Datasets:
yoonLM
/
decoding_llama3

Dataset card Data Studio Files
xet
 Community
1
decoded_text
stringlengths
4.18k
47.6k
Orchestra using 16 muzzleloading cannons fired live as written in the 1880 score. That recording was done within earshot of the composer's grave. The festival was televised for the first time in USA on March 9, 1991.[36][37] The Texan band "The Invincible Czars" released a rock version of 1812 Overture for the bicentennial of the Battle of Borodino in September 2012.[38] The band had already debuted their arrangement of the piece at the 20th annual OK Mozart classical music festival at Bartlesville, Oklahoma, with professional orchestra musicians, in June 2009, complete with fireworks at the finale.[39] In 2000 the music was used in the intro for the Computer game "Risk 2" In the sci-fi fantasy show Farscape, John Crichton converts a DRD to belt out the overture in order to ground him and help maintain his focus. He even paints the French flag on the droid and labels it "1812". The piece is featured prominently in the film V for Vendetta.[40] The melody of Dan Fogelberg's top ten hit "Same Old Lang Syne" is drawn from the distinctive leitmotif that represents the Russian forces in the piece.[41] In Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time, the RYNO V weapon plays the 1812 Overture while firing. In Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, part of the overture's finale plays when the Claptrap character enters Pirate Ship Mode. Bond the four-girl 'crossover' string quartet produced a truncated rock version of the Overture at their concert in the Albert Hall in London.2016: Re-education camp comes to you https://t.co/LXZCIdV1U3 — Will (@Oil_Guns_Merica) May 19, 2016 What a time to be alive! When you’re forced to undergo something as tedious and mind-numbingly awful as corporate diversity training, the least you can do is try to have a little fun with it. That’s exactly what tweeter @Beer__Wolf did. And fortunately for us, he decided to share it with the world. Dying laughing at @Beer__Wolf livetweeting his online diversity training. — Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) May 19, 2016 Join the club. Because this … is amazing: Currently sitting through hours of mandatory online diversity modules. This guy needs to die in a diverse fire. pic.twitter.com/bBrFqXb788 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf wow not respectufl — Adam R. Maxwell (@maxwellarm) May 19, 2016 @maxwellarm I'm not done the modules yet I might be more respectful when I've learned more — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf Each team has a white male, a white female, a disabled guy and a minority. — AlphaBetaShoe (@TheOneSoleShoe) May 19, 2016 @TheOneSoleShoe I can't wait until they do the once-a-decade update & have a thousand new stereotypes to shoehorn in — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf "Sure you might be tempted to scream when the Transwoman dries her genitals off in the air dryer but that is discrimination." — AlphaBetaShoe (@TheOneSoleShoe) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf The worst are the ones that make you take a quiz at the end, so you have to actually pay attention to the drivel. — Chelie in TX (@ChelieinTX) May 19, 2016 @ChelieinTX I still don't pay attention. I fail it once for the answers & sit through it a second time. I'm stubborn like that. — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Stubborn, or brilliant? Ask Lian to bring Chinese food to the next meeting. Next question. pic.twitter.com/4ut29mH6q9 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 It puts the diversity on the skin or else it gets the brainwashing again pic.twitter.com/l68cUMEAvm — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf Last one needs a footnote: "*It only makes sense because you would be sued into oblivion for not complying with Federal law" — Adam R. Maxwell (@maxwellarm) May 19, 2016 @maxwellarm Hilariously when you click it the pop-up says "Wrong-Diversity is not mandated by any laws, but…" — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @maxwellarm @Beer__Wolf Diversity is a solid business technique that limits lawsuits and bad press. — Yoenis Cespedes (@AppFlyer) May 19, 2016 @AppFlyer @maxwellarm See? That's all I ask. Just be honest with me. I'll eat the shit sandwich. Just don't ask me to tell you it's PB&J — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Oh no grandma why wouldn't you just ask us for money pic.twitter.com/8s0gQ4jFH2 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 This is wrong, because it's important to lie about how the system works and maintain the illusion of fairness. pic.twitter.com/aMG4XPYpS1 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 The lesson I took away from this exercise is that Hispanics are misogynistic. Good job, diversity activity! — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Well, at least you learned something. That’s the important thing! Not a problem, since the coworker couldn't hear what Hisao said, because they are deaf. pic.twitter.com/2OIfvLfgNs — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 100% chance Gustavo does crossfit pic.twitter.com/Q9qk9FGac5 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Holy shit Kate I mean what the hell is even wrong with you pic.twitter.com/StOrVvu32w — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Oh you mean like a steak because I'm here to cook you dinner? You're a microagressing asshole, Satish pic.twitter.com/p26buyzTrr — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @MarlaMHughes You know these are all jokes right — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf is this something you actually have to do for work? — RenegadeJay (@TBCJay) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf oh dear. Is it at least a secret ballot? — RenegadeJay (@TBCJay) May 19, 2016 @TBCJay It's just packaged into a database & it's been an ongoing joke for years what a waste of resources it is. Nobody looks at it. — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Miguel hates women and Alfredo hates minorities. This thing has a real problem with Hispanics. pic.twitter.com/Z8bUve4f53 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf I want to work for your company. — Dale W (@chrisanddale) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf But your training is so entertaining! — Dale W (@chrisanddale) May 19, 2016 @chrisanddale Probably because you get the fun snippets of it I share. It's not fun at all. — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Jack0Spades And it's the same f-ing training module every year in mine (that, ''business ethics", and sexual harassment). @Beer__Wolf — Darth_Spurious (@Darth_Spurious) May 19, 2016 And look! As if he weren’t already having the time of his life, Mr. Trout also had the opportunity to brush up on his office safety: Jesus I've been using the escalator to my office all wrong for years it's a miracle I'm alive pic.twitter.com/wilkdch2r0 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 I've lost three fingers to filing cabinets, they do not fuck around. pic.twitter.com/RCDWeQr33C — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 I don't want to hear any shit from any of you vets about hazardous lines of work I am surrounded by danger right now pic.twitter.com/kWB4DOYba3 — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 @Beer__Wolf This is like something out of Office Space. — ScreamingTwitrEagle (@panem075) May 19, 2016 Office Space is so beloved because it really wasn't a joke. https://t.co/BhvylcAwUH — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 Hey, @Beer__Wolf, you deserve a medal for getting through this ordeal. Not even joking. Corporate brainwashing day is always the most soul-deadening of the year for me because I'm exactly the kind of person they don't want. — Kilgore Trout (@Beer__Wolf) May 19, 2016 We owe you a drink next time we see you. But you owe us new keyboards, since we just spit our drinks all over them. "Kate spills her coffee and grabs the towel off of her Sikh assistant's head to mop it up" – Permissible or no? https://t.co/NpbNGKteIs — Dave's Not Here (@Weirddave0) May 19, 2016Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election has left many minority groups in Winnipeg worried about whether his presidency could provoke more hate crimes in Canada and encourage racism. "We have our share of racists here in our country," said Shahina Siddiqui, president of the Islamic Social Services Association. Shahina Siddiqui, president of the Islamic Social Service Association in Winnipeg, said she's worried about what a Trump presidency will mean for Muslims in the U.S. and Canada. (CBC) "Now having Mr. Trump in power, is it going to embolden our hate-mongers? Our own racists or bigots?" she said. "I hope that this doesn't spill over into Canada, that's my concern." Siddiqui said she has family in Chicago and Texas, and she said there is a lot of uncertainty about their future there. "Up until now it was just a joke, I would tell them 'you know you can always come to Canada' and we would just laugh about it." During his campaign Trump pledged to crack down on immigration and to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. It's those ideas that has Siddiqui worried. "We have a large Muslim population there, people don't know what's going to happen and so that uncertainty is not a healthy place to be." 'The LGBT community has every right to be scared' The LGBT community in Manitoba is also reeling from the Trump win. "It feels heavy today, I think there is going to be a period of people who are just grieving the loss of this," said Michelle McHale, Steinbach Pride spokesperson. Michelle McHale, Steinbach Pride organizer, said women and the LGBT community have a reason to be scared after Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election. (CBC) "And for him to take it by that much," McHale said. "I think any time there is such a significant player in the world that makes a statement such as that, I feel the people who feel justified in the United States will be louder and the people who have similar views here will feel hopeful that perhaps that can be obtained here too." Trump has been criticized for controversial comments about groping women, and there are concerns about equal rights of women being jeopardized. "The LGBT community has every right to be scared right now given some of the things that have been said, like will all the gains that have been made be lost?" she asked. 'Feels like sad ending' Winnipegger and Mexican Jorge Requena is concerned about his relatives living in California, Texas and Arizona who he says have already been victims of racism. "Last night to me felt like the sad ending to a movie, when evil wins in a comic book, it just feels fictitious to me," Requena said. Mexican-Canadian Jorge Requena, lead singer for the Mariachi Ghost band in Winnipeg, says he's shocked and worried about his family in the U.S. after Donald Trump's election Tuesday night. (Prairie Boy Productions) Requena, the lead singer of musical group Mariachi Ghost, said he's still trying to get over the shock of learning Donald Trump will become the next president of the United States. "I feel disappointed in the American people," he said. "Having so much family there, I'm just very scared and worried." Requena said his aunt who lives in California has already been forced to move to a different neighbourhood because of racial tensions. Requena's also worried about his parents in Mexico City. He fears there could be violence in his home country if Trump builds his promised wall between Mexico and the U.S. He said he wonders what would happen if Americans try to force Mexico to pay for it too. "When we say no to the wall what's going to happen?"With the 2015 NFL Draft wrapped up, the Green Bay Packers are now fighting with 31 other NFL teams to sign undrafted players to priority free agent contracts. We'll keep you posted with all the reports that we can regarding Packers signings. According to CBS' Joel Corry, each NFL team will have a cap of $86,957 to use for the signing bonuses for all of their undrafted signings. Note that this number is the total bonus cap for all of the signings, not per player. The Packers' have had remarkable success with undrafted free agents over Ted Thompson's tenure in Green Bay, with several of the team's priority signings making the team. Sam Shields is arguably the greatest success story, having earned a four-year, $39 million contract prior to the 2014 season. For the full list of the Green Bay Packers' 2015 draft picks, click here. Stay tuned as the reports start rolling in. Please note that reports are not necessarily final, as not all contracts will be signed immediately. Offense John Crockett, RB, North Dakota State (reported, confirmed by player) Raymond Maples, RB, Army (reported) Alonzo Harris, RB, Louisiana Lafayette (reported) Malcolm Agnew, RB, Southern Illinois (reported) Adrian Coxson, WR, Stony Brook (reported, $5,000 signing bonus) Larry Pinkard, WR, Old Dominion (reported by ODU) Ricky Collins, WR, Texas A&M-Commerce (reported, confirmed by player) Jimmie Hunt, WR, Missouri (reported) Javess Blue, WR, Kentucky (reported) Mitchell Henry, TE, Western Kentucky (reported) Fabbians Ebbele, OL, Arizona (reported by UofA) Matt Rotheram, OL, Pittsburgh (confirmed by player) Marcus Reed, OL, Fayetteville State (reported) Defense Lavon Hooks, DT, Mississippi (reported) James Castleman, DL, Oklahoma State (reported by OSU) James Vaughters, OLB, Stanford (reported) Jermauria Rasco, OLB, LSU (reported) Tavarus Dantzler, ILB, Bethune-Cookman (reported by agent) Bernard Blake, CB, Colorado State (reported by agent) Ladarius Gunter, DB, Miami (FL) (reported by college coach) Anthony Wooding, S, Wake Forest (reported by college recruiting coordinator) Minicamp Tryout invites Blake Sims, QB, Alabama (reported) Chris Mallott, WR, Southeastern Louisiana (reported) Jake Silas, OT, Buffalo (reported by agent) Josh Bredl, OT, Colorado State-Pueblo (reported by APC's Jason B. Hirschhorn) Andy Phillips, OG, Central Michigan (reported) Mitch King, TE, Penn (reported by agent) Uona Kaveinga, ILB, BYU (reported by agent) Skye Povey, DB, BYU (reported by APC's Jason B. Hirschhorn) JD Rousell, DB, Sacred Heart (reported) Notes It was initially reported that Southern Oregon QB Austin Dodge was coming to Green Bay, but reports now indicate that he has signed a UDFA contract with the Atlanta Falcons. Currently, the list of reports consists of 21 signees. However, following the 2015 NFL Draft, the Packers' roster sat at 72 players (64 signed plus eight draft picks), so the team can only sign 18 free agents. It is possible that a few of the players listed as signees have only been invited to the rookie minicamp instead. We will continue to update this list as we learn more.A teenage boy accidentally shot his older brother Friday afternoon, according to Union County Sheriff David Taylor.The shooting was reported shortly after 4 p.m. on Old Spartanburg Highway in Union County.Taylor said the adult brother was shot in the upper back. Taylor said he thought the injuries were not life-threatening, but that has not been confirmed by doctors.The injured man was taken to Spartanburg Regional Medical Center.Check back on this page for more information as it becomes available. A teenage boy accidentally shot his older brother Friday afternoon, according to Union County Sheriff David Taylor. The shooting was reported shortly after 4 p.m. on Old Spartanburg Highway in Union County. Advertisement Taylor said the adult brother was shot in the upper back. Taylor said he thought the injuries were not life-threatening, but that has not been confirmed by doctors. The injured man was taken to Spartanburg Regional Medical Center. Check back on this page for more information as it becomes available. AlertMeIs it better to teach youself how to play the guitar or should you have guitar lessons? There seems to be some kind of rivalry between people who teach themselves and people who get lessons and I am going to discuss this issue. I would have to say that it is a very personal decision whether you take lessons or not and it very much depends on what type of person you are. There are many advantages and diadvantages to both which I will also discuss.If you plan on teaching yourself guitar to make progress you will have to discipline yourself and work very hard, I'm not saying that you don't have to work hard if you take guitar lessons it's just that if you teach yourself you don't have the motivation that you have another guitar lesson in three days so it's quite easy to lose focus, it's also good to have some guidance sometimes.Obviously an advantage when teaching yourself is that you don't have to spend any money on lessons and this is one of the main reasons why people don't take guitar lessons, me included. I would love to have the money and time for lessons because I'm sure it would improve my playing but the fact is I don't but I don't let that stop my progress. As long as you have ambition and you clearly set out your aims and goals you can reach them as long as you put in the effort.If you can't afford guitar lessons there are plenty of online resources and lessons out there including this blog, (I will be adding new lessons every week and if you have any suggestions just drop me a comment as all comments are very welcome, positive or negative.)Another advantage from teaching yourself is that you can learn at your own speed and teach yourself what you want and what interests you which in turn helps you keep motivated, although if you are serious about being an all-round good musician then most things will interest you anyway.A tip for any guitarist who is teaching themselves is to make the most of any practice opportunity you have. Don't just practice the same three songs you have been playing for the last 6 months, learn a new scale or a new lick or technique and you will make much more progress and make sure you use a metronome when practicing to keep your timing on top form.Ultimately whether you teach yourself or are getting lessons as long as you work hard and keep motivated then you will succeed in any goals you set and make real progress as a guitarist. I don't think there should be a rivalry between guitarists who choose lessons and guitarists who choose to teach themselves, we all have the same goals and instead of hindering each other we should be supporting each other and helping each other. With knowledge comes responsibility and if you can help another guitarist with an aspect of their playing then go for it.Good luck!!Dr Drew : Dr. Drew Pinsky is heard daily, along with Mike Catherwood, on 790 KABC Radio. His show, Dr. Drew Midday Live with Mike Catherwood, noon to 3pm daily on KABC, takes on the news of the day with experts, newsmakers and caller, bringing his knowledge, experience and common-sense approach to the hottest issues of the day. Dr. Drew Pinsky is a diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Addiction Medicine. He has been appointed to the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society and is a Fellow with the American College of Physicians. He was for many years an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Pinsky received his undergraduate degree from Amherst College and his M.D. from Keck School of Medicine of USC. He then did a medical residency and became chief resident at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena. In addition to maintaining an outpatient medical practice and an in patient and critical care presence at medical hospitals throughout the San Gabriel Valley, Pinsky served over two decades as Medical Director for Chemical Dependency Services at Las Encinas Hospital, a free standing psychiatric facility in Pasadena, California. In 2001 Pinsky received the USC Alumni Merit Award. He has been honored by the Entertainment Industry Council with the Larry Steward Leadership and Inspiration Award and the Henry J. Kaiser Foundation Shine Award. He has delivered commencement speeches at major medical schools throughout the country and has addressed the student bodies of scores of colleges and universities. Pinsky is a New York Times bestselling author and co-author of the first academic study on celebrities and narcissism published in the Journal of Research in Personality (Elsevier.) He is the author of 5 books, several medical journal articles and contributor to textbooks. He is also host of multiple podcasts including: “The Adam & Drew Podcast,” “This Life,” and “Weekly Infusion.” Pinsky's long career in television and radio started in 1983 with the seminal nationally syndicated call-in show “Loveline,” that later became a hit MTV show with co-host Adam Carolla. He is a pioneer in the field of reality television including 5 seasons of VH1’s “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew,” He also hosted his own nightly cable TV show on HLN and the nationally syndicated daytime talk show “LifeChangers.” In addition to his daily radio show, he currently host reunion specials for MTV’s “Teem Mom” and “16 and Pregnant.” He can be seen regularly on national network and cable news outlets as well as routinely on daytime programming. Mike Catherwood : Mike Catherwood joins his longtime Loveline co-host, Dr Drew Pinsky discussing the top stories of the day, weekdays on 790 KABC Radio. Together they host Dr Drew Midday Live with Mike Catherwood, heard daily, noon to 3pm, featuring listener phone calls and timely, expert guests. Radio and television personality Mike Catherwood is one of the most beloved names in Los Angeles' top rated radio market. He has created some of the most well-received characters for the groundbreaking KROQ morning program The Kevin and Bean Show in recent memory, a show which also launched the careers of Jimmy Kimmel, Adam Carolla and Carson Daly. This is where he developed his character "PSYCHO MIKE". A Los Angeles native, proud of his Mexican/Irish heritage, Mike studied Theatre at Rutgers University before opting out of the college scene to immerse himself in the world of punk and rock music. Mike developed a knowledge and appreciation that would help propel him to the heights of popularity as a radio personality. In addition to his past work with The Kevin & Bean Show, Mike was the co-host of Loveline Radio with Dr. Drew Pinsky. Mike's guest hosting stint on Regis and Kelly, where he subbed in for a vacationing Regis Philbin, showcased his on-camera talents and was in part, responsible for his being cast on Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars, America's highest rated television program. He has hosted NATEGEO's Wicked Tuna live,DISCOVERY Channel's American Chopper Live, SPIKE'S Auction Hunters Live, MTV's Oawards and NUVO Tv's new show The Collective.He is also a regular contributor on HLN's Dr Drew on Call. Mike also appeared recently on several episodes of NBC's UNDATEABLE.COMEDY CENTRAL is also developing an animated project based on Mike's original character "RUDY". Mike has also done successful voice over and commercial campaigns for many clients such as Major League Baseball, TNT Network, The Discovery Channel, and AT&T. Catherwood lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter.“Indonesia is losing 52,000 hectares of mangroves per year, or the equivalent of three football fields of mangroves per week,” said Daniel Murdiyarso, Principal Scientist at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR). Murdiyarso was one of three speakers at the recent event titled, Mangrove ecosystems in Indonesia: A strategic resource for local sustainable economy and adaptation to climate change, held on the occasion of World Wetlands Day. The event was hosted at the Italian Cultural Institute in Jakarta with the support of the Embassy of Italy. Indonesia is losing 52,000 hectares of mangroves per year, or the equivalent of three football fields of mangroves per week. Daniel Murdiyarso, Principal Scientist at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) Carbon powerhouses Coastal blue carbon ecosystems are the planet’s greatest carbon storehouses. They are capable of capturing and storing excessive atmospheric carbon with burial rates 20 times greater than any other terrestrial ecosystem, including boreal and tropical forests. But when cleared or degraded, blue carbon ecosystems can transform into worrisome emission sources. Currently, global greenhouse gas emissions from unsustainable coastal development amount to one billion per year. One-fifth of that (200 million tons CO2-eq) is produced by the country of Indonesia alone- the equivalent of 40 million fewer cars on the roads, according to Murdiyarso. Carbon stock assessment of mangrove trees in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photo credit: Kate Evans/CIFOR Carbon stock assessment of mangrove trees in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photo credit: Kate Evans/CIFOR CIFOR scientists collect mangrove leaves to assess the above-ground carbon stock. Photo credit: Kate Evans/CIFOR CIFOR scientists collect mangrove leaves to assess the above-ground carbon stock. Photo credit: Kate Evans/CIFOR “The rate of conversion in Indonesia is very high at 2 percent,” he said. “And recent findings show that the loss of mangroves is not only caused by fish, shrimp and aquaculture development, but also by oil palm plantation development.” This finding is surprising, as the saline environment of mangrove ecosystems is hardly conducive to growing palm oil. But that hasn’t stopped the trend. “This is now happening in North Sumatra and on the east coast of Riau near Pekanbaru,” said fellow event speaker Nyoman N. Suryadiputra who heads the Indonesian arm of the NGO Wetland International. “My worry is that they will do the same in Papua and West Papua. This province has the most mangrove forests in Indonesia, with a shallow layer of peat underneath. It’s a very dangerous situation because many big oil palm companies are invading the area. If they drain the forests, the peat will subside, the sea level will rise, and it cause significant inundations for the local communities.”According to several frustrated posters on Google's product forums, the hands-free reply function built into Android Auto is broken. The feature enables users of various different messaging apps to reply to incoming messages while keeping their hands on the wheel. There is a bizarre workaround, though — make sure you have Hangouts enabled and up-to-date. The original poster writes specifically about not being able to reply to WhatsApp and Telegram messages on his Google Pixel using the voice commands. He's using Android Auto with a head unit, and while he has no problem playing the message content out loud, it's when he tries to reply that it ceases to function properly. The error message being reported is "this chat app is neither installed or needs to be updated [sic]." For some reason, sending a message in the normal way works fine, it's only replying that provokes the issue. Other users have since added Facebook Messenger, Textra, and Allo to the list of apps encountering the problem. Furthermore, the bug is not limited to Pixel phones, with various Nexus and Samsung Galaxy devices (running assorted versions of Android) also experiencing difficulties. There doesn't seem to be much of a pattern for Google to look at with this, and sure enough, a representative confirmed in the thread that he's unable to replicate the error. He and other Googlers on the forum reassured customers that they were looking into the issue, so it's a matter of watching this space for now. In the meantime, there is a strange workaround put forward by one poster. For those who had previously disabled Hangouts, it appears that re-enabling and updating it caused the problems with the others apps to disappear. Go figure! Google has even recommended this fix while they work on a permanent solution. Aside from that, one user also claimed that a factory reset resolved things for him. Good to know, but hopefully not everyone is required to take a course of action so drastic. We'll keep an eye on this one and let you know more when we do.At one point there gathered an intensity. Midday on Saturday and the music festival was pulsing in the throng of its three-day ecstasy. After a wonky Friday night, Cole and myself had taken shelter from the glaring, hot sun and were sitting in a no-shoes, hookah and chai café. Colourful drapes were hung across the sides of the tent and two Barbie dolls, dressed in bondage gear, swung surreptitiously from the roof above. Between us was a red, square, low-riding table; jutting up from a rug-covered floor. A blueberry-packed shisha pipe, with two long hoses wrapped carefully around it, was perched in the centre, and mugs of chai and cans of lager nestled happily together at the base. A small group of trippers, with baggy linen trousers and faded tops, who’d also done the journey up from the South-West had joined us. We all splayed out on cushions excitedly chatting; a strange mix of Bedouin calm-comfort and British mid-rave-wreck intensity. It turned out we were all from a similar area of Cornwall, knew many of the same people and drank in many of the same pubs. A ready-made rapport as we shared a cultural heritage; a geographical pointer that opens up the doors of conversation. Not that this mattered greatly, as with any good music festival the proximity of our selves with the event is all one needs to make a great new friend at every turn; even if after the three-day ecstasy they become only impressions, they are, by-and-large, good impressions. A waitress sauntered elegantly over to our table; she was dressed in a thin, light green blouse, which was cropped short and ran tight just below her breasts and a darker, thick pair of green Thai-fishing trousers hung loosely around her hips. Her long, dark brown hair was tied up very loosely and the area around her right eye and cheek was delicately painted with an intricate blue pattern, wave-like and layered with patches of sparkle. I remember watching as dolphins appeared, swimming in and out of the tide, until her eye caught me and she smiled. Bending down between Cole and I she asked: “Would you like some balloons with your hookah?” “Nos?” We both answered. “Nos. Hippie crack. Balloon?” We nodded and she disappeared out back. Soon after, the slow hissing sound of a nitrous oxide filling balloon whistled and hissed out to our ears. When she returned she was holding one blue and one red balloon. They were small extensions of her arms. Handing me the red one, she said “enjoy”, smiled and went and sat down with some trippers in the corner, immediately falling into her own bubble of conversation. An elation dashed across our faces: “Chin, chin” Cole said, proffering his balloon, “to Davy”. We clashed the two balloons together and thus plunged into the first of a dozen or so nos-led ecstasies that late summer weekend. I wonder how Humphry Davy (1778-1829) felt the instant he partook of a Nitrous oxide hit? Davy was a Cornishman who, in 1799/1800, published one of English literature’s oldest works of drug writing[i] and pioneered an enlightenment-fuelled exploration of the gas. The Pneumatic Institute laboratory, in Bristol, came to be the hub of experimentation, in fact “literary experimentation with drugs had its birth in the friendship between Davy and [Samuel L.] Coleridge” (Boon 90). Though the poet Coleridge (1772-1834) didn’t write explicitly on nitrous oxide, it did become an early source of fascination, as he and other romantics sort a new descriptive, penetrative language, an evolving tool-kit from the emerging scientific disciplines to communicate the wonders of nature. Back then Davy was on the cusp of this new experience; he might well have seen the world transforming before his eyes. “The laboratory must have become more than simply the source of the gas: it must, on some levels, have taken on the qualities of a sacred shrine, a sublime place of power, the inner sanctum of the mysteries” (Jay 30). But although a spirit of discovery and a sense of otherness must have temporarily bound researchers together in some sort of tribalism, the sort that one sees repeated throughout cultural drug history, by many accounts the laboratory was a theatre of individualism wherein one could find a “subject in the grip of a temporary lunacy, groaning, giggling, babbling, uncontrollably acting out inscrutable fantasies” (ibid.). And so it was with my first balloon of the day that I ignored the outside world, closed my eyes and gorged on myself during what is the very short lived nitrous oxide high. I clasped my mouth to the red balloon. Breathing comes so naturally; rhythmically in and out, in and out, a circularity demonstrating our mutual-becoming with the world around us. Is it any wonder that systems of yoga and meditation and the stirrings of singers and sportsmen put the control of breath at the heart of their arts. In this manner, the arts and the processes of life become synonymous and the romantics must have breathed the gas as if it were the very ground of the art-subject, the imagination, a place where experience is undercoated by the brush of breath. Shrinking, growing, shrinking, growing, the balloon became my external lung for a minute or so, and slowly, at first, but quickly stepping up into a crescendo, the nos took effect; my eyes closed to a changed sensual world; my becoming-molecular as my perceptions became the extension of my breath. In his book on drugs and writers The Road of Excess, Marcus Boon writes that the anaesthetic experience is often associated with sound. He quotes Ernst Jünger as saying that ether inhalation results in “an acoustic revelation” and also writes that “the anaesthetized patient in Theodore Dreiser’s play Laughing Gas (1915) hears The Rhythm of the Universe chanting “Om! Om! Om! Om! Om! Om! Om! Om!”” (Boon 105). It was my overwhelming experience that this observation seemed accurate. It felt that as I entered into new perceptions that the last sound that came to my ears became caught in an intense loop; a fast, trance-like but alien beat that pitched very highly before fading. Several times later, when flowing from the intensity, I was convinced that it was just an amplification of some festival beat from close by, but the music in the café was always revealed to be an acoustic guitar; not a ripping, hard-trance beat that amplified ecstatically into the centre of my brain. The second round of balloons swiftly followed the first, just as they did all afternoon – hippie crack – and while pinching it tightly between my fingers I noticed my brain still humming; then a deep inhale, a long exhale, a deep inhale, a long exhale and so on until the balloon whimpered out. Moments after the peak of the aural experience my eyes opened. An instant of incoherence as the becoming-spun-over, then Cole came into focus. Without worrying about words we both decided that he should fly the empty, red balloon from his hand over into mine. He sat barely a couple of feet away. As it floated up serenely we looked at one another, back to the balloon, over to one another, back to the balloon, for what seemed like an eternity. Suddenly, it landed in my unmoved hand. According to philosophers Giles Deleuze and Felix Guattari “all drugs fundamentally concern speeds, and modifications of speeds” (Deleuze 282). I was experiencing the speed in rotation; a cycle of becoming; from the trance-beats in my ears looping over and over, the hippie crack effect of a rapid series of experiences, to the impossible number of re-glances in a
it’s really there, vacant and legal. I fight the urge to yell boo-yah and cross the street to the El Cortez. The casino is packed, and I’m so lost in thought that I wander into the stiff arms of a craps dealer, who shoos me back on course (probably assuming I’m either drunk or part of a Colombian pickpocket gang). In the bright bustle, Parlour Bar is an island of cool. Candles glow behind gold mesh, and the richness of riveted leather is echoed in brushed metal tables and a slab of tawny marble lined with bottles like jewels in an antique box. Wrapped in the vintage of this historic property, the bar does classic without pretense. The specialty cocktails are tempting, but I’m a sucker for throwbacks. Blood and Sand gets its name from a 1922 silent film starring Rudolph Valentino, and like him, Parlour’s version ($9) has drama. Johnny Walker Red, cherry liqueur, sweet vermouth and fresh orange are shaken tableside and poured to the very top of a chilled martini glass. If the Old Fashioned had a charming little sister, this would be it. Along with Justin Mather’s homage to The Beatles, it uncoils the muscles in my neck. “Here comes the sun,” he sings, reading my dark thoughts. His talent deserves some silence and a spotlight, but this is Vegas. Warm with whiskey, I head down Ogden to Mob Bar, where pearl-handled forks are twirled into all kinds of $5 goodies. Crystal chandeliers illuminate embellished ceilings, imported cigarettes and an old poster featuring none other than Valentino. One flat screen has basketball, the other a black-and-white romance, suggesting the bar’s inviting tug between now and then. Wearing the same white button-up, black vest and bow tie as Parlour’s bartender, Mob Bar’s Pinto styles it with rolled sleeves, his own fedora and thick glasses. He calls me “dear.” In a coupe glass, he mixes a drink named after another icon of silent film: The Clara Bow ($9) mingles Devil’s Cut Jim Beam, ginger and clove liqueurs and splashes of citrus and green Tabasco. The final flourish is stenciled, atomized bitters. It’s tangy and herbal with jalapeño fire—not the sort of drink you’d normally see served on a paper napkin next to a video poker screen, but this is Vegas. Walking to Le Thai for a bowl of life-changing noodles, I feel suddenly peaceful. I make friends with the parking ticket guy and the homeless man in the crosswalk. I decide old Vegas might be just right for a lone woman with sorrows to drown. I could have curled up with a box of fudge pops and Season Three of Grey’s Anatomy. I didn’t really need a drink (or two). But this is Vegas.Idol of the Crowds Theatrical poster Directed by Arthur Lubin Produced by Trem Carr Paul Malvern Screenplay by George Waggner Harold Buckley Story by George Waggner (as Hell on Ice) Starring John Wayne Cinematography Harry Neumann Edited by Charles Craft Production company Universal Pictures Distributed by Universal Pictures Release date September 30, 1937 ( ) Running time 60 minutes Country United States Language English Idol of the Crowds is a 1937 American drama sport film directed by Arthur Lubin and starring John Wayne as an ice hockey player. It was originally called Hell on Ice but the Hays Office requested this be changed.[1] Plot [ edit ] The New York Panthers ice hockey team is struggling in the standings. A scouting team headed by Kelly (Hopton) heads to Maine where they've heard of a promising former amateur player. He turns out to be John Hanson (Wayne), now a chicken farmer. Hanson does not wish to return to the game, but when he learns how much money he can make, he agrees solely so he can make enough to upgrade his farm. His skills make him an instant sensation, but as the team heads toward the championship series, he runs afoul of crooked gamblers and the beautiful woman (Bromley) they tempt him with. Cast [ edit ] See also [ edit ] References [ edit ]Threatened Online? Supreme Court Says Prosecutors Must Prove Intent Enlarge this image toggle caption Jonathan Ernst/Reuters/Landov Jonathan Ernst/Reuters/Landov The U.S. Supreme Court made it harder Monday to prosecute people for making threats on social media. The case was brought by Anthony Elonis, who was sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison for threatening his estranged wife and an FBI agent. After his wife got a court order barring him from threatening and harassing her, he posted this on his Facebook page: "Fold up your protective order and put it in your pocket. Is it thick enough to stop a bullet?" He mused about making a name for himself by shooting up a kindergarten. And after a visit from a female FBI agent, he posted on Facebook that it "took all the strength I had not to... slit her throat, leave her bleedin' from the jugular." Elonis contended his words were only "venting," and he challenged his conviction — contending that the judge wrongly instructed the jury that it could convict if it determined that a reasonable person would view Elonis' words as threats. In contrast, Elonis maintained that to convict, the jury would have to determine that he actually did intend to put his wife and the FBI agent in fear of bodily harm. The "reasonable person" standard used to convict Elonis was in place in nine of the 11 federal appeals courts, but on Monday the Supreme Court said there has to be a higher bar for criminal convictions. Writing for the seven-justice majority, Chief Justice John Roberts parsed the federal threats law, finding that it nowhere specifically allows the "reasonable person" standard. So what standard can prosecutors use? The Roberts opinion said prosecutors must show something about the mental state of the defendant, but the level of evidence required to prove intent remained unclear — whether, for instance, it would be sufficient to show an awareness that the language is so incendiary that it would be perceived as a threat. Many experts had expected the High Court to delineate some standards for evaluating threats in the digital age, and in light of the First Amendment guarantee of free speech. They definitely were disappointed. "The mountains have labored and brought forth a mouse," said UCLA law professor Eugene Volokh, who writes extensively about the First Amendment. "The court doesn't answer the question, whether if you know there is a substantial likelihood you're scaring the living daylights out of someone, that that's good enough," says University of Maryland law professor Danielle Citron. But, she adds, Congress could amend the law to make it easier to win convictions. If Congress were to do that, however, it is unclear whether that law itself would be constitutional. Monday's decision specifically said it was leaving open the First Amendment free speech question. That prompted Justice Clarence Thomas, in dissent, to accuse the majority of "throwing everyone from appellate judges to everyday Facebook users into a state of uncertainty." Fellow dissenter Samuel Alito added that by not specifying what standard is required, the court has "compounded — not clarified — the confusion."Fluoride could be causing depression and weight gain and councils should stop adding it to drinking water to prevent tooth decay, scientists have warned. A study of 98 per cent of GP practices in England found that high rates of underactive thyroid were 30 per cent more likely in areas of the greatest fluoridation. It could mean that up to 15,000 people are suffering needlessly from thyroid problems which can cause depression, weight gain, fatigue and aching muscles. Last year Public Health England released a report saying fluoride was a ‘safe and effective’ way of improving dental health. But new research from the University of Kent suggests that there is a spike in the number of cases of underactive thyroid in high fluoride areas such as the West Midlands and the North East of England. Lead author Professor Stephen Peckham, Centre for Health Service Studies, said: “I think it is concerning for people living in those areas. “The difference between the West Midlands, which fluoridates, and Manchester, which doesn’t was particularly striking. There were nearly double the number of cases in the West Midlands. “Underactive thyroid is a particularly nasty thing to have and it can lead to other long term health problems. I do think councils need to think again about putting fluoride in the water. There are far safer ways to improve dental health.” In England, around 10 per cent of the population (6 million) live in areas with a naturally or artificially fluoridated water supply of 1 mg fluoride per litre of drinking water. The researchers compared areas to records from 7935 general practices covering around 95 per cent of the English population in 2012-2013. Rates of high underactive thyroid were at least 30 per cent more likely in practices located in areas with fluoride levels in excess of 0.3 mg/l. Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral found in water in varying amounts, depending on the region and it is also found in certain foods and drinks, including tea and fish. It helps combat tooth decay by making enamel more resistant to bacteria. But previous studies have found that it inhibits the production of iodine, which is essential for a healthy thyroid. The thyroid gland, which is found in the neck, regulates the metabolism as well as many other systems in the body. An underactive thyroid can lead to depression, weight gain, fatigue and aching muscles and affects 15 times more women than men, around 15 in 1,000 women. The researchers say councils must rethink public health policy to fluoridate the water supply in a bid to protect the nation’s tooth health. However Public Health England said that previous evidence overwhelmingly showed that fluoride in water was safe. Dr Sandra White, Director of Dental Public Health at Public Health England, said: “Public Health England regularly reviews the evidence base for water fluoridation. “The totality of evidence, accumulated over decades of research, tells us that water fluoridation is a safe and effective public health measure, and shows no association with reduced thyroid function.” Other experts also warned that the study may have been skewed by population bias, a claim denied by the authors. Prof David Coggon, Professor of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of Southampton, said: “It is quite possible that the observed association is a consequence of other ways in which the areas with higher fluoride differ from the rest of the country. “There are substantially more rigorous epidemiological methods by which the research team could have tested their idea” The research was published in the BMJs Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.Senate Republicans Unite Around Plan To Block Obama Supreme Court Nominee Senators held a closed door meeting on Tuesday to strategize on the upcoming fight over whether to hold a hearing on President Obama's nominee to succeed Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says Republicans are lining up behind him. He's talking about his decision not to consider any nominee President Obama might tap for the Supreme Court. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) MITCH MCCONNELL: In my view, and I can now confidently say the view shared by virtually everybody in my conference, is that the nomination should be made by the president the people elect in the election that's underway right now. SIEGEL: NPR's Susan Davis covers Congress, and she joins us now to talk about the latest from Capitol Hill in the fight to replace Justice Antonin Scalia. And Sue, Senator McConnell sounds very confident. Why is he so confident? SUSAN DAVIS, BYLINE: Well, what we heard from McConnell today is that, you know, his Senate Republican colleagues - they have his back. All 11 Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is the panel that plays a very crucial role in approving nominees, today announced in a letter unanimous support for McConnell's decision, which means they will not have any committee hearings. They will not have any committee votes. And without committee action, it's highly unlikely a nominee would ever get a vote on the floor because the floor is controlled by Mitch McConnell, who certainly does not have a reputation on Capitol Hill from backing down from these flights. He also said today, among other top Republicans like John Cornyn of Texas, that they wouldn't even meet with a nominee if and when President Obama makes his announcement. Now, only two Republicans that we know of - Susan Collins of Maine and Mark Kirk of Illinois - have voiced any doubt about this plan. But someone like Kirk - he's up for reelection in Obama's home state, so he's got his own home-state politics to think about. SIEGEL: In Illinois. Is this what you would expect from the party that doesn't control the White House? DAVIS: Well, that's what Republicans are saying, you know? They're pointing now to something that they're calling the Biden rules for nominees - Supreme Court nominees made in presidential election years. In 1992, when Joe Biden was still in the Senate, he was the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and he spoke on the Senate floor about is very dynamic. Take a listen to what he said then. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) JOE BIDEN: As a result, it is my view that if a Supreme Court justice resigns tomorrow or in the next several weeks or resigns at the end of the summer, President Bush should consider the following the practice of a majority of his predecessors and not - and not - name a nominee until after the November election is completed. SIEGEL: And of course, the President Bush that he was referring to is George H.W. Bush... DAVIS: Right. SIEGEL:...Which was in the - what turned out to be his last year in office. How do the Democrats explain that one, Sue? DAVIS: Well, the White House has backtracked on this, and Senate Democrats say, look; these remarks were taken out of context. This was a theoretical debate because there were no vacancies in 1992 at the time of Biden's remarks. There is a vacancy now, and Democrats say don't try and rehash past quotes; let's look at their record. They say Democrats have never preemptively blocked a nominee before they were even announced. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid today also said, look; there were justices like Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito who were conservatives the Democrats did not support but they ultimately did not block from getting a vote. Clearly these past remarks are going to be an issue for Democrats as the Senate rolls on in this fight. SIEGEL: President Obama says that he's going ahead with this nomination. Do we know anything about his timing? DAVIS: White House Spokesman Josh Earnest said he's not going to give any specifics but that in the past, for Obama nominees, it's taken about four to six weeks. Senators I talked to today said they expect an announcement in weeks and not months. And the president is definitely making calls on Capitol Hill to senators, asking them for their input and support for who he should pick to be his nominee. SIEGEL: Sue, you mentioned that all of the Republicans on Judiciary are with Majority Leader... DAVIS: Right. SIEGEL:...McConnell on this. That includes the chairman, I assume, Chuck Grassley of Iowa? DAVIS: It does include Chuck Grassley, and like McConnell, he also said that he would be unlikely to meet - even meet with a nominee when President Obama makes his announcement. SIEGEL: Thank you. DAVIS: Thanks, Robert. SIEGEL: That's NPR's Susan Davis from Capitol Hill. Copyright © 2016 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.more.pathtool: info about paths in Morepath apps more.pathtool lets you create a tool that generates information about paths in a Morepath application. This way you can see exactly what paths a Morepath application supports, including views and mounted applications. It does this by reading the configuration information of a Morepath application. To create such a tool you do the following, for instance in tool.py of your project: from more.pathtool import path_tool from.someplace import SomeApp def my_path_tool(): SomeApp.commit() path_tool(SomeApp) where SomeApp is the application you want to query, typically the root application of your project. Now you need to hook it up in setup.py to you can have the tool available: entry_points={ 'console_scripts': ['morepathtool = myproject.tool:my_path_tool', ] }, You also need to include more.pathtool in your setup requirements. After you install your project, you should now have a morepathtool tool available that lets you query your project for path information. By default the path tool generates a CSV file with information in it about paths in your application: $ morepathtool paths.csv You can open it in a spreadsheet application such as Excel or OpenOffice Calc. Note that if you your locale is European you have to add -csv-dialect=europe to set the CVS writer to use ;` as the delimiter instead of, so that Excel can read it.Back in May, we reported that Facebook now accounts for one out of three ad impressions in the U.S., and that, really, no other web property in the U.S. comes close (Yahoo was second with 10 percent). That means that Facebook served approximately 340 billion ads in the first quarter. It’s probably not a surprise, then, that advertising makes up for about 89 percent of the social network’s total revenues, which are estimated at about $1.6 billion for the first six months of 2011. Today, on Citi’s third quarter search marketing trends call, the panelists discussed the current landscape of search advertising, among other things that Google is maintaining its dominant market share in advertising spend on search, at 80 to 81 percent of total spend. While the panelists said that they’re not seeing much demand for social search ad targeting, there is obviously a ton of interest in marketing on Facebook. Much of this is due to the appeal, as Facebook’s Ad Czar Gokul Rajaram said at TechCrunch Disrupt earlier this month, of the social network’s ability to offer a social discovery experience through its ads. Rajaram clarified this point by saying that brand messaging tied to social context (“likes”, for example) leads to 68 percent ad recall — something that’s obviously of great interest to advertisers. Going forward, social ads or pages with sponsored stories or status updates will be the “foundation” of the network’s ads, the Facebook Ad Guru said. Yet, Citi panelists noted that the amount spent on Facebook ads is currently only 5 percent of what is spent on search ads. This number is expected to increase dramatically in the future, but what is of interest is that the panelists nearly unanimously agreed that Facebook ad spend is currently gobbling up share from traditional ad buckets, like banner, display, and brand awareness, and not from direct response and search. Traditionally, the media has made a big deal out of Facebook’s threat to Google in search advertising, but as it stands now, that doesn’t really seem to be the case. What is for sure, however, is that Facebook and Google continue to gobble up online display advertising from the likes of Yahoo and Aol, and Facebook is, by all accounts, growing like gangbusters in this area. We’ll continue to watch with interest as Google+ matures and certainly the two Internet giants will continue to push back and forth, but for now it seems safe to say that search marketers can continue to maintain their focus on Google, and brand marketers can keep trying to figure out how to socialize with customers on Facebook. Excerpt image courtesy of BillboardomToday (21st April) is the traditional date given for the founding of Rome. According to Roman mythology, the founders were Romulus and Remus, twin brothers and supposed sons of the god Mars and the priestess Rhea Silvia. The twins were then abandoned by their parents as babies (because of a prophecy that they would overthrow their great-uncle Amulius), but were saved by a she-wolf who nursed them. Romulus killed his brother after a vicious quarrel and went on to establish a city which he named after himself. Although the original date given by Roman historians for the founding of Rome varied between 758 and 728 BC, the official date was set as 753 BC. Archaeologists have traced evidences of villages on the Palatine Hill dating back to around the 9th century BC. The ancient Romans celebrated the founding of their city every April 21st in the festival of Palilia. This festival was originally aimed at cleansing both sheep and shepherds in honour of Pales, the goddess of shepherds, but was later associated with the founding or Rome. The connection between these two characters of the festival is evident as the founders of the city, Romulus and Remus, grew up to be shepherds like their adoptive father. This panel comes from a sacrificial altar dedicated to the divine couple of Mars and Venus found at Ostia (Italy). This side of the altar shows a scene with the she-wolf nursing Romulus and Remus, a personification of the river Tiber, and two fleeing shepherds, probably Faustulus, adoptive father of the twins and his brother Faustinus. On the left is the personification of the Palatine, also dressed as a shepherd. The eagle of Jupiter, symbolically hovering over the sacred grotto of the Lupercal, indicates that the events are unfolding under divine auspices. The altar carries various inscriptions. One of the inscription tells us that the altar was later used as a pedestal for a bronze statue of the god Silvanus. The consuls mentioned in the text inscribed securely date the inscription to October 1st, 124 AD. In this period Hadrian promoted renewed interest in themes related to the origins of Rome. This aureus of Hadrian was struck in 121 AD to commemorate the circus games that marked the 874th birthday of the city of Rome. The reverse of the coin depicts the Genius of the Circus Maximus with the legend “ANN. DCCCLXXIIII NAT. VRB. P. CIR. CON.” meaning that in the 874th year, circus games were for the first time instituted (Circenses constituta) for the natalis urbis romae (birthday of the city). In the same year, while celebrating the Parilia festival, Hadrian founded a new temple dedicated to Venus, the divine ancestress of the Roman people, and to Roma herself. The temple was to stand on the north side of the Sacred Way on a great podium, stretching from just beyond the Arch of Titus and almost as far as the Colosseum. The two goddesses would be placed back to back with one cella facing toward the Colosseum, the other facing towards the Forum. As Dio Cassius tells us, Hadrian himself seems to have personally designed the temple. However, construction of the temple did not begin until 125 AD. Having dedicated the temple, Hadrian changed the name of the Parilia festival to Romaia (the Natalis Urbis Romae) and associated the new Temple to the celebrations of the birthday of Rome. In addition Hadrian retraced the sacred boundary of the pomerium, the original line ploughed by Romulus around the walls of the original city. In doing so, Hadrian renewed the festival of Parilia in associating himself with Romulus. One other coin minted in Rome in the year 121 proclaimed a new Golden Age (saeculum aureum). This gold aureus featured on the reverse the Genius of the golden age “Saeculum Aureum” holding the zodiac and the phoenix on a globe, suggesting rebirth and renewal. Through this type of coin, Hadrian aimed at bringing the empire to its pinnacle while emphasising the power of Rome within the vast empire. Links and further reading: Sources: Boatwright, M.T. (1987) Hadrian and the City of Rome, Princeton, NJ, Princeton University Press, pp. 121-122 , Princeton, NJ, Princeton University Press, pp. 121-122 Birley, Anthony R. (1997) Hadrian: The Restless Emperor, London and New York: Routledge, pp. 112 Marie-Henriette Quet (2004). L’aureus au zodiaque d’Hadrien, première image de l’éternité cyclique dans l’idéologie et l’imaginaire temporel romains – Revue numismatique Volume 6 Numéro 160 pp. 119-154 ( linkLooked at one way, it’s been another rocky summer for Obamacare. First, the Halbig v. Burwell decision by D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, in which two conservative judges used an error in the act’s language to leap to the ludicrous conclusion that a law passed for the very purpose of helping all Americans get health insurance was in fact intended to allow only certain Americans to do so, was a potential body blow. The full D.C. Circuit is widely expected to reverse the two conservative judges en banc sometime this fall, but it could still wind up at the Supreme Court, and with this Supreme Court, you just never know. Second, the law isn’t getting any more popular. It’s true that some polls, which ask respondents whether to “keep and fix” the Affordable Care Act or repeal it, generally produce majorities saying the former. But that doesn’t mean people have warmed to it, and in early August, a Kaiser Family Foundation tracking poll generated some inexplicably bad numbers. The basic favorable-unfavorable rating was 37 to 53 percent. That 53 percent represented a staggering eight-point negative spike since June. The spike is odd and vexing, since the news of actual substance since June has mostly been very positive. Most obviously, there are the several million—somewhere between 6 million and 12 million, depending on which source you believe—more Americans with health insurance. Those who pay closer attention to such things might have noticed developments like one that happened at the end of July, when the Medicare trustees’ report said that the program’s solvency could extend for an additional four years, to 2030, because of savings achieved through the ACA. But of course, the percentage of Americans who know that is infinitesimal. So, yes—jury still out and all that. Perceptions remain terrible. But it’s worth stepping back and looking at reality. And the reality is this: On the evidence available to us so far, nearly everything that the more vocal conservative critics have said about the ACA has been wrong. No. “Wrong” implies a statement made in good faith. These charges were often made in the worst possible faith. And they were lies. And—here’s a crazy thought—maybe it’s not just dumb luck that the law seems to be working, especially in the states that took the Medicaid money and set up well-run exchanges. Maybe it’s working because bureaucrats (!) anticipated all the potential problems and planned for them in the writing of the law. Nancy-Ann DeParle, one of the administration’s chief architects of Obamacare, put it this way: “When President Obama took office, there were 42 million uninsured Americans, premiums that were unaffordable for families and businesses, a delivery system with the wrong incentives, and unsustainable cost growth. The Affordable Care Act was the product of nearly two decades of bipartisan analysis and discussions among health policy experts and economists to address these problems, and most--indeed, virtually all--of the policies in the law had widespread agreement from these experts.” In other words, writing this law wasn’t guesswork. Herewith, the five biggest whoppers, with special emphasis on the fifth (and most current one), and how they’re turning out to be so fantastically wrong. 1. Healthy People Won’t Sign Up Or call this “Death Spiral Part I.” The idea here, spread lustily by many conservatives since 2010 but especially during last fall’s disastrous roll out, was that healthy people simply wouldn’t buy insurance. Senator Orrin Hatch said last November that “at this pace, the Obama administration will never be able to meet their enrollment goals.” Speaker John Boehner at the time groused that “the idea that the federal government should come in and create a one size fits all for the entire country never was going to work.” Their hope was that only really sick people would sign up, which would lead rates to spike—the much-feared death spiral (more on that later). But lo and behold it turned out that millions of healthy people did want health insurance. As noted above, the precise numbers are hard to come by. But Gallup’s estimate is that the country has roughly 10 million newly insured citizens under Obamacare. And insurance companies report that around 80 to 85 percent of them are paying their premiums (this was another canard spread on the right, that people would sign up but never pay). In sum, the law’s advocates were right, and its critics wrong, that health insurance was something normal Americans did in fact want. “There never was any realistic prospect of a death spiral,” says Jon Gruber of MIT, one of the country’s top health-care economists. 2. You Won’t Be Able to Choose/Keep Your Doctor/Plan It’s true that this happened in a limited number of cases—maybe six or seven million people who bought policies on the individual market got cancellation letters from insurers telling them that their plans didn’t meet the minimum requirements under the new law, as NBC News explosively reported last fall. It harmed the administration’s credibility, and rightly so. But it didn’t represent much of a change from the past — the “churn-rate” in the individual market has always been high. More importantly, no one seems to have followed up with this population to try to figure out what percentage did, in fact, lose coverage and/or have to pay considerably more for a new plan, so we don’t actually know how many of those six or seven million walked away satisfied or dissatisfied. But more broadly, in a country where some 260 million people have health insurance, no one has adduced any proof that the ACA has resulted in anything remotely like the cataclysm opponents predicted. In fact, last fall, Factcheck.org rated such claims as outright falsehoods. And Gruber noted to me that if some people are “losing” their doctors, it’s often by their own choice, because now that they have so many different coverage options, many are choosing less expensive or so-called “limited network” plans. “No one is making people buy these plans,” Gruber says. “They’re cheaper alternatives. This is capitalism at its finest. For the right to criticize that is just ludicrous.” 3. Obamacare Will Explode the Federal Deficit You heard this one a jillion times back when the law was being debated. Still today, Republicans and conservatives are deft at cherry-picking numbers out of official reports that can convey the misleading impression that fiscal watchdogs think the law will be a disaster. The truth is that the Congressional Budget Office said in 2010 and reaffirmed this summer that the Affordable Care Act’s budget impact would be positive. The 2010 estimate was that the ACA would cut deficits by $124 billion over its first decade. And in June, CBO head Douglas Elmendorf reported that his experts “have no reason to think that their initial assessment that the ACA would reduce budget deficits was incorrect.” Now, he throws in a number of caveats, as any bureaucrat should, having to do with the fact that many provisions of the act will kick in later. But Elmendorf sees no hard evidence to suggest that initial estimates were wrong. In fact, says Paul Van de Water of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “The CBO has estimated that the law will especially reduce the deficit in its second decade, and there’s every reason to believe that those estimates are on course.” 4. Okay, Then, It Will Bust States’ Budgets Texas’ Rick Perry, Florida’s Rick Scott, and numerous other Republican governors have said that Obamacare will bust their budgets. They’re basing that on the fact that the federal government will pay 100 percent of the costs of Medicaid expansion through 2016, but a little less than that thereafter (although never less than 90 percent). So states are going to have to start shelling out (that is, states that take the money in the first place, which Texas and Florida did not). That’s true as far as it goes. But here’s the part Perry and Scott leave out. All states have, of course, an existing relationship with the Medicaid program in which states pay for some portion of the program’s implementation. And a number of studies estimate that in that pool of funds, states will save significant amounts of money that will offset most of the new expenses incurred under Obamacare. For example, Massachusetts found that after implementation of Romneycare, its costs for “uncompensated care”—charity work, basically—decreased considerably. And one study released in June found that uncompensated care costs are already dropping dramatically under the ACA—but only in the states that have taken the Medicaid money. Thus, Perry, Scott, et alia are perhaps agents of a self-fulfilling prophecy: Yes, the ACA might bust the budgets of their states—the states trying to kill off Obamacare. But in the states trying to make it work, the budgetary impact, say most nonpartisan experts, will be a little bit negative, but pretty small. 5. Premium Rates Will Shoot Through the Roof This is the big enchilada, and the culmination of the alleged death spiral. The charge here is that the lack of healthy enrollees will force insurers to jack rates up to the heavens, because they’ll have all these sick and dying people on their hands. Premium hikes for this year were all over the map, because they were based on guesswork by the insurance companies about who was enrolled. But now, the companies have hard data. So just watch, critics say, as the rates go boom. To be sure, you can go to your Google machine and enter “insurance premium increases 2015” and find a lot of scary headlines from earlier this year. But you can ignore them all, because no one really knows yet. Here’s how it works. By roughly this past Memorial Day, insurance companies submitted their 2015 rate requests to the states. These could range from tiny to huge—but they’re just requests. State insurance commissioners are now reviewing the requests. Final, approved rates will be made public in November (before November 15, when Obamacare’s second enrollment period begins). By the way, the ACA, for the first time ever, rationalized this “rate season,” so that everything happens in almost every state at the same time and in more or less the same way. Before, there was no national logic to the process at all. Again, to echo back to what DeParle said: The people writing the law knew all this was coming, and understood very well that rate shock would be a risk. As a result there are numerous provisions in the law designed to guard against it. The most notable one carries an obvious name: “rate review.” Under rate review, any request for an increase of 10 percent or more has to be approved by a board, to which the insurer has to offer copious documentation proving that such a hike is necessary. Prior to the ACA, there was no such review. Before we go any further, let’s step back. What’s a typical, pre-ACA rate increase? Good question. In 2008 it was 9.9 percent; 2009, 10.8 percent; 2010, 11.7 percent. Within those broad averages, numbers were all over the map: In 2010, rates went up in Kentucky by just 5.5 percent, but in Nebraska by 21.8 percent. The numbers released in November will similarly be all over the map. There are just too many variables to say otherwise—how much competition there is among insurers in any given state (in general, it’s increased); what the risk pool looks like in a state (how old, how sick); and other factors. So undoubtedly, there will be some isolated hair-raising increases. We don’t know, but we do have some early indications and studies, and they are pretty hopeful. The Health Research Institute at PricewaterhouseCoopers looked at rate requests from insurers that have been filed across 29 states and the District of Columbia and found that the average increase is 8.2 percent, which is impressively low and definitely not “sticker shock.” And remember, these are mostly just requests (in Rhode Island and Oregon, the rates are final), which aggressive state insurance commissioners might seek to make still lower. "So far, the filings suggest modest increases for 2015, well below the double digit hikes many feared,” says Ceci Connolly, the managing director of the institute. All the above is about the individual market—people buying insurance on their own, either through state exchanges or the federal marketplace. For a host of reasons, that’s the best barometer by which to measure the law’s success. But there are other markets, too, notably the small-business market, where employers with fewer than 50 employees buy for their workers. There has been some grumbling among conservatives that this “small-group” market will take an especially hard hit, but that seems not to be the case either. Again, there will be great variance in the small-group market, according to Jon Kingsdale, of the Wakely Consulting Group in Boston. He says the biggest impact will be that, because of some technical changes made by the law, employers with older employees and larger families will likely see rates increase, while employers with younger workers and smaller families may see rates decrease. But overall, says Kingsdale, “I do not believe there will be a significant jump in rate in the small-group market, because the underlying body of people being insured is not so different from the prior year.” One last point on rates: This is another area where Republican saboteurs of the law can, if they choose to, make it not work. That is, Republican state insurance commissioners can approve big premium hikes just to make the law look bad. Says Sally McCarty, the former Indiana state insurance commissioner, now at the Georgetown Center on Health Insurance Reforms: “States that are in earnest about implementing the law will likely see lower increases, and states not so concerned about seeing the law
truck, a surprising number of those pre-orders were coming from Canada. Now we learn that fleet operators and truck drivers in Ontario, Canada’s biggest province, are going to have access to an important incentive. The Ontario government is about to announce the new program, reported Reuters: “The program will offer buyers rebates of up to 60 percent of the incremental purchase cost of an electric truck, compared with an equivalent diesel vehicle, up to a cap of C$75,000 per vehicle, according to documents seen by Reuters.” That’s the equivalent of an incentive worth up to $59,000 USD. Ontario already has a significant EV incentive of up to $14,000 CAD for passenger cars, but with the new Green Commercial Vehicle Program, electric trucks would now be included. Electrek’s Take Interestingly, the news comes just after BYD announced a new electric truck assembly factory in Ontario. The company is likely going to benefit from this new incentive. Of course, Tesla is also likely going to benefit from higher demand for Tesla Semi in the province. The vehicle is already somewhat popular in Canada with Loblaws, a massive grocery chain in Canada, already having confirmed placing an order for 25 Tesla Semi electric trucks and Walmart announced that it reserved 15 trucks from Tesla, 10 of which will be used in Canada, according to the retailer. Tesla’s electric truck is a little more expensive than an average diesel truck, but operators can save a lot on the back end with a much lower operating cost. But with this incentive, the upfront cost would be very similar to an average diesel truck, which costs about $120,000. Tesla’s truck starts at $150,000 ($191,000) and goes up to $180,000 ($230,000 CAD). 60-percent would go up to the $75,000 CAD limit, which I would think could make the truck extremely competitive. What do you think? Let us know in the comment section below.Forgiveness is nothing more than a decision. It’s a decision to let go of a resentment, to lessen the grip of a hurt that was perpetrated on you, and to allow yourself to focus on more positive things. Benefits of forgiving vs. Effects of holding a grudge When you hold a grudge against someone who has wronged you, in effect you are allowing anger to have a presence in your life. Even if you only think about it on occasion, the anger keeps seeping back into your life. When you allow anger to be with you, you end up bringing it to other aspects of your life. You bring it with you to other relationships, to new experiences, and to your inner self. Holding a grudge, therefore, blocks enjoyment of the present. No matter what you are doing or where you are, if something reminds you of that person or the event that hurt you, you return to your anger. That means that it affects whatever you’re doing, even if you were having a great time doing it! Maybe you love going to baseball games, but one time you were there with a friend who got drunk and insulted you. If you don’t forgive him and move on, guess what happens every time you go to a game? You think of him, and anger creeps into your enjoyment of one of your favorite pastimes! Or maybe you enjoy playing the piano, but your grade school teacher said you weren’t very good. If you haven’t forgiven her for being so negative and unsupportive, now whenever you play, the memory of her statement angers you again. You might even be reminded of the hurt when you’re doing something completely unrelated to the original transgression. For instance, you could be reading a book that you are really enjoying, and then there’s a story line of someone betraying a friend. If you were once betrayed by a friend and didn’t forgive her, the story in the book will immediately bring you back to that event, and suddenly you aren’t enjoying your leisure reading anymore. What a way to ruin a good book! When you forgive someone, however, it allows you to enjoy your life and everyone and everything in it without repeated reminders of past hurts and without returning to the anger you felt toward that person. When you forgive, it is also good for your health. Letting go of the anger reduces your anxiety and stress level. It also improves your psychological well-being when you stop carrying that negative energy. What forgiveness doesn’t mean When you forgive someone, it doesn’t erase what happened. It also doesn’t change that person’s responsibility for hurting you. And don’t worry about “forgive and forget” – maybe you shouldn’t forget. You might be able to use the event as an opportunity to learn something. You might learn a little about your sensitivities, or you might find you need to create stronger boundaries with caustic people, or maybe you’ll even realize how you might have similarly hurt someone. Regardless, forgiving doesn’t mean you are being a doormat and letting people step all over you. You are simply taking charge of your own life, casting out negative feelings and focusing on positive ones. How to forgive If you are having a hard time letting go of a hurt, there are some steps you can go through that might help you. Think about the facts of the situation – You can try reliving it if it isn’t too painful. Think about what happened, and what hurt you. Remember how you reacted and how you felt. Think also about how the event has affected your life in the time since it happened. Think about what made him act that way or say what he said – What are his weaknesses? Most people aren’t inherently bad. Everyone carries their own pain, and that influences their decisions. Take heart in the fact that if he wasn’t carrying his pain, he likely wouldn’t have inflicted any on you. Sympathize with him if you can. Replay the event with a good outcome – This is a technique I learned a few years back, and it can actually help you gain some closure. If that bad event had not played out in a negative way, how would it have looked? Envision the same event, but with a positive outcome. It just might give you some gratification in knowing how things should have happened. Remove your victim status – Even if you were the victim, try to stop identifying as one. This lets go of the offender’s control and power over you. This doesn’t shift any responsibility away from the person who hurt you, it just means you will no longer be a victim to the hurt that he caused you. Take away his power to hurt you by choosing to take control over the situation in your decision to forgive. Actively choose to forgive – And commit to it! At some point, it just comes down to this. You know what holding a grudge does to you, you know how your life will be improved if you choose to forgive, and you know it’s time to move forward. Choose to forgive the person who caused you pain, and know (as trite as it sounds) you will be a better person for it – it’s true! When you choose to forgive someone, it won’t have any effect on that person. Know that he won’t change, and that you can’t make him change. Forgiveness changes you. It brings you to peace, it allows you to heal, and it helps you put past pain behind you. “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” ~Mahatma Gandhi Do you have someone you need to forgive? What is holding you back? How might your life be different if you forgave that person? I’d love to hear from you in the comments, and you can also find us at www.facebook.com/OneMoveForward!I was more than surprised this evening when I received a review copy of five different BattleTech rule sets. Surprised and insanely happy. Immediately I was transported to a time when acne was a real issue, Walkman’s were new tech and my revenge fantasies took place in 80 Ton, bad ass, bipedal tanks. Of course my friends were pummeling me with their 80 ton walking tanks. What a fun time! Here it is folks. BattleTech. The core rules from 1987 on through 2001. 155 Megabytes of compressed ‘mech goodness. I am writing this in my office and glancing to the bookshelves on my left, I can see the original BattleTech boxed set and the BattleTech Reinforcements boxed set. What can I say that hasn’t already been said? This is the good stuff – all scans of the originals which means that they won’t plug in to modern BattleTech. But then, they’re not supposed to. This is the game that got me into tactical warfare. As a group of teens, we would spend hours customizing ‘mechs and then putting them in to combat against each other. I staged and participated in running campaigns while in college starting in the Spider and ending in the Awesome, which is aptly named. It’s freaking awesome. The first manual in the series comprises rules for BattleTech, CityTech and AeroTech. Ahhh the memories. The fierce battles on the map, the fights off the map over who came up with these designs first, FASA or the folks behind Robotech. I don’t really feel the need to review the individual books. If you’re interested, there are 20+ years worth of reviews on some of these which you can find laying about on the net. If you love the elder days of BattleTech you’ll still love it now. If you’re curious about how the game developed between ’87 and ’01 well, here’s your historical record. You can use them to play the game as it was in 1987 or simply add them to your collection. As a youth, I spent $39.00 I think (in 1987 dollars no less, earned at $4.25/hour) on my first boxed BattleTech set and I still have it. That should tell you how much I’m enjoying these scans. For $12.00 this easily deserves a 5 out of 5 stars. [tags]rpg, battletech, tactical war games, mecha, PPC, review[/tags]By of the The University of Wisconsin-Madison's chief of police issued a formal apology Friday because an officer entered a classroom after a class had started Thursday, and asked a black student to step outside for questioning about 11 anti-white supremacy graffiti statements that popped up across campus in recent months. "Because of the officer's error in believing the class had not yet started, I extend my sincerest apologies to the students and the professor who were in this class and witnessed this interruption," Police Chief Susan Riseling said in a statement. The student's removal from class has prompted angry responses from several groups on campus, including the Associated Students of Madison and the executive committee of the Teaching Assistants' Association. "Why aren't we pulling individuals from classrooms who have raped someone?" asked Madison Laning, chair of Student Council leadership. Two eyewitnesses said the 21-year-old student accused of tagging campus buildings to protest racism was handled roughly, according to a statement from the Teaching Assistants' Association's executive committee. The TAA statement accused the university of "halfhearted condemnations" of racist incidents around campus, including the mocking of tribal leaders at Dejope Residence Hall, graffiti of a man hanging from a tree in a Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery restroom, and students facing hateful language and being spit in the face in their residence hall. "University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) administration apparently considers these incidents less concerning than a black student's expression of justified frustration with this climate," the TAA statement said. The police chief's statement addressed some of those sentiments. "Questions have been raised about this crime and whether the content of the vandalism influenced the police response," Riseling said. "Graffiti is criminal vandalism and we act on these crimes regardless of the content. With every report we receive, we thoroughly investigate, work to identify individuals who were involved, and when appropriate, take action to hold the individuals responsible for their criminal action(s)." At the same time, Riseling said, the department is reviewing all officer actions upon entering the classroom, and department procedures related to classroom contacts, consistent with the department's commitment to the academic mission of the university. "In the interest of transparency and public understanding of this incident, UWPD will be releasing all body camera video and external surveillance video associated with this contact as soon as possible," the police chief said. The graffiti in question was signed "God" and included writings such as "White supremacy is a disease" and "Racism in the air. Don't breathe." It appeared over the past six months on several campus buildings, including Memorial Library, Chazen Museum of Art, Vilas Hall and the Humanities Building. Vilas Hall is home to the School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The student who was arrested is majoring in journalism, and did a class project in 2014 about what it's like to be black at a predominantly white university, according to Mike Wagner, an associate professor of journalism and mass communication. "Here's something I never thought I'd write: one of my best students was pulled out of class and arrested today," Wagner wrote in a blog post. "It is shocking and deeply upsetting that an unarmed suspect of a nonviolent crime was pulled from a college class to be arrested... "This is not professional behavior. It is not recognizing my student's humanity, nor was it respectful of the faculty of color who was teaching and was ignored by the officers." Two of the graffiti incidents reportedly occurred the night before the student was arrested. On Thursday, UW-Madison police entered a campus auditorium to locate and speak with the student believed to be responsible, Riseling said. "UWPD police officers had been attempting to contact the student for the last two weeks for questioning — knocks on doors and phone calls went unanswered," the chief said in her statement. The officer scanned the room before entering, she said. "He observed a group of people sitting and talking among themselves. The officer did not see anyone standing at the front of the room or lecturing — the officer mistakenly believed the class had not yet started. The officer entered the classroom, located the student, and asked to speak with him in the hallway. It was at this time the assistant professor identified herself to officers."Everyone has skeletons in their closet. There’s at least one in mine. A couple of years ago while on a cruise, I pinched a spoon from the dining room. It wasn’t because of any lack of spoons at home, it was because no matter how hard I tried, I could not bend this one. I tried with two hands, I tried by pushing against the table, I even tried placing the handle under my heel and tugging on the head. No give at all. I had to have that spoon! I’ve been practising magic as a hobby ever since I was a teenager. It has turned out to be a perfect fit with my career because of the numerous scientific principles involved in creating the illusion of contravening the laws of nature. And that is what magic is all about. Seeing someone levitate, or vanish inside a cabinet, or appear out of thin air, requires an apparent suspension of the laws of nature. The key word of course is “apparent,” because all such effects are accomplished by clever scientific means. A magician, however, attempts to ensure that the audience will not discover those means. Science can also appear magical, but in this case, we relish in scuttling the magic with down-to-Earth explanations. Just think about it. Isn’t an airplane with hundreds of people aboard flying through the air magical? How about taking pictures with your smart phone and sending them around the world in seconds? Or a seed growing into a plant or a new life being created from the meeting of cells? But magic is converted into science with an appropriate explanation. I have found performing magic to be an excellent springboard for a discussion of scientific methodology and for fostering the critical thinking needed to prevent being swept away by the tsunami of pseudoscience generated by a rapidly multiplying bevy of charlatans. When you can demonstrate how “psychic surgery,” a procedure by which diseased tissues are apparently removed without an incision, can actually be accomplished by sleight of hand, you have given believers something to think about. Similarly, a demonstration of “mental” effects with a clear declaration that these are done by clever chicanery can help convince at least some that trickery may be involved when psychics perform seemingly scientifically inexplicable feats. One such feat is “psychokinesis,” or the ability to move objects using only the power of the mind. Psychokinetic effects were first popularized in the middle of the 19th century, when Angelique Cottin in France claimed that electric emanations from her body allowed her to move objects without touching them. She convinced many observers of her power, but critics offered quite down-to-Earth explanations about how such effects could be performed by natural means. Since that time, numerous psychics have claimed psychokinetic powers, with Uri Geller being perhaps the most famous. In the 1970s, he beguiled audiences and even some scientists with his apparent ability to bend metal with the power of his mind. He gets credit for introducing the phenomenon of mental spoon bending, an effect upon which he built quite a spectacular career. Magicians were also astounded. Not by the effect, which can be accomplished by a number of established methods, but by how the public was so ready to swallow a “paranormal” explanation. Conjurers were quick to reproduce the spoon-bending trick, pointing out that the only requirement was a modicum of sleight of hand. This brings us back to my pilfered spoon. When I do the spoon-bending trick, I first hand out the spoon to the audience with a challenge to bend it. Once it is established that it can withstand all efforts, I proceed to bend it “with the power of my mind.” But in rare cases, some strong men have managed to bend the spoon and destroy my performance, so I’m always on the lookout for super-strong spoons. I can tell you that Crystal Cruises have such. They absolutely cannot be bent, except in the hands of a magician who is equipped with a “special something.” But why am I talking about tormenting cutlery? Because last week, thanks to colleague Tim Caulfield, a health-law professor at the University of Alberta, I learned that Integrative Pediatric Medicine Rounds at his university were set to feature a talk on “Spoon Bending and the Power of the Mind.” The seminar would be given by an “energy healer” who calls herself a Reiki master teacher, a certified Trilotherapy practitioner, a Yuen Method practitioner and a teacher of popular spoon-bending and tantric-sex workshops. So, this was not to be a workshop on critical thinking, which could have been appropriate. The prospective speaker claimed that 75 per cent of attendees would be able to bend spoons with their mental energy! The scientific community reacted with vigour to this assault on reason, and the resulting extensive media coverage caused the seminar to be cancelled with some weasel explanations being provided about the workshop “being withdrawn by the presenters.” The “presenter” was to be Anastasia Kutt, who is not some wacky outsider, but is listed in the university’s directory as “a research assistant in the Complementary and Alternative Research and Education (CARE) Program and is also involved in research activities and organizing events.” What sort of events? Given her interest in topics such as tantric sex and spoon-bending, one wonders. Criticism of this spoon-bending fiasco should not be construed as an attempt by the mainstream scientific community to curb free speech or to police academic research. Rather, it is an appeal for reason and for vigilance against quackery sneaking into “integrative medicine” programs, which are becoming increasingly popular. I don’t know how Kutt bends spoons, but I’d be willing to fly to Edmonton at my expense to find out. If she can bend my Crystal Cruises spoon, I’ll eat a University of Alberta Integrative Health Program hat. joe.schwarcz@mcgill.ca Joe Schwarcz is director of McGill University’s Office for Science & Society (mcgill.ca/oss). He hosts The Dr. Joe Show on CJAD Radio 800 AM every Sunday from 3 to 4 p.m.Aladura 1 million Various prophet-healing churches founded since c.1918, West Nigeria. Generally monotheistic; a mix of Anglican, Pentecostal and traditional African beliefs. Strong emphasis on healing and salvation in this life. Not emphasized; views vary. Spiritual healing is central. Mix of Anglican and African rituals; a prophet plays a prominent role. Aladura Practices none Asatru unknown Revival of Norse and Germanic paganism, 1970s Scandinavia and USA. History of Asatru Polytheistic, Norse gods and goddesses, Norse creation myths. Asatru Gods Salvation or redemption not emphasized. Fatalistic outlook. Valhalla (heaven) for death in battle; Hel (peaceful place) for most; Hifhel (hell) for the very evil. Sacrifice of food or drink, toast to the gods, shamanism (less frequently), celebration of solstice holidays. Nine Noble Virtues is moral code. Asatru Practices Eddas (Norse epics); the Havamal (proverbs attributed to Odin) Asatru Texts Atheism 7.4 million self-identified atheists; 1.1 billion are religiously "unaffiliated" Appears throughout history (including ancient Greek philosophy), but especially after the Enlightenment (19th cent). There is no God or divine beings. Not addressed. But many atheists believe that since there is no afterlife, this one life is of great importance. Only humans can help themselves and each other solve the world's problems. none none Influential works include those by Marx, Freud, Feuerbach, Voltaire, and Mark Twain. Notable modern authors include Richard Dawkins and Carl Sagan. Bon 100,000 11th-century Tibet Nontheistic Buddhism, but meditation on peaceful and wrathful deities. Gain enlightenment. Reincarnation until gain enlightenment Meditation on mandalas and Tibetan deities, astrology, monastic life. Bonpo canon Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Cao Dai 4-6 million Founded in 1926, Vietnam by Ngo Van Chieu and others based on a séance. God represented by Divine Eye. Founders of Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity venerated, and saints including Victor Hugo. Goal is peace and harmony in each person and in the world. Salvation by "cultivating self and finding God in self." reincarnation until Nirvana/Heaven Hierarchy similar to Roman Catholicism. Daily prayer. Meditation. Communication with spirit world (now outlawed in Vietnam). Caodai canon Christian Science 400,000 Founded by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879, Massachusetts. History of Christian Science One God. No Trinity (in traditional sense). Matter and evil do not exist. "Life, Truth, and Love understood and demonstrated as supreme over all; sin, sickness and death destroyed." Heaven is "not a locality, but a divine state of Mind in which all the manifestations of Mind are harmonious and immortal." Spiritual healing through prayer and knowledge, Sunday services, daily Bible and Science & Health reading. Christian Science Practices Christian Bible, Science & Health with Key to the Scriptures Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Confucianism 5-6 million Based on the teachings of Confucius (551–479 BCE, China) History of Confucianism not addressed To fulfill one's role in society with propriety, honor, and loyalty. not addressed none Confucian Practices Analects Confucian Texts Deism unknown Especially popularized in the 18th-cent. Enlightenment under Kant, Voltaire, Paine, Jefferson, and others One Creator God who is uninterested in the world. Reason is basis for all knowledge. not addressed not addressed None prescribed, although some deists practiced prayer. Thomas Paine's The Age of Reason and similar texts Druze 500,000 Founded by Al-Darazi in 11th century, Cairo, Egypt. Roots in the Isma'iliyya sect of Shia Islam. Universal Intelligence (al-Aql al-Kulli) or Divine Essence (akin to Neoplatonism), of which al-Hakim is believed to be an incarnation. Live a good life for a favorable reincarnation. Await the re-appearance of al-Hakim (a Fatimid caliph who disappeared in 1021), who will usher in a Golden Age for true believers. Reincarnation. Heaven is a spiritual existence when one has escaped reincarnation. Hell is distance from God in lifetime after lifetime. Modest lifestyles, fasting before Eid al-Adha. Beliefs and practices are hidden for protection from persecution. Special group of initiates called uqqal. Al-Naqd al-Khafi (Copy of the Secret); Al-Juz'al-Awwal (Essence of the First) Eckankar 50,000-500,000 Founded by Paul Twitchell in Las Vegas, 1965 History of Eckankar The Divine Spirit, called "ECK." "Each of us is Soul, a spark of God sent to this world to gain spiritual experience." Salvation is liberation and God-realization. Reincarnation. The Soul is eternal by nature and on a spiritual journey. Liberation possible in a single lifetime. Spiritual Exercises of ECK: mantras, meditation, and dreams. These enable Soul travel and spiritual growth. Eckankar practices Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad and books by Harold Klemp. Eckankar sacred texts Epicureanism n/a Based on the teachings of Epicurus, c. 300 BCE, Athens. Polytheism, but the gods take no notice of humans. Pursue the highest pleasures (friendship and tranquility) and avoid pain. No afterlife. The soul dissolves when the body dies. none Letters and Principal Doctrines of Epicurus Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Falun Gong 3 million (acc. to official sources); 100 million (acc. to Falun Gong sources) Li Hongzhi in 1992 in China History of Falun Gong Countless gods and spiritual beings. Demonic aliens. Good health and spritual transcendence, achieved by practicing Falun Gong. Not addressed Five exercises to strengthen the Falun. Cultivation of truthfulness, benevolence and forbearance. Meat eating discouraged. Falun Gong Practices Zhuan Falun and other writings by Master Li Falun Gong Texts Gnosticism ancient form extinct; small modern revival groups Various teachers including Valentinus, 1st-2nd cents. AD The supreme God is unknowable; the creator god is evil and matter is evil. Humans can return to the spiritual world through secret knowledge of the universe. Return to the spiritual world. Asceticism, celibacy Gnostic scriptures including various Gospels and Acts attributed to apostles. Greek Religion ancient form extinct; various modern revivals Indigenous religion of the ancient Greeks, c. 500 BCE to 400 CE. Olympic pantheon (Zeus, etc.) mixed with eastern deities like Isis and Cybele. Ancient Greek Gods Human life is subject to the whim of the gods and to Fate; these can be partially controlled through sacrifice and divination. Beliefs varied from no afterlife to shadowy existence in the underworld to a paradise-like afterlife (mainly in mystery religions). Animal sacrifice, harvest offerings, festivals, games, processions, dance, plays, in honor of the gods. Secret initiations and rituals in mystery religions. Greek religious practices Epic poems of Homer and Hesiod. Hare Krishna 250,000-1 million Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, 1966, USA (with roots in 15th-century Hindu movement) Krishna is the Supreme God. Salvation from this Age of Kali is by a return to Godhead, accomplished through Krishna-Consciousness. Reincarnation until unite with the Godhead. Chanting, dancing, evangelism, vegetarianism, temple worship, monastic-style living The Bhagavad-Gita As It Is Hinduism 1 billion Indigenous religion of India as developed to present day. Earliest forms (Vedic religion) date to 1500 BCE or earlier; major developments 1st-9th centuries CE. Hindu History One Supreme Reality (Brahman) manifested in many gods and goddesses Hindu Gods & Goddesses Humans are in bondage to ignorance and illusion, but are able to escape. Purpose is to gain release from rebirth, or at least a better rebirth. meaning of life (Hinduism) Reincarnation until gain enlightenment. Yoga, meditation, worship (puja), devotion to a god or goddess, pilgrimage to holy cities, live according to one's dharma (purpose/ role). Hindu Rituals & Practices Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana, etc. Hindu Sacred Texts Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Islam 1.6 billion Based on teachings of the Prophet Muhammad; founded 622 CE in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. History of Islam One God (Allah in Arabic); the same God revealed (imperfectly) in the Jewish and Christian Bibles Submit (islam) to the will of God to gain Paradise after death. eternal Paradise or eternal Hell Islamic Beliefs About the Afterlife Five Pillars: Faith, Prayer, Alms, Pilgrimage, Fasting. Mosque services on Fridays. Ablutions before prayer. No alcohol or pork. Holidays related to the pilgrimage and fast of Ramadan. Muslim rituals and practices Qur'an (sacred text); Hadith (tradition) Islamic sacred texts Jainism 4 million Founded by Mahavira, c. 550 BCE, eastern India History of Jainism Polytheism and pantheism. The universe is eternal; many gods exist. Gods, humans and all living things are classified in a complex hierarchy. Jain theism Gain liberation from cycle of rebirth, by avoiding all bad karma, especially by causing no harm to any sentient being. meaning of life (Jainism) Reincarnation until liberation. afterlife (Jainism) Monasticism under the Five Great Vows (Non-Violence, Truth, Celibacy, Non-Stealing, Non-Possessiveness); worship at temples and at home. Meditation and mantras. Jain practices The teachings of Mahavira in various collections. Jehovah's Witnesses 6.5 million Founded by Charles Taze Russell, 1879, Pittsburgh History of the Jehovah's Witnesses One God: Jehovah. No Trinity. Christ is the first creation of God; the Holy Spirit is a force. Salvation is through faith in Christ and obeying Jehovah's laws. The End of the World is soon. Heaven for 144,000 chosen Witnesses, eternity on new earth for other Witnesses. All others annihilated. No hell. No blood transfusions, no celebration of holidays, no use of crosses or religious images. Baptism, Sunday service at Kingdom Hall, strong emphasis on evangelism. Jehovah's Witnesses Practices New World Translation of the Scriptures Jehovah's Witnesses Sacred Texts Mayan Religion Several million Maya practice a Catholicism that retains many elements of traditional Mayan religion. Began c.250 CE (rise of the Mayan civilization) Many gods, including Itzamná, Kukulcán, Bolon Tzacab, and Chac Appease and nourish the gods; determine luckiest dates for various activities. The soul journeys through dark and threatening underworld; but sacrificial victims and women who die in childbirth go to heaven. Astronomy, divination, human sacrifice, elaborate burial for royalty, worship in stone pyramid-temples Dresden Codex; Madrid Codex; Paris Codex; Books of Chilam Balam; Popol Vuh; The Ritual of the Bacabs Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Mormonism 12.2 million Revelations to Joseph Smith, 1830, New York. Mormon History God the Father, the Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three separate individual beings Return to God by faith in Christ, good works, ordinances, and evangelism. All return to spirit world instruction before resurrection. Then Mormons to heaven with God and families; others rewarded apart from God; hell for those who still reject God. The Afterlife in Mormonism Abstinence from alcohol, tobacco, coffee and tea; baptism for the dead; eternal marriage; temple garments under daily clothes; active evangelism. Mormon Practices Christian Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price Mormon Texts Nation of Islam 10,000-100,000 Founded by Wallace Fard Muhammad, 1930, Detroit, USA. "One God whose proper name is Allah." Wallace Fard Muhammad became the divine messiah and incarnation of Allah in 1930. "The Blackman is the original man." Live righteously and worship Allah. Mental resurrection of the righteous. Black people will be mentally resurrected first. Prayer five times a day. Work for the equality of the African race. Respect laws of the land, don't carry arms, don't make war. Healthy living and abstinence from alcohol, smoking and substance abuse. Modest dress. Qur'an and "Scriptures of all the Prophets of God" are holy texts. Influential writings include Elijah Muhammad's Message to the Blackman in America (1965) New Age 5 million Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and Annie Besant in the 19th C, Alice A. Bailey (1880-1949), flourished in 1970s and 80s The Divine is an impersonal life force that pervades all things Dawning of a New Age of heightened consciousness and international peace. Individuals can obtain a foretaste of the New Age through spiritual transformation ("Ascension"). More emphasis on the latter now. Evil comes from ignorance. Reincarnation Astrology; mysticism; use of crystals; yoga; tarot readings; holistic medicine; psychic abilities; angelic communications; channeling; amulets; fortune-telling Works of a variety of New Age writers New Thought 160,000 Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (1802-66) and others, late 19th century, USA. Generally monism (all is One), but members might be theists, pantheists or panentheists. God is immanent; the universe is essentially spiritual. Man is divine, essentially spirit, and has infinite possibility. Mind can control the body. Sin and sickness caused by incorrect thinking. Man can live in oneness with God in love, truth, peace, health, and prosperity. "Life is eternal in the invisible kingdom of God." Emphasis on spiritual and mental healing, but without rejection of modern medicine. Worship services; prayer for the sick; discussion of New Thought authors and ideas. Writings of Quimby (such as the The Quimby Manuscripts) and other New Thought authors Olmec Religion extinct in original form Indigenous religion of the Olmecs, Guatemala and Mexico, c. 1500-400 BCE Mostly unknown due to lack of written records. Many gods represented in art, including the Olmec Dragon, Maize Deity, Bird Monster, and Were-Jaguar. unknown, but art indicates importance of fertility (rain, corn, etc.) unknown sacrifices, large sculptures of human heads, cave rituals, pilgrimages, ball-courts, pyramids none Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Rastafarianism 1 million Founded by Marcus Garvey in the slums of Jamaica in the 1920s and 30s History of Rastafarianism God is Jah, who became incarnate in Jesus (who was black); Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I was messiah. Humans are temples of Jah. Salvation is primarily in this world and consists of liberation from oppression and return to Africa. Some Rastas will experience "everliving" (physical immortality). Heaven is a return to Eden, which is in Africa. Many practices based on Jewish biblical Law. Abstinence from most or all meat, artificial foods, and alcohol. Use of marijuana in religious rituals and for medicine. Wearing of dreadlocks. Rastafarian Practices Holy Piby (the "Blackman's Bible"). The Ethiopian epic Kebra Negast also revered. Rastafarian Texts Satanism The Church of Satan was founded in 1966 by Anton LaVey Scientology 70,000 or several million, depending on the source Founded by L. Ron Hubbard, 1954, California History of Scientology God(s) not specified; reality explained in the Eight Dynamics Human consists of body, mind and thetan; capable of great things. Gain spiritual freedom by ridding mind of engrams. Reincarnation Auditing, progressing up various levels until "clear". Focus on education and drug recovery programs. Writings of Hubbard, such as Dianetics and Scientology Seventh-Day Adventism 25 million Rooted in Millerite movement; founded 1863 in New England; early leaders: Ellen White, Hiram Edson and Joseph Bates Trinitarian monotheism Live in accordance with the Bible, including the Old Testament. The Second Coming will happen soon. A "peaceful pause" after death until the coming of Christ, then resurrection to judgment, followed by eternity in heaven or nonexistence. No hell. 24-hour Sabbath observance starting Friday at sunset; adult baptism by immersion; church services emphasizing sermon Christian Bible; writings of Ellen G. White as helpful supplement Shinto 3-4 million Indigenous religion of Japan Shinto History kami: ancient gods or spirits Humans are pure by nature and can keep away evil through purification rituals and attain good things by calling on the kami. Death is bad and impure. Some humans become kami after death. Worship and offerings to kami at shrines and at home. Purification rituals. Shinto Practices Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters); Nihon-gi (Chronicles of Japan) Shinto Texts Adherents History Gods Meaning of Life Afterlife Practices Texts Sikhism 23 million Founded by Guru Nanak, c. 1500, Punjab, India. History of Sikhism one God: Ik Onkar Overcome the self, align life with will of God, and become a "saint soldier," fighting for good. Reincarnation until resolve karma and merge with God. Prayer and meditation on God's name, services at temple (g
question of values and what we want to value most: the current paradigm of money at all costs, or a new paradigm of our own making, a pluriverse where there is space for all worlds Deschoolers must continually look for the cracks in the education system, where they can plant the seeds for humanity to grow. Realigning with the truth of our interdependence brings vitality to our humanity as culture again begins to flourish. This is the role of learning in our collective healing of humanity—people with the freedom to learn—to coalesce as a family and engage in a life long journey of love, excitement, sadness and rebirth, reestablishing our relationships to each other and the world around us—the full breadth of our sacred humanity. Bibliography: Berry, W. (1990). What Are People For? New York: North Point Press. Gabbard, D. (1998). “Decolonizing Society” in Peace Review, March 1998. 10; 1: 107. Hooks, Bell. (2001) All about love: new visions. New York : Perennial. Illich, I. (1971). Deschooling Society. PDF retrieved from http://www.arvindguptatoys.com/arvindgupta/DESCHOOLING.pdf Kumashiro, K. “Towards a Theory of Anti-Oppressive Education” in Review of Educational Research, Spring, 2000. 70, 1, 25-53. Prakash & Esteva. (2007). Escaping Education: Living as learning within grassroots cultures. PDF retrieved from http://www.arvindguptatoys.com/arvindgupta/escapingeducation.pdf Underground Curriculum (2012). Retrieved from Underground Curriculum Website at https://sites.google.com/site/undergroundcurriculumSyzygy Syzygy 26/02/99-28/03/99, Beaconsfield Arts, London was a major project developed by 0rphan drift and the Cybernetic Culture Research Unit for Beaconsfield Arts London, and funded by the Arts Council of England. Avatars it has one eye with two pupils and one glassy eye that looks into itself. it is passing through, transforming the space it moves through (imagine earths crust forming), its touch makes sparks, its changes light, an unstable conducter, friction. Avatar Tools for Engineering Demon Convergence in a Space TWIN FOCUS : KATAK THE DESOLATOR NETSPAN[5<>4] TIME RELATION: time rider. passes on time. TRAVELS IN: lightening, electricity. thunder storms. Ritual 5 to 2 p r e s s u r e through s c h i z o to path of ruin exhaling insanity into 1 the I n v I s I b l e s through w e b m a k e r to path of breath into p h y s i c a l t e l e p a t h y through m a g n e t I c m u t a t I o n into t r i c k s t e r t o u c h. (the crypt) Meshed Katacomic Print Publication produced in conjunction with Syzygy, Beaconsfield Arts London, Thanks to the Arts Council of England. Video Although the Hybridised mix showcases the main avatar visuals, it was produced before the Syzygy event took place in order to be available for sale. The Katak and IIS excerpts here mix newer samples and filmed elements and reveal the depths of intensity achieved during the extended live mixes on the night. The other two excerpts give a tantalising glimpse of 0D Syzygy avatar nights. Hybridized This video mix was made to showcase the Syzygy avatars, and was for sale at Syzygy and thereafter. The audio tracks for each avatar were commissioned for Hybridized and were part of the DJ sets during the Syzygy performances. Some of this work has been remixed for CTM Berlin, 2013. Radius Suck Radius Suck was produced by TASK and 9(orphan)d>(rift)for SYZYGY, Beaconsfield Arts, London 1999. Nomo Nomo was released by the CCRU on the occasion of SYZYGY, Beaconsfield Arts, London 1999. CCRU and Abstract Culture Ccru- cybernetic culture research unit.But what if a deal between consenting adults imposes costs on people who are not part of the exchange? What if you manufacture a widget and I buy it, to our mutual benefit, but the process of producing that widget involves dumping toxic sludge into other people’s drinking water? When there are “negative externalities” — costs that economic actors impose on others without paying a price for their actions — any presumption that the market economy, left to its own devices, will do the right thing goes out the window. So what should we do? Environmental economics is all about answering that question. One way to deal with negative externalities is to make rules that prohibit or at least limit behavior that imposes especially high costs on others. That’s what we did in the first major wave of environmental legislation in the early 1970s: cars were required to meet emission standards for the chemicals that cause smog, factories were required to limit the volume of effluent they dumped into waterways and so on. And this approach yielded results; America’s air and water became a lot cleaner in the decades that followed. But while the direct regulation of activities that cause pollution makes sense in some cases, it is seriously defective in others, because it does not offer any scope for flexibility and creativity. Consider the biggest environmental issue of the 1980s — acid rain. Emissions of sulfur dioxide from power plants, it turned out, tend to combine with water downwind and produce flora- and wildlife-destroying sulfuric acid. In 1977, the government made its first stab at confronting the issue, recommending that all new coal-fired plants have scrubbers to remove sulfur dioxide from their emissions. Imposing a tough standard on all plants was problematic, because retrofitting some older plants would have been extremely expensive. By regulating only new plants, however, the government passed up the opportunity to achieve fairly cheap pollution control at plants that were, in fact, easy to retrofit. Short of a de facto federal takeover of the power industry, with federal officials issuing specific instructions to each plant, how was this conundrum to be resolved? Enter Arthur Cecil Pigou, an early-20th-century British don, whose 1920 book, “The Economics of Welfare,” is generally regarded as the ur-text of environmental economics. Somewhat surprisingly, given his current status as a godfather of economically sophisticated environmentalism, Pigou didn’t actually stress the problem of pollution. Rather than focusing on, say, London ’s famous fog (actually acrid smog, caused by millions of coal fires), he opened his discussion with an example that must have seemed twee even in 1920, a hypothetical case in which “the game-preserving activities of one occupier involve the overrunning of a neighboring occupier’s land by rabbits.” But never mind. What Pigou enunciated was a principle: economic activities that impose unrequited costs on other people should not always be banned, but they should be discouraged. And the right way to curb an activity, in most cases, is to put a price on it. So Pigou proposed that people who generate negative externalities should have to pay a fee reflecting the costs they impose on others — what has come to be known as a Pigovian tax. The simplest version of a Pigovian tax is an effluent fee: anyone who dumps pollutants into a river, or emits them into the air, must pay a sum proportional to the amount dumped. Pigou’s analysis lay mostly fallow for almost half a century, as economists spent their time grappling with issues that seemed more pressing, like the Great Depression. But with the rise of environmental regulation, economists dusted off Pigou and began pressing for a “market-based” approach that gives the private sector an incentive, via prices, to limit pollution, as opposed to a “command and control” fix that issues specific instructions in the form of regulations. The initial reaction by many environmental activists to this idea was hostile, largely on moral grounds. Pollution, they felt, should be treated like a crime rather than something you have the right to do as long as you pay enough money. Moral concerns aside, there was also considerable skepticism about whether market incentives would actually be successful in reducing pollution. Even today, Pigovian taxes as originally envisaged are relatively rare. The most successful example I’ve been able to find is a Dutch tax on discharges of water containing organic materials. Photo What has caught on instead is a variant that most economists consider more or less equivalent: a system of tradable emissions permits, a k a cap and trade. In this model, a limited number of licenses to emit a specified pollutant, like sulfur dioxide, are issued. A business that wants to create more pollution than it is licensed for can go out and buy additional licenses from other parties; a firm that has more licenses than it intends to use can sell its surplus. This gives everyone an incentive to reduce pollution, because buyers would not have to acquire as many licenses if they can cut back on their emissions, and sellers can unload more licenses if they do the same. In fact, economically, a cap-and-trade system produces the same incentives to reduce pollution as a Pigovian tax, with the price of licenses effectively serving as a tax on pollution. Advertisement Continue reading the main story In practice there are a couple of important differences between cap and trade and a pollution tax. One is that the two systems produce different types of uncertainty. If the government imposes a pollution tax, polluters know what price they will have to pay, but the government does not know how much pollution they will generate. If the government imposes a cap, it knows the amount of pollution, but polluters do not know what the price of emissions will be. Another important difference has to do with government revenue. A pollution tax is, well, a tax, which imposes costs on the private sector while generating revenue for the government. Cap and trade is a bit more complicated. If the government simply auctions off licenses and collects the revenue, then it is just like a tax. Cap and trade, however, often involves handing out licenses to existing players, so the potential revenue goes to industry instead of the government. Politically speaking, doling out licenses to industry isn’t entirely bad, because it offers a way to partly compensate some of the groups whose interests would suffer if a serious climate-change policy were adopted. This can make passing legislation more feasible. These political considerations probably explain why the solution to the acid-rain predicament took the form of cap and trade and why licenses to pollute were distributed free to power companies. It’s also worth noting that the Waxman-Markey bill, a cap-and-trade setup for greenhouse gases that starts by giving out many licenses to industry but puts up a growing number for auction in later years, was actually passed by the House of Representatives last year; it’s hard to imagine a broad-based emissions tax doing the same for many years. That’s not to say that emission taxes are a complete nonstarter. Some senators have recently floated a proposal for a sort of hybrid solution, with cap and trade for some parts of the economy and carbon taxes for others — mainly oil and gas. The political logic seems to be that the oil industry thinks consumers won’t blame it for higher gas prices if those prices reflect an explicit tax. In any case, experience suggests that market-based emission controls work. Our recent history with acid rain shows as much. The Clean Air Act of 1990 introduced a cap-and-trade system in which power plants could buy and sell the right to emit sulfur dioxide, leaving it up to individual companies to manage their own business within the new limits. Sure enough, over time sulfur-dioxide emissions from power plants were cut almost in half, at a much lower cost than even optimists expected; electricity prices fell instead of rising. Acid rain did not disappear as a problem, but it was significantly mitigated. The results, it would seem, demonstrated that we can deal with environmental problems when we have to. So there we have it, right? The emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases is a classic negative externality — the “biggest market failure the world has ever seen,” in the words of Nicholas Stern, the author of a report on the subject for the British government. Textbook economics and real-world experience tell us that we should have policies to discourage activities that generate negative externalities and that it is generally best to rely on a market-based approach. Climate of Doubt? This is an article on climate economics, not climate science. But before we get to the economics, it’s worth establishing three things about the state of the scientific debate. Advertisement Continue reading the main story The first is that the planet is indeed warming. Weather fluctuates, and as a consequence it’s easy enough to point to an unusually warm year in the recent past, note that it’s cooler now and claim, “See, the planet is getting cooler, not warmer!” But if you look at the evidence the right way ­— taking averages over periods long enough to smooth out the fluctuations — the upward trend is unmistakable: each successive decade since the 1970s has been warmer than the one before. Second, climate models predicted this well in advance, even getting the magnitude of the temperature rise roughly right. While it’s relatively easy to cook up an analysis that matches known data, it is much harder to create a model that accurately forecasts the future. So the fact that climate modelers more than 20 years ago successfully predicted the subsequent global warming gives them enormous credibility. Yet that’s not the conclusion you might draw from the many media reports that have focused on matters like hacked e-mail and climate scientists’ talking about a “trick” to “hide” an anomalous decline in one data series or expressing their wish to see papers by climate skeptics kept out of research reviews. The truth, however, is that the supposed scandals evaporate on closer examination, revealing only that climate researchers are human beings, too. Yes, scientists try to make their results stand out, but no data were suppressed. Yes, scientists dislike it when work that they think deliberately obfuscates the issues gets published. What else is new? Nothing suggests that there should not continue to be strong support for climate research. And this brings me to my third point: models based on this research indicate that if we continue adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere as we have, we will eventually face drastic changes in the climate. Let’s be clear. We’re not talking about a few more hot days in the summer and a bit less snow in the winter; we’re talking about massively disruptive events, like the transformation of the Southwestern United States into a permanent dust bowl over the next few decades. Now, despite the high credibility of climate modelers, there is still tremendous uncertainty in their long-term forecasts. But as we will see shortly, uncertainty makes the case for action stronger, not weaker. So climate change demands action. Is a cap-and-trade program along the lines of the model used to reduce sulfur dioxide the right way to go? Photo Serious opposition to cap and trade generally comes in two forms: an argument that more direct action — in particular, a ban on coal-fired power plants — would be more effective and an argument that an emissions tax would be better than emissions trading. (Let’s leave aside those who dismiss climate science altogether and oppose any limits on greenhouse-gas emissions, as well as those who oppose the use of any kind of market-based remedy.) There’s something to each of these positions, just not as much as their proponents think. When it comes to direct action, you can make the case that economists love markets not wisely but too well, that they are too ready to assume that changing people’s financial incentives fixes every problem. In particular, you can’t put a price on something unless you can measure it accurately, and that can be both difficult and expensive. So sometimes it’s better simply to lay down some basic rules about what people can and cannot do. Consider auto emissions, for example. Could we or should we charge each car owner a fee proportional to the emissions from his or her tailpipe? Surely not. You would have to install expensive monitoring equipment on every car, and you would also have to worry about fraud. It’s almost certainly better to do what we actually do, which is impose emissions standards on all cars. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Is there a comparable argument to be made for greenhouse-gas emissions? My initial reaction, which I suspect most economists would share, is that the very scale and complexity of the situation requires a market-based solution, whether cap and trade or an emissions tax. After all, greenhouse gases are a direct or indirect byproduct of almost everything produced in a modern economy, from the houses we live in to the cars we drive. Reducing emissions of those gases will require getting people to change their behavior in many different ways, some of them impossible to identify until we have a much better grasp of green technology. So can we really make meaningful progress by telling people specifically what will or will not be permitted? Econ 101 tells us — probably correctly — that the only way to get people to change their behavior appropriately is to put a price on emissions so this cost in turn gets incorporated into everything else in a way that reflects ultimate environmental impacts. When shoppers go to the grocery store, for example, they will find that fruits and vegetables from farther away have higher prices than local produce, reflecting in part the cost of emission licenses or taxes paid to ship that produce. When businesses decide how much to spend on insulation, they will take into account the costs of heating and air-conditioning that include the price of emissions licenses or taxes for electricity generation. When electric utilities have to choose among energy sources, they will have to take into account the higher license fees or taxes associated with fossil-fuel consumption. And so on down the line. A market-based system would create decentralized incentives to do the right thing, and that’s the only way it can be done. That said, some specific rules may be required. James Hansen, the renowned climate scientist who deserves much of the credit for making global warming an issue in the first place, has argued forcefully that most of the climate-change problem comes down to just one thing, burning coal, and that whatever else we do, we have to shut down coal burning over the next couple decades. My economist’s reaction is that a stiff license fee would strongly discourage coal use anyway. But a market-based system might turn out to have loopholes — and their consequences could be dire. So I would advocate supplementing market-based disincentives with direct controls on coal burning. What about the case for an emissions tax rather than cap and trade? There’s no question that a straightforward tax would have many advantages over legislation like Waxman-Markey, which is full of exceptions and special situations. But that’s not really a useful comparison: of course an idealized emissions tax looks better than a cap-and-trade system that has already passed the House with all its attendant compromises. The question is whether the emissions tax that could actually be put in place is better than cap and trade. There is no reason to believe that it would be — indeed, there is no reason to believe that a broad-based emissions tax would make it through Congress. To be fair, Hansen has made an interesting moral argument against cap and trade, one that’s much more sophisticated than the old view that it’s wrong to let polluters buy the right to pollute. What Hansen draws attention to is the fact that in a cap-and-trade world, acts of individual virtue do not contribute to social goals. If you choose to drive a hybrid car or buy a house with a small carbon footprint, all you are doing is freeing up emissions permits for someone else, which means that you have done nothing to reduce the threat of climate change. He has a point. But altruism cannot effectively deal with climate change. Any serious solution must rely mainly on creating a system that gives everyone a self-interested reason to produce fewer emissions. It’s a shame, but climate altruism must take a back seat to the task of getting such a system in place. The bottom line, then, is that while climate change may be a vastly bigger problem than acid rain, the logic of how to respond to it is much the same. What we need are market incentives for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions — along with some direct controls over coal use — and cap and trade is a reasonable way to create those incentives. But can we afford to do that? Equally important, can we afford not to? The Cost of Action Just as there is a rough consensus among climate modelers about the likely trajectory of temperatures if we do not act to cut the emissions of greenhouse gases, there is a rough consensus among economic modelers about the costs of action. That general opinion may be summed up as follows: Restricting emissions would slow economic growth — but not by much. The Congressional Budget Office, relying on a survey of models, has concluded that Waxman-Markey “would reduce the projected average annual rate of growth of gross domestic product between 2010 and 2050 by 0.03 to 0.09 percentage points.” That is, it would trim average annual growth to 2.31 percent, at worst, from 2.4 percent. Over all, the Budget Office concludes, strong climate-change policy would leave the American economy between 1.1 percent and 3.4 percent smaller in 2050 than it would be otherwise. And what about the world economy? In general, modelers tend to find that climate-change policies would lower global output by a somewhat smaller percentage than the comparable figures for the United States. The main reason is that emerging economies like China currently use energy fairly inefficiently, partly as a result of national policies that have kept the prices of fossil fuels very low, and could thus achieve large energy savings at a modest cost. One recent review of the available estimates put the costs of a very strong climate policy — substantially more aggressive than contemplated in current legislative proposals — at between 1 and 3 percent of gross world product. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Such figures typically come from a model that combines all sorts of engineering and marketplace estimates. These will include, for instance, engineers’ best calculations of how much it costs to generate electricity in various ways, from coal, gas and nuclear and solar power at given resource prices. Then estimates will be made, based on historical experience, of how much consumers would cut back their electricity consumption if its price rises. The same process is followed for other kinds of energy, like motor fuel. And the model assumes that everyone makes the best choice given the economic environment — that power generators choose the least expensive means of producing electricity, while consumers conserve energy as long as the money saved by buying less electricity exceeds the cost of using less power in the form either of other spending or loss of convenience. After all this analysis, it’s possible to predict how producers and consumers of energy will react to policies that put a price on emissions and how much those reactions will end up costing the economy as a whole. There are, of course, a number of ways this kind of modeling could be wrong. Many of the underlying estimates are necessarily somewhat speculative; nobody really knows, for instance, what solar power will cost once it finally becomes a large-scale proposition. There is also reason to doubt the assumption that people actually make the right choices: many studies have found that consumers fail to take measures to conserve energy, like improving insulation, even when they could save money by doing so. Photo But while it’s unlikely that these models get everything right, it’s a good bet that they overstate rather than understate the economic costs of climate-change action. That is what the experience from the cap-and-trade program for acid rain suggests: costs came in well below initial predictions. And in general, what the models do not and cannot take into account is creativity; surely, faced with an economy in which there are big monetary payoffs for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, the private sector will come up with ways to limit emissions that are not yet in any model. What you hear from conservative opponents of a climate-change policy, however, is that any attempt to limit emissions would be economically devastating. The Heritage Foundation, for one, responded to Budget Office estimates on Waxman-Markey with a broadside titled, “C.B.O. Grossly Underestimates Costs of Cap and Trade.” The real effects, the foundation said, would be ruinous for families and job creation. This reaction — this extreme pessimism about the economy’s ability to live with cap and trade — is very much at odds with typical conservative rhetoric. After all, modern conservatives express a deep, almost mystical confidence in the effectiveness of market incentives — Ronald Reagan liked to talk about the “magic of the marketplace.” They believe that the capitalist system can deal with all kinds of limitations, that technology, say, can easily overcome any constraints on growth posed by limited reserves of oil or other natural resources. And yet now they submit that this same private sector is utterly incapable of coping with a limit on overall emissions, even though such a cap would, from the private sector’s point of view, operate very much like a limited supply of a resource, like land. Why don’t they believe that the dynamism of capitalism will spur it to find ways to make do in a world of reduced carbon emissions? Why do they think the marketplace loses its magic as soon as market incentives are invoked in favor of conservation? Newsletter Sign Up Continue reading the main story Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up You will receive emails containing news content, updates and promotions from The New York Times. You may opt-out at any time. You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. Thank you for subscribing. An error has occurred. Please try again later. View all New York Times newsletters. Clearly, conservatives abandon all faith in the ability of markets to cope with climate-change policy because they don’t want government intervention. Their stated pessimism about the cost of climate policy is essentially a political ploy rather than a reasoned economic judgment. The giveaway is the strong tendency of conservative opponents of cap and trade to argue in bad faith. That Heritage Foundation broadside accuses the Congressional Budget Office of making elementary logical errors, but if you actually read the office’s report, it’s clear that the foundation is willfully misreading it. Conservative politicians have been even more shameless. The National Republican Congressional Committee, for example, issued multiple press releases specifically citing a study from M.I.T. as the basis for a claim that cap and trade would cost $3,100 per household, despite repeated attempts by the study’s authors to get out the word that the actual number was only about a quarter as much. The truth is that there is no credible research suggesting that taking strong action on climate change is beyond the economy’s capacity. Even if you do not fully trust the models — and you shouldn’t — history and logic both suggest that the models are overestimating, not underestimating, the costs of climate action. We can afford to do something about climate change. But that’s not the same as saying we should. Action will have costs, and these must be compared with the costs of not acting. Before I get to that, however, let me touch on an issue that will become central if we actually do get moving on climate policy: how to get the rest of the world to go along with us. The China Syndrome The United States is still the world’s largest economy, which makes the country one of the world’s largest sources of greenhouse gases. But it’s not the largest. China, which burns much more coal per dollar of gross domestic product than the United States does, overtook us by that measure around three years ago. Over all, the advanced countries — the rich man’s club comprising Europe, North America and Japan — account for only about half of greenhouse emissions, and that’s a fraction that will fall over time. In short, there can’t be a solution to climate change unless the rest of the world, emerging economies in particular, participates in a major way. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Inevitably those who resist tackling climate change point to the global nature of emissions as a reason not to act. Emissions limits in America won’t accomplish much, they argue, if China and others don’t match our effort. And they highlight China’s obduracy in the Copenhagen negotiations as evidence that other countries will not cooperate. Indeed, emerging economies feel that they have a right to emit freely without worrying about the consequences — that’s what today’s rich countries got to do for two centuries. It’s just not possible to get global cooperation on climate change, goes the argument, and that means there is no point in taking any action at all. For those who think that taking action is essential, the right question is how to persuade China and other emerging nations to participate in emissions limits. Carrots, or positive inducements, are one answer. Imagine setting up cap-and-trade systems in China and the United States — but allow international trading in permits, so Chinese and American companies can trade emission rights. By setting overall caps at levels designed to ensure that China sells us a substantial number of permits, we would in effect be paying China to cut its emissions. Since the evidence suggests that the cost of cutting emissions would be lower in China than in the United States, this could be a good deal for everyone. But what if the Chinese (or the Indians or the Brazilians, etc.) do not want to participate in such a system? Then you need sticks as well as carrots. In particular, you need carbon tariffs. A carbon tariff would be a tax levied on imported goods proportional to the carbon emitted in the manufacture of those goods. Suppose that China refuses to reduce emissions, while the United States adopts policies that set a price of $100 per ton of carbon emissions. If the United States were to impose such a carbon tariff, any shipment to America of Chinese goods whose production involved emitting a ton of carbon would result in a $100 tax over and above any other duties. Such tariffs, if levied by major players — probably the United States and the European Union — would give noncooperating countries a strong incentive to reconsider their positions. To the objection that such a policy would be protectionist, a violation of the principles of free trade, one reply is, So? Keeping world markets open is important, but avoiding planetary catastrophe is a lot more important. In any case, however, you can argue that carbon tariffs are well within the rules of normal trade relations. As long as the tariff imposed on the carbon content of imports is comparable to the cost of domestic carbon licenses, the effect is to charge your own consumers a price that reflects the carbon emitted in what they buy, no matter where it is produced. That should be legal under international-trading rules. In fact, even the World Trade Organization, which is charged with policing trade policies, has published a study suggesting that carbon tariffs would pass muster. Needless to say, the actual business of getting cooperative, worldwide action on climate change would be much more complicated and tendentious than this discussion suggests. Yet the problem is not as intractable as you often hear. If the United States and Europe decide to move on climate policy, they almost certainly would be able to cajole and chivvy the rest of the world into joining the effort. We can do this. Photo The Costs of Inaction In public discussion, the climate-change skeptics have clearly been gaining ground over the past couple of years, even though the odds have been looking good lately that 2010 could be the warmest year on record. But climate modelers themselves have grown increasingly pessimistic. What were previously worst-case scenarios have become base-line projections, with a number of organizations doubling their predictions for temperature rise over the course of the 21st century. Underlying this new pessimism is increased concern about feedback effects — for example, the release of methane, a significant greenhouse gas, from seabeds and tundra as the planet warms. At this point, the projections of climate change, assuming we continue business as usual, cluster around an estimate that average temperatures will be about 9 degrees Fahrenheit higher in 2100 than they were in 2000. That’s a lot — equivalent to the difference in average temperatures between New York and central Mississippi. Such a huge change would have to be highly disruptive. And the troubles would not stop there: temperatures would continue to rise. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Furthermore, changes in average temperature will by no means be the whole story. Precipitation patterns will change, with some regions getting much wetter and others much drier. Many modelers also predict more intense storms. Sea levels would rise, with the impact intensified by those storms: coastal flooding, already a major source of natural disasters, would become much more frequent and severe. And there might be drastic changes in the climate of some regions as ocean currents shift. It’s always worth bearing in mind that London is at the same latitude as Labrador; without the Gulf Stream, Western Europe would be barely habitable. While there may be some benefits from a warmer climate, it seems almost certain that upheaval on this scale would make the United States, and the world as a whole, poorer than it would be otherwise. How much poorer? If ours were a preindustrial, primarily agricultural society, extreme climate change would be obviously catastrophic. But we have an advanced economy, the kind that has historically shown great ability to adapt to changed circumstances. If this sounds similar to my argument that the costs of emissions limits would be tolerable, it ought to: the same flexibility that should enable us to deal with a much higher carbon prices should also help us cope with a somewhat higher average temperature. But there are at least two reasons to take sanguine assessments of the consequences of climate change with a grain of salt. One is that, as I have just pointed out, it’s not just a matter of having warmer weather — many of the costs of climate change are likely to result from droughts, flooding and severe storms. The other is that while modern economies may be highly adaptable, the same may not be true of ecosystems. The last time the earth experienced warming at anything like the pace we now expect was during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, about 55 million years ago, when temperatures rose by about 11 degrees Fahrenheit over the course of around 20,000 years (which is a much slower rate than the current pace of warming). That increase was associated with mass extinctions, which, to put it mildly, probably would not be good for living standards. So how can we put a price tag on the effects of global warming? The most widely quoted estimates, like those in the Dynamic Integrated Model of Climate and the Economy, known as DICE, used by Yale’s William Nordhaus and colleagues, depend upon educated guesswork to place a value on the negative effects of global warming in a number of crucial areas, especially agriculture and coastal protection, then try to make some allowance for other possible repercussions. Nordhaus has argued that a global temperature rise of 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit — which used to be the consensus projection for 2100 — would reduce gross world product by a bit less than 2 percent. But what would happen if, as a growing number of models suggest, the actual temperature rise is twice as great? Nobody really knows how to make that extrapolation. For what it’s worth, Nordhaus’s model puts losses from a rise of 9 degrees at about 5 percent of gross world product. Many critics have argued, however, that the cost might be much higher. Despite the uncertainty, it’s tempting to make a direct comparison between the estimated losses and the estimates of what the mitigation policies will cost: climate change will lower gross world product by 5 percent, stopping it will cost 2 percent, so let’s go ahead. Unfortunately the reckoning is not that simple for at least four reasons. First, substantial global warming is already “baked in,” as a result of past emissions and because even with a strong climate-change policy the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is most likely to continue rising for many years. So even if the nations of the world do manage to take on climate change, we will still have to pay for earlier inaction. As a result, Nordhaus’s loss estimates may overstate the gains from action. Second, the economic costs from emissions limits would start as soon as the policy went into effect and under most proposals would become substantial within around 20 years. If we don’t act, meanwhile, the big costs would probably come late this century (although some things, like the transformation of the American Southwest into a dust bowl, might come much sooner). So how you compare those costs depends on how much you value costs in the distant future relative to costs that materialize much sooner. Third, and cutting in the opposite direction, if we don’t take action, global warming won’t stop in 2100: temperatures, and losses, will continue to rise. So if you place a significant weight on the really, really distant future, the case for action is stronger than even the 2100 estimates suggest. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Finally and most important is the matter of uncertainty. We’re uncertain about the magnitude of climate change, which is inevitable, because we’re talking about reaching levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere not seen in millions of years. The recent doubling of many modelers’ predictions for 2100 is itself an illustration of the scope of that uncertainty; who knows what revisions may occur in the years ahead. Beyond that, nobody really knows how much damage would result from temperature rises of the kind now considered likely. You might think that this uncertainty weakens the case for action, but it actually strengthens it. As Harvard ’s Martin Weitzman has argued in several influential papers, if there is a significant chance of utter catastrophe, that chance — rather than what is most likely to happen — should dominate cost-benefit calculations. And utter catastrophe does look like a realistic possibility, even if it is not the most likely outcome. Weitzman argues — and I agree — that this risk of catastrophe, rather than the details of cost-benefit calculations, makes the most powerful case for strong climate policy. Current projections of global warming in the absence of action are just too close to the kinds of numbers associated with doomsday scenarios. It would be irresponsible — it’s tempting to say criminally irresponsible — not to step back from what could all too easily turn out to be the edge of a cliff. Photo Still that leaves a big debate about the pace of action. The Ramp Versus the Big Bang Economists who analyze climate policies agree on some key issues. There is a broad consensus that we need to put a price on carbon emissions, that this price must eventually be very high but that the negative economic effects from this policy will be of manageable size. In other words, we can and should act to limit climate change. But there is a ferocious debate among knowledgeable analysts about timing, about how fast carbon prices should rise to significant levels. On one side are economists who have been working for many years on so-called integrated-assessment models, which combine models of climate change with models of both the damage from global warming and the costs of cutting
An all-new event will be arriving next week, Empire Assault! This new event is meant to be very challenging but has great rewards for those that can best it. Below are all the details for this battle against the Empire:: June 2ndThis new type of event is meant to be challenging and is tuned for level 80 players.Structure of Event:The development team is working very hard more brand new content for all of you, but they are also working on addressing some concerns that have been in the community.Have a great weekend everyone and remember, the Omega Battles will be back again this weekend, so be sure to take part in them for credits and ability materials!Michael Moore plans to try to “bring down” President Donald Trump via a Broadway show. On Monday, The New York Times reported that the 62-year-old filmmaker has announced plans to create a one-man show called “The Terms of My Surrender” to run “eight times a week, for 12 weeks,” with the purpose of attempting to take down the president. (RELATED: Michael Moore Calls On Democrats To ‘Declare A National Emergency’ Over Trump) “Can a Broadway show bring down a sitting president,” a poster from Moore’s production read. (RELATED: Michael Moore Calls On Americans To ‘Disrupt’ Trump’s Inauguration) Michael Moore (@MMFlint) unveils Trump-skewering Broadway play, including post-show excursions to Trump Tower https://t.co/IyINlNE7FT pic.twitter.com/zYSZVUzpUZ — Ashley Lee (@cashleelee) May 1, 2017 “It’s a humorous play about a country that’s just elected a madman — I mean, there’s really no other way to put it,” Moore explained about the production. “Can something like this unravel an unhinged man,” he added. “I think that discombobulation might be our most effective path to undoing his presidency.” Moore said the plan is not to make a stand-up comedy show or TED Talk, but a show based off what’s happening in the news and “a piece of entertainment for people who like to think.” “I think people will find themselves laughing one minute and wanting to go look for some pitchforks and torches the next,” Moore said. The filmmaker has been very outspoken against Trump His last few attempts to “take down Trump” include: encouraging people to “disrupt” his inauguration, demanding Democrats “declare a National Emergency” over alleged ties between Trump campaign and Russia, and launching a website with the sole purpose of getting Trump removed from office.Man of Steel received its fair share of criticism, however, director Zack Snyder believes any criticism about how Superman was portrayed is coming from those that aren't familiar with the source material. “People are always like, ‘You changed Superman’,” Snyder told the Hall of Justice podcast. “If you’re a comic book fan, you know that I didn’t change Superman. If you know the true canon, you know that I didn’t change Superman. If you’re a fan of the old movies, yeah I changed him a bit. That's the difference. I'm a bit of a comic book fan and I always default to the true canon. Not the cinematic canon that sort of, that in my opinion, plays fast and loose with the rules. And so, I feel like I tried to create a Superman that would set a tone for the world.” Listen to Snyder comments, starting at the 6-minute mark, in the audio player below. In Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, fearing the actions of a god-like Super Hero left unchecked, Gotham City’s own formidable, forceful vigilante takes on Metropolis’s most revered, modern-day savior, while the world wrestles with what sort of hero it really needs. And with Batman and Superman at war with one another, a new threat quickly arises, putting mankind in greater danger than it’s ever known before.More than 140 injured after groups of men with knives attack demonstrators heading for military headquarters Thousands of protesters trying to march to the headquarters of Egypt's military rulers have been attacked by groups of men wielding knives and sticks, triggering street clashes that have left more than 100 people injured. An estimated 10,000 people set out from Tahrir Square in Cairo, but were stopped from reaching the military headquarters in the eastern Abbasiya neighbourhood by army barricades. Security forces also used teargas to disperse protesters. Saturday's clashes came as tensions mount between the military council that took control of the country after a popular uprising forced President Hosni Mubarak from office and activists who want them to move faster in bringing former regime officials to justice and setting a date for the transition to civilian rule. The military has appeared impatient with the pressure, accusing activists of treason, warning protesters against "harming national interests" and calling on "honourable" Egyptians to confront actions that disrupt a return to normal life. The march coincided with the anniversary of the 1952 military coup that toppled the Egyptian monarchy and brought a series of military leaders to office. Bands of men armed with knives and sticks set upon marchers from side roads and in front of the barricades, triggering street battles. Gunfire was heard, but it was unclear who was shooting. Some firebombs were thrown. The identity of the attackers could not immediately be determined. Similar groups of men have tried to break up other rallies, and Mubarak's regime often used hired civilians to attack protesters. Some witnesses said they might have been residents or shopkeepers angry at the loss of business as a result of the protests. Others said local residents threw water bottles to the protesters and helped them reach safety. At one point, a man perched over a female protester, squeezing her against the wall where she was taking cover from the flying rocks. The man cursed her and accused her of being hired to cause chaos, shouting: "Damn your revolution!" An Associated Press reporter saw a firebomb flying from inside a garden in a side street, landing at a distance from the protesters. The attackers then charged toward the protesters and accused them of throwing the flaming bottle. "We are extremely angry. These are Egyptians beating us," said Selma Abou el-Dahab, one of the marchers. A medical official, who did not want to be named, said more than 140 people were taken to hospital with wounds from thrown rocks and falling in the stampede. The violence broke out following a televised speech commemorating the 1952 coup by Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, head of the ruling military council, who attempted to diffuse tensions by praising young people who led the uprising that toppled Mubarak. Many protesters have grown distrustful of the military rulers who assumed control of the country on 11 February. A few hundred have been camped out in Tahrir Square since 8 July to pressure the military into bringing those accused of killing nearly 900 protesters during the 18-day uprising to trial. So far, only one low-ranking policeman has been charged in absentia for killing protesters. Saturday's march was the second consecutive day that protesters tried to reach the headquarters of Egypt's supreme council of the armed forces. On Friday, crowds tried to reach the building to denounce alleged beatings of demonstrators by military forces during another rally in the city of Alexandria. Tantawi appealed for national unity and called the youth activists "a great product of Egyptian soil". The military council has promised to hand over power to an elected civilian government within six months. Parliamentary elections are set for October or November, followed by presidential elections, likely next year.It’s just a nice and pleasant night in the state of Florida so the SRSLYcasual guys prep the mics to spit some fiiiiiiire. Fire that takes the form of 1.5 hours of comical podcasting. Winston, after being galvanized by a previous ep. of SRSLYcasual, went to Disney World with his girlfriend and retells his time there and why he’s in love with it. Mark pulls out all the stops and asks the guys what their crazy ex stories are. Xian dares the group to go deep and contemplates Universal Basic Income. David then ends the show off talking about everyone’s personal contradictions. No fluff, just that gooooooood shit. TUNE IN and participate in our Utter Nonesense give-awawy! Details on social media! Hosted by the personal contradiction himself, David the Day Topics / Minutes 00:00 Intro / Hosts’ Warm Up Intro / Hosts’ Warm Up 00:00 Winston’s Disney Trip Winston’s Disney Trip 00:00 Crazy Exes Crazy Exes 00:00 Real Recognizing Real: UnAired! Real Recognizing Real: UnAired! 00:00 Universal Basic Income Universal Basic Income 00:00 Personal Contradictions Links & Mentions Check out the UnAired! Podcast SUBSCRIBE TO THE SHOW ON iTUNES AND GOOGLEPLAY! GREAT THINGS HAPPEN TO PEOPLE WHO DO! Studies show a 78% improvement in life* after subbing. Call our voicemail line! Leave a message and get a shout out on the show! 501-SRSLY01 (501-777-5901) Cast Twitters @davidtheday @WinstonRTR @xianricca @Macwing86 Remember to follow the show on Twitter @SrslyCasualCast and visit SrslyCasual.com for more content! *Based on my own knowledge, sucka’U21 Premier League Division 2 West Bromwich Albion 3 (Fitzwater 18, A. Nabi 61, 66 (pen)) Arsenal 0 Arsenal U21s saw their already slim hopes of securing promotion to the top tier of second-string football dissipate this afternoon as the young Gunners sunk to their fourth defeat in succession away to West Bromwich Albion. Coach Steve Gatting made just two alterations from the team that lost to Aston Villa on Friday, with Matt Macey replacing Deyan Iliev in goal and Krystian Bielik returning from injury to partner Glen Kamara in the absence of Ainsley Maitland-Niles. Macey Pleguezuelo-O’Connor-Dobson-Ormonde Ottewill Kamara-Bielik Iwobi-Crowley-Zelalem Mavididi Subs: Robinson (for Kamara, 64), Eyoma (for Pleguezuelo, 81). Not used: Iliev, Smith, M. Bola. Exactly eight months ago an Arsenal U21 side containing players such as Hector Bellerin, Francis Coquelin, Abou Diaby and Joel Campbell had beaten West Brom 4-2 at Emirates Stadium, but this was a considerably less experienced Gunners’ side and they struggled defensively throughout against the hosts’ intelligent attackers. Adil Nabi would go on to score two goals in the second half and he provided an early indication of his threat when he darted into the penalty area before shooting just wide. Arsenal attempted to respond, but they struggled to find fluency in their attacking movements. On one occasion George Dobson, who has established himself as something of a regular in the team in recent weeks, did well to find Kamara, but the midfielder’s cross just eluded the waiting Alex Iwobi. West Brom, when presented with the opportunity to attack, were much more ruthless in terms of getting attempts on target and, from their next set-piece, they scored, with centre-back Jack Fitzwater heading home from a corner. Arsenal did at least manage to create a couple of openings of note before the break. Dan Crowley, who scored a memorable free-kick in the reverse fixture between these sides earlier in the season, received the ball from Bielik before shooting over, with Iwobi then marauding forwards down the right flank to find Stephy Mavididi, whose usual clinical nature in front of goal deserted him on this occasion. West Brom had the final chance of the first-half, with Joe Ward shooting over and The Baggies proceeded to dominate throughout the second period. The pressure on the Arsenal defence was relentless and, for the most part, they struggled to cope. Adam Campbell forced a good save from Macey, with Nabi shooting wide shortly afterwards. There was a brief period of respite for Arsenal, with Bielik shooting over, but normal service was soon resumed as Nabi doubled West Brom’s advantage by finishing adroitly after he was located by Campbell’s pass. Nabi was celebrating again just five minutes later, with his penalty putting West Brom three goals to the good and, in turn, inflicting further misery on the Arsenal defenders, who have conceded nine goals in their last three games. Nabi was prevented from scoring a hat-trick by an impressive save from Macey, but, although Gedion Zelalem and Crowley both tried their luck for Arsenal in the closing stages, neither could find the net on what was another disappointing day all round. The defeat was frustrating but the wider repercussions of this and other setbacks will be felt next season when Arsenal’s youngsters will again take their place in the second tier of U21 football, thus depriving them of the opportunity to play against the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool. AdvertisementsAt 12 years old, John Truel already co-owns the cupcake shop Cupcakes on 8th in Marshfield with his mom. It opened up in March and he's catching the attention of the community for a positive reason, celebrating his abilities, like making cupcakes. So, while John Truel has Down Syndrome, it hasn't stopped him from serving up delicious treats. "I want him to run this shop all by himself, come up with his own flavors, his own combinations," John's Mom Patricia Truel said. John Truel wants to learn so he can be the boss. Right now, John Truel loves interacting with the customers at the cash register, opening doors and helping them pick out flavors. His personal favorite is the peanut butter cupcake. "His second week working the register he learned on his own that a dozen means 12, and I was like, that's the purpose of this shop is to teach him those little basic things," Patricia Truel said. It has been a learning opportunity for both mother and son. "Everyone has abilities, you've just got to provide them with opportunity and the tools to show off their abilities," Patricia Truel said. For John Truel, sometimes that means sometimes having to chores that aren't so fun, like sweeping the floor and doing the dishes. But, at the end of the day, he gets to make his customer's days just a little bit sweeter.NEW ORLEANS, LA - AUGUST 30: Ryan Mallett #15 of the Houston Texans throws a pass against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on August 30, 2015 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) New Orleans (CBS HOUSTON) – Brian Hoyer got his first start as the official starter for the Houston Texans but was the only Texans quarterback not to throw a touchdown pass on Sunday in New Orleans. Hoyer did lead the Texans to a touchdown on their first drive after a fade route to DeAndre Hopkins was ruled out of bounds, Alfred Blue was able to pound the ball in from the 1-yard lin to get the Texans the lead they would not relinquish all day. Hoyer would also add a field goal drive to his day for the Texans before relinquishing to Ryan Mallett in the second quarter. Hoyer would finish for 7/11 for 82 yards on the day. He didn’t throw a pick or a touchdown on the day. Mallett took over and struggled early for the #Texans, not leading the Texans to any real momentum, having to punt on his first two drives at quarterback. Mallett who missed a practice this week after sleeping in looked off early in his appearance, overthrowing receivers on a number of his passes. A strip sack by Tony Washington and a fumble recovery by Kourtnei Brown gave the Texans the ball back in Saints territory. Mallett would move the ball enough to add a field goal to the Texans score and a 13-3 lead. A Saints 53-yard field goal at the end of the half to make the game a 13-6 at the break. Mallett returned to start the second half. On the first drive Mallett moved the ball well, a zipped pass to Anthony Denham gained a first down but saw the Tight End leave the game after taking a hard hit to the head. Once play continued Mallett drove the Texans down inside the 10-yard line finding Jaelen Strong for an 6-yard touchdown pass to cap the drive. Mallett would finish 9/17 for 77 yards and the one touchdown. Tom Savage would take over at quarterback and also added a touchdown pass. Savage found Chander Worthy on a short pass to get the score to 27-13. The second year QB finished 5/7 for 58 yards with the one touchdown and no interceptions. The highlight of the game came in the 4th quarter as cornerback Charles James II took some reps at running back. James took a toss to the right and broke it for 73 yards into the end zone as the entire Texans bench exploded in excitement. But the joy would fade as the play was called back due to a holding call. James is a bubble player for the Texans, but his colorful socks and personality have taken many to hope he makes the squad. J.J. Watt & Vince Wilfork were the only notable healthy scratches for the Texans. All-Pro left tackle Duane Brown missed the game with a wrist injury.Clarifying the difference in wording –noted by many readers — between what the whistleblower said and what the Verizon Wireless spokeswoman said about firing reps. As longtime readers know, I think the cellphone industry is one step away from a big-city mugger. Some of its practices are outrageous ripoffs — like how they charge so much for text messages (both the sender and the receiver), even though text messages cost them nothing. Or how the purpose of two-year contract is to sell you an expensive phone cheaply, on the premise that you’ll pay it off over the next 24 months, but once you’ve paid off the phone, your monthly bill doesn’t go down. (Except at T-Mobile.) Verizon Wireless, Atkinson Studios A few months ago, I wrote about Verizon Wireless’s outrageous practice of selling phones whose arrow keys are preprogrammed to connect to the Web. And if you hit one accidentally, you get zapped with a $2 Internet charge, instantly. After much outcry and even an investigation by the Federal Communications Commission, Verizon Wireless installed a “landing page,” a page on the phone that lets you cancel before you incur the charge. But plenty of people still find those mysterious $2 charges. If you truly never use Internet features, you can call Verizon to request a “data block,” to say, “I just don’t use the Internet on my phone, and I don’t want to run the risk of getting hit with those $2 charges.” Last month, I heard from a customer service representative who, despite working for Verizon Wireless, is on my side on this issue. He wrote with two alarming internal developments at Verizon that could affect you. C.S.R.’s refers to customer service representatives: “Effective this past month, all C.S.R.’s were versed on the usage of blocks. A new policy has gone into effect regarding how to handle Escalated Calls regarding data charges. Now, a representative can be reprimanded and even terminated for proactively offering to block any of the following: Web Access Blocks Data Blocks Premium SMS blocking Application download blocking Vcast Music or Vcast Video download blocks “Essentially, we are to upsell customers on the $9.99 25 mb/month or $29.99 unlimited packages for customers. Customers are not to be credited for charges unless they ask for the credit. And in cases such as data or premium SMS, where the occurrences may have gone months without the consumer noticing, only an initial credit can be issued.” I asked Brenda Raney, a Verizon Wireless spokeswoman, about this. She replied two different ways. First, she flatly denied that a representative could be fired for suggesting a data block. “We train our representatives to solve our customers’ problems. If a customer calls and indicates to a representative that a data block would solve his or her problem, the representatives can and should suggest a data block, and we train them to do that.” Well, that’s good. But she went on to say: “Many customers request data blocks to prevent children from downloading applications, music, etc., that could significantly affect their bills. We have been training and encouraging the representatives to step customers through the services that will be affected by data blocks to make sure customers really want a total block, or if they would be better served by going to My Verizon (the online free account portal) and customizing their usage themselves by removing features they don’t need. We haven’t helped the customer if we put a data block on their phone only to have them call back because they didn’t realize it would stop them from downloading a ringtone, for example.” So who’s right? Maybe both my representative and the spokeswoman are correct: that you’re really going to have to insist if you want data blocks put on your line. Verizon Wireless will try even harder than before to upsell you, to talk you out of the data blocks. UPDATE: The rep said they could be fired for for offering data blocks, while Ms. Raney said they would not be fired for refusing data blocks if the customer asked. I asked her to clarify. Does that difference in wording mean that my whistleblower is correct? That if reps volunteer information about data blocks, they may be fired? The answer is no. “I saw the comments. We do not terminate employees for proactively recommending a data block,” she says. As for giving you credit for accidental charges, Verizon Wireless reports: “While we want the representatives to work with customers, and in appropriate cases, credit their accounts, we also ask that representatives encourage customers to move to plans that match their usage needs. We don’t want customers to go over their usage every month, and then call us looking for credits every month.” It seems true, then, that it will be tougher than before to get credited for accidental charges; the burden is on you to monitor the My Verizon Web site to track your own use. But would Verizon Wireless actually fire an employee for failing to upsell you? Ms. Raney is pretty emphatic on this point: “A representative would not be terminated or reprimanded for putting a data block on an account if that’s what the customer requested. If a customer calls and indicates to a representatives that a data block would solve his or her problem, the representatives can and should suggest a data block, and we train them to do that.” The representative I talked to mentioned another development at Verizon Wireless. It pertains to the early termination fee, or E.T.F., which is the penalty you have to pay if you discontinue your service before the two-year contract is up. The representative writes: “Effective April the 26th, 2010 Early Termination Fees are no longer waived if a consumer moves out of our digital calling area coverage map. This means for customers who have lost jobs and must relocate, people with immigration status and are liable to leave, or anyone who may otherwise relocate, is now subject to the E.T.F. of $175 or $350, depending on device. “In this economy, people are moving, they cannot keep certain bills, and when things don’t work as planned, they also expect to terminate services. For a company that reports profit margins in the $49 billion range, you’d expect a little bit of kindness and compassion.” The representative attached a scan of the internal Verizon Wireless document that detailed this change. Verizon’s reply: “This was an old policy that needed updating, a leftover from before our network covered over 300 million out of the 305 million or so people in the United States. “There are two issues here. First, very few customers actually move out of a service area today. Second, if a customer buys a device from us at a deep discount in return for a two-year contract, and then decides to cancel service because he or she moves outside of that coverage area (likely out of the country, given the breadth of our coverage area), then the E.T.F. helps us recoup our losses associated with the customer’s early cancellation. This policy change was made in April and applies to very few people. We also have other ways of handling exceptions such as military — Verizon Wireless waives the E.T.F. for deployed military personnel.” I have to say, I’m more understanding of Verizon on this point. Yes, times are tough. Yes, corporate compassion is a wonderful thing. But you don’t see many companies letting their customers off the hook for bills they owe, and contracts they’ve signed, out of compassion; that’s not the way the world works. Thanks to the representative for letting us know about the changing winds behind the scenes at the nation’s biggest cellphone carrier. And thanks also to Verizon Wireless, who can’t stand my muckraking about its practices, but nonetheless sent me these responses.CLOSE Some voters are acknowledging they may not be casting ballots for their preferred candidate in this year's unpredictable primary season. (March 15) AP Voters have turned out in large numbers for primaries this year, like this polling place in Chicago on Tuesday. (Photo: Tannen Maury, EPA) WASHINGTON — Voters again turned out in record or near-record numbers Tuesday in five key primary elections, continuing a pattern of very high participation that has played out during the 2016 election cycle. Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander announced Wednesday that the unofficial voter turnout in the presidential primary was a record 39%. More than 1.5 million registered Missouri voters turned out to nominate candidates for president, Kander said. The 2008 primary set a state record with approximately 1.4 million votes and a 36% turnout. In Ohio, the turnout was the second highest in a primary contest, election officials said. It was about 41%, just 5 percentage points shy of the 46% turnout record set in 2008. North Carolina election officials also said their primary turnout was the second highest in the past 28 years. The turnout was about 35% on Tuesday. A record turnout of 37% was set in 2008. In Florida, about 46% of eligible voters cast ballots in the primary contest, which Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton won. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio suspended his campaign after losing his home state primary. The turnout was higher than in the Republican-only primary of 2012 and the joint primary of 2008, when 42% of eligible voters participated, according to the Florida Department of State. Illinois was still calculating turnout Wednesday, but the United States Elections Project estimated that the state's turnout was up about 19 percentage points from 2012 and about 3 percentage points from 2008. The project's website, which is run by Michael McDonald, an associate professor of political science professor at the University of Florida, said the estimated turnout is based on the total number of ballots counted in each state divided by the voting-eligible population. This year's primaries have sparked record turnout by Republican voters and stronger-than-usual turnout by Democratic voters, according to an analysis by the Pew Research Center. More than 17% of eligible Republican voters participated in the first 12 primaries of 2016 — the highest turnout since at least 1980, the Pew Research Center analysis shows. Nearly 12% of eligible Democratic voters also turned out, the second highest percentage in the past 24 years. The highest turnout for Democrats in recent years was in 2008, when nearly 20% of eligible voters came out to choose between Obama and Clinton. Political scientists say Republican turnout is higher this year in part because the GOP primaries are viewed as more competitive than the Democratic contest, where Clinton has dominated the race for convention delegates despite some surprise upsets by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. "People will vote if the election is close or expected to be close and if voters perceive real differences among the candidates," said McDonald, who is also a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "Republicans have both of those things going for them right now." The angry split between Trump voters and those who support "establishment" Republicans stands in stark contrast to Democratic voters, who are much more unified, McDonald said. "More than 70 percent of Democrats, in exit polls, said they would be satisfied if either Clinton or Sanders were their candidate," he said. The polarizing nature of Trump's candidacy has helped drive GOP voters to the polls, spurring participation from passionate supporters and fierce opponents, said Steven Taylor, a professor and chairman of the political science department at Troy University in Alabama. "There's no question that Trump excites people and motivates them to turn out to the polls, whether it's to vote for him or against him," Taylor said. He said there is not yet enough data to support Trump's claims that he is turning out millions of new voters. "Are they truly new voters? Were they going to stay home if Trump wasn't on the ballot? We don't really know yet," Taylor said. "We need to ask detailed questions in exit polls about who is a first-time voter and look at their ages and demographics." While Republicans boast of stronger participation by their primary voters, there is no correlation between primary turnout and which party is going to win the general election, political scientists say. An analysis by Politifact of presidential elections going back to 1972 showed that the party with the highest percentage turnout in the primary races won the White House only four out of 11 times. "You can't predict who is going to win the presidency based on turnout in the primaries," McDonald said. "It's an unfair comparison." Historically, many more people turn out to vote in the general election than in the primary races, Drew DeSilver of the Pew Research Center wrote in an analysis of this year's election data. In the 2012 presidential election, more than 129 million Americans voted in the general election, compared to 28 million who voted in the primaries, DeSilver noted. "Even in relatively high-turnout years such as 2008 — and, so far, 2016 — primaries attract far fewer voters than general elections, even though...they determine whom voters get to choose from come November," DeSilver said. Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1ptZJXsSetting the Mood Look, I get it, pulling out a game on a first date might be kind of awkward at first. You’re having a great conversation with your new friend and suddenly you get to the topic of your hobbies… I can’t tell you how many times this has happened to me. “Do I tell her about my niche hobby that I spend all of my free time with? What will she think?” Usually about ten minutes later my internal dialogue turns into, “No! Why did you show her a picture of your collection/game room?!” which eventually turns into, “Ok. Ok. She hasn’t run off yet. Whew.” Now, in almost any other situation you put me in, I will have no fear in evangelizing the hobby and I’ll probably find a way talk about how great it is for building up community and relationships. Yet, when I’m sitting in front of a pretty girl, that becomes much much harder to do. Still, I end up bringing it up anyway and it has always spawned great conversation. One thing I have always wanted to try is to actually break out a game on a first or second date. I’ve never quite gotten up the nerve to actually bring a game with me… but I swear one day I will. This Top Six will be great for you if you have more courage than me! Keep in mind, this isn’t just for first time dates. Whether it’s your first your your 50th, I hope you are able to find something here that may make a date with your partner just that much more special! Let’s jump in! The First Date You pull up to the local coffee shop, palms already sweaty from your nerves. You keep thinking, “Did she notice that I put ‘boardgames’ as one of my interests?” and worry that somehow she swiped right without noticing that your instagram feed was full of artistic board game photos. “Alright. You can do this. Don’t be nervous.” After sitting down and getting past the awkward introductions, you realize that things are actually going pretty well. Conversation is flowing like the notes in a symphony. Suddenly she asks the question… “What do you like to do in your spare time?” Nervously you reply, “I play board games.” The moment freezes after you come to realize that this could be the make or break moment of the night. She responds, “Oh! I love board games! We played monopoly all the time when I was growing up!” You let go a sigh of relief, but then also process exactly what she just said. “Well… not exactly like Monopoly. Have you ever played Settlers of Catan? You see, over the past 20 or so years, games have completely changed! They say we are in a renaissance in the industry!” As the words leave your mouth, you realize that you are about to go into an explanation of modern board games that will be way too much information for her. “That’s really neat! I’d love to try one sometime!” She says with excitement. Bright eyed and bushy tailed, you reach into your bag, pull out a small box, and say “How do you feel about camels?!” without realizing what words just spewed from your mouth out of excitement. Jaipur – Sébastien Pauchon She looks at you confused and caught off guard and says, “Camels?” Immediately you backtrack, “Well, that’s not what I meant… here let me just show you. So, Jaipur is one of my favorite games made to be played with just two people. You see, you lay out these cards and try to collect sets of the different items. When you sell the sets you get these chips that are worth points. Whoever has the most points when we run out of these point chips wins the round. Best of three wins the game! What do you think?!” You can tell she’s a little thrown off by your excitement, but she smiles and nods her head in understanding. “Ok, well the reason I love this game is that it is so easy to learn, but there are still a lot of challenging decisions to make! You see, on your turn you either take some cards or sell some cards. If you take cards, you either pick one from the face up cards and put it in your hand, trade 2-5 from your hand (or your camel pile) with ones from the face up cards, or take all of the face up camels. The camels help you get more cards, but don’t worry too much about that yet. Once you get enough cards of the same kind to sell, you can turn them in for points! You can just sell a couple if you want, but if you hold onto them you get bonuses for selling a bunch at a time. But, the earlier you sell them, the more points the point chips are worth. See, interesting decisions! Make sense?” “Um… I think so. Maybe once I try it I’ll understand it more?” she says. “Ok then, let’s give it a shot!” You say with excitement. 30 minutes later “Wow! That was lots of fun! Did you bring any more?” She says with a smile. Again, without processing the words coming out of your mouth, you pull another box out of you bag and exclaim, “How do you feel about quilting?!” Patchwork – Uwe Rosenberg Giggling, she says, “You sure have a strange way of describing these games!” “I really don’t know why I keep doing that… we don’t have to play it…” you say somberly. “No, no! I love quilting! What do you like about this one?” You can tell that she is trying to keep you from being too embarrassed. It’s too late for that, but the sentiment is certainly appreciated. “Well, remember how I said that the last game was fun because it was pretty simple, but still allowed for challenging and interesting decisions? The same thing goes for this one. So we each have a one of these grid boards that represents our quilt. Throughout the game we’ll buy quilt pieces that are worth different points from the middle and build our quilt with them. Then whoever has the most points when one of our pawns gets to the middle wins!” “Hm.. so what makes those decisions so interesting then?” she says. “Ah, yes. So buttons are like money and you have to spend them to buy all of these weirdly shaped patchwork tiles. When you buy one, you place it on your board and then move your pawn how ever many spaces of time it says to on the tile. So what is really neat about this game is that the player in last place on the time track gets to keep taking turns until they leapfrog to first place!” “Interesting…” she says carefully. “So when it’s your turn, you can either buy one of the three tiles in front of the tile marker, or you can leapfrog your pawn to the spot right in front of the other player’s pawn and take as many buttons as the number of spaces you moved! So basically, we keep going back and forth until one of our pawns gets to the middle. If you can fill in a certain amount of the board without leaving any spaces, you’ll also get bonus points in addition to the points on the board and your leftover buttons. See, that’s not too bad, right?” She looks at the pieces and then back at you and says, “Ok, the whole ‘last person goes first’ thing is kind of weird and I’m not sure about this whole button thing, but I seemed to pick the last one up more once we started playing, so let’s give it a shot!” 30 minutes later “Wow! I never thought I would enjoy quilting so much!” your date exclaims. “Wait… I thought you said you said that you love quilting!” you retort. “Hey, are you hungry? Let’s go get some food!” she quickly exclaims. As you drive over to the local taco joint, she begins to ask you all kinds of questions about this new world that you have given her a peek into. “How long have you been playing these games?” “How did you find out about them?” “What is your favorite?” Her questions seemed to keep flowing out like a curious river, only being halted by the wafting smell of delicious tacos. As you both get out of the car and start walking in, she glances back and says, “Wait, aren’t you going to bring your bag of games in?” You look at her, shocked
BR:3;CMP:1;CRYPTO:0;FLT:0;I/O:0;LOGIC:0;MATH:1;SIMD:0;STR:0;SYS:0;UNCAT:0;VMM:0;XFER:13 ApiAnalyzer Finally, the latest release of the Pharos tools includes our API pattern matching tool, called ApiAnalyzer. The capabilities provided by ApiAnalyzer enable reverse engineers and malware analysts to specify and then search for many potentially malicious API function call patterns of interest. In a previous post I detailed ApiAnalyzer's inner workings and API signature format. We included this tool and its source code in the Pharos repository to help analysts create new and interesting API-pattern signatures. Looking Ahead I've only scratched the surface of what is included the Pharos Static Analysis Framework. Future posts will examine in-depth our switch to a constraint-based approach to program analysis and our experiences using XSB Prolog. In the meantime, please download the tools and keep an eye on the Pharos GitHub repository and the SEI Insights blog for the latest updates to our work. Additional Resources Download Pharos Binary Analysis Framework and tools to support reverse engineering, which includes many new tools, improvements, and bug fixes.Can an upstart sound-canceling headphone match the performance of the vaunted Bose Quiet Comfort 15 at a third of the price? That was the claim made by makers of the NoiseHush i7 headphones, which cost $100, or about $200 less than the Bose. To test the claim, I took both headphones on a train trip. I tried them out in the quiet car because noise-canceling headphones do a good job with consistent background sounds, like the rush of wind, but do little to shut out chatty travelers or a crying baby. The simple test is to turn the noise canceling on and off without any music playing. Headphones dealt with four distinct sounds there: a whirring ventilation fan, a low rumble, the wind rush and the clatter of the tracks.U.S. Secret Service was at the Tribeca Film Festival Hub for more than just Malia Obama this week. On Saturday, April 22, Hillary Clinton was in the house as well. Clinton was on-hand as a surprise guest and panelist for the premiere of The Protectors: Walk in the Ranger’s Shoes, a new virtual reality short film from director Kathryn Bigelow and VR creator Imraan Ismail. The eight-minute film highlights the African elephants’ race toward extinction at the hands of ivory-seeking poachers, interviewing a group of Garamba National Park rangers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. As they discuss the trials of their profession, they bushwhack their way through 10-foot grasses and cruise by jeep and boat in an attempt to patrol this vast territory. On this Earth Day 2017—when thousands marched in our nation’s major cities on behalf of science— “part of science is understanding the intricate relationships that we share with all those on this planet, and particularly large mammals like elephants, who have a role to play both in reality and in our imaginations,” said Clinton. She noted the film as “remarkable” for the way it “brings to reality what we’re up against.” This is particularly stark in the film's final sequence, when the small group of rangers comes to a clearing in the grass to find an elephant corpse, tusks sawed off and face mutilated, rotting away in the African sun. “When I find a dead elephant, I feel like they have killed my child,” one ranger says. Thanks to Bigelow and Ismail’s work (and their 360-degree camera technology), this elephant lays larger-than-life, seemingly within reach. It’s as close to a literally transporting experience as film can achieve. From this immersive perspective, you can understand when the ranger calls this helpless animal “my child”—it’s the kind of searing image that makes your heart hurt. It’s estimated that each day, approximately 100 elephants are killed by poachers, and that in 2016, there were more elephants being killed than were being born. Today, there are an estimated 400,000 elephants left, and the U.S. stands as the second largest importer of illegal ivory. At their current death rate, elephants may well be extinct within the next decade. “If conservation isn’t a part of our daily life, we’ll look back and your children, your grandchildren, will only ever experience an elephant in a photographic book,” Bigelow said, speaking exclusively with Vanity Fair prior to Saturday’s event. “The risk is to do nothing…. Time is the enemy on every front.” The Protectors is a fine piece of conservation media—the kind of work that makes an audience want to take action. Clinton described Bigelow and Ismail’s film as a necessary portal—“a portal that people can go into and think about,” she said. “There is a lot that can be done: Stop the killing, stop the trafficking, and stop the demand. And part of that is protecting these rangers, who are up against some of the most ruthless killers anywhere on the planet right now, and doing the very best they can.” Clinton, Ismail, and Bigelow—along with fellow panelists Rachel Webber (from National Geographic) and Andrea Heydlauff (of African Parks)—all urged audiences to consider donating to outfitaranger.org and other African Parks conservation initiatives. Bigelow, who also explored African elephant poaching in the 2014 animated short Last Days, said that the apparent “intersection between poaching and terrorism” led her to The Protectors. There are real dangers in the field of “insects, animals, and also the poachers who are very well armed,” Bigelow told the sold-out audience. “It’s no joke out there.” Just last week, for instance, two poachers lost their lives while on duty, leaving behind two wives and a total of 11 children. “The hope of this piece is that it puts a human face on a problem that [seems] vast, but then once you put the human face on it, suddenly it comes down to earth,” she said. “I think James Baldwin quoted it beautifully: ‘Nothing can be changed until it is faced.’ This is an opportunity to look into the eyes of a very grave problem and give it a human face.” For Bigelow’s VR debut, however, it wasn’t the prospect of diving into the new medium that excited her most, but simply the possibility to tell these rangers’ story in the most effective way. “It’s a message first and the content first that led us to VR, which might, in this case, have a sort of natural empathy, but also have the potential to be incredibly immersive,” she said. “If you are living it, breathing it, feeling it, experiencing it, then you might have a better understanding of what these gentlemen face and might be more sympathetic to what they may need to survive.” Many view Bigelow today as an glass ceiling breaker, an innovator. Her masterful work behind the camera has established her as the only woman to ever win an Academy Award for direction for The Hurt Locker. Similar praise is often bestowed upon Clinton, who herself can fill several “first woman to…” title cards. The two of them made for a fitting pair at the panel, and together kept the room rapt at attention for nearly an hour. Speaking with Vanity Fair about her various accomplishments, Bigelow emphasized that she's always been driven first and foremost by storytelling. Films like Zero Dark Thirty or this first foray into VR are endeavors built from the inside out. She said that she doesn’t set out to push boundaries, and she shies away from calling herself an innovator. All bets are off, though, if there’s a boundary in the way of getting her core message heard. “You’re incentivized with that agenda to push boundaries,” she said. “So however you can, push those boundaries. However you can, move that agenda forward—and if there’s a boundary in the way, then obviously you have to obliterate it.”A three-year-old in Wilson County, Tennessee died Sunday evening after accidentally shooting herself in the abdomen with a weapon she may have mistaken for a plastic Wii facsimile. At least that's how the news is being reported today in The Tennessean. Three-year-old Cheyenne Alexis McKeehan had been playing a Nintendo Wii game in her living room using a gun-shaped controller which, according to the story, "looked very similar to the real handgun" her stepfather used to scare away dogs that were hanging about the family's home. The child had been playing a Nintendo Wii video game, Ashe said. The game's controller was shaped like a gun that looked very similar to the real handgun, which her stepfather had put on a table in the living room. Ashe said the girl pulled the gun off the table and it went off. Advertisement My question is this: why is the Wii even mentioned in this article? Someone left a loaded handgun in reach of a three-year-old girl. That's the story here. The fact that the child was playing with a Wii controller that looked like a real gun is a non-issue. This is a three-year-old we are talking about. Three-year-olds touch everything, regardless of whether or not it looks like something they were allowed to touch previously. Not to mention the fact that most Wii gun controllers are either white and blue or Nerf-colored, none of which is a color commonly found on handguns. Advertisement This story is horrible, unfortunate, and tragic, but the way that things are worded here make me wonder if there aren't pair of parents out there thinking that had they not let their child play that Wii game, she would still be alive today. I don't think the majority of our readership needs clarification on this, but just in case, no - if her stepfather had not left a loaded weapon within reach of a curious three-year-old's hands, she would still be alive today. Accidental shooting kills Wilson County child [The Tennessean]Looking for news you can trust? Subscribe to our free newsletters. Anti-abortion lawmakers in state legislatures around the country have already drawn national attention—and outrage—for pushing bills that would drastically limit access to abortions. But in Louisiana, one “unapologetically pro-life” lawmaker wants to go even further. State Rep. John LaBruzzo, a Republican from Metairie, has introduced a bill that would ban all abortions in his state—with no exceptions for rape, incest, or the life of the mother—and charge women who seek abortions and the doctors who perform those abortions with “feticide.” Louisiana state law calls for jail sentences of up 15 years, with hard labor, for the unlawful killing an unborn child. LaBruzzo told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that the inclusion of the line subjecting women to “feticide” prosecution for seeking abortions was a “mis-draft,” and including it “would make [the bill] too difficult to pass.” He promised the provision will be removed from the bill before it goes to a committee vote. But while LaBruzzo doesn’t expect to punish women who seek abortions, he would still like to see doctors working on the chain gang for providing a constitutionally protected medical procedure. The Constitution, of course, is exactly what LaBruzzo is targeting. He admits his proposal is intended as a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case in which the Supreme Court ruled that the constitutional right to privacy included the right to abortions in some circumstances. LaBruzzo says he’d like his bill to become law and “immediately go to court,” and he told a local paper that an unnamed conservative religious group asked him to propose the law for exactly that purpose. When contacted by Mother Jones, LaBruzzo’s secretary said he would “prefer not to do an interview” on the bill but would possibly answer written questions. As of press time, he had not responded to our inquiries. Aggressive attacks on abortion rights are nothing new for Louisiana. Access to abortion in the state is already pretty limited, with only seven providers in the state, says Julie Mickelberry, the spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of the Gulf Coast. In 2006, then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D) signed a bill that would ban abortions in the state immediately should Roe v. Wade ever be overturned. The Bayou State’s legislature passes bills related to abortion almost every year. Last year, it passed two—one that would require women to submit to an ultrasound before they can get the procedure, and another that would prevent doctors who perform abortions from obtaining malpractice insurance. Abortion rights groups have sued the state over both laws. “I would venture to say that Louisiana has probably passed the most unconstitutional laws involving Roe v. Wade,” says Bill Rittenberg, a New Orleans attorney who has worked extensively with the Center for Reproductive Rights on abortion laws in the state. Rittenberg estimates that he’s represented advocates for reproductive rights in about 90 percent of their cases in the state, challenging a litany of laws over the years that sought to limit access to abortions. He says that the state is often a testing ground for some of the more extreme measures in the country because such bills usually pass the legislature. “The crazier it is, the more likely it is to pass,” he says. This isn’t the first time that LaBruzzo has proposed radical measures on reproductive rights. As Robin Marty points out over at RH Reality Check, LaBruzzo has previously suggested that the state should pay poor women $1,000 to have their tubes tied as a means of reducing the number of people on welfare in the state. When he proposed this kind of program in 2008, he expressed concerns that women on government assistance programs were reproducing more than wealthier women. He also proposed offering tax incentives for “college-educated, higher-income people to have more children” as a means of combating that trend. While he floated the idea publicly, he never formally introduced a bill. Abortion rights groups in Louisiana say LaBruzzo’s abortion ban has a good chance of passing, given the strong anti-abortion tilt of the state legislature. If it becomes law, the ban will inevitably end up in court—exactly the outcome its proponents want. “The bill is purely political. It’s not at all about preventing abortion—he said it himself,” says Planned Parenthood’s Mickelberry. “His intention is to give anti-choice groups a bill they can take to court.” Mother Jones is following a variety of efforts to curb abortion access around the country. We’ve covered legislative measures that would increase regulations on clinics (like Virginia and Arkansas), slash the number of weeks that abortions are available (like in Ohio, Minnesota, Kansas and Idaho), force women to view an ultrasound (like in Florida), or mandate visits to so-called “crisis pregnancy centers” (as they have in South Dakota). And at the federal level, Republicans in the House have tried to advance measures that would redefine rape and expand limitations on federal funding for abortion services.The Goal of the Drupal Ladder is to have 1% of the Drupal Community contributing to core drupalladder.org contains (or links to) lessons and materials to help people learn about and contribute to Drupal. The site was created by the Boston Initiative to help Drupal user groups develop and share and develop materials for learn sprints and issue sprints. If you'd like to volunteer to help maintain the community website, please contact Bryan Hirsch. Get involved Find out how to Get involved! Use drupalladder.org to: Find lessons about contributing to Drupal Work your way up the Drupal Ladder or other "learning ladders" and keep track of which lessons you have completed Contribute lessons about contributing to Drupal Get resources about organizing "learn sprints" and "issue sprints" for Drupal User Groups and Camps Drupalladder.org is built on the Drupal Ladder installation profile which you can download here.On Wednesday, a meeting between student groups at West Virginia University (WVU) turned violent, as liberal students kicked out conservatives, with one following them out the door. "Get the f*ck! Why did you film our f*cking meeting!" yells the liberal aggressor — identified as Kelley Denham, president of the WVU Gender Equality Movement — in a video posted on Facebook. The woman he reportedly shoved into a door — Kaitlynn Critchfield, a member of the conservative group Turning Point USA — replied, "I have a heart problem..." Storming off in anger at first, Denham suddenly turns around and attacks another conservative student — the one filming the video. "F*ck this! What is your f*cking problem?!" he yells, rushing in and pounding the unnamed student filming the incident. An audible thud comes across on the video as Denham yells, "Get that phone out of here!" "Calm down!" one of the students responds. To this, Denham shouts, "Why the f*ck are you filming me?! What the f*ck is wrong with you?!" The student filming the video replies, "You're attacking me right now." Critchfield, in the background, says, "Sorry we wanted to share another point of view. We weren't going to film until you..." Cutting her off, Denham lunges again, "F*ck you, f*cking conservative piece of — give me your f*cking phone!" During the course of the 42-second video, Denham is able to get out at least twelve f-bombs, and seems to commit at least three physical assaults. View the video, as posted by Turning Point USA President Charlie Kirk, below.Man Misdiagnosed of Coma for 23 Years; Was Conscious All Those Times No one wants to last a whole night having nightmares, so imagine being in a single nightmare for 23 years. A Belgian engineering student was put into a deep coma and vegetative state after a car accident. He was in that condition for 23 years. However, he was conscious and has been able to hear all conversations around him during all those time. It was Dr. Steven Laureys, a neurological researcher at the Liege University Hospital, who discovered that Rom Houben is conscious using brain scanning techniques despite the fact that he lost control of his body. His discovery now brings fears that there may be many similar cases around the world. Houben, who now communicate using a specialized computer, said that he always dreamed of a better life, that frustration is too small of a word to describe what he had felt all those years and that he will never forget the day it was discovered what really is wrong with him and that it felt like it was second birth.For the longest time, Google Sites felt like the forgotten app in Google’s productivity suite. Earlier this year, though, the company announced that it would finally give Sites a full overhaul. Today, after a short beta, this new version of Sites is going live for all users. Google Sites is essentially a drag-and-drop website builder for creating both public facing web pages and intranet sites that’s deeply integrated with the rest of Google’s tools. You can easily insert documents from Google Docs, Slides, Sheets and the rest of the (unfortunately named) G Suite tools into any site, for example. It also directly integrates with Google Analytics. The new sites now also allows multiple users to collaboratively edit a site (using the same tech the company also uses in Google Docs). Admins can choose whether users are able to publish to the web or only able to make their pages available to users on their own domain. With this update, any pages you create in Sites will also automatically scale according to the screen size you are using — and its preview mode makes it easy to see what a site will look like on a phone, tablet and desktop. In order to make those sites look halfway professional, Google added six new themes to get you started. All of these themes come with customizable font and color settings, but I hope Google will add a few more options over time. Sadly, it doesn’t look like you’ll be able to easily move existing sites over to the new experience (which made our Editorial Director here at TechCrunch rather unhappy), but at least for the time being, you’ll be able to jump back and forth between the old and new editors. Update: A Google spokesperson told us that Google will provide and recommend options for migrating from the classic Sites to the new Sites in 2017. Most importantly, though, Sites is now a product people will want to use. It finally feels like a modern applications and not like the last vestige of Google’s old and forgotten design principles.Jeremy Corbyn's plan to force all Labour MPs to enter a ballot in order to contest their seat in the General Election is expected to be blocked after union sources reportedly refused to back it. The Labour leader is understood to want every MP to be forced to secure more than half of their local party's votes in a so-called trigger ballot before being allowed to stand again. But it is understood that the National Executive Committee will block the plan at an emergency meeting on Wednesday morning, allowing MPs to automatically stand again without a ballot if they want to. It came as Mr Corbyn refused to confirm he will stand down as party leader if Labour suffers defeat in the General Election as two of his MPs stood down ahead of the vote.Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) said yesterday that gun control measures wouldn’t have stopped the Orlando mass shooting. Proposed gun control measures would strip people on the FBI’s terrorist watch list of their 2nd Amendment rights; However, Paul said those measures wouldn’t have stopped Omar Mateen from killing fifty people. “It wouldn’t have stopped the Orlando killer — no, he wasn’t on the list,” Paul said. In response to Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) leading a 15-hour filibuster for gun control, Paul had nothing to say, instead asking why the FBI stopped investigating Mateen. “The facts are he wasn’t on the list. Why wasn’t he on the list? Well, they closed the investigation. Well, then why did they close the investigation?” Paul asked. “At least once or twice he said he was going to kill people int he name of a version of his religion. He happened to know a suicide bomber — not many of us know a suicide bomber, or will get to know one — and traveled to Saudi Arabia.” Paul acknowledged that the law was “difficult.” He wasn’t advocating for stripping people on the list of their rights, but instead arguing that there was a difference between a conviction and an investigation. “You’ve got all these things adding up and then they closed the investigation? So I asked the director of the FBI yesterday, I said, I’m not here to make accusations—I said ‘you are fallible, I am fallible,’” Paul said. “You make mistakes, we all make mistakes. It’s not really something where I’m saying ‘the FBI did a rotten job when they closed this,’ but shouldn’t we at least ask: What would have happened had the investigation stayed open?” In Kentucky, Paul is facing reelection. His opponent, Lexington Mayor Jim Gray, blasted him for allowing “suspected terrorists” to purchase weapons. “How many headlines like this do we need to see before Congress does something?” asked Gray during a rally outside of Paul’s Lexington field office. “Senator Paul voted to let potential terrorists buy guns. He chose to protect the rights of radical Islam over the safety of innocent Americans. What was Rand Paul thinking? Where is his common sense? Where’s the backbone?” Paul shot back, saying that he voted for a measure which would “let federal law-enforcement officials delay gun sales to suspected terrorists for up to 72 hours.” The measure would also block the sale permanently if officials presented enough evidence to justify it to a judge. “In December, I voted to make sure no terrorist can buy guns in the U.S.,” Paul said in a statement. “The legislation I supported, however, prevented the Obama administration from drawing up a secret list of hundreds of thousands or even millions of Americans who, through no judicial process, are stripped of their rights. Make no mistake, what Jim Gray and President Obama want to do together is take guns away from law-abiding Kentuckians.”This isn’t a map of radiation, it’s a map of wave estimated hight after the Tohuku Tsunami. So why is there so much outrage and fear around Fukushima radiation, even when there is evidence to suggest it’s not as bad as we fear? To answer this, I invited psychologists Anselma Hartley and Joachim Krueger to contribute this guest post. Anselma received her Ph.D. from Brown University in 2013 and is currently on the job market. She researches social cognition and the assessment of personality change. You can find her on Twitter: @anselmahartley. Joachim is a professor of psychology at Brown University, a social psychologist, and author of the Psychology Today blog One Among Many. Let’s talk Confirmation Bias Why do some people hold fast to apocalyptic ideas, like Fukushima radiation, even when the best available evidence suggests that the world is not about to end? Confirmation bias is the term psychologists use to describe the behavior of testing an idea by searching for evidence that supports it. This tendency to confirm pre-existing beliefs creates and maintains false perceptions of reality because people fail to acknowledge information to the contrary, even when readily available. The strongest type of confirmation bias arises from a motivation or a need to see the world as we want to see it. Here, confirmatory information is purposely sought out and any information challenging our preconceived notions is ignored, discounted, or dismissed. Confirmation bias can play a role in the angry reactions to scientific evidence regarding the scope and effects of the Fukushima accident. Although evidence suggests that radiation emanating from Fukushima will not reach a catastrophic level on an ocean or global scale, many people remain convinced that the risks to human and ocean health are enormous. A person with deep concerns about environmental impacts of radiation will likely seek out evidence to confirm the belief that the radiation from Fukushima has spread in high levels to the American West Coast and beyond, contaminating fisheries, and killing off species in the Pacific Ocean. This person may unknowingly exhibit confirmation bias by focusing on information in the media consistent with these ideas and discounting information that would challenge them. What are the psychological sources of confirmation bias? One source of confirmation bias is defensive; to protect the psychological self. As humans, we are motivated to protect the integrity and perceived value of who we think we are (Steele, 1988). When we encounter information that threatens a self-relevant belief, we experience a state of a discomfort (termed cognitive dissonance) arising from the discrepancy between what we think defines us and, what the world is appearing to tell us. To resolve this discrepancy, we either actively seek out confirmatory information in the first place, or dismiss or re-interpret challenging information (Hart et al., 2009). A second source is the tendency to base beliefs about the risks and benefits of an event on our cultural worldview. Kahan and colleagues (2008), for example, found that when they presented research participants with balanced information about the benefits/risks of nanotechnology, participants were polarized: People with a conservative, individualistic outlook noted the benefits of the technology and came away with a more favorable attitude, whereas people with a more liberal, egalitarian outlook focused on risks and hazards; their attitudes become more unfavorable. Given these findings, it is reasonable to speculate that perceptions of risk in the area of nuclear energy are highest among those of us whose core values are liberal and egalitarian. Who is susceptible? Most of us fall prey to the confirmation bias at some point. It is human nature to analyze new information in light of our core beliefs and favor inferences that are in accordance with these beliefs. Those of us with liberal or conservative political leanings likely do this when choosing the candidate we will vote for in an upcoming presidential campaign, regardless of the candidates’ campaign ads or campaign spending (Garramore et al., 1990; Kaid, 2004; Levitt, 1994). Consuming information on the internet and traditional media may not be enough to form accurate beliefs. The media tends to favor negative, violent, and sensational information (Lowry et al., 2003; Marsh, 1991). News is often equated with bad news. Focusing on the negative fosters a mindset characterized by overestimating risk, and a readiness to perceive the self as a victim (Doob & Macdonald, 1979). If a person’s ideological leanings stress the negative, the apocalyptic, or the conspiratorial, this media bias and the psychological confirmation bias converge (or “conspire”) to produce and maintain a grim outlook. How do I prevent confirmation bias? Not surprisingly, researchers recommend carefully selecting sources. Is your information coming from a social media site of questionable credibility, or is it coming from a reputable media source or perhaps directly from the scientific literature? A focus on credible and competent sources of information can help keep the effect of prior beliefs at bay, and open our minds to alternative points of view. To combat confirmation bias further, you may decide to strategically consider news from diverse sources with known biases or ideological leanings. Deliberately increasing exposure to views that conflict with prior beliefs can promote a more careful consideration of, and appreciation for, other perspectives. Even if this consider-the-alternative strategy does not change your attitude, it provides a more balanced understanding of the issues at stake and it will make it less likely that a debate is cast in personal terms. Finally, it is possible to diminish confirmation bias by asking a person (or oneself) to justify a preferred point of view with relevant evidence and logical coherence. In other words, ask yourself why you hold a given perspective, and review the evidence you gathered to come to that point of view. Indeed, when we know we will be held accountable for the views we express, we tend to be more circumspect when gathering and interpreting information (Jonas et al., 2001). So what’s the point? Following these recommendations could not only help us avoid confirmation bias, but would have the added benefits of aiding us in becoming more tolerant of multiple and varied points of view, better articulating our own beliefs, and making us better informed consumers and critics of media and news outlets. While critical debate and discussion can advance the public’s understanding of a topic, emotional appeals and defensive antagonism can hinder it. Further deliberation and examination of the facts before we speak or write can help us avoid responding with emotion and malice. Work cited and additional readings Doob, A. N., & Macdonald, G. E. (1979). Television viewing and fear of victimization: Is the relationship causal? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 170-179. Garramone, G. M., Atkin, C. K., Pinkleton, B. E., & Cole, R. T. (1990). Effects of negative political advertising on the political process. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 34, 299-311. Hart, W., Albarracín, D., Eagly, A. H., Brechan, I., Lindberg, M. J., & Merrill, L. (2009). Feeling validated versus being correct: a meta-analysis of selective exposure to information. Psychological bulletin, 135, 555-588. Jonas, E., Schulz-Hardt, S., Frey, D., & Thelen, N. (2001). Confirmation bias in sequential information search after preliminary decisions: an expansion of dissonance theoretical research on selective exposure to information. Journal of personality and social psychology, 80, 557-571. Kahan, D. M., Braman, D., Slovic, P., Gastil, J., & Cohen, G. (2008). Cultural cognition of the risks and benefits of nanotechnology. Nature Nanotechnology,4, 87-90. Kaid, L. L. (2004). Political advertising. Handbook of political communication research, 155-202. Levitt, S. D. (1994). Using repeat challengers to estimate the effect of campaign spending on election outcomes in the US House. Journal of Political Economy, 102, 777-798. Lowry, D. T., Nio, T. C. J., & Leitner, D. W. (2003). Setting the public fear agenda: A longitudinal analysis of network TV crime reporting, public perceptions of crime, and FBI crime statistics. Journal of Communication,53, 61-73. Marsh, H. L. (1991). A comparative analysis of crime coverage in newspapers in the United States and other countries from 1960–1989: A review of the literature. Journal of Criminal Justice, 19, 67-79. Steele, C. M. (1988). The psychology of self-affirmation: Sustaining the integrity of the self. Advances in experimental social psychology, 21, 261-302.Who was Milan Stefanik and why is he on stamps of three nations? Dec 9, 2016, 12 PM This 1945 Czechoslovakian 30h Gen. Stefanik stamp (Scott 293) was issued during the period when the Soviet Union tolerated a coalition unity government in Czechoslovakia. On May 3, 2003, France and Slovakia participated in a joint stamp issue, producing these stamps (France Scott 2942 and Slovakia Scott 428) to honor Gen. Stefanik’s achievements as an astronomer. This Slovakian 40h Gen. Stefanik and Tomb stamp (Scott 34) was issued in May 1939 to mark the 20th anniversary of Stefanik’s death. Three definitive stamps depicting astronomer, philosopher, soldier, and statesman Gen. Milan Stefanik: a 1935 50-halleru green stamp, a 1936 60h dull-violet stamp, and a 1939 60-halierov dark blue stamp. The 1935 and 1936 issues are from Czechoslovakia (Scott 208 and 217), and the 1939 stamp is from Slovakia (23A). By Rick Miller Shown in the first slide above are three stamps commemorating astronomer, philosopher, soldier, and statesman Gen. Milan Stefanik. The 50-halleru green stamp perforated gauge 10, left, was issued May 19, 1935. The 60h dull violet stamp in the center is perforated gauge 12½ and was issued in 1936. Issued March 30, 1939, the 60-halierov dark blue stamp at right is also perforated gauge 12½. All three stamps are inscribed “Ceskoslovensko,” but the stamps at left and center are Czechoslovakia stamps (Scott 208 and 217), while the stamp at right is from Slovakia (23A). Connect with Linn’s Stamp News: Sign up for our newsletter Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter The Czechs and Slovaks are Western Slavic people who began moving into Central Europe from the Black Sea area in the sixth century. The Czech language and the Slovak language form a dialect continuum in which most dialects are mutually intelligible. Culturally, the Czechs have been a more urban people with a fairly strong tradition of religious nonconformity, while the Slovaks have been more rural and agrarian and more conservatively loyal to the Roman Catholic Church. As part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until 1918, the Czech lands were governed by Austria, while Hungary ruled in the Slovak lands. Before independence, the Czech lands were known as Bohemia and Moravia. In 1918, it became obvious that the Dual Monarchy was losing World War I, which was likely to result in the fall of the Habsburg Empire. Czech and Slovak nationalists united in the Czechoslovak National Council to work for independence. The council, which would evolve into the provisional government of independent Czechoslovakia, was primarily led by two Czechs, Thomas Garrigue Masaryk and Edward Benes; and one Slovak, Gen. Stefanik. Milan Rastislav Stefanik was born July 21, 1880, in Kosariska, Slovakia. Atypically for a Slovak, he was a protestant and his father was a Lutheran pastor. Educated in Slovakia through secondary school, he went to Prague in the Czech lands for his university education. At Charles University, he studied philosophy, astronomy, optics, mathematics, and physics. He received a doctorate in philosophy in 1904. In 1904, Stefanik traveled to Paris and found employment at the Observatoire de Paris-Meudon, the leading observatory in the world at the time. Through hard work and talent, he became acknowledged as one of the premier astronomers of his day. He traveled the world to view eclipses and other astronomical phenomenon, visiting South America, Central Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji, and Tahiti. To observe astronomical phenomena without being obstructed by the thick sea level atmosphere, he became an accomplished mountain climber to view the heavens from the tops of mountains. After accepting French citizenship in 1912, in his travels he served as an unofficial diplomat, working closely with French and foreign diplomatic personnel. On May 3, 2003, France and Slovakia participated in a joint issue honoring Stefanik’s achievements as an astronomer. The French €0.50 stamp (Scott 2942), perforated 13¼, and the Slovakian 14-koruna stamp (Scott 428), perforated 11¾, are shown in the slider above. The main building of the Observatoire de Paris-Meudon can be seen in the background. The red, white, and blue colors above the observatory represent both the French and Slovakian flags, as well as Stefanik’s work in spectral analysis of the sun’s corona. World War I started in August 1914 with Austro-Hungary allied with Germany and the Central Powers. Stefanik saw the defeat of Austro-Hungary as a catalyst for Czechoslovakian independence. Accepting a commission in the French army, he took aviation training and became a military pilot. He flew Farman reconnaissance aircraft on the Western Front and later, in 1915, on the Serbian Front. He was a founding member of the Czechoslovak National Council in 1916 and served as its vice president. His diplomatic contacts from his time as an astronomer greatly aided the council’s work for Czechoslovak independence. He was promoted to the rank of general, and in 1917 was named a Grand Officier de Odre national de la Legion d’honneur. In 1917, Stefanik began organizing Czech and Slovak prisoners of war in Italy and Russia who had been fighting for Austro-Hungary into pro-Allied Czechoslovak Legion troops. This greatly enhanced the Czechoslovak National Council’s standing with the Allies and led directly to its recognition as the provisional government of independent Czechoslovakia. The Bolshevik coup in Russia in November 191
off, director of cardiac pacing and tachyarrhythmia devices at the Cleveland Clinic, who was not involved with the research. It is still immature, he adds, because it requires other components to coordinate the stimulation. Given that wireless technology is typically not as reliable as its wired counterpart, the largest concern involves the signal—whether the ultrasound will penetrate the heart muscle consistently and efficiently transfer energy to the wireless lead, Wilkoff says. Still, he adds, "I don't think that there is any concern about safety." Pacemakers in general require patients to take certain safety precautions, such as not placing cell phones directly against the chest and avoiding strong electric or magnetic fields. Whereas some newer pacemakers are not affected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, patients should consult their physicians before undergoing such tests. The addition of wireless to a pacemaker does not change the need to take these precautions. Some experiments to "hack" into pacemakers capable of communicating wirelessly with computers and smart phones have been demonstrated by security researchers, but there have been no reported incidents of wireless pacemaker data being tampered with to the detriment of a patient. Still, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Massachusetts Amherst say they are developing a jamming device that could be used to shield pacemakers from cyber attackers. EBR and Cambridge are not only ones working on wireless pacemakers. Minneapolis-based Medtronic, Inc., last year introduced plans for a small, self-contained and fully leadless pacemaker the company hopes to market within three or four years. The Medtronic titanium-encased device will have a circuit board, an oscillator to generate current, a capacitor to store and rapidly dispense charge, memory to store data, and a telemetry system to wirelessly transfer that data to a computer or smart phone. Unlike WiCS, however, Medtronic's bullet-shaped pacemaker, about the size of an antibiotic pill, would be delivered directly into a patient's right ventricle through a catheter, without surgery. Unfortunately, as currently designed, the Medtronic device could not be repositioned or retrieved from the heart after its seven-year battery failed. It would remain in the heart to be replaced by a new miniature pacemaker.August 6 usually doesn’t make headlines in America. But mark the day by what absence demonstrates: On the 72nd anniversary of the nuclear destruction of Hiroshima and some 140,000 non-combatants, there is no call for reflection in the United States. In an era when pundits routinely worry about America’s loss of moral standing because of an offish, ill-mannered president, the only nation in history to employ a weapon of mass destruction on an epic scale, against an undefended civilian population, otherwise shrugs off the significance of an act of immorality. But it is August 6, and so let us talk about Hiroshima. Beyond the destruction lies the myth of the atomic bombings, the post-war creation of a mass memory of things that did not happen. This myth has become the underpinning of American war policy ever since, and carries forward the horrors of Hiroshima as generations of the August 6 anniversary pass. Advertisement The myth, the one kneaded into public consciousness, is that the bombs were dropped out of grudging military necessity, to hasten the end of the war, to avoid a land invasion of Japan, maybe to give the Soviets a good pre-Cold War scare. Nasty work, but such is war. As a result, the attacks need not provoke anything akin to introspection or national reflection. The possibility, however remote, that the bombs were tools of revenge or malice, immoral acts, was defined away. They were merely necessary. That is the evolved myth, but it was not the way the atomic bombings were first presented to the American people. Harry Truman, in his 1945 announcement of the bomb, focused on vengeance, and on the new power to destroy at a button push—“We are now prepared to obliterate more rapidly and completely every productive enterprise the Japanese have above ground in any city,” said Mr. Truman. The plan put into play on August 6—to force the Japanese government to surrender by making it watch mass casualties of innocents—speaks to a scale of cruelty previously unseen. It was fair; they’d started it after all, and they deserved the pain. The need to replace the justification to one of grudging military necessity, a tool for saving lives, grew out of John Hersey’s account of the human suffering in Hiroshima, first published in 1946 in the New Yorker. Owing to wartime censorship, Americans knew little of the ground truth of atomic war, and Hersey’s piece was shocking enough to the public that it required a formal response. Americans’ imagined belief that they’re a decent people needed to be reconciled with what had been done. With the Cold War getting underway, and with American leadership fully expecting to obliterate a few Russian cities in the near future, some nuclear philosophical groundwork needed to be laid. And so the idea that the bombing of Hiroshima was a “necessity” appeared in a 1947 article, signed by former Secretary of War Henry Stimson, though actually drafted by McGeorge Bundy (later an architect of the Vietnam War) and James Conant (a scientist who helped build the original bomb). Dr. Conant described the article’s purpose as countering Hersey’s account at the beginning of the Cold War as, “You have to get the past straight before you do much to prepare people for the future.” The Stimson article was the moment of formal creation of the Hiroshima myth. A historically challengeable argument was recast as unquestionable—drop the bombs or kill off tens of thousands, or maybe it would be millions (the U.S. regularly revised casualty estimates upwards), of American boys in a land invasion of Japan. It became gospel that the Japanese would never have surrendered owing to their code of honor, though of course surrender is in fact exactly what happened. Nonetheless, such lies were created to buttress a national belief that no moral wrong was committed, and thus there was no need for reflection and introspection by the United States. Full speed ahead into the nuclear age. No later opportunity to bypass reflection was missed. American presidents from Truman to Bush chose not to visit Hiroshima. The 50th anniversary of the bombing saw a moderately reflective planned exhibit at the Smithsonian turned into a patriotic orgy that only reinforced the “we had no choice” narrative. When Barack Obama became the first sitting president to visit Hiroshima in 2016, his spokespeople went out of their way to make it clear he would be looking only forward, the mushroom cloud safely out of sight. American foreign policy thus proceeded under a grim calculus that parses acts of violence to conclude some are morally justified simply based on who holds the knife, with much of the history of the next 70 some years a series of immoral acts allegedly servicing, albeit destructively and imperfectly, the moral imperative of saving lives by killing. America’s decisions on war, torture, rendition, and indefinite detention could be explained in character as the distasteful but necessary actions of fundamentally good people against fundamentally evil ones. Hiroshima set in motion a sweeping, national generalization that if we do it, it is right. And with that, boom! The steps away from August 6 and the shock-and-awe horrors inside the rubble of Mosul are merely a matter of degree. The drone deaths of children at a wedding party are unfortunate collateral damage in service to the goal of defeating global terrorism. Same as the 3,100 civilians killed from the air since the U.S. launched its coalition war against the Islamic State, along with 3,674 civilians destroyed by drone strikes in other parts of the world. We are, in fact, able to think we are practically doing the people of Afghanistan (Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Somalia…) a favor by killing some of them, as we believe we did for tens of thousands of Japanese that might have been lost in a land invasion of their home islands had Hiroshima not be killed for their prospective sins. There is little discussion because debate is largely unnecessary; the myth of Hiroshima says expediency wipes away concerns over morality. And with that neatly tucked away in our conscience, all that is left is pondering where to righteously strike next. America’s deliberate targeting of civilians, and its post-facto justifications, are clearly not unique, either in World War II, or in the wars before or since. Other nations, including Japan itself, added their own horror to the books, mostly without remorse. But history’s only use of nuclear weapons holds a significant place in infamy, especially on this August 6. America’s lack of introspection over one of the single most destructive days in the history of human warfare continues, with 21st-century consequences. Peter Van Buren is the author of Hooper’s War: A Novel of WWII Japan, which examines moral injury in the context of Hiroshima.Spread the love 8 No matter how much doctors push the treatment, chemotherapy might not be the best option in the fight against cancer, as a new study shows up to 50 percent of patients are killed by the drugs — not the disease, itself. Researchers from Public Health England and Cancer Research UK performed a groundbreaking study examining for the first time the numbers of cancer patients who died within 30 days of beginning chemotherapy — indicating the treatment, not the cancer, was the cause of death. Looking at those death rates in hospitals across the U.K., researchers found an alarming mortality rate associated with chemotherapy. Across “England around 8.4 per cent of patients with lung cancer, and 2.4 per cent of breast cancer patients died within a month,” the Telegraph reported. “But in some hospitals the figure was far higher. In Milton Keynes the death rate for lung cancer treatment was 50.9 per cent, although it was based on a very small number of patients.” Alarmingly, the one-month mortality rate at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals for those undergoing palliative, rather than curative, chemotherapy for lung cancer was a full 28 percent. One in five breast cancer patients receiving palliative care at Cambridge University Hospitals died from treatment. In certain areas — Blackpool, Coventry, Derby, South Tyneside, and Surrey and Sussex — deaths of lung cancer patients by chemotherapy were ‘far higher’ than the national average. Dr. Jem Rashbass, Cancer Lead for Public Health England — the national health care service, which requested the study — said, as quoted by the Telegraph: “Chemotherapy is a vital part of cancer treatment and is a large reason behind the improved survival rates over the last four decades. “However, it is powerful medication with significant side effects and often getting the balance right on which patients to treat aggressively can be hard. “Those hospitals whose death rates are outside the expected range have had the findings shared with them and we have asked them to review their practice and data.” For the analysis, researchers “included all women with breast cancer and all men and women with lung cancer residing in England, who were 24 years or older and who started a cycle” of chemotherapy in 2014. Long the mainstay for treating various cancers, chemotherapy has finally drawn criticism in recent years, as the medicine does not differentiate between healthy and cancerous cells. Now, this study — published in the Lancet — shows how that powerful cell-destroying property can mean the demise for patients as well. Researchers have advised physicians to exercise more caution in vetting which patients should ideally receive chemotherapy. Older and more infirm patients, in particular, might be better off without receiving palliative care, which is designed to offer relief instead of curing the disease. “The statistics don’t suggest bad practice overall but there are some outliers,” noted Professor David Dodwell of the Institute of Oncology at St. James Hospital in Leeds. “It could be data problems, and figures skewed because of just a few deaths, but nevertheless it could also be down to problems with clinical practice,” he continued. “I think it’s important to make patients aware that there are potentially life threatening downsides to chemotherapy. And doctors should be more careful about who they treat with chemotherapy.” All hospitals involved said they reviewed the information and remain certain chemotherapy is safe — with the caveat patient selection for the treatment may need to be more discretionary. Professor David Cameron of the Edinburgh Cancer Centre at West General Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland, noted, “The concern is that with some of the patients dying within 30 days of being given chemo probably shouldn’t have been given the chemo. But how many? There is no easy way to answer that, but perhaps looking at those places/hospitals where the death rate was higher might help. “Furthermore, if we give less chemo then some patients will die because they didn’t get chemo. It’s a fine balance and the more data we have the better we can be at making sure we get the balance right.” Meanwhile, doctors in the United States should probably take note, considering the sheer number of patients forced to undergo chemotherapy at the State’s behest despite objections from those patients and their families. In one example, a 17-year-old diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma decided to seek alternatives to chemotherapy, but her doctors — so inculcated in state and Big Pharma propaganda — contacted family services, who then kidnapped the young adult and placed her in foster care. She was finally allowed to return home once she agreed to undergo the often debilitating treatment — but ran away once doctors informed her she’d have to endure surgery for the implantation of a chemo port. In an incredible act of Orwellian Big Government, the Supreme Court ruled the State was in the right in this case — and after being kidnapped and forced into treatment against her will, was denied contact with her own family. As unfathomably invasive as that was, it isn’t isolated. Alternative treatments do, in fact, exist — the most promising among them for many cancers are various formulations of CBD oil, a cannabis derivative. But, thanks to the phenomenally failed war on drugs, cancer patients in most areas of the U.S. are unable to procure much needed medicine or are forced to receive treatment on the sly — risking time behind bars simply for wanting to cure themselves.A box full to the brim with KONY 2012 campaign posters are shown Thursday March 8, 2012 at the Invisible Children Movement offices in San Diego. The workers are monitoring the social media impact of their KONY 2012 campaign. Joseph Kony and his Lord's Resistance Army, a brutal Central Africa militia that has kidnapped thousands of children and forced them to become sex slaves, fight as child soldiers and kill family members during a 26-year campaign of terror. The KONY 2012 project is an effort to stop Joseph Kony. (AP Photo/John Mone) SAN DIEGO (AP) — The director of a wildly popular video about brutal African warlord Joseph Kony has been diagnosed with brief psychosis and is expected to stay in the hospital for weeks, his wife said Wednesday. Jason Russell, 33, was hospitalized last week in San Diego after witnesses saw him pacing naked on a sidewalk, screaming incoherently and banging his fists on the pavement. He was in his underwear when police arrived. His outburst came after the video's sudden success on the Internet brought heightened scrutiny to Invisible Children, the group he co-founded in 2005 to fight African war atrocities. Russell's family said that the filmmaker's behavior was not due to drugs or alcohol. He was given a preliminary diagnosis of brief reactive psychosis, in which a person displays sudden psychotic behavior. "Doctors say this is a common experience given the great mental, emotional and physical shock his body has gone through in these last two weeks. Even for us, it's hard to understand the sudden transition from relative anonymity to worldwide attention — both raves and ridicules, in a matter of days," Danica Russell said in a statement. Researchers don't know how many people suffer from the condition, mainly because symptoms are fleeting, but those with personality disorders are at greater risk for having an episode. Brief reactive psychosis is triggered by trauma or major stress such as an accident or death of a loved one. Other stressors can include sleep deprivation or dehydration. Symptoms include hallucinations, delusions and strange speech and behavior. People typically recover within a few weeks without medication. Others have to take antipsychotic drugs to alleviate symptoms or undergo talk therapy to cope. The condition causes "temporary debilitation, but in general people have good recoveries," said Dr. Stephen Marder, professor of psychiatry at the University of California, Los Angeles. In some cases, doctors say brief reactive psychosis can signal the beginning of a more serious mental illness such as schizophrenia. Danica Russell said it may be months before her husband returns to San Diego-based Invisible Children. "Jason will get better. He has a long way to go, but we are confident that he will make a full recovery," she said. Russell narrates the 30-minute video "Kony 2012," which has been viewed more than 84 million times on YouTube since it was released this month. In the video, Russell talks to his young son, Gavin, about Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army. The Invisible Children group has been criticized for not spending enough directly on the people it intends to help and for oversimplifying the 26-year-old conflict involving the LRA and its leader, Kony, a bush fighter wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity. Invisible Children has acknowledged the video overlooked many nuances but said it was a "first entry point" that puts the conflict "in an easily understandable format." It said money that directly benefits the cause accounted for more than 80 percent of its spending from 2007 to 2011. ___ Online: http://www.kony2012.comOfficer Fatally Shot While Trying To Help People In A Crashed Car Near Indianapolis A police officer attempting to help at the scene of a car accident was fatally shot, apparently by an occupant of the vehicle, near Indianapolis on Thursday. Lt. Aaron Allan, a six-year veteran of the Southport Police Department with almost 20 years in law enforcement, was pronounced dead at Eskenazi Hospital, said Sgt. Kendale Adams of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department at a press conference, according to the Associated Press. The Indianapolis Star reports Allan was responding to a report of a flipped car around 3 p.m. Thursday when one of the vehicle's occupants opened fire, hitting Allan. Two other officers, one of whom was off-duty, were nearby and both returned fire, authorities said. One of the car's occupants was hit and both were taken to the same hospital as Allan. They were treated and kept in police custody. Officials provided no information as to why the car's occupant allegedly opened fire. The names of the people in the crashed vehicle were not immediately made available. Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said in a statement: "Today, Lt. Aaron Allan was doing what officers do each day: responding to the scene of an accident to help someone in their time of need. His death is a shocking and tragic reminder of the difficult, often dangerous work of police officers across Marion County." Allan was awarded the Officer of the Year award in 2015, according to the Southside Times. He told the local paper he had "wanted to be a cop since I was 5 years old."Early next year, a Boeing 777 will take off from the company’s airfield near Seattle with a laser shooting out of its nose. It may sound like a novel (and grisly) way to avoid bird strikes, but this isn’t that kind of laser. Rather, it’s part of a new system that Boeing hopes could spot brutal turbulence that can damage aircraft and toss passengers around the cabin—and give crews enough time to hunker down before the going gets tough. While modern passenger aircraft can withstand even the bumpiest rides, turbulence remains dangerous for the people inside those planes. According to the FAA, 44 people were severely injured by turbulence in 2016, and that doesn’t count the less severe rocking and spilled drinks passengers endure on flights on a daily basis. Boeing thinks a long-range lidar could be the answer. “We expect to be able to spot clear-air turbulence more than 60 seconds ahead of the aircraft, or about 17.5 kilometers [10.9 miles], giving the crew enough time to secure the cabin and minimize the risk of injuries,” says Stefan Bieniawski, the Boeing program’s lead investigator. (Clear-air turbulence is the sort that strikes without any visual warnings, like moving clouds.) The lidar is the centerpiece of a new system developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, which has been collaborating with Boeing since 2010 to configure it for use on commercial aircraft. It projects a laser in a steady line ahead of the aircraft, while an optical sensor tracks the bits of light reflected back by dust particles along the path of the beam. Software analyzes the aircraft’s velocity relative to the movement and velocities of particles at different distances. Significant changes in the velocity differentials—like pockets of air moving faster than the stuff around it—are signs of turbulence ahead. When the system detects those deltas, it will alert the flight crews through audible and visual cues integrated into the instrument panel. (The specifics of how to deliver those alerts are still in development.) Even if it doesn’t give pilots enough time to steer around the threat, a 60-second warning could be a major improvement over conventional methods of turbulence detection, which rely on reports from aircraft flying the same routes and general precautions around active weather systems. At best, those systems can help pilots avoid turbulent areas but not predict when the air gets choppy from one instant to the next. Systems that use radars to bounce radio waves off water droplets don't work for spotting clear-air turbulence. With a minute’s warning, passengers could buckle up. Flight attendants could stow their coffee pots and take their own seats. Similar ground-based systems can detect turbulence and wind-shear around airports, but they’re the size of trucks. Now that the engineers have downsized their system so it can fit into a commercial jet without adding too much weight (about 185 pounds) or consuming too much power (3.3 watts), they can test it through Boeing’s ecoDemonstrator program. Every 18 months or so, the company selects a bunch of nascent technologies and installs them on an aircraft, which it flies twice daily for six weeks. The 2018 program will have some 30 systems on the 777, a new cargo aircraft FedEx is leasing back to Boeing. “This is all about accelerating technologies,” said Doug Christensen, a manager in the ecoDemonstrator program. “We want to see if they work and how they integrate into the airplanes.” This year’s tech roster includes a lightweight and compact thrust reverser for the newest generation of massive jet engines, 3-D printed components, cockpit noise reduction systems, and a new biofuel. If the lidar system proves successful, it could start spotting turbulence for commercial airlines within a few years, Boeing says. Until then, make sure to buckle up—and maybe keep a hand on that cup of joe.The U.S. bike company threatens to sue a Canadian veteran over his shop's name, Cafe Roubaix, saying "Roubaix" is a trademark Veteran forced to change bike shop’s name after threat from Specialized — Calgary Herald A Canadian veteran of the Afghanistan war who operates a tiny bicycle shop in Cochrane is being forced to change his store’s name after being threatened with a lawsuit by one of the giants of the U.S. bike industry. Dan Richter, owner of Cafe Roubaix Bicycle Studio, located above the famous Mackay’s Ice Cream in Cochrane, says he received a letter from the lawyers of big bicycle maker Specialized several months ago, demanding he change the store’s name because the company owns the trademark on the word Roubaix, which they use to market a brand of road bike. Richter, however, says he didn’t name his store after the company’s bike, rather after a region in France that hosts one of the most famous bike races in the world, the gruelling 117-year-old Paris-Roubaix. Because the name is an icon of bike culture, and graces hundreds of other products from bike tires to a brand of cycling tights sold by MEC (and even other road bikes), Richter says he has a good case to keep the store name, but is capitulating because he can’t afford a legal fight in court. “It’s been frustrating,” Richter told me. “The response throughout this process (from Specialized) has been arrogant and almost unbelievably dismissive. “We didn’t want to go public... but they’ve made it clear on no uncertain terms, they are going to sue.” Larry Koury, managing director of Specialized Canada Inc., said the company is simply defending its legally owned trademark. “A simple trademark search would have prevented this,” Koury wrote in an email, along with a reference to the federal government’s trademark database showing Specialized’s registration of the word Roubaix. “We are required to defend or lose our trademark registration.”The exterior of William Hallets for Halloween, decorated to look like the famous cartoon burger joint. View Full Caption DNAinfo/Jeanmarie Evelly; Facebook/BobsBurgers ASTORIA — A bar in Queens is getting into the Halloween spirit with a "Bob's Burgers" costume party this weekend — even decorating its storefront to look like the animated eatery. The staff at William Hallet, on 30th Avenue between 36th and 37th streets, will dress up as the main characters from the hit Fox TV show, which follows a quirky cartoon family as they run a struggling burger joint. The restaurant itself will also be in costume, with a "Bob's Burgers" sign hanging outside and bright green paper covering its facade to match the look of the fictional hamburger restaurant. The Astoria Post first reported on the makeover. "We're trying to emulate the look of the place as closely as we can," said William Hallet co-owner Craig Davis, who will be decorating the bar inside to look like the counter on the show. The menu that night will include special hamburgers like the ones featured on the cartoon, which uses puns to name a burger-of-the day in every episode. Favorites will include the "I've Created a Muenster" burger and "The Final Kraut Down" burger (topped with muenster cheese and sauerkraut, respectively.) "Come down, have some fun, order some weirdly named burgers," Davis said. William Hallet is no stranger to TV-themed Halloween parties — last year's was based on the FX comedy "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." The "Bob's Burgers" party will start Saturday at 8 p.m. and will also include a costume contest and drink specials, according to Davis. For more information visit the Facebook event page.Types of Afflictions Curses Diseases Drugs Infestations Madness Pharmaceuticals Poisons From curses to poisons to diseases, there are a number of afflictions that can affect a creature. While each of these afflictions has a different effect, they all function using the same basic system. All afflictions grant a saving throw when they are contracted. If successful, the creature does not suffer from the affliction and does not need to make any further rolls. If the saving throw is a failure, the creature falls victim to the affliction and must deal with its effects. Afflictions require a creature to make a saving throw after a period of time to avoid taking certain penalties. With most afflictions, if a number of saving throws are made consecutively, the affliction is removed and no further saves are necessary. Some afflictions, usually supernatural ones, cannot be cured through saving throws alone and require the aid of powerful magic to remove. Each affliction is presented as a short block of information to help you better adjudicate its results. Name: This is the name of the affliction. Type: This is the type of the affliction, such as curse, disease, or poison. It might also include the means by which it is contracted, such as contact, ingestion, inhalation, injury, spell, or trap. Save: This gives the type of save necessary to avoid contracting the affliction, as well as the DC of that save. Unless otherwise noted, this is also the save to avoid the affliction’s effects once it is contracted, as well as the DC of any caster level checks needed to end the affliction through magic, such as remove curse or neutralize poison. Onset: Some afflictions have a variable amount of time before they set in. Creatures that come in contact with an affliction with an onset time must make a saving throw immediately. Success means that the affliction is avoided and no further saving throws must be made. Failure means that the creature has contracted the affliction and must begin making additional saves after the onset period has elapsed. The affliction’s effect does not occur until after the onset period has elapsed and then only if further saving throws are failed. Frequency: This is how often the periodic saving throw must be attempted after the affliction has been contracted (after the onset time, if the affliction has any). While some afflictions last until they are cured, others end prematurely, even if the character is not cured through other means. If an affliction ends after a set amount of time, it will be noted in the frequency. For example, a disease with a frequency of “1/day” lasts until cured, but a poison with a frequency of “1/round for 6 rounds” ends after 6 rounds have passed. Afflictions without a frequency occur only once, immediately upon contraction (or after the onset time if one is listed). Effect: This is the effect that the character suffers each time if he fails his saving throw against the affliction. Most afflictions cause ability damage or hit point damage. These effects are cumulative, but they can be cured normally. Other afflictions cause the creature to take penalties or other effects. These effects are sometimes cumulative, with the rest only affecting the creature if it failed its most recent save. Some afflictions have different effects after the first save is failed. These afflictions have an initial effect, which occurs when the first save is failed, and a secondary effect, when additional saves are failed, as noted in the text. Hit point and ability score damage caused by an affliction cannot be healed naturally while the affliction persists. Cure: This tells you how the affliction is cured. Commonly, this is a number of saving throws that must be made consecutively. Even if the affliction has a limited frequency, it might be cured prematurely if enough saving throws are made. Hit point damage and ability score damage is not removed when an affliction is cured. Such damage must be healed normally. Afflictions without a cure entry can only be cured through powerful spells, such as neutralize poison and remove curse. No matter how many saving throws are made, these afflictions continue to affect the target. He failed a DC 15 Fortitude save to avoid contracting it, so after the onset period of 1d3 days has passed, he must make another DC 15 Fortitude save to avoid taking 1d6 points of Strength damage. From this point onward, he must make a DC 15 Fortitude save each day (according to the disease’s frequency) to avoid further Strength damage. If, on two consecutive days, he makes his Fortitude saves, he is cured of the disease and any damage it caused begins to heal as normal. Diseases and Poisons Optional Rules Source PFU The standard rules for diseases and poisons don’t necessarily mimic the progression of these afflictions in a believable way; a character with a few lesser restoration spells can simply ignore most diseases, and diseases and poisons that don’t affect your Constitution score can never kill you. What’s more, because these afflictions tend to affect ability scores, their effects can be unrealistically powerful—a poison that damages Intelligence can take down any creature of animal intelligence, regardless of CR. The following optional system presents progression tracks for diseases and poisons that cause the victim’s situation to become increasingly worse. Progression and End States When a victim fails his initial save and is afflicted with a disease or poison, he immediately gains the effects of the first step down that affliction’s progression track. For diseases, this is latent/carrier; for poisons, it’s usually weakened. This replaces the affliction’s normal effects (such as ability damage and ability drain), though many afflictions still produce additional symptoms. At the GM’s discretion, truly deadly diseases and poisons might cause the victim to start further along the progression track than normal. All effects from disease and poison tracks are cumulative. Most afflictions also have an end state—a point at which the disease or poison has progressed as far as it can. Once an affliction has reached its end state, the victim keeps all current effects (but doesn’t suffer further effects) and can no longer attempt saving throws to recover from the affliction. By default, each disease and poison track has an end state of dead, but some afflictions have less severe end states, and others might progress only to a certain intermediate state at worst, allowing victims to continue attempting saves. In general, whenever a victim fails a saving throw against her affliction, she moves one step further down the progression track, gaining the effects of the next state and keeping all previous effects, until she reaches the end state. If she’s afflicted with a disease, she moves one step back toward healthy whenever she fulfills the conditions in the disease’s Cure entry (usually by succeeding at one or more saves). Once she reaches healthy, she is cured. Poisons work differently—fulfilling the cure condition removes a poison from the victim’s system, but she remains at the same step on the track and recovers gradually. (Treat a poison that has exhausted its duration in the same way.) For every day of bed rest (or 2 nights of normal rest), a victim recovers one step; this recovery is doubled as normal by Heal checks, and tenacious poisons might require a longer recovery period. Usually, neutralize poison or remove disease immediately moves the victim to a healthy state on the respective track, and a heal spell will work for both. However, once the disease or poison has reached its end state, only a more powerful spell such as miracle or wish can remove its effects. Some diseases and poisons cause the same effects as a condition (such as sickened) or render characters paralyzed. Effects that modify or remove those conditions (such as immunities) do not apply; only effects and immunities that help against diseases or poisons apply, as appropriate. Diseases The disease track simulates the progression of a disease, starting with incubation. Ignore any onset entry for a disease; the victim attempts saving throws at a rate based on the disease’s frequency. At the GM’s discretion, if the disease’s cure entry does not allow a cure, the disease’s progression may be irreversible without the use of a heal spell, and even a successful remove disease only prevents further deterioration. There are two different tracks: one for diseases that affect physical ability scores (such as bubonic plague or slimy doom), and one for those that affect mental ability scores (such as cackle fever or mindfire). Physical Disease Track Healthy—Latent/Carrier—Weakened—Impaired—Disabled—Bedridden—Comatose—Dead Latent/Carrier: A character in this stage has the disease, and may pass it on if contagious, but suffers no ill effects. Weakened: A character weakened by a physical disease suffers all the effects of the sickened and fatigued conditions. Impaired: A character impaired by a physical disease also suffers the effects of the exhausted condition. Whenever he takes a standard action, he must succeed at a Fortitude save at the same DC as the disease’s DC or lose the action and gain the nauseated condition for 1 minute. Disabled: A character disabled by a physical disease gains the disabled condition. If he takes a standard action, his hit points drop by 1 or to –1, whichever is worse. Bedridden: A character rendered bedridden by a physical disease is awake and can converse, but he can’t stand on his own or take any standard or move actions. Comatose: A character rendered comatose by physical disease is unconscious and feverish. He can’t be woken by any means as long as he remains in this state on the disease track. Dead: The disease overcomes the body’s immune system, and the character dies. The corpse may be still be contagious, and some diseases may have unusual effects after the character dies. Mental Disease Track Healthy—Latent/Carrier—Weakened—Impaired—Befuddled—Deranged—Comatose—Dead Latent/Carrier: A character in the latent stage has the disease, and may pass it on if contagious, but suffers no ill effects. Weakened: A character weakened by a mental disease suffers all the effects of the shaken condition. The DCs of her spells and spell-like abilities decrease by 2. If she is a spellcaster, she can no longer cast her highest level of spells. Impaired: A character impaired by a mental disease no longer adds her mental ability score modifiers to the number of uses per day of pools (such as an arcane pool or a ki pool), abilities (such as channel and lay on hands), and bonus spells per day. Her DCs decrease by an additional 2. If she is a spellcaster, she can no longer cast her 2 highest levels of spells. Befuddled: A character befuddled by a mental disease is losing her grasp on thought, reality, and self. She has a 50% chance each round to take no relevant action, instead babbling randomly, wandering off, or talking to unseen things. Deranged: A character rendered deranged by a mental disease is almost entirely disconnected from reality. Her mind filters and twists all external stimuli into strange forms. Comatose: A character rendered comatose by a mental disease has lost all grip on reality and entered an inner world of dreams. She can’t be woken by any means as long as she remains in this state on the disease track. Dead: The disease has harmed the character’s brain beyond repair, killing her. The corpse may still be contagious, and some diseases may have unusual effects after the character dies. Poisons The poison track simulates the progressive effects of poison in the body. A character who is poisoned rolls a saving throw after the listed onset at the listed frequency. On an initial exposure to poison, regardless of whether her save succeeds, a victim takes an amount of poison damage equal to the poison’s DC – 10, divided by 2 (for example, 5 points of poison damage for a DC 20 poison). This is hit point damage, not ability damage. If a victim is exposed to additional doses of the same poison, a failed save progresses the poison track by one step and increases the duration by 50%, but doesn’t increase the DC. Strength Poison Track Healthy—Weakened—Impaired—St
activity in Ukraine grinded to a halt in 2013 and the country was in recession long before Euromaidan began. The regime’s mad dash to plunder the country also deeply affected the people of Ukraine. Not only were their taxes stolen, their employers destroyed, and the nations wealth privatized in criminal deals, each and every Ukrainian saw life standards fall during the Yanukovych years. Even worse, it saw people suffer and die. To launder the dozens of billion USD the regime stole, it founded dozens of banks. When European and American regulators took a closer look at these banks because of their wild business behavior, the regime stripped the banks of all assets and handed them over to the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) to recapitalize. After having opened and burned dozens of banks the regime began to raid existing banks. Once Yanukovych’s straw men had taken control of a bank, it was used to launder money in a hurry and at the same time completely asset stripped within a few weeks. The bank was then handed over to the NBU to recapitalize. Yet as Yanukovych and his gang also asset stripped the NBU (under the eyes of IMF and World Bank!) hundred thousands of Ukrainians now find their accounts frozen and their savings lost as the NBU can’t recapitalize the many banks Yanukovych plundered. (under the eyes of IMF and World Bank!) hundred thousands of Ukrainians now find their accounts frozen and their savings lost as the NBU can’t recapitalize the many banks Yanukovych plundered. The entire justice system became a farce. Police only investigated crimes that did not involve regime figures and only pursued cases involving regime adversaries with vigor. Judges auctioned their decisions: the party capable to pay the higher bribe won the case. Criminals with deep pockets, even those accused to have ordered more than 30 murders, were let go if they paid a bribe to the regime. By 2013 the regime had begun to arrest and accuse innocent people in a bid to extort money from their families to drop the case. Innocent people were sent to prison for not being able to pay the demanded bribe, while hardened criminals were given two years probation for attempted murder. Furthermore, the regime began a drive to raid private residences in the centers of big cities by 2013. Families found burly, athletic men at their door in the morning that threw the families out of their flats, showing faked ownership deeds, which were enforced by police and corrupt judges. In this way, many of Yanukovych’s parliamentarians acquired prime residences in the center of Kyiv near parliament. Even the National Association of Writers was raided in this way. Yet the worst crimes the regime committed against the weakest members of society. I am not just talking about the millions of pensioners, who have to subsist on $ 70 a month to survive, but the sick and young. The massive raiding of state coffers led to teachers, nurses and doctors being paid just from $ 100 to $ 200 a month. Competent teachers resigned, young teachers looked elsewhere for jobs, and the remaining teachers and university lecturers sold grades and exams for sex or money. Nurses and doctors left the state hospitals for private clinics for the affluent few, leaving the nations health care system short of personnel. Yet that didn’t kill thousands. Thousands died because the regime stole billions from the healthcare budget. The money destined for medicines, equipment, for treatments and for rehabilitation was all stolen. Hospitals never saw any of the equipment acquired at triple the market rate, as it was sold at below market rates to private clinics for the benefit of the criminals running the health ministry. Medicines were bought in bulk for the entire nation at triple their real price, but never reached clinics as they were sold to criminal gangs, who controlled vast chains of pharmacies. Thus patients were forced to buy their own medicines, and patients to poor to buy the needed medicines were left to die. I know this, as I have seen it. I have seen it. I saw dying cancer patients in horrible pain for whom the doctors had no pain medication, while Yanukovych spend 2,7 million € on a lamp. I saw mothers bury their babies as they could not afford $5 a day for the needed antibiotics, while Akhmetov spent 200 million GBP on a flat in London, I saw children die of cancer as doctors could not treat them without equipment, while Yanukovych’s son bough a Yacht for $100 million. I saw the overcrowded orphanages, I saw old people freezing and starving to death in the streets, I saw hordes of street children, I saw young mothers prostituting themselves to feed their children, I saw the hundreds of Ferraris of the elite. Nobody, who has not lived through the Yanukovych years in Ukraine, can understand what omnipresent, all-encompassing and brutal system of corruption he and his gang blanketed Ukraine with. No one was untouched, everyone suffered, and many died for the greed of this man. Ukrainians had put all their hope in the Ukraine-European Union Association agreement hoping that it would check the greed of the regime, yet when Yanukovych abandoned the agreement he devastated the nation. The brutal police attack on the few students that came out to protest then lit the revolutionary spark as Ukrainians understood that if they did not raise up now, Yanukovych would never leave power, would never stop robbing the nation, and would destroy everybody’s future. Ukrainians rose up against corruption, lawlessness, mafia rule and the threat of dictatorship. Only when Putin offered Yanukovych a $15 billion bribe to subjugate Ukraine once more to Moscow’s rule, did the revolution also become a national awakening of the Ukrainian people. Yet too few in the West understand what led to the Ukrainian revolution and for what reasons and for what goals the people rose up. The EU stands for a dignified life in a non-corrupt environment; therefore Ukrainians adopted the European Union flag as their symbol. Russia stands for the kind of oppression and corruption Yanukovych’s regime brought to Ukraine, therefore Ukrainians reject Putin and his idea of a Eurasian Union. The Ukrainian revolution was not for the EU and not against Russia or Russians, the people rose up for European values and against Putin’s values. And while too few in the West understand the real reasons for the Ukrainian revolution, Putin understands them perfectly and as these reasons do also appeal to the Russians, his subjects, Putin unleashed war on Ukraine. A war nobody in Ukraine wants. A war facilitated by morose Western leaders, who neither understand the Ukrainians motivation to rise up and unite nor Putin’s motives to wage war and thus give Putin a free hand to murder thousands. I am from the EU. I supported the European idea all my life. I saw Ukrainians suffer under Yanukovych, I saw them rise up and reclaim their dignity, their destinies, their nation. I saw Europe curry favor with Yanukovych even after he had over 100 people shot mere meters from where he and Steinmeier were lunching. Now I see Europe subjugate itself to Putin’s whims, being to his mercy, even after he has the blood of a thousand Ukrainians on his hand. I see the European idea sacrificed for corporate profit, I see the dignity of Europe thrown away for Russian gas, I see human values abandoned for pleasing a murderous dictator. Yet I see Ukrainians fight and die for their nation in the East, while building a peaceful, liberal and free nation all over their country. I see Ukrainians coming together to create a country free from greed, fear, oppression and yet free and open for all. I see! And you? Слава Україні! In italiano Auf Deutsch Since you’re here – we have a favor to ask. Russia’s hybrid war against Ukraine is ongoing, but major news agencies have gone away. But we’re here to stay, and will keep on providing quality, independent, open-access information on Ukrainian reforms, Russia’s hybrid war, human rights violations, political prisoners, Ukrainian history, and more. We are a non-profit, don’t have any political sponsors, and never will. If you like what you see, please help keep us online with a donation Related Tags: corruption, economy, Euromaidan 2 years, Featured, international, Maidan, YanukovychTributes have been laid at the home of a heavily pregnant mother-of-four who was stabbed to death, allegedly by her partner. Kirralee Paepaerei's body was discovered by her 15-year-old son at their Mount Druitt home just after midnight on Tuesday morning. He had left the house on Chester Street earlier that night after she and her fiancé began arguing. The 38-year-old has now been charged with murder. Kirralee Paepaerei was pregnant with her fifth child. (Supplied) () Tributes laid outside Kirralee Paepaerei's home. (9NEWS) () "I can’t describe how he was, he's very distraught," Detective Inspector Dave Goddard said of the teen. Ms Paeparei’s fiancé drove himself to the local police station and told officers they had been the victims of a break-in, but was himself arrested. "The male did drive from the premises to the police station, and walked in and presented himself at the counter," police said. He was taken to Nepean Hospital suffering non life-threatening injuries but was released earlier today and taken to Mount Druitt Police Station where he was charged with murder. The man was refused bail and is set to appear at Mount Druitt Local Court later today. Ms Paeparei had four sons and was excited to be seven months pregnant with her first daughter, posting on Facebook "I'm apparently getting my pink baby". "She had her own problems, but other than that she was a good person," her former mother-in-law, Tungane Paepaerei, said. The woman's 38-year-old partner walked into Mount Druitt Police Station shortly afterwards. (9NEWS) () Police said the woman's body was discovered by her 15-year-old son. (9NEWS) () © Nine Digital Pty Ltd 2019For more than 3 years now our company has developed and sold a desktop application for cross-browser testing called BrowseEmAll. As we started out we developed the application using the.Net Framework which means the application was only capable of running on the Microsoft Windows platform. As more and more web development is done on other operating systems like Linux and macOS the most common feature request was a version that could run on these other platforms as well. So we set out to see if we could come up with a viable strategy to make cross-platform happen without having to give up our existing codebase (because this is not a good idea in general). Our goals in detail were: Reuse as much of the current code as possible Let the application look and feel native on the different platforms Keep platform specific code to a minimum Use only a single UI Framework so we don’t end up with platform specific UI code Technology choice Luckily our application is already designed using the Model-View-Controller pattern so we could just rewrite the View part to make the application cross platform using.Net on windows and Mono on Linux / macOS. The old UI was based on Winforms and was contained lot’s of calls into native Windows APIs so using Monos Winforms implementation was not an option. By sheer luck, I stumbled onto the cross-platform.Net / Mono UI Toolkit Eto.Forms which gives you the ability to reuse UI code across different platforms and it uses native controls as much as possible. After a few small test applications, we choose Eto.Forms and started recreating the UI. Because of the existing code, one person was able to do the transition in about 1 month of effort while the rest of the team was able to continue to add new features as we went along. Implementation Gotchas A few things that you need to keep in mind if you want to modify your.Net application for cross-platform compatibility. Mono is not a drop in replacement In theory, Mono aims to be a drop-in replacement for the.Net Framework and it works reasonable well for this. But still a few things can fall on your feet in unexpected ways: You need to make sure you handle paths correctly in your application. Always use Path.Combine and don’t hard-code platform specific path separators anywhere. Other things to look out why porting to Mono To build an Application bundle for macOS you need a mac and XCode. Mono is only available as a 32bit build for macOS (you can build a 64bit version yourself). You need platform specific Installers For the installation of the application, you will need separate installers. We used InnoSetup for Windows, a simple dmg image for macOS and currently a deb/rpm package for Linux distributions. Platform specific code cannot be fully avoided We did not manage to avoid platform specific code fully and it turns out detecting the platform you are running on is not trivial at all. We used this which seems to work quite good: [DllImport("libc")] static extern int uname(IntPtr buf); public static Platform RunningPlatform() { switch (Environment.OSVersion.Platform) { case PlatformID.Unix: { IntPtr buf = IntPtr.Zero; try { buf = Marshal.AllocHGlobal(8192); // This is a hacktastic way of getting sysname from uname () if (uname(buf) == 0) { string os = Marshal.PtrToStringAnsi(buf); if (os == "Darwin") return Platform.Mac; } } catch { } finally { if (buf!= IntPtr.Zero) Marshal.FreeHGlobal(buf); } return Platform.Linux; } case PlatformID.MacOSX: return Platform.Mac; default: return Platform.Windows; } } Code Template To make things easier for anybody just starting out with this we have created a simple template as a baseline for a cross-platform.Net / Mono application using Eto.Forms. You can find the code in this repository. Results All in all, we are quite happy with the new version of our software. The experience if mostly the same across all targeted platforms and we have quite a few happy users already running BrowsEmAll as an on-premise solution for cross-browser testing. Feel free to share your own wisdom in the comments! Image by KeckoMaking it Big on Kickstarter The formula for making it big on Kickstarter is still unknown to a lot of people making projects for the crowdfunding website, but when it comes to video games having a well known development studio or IP that was popular decades ago helps. Project Eternity, Broken Age and Might No.9 are three of the biggest games funded on Kickstarter, they all have faces who are recognised as kings of the gaming industry, like Keiji Inafune from Mega Man, Double Fine Studios and Black Isle Studios. Wasteland 2 fits into this area of well known IP and faces in the gaming industry and is probably the main reason the Kickstarter achieved just shy of $3,000,000 in funding, making it one of the most successful Kickstarters of all time. Making A Game Making a Kickstarter is easy, it’s backing up the campaign with an actual good product that is hard to achieve. We have seen many products, including very popular Kickstarters like Ouya, fall flat once they get into the public. Wasteland 2 still isn’t actually “out” but it is available on Steam Early Access for £34.99, the developers at inXile Entertainment are actively working on bugs, but the brunt of the game has been completed and they are looking to announce an official release date in a few months. Early Alpha and Beta reviews are pretty good, although most recommend waiting until the finished product before actively playing the game, since the narration and storyline will only be great once, similar to Fallout and other RPG adventure games. Wasteland 2 has a lot of features that appeal to older audiences who love PC gaming. It doesn’t do a Fallout 3 and make the world run on the same engine Elder Scrolls did and it doesn’t take away the core experience of the original Wasteland. This could be Wasteland 2’s biggest downfall in terms of selling on Steam, while the core audience from the original Wasteland and fans of Fallout 1 and 2 may be into the game, we are not sure the younger audience on PC will be particular hyped for this game. Is Kickstarter a Viable Solution? Wasteland 2 has shown how Kickstarter is a way to step away from publishers and we are starting to see indie developers move towards Kickstarter, instead of other routes like Xbox Live Arcade or Steam Greenlight. The issue with Kickstarter is the gamble on success, grabbing an audience is hard enough and for games, it means having people who have decades of experience in game development and have a reputation for incredible titles. If a new indie company springs onto Kickstarter, they will need to pitch small. Pitching for millions of dollars without previous experience will leave people questioning how this game could be possible and will be a big failure for the company.By midnight on April 15, roughly 140 million Americans will have filed their federal income tax returns and breathed a sigh of relief. Politicians from both parties, however, will spend most of the day criticizing our current tax system. Conservatives bemoan that not enough people are paying taxes. They insist that a minority of “job creators” and “makers” are underwriting the social benefits that go to the “takers.” Liberals cite the growing concentration of wealth and lament that the rich don’t pay their fair share. In this new Gilded Age, they say, the 1 percent should be paying far more of their annual earnings. Yet neither party seems willing to reform our tax system dramatically. Both avoid talking about the vital link between taxes and government spending. This was not always the case. More than a century ago, during the first Gilded Age, lawmakers embraced progressive taxation. Responding to the massive inequalities between plutocrats and workers, policymakers used graduated taxes to rebalance the tax burden, reminding Americans about their shared duties to each other. As the nation struggles through another period of rising inequality and social dislocation, history shows there are effective ways to address these issues. The reformers’ goal then was to reallocate the burden of financing a bourgeoning modern industrial state. They were not seeking to radically redistribute wealth, as some Tea Party conservatives claim or as some on the left may hope. The Progressives wanted to replace tariffs and excise taxes on alcohol and tobacco — the existing system of indirect, regressive and hidden taxes — with a direct, graduated and transparent tax system. They wanted to create a new fiscal order. By taxing individual incomes, business profits and wealth transfers instead of ordinary consumption goods, activists were trying to force those segments of society that had the greatest taxpaying ability — the wealthy individuals and corporations, then largely in the Northeast — to share the burden of underwriting a modern democratic state. Progressives a century ago, like their liberal counterparts today, believed citizens owed a debt to society in relation to their “ability to pay.” This curt yet crucial phrase captured the idea that people who had greater economic power also had a greater social obligation to contribute to the public good — to contribute not just proportionally but also progressively more. Influential thinkers and political leaders — including Francis A. Walker, president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and William Jennings Bryan, three-time Democratic presidential nominee — used the term “ability to pay” to illustrate the widening circle of social responsibilities in a modern society. The Progressive Era was, after all, a time when the social dimensions of American democracy were paramount. “The identification with the common lot,” as the influential social reformer Jane Addams noted, was “the essential idea of democracy.” Creating a new tax regime based on the ability to pay had significant consequences. Not only did it provide sorely needed revenue while addressing growing inequality, it also fostered greater social solidarity and bolstered faith in government — a lesson lost on many lawmakers today. Progressive Era politicians knew that adopting graduated taxes to counterbalance the existing regressive tariff and excise tax was one way to show that all Americans were contributing to the greater collective good. Graduated taxes reflected the importance of shared sacrifice. Reformers believed progressive taxes could be used to reconfigure the relationship between citizens and the state to renegotiate a new social contract and forge a new sense of fiscal citizenship. Activists also contended that a lawmaker’s duty, as part of this new social contract, was to ensure that the tax burden would be shared fairly by all Americans. If policymakers held up their end of the bargain, reformers argued, citizens would come to trust, even welcome, the growing powers of the modern state. Americans would come to see how the public sector could enhance their private lives, creating the basis for economic development and prosperity, while also providing assistance in times of stress and crisis. They would view government not as an enemy, but as an ethical agency “whose positive aid,” Richard T. Ely, the progressive economist, explained, “is an indispensable condition of human progress.” Indeed, making sure that the wealthy contributed their fair share was one of the key motivations for a progressive tax system. “I have no disposition to tax wealth unnecessarily or unjustly,” Tennessee Representative Cordell Hull, one of the chief architects of the 1913 progressive income tax, said: “but I do believe that the wealth of the country should bear its just share of the burden of taxation, and that is should not be permitted to shirk that duty.” Hull’s comments still resonate today. Warren Buffet’s argument that he should be taxed at a higher rate than his secretary, the calls from Occupy Wall Street’s 99 percent to “tax the rich” and even the Obama administration’s partial victory last year in raising top tax rates on the wealthiest Americans are legacies of a progressive tax system based on the notion of “ability to pay.” This tax day it may be useful to reflect on how an earlier generation of bipartisan reformers and lawmakers responded to a similar set of concerns — by creating the foundations for and the promise of a more progressive fiscal order. ILLUSTRATION (TOP): Matt Mahurin PHOTO (INSERT 1): A general view of the Internal Revenue Service building in Washington, May 14, 2013. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst PHOTO (Insert 2): William Jennings Bryan, Democratic Party presidential candidate, October 3, 1896. Courtesy of LIBRARY OF CONGRESSAs we’ve been telling you, Trump Derangement Syndrome is in full swing today following the president’s speech before the U.N. General Assembly. CNN’s Jim Acosta is flipping out over Trump’s “saber-rattling.” Ben Rhodes is pissed that Trump denounced the B.S. “deal” with one of our “allies” Iran. Dianne Feinstein is clutching her pearls like it’s going out of style. And then there’s Brian Fallon, who can’t even with Trump’s call for Democracy in Venezuela. Not to be outdone, here comes the New Republic with a meltdown of their own: Donald Trump is the new Qaddafi of the United Nations General Assembly. https://t.co/B7ocXz6sgC pic.twitter.com/yVFhJ369fg — New Republic (@NewRepublic) September 19, 2017 We know this sort of crap is par for the course with the New Republic, but still. Really? Really??? You guys. You’ve gotta laugh so you don’t slam your head against the wall. How unhinged do you have to be to hear a speech denouncing brutal regimes and think "this man is a brutal dictator" THIS WAS GOOD TRUMP! — Lyndsey Fifield (@lyndseyfifield) September 19, 2017 Pretty damn unhinged. That was stupid — andthenwhat? (@NWcarol28) September 19, 2017 That … was the New Republic.The Astonishing Truth About Sitting Toilets That You'll Never Hear About Today... I set up this website to share with you what I know about sitting toilets, the specific ailments and diseases that they can cause, and what you can do about it. Research revealed that squatting - not sitting - is a more natural and comfortable position to empty the bowels This is reflected in the design of the colon and human body. In the sitting position, it is physically impossible to evacuate waste completely and efficiently. This is the reason why those who use sitting toilets often have a vague sensation that there is always'still something left'. By forcing unsuspecting users to depart from the correct toileting posture, the sitting toilet has caused much distress, pain and suffering. It is not going to end soon. Today, the porcelain throne continues its relentless march, making huge inroads even in countries whose peoples have traditionally been squatting populations. The impact of this trend has been tragic. Worldwide, there is a never- ending, growing epidemic of colon and pelvic-related ailments and diseases. There is no guarantee that those who squat will not suffer from these health problems. But one thing is for sure: the habitual use of sitting toilets is a dangerous habit, one that you would do well to abandon. On this note, I invite you to explore and check out the information on this site. It is my hope that more will discover the truth about the sitting toilet and see it for what it really is: a health threat that has been ignored for more than 150 years! David Ling Toilet-Related-Ailments.com (About Me & This Site) Web www.toilet-related-ailments.com BING SEARCH TOOLWith six teams on bye this week, that left 26 teams playing in week nine. Not a single one of the main quarterbacks for any of those teams averaged fewer than 4.00 Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt. That’s incredible: overall, quarterbacks this week averaged an insane 7.12 ANY/A. Take a look: the table below shows the passing stats from all 30 players who threw a pass in week 9. I have calculated the Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt for each player as well, along with their VALUE (ANY/A minus league average multiplied by number of dropbacks) provided relative to league average, with one catch: league average is 7.12. As a result, all of the quarterback grades feel a little depressed. Eli Manning threw for 213 yards and 2 TDs and took zero sacks in a win…. and he was the “worst” statistical quarterback of the week! That’s nuts. As it turns out, it’s the second best ANY/A week since the merger. The table below shows the league average ANY/A in each year-week from 1970 to 2014: Week Rk Tms Cmp Att Gross Pyd TD INT Sk SkYd ANY/A 2010-10 1 28 648 1032 8090 56 22 54 355 7.24 2014-4 2 26 600 925 7225 54 30 48 261 6.88 2014-3 3 32 728 1108 8221 52 22 54 313 6.85 1990-6 4 24 426 749 6006 45 23 53 393 6.83 1991-11 5 28 548 904 7135 45 23 59 424 6.83 2014-6 6 30 660 1080 8056 56 23 82 447 6.62 2014-8 7 30 693 1081 8260 52 28 73 450 6.58 1980-7 8 28 486 796 6629 44 35 48 397 6.56 2011-1 9 32 685 1116 8420 54 24 89 578 6.51 1989-2 10 28 566 927 7586 54 41 56 424 6.51 2009-5 11 28 573 908 6669 41 19 60 356 6.49 2014-7 12 30 636 999 7309 54 21 76 484 6.47 2011-2 13 32 682 1100 8433 54 33 68 487 6.46 2011-13 14 32 613 1028 7698 45 22 74 494 6.46 2012-9 15 28 591 938 6865 39 19 59 359 6.45 1995-12 16 30 630 1007 7541 57 30 67 432 6.42 1991-12 17 28 547 908 6751 48 22 63 484 6.42 2004-3 18 28 569 927 6892 36 16 77 447 6.42 2012-17 19 32 591 995 7200 49 20 69 461 6.41 2007-3 20 32 649 1022 7791 45 28 69 486 6.37 2013-9 21 26 576 939 7046 44 27 61 367 6.34 2008-8 22 28 614 981 7136 37 21 53 376 6.34 2010-3 23 32 689 1095 8134 50 32 59 389 6.33 2004-9 24 28 515 862 6099 44 17 62 375 6.32 2011-9 25 28 568 951 6766 43 24 45 254 6.32 2012-2 26 32 664 1064 7899 49 28 73 453 6.30 2013-5 27 28 595 977 7503 42 27 77 504 6.28 2002-10 28 28 629 998 7203 39 23 54 339 6.28 2008-17 29 32 596 970 6912 40 23 48 289 6.28 2009-11 30 32 667 1080 7826 52 29 58 420 6.28 1994-2 31 28 586 950 7207 50 34 57 361 6.27 1990-5 32 24 433 761 5897 43 27 57 412 6.27 2004-8 33 28 565 930 6786 50 30 48 328 6.25 2008-6 34 28 559 883 6597 35 24 56 353 6.24 2011-5 35 26 534 882 6583 45 28 57 361 6.24 2013-14 36 32 669 1114 7759 64 27 65 465 6.24 2014-1 37 32 747 1163 8297 48 25 67 462 6.24 2013-1 38 32 748 1183 8710 63 34 81 562 6.23 2012-4 39 30 686 1088 8206 47 32 74 482 6.22 2013-13 40 32 678 1100 8184 48 29 79 521 6.21 1996-13 41 30 639 1048 7701 46 31 57 376 6.20 2014-5 42 30 660 1076 7678 49 27 62 389 6.20 2014-13 43 32 690 1080 8046 54 31 79 548 6.20 2013-2 44 32 741 1213 8693 48 26 77 495 6.19 2012-10 45 28 603 952 6826 47 25 60 382 6.18 1992-7 46 26 475 806 6193 36 23 67 482 6.18 2014-11 47 28 605 967 6957 40 26 53 303 6.16 2007-17 48 32 651 1065 7191 58 22 61 434 6.15 2006-14 49 32 601 999 7251 42 28 58 350 6.13 2008-1 50 32 588 958 6696 39 17 68 429 6.12 So what’s driving the great ANY/A this week? There’s a pretty simple answer to that, too. It’s a really high touchdown rate and a really low interception rate. The highest TD/INT ratio for the NFL in any single week came in week 17 of the 2007 season, when teams threw 58 touchdowns and only 22 interceptions. That’s a 2.64 TD/INT ratio. Well, this week, teams teams threw 48 touchdowns and just 18 interceptions. That’s a 2.67 touchdown/interception ratio, the highest single ratio in any week in NFL history.Some 70 percent of Russian residents believe that no military conflict will arise between China and Russia in the next decade, according to a recent poll. © Flickr / Rob Schleiffert Russia to Begin New Su-35 Communication Equipment Supplies to China in 2016 MOSCOW (Sputnik) — A survey conducted by the Moscow-based Levada Center revealed that 69 percent denied any possibility of a Chinese-Russian military conflict outside the territory of Russia, while 72 percent answered that no fight would arise on or near Russian borders. Only some 10 percent of those surveyed thought a conflict between the states was possible, the Saturday poll showed. In total, 67 percent of Russian citizens regarded China as "generally good", and one percent of those answering the questionnaire had "a very bad" attitude towards the country, the poll results stated. The Levada survey polled 800 Russian residents over 18 years old between November 13 and November 16. Russia and China cooperate in many areas including energy, infrastructure, finance and defense. In recent years, Moscow has been stepping up its cooperation with Beijing, including in the defense sector.DECATUR, GA – A man accused of killing three homeless men and a woman has pleaded guilty to murder and other charges in two of the deaths outside Atlanta. A ccused serial killer Aeman L. Presley, 35, was sentenced Monday to two life sentences without parole for the Sept. 26, 2014 shooting death of Calvin Lewis Gholston and the Dec. 6, 2014 robbery and shooting death of Karen Pearce. “His actions were monstrous and had severe consequences on the lives of several individuals,” DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James said. “Although he accepted responsibility for his actions, when a person commits crimes this terrible, he deserves to go to prison for the rest of his life.” Presley was charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony for Gholston’s death. He was charged with malice murder, multiple counts of felony murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and armed robbery for Pearce’s death. Presley initially pleaded not guilty to accusations that he murdered Pearce. He is currently charged with murder in two other unrelated Fulton County homicides. Dekalb prosecutors are seeking the death penalty in that pending case. He will be turned over to the jurisdiction of the Georgia Department of Corrections to serve out his sentence.SYNOPSIS If a crime is committed in order to prevent a greater crime, is it forgivable? Is it, in fact, necessary? THE RELUCTANT RADICAL follows activist Ken Ward as he confronts his fears and puts himself in the direct path of the fossil fuel industry to combat climate change. Ken breaks the law as a last resort, to fulfill what he sees as his personal obligation to future generations. After twenty years leading environmental organizations, Ken became increasingly alarmed by both the scientific evidence of climate change and the repercussions for civilization as we know it. Ken pushed for a crisis level response from inside environmental organizations. Those efforts failed, and he now embraces direct action civil disobedience as the most effective political tool to deal with catastrophic circumstances. THE RELUCTANT RADICAL follows Ken for a year and a half through a series of direct actions, culminating with his participation in the coordinated action that shut down all the U.S. tar sands oil pipelines on October 11, 2016. The film reveals both the personal costs and also the fulfillment that comes from following one’s moral calling- even if that means breaking the law. Ken Ward has no regrets, and his certainty leaves the audience to consider if he is out of touch with reality, or if it is the rest of society that is delusional for not acting when faced with the unsettling evidence that we are collectively destroying our world. Director Lindsey Grayzel, co-producer Deia Schlosberg and cinematographer Carl Davis were three of four independent filmmakers to be arrested and charged with crimes for filming the activists on October 11, 2016. Their charges have been dropped, and they have joined forces to tell Ken’s story through this film. ​California was once home to over 300 Native American dialects and as many as 90 languages, making it the most linguistically diverse state in the US. Today, only about half of those languages are still with us, according to the Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival, or AICLS. “Many of the California tribes were really negatively impacted with the Gold Rush and tribes were devastated and a lot of the languages have been lost,” said Janeen Antoine, who teaches a language class at the Intertribal Friendship House in Oakland. She teaches Lakota, which is spoken in South Dakota where she is from. “There’s a very strong effort within the California peoples to revive their languages.” L. Frank Manriquez was a part of the California language revitalization movement, which began about 20 years ago, after many people noticed languages were disappearing with the eldest generation of fluent speakers. “We’ve been studied enough
, and on the subject of character tweaks… someone desperately needs to have a communal crew talk, because the Squashed Peridot Problem is spreading. While Doug looks younger and better than in any of his previous appearances, Connie and Steven are squat and boxy in a way that makes them look around the same age as Onion, which makes for a weird visual dynamic in the moments where Steven is acting as a reassuring older brother. The almost chibified off-model days can get by in lighter episodes like this one, which is sweet despite not reaching the heights of Maheswaran family bonding in “Nightmare Hospital,” but it runs the risk of undercutting more serious moments while making it even harder to believe that Steven’s actually supposed to be fourteen. Doug makes for a great dad character, right up there with Greg as he happily buys into the kids’ disguise games and shares his daughter’s quiet longing for an exciting life. Abrams and Mitroff’s style is perfect for helping Doug come off as warm, trustworthy, and memorable, with a bonus heartwarming callback to Steven and Onion’s now-cemented friendship. Like an actual stakeout, this episode is mostly about killing time until the big moment at the very end, but if the time until then feels less than monumental, it doesn’t feel wasteful either. Still, the “wait for it” sense that pervades the episode as a whole is finally paid off in the last seconds: slow, effective transition for an episode that’s about the crossing of borders in various ways: Doug coming to Beach City, being in an amusement park after dark (Steven and Connie both get great one liners in this one), and the tearing of the fence in a brutal, ominous fashion. And sure enough, we have silhouettes of two new Gem antagonists to chew on. It’s difficult to discuss the tension with any real depth given how easily one can simply go on and find out all the rest (even if you’ve been avoiding spoilers, their names are already ubiquitous, as well as the fact that this conflict will be bleeding over into the next season). Still, even on its own it makes a great teaser. The designs are clearly made to be distinctive from Gems who’ve come before and set off curiosity as to what that difference signifies–are they some manner of new model Gems, like Peridot? Ones made specifically to deal with the Crystal Gems in the wake of what happened during the trip to space? Rogue agents? Yes, I’m aware that the conjecture is even more pointless than usual. The point is that this is a case of what the show’s always done well: giving a sliver of information that slots into a collected puzzle collage of other doled out hints, opening the way for theorizing while also being perfectly enjoyable to a casual viewer. It also speaks well to the show’s pacing. As frustrating as CN’s scheduling can be, the episodes themselves work well together in units, coming into its own with the Bomb formula (season 1 had more elements of Adventure Time’s pacing, dropping very distant backstory and visual cues behind the goofy shenanigans) to set up concentrated plot arcs and then relaxing into character stretches. It knows when to breathe and when to focus. We actually have one more character episode before diving fully into Gem issues. Hopefully “The Good Lars” will indeed build on the fairly promising last look we got at the character (finally, at last). Hope to see you there! Vrai is a queer author and pop culture blogger; they’re their own self-sufficient salt mine. You can read more essays and find out about their fiction at Fashionable Tinfoil Accessories, listen to them podcasting on Soundcloud, support their work via Patreon or PayPal, or remind them of the existence of Tweets Want more stories like this? Become a subscriber and support the site! —The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.—Shell money is a medium of exchange similar to coin money and other forms of commodity money, and was once commonly used in many parts of the world. Shell money usually consisted either of whole sea shells or pieces of them, which were often worked into beads or were otherwise artificially shaped. The use of shells in trade began as direct commodity exchange, the shells having value as body ornamentation. The distinction between beads as commodities and beads as money has been the subject of debate among economic anthropologists.[1] Some form of shell money appears to have been found on almost every continent populated by humans: America, Asia, Africa and Australia. The shell most widely used worldwide as currency was the shell of Cypraea moneta, the money cowry. This species is most abundant in the Indian Ocean, and was collected in the Maldive Islands, in Sri Lanka, along the Malabar coast, in Borneo and on other East Indian islands, and in various parts of the African coast from Ras Hafun to Mozambique. Cowry shell money was an important part of the trade networks of Africa, South Asia, and East Asia. Cypraea moneta 1742 drawing of shells of the money cowry, Africa [ edit ] A print from 1845 shows cowry shells being used as money by an Arab trader In western Africa, shell money was usual legal tender up until the mid 19th century. Before the abolition of the slave trade, large shipments of cowry shells were sent to some of the English ports for reshipment to the slave coast. It was also common in West Central Africa as the currency of the Kingdom of Kongo called locally nzimbu. As the value of the cowry was much greater in West Africa than in the regions from which the supply was obtained, the trade was extremely lucrative. In some cases the gains are said to have been 500%. The use of the cowry currency gradually spread inland in Africa. By about 1850 the German explorer Heinrich Barth found it fairly widespread in Kano, Kuka, Gando, and even Timbuktu. Barth relates that in Muniyoma, one of the ancient divisions of Bornu, the king's revenue was estimated at 30,000,000 shells, with every adult male being required to pay annually 1,000 shells for himself, 1,000 for every pack-ox, and 2,000 for every slave in his possession. In the countries on the coast, the shells were fastened together in strings of forty or one-hundred each, so that fifty or twenty strings represented a dollar; but in the interior they were laboriously counted one by one, or, if the traders were expert, five by five. The districts mentioned above received their supply of kurdi, as they were called, from the west coast; but the regions to the north of Unyamwezi, where they were in use under the name of simbi, were dependent on Muslim traders from Zanzibar. The shells were used in the remoter parts of Africa until the early 20th century, but then gave way to modern currencies. The shell of the large land snail, Achatina monetaria, cut into circles with an open center was also used as coin in Benguella, Portuguese West Africa. Asia [ edit ] Money Cowry; Length 2.6 cm; Palou Tello, Batu Islands, Indonesia. In China, cowries were so important that many characters relating to money or trade contain the character for cowry: 貝. Starting over three thousand years ago, cowry shells, or copies of the shells, were used as Chinese currency.[2] The Classical Chinese character for "money/currency", 貝, originated as a pictograph of a cowrie shell.[3][better source needed] Cowries were formerly used as means of exchange in India. In Bengal, where it required 3840 to make a rupee, the annual importation was valued at about 30,000 rupees. In Southeast Asia, when the value of the Siamese tical (baht) was about half a troy ounce of silver, the value of the cowrie (Thai: เบี้ย bia) was fixed at ​1⁄ 6400 Baht. In modern Thailand, it refers to interest paid for the use of money borrowed or deposited;[4] bia wat เบี้ยหวัด is a military pension.[5] In Orissa, India, cowry (popularly known as kaudi) was used as currency till 1805 when it was abolished by the British East India Company. This was one of the causes of the Paik Rebellion in 1817. Oceania and Australia [ edit ] Chinese shell money, 16-18th century BCE. Papua New Guinea shell money. In northern Australia, different shells were used by different tribes, one tribe's shell often being quite worthless in the eyes of another tribe. In the islands north of New Guinea the shells were broken into flakes. Holes were bored through these flakes, which were then valued by the length of a threaded set on a string, as measured using the finger joints. Two shells are used by these Pacific islanders, one a cowry found on the New Guinea coast, and the other the common pearl shell, broken into flakes. In the South Pacific Islands the species Oliva carneola was commonly used to create shell money. As late as 1882, local trade in the Solomon Islands was carried on by means of a coinage of shell beads, small shells laboriously ground down to the required size by the women. No more than were actually needed were made, and as the process was difficult, the value of the coinage was satisfactorily maintained. Although rapidly being replaced by modern coinage, the cowry shell currency is still in use to some extent in the Solomon Islands. The shells are worked into strips of decorated cloth whose value reflects the time spent creating them. On the Papua New Guinea island of East New Britain, shell currency is still considered legal currency and can be exchanged for the Papua New Guinean kina. North America [ edit ] The shell most valued by the Native American tribes of the Pacific Coast from Alaska to northwest California was Dentalium shell, a species of long narrow marine shelled mollusk, a tusk shell or scaphopod. The tusk shell is naturally open at both ends, and can easily be strung on a thread. This shell money was valued by its length rather than the exact number of shells; the "ligua", the highest denomination in their currency, was a length of about 6 inches.[citation needed] Antiquities of the southern Indians, particularly of the Georgia tribes (1873) Farther south, in central California and southern California, the shell of the olive snail Olivella biplicata was used to make beads for at least 9,000 years. The small numbers recovered in older archaeological site components suggest that they were initially used as ornamentation, rather than as money.[6] Beginning shortly before 1,000 years ago, Chumash specialists on the islands of California's Santa Barbara Channel began chipping beads from olive shells in such quantities that they left meter-deep piles of manufacturing residue in their wake; the resulting circular beads were used as money throughout the area that is now southern California.[7] Starting at about AD 1500, and continuing into the late nineteenth century, the Coast Miwok, Ohlone, Patwin, Pomo, and Wappo peoples of central California used the marine bivalve Saxidomus sp. to make shell money.[8] On the east coast of North America, the members of the Iroquois Confederacy and Algonquian tribes, such as the Shinnecock tribe, ground beads called wampum, which were cut from the purple part of the shell of the marine bivalve Mercenaria mercenaria, more commonly known as the hard clam or quahog.[9] White beads were cut from the white part of the quahog or whelk shells. Iroquois peoples wove these shells in belts. Middle East [ edit ] In parts of West Asia, Cypraea annulus, the ring cowry, so-called because of the bright orange-colored ring on the back or upper side of the shell, was commonly used. Many specimens were found by Sir Austen Henry Layard in his excavations at Nimrud in 1845–1851. See also [ edit ] Notes [ edit ] References [ edit ] This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Shell-money". Encyclopædia Britannica. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 833. Allibert, C., 2000 "Des cauris et des hommes. Réflexion sur l'utilisation d'une monnaie-objet et ses itinéraires", in Allibert C; et Rajaonarimanana N. (eds), L'extraordinaire et le quotidien, variations anthropologiques. Paris, Karthala, pp. 57–79 Arnold, J. E. and A.P. Graesch. 2001. The Evolution of Specialized Shellworking among the Island Chumash. In The Origins of a Pacific Coast Chiefdom: The Chumash of the Channel Islands., J.E. Arnold, ed., pp. 71–112. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. ., J.E. Arnold, ed., pp. 71–112. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. Chagnon, Napoleon A. 1970. Ecological and Adaptive Aspects of California Shell Money. Annual Reports of the University of California Archaeological Survey 12:1–25. University of California at Los Angeles. 12:1–25. University of California at Los Angeles. Davies, Glyn. 1994. A History of Money, from Ancient Times to the Present Day. University of Wales. . University of Wales. Hughes, Richard D. and Randall Milliken 2007. Prehistoric Material Conveyance. In California Prehistory: Colonization, Culture, and Complexity Terry L. Jones and Kathryn A. Klar, eds. pp. 259–272. New York and London: Altamira Press. ISBN 978-0-7591-0872-1. Terry L. Jones and Kathryn A. Klar, eds. pp. 259–272. New York and London: Altamira Press. ISBN 978-0-7591-0872-1. Mauss, Marcel. 1950. The Gift. English translation in 1990 by W.W. North. . English translation in 1990 by W.W. North. Milliken, Randall, Richard T. Fitzgerald, Mark G. Hylkema, Randy Groza, Tom Origer, David G. Bieling, Alan Leventhal, Randy S. Wiberg, Andrew Gottsfield, Donna Gillete, Viviana Bellifemine, Eric Strother, Robert Cartier, and David A. Fredrickson. 2007. "Punctuated Culture Change in the San Francisco Bay Area." In California Prehistory: Colonization, Culture, and Complexity Terry L. Jones and Kathryn A. Klar, eds. pp. 99–124. New York and London: Altamira Press. ISBN 978-0-7591-0872-1. Terry L. Jones and Kathryn A. Klar, eds. pp. 99–124. New York and London: Altamira Press. ISBN 978-0-7591-0872-1. Trubitt, M.B.D. 2003. "The Production and Exchange of Marine Shell Prestige Goods." Journal of Archaeological Research 11:243–277. 11:243–277. Vayda, Andrew. 1967. Pomo Trade Feasts. In Tribal and Peasant Economies, G. Dalton, ed., pp. 494–500. Garden City, NY: Natural History Press.Back to basics This still comes back to the basic guideline: 'learn your fundamentals.' You don't need to learn them all (designing CPU instruction sets??), but you do need to know the primary layers you interact with. A web programmer generally doesn't need to be aware of the machine code generated by his application, but should be knowledgeable in networking (layer 3 and up), caching, databases, and so on. Hacker News user ominous_prime | What's your take? Today's coders may know how to whip up a PHP script or a Drupal extension, create a mobile app for both the iPhone and Android, and run DOOM on their car's GPS (which has been done, it turns out). But there's a lot that their predecessors knew that today's programmers don't. Some of these skills aren't likely to be needed again, any more than most of us need to know how to ride a horse or (sigh) drive a manual-transmission vehicle. But other skills and "lessons learned" may still or again prove relevant, whether developers are banging their heads against legacy systems, coding for new mobile and embedded devices... or other devices and applications we haven't yet thought of. [ Programming magic: Rituals and habits of effective programmers | Sign up for ITworld newsletters ] Here's what some industry veterans and seasoned coders think the younger generation doesn't know... but should. What you don't know about hardware might hurt you "I see poor understanding of the performance ranges of various components," says Bernard Hayes, PMP (PMI Project Mgmt Professional), CSM (certified Scrum Master), and CSPO (certified Scrum Product Owner). "For example, rarely is the processor the bottleneck, but so many people look to 'tight loops' to speed up performance when it's often an I/O issue. In a world in which most folks have never intuited systems operations from studying console lights (or more often now, correlating events with signal analyzers), engineers are losing a strong mental model for processor/IO & systems interactions." Also, says Hayes, "I see people more often having difficulty in thinking through problems caused by buggy hardware, and in general, folks have minimal real understanding of the hardware issues and the implications of the downstream errors that hardware errors can cause. Instead, they tend to feel that 'the driver should deal with that.'" "When your company builds specialty hardware, you need to be able to learn how each new thing works -- and write some hardware test routines to figure out whether it was built to spec and which bits do what!" says Suford Lewis, a hands-on developer and project leader for 35+ years and past president of the Association for Women in Computing. "Half the fun of my career was moving between technologies and these days when things change so fast, I would think that changing what you are willing to do when a company dissolves from under you would be a downright necessity." Miles Fidelman, Principal at Protocol Technologies Group, LLC and a 36-year veteran of the networking industry, wonders, "Maybe it's a personal gripe, but as far back as 1983, I found serious software engineers who didn't understand hardware. For example, in talking about, say, a simulation algorithm: Me: How much horsepower do you need? SE: I don't know. Me: Let's see, how many lines of code in your main loop? SE: 10,000. Me: what language? SE: Fortran Me: ok, that's about 10 lines of machine code per line of Fortran, so 100,000 instructions per loop; how many times does the loop execute per second? SE: every 1/20th of a second. Me: OK, so that's 20 x 100,000 = 2mops (which was faster than anything we had at the time), maybe we'd better rethink this. "I don't think things have gotten any better," says Fidelman. Programming!= software engineering "Many newer developers have difficulty in depicting and understanding dependencies and diagnosing/debugging them throughout a system," says Bernard Hayes. "Some open source devotees are acquiring this skill as they work on something like mySQL that is complex and deals with many subsystems. And I'm not seeing an intuitive feel for the space/performance tradeoff in implementing algorithms. People have come up in a time of massive memories and high speed systems with respect to most problems, so many coding issues are not as visible. [ Programmers who defined the technology industry: Where are they now? ] Chris De Herrera, Founder of Pocket PC FAQ, says, "It looks like structured software development is going away especially with companies like Facebook and Google that are sponsoring 24-hour coding events where they allow any ideas which may go into their products. I am definitely sure that structured software design including a defined software development lifecycle (SDLC) is critical to reusability and secure design." Also, says De Herrera, "The use of batch files in Windows is almost gone even though they still can serve a major function. The replacement is Power Shell which does even more. However having batch file experience is an excellent base to build scripting on." Kris Rudin, Senior Developer and Associate Partner at digital marketing agency Ascentium says, "One 'lost skill' that I see all the time with new developers -- how to debug without an integrated debugger. When I started programming (in 1986, just after punch cards, using a mainframe & dumb terminal), we didn't have any IDEs and debuggers, we had to put trace statements in our code to track values and execution. "Today," says Rudin, there are occasionally times with you can't use the integrated debugger in your IDE (usually with some weird web application frameworks and server configurations), and younger programmers are at a loss as to what to do, and resort to hack-and-slash coding to try to randomly fix a bug, using guesswork. Me, I just calmly put in some code to display output values on the web page, find the bug, and fix it." Never popular, but very useful "I observe two main areas of neglect among younger programmers but the skills that I am citing were never wildly popular, only very useful," says Suford Lewis. What I learned vs. what I teach Jim Peters, a Worcester, Mass.-based programmer and web developer who has been teaching these subjects in a vocational technical high school for several years, offers some observations comparing what he was taught versus what he discovered he should be teaching today: "It's no longer about processing data or writing your program from a blank slate. It's about teaching the novice how to use the interface first, then getting them familiar with they need to add to the generated code. Once you're by that, you can start to teach them how use the programming language to help them get the task done." For example, says Lewis, "Careful design and thorough specification: the 'think about it first' method. So many times I have seen software from single programs to large systems developed with insufficient attention to what was requested -- and what the requestor actually meant by it! At the single program level, this takes the form of dashing off the code and fixing it at random until it seems to execute okay. Modern tools make this so easy that few software engineers actually spend much effort trying to figure out what the problems are, let alone thinking about it in detail before starting. This is the 'No time to do it right, plenty of time to do it over' method. It always takes longer. It's hard to resist the pressure of those who demand 'Why aren't you coding yet?' but one should. "The code produced could fail as soon as it hits a case that was not in the test set, and it is unlikely that it will be easy to understand when someone else has to fix or modify it," says Lewis. "Even if your code editor automatically makes it structured, if there are no comments about why something is done a particular way or what a routine is supposed to do or a variable to mean that the next person to wrestle with the code will have a tough time. I used to put in comments to help think out the process. I stopped assuming I would always remember every line I wrote after my first year." "Whatever happened to drawing flowcharts?" asks Paula Lieberman, a systems engineer who's also been a software test engineer, tech writer and market researcher. "One of the most common failings of software engineers and coders I've seen over my entire career in high tech is a lack of exception handling. Most developers outside of computer security specialists seem rarely to consider, 'What if the user makes a mistake, what if someone is intentionally trying to break or break into the system, what if someone is clueless and doesn't do things the way the developer automatically assumes users do things?'" Also, says Lieberman, "Flowcharts help with the "just what is it that you're trying do?" view. Lists of requirements don't show interdependencies and how things fit together. Flowcharts are a visual systematic approach, in a world where particularization seems to have eclipsed looking at software from a systems perspective." Working within network and performance constraints Ben Summers, Technical Director at ONEIS, a U.K-based information management platform provider, points out that "habits learned when writing web applications for 14.4kbps dial-up telephone modems come in rather handy when dealing with modern day mobile connections. When you only had couple of Kbytes per second, and latencies of a few hundred milliseconds, you were very careful to minimize the size of the pages you sent, and just as importantly, minimize the amount of back and forth with the server." With today's mobile connections, says Summers, "the latency is much worse than using a telephone modem connection, and that's compounded by error rates in congested areas like city centers. The fast 'broadband' headline speeds are pretty irrelevant to web applications. It's the latency which determines how fast the response time will feel, and tricks learned when phone modems ruled the world come in awfully handy. As a bonus, when someone uses your app on a fixed connection, it'll feel as fast as desktop software!" The sounds of failure Today's techies have a tin ear for failure. "I'm not seeing an understanding or awareness of the sounds computer systems and electronic equipment tend to make and how that relates to failure risks, like people being able to hear or otherwise sense when the engine oil in a car needs to be changed," says Bernard Hayes. "I can hear and am sensitive to the sounds of arm motion within my hard drive and can tell when it needs to be defragged. About six months ago, I could hear that my four-year-old disk drive on my seven-year-old laptop was about to fail, so I took care to duplicate everything and have copies about. I was thus not at all surprised when the disk failed about two weeks after I become aware of the risk." "Activities like hearing a noisy voice or copying Morse Code are not in the realm of most RF engineers," says Carl Mikkelsen, whose 45 years of experience covers high voltage vacuum FETs, TTL, broadcast engineering, programming language design, compiler writing, laying the framework for EMACS, image processing, graphics, font rendering, six patents, and real time mechanotronics. "We have such good digital modulation and error corrections that we expect all communications to be clear and error free. Unfortunately, you can't make a digital transmitter with a spark gap and a bit of crystal. Ham radio operators keep this barely alive." Parting words "Assembly language, interrupt handlers, race conditions, cache coherence," says Jude Miller, long-time system consultant and industry curmudgeon. Other low-level skills that today's engineers aren't getting, according to Carl Mikkelsen: "programming tight loops, computational graphic approximations like a circle algorithm, machining cast iron, designing CPU instruction sets, meeting real-time constraints, programming in the inefficient zone - recovering some of the last 30% of potential, and analog design, such as audio amps." Pete Kaiser, an independent consultant and 50-year veteran of the industry, doesn't so much see lost individual skills as "overall shrinkage -- many of the 'experts' I hear and see in the trade press seem to have much narrower, shallower perspectives compared to the people I worked with in my days as an active developer of software and hardware in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. I read about people who know everything about the APIs to Microsoft Windows VSS -- but who have no idea what a log-based file system is. Or who can tell you to buy more RAM for your servers, but have no idea of the design principles behind why a 4GB Linux system may outperform a 16GB Windows system for some purposes. They're ecstatic about Microsoft's Aero interface for Windows, but have no concept of how little GUIs have changed since the 1980s. So they have nothing to contribute to thinking about where to go from here, or whose feet to hold to the fire. What do you think? Are the coding skills of yesteryear a lost art that should be revived? Or are they actually not very good coding practices in a modern environment? This article, "Lost programming skills," was originally published at ITworld. For the latest IT news, analysis and how-tos, follow ITworld on Twitter and Facebook.There is nothing redeemable about Sausage Party, other than how hard it made me laugh. It's a movie filled with racial stereotypes, juvenile humor, raunchy sex and utter stupidity, and I loved every second of it. Sausage Party is probably the most authentically work-in-progress Work-In-Progress screening I've seen at a festival - there were entire segments of story that featured unfinished, sketchy animation. Under those circumstances, it still managed to charm a theater full of viewers, because the movie is complete in its story and spirit. It's also a complete work of nonsense, but complete nonetheless. Where to begin? Frank (Rogen) is one in a package of hot dogs waiting on the shelves of a local grocery story. Waiting for what? For The Great Beyond, that magical moment when The Gods (hungry humans) purchase a product and take it outside the store, where the sausage, or bagel, or bottle of curry ketchup, can fulfill its sweet destiny. All of this is foretold in a song the groceries sing every morning, as the fluorescent lights flicker on and the market opens for business. Frank is most excited for the moment that he and his fated bun (Kristen Wiig as Brenda) will become one, and as many sexual sausage-in-bun jokes you're predicting the film can make, go ahead and double that number. Alas, Frank and Brenda's future is forestalled when disaster strikes the store, and Frank begins to realize that the outlook for a piece of processed meat isn't as rosy as he's been led to believe. As he starts to doubt the word of The Gods and the inevitability of The Great Beyond, Brenda digs in her heels, determined to stick to her faith in spite of mounting evidence that such scripture is a bunch of baloney. So yes, there are some legitimate themes hiding under all of the dick jokes, questions of faith and skepticism, of fate and choice. There's also a bit of light sociopolitical examination, mainly among the different ethnicities of the food groups, and how they fight or work together to escape to The Great Beyond and out from the tedium of their supermarket shelves. David Krumholtz is Vash, a piece of Armenian lavash who finds himself very surprised to be working with Sammy Bagel, Jr. (Edward Norton doing a perfect Woody Allen). Salma Hayek is Theresa, the taco who has eyes for Brenda, and yes, all of the female characters are basically edible vaginas. There's even a wise Indian chief character portrayed, naturally, by a bottle of fire-water. It's a real problem. People are going to be so mad. It's all so silly, so incredibly dumb, but it's also brand new. Sausage Party is visually inventive and absolutely courageous in its freedom from convention, its willingness to offend any and everybody. It's weird enough to feel nearly hallucinatory, raunchy enough to require an R-rating, foolhardy enough that I can hardly believe it exists. Seth Rogen stated that the film was several years in the making, something of a "labor of love" for himself and Goldberg, and it's like, really, this movie? This movie about hot dog weiners bedding zaftig buns is your labor of love? But Sausage Party, against all odds, feels like it was made with love. It's bawdy and heinous, amazingly ill-advised, and people are going to hate it. But goddammit, this movie is funny.Ready to fight back? Sign up for Take Action Now and get three actions in your inbox every week. You will receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nation’s journalism. You can read our Privacy Policy here. Sign up for Take Action Now and get three actions in your inbox every week. Thank you for signing up. For more from The Nation, check out our latest issue Subscribe now for as little as $2 a month! Support Progressive Journalism The Nation is reader supported: Chip in $10 or more to help us continue to write about the issues that matter. The Nation is reader supported: Chip in $10 or more to help us continue to write about the issues that matter. Fight Back! Sign up for Take Action Now and we’ll send you three meaningful actions you can take each week. You will receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nation’s journalism. You can read our Privacy Policy here. Sign up for Take Action Now and we’ll send you three meaningful actions you can take each week. Thank you for signing up. For more from The Nation, check out our latest issue Travel With The Nation Be the first to hear about Nation Travels destinations, and explore the world with kindred spirits. Be the first to hear about Nation Travels destinations, and explore the world with kindred spirits. Sign up for our Wine Club today. Did you know you can support The Nation by drinking wine? On Tuesday, a federal court in Washington found that Texas’s redistricting maps violated Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act and were “enacted with discriminatory purpose.” On Thursday a separate three-judge federal court panel in Washington unanimously found that Texas’s voter ID law also violated Section 5 by discriminating against minority voters. Ad Policy For background, see my earlier posts “DOJ Blocks Discriminatory Texas Voter ID Law” and “Discriminatory Texas Voter ID Law Challenged in Federal Court.” In March the Justice Department objected to Texas’s voter ID law. Among the reasons: the state admitted that between 603,892 to 795,955 registered in voters in Texas lacked government-issued photo ID, with Hispanic voters between 46.5 percent to 120 percent more likely than whites to not have the new voter ID; to obtain one of the five government-issued IDs now needed to vote, voters must first pay for underlying documents to confirm their identity, the cheapest option being a birth certificate for $22 (otherwise known as a "poll tax"); Texas has DMV offices in only eighty-one of 254 counties in the state, with some voters needing to travel up to 250 miles to obtain a new voter ID. Counties with a significant Hispanic population are less likely to have a DMV office, while Hispanic residents in such counties are twice as likely as whites to not have the new voter ID (Hispanics in Texas are also twice as likely as whites to not have a car). These facts also persuaded the court to block the voter ID law. Section 5 mandates that covered jurisdictions with a history of electoral discrimination—which includes parts or all of sixteen states, including much of the South—receive approval from DOJ or a federal court in Washington for any voting-related change to ensure that it does not make it harder for minority citizens to be able to vote (known in the legal parlance as “retrogression”). Here’s the key section from the court ruling: Texas bears the burden of proving that nothing in SB 14 “would lead to a retrogression in the position of racial minorities with respect to their effective exercise of the electoral franchise.” Because all of Texas’s evidence on retrogression is some combination of invalid, irrelevant, and unreliable, we have little trouble concluding that Texas has failed to carry its burden. To the contrary, record evidence suggests that SB 14, if implemented, would in fact have a retrogressive effect on Hispanic and African American voters. This conclusion flows from three basic facts: (1) a substantial subgroup of Texas voters, many of whom are African American or Hispanic, lack photo ID; (2) the burdens associated with obtaining ID will weigh most heavily on the poor; and (3) racial minorities in Texas are disproportionately likely to live in poverty. The court elaborated: According to undisputed U.S. Census data, the poverty rate in Texas is 25.8% for Hispanics and 23.3% for African Americans, compared to just 8.8% for whites. This means that the burdens of obtaining [voter ID] will almost certainly fall more heavily on minorities, a concern well recognized by those who work in minority communities. …Undisputed census data shows that in Texas, 13.1% of African Americans and 7.3% of Hispanics live in households without access to a motor vehicle, compared with only 3.8% of whites. …while a 200 to 250 mile trip to and from a DPS [Department of Public Safety] office would be a heavy burden for any prospective voter, such a journey would be especially daunting for the working poor. Poorer citizens, especially those working for hourly wages, will likely be less able to take time off work to travel to a DPS office—a problem exacerbated by the fact that wait times in DPS offices can be as long as three hours during busy months of the year. This concern is especially serious given that none of Texas’s DPS offices are open on weekends or past 6:00 PM, eliminating for many working people the option of obtaining an EIC [“election identification certificate”] on their own time. A law that forces poorer citizens to choose between their wages and their franchise unquestionably denies or abridges their right to vote. The same is true when a law imposes an implicit fee for the privilege of casting a ballot, like the $22 many would-be voters who lack the required underlying documentation will have to pay to obtain an EIC. “[W]ealth or fee paying has…no relation to voting qualifications; the right to vote is too precious, too fundamental to be so burdened or conditioned.” …Significantly, Texas disputes none of the facts underlying this conclusion—not the $22 cost for a birth certificate, not the distance between DPS offices, not the poverty rates for minorities in Texas, not the disproportionate vehicle access rates. The court ruling clearly shows how voter ID laws disproportionately harm Hispanic, African-American and low-income voters, who, perhaps not surprisingly, are more likely to vote for Democrats
than me. Being a teenager would be relatively fresh in my memory. My size would make me appear younger than I was and possibly diminutive. I needed to assert myself or these kids weren’t going to take me seriously. To start, I figured I should look the part as much as possible. I donned a shirt and tie, even though most of my colleagues dressed more casually. I’ll admit sporting a dress shoe with a slight heel, figuring I could use the extra lift. Although I wavered about this, I went for a clean-shaven look. Facial hair may have aged me slightly, but I thought I could better cultivate a professional look through sharp grooming. I visited the school before I started my assignment. My plan was to familiarize myself with the building and meet several teachers. Falling in with them early was going to be important, as I was going to need allies. I wanted to look the part, but also I wanted to be accepted as a professional peer. Being firmly entrenched on this team would help my cause. By the start of my assignment, I had adopted a professional appearance and established connections with colleagues. Now, I had to make my first impressions with students. On my first official day, I stood outside the classroom as students shuffled by me. I tried to identify which ones were destined for my classroom. The students were boisterous and physical, shoving one another and cursing loudly. Being a student teacher, I lacked the authority to break up scuffles. I was relieved not to see any serious ones that first day. I made a point to make eye contact with several regardless of what they were doing. I offered a firm “Good morning!” to a few even if they didn’t reciprocate. A few hesitant students approached, confused about why I was standing by the door. I greeted them as their new student teacher and offered my hand. Most played along, so I gave each a firm shake while maintaining eye contact. I didn’t know at the time that eye contact could be threatening to some, but it didn’t seem to cause any initial problems. A few made smart remarks and refused to enter, but this didn’t have to do with eye contact. Rather than chase them, I cut my losses. Again, without any recognized authority, I wasn’t going to get anywhere pursuing students and attempting to wrangle them. When the first group had entered the room and seated themselves, I introduced myself rather than allowing my cooperating teacher to introduce me. Prior to the assignment, I arranged through her and my supervisor to begin teaching the first day. This was highly unorthodox and not condoned by my program. However, the assignment was brief and I assumed Id need ample time to develop a presence. I started by insisting they call me Mr. Hartman rather than Mr. H. or the much more common Mister. I told I was going to learn their names, so they could learn mine. I shared some of my background and gave them a chance to ask questions about me. Most didn’t bite, but a few asked questions about whether or not I’d be tough on them. I told them they’d find out. After they had their chance, I gave them a survey through which they could tell me about themselves. I wanted to show I was interested in them. We discussed results as they finished. Before starting the first lesson, I reminded them that while I was with them, I had all the authority any other teacher in the building had. This was a stretch, but I stuck with it. As I began interacting with students, I refused to use their vernacular. I assumed they’d see right through this rather than appreciating the attempt to identify with them. I didn’t ask them to participate. I called on them, not allowing anyone to drift. When a kid got off-task, I moved closer or lowered my voice to grab attention. Proximity helped, but I was somewhat conscious of how I appeared standing next to them. I knew I wouldn’t appear intimidating, but I didn’t crave that. I didn’t shout. I didn’t get into power struggles. I used a firm voice, I soldiered on with lessons, and I addressed disruptions without giving signs they had angered me. My strongest asset proved to be an odd combination of novelty and routine. Being new and young won me some points. I was someone different, so I milked that as long as I could. This was an English class for struggling readers. I had the freedom to choose materials, so I selected topics of relevance to them, often letting them select. I kept my wit about me, quipping back at their smart remarks without seeming threatening and without interrupting the pace of my lesson. My ability to jab right back without cracking a smile impressed them. The routines I established helped much more. They knew what to expect out of a period with me. We worked nonstop every period, which required intense preparation on my part. Keeping them busy helped keep me in control. They knew they didn’t have time to slack. I offered what rewards I could for keeping pace. Not everything went smoothly. I won over enough of them to survive the assignment, but a few weren’t going to cooperate no matter what I did. Unfortunately, a culture of disrespect and antagonism was rampant in the school before I started. I wasn’t going to overcome that in just a few weeks. I lucked out in that some of the rowdiest students didn’t bother attending. My initial poise and continuing persistence helped me with the regulars. I had a professional appearance and demeanor, but I showed them I could keep up with them without losing my control. We all got to know one another better, and soon they forgot about my height and I forgot about their attitudes. I was their teacher rather than their short teacher. They were my students rather than the troubled kids I had to teach. It worked well enough.Share this article! 31 Pinterest 0 StumbleUpon 0 Reddit 0 Linkedin Tumblr 0 Digg What if you decided to finally go natural and stop using relaxers, and nix the weaves, only to find out that your man hates the curls and coils that you were born with? Husband and wife Love and McLea were faced with this very problem and they spoke about it on The Steve Harvey Show. Love said that they were together for 9 years and when they first met, she wore weaves. It was only three years ago that she decided to wear her hair natural after a bad experience with a weave. According to Love, when her husband saw her natural hair for the first time, he actually ran out of the house! For his part, McLea said that he “understands” how long it could take for natural hair to grow out and he tries to be supportive of his beautiful wife, but lamented that he wished there were more styles Love could do with her hair to make it more ‘appealing’. Steve Harvey asked Love how she felt about what her husband shared to which she replied: “No wife wants to hear that their husband is not attracted to their natural beauty, so of course it makes me feel bad. But I feel like I am to blame for this because I’ve been wearing weaves since I could talk and he’s never really seen me in this state. So it kind of feels like it’s my fault.” Love added that if her husband is more supportive of her natural curls, she’ll wear it more. She also shared how overwhelming the process of going natural has been for her because she is at a loss as to how to style her hair. Luckily for the couple, Steve brought in natural hair blogger Nikki Walton who offered advice to Love on her natural hair journey as well as some of the great styles that she can try on her hair. You can watch the video of the show below: Is your man supportive of you wearing your hair natural, or is he more like McLea? Do you, like Love, blame yourself if your man can’t accept your natural curls? Author: Dianne “Changing attitudes about natural hair” is what we do at Natural Haircare News. Through informative articles, podcasts and videos, we go beyond just sharing the latest advice and tips on kinky, curly, wavy haircare – We shake things up and focus on the realities of wearing our hair natural. Not sure of which products are right for your hair type? Visit our solution oriented natural hair products store. if (function_exists('nrelate_related')) nrelate_related();?We’ve talked with Mark Knight about his work and the way he manages to capture complex games and films in tiny pixel art masterpieces. Introduction I’m Mark Knight, I live in the coastal town of Grimsby, in the UK. I studied CAD at University, had a failed website startup and tried to get into remote freelance graphic design. I’m currently a minimum wage fish factory worker. Hexels Toolkit I was introduced to Hexels1 when I simply googled ‘isometric Graphics Software demo download’ to create a banner for my youtube channel. I found there was no ‘learning curve’ at all – it was so easy to use and let me do exactly what I wanted – a Minecraft style banner, with my name, which I still use today on all my channels. My pictures gained traction with a series of images based upon the Silent Hill series of games. From there I have focused upon genre films and video games that I love. I choose scenes and situations that are not normally depicted in ‘fan art’. I’ll pick a scene that encapsulated the atmosphere of the film (or game) for me. I try to avoid the most recognizable scenes and I avoid hero poses. Many of my pictures have single digit views because, I think, the source material is not widely known or a bit niche. The software is constantly evolving and often each new picture, or gif, I create features some new technique that was not possible until the most recent patch. Hexels seems to updated monthly with meaningful new, often requested, features. I have to mention that I only use ‘Trixels’ mode (for isometric style triangular grid sets) Hexels 2 features a full suite of other modes including pixel art mode for tradition 2D art and animation. Ive just started experimenting with importing isometric Trixels into pixel mode for a cool retro gamer style. Learning With Hexels 2 it helps if you have a basic knowledge of Photoshop. Layers and tools work the same way as do most keyboard shortcuts. Because Hexels uses a snap style grid movement I do not use a graphics tablet. I use a standard desktop office mouse and drag my pointer through the grid almost like creating a mosaic. I try to ‘light’ my scenes quite realistically, or faithful to the source material (videogame or film), so a competent understanding of light and shadow help give the illusion of three dimensional shapes in my scenes. Because Hexels Trixel mode used to be triangles only I embraced the angular look of my character and scenes. I worked within those limitations and I think I’ve been a little spoiled, with each iteration of Hexels, by the amount of shape control that is on offer now to the point where I can create an image without any evidence of the Trixel look. I try to keep some areas of my newer pictures looking ‘jaggy’ and I may revert a little to that style, combined with pixel mode, in future. Animation I often create an ‘animated gif’ version of my images as they get more of a response than the static image. I keep them around 20 frames and try to create a loop. The only reason for this is to keep the exported gif under 3mb – a requirement for tumblr. I sometimes use traditional keyframe animation, within Hexels timeline mode, by drawing and modifying each individual cel. It was only after a great reading a ‘bouncing ball’ tutorial, by Ken Kopecky, that I learnt that I could animate by transforming a layer, at different points along the timeline, and have the software generate the ‘in between’ frames for ultra smooth movement. The animation suite has changed so much within the past 3 months to the point where it gives me the confidence to try something new each time. My most recent (Friday 13th) picture has a realistic water reflection effect that was very easy to create and took only a few minutes to set up the animation. I have been planning a short animated film entirely in Hexels and I may start that this year (if my outdated Mac mini can handle it). Game Development with Hexels Games cannot be made with Hexels but assets can be created, with Hexels, for use in game development. I am yet to ‘dabble’ in this area (although I’d love to give it a go). Hexels has always had export options for game assets. files can be exported as a sprite sheet (a single bitmap file containing multiple images for character animation such as walk,run,crouch,jump etc) which is the standard format for pixel art style games. Aside from.psd (photoshop and.png (image) I have no knowledge of the other export options svg, csv and xml. My understanding is that Hexels would be used alongside software such as ‘Gamemaker’. I know of a game, in development, called ‘Quench‘ that uses Hexels and, I think, ‘Monument Valley‘ used Hexels to some extent. Plans I usually create at least one new picture, and a ‘making of’ video, each week. I’m trying to build a portfolio with the hopes of attracting a commission or work or at least generating enough income, from my Youtube channel, for new hardware. I’m not sure what to make next but I’m in no way short of great games and movies to draw inspiration from. I have been planning to create an animated short film, entirely in Hexels, that I’ve had planned out for some years now, waiting for a medium that is workable. I’d like to vary my genres more by creating more colourful images. I have been focusing on characters more than architecture of late so that is an area to explore more. I’m currently engrossed in Resident Evil 7(PS4) so I may draw from that by recreating a scene from the demo (which is more widely know at the moment). Mark Knight, 2D artist Interview conducted by Kirill Tokarev. Follow 80.lv on Facebook, Twitter and InstagramBill Gates is no stranger to progressive thinking. The philanthropic foundation he runs with his wife, Melinda, has backed everything from longer-lasting pill-based contraception to a process whereby human waste can be converted into safe, drinkable water. Most of their efforts are focused on improving conditions for the world’s poor in markets often neglected by private sector corporations and government aid. And it’s to safeguard the ongoing work of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation that Bill Gates has announced that he will be doubling his personal investments in clean energy technology over the next five years. Taking his total stake to a whopping US$2 billion in renewable energy production and research, Gates argues that the time is right because he believes that the next five years will see major advancements in technology and initiatives that will help ‘solve’ climate change. While Gates’s personal investments are separate from the investments made by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, there’s a common goal between them. As Gates notes, of all those who will be affected by climate change, it’s people in poor countries – who are already vulnerable to harsh environmental and economic conditions – that will suffer the worst: “Higher temperatures and less-predictable weather would hurt poor farmers, most of whom live on the edge and can be devastated by a single bad crop. Food supplies could decline. Hunger and malnutrition could rise. It would be a terrible injustice to let climate change undo any of the past half-century’s progress against poverty and disease — and doubly unfair because the people who will be hurt the most are the ones doing the least to cause the problem.” Despite the size of Gates’s personal funding for clean technologies, he acknowledges it’s a drop in the ocean compared to the investments and decisions made by governments around the world, prompting him to make the case for why a carbon-free future is a realistic and worthwhile commercial goal. Gates lays out a three-step model on his blog for how the countries of the world can achieve this ambitious target. Firstly, he says we need to create incentives for innovation by "drastically increasing government funding for research on clean energy solutions”. Second, we need to develop markets that help get to zero carbon emissions, with models that more accurately recognise the full impact of emitting carbon (including health and environmental factors). Finally, Gates says we need to treat poor countries fairly. Acknowledging that some climate change is inevitable, he advocates richer countries need to help poorer countries adapt to the world’s changing environmental conditions. “These are solvable problems,” Gates says. “If we create the right environment for innovation, we can accelerate the pace of progress, develop and deploy new solutions, and eventually provide everyone with reliable, affordable energy that is carbon free. We can avoid the worst climate-change scenarios while also lifting people out of poverty, growing food more efficiently, and saving lives by reducing pollution.”After much hand-wringing over how many Kansas City Royals would start the MLB All-Star Game, the final fan voting tallies were released late Sunday, and the rest of America can breathe a sigh of relief. The tabulation revealed that “only” four K.C. players — Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain, Alcides Escobar and Salvador Perez — will be slotted into the lineup by the fans. (Two Royals relief pitchers, Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera, were added by the players and Royals manager Ned Yost, who is managing the American League this year. Third baseman Mike Moustakas has a chance to become the fifth Royal chosen by the fans in the final round of voting, which ends Friday.) It was a far cry from the staggering eight Royals who were in position to start the game for the American League a few weeks ago, a number that sparked accusations of improper ballot-box stuffing (which MLB officials denied). Had the Royals sustained that number — or even one fewer, if we exclude designated hitters, as Baseball-Reference’s yearly table does — it would have been historic. Since baseball ditched dual All-Star Games in 1963, no team has garnered more than five non-DH position-player starters in one midsummer classic. Kansas City almost certainly didn’t deserve that many players on the lineup card. Based on the historical relationship between a team’s All-Star Game position-player starters and its record, a team with seven starters (again, excluding the DH) should have won something like 68 percent of its games through midseason, which would come out to 110 wins over a full season. That’s as many as the juggernaut 1927 Yankees had. But the Royals aren’t the ’27 Yankees. Fangraphs projects that the Royals will finish the year with 92 wins if they maintain their first-half form. As it is, four All-Star starters is an impressive count. Only 14 teams since 1963 have had that many position players as starters. You can quibble over how many starters the team actually deserved. According to Fangraphs’ version of wins above replacement (WAR), only left fielder Gordon leads American Leaguers at his position thus far in 2015. And based on historical teams with the same midseason record, there was only a 1.9 percent probability that the Royals would get four or more starters. The voting power of Kansas City’s fans certainly seems to have exceeded the performance of its players. But the Royals do boast five players who rank among the AL’s top four at their position in WAR (Gordon, Cain and Perez, plus Eric Hosmer and Moustakas). And Kansas City’s record is also very much in keeping with those of the four-starter club’s other members: As of Sunday, their winning percentage on the season (58.2 percent) was only marginally lower than the average first-half winning percentage (59.1 percent) for all teams with four All-Star Game starters since 1963. Yes, the Royals fan base was particularly mobilized during this season’s voting cycle, perhaps out of leftover enthusiasm from last year’s World Series run (which came after years of futility). But maybe that’s a key part of the story as well. From 2001 through 2013, K.C. didn’t have a single All-Star starter; less than a month ago, it looked like they’d have eight in one year. Sympathy turned into backlash. The fans’ votes eventually found the equilibrium between those extremes, and that the Royals ended up with four starters isn’t so crazy after all.Getty Images U.S. exports fell in 2015 and that hurt the U.S. economy. WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The nation’s trade deficit rose 2.7% in December as exports fell again, capping the first year since 2009 in which U.S. exports have declined. The U.S. trade gap increased to a seasonally adjusted $43.4 billion from $42.2 billion in November, government data show. That was in line with the MarketWatch forecast. U.S. exports dipped 0.3% to $181.5 billion. They fell 4.8% in 2015 to mark the largest decline since the final year of the Great Recession. Exports have tumbled because of a weak global economy and a strong dollar that’s made American-supplied goods and services more expensive. The worsened trade picture contributed to slower U.S. economic growth in the second half of 2015. Imports rose 0.3% to $224.9 billion in December. They decreased 3.1% in 2015, largely reflecting lower costs of imported oil. For the full year, the U.S. trade deficit climbed 4.6% to $531.5 billion compared with 2014. In a separate economic report Friday, the pace of hiring tapered off in January, but wages rose sharply and the unemployment rate dipped below 5% for the first time since 2008.The eruption seems to have started near the northern end of the magma intrusion that has been propagating northward from the Bardarbunga caldera since August 16. Small surface crevasses were seen in the Holuhraun lava field yesterday, leading to increased interest among scientists. The possibility of an eruption migrating southwards, towards the Dyngjujokull glacier cannot be excluded at this time. Benedikt Ofeigsson, staff member at the Icelandic Met Office is at the scene. In an interview with RUV tonight, he described the eruption as small; lava is flowing to the southeast and some small tephra mantles are coming out of the fissure. The IMO has issued a red alert (highest) for aviation. That means that airtraffic is restricted in a large area around the eruption. The fissure lies on a northeast - southwest direction. A live webcam of the eruption can be found at www.mila.is Road and area restrictions that have been enforced over the last days are still in effect in the area north of the Vatnajokull glacier. [email protected] This story, by the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service (RUV), was updated on August 29. 2014, at 01.54 GMT. Updates in English will be posted at: ruv.is/volcano. Follow us on Twitter @ruvfrettirMy interest in South Asia, and specifically Pakistan, started when I finished my degree in Islamic studies in Madrid. It was not easy to pursue South Asian studies as a Spanish scholar; unlike other European countries such as the UK, Spain still does not have a university department for this area. I moved to India for PhD research for two years (2001-2002) when 9/11 clearly marked a change. Islam came to the forefront of international academic and non-academic interests, often for the wrong reasons. When I returned from India, I observed that my friends in Barcelona often talked about the increasing presence of Pakistanis and other people of South Asian origin in the city. To the delight of the British nationals in town and other more adventurous citizens, the proliferation of curry houses was a reason to celebrate the formerly less diverse culinary scene. It was clear that the Pakistani community in Barcelona had become a talking point. Their presence was unavoidable, particularly after the prayers on Fridays. And nowhere were they more visible than in the neighbourhood of El Raval. Many wondered where these men were from, why they dressed like that (shalwar kameez), and why they were seldom accompanied by their womenfolk. In 2008, Casa Asia, an institution of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs that promotes knowledge of Asia in Spain, awarded me a grant. My project was to conduct a piece of research that would be called Atlas of Pakistani Migration in Spain. I took this opportunity to visit Pakistan and travel around Spain to go to the different places where Pakistanis had settled. More than half of all Pakistanis in Spain lived in Catalonia, especially Barcelona, which is why I moved there in the summer of 2008. Pakistanis in Spain Compared with other European countries, Spain has not always been a country of immigrants. Pakistanis, for example, have traditionally preferred to migrate to the UK, USA, Canada, and the Gulf because of the better economic prospects in those nations. Spain has a population of approximately 46.5 million, of which 9.5% are foreigners. The main foreign nationalities represented in the country are Romanians, Moroccans, British, Italians and Chinese. Pakistanis are 1.2% of all foreigners and barely 0.1% of the population in Spain. How have they managed, then, to attract so much attention? One of the explanations can be found in their local concentration, in terms of both origin and destination. Gujratis make up 44% of all Pakistanis in Spain, while in other destinations in the European Union, they are about 11%. As for destination, more than half of all Pakistanis in Spain are in Barcelona. At their peak, in 2012, there were about 68,000 Pakistanis in Spain, although the Spanish Institute of Statistics only accounts for those legally resident. Several thousand others are thought to have resided there illegally. The Pioneers The first Pakistanis to arrive in the country were a group of about 300 Gujratis who migrated from other European countries in the 1970s and landed initially in Barcelona. Some of the migrants had experience working in mines elsewhere in Europe and Pakistan; some had lost their jobs in factories or mines in the UK where the industrial crisis had begun; others had working experience in oil refineries in Libya. Those were the last days of Franco’s dictatorship and Spain’s industrial labour market was small. Some migrants opened shops and boarding houses; others looked for jobs in industry or manufacturing. Those who had no previous experience in mining had to learn from scratch. The main mines where they began to work were El Bierzo (coal) and Linares (lead), and others in La Rioja and Teruel. Most of the Pakistani newcomers were men between 20 and 28 years old from Gujrat, predominantly from the village of Puran. Map of origins of Pakistanis in Spain. Source: Spanish Institute of Statistics, 2008. Map of destinations of Pakistanis in Spain. Source: Spanish Institute of Statistics, 2008. They are known among the wider Pakistani community in Spain as los pioneros (The Pioneers), being the first to venture into the Spanish labour market. The Spain of those days was a very traditional country with only basic infrastructures. One of the Pioneers told me they found themselves in quite familiar surroundings in the 1970s: “We came from a place where there was also a dictatorship, where you would not talk about politics and you knew you had to keep your mouth shut.” Many were surprised to find that people in Spain hardly spoke any English and that they had to learn Spanish if they were to be understood by the locals. Not surprisingly, traditional Pakistani codes were misinterpreted. The shalwar kameez attracted unexpected attention in the villages near the mines, with many old ladies believing that the men were wearing dresses. Pakistanis working in the mines in Linares. Photo credit: Blas Torralbo Photo credit: Blas Torralbo While it was acceptable for Spanish couples to walk hand in hand, Pakistani men doing the same was misunderstood as homosexuality. Blas, a teacher at a high school in Linares, told me that as a child their only entertainment was playing in the streets. The sight of Pakistani men walking hand in hand was an amusement for naughty kids who would follow them around and scream “Mariquitas! Mariquitas!” (Pansies! Pansies!) Most of these Pioneers worked for about 15 or 20 years. The majority had to retire due to work-related illnesses, mainly respiratory ones such as silicosis. They usually worked as drillers and explosive experts and did the night shifts. There was a death in a mine in June 1977 of a Pakistani worker named Abdul Razaq. The whole village of Bembibre joined the funerary court and the company helped send his body back to Pakistan. The funeral of the Pakistani mine worker. Photo credit: El Diario de León In those early years, the economic situation was better. Spain had just joined the EU (in 1986). Job opportunities increased and the welfare state was at its most supportive. Some of those who had secured their retirement pensions travelled back to Pakistan and spread the idea that Spain was a land of opportunity. As proof of it, they had their big houses to show off. But at the same time, these migrants were exponents of a myth that others could not fulfil. When the mines started closing in the 1980s and 1990s, many lost their jobs and had to change occupations or moved to different towns. Destination Barcelona The main question everyone asks is why most Pakistanis are concentrated in Barcelona. To begin with, while the first wave of Pakistani migrants largely worked in mines and industry in other parts of Spain, the next generation of migrants preferred cities as they offered job opportunities in occupations that Pakistanis have become specialised in: the services sector and self-employment. We must also consider the fact that Barcelona has a more buoyant economy than other Spanish cities. Furthermore, the kinship networks developed by the migrants themselves provide an important degree of social security for the newcomers. The migrants, typically men, would bring over their brothers, then their cousins and uncles. After establishing themselves, it would be the turn of wives and children. El Raval was the main point of arrival for most of the Pakistani migrants and it was here where their initial experience in Barcelona took place. Formerly known as El Barrio Chino (Chinese quarter), El Raval was at that time a tough working-class neighbourhood where drug trafficking and prostitution were rife, turning it into a no-go zone for locals and tourists. When Pakistanis arrived, they were attracted by El Raval’s central location, low rents and affordable business premises, where shops and restaurants could be established. Some more adventurous entrepreneurs bought flats there. The flow of immigrants turned El Raval into one of the most international neighbourhoods in Barcelona. The primary and secondary education institute Miquel Tarradell is proof of this. I used to live just across the street and loved to see from the balcony how Pakistani, Moroccan, Senegalese, Latin American and Catalan parents, all with their different attires and languages, would drop their kids off. Pakistani kids would arrive speaking Punjabi to their parents, only to instantly switch to Catalan or Spanish at the school gates. When Barcelona staged the 1992 Olympics, El Raval became a tourist hot spot, even more so with the economic boom of the early 2000s. Like most neighbourhoods in the city, El Raval also became increasingly gentrified. The area’s Pakistani population has decreased over the years. Many have remained in Barcelona but have taken their families to other locations. Some Pakistanis I talked to mention that they like their new neighbourhoods and prefer their children to grow up here, but they miss the feeling of proximity and neighbourliness they had while in El Raval. Many can still be seen on the Rambla del Raval boulevard, where they meet on Fridays after prayer at the nearby mosque run by the Minhaj-ul Quran association, the one with the biggest attendance in Barcelona. Pakistani associations The religious and cultural associations are the main means through which the diaspora organises and presents itself to the local government. These organisations help Pakistanis find their way through life, get guidance regarding bureaucratic formalities, and assist them with Spanish and Catalan language classes. The vast majority of the Pakistani associations are religious in nature and are anxious to be seen as legitimately representing the whole community. Entrance of one of the mosques in Barcelona. -Photo by author Survival of an association depends not only on the total number of its members but also on grants available from the local government, whose demands have to be complied with. In Barcelona, these demands include speaking Catalan and expressing support for the region’s agitation for greater autonomy or even independence. Pro-autonomy or pro-independence parties often see these associations as a useful source of votes and a means by which to spread their ideologies in the Pakistani community. Although local politics is a topic of discussion at association meetings, members are mainly concerned with matters back home. Pakistanis have their radio (Pakcelona), TV (Dia Tv online) and newspaper (Naqash online). Here they've announced an event to celebrate independence. There are taboos that locals know cannot be discussed openly with Pakistani acquaintances. One is religion; another is the low visibility of women in public life; the last is the exploitation and abuse that occurs by some members in the Pakistani community towards the newly-arrived migrants from Pakistan. Knowledge about Pakistan among the Spanish population is rather limited but it would be true to say that the country has had a very bad press. Interest is often limited to the presence of Pakistanis in Barcelona. The academic world in Spain has paid the country scant attention; when it has done so, it’s only in the context of immigration. The press is seemingly obsessed with Pakistan’s role in the War on Terror. Some of the Pakistani associations have worked to change the stereotypes, but it has proved to be a difficult task. However, there is a growing interest in Pakistani culture, albeit mainly in its English language manifestation (literature, cinema, music). Writers such as Nadeem Aslam, Mohsin Hamid, Mohammed Hanif, Kamila Shamsie or Bapsi Sidwa have been translated into Spanish, thereby creating an impression far more positive than that given by the press. Some of these authors have also visited the city and presented their work at different cultural centres. Nadeem Aslam presents the Spanish translation of The Blind Man's Garden (El Jardín del Hombre Ciego) at the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (interviewed by Ana Ballesteros). -Photo by author Kamila Shamsie, accompanied by Ana Ballesteros and Judit Carrera, meets students from El Raval at the secondary institute Miquel Tarradell in a talk on writing and Pakistan. -Photo by author The lives of women From 2000 onwards, Pakistani women started to arrive in Barcelona, although in lower numbers than the menfolk. It is very striking to the Spanish eye to see the lack of participation of women in general. Women from other migrant communities are out and about, taking part in all sorts of activities, and in many cases, acting as pioneers in the migrant experience. ######Even those from other Muslim countries like Morocco participate more actively than their Pakistani coreligionists. This is no doubt the most controversial aspect when we deal with the Pakistani community in Spain. Although many associations tend to organise family events, women participate in these in the traditional roles of mothers and homemakers, and account for less than 1% of those attending. Some of the women have told me they had more freedom back in Pakistan, where they could visit relatives within their village, go shopping and roam relatively freely. “Here,” one of them told me, “we are sometimes prisoners in our own houses. I sometimes leave home only to drop my boys off at school and pick them up. But if my husband can do it a certain day, not even that.” Pakistani men in Barcelona usually explain that they will not allow their women to become ‘contaminated’ by local norms of behaviour. This vision is very pronounced in the case of daughters reaching puberty. Under Spanish law, it is compulsory for all children to study until they are 16 years old. Some schools, however, complain that Pakistani girls sometimes disappear from their classes when they reach the age of 14 or 15. This is a great shame as most teachers agree that Pakistani girls are usually among the best students. Exploitation in the community Starting in 2002 and 2003, there have been rumours that legal settlement is available more easily in Spain than anywhere else in Europe. Some greedy elements among the Pakistani community have taken the chance to profit from the arrival of their compatriots from different countries in the EU seeking such settlement. Compatriots with few qualms deceive the new migrants, charging them high rents for a bed in a shared room, a bed sometimes used only for a few hours. In the first phases of the migration experience, newcomers minimise costs in order to save money to send back home and pay back the fees to those who brought them to Spain. They are forced to accept long shifts in corner shops or any other odd jobs (12-14 hours) for a meagre €300-400 a month (if they are paid at all) while they are made to pay at least €100 per month for their beds. One of those newcomers told me in 2009 that the owner of the flat where he lived, another Pakistani, took away his passport and made him stay indoors for weeks at a time. The owner would do the shopping for the tenants and then make even more money by charging them exorbitant prices for it. He and a friend, a fellow exploited flatmate, managed to leave, something that was only possible with the help of an NGO. A great number of well-off Pakistanis have found a lucrative business in the exploitation of vulnerable compatriots, many of whom are family members or neighbours from back home. In such a close-knit community with tight social control, it can be very difficult for those caught up to break the circle of abuse. Everything they do will be made known and the price of dissent is ostracism. Austerity As is the case in the rest of southern Europe, austerity measures have badly affected the welfare state and the job market in Spain. Decreasing salaries and growing living costs paint a bleak future. Some immigrant communities have decided to leave Spain and go back home. Others are moving elsewhere in Europe. Pakistanis are part of Barcelona but it remains to be seen how the younger generations will respond to the new challenges. Nonetheless, they fare better than other nationals: they are known to be resilient and their extensive, worldwide kinship network allows them a great deal of mobility. I am sure they will get through these difficult times. As many of them say
the time being thanks to international government help. But a downgrade in Greek bonds to default status would further push up the interest rates on Greek debt, making it increasingly unlikely that Greece could go back to refinancing itself on capital markets. It is also unclear how banks would react to the threatened downgrade. Even the European Central Bank has said it would no longer accept such renewed bonds as collateral. It would therefore become even more difficult for Greek banks to borrow fresh funds from the ECB. Warning on Implementation of Reforms S&P's announcement shows that the Greek debt crisis has not been overcome yet, despite the most recent austerity package and pledges of aid. The Greek parliament last week agreed a new austerity program involving tax hikes and spending cuts. In return, the EU and International Monetary Fund provided a new tranche of financial aid. A second bailout package for Greece is to be agreed in the coming weeks. Regardless of whether the Paris model is implemented, S&P also questioned Greece's ability to implement the reforms demanded by the EU and IMF. This was a major risk for the country's credit status, S&P said. The euro depreciated against the dollar after the report came out on Monday. Allianz, Europe's biggest insurer, said it would contribute €300 million to the new Greek aid package. Allianz CEO Michael Diekmann said there was no alternative to supporting Greece. A Greek insolvency would have a bigger impact than the collapse of Lehman Brothers, he warned. Many banks have declared themselves ready to help Greece, German business daily Financial Times Deutschland reported on Monday. Some 400 banks around the world plan to give voluntary help, the newspaper reported, citing the International Banking Association.Wow, so much backlash about a thing I said on Game Grumps. Also a lot of misunderstanding about it. I said I hate subtitles and dubbing at the same time. That is, ENGLISH dialogue with ENGLISH subtitles. I, as well as most people on earth, read at a different pace than actors speak. It’s typically always faster, which means I know what this actor is going to say before they even say it. I press A to hear the next line of dialogue, cutting off the dubbed line abruptly. I don’t wait around to hear the actor finish something I know they’re going to say. Why would I? If I wanted to enjoy a nuanced performance, I’d turn the subtitles off, so I’m surprised and interested in every word, and not listening out of formality. I am not attacking subtitles. Subtitles are great for having the sound off. Subtitles are great for non-native English speakers. But having BOTH subtitles AND spoken word at the same time being the default is weird to me. I don’t understand why they would do that. I seriously believe people are defending it because it’s the norm, like, they’re used to it. Does no one have a problem with this? Does no one else get annoyed by this staggered pacing? Even when films are subtitled they display small chunks to keep the pacing right, but a game like Fallout has these giant text walls you can read super quick. When I play games with heavy dialogue, I turn the subtitles off and enjoy the acting. Most games that are really “go here and do this” have backlogs and journals that you can look up if you REALLY needed to READ the dialogue so I don’t understand the argument that it helps you understand things better. It helps me understand things worse because I have this offsync babble being bombarded on me. Like I seriously have to tune one or the other out in order to really focus. I don’t understand the desire for this, and I don’t understand why devs make it the default.MilkSnake A Non-Euclidean Snake Game for the iPhone MilkSnake is a new take on the classical snake game. It is played on the surface of various 3D shapes, such as a sphere, a torus and even a Möbius strip! You use intuitive and smooth touch controls to move your snake around. Earn points to unlock new levels with different mindbending visual styles and relaxing music (by Ken 'coda' Snyder)! Enjoy this gentle introduction to non-euclidean geometry! Gameplay video Screenshots Soundtrack If you like the music, then Ken "coda" Snyder, the composer, has made it available on Bandcamp, as a name-your-own-price deal. There's even a bonus track! If you like mod music and chiptunes, you'll also want to check out his other works. Other versions There is also an older version of MilkSnake available for Macs. Click below to find out more. Links Version history Version 1.0:Craig Ferguson is in advance talks with Tribune Media about doing a half-hour first-run comedy/talk show that would air in prime access, sources say. The CBS Late Late Show host plans to take his robot skeleton Geoff Peterson sidekick with him — along with Josh Robert Thompson, who does the robot voice. Those who’ve been watching Ferguson’s show recently have heard him make “whither I goest, you go” assurances to Robot Skeleton. Ferguson also is expected to take Secretariat, his pantomime horse — and his longtime showrunner Michael Naidus. It’s expected that the new show, which would target a fall 2016 launch, would be shot in Los Angeles. He’s set to leave the Late Late Show in December. Related: Watch Craig Ferguson Announce He’s Leaving ‘Late Late Show’: Video Ferguson’s show would have the advantage of Tribune Media’s 42-station network, including the nation’s top 3. Still, it’s a fairly risky proposition — nobody’s ever done a talk show of this sort in access. On the bright side, the ratings potential is very big. HUT levels in access are huge compared to late night — and, in success, it would put Ferguson in a powerful position in the talk show universe. Related: CBS Banks On James Corden To Replace Craig Ferguson In April, the CBS late-night host announced to his studio audience he would not be re-upping his contract to host Late Late Show and would step down in December. “CBS and I are not getting divorced, we are ‘consciously uncoupling,’ but we will still spend holidays together and share custody of the fake horse and robot skeleton, both of whom we love very much,” Ferguson said in the announcement, which immediately triggered speculation as to who would replace him. (And, despite one late-night pundit’s crack that they’d be shocked if CBS went with another white male Brit to host its show, the network focused in on James Corden, who next will be seen starring as Paul Potts in the biopic One Chance for the Weinstein Company and also is slated to appear in Disney’s musical, Into The Woods). Related: Craig Ferguson-Hosted ‘Celebrity Name Game’ Set For Fall 2014 Launch In November, Debmar-Mercury sold the Ferguson-hosted syndicated game show Celebrity Name Game to Tribune Broadcasting stations covering 40% of the country. Based on the board game Identity Crisis, the pop culture show was developed by Courteney Cox and David Arquette’s Coquette Prods with Scott St. John. The half-hour strip is set for this fall –including on Tribune stations including WPIX New York, KTLA Los Angeles, and WGN Chicago — and since has doubled its clearance in the U.S. Related: Stephen Colbert Named CBS’ New ‘Late Show’ Host Ferguson’s announcement he was moving on from CBS had followed David Letterman‘s news he was going to retire some time in 2015, and CBS’ announcement it was giving the time slot to Stephen Colbert. Ferguson has been Late Late Show’s host since succeeding Craig Kilborn in January 2005; his contract had been set to expire this summer. Related: Watch David Letterman Announce His RetirementThe Mets and Brewers had agreed in principle to a trade last July that would send Carlos Gomez back to his original team. Milwaukee officials were so sure this was a done deal that they notified the center fielder’s representatives of the impending swap and went to dinner. However, in one of the most important decisions not only in Mets history, but in shaping the modern landscape of the game, Mets officials told their Brewers counterparts that their team doctors did not like the look of Gomez’s right hip. So rather than finalize a swap that would have sent Wilmer Flores and Zack Wheeler to Milwaukee for Gomez, the Mets backed out of the verbal agreement. In real time, the Mets were hammered for failing to see this to conclusion, in part because word had leaked out and, most famously, Flores cried during the game under the belief he was about to leave the only organization for which he had ever played. Perhaps the anger of fans and the criticism of media – particularly the sense that the Mets backed out not because of Gomez’s physical problems, but because they did not want to take on his $9 million salary for 2016 – stirred the Mets to make a trade. Sandy Alderson has insisted that was not a factor, that he was determined to add a significant bat to elevate a putrid offense and better support the wonderful rotation. He tried for Cincinnati’s Jay Bruce and San Diego’s Justin Upton. Those avenues closed. So with the clock ticking toward the July 31 deadline, Alderson dealt Michael Fulmer and Luis Cessa to Detroit for Yoenis Cespedes. Cespedes’ bat was integral to the Mets winning the NL East en route to the NL title. Had Cespedes never played with the Mets, there is no way they would have continued to monitor his market in the offseason and there is no way he would have pined to figure out a way to stay in New York. He signed a three-year, $75 million contract as a free agent with an opt-out after this season. He is tied for the major league lead in homers (13) and tops the NL in slugging (.649). Since his Mets debut on Aug. 1, 2015, Cespedes had 30 homers (tied for third-most in the majors), 77 RBIs (sixth), a.620 slugging percentage (second) and a.970 OPS (fifth). Meanwhile, the Brewers did trade Gomez, on July 30, to the Astros. Since his Houston arrival, Gomez has been among the majors’ worst regulars with a.215 average, four homers and a.588 OPS. Would he have been this bad for the Mets? It is unknown, but it is hard to believe he could have been anywhere near as valuable as Cespedes has been. While Cespedes thrives again in 2016, Gomez has the lowest OPS (.486) in the AL, to go along with no homers and 46 strikeouts in 121 at-bats. He had lost his starting center field job before being placed on the DL with a ribcage injury. The Astros also got back-end starter Mike Fiers from Milwaukee, but gave up four prospects. One of them, outfielder Domingo Santana, is part of the Brewers team that will face the Mets this weekend for the first time since that scuttled trade. The two key prospects that Milwaukee received from Houston remain in the minors: outfielder Brett Phillips and power lefty Josh Hader. So the outcome could still get worse for Houston. And it is pretty bad, right now. After making the playoffs as a wild card last year, the Astros are last in the AL West. There are many reasons for that. But Gomez’s woeful play has been as big as any. The Astros would have been better off if the Mets had completed the trade in principle. But think about how much worse off the Mets would be if Gomez were with them. Not only would they have him in 2016 – instead of Cespedes – but they also would not have Flores and Wheeler. And it may turn out that one of the most important parts of the trade that nearly was, but wasn’t, is that the Mets still have Wheeler looming as a helpful rotation piece for the second half this season.(Reuters) - Uncertainty surrounding the Republican plan to replace Obamacare is forcing some U.S. hospitals to delay expansion plans, cut costs, or take on added risk to borrow money for capital investment projects, dealing an economic blow to these facilities and the towns they call home. Hospitals typically lay out multi-year operating plans that prioritize investments, such as new clinics, medical wings, technology or other projects that help draw in more patients and increase revenue. In addition to enhancing patient care, these projects are vital to the local economy as a driver of jobs ranging from construction and maintenance to restaurants and transportation. Denver Health Medical Center, for example, opened a new $26.9 million clinic in the city’s southwest in 2016 to provide care to an area lacking in health services and saw more patients within six months than it had expected over two years. The health system planned to build or remodel five more facilities based on the new clinic’s success. But since November’s election, when Republicans swept the White House and Congress, Denver Health has deferred $73.7 million-worth of construction projects that had been planned to serve more low-income residents, many of whom were newly insured under Obamacare. “We want to know what will happen with the Medicaid expansion population, and what will be the timeline for that,” said Peg Burnette, Denver Health’s chief financial officer. “Due to the uncertainty, we’re not going to issue new debt. We have no plans for that in the near future.” Denver Health is not alone. Across the country, hospitals are shifting to a more conservative stance as they await sweeping changes to the nation’s healthcare law that for the first time in U.S. history would reverse a government healthcare entitlement program. The Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, provided coverage to 20 million Americans and brought higher revenues to many hospitals. The law’s likely overhaul puts many hospitals in a uniquely daunting position of being unable to predict how many of their patients will be insured and what type of coverage they will have in the future. As a result, many are more wary than in years past to invest in expensive capital projects, issue debt, or expand into new regions, said healthcare experts and hospital executives. This is playing out in Arizona, where Kingman Regional Medical Center is taking cost-cutting measures by renegotiating medical supply and service contracts. The University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System, which includes six hospitals, is largely holding off hiring non-clinical staff, a trend also evident in national data. Across the industry, hospital jobs so far in 2017 grew by 8,775 monthly on average, compared to 11,413 jobs for the same period last year, Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows. Infographic ID: '2nV3F3h' The Republican-proposed bill, set to come before the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday for a vote, would unwind the Medicaid expansion, cap federal payments to states and replace Obamacare’s income-based tax credits with flat age-based credits. The bill would still need approval in the Senate if it clears the House this week. When asked about the early signs of hospitals putting spending on hold, a White House spokesperson expressed confidence that “the disastrous Obamacare law will be replaced with the American Health Care Act — the vehicle which will reform our broken healthcare system.” An artist's rendering of the University of Maryland Prince George's Medical Center which will be located in Largo, Maryland, U.S., is shown in this handout provided on March 21, 2017. Courtesy of Prince George's Hospital/Handout via REUTERS The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the new proposal would cause 14 million people to lose health insurance next year and 24 million by 2026. The bill has divided House and Senate Republicans and sparked fierce criticism from Democrats and leading medical and hospital groups, including the American Medical Association and American Hospital Association. Infographic ID: '2nUXegK' “It’s very challenging to plan for your future in an environment like this,” said Beth Feldpush, senior vice president of policy and advocacy at America’s Essential Hospitals, a group that represents safety-net hospitals nationally. Not all hospitals are on hold. Some healthcare groups in areas with growing populations, such as Atlanta and Houston, are pushing ahead with capital expansion projects. Others, such as Maryland’s Prince George’s County, are still planning to move forward with construction plans, thanks in part to a partnership with the University of Maryland Medical System. With the new medical center, Prince George’s County hopes to end its long-time reliance on $30 million annually from public subsidies to help cover operations. But that goal assumed Obamacare would remain intact, said Thomas Himler, Prince George’s deputy chief administrative officer. “It could be that three years out we are no longer making money, we are losing money,” said Himler. The uncertainty has seeped into the municipal bond market, where nonprofit hospitals access capital. The sector sold 36 percent less debt for new projects so far in 2017, compared to the same period last year, while the rest of the municipal market increased the amount of new money issued by 23 percent, Thomson Reuters data shows. While municipal analysts say it’s too early to draw conclusions, the uncertainty surrounding Obamacare is a likely cause for the decline. “There’s a wait-and-see feeling,” said Kevin Holloran, a senior director at S&P Global Ratings. “Hospitals are saying, we’ll revisit this in six months or more.” REVENUES AND RESTRAINT Since enrollment started in 2014, the Affordable Care Act brought significant changes to Denver Health Medical Center, a safety-net hospital with the busiest trauma center in Colorado. Historically, nearly two-thirds of patients were either uninsured or covered by Medicaid, the government health insurance program for the poor. Almost immediately after Obamacare went into effect, rates of uninsured dropped and Medicaid coverage jumped to over half of all patients. With so many more patients covered, hospital margins grew and days of cash-on-hand climbed. Such financial improvements enabled the hospital to invest in new projects, including the Pena Family Health Center in southwest Denver. The hospital planned to construct three more clinics, to expand two existing clinics, and to build a new parking garage to drive new revenues and expand its coverage. Slideshow (3 Images) But since November’s elections, much of those plans have been deferred, including a $24 million expansion of a second clinic, largely financed through bonds. The health system still plans to move forward with the construction of one clinic and the remodeling of another. But those plans could be bigger. “There’s great demand that we’re concerned about not being able to meet in the future,” said Burnette.Apple Confirms AlgoTrim Acquisition Apple has acquired Swedish data-compression company AlgoTrim, a company representative confirmed to AllThingsD. “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans,” spokeswoman Kirstin Huguet said, reciting the company’s standard refrain on small acquisitions like these. The price Apple paid for AlgoTrim and its plans for the company couldn’t immediately be learned. Founded in 2005 by Anders Berglund, Anders Holtsberg and Martin Lindberg, AlgoTrim develops data-compression technology that simultaneously shortens processing times and reduces file size — just the sort of thing for optimizing mobile imaging and video. While Apple declined to elaborate on its plans for AlgoTrim, they likely involve using its expertise to make image capture on the iPhone and iPad more efficient and powerful. Apple’s purchase of AlgoTrim is the latest in a conga line of acquisitions made during the past month that includes wireless chip developer Passif Semiconductor, video-discovery outfit Matcha, public-transit app developer Embark, crowdsourced location data company Locationary and online transit-navigation app maker HopStop. News of the deal was first reported by Rapidus.With contributions from Alex Cooper and Gene Buonaccorsi After Hurricane Irene ruined Chesapeake weekend, there were no natural disasters to inhibit the running of the 2011 Labor Day Ultimate Championships or the Chicago Heavyweight Championships. Between these two tournaments, we saw all but a handful of Nationals contenders on the fields in their last tune-ups before the Series. CHC 2011 The race for the Central title intensified this past weekend, with the region’s top four contenders trading blows into the semifinals and beyond. Machine escaped with a perfect record that included important wins over Madison Club (pool play and semis), Sub Zero (finals), and an improving Madcow squad (pool play). And speaking of Madcow, the Ohio team certainly complicated things by breaking seed, charging to the semifinals, and splitting the weekend series with Madison Club. Sub Zero took care of business against everyone except Madison Club, and their run to the finals should give them confidence as they head into the Series. Madison Club performed well, but Machine definitely asserted its superiority over Madison by beating Madison twice in the same weekend. LDUC 2011 This tournament just effed shiz up. Doublewide, widely regarded as one of the nation’s top three teams, struggled with many playmakers out on account of the injury and conflict bugs. Kurt Gibson tweaked his hamstring, Kevin Richardson hurt his knee, and Jerrod Wolfe suffered a concussion, all in Doublewide’s first game. Cameron Bond rolled his ankle against Sockeye (third game), and David “Salad” Melancon and Chase Hudson (two offensive starters) were not in attendance. Sockeye, a team on the Tier 1 bubble, swam to the semis, but not before being upset by regional rival Rhino. Who picked Rhino to win pool B? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? Sockeye had its own injury woes to deal with, as Dave Bestock sat out Saturday, Danny Karlinsky sat out the whole weekend, Simon Montague was sidelined with broken fingers, Mike Caldwell broke his nose Sunday, Erik Doesburg had a hurt hamstring, Skip Sewell went down with undisclosed injuries, and Tyler Kinley got concussed in the semifinals against Chain. What’s the point of all this injury talk? A lot of the writers at IB hate the excuse, “Oh well, you can’t really blame them for losing this game because they were missing that person or this combination of players.” But Doublewide’s injuries took out nearly their entire O-line before Saturday was over, and Sockeye’s injuries knocked out three of its four captains, who are also major playmakers. There were other factors that contributed to the teams’ poor play—Doublewide couldn’t connect on its floaty/touch hucks to space that it did in Colorado, and Sockeye’s offense couldn’t hold on DGP against both Rhino and Chain, despite being near the opposing goal line in both points. Still, the injuries and absences of offensive and defensive staples negatively impacted these teams’ complexion and performance. Revolver beat Furious, Furious beat Chain, Chain beat Revolver, and then Revolver beat Chain. There’s no transitive property of sports application here—there are just great teams losing to great competition. The Mid Atlantic Region posted a particularly poor showing, with Southpaw going winless and Cash Crop’s only win coming against Southpaw in placement play, when Cole Sullivan was given more freedom to handle. If there’s any indication that the club open division needs to quickly adopt a more regular season strength-based bid system (like the college divisions), it is this tournament’s results. The Mid Atlantic just doesn’t have the depth that the Northwest does, but this year’s Nationals field will still be comprised of four Mid Atlantic teams and just two Northwest teams. Ugh. Before we give too many justifications away in the recaps, let’s jump to the rankings: Tier 1: Revolver, Ironside, Chain Lightning, Doublewide, Sockeye Tier 2: Furious George, Ring of Fire, Rhino, Truck Stop, GOAT Tier 3: Machine, Johnny Bravo, PoNY Honorable Mention: Sub Zero, Voodoo, Southpaw, Cash Crop, Madison Club Oakland Ultimate, Streetgang These rankings still reflect how good we think teams are, not necessarily how likely it is that they’ll make Nationals or how well they’ll perform there. Tier 1 Revolver’s offense experienced some hiccups in the form of uncharacteristic drops and throwaways from Cahill, Watson, and Rasmussen, but San Francisco fought through its difficulties and posted an emphatic tournament finals win over Chain. They did it all without Russell Wynne playing on Sunday, either. Ironside has not played since ECC, so they stay locked in Tier 1. Chain Lightning put together an excellent weekend, with notable victories over Revolver and Sockeye. The Seattle victory had to feel sweet, as the Fish ended Chain’s Worlds and Nationals runs last season. One Sockeye player commented that Chain’s danger lies in its slight delineation between handlers and cutters. Chain has players like Nicky Spiva, Dylan Tunnell, and Grant Lindsley who are threats downfield and behind the disc. Force Nicky out, and he’ll take you to the house. Force Nicky under, and he’ll feed someone else in the endzone. You get our point. We realize that Doublewide is a controversial Tier 1 team with their subpar performance at Labor Day. But we still think that they’re one of the nation’s top teams provided everyone is healthy. No offense to Doublewide’s sectional competition, but the Austin boys don’t have another truly meaningful or challenging game until Regionals in October—that’s plenty of time for people to get healthy and get Doublewide’s o-line back to full strength. Sockeye fought to the semis despite several tough injuries, and both of their losses came on double game point to quality teams. There’s no reason for them to leave Tier 1. Tier 2 Furious missed out on the championship bracket by mere points. They earned solid victories over Doublewide and Chain Lightning, and lost to the best team in the world. Had they made the championship bracket and/or the finals, they could have put themselves in the Tier 1 discussion. Ring hasn’t officially played since ECC, so they stay at Tier 2. There was a Charlotte round robin in place of Chesapeake, but none of the attendees had their full rosters, and it’s not on Score Reporter, so we’ll discount anything that happened there. Rhino came out of nowhere to take Pool B. Seth Wiggins and Dylan Freechild are the real deals. Their Labor Day surge, along with Furious’ performance, has to plant a more than a seed of doubt in everyone’s mind that Sockeye has that second Northwest bid locked up. Truck Stop hasn’t played since ECC, so they stay at Tier 2. GOAT hasn’t played since the Canadian Ultimate Championships, so they stay at Tier 2. Tier 3 Machine wins Chicago Heavyweights Classic against competition at or below its level. They are the Central and Tier 3 frontrunner. Johnny Bravo posted some disappointing results at Labor Day. They were missing captain Ryan Farrell, veteran David Belsheim got concussed, and Austin Gangel suffered a knee injury that might have ended his season. Furthermore, with David Popiel and Matty Zemel having left the roster, the team had to quickly integrate Jeff Grobe (of Barrio) and Steven Rouisse (from semi-retirement). Their losses were to Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 competition, and their wins came against Honorable Mention and injury-plagued Tier 1 competition. We feel that this inconsistent performance and roster upheaval merits downgrading them for now. PoNY wasn’t terribly impressive, but they won the games they were expected to win, and maybe one more (Johnny Bravo?). They stay comfortably in Tier 3. Honorable Mention Sub Zero put together a nice run to the CHC finals. Had they won, they could have moved up to Tier 3, but we think they aren’t quite on the same level as those other teams. Voodoo gives teams fits at Labor Day and earns a win over one of the MA’s top teams. It’s about time they earn honorable mention recognition. It’s too bad that they’re in such a tough region, because they could have a shot at a Sarasota berth if they were in the MA, for sure. Southpaw is the only team to plummet in these rankings. Labor Day has never been kind to the Philly boys, and going winless doesn’t give us much to go off of—they have to be moved down. I’m sure all the Cash Crop haters will love to see them moved down here. They played Sockeye close and beat Southpaw (indicating that the MA really is wide open), but struggled otherwise. They have some technical kinks to work out before they can become a Tier 3 team again. Madison Club’s run to semis keeps them here. Oakland and Streetgang haven’t played in a sanctioned tournament since our last rankings, so they can’t move. Look for another set of rankings and some Nationals projections after Regionals. Until then, tell us what you agree and disagree with in the comments. [polldaddy poll=5485845] [polldaddy poll=5485849] Photo by Ben BeehnerThe Supreme Court released three opinions Thursday, but none of them were Aereo. There had been some buzz that the decision was being released, but the court does not provide any advance warning, so that was only speculation. There are still two more Mondays in the session, and the court could add a Thursday session next week as it has done the previous two. The court could conceivably hold the decision over until the fall, but that is considered a long shot since it is ruling on an injunction. Broadcasters claim that Aereo is violating copyright by delivering TV station signals remotely over the Internet without compensating content providers. Aereo had argued that it was simply providing remote access to free TV and the fair use recording right its subs are entitled to. While the court is being asked to rule on a decision about the injunction, not broadcasters underlying legal challenge, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, in denying the injunction, signaled it thought Aereo was legal. One of the tests for granting an injunction is likelihood of winning on the merits, so the Supremes are expected to weigh in on whether Aereo is violating copyright. The court also accepted broadcasters view of the question posed in the case, which was "whether a company 'publicly performs' a copyrighted television program when it retransmits a broadcast of that program to thousands of paid subscribers over the Internet." That answer clearly implicates the future of online video distribution. Broadcasters say that answer is clearly yes.It’s not long the worst thing he’s done since taking office, but Virginia governor Bob McDonnell is certainly leaving little doubt as to who he’s listening to. McDonnell, a Republican, yesterday quietly reversed a policy, instituted under the previous governor, Democrat Tim Kaine, prohibiting Virginia State Police troopers from referring to Jesus Christ in public prayers.“The Governor does not believe the state should tell chaplains of any faith how to pray,” a spokesman for the governor told the Washington Post. “Religious officials of all faiths should be allowed to pray according to the dictates of their own conscience, and in accordance with their faith traditions, while being respectful of the faith traditions of others. The president of the Virginia Christian Alliance said last week that twice recently he has urged McDonnell to change the policy — once at a fundraiser at the governor’s mansion, and again in a private meeting with McDonnell’s chief of staff. Other Christian groups also had advocated the change. Since taking office, McDonnell has moved Virginia sharply to the right. In February, he rolled back discrimination protections for gay state workers. He recently declared April Confederate History Month, in a proclamation that at first made no mention of slavery. And earlier this month, his administration announced that felons seeking to have their voting rights restored would have to submit a written essay — before later saying that the new policy had not yet been decided upon.When it comes to "Best of" lists, Minneapolis-St. Paul have routinely appeared in rankings of things like parks, eats and jobs. Now, website Patch of Earth has combined seven such lists to create what we will happily call a Definitive U.S. City Power Ranking. They call it the "Absolute Top Cities." We'll take it. Because guess who's on top. We are. The Twin Cities appeared on five of the seven lists considered, making our fair pair of towns the best place to live in the entire country, basically. But you already knew that. Tied for second place were Denver, Portland, Ore., and Austin, Texas. Rounding out the top eight were New York, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Seattle. The website looked at seven previously-ranked criteria, including Greenest Cities (ranking by Wallethub.com), Best Cities for Foodies (by Travel + Leisure magazine), Best Cities for Job Seekers (by Nerdwallet.com), the similar Best Cities to Get a Job list (from Fortune magazine), and Best Cities for Students without a Car (BestColleges.com). Minneapolis-St. Paul did not appear on rankings for Most Well-Read Cities (Amazon.com) or Best Cities for Retirement (from Bankrate.com). Patch of Earth says they did not include lists that were tailored to only one gender or one career. So go ahead. Gloat to your coastal and mountain-dwelling friends and tell them why Midwest is the (definitive, absolute) best.Here are reasons for opposition. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images) In a recent Medium post, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) argued, “Democrats desperately are searching for a valid reason to oppose Betsy DeVos for U.S. Education Secretary.” With all due respect to Alexander, it’s not all that difficult to find reasons to oppose DeVos’ nomination. As the most inexperienced and untested nominee for secretary of education in U.S. history, DeVos threatens to upend America’s public education system with plans that are worrisome at best and insidiously destructive at worst. Sen. Alexander, for your reference, here are five extremely valid reasons why so many oppose Betsy DeVos’ nomination: 1. Lack of experience. DeVos has never attended, worked in nor sent her children to public schools. She has no government experience and no experience running or managing a bureaucracy or large organization. Instead, DeVos has spent much of her adulthood donating millions to politicians so that she can in turn lobby them to support her favorite pet cause: vouchers that give money to conservative religious schools with zero strings attached. To those who argue that maybe an outsider’s perspective is what is needed in Washington, that only works when we are talking about a proven leader who has a track record of effectiveness –such as a military general with strategic prowess, a transformational CEO or a superintendent who successfully improved a major school system. DeVos fails to meet these criteria. 2. Lack of knowledge and preparation. DeVos failed to prepare for her own confirmation hearing with even a baseline level of adequacy. News outlets gave DeVos’ confirmation hearing performance a failing grade. The Los Angeles Times editorial board went so far as to say that she’d embarrassed herself. To accommodate for her lack of understanding of basic education policy issues, Republicans threw DeVos softball questions during her hearing, such as, “Do you support public education?” from Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. Yet even despite the softball questions, there is a very strong possibility that she perjured herself by downplaying her role in her parents’ foundation. DeVos also revealed that she didn’t understand a basic tenet of one of the most important education laws, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. 3. Well outside the mainstream. DeVos has said that she wants to “advance God’s kingdom” through school reform, a view that is far from mainstream. Similarly, many of her family members’ views – which she has, whether genuinely or shrewdly sought to distance herself from recently – are alarmingly extreme, such as support for conversion therapy, opposition to same-sex marriage or the view that intelligent design should be taught in schools. 4. A dangerous precedent for pay-for-play in politics. During DeVos’s hearing, Sen. Bernie Sanders asked DeVos, “Do you think that if you were not a multibillionaire, if your family had not made hundreds of millions of dollars in contributions, that you would be sitting here today?” The implication that DeVos is only being considered for this job, which would be her first as a public servant, as a political favor to reward her for years of donations is not without merit. While Sen. Alexander asserted in his post that her critics dislike her because she’s wealthy, in reality it’s because her wealth appears to be buying her a cabinet post that she is unqualified to hold. By some estimates, DeVos and her family have donated over $200 million to Republicans nationally, including sizable donations to many of the senators who will vote on her confirmation. In fact, DeVos is open about her support of pay-for-play, once stating that “I have decided to stop taking offense at the suggestion that we are buying influence. Now I simply concede the point. They are right. We do expect something in return.” 5. No plans or vision, except for outdated and ineffective policies that are harmful to public education. What is DeVos’ vision for how to improve public education? Despite a hearing and several weeks of scrutiny, no one knows. She dodged basic questions at the hearing, to the point of ridicule. At one point in response to questioning by Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine, DeVos simply repeated her stock phrase, “I support accountability,” yet refused to discuss even the most basic of related policy details. What we do know about DeVos is that she wants to divert money now spent on public education – which is guaranteed for all students – to private schools that can turn students away or kick them out because of their gender identity or sexual orientation, a disability that is an inconvenience to school personnel, any behavior they deem problematic or essentially any other reason of their choosing. Given that a significant chunk of the country has no access to private school options, this plan will also mean significantly fewer education dollars overall in many areas, often in districts that simply cannot afford to lose funding. Even most voucher advocates have now moved away from the model that DeVos continues to espouse for these and other reasons. It is not partisan, unfair or “desperate” to oppose DeVos’ nomination. Rather, it is born out of a real fear that putting DeVos in charge of the nation’s public schools could inflict severe harm on our nation’s most vulnerable students.CLOSE Trump’s transition team has reportedly signaled to Congress that the president-elect’s preference is to fund the border wall through a congressional appropriations process as soon as April, but Trump insists Mexico will pay for the wall, just later. Buzz60 President-elect Donald Trump (Photo: Evan Vucci, AP) President-elect Donald Trump defended a plan Friday that would see the United States initially pay for a border wall with Mexico and then be reimbursed at a later date. "The dishonest media does not report that any money spent on building the Great Wall (for sake of speed), will be paid back by Mexico later!" Trump tweeted Friday. The proposed U.S
it deflects into Tavon Wilson’s hands. No. 2: 2012 Week 11, fourth quarter, 15:00, Patriots 44-17 The Patriots drop into a Cover-2, and Luck doesn’t get enough oomph on his pass to the left sideline. Dennard jumps the route and takes the interception to the house. No. 1: 2012 Week 11, second quarter, 11:17, Patriots 20-14 The Patriots are in Cover-3, and Luck simply overthrows Wayne in the middle of the field, and Aqib Talib picks off the pass. The Patriots put pressure on Luck, but he had plenty of time to deliver an accurate throw. Thumbnail photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images Thumbnail photo via Jan 18, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) is hit by New England Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork (75) after throwing a pass in the second half in the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY SportsPegged anywhere between USD six to nine billion, the taxi market is believed to grow at 17 to 20 per cent annually (YourStory). Breaking into this B2C heavy segment of cab and taxi aggregators, Lithium Cabs is set out to bring green public transportation to India with electric vehicle cabs. Started by Sanjay Krishnan the ex-COO of Comfort India, Lithium was born with the idea of negating both fuel costs and the degradation to the environment brought on by hydrocarbon cabs. "India as a country has the maximum difference between the pricing of hydrocarbon and electricity. Therefore, India as a starting ground for such an idea is great," adds Sanjay. He also adds that under the current government, there has been a fair amount of traction on renewable energy. Four states in India, he says are already solar positive, which means that the power generated using solar is lesser than the grid price. Lithium Cabs While most of the aggregators and cab companies are looking at a more B2C space, Lithium Cabs decided to take a more B2B route. There were several reasons for the same. Sanjay says that when you look at a B2C model, you need to have a certain fleet size. "This meant we needed to have close to 200-300 charging stations, and close to 1000 cabs, which wasn't viable," adds Sanjay. However, this did come along with its unique set of challenges. Apart from regular startup hiccups of building the right core team and funding, Lithium cabs faced other challenges too. One of the biggest concerns was bringing in transparency. In order to ensure the same, the team has completely automised the process. Also to ensure safety, especially of women travellers, the team ensure all the necessary apps and gadgets were in place. "The cabs have an inbuilt GPS system that cannot be tampered with by the driver, also there is a complete real time tracking of the cabs during the ride. And all this is apart from the rigorous training we give the drivers.” Sanjay believes Lithium, is growing at a decent pace. He is confident that from now till close to the end of the year the organisation will see a growth of 500 per cent. Video Reporter: Dola Samantha Video Editor: Anjali Achal Cameraman: Rukmangada RajaAgain he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. They watched him see whether he would cure him on the sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Come forward.” Then he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. He looked around at them with anger; he was grieved at their hardness of heart and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him. – Mark 3: 1-6 Jesus’s example in the Gospels could not be clearer: again and again, he chooses people over policies, he values relationships more than rules. Jesus consistently responded to the needs of the people around him and put the law in its place: “the sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath.” –Mark 2:27. The United Methodist Church today exhibits far too much hardness of heart, and there are far too many who remain silent when confronted with the question of whether we should do good or harm to God’s LGBTQI children. When a clergy person comes out or a pastor offers ministry to a same-sex couple, the Pharisees and Herodians in our church demand punishment in the name of covenant. This is not a church Jesus would recognize. Nor John Wesley. Wesley, too, chose people over policies when he ordained bishops in America without church authority. The profound emphasis on grace in Wesleyan theology is hard to discern in the shrill calls for harsher penalties. Meanwhile, the immense damage done to countless young people who are taught that they are an abomination (or in Methodist speak, “incompatible with Christian teaching”) makes a mockery of Wesley’s admonition to “do no harm.” Our United Methodist Church does harm each and every day to LGBTQI people and especially LGBTQI young people – in our pews and far beyond. Our official condemnation and policies of discrimination help hold up the edifice of state-sponsored discrimination in a majority of U.S. states and in countries across the globe. They provide moral cover to parents who throw their kids out when they come out and contribute to the crisis of queer homeless youth in the U.S. They foster the intolerance that fuels rising hate violence against queer people, the main targets of which are trans women of color in the U.S. and queer people of color worldwide. And they model bullying for children, part of the reason 74% of queer students in the U.S. are verbally harassed at school, 56% feel unsafe, and 16% are physically assaulted. As Christians, we are called to welcome and defend the poor, the marginalized, and the oppressed. We cannot claim to follow Jesus and yet do nothing in response to our own church’s mistreatment of some of “the least of these.” As Methodists, we are compelled to witness against the distortion that Methodism has become. Yet what are we to do? Everywhere we turn, institutional channels of change are foreclosed. For over 40 years – 40+ years of spiritual wilderness, of hate and exclusion and condemnation – we have gone to General Conference and advocated for change, pleaded, begged for our dignity and humanity. All for naught. An anti-queer majority at General Conference, a combination of U.S. and international conservatives, led and whipped into a hateful frenzy by southern white Americans, has refused to consider our humanity. We are told we are prostitutes, pedophiles, murderers. If we look beyond General Conference, our way is equally blocked. Annual conferences are not allowed to set policy that contradicts the Book of Discipline. And if we pass a resolution that says we will not discriminate, the judicial council invalidates it. Meanwhile, our trial courts have consistently upheld our unjust laws and found guilty those who were moved to break them. Our bishops, with one shining exception, have said – collectively as well as individually – that they must uphold the Discipline and that they have “no choice” but to do so. Our legislative, judicial, and executive branches are all foreclosed to us. No matter where we turn, what church body or leader we look to, what prescribed process we follow, we always hit the same brick wall. While Jesus showed us it is “lawful to do good on the sabbath,” our entire church has rejected that teaching. We are in thrall to an unjust book of rules and we are told that the only way to change it is at General Conference, but at General Conference a tyranny of the majority is hellbent on denying our humanity. Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a den of robbers.” The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he cured them. – Matthew 21: 12-14 Throughout his ministry, Jesus challenged rules of social hierarchy, exclusion, and privilege, and rules that interfered with meeting the needs of the poor and the outcast. In situation after situation, surrounded by people in need who were clamoring for his help and desperate for his ministry, Jesus had a choice to make: he could meet the needs of the people standing in front of him or he could follow the laws and customs of his society. He could not do both. There was no way for Jesus to be in ministry with the poor without breaking the rules. Thank God for Jesus’s example – because in The United Methodist Church it is impossible to be in ministry with LGBTQI people without breaking its rules. Jesus did not ask for permission before healing on the sabbath. He did not send a letter to his bishop saying he was planning to touch and heal “unclean” lepers. He did not submit a petition to the Temple authorities suggesting the removal of the money changers. Nor did he negotiate a witness in which the blind and the lame would be allowed on the Temple floor for a symbolic moment of ministry. No, Jesus took matters into his own hands, and so must we, because the system is rigged against us, too, and we will not change it without challenging the rules that keep it in place. This is not easy, but if we are serious about following Jesus, we must do it. “Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” – Luke 14:27 Since 2011, thousands of clergy and lay supporters across the denomination have banded together in annual conference networks to do weddings for all couples on an equal basis, in open defiance of our church’s rules. They have helped breathe new life into the church as they provided desperately needed ministry to those cast out by The UMC. None of this happened because anyone in any leadership position in the church said, “we need to find a way to stop denying LGBTQI people ministry, we need to address the spiritual crisis our clergy face on a daily basis as a result of the church’s requirement to discriminate.” Are you kidding? If we had not taken matters into our own hands, it would not have happened. If we do not continue to do so, it will not happen. Nor will change happen at General Conference if we do not directly challenge business as usual there. There are no checks or balances to counter the General Conference’s anti-queer majority: No constitutional protection, no 14th Amendment guaranteeing equal treatment or dignity. And no institutional leaders willing to prioritize justice over order. Come May 2016 this body will once again affirm that LGBTQI people are “incompatible with Christian teaching,” that we should not be ordained, that our marriages may not be consecrated in the church, and church funds may not be spent to defend our human rights. This outcome is as assured as a vote in a southern U.S. legislature in 1960 on ending segregation. If there is to be a different outcome then we must take matters into our own hands and somehow force the system to recognize our humanity. What will it take? Inspiration and instruction come from Jesus’s example, and also from the Civil Rights Movement, here in the words from the Letter from Birmingham Jail: Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and establish such creative tension that a community that has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored…. to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. As it stands, LGBTQI people are legislated about by General Conference, but never negotiated with. Out queer clergy are banned by the Book of Discipline, and queer lay people can be denied membership at the discretion of a pastor. The church excludes and silences us, yet pretends the so-called “holy conferencing” that every four years affirms our exclusion is somehow a legitimate process. What must we do in order “so to dramatize the issue” that LGBTQI people’s demand for inclusion can no longer be ignored? We must find a way to make it impossible for delegates to continue to step over our bodies, ignore our hymns, and stick to their schedules. It will take my body, and yours – all of ours – to do this. If we do not disrupt business as usual, then nothing will change. The money changers, the dove sellers, the discriminatory legislation, the foundational hate language in our Book of Discipline – it will all continue. When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” – Luke 4: 16-21 This passage of scripture is much loved and often cited, yet rarely does anyone focus on its core lesson, contained in the word “today.” Jesus claims the promise of liberation not as an abstract goal or an aspirational future but as the demand of the present. This scripture is balm to all those who have been told, over years and centuries, to wait for justice. That someday, but not today, the world will be ready for desegregation… for women in leadership or ministry… for a free Palestine… for gender-neutral bathrooms… for end an end to racial profiling, Muslim profiling, police violence, mass incarceration… for affordable housing and living wages… for an end to the fossil-fuel economy… for LGBTQI people everywhere in the world to have human and civil rights and be free from violence…for queer people to be included in The UMC. But the demand of the scripture, and the example of Jesus’s ministry, is that the time is now and we are the agents of change. For over 40 years we have wandered in spiritual wilderness as a denomination, and LGBTQI people have pleaded for our humanity from an intransigent General Conference. No longer. No more business as usual. The time is May 10-20, 2016, the place is Portland. Join us. Join us in doing good and saving lives on the sabbath. Join us in overturning the tables in the Temple. Join us in inviting into the Temple and bringing healing to those who have been harmed by The UMC. Join us in letting the oppressed go free. Attend one of these non-violent direct action trainings:Every share makes Black Voice louder! Share To Share To A Sacramento Middle School teacher picked on a sixth-grader because she is black. A Sacramento middle school teacher has been placed on leave over alleged racist remark toward a student, FOX40 reports. Mr. Hasting was going over test scores during a class at John Still Middle School when he singled out an African-American sixth-grader, Dania Owens, for ridicule. According to Dania’s mom Demia Flack, the teacher stated outright that he was making a mockery of her daughter because she was black. “She said, ‘Could you please stop picking on me? Why do you always do this to me?’ And he stated, ‘Because you’re black,’” Flack said. Dania, who was broken by the teacher’s remarks, bowed down her head as other students starred at her and waited for a response. Mr. Hasting has been put on paid leave awaiting the conclusion of a probe the Sacramento Unified School District launched. “If indeed what has happened is what we believe, then it was clearly inappropriate by any measure, clearly not the kind of behavior we want, even if it was intended to be a joke,” said Gabe Ross, the spokesman for the School District. There is a strong possibility that attempts will be made to wave off this the teacher’s racist attack on the student as an insensitive joke. However, Dania, who is smart enough to tell whether or not someone is joking, told FOX40 that she does not think her teacher was joking. Teachers in the habit of racially discriminating against their students should never be allowed to enter the classroom again, because in addition to making students of color unwelcome at schools, racism has the potential to inflict psychological stress on our children. Ensure to visit this page for all exclusive updatesPakistani authorities have arrested a doctor on suspicion of violating the country's contentious blasphemy laws after he threw away the business card of a man who shared the name of the Prophet. The blasphemy law was widely criticised after Asia Bibi, a Christian woman, was sentenced to death for insulting Islam. Critics say the law should be repealed because it is used to settle grudges, persecute minorities and promote extremism. Naushad Valiyani, a Muslim doctor in Hyderabad, in Sindh province, was arrested after a complaint to police alleging he had insulted the Prophet. We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. From 15p €0.18 $0.18 $0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras. The case began when Muhammad Faizan, a pharmaceutical representative, gave Mr Valiyani his business card. When the doctor threw it away, Mr Faizan filed a complaint, noting that his name was the same as the Prophet's. We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. At The Independent, no one tells us what to write. That’s why, in an era of political lies and Brexit bias, more readers are turning to an independent source. Subscribe from just 15p a day for extra exclusives, events and ebooks – all with no ads. Subscribe nowThe journalists at CBS This Morning on Monday obsessed over Donald Trump’s new order restricting refugees from Muslim-majority countries. Co-host Norah O’Donnell wondered if the administration was being too pro-Christian with this move. Additionally, co-host Charlie Rose used anti-Trump press coverage as justification that the implementation is going badly. The journalists brought on New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, one of 16 Democratic AGs who are opposing the actions. O’Donnell worried, “President Trump in an interview said he may favor Christians over Muslims in those seven states.” She added, “Does that invite some additional [legal] challenges on this?” Trump’s comments to the Christian Broadcasting Network in full: [Christians have] been horribly treated. Do you know if you were a Christian in Syria it was impossible, at least very tough to get into the United States? If you were a Muslim you could come in, but if you were a Christian, it was almost impossible and the reason that was so unfair, everybody was persecuted in all fairness, but they were chopping off the heads of everybody but more so the Christians. And I thought it was very, very unfair. So we are going to help them. Over on CNN, Carol Costello had the same worry, fretting that Trump’s “underlying goal” was “to make this country aggressively Christian.” Earlier, while talking to top Trump aide Stephen Miller, Rose cited media reports of evidence of how badly the immigration order was being handled: It's been described as enormously successful. Yet, there are protests. I'm looking at the paper headlines. "Trump stands by orders. Confusion, dissent swirl." "Immigration sows chaos." "Travel ban sets off chaos and turmoil." Help me square hugely successive and chaos, and turmoil. Co-host Gayle King demanded, “Stephen, help us understand how this is keeping America safe?” After Miller pointed out that the Obama administration had already selected the seven countries impacted as points of concern, King repeated, “But the Obama administration didn't call for a ban, Stephen. They didn't call for a ban. They didn't call for a ban.” A transcript of the questions to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is below: <<< Please support MRC's NewsBusters team with a tax-deductible contribution today. >>>Traveling light takes on new meaning when jumping trains, as does the limited battery life of mobile devices – just like the rest of us, hitchhikers and train hoppers these days increasingly see the web as as invaluable resource. The underlying story of nomadic life on the rails is surprisingly consistent in some ways: people, generally young, using the nation’s railways to travel the country. The details are, however, revealingly different – analog hobo codes have given way to digital hobo coders. Like many 30-somethings, Huck has experienced life with and without a pervasive internet that answers all questions. This transitional generation knows to rely on conventional knowledge and hard research as much as spoon-fed answers. In the extended interview below, this reddit user (/u/huckstah) and long-time /r/vagabond participant shares stories from his nomadic lifestyle. Images here by Molly Steele illustrate some of the everyday wonders of illicit train travel as well. Per Hobos of Instagram, these travelers are trading their flip phones for iPhones, starting Instagram accounts … and bringing an age-old tradition of trainhopping and tramping into the Information Age.” Online resources provide help in all kinds of ways, including some websites dedicated to helping the (often intentionally) homeless and misfit travelers as they hitchhike or dumpster dive. At the same time, there are many ways to also turn ordinary resources toward new ends, like using Google Maps to scout the layouts of train yards for security gaps and best access points. Beyond transit, maps are also helpful for finding public restrooms, camp grounds, power outlets, showers and other essentials. Kindles (or other devices using less power than phones) are critical to stretching battery life, too. Ultimately, the information flows both ways: travelers turn around and share their adventures on Instagram, Vine, Facebook and other social media sites. Those on the road more often than not find themselves looking for remote digital work or seasonal employment, again aided in part by websites like Craigslist and otherwise. YouTube videos help guide people through various processes of actually getting on and off trains, as well as finding the best boxcars on (or in) which to travel. Of course, none of these reduce the real, physical-world risks and dangers associated with train hopping, including but not limited to injury and arrest. Some naturally worry that the spread of this form of transit to the internet will increasingly lure people who are not equipped for the lifestyle to try things better off watched on Vimeo or read on reddit.After my last article, some of you wrote in asking if it was true that many of the people arrested in Saudi Arabia were friendly toward Israel. Since I am not a Mossad agent, I can’t answer that for certain. It defintely seems to be case that the US lost a lot of its informants on the inside, if you read any of the links I posted before. However, I say it “seems to be”, because rarely are media reports from the intelligence community actually true, and if so, the whole truth is always ommitted. We can come to 2 conclusions then, when dealing with news reports from US intelligence; either things are completely fine, or things are a lot worse than we could imagine. So it follows then that, while many pro-western Saudis were arrested, the US either has more informats inside the Saudi Kingdom, or there is a complete blackout for them. Though the subject of Israel’s intelligence has been completely left out of public reports, it’s safe to say that they were affected, since pro-US Saudis are more likely to support pro-Israel policies as well. Regardless of the case, many of you may have seen this sort of pseudo-journalism within the last year: Here’s a tip, don’t trust someone who spent more time in a comfy university dorm than actually being in the middle east, about middle eastern politics. No one who experiences the never ending conflict seriously considers the idea of substantial ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Any Arab “cooperation” with Israel is merely an anomaly of a narrow state interest winning against a vast undercurrent of antisemitism. Saudi Arabia is simply not an ally in any sense of the word, and any imagery that suggests this is merely deception for their own gain. Iran could wipe out Israel, and the Sauds would rejoice for a good 10 minutes before launching rockets directly into Iran’s unguarded underbelly. Which is exactly what the now-powerful crown prince is trying to do. Every report about him indicates that he is willing to take wild risks, and they normally pay off. With the raging civil war in Yemen, Saudi Arabia has no interest in fighting Iran by themselves. They do, however, have an interest in Iran creating conflict with Israel. It is my educated guess, based on limited reporting, that rushing such a confrontation is the most logical thing for Saudi Arabia to do, and what they are clearly setting up for. There is no better win-win scenario than for them to see two of their historical enemies fight each other in a prolonged war eventually ending, in their estimation, with the destruction of Hezbollah. From this point of view, Israel’s answer to all this instability is to simply be decisive, and yet, such a tall request in Israeli politics. War is best avoided, but if war in Lebanon is inevitable, then Israel cannot repeat the mistakes of 1982 and 2006. Any conflict with Lebanon has only one goal: completely destroy Hezbollah. Anything short of this is a failure.Former Michigan Governor William Milliken. (Photo: John L. Russell / Special to the Detroit News) Lansing — Former Michigan Gov. William Milliken, a Republican who in recent years has increasingly backed Democrats, is endorsing Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton for president. Milliken said in a statement he is “saddened and dismayed” the Republican party has nominated businessman Donald Trump, who “has repeatedly demonstrated” that he does not embrace the nation’s “abiding commitments to tolerance, civility, and equality.” “Because I feel so strongly about our nation’s future, I will be joining the growing list of former and present government officials in casting my vote for Hillary Clinton for President in 2016,” the 94-year-old said. “To me, the choice is clear. The answers to our current challenges lie in unity, and not division.” Millken’s endorsement comes as Clinton and Trump prepare to contrast their economic agendas this week in Detroit. Trump will speak Monday at a Detroit Economic Club luncheon. Clinton is expected to deliver a jobs speech on Thursday in Detroit, but the time and location have not yet been announced. Milliken, the longest-serving governor in Michigan history, endorsed Republican Gov. Rick Snyder’s re-election bid in 2014 but that same year also backed Democratic U.S. Sen. Gary Peters and attorney general candidate Mark Totten, who lost to GOP incumbent Bill Schuette. Michigan Republican Party spokesman Sarah Anderson said she was not surprised by Milliken endorsing Clinton, saying the former governor was “always moderate” and has increasingly backed Democrats. “I think it’s news these days when he endorses a Republican,” she said. Snyder has not endorsed Trump, saying he’s more focused on helping Republicans retain control of the state House this fall. Schuette and Lt. Gov. Brian Calley both support the New York businessman, who won Michigan’s March 8 primary and upended the GOP establishment en route to the party nomination. At the congressional level, six of Michigan’s nine Republican U.S. House members have endorsed Trump. Reps. Fred Upton, Justin Amash and Bill Huizenga have not offered public support. Read or Share this story: http://detne.ws/2b86XgB“I don’t think Bannon’s behind it for a number of reasons,” Mike Cernovich, the right-wing media personality and former pizza truther, told me recently, describing the alleged feud between Steve Bannon, the president’s chief strategist, and H.R. McMaster, his national security adviser. For days, the conservative universe had been self-immolating over a series of extremely negative stories about McMaster in Breitbart, Bannon’s former organ. The beef fit the broad contours of a presumed narrative of spite and ideological confrontation. Bannon, after all, is a self-proclaimed “economic nationalist” who cautions against foreign intervention. McMaster, on the other hand, has been advocating a troop increase in Afghanistan—and saw to it, as one of his first moves in his new job, helped to remove Bannon from the National Security Council. He later oversaw a purge of former Michael Flynn acolytes from the N.S.C., too, removing the vestiges of his nationalist-minded predecessor, who remains a hero in the world of anti-globalist agitators. But Cernovich wasn’t buying that Bannon was behind the bad press. And he had some valid proof. “Number one, it’s cause I’ve been one of the people behind it and I’ve never talked to him,” he told me. “I don’t think he wants this public beef because he’s going to be framed for it. These beefs, all they do is antagonize Trump.” Rumors of Bannon’s ouster from Trumpworld began circulating from essentially the moment that he joined it. One week after Donald Trump was unexpectedly elected president, Bannon, the messianic architect of Trump’s national-populist campaign, was high on his own supply. “Darkness is good,” he effused in a giddy, wide-eyed interview with The Hollywood Reporter in Trump Tower. “Dick Cheney. Darth Vader. Satan. That’s power.” Conservatives, he predicted, would “go crazy” when they saw what the Trump Revolution had in store. “We’ll get 60 percent of the white vote, and 40 percent of the black and Hispanic vote and we’ll govern for 50 years.” Nine months later, Trump’s would-be svengali is isolated and alone in the West Wing as the president, on vacation in Bedminster, contemplates his expulsion. And despite the president’s Breitbart-worthy waffling on whether to blame white supremacists for the recent tragedy in Charlottesville—an apparent whistle call to the far-right—Bannon appears to once again have found himself exiled from Trump’s inner circle. His initial attempts to consolidate his power during the first two weeks of the Trump administration, and a spate of breathless media profiles of the White House chief ideologue, left Trump fuming. “I call my own shots,” he spat on Twitter. In April, he expelled Bannon from the National Security Council’s Cabinet-level “principals committee.” One week later, he derisively referred to the anti-establishment strategist as just “a guy who works for me.” Bannon laid low in the intervening months, forging alliances of convenience and notching small successes like Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris climate deal, to the horror of “globalists” like Gary Cohn and Ivanka Trump. And he survived a rolling staff shake-up that saw the purgation of Sean Spicer, Reince Priebus, and Anthony Scaramucci. But renewed allegations that Bannon has been leaking to the press have put him, suddenly, on even shakier ground. Trump himself has reportedly told associates he believes Bannon is undermining his colleagues. When Fox News chairman Rupert Murdoch recently urged the president to fire Bannon, The New York Times reports, Trump “offered little pushback... and vented his frustrations.” In the past, Trump has been loath to move against the former Breitbart ringleader, or to personally fire anyone, for that matter. But with John Kelly as White House chief of staff, the president might finally have someone to do the dirty work for him. Both have reportedly been upset by a vicious smear campaign against McMaster, launched in early August by a variety of far-right agitators and activists who accuse him of sabotaging Trump’s nationalist agenda. Breitbart led the charge, raising suspicions that Bannon was supplying the dirt behind the headlines: “NSC Purge: McMaster ‘Deeply Hostile to Israel and to Trump’”; ”H.R. McMaster promised Susan Rice she could keep her security clearance in secret letter”; and so on. One particularly odious attack sought to link McMaster to billionaire George Soros, who is frequently portrayed as a sort of globalist puppeteer on the far right. Outside of Breitbart, other outlets piled on: InfoWars accused McMaster of “leaking intel to Soros almost daily,” while Cernovich urged his followers to submit dirt to McMasterLeaks.com. Scurrilous rumors that McMaster has a drinking problem floated around the periphery. Bannon has insisted that he had nothing to do with the anti-McMaster campaign. Denizens of the Breitbart diaspora agree. Lee Stranahan, a former Breitbart reporter, current Sputnik host, and fellow force behind #FireMcMaster, told me that he believed the “deep state” was actually the ones pushing this narrative—not McMaster specifically, but the intelligence community and the career civil servants who allegedly want Bannon gone. “They’re clearly getting stories planted, which, whatever. That’s the game. I get it,” he told me. Patrick Howley, a former Breitbart reporter who now runs Big League Politics, also described the effort to oust Bannon as the product of shadowy forces. “Really, what it is, is [them] just trying to push the president away from the things that he actually believes in and making him even more marginalized in his own White House,” he told me. “I’m not concerned about [Bannon’s] relationship with the president. What I’m concerned about is, is it really possible for someone like President Trump to be able to come in and drain the swamp and win these battles?” Nobody I spoke to, however, thought that Bannon needed to remain in the White House to influence the president. On the contrary, multiple people told me that they thought the chief strategist would be more powerful on the outside, where he could return to his previous role as a conservative media bomb-thrower. Whether Bannon himself has such a strategy in mind is another matter. Stranahan claimed that he knew of several people within Breitbart who had e-mailed Bannon suggesting that he return to the company, though their e-mails went unanswered. And Cernovich had an even more trollish answer: “It’s in my selfish interest for Bannon to get fired, actually,” he said, adding that he missed the hell-raising Bannon of old. “It would be a lot more fun if Bannon were back in the game, as it were.” If there is one thing that Bannon and McMaster have in common, it is an outsize hold on the public imagination. In the mainstream press, Bannon is frequently portrayed as a kind of mad prophet—a characterization that he has happily fueled by name-checking obscure, proto-fascist philosophers and extolling apocalyptic theories such as “The Fourth Turning.” McMaster is a similar sort of boogeyman for the right, the tip of a neoconservative, deep-state, globalist spear aimed directly at the heart of Trump’s agenda. Both are likely nowhere near as influential as their enemies fear. “McMaster doesn’t have that much power in the White House, it’s all Jared [Kushner] and Ivanka. But going after Jared and Ivanka is going to get you nowhere,” Cernovich conceded. “Frankly, it’s too obvious,” said Kurt Schlicter, a Trump-supporting commentator and Bannon critic, referring to the anti-McMaster whisper campaign. “What, [someone’s] going to sic Breitbart on him? Gee, who would that be?” Matt Lewis agreed. “It’s plausible that this is totally organic,” the Daily Beast contributor and conservative Trump critic told me. “If you hire a bunch of people who have a certain worldview, don’t be surprised when they act consistent to that worldview. The people like the Cernoviches and [Breitbart political editor] Matt Boyles of the world... they’re going to try and claim the scalp of [any] guy who is too mainstream for their taste, and not, like, Red Pilled. I think that’s the term for ‘woke’ on the right.” Indeed, if there is one thing uniting the far-right blogosphere, beyond a vaguely nationalist orientation, it is a general lack of discipline and contempt for the establishment. Even Breitbart, once unshackled from Bannon, quickly grew unruly. Bannon and Boyle reportedly got in a spat when Boyle pushed a story attacking Reince Priebus, Kelly’s predecessor, and people believed that Bannon had ordered the hit. (Both declined to comment.) As a result, press secretary Sean Spicer went out of his way to grant Boyle access to the president, only to see Boyle turn on him. In his brief tenure as communications director, one of Anthony Scaramucci’s first moves was to arrange an interview with Boyle where he lavished Breitbart with praise and suggested Boyle work at the White House. When Scaramucci attacked Bannon in the press, however, Boyle hit back forcefully in defense of his former boss, accusing Scaramucci of having destroyed “whatever was left of his credibility with Trump’s base.” (“Breitbart News is editorially independent,” spokesman Chad Wilkinson said in a statement. “Any suggestion to the contrary is a conspiracy theory. Our coverage of Gen. McMaster has been 100% consistent with our populist, nationalist, conservative editorial vision.”) It’s hardly three-dimensional chess. “If you were to pick a guy to help you orchestrate a cover-up, would you pick Matt Boyle?” a senior editor at a competing conservative outlet asked, rhetorically. “I don’t think Boyle is deft enough to be looped into a cover-up that involves him pretending to fight Steve Bannon.” The outrage machine is moving too quickly, and feuding too wildly, to constitute a vast right-wing conspiracy of its own. “[Boyle’s] like me,” Cernovich explained. “There isn’t always this grand strategy or master plan. We just like lighting bombs and throwing them out there.”Ever since "The Sixth Sense", Hollywood producers have been trying to capitalize on its success by distributing horribly illogical twist endings, hoping desperately to recapture what made the film such a surprise hit. And fail as they might, that certainly hasn't stopped them from continuing to try. We should warn you, there are spoilers below. Not that you would ever want to watch the movies to begin with, we should just warn you because the twists are so stupid
conduct. Opposition politicians seized on the government divisions, but called on the prime minister to engage with Johnson’s criticisms. The shadow foreign secretary, Emily Thornberry, said the remarks showed “shabby hypocrisy” when Johnson had consistently rejected the argument that Yemen was a proxy war in debates on the conflict in the House of Commons. “If that is his genuine view, he needs to explain why he ordered his MPs to vote against Labour’s calls in October to suspend support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, until a lasting ceasefire has been brokered and until alleged violations of international humanitarian law have been properly investigated,” Thornberry said. This time it’s Saudi Arabia: even when Boris Johnson gets it right, he’s wrong | Simon Tisdall Read more “The government cannot complain about Saudi Arabia’s military actions one minute, then continue selling it the arms to prosecute those actions the next. We need to see some consistent principle in the UK’s foreign policy, not more shabby hypocrisy.” The Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman, Tom Brake, said the foreign secretary was “talking sense” even if he was at odds with official government policy. “This will be a huge embarrassment to May as she returns from her grubby tour of the Gulf, where she did her best to ignore human rights and desperately push trade at all costs,” Brake said. “The Conservative government rightly condemned Fidel Castro for his human rights record, but have fallen completely silent when it comes to the appalling record of countries they have been cosying up to in the Middle East.”INFORMED CONSENT FORM You are being asked to participate in a research project conducted as a course requirement for Psychology 111 (Practicum in Research Methods) at Claremont Mckenna College. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to investigate the differences in reasoning abilities of the participants. PARTICIPATION: You will be asked to complete a brief reasoning test, and then to self-evaluate your performance. We expect that your participation will take no longer than 10-15 minutes of your time. RISKS AND BENEFITS: There are no physical risks associated with participation in this study, though the questions asked in the reasoning test may be challenging to participants. We expect the study to benefit you providing the opportunity to practice exercising your reasoning abilities. The information gained in this research will advance the body of scientific knowledge of the various factors that affect reasoning abilities. COMPENSATION: Participation in this study is completely voluntary. You have the right to withdraw from the study at any time without penalty. CONFIDENTIALITY: Your individual privacy will be maintained in all publications or presentations resulting from this study. Your contribution will remain anonymous and any reporting of information gathered from this study will be on a group level. If you have any questions or would like additional information about this research, please contact me at tholland14@cmc.edu. BY CLICKING NEXT, I AGREE THAT I UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE INFORMATION AND HAVE HAD ALL OF MY QUESTIONS ABOUT PARTICIPATION IN THIS RESEARCH ANSWERED. I VOLUNTARILY CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS RESEARCH.These popsicles might look like the sort of thing you’d expect to find being served from a quirky organic artisanal food truck, but one bite could leave you very ill indeed, because they’re actually made from sewage found in the polluted waters of Taiwan. They were made by three design students for the Polluted Water Popsicles project, which aims to raise awareness about rising water pollution due to rapid economic growth and urbanization. Water was taken from 100 different water sources in Taiwan and turned into frozen toxic popsicles before Hung I-chen, Guo Yi-hui, and Cheng Yu-ti from the National Taiwan University of Arts recreated them using transparent polyester resin. They even made wrappers for them that represented the different regions from which the polluted water samples were taken. While the trash in the water was varied, about 90 percent of it was plastic, and the popsicles contain everything from bottle caps and plastic bags to bottles and chopstick wrappers. It’s a simple yet effective way of getting us to think about water pollution from a totally different perspective. Popsicle anyone? More info: Polluted Water Popsicles ProjectReview: Arthur Russell, 'Corn' toggle caption Courtesy of the artist To those who adore his work, Arthur Russell was a sort of musical saint whose flittings between styles — disco, pop, folk, rock, quasi-classical stirrings from solo electric cello — were evidence of a divine being on earth. Before his death in 1992, Russell mingled with fellow artsy minds in downtown New York (among them David Byrne and Allen Ginsberg), but his legacy did most of its growth after his passing, with reissues and archival releases adding to the lore with every homespun note. Here's another: a collection of unreleased recordings from 1982-83, culled from Russell's famously prodigious tapes by one of his closest and most devoted listeners. The Audika Records label was started in 2004 to honor Russell's work, and its mastermind, Steve Knutson, has rescued bounteous charms from all-but-certain oblivion. Calling Out Of Context, First Thought Best Thought, Love Is Overtaking Me — these are just a few of the collections to which Corn is a new addition, with songs that will be familiar to Russell followers in new and, as has become custom, slightly different versions that deliver more than slight rewards. "Lucky Cloud" opens the set with Russell in loose and jaunty form, as he hums and scrapes his cello over the top of what sounds like a rudimentary keyboard beat. The best-known version of the song (from his 1986 album World Of Echo) is murky and a bit morose, but this one is highly spirited, with Russell nearly scat-singing as he bops along. Some of the tracks here are raw, to be sure: No one will mistake "Corn" and "Keeping Up" for anything other than sketchy demos, but even those offer a useful view into Russell's recording process. In "Corn" (which picks up again later in a nearly 10-minute form), you can practically hear Russell listening to himself as he plays and tries out different ideas involving timing and tone. Other tracks are more expressly revelatory. "See My Brother, He's Jumping Out (Let's Go Swimming #2)" moves to a beat as fleet as any Russell ever made, and its spell of celebration and release by way of horns at the beginning is a blast. That it could count as a cast-off moment in any context is crazy, but such is the miracle of Russell's specialness and sensitivity in any setting.What a dead fish can teach you about neuroscience and statistics The methodology is straightforward. You take your subject and slide them into an fMRI machine, a humongous sleek, white ring, like a donut designed by Apple. Then you show the subject images of people engaging in social activities — shopping, talking, eating dinner. You flash 48 different photos in front of your subject's eyes, and ask them to figure out what emotions the people in the photos were probably feeling. All in all, it's a pretty basic neuroscience/psychology experiment. With one catch. The "subject" is a mature Atlantic salmon. And it is dead. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a powerful tool that allows us to capture incredible amounts of information about what happens in our brains. It's relatively new — neuroscientists began using fMRI in the early 1990s — and it produces colorful images that help bring numbers to life for the general public. All of those things are strengths for fMRI. Unfortunately, they're also all weaknesses. New tools vastly expand our understanding of the human body... but they also mean that we have to develop new standards so that different studies using the same tool can actually be compared to one another. Images of the human brain help make science more understandable... but they can also be incredibly misleading when the public doesn't have a good idea of what the pictures show. Amassing vast quantities of information is great... but it also makes it easy to end up with false positives — coincidences of chance that look like something a lot more important. Enter the dead salmon. In 2009, a team led by neuroscientist Craig Bennett and psychologist Abigail Baird ran an fMRI experiment using the salmon as their subject. Not only did they really put a dead (and frozen) fish into an fMRI machine, later analysis of their data actually produced evidence of brain activity — as if the dead fish were thinking. It wasn't, of course. But Bennett's and Baird's research — which recently won a 2012 IgNobel Award — was meant to show how easily scientists can mislead themselves and why well-done statistics are vital. I got to speak with Bennett and Baird last week. In the interview, they talked about the study, how fMRI really works, and what scientists have to do to make sure they can trust their own results. Maggie Koerth-Baker: Let's start with the basics. As a layperson, I see fMRI images in the news all the time, but I'm not really certain that I could tell you how fMRI works or what it's actually measuring. Can you explain? Craig Bennett: We're not directly measuring activity in the brain. You'd need electrodes implanted in the brain itself for that. We're actually measuring the amount of magnetic disruption in the brain. We use a trick of how brain and body work. Oxygenated and deoxygenated blood have different magnetic properties. Abigail Baird: If a brain region is doing a lot of work it's probobably going to be bringing in a lot of oxygen through increased blood flow. The premise is that if an area is working harder it will need more nutrients and oxygen and that will be delivered through the blood. Using blood flow as measure of brain activity is reliable, but it's a very slow response. True brain activity happens when cells are communicating using neurotransmitters and electricity. Real, actual brain activity is measured with electrodes in the brain or someting like EEG that records electrical activity. The problem with doing that is that when you use EEG, you don't know exactly where the signal is coming from or what the signal means. fMRI presupposes that brain activity relies on oxygen but there's a 4-6 second delay because that's how long it takes for the call for more blood to go out. It's a slow response and in a way it's a sloppy response. We're assuming that there are more leftovers here in spot A then spot B, so there must be brain activity here and not there. CB: The best description I've heard is that it's like coming up on thhe scene of a car accident and being able to tell what happened based on the skid marks. We have to try to interpret by the changes what was going on when the activity happened. It's a proxy. MKB: So when we see those images with areas of the brain popping out in bright colors, that's not necessarily telling us that one part of the brain is active and the rest isn't. AB: I'm so tired about hearing about "the brain lighting up". It makes it sound like you see lights in the head or something. That's not how the brain works. It suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of what fMRI results mean. Those beautiful colorful maps... they're probability maps. They show the likelihood of activity happening in a given area, not proof of activity. According to our analysis, there's a higher likelihood of this region using more blood because we found more deoxygenated blood in this area. It's also correlational. Here's a time frame and the changes we'd expect, so we see which bits of brain correlate with that. CB: We've had methods to look inside the brain of a living human for decades, and we've gotten quality science out of that method. What does fMRI add? The big thing is spatial location, you can say where in the brain activity is happening to a much greater degree. It's really mostly about that. But what that buys you is the ability to produce really pretty maps of the brain. You get a greyscale image with the colored spots that indicate what's significant. But that's not showing brain activity, it's showing a statistic. I drew a line in the sand and said these dots are the ones that crossed the line. It makes for drammatic and pretty presentation of data. If you have a page of jargon people will believe it at a certain level. But if you put a picture of the brain with active voxels [a three-dimensional pixel] people will believe it even more because a picture of the brain is next to it. We have a powerful tool and ability to create dramatic persuasive figures. And we can use it in improper ways. MKB: So how do we know that the data we get from fMRIs is useful, at all? If it's just correlational, and doesn't really show you where activity is happening? CB: This is why we have to do tightly controlled experiments. To do it right, you'll take two conditions, almost exactly matched except for one critical thing. Some of the studies I really like are visual studies. I could show you the same stimulus, say a flashing circle of light, but I'd change the position of it. Whether it's inn the top third or the bottom third of your field of vision. Just by changing the position and comparing each position to each other you can see which parts of the brain are sensitive to each spot. That's a narrow study and a really good control. AB: More than a couple papers have been sesationalistic. There have been comparisons of Republican and Democratic brains. That's ridiculous and it's a misuse of fMRI. It's not a specific enough question. MKB: Can you explain what you mean by a specific question here? AB: In an fMRI study you have to stimulate the brain in some way. So what are you showing the brain in order to make distinction between Republicans and Democrats? Say it's pictures of people on welfare, and Democrats showed more activation in one area and Republicans in another. It doesn't actually tell you anything about Democrats and Republicans. Those results might tell you something about compassion. Or how we process compassion. But to say there are fundamental differences as a whole group between two groups of people, when there's so much variation within the group, it's just silly. I could get the same result... find big differences... with two groups of Democrats. Remember, the brain doesn't just light up and those images are showing statistics, not all activity. If you see the same thing in several different studies, you can trust it more. But you should be suspect of one study of a handful of people, especially if the question wasn't specific enough and the researchers just went fishing to see what would happen. Also, what you're seeing is an average of the group, not each individual. You could have a group of 40 people and 39 out of the 40 show activity in one area, but that area might still get dropped from the final images because everybody didn't have it. So you need to consider the individuals, not just the group. MKB: Let's get back to that dead salmon you worked with. If fMRI is measuring changes in blood flow — or changes in oxygenation which indicate a change in blood flow — why would you see any signal at all in the brain of a dead salmon? CB: In almost any experiment, but especially with MRI and fMRI, it's a noisy measure. There's all kinds of noise that gets entered into the signal. It'll pick up your own heart beating. We once had a lightbulb going bad in the scanner suite and it was introducing specific signal in our data set. You have to get enough data... run the experiment enough times... to separate signal from noise. We're looking for variation in the magnetic field. With the salmon, fat will do that. Fatty tissue has a magnetic signal, but some areas of fatty tissue are more dense, and some less, so you'll see a differential. The salmon's brain was more fatty and that created more inherent variability. But it was just noise. It wasn't due to any actual activity but just happened to match our study design. Now, that's unlikely. But it just happened to happen. It's possible to find a false positive like that. AB: We also saw activity outside the body of the salmon. The magnet itself has noise. It will always have noise. And if the threshold is low enough you're going to get that noise pattern matching up with your hypothesis. MKB: So, basically, the salmon is about statistics, right? Why do statistics matter so much? I think most people imagine scientists just taking down data and reporting what they observe. But it's more complicated than that. AB: In most behavioral sciences and natural science, there's a certain cutoff level where we consider the things we've found significant or not. The gold standard is.01, less than a 1% chance that you're seeing something just by accident. Or a 99% chance that it's an actual difference. But, still, 1 out of 100 times you'd get that exact same result just by chance. We're also interested in data at the.5 level. Anything up to 10% we tend to call that a trend — something might be happening. That has held throughout history of psychology and neuroscience and it's pretty good. But we'd never had any tools that produced the magnitude of data that fMRI has. Instead of making comparisons between two groups of 40 people, you're making comparisons between 100,000 points in the brain and that.01 no longer says as much because you have so much more information to work with. CB: Here's my analogy, if I give you a dart and say, "Try to hit the bullseye", you have some chance of hitting it. Your chance is not 0. But, depending on skill, you might hit more or less often. So you try the throw with one dart and hit on first throw, that's impressive. That's like finding a result. But if you only hit it once out of 100 tries, it's less impressive. In fMRI it's like having 60,000 darts you can throw. Some will hit the bullseye by chance and we need to try to correct for that. We tend to set a threshold and say anything over is legitimate and anything under is not. But what our team found is that in a surey of literature, between 25-40% of published papers were using an improper correction. You have a lot more chances of finding significance so you need to be more conservative of saying what is a legit result. AB: So if you have a really specific hypothesis you can stick to the traditional numbers. But if you don't know what you're looking for and you just want to see "what lights up", then you're getting lots more chances to see things that could be just random. That's when you need to be more strict about what you consider real. And people aren't always as careful about that as they could be. MKB: So you're saying that, right now, there's a pretty good chance that a lot of the research papers that use fMRI are showing results that are every bit as wrong as the results you got while studying a dead salmon? CB: Up to 40% of papers published in 2008 didn't do proper correction, so are there incorrect results in literature? Absolutely. Even if we correct perfectly you'll probably have 5% incorrect. There will always be false positives. But as a field we need to do as good a job as possible to release the best results we can. What we're saying is that it's not good for you, your study, or the field as a whole to not correct hard enough. • You can read Craig Bennett and Abigail Baird's full paper online at the Journal of Serendipitous and Unexpected Results • Read a story Alexis Madrigal wrote for Wired about this study in 2009 • Read blogger and neuroscientist Scicurious' article on the dead salmon study, published after the IgNobel announcement. Image: Christmas Salmon, a Creative Commons Attribution (2.0) image from toolmantim's photostreamThe judge in the Ted Stevens trial today threw out two major pieces of evidence, after it was revealed that prosecutors failed to provide the defense with crucial information. According to Politico: Judge Sullivan is throwing out a portion of the business records from Veco Corp., whose former CEO, Bill Allen, allegedly spent $188,000 renovating Stevens’ home in Girdwood, Alaska. Two former Veco employees, Rocky Williams and Dave Anderson, are on the company’s records as having spent significant time working on Stevens’ home in late 2000 and early 2001. But prosecutors never presented testimony from Williams, who was suppose to be the foreman on the home project, and instead shepherded him out of Washington right before the trial started, all without informing Stevens’ attorneys. And Anderson told the grand jury that he was in Portland, Ore., not Alaska, in late 2000, when Veco’s records have him as working on Stevens’ home. Prosecutors knew that Anderson had told the grand jury that and did not tell the defense team. So Judge Sullivan excluded the portion of Veco’s records that reference Anderson and Williams’ work on Stevens’ home, and he will instruct the jury that the government knowingly used false evidence in its case.Divisadero Parklet – SF Pavement to Parks by jeremyashaw, on Flickr Raleigh’s Urban Design Center is hosting a meetup next week to discuss parklets. These ‘sidewalk extensions’ or ‘pop-up mini-parks’ are a new trend in urban areas that attempt to bring more public space to pedestrians. Wikipedia states: A parklet is a small space serving as an extension of the sidewalk to provide amenities and green space for people using the street. It is typically the size of several parking spaces. Parklets typically extend out from the sidewalk at the level of the sidewalk to the width of the adjacent parking space, though some have been built at the level of the street with access from the sidewalk. Parklets are intended for people. Parklets offer a place to stop, to sit, and to rest while taking in the activities of the street. In instances where a parklet is not intended to accommodate people, it may provide greenery, art, or some other visual amenity. A parklet may accommodate bicycle parking within it, or bicycle parking may be associated with it. *Parklet on Wikipedia If you look at the photos in this post, you’ll see some examples of parklets in other cities. According to the flyer for the event, attached at the bottom, the folks at the UDC will be presenting their preliminary research and want to get your feedback about parklets in Raleigh. A big positive to having parklets is that it adds more space for pedestrians to sit and linger. Already an area with very low parkspace per citizen, downtown Raleigh doesn’t have room to add more parks in the traditional way so parklets, in combination with other more urban tactics, could be the solution. There’s also an economic activity advantage because the shops and restaurants in downtown thrive with an active sidewalk life. One negative is that public street space, more specifically on-street parking spaces, have to be given up for these parklets. While that might make public officials wary of parklets, citing concerns about loss of revenue, I question the reality of it. Does a few less on-street spaces really result in a loss of revenue? In my opinion, I would think that it doesn’t matter since downtown currently has a gross oversupply of parking spaces in the decks. Hopefully the UDC has some thoughts on this and how other cities have addressed this fear. Four Barrel Coffee Parklet by mark.hogan, on Flickr Spring Street Parklets by waltarrrrr, on FlickrSimply Phenomenal I've been wanting a bronze watch for quite some time. Saw this Trident and snagged it along with a couple other straps. I've had it a month now. This is an excellent watch. It's comfortable, easy to read and very accurate. All the online complaints regarding the logo are... Read More I've been wanting a bronze watch for quite some time. Saw this Trident and snagged it along with a couple other straps. I've had it a month now. This is an excellent watch. It's comfortable, easy to read and very accurate. All the online complaints regarding the logo are seriously misguided. It's perfectly placed and the font is unobtrusive. My only nit-pic would be on the lume, as I feel a better kind/brand would really make the watch pop. Another item to note is the bronze gives off an odor, similar to what rust would smell like. Not overpowering by any means, just something noticeable. Adds to the character of the watch as you know it is oxidizing and changing as the days go by. All in all, this watch is high quality, extremely great value and commands attention. I wear mine on the Blue Rubber strap. Perfection. I love this watch so much I seriously considered getting another. Thankfully the LE Ombre' just debuted, so I ordered it instead.What was agreed at Copenhagen – and what was left out National leaders and sleep-deprived negotiators thrashed out a text late last night that could determine the balance of power in the world and possibly the future of our species. The list below gives a breakdown of the key points: Temperature "The increase in global temperature should be below two degrees." This will disappoint the 100-plus nations who wanted a lower maximum of 1.5C, including many small island states who fear that even at this level their homes may be submerged. Peak date for carbon emissions "We should co-operate in achieving the peaking of global and national emissions as soon as possible, recognising that the time frame for peaking will be longer in developing countries …" This vague phrase is a disappointment to those who want nations to set a date for emissions to fall, but will please developing countries who want to put the economy first. Emissions cuts "Parties commit to implement individually or jointly the quantified economy-wide emissions targets for 2020 as listed in appendix 1 before 1 February 2010." This phrase commits developed nations to start work almost immediately on reaching their mid-term targets. For the US, this is a weak 14-17% reduction on 2005 levels; for the EU, a still-to-be-determined goal of 20-30% on 1990 levels; for Japan, 25% and Russia 15-25% on 1990 levels. The accord makes no mention of 2050 targets, which dropped out of the text over the course of the day. Forests "Substantial finance to prevent deforestation; adaptation, technology development and transfer and capacity." This is crucial because more than 15% of emissions are attributed to the clearing of forests. Conservation groups are concerned that this phrase lacks safeguards. Money "The collective commitment by developed countries is to provide new and additional resources amounting to $30bn for 2010-12 … Developed countries set a goal of mobilising jointly $100bn a year by 2020 to address needs of developing countries." This is the cash that oils the deal. The first section is a quick financial injection from rich nations to support developing countries' efforts. Longer term, a far larger sum of money will be committed to a Copenhagen Green Climate Fund. But the agreement leaves open the questions of where the money will come from, and how it will be used. Key elements of earlier drafts dropped during yesterday's negotiations: An attempt to replace Kyoto "Affirming our firm resolve to adopt one or more legal instruments …" This preamble, killed off during the day, was the biggest obstacle for negotiators. It left open the question of whether to continue a twin-track process that maintains Kyoto, or whether to adopt a single agreement. Europe, Japan, Australia and Canada are desperate to move to a one-track approach, but developing nations refused to kill off the protocol. Deadline for a treaty "… as soon as possible and no later than COP16 …" This appeared in the morning draft and disappeared during the day; it set a December 2010 date for the conclusion of a legally binding treaty. The final text drops this date, but small print suggests it will still be next year.With the stock market in such a funk, it’s a great time to check in with someone who knows a thing or two about meltdowns. That would be Lawrence G. McDonald, who says (with Patrick Robinson) in his New York Times best-seller, “A Colossal Failure of Common Sense,” that he warned colleagues at Lehman Brothers of the coming subprime storm and how it might hurt the investment bank. Nowadays, McDonald is the head of U.S. macro strategy at Newedge, where he uses a six-factor capitulation model to judge when sentiment has broken down so much, a sector is worth buying. It’s an indicator for true contrarians that can suggest the best time to buy a sector because everyone else hates it so much, they’re all trying to get out at once. “Too many people have the attitude of ‘don’t try to catch a falling knife.’ But you can take advantage of big sell-offs.” Lawrence G. McDonald This is the kind of tool that might come in handy right about now, given concern over the stock market — and the outright hatred of asset classes like gold, coal, uranium — all of which McDonald favors for a bounce right now. I’ve watched McDonald make some great market-timing calls over the years, so I think he’s worth listening to. Like anyone, he’s not always right. But most recently, McDonald was bullish on Brazil right before the 7% jump in the iShares MSCI Brazil Index EWZ, +0.41% on Oct. 6. He was bullish on U.S. bonds in late August 2013, and late September 2014 ahead of big rallies; and gold last December ahead of a huge, three-month rally. “Too many people have the attitude of ‘don’t try to catch a falling knife.’ But you can take advantage of big sell-offs,” says McDonald. “When the selling abates, it is like a storm that clears. The sky is blue and there is really nobody left to sell for the next three weeks to three months.” Take note of that last phrase. A lot of times, these are just short-term trading calls of one to three months, and not buy-and-forget calls. He also prefers to play capitulations via ETFs, as opposed to stocks, which are riskier. With those provisos, let’s take a look at some of his current calls. Lawrence G. McDonald, head of U.S. macro strategy at Newedge, expects gold, coal and uranium to bounce from their lows. U.S. stocks headed for more losses: McDonald expects a correction of 10% or more, which means we are less than halfway there, at best. Three factors point to more trouble ahead. 1. Oil and gas make up a big part of the S&P 500, and they probably have more downside — and some profit warnings to boot — because oil has fallen so much. 2. Many companies with big foreign exposure will report earnings misses and downward guidance, because the strong dollar means overseas earnings translate back into fewer greenbacks. That might shake up investors some more. 3. A lot of investors around the globe own U.S. stocks, and they’re now selling on concerns about global weakness hurting the U.S. economy. “Everyone was crowded into the U.S. trade,” says McDonald. While there will no doubt be rallies on the way down, all of this spells trouble. “Between now and year-end you buy fear and sell rallies,” he says. One hedged trade to consider: Go long small caps, or the iShares Russell 2000 ETF IWN, -0.80% because those stocks are so washed out, trading near a 52-week low. And go short an equal amount on large caps, say, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF SPY, -0.07% because it probably has greater downside, since it has not fallen as much. The dollar weakness will continue: McDonald was negative on the dollar before last Wednesday’s reversal on news of the Fed’s concern about greenback strength damaging U.S. economic growth. Now he thinks dollar weakness will continue for three reasons. 1. The dollar was simply way too overbought. 2. The U.S. is under pressure from China to weaken the dollar to help China’s economy. The Chinese yuan is linked to the U.S. dollar via a “crawling peg,” so a stronger yuan hurts non-U.S. demand for Chinese exports. 3. Global economic weakness is bound to bring down U.S. growth. That will push Fed interest-rate hikes out into 2016, he says. Many investors are not expecting this, since consensus recently suggested the Fed to start rate hikes in June 2015. That’s not going to happen, maintains McDonald. A delay in rates hikes would lower demand for dollars, in part because U.S.-denominated debt would look less attractive. McDonald expects dollar weakness to continue for about three months. Gold, coal and uranium are due for a bounce: If he’s right about the dollar weakness ahead, that would help commodities like gold, coal and uranium, which have been absolutely trashed. Since those commodities are priced in dollars, a weakening dollar boosts demand. But those three commodities are also due for a bounce simply because they look way too oversold. “These three areas have been an unmitigated disaster,” says McDonald. “They are coming up the strongest in our capitulation models.” Two other factors might help these commodities. 1. China is reportedly bringing in a new central bank chairperson. McDonald takes this as a signal that it’s moving toward more aggressively stimulative monetary policy to help its economy, which McDonald believes is in recession. Signs of more aggressive monetary policy in China would have investors betting that China will soon be buying more commodities. 2. He also thinks coal will get a boost because Republicans will retake control of the Senate in November. Investors may take that to mean more coal-friendly policies are on the way. McDonald expects gold, coal and uranium to rally over the next three weeks or so. Then there’s a good chance they might retest their lows. “Buy now for a bounce and sell half in a rally,” he says. He suggests playing these moves via ETFs like Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF GDX, -0.18% Market Vectors Coal ETF KOL, -0.05% and Global X Uranium ETF URA, -0.63% Don’t buy oil-service companies yet: While the energy sector has been trashed due to weakening oil prices, McDonald thinks it is too early to buy oil-service companies because they still have more to fall. Michael Brush is a Manhattan-based financial writer who publishes the stock newsletter Brush Up on Stocks. At the time of publication, Brush owned none of the securities mentioned in this column. Providing critical information for the U.S. trading day. Subscribe to MarketWatch's free Need to Know newsletter. Sign up here.In 1938, the world changed forever when a costumed, caped hero appeared on the cover of the very first issue of Action Comics. But while Superman would wow readers with feats of strength and heroics, another character rose up out of the panels to give the Man of Steel a run for his money. Lois Lane appeared at the very same time, leaping off the page and into action alongside her heroic counterpart, locked in a very different battle than those faced by the Kryptonian -- a battle for a front page story. Though Lois has changed and evolved a great deal over her three-quarters of a century, certain things have remained the same. No matter what positions her writers put her in, or how many times he had to be saved by Superman, Lois has remained stubborn, dogged and fearless in her pursuit of truth, justice and the Daily Planet’s biggest headlines. Torchy Blane Zoom In Lois was, technically, inspired by flesh and blood women (taking her first name from a childhood sweetheart, and her physical appearance from Jerry Siegel's wife), but her dogged personality came from another fictional newswoman, Torchy Blane. Played by Glenda Farrell, and star of a series of detective/reporter adventure films in the 1930s, Torchy Blane was a fast-talking, no-nonsense newspaperwoman. Her take-no-prisoners attitude and dismissal of anyone who thought she shouldn’t stick her delicate nose into places she didn’t belong, tended to get her into a number of sticky situations. Sound familiar? While Lois Lane was living her life on the page (and Torchy living hers on the silver screen), real world women were living very similar lives, and risking a great deal to do so. Though Lois’ creators have never spoken publicly about any real-world journalistic inspiration for the character, it’s hard to ignore the striking similarities between Lois and the women who dared to live her life in newsrooms, battlefields, and pillars of testosterone across history. Surprisingly, newsrooms were some of the few businesses in the late 19th and early 20th centuries where women were actually given the ability to make a name for themselves, though it would take the better part of a century for women to make their way to the front page on any sort of equal footing with their male counterparts. Nellie Bly and Stunt Journalism Zoom In One of the most famous female journalists of all time was Elizabeth Cochran. Writing under the pen name “Nellie Bly”, she helped pioneer the field of investigative journalism, Lois’ beat of choice. Bly first started working for a local paper in Pittsburgh, writing hard-hitting investigative pieces aimed at women’s issues of the time, reporting on factory conditions where many working women earned their paltry wages. She even tried her hand at international reporting, taking a six-month assignment in Mexico, writing about culture, until her criticism of the government and their treatment of an imprisoned reporter landed her a series of threats, and forced her to flee the country. I imagine Lois Lane, who developed a habit of getting herself into dangerous situations over her many years in the comic book pages, would be a very big fan of that particular piece of Bly’s history. Despite her ambitions, her talent, and her knack for getting under the skin of authority figures, Bly (much like Lois) was constantly pressured to retreat back to the “women’s section” of the papers. Her editors pushed her to write about fashion, art, and social events, none of which piqued the interest of the adventurous reporter. If she wanted her editors to take her seriously, she was going to need to ruffle some bigger feathers. Inspired by the fictional adventure from Jules Verne’s Around the World in 80 Days, Bly made worldwide headlines in 1888 by making her own world-spanning journey in just 72. But it was an assignment much
focus attention on Assata and to—I mean, it’s interesting. We were talking about popular culture today, and I understand there was an episode of the television program— AMY GOODMAN : Madam Secretary. ANGELA DAVIS : — Madam Secretary, in which an Assata-like character was approached by the secretary of state, and the secretary of state acknowledged that she had been wrongly convicted. And the issue is resolved by promising to provide the support of the State Department to Assata in a new trial in the U.S. AMY GOODMAN : Right. And it was part of the process of normalization in Madam Secretary. ANGELA DAVIS : Exactly. AMY GOODMAN : Téa Leoni plays Madam Secretary, the secretary of state— ANGELA DAVIS : Exactly. AMY GOODMAN : —when she goes down to Cuba. And in that situation, they said that Assata Shakur’s case was instrumental to normalizing relations. And I want to go to a clip of that. ELIZABETH McCORD: [played by Téa Leoni] There are people who want you to come back to the U.S. to serve your sentence. What if I could ensure that you would be at a minimum-security prison close to your daughter in Connecticut? You have a grandson you haven’t met. You would be eligible for parole in three years. AFENI RAHIM : [played by L. Scott Caldwell] Wouldn’t that be convenient for you? I simply turn myself over to the feds, and you get whatever it is you want. ELIZABETH McCORD: Under COINTELPRO, the FBI wiretapped your defense team, and they suppressed forensic evidence that made it clear you didn’t fire the murder weapon. Afeni, based on these findings, Attorney General Cronenberg is offering you a new trial. And we will make sure that these files are splashed across every newspaper in the country. AMY GOODMAN : That is the CBS drama Madam Secretary doing their own kind of take on a kind of Assata Shakur, who ends up agreeing to come back to the United States, and the secretary of state saying she would get a fair trial and something to do with time served. ANGELA DAVIS : Well, yeah, Assata has not seen her grandchildren. It’s horrendous, the extent to which the repression associated with the era of the late 1960s and 1970s continues to this day. And we might also mention the fact that vast numbers of people are still behind bars from that era, members of the Black Panther Party—Mondo we Langa, Ed Rice. My co-defendant, Ruchell Magee, has been in prison for over 50 years. So I think that when we put all of these things together, they create a kind of invitation for increased radical activism for trying to resolve these issues that have been decades in the making. AMY GOODMAN : Angela Davis, professor emeritus at University of California, Santa Cruz. Her latest book is titled Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement. NEXT: As Sanders Sweeps 3 States, Meet the Young Immigrant Activist Helping Him Mobilize LatinosI had the pleasure of joining Dave Smith this morning as he guest hosted episode 303 of the Gavin McInnes show. Dave is a comedian from New York who came up on a prior episode of Radical Agenda (263) after referencing me on the Tom Woods show. The incident started off somewhat confrontational, as is often the case in my dealings. Dave, however was very good about the whole thing and invited me to come on Gavin’s show to discuss the direction of the libertarian movement and its relationship with the alt right. The audio will do it more justice than I’ll bother to write here, but here is the basic underlying premise I’ve taken as of late. Libertarianism, understood as a society governed by private property and contracts, in many ways resembles a totalitarian state. Private property owners are not restrained by constitutions or human rights tribunals, only the property lines of others and whatever contracts they consent to. So if libertarians are taking the stance that all government control is inherently wicked based on the initiatory violence of the State, that’s fine, but all libertarianism really advocates for is a reassignment of who gets to call the shots. In this sense, trying to get the State to legalize drugs, or going topless in public, or whatever silly leftist social issue one might pursue in the moment, does not bring us closer to a libertarian society. In fact, it draws us away from this world in which we wish to live because it promotes practices that produce incapable people. So, to the extent a libertarian might comment on public policy of the day, he is not necessarily obligated to demand the abolition of every State function. Rather, the State should behave (to the extent possible) as a market actor, and promote virtuous behavior amongst the citizenry. If we raise a generation or three of capable, intelligent, strong people, then perhaps we will finally achieve a free society. If we continue subsidizing bad breeding and insisting the State stay out of our personal affairs while it remains in everyone’s wallets, then we are going to drift ever further therefrom.Pretty indicative of Romney's attitude, yes? What audacity, to charge journalists just for the ability to report from his campaign headquarters! Astounding. What's even worse is that some of those media orgs actually paid for it: Romney, the former Massachusetts governor who is locked in a tight race with Democratic President Barack Obama, will be holding his election night gathering at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, where access costs anywhere from $75 for a chair in the ballroom to $1,020 for permission to use the media filing center. Broadcast news organizations will be paying up to $6,500 for workspace. BOSTON — The campaign of Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney appears to be setting a precedent this election year in charging journalists and news organizations for any access to a presidential campaign headquarters on the night of the election. Seriously, I'm impressed. The man could squeeze blood out of a nickel. Obama's campaign party will be held at McCormick Place, in Chicago, and although his campaign is charging for premiums, credentialed reporters are granted access, which includes a workstation, electrical power and a wireless Internet connection, at no cost. The credentialing process for Romney's election night activities allowed a reporter to choose where they would like to be, whether on a riser, in the ballroom or the media filing center, although prices weren't posted until days later, after an organization entered credit card billing information to confirm their credential request. And by the time the confirmation email came along, the only option left was the media filing center, where reporters can reportedly watch the happenings in the ballroom on a closed-circuit TV with catered meals. The Republican/MassLive.com, which will be on the ground in Boston on election night covering the Senate race, planned on sending a team of at least four reporters to Romney's headquarters, but decided to send only one after it was revealed by the Romney campaign that the cost for each approved credential was $1,020. Romney spokesman Ryan Williams confirmed on Monday that there was indeed no way to cover the event unless paying for facilities. "As a reporter, you need to pay for access to the filing center if you want to cover (the event)," Williams said, confirming there was no access for credentialed media otherwise. Al Tompkins, who teaches online and broadcast journalism the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla., said that restricting reporters' access to an event based on a paywall is "outrageous." "If you're going as a journalist and need access to infrastructure, such as electricity, special lighting, etc., it makes sense that you pay your way. They are incurring a cost for that and you should have to pay as you would in any other situation," Tompkins said. "But if you aren't using anything at all, and are just looking to report from inside the building, there is no reason a credentialed member of the press should have to pay. This is paying for access to a story."“Deep inside, at a dark hallway, we stopped in front of a heavy metal door. The engineer indicated I had only a brief moment to shoot. It took him a long minute to open the jammed door. The adrenaline surge was extraordinary. The room was absolutely dark, lit only by our headlamps. Wires were obstructing my view. At the far end of the room I could make out a clock. I was only able to fire off a few frames and wanted to wait for my flash to recharge. But he already pulled me out. I checked my pictures. Out of focus! I begged him to allow me in one more time. He gave me a few more seconds to frame the clock showing 1:23:58 AM—the time when on 26 April, 1986 in the building that housed Energy Block # 4, time stood forever still.” —Gerd Ludwig on photographing inside reactor #4, where an explosion caused a catastrophic nuclear meltdown. Ludwig describes this as one of the most challenging situations he has ever photographed. When the tsunami caused disastrous damage to Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in March 2011, German photographer Gerd Ludwig’s agency, Institute, was contacted by photo editors at Time wanting to assign him for the story. Ludwig was unreachable, at a hotel without internet access at the site of another disaster that happened 25 years before—Chernobyl. Ludwig has been photographing Chernobyl since 1993 and has returned to the area three times since—in 2005, 2011 and 2013—ultimately venturing deeper inside the reactor than any Western photographer. “Of all man-made environmental catastrophes in human history, Chernobyl is considered to have caused the most lasting impact. Seeing the full extent of the destruction inside the reactor, and the full force of health consequences—not only in Ukraine but also in neighboring Belarus—is why I felt that I would need to revisit Chernobyl on a regular basis,” he says. Ludwig is the author of a photography book, the Long Shadow of Chernobyl, documenting his 20-year relationship with what noted scientist Alexei Okeanov calls “a fire that can’t be put out in our lifetimes.” Ludwig recently shared his thoughts with Proof: Alexa Keefe : What is the most important part of telling this story? Gerd Ludwig: These images remind us that accidents like Chernobyl are a possible outcome of nuclear power—anytime, anywhere. I want my project to stand as a document of this man-made disaster—to remember the countless victims of Chernobyl, and to warn future generations of the deadly consequences of human hubris. Alexa: Were there times when you felt in danger? Gerd: Exposing your body to radiation inside the reactor is only one side of the danger. The other risk comes with radioactive dust specs that can settle easily into soft materials. If ingested they can stay in your body and cause cancer. After each entry into the reactor I undergo a careful cleaning process: leave the protective gear behind, take a long, hot shower, and change into clean clothes. When I asked a safety specialist to check my equipment after my last visit deep into the reactor, I could read in her face that she thought I was being paranoid. Reluctantly she checked my gear, but then her facial expression completely changed, and she kept repeating again and again “Oh my God! Oh my God! You need to clean your cameras. You need to wash them.” It turned out that the camera straps were contaminated. I gave my cameras a good cleaning that night, until my Geiger counter indicated that they were fine. And I got new camera straps. Alexa: You devote one section of your book to the human victims, particularly children born in the years following the disaster. Tell me about your experience photographing them. Gerd: Much of the nuclear fallout drifted into the Gomel region of Belarus. In 2005, on assignment for National Geographic, I wanted to photograph the children in an orphanage. In one of the orphanages, I photographed 5-year-old Igor. Severely physically and mentally handicapped, he was given up by his parents, and lived at a home which cares for abandoned and orphaned children with disabilities. He caught my attention because most of the time he was sitting motionless, leaning against a wall. With poor eyesight and hearing he was unable to participate even in the slightest interaction with the other children around him. Once in a while his empty eyes wandered in the direction of the other kids in the room, but when they tried to hug him he started crying. Done photographing him I gave his hand a squeeze. The smile with which he reacted nearly brought tears to my eyes. Alexa: Another group of people you have photographed are those who have returned to the Exclusion Zone to live—whom you have described as preferring to die on contaminated soil than of a broken heart in an anonymous suburb. What was their attitude towards you as someone coming to tell their story? Gerd: No journalist can move freely in the zone. We have to be accompanied by a guide who works for the administration but we have to pay for their time. Since there are only a few hundred returnees living in the zone today, the guides know most of them. The only vehicles driving in the zone are those controlled by the administration. There is no public transportation and the returnees do not own cars. That is why many returnees enjoy visits by journalists. They are a welcome change into their rather uneventful daily routine. The guides recommend that journalists bring along goods such as fresh bread, cheeses, sweets that the returnees lack, as they rarely get the chance to leave their villages. Many returnees are very hospitable, offering everything they grow and produce from their own land, from tomatoes to berries, from illegally caught fish to moonshine. Eating food grown on contaminated land makes me sometimes feel uncomfortable. But as a photographer you walk a thin line: you want to be safe but you also need people’s trust and cooperation to get the pictures. Alexa: The landscape of Chernobyl is changing. Do you see this as a story that will you will continue to tell, or one that you are capturing before it is gone from memory? Gerd: The reactor may be disappearing from sight under a high-tech dome, the buildings in Pripyat will collapse, the elderly returnees will have passed away, but I am afraid the story of Chernobyl will continue way beyond our lifetime. A scientist in Chernobyl told me, “We could erect fences in certain areas here stating: Not meant for human habitation for 24,000 years to come. And this is only the half-life of plutonium 239.” The upcoming book though, is a caesura—a pause—but it will not be the end of my coverage. I am curious myself what will be next. Alexa: What is it about this area of the world that draws you in? Gerd: My personal relationship with Russia began as I grew up as a child in postwar Germany. My father had been drafted into the Sixth German Army that invaded the Soviet Union in 1942 and fought through southern Russia towards Stalingrad, where the Soviets decimated the German forces. He was lucky enough to be amongst the last soldiers evacuated. In the darkness of our small refugee room—after WWII my parents had been expelled from their home in Bohemia—I would listen to the sad soothing voice of my father as he conjured images of endless winter landscapes of soldiers battling their way through snowstorms; and people hiding from them in stables and barns. It was not until I grew older that I began to grasp the darkness behind the stories: that the landscapes were stained with blood, the soldiers dying, and the people hiding were Russians filled with fear. My father told these bedtime stories to shed himself of terrible memories of war. As a young teenager in the mid-1960’s, I was a member of the first postwar generation of Germans. Filled with guilt for my elders’ actions, I compensated by glorifying everything Germany tried to destroy. In particular, I idealized Russia and the communist Soviet system. Finally, Gorbachev’s glasnost—his call for openness in every part of life—confronted me with the social and political realities of a country that had been under totalitarian rule for seven decades. Alexa: Is there anything else you would like to add?A lake in Austin is joining other waters in Texas producing sizable largemouth bass. Lake Austin has produced two more Toyota ShareLunkers, bringing its season total to five. Corey Johnson of Cedar Park hooked the 13.18 pound bass shortly after noon on March 21 st from Lake Austin, using a white jig in 4 to 5 feet of water. Later that same evening, Charles Whited of San Marcos caught a 13.59 pounder using a Senko in 8 feet of water. The 26.125 inch-long fish was caught just after 6:00 p.m. during a Texas Tournament Zone tournament. Central Texas lake O.H. Ivie has also produced its first ShareLunker of the season as well over the weekend. Stacy Brookings of Midland was using a spinner bait when he caught a 13.22 pound bass in 8 feet of water. Currently, Lake Austin’s season total of ShareLunkers has increased to 5, leading them to a number 6 ranking statewide of ShareLunkers with 17 total. Lakes across the state producing high numbers of ShareLunkers include Lake Fork with 249, Lake Alan Henry with 25, O.H. Ivie with 24, Sam Rayburn with 23, Falcon with 19, Conroe with 16, Choke Canyon with 13, and Amistad has netted 12. Anyone that catches a largemouth bass weighing 13 pounds or bigger from public or private waters in Texas between October 1 st and April 30 th may submit the fish to the Toyota ShareLunker Program. This can be done by calling the ShareLunker hotline at 903-681-0550 or paging 888-784-0600 and leaving a phone number with an area code. The fish will be picked up by Texas Parks and Wildlife personnel within 12 hours. Bass submitted to the Toyota ShareLunker program are generally taken to the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens, Texas. DNA of the bass is taken, and if it is 100 percent Florida largemouth bass, it is used for spawning at the Center. If it is not completely Florida largemouth, the bass is given back to the angler or returned into the lake from which it was caught. For more on the Toyota ShareLunker program, click here.November 30, 2010 The cuts that politicians are planning to institute in Britain will slash services and throw millions into poverty--while letting bankers off the hook, writes Mike Marqusee. BRITAIN'S COALITION government has embarked on an ambitious program of social engineering. The purpose of its historic package of public spending cuts and "reforms" is said to be the reduction of the fiscal deficit, which rose sharply in 2008 and 2009 as a result of the recession. But, as we shall see, the deficit is a pretext. By a political sleight of hand masquerading as economic necessity, wealth and power are being redistributed in favor of the rich, whose deregulated appetite for short-term profit triggered the recession in the first place. Government announcements have come thick and fast, each spending cut, reorganization or redefinition accompanied by an ideological polemic (echoed across the media) in favor of "personal responsibility," "individual choice" and the virtues of the private sector. Despite the rhetoric, it's not so much the "state" that's being shrunk as the infrastructure of social solidarity. Over the next four years, the government plans to cut $28 billion from the welfare benefits bill, the vast bulk of which is spent on the elderly, children, people with disabilities and low-paid workers (not the largely mythical "work-shy" adult). Public housing in East London (John Levett) At the same time, it is increasing the flat-rated, regressive Value Added Tax from 17.5 percent to 20 percent, while slashing the corporation tax from 28 percent to 24 percent. Not surprisingly, the independent Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) concluded that the new tax-benefit regime was "clearly regressive," with the poor loosing a much higher proportion of their income than the rich. Severe cuts in housing benefits and in construction of new affordable housing will mean increased homelessness, higher housing costs and more people living in temporary, overcrowded or sub-standard accommodation. Residential segregation will increase, with the Chartered Institute of Housing warning that the poor will be priced out of many towns and cities. A spokesperson for Shelter, the country's leading homelessness charity, said the new policies "will see the door firmly closed on the aspirations of a whole generation for decent, secure, affordable housing to rent or buy." The highly popular (and cost-effective) National Health Service (NHS), the core and crown of the post-war welfare state, is also under threat. According to a source inside the government, reduced spending will mean that in four years time the NHS will be able to do "a fifth less" than it does now. On top of that, the proposed NHS reorganization will fragment the service and outsource many of its functions to the private sector, with accompanying increases in administrative costs and decreases in accountability. The quality of patient care will diminish. The already marked inequalities between income groups in life expectancy, cancer survival rates and disability-free years will widen. IN EDUCATION, the government is pushing the formation of "academy schools" which will be free of local government oversight and open to private sector management. Over the next four years, while investment is directed selectively towards these schools, there will be (according to the IFS) a real terms cut in spending for 60 percent of primary and 87 percent of secondary school pupils. According to the Department of Education, 40,000 teachers (about 10 percent of the total) will lose their jobs and capital spending on schools will be slashed by 60 percent. Universities are slated for rough treatment, with cuts in teaching funds and a proposed near tripling of tuition fees--which a recent poll shows may deter two thirds of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds from applying. Science and arts funds face cuts of more than 30 percent. Local councils, which provide a wide range of basic services (street cleaning, swimming pools, libraries, as well as care for children, the elderly and the disabled), are being told to slash budgets by 25 percent or more. And forget about the UK making any meaningful contribution to slowing global warming: there will be no significant investment in renewables or energy conservation. Many of the government's welfare "reforms" are aimed ostensibly at getting people "off benefits and into work". Under tough new tests on people claiming benefits for disabilities recovering cancer patients and others with serious physical limitations are being deemed "fit for work". But where are the jobs? Already one million disabled adults are seeking work but unable to find it. Unemployment currently stands at 2.5 million, 8 percent of the workforce, a figure that understates the work-shortage because it does not include the 1.5 million forced to work part-time. By its own admission, the government intends to shed about 500,000 public sector jobs. An additional 600,000 private sector jobs directly dependent on public spending will also go. It's claimed that these losses will be compensated for by private sector growth, but since the private sector created only 570,000 jobs in the entire decade prior to the recession, when GDP growth was stronger than it is likely to be in the coming years, this is mere fantasy. As unemployment and under-employment increase, wages, conditions and security for those in work will deteriorate. The benefits bill will rise and with it the much-dreaded deficit. The UK already has a higher proportion of its population (22 percent) living on low incomes than 21 of the 27 other EU countries. The extra money generated during the years of growth went overwhelmingly into the pockets of the top 20 percent, who now receive 51 percent of total national income, while the poorest 20 percent receive a mere 5.5 percent. As a result of increasing inequality, Britain has fallen in recent years to 26th place in the UN's Human Development Index (HDI), behind not only Germany and France, but also crisis-stricken Greece, Spain and Ireland. If the government gets its way, poverty and inequality will grow more acute, living standards for the majority will decline, and the UK's HDI ranking will plummet further. A SMALL but powerful minority does stand to gain from all this pain. The pharmaceutical companies, for example, will rake in extra billions as a result of the government's decision to marginalize the body charged with ensuring cost-effectiveness in NHS drug purchases. Outsourcing and privatization in education, health care, welfare and the post office will open avenues to vast private profiteering, largely risk-free and tax-payer subsidised. In the first five months of its existence, the government paid out $5.1 billion (more than the Department of Energy and Climate Change receives in a whole year) to a single firm, Capita, for undertaking previously in-house government functions. Meanwhile, the banks, saved from collapse by the public weal, remain unreformed: paying themselves $10.9 billion in bonuses this year (which happens to be the amount required to abolish university tuition fees altogether). While benefit fraud costs the public $2.3 billion a year, tax evasion costs $109 billion a year and tax avoidance another $39 billion, totals that will rise because of cuts in Customs and Revenue staff. If one-third of the missing billions were collected each year, the deficit could be closed over five years without cuts. But we are told that if we ensure the rich pay a fair share of taxes, they will all leave the country, and if we fail to make the cuts, the markets will pull the plug on us. Let's leave aside, for the moment, the fact that the structure of the UK national debt (largely long-term, low yield and domestically held) is quite sustainable, and forget also that Ireland's 12.5 percent corporate tax rate did nothing to protect it from the ravages of recession. This attempt to coerce the majority of Britons into making sacrifices from which a small minority benefits raises fundamental questions about the purpose and direction of our society. The implication is that we must acquiesce to a perpetual dictatorship of the rich, that we are forbidden from disposing of the wealth we collectively create according to our collective priorities. Of course, the government presents the rich as the wealth creators, but this is a myth, our version of believing the sun revolves around the earth. The overall impact of government policy will be to make the rich richer and more secure and the rest poorer and less secure. The damage will take generations to undo. This is the real threat to civilization in Britain, not the immigrants, Muslims or "benefit scroungers" targeted by politicians and the media. First published in The Hindu.Every master criminal has his or her weakness that lands them in jail. Some get caught because they feel compelled to clean out every diamond from a vault. Others can’t resist the temptation of going up a supposedly unbeatable security system. Then there’s the guy in Delaware who was caught robbing a restaurant because he stopped to cook up some crab cakes for himself. According to Delmarvanow.com (via FoodBeast), the crabburglar entered a Rehoboth Beach restaurant in the wee hours of the night last week, using the time-honored stealthy method of shattering the front glass door. In spite of his ninja-like efforts to go undetected, someone noticed the broken door and called the police, who arrived to find the man in the kitchen, cooking himself up some crab. He also had a stolen bottle of booze on him, which might explain his behavior. Because he apparently didn’t have enough crab cakes to share with everyone, the suspect attempted to flee when the officers arrived, but an alley-wide dragnet managed to track him down behind the restaurant. Police arrested him and charged the 41-year-old with burglary, theft under $1,500, criminal mischief, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. No word yet on whether he got to enjoy the crab cakes.This column's about the down-side of universities, so I should probably begin by admitting I've spent many happy years attending these institutions, including most recently a term, three years ago, at Cambridge. During this period I've learned a great deal, although it's probably also important to note that I'm sure my professors believed I should have learnt a great deal more. My standpoint is, however, that I'm very pro education. That, of course, is not nearly the same thing as being pro university. In the current job market, there are no guarantees of a bright future for young people studying at university. Photo: Glenn Hunt Credit:Glenn Hunt The government claims the higher education system plays "a critical role in fuelling innovation, driving productivity and giving students the skills they need for future success". It's problematic to work out how much anyone may have benefited from studying, because it's not possible to run counter-factual comparisons. Nevertheless, ask yourself to what extent do you attribute your own productivity and success to university and how much would have occurred anyway, because of other factors? And does learning how to perform tasks in a particular structured way really fuel innovation, or just assist someone to do their current job better? And if university really has provided such a leg-up for our society, why is it that productivity has levelled off, particularly now when so many more people possess degrees? The reality is that education stopped being something intrinsically wonderful, in itself, the moment it became an industry. And today it's a very big industry. That's why it deserves some examination to see how much it's serving itself, instead of the needs of its students or society. Tertiary institutions are no longer just about thinking, learning, growing up and having fun; they're huge businesses and, as such, have a massive interest in pushing their own barrow. So let's examine this sector with the aim of working out exactly whose needs it's serving.Ballu Singh and Pubali Sen are solutions architects at Amazon Web Services. AWS Database Migration Service (AWS DMS) helps you migrate databases to AWS easily and securely. The AWS Database Migration Service can migrate your data to and from most widely used commercial and open-source databases. The service supports homogenous migrations such as Oracle to Oracle. It also supports heterogeneous migrations between different database platforms, such as Oracle to Amazon Aurora or Microsoft SQL Server to MySQL. The source database remains fully operational during the migration, minimizing downtime to applications that rely on the database. Data replication with AWS Database Migration Service integrates tightly with the AWS Schema Conversion Tool (AWS SCT), simplifying heterogeneous database migration projects. You can use AWS SCT for heterogeneous migrations. You can use the schema export tools native to the source engine for homogenous migrations. In this blog post, we focus on migrating the data from Oracle Data Warehouse to Amazon Redshift. In the past, AWS SCT couldn’t convert custom code, such as views and functions, from Oracle Data Warehouse to a format compatible with the Amazon Redshift. To migrate views and functions, you had to first convert the Oracle Data Warehouse schema to PostgreSQL. Then you’d apply a script to extract views and functions that are compatible with Amazon Redshift. After an update based on customer feedback, we’re happy to let you know that with AWS SCT and AWS DMS, you can now migrate Oracle Data Warehouse to Amazon Redshift along with views and functions. The following diagram illustrates the migration process. Prerequisites To get started with this migration, take the following steps: Creating a Stack In this post, you use Launch Stack following to launch an AWS CloudFormation stack. The launch process also creates the architecture shown preceding. You can then see the results in the AWS DMS console. At the end of the migration, you tear down the CloudFormation stack. The link launches the stack in the US West (Oregon) Region (us-west-2). Some resources incur costs as long as the resources are in use. To launch your stack and name it, do the following: Log in to your AWS account if you haven’t done so already. Choose Launch Stackto launch the CloudFormation console with the prepopulated CloudFormation template. Choose Next. For Stack name, use the prepopulated orclrsmigration or type a custom name. Choose KeyName, type MasterUserPassword for Redshift Cluster, and choose Next. On the Reviewpage, acknowledge that CloudFormation will create AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) roles as a result of launching the stack. Choose Create. To see the stack creation progress, choose Refresh and then Restore, and then select the stack to see the launch events. When the stack is successfully launched, the Status changes from CREATE_IN_PROGRESS to CREATE_COMPLETE. To view the values used in the next section, choose Outputs. The infrastructure created by this CloudFormation template is used in the next section. You should see the values that are listed in the following table. Seeing the Schema Conversion Tool in Action To see the AWS SCT tool in action, do the following: Start the AWS Schema Conversion Tool. Choose New Project from the File The New Project dialog box appears. Add the following preliminary project information: Project Name Type a name for your project, which is stored locally on your computer. Location Type the location for your local project file. Data Warehouse (OLAP) Source DB Engine Oracle DW Target DB Engine Amazon Redshift Choose OK to create your AWS Schema Conversion Tool project. To connect to your Oracle data warehouse, choose Connect to Oracle DW. The Connect to Oracle DW dialog box appears. Provide the Oracle DW source database connection information. Type the following values into the form, and then choose Next. Server name <SourceEC2EndpointDns> Server port 1521 Oracle SID XE User name dms_sample Password dms_sample Use SSL Unchecked Choose Test Connectionto verify that you can successfully connect to your source database. Choose OKto connect to your source database. Select the DMS_SAMPLE database and then choose Next. Review the Database Migration Assessment Report, and then choose Next. To connect to Amazon Redshift, choose Connect to Amazon Redshift. The Connect to Amazon Redshift dialog box appears. Provide the target database connection information. Type the following values into the form, and then choose Next. Server name <TargetRedshiftEndpointDns> Server port 5439 database dev User name admin Password Password selected in CloudFormation Use SSL Unchecked Choose Test Connectionto verify that you can successfully connect to your source database. Choose OKto connect to your target database. Converting Your Schema Next, convert your schema: Choose View, and then choose Main View. In the left panel that displays the schema from your source database, choose dms_sample schema object to convert. Open the context (right-click) menu for the object, and then choose Convert schema. When the AWS Schema Conversion Tool finishes converting the schema, you can view the proposed schema in the target Amazon Redshift cluster along with views and functions. At this point, no schema is applied to your target Amazon Redshift cluster. You can edit the schema in this window. The edited schema is stored as part of your project. The edited schema is written to the target DB instance when you choose to apply your converted schema to the database. In the right panel that displays the schema from your target database, choose dms_sample schema object to convert. Open the context (right-click) menu for the object, and then choose Apply to database. At this point, the database schema is available for the Amazon Redshift cluster with no data in it. Configuring AWS DMS to Migrate a Database Next, we’ll move into DMS: On the AWS Management Console, choose DMS, and then choose Create migration. On the Welcome to AWS Database Migration Service page, choose Next. The Create replication instance page appears. On this page, specify the following values, and then choose Next. Name Type a name for the replication instance that contains from 8 to 16 printable ASCII characters (excluding /,”, and @). Description Type a brief description of the replication instance. Instance class dms.t2.medium VPC Choose the Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC) you want to use. Use VPC, where your source or target or both resides. Multi-AZ No Publicly Accessible Checked Keep Advance tab values as the defaults, and choose Next. Working with a Database Endpoint Specify the following values for the Source endpoint. Endpoint Identifier Type the name you want to use to identify the endpoint. Source Engine Oracle Server Name <SourceEC2EndpointDns> Port 1521 SSL Mode None User name dms_sample Password dms_sample Specify the following values for the Target endpoint. Endpoint Identifier Type the name you want to use to identify the endpoint. Source Engine Redshift Server Name <RedshiftEndpointDns> Port 5439 SSL Mode None User name admin Password Password selected in CloudFormation You can test the endpoint connection by choosing Run test, after the replication instance is created successfully. Creating a Task On the Create Task page, specify the task options. The following table describes the task settings. Task name Type a name for the task. Replication Instance Type a description for the task. Source endpoint Shows the source endpoint to use. Target endpoint Shows the target endpoint to use. Replication instance Shows the replication instance to use. Migration type Migrate existing data Start task on create Check For Target table preparation mode, choose Do nothing. For Table mapping, choose dms_sample, select Add Selection rule, then and choose Create Task. Monitoring Your Task If you choose Start task on create when you create a task, your task begins immediately to migrate your data when you choose Create task. You can view statistics and monitoring information for your task by choosing the running task from the AWS Management Console. The following screenshot shows the table statistics of a database migration. Conclusion In this post, I have demonstrated how easy it is to migrate a commercial database in Oracle Data Warehouse to Amazon Redshift along with views and functions. I welcome your comments or questions below.“You Have Zero Privacy Anyway. Get Over It”–That Goes Double on Social Networks When Sun Microsystems (JAVA) Gadfly-in-Chief Scott McNealy made his infamous statement about online privacy in 1999, there was a horrified hubbub at the time that he had the audacity to say such a thing. You know, that he actually uttered such a terrible thing as the truth. What a shock then that everyone is now in yet another tizzy about Facebook changes to its Terms of Service, which pretty much state the obvious again by noting that Facebook archives info you posted, even if you quit the service. As in, you probably can’t delete it. No, you can’t–because you shared it, whether it be a photo, an email, a Wall post, whatever, already. Because the fact of the
iations” between the U.S. and the P.L.O., an utter fraud, as was well-understood by the Israeli leadership. The facts have been efficiently suppressed here, but are known at least to readers of this journal, so I will not repeat them.23 There has long been a tacit alliance between the “Arab Facade” that manages the energy system and the regional gendarmes that provide protection from nationalist currents — Israel among them, alongside of Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan — with U.S.-British power on call if needed, and various modifications as conditions change (e.g., the fall of the Shah). The tacit alliance is coming quite close to the surface now that Arab nationalism has been dealt yet another crushing blow, thanks to the murderous gangster who disobeyed orders, and PLO tactics of more than the usual foolishness. The Arab rulers therefore have less need than before to respond to popular pressures and make pro-Palestinian gestures; accordingly, the prospects for U.S. rejectionism have advanced several notches. The U.S.-run “peace conference” will be permitted to discuss only one topic, as James Baker made clear and explicit in 1989: the Shamir Plan, actually the Shamir-Peres Plan of the Likud-Labor coalition, then governing. The basic terms of this Plan, it will be recalled, are that there can be no “additional Palestinian state” (Jordan already being one) and no “change in the status of Judea, Samaria and Gaza other than in accordance with the basic guidelines of the [Israeli] Government,” which exclude any Palestinian rights. Palestinians must, furthermore, be denied even the right to select their own representatives to discuss their capitulation to U.S.-Israeli terms (no PLO); and there will be “free elections” under Israeli military rule with much of the Palestinian leadership in prison camps without charges. These terms would be regarded as a sick joke if they were not advocated by the U.S. and its client. There remain, however, some problems in implementing this project, notably the recalcitrance of both Shamir and Peres, who lead the two major parties (though Labor is in serious decline). Shamir has repeatedly dragged his feet, and Peres is trying to outflank Shamir from the jingoist extreme (what is called “the right”). The difficulties with Shamir are familiar: he is the preferred scapegoat for the media, and his recalcitrance offers the opportunity to present Washington’s extreme rejectionist position as a “middle ground,” suitably “moderate” and “pragmatic.” But it is harder to deal with the stand of the Labor party, traditionally presented as “the good guys” who line up with U.S. positions. Shimon Peres, in particular, has been designated by the media as a man of “healthy pragratism” and a leading dove, deeply troubled by the lack of a “peace movement among the Arab people” such as “we have among the Jewish people,” to sample a few of the fairy tales relayed by the New York Times and its Pulitzer Prize-winning correspondent Thomas Friedman.24 Peres’s current stand is familiar in Labor Party annals. Leading figures in the Labor Party had opposed Menahem Begin’s acceptance of the Camp David agreement, a great boon to Israeli power because it removed the sole Arab deterrent (Egypt) from the conflict, thus enabling Israel to accelerate its integration of the occupied territories and attack Lebanon, with massive U.S. assistance. But the agreement compelled Israel to yield settlements that Labor had established in Egyptian territory, eliciting opposition among the top party ranks. Much the same is true today. In the Hebrew press, Knesset Member Yossi Sarid, regarded as a leading dove, writes that in a meeting of the Labor Party Committee on Foreign and Security Affairs, Peres sought to undermine any positive response to the conciliatory stance of Syria that had been welcomed by Prime Minister Shamir. “He, Peres, is attacking Shamir from the right,” Uzi Baram of the Labor Party reported. On most matters, Sarid continues, the Labor Party is following the Likud lead, but on the matter of the Golan Heights, Peres is mimicking the fringe rightwing Ha-Tehiya party, denouncing any negotiations with Syria as a trap that must be avoided. Peres’s Labor Party rival Yitzhak Rabin took the same position at the meeting. “The stand of the two with regard to the Golan Heights is rejectionist to the point of despair,” Sarid writes. Earlier, Rabin had denounced the Baker conference plan as “a deadly trap [for Israel], while Peres demanded that Israel not relinquish the Golan Heights under any circumstances,” the press reported. These are matters of no small moment, since, as the military command and military correspondents have been emphasizing, failure to reach an agreement with Syria on the Golan Heights is likely to lead to war in the not-too-distant future.25 Peres’s stand was in accord with the largest sector of the Kibbutz Movement (Ha-TAKAM), which called for “permanent rule over the Golan Heights” by Israel, and steps for further development of the Heights.26 In fact, there has never been any serious difference between the two major political groupings on the matter of Palestinian rights, which both reject. The U.S. has always backed them in this rejectionist stance. The official reasons are hardly worth even refuting. The real reasons are that a Palestinian state, even if it lacked a pistol or an ally anywhere, would control its own land and resources, and that the U.S. and Israel will not permit. For many years, it has been well-known that Israel relies heavily on West Bank water; control over water has also always been a major reason for Israel’s concern over the Golan Heights and southern Lebanon, and any Syrian or Jordanian development projects in the region. Furthermore, some of the most popular suburbs are in the West Bank (including the vastly expanded area called “Jerusalem”). Israel has also benefited from the supercheap Palestinian labor force and a controlled market (meanwhile preventing any independent development), though these needs will reduce if the Arab boycott officially ends, and if enough Soviet Jews can be forced to Israel to do the dirty work that has been assigned to Palestinians. The issue is not Israel’s survival or even its security, which would not be threatened by a Palestinian state. As David Ben-Gurion observed in December 1948, “an Arab state in Western Palestine [that is, West of the Jordan] would be less dangerous than a state linked to Transjordan [now Jordan], and maybe tomorrow to Iraq.” Nothing that has happened since has changed that assessment, and an Israel within the internationally-recognized borders could well be integrated into the region as its most technologically advanced and military powerful element. The problem lies elsewhere. It is that under such arrangements, Israel could not “exist according to the scale, spirit, and quality she now embodies,” as General Ezer Weizmann explained in justification of Israel’s decision to launch the 1967 war by attacking Egypt, at a time when he was air force commander and one of the top military planners.27 To force Soviet Jews to Israel, it is necessary to gain U.S. cooperation in barring their entry. That is readily obtained, with the support of those who had been vociferously calling on the Soviets to “let my people go” — as long as they go where we tell them to. The Jerusalem Post quotes Democrat Charles Schumer of New York, a ranking member of the House immigration, refugee and international law committee, who said on August 15 that there would be no increase in the ceiling on Soviet immigration (50,000, with “some 40,000 slots reserved for Jews”). “This comes as a relief to absorption officials [in Israel], who worry that Soviet aliya [“ascent” to Israel] would drop-off dramatically if the U.S. allows more Soviet Jews in,” the Post news report continues. “American Jews and Israel,” Schumer explained, “both seem happy with the current equilibrium,” effectively barring non-Jews from the U.S. altogether and restricting Jewish immigration sufficiently to ensure that many will be compelled to go to Israel against their will.28 Nevertheless, there are some clouds on the horizon. Ha’aretz reports that a Jewish organization was formed in the United States to campaign for admission of Russian Jews. This dangerous development led to a closed debate of the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem, where participants “expressed sharp opposition” to any such plan and agreed that “the other Jewish bodies in the United States should unite to sabotage this attempt, which might harm the immigration of Jews to Israel.” These moves extend pressures of many years on American Jewish communities not to provide assistance to refugees from the Soviet Union. Prime Minister Devid Levy was sent to Germany to induce its Government to stop providing refugee status to Soviet Jews. “Our policy…is that Jews should go to Israel,” not here, the spokesman for the Israeli Embassy said in Bonn. Michael Kleiner, head of the Immigration and Absorption Department of the Knesset, “sharply attacked the decision of the German government to permit Russian Jews to enter Germany,” the Hebrew press reported. Israel is also reported to have persuaded the Soviet Union to deprive departing Jews of Soviet citizenship, to bar return there, a growing problem as many Russian Jews seek to leave Israel despite the serious impediments imposed by its government, including severe financial liabilities.29 Israel will never agree to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state unless the U.S. withdraws the huge subsidy that maintains it as a wealthy Western society. And that is unlikely. Israel’s services as a “strategic asset” have been highly valued for thirty years, with roots extending beyond. The Israeli lobby (not all Jewish, by any means), with its political clout and its finely-honed techniques of defamation, slander, and intimidation is highly effective in containing discussion within the narrow framework of U.S.-Israeli rejectionism and support for Israeli power and repression. In contrast, the Palestinians, as noted, offer the U.S. nothing, and there is no domestic lobby pressuring for their rights. What is more, anti-Arab racism is endemic, so rampant as to be unnoticed. The concept of “rejectionism,” mentioned above, is demonstration enough, with its unquestioned assumption that Jews have rights denied in principle to Palestinians. The same is true of the standard assumption, also taken as uncontroversial, that Palestinians should not even have the minimal right to select their own representatives to negotiate their capitulation. An editorial in the liberal Boston Globe calmly observes that the “ultimate control” of terrorists who take hostages is “extermination,” referring, of course, to Arab hostage-takers, not to Israel with its hundreds of Lebanese and Palestinian hostages held under grotesque conditions to ensure compliance with Israel’s terrorist army in South Lebanon or to induce Lebanese terrorists to release Israeli soldiers captured in the course of Israeli aggression, not to speak of Palestinians kidnapped on the high seas or the tens of thousands who have been jailed without charges in the occupied territories. In the same journal, a lead op-ed derides the “frenzy” of Arab politics which “expresses the resentments of a civilization which has at once been left behind and overwhelmed by modernity” and which must be helped to “accommodate to reality” (Martin Peretz, who reveals his own grasp of reality by accusing Baker of “a fixed animus to the Jewish state”).30 One can imagine the reaction to a call for “extermination” of Jews or similar derisive commentary about Jewish culture. The approved current practice is sanctimonious and patronizing condemnation of the Palestinians for having applauded Saddam Hussein, and for PLO support for Iraq against the U.S. attack (while calling for Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait). Therefore, American and Israeli hypocrites argue, the Palestinians have abdicated their right to participate in determining their own fate. Let us put aside the fact that that right had been forcefully rejected by the United States and both Israeli political groupings long before the invasion of Kuwait; one will search far for a U.S. or Israeli commentator in the mainstream who was willing to grant Palestinians even the right to select their own representatives, a right explicitly denied in the Baker-Shamir-Peres plan. Let us consider, however, what the same logic implies about Israel, which not only applauds but directly participates in horrifying atrocities in Latin America, Africa and Asia, not to speak of its loyal support for U.S. aggression in Indochina and elsewhere, and its own shameful crimes. The conclusions are obvious enough, but, again, fail the test of political correctness, and will therefore not be drawn in a well-disciplined and deeply conformist culture. For Washington’s purposes, it is not of great importance that the “peace conference” succeed. If it does, the U.S. will have rammed through its traditional rejectionism, having sucessfully rebuffed the near-unanimous world support for an authentic political settlement. If that comes about, it will be hailed as another triumph for our great Leader, a renewed demonstration of our high-minded benevolence and virtue. The other possibility is that the “peace process” will fail, in which case we will read of “a classic cultural clash between American and Middle Eastern instincts,” a conflict between Middle Eastern fanaticism and Baker’s “quintessentially American view of the world: that with just a little bit of reasonableness these people should be able to see that they have a shared interest in peace that overrides their historical antipathies” (Thomas Friedman).31 It’s a win-win situation for U.S. power. The “Two Triumphs” The “peace process” aside, there is not a great deal that can be brought forth to illustrate U.S. achievements in the Gulf. This too is not much of a problem; as state priorities shift, respectable folk follow suit, turning to approved concerns. But it would have been too much to allow the August 2 anniversary to pass without notice. A last-ditch effort was therefore necessary to portray the outcome as a Grand Victory. Even with the journalistic achievements of the past year, such as the suppression of the possibilities for a peaceful negotiated settlement and the rigorous exclusion of Iraqi democrats and world opinion generally, it was no simple matter to chant the praises of our leader as we survey the scene of two countries devastated, hundreds of thousands of corpses with the toll still mounting, an ecological catastrophe, and the Beast of Baghdad firmly in power thanks to the tacit support of the Bush-Baker-Schwartzkopf team. It is a relief to discover that even this onerous task was not beyond the capacity of the cultural commissars. In its anniversary editorial, the New York Times editors dismissed the qualms of “the doubters,” concluding that Mr. Bush had acted wisely: he “avoided the quagmire and preserved his two triumphs: the extraordinary cooperation among coalition members and the revived self-confidence of Americans,” who “greeted the Feb. 28 cease-fire with relief and pride — relief at miraculously few U.S. casualties and pride in the brilliant performance of the allied forces” ( NYT, Aug. 2, 1991). Surely these triumphs far outweigh the “awesome tragedies” in the region. These are chilling words. One can readily understand the reaction of the non-people of the world. Notes 1 The Challenge to the South, Report of the South Commission (Oxford, 1990), 287. 2 Guardian (London), April 13, 1991. 3 Editorial, Proceso, Jan. 23, 1991. Benedetti, La Epoca, May 4, 1991. 4 Z, May 1991. Foreword, Thomas Fox, Iraq (Sheed & Ward, 1991), ix. 5 On these matters, see my Towards a New Cold War (Pantheon, 1982). 6 Latin America Strategy Development Workshop, Sept. 26 & 27, 1990, minutes, 3. Andrew Reding, “Mexico’s Democratic Challenge,” World Policy Journal (Spring 1991). 7 Quoted by Piero Gleijeses, Shattered Hope (Princeton, 1991), 365. 8 John Lewis Gaddis, The Long Peace (Oxford, 1987), 10. 9 Eisenhower to Harriman, quoted in Richard H. Immerman, Diplomatic History (Summer 1990). John Foster Dulles, Telephone Call to Allen Dulles, June 19, 1958, “Minutes of telephone conversations of John Foster Dulles and Christian Herter,” Eisenhower Library, Abilene KA. 10 Luzviminda Francisco and Jonathan Fast, Conspiracy for Empire (Quezon City, 1985), 302, 191. 11 NYT, July 7, 1991. 12 Kathy Blair, Toronto Globe and Mail, June 17, 1991; WSJ, July 5, 1991. 13 Spectator (London), Aug. 10, April 13, 1991. 14 Greenpeace press release, July 23, 1991; Environet. 15 WSJ, April 8, 1991. 16 NYT, April 11, 1991. 17 Al-Ahram, April 9, 1991. Mideast Mirror, 10 April, 15 March, 1991. 18 Mideast Mirror, 27 March, 26 March, 27 February, 1991. 19 Personal correspondence, Egypt. 20 Ron Ben-Yishai, interview with Shomron, Ha’aretz, March 29; Shalom Yerushalmi, “We are all with Saddam,” Kol Ha’ir, April 4; Jerusalem Post. April 4, 1991. 21 Ha’aretz, March 8, 1991. 22 Editorial, NYT, Aug. 8; Miller, NYT, Aug. 11, 1991. 23 See my articles “The Trollope Ploy and Middle East Diplomacy,” “The Art of Evasion: Diplomacy in the Middle East,” Z, March 1989, Jan. 1990, and my Necessary Illusions (South End, 1989). 24 For details, see Necessary Illusions. 25 Sarid, Ha’aretz, Aug. 1; Hana Kim, Hadashot, July 23, 1991. 26 Nahman Gilboa, Al-Hamishmar, July 7, 1991. 27 Ben-Gurion’s diaries, quoted by Avi Shlaim, Collusion across the Jordan (Columbia, 1988), 364. Weizmann, Ha’aretz, March 20, 1972. On Israel’s decision for war, see now Andrew and Leslie Cockburn, Dangerous Liaison (Harper Collins, 1991), an important and informative study, as indicated by the hysterical and infantile reviews in the New York Times and other major journals (for some amusing examples, see David Schoenbaum, NYT Book Review, Aug. 18, 1991; John Yemma, Boston Globe, Aug. 15, 1991). 28 JP, Aug. 16, 1991. 29 Ha’aretz, Feb. 18, May 19; Yediot Ahronot, March 15; Christian Science Monitor, July 29, 1991. 30 Editorial, BG, Aug. 15; Peretz, Aug. 9, 1991.San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer is receptive to having the Oakland Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers play this Sunday’s game in Mission Valley if the Oakland Coliseum becomes unavailable due to the wildfires in the Bay Area, a mayoral aide said. Friday morning update: According to multiple reports, NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart said on a conference call that the game is still scheduled to be played in Oakland, but the league has a contingency plan in case it has to be moved. He won’t say where but “I would expect it to be an NFL stadium.” That would appear to rule out San Diego. As of mid-day Thursday, there was no indication that the NFL seeks a temporary relocation to San Diego for the Week 6 matchup. “I am not aware of any request that has come from the NFL to date,” said Faulconer’s chief of staff, Aimee Fawcett. “We are always happy to help other cities during times like these.” An NFL spokesperson, per multiple reports, said the league is monitoring the air quality in Oakland. "At this point, the game remains scheduled for Sunday in Oakland," the league official said Thursday. An official for Bay Area Air Quality Management District, which oversees the EPA’s air quality index readings for the region, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal “nobody can answer” today what the air quality conditions will be like on Sunday. “We don’t know what the level of containment of fire will be or what the wind direction will be,” Ralph Borrmann said, “so we don’t have an answer for it. …. Things can change pretty quickly. It’s really hard to make a prediction that’s going to be 100 percent accurate. There are variable winds. Generally now, they’re blowing in a southernly direction from what’s burning. It’s filtering into the Bay Area from the north. In an hour, things can change.” Pay forward a favor? Fawcett said she is aware of related precedent in 2003 when wildfires in San Diego County caused a Chargers-Cardinals game to be relocated to the Phoenix area. Fans who attended the game in Arizona donated about $225,000 to aid victims of the fires. Other relocations options for Sunday could include venues in the Bay Area and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, a former Raiders home. StubHub Center, the Chargers’ home stadium, is being utilized by its primary tenant, the Galaxy of Major League Soccer. The Mission Valley stadium was the home to the Chargers from August 1967 through the 2016 season finale this past Jan. 1. Raiders South? The Raiders could probably expect a pro-Raiders environment in Mission Valley if the atmosphere there Dec. 18 was the template. Raiders fans were a noisy presence throughout the game, especially in the fourth quarter when the Chargers offense went to a silent count due to communication issues. Oakland won, 19-16. At other games in San Diego, Raiders fans were less of a presence, but by last December, the specter of franchise relocation, along with poor on-field results spanning two seasons, seemingly eroded the willingness of Chargers fans to attend the home games. A SurveyUSA poll conducted Thursday showed mixed reaction from San Diegans. Kickoff for the game Sunday is set for 1:25 p.m. Tom.Krasovic@SDUnionTribune.com; Twitter: SDUTKrasovic UPDATES: 7:30 a.m. Friday: This article was updated with additional informationThe Global Intelligence Files On Monday February 27th, 2012, WikiLeaks began publishing The Global Intelligence Files, over five million e-mails from the Texas headquartered "global intelligence" company Stratfor. The e-mails date between July 2004 and late December 2011. They reveal the inner workings of a company that fronts as an intelligence publisher, but provides confidential intelligence services to large corporations, such as Bhopal's Dow Chemical Co., Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and government agencies, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the US Marines and the US Defence Intelligence Agency. The emails show Stratfor's web of informers, pay-off structure, payment laundering techniques and psychological methods. The 'War Nerd' on Iran Released on 2013-02-13 00:00 GMT Email-ID 1292937 Date 2009-06-25 16:38:47 From mike.marchio@stratfor.com To fisher@stratfor.com The 'War Nerd' on Iran http://exiledonline.com/war-nerd-irans-cedar-show-aka-dont-get-excited-the-protestors-are-just-letting-off-some-steam/all/1/ War Nerd: Iran's Cedar Show, A.K.A. Don't Get Excited, the Protestors Are Just Letting Off Some Steam By Gary Brecher It took me a while to figure out why everybody was nagging me to do a column on the Iranian elections. Everybody seemed to think it was all mysterious and world-shaking. Finally I realized, you're all het up because every news service in the US and England has been selling these riots like a new Star Wars episode, and people are just trying to figure out what's going on and what it all means. Well, I can answer that in one note: nothing much is going on, just letting off steam; and what little is happening isn't mysterious at all. Basically, this is simple steam release, something the Mullahs have to allow now and then when the kids, and there are a lot of young adults in Iran, need to remind everybody they're tired of being bossed around. There's a huge, huge difference between that kind of "revolution" and the kind that has a real foundation in tribal differences or religion or city/country, the real fault lines. What's going on in Iran now is a lot like the big fizzle in Lebanon after Hariri's assassination in 2005. So if y'all will permit me to digress, let me take you back to the Cedar Revolution that supposedly "gripped" Lebanon. All that really happened was that some of the few Christian/Sunni elite Lebanese kids who hadn't emigrated yet got so pissed off at the Syrians for just blowing Hariri away in broad daylight that they came out and waved the Lebanese flag-the one with the Cedar tree on it. Well, you'd have thought the Berlin Wall had fallen all over again. The same Anglo news networks that are declaring an outbreak of democracy in Iran now were screaming into microphones all over Lebanon, just so touched by these rich Christian/"Phoenician" Lebanese kids announcing that no durn Hezbollah Iranian-puppet thugs were gonna repress their craving for freedom...and discos, and wearing about a quart of perfume, and all the other accessories that go with what they call a Western orientation in the Middle East. These are the kind of people Anglo news crews glom onto like horny refrigerator magnets: young, well-dressed, a lot of them speak English, and they talk about nice familiar stuff like "freedom" and "democracy." They make great TV. But they can't win a war. You win wars with poor people, numbers and toughness and discipline. Hezbollah proved it had the numbers by producing counter-demos with a million people cheering the Syrians and asking Allah to zap the West and Democracy and that Cedar Tree. If democracy means "we got more people with us than you do," that should've proved Hezbollah beat the Cedar All-Stars, but that story never came out much. Hezbollah's demonstrators weren't the kind of people the BBC or CNN really felt comfortable around. It's hard for a Western news crew to relax with a huge crowd of agitated lower-class Shia. Their way of making a point is by getting bloody, showing off wounds and cuts and shaving nicks, whatever they've got. Nobody at CNN wants that to be the future; nobody wants to go to commercial with a bunch of shrieking Shia mothers like hysterical Hefty Bags proudly saying they hope their 14 or so sons become martyrs, and the sooner the better. No, what you want for an upbeat TV story is a bunch of taller, skinnier, paler, English-speaking rich kids. Which brings us to Iran. Iranians aren't Arab, but they are Shia, and excitable. Keep that in mind. Different countries explode at different temperatures. There are places where yelling is a declaration of war. If a Norwegian raises his voice, Hell is about to break loose. If a Canadian yells at you, get a restraining order. But Iranians will scream at each other over how to cook an egg, and be all chummy and laughing the next minute. They used to keep that hysterical side in control with opium-the whole country was on the pipe until the sixties-but it's harder to get now, so they just keep yelling. So when Iran has a national election, it's going to be loud. People are going to yell in the streets, people are going to shoot guns off, sometimes in the general direction of the opposition, and anybody who gets hit is going to tweet his bloodstains, Youtube his bullet-holes, and send it all over the world. And if the people doing the demonstrating are mostly that same Cedar-Rev demographic: rich young city kids-then duh, they're also the ones who are going to be web-savvy tweet freaks. In fact, Iran has probably the biggest dissident blog network in the world. I don't read Farsi-I wish I did-but I read this pretty decent book, I Am Iran, about the anti-mullah blog scene there. Check it out if you want a better idea of who the opposition is, the people flooding the streets in Tehran. They're sick of it, which is easy to understand; living in the Islamic Republic of Iran must be a lot like going to a Catholic school where you never, ever graduate, where kissing is a felony and not wearing the uniform is a crime against God. Hell yes, they're sick of it, and they have every right to be. But, to get coldblooded about it, so what? They're not going to overthrow the state. I don't usually like that word, "the state," but I'm using it here because it works better than "Ahmedinajad." He's the official bad guy here, the classic bigmouth runt who wants Israel turned into a gravel pit and America turned into a colony of Venezuela. Hell, he's all kinds of obnoxious, down to the ratty beard and beady eyes and the way he dresses like a hungover Soviet janitor. But he's not the Islamic Republic of Iran. He's only the president. The way the Iranian government is put together, the Prez is more like a noisemaker, official annoyer-of-the-Anglos, than a decider. Way, way above him is the "Supreme Leader," sort of an Ayatollah version of the Pope, Khomeini's official successors. Right now the Supreme Leader is Ali Khamenei. He doesn't talk to the press, or make official trips to hug Chavez. He just sits there in his big black turban and says "No" every time somebody asks for a little relaxation of all this pious crap. He's seen'em come and go, these reformer types; he crushed Rafsanjani, Khatami, anybody who even suggested that the way Khomeini laid it down in 1979 might not be good enough for all eternity. See, that's the pattern I'm talking about: the people who matter in Iran won't talk to foreign news crews, and the people who will, the ones in the streets right now...well, they may be brave, noble people, but they don't have a chance in Hell. That's because the IRI government is a bunch of rival militias, intelligence agencies, and religious committees. There's even a legislature, although nobody takes that seriously. If you remember the way the Iranian side was organized in the Iran/Iraq war, you might have a better idea how the people at the top like things to run: always with rival forces competing for power. That's because Khomeini was thinking coups in 1979. So alongside the regular Army he set up the Revolutionary Guards, hardcore jihadis loyal to the Supreme Leader, not the Army Brass. To make sure the Revolutionary Guards weren't vulnerable to a sudden decapitation by the army or anyone else, their cadres were placed with every agency, like Islamist commissars, and they set up militias in every city in Iran. You get the same thing in any new militarized state, even tiny Hellholes like Duvalier's Haiti, with the Ton=ton Macoutes balancing the army, bypassing the official channels so they could kill at Duvalier's command. Then there's the Basij, a million or so amateur thugs who do what the Revolutionary guards tell them to do. When you see cop types firing into demonstrating crowds in footage from Tehran, it's usually the Basij. The hottest hate of all right now is between the city kids, sick to death of being whacked around by Shia nuns, and the Basij, a bunch of redneck bigots with guns and clubs. That's not to take away the amazing suicide courage they showed when they fought the Iraqis. I mean, the Pasdaran elite used the poor Basij suckers as human landmine detonators: "Here, go walk across that field for us please. You can't lose; either Allah welcomes you to Paradise or you live and get to do it again!". Lots of people are brave, after all. Most young male humans are brave, when they've got a gang leading them on and backing them up. The Basij are brave and so are the kids marching in the Tehran streets. Like a lot of people in the same tribe who hate each other, they've probably got more in common than they wanna think about right now, starting with that whole martyrdom thing the Shias get off on. The Basij died like flies in the minefields, and the demonstrators are on twitter right now showing off their bloody wounds. Iranian to the core, both of them. But they don't feel a lot of common ground right now. There's what you might call a culture clash between these pious thug dudes and the city people, the marchers and tweeters and bloggers. If you want an idea how snotty this kind of Iranian feels about the other kind, read that woman's comic book (whoops, you're supposed to call them "graphic novels") Persepolis. There's her and her high-school friends slipping Iron Maiden LPs under their chadors. Kind of a sixties thing, kind of a hippie thing, if Kent State was happening ten times a day. But then Iranians are tough, brave people; you couldn't scare them with just one Kent State. The problem is, not that many people were actually willing to die for the hippies. They all grew up and went into real estate. That kind of divide doesn't cut deep enough to make a war. Even those Lebanese Cedar Revolution camera hogs had a real ethnic/religious grudge, but from what I've been reading about Iranian election demographics, the divide between rioters and loyalists is pretty damn blurry. Here's a link to the best of the articles I've found on the way the elections break down in class, ethnic, regional, and age terms. I warn you though, it's written by a professor, and they train those bastards to write as bad as possible. It's worth checking out, though, if you can slap yourself awake. https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/esfahani/www/IndexFiles/Esfahani-Resume.pdf He takes 45 pages to say that Ahmedinajad won in 2005 because he was the `populist' candidate, meaning he promised to bring the oil money home to ordinary people, instead of opening it up for a scary free-market scenario. It wasn't an ethnic divide; it can't be, in Iran, because the ethnic Persians are way bigger and stronger than the other groups (Kurds, Azeri, Arab) put together. Kurds barely even vote-their rate is 20% lower than Persians', just like "minorities" here. The people who back Ahmedinajad are mostly Persian, and so are the protesters who want him gone. You can't even call it a city/country divide, which I've been tempted to do, because according to this Iranian professor Ahmedinajad got a big vote in the cities as well as the villages. The only dividing lines he can find are pretty shallow ones, like hippie/straight back in the day: Ahmedinajad's supporters have larger family sizes, and a cluster of other things that go along with conservative attitudes no matter where you are. And that's about it; he says you can't even claim that education levels matter much, because-and I love this bit: The most visible impact of higher education is a sizable increase in the share of invalid ballots, implying that the educated are more likely to display their disenchantment with the systemthrough invalid ballots than through non-participation. That's the key here, if you ask me. This isn't a revolution, it's a lot bummed-out, frustrated people writing "Fuck You Goddamn Mullahs!" on their ballots in their best overeducated handwriting. They've got good reason to be pissed off-imagine being stuck in a giant Catholic school where girls have to wear black ghost sheets every day when you're hitting 30-but it's not the kind of fault-line that makes revolutions. What we're seeing only looks big or historical for two reasons: one, it's fuckin' Persians, damn it, and they live large. They fight like this over whether rose-water ice cream is what Allah eats in Paradise or tastes like grandma's cologne spilled on freezer scrapings (my vote, cuz I've tried the filthy stuff). Persians are like that amp in Spinal Tap: they go to eleven. And on the Persian scale, this is a two or a three, fun for a while but no biggie. The other reason this seems big is that a lot of people on our side of the world have been waiting a long, long time to see Ahmedinajad take a big fall. They're hyperventilating just thinking about what a great movie this is, with the people rising up to send the loud-talking shrimp back to midget wrestling. They're so desperate they're putting cellphone videos on the nightly news, desperate for some sign that Iran's having its democracy rapture. It ain't gonna happen. Hell, for all I know Ahmedinajad actually did win the election. I admit it's kinda weird how they counted
SkeRundownProcess 11 SkpsIsProcessDebuggingEnabled / SkmmDisableProcessMemoryProtection 12 Unknown 13 & 14 SkmmMapMdl / IumpGetSetContext 15 SkeReferenceProcessByHandle / SkmmMapDataTransfer / SkpEncryptWithTrustletKey 16 SkeReferenceProcessByHandle / Unknown 17 SkRetrieveMailbox 18 SkIstTrustletRunning 19 SkmmCreateSecureAllocation 20 SkmmMapDataTransfer / SkmiFillSecureAllocation 21 SkmmConvertSecureAllocationToCatalog 22 SkmmCreateSecureImageSection 23 SkmmFinializeSecureImageHash 24 SkmmFinishSecureImageValidation 25 SkmmPrepareImageRelocations 26 SkmmRelocateImage 27 SkobCloseHandleEx 28 SkmmValidateDynamicCodePages 29 SkmmTransferImageVersionResource 30 EntropyProvideData / BCryptGenRandom 31 SkpEncryptHiberData / SkpSetHiberCrashState 32 SkpSetHiberCrashState / SkpgHibernateActive = 0 / SkFinalizePageEncryption 33 SkmmConfigureDynamicMemory 34 IumConnectSwInterrupt 35 Unknown = 0x3000 36 SkLiveDumpStart 37 SkpLiveDumpContext / Unknown 38 SkLiveDumpSetupBuffer 39 SkLiveDumpFinalize 40 SkpLiveDumpFreeContext / SkpReleaseLiveDumpLock 41 SkNotifyPowerState 42 IumDispatchQueryProfileInformation 192 SkeReferenceProcessByHandle 193 SkmmValidateSecureImagePages 208 SkmmInitSystem / IumpInitializeSystem 209 SkpWorkItemList / Unknown 210 SkmiReleaseUnprivilegedPagesInRange / SmiReserveNtAddressRange 211 SkmmApplyDynamicRelocations 212 SkEtwEnableCallback 224 SkiAttachProcess / SkmiFlushAddressRange 225 SkmmFastFlushRangeList 226 SkmmSlowFlushRangeList 227 SkmmRemoveProtectedPage 228 SkmmCopyProtectedPage 229 SkmmMakeProtectedPageWritable 230 SkmmMakeProtectedPageExecutable 231 (H) Gets Skmi flags 232 SkhalEfiInvokeRuntimeService 233 SkLiveDumpCOllect 234 SkmmRegisterFailureLog 235 SkPrepareForHibernate 236 SkPrepareForCrashDump 237 SkhalpEfiRuntimeInitialize / SkhalpReportBugCheckInProgress 238 & 240 Returns an error code 241 SkKsrCall Otherwise SkeBugCheckEx(0x121, 0xFFFFFFFFC000001C,, 0, 0) As you can see, several called functions are unknown. This is because they do not perform obvious calls, and we did not spent a lot of time on analyzing what they manipulate. Conclusion This article has quickly described how the Virtualization Based Security VTL0-VTL1 kernels communications actually work. If you want more Hyper-V related information, you can also read these two articles: In a near future, we plan to publish a third article on VBS which will focus on the HVCI internals, and especially on the W^X VTL0 kernel protection. Update Thanks to a reader, we identified that we misread the HyperCallPage contents, and made a few modifications. We thought that there were all x64 ones, and that HyperV served one or the other depending on the VTL level, and inverted the values. Disclaimer These findings have almost all been retrieved by static analysis using IDA Pro. We apologize if they contain mistakes (actually they probably do), and ask the readers to take this “as it is”. Any helpful remark or criticism is welcome, just email us at etudes{at}amossys.fr!When my partner did not fulfill my want/need/desire of being, ‘whole,’ during the relationship that I self-created through my mind, the primary backchat comes up. “I’m always going to be alone” “Relationships are always going to be meaningless if I cannot even be with myself” “I cannot connect with anyone so there must be something wrong with me” I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed the expectation of myself and my partner that everything will be more, ‘whole.’ I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed myself to in my mind create fantasies that someone/something outside myself will make me more, ‘whole,’ instead of realizing that I’m separating myself from myself onto others. I forgive myself for not allowing myself to see/realize or understand that when I’m moulding/forming relationships inside my head, I’m actually separating myself from others by not seeing/realizing or understanding that I’m one and equal to that person, thus, nothing can change, but actual myself being the self-directive principle of my reality. I forgive myself for not allowing myself to self-realize for myself that I’m not allowing myself to actually grow, develop and expand with me and my Partner because of constantly searching for something outside myself to make myself feel, ‘whole.’ I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed myself to think/believe that I must search for a relationship outside myself to make me feel, ‘whole,’ when in actuality not seeing/realizing or understanding that everything is HERE. I forgive myself that I haven’t accepted and allowed myself to self-realize that in always expecting myself and my partner to be, ‘whole,’ I’m actually not considering the polarity of wholeness/emptiness that always leads to endless patterns of self-sabotage. I forgive myself that I haven’t accepted and allowed myself to self-realize, that in always expecting myself and my partner to be, ‘whole,’ I’m actually self-sabotaging my own self-agreement and my partner’s self-agreement to grow, develop and expand, thus, being actual beings that are really walking, ‘wholeness,’ of and as Oneness & Equality. I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed the backchat “I’m always going to be alone” to exist within and as me towards my partner not making me feel, ‘whole.’ I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed the backchat “I’m always going to be alone” trigger blame/anger towards my partner not making me feel, ‘whole,’ but, ‘empty.’ I forgive myself for accepting and allowing myself to think/believe that my partner is making me feel ‘empty,’ so I don’t have to see/realize or understand that I’m abdicating self-responsibility by participating in blame/anger towards my partner. I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed the backchat “I’m always going to be alone” to the interconnections of emotional reactions of blame/anger, by not experiencing myself as, ‘whole,’ but, ‘empty.’ I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed the backchat “I’m always going to be alone” to exist within and as me towards my partner making me feel, ‘empty.’ I forgive myself that I didn’t accept or allow myself to tell my partner about my, ‘emptiness,’ for getting to that actual cause and creating a solution, but instead allowed myself to immediately react with the backchat “I’m always going to be alone.” I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed myself to emotional react through blame/anger towards my partner not making me feel more, ‘whole,’ but instead make assumptions through the backchat “I’m always going to be alone.” I forgive myself that I accepted and allowed the backchat “Relationships are always going to be meaningless if I cannot even be with myself” to exist within and as me towards my partner. I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed the backchat “Relationships are always going to be meaningless if I cannot be with myself” to self-direct me, instead of actually self-realizing for myself that everything is going to be meaningless through relationships if I don’t allow myself to see myself in another, thus, I’m always with myself. I forgive myself that I have not accepted and allowed myself to self-realize for myself that through the backchat “Relationships are always going to be meaningless if I cannot be with myself” I’m actually not seeing/realizing or understanding that I’m self-sabotaging myself in relationships in the hopes of, ‘finding myself,’ sort of speak. I forgive myself that I have not accepted and allowed myself to see/realize and understand that when being in a relationship its not about looking for energy to find meaning from another, BUT to actually allow myself to see myself everywhere and with anyone to become an eventual stable agreement that is best for ALL. I forgive myself that I have not accepted and allowed myself to self-realize for myself that participating in the backchat “I cannot connect with anyone so there must be something wrong with me” is a flag-point for myself to actually see/realize and understand that when I’m allowing myself to participate in self-victimization/self-defeat, I’m actually not allowing myself to connect with myself. I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed myself to participate in the backchat “I cannot connect with anyone so there must be something wrong with me” towards myself and my partner because I actually don’t want to stand up and find a solution with my partner, BUT look for faults in myself that I apparently can’t change. I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed myself to go into a relationship to try and feel, ‘whole,’ when I cannot not allow myself to connect with myself for what is HERE. I forgive myself that I have accepted and allowed myself to manipulate my partner/relationship and myself from the starting-point of transference of energy, rather than actually cross-referencing our points and making a stable agreement that will stand the test of time, for what is best for ALL. I realize that when expectations are not communicated they become backchat and suppressed, then creates internal/external conflict with myself and my partner. I realize, that if I simple communicated with my partner about my, ‘emptiness,’ then it would allow an actual solution for the both of us, instead create backchat and suppression for myself and my partner. I realize, that if I’m actually open and direct with my partner, then I don’t have to harbour these emotions of blame/anger towards my partner and myself of not experiencing myself as, ‘whole.’ I realize, that if I’m experiencing this, ‘emptiness,’ and also through the relationship towards my partner, then maybe he is as well and we can actually communicate and be self-honest with each other, thus, creating a stable foundation for ourselves, as ALL as ONE as EQUAL. When and as I see such expectations come up with my partner, I stop, I breathe, I bring myself back here, I direct myself to communicate with my partner openly and honestly, instead of participating in backchat that only leads to suppression and internal-external conflict for myself and my partner. With communicating about my partner about, ‘emptiness,’ or ‘wholeness,’ or anything based on abuse, we’ll communicate as equals, for the very first time. When and as I go into anger/blame within myself towards my Partner, I immediately stop and breathe and I investigate where this blame/anger is coming up for wanting/needing/desiring to experience myself as, 'whole,' within communication with my Partner, wherein I'm actually taking self-responsibility for me/my world within the very aspect/part I'm blaming for. Within this I stop the backchat towards my partner and actually take self-responsibility for me world/reality and that includes relationships that I have self-created in my mind, actually seeing/realizing/understanding I'm not actually facing myself through wanting/needing/desiring a partner and so I actually slowly but surely accumulate a self-agreement supporting myself as another, walking together for the very first time accumulating ourselves. When and as I see such expectations of wanting/needing/desiring to accumulate, 'wholeness,' within energy when I'm with my partner I see/realize/understand that I'm not being one and equal with myself as another, but mind-projecting my own delusions/illusions from someone separate from me that I'm self-creating in my mind, instead of actually seeing/realizing/understanding that if I stand one and equal to whom ever that I'm in agreement with, I see/realize/understand this this isn't a relationship built upon lies and deceit for wanting/needing/desiring energy, but an actual self-support platform for each other and re-creating ourselves as ourselves, as each other for the very first time. Within this I stop the backchat towards my partner and actually see/realize/understand that my partner is an actual person just like me, one and equal, thus, mind-projecting my own aspects/parts of myself that I haven't become one and equal to through self-sabotaging myself and my partner's own individual process will own diminish/compromise each other, therefore we establish ourselves slowly but surely accumulating a self-agreement supporting myself as another, walking together for the very first time accumulating ourselves.REWARI (HARYANA): Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi on Sunday slammed the Centre for mishandling the border troubles with Pakistan and China, while strongly defending the role of Army and calling it a "symbol of secularism".Addressing a gathering of ex-servicemen here, Modi slammed defence minister AK Antony's statement on LoC attacks and blamed the Centre for the repeated Chinese incursions in Arunachal Pradesh."Unless there is a determined government at the Centre, these incidents will continue," the Gujarat chief minister and BJP's prime ministerial candidate said.Recalling the NDA government’s achievement at keeping Pakistan at bay, Modi said the then foreign policy assured that Pakistan was isolated in the world.Modi then went on to target Bihar minister for disrespecting martyred jawans, who were killed in firing by Pakistan army at the LoC in Jammu & Kashmir.Bihar rural works and panchayati raj minister Bhim Singh had said "people join army or police for sahadat (martyrdom).” Singh later had apologized for his remark.Modi started his speech heaping praise on the Army and paying rich tributes to the soldiers for their sacrifice and contribution."I salute the courage and sacrifices made by our brave soldiers," Modi said.Sharing a childhood anecdote of how he wanted to join the Sainik school at the age of four, the Gujarat chief minister said he shared a special feeling for the country's armed forces.“I regret not being able to study in Sainik School,” Modi said."I am happier today (coming to this rally) in the presence of ex-servicemen than I was on the day I was anointed BJP’s PM candidate," he added.He narrated the role played by ex-servicemen in Gujarat in stopping the cases of power theft.Modi then went on to congratulate the scientists for the successful launch of Agni-V missile."I thank all the scientists responsible for the successful test launch of nuclear capable Agni-V missile," Modi said.He thanked the armed forces for their role in relief work during the Gujarat earthquake."I cannot forget the work army jawans did in the aftermath of the devastating 2001 earthquake in Gujarat," Modi said.Earlier, the Gujarat chief minister got a rousing welcome as he arrived here to address his first rally after being named the BJP's prime ministerial candidate.Thousands gathered for the rally clapped and waved as the Gujarat chief minister, after flying in from New Delhi in a helicopter, took to the dais.Also on the dais was former Army chief VK Singh along with a number of retired senior military officers. Modi was declared the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate on Friday.Is this the Sounders new 3rd kit? Could be. As the club prepares to celebrate 40 years since the founding of the original NASL Seattle Sounders, some fans are hungry for a blend of nostalgia and class. Is not doing something like the design Joel DuChesne crafted a few years back a missed opportunity? Click to enlarge. This concept was tweeted and retweeted numerous times Monday night and is also gathering plenty of new likes on Facebook. There is something about the 1970’s wavy word logo and turquoise blue that just won’t let go of people. Joel DuChesne, for example. He took the time to design a very workable third ‘kit’ option for Sounders FC that would honor the club’s NASL brothers of the past. “With the suggestion of many Seattle Sounders FC Fans, I created a white retro kit to serve as a “third” option,” Joel said back in 2010. “This design is intended to pay respects to the many Sounders players, coaches, owners, and others who started professional soccer in Seattle in 1974.” goalWA.net Local Soccer News is sponsored by Pro Roofing Northwest, Kirkland, Bellevue, Seattle, Redmond, Woodinville, Federal Way, Everett, Snohomish, Issaquah, Renton, Kent, Bothell, Edmonds Washington roofing company. AdvertisementsFormer British prime minister Tony Blair on Friday (17 February) urged Britons who support the European Union to “rise up” and persuade Brexit voters to change their mind about leaving the bloc in a high-profile speech. “This is not the time for retreat, indifference or despair but the time to rise up in defence of what we believe,” he said at an event organised by Open Britain, a campaign group lobbying for Britain to retain close ties with the EU. “I don’t know if we can succeed. But I do know we will suffer a rancorous verdict from future generations if we do not try,” he said. “We have to build a movement that will stretch across party lines,” he said, announcing that he was creating an institute that would also develop arguments against Brexit and keep ties with the EU. Criticism of Corbyn Blair also heavily criticised his successor as Labour leader, although not mentioning Jeremy Corybn by name. He told his audience: ““The debilitation of the Labour party is the facilitator of Brexit. I hate to say that but it is true.” Corbyn, who voted against remaining in the EU in the original 1975 referendum, was accused of running a lacklustre campaign to ‘Remain’ at last year’s referendum, then failing to oppose the government’s Brexit bill in parliament earlier this month. Blair in Brussels In the wake of the speech, euractiv.com asked the Commission if Article 50 was “reversible”, if indeed the British do ‘rise up’ against Brexit. Deputy Chief Spokesman Alexander Winterstein, replied: “We are where we are. We wait for the Article 50 letter to arrive and then there will be negotiating guidelines from the European Council. Discussion with the UK will start and the rest we will see. Blair had been in Brussels in January for a private meeting with Commissioner Jean-Claude Juncker. Asked if that meeting had touched on this topic, Winterstein merely said: “It Is not a secret that former Prime Minister Blair came to see President Juncker as many other current and former leaders do on a continuous basis. “Former PM Blair and President Junker have known each other for a long, long time. It’s very normal that they have conversations from time to time. UK's Brexit bill overcomes another hurdle British MPs overwhelmingly backed a bill yesterday (8 February) empowering Prime Minister Theresa May to start negotiations on leaving the European Union, bringing Brexit a significant step closer. Britain voted to leave the European Union last year and Prime Minister Theresa May has said she will trigger Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty by the end of March, starting a two-year exit process. Experts are divided on whether the government could change its mind about leaving the EU at some point in the future, even after invoking Article 50. Blair came to power in 1997 at the head of the moderate leftist “New Labour” movement and won three general elections but his role in leading Britain into the Iraq War has badly damaged his legacy. Brexit supporters quickly criticised Blair’s comments. “The EU referendum was democratic, fair and free and the British people voted for Brexit,” said Richard Tice, co-chair of the Leave Means Leave group. “Tony Blair is now trying to do everything he can to halt Brexit,” he said. Former Conservative minister Iain Duncan Smith said the speech was “arrogant” and “undemocratic”. Nigel Farage, former head of the UK Independence Party, tweeted: “Tony Blair is yesterday’s man.” In the speech, which was shown live in full on BBC and Sky News, Blair launched a stinging attack on government policy saying the EU departure process was being led by proponents of hard Brexit. “Our challenge is to expose relentlessly the actual cost, to show how this decision was based on imperfect knowledge,” he said, adding: “How hideously, in this debate, is the mantle of patriotism abused.” Blair also warned that Scotland, which voted overwhelmingly to stay in the EU, now had a “much more credible” case for independence. He said Brexit could have a “destabilising impact” on Northern Ireland, which also voted to stay. Blair made the speech at the offices of Bloomberg news agency, the same place where former prime minister David Cameron announced in January 2013 that Britain would hold an EU membership referendum. Meanwhile, ahead of a meeting with French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve in Downing Street on Friday, May wrote a lengthy opinion piece for Le Figaro, restating her position that the UK had “voted to leave the EU, not Europe”. UK unveils Brexit blueprint The British government on Thursday (2 February) presented its Brexit strategy to parliament, publishing 12 objectives that it believes will secure “a new, positive and constructive partnership” with the EU.Home Daily News Prenda Law attorney who had switched to ADA… Legal Ethics Prenda Law attorney who had switched to ADA suits is suspended for earlier 'copyright trolling' work A Minnesota lawyer whose practice has recently focused on suing businesses for ADA violations was indefinitely suspended from practicing law for his past legal work targeting people who illegally downloaded pornographic videos. Conduct allegations against Paul Hansmeier include discovery abuse; willfully violating court orders; and lying to the court about finances, according to the Pioneer Press. Hansmeier was one of three operators of Prenda Law, which has had numerous legal problems in recent years. In June, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an $81,000 sanction filed against the firm. Besides Hansmeier, the sanction was also imposed against John Steele and the late Paul Duffy. The lawyers, through their law firm, set up shell companies that purchased copyrights to pornographic movies. When someone illegally downloaded one of the films, Prenda Law or a local lawyer it hired would file a complaint against the “John Doe” downloader and use discovery to uncover his or her identity. That person would then receive a letter threatening suit unless he or she paid about $4,000 to settle. The plaintiffs’ real business, the appeals court said in its opinion (PDF), was “copyright trolling.” In 2015, Hansmeier opened a Minnesota law firm called Class Justice, which filed Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits against businesses not in compliance with the federal regulation, CityPages reported. When the article ran last year, he reportedly had filed 15 state court cases, and another 45 in federal court. Some businesses owners made improvements after receiving Hansmeier’s letters, but were sued anyway, the St. Paul Chamber of Commerce told CityPages. Hansmeier responded that if the businesses were following the law, they wouldn’t have been sued. He described the chamber of commerce’s accusations as “pot shots” against his clients. Michael H. Frasier, a Minneapolis lawyer who represents businesses, estimates that in the past three years Hansmeier has brought hundreds of cases, and the average settlement was reportedly $8,000. Minnesota has what’s known as “pocket service,” Frasier explain to the ABA Journal, where you can instigate a lawsuit by in-person summons service, and the actual complaint does not need to be filed until a year later. “What I’m hearing is that his priority is not making sure there’s been barrier removal; he didn’t come back to make sure the work was done,” Margot Imdieke, an accessibility specialist with the Minnesota State Council on Disability, told the ABA Journal. However, due to the various news articles about the suits, she says that more businesses which haven’t been sued are contacting her organization, because they want to make sure they’re in compliance with ADA regulations. Hansmeier can seek reinstatement to the Minnesota bar in four years, according to the Minnesota Supreme Court order (PDF) published Sept. 12. He told the Pioneer Press that he didn’t know whether he would, but he did plan to continue working on behalf of people who are disabled. Many of the cases also list his wife, Padraigin Browne, as counsel. She told the ABA Journal that she would continue suing companies for ADA matters. “There’s a wide range of businesses that are nowhere near in compliance, and my clients are continuously running into issues,” she said.During the last weekend of January I've been part of the Global Game Jam 2016 - 48 hours of work, creativity and crunch time. The stated goal is to create a game, learn new stuff and of course meet new people. What makes GGJ even cooler is that it happens simultaneously all around the world - 36000 jamers from 93 countries. As Arnold Nesis put it: "My favorite event of the year is basically 'thousands of people worldwide meet for a 48 hour weekend and... work'." (really hard). ) - but his friends call him "IHAM". A local multiplayer PVP game about the epic struggle between good and evil - germs Vs. toothbrush, made in Unity (we uploaded the game to Kongregate so everyone can try it out ). I believe that, as in every high-intensity situation, there is a lot to learn about life and about yourself at a hackathon. So in this post I'll do my best to extract even more value from those 2 days - using examples from our own story and extrapolating. Yes you can! (Summon creativity at will): Creativity is a controversial subject. Some are firm believers that inspiration and ideas are somewhat magical beings - they come and go as they please, while others (myself included) hold the opinion that they are a direct result of practice, knowledge, experience, training and hard work. I think the controversy originates from the fact that no one is wrong: inspiration is indeed a random occurrence, but you can "move" the average quality and quantity of ideas you come up with both by knowing more about the relevant fields and by practicing the art of coming up with ideas. In case you've never been to GGJ - each year there is a unique theme that's revealed at the start of the event (this year all games had something to do with "ritual") - so you can't prepare a game idea before hand. You can't wait for the muse to hit you in the proverbial shower. You have to brainstorm an idea with your group that's simultaneously: doable in 2 days, the team likes and has at least most of the required skills to create, the game doesn't suck too much. And you have to do it fast - every minute spent brainstorming is a minute not spent on designing and building the actual game. I've attended together with my partner - Nataly Eliyahu - and we had to do it twice. The first team we "recruited" (on the spot) was both too big and had somewhat conflicting visions of the kind of game we should make - so Nataly and I split off. So we were a couple of hours into the jam and had to brainstorm a completely new "good idea" - which turned out not to be that big of a deal. Both "final" ideas were reasonably good. The moral of the story - if you don't feel creative - try harder :). Yes you can! (Make an actual game): You know - one that actually works and doesn't bug-out every 5 seconds. This is perhaps the best part of any hackathon - the realization that it is possible to build stuff 10, 20 or even a 100 times faster than large companies do it. Sure, there's less polish and some bugs/edge cases you blatantly ignored and perhaps worse architecture (but not necessarily - on that later) - but it f-ing works! After that it's hard to go back and face the abysmal inefficiency of a "normal" 9-5 job - you're stuck with the gnawing feeling of "I'm wasting my time". But maybe that's just me :) That being said, you still have to be realistic, cost-efficient and very calculated with how you allocate your limited time. The first challenge we faced was being just 2 devs - with no art skill to speak of. So we chose a game that's light on art requirements (we considered getting a public image of teeth, germs and a brush and drawing the UI ourselves) but heavy on mechanics and balance (asymmetric PVP is tricky to balance well - in retrospect perhaps it's too complex for a game jam). Luckily, Jonathan Beyt-yacov, a cool artist and a great guy, heard our brainstorming session and decided to join us - so no Google images were needed - but we were ready to use the skills we have and avoid the skills we don't. Jonathan, me, Nataly and Yaam (who did the sound editing). Nataly is holding our protagonist - the toothbrush. Another common mistake at hackathons is to overestimate what you'll get done in any given period of time - even though it really will be more than you'd get done "normally". On top of that, people often leave no buffer time for basic QA, bug fixing, polishing, integration challenges and submission. The "solution" is basically to assume you have even less time, and be incredibly brutal when cutting down non-essential features. Continuously ask yourself "is this piece of work absolutely necessary for the game to function well?" - if there is a doubt there is no doubt. Kill the feature with fire. A natural result of this strategy is a simpler game - which is a good thing. Choosing a relatively easy game to implement gave us the privilege of playtesting time (and - perhaps even more importantly - time to sleep). We had a working prototype ~16 hours before submission and had several players (who weren't us) try it out during that time - including the event organizer who (correctly) claimed there was a single heavily favored strategy for one of the sides. That forced us to add a new feature/mechanic to the game ~7 hours before deadline (usually a bad idea), but since there was only sound and UI work left (where I had less value anyway) - it left me free to mess around with the game core and balancing issues. The moral of the story - you can do more than you think, but you still have to make the right choices. Yes you can! (Make a fun game): The kind people play for fun - not just to try it out. And when they lose/finish they want to play it again. Now that's surprisingly hard to accomplish - even if you have more than 48 hours. Luckily, Nataly decided (it was her turn to be the "CEO") we should focus on making a game with fun and active gameplay, and not an artistic game that's more focused on telling a story or sending a message - and I'm really glad she did. I'm a big believer that games can be - and some already are - a form of art, but making an "artsy" game in 48 hours that actually makes the player stop and think/feel something is even harder than making it fun and replayable. We went for a cartoonish/slightly over the top feel with the art style and sounds (all of which were made with our mouths - I swear!) and a fast, "arcade style", PVP action game - all in the pursuit of an experience that's "bite-size" (pun intended) fun. I mean look at it: This is the main game screen. Yes, you're staring into a mouth the whole game. It had to be responsive, it had to "feel good" to both players - even though their mechanics and gameplay are very different. There's a built-in balancing system - the game is a best of 5, but each time you win your opponent gets a powerup (the bars in the upper corners) - again to make it more back and forth and engaging. And that was our focus - less features, better gameplay. We carried this focus even into our final presentation: we were the only group to invite random people from the crowd to play our game live on stage. We knew that we had less shiny graphics and no 3D assets - our best selling points were the cheers and laughter from the crowd during the demo game. The moral of the story - focus on the main goal and look through the eyes of the "judges". For us it was "what would feel funny and fun to the players" - so it's fairly obvious - but next time you go to a job interview don't think "what are they going to ask me" but "what kind of person/employee is the interviewer looking for?". Yes you can! (Invest in infrastructure): Another important decision we made was concentrating the multitude of numbers that controlled all aspects of the game into a single "settings" file. We could change the speed of the brush, germ damage, germ reproduction rate, teeth resilience and many more aspects of the game within seconds - allowing rapid iterations (which we knew we'll need due to the PVP balance challenge). For an experienced developer that might sound obvious, but in a hackathon atmosphere, where everything feels "one-time-use" and there's a very tight schedule, software architecture is often the first to be neglected. We even went as far as creating all the scripts and dummy functions we assumed we'll need before writing a single line of actual code. Yes, it took 2-3 hours but we fleshed out the whole architecture and - even more importantly - allowed 2 devs to work on the same small project without stepping on one-another's toes. I implemented stuff that was further away from Unity specifics since I had no experience working on the platform. The moral of the story - even when there seems to be too much work and not enough time, planning ahead and forcing order upon the chaos is worthwhile. "Ok ok - you can. But did it work?": It's very (very...) far from perfect - but I think it's worthy of the title "an actual game". If your response is something like "we played a couple of times but the brush is too strong and always wins" - that's actually a good sign for me. It means you've judged IHAM according to game standards and decided it's unbalanced - not as a student project that mostly demonstrates the makers' skills/potential. And if you think it sucks - well - I really enjoyed making it so I don't care :P. Seriously though - if you have constructive criticism then by all means tell me about it. We probably won't change anything but it will teach me something new. Perhaps you've noticed my incredibly subtle message of "YES YOU CAN!!!". In my opinion, that's perhaps the greatest value of hackathons. The reasoning is as follows: "if I could make ~30% of a playable game in 2 days with no background in Unity - imagine what I could do if I actually knew what I was doing :)". It's not necessarily entirely correct (if Nataly wasn't an expert freelance Unity developer we wouldn't have a Unity game), but my subconscious finds it very convincing.Tesla is believed to be working on a new Roadster for an expected launch in 2019. In continuation of Tesla referencing the movie ‘Spaceballs’ for its performance modes, like ‘Ludicrous mode’, CEO Elon Musk said that the automaker is reserving the ‘Maximum Plaid’ mode for the next generation Tesla Roadster. We haven’t heard much about this new version of Tesla’s first vehicle since Musk’s comment, but last week a company representative revealed a few more information, although vague, about the upcoming sports car. While giving a presentation at an electronics trade fair in Gothenburg, Sweden, Tesla’s Nordic Countries Manager Peter Bardenfleth-Hansen commented (via IDG in Swedish): “We would have loved to build more, but if no one other than you would be listening right now, then I’d probably tell you that we will manufacture it again. It will look a little different, a little faster and a little bigger”. When Tesla first built the Roadster, it was based on Lotus gliders and therefore not really built from the ground up as an electric vehicle or by Tesla. The next generation Roadster is expected to be built on Tesla’s third-generation platform, like the Model 3. I wouldn’t expect to hear much more about the Roadster for a while as Tesla is putting all its efforts and resources toward bringing the Model 3 to market on time and in volumes. Independently, the company is also working on a retrofit for current Roadster owners. The upgrade is called ‘Roadster 3,0’ and features a new battery pack with LG cells, a new aero kit designed to reduce drag, and new tires with lower rolling resistance. The upgrade was promised to Roadster owners long ago as a token of appreciation for having supported Tesla in its early days, but as of now, it doesn’t look like anyone received the retrofit and only the battery pack was made available for reservation on Tesla’s website. The new 70 kWh pack will be hand-built at low volume and Tesla doesn’t aim to make a profit on the upgrade, which will cost $29,000 including labor. The automaker manufactured about 2,500 roadster through its production run between 2008 and 2012.The pytest-helper package provides several functions which make it easier to set up and run unit tests in Python using the pytest testing framework. For example, there is a function to make modules self-testing whenever they are executed as scripts, and a function to simplify making modifications to the Python search path. One of the most useful features is that relative pathnames are relative to the file in which they occur. This package makes use of pytest but is independent of the official pytest project. Two kinds of helper functions are provided. The first kind are intended to make it easier to run pytest on a test file or files, and the second kind are meant to be used in writing tests, inside test files. Some of the provided helper functions are general-purpose, but several are specific to the pytest testing framework. The functions are independent of each other and can be used (or not used) as desired. These functions are all compatible with the ordinary uses and invocations of pytest. Introduction¶ Testing is an important part of software development, especially for a dynamically-typed language like Python. The easier it is for people to set up and run tests, the more likely they are to write their tests as they code rather than waiting until later to do so (or perhaps not writing formal tests at all). When developing a
you’re talking to a lawmaker about any issue or anything you’re lobbying,” said Dave Wenhold, president of the league, which represents 1,100 lobbyists. Currently, the law requires people to register as lobbyists if they make more than one contact, spend more than 20 percent of their time lobbying and have more than $11,500 in expenses or $3,000 in income from lobbying per quarter. Sunlight is proposing to eliminate the 20 percent rule and to lower the thresholds to $5,000 in expenses or $2,500 in income per quarter, said Lisa Rosenberg, a Sunlight lobbyist. Right now, anyone who says they don’t clear the 20 percent threshold doesn’t have to register, a provision some insiders even call “the Daschle exemption.” Daschle, however, did not answer a question about whether he utilizes the exemption to avoid registering.hello Guys, here's the 2nd chapter. It's 2:30 AM here and i finished it somehow. Too sleepy, if i made any mistake then let me know, i'll fix it soon. Enjoy! Chapter 2: He was called “Wolf” After Teng Qing Shan had just left for a while, two old Santana cars arrived and parked not so far from the yard. There were 3 people in the first car. A black beard man was sitting at the back seat. He held a temperature detector in hand, and carefully observed the screen, then suddenly he lowered his voice: "Hey guys, there must be no one in the yard. Let’s go!” Then 6 people came out of the car. 5 yellow men, one white man. "Hopefully that man is really not here." The black beard man whispered, “If he were really here, we would all die.” The white man said. Although they were not feeling so unpleasant, they did not dare to disobey the command of their organization. Despite the high walls preventing them, they still managed to enter the yard. They were checking everything. The black beard man felt relief:"That man left. There was only a dead body left. We detected him in the An Yi County. Our mission was completed, we might as well return and have a rest. Yes, we should bring the body with us, and clean up every trace.” They had done this type of work many times before, so they were quite familiar with it. *** Located in northern Italy, the Adriatic coastal city called 'Watertown” Venice, with ancient history, used to held the most supreme power throughout Europe in the past. Nowadays, there were still a lot of historic buildings since the 15th century. In Venice, there is a red brick castle building which has been existing for hundreds of years. This castle was also known as the 'Red Fort', or 'Blood Fort'. It was the Europe's oldest “Redmayne” family's ancestral home. In the 'Red Fort', there was a dark hall. Hung on the wall there was a a giant LCD screen, the screen show a pair of maps. In the hall, there was a red-brown short haired young man and a silver-haired old man. "Master, the Hand of Darkness organization has sent us a message.“Wolf” appeared in An Yi County, Jiang Su Province. I have just forwarded this message to Dead. The red-brown short haired young man with his deep, cold eyes said:" The presence of the Wolf is the Redmayne family’s shame! Now I want...... at all costs, and with the fastest speed I want Wolf to be killed! Before my father might know, we need to finish all". " Yes, sir", the silver-haired old man nodded. Suddenly, there were sound of footsteps. The reddish brown short haired young man’s face changed color. He had just seen a red-brown short haired middle-aged man with his red-brown bearded walked in. " Father! "-Reddish brown short haired youth immediately bowed. "Patriarch"-The silver-haired old man immediately bowed All the Redmayne family members, even their children, had reddish brown hair. The bearded middle-aged man was the one that held the highest authority in the Redmayne family - Alexander Redmayne. Alexander threw a cold look at his son: "Ambrose, my child, you really let me down." "Father, I.. I was trying to solve this as soon as possible," the red-haired youth bowed his head. "Resolve soon? I have now started to doubt your ability! If it was not for my friend who told me about this, I wouldn't know that there have been such a big issue happening." Alexander said. "Until Now, I still can not believe the news. Ambrose, tell me very clearly about all the details,from the beginning till the end, right now " The man 'Ambrose' raised his head, moved in front of the computer. "Father, this happened, mainly because of a person who is called “Wolf"”. Then he hit on the keyboard. Numerous images on the walls of the hall giant LCD screen appeared, as well as a lot of text and news. [TS Note - The Name was "Wolf" Killer in the Raws] “Twenty-two years ago, we had send Red killer to collect 360 children with good physical fitness, among them was “Wolf”. According to our historical records, “Wolf” was Chinese, and was seven years old then. After our first round of screening, only 113 among 360 children survived, and he is one of them. " Alexander watched description on the screen. The killer organization selected new members yearly, and this screening was extremely brutal, dead or alive, no third choice. "113 children who survived, later were sent to Siberia camp for training. Three years later, the number of survival was only 38. He was still one of them, and then was officially awarded the nick name-“Wolf" "We sent 38 candidates to Mr. Teng. Teng gentleman received only four guys. “Wolf” was one among them. Six years later, when “Wolf” was sixteen, he was sent back to Red organization. “Wolf” and “Cat” were the strongest one among those 4 killers, and that they had completed many tasks. " "Last Christmas, I was asked to implement a SS-level-three-hundred-million-dollar-worth mission.”The redhead youth 'Ambrose' lowered his voice.” “The red organization had not completed any the SS-level task over the past 20 years. If we can do this, not only we will be awarded three hundred million dollars, but we can also revive the red organizational reputation. That’s why I took over this task.” "My child, you are even crazier than a she-wolf.”- said Alexander. “This SS-level tasks is the most complicated tasks among all the world top tasks. Red is simply just incapable of it. Even if we complete it, we will need to pay an extremely high price." “I had the 8 top managers of our organization prepare a good plan, they spent a lot of efforts, and finally they decided to use to “Wolf” and “Cat”as a bait for the successful completion of the task!". The red haired young guy said:" In my opinion, “Wolf” and “Cat”are just A-level killers. They only can bring up to one hundred million dollars revenue for our organization for their whole lives. However, this time, if we sacrifice them, not only we can receive three hundred million dollars, but we can also to revive the red organizational prowess. So why not do it?" "Well."-Alexander sneered, "But the result was actually very bad." "Yes, father"- the red haired young guy had a deep sigh, "I had never thought of that before Just cannot believe that the professional killer, “Wolf”, the one who for many years have done so much work for us, could surprisingly hide his power!!!"- The red-haired youth took a deep breath. “His strength is far more than A grade!" "That's a mandate in which the organization wanted to let both of them die as a bait. “Cat” was dead, but “Wolf” was still alive. When he knew that his best friend “Cat” died, Wolf launched a frenzied revenge! He went alone to the Red headquarters to kill everyone there” Alexander’s face color also changed when hearing that story. Fight against all the killers in the headquarters- all alone. How crazy this sounds! Even the most powerful person of this family was impressed by that killer's madness. "Red headquarters, “Wolf” had spent twelve years of his life there, he was quite familiar to it. He -quietly sneaked in. 2 A-class killers, and half of 52 B-class killers were killed. And he even killed 7 out of 8 top senior managers of Red. When we realized what was happening, he began to show off his unbelievable strength, he alone fought against 2 Class A killers. His ability was far more than the strength of an A-level, he soon killed both of them, and finished the last member of top 8 senior managers. Later, he even incredibly won in the fight against more than twenty B-class killers. He was hurt, but, all A and Class B killers of Red organization were totally wiped out.” Alexande’s face became pale."More than twenty class- B killers?" -Alexander just couldn’t believe it. In the battle with two Class A killers, he might win. But winning over twenty B-level killers was far too shocking. Those twenty powerful killers were unlikely to lose. "He must be at least an S-class killer! Or even more!"- Alexander made such judgments. "Yes, the “Hand of Darkness” organization had adjusted “Wolf’s level to S-class killer. All over the world, there are only 50 people, including the “Wolf"" -the red-haired youth Ambrose sighed. “If I would have known that in advance, how could I ever do that to him. An S-class killer, is billions of dollars, I will never exchange". There is only one S-class killer in billion people worldwide. This of course doesn't included some of the hidden killers yet. However, this fact still helps us understand how precious he is. Red organization, for decades, had no S-class killer at all. S-class killer, and non S-class killer, can be too different. "After his successful revenge, he started to escape from the Red headquarters in Siberia. I had to have the Hand of Darkness organization launch a special campaign, with the aim to kill him.” "However, “Wolf” is really powerful." "From Russia, he found all the way to escape, then from the Sino-Russian border, he moved to the east of the ancient kingdom in Heilong Jiang province; and later, we could not find a trace of him. In a Chinese ancient oriental country with Chinese people everywhere, looking for a Chinese man was very difficult. And not long ago, at the time when the ”Hand of Darkness”organization last saw “Wolf”, he was in the territory of a county in Jiang Su Province. After talking for too long, the face of the red-haired youth Ambrose looked quite unpleasant. “That was an excellent killer, he would have been the strongest fangs of Redmayne family"-Alexander sighed loudly. Having heard of the killer experience so far, he also had some admiration for the guy called “Wolf”. However, the killer organization operated by Redmayne family got attacked by some internal traitors, resulted in the destruction of the entire organization. "This was the biggest joke in the world of darkness! For centuries, the world of darkness had never witnessed such a play like that!" Red-haired youth 'Ambrose' also lowered his head. It was really a shame! A powerful organization, just because of a traitor’s revenge got destroyed. It is simply inconceivable. Redmayne family, a hundreds-of-year-old family just cannot take this humiliation! "Kill him! No one is allowed to challenge me! "-Alexander voice was low, just like an endless boiling anger *******There’s no better indicator of the kinds of people who tend to go into journalism, and the kinds of people we tend to pitch journalism to, than Toronto real estate news. As home prices reached a certain level of astonishing last year, there was a spate of stories about crestfallen millennials abandoning their “dreams of detached homes,” as a Toronto Star headline put it. Home prices having since become even more astonishing, we have learned that even semi-detached homes — ick! — are beyond the reach of many who for some reason believe they should be able to afford them. Readers might wonder if homeownership had been declared some kind of hereditary right — if not a human right — under Canadian law. One of the joys of Toronto for people of adequate means is the chance to be king or queen of your own castle, and its backyard, minutes from downtown. The market may be in for a correction, but “adequate means” have inflated mostly because Toronto is a vibrant, wealthy city people are desperate to live in. When today’s typical would-be first-time homebuyer was born, the homeownership rate in Toronto was around 58 per cent. People managed. So can future generations. The media are focusing now on a new and related market villain: the Giant Rent Hike. A hilarious Globe and Mail headline last year promised to explain how Montreal “maintain(s) its enviably low rents.” The answer, alas: “ample but antique housing stock; a sluggish economy; and a language barrier that puts a soft cap on population growth.” The free market strikes again. But politicians cannot abide it working in the opposite direction. “We hear from families that say these increases are chasing them from their homes — the place they’re raising their kids,” Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said Monday. “Some people are seeing rent increases of hundreds of dollars or even $1,000 a month. That’s not fair, it doesn’t have to be this way and Wynne Liberals could have done something about this years ago.” The NDP’s solution: rent control. MPP Peter Tabuns tabled a private member’s bill Monday that would extend limits on annual rent increases to units built after 1991 — thus closing a so-called “loophole” the Mike Harris Tories introduced in hopes people would build more new units. The Liberals followed quickly behind, with Housing Minister Chris Ballard promising “substantive rent control reform” — details to come. You can see the attraction, politically. Robber baron landlords swoop in, cackling, forcing families onto the streets and auctioning off their homes, literally, to the highest bidder. The government can stop it. Why won’t the government stop it? No doubt there are some very sympathetic stories out there. But we in the media tend to be very good at finding those, and it’s hard not to notice the preponderance of “victims” who could afford very high rent in the first place, and didn’t do their homework with respect to rent control or the lack thereof. A typical example: CBC introduced us to a 32-year-old who was paying $1,650 a month for a tiny one-bedroom condo, only to be sent couchsurfing by a whopping $950 increase. I rent a very similar condo; I fear the same outcome. But I don’t fear couchsurfing, and I wouldn’t ask anyone else for sympathy: $1,650 still rents you a whole lot of apartment in this city. In October, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) had the average two-bedroom apartment in the City of Toronto at $1,272 — up two per cent from a year earlier. There are perfectly good newly renovated two-bedrooms going for $1,400, right across the street from me in St. James Town. I might well live there some day soon, and I’ll have nothing to complain about. The fact is, rent control would largely help high-end renters in a high-end market. The vast majority of units that aren’t rent controlled are condos. In October, CMHC pegged the condo-over-apartment rental premium in the GTA at 46 per cent for one-bedrooms, 54 per cent for two-bedrooms and 65 per cent for three-bedrooms. The real challenge these days is finding an apartment, period: the vacancy rate in October was 1.3 per cent. Critics say the “loophole” didn’t actually incentivize building rental apartments, but closing the “loophole” certainly won’t. Indeed, it’s tough to see how it would accomplish much except transferring money from unit owners to their tenants. Many will like that idea on principle — but if owners can’t rent to the highest bidder, they are unlikely to suddenly rent for less to the youngest, most disadvantaged and most vulnerable people rent control ostensibly helps. If you want central Toronto to be a more affordable place to live, you need to figure out how to boost supply. There are lots of different ideas out there. It’s a topic of constant discussion at City Hall and Queen’s Park alike. Rent control is nothing but a political distraction. • Email: cselley@postmedia.com | Twitter: cselleyby Madison Park CNNhealth.com writer/producer Oh Viagra. Sure, Pfizer’s wonder pill has side effects such as headaches, facial flushing, upset stomach, erections lasting more than four hours, bluish or sudden loss of vision. There’s one more risk to the pill that grants erections: Hearing loss. Research published this week in Archives of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery showed an association between long-term hearing loss and Viagra. This side effect is already acknowledged by Viagra - especially after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration forced this labeling changes for oral erectile dysfunction medicines known as PDE5 inhibitors in 2007. The research conducted at the University of Alabama at Birmingham looked into the data based on 11,525 men. Men who self-reported hearing problems were twice more likely to indicate that they used erectile dysfunction medication. While it’s difficult to establish cause and effect in an observational study, these findings indicate that the FDA labeling was warranted, said study author Gerald McGwin, a professor of epidemiology at the UAB School of Public Health, in a taped news release. The association was present for long-term hearing loss after using Viagra, and to a lesser extent other ED drugs such as Cialis and Levitra. The sample sizes for the two latter drugs were smaller. Since Viagra increases blood flow to the penis, perhaps the drug increases blood flow to the ear causing damage, McGwin hypothesized. For more facts about Viagra Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.In computer security there are lots of great tools that can be used to improve your company security. This article is focused on one of them that has been around for a long time and it’s called - Nicolas Cage. One of the great potential problems of stealing your data is leaving your PC unlocked when you are not at your desk. That’s exactly what happened to one of my colleagues. At an investment bank security is our top level priority. We take this subject very seriously. So we caged this bastard. And we caged him well. But seriously, if you are looking for tips how to improve application and data security, Troy Hunt is a great expert, especially in the web environment. Go and check out his great blog.Halloween III brazenly combines elements of science fiction, witchcraft, and Celtic fairy tales. Okay, deep breath, here we go: a corrupt businessman has manufactured a line of children's Halloween masks that, when activated by a signal sent from a TV commercial to microchips in the masks, made out of pieces of Stonehenge (What??), will unleash demonic snakes and insects that will kill the wearer. Phew, that's a mouthful. The film begins with a shop owner yelling about the Silver Shamrock (seriously) jack o'lantern masks — "They're going to kill us!" before he becomes the patient of our main protagonist, Tom Atkins as Dr. Daniel Challis. The man is killed during the night by a mysterious stranger who then gets in his car and immolates himself. Clearly, the shop owner knew something he wasn't supposed to know, and Dr. Dan springs into action, teaming up with the deceased shop owner's daughter Ellie, played by Stacey Nelkin, to get to the bottom of things. The decision to journey to the small California town that houses the Silver Shamrock factory (I never tire of writing that) is decided upon rather quickly by the two leads, and why not? Dr. Dan is looking for any excuse to ditch the wife and kids to hit the open road with comely young Ellie. Their pairing is awkward, for a number of reasons including the actors' disparity in both age and looks. This movie upholds Hollywood's requirement that only women need to be hot. Also, may I remind you that in the 1980s, beyond all logic and reason, not only did Tom Atkins hook up with Stacey Nelkin here but also with Jamie Lee Curtis in The Fog. Even when presented with cinematic proof of this fact, it's still too mind boggling to believe. We live in a world where this is true. Maybe it's all due to Atkins pure animal magnetism and smooth pickup lines, like the ones on display during this cringe-worthy bit of verbal foreplay: Dr. Dan: Maybe I ought to get another room. Ellie: That would look sort of suspicious, wouldn't it? Dr. Dan: What I mean is, if it'd make you more comfortable... I can sleep in the car - be a lot better than this floor, anyway. Ellie: Where do you want to sleep, Dr. Challis? Dr. Dan: [Staring at her] That's a dumb question, Miss Grimbridge.Running back Dion Lewis did something he doesn’t often do in the Patriots’ win over the Falcons. Instead of jump-cutting or juking in the open field, he lowered his shoulder into Ricardo Allen and bowled the safety over. Lewis’ power may have caught Allen off guard, as he seemed ready for Lewis’ shimmy — not his shoulder pad. So Bill Belichick was asked if he’s every surprised by Lewis’ power. “Dion’s got good strength,” Belichick said Wednesday at a press conference. “He’s got good balance. He’s got really good balance. He gets hit but a lot of times it’s not necessarily that he runs over a guy, it’s that he’s able to keep his balance and keep moving and then a lot of times regain his balance and continue to pick up positive yards. He’s a hard guy to tackle because he’s thick and he’s got good balance. A lot of times he absorbs the contact and is able to regain his balance and the defender is not able to finish the tackle.” While his power hasn’t been a frequent sight on the field, Lewis’ balance has often been on display. On one carry against the Jets in Week 6, Lewis was falling to the ground after spinning away from two defenders. Jets linebacker Darron Lee looked ready to finish Lewis off with a hit. Instead, Lewis used Lee’s contact to regain his balance, spin upright again and continue fighting for yards. The play was whistled dead, and Lewis never hit the ground. That’s what makes Dion neon. Sometimes, Dion Lewis uses defenders to keep him upright. pic.twitter.com/UaygUQVohN — Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis) October 16, 2017A person isn’t considered “wealthy” in the San Francisco Bay area until their net worth has topped $6 million. That’s according to a new survey from San Francisco-based investment firm Charles Schwab. A net worth of $1 million makes someone “financially comfortable,” the survey says. None of this is based on any official definitions of wealth, but rather perceptions of people themselves in the Bay Area—a place where a startup CEO can occasionally be overhead saying that an income of $250,000 makes one “poor.” The survey asked 1,000 residents ages 21 to 75, from San Francisco and surrounding areas, for their opinions. It’s worth noting that 86% of them also said that the costs of living here—which include but are not limited to $400 for renting a box in someone else’s apartment—are “unreasonable.” The Brief Newsletter Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now. View Sample Sign Up Now MORE San Francisco’s New Disruption The survey reflects how expensive things have become in San Francisco amid the latest tech boom, with office space going for about $100 per square foot and the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment having the dubious honor of being the highest in the nation at $3,590, according to rental site Zumper. But it also shows how far the local mindset—surrounded by $8 drip coffees and endless tales of the latest startup that just got millions in venture capital funding—is removed from the rest of the nation. In the survey, Bay Area residents said that being worth $2.5 million in most parts of the United States would make someone “wealthy.” When Gallup asked the same question a few years ago, Americans outside the bubble said they’d consider themselves “rich” with an annual income of $150,000. And 30% said less than $100,000 would still be enough. Write to Katy Steinmetz at katy.steinmetz@time.com.Israeli soldier David Adamov has become an overnight hero in Israel. Why? Because he cocked his assault rifle at unarmed Palestinian youths in Hebron. Adamov’s actions were caught on camera and posted to YouTube by the activist group Youth Against Settlements. In the video, Adamov is seen talking trash to a Palestinian teen in Hebron, a city in the occupied West Bank, as several onlookers watch with cameras in hand. Adamov then loads his assault rifle and points it at the teen’s face and takes aim at several others while threatening them with “a bullet in your head” if they don’t stop recording. Sadly, the video’s content is not unusual or surprising. The Internet is teeming with visual representations of Israel’s occupation enforcers dishing out vicious cruelty against unarmed Palestinians of all ages with total impunity. But this particular video struck a nerve among soldiers following rumors that Adamov was sentenced to 20 days in military jail for aiming his gun at civilians. The Israeli army quickly clarified that Adamov was being held for assaulting a superior officer for the second time. In fact, it was the Palestinian youth who was arrested and interrogated. But it was too late to stop the backlash. Within hours a storm of outrage erupted within the Israeli army, culminating in the Facebook page “David from the Nahal brigade” — or “David Hanahlawi” in Hebrew. With more than 129,000 likes as of this writing plus thousands of photos of Israelis, mostly soldiers, holding up signs in Hebrew that say “We are with David Hanahlawi,” the page is still gaining traction. A dangerous victim complex Several Israeli politicians have expressed solidarity with Adamov, including economy minister Naftali Bennett of the far right Jewish Home party. “I would have done the same as David the Nahal soldier,” Bennet declared. “Violence was directed at him. He was alone, surrounded by violent, provocative Arabs. He didn’t shoot. He defended himself and those surrounding him reasonably and ended the incident.” Construction and housing minister Uri Ariel, also of the Jewish Home party, added his voice to the chorus of incitement from high level officials, saying, “The reality in which soldiers have to absorb harm and humiliation on a daily basis without being able to respond, even when their lives are really in danger, because we’re afraid of criticism, is intolerable.” Ariel was echoing the main complaint from Israeli soldiers that their “hands are tied” in the face of Palestinian aggression. But the facts tell a far different story. According to reality, Israeli soldiers are free to act as belligerently as they wish toward the mostly defenseless population they are tasked with dominating. Sure, Palestinian children sometimes throw rocks, but they are aiming at heavily-armed Israeli soldiers who have a habit of launching tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian school children, not to mention the live ammunition routinely fired at unarmed Palestinians. Trigger-happy impunity In a damning investigation released in February, Amnesty International found that “trigger-happy” Israeli soldiers and security forces since 2011 have critically injured 261 Palestinians, including 67 children, in the West Bank with live ammunition. In 2013 alone, Amnesty documented 22 Palestinian civilians, including four children, killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank. They found that none of them posed a threat and that some were “willful killings” that “amount to war crimes.” Nevertheless, Israeli soldiers, whose hands are supposedly tied, are rarely — if ever — prosecuted, let alone convicted. As Amnesty notes, not one soldier has been convicted for willfully killing a Palestinian since 1987. With this in mind, the notion that Israeli forces are the victims in this scenario is laughably absurd. It is Palestinians whose hands are tied (or more accurately, shackled) in the face of checkpoints, land theft and forced displacement executed by trigger-happy soldiers with a callous disregard for Palestinian life. Media’s troubling tone In typical biased fashion, The New York Times’ Jodi Rudoren characterized the incident as “an aggressive confrontation with Palestinian teenagers,” as though the encounter was between two equally powerful parties rather than a heavily armed occupation soldier and unarmed civilian youths. Rudoren went on to report as fact an Israeli army lie that one of the Palestinian youths in the video was holding brass knuckles. This was disproven the following day when a second video emerged (embedded below) showing the Palestinian teen, whose name is Saddam Abu Sneinah, holding prayer beads, not brass knuckles. Other media outlets — like Reuters, the BBC and The Guardian — centered the story around Israeli reactions to the Facebook campaign, an unfortunate reminder that Israeli opinions about the occupation take precedence over the often-ignored daily violence inflicted against Palestinians. Israeli extremism This entire episode should serve as a warning about the extremism and anti-Palestinian fervor permeating Israeli society, where reality is so warped that heavily-armed occupiers genuinely see themselves as victims to defenseless population they are actively wiping off the map. It is a scandal that the world is silent while Palestinians are at their mercy.37Games has confirmed its Champion Collecting RPG Nightfalls will today officially enter Closed Beta after months of intensive testing and constant improvement from the operation team. Without the fuss of downloading a client or paying to play, players are invited to experience this MMORPG and enter the fantasy world of Nightfalls right through their browser. In Nightfalls, players will become the fallen angle, Sherri, who still believes in the virtue of mankind and tries to stop the forces of evil from taking the last lands of the human race. You will join forces with heroes from all over the world to face the evil Demon Lord Sallos, who wishes to once again shroud this world in darkness. Nightfalls seamlessly combines the essential elements of an MMORPG and strategy game, players can not only enjoy the addictive fun of customizing their character and champions but also the strategy behind their champion's battle formations. There are hundreds of champions for you to choose from, including defensive, attacking and support type champions. All champions have various unique attributes and magic skills to help you build an elite team for battle. Nothing is impossible on your journey to banish the evil powers of darkness! Furthermore, in order to immerse players into a thrilling world devoured by evil, the art team of Nightfalls has created a large number of elaborate and dark-themed environments and combat scenes, along with various exotic ambient music compositions for each scene. To celebrate the starting of the Closed Beta Nightfalls has also arranged a series of events, such as Mount Contest, Arena Rank, Guild War, Wizard Evolution and more! Start your journey and collect your first champion today! http://play.37.com/nightfalls/?cid=54&scid=ncb Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Nightfalls.37Games/Most economists believe open, honest, competitive markets are a good thing: consumers get products at the lowest prices and the most efficient producers get the sales. How to get there is another matter: Who keeps the markets honest? Any government with the authority to do that can also do the reverse. James Madison put it this way: “In framing a government, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. ” Stan Zin points out a modern version from Luigi Zingales in one of The Economist’s blogs. Luigi is concerned with “crony capitalism,” in which government is controlled by business. In his words: There is not a well-understood distinction between being pro-business and being pro-market. Businessmen like free markets until they get into a market; once they are in it they want [to use their influence] to block entry to others. Pro-marketeers want free markets at all times. As Madison might have said: you must enable the government to control the governed, not the reverse. Update (Aug 26 12): (1) This seems to be an old meme. Probably goes way back, but here are some examples. (2) We got lots of hits via Reddit. If someone could explain how this works and how to track it back to the source, I’d appreciate it. Email preferred. Advertisements Share this: Twitter Facebook Like this: Like Loading... RelatedI am a midwife and trade unionist. I never assign sex and find parents are quite capable of identifying their baby’s sex. My job includes documenting sex in the health record and sex is recorded in birth registration. Sex is only ‘assigned’ to babies when this is not obvious at birth - a rare occurrence. Recording of the sex of male and female newborns is important. There are health issues for newborn boys (such as undescended gonads) that do not exist for newborn girls (for whom internal gonads are healthy) and vice versa. Recording sex at birth, and various life junctures, is vital to the social and political health of us all. Every single claim that feminists and socialists have ever made about the representation and treatment of women is dependent upon this data. This includes that 100 million women were missing due to sex-selective abortion, infanticide and unequal treatment of girls first published in 1990. [1] Our efforts for a more just, equal and peaceful world starts with being able to accurately identify inequality, injustice and violence. Without recording sex we would not know that even more women (estimated 117 million) are missing today.[2] Bridget Chapman and Kirstie Paton write that self-declaration will not render meaningless sex discrimination legislation or the category of woman. Yet, Stephen Whittle, a key activist for the Gender Recognition Act described how in that legislation “gender identity transforms legal sex…there is no recourse to the sexed body which suggests that the body’s sex as a taxonomical tool has in some way become redundant… Changing sex for the purposes of legal recognition then, is … about changing how sex is legally defined.” [3] The Equality Act placed limits on this disregard for the sexed body, setting out exceptions in Schedule 3, Paragraph 28.[4] These allow the provision of single-sex services provided they are a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. The passing of a self-declaration law together with a removal of these exceptions would see the current delicate balance of rights between ‘sex’ and ‘gender’ in the Equality Act overturned. Socialists who want ‘the body’s sex as a taxonomical tool’ made redundant should reflect on the violent exploitation of female bodies. Women have won services and organisations that meet our needs for safety, dignity, privacy and healing at times when our bodies and psyches are vulnerable. Those confident that new legislation will not impact women’s rights should not fear full discussion of the proposals. The left must consider the impact of further changing how sex is defined.In this second half of Natalya Irtenina’s essay “Holiness as a National Ideal,” the author shows the bankruptcy of humanism and liberal ideology’s reduction of man to a bestial state. As St. John of Kronstadt understood, recovery of the divine image entails struggle for holiness, the language of which was given to us in Christ the eternal Logos, our one salvation. Translated by Mark Hackard. Humanism against Holiness Without any exaggeration, the ancient language of holiness founded the Russian state and cultivated the Russian people; it laid the basis of the most important cultural and social phenomena. It sustained the language of political action (defense of national sacred places, the peaceful colonization of frontier lands and the enlightenment of foreign pagans, their inclusion into the orbit of high Christian culture), the language of social service, and finally the languages of everyday life and art. From the end of the 18th century, the language of holiness was expelled from Russian life by another language that had arrived from the Age of the European Renaissance and the new Age of Enlightenment. Very quickly the latter created around itself a special stratum of men in Russian society who spoke it – the Russian intelligentsia. Its essence amounts to liberal, sentimental humanism, or simply humanism. John of Kronstadt saw through the sorry, conceited and arrogant soul of the intelligentsia and dedicated more than a few sharp strokes of his pen to this ruinous social phenomenon. In a 1909 speech honoring the memory of the Shepherd of Kronstadt at the Russian Assembly of Monarchists, another saint, Archbishop John Vostorgov, called the Russian intelligentsia an exalted harlot “looking slavishly to bow before something great in some foreign land…for someone to whom they can bend their knee…for someone before whom they can grovel…for someone from whom they can hear patronizing words and a smile of praise and approval.” This harlot’s language began to set the direction of Russian history in modern times. “The Russian intelligentsia have declared war upon God Himself,” Father John wrote in his diary. They dream of the improvement of mankind without Christ, and meanwhile, they themselves are far from perfection and devoted to every passion…Not knowing themselves, their baseness, their infirmity, their sinfulness, poverty, blindness and nakedness, they only mock Christ and the Church. The language of holiness speaks of man as a person open to God for cooperation with Him in
that can randomly win on turn three. That being said, I'm not sold on it being a bad deck for me to play against. I'm not saying anything ridiculous like this being a 70-percenter for me, but I think it's a close match, and I'm possibly slightly favored after board, and even pre--board. Game one, I drew removal when I needed to, and was able to swing in with Exalted Giant Solifuge a few times. Once I got ahead on the damage race, a timely Bonfire sealed the deal. I bring in double Shatterstorm, double Ancient Grudge, and double Sowing Salt for all the Dismembers, and Blood Moons, as well as a lone Stormbreath Dragon. Game two started with a Vault Skirge suited up with Cranial Plating. I had the removal to take care of both, in the form of Ancient Grudge, with Flashback. He reloads with another Skirge and a few other guys, and I'm not able to get any other removal to spring forth from my deck. Another Plating, and the game ends with him at a healthy 34 life. Third game, I get a second turn Burning-Tree Shaman, and follow up with more removal and burn to the dome than he can handle. He eventually succumbs to an army of 3-power attackers. 4-2 Round 7: W/B Tokens W/B Tokens is the reason you can never say anything is a "never lose." I have played against this deck multiple times with my various R/G builds, and experience has shown me that this is at least as close to a "never lose" and I've ever been. But we are not playing chess here. We are playing Magic, and there is an element of randomness and variance to the game. In all my rounds of Magic this weekend, this is the one and only time I truly felt like I just got extremely unlucky and that the Magic gods were out to get me. It happens, and if there is one match in 19 over the weekend that that happens, then so be it. I cruise to a quick game one win, with little resistance being put up by my opponent. There is nothing in my sideboard that I really want or need to bring in that is better than what I already have in the main. In the second game, I jump out to an early advantage. Blood Moon hinders his development, and I am able to get him into the low single digits before he recovers with some tokens, and a Sorin, Solemn Visitor. He gives his guys lifelink, but doesn't attack. I also hold back, and I have lots of outs that just win, and I didn't see the point if giving him life in trade for my threat. So, I was willing to sit back and wait if he was, as I had three Bonfires, two Bolts, and both Dragons that would have essentially ended the game. My next 5 draws were lands. While I was drawing that, he was playing action and was able to make more tokens and attack with his fliers to gain life. Once it got to where Bonfire was pretty much my only out, and he was at 16, the next land off the top put us to the next game. Third game, and I kept a hand with a couple lands, some guys, and a Bonfire. My mana developed very slowly, but I was able to get some guys out and swing. He again got his Sorin to pump and lifelink his guys. I couldn't block his fliers, so my attacking guys basically trade with his lifelink. When I'm down to a mere four life after a large hit by Sorin and Intangible Virtue pumped guys, I'm still waiting to get the all-important 5th land to enable the Bonfire for 2 in my hand and to clear his board. I draw. IT'S A LAND!! Umm...that's a Copperline Gorge. Game, set, match, and dead for Day 2. 4-3 Round 8: Affinity Now I'm dead. Any pressure I may have had in trying to Day 2 was gone. So, it's time to play for Planeswalker Points. My opponent was on Affinity, and was forced to double-mulligan in the first game. He played a lone Skirge during the game, which I Bolted, and nothing else with power. His life total drops in large chunks and the game is quickly over. I sideboard the same way as before, and we head into the second game. He kept his full seven this time, but the draw was not overly explosive, or even very good. I got a creature advantage and just swung away, while he used his guys to block. He was able to create enough chump blockers to stay alive for several turns, but my bigger guys living through combat ended the game in short order. 5-3 Round 9: U/R Twin Time for the last round. The big round to see if I would squeak into Day 2 had the event happened after January 1st, or if I would have remained on the outside, looking in, regardless of when the event was held. My opponent was straight U/R Twin. My opener didn't have a Burning-Tree Shaman, and my opponent overcame a mulligan to six on the play to turn four me. With the exception of his Remand on my second turn Boggart Ram-Gang, the game was completely non-interactive. I bring in Damping Matrix and Banefire from the board for all three Blood Moon and two Bonfires, and get set for game two. Early Burning-Tree followed by several 3-power guys after that, and my opponent was quickly in chump mode. When I Bolted in response to a Vendilion Clique, leaving me with two more three power attackers than he had blockers, he scooped up. Game three was one of those games you have on occasion. I wasn't mad, and I don't even consider it somewhat unlucky. It's part of the game. I mulligan a 1 lander with all 3-drops. I mulligan a zero lander. I mulligan another zero lander. I keep my 4-card hand, with double land, Bolt, Ram-Gang. In a shocking turn of events, the triple-mulligan does not get there, and I die to a steady stream of Bolts, Snapcaster + Bolt, and Cliques. 5-4 To say I was disappointed in my end result would be an understatement. But even with my disappointment, I was really happy with the deck, and kinda stoked that the deck itself played well, even if the pilot had issues. I was itching to play again, and see it the deck held up. And for those of you who took the "Over" on the line: You won. Total read count was a robust 29. Considering I had one opponent read nothing, that's significantly higher that I bargained for. After a dinner of awesome burgers and double dessert, as well as a few crass jokes, it was time to head back to the room and prepare for Sunday. Unexpectedly, and without warning, my inner 12-year-old came out on the elevator. Apparently, riding up to the 3rd floor in a 15-floor hotel was too much for me to remain an adult. I had to hit all the buttons. Eric and I exited the elevator after he made a comment possibly questioning my maturity, but all was well. Except when we got out, a lady was waiting to enter. As we were rounding the corner to our room, we heard the lady who entered the conveyor upon our departure exclaim, "What the HELL!?!?" We turned the corner and laughed hysterically. It was probably not as hilarious as my reaction made it out to be, but apparently full bellies, lack of sleep, and the sudden appearance of "Child-Carl" worked against any capacity I had to control my laughter or maintain any semblance of composure. Once I finally got over my fit of joviality, and was able to show a little self-control, we made our plans for the next day. There were several events firing in the morning, as well as all day drafts and win-a-boxes. Immediately, though, I gravitated towards the Modern for Planeswalkers event. I really wanted to run it back and see how the deck would do. Eric, likewise, decided to play the same event, although he was going to make a few modifications to his deck that night before it was time to crash. A couple hours later, all was done, and it was time to sleep. Getting up in the morning, I was greeted with awesome news. My good friend from Omaha, who made the trek to OKC with his sons, Steve Perigo, not only got a camera match in Round 10 of the GP, but also had his deck featured in an article that morning on the mothership. Steve was really proud of his deck and had been talking it up for a couple weeks, from our brief conversations leading up to the event, and I was glad that he had success with his own brew and did so well on the first day. So, please indulge me for a moment here, as I send out public congratulations to Steve. Great job, Steve. I signed up for the Modern for Planeswalkers event and waited around for it to start. The going rumor was that this was only a five round event. Of course, historically, when this event was run at Standard or Limited GP's, they got around 60 or so participants. Who knew running a Modern side event on the Sunday of a Modern GP with almost 1500 people, over 1200 of which did NOT make Day 2, would have higher than the customary 60 people? Shocking, I tell you. Did not see that coming at all. Anyway, after person 149 entered the fray, they were ready to kick off the event. It was time to play eight more rounds of Modern, plus a Top 8. Modern for Planeswalkers Rounds Round 1: Affinity There's kind of a theme during this tournament. As we move along, I'm guessing you will be able to figure it out. My opponent is running a fairly stock list, and gets an aggressive start. I'm able to answer a few threats, but not enough in a timely manner, and he gets the first game. I sideboard the same way as I have all previously, and we go to the second game. I knock out a couple early threats with Ancient Grudge and Flashback, and develop my board of creatures. He is able to recover and starts building up his forces as well. He was Hellbent, and I started counting. My attack knocked him down to 2, and the only way I lose is if he draws a Thoughtcast and gets two artifacts with it. He only draws an artifact, and swings in with a Cranial Plated guy, and a couple other guys. I take 14 when I'm at 15, and he's dead on board. Game three, he has a flurry of artifacts hit the table, but none of them are creatures with power that matters. He's gets empty handed, and I have the Shatterstorm. Game over. 1-0 Round 2: U/W Retract Combo Obviously, this deck won the first round, but I have no idea how. He had to double-mulligan in game one, and played an Island. He never played anything else. The only damage I took was from my own Shock land. I saw nothing else in his deck at all. Hmmm... Sideboarding, I took a chance. I figured he was a rogue deck that cheated on lands, so I brought in Trinisphere for the Blood Moons. He kept his opening seven and played a fetch for an Island turn one, and paid to cast Gitaxian Probe. I played a first turn Sprawl and a second turn Ram-Gang. He paid life via Noxious Revival to get his fetch back for a second land, and gets a Plains and passes. I have a second Ram-Gang, and he scoops one draw step later. I commiserated with him about his poor draws, and asked if he minded showing me what his deck was supposed to do. He was gracious enough to do so, and explained how he only ran 15 lands, 8 of which were fetch lands. At least I sideboarded correctly. 2-0 Round 3: Affinity Remember earlier when I said that Affinity was the "fair" deck that occasionally wins on turn 3? I take that back. There is nothing fair about this. My opponent wins the roll and plays Darksteel Citadel, Ornithopter, Mox Opal, Springleaf Drum and Cranial Plating on his first turn. I had a land and a Sprawl. He plays a second Citadel on the second turn, Master of Etherium, and equips the Plating, and hits me for 8. I look at my hand of nothing relevant, and decide to scoop up for Game two, staring down lethal across the board. Same sideboard plan was implemented, and we go off to the second game. I had a hand of some removal, and an accelerator, so I kept. Funny thing happened on my way to having a chance at victory. My opponent's first turn Opal, Citadel, Drum led to a second turn Inkmoth, plus Ensoul Artifact on the Indestructible land. I put out some chump blockers for a few turns, but never got the all-important Sowing Salt to remove the land-creature, and I eventually was defeated. 2-1 Round 4: Merfolk Merfolk is a deck I should have tested more against, but time constraints, and the fates of the TPR were conspiring against me. I have a rough plan, and like my chances, but don't feel this is a slam dunk by any means. Game one sees a Spreading Seas hit one of my lands, and then the legion of mer-men, mer-women, and mer-children come out to play. I did try to Dismember his Lord of Atlantis, but he had the Spell Pierce to thwart my attempt, and we went to sideboarding. From the first game, it was pretty obvious that my opponent didn't get the "Anti-Choke" memo, as he was all Islands, Mutavaults, and Cavern of Souls. I took out all the Blood Moons and Dismembers, and brought in Damping Matrix and Sowing Salt. He kept a really sketchy hand in the second game, and I had Hierarch, into Ram-Gang, into Hellrider. He played a creature to chump on his last turn, but I had the Bolt to kill it, and swing for lethal. We went on to the third game. After a quick mulligan, I was able to get a second turn Burning-Tree, into a third turn Sowing Salt, relieving my opponent of all of his Mutavaults. I took note that he had a Spell Pierce in hand. I went into beatdown mode, and played a man-land of my own. Rather than play any of the other spells I was drawing, I just pinged myself to activate my lands and swung in. The couple creatures he had did their best imitation of a speed bump, and my opponent was dispatched with relative ease. 3-1 Round 5: Ad Nauseum Combo When you opponent wins the die roll, and goes "Land, suspend Lotus Bloom," there is only one possible deck you are playing against. When you are in a race, hoping your creatures can kill off your opponent before they combo, and two of your first three draws are Dismember, you probably lose that game. I did. I remove Bonfire and Dismember to bring in Trinisphere and Banefire, and shuffle up for the second. I get an aggressive creature draw, and follow up with Blood Moon and Trinisphere, both of which hamper my opponent significantly, and keep him from casting what he needs to. I have him down to 2 life, with Ram-Gang and Burning-Tree on board. He plays a Phyrexian Unlife. The Hellrider in my hand ensured he didn't get another turn, regardless, as I kill him with exacts on my next turn. In the third game, I went with second turn Burning-Tree, third Hellrider, and had the land and Stormbreath in my hand to be lethal the next turn, which would have been super cool to pull off. He had Supreme Verdict, so I could only Ram-Gang and play a man-land, bringing him down to 9. He had removal for the Ram-Gang, and took three from the land the next turn. Following that, he couldn't go off, and didn't have any of his Unlifes or Angel's Graces, so he attempted to cast a naked Lightning Storm to kill my Treetop Village. I was holding a land in hand, and sent it back to him, and he extended the hand. 4-1 Round 6: R/G Tron I've been seeing more and more Tron decks floating around, which was one reason I considered going with Sowing Salt in the board after not playing it for a significant amount of time. After winning the roll, I was able to slam down a second turn Blood Moon, and follow up with a Ram-Gang. From there, I just continued to beat down, and tossed Bolts at my opponent. After much cycling of Chromatic Stars and Chromatic Spheres, he finally found his Nature's Claim, and killed off the Blood Moon. He then played a Wurmcoil Engine and passed the turn at a mere one life. A Hellrider from me ended the game before blockers. I bring in the fourth Blood Moon, and both Sowing Salt, and remove Dismember and a single Bonfire. I get a perfect start, with Hierarch into a turn two Sprawl and Ram-Gang. He played a Forest, Expedition Map and Ancient Stirrings, finding one of his Tron parts. I miss my third land drop, but swing in for another four and pass back. He completes Tron and plays an Oblivion Stone and passes back. I rip the Sowing Salt, and he suddenly has no more Urza's Towers available. He does remember to blow the Stone in response. Next turn, still with only 2 land, I play another Hierarch and Sprawl. I know he has Feed the Clan in hand from the Sowing Salt, so he's playing with additional life. I thankfully run into a land pocket, and deploy a Hellrider, and knock him to seven. He gets enough lands to hard cast Wurmcoil, so I wait a turn, and play out a Solifuge. He attacks with the Wurmcoil, and goes to 13. I play a second Hellrider, and with double Hellrider, Solifuge and Hierarch. He takes 8 on triggers, dropping to five. He Feeds his Clan, and jumps to 15, and takes 10 off the attack, back down to five. He attacks again with the Wurmcoil, and goes back to 11, and passes. I drop another Solifuge, activate a Treetop, and swing with the team. He's going to take 12 just off of triggers. He casts Nature's Claim on his own Wurmcoil to go to 15 before the triggers do their dozen. He looks and all the guys coming across and realizes that even blocking with the Lifelink guy, he's buried. Nothing like simply ignoring a modest 29 points of life gain from your opponent. Needless to say, at the conclusion of the match, my opponent was a little salty. Pun intended. 5-1 Round 7: Jund You know what Jund decks really hate to see? Main deck Blood Moon. This was also a reason to not run four main. I open with a land and a Sprawl. My opponent casts a first turn Inquisition of Kozilek and takes the only card he can, a Burning-Tree Shaman. I play a land and play my freshly top-decked Ram-Gang and swing in. He plays a fetch, cracks it, and searches up a Blood Crypt, and Terminates the Ram-Gang. With him tapped out, I play Blood Moon from the top. He doesn't cast anything else, and I drop several fours and get there. I don't bring in anything and go to the next game. He is trying hard to play around a Blood Moon by keeping the ability to get Black and Green open whenever he passes the turn. Eventually, my creatures force a response, and he Terminates my Burning-Tree when it attacks, leaving open only a single Twilight Mire. Or perhaps, I should say only a single Mountain. As soon as he tapped and killed my guy, I couldn't play Blood Moon fast enough. He shook his head. "Man. Main deck Blood Moon. Who plays that?" he said, shaking his head and scooping his cards. 6-1 Round 8: ID against Affinity I'm in 4th place when standings are posted, and I'm paired against the 2nd place guy. I get to our table, and the ID is pretty immediate. 6-1-1 The Top 8 decks are made up of 3 Affinity, 2 Merfolk, Burn and me. Sadly, I missed the 8th deck, so am unsure what it was. It did lose to Burn in the quarterfinals. Top 8: Affinity I go into the Top 8 as the 5th seed, and I'm paired against the guy I just ID'd with to get in. We talk some and have friendly conversation as we get started. He gets a slower start, and I'm dropping early 3's and 4's. My guys overwhelm him, and I win the race. I noticed his land base was a little different, as he was running multiple copies of various U/R lands. As such, I didn't bring in the Sowing Salt from the board, and instead went with cutting the Dismembers and the Dragons to add in the anti-artifact cards. Remember, again, how I said earlier that Affinity was the most "fair" deck that can win on Turn 3? And then I said to ignore that? Yep...keep on ignoring that, because I obviously have no idea what I'm talking about. I shocked myself to play a Hierarch on turn one, and have only a tapped land to play on turn two, but I was cool with that, as I was set to have a third turn Shatterstorm. What were the chances I die on his third turn? Apparently, Inkmoth Nexus is pretty good. It's even better when there are both an active Arcbound Ravager and Steel Overseer in play. What's a friendly 10 poison among friends, right? If anything, the third game was rather anticlimactic. I drew removal and board wipes when I needed them, and beat him down with creatures. By the end of the game, he extended his hand with only a Blinkmoth Nexus in play. 7-1-1 The quarterfinals had the following results: Burn >?? (The deck I didn't get) Affinity > Merfolk (my 4th round opponent) Merfolk > Affinity Green Moon > Affinity Interesting conversational side note. While sitting there waiting for my semi-final opponent and talking with Eric, several bystanders were discussing the Top 8 decks, and what was advancing. Every deck had a name, and then they came to mine. There was a pause in the conversation, and the guy said, "...And....Red Green Rogue." Eric and I laughed, and Eric said he wondered what the guy was going to say when he got to me. Top 4: Affinity Against another Affinity deck. For those wondering the "Secret Theme" of this event: if you guessed Affinity, congratulations, you're a winner. I wish I could have provided a more inspiring ending, but it was not to be. I had a few creatures, but didn't really draw what I needed. They got the Cranial Plating on their Etched Champion, and easily rumbled to victory. I used the standard sideboarding strategy that I had been using over the last couple days. My opponent was rather vocal in not knowing what to bring in, because apparently my deck was not in his gauntlet. He jokingly taunted his friend and test partner for not properly preparing him. In the end, it didn't matter. I did cast a Sowing Salt and he lost all of his Citadels, but he was able to get Plated Skirges going, so any damage I did was offset. At three life, I looked at my deck, then looked at my opponent and said, "OK...I have seven outs. If I get one, awesome. If not, it's over. I'm just going to flip the top card, and we'll see what happens." And up came a Sowing Salt. Doesn't matter. I had a great time, and finished 3rd overall. On the other side of the bracket, the Merfolk player won over the Burn deck, setting up a rematch in the finals between the two players. The Affinity deck was victorious in the Swiss, but I had no desire to stick around and witness the rematch. Having not eaten since breakfast, it was time for this fat guy to get some food. I collected my prizes and hit the door. 7-2-1 Evaluation Hands down, this is the most fun I've had in Modern in months. The deck was insane, and playing in an event where essentially no one knew going in what I was on is always a fun experience. When you play the same thing, over and over again, your local metagame, or store, knows what you do, how you do it, and metagames against you. For someone like me, that usually plays a rogue deck, it's not conducive to effectiveness. Reviewing the deck, there are a handful of changes I am considering, or would at least think about. The first thing I will do is absolutely swap out the Sowing Salt for Crumble to Dust. Making the swap, which allows me to lower my reliance on one double-red spell, seems like a no-brainer. Another reason for this change is the corner case where Infect decks can activate their Inkmoth Nexus in response to your spell and give it Pro-Red with Apostle's Blessing. That doesn't work with Devoid spells. I'm also willing to consider a change to the lands. Perhaps it's just the salt from topping a Copperline Gorge when I needed one untapped land, but there is a consideration to make a swap. Rootbound Crag is a possibility, as the deck runs 14 total lands that count as a Forest or Mountain. That does mean there is a much higher than zero percent chance of need to mulligan away good hands because I have started with 2-3 of my non-Forest/non-Mountain lands. Karplusan Forest is another option. I would have to weigh, on average, the slight increase in self damage this would cause. On the positive side, it never enters tapped, regardless, and only forces me to take damage if it happens to be my only source of a color needed for a spell. The other option is to just not make a change at all, and accept that there may be times I lose as a result of a late drawn ETB-Tapped land. One final consideration is if I want something like Ghost Quarter or Tectonic Edge, as a hedge against some decks in the main. The one immediate drawback is that it could cause me to not be able to cast a turn 2/turn 3 Ram-Gang. I would need to test it online before making that decision, and see exactly how often it becomes an issue. It does seem like a good move, though, to have some main deck interaction against man-lands and Tron. I'm not going to do a matchup by matchup sideboarding guide this week. A lot of it is fairly self-explanatory, by reading the cards and understanding the matchup. If anyone has specific questions, feel free to ask in the comments. If there is enough of a calling for that type of an article, it may be coming in the future. For months, I've been saying and feeling that Green Moon was dead. But this weekend has rekindled my love for the deck. I don't expect to be shuffling up anything different in a competitive Modern event any time in the near future. Long live Green Moon. Peace... Carl WiltGovernment-funded broadband projects, exemplified by the one undertaken in 2005 by Lafayette Utilities Service (LUS), start with a fundamental error: governments believe they are entering a monopoly-based infrastructure business when in reality, they are entering an extremely competitive service business. Because they assume broadband is an infrastructure business, they believe the model will follow the classic utility: high upfront construction costs, followed by high yield revenues that pay back the investment, while the installed plant can be routinely maintained as it depreciates on a long schedule. As with a classic utility, customer acquisition costs are believed to be low and incremental. The shock comes when they learn, usually within two years of start-up, that technology cycles in broadband are short. Equipment can’t be “maintained” over a decade; it often has to be upgraded or replaced every two to three years. An even bigger shock comes when cities discover how much they must spend year-to-year to build and maintain viable market share. This is when municipalities realize that it’s not the speed of its Internet connections, but the quality, breadth and competitiveness of its cable TV service that drives revenues. This paper examines one of the largest and most publicized municipal broadband projects in the U.S.: the $160-million fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) project launched by Lafayette Utilities Service (LUS) in Lafayette, Louisiana. Six years into the operation, LUS Fiber is: 30% short of its revenue projection as set out in its business plan More than $160 million in debt As of last year was losing $45,000 a day, according to the Lafayette’s independent auditor Struggling to compete with cable, telephone, wireless and satellite service providers in terms of price, performance and service options. Reason chose to profile LUS Fiber because it is often held up as a policy success. Groups such as the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, which profiled the operation last year in a report titled Broadband at the Speed of Light: How Three Communities Built Next-Generation Networks, say it is a model to be followed. It has drawn national coverage from prominent journalists Bill Moyers and Tom Friedman. Susan Crawford, former telecom advisor to President Obama, devotes several pages of her new book, Captive Audience: The Telecom Industry and Monopoly Power in the New Gilded Age, to LUS Fiber’s story. Both progressive analysis and mainstream news reports tend to play up the benefits of fiber optics as well as the compelling story of a small town taking on the huge, impersonal telephone and cable companies. These reports also further reinforce the erroneous notions that broadband is a monopoly that can be effectively countered through government alternatives. In reality the situation is much more complex. This paper will spell out those complexities, which are either glossed over or dismissed outright by the municipal proponents and the media. They represent risks and realities that should be understood by any municipality before it moves ahead with a public broadband project. For all the enthusiasm about municipal broadband, one fact remains: A great majority of systems fail. Those that survive end up falling short of their promised goals of lower prices, better service and ubiquity. One high-profile project after another-Ashland, Oregon; Provo, Utah; Tacoma, Washington-have leveraged their taxpayer funding, only to fall short of goals and end up facing a mountain of debt. In some cases, the city recovers its investment through sale of assets, or by converting a partially completed network into a system exclusively serving the local government agencies. Compared to those past projects, LUS Fiber is in better shape, but it is far from secure. Whether LUS Fiber will truly be a success remains to be seen. But as of early 2013, it is still short of its financial and competitive goals. As this report was going to press, LUS Fiber’s management was predicting that the operation would be self-supporting by 2016. But it is turning to its own municipal parent, LUS, for more revenues. The 2013-14 budget for the Lafayette Consolidated Government calls for $1.3 million in LUS purchases from LUS Fiber for the next fiscal year, a 185% increase over the $454,000 projected for the current fiscal year, which will end October 31. AttachmentsRon Butler, an Obama impersonator The first thing Ron Butler wants me to know, even though he’s standing inside a crowded Las Vegas casino trying to look like President Obama, is that he is not a freak. We’re at the annual convention of celebrity impersonators in a conference room at the Imperial Palace, not one of the Strip’s more glamorous addresses. Beside us is a short guy with a blond-mullet hair weave who’s trying to scowl like Dog the Bounty Hunter. A Britney Spears runs by searching for her lost riding crop. “I see this as a chance to grow as a dramatic actor,” says Butler, who prepares for each Obama show by affixing fake hair to his otherwise bald head. “Besides, it can be very lucrative.” Butler is a professional actor with a full-time job playing Oscar on “True Jackson, VP” on Nickelodeon. Now he is trying to break into a more specialized field. Top-tier presidential impersonators make appearances at conventions, corporate meetings, and the like. And the battle to become First Impersonator is real. As is the money he stands to make. Tim Watters, the world’s greatest Bill Clinton impersonator, has grossed more than $1 million in a single year and owns six boats and two beach houses. But just as every politician can’t be a Bill Clinton, so every presidential impersonator can’t be a Tim Watters. “There’s A-list talent, and there’s D-list talent,” says Janna Joos, an agent who represents more than 2,000 impersonators and organizes the Las Vegas conference. “You can tell the difference instantly.” Presidential impersonation is a subsidiary of the larger industry of celebrity impersonation, which is worth millions annually. (Exact figures are hard to come by.) Yes, the field has its freaks—at the conference in May, I talked for an hour to a Kenny Rogers impersonator who refused to tell me his real name or use his own voice—but I also met some pretty rational (and savvy) entrepreneurs. “We take it seriously because this is our living,” says Rob Garrett, a Neil Diamond impersonator who calls himself “The King of Diamonds.” “Some months I might only play two gigs and still I pay my bills.” Among the world of celebrity impersonators, however, fake presidents stand apart. For one thing, their careers—like the presidents they impersonate—are term-limited. There are no George H.W. Bush impersonators working full-time anymore. The last good Reagan died recently. The former agent for one of the only Jimmy Carter look-alikes in the country says his client has either retired or moved. On the other hand, the industry is big enough to support still-current presidential runners-up. There are at least four Dick Cheneys, a John McCain, a bevy of non-SNL Sarah Palins, and a man named Frank King, who promotes “clean corporate comedy” and has his own Joe Biden act. Presidential impersonators also are different because, to be blunt, they have to be better than other impersonators. “Presidential impersonators tend to be the best overall talent,” says Brent Mendenhall, a top George W. Bush look-alike and an agent to other impersonators. “They get the most work and make the most money.” That’s because impersonating the president is really hard. Most stars are surprisingly fungible—you’d be amazed how far a Marilyn can go with a blond wig and a push-up bra. Presidents are different. Barack Obama’s face, with his cinched-together eyebrows and wide-open smile, is among the most recognizable in the world. His voice and manner of speech—those pregnant pauses between words, when you can almost see those giant gears grinding inside his head—are universally familiar. “Everybody knows exactly how Obama looks and acts,” says Butler. “I have to study his complete physicality.” And he has to be a quick study, because time is short. Throughout George W. Bush’s administration, Mendenhall worked full-time, earning more than $100,000 a year. Eight months after Bush left office, Mendenhall’s gravy train has all but stopped. “I might have to find another job,” he concedes. Work also plummeted after Obama’s election for John Morgan, a Bush impersonator, and for Dale Leigh, a Bill Clinton look-alike. So they created a new act: “Bill & George’s Excellent Adventure.” “Hopefully it will have demand in the marketplace,” Morgan says, “so we can keep doing this full-time.” All of which explains why competition among Obama impersonators is particularly fierce right now. Talent agents will book the various Obamas on the basis of looks, performance, and professionalism. A-list Obamas can charge up to $13,000 to emcee a trade convention, make an appearance at a corporate meeting, or hand out awards at an employee-appreciation event. The typical performance includes a half-hour speech mixing topical, family-friendly, bipartisan political humor with inside jokes at middle management’s expense. Afterward, impersonators work the room, posing for photos with managers and the CEO. Lucky performers might get to star in a Japanese TV commercial. C-listers, in contrast, work the parade-and-wedding circuit. They might make $500 a day. Impersonator Randall West “We’re in the proving time right now, and the cream will rise to the top,” says Randall West, an Obama impersonator and formerly the owner of a Ford dealership in New Jersey. “Who’s gonna be the man? I think I’m gonna be the man.” According to talent agents, West and Butler are the top competitors for the coveted title of First Impersonator. “Most of these other guys aren’t in the same league,” says Greg Thompson, an agent in Orlando. Butler scores high marks for looks, act, and professionalism. But his TV work makes scheduling a problem, says Thompson. West is more committed to Obama as a full-time career. His problem is the impersonation itself. West’s smile is wide-open and constant, giving him all
(e.g., free recall vs. recognition memory) but also critically by their emotional content. Whereas this effect was originally referred to as the “emotional enhancement effect on memory” (e.g. [1]; see review by [2]), it has become clear that emotion can facilitate, yet also impair memory. This is dependent on how emotion is manipulated and upon how, when, and what kind of memory is tested. More specifically, memory performance may be a function of whether memory for single items or the relation between two or more component parts (i.e., relational memory) is tested [3], [4], which aspects in a relational memory paradigm are tested (e.g., the emotional or non-emotional part of a scene) [5]–[9], and of the length of the delay between study and test, particularly whether the task is administered as a working memory (WM) or long-term memory (LTM) task [10]. In addition, both valence and arousal levels of the stimuli or events [11]–[13] and how “emotion” is manipulated (e.g., through mood induction, by manipulation of the emotional content of the to-be-remembered stimuli or of distracting stimuli) are all critical determinants of the accuracy with which an event is remembered. It has been noted that much of the evidence in favor of the “original” emotional enhancement effect of memory has been derived from studies examining memory for individual items only. However, single-item memory tasks lack the typical relational and associative nature of “real-life” episodic memories [4], [14], [15]. Indeed, emotional memory enhancement does not always extend to relational memory tasks, at least not in a straightforward way. That is, the effect of emotion hinges critically on what is tested. For example, when more complex scenes, which consist of an arousing item and a neutral background, are encoded and tested in a subsequent episodic memory task, memory for emotionally arousing central items seems to be better than for emotionally neutral items. In contrast, memory performance for the details of the background shows the opposite pattern; with impaired memory when the background is presented together with an emotionally arousing central item in comparison to when it is presented with a neutral central item [5], [6], [8], [9], [16], [17]. This effect is also nicely reflected in the well-known weapon-focus effect, in which people are more apt at remembering the weapon in a crime (real or simulated) in much detail, but are more likely to forget other contextual details [18]. As an explanation, it has been suggested that the arousal level of emotional stimuli modulates and biases the perceptual competition, with highly arousing stimuli being more likely to capture the attention [19]–[23] and thus benefiting from prioritized processing [24], [25]. Consequently, they will be more likely to be remembered in a subsequent memory task, possibly also depending on whether the attention–grabbing stimulus is task-relevant [10], [26], [27]. At the same time, this competition bias on the perceptual level may result in less-arousing stimuli being less attended to and, thus, more likely to be forgotten (i.e., not consolidated into LTM). Hence, the type of the memory test (single item vs. relational memory test) and the aspects of an event that are tested (e.g., central or peripheral items or the context) are critical for determining the accuracy with which an event is remembered. With this said, however, different types of relational memory have been distinguished [28], [29] and it appears that the effect of emotion on memory may depend upon what kind of relational memory task is administered (see [14]): Recent studies on emotional arousal and relational memory have mainly employed intra-item relational memory binding tasks, for example, object-color binding tasks [30]–[33] or object-location paradigms [4], [15], [30], [34], [35]. The majority of these studies showed increased performance on an unexpected subsequent recognition memory task for stimulus-color as well as stimulus-location associations when the stimulus was emotionally arousing compared to non-arousing, neutral stimuli. Interestingly, the very few studies using paired-associate memory tasks, where the relationship between two or more objects has to be remembered (i.e., inter-item binding paradigms), showed the opposite pattern. For example, paired-associate memory tasks in which the associated word had to be generated to a cue word demonstrated lower performance for associates of emotional rather than neutral cue words, hence indicating impaired performance on inter-item binding paradigms for emotional stimuli [36]–[38] (see [39] for contradicting evidence; it has been argued however, that this may be due to enhanced item memory rather than associative memory per se [3]). Another study addressed the issue of possible differential effects of emotion on intra- and inter-item binding tasks empirically and found differential effects of valence for these two tasks, depending on whether participants were instructed to visualize neutral-neutral or neutral-emotional word pairs as an integrated unit or to visualize them separately from one another [40]. To our knowledge, however, no inter-item binding studies exist that have used non-verbal stimuli, which are thought to be more ecologically valid and to be processed more efficiently [41]. Finally, the interval between study and test is important in determining the effect of emotion. Not only is there some evidence across studies that emotional enhancement increases as retention intervals increase [11], [42]–[44], but differential results might also be expected for WM as compared to LTM tasks. Most emotional memory studies in which the emotional content of the stimuli rather than the mood of the participants was manipulated were administered as LTM tasks and there is a clear lack of studies using WM paradigms. There is some evidence however that emotional content might differentially affect performance on WM and LTM. For example, Kensinger & Corkin (2003; [32]) conducted five experiments, in which they assessed different WM paradigms (memory updating, word span, n-back task), as well as subsequent LTM tasks that were typically administered one day after the WM task. Although their tasks did not rely on relational memory, the results indicated that performance on the WM tasks was not affected by the emotional content of the stimuli. In contrast, performance on the different LTM tasks showed the well-established emotional memory effect with higher accuracy for emotionally arousing in comparison to non-arousing stimuli. Another study administered a delayed-match-to-sample (DMS) WM task in which each trial consisted of four serially presented items that had to be remembered, along with their respective locations on the screen across a 7s-delay interval (i.e., an intra-item binding WM task [15]). Stimuli were drawn from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS; [45]). These stimuli were selected based upon their arousal levels and divided into three categories: non-arousing (neutral), low arousal and high arousal. The authors reported an “inverted” emotional effect: the higher the arousal level of the stimulus, the less likely it was to be correctly processed together with its corresponding locations in the WM task. Interestingly, these results seemed to contradict studies in which memory was not tested immediately but after some delay; here performance seemed to rely on LTM instead of WM. In most of the “LTM studies” the opposite pattern has been reported, with better performance on the intra-item binding of emotionally arousing stimuli than for the binding of neutral/non-arousing stimuli on different kinds of relational memory tasks. Next to these arousal effects, it has also been suggested that the valence of an event (i.e., whether it is pleasurable or aversive) may modulate memory effects [11]. For example, it has been reported that negative items are more likely to be remembered in detail than emotionally neutral or positive items, at least in young adults [17], [46]. However, only very few studies exist that investigated the effects of both valence and arousal. To the best of our knowledge, no inter-item memory binding tasks have been reported that used non-verbal stimuli and combined a WM and a LTM test in one single experimental design. In addition, most studies did not separate arousal effects from the effect of valence. With the previous statement in mind, the present study combined an inter-item WM-binding with an unexpected subsequent LTM task, using identical stimuli and similar task requirements for these two tasks. This permits the investigation of the effect of valence and arousal on both WM and LTM, using pictorial stimuli. A DMS task was employed in which emotionally neutral stimuli were always paired with a second stimulus of which the emotional content was manipulated. Based on previous studies and the object-binding theory [14] we predicted that high-arousal stimuli would increase attention for the stimulus content, thereby producing a cost for the required binding process. Consequently, picture pairs containing high-arousal pictures were hypothesized to be less likely to be correctly processed in WM than picture pairs consisting of less arousing stimuli. In addition, as there is some evidence that not only encoding-related but also post-encoding or consolidation processes affect the outcome in episodic LTM tasks and based upon previously reports on impaired emotional memory on paired-associate tasks, we hypothesized similar effects for the unexpected associative LTM task (i.e., a detrimental effect of arousal). Finally, the attention bias towards high-arousal stimuli may be expected to be reflected in better single-item memory as opposed to memory for less arousing stimuli. This hypothesis was tested in a single-item LTM task.Intriguing position battles can be found all over the training camp practice fields of One Buc Place this summer. New faces and up-and-comers are fighting for roster spots and playing time within virtually every unit. Nowhere may that competition be fiercer than at cornerback and no one may have more to prove that fourth-year pro Johnthan Banks. After beginning last season as a starter, Banks suffered a Week 3 knee injury in Houston that left him inactive for the next two games leading up to the Bucs’ bye week. Then something happened between Banks and the former regime of head coach Lovie Smith and defensive staffers. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound corner returned to the starting lineup for two more games until his playing time fell off a cliff. From Week 9-14, Banks spent the majority of games spectating from the sidelines. In five of those six games he appeared more on special teams than he did on defense, including three where he didn’t play a single snap at corner. Banks’ fall from being a promising cornerstone of the secondary with seven interceptions, 15 passes defensed and 105 total tackles over his first two seasons was one of year’s biggest head-scratchers. Now Banks enters 2016 tasked with showing a reconfigured Bucs coaching staff that he’s an impact performer that needs to be on the field. Adding to the importance of accomplishing that goal is that Banks is on a contract year. He came to Tampa Bay as a second-round draft pick and Jim Thorpe Award-winning, All-America corner out of Mississippi State in 2013 and his four-year rookie deal expires at the end of this season. Playing for a payday is hard to ignore, but Banks told PewterReport.com this weekend that his true motivations have evolved over the years. “I think about my kids,” Banks said when asked about being on a contract year and what pushes him during training camp. “They mean the world to me. I want to see them grow up and have things I didn’t have. I try to get out here and push and keep going. “But I don’t worry about it. I’m going to be taken care of regardless. If I get it I get it, if I don’t I’m still blessed. So I just take it one day at a time. I don’t think about it. I just let whatever happens happen.” Taking that mindset to heart would be especially helpful this season. In addition to just bouncing back from last year’s disappointments, Banks has plenty of challengers looking to take away his playing time. Tampa native Vernon Hargreaves III is in camp as the Bucs’ first-round draft pick this spring. Tenth-year veteran Brent Grimes signed a 2-year, $13.5-million deal in the offseason. Fifth-year vet Josh Robinson was also brought in town from Minnesota and the guy that took Banks’ starting job for a big chunk of last year, Jude Adjei-Barimah, is back in pewter and red. If Banks is concerned about the newcomers and overall level of competition he’s not letting on. “It’s a business but you still have to go out there and compete and have fun. Whatever’s going to happen is going to happen. That’s it.” Banks is no stranger to exuding confidence in Tampa Bay’s secondary and defense, proclaiming that the Bucs could be the best overall unit in the league last October. A similar excitement is back in 2016. “I’m fired up,” Banks said. “I think we’re going to be really good. We’ve got a good offense, on defense we’ve got a lot of good pieces, so it’s going to be fun. I think we have a good group [at cornerback] – real good group. Solid. A lot of competition in the room.” For reality to match up with perception, every defensive player will have to adapt to, execute and thrive in a new system led by defensive coordinator Mike Smith. Adjusting to new coaching staffs takes time and it’s something Banks has plenty of experience dealing with during his brief NFL career. “It’s crazy, man. I’m going on my fourth year and this is the third defense I’ve played on. Sometimes it gets frustrating but with God on my side, my wife pushing me, I’ll make it. I’ll be all right. That’s how you’ve got to be. Things happen. We’re grown, we’ve got to learn to adjust.”2018 U-24 National Team Tryout Attendees Announced Colorado Springs, Colo. (Jan. 31, 2017) – USA Ultimate, the national governing body for the sport of ultimate in the United States and proud member of the U.S. Olympic Committee, is excited to announce the athletes selected to attend tryouts for the 2018 U.S. U-24 National Teams. Of the more than 550 athletes who applied, invites were sent to 180 – 90 men and 90 women – in this initial round. The remaining applicants have been placed on a wait list. Several spots at each tryout are still available, with additional invitations to be awarded at the coaches’ discretion during the 2017 college season. The coaches will take performances during the college season into account when determining which athletes will be offered those currently unfilled tryout spots. In all, USA Ultimate expects 100 men and 100 women to try out for the U-24 National Teams. Two tryouts will be held in June. The first will be in Columbus, Ohio, June 17-18. The second will be held the following weekend, June 24-25, in Denver. Roster selections will be made by the three teams’ coaching staffs, with the input of selection assistants and members of the USA Ultimate staff. The teams' head coaches and assistant coaches were announced last fall. Those trying out will be competing for spots on either the men’s, mixed or women’s national teams that will compete at the World Flying Disc Federation’s World Under-24 Ultimate Championships to be held January 7-13, 2018, in Perth, Australia. Men's Tryouts Name College/High School Tryout Timothy Anders Olsen Emory East Joel Anton Cal Poly - SLO West Norman Archer North Carolina East Jeffrey Babbitt Massachusetts East Henry Babcock Richmond East Ross Barker Wisconsin West Steven Benaloh Washington West Dylan Best Pittsburgh East Jesse Bolton Carleton College West Parker Bray Georgia East Elliott Chartock Stanford West Joel Clutton Texas West Jackson Cochran Tulane West Alexander Cuizon Tice Oregon West Michael Dillard Tufts East Thomas Edmonds New Hampshire, Pittsburgh East Jacob Fairfax North Carolina-Charlotte East Michael Fairley Central Florida East Robbie Farwell Whitman West Joseph Freund Virginia Tech East Lior Givol California-Santa Cruz West Matthew Gouchoe-Hanas North Carolina East Brett Gramann Massachusetts West Jake Hansen Connecticut East Nathan Haskell Georgia East JD Hastings North Carolina, North Carolina-Wilmington East Mac Hecht Brown East Erik Hotaling Colorado West Michael Ing Pittsburgh East Tannor Johnson Massachusetts East Logan Kinney Texas West Conor Kline Massachusetts East Benjamin Lamport Tulane West Dillon Lanier Carleton College East Dillon Larberg Texas West Andrew Lehmberg Pittsburgh East Will Lohre Oregon West Kai Marshall Oklahoma West Walker Matthews North Carolina East Connor Matthews Oregon West Kaplan Maurer Arkansas West Alexander Max California West Timothy McAllister North Carolina East Charles McCutcheon Delaware, Minnesota East Jacob McGoogan North Carolina State East Wyatt Mekler Minnesota West Griffin Miller Spring Hill College West Daniel Moder Dartmouth East Tyler Monroe George Washington West Carl Morgenstern Pittsburgh East Eli Motycka Brown East Oak Nelson Colorado, Princeton West Zachary Norrbom Mary Washington East Keegan North Cincinnati East William O'Bryan Florida East Alexander Olson Carleton College West Ethan Penner John Brown West Henry Phan N/A West Anthony Poletto Minnesota West Milan Ravenell Harvard West Adam Rees Oregon West Robert Rickert Cornell East Benjamin Sadok Massachusetts East Dylan Salzman Middlebury West Charles Schuweiler Saint John's West Liam Searles-Bohs Carolina Friends School East Max Sheppard Edinboro University East Eric Sjostrom Auburn East Benjamin Spielman Northwestern East John Stubbs Harvard East Ian Sweeney Cal Poly - SLO West Ryan Takayama Nevada West Alexander Taylor Elon East Eric Taylor Carleton College West Sawyer Thompson Brown West Scott Trimble N/A East Tristan Van de Moortele Minnesota West Samuel VanDusen Pittsburgh East Nathan Vickroy Georgia College & State East Nicholas Vogt Wisconsin West Cole Wallin Minnesota West Cameron Wariner Cal Poly - SLO West Jesse White Missouri East Ben Whiteman Ohio State East Jack Williams North Carolina-Wilmington East Jonah Wisch Pittsburgh East Timothy Wolverton Schoch Carleton College West Codi Wood Penn State East David Yu Wisconsin West Joshua Zdrodowski Utah West Women's Tryouts Name College/High School Tryout Abbie Abramovich Western Washington West Kelsey Akin Kansas West Amel Awadelkarim Penn State East Mia Bladin Harvard East Shayna Brock Central Florida East Nicola Bruce Seattle University West Julia Butterfield Notre Dame West Joline Chang Illinois East Joanna Chen Brenau East Katie Ciaglo Carleton College East Nicole Cramer Washington West Veronica Cruz Stanford West Katie Cubrilovic North Carolina State East Piper Curtis Dartmouth East Makella Daley Minnesota West Elizabeth Diffey Nebraska West Tulsa Douglas St. Olaf East Hallie Dunham Stanford West Annie Edna Chen Princeton West Dena Elimelech California-San Diego West Rachel Enyeart Indiana East Andrea Esparza Texas East Nina Finley Whitman West Janina Freystaetter Central Florida East Emma Gautier Carleton College West Madeline Gilbert Western Washington West Josie Gillett Bates College West Caitlin Go Stanford East Olivia Hampton Boston College East Ella Hansen Oregon West Alexandra Hardesty Whitman West Shayla Harris Stanford West Alexandra Hasan California West Margo Heffron Whitman West Megan Henderson Colorado West Hannah Henkin Michigan East Anna Hrovat-Staedter Wisconsin East Alexandra Hu Northwestern East Sophia Hulbert Barnard College, Columbia East Megan Ives Colorado West Sadie Jezierski Ohio State East Kirstin Johnson Colorado West Sophia Knowles Case Western East Brittney Kokinos Wisconsin East Lisa Kowalski George Washington East Rachel Kramer Tufts East Marissa Land Texas East Laura Landis Virginia East Nora Landri Washington West Tracey Lo Michigan East Arianne Lozano Whitman West Jin-Mi Matsunaga Vanderbilt East Michelle McGhee Stanford West Rebecca Meeker Virginia East Linda Morse Pittsburgh East Luisa Neves Rochester East Jackelyne Nguyen California West Lani Nguyen Seattle University West Nhi Nguyen Colorado West Grace Noah Washington West Carolyn Normile Pittsburgh East Alyssa Perez Southern California West Kristen Pojunis UCLA West Clea Poklemba Portland Community College West Ashley Powell North Carolina State East Claire Revere Whitman West Sierra Rimmer Tennessee East Grace Roth Kansas East Danielle Runzo Case Western East Madison Samson Cincinnati East Nariah-Belle Sims Lakeside School West Lindsay Soo Wake Forest, North Carolina East Alissa Soo Whitman West Linnea Soo Whitman West Keila Strick Virginia East Claire Thallon Carleton College West Anna Thompson Pennsylvania East Julia Ting Georgia Tech West Danielle Tran Cal Poly - SLO West Claire Trop Lakeside School West Jane Urheim Princeton East Anneke Vermaak Wisconsin East Jaclyn Verzuh Dartmouth West Hayley Wahlroos Oregon West Kyle Weatherhogg Vermont East Jenny Wei North Carolina East Patricia Weicht Colorado College West Julianna Werffeli Dartmouth East Monisha White Stanford West Angela Zhu Dartmouth West Have any questions or comments? We welcome community feedback and discussion made in a respectful manner. Please refrain from profanity or personal attacks, as such public comments negatively reflect on our sport and community.As part of the ‘Aneurin Bevan and Wales’ series, Nye Davies analyses Bevan’s 1947 article ‘The Claim of Wales’ 70 years on from its publication Wales in Bevan’s thought It has generally been considered that Bevan was either against or at best ambivalent towards devolution and that “the claim of Wales”, as he termed it, did not feature heavily in his political thought. Whilst it is not accurate to say Bevan was against devolution and/or the idea of Welsh nationhood/identity, a read of his 1947 article in the journal Wales certainly displays the lack of a concrete solution to the issue of Welsh devolution in his thinking. Bevan had promised to write an article for the journal on the government’s attitude towards “Welsh devolution, policies and cultural problems” but due to the Fuel Crisis, he wrote a message to the editor saying that things were “so hectic” that he could not do better than provide an article that he had written for Tribune. The article itself (available here through the National Library of Wales) is a reaffirmation of Bevan’s views but does not offer concrete solutions and practical steps for allaying the concerns of Welsh politicians pressing for devolution to Wales. A distinct nation? Bevan began by acknowledging the distinctive language and culture of Wales, writing that “People from other parts of the country are surprised when they visit Wales to find how many Welsh people still speak Welsh, and how strong and even passionate, is the love of the Welsh for their country, their culture, and their unique institutions”. He praised this distinctive Welsh culture as it counteracted “the appalling tendency of the times towards standardisation, regimentation and universal greyness…We should lose touch with much that helps now to adorn our world if the super-state were allowed to obliterate all the differences which people have from each other”. However, Bevan argued that economic and industrial matters which affect the UK generally should not be separated from their UK-context. Referring to the Welsh Day debates in Parliament that had begun in 1944, Bevan argued that “Consideration for specific Welsh questions was inevitably overlaid by the intrusion of subjects which are common to England and Scotland”. He claimed that industries such as coal and steel and State factories were issues relevant to the whole of the UK not just Wales. Other questions relating to Wales, such as language and culture, should be considered and taken account of outside Parliament. He suggested that “Wales should hit on a more effective constitutional device for enabling Welsh life to be articulated on a national level”. He did not expand on what this would look like, but he did argue that it should not be through a Secretary of State for Wales. Instead of attempting to suggest what this device could be, Bevan returned to his earlier points, reiterating his belief that Wales did have a unique identity which should be taken account of: “she has a language of her own, and an art and a culture, and an educational system and an excitement for things of the mind and spirit, which are wholly different from England and English ways. It is in the commonality of this difference that Wales has a claim for special recognition and where she should seek new forms of national life.” Bevan and power Bevan’s attitude stems from his conception of power and his belief that there was a need to capture power for the working class through collective action via the state. Perhaps he was worried that devolution would damage the unity of the workers in Britain and be a hindrance to this type of collective action. However, Bevan also stressed the importance of giving power back to the people (“the purpose of getting power is to be able to give it away”). Bevan’s acknowledgement of the need to value difference and the unique culture of Wales and its people is in keeping with a significant objective of his political thought which was to enrich the life of the individual. If Wales was looking for a coherent and comprehensive statement on the government’s position on Wales and devolution, I’m not sure they would have been completely satisfied with Bevan’s response! But his article and the views he put forward are consistent with what he had stated previously. Despite Bevan eventually being won over to the idea of a Secretary of State for Wales later in his career (see Kenneth O Morgan’s The Red Dragon and the Red Flag), Bevan’s article helps articulate the place of Wales within his political thought. It also demonstrates his regard for the importance of the culture, language and unique identity of Wales. However, giving recognition to that difference in a constitutional form was something that Bevan was not able to formulate clearly.Could the Obamas finally be returning from their insanely enviable vacation? (Please come back.) The upcoming fifth season of Masterchef Junior has announced a guest that might just cure our February blues: you guessed it, former FLOTUS and beloved health-food enthusiast, Michelle Obama. The cooking competition, which premiered Feb. 10 on FOX, will be replacing former judge Graham Elliot with a rotating crew of guest judges including Martha Stewart (if she can make it out of the snow), and the Muppets. This guest spot shouldn't be a shock considering Michelle rocked us all for eight years with her Let's Move! initiative and spearheaded the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act, making school lunches healthier around the country. We're so ready for Michelle's return, and hope these kids are ready to sauté some vegetables.Download this report (pdf) Download the executive summary (pdf) Download to mobile devices and e-readers from Scribd About the Progressive Tradition Series There have historically been two primary strands of progressive thought concerning the proper relationship between faith and politics—one secular and the other emerging directly from religious social values. Secular progressive thought, associated with Enlightenment liberalism, is skeptical about particular religious claims in a pluralistic society, and insistent upon keeping religion out of politics and politics out of religion. Prominent American liberals such as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, among others, strongly advocated freedom of conscience, religious tolerance, and strict separation of church and state as represented in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This classical liberalism placed a premium on rationality, self-determination, and personal morality above faith, church authority, and public morality. It looked to establish a constitutional order in America that would prevent the merging of religion and government that was prevalent in Europe. Many religious authorities during this time, most notably the Catholic Church, viewed liberalism as a “sin” and worked hard to stop its spread in Europe and America before reconciling Catholic teaching with liberal democracy. They disagreed with the liberal conception of faith and politics, which was best represented by the religious freedom and disestablishment clauses of the First Amendment. But these progressive beliefs eventually triumphed in this country as most Americans came to accept that one could freely practice their faith while keeping specific religious beliefs from taking over government and threatening the religious freedom of others. An equally powerful strand of progressive thought emerged directly from religious values during the social gospel movement. These reformers argued that Christians should apply their teachings to public problems. American Protestant ministers and theologians during the 19th century such as Walter Rauschenbusch espoused this belief, as did politicians such as William Jennings Bryan, and settlement founders such as Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr. Catholic social justice leaders such as Fr. John Ryan and Dorothy Day pushed for similar values and religious activism, and later civil rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. followed suit. Many of the most prominent social movements in American progressive history would not have been possible without the inspirational values and moral authority of socially conscious Christianity and Judaism, an idea that we explore in more detail in see part three of this series, “Social Movements and Progressivism.” Progressives working within these faith traditions applied religious morality to the task of transforming American society during the industrial age away from the exploitation of workers and toward more cooperative forms of economic life. These faith-driven progressives insisted that society and governments uphold the fundamental notion that all people are equal in God’s eyes and deserve basic dignity, freedom, political rights, and economic opportunities in life. Religious progressives promoted the notion of community and solidarity above concepts of individualism and materialism, and worked to stop unnecessary wars and military aggression across the globe. The social gospel movement and Catholic social teaching played influential roles in the progressive search for economic fairness and justice in the 20th century. Both traditions promoted the belief that any true commitment to the Gospels and the example of Jesus Christ demanded followers to take concrete steps to address oppression and hardship in this world and to replace the laissez-faire attitudes of the late 19th century with a more communitarian outlook. In his famous book, Progress and Poverty, Henry George, a popular economist and social gospel adherent, rejected the traditional notion of religion that allowed the “rich Christian to bend on Sundays in a nicely upholstered pew…without any feeling of responsibility for the squalid misery that is festering but a square away.” Walter Rauschenbusch’s 1907 classic book, Christianity and the Social Crisis, served as the most complete statement of faith-based progressivism and offered a compelling argument for the social application of the Gospels. Rauschenbusch stressed how “the essential purpose of Christianity was to transform human society into the kingdom of God by regenerating all human relations and reconstituting them in accordance with the will of God.” The purpose of this argument was to show people how Christian teachings and the prophetic tradition of the Hebrew Bible could be put to use to foment social change during a period of want and suffering: “If anyone holds that religion is essentially ritual and sacramental; or that it is purely personal; or that God is on the side of the rich; or that social interest is likely to lead preachers astray; he must prove his case with his eye on the Hebrew prophets, and the burden of proof is with him.” Rauschenbusch took on what he called “the present crisis” wrought by the industrial revolution and the rise of modern capitalism, arguing that Christian civilization could no longer withstand the injustices of contemporary times—inequality, poverty, physical deprivation and hunger, worker abuses. He believed that desperate times required genuine moral leadership, and he sought to humanize capitalism by encouraging more direct action. He supported movements such as the settlement houses—urban community centers where low-income people could go for services and classes—as well as labor organizing and solidarity, and Christian volunteerism from preachers and groups like the YMCA and the Salvation Army. Above all, Rauschenbusch counseled people to put their theological principles to work personally by adding “spiritual power along the existing and natural relations of men to direct them to truer ends and govern them by higher motives.” On the Catholic side, Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical, Rerum Novarum, served as the intellectual and theological basis for a new generation of social activism among American Catholics. The Pope’s statement on capital and labor sought to find a humane path for capitalism that respected workers and avoided the extremes of both socialism and laissez-faire conservatism. Rerum Novarum affirmed the state’s right to intervene on behalf of citizens, endorsed unionization, and also affirmed property rights. Its teachings provided a moral and theological basis for generations of Catholic social justice reform most famously seen in Monsignor John Ryan’s “Bishop’s Program of Social Reconstruction” in 1919 and later actions during the New Deal. Progressives today come in many stripes, and nonbelievers and believers alike have managed to find common ground on key areas from climate change and poverty to war and social policy. This report seeks to explore the religious roots of progressivism in more detail, given the primary role that faith played in the devel- opment of the original progressive movement and in later civil rights and antiwar activism. This paper is designed to begin discussions about the role of faith in progressive politics and is not intended to cover every theological nuance or the wide range of important thinking in other religious and secular traditions. About the Progressive Tradition Series With the rise of the contemporary progressive movement and the election of President Barack Obama in 2008, there is extensive public interest in better understanding the origins, values, and intellectual strands of progressivism. Who were the original progressive thinkers and activists? Where did their ideas come from and what motivated their beliefs and actions? What were their main goals for society and government? How did their ideas influence or diverge from alternative social doctrines? How do their ideas and beliefs relate to contemporary progressivism? The new Progressive Tradition Series from the Center for American Progress traces the development of progressivism as a social and political tradition stretching from the late 19th century reform efforts to the current day. The series is designed primarily for educational and leadership development purposes to help students and activists better understand the foundations of progressive thought and its relationship to politics and social movements. Although the Progressive Studies Program has its own views about the relative merit of the various values, ideas, and actors discussed within the progressive tradition, the essays included in the series are descriptive and analytical rather than opinion based. We envision the essays serving as primers for exploring progressivism and liberalism in more depth through core texts—and in contrast to the conservative intellectual tradition and canon. We hope that these papers will promote ongoing discourse about the proper role of the state and individual in society, the relationship between empirical evidence and policymaking, and how progressives today might approach specific issues involving the economy, health care, energy-climate change, education, financial regulation, social and cultural affairs, and international relations and national security. Part one examines the philosophical and theoretical development of progressivism as a response to the rise of industrial capitalism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Read part one » Part two examines the politics of national progressivism from the agrarian populists to the Great Society. Read part two » Part three examines the influence of social movements for equality and economic justice on the development of progressivism. Read part three » Part four of the series examines the important role of human rights in the development of progressive thought and activism both domestically and globally. Read part four » Part five examines the relationship between progressivism and America’s founding. Read part five » Part six examines the religious roots of progressivism. Read part six » Download this report (pdf) Download the executive summary (pdf) Download to mobile devices and e-readers from Scribd About the Progressive Tradition SeriesRacing game fans have been enjoying Gran Turismo titles on Sony’s PlayStation consoles since 1997. The racing simulation series has been, arguably, setting the standard for other similar games, be it in terms of graphics, gameplay or simply licensing, that allows real world cars and tracks to be a part of the game. Set to release in spring 2016, the next iteration from the franchise is called Gran Turismo (GT) Sport. And it is a first-of-its-kind product in the world of gaming. The basis for that is a partnership between game developer Polyphony Digital and the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the governing body that hosts a number of racing events globally, including the Formula One (F1) World Championship. The idea is to bring some of the real-world experience of driving in a championship to virtual gaming. The Gran Turismo Sport game will be exclusive to the Sony PlayStation 4 console, because it is developed for the powerful hardware this console runs. However, this game is not to be confused with Gran Turismo 7, which will actually be the logical successor to the Gran Turismo 6 game that arrived quite late in the PlayStation 3’s lifecycle. GT 7 will be a different game altogether, and we will hear about that in the coming months. The idea is that GT Sport will have greater focus on the online gaming experience, something that the previous GT games had neglected in favour of a smoother offline experience. And while that worked back then, the entire focus has now shifted, which means Polyphony Digital is trying to keep up. In essence, GT Sport will be an online-focused game with three playable modes: Campaign, Sports, and Arcade. Gamers will be able to compete in virtual championships with other players. But here comes the kicker—the results will be officially recognized by the FIA through a Nations Cup where countries compete against each other and a global Manufacturers Cup in which car makers can vie to reach the top step of the podium. All participants will be treated the same as real-life racing drivers and the winners will be presented with their awards at the FIA annual ceremony in Paris. This is a first-of-its-kind online game, but we await more clarification on how this works and what the real world awards will be. It is clear that GT Sport has a very different gameplay focus compared to the previous iterations. That means the game can remain fresh for longer too, as online events don’t usually get repetitive after a while. And that also means there will be lesser pressure on Polyphony Digital to produce the Gran Turismo 7 for the PlayStation 4 quickly, and they can take their own sweet time fine-tuning that game. While Gran Turismo games have always tried to recreate the world of racing in the closest possible manner (without the smell of the burning rubber, of course), the FIA stamp on GT Sport just gives this game a boost that none of its rivals will be able to match in the near future.One of the big claims by defenders of the foreclosure fraud settlement is that it’s just a down payment on future actions. The release was narrow enough that state and federal regulators can still hold the banks accountable for their crimes. Why, even some active lawsuits were carved out to allow state AGs to pursue claims. One of the biggest was the suit by Eric Schneiderman against MERS and three banks who used the electronic registry. At the time I was unclear how you could let this suit, which alleged that the banks’ deceptive use of MERS led to the creation of false documents, and still release the banks on foreclosure fraud claims. I was assured that the suit was a carve-out, and that Schneiderman could add other banks to the suit for using MERS if they wanted. Well, so much for that. Schneiderman settled the MERS suit with the three banks and two others, for, get this, a measly $25 million. And look, the Delaware and Massachusetts suits against MERS were folded into it as well. Five of the nation’s biggest banks have agreed to pay New York a total of $25 million to settle claims
cost which will reduce the amount of healing that you need to do, and doesn't require a large portion of your ability tier points. Additionally, Medics can grant themselves and a few teammates another stack of Interrupt Armor through the spell Barrier, though it carries an enormous focus cost.Medics are mobile, but don’t have a lot of ways of shrugging off damage. Their stun break, Calm, is a multi-faceted ability that removes all CC effects, restores a moderate amount of your shield, and pacifies nearby foes, causing them to deal 25% less damage to you for several seconds. As far as mitigating damage, that’s about as good as the Medic can do, though. Alternatively, Medics can aim to avoid damage by staying agile, and using teleports, snares, and movement speed buffs to stay out of harm’s way. Restrictor and Urgency both offer short range teleports that allow the Medic to elude damage and gain a movement speed advantage over their enemies. So while you can’t do much about damage that’s going to hit you, you can strive to be out of reach or difficult to target to avoid the damage in the first place.Medics don’t have many CC abilities, but they have very powerful ones. Paralytic Surge offers a short range stun that can be used to fully lockdown a player for a short period of time, but carries a hefty 30 second cooldown. Magnetic Lockdown is the only CC ability in the game that has a cast time, but offers a long-lasting root effect and only has a 15 second cooldown, making it the shortest cooldown for a CC ability in the game. Additionally, as you tier up Magnetic Lockdown, it becomes instant cast after you've been crit, allowing you to easily and frequently lock down players to escape or to help set up damage spikes.Spellslingers are highly agile, long range healers that use their pistols and Void magic to heal allies and protect their lightly-armored bodies. They have quick casting abilities with long, narrow telegraphs that require you to carefully aim your heals, but the reward for landing them is great. Using a class resource called Spell Power, Spellslingers are able to selectively boost certain spells to increase their effectiveness or decrease their cast time, allowing them to adapt to a situation and react accordingly. This Spell Power naturally regenerates over time, and pools up to a maximum of 100, allowing 4 boosted (or “spellsurged”) casts. Spellslingers have a strong mix of powerful healing skills, defensive buffs, and utility abilities, but tend to have a lot of short cooldowns that need to be properly managed to make sure you’re healing efficiently with both your focus and your GCDs.With most abilities having a 35m range, Spellslingers are able to heal their allies from incredible range, staying safely out of harm’s way. At worst, Spellslingers have to get within 20m of their allies, but can use almost all of their support abilities at a distance of 25m to 35m, giving them an excellent view of the battlefield so they can see their foes and friends alike.Spellslinger heals require you to aim relatively narrow telegraphs at players, and typically only affect up to 4 allies. This means it takes substantially more skill to consistently land your heals on a Spellslinger than the other two classes, and that this class is best suited for healing individuals or small groups, rather than raids. Their only natural 10-man healing skills are Healing Salve, a buff that reactively heals allies whenever they take damage, and Voidspring, a large ground-targeted field that ticks for a small amount of healing once a second for 12 seconds. The AoE heal Sustain can also affect up to 10 targets at a time but requires a significant investment (tier 8} and sports a small cooldown making it difficult to heal players with consistently. All of this comes together to mean that Spellslingers can help sustain large groups of players, but will be outpaced by Medics and Espers when it comes to healing groups larger than 4. The basic heal for Spellslingers, Runic Healing, is a targeted heal, but only affects one target, so it will often fall to you to use your telegraphed heals to keep players up.Spellslingers don’t have much in the way of spammable heals, with most of their skills sporting a 3 – 15 second cooldown. As such, sustaining health pools needs an alternative approach with Spellslingers, relying on defensive buffs and larger more infrequent heals to keep players up, rather than lots of quick-casting small heals. This can be done through Runes of Protection, which applies a strong absorption shield to allies, and Healing Salve, which restores a moderate amount of health whenever a player takes damage, while using Runic Healing or Sustain to heal for small amounts.With Healing Torrent on a 3 second cooldown, Spellslingers are always ready to surge a player’s health bar from low to full. All of the casted abilities heal for large amounts on a Spellslinger as well, so no matter what spell you’re using you’ll be able to top players off even when they get low. Throw in the fact that you have Spellsurge to boost your healing output at a moment’s notice, and AMPs like Healing Aura and Savior, and you’ll be the undisputed king of burst healing.Much like the two other classes, Spellslingers have a hum-drum utility skill to restore focus and a few AMP choices. Unlike the others, however, there is enormous synergy between the AMPs and the ability that allows Spellslingers to recover significantly more focus than their Medic and Esper counterparts. The ability Gather Focus is a 2 second cast that restores 60 focus up front, then a bit more focus over the next few seconds, but reduces your outgoing healing for several seconds as well. This can be coupled with the Focus Stone AMP, however, to spawn an item in your inventory that can be used to instantly restore some health, spell power, and an additional 100 focus. This alone gives Spellslingers much better active focus management than the other two classes, but they also have the standard focus regeneration and cost reduction AMPs, as well as Desperation, which restores 240 focus over 8 seconds once you drop below 100. This category wouldn't be complete if it didn't address the downsides of Spellslinger focus management, though. At launch, Spellslingers suffer from a focus sapping debuff that drains either 4 or 6 focus every second for 3 seconds whenever they Spellsurge a Support skill other than Sustain or Vitality Burst. Since Spellsurge increases the potency of the heal, it also increases the focus cost associated with it. This debuff cannot be dispelled or otherwise removed, but it can be reset and "clipped" by surging multiple spells back-to-back to minimize focus losses. With all this in mind, you get a complicated ebb and flow of your focus with expensive casts and powerful restorative abilities, so Spellslingers are a complex class to manage, but have powerful tools to keep you relevant as a healer in drawn out fights.While their offensive dispels are lacking, Spellslingers have a reasonably powerful defensive dispel that can be used to cleanse debuffs from themselves and their allies. Purify is a Utility ability that costs 30 - 46 focus, and removes 2 debuffs from yourself and up to 4 allies in a large area around you on a 6 second cooldown. It can also be tiered up to remove all snare and root effects before removing the debuffs, giving it more use as a dispel, and can remove yet another debuff at tier 8. As far as offensive purges go, the only option is tier 8 Arcane Shock. This ability is a soft CC skill that breaks 1 Interrupt Armor and applies a debuff to enemies that interrupts their next cast, and has 20 second cooldown. So while they’re capable of it, generally offensive dispels are best left to Medics and Espers while Spellslingers stand out as strong defensive dispellers.Unlike Medics and Espers, the Spellslinger’s big, single target heal does not apply an Interrupt Armor, so their options for negating CC are relatively limited. For themselves, they have the utility skill Phase Shift, which grants them 1 IA stack for several seconds, but does not affect their party members. For their team, they have Runes of Protection, which can be likened to the Medic’s Protection Probes in that it has a steep investment cost, but can be used as a low-cooldown method of applying Interrupt Armor to your group. At tier 8, Runes of Protection grants everyone affected by it one stack of Interrupt Armor on a 17 second cooldown, meaning you can always have an absorption shield and IA ready for an enemy’s CC abilities, but it requires a massive number of your ability tier points that may be better spent on other skills. AMP-wise, Spellslingers have Shock And Awe and Readiness which apply short-duration Interrupt Armor on a successful interrupt of a foe or CC break, respectively.Spellslingers are the slipperiest healers this side of the Okay Corral. With a number of powerful defensive tools, this class can be an absolute nightmare to try and kill. Void Slip is a CC breaker that removes the caster from the corporeal plane for several seconds, making them invisible and unattackable, allowing them time to run away, reposition, and even cast spells while in the Void to heal themselves before returning to our plane of existence. This ability is strong on its own, but can also be activated automatically on an incoming attack that would otherwise kill you through the Homeward Bound AMP. The One AMP can also be taken to give Spellslingers a 9% increased deflect chance for several seconds whenever they use their spellsurge class mechanic. On top of these, Spellslingers can run Phase Shift, which gives them a ridiculous 50% increased deflect chance for several seconds, one Interrupt Armor, and can be used while CC’d to negate any incoming damage. Furthermore, the Spellslinger CC ability, Gate, also functions as a short teleport allowing them to blink away to safety, and stun enemies in the process.Spellslingers are often cited as having some of the most powerful CC abilities in the game. Some of this comes from the long durations of the CC effects even at base tier. Some of this comes from the incredible range from which they can stun, root, or disorient you. Some of this comes from jealous rage. No matter the source, it’s true. Spellslingers have access to a long-lasting stun and root effect through the abilities Gate and Flash Freeze, as well as potent snares and their own unique CC mechanic, disorient. The ability Spatial Shift causes the Spellslinger and their target to swap locations, and then applies an incredibly long disorient effect to the affected foe, remapping their movement keys randomly so they have difficult controlling their character. With several AMPs to reduce cooldowns, and the general waywardness of the class, Spellslingers become potent CC monsters when they can lock you down without giving you the chance to do the same to them.So now you have an idea of how each healing class stacks up. They're all strong, and all can be viable in both PvE and PvP content alike, but excel in different areas. Espers are long ranged lightly-armored healers who are great at keeping individuals and groups alive, while still bringing tons of utility to the table. Medics are more durable, mid-ranged healers who get right up in the thick of things to drop AoE fields and buff their allies both offensively and defensively. Spellslinger's wear light armor, but have a myriad of strong defensive cooldowns and mobility skills allowing them to dance with death while surging their teammates to full health with incredibly long telegraphs. Each class has their strengths and weaknesses that lend themselves to different playstyles, different content, and even different encounters within a single dungeon or raid. Whether you're playing with a friend or two, or going all out with a 40 man raid or war party, each healer can fill a unique role and bring a strong supportive presence to the table. Even so, here are my personal rankings for each class in different aspects of the game.If you found this resource to be helpful, check me out on social media for more content and game play!UNICOR, the government company that runs and operates many of the workhouses that exist in the federal penitentiaries of the United States, today announced that prisoners would be put to work in new community based medical marijuana dispensaries to help fund their incarceration. The spokesperson for UNICOR Andrew Rollafatawon explained to gathered news organisations today: “We have tried putting these non violent offenders to work making bumper plates, calling people for telemarketing companies and as alternatives to gibbons in cosmetics testing laboratories, but as yet none of these initiatives have been highly successful, nor do they generate the returns that we require in order to make us a truly sustainable company. As a result we have decided to radically re-think our business plan and employment policies. After an exhaustive study by leading corporate strategy consultancy “Cheech And Chong Associates” we arrived at the realisation that incarceration for soft drugs in the USA has increased twelve fold in recent years. When we then carried out an exercise to match our inmates skills profiles with market demands, it quickly became apparent that we have a highly skilled workforce experienced in the growing and the sale of “top drawer” sensimillia combined the fortuity of a growing market demand. Thanks to our work with Cheech & Chong we now understand how we can put these delinquent drug offenders in work and generate a huge cash crop that would not only increase our revenues but would also help us appreciate good music and satirical comedy. Starting in 2014 we will be opening a chain of medical marijuana dispensaries under the brand “Jailbird Joints”, these facilities will dispense medical grade marijuana with an intense high similar to Super Silver Haze or Royal Caramel. Under the 13th Amendment of the Constitution Of The United States you will find the following “neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” This means that legally we are on safe ground, however UNICOR is restricted by its mandate and we can currently only supply to the federal government. The CIA have their own dealers already in place but we are hoping that those kids at the NSA will develop a taste for the herb. There is potentially so much cash at stake that I am sure we can successfully lobby congress to change our mandate so we are able to sell our product to the consumer market relatively quickly. Mr Rollafatawon added. A study by the Progressive Labor Party, which accuses the prison industry of being “an imitation of Nazi Germany with respect to forced slave labor has not made a comment on the new initiative. Many of these beardy weirdy hippies have stated that the contracting of prisoners for work fosters incentives to lock people up as prisons grow to depend on this income. They claim that corporate stockholders who make money off of prisoners’ workhouses aggressively lobby for longer sentences, in order to expand their workforce and increase their profits. Obviously anyone looking at the graph representing incarceration figures in the United States can see this is premium grade baloney, it is simply that people are much more naughty now than they were thirty years ago. Links The Full Global Research Report in The Prison Industry Excellent article into slavery within the prison system targeted at Latino & Black Communities The Prison Industrial Complex UK Prison Service Telesales Teams The 13th Amendment with the slavery text Is this video correct? – Let us know on your comments 🙂Says "I’ve been proven right" about "Hillary Clinton's radical call for open borders, meaning anyone in the world can enter the United States without any limit at all." Donald Trump repeated his claim that Hillary Clinton supports open borders, pointing to an excerpt of a leaked speech as new evidence. Wikileaks released more than 2,600 hacked emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, including an email with brief sections of Clinton’s paid remarks to Wall Street banks. (The Clinton campaign hasn’t confirmed or disputed the authenticity of the emails.) According to Trump, these speeches show "she wants the United States to surrender to global governance with no controls over trade or immigration." "Hillary Clinton's radical call for open borders, meaning anyone in the world can enter the United States without any limit at all, would end the United States as we know it today," he said at an Oct. 10 rally in Pennsylvania. "By the way, weeks ago, I called out Hillary Clinton for supporting open borders and the media said I was wrong. Now, I've been proven right," he continued. "Where is the media rushing to correct these false stories? Because in the Wikileaks, it was all about open borders, free trade for everybody." Is Trump right that Clinton really does want open borders? The leaked excerpt does contain the words "open borders," but that alone doesn't make Trump's claim correct. Experts suggested Clinton could have been talking about free travel or open trade, or immigration policy. It's just not clear. What's more, Clinton's official immigration position does not contain a proposal for an open border. Clinton’s immigration plan As evidence for Trump's claim, the Trump campaign referred us to Clinton's pledge to offer immigration legislation within her first 100 days in office as well as her support for sanctuary cities. We've looked into this before, and concluded that equating Clinton's immigration plan with "open borders" is not accurate. Clinton supported 2013 legislation (which never passed) that included a path to citizenship with conditions and billions for border enforcement for new surveillance equipment and fencing along the Mexican border, as well as adding 20,000 border agents. As a candidate, she has said she would focus on deportations for violent criminals or those who pose threats. Clinton, however, does want to make it easier for many undocumented immigrants to obtain a legal status. That’s not the same as getting rid of enforcement, of course, and it’s a far cry from Trump’s characterization: "Anyone in the world can enter the United States without any limit at all." Clinton’s paid speech comment on open borders According to Trump, the Wikileaks hack vindicates his earlier charge. The speech excerpt is more ambiguous than he’s suggesting, but she does use the words "open borders." On Jan. 25, Clinton campaign research director Tony Carrk sent an email to Podesta that contained excerpts of Clinton’s paid speeches to Wall Street banks. (For months Clinton has faced calls to release the speech transcripts but hasn’t done so.) She mentioned open borders in her remarks on May 16, 2013, to the Brazilian bank Banco Itau. The excerpt, in its entirety, reads: "My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, some time in the future with energy that is as green and sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for every person in the hemisphere." It’s difficult to discern exactly what she was referring to here, because we don’t have more context. The Clinton campaign didn’t respond to our request for the full speech. But a campaign spokesman pointed to statements by Podesta and Clinton’s campaign manager Robby Mook on Oct. 9. Both said the context of that sentence related to green energy -- and wasn’t about people immigrating to the United States. On Face the Nation, Mook said she was talking about integrating green energy between north and south America. "But if the question is does Hillary Clinton support throwing open our borders, absolutely not. And she is going to do everything she can to fight to protect the interest of workers in this country. That is actually why she voted against the Central American free trade agreement when she was a senator," Mook said. On Fox News Sunday, Podesta also said she was referring to clean energy. "When she was secretary of state, she talked about creating a hemispheric effort to bring clean energy across the continent from the tip of South America to Canada, to invest in clean and renewable energy, to invest in the transmission that would clean up our energy system," Podesta said. "And I think when you look at what she said about immigration, she's for comprehensive immigration reform that takes people out of the shadows, emphasizes family unity, but also has -- modernizes our border security. Are her remarks a call for open borders for immigrants? We interviewed three immigration experts and asked them if they thought she was calling for open borders for immigrants and whether it was in conflict with her campaign immigration plan. The experts said Clinton’s remarks were not a clear-cut call for open borders. They also said that her statement sounded aspirational and contained no timeline or explanation as to how she would make it happen politically. "I would note her emphasis on a ‘hemispheric’ common market, an idea that became more concrete in 1994 when her husband, Bill Clinton, hosted the first Summit of the Americas meeting in Miami," said Stephen Kelly, a Duke University public policy professor. That summit involved 34 democracies, and "open markets, hemispheric integration, and free trade" were all cited as a means of increasing prosperity at the meeting, Kelly said. Those summits have continued, and Clinton attended one in 2012 as secretary of state. "My guess would be that Clinton's Brazil speech reflects this broader call for greater hemispheric cooperation on a variety of issues, including trade," Kelly said. "Given this context, and without seeing the rest of her speech, I would also guess that the ‘open borders’ she mentions relate to the movement of goods and capital, but not people." Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a policy institute focused on foreign policy and national security, said that Clinton seemed to refer to something related to travel such as the Schengen Agreement, which abolished many of the European Union’s internal borders. For example, if the United States and Canada had such an agreement, that would not mean an open border for free immigration, but rather for free travel. "I don't think she is calling for open immigration, but the context of her remarks shows that when she says ‘open borders,’ she doesn't just mean open trade," he said. Jacob Vigdor, professor of public policy and governance University of Washington, said Clinton appeared to be talking about both trade and immigration. "I would read the remark as calling for open borders with regard to both trade and immigration. Otherwise the term ‘open trade and open borders’ would be redundant," he said. However, he said he saw no timetable in her remarks beyond "some time in the future," or discussion about how to make it happen. "I don't necessarily see a contradiction between a statement of ideals and a more pragmatic policy agenda for reality," he said. "One can dream of a crime-free world where there is need for neither police nor prisons while still supporting those things in reality." Our ruling Trump said, "I’ve been proven right" about "Hillary Clinton's radical call for open borders, meaning anyone in the world can enter the United States without any limit at all." Trump is referring to a leaked speech excerpt in which Clinton purportedly says, "My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, some time in the future with energy that is as green and sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for every person in the hemisphere." We don’t have more context about what Clinton meant by "open borders" because she has not released the full speech. Her campaign has said she was talking about clean energy across the hemisphere. Trump argues that it directly applies to her current immigration policy. She has not called for open borders in this campaign. Clinton has proposed making it easier for the current undocumented population to gain a path to citizenship with conditions, but she has also supported beefed-up border security. The statement contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression. We rate it Mostly False. https://www.sharethefacts.co/share/cad1cc7a-6265-40a9-a8d4-2df1d465d1aeDuring a recent press conference, Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay was high on tight end Tyler Higbee — who struggled during his rookie year. Fantasy guru John Hansen speculated that Higbee is going to be a “big part” of the Rams offense. ESPN’s Matthew Berry noticed the Higbee discussions as well. Rams HC Sean McVay talking @ his offense will use TE in a variety of ways. Hasn't worked with him yet but was v complimentary @ Tyler Higbee pic.twitter.com/6PtKCUQwBs — Matthew Berry (@MatthewBerryTMR) March 2, 2017 According to Vincent Bonsignore, Rams general manager Les Snead said that he expects big things from Higbee next year. Snead thought that Higbee was strong in training camp but then struggled due to injury. It’s worth noting that McVay was the tight end coach for the Florida Tuskers in 2009 and had the same role with Washington in the NFC East from 2011 until 2013. McVay said he has plans to use Higbee in a variety of ways in 2017. The Los Angeles coach added that Higbee has a “nice catch radius” as well (via Joe Curley). Though the Rams just signed former Utah quarterback Travis Wilson, the high praise of Higbee indicates Los Angeles likely does not have plans to draft another tight end this season. Similarly, if they believe in Higbee, they almost definitely won’t make a move on a free agent like Martellus Bennett either. The 2016 4th-round pick, however, had just 11 catches for 85 yards and one touchdown last season. It wasn’t exactly what Rams fans had hoped for. Higbee didn’t look impressive when he played, either, as you can see from the GIF below: Higbee saw three targets against the Dolphins. Here they are. #SaveUsMcVay pic.twitter.com/L44ZCR6oFA — Brandon Bate (@NoPlanB_) February 21, 2017 Related Los Angeles Rams should target free agent tight end Martellus BennettCongress will pass a bill to “forgive” banks the potentially criminal errors made in foreclosure proceedings, a senior CNBC editor predicts. In a blog column Friday, John Carney argues that lawmakers in DC won’t allow the country’s largest issuers of mortgages to suffer financial losses following revelations of numerous mishandled foreclosure proceedings, especially when bailing them out this time “won’t cost taxpayers a dime.” Here’s what is going to happen: Congress will pass a law called something like “The Financial Modernization and Stability Act of 2010” that will retroactively grant mortgage pools the rights in the underlying mortgages that people are worried about. All the screwed up paperwork, lost notes, unassigned security interests will be forgiven by a legislative act…. The [foreclosure] crisis is not driven by economics. It is driven by legal rights. And there’s simply zero probability that the politicians in Washington are going to let Bank of America or Citigroup or JP Morgan Chase fail because of a legal issue. Carney predicts that the lame-duck session of Congress following this November’s elections will pass the law. “Every member of Congress … who has been voted out of office will cast a vote for the bill. And the President will sign it.” Major banks’ stocks have suffered losses this week as an increasingly large body of evidence has emerged suggesting that banks and their contractors may not have done the most basic vetting of foreclosure paperwork, instead using “robo-signers” to rubber-stamp whatever foreclosure applications were brought forward. The Associated Press reported this week: In an effort to rush through thousands of home foreclosures since 2007, financial institutions and their mortgage servicing departments hired hair stylists, Walmart floor workers and people who had worked on assembly lines and installed them in “foreclosure expert” jobs with no formal training, a Florida lawyer says. In depositions released Tuesday, many of those workers testified that they barely knew what a mortgage was. Some couldn’t define the word “affidavit.” Others didn’t know what a complaint was, or even what was meant by personal property. Most troubling, several said they knew they were lying when they signed the foreclosure affidavits and that they agreed with the defense lawyers’ accusations about document fraud. The result has been a steady stream of allegations of wrongly foreclosed homes. In one notorious incident last month, a Florida man who had bought his home for cash and carried no mortgage was stunned to find his home in foreclosure. In another incident, a woman who was behind on payments but not in foreclosure called 911 when she heard what she thought was a burglar, but was in fact a JPMorgan contractor coming to change the locks on her home. In many instances, those shortcuts and mistakes may have violated laws. Attorneys general in all 50 states have now launched probes into foreclosure practices. Bank of America has halted foreclosure proceedings in all states, while Ally Financial (formerly GMAC), JPMorgan and others have announced partial suspensions. Carney admits that, with outrage growing over unscrupulous foreclosure practices, a second bailout of banks would be politically unpopular. “Will the public be outraged?” he writes. “Probably. Financial bloggers will scream from the high heavens against another bailout of the banksters. Congress may try to create some cost for banks in exchange for the forgiveness, perhaps requiring more mortgage modifications. But the much feared [foreclosure] apocalypse will be laid to rest.”The biggest event in computer graphics is nearly here. SIGGRAPH 2017 returns July 30th through August 3rd in Los Angeles, promising to showcase the latest innovations in computer graphics wizardry. This video gives us an early glimpse at what tomorrow’s graphics will look like: Attendees will watch interactive stories and bleeding-edge graphics engines at work in VR at this year’s event, along with demonstrations and showcases featuring some of the entertainment industry’s biggest brands. The event features 177 exhibitors showing off new techniques and technologies. The vision of art and technology that allows Hollywood to show us fictional worlds in detail, or a designer to simulate seven million grains of sand in motion, is what SIGGRAPH is all about. We can’t wait to see what happens next! Read next: Why full-fledged entrepreneurship is the'safer' career optionSouth Carolina preacher Mark Burns has been a vocal, active Donald Trump supporter — and he’s a regular go-to guy for the campaign, seeing as he represents a demographic that Trump can’t seem to win over. (It happens when your first mention ever in the New York Times is about how you discriminated against African-Americans, and your subsequent actions haven’t changed that perception.) Burns is the pastor who delivered an angry prayer at the Republican National Convention, calling on God to help “defeat the liberal Democratic Party.” He also said in a March rally that Bernie Sanders “doesn’t believe in God,” adding, “Bernie gotta get saved. He gotta meet Jesus… He gotta have a ‘coming to Jesus’ meeting.” (Sanders, who has repeatedly said he’s not an atheist, is Jewish.) And just this past week, he tweeted a picture of Hillary Clinton in blackface. It turns out Burns, for all his public religiosity, has been lying about his own credentials, and he was caught red-handed during an interview with CNN’s Victor Blackwell. Burns claimed on his church’s website that he earned a Bachelor of Science degree (he hasn’t) and spent six years serving in the Army Reserve (he didn’t). Get the popcorn ready because this is entertaining as hell… Burns… was never in the Army Reserve. He was in the South Carolina National Guard, from which he was discharged in 2008, CNN found. As far as a Bachelor’s degree, North Greenville University told CNN he only attended the school for one semester. Burns admitted that he did not finish his degree when CNN asked him about it. Burns first said the page had “obviously” been either “manipulated or either hacked or added.” But the site host, Wix, said there was no evidence of a hack. In the video, Burns keeps promoting the lies until the anchor directly calls him out on them, one by one, when Burns’ story quickly changes. At one point, there’s just a long awkward pause before Burns says he thought the conversation was off the record, which it wasn’t. And then, just as Trump does when confronted by facts that don’t make him look good, he blamed the reporter for being part of a media machine out to get him for not being “politically correct” and trying to “destroy” his character. He then walked out of the interview, leaving the CNN team in his church. It wasn’t until well after the interview that Burns issued a statement contradicting the notion that his website was hacked: “As a young man starting my church in Greenville, South Carolina, I overstated several details of my biography because I was worried I wouldn’t be taken seriously as a new pastor. This was wrong, I wasn’t truthful then and I have to take full responsibility for my actions,” Burns’ statement reads. How’s he taking responsibility? Is he quitting his role as a Trump surrogate? No word on that. This wasn’t an attack. This was a reporter doing his job. And a pastor who wants to convince people that Trump should be trusted as President showed us that we can’t even trust him to tell the truth about himself. What does it say about the Trump campaign, too, that Burns’ lies went undetected for this long? I mean, I know what it says. But what’s amazing is that his supporters won’t care. They will watch this interview and blame CNN for going after a black man who supports Trump. That’s the bubble they live in.GTA Online: Goodbye Down The Drain cardboard, you claimed the lives of so many (Picture: Rockstar) Rockstar released a hefty DLC update for GTA 5 Online today, which makes some small but very important changes to day-to-day criminality in Los Santos. The Beach Bum pack is the main thrust of the update, bringing a host of new weapons, vehicles and missions that you can read about here. There are some salient pieces of information at the foot of the mini-expansion however, namely: • The Bad Sport penalty for destroying personal vehicles has been reduced significantly. (So feel free to helicopter grappling hook players’ cars into the water to your heart’s content) • Removed some instances of debris in specific Races, including the cardboard from the ‘Down the Drain’ Race. (Yes, that cardboard, the stuff that has sent you careening off up the side of the sewer at the last minute) • Restricted cars and vehicles that have been added to player garages through exploits have been removed. This includes tanks, helicopters and police vehicles. Advertisement Advertisement (Say goodbye to those army vehicles you spent hours glitching into your garage) GTA Online – Beach Bum update is finally here And the rest of the ‘dynamic tuning’… • The following vehicles have been added to the southernsanandreassuperautos.com website in-game: BF Dune Buggy, Canis Bodhi, Karin Rebel, Maibatsu Sanchez 2, Vapid Sadler, Vapid Sandking SWB. • The GTA$ and RP rewards for Races, Deathmatches and Parachuting are now based on the average time they take to complete. • Players now receive GTA$ and RP rewards when failing a cooperative Job or being a member of the losing team during a Versus Mission, depending on how long the Job / Mission lasts. • Players now receive a bonus GTA$ multiplier for Missions when played at the higher difficulty levels (Normal = 1.25, Hard = 1.5). • In Team Deathmatch, all players on a team now receive the same GTA$ and RP rewards, with the winning team getting roughly 4-5x what the losing team receives. • Deliveries from Pegasus have been reduced from $1,000 to $200. • The cost of removing a wanted level by calling Lester has now been scaled based on the amount of stars you have – at a cost of $200 per star. • To eliminate any remaining vehicle loss issues, an additional automatic cloud save will occur when purchasing a vehicle or vehicle modification.Members of the West Virginia Legislature should know better than to rely solely on the word of an industry lobbyist when making its decisions. A case in point occurred during this year's regular legislative session, when a bill was amended to keep legal a substance known as kratom, derived from a plant originating in Southeast Asia. As submitted originally, House Bill 2526 would have added kratom to a list of Schedule I controlled substances, which includes such things as heroin and LSD as having no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse, according to a report by The Charleston Gazette. The Drug Identification Section of the West Virginia State Police Forensic Laboratory had asked that kratom, as well as other drugs, be added to the list. As it turned out, the bill was amended by the House of Delegates' Committee on Health and Human Resources to take kratom and its main active component chemicals from the controlled substances list, the newspaper reported. However, this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an advisory saying the substance produces effects similar to such narcotics as opioids with similar risks of abuse, addiction or death. The FDA said people use kratom for recreational purposes and as a self-prescribed treatment for some disorders. In describing kratom as deadly, the FDA said it is aware of 36 deaths associated with the use of products containing kratom. Calls to U.S. poison control centers regarding kratom have increased tenfold from 2010 to 2015, the Gazette-Mail reported, citing FDA data. The agency said there is no evidence to support the use of kratom as treatment for opioid use disorder, and people are using it without dependable instructions and without consultation with healthcare providers. So what prompted the House committee in February to amend the bill and keep it off the controlled substances list? They made the switch after listening from a lobbyist from the American Kratom Association, which maintains that no deaths have been proven to be caused by kratom, that it is not addictive and can be used to treat minor pain and to promote a sense of health and well-being. Some members of the committee told the Gazette-Mail that they knew little or nothing about kratom. However, since no one from any state agencies testified at the hearing, it seems the committee chose to accept the lobbyist's word without seeking more information from state police. The bill was amended.MOBILE, Alabama -- As the bands tune up for BayFest tomorrow, thousands of people from across the region will head to downtown Mobile, and most of them will come in a car. When they get here, they’ll have to deal with parking. Those that ride a bike won’t have to worry about that thanks to the MOB Cooperative, which is operating a bicycle valet for all three days of the event. Cyclists can park their bikes, complete with accessories, for free at the cooperative
ate properly throughout the day — and then got on the plane and get off the plane and I’m still in Denver.”Hunt eventually made it onto a flight that allowed him to join the Oilers on home turf but, unlike his Condors teammate, Khaira was able to take his time.“It’s different, I think. It depends on the schedule, but I had a little bit of time to go home and pack,” he said. “I actually flew out of LA so I had a car service from Bakersfield to LA and I actually flew out the next day. So for me it was pretty easy. I had a lot of time to kind of prepare and to pack all of my things.”Though players work on their physical development and impact they have on the ice, mentally prospects try to prepare themselves for the potential for a call-up throughout the season.Physically, they want and need to be ready for the call-up, because, according to Khaira, there is an adjustment period that has to take place when moving from the minor to the major league.“I feel like it took a couple games just to get comfortable and get used to,” he said. “Just the style of play up there compared to down here, I feel as the time went on I did get more comfortable and find my rhythm.”“When I got up there and played my first game, I just tried to keep things simple and just play my game. The coaches and the players up there made me really comfortable, they just wanted me to play my game, they said mistakes come and you learn off them, from then every game I just got more confident and I just played as best as I could.” Photo by Andy Devlin / Edmonton Oilers Hockey ClubAccording to a purported T-Mobile memo obtained by TmoNews, the nation’s No.4 carrier may be looking to increase the price of its premium 5GB and ultra 10GB unlimited data packages. The change could go into effect as early as April 4th and would add an additional $5 to the cost each plan. The 5GB plan will jump from $35 to $40 per month and the 10GB plan will increase from $65 to $70. T-Mobile’s Value Plan pricing will remain unchanged. The premium and ultra plan increases will only apply to customers who sign up for service after the effective date, however. The price increase comes as the carrier is looking to restructure and in doing so, will also cut 5% of its workforce and close seven call centers over the next three months. A second leaked T-Mobile image can be found after the break. ReadMetrics Tree Maps 03 May 2010 Posted in Visualisation As a consultant I often find myself in a position where I have to get to know a large existing code base quickly; I need to understand how the code is structured, how well it is written, whether there are any major issues, and if so, whether they are localised or whether they are spread throughout the code base. To get a feeling for the general quality of the code I have found Toxicity charts useful. To understand the structure, Dependency Structure Matrices come in handy. Conceptually somewhere between those two lie metrics tree maps, which I want to write about today. A metrics tree map visualises the structure of the code by rendering the hierarchical package (namespace) structure as nested rectangles, with parent packages encompassing child packages. The actual display is taken up by the leaves in this structure, the classes. Have a look at the following tree map which shows the JRuby code base, without worrying too much about the "metrics" part yet. At the top right I have highlighted the org.jruby.compiler package. The tree map shows that this package contains a few classes, such as ASTCompiler and ASTInspector, as well as three subpackages, namely impl, ir, and util, with util for example containing a class called HandleFactory, visible on the far right. (Visible in the full-size version.) In the following I explain how the tree maps visualise metrics, and I will explain how to create such maps from Java source code. As usual, adapting this other programming languages is relatively easy. Showing metrics in the tree map From the JRuby example above it is clear that tree maps can visualise two metrics by using the size and the colour of the rectangles. In the example the size of the rectangle represents the number of lines in the corresponding file (the actual length of the file, not the sum of the lines of code in all the methods) while the colour shows the sum of the cyclomatic complexity of all the methods in the class; the redder the class, the higher the complexity. This map allows easy identification of large and complex classes, and usually file size and complexity are correlated, meaning that larger rectangles appear in a darker shade of red. The left third of the JRuby tree map follows this pattern almost perfectly. However, the tree map also highlights an exception to this pattern: the IANA class in the org.jruby.ext.socket package. This class is large but has a very low complexity for a class if its size, something that is worth an investigation. It should be obvious that other size metrics, such as method count or length, could be mapped to the rectangle size, while metrics such as class fan-out or data abstraction coupling could be mapped to the colour. Going further, while it is intuitive to show a size-based metric as the size, it can be worthwhile to map other metrics to the size. For example, a tree map showing complexity via the size and fan-out as colour makes it obvious which complex classes have high fan-out and which ones have not. This can be useful to identify which (overly) complex classes can be refactored more easily. In a class that has lower fan-out the complexity is more "self-contained", likely allowing for one or more easy Extract Class refactorings. Going beyond these examples, it is also possible to map non-metric information onto the colour, for example the name of the dominant committer of a file. In such a case each committer would be mapped to an individual colour, and rectangles could be shaded grey if no single committer accounted for more than a certain percentage of commits. Such a view would show whether a development team has bought into collective code ownership, or whether developers have carved off individual packages for themselves. More ideas, and other visualisations here. Using Checkstyle to get metrics Checkstyle is meant to report on violations of guidelines, usually if a numeric threshold is exceeded. (I've shown how this data can be visualised in a previous article.) If all thresholds are set to zero Checkstyle considers everything a violation and reports all metrics. The following file shows the configuration used for this article. <module name="Checker"> <property name="severity" value="warning"/> <module name="TreeWalker"> <module name="FileContentsHolder"/> <module name="FileLength"> <property name="max" value="0"/> </module> <module name="MethodLength"> <property name="max" value="0"/> </module> <module name="ClassDataAbstractionCoupling"> <property name="max" value="0"/> </module> <module name="ClassFanOutComplexity"> <property name="max" value="0"/> </module> <module name="CyclomaticComplexity"> <property name="max" value="0"/> </module> </module> </module> With this file saved as "metrics.xml" Checkstyle can be invoked as follows to create an XML file containing all metrics we are interested in. java -jar checkstyle-all-4.1.jar -c metrics.xml -f xml -o checkstyle_out.xml -r <source_dir> <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <checkstyle version="4.1"> <file name="jruby-1.4.1/src/org/jruby/anno/AnnotationBinder.java"> <error line="1" severity="warning" message="File length is 487 lines (max allowed is 0)." source="com.puppycrawl.tools.checkstyle.checks.sizes.FileLengthCheck"/> <error line="31" column="1" severity="warning" message="Class Data Abstraction Coupling is 1 (max allowed is 0) classes [AnnotationBindingProcessor]." source="com.puppycrawl.tools.checkstyle.checks.metrics.ClassDataAbstractionCouplingCheck"/> <error line="31" column="1" severity="warning" message="Class Fan-Out Complexity is 5 (max allowed is 0)." source="com.puppycrawl.tools.checkstyle.checks.metrics.ClassFanOutComplexityCheck"/> <error line="36" column="5" severity="warning" message="Cyclomatic Complexity is 1 (max allowed is 0)." source="com.puppycrawl.tools.checkstyle.checks.metrics.CyclomaticComplexityCheck"/> <error line="36" column="5" severity="warning" message="Method length is 3 lines (max allowed is 0)." source="com.puppycrawl.tools.checkstyle.checks.sizes.MethodLengthCheck"/>... For languages other than Java other tools can be used to create a similar output file. The format does not need to be exactly the same (more later). Drawing tree maps with InfoVis I've been using the InfoVis Toolkit for years and while development on it has stagnated it just works; at least as long as a Java 5 runtime is available, which, unfortunately, is not the case on Mac OS X Snow Leopard. I'm open to suggestions of better/newer tools... InfoVis is an interactive Java application that has a decent user interface to map various fields of the input file onto different aspects of the tree map, size and colour being two obvious ones. At this point it is probably worth mentioning that I generally also "sort" the tree map by whatever metric I have mapped to the size. The screenshot on the right shows the settings I used for the JRuby tree map above, and in case you wonder about the abbreviations for the metrics, FLENGTH is obviously file length, and WMCcc stands for Weighted Method Count (cyclomatic complexity). Data conversion The remaining piece of the puzzle is the transformation of the Checkstyle output into a format that InfoVis can interpret. Luckily, the input file format for InfoVis, named TM3, is very simple. The following excerpt shows data for the first few classes of the JRuby code base. FLENGTH CDAC CFOC MCOUNT WMCloc WMCcc INTEGER INTEGER INTEGER INTEGER INTEGER INTEGER 487 6 16 15 422 87 org jruby anno AnnotationBinder 21 0 1 0 0 0 org jruby anno Coercion 14 0 0 0 0 0 org jruby anno CoercionType 5 0 0 0 0 0 org jruby anno FrameField 69 6 9 1 54 11 org jruby anno InvokerGenerator 136 1 3 4 93 26 org jruby anno JavaMethodDescriptor 20 0 0 0 0 0 org jruby anno JRubyClass The first line contains the names of the metrics, the second line their data types. Both are tab separated. The remaining lines contain the metrics for each of the classes followed by the tree structure, with all package nodes flattened out and separated by tabs as well. Sometimes non-XML formats are so refreshingly easy to work with. A small Ruby script, which I have attached further down can be used to convert Checkstyle's XML output into the TM3 format, using a command like this: ruby checkstyle2tm3.rb checkstyle_out.xml <source_dir> > treemap.tm3 Currently, the script has the path separator hard-coded. If you intend to run this script on a Windows machine you have to change the path separator constant in line 6 manually. This Zip archive contains the Ruby script used to convert Checkstyle XML output format to the InfoVis TM3 file format. Remember that you might have to change the path separator.For those in the know, it was always strange that Game of Thrones scoured all of Spain looking for castles and settled for Catalonia, Andalusia, Cáceres and the Basque Country. All of them make for fine locations, of course, but if you are looking for castles in Spain you should probably go to the community literally named after the many castles it has: Castille. Apparently, the producers wised up for their last attempt, as they have been witnessed scouting a Castillian location for season eight: Urueña Castle. Today, Castillian newspaper El Norte de Castilla picked up on this development, originally reported by the local Urueña paper, El Cisco, back on June 18, when Game of Thrones producers Bernie Caulfield and Chris Newman, accompanied by HBO’s Spanish Location Manager Pedro Aráez, visited this 11-to-13th Century Castillian castle. Reportedly, the Game of Thrones producers showed a particular interest in Urueña’s round tower, known as “Peinador de la Reina.” This characteristic torreón, pictured above, springs out of the cube-shaped castle walls, which nowadays hold a cemetery (this may seem strange, but there are hundreds like it around and little to do with them.) Though there is no photographic evidence, Game of Thrones is said to have scouted another location in Urueña: the Santa María del Azogue, also known as Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, a 16th Century Renaissance church built over its Medieval predecessor: Game of Thrones shot in my own homeland for season seven, so it would be pretty unbelievable if they were to also film in Castille, the homeland of my father’s ancestors. If you recall, the show’s eighth and final season may return to film in Southern Spain, specifically at Seville’s Royal Shipyards and Itálica’s amphitheater. Spain is shaping up to be a major filming location yet again, despite the arrival of winter in Westeros. That written, snow and cold aren’t unusual in Castille, unlike in Seville, so if Game of Thrones heads to Urueña in the middle of winter, and if they are lucky, they could find it like this.“The Church and the Proposed Equal Rights Amendment: A Moral Issue,” Ensign, Mar. 1980, 1 Copyright © 1980 by the Ensign Magazine All Rights Reserved Printed in the United States of America February 1980 Recently there has been increasing nationwide interest in the stand of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the proposed Equal Rights Amendment. Many members of the Church are sincerely asking, “Why has the Church considered this a moral issue?” and “Why has the First Presidency taken so positive a stand on the matter?” For the benefit of subscribers, members, and nonmember friends and neighbors, Church magazine personnel have researched this issue and have attempted to answer these questions with the following information: first, a contents listing of questions, answered in quick summary form, pages 2–3; second, a more detailed discussion on those questions, pages 5–17; and third, statements of the First Presidency on the issue, pages 19–23. Those statements are introduced by a review of the First Presidency’s responsibility to give such counsel, and members’ responsibility as they receive it. Some issues that confront societies are strictly political issues, some are moral issues, and many are both political and moral issues. Though the proposed Equal Rights Amendment has both political and moral aspects, emphasis is given here to its moral implications.The detail has retained a staggering quality. When Érik Lamela joined Tottenham Hotspur from Roma on 30 August last year, he cost a club record £30m but he did not start a Premier League fixture until 24 November. “It was weird and crazy for you to see?” Lamela says. “Well, it was a bit like that for me.” The one-time River Plate prodigy had come off a wonderful season at Roma, when he scored 15 goals in Serie A and helped the club to reach the Coppa Italia final. The only downer was that they lost 1-0 to their crosstown rivals, Lazio. The idea for Lamela was to shine in a rejigged Tottenham team, making light of the sale of Gareth Bale and to finish the season by lifting the World Cup with Argentina, ideally after beating Brazil in the final at the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro. Instead, Lamela experienced bitter frustration. The best-laid plans were reduced to rubble. It has gone down as the 22-year-old’s lost season, one in which he was waylaid by jarring assimilation difficulties, particularly with the language, and an injury that wiped him out from the turn of the year. The back problem also accounted for the World Cup dream. Lamela watched the final, which Argentina lost narrowly to Germany, at his house in London. The winger made his Tottenham debut as a substitute in the 1-0 derby defeat at Arsenal on 1 September but it quickly became apparent that he did not enjoy the trust of the manager at the time, André Villas-Boas. Lamela had followed Franco Baldini, the sporting director, from Roma to Tottenham and the theory went that he was not a Villas-Boas signing. When Villas-Boas finally started Lamela in the league, it was in the 6-0 loss at Manchester City and, in what felt like a political statement, he left him on for the 90 minutes. “I was not struggling with any injuries in my early weeks at the club,” Lamela says. “It was not until the first week in December that I felt the injury [initially in the thigh]. I didn’t want to miss out on any playing time so I carried on and then I had the problem with my back as a result.” The bewilderment is still plain, although there is a pragmatic streak that runs through Lamela, which feels at odds with the flair of his on-field persona. “The manager has to call it as he sees it,” Lamela says. “There might have been people at that time who were showing better form. It’s down to me to be fit and in form. You’re not guaranteed a place just because you cost a certain amount of money. “The thing about the manager is that he was very, very open and his style was to speak to every player individually all the time. It was kind of an open door, so on a couple of occasions I would speak to him. I told him that I hadn’t had the chance to play three, four, five games on the spin, to convince myself and other people that I can play in this league. But it’s all in the past now. I’ve managed to have more regular performances this season and continuity in the side. I’m proving to people that I can play in this league.” The summer was a pivotal period. It was strange to watch the World Cup from afar. Lamela had been an ever-present in Alejandro Sabella’s Argentina squads last season – until the injury – and, as an aside, he has been called up every time thus far by the new manager, Tata Martino. If fit, he would surely have gone to Brazil. But Lamela saw the bigger picture. “Of course, there was a part of me that thought I could have been there myself but it was the injury that was responsible for taking all that away from me,” Lamela says. “I’ve discussed it with my family and what I have now is like a fresh hope for my career. There is something to aim for, to strive for. I am still young. Hopefully, I can have another chance at the final. “I had goose bumps before every match when I listened to the national anthem but when they got to the final, it was nothing but pride for the rest of the lads. I think we shaded the final. I think we almost deserved to have won.” Weaker characters than Lamela might have wanted to walk away from a club after enduring such a season, to push for a move elsewhere. There was interest in him back in Italy. Tottenham were in a position where they could not sell – Lamela’s value had dropped after only three Premier League starts – but it was all academic. His determination to succeed at White Hart Lane had merely intensified. “There was talk, not only in the summer, but in December – people had spoken about me in Italy and stuff,” Lamela says. “But I’d spoken with my family and my girlfriend and we were all convinced that my time would come, that once I got over this injury, I would be able to show what I could do. We were never going to leave this challenge.” The ambition and the competitive fires burn inside Lamela. They always have done, since the days when he joined River Plate as a seven-year-old and tore it up in their junior ranks. As a 12-year-old, he scored more than 120 goals in a season and Barcelona tried to take him to Spain, just as they had done with Lionel Messi at a similar age. It was reported that Barcelona had offered Lamela an annual payment of €100,000, a house for the family, employment for his parents and education for him and his two brothers. “I went over there,” Lamela says. “I trained with them. I even played a kids’ tournament with them but when I went back, I spoke to River and I decided to stay there.” His mother, Miriam, is on record as saying that she did not want her son to have such responsibility when he was so young; the pressure of knowing that the family had emigrated to Barcelona because of him. But Lamela never had any doubts that he would become a professional footballer and there is an old video clip to prove it. At the age of 12, he told a Trans World Sport film crew that his dream was “to win the World Cup with Argentina, just like Maradona”. He adds: “I was born to play football. I may have been taught to play but everybody is born for something and I was born to play football.” Lamela’s mentality was forged at River Plate. He made his debut for them at 17 and, by 18, he was a first-team regular, playing in the Superclásico against Boca Juniors. The Buenos Aires derby is one of the most heated in world football; in 2004, the Observer described it as making “the Old Firm game look like a primary school kick-about”. Lamela was in the side that won 1-0 at River Plate’s El Monumental in November 2010 and he travelled to La Bombonera for the return in May 2011. By then, with Ariel Ortega having left the club, Lamela had the fabled No10 shirt. The River Plate team bus was pelted with rocks on the way in. “We got there but without any glass in the bus,” Lamela says, with a smile. Boca won 2-0. “Those games were among the best things that have ever happened to me in my football career,” Lamela says. “I’d been at River since I was a seven-year-old kid and it’s something you dream of. Derby day in Buenos Aires is completely crazy and those sort of experiences have shaped me. When you’ve played at a club like River, who are a massive, massive club in Argentina – and Roma, the same, in Italy – you learn how to deal with the pressure. After that, you can live with anything.” Lamela is talking at the Bruce Grove youth centre, where the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation’s skills project is helping to get youngsters off the streets and on to more positive pathways. It is his first UK interview and he speaks in Spanish, even though his English is improving. He can understand things better these days and he feels more a part of it in the dressing room. “The language barrier was a bit of a factor last season but my first year at Roma [in 2011-12] wasn’t fantastic either, for similar reasons,” Lamela says. “It’s always tough when you go somewhere for the first year and maybe in the second year, you start to hit the ground running more. I didn’t speak Italian in my first year in Rome but I did in the second.” Lamela wears wicked trainers and he has a slightly husky voice. He is a cool guy. He has a kickabout with a group of boys at the youth centre and a table tennis match, too. It turns out that he is a bit of a whizz. “He’s from Buenos Aires,” explains a friend of his. “In Buenos Aires, they learn how to win at everything.” What shines through is Lamela’s love of football. “It’s the thing I enjoy most in life,” he says. “I live for football. I’m at my absolute happiest when I’m out on the field playing, or in training. If I go home, I’ll just have a kickabout there because I love the game so much.” Lamela returned to London two weeks before the start of pre-season but his preparatory work had begun immediately after the final day of last season. “I started training [in Argentina] once the season had finished,” he says. “I had started to be almost pain-free so it was the time to start. Gradually, the pain went and I’m fine now.” The season has begun promisingly for him. He has benefited from a proper pre-season and he has a new manager, Mauricio Pochettino, who is picking him. Lamela’s belief in his ability has always been total and he is certainly not afraid to try his moves. They have not always come off at Tottenham; Lamela feels raw and mercurial, and there have been misjudgments. But it is clear that the talent is there, as his outrageous goal in the 5-1 home win over Asteras Tripoli proved. Previously, most people in England thought that the rabona was something off Strictly Come Dancing. Not any more. “It’s not such a big deal,” Lamela says. “It was a split-second decision where the ball just fell right for me. I didn’t think before the game: ‘Right, I am going out to do one of those today.’ I was just trying to score. My philosophy is to win.” Facebook Twitter Pinterest Erik Lamela and Ledley King help teach the rabona at the Bruce Grove Youth Centre. Photograph: Alan Walter/Action Images The Tottenham Hotspur Foundation’s skills project steers vulnerable young people away from crime and anti-social behaviour and engages them on to sport, education and employment pathways. Skills recently secured funding from the Premier League and People’s Postcode Lottery which has enabled the Foundation to roll the programme out across a number of key community hubs in HaringeyAfter the attack on Parliament in 2001, it was clear to all right thinking members of the strategic community that the most likely scenario for conflict in South Asia would be that of punitive retaliation after a Pakistan terror strike. In 2001, the prime minister and the chiefs of the three services discussed what could be done. The PM wanted a swift, surgical and punitive action whereas the chiefs were offering a war of attrition. None of the three services offered what the PM wanted because either they did not have the intelligence, or the hardware, or the training or a concept. The situation actually called for a surgical strike by special forces to be launched across the border in specially equipped low-flying, night-flying helicopters, of which we had none at the time. Advertising It is assumed that the chiefs would have gone back shamefaced and addressed this lacuna immediately. But seven years later came the Mumbai horror and the then PM and the chiefs had the same kind of conversation they had had in 2001. The PM asking for options for punitive retaliation and the chiefs offered none, for the same reasons as in 2001. If it wasn’t clear in 2001, it should have been clear in 2008, that a war arising out of punitive retaliation would be the most likely scenario for conflict in South Asia and that the three services should prepare single-mindedly for that scenario. Incredible though it seems, nothing was done towards preparing for that scenario. Then came Pathankot and now Uri. None of the three services have worked towards a punitive retaliation strategy using special forces in a cross-border raid of the kind that eliminated Osama bin Laden. The reasons in 2001 and 2016 are the same. No helicopters, no integration, no intelligence, no training and no operational concept. A special force raid will probably result in escalation, but the onus for escalation will rest on Pakistanis. The same applies to an air force precision strike towards which the IAF has put in no effort since 2001. The army has 10 battalions of para-commandos — and many of them are special forces — but have no helicopters with low night-flying capability, though these are available off the shelf in western markets. The lacuna was attempted to be redressed by creating a CDS and putting a Special Operation Command (SOC) under him consisting of special forces, RAW and helicopters with analysis units. But the proposal has been hanging fire with the defence minister ever since he took over. Much money has been spent on hardware by all the services between 2001 and 2016. So it isn’t the shortage of money that has prevented the three services from setting up a punitive retaliation capability. A special operation command would cost under Rs 1,000 crore and it is a national requirement, so why should a service shy away from opening its purse strings? So after Uri, we had politicians issuing aggressive warnings and service chiefs talking of retaliation in a time of “our own choosing”. Hot pursuit is an internationally recognised concept; retaliation in a time of our own choosing is not. This is one occasion when a knee-jerk reaction was called for and we should have been ready, considering that Pakistan has an avowed strategy of bleeding India with a thousand cuts. Ideally, the special forces of the army and the night flying helos of the air-force (if they have any) should be integrated into one command and be pre-trained on a number of possible missions in peacetime to conduct raids during the dark hours. Similarly, Marcos of the Navy should be tasked off the coast of Balochistan to help the local resistance movement with intelligence driven surgical strikes. All this should be practiced in peacetime so that a knee-jerk reaction is possible when the opportunity offers itself, like now. Advertising A certain amount of hardware updating like individual night vision glasses, throat mikes and weapons would be necessary. Foreign assistance for training should be taken from the US or Israel so that we don’t simply flaunt our special forces when they have no operational capability. Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar are flaunting their actions in Pakistan and they will act in the same manner again, but let us be prepared. Escalation is something we are ready for but Pakistan, with its weaker conventional strength, is not. By carrying out a precision strike we leave it to the Pakistanis to choose escalation, which, “gaming” has shown, they will not resort to. But there is no gaming in India although the South Asia scenario has been repeatedly gamed abroad and there is a much clearer idea of outcomes outside the establishment than inside it. If the services are waiting for a directive to prepare for punitive retaliation then give them one, but there are enough experts in each service to advise the chiefs where to put the money, and embark without further delay on creating the requisite capability. Without this the hollow threats that are being issued will once again fizzle out.I released a patch for production line recently, then found a minor save game bug that I patched right away. There is a long list of stuff we improved and added and changed, so here is the full list: [version 1.27] 1) [Design] Touchscreen is now an upgrade for fit dashboard instead of fit electronics. 2) [Bug] Fixed bug where the AI would be very reluctant to research air conditioning or polished paintwork. 3) [Bug] Placing facilities and slots is now correctly recorded as a capital expenditure in expenses charts. 4) [Bug] Bubble next to car sales icon now expands to show numbers greater than 999 correctly. 5) [Bug] Fixed visual bug where scrolling in the sales showroom resulted in invisible cars. 6) [Balance] Research costs of some later-game research items have been increased. 7) [GUI] Various improvements to the style scheduler window. 8) [Feature] Marketing campaigns can now be launched to boost brand awareness, and thus visits to the showrooms. 9) [Bug] Fixed crash bug if the game autosaves within a minute of a manual save, the next time the save dialog was launched. 10) [Bug] Fixed bug in slot-picker where expand icon buttons (+/-) would not unlock when research triggered if slot picker was open. 11) [Bug] Fixed bug where the market screen doesnt show the correct market segment of cars until you have viewed them in the car design screen. 12) [Bug] Fixed bug where cars would have a red error message on them if the next slot was a really long conveyor journey away. 13) [GUI] The style scheduler at the start of the production line now lets you edit existing quantities of entries. 14) [Feature] Wingmirrors can now be manufactured, and also have folding and heated upgrades. 15) [Balance] Costs of wingmirrors and alloy wheels has gone up. Making alloy wheels requires more steel.Keyless entry worth more, requires 2 chips. 16) [Balance] Resource prices are now affected by demand from AI competitors. 17) [Balance] Crossing up to a new price category now produces a ‘bump’ in value which prevents pricing anomalies. 18) [Tutorial] New pop-up explains what to do when you have researched a new body style. 19) [Balance] Increased price of last robot upgrade so its less of a no-brainer upgrade. Also slight increase in power-draw. 20) [Feature] Offices (marketing and research) can now only be placed in office areas zoned on the map. Non office items cannot be placed there. There is some cool stuff in there, and I think that 8) is a big change (ooh look! actual marketing!) and 14 adds new stuff to research and play with, plus the combination of 16),17) and 19 is actually pretty vital (and much needed) to increase the extent to which the long term game is balanced. The game has definitely tended towards easy, with cash becoming a non-problem once you have put a good few hours in and done half or most of the tech upgrades. balancing a game is hard, and a constantly moving target as new features and bug fixes go in, so this is something I will have to constantly revisit. However, probably the biggest obvious gameplay change in there is that last one, which frankly was a last-minute decision to add. (I have mused on the mechanic for a while, but made a last minute decision to actually include it now rather than later). Basically the old game let you slap down a research office or marketing office anywhere on the map. The new game sets aside dedicated office space which cannot be moved or expanded. Nor can you build production stuff in there. It adds a new restriction on the game which may annoy existing players used to the free-form style of the previous version. So why did I do it? Firstly, the corralling of offices like this prevents ‘research spamming’. Essentially you could ‘cheat’ in the game by slapping down 30 or 40 research centers right at the start using a loan, and then splat through all of the research in record time. You then had an advantage over the AI, and could quickly start producing cars with high tech, and never put down a single production slot without access to a bunch of upgrades. I disliked the ‘spirit’ of this approach, and it seemed unlikely to be practical in the real world. You wont get financiers to back a 10 billion dollar car company that employs nothing but researchers. I like the idea of encouraging research alongside the game, not as a prelude to it. Secondly it introduces some new difficult and strategic decisions. The layout of the factory is now slightly more complex, and the positioning and size of research centers is more tricky. it also encourages upgrading to more efficient research offices (space-wise) which otherwise had little to recommend them. Plus when it comes to expansion, it means you have another factor to take into account when choosing potential lots to acquire. Thirdly it feels more ‘real’. In a real factory researchers desks are not next to car-body stamping machines, for obvious reasons. This makes the layout look more like a real factory and less like a game, which has to be a good thing :D. Its always going to be difficult making a gameplay change during early access. So far I haven’t got any angry shouts at me, and we have over 20,000 players, so that looks like its a good sign. I *do* need to include a LOT more tutorial hints as to what is going on, as its not explained at all, but I think in the long run, the effect this change will have will be seen as positive for the experience of the game. I guess only time, and checking of forums, reddit, twitter and facebook posts (and blog comments) will really tell. I expected more outcry YTBH, so it seems things are going well (or people upgrading slowly :D). In unrelated news my construction hat for my EGX booth is now here, along with Production Line stickers :DPrepare yourselves! I am about to utter a radical statement! Gasp! I would like to not get raped. As such, I am a radical. I say radical in the sense of requiring the restructuring or demolishment of social norms and institutions in order for something to be comprehensively addressed. For example, this year we were reminded that a radical statement for Black North Americans is: I would like to not be murdered by my government. That is a reasonable thing to ask. It is also a radical statement. These are not mutually exclusive categories. My radical statement is: I would like to not be raped. I would like to not grow up with both implicit and explicit messages from the media, from authority figures and educators, and from the way people treat me, that result in the acute awareness that I may be raped, that rape is a constant possibility in my life. "Hmm...we need some kind of motivating plot for our heroine. What do you think: pregnancy, or rape?" "Why not both?" I would like to not have had to learn the many things I need to do to prevent my own rape, and then to find that all those things will not be enough. "You walked home alone?? / You let him walk you home??" I would like to not have to live with the constant knowledge that my rape is possible, very very possible, that is is all at once something I am responsible for stopping, something I must be active in preventing, and something that is very likely to happen to me no matter what I do because it is just something that happens. Anti-Rape nail polish Rohypnol -
of Kyle Marquardt………….. I have been thoroughly entrenched in photography since high school, but it wasn’t until I learned I could combine it with the things I love most that I got into travel photography. After volunteering with a travel company civilized adventures. I got a fantastic offer to go to Antarctica as a photographic guide. Here I got to show people the sights, take photos and inspire everyone to get their best photos. Since then I have hosted photographic trips in Kenya & Tanzania, the Norwegian and Canadian Arctic, Greenland and of course Antarctica. Iceberg half underwater Before I was even in Antarctica, I knew I wanted to get an iceberg half underwater. I did a little research and experimented with underwater housings so I could be prepared to get a shot like this. When the opportunity came I was ready and snapped this shot by hanging off the side of my zodiac! White baby seal With over four million fur seals in the great sub antarctic island of South Georgia, you get quite used to these black pups flopping around the beach. But when you get the chance to photograph a rare leucistic fur seal with the blonde coat you know you have something special! I had to take a few shots as the sun was behind the clouds and it was very dark; I was dealing with slow 1/100ths of a second shutter speeds. This is why photographers take so many pictures, between the 20 shots I took this one had the best pose with no motion blur! Black and White Mountains South Georgia is known for it’s dramatic scenery, quite often I like taking landscape shots with my telephoto lens, somewhat unconventional but when you see these perfect rays in this stunning set of mountains far away, you end up zooming in on a scene normally only accessible by helicopter! King Penguins The special moments when the chaos amongst a busy colony seems to flow into a peaceful moment is exactly what a photographer is looking for. I was laying on the ground scanning the colony for this calm behaviour when these two snuggled up to eachother, I trained my lens on them and snapped this couples portrait. Iceberg Dotted with Penguins This is among the first sights antarctica may greet you with, great icy monoliths with hints of what is to come, almost like an appetizer tray with just a bit of the best things antarctica has to offer to prepare you for the grand splendor it has to offer. After seeing so much ice you begin to learn how to interpret the shapes carved into the ice and can actually read the history on the icebergs. You can see if they’ve turned over, what orientation they used to be and where the “shoreline” was. You can spend hours “reading” every piece of ice you see. Glacier in the sun The weather is also dramatic, one minute it is calm quiet and sunny, the next you may have ultra fast winds whipping over the top of the glacier. I’m never afraid to shoot into the sun, something a lot of people are taught not to do. I’ve learned that the most difficult situation to shoot in is often the most rare and beautiful. Arctic Walrus These three walrus were enduring a particularly hot day. Normally their skin lacks a lot of colour but when it gets hot, blood flows to the surface of their skin and turns it into a pink cottage cheese colour! After seeing this I don’t think anyone should be allowed to complain about cellulite, it could be worse if you’re a walrus! Speeding Cheetah This mother cheetah was posing for us early in the golden morning of the Masai Mara in Kenya. We took some great portraits of her when she got up and walked purposefully over the hill. The local guides with me knew she was ready to hunt and we made the decision to stop photographing her cubs and get ahead of the mother to capture her on a chase. Our quick decisions worked perfectly as mother cheetah burst after a gazelle right in front of us. The gazelle got away but we all came back with stunning photos of her. Lazy Leopard We had seen a few glimpses of the leopard before, but the reclusive nature of these big cats made sure we couldn’t get a clear view of them, either hidden away in bushes or asleep in high branches. All throughout the safari we were keen on getting more photos of leopards when we came across this beauty. The sun was setting ensuring the light would scoop under the canopy of the acacia tree and light our leopard in the most perfect way! Tanzania Sunset I was very lucky to get a shot like this. It was quite dark at this point and had to use my telephoto lens to capture this scene the way I saw it. I had to shoot at 1/40th of a second, which is very hard to do with a 400mm lens hand held. Thank goodness for image stabilization, I was able to get a crystal clear picture out of a few exposures! The thing about every photo I’ve taken is that I’m always with other travellers, regular people just like you. People think that only extraordinary people get to see these things and that’s not true! It’s ordinary people that make it viable for me to go on these adventures and trip after trip has proven to me that everyone with the drive can take great photos.by Ed Coghlan The United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has announced it will reduce the amount of almost every Schedule II opiate and opioid medication that may be manufactured in the United States in 2017. The reduction will be by 25 percent or more, according to a Final Order being published in the Federal Register tomorrow and available for public inspection today here. For several other medicines, including hydrocodone, it will be a much larger reduction. The DEA is reducing hydrocodone manufacturing by 2/3rd. The DEA says that demand for these opioid medicines, represented by prescriptions written by DEA-registered practitioners, has decreased. The 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) released last month found 6.5 million Americans over the age of 12 used controlled prescription medicines non-medically during the past month, second only to marijuana and more than past-month users of cocaine, heroin, and hallucinogens combined. Earlier this year the CDC issued guidelines to practitioners recommending a reduction in prescribing opioid medications for chronic pain. According to the DEA press release, the purpose of quotas is to provide for the adequate and uninterrupted supply for legitimate medical need of the types of schedule I and II controlled substances that have a potential for abuse, while limiting the amounts available to prevent diversion.. The DEA considers data from many sources, including estimates of the legitimate medical need; estimates of retail consumption based on prescriptions dispensed; manufacturers’ data on actual production, sales, inventory, exports, product development needs, and manufacturing losses; data from DEA’s own internal system for tracking controlled substance transactions; and past quota histories. Once the aggregate quota is set, DEA allocates individual manufacturing and procurement quotas to those companies that apply for it. DEA may revise a company’s quota at any time during the year if change is warranted due to increased sales or exports; new manufacturers entering the market; new product development; or product recalls. Subscribe to our blog via emailComplete the past. A legacy of bad change can inhibit your change effort, even if you had nothing to do with the unfortunate history. Acknowledging—and, if possible, correcting—past change failures is often essential to future success. Build participation and engagement. Heed feedback even when it doesn’t seem likely to yield objective improvements. The ownership people feel when you adopt their best ideas will pay off in ways you often cannot foresee. Change the change. People who resist change are often the ones most concerned about getting things right. Give them the chance to help you make a good change initiative better. Return to purpose. Employees need to know not only what will change but why the new reality will be better. Don’t be shy about offering explanations as directly as possible. Boost awareness. In the early stages, if the only way to keep the conversation about change alive is to entertain highly charged discussions, so be it. A complete lack of feedback can sound the death knell for change. When a change initiative falters, the knee-jerk response can be to blame those who won’t get on board. Jeffrey Ford, of the Ohio State University, and Laurie Ford, of Critical Path Consultants, examine why that type of reaction is not only pointless but potentially destructive. Drawing on their years of research and consulting work, the authors recommend seeing resistance for what it really is—feedback—and propose five ways for leaders to use that feedback to effect change more productively. The Idea in Brief You announce a change initiative. Some employees are silent; others complain. You bristle at this “threat” and determine to squelch the resistance. But wait: Resistance is a form of feedback from people with deep knowledge about your company’s daily operations. Treat their concerns as valuable information, and you gain important ideas for communicating and executing the change initiative. And you win buy-in essential for success. Consider: A manager proposed merging the billing group with her call center to create a large customer-service function. Because this required cross-training in both tasks, everyone balked at the extra work. But when she asked them for suggestions for implementing the change, they perked up. One idea—billers and callers training each other—struck gold, and fostered collaboration postmerger. The Idea in Practice How to use resistance to effect productive change: Explain What’s Changing With any change effort, the jobs of people lower in the organization will change in ways higher-ups may not anticipate. Don’t suppress dialogue about what the change will involve; you’ll miss opportunities to gain these employees’ buy-in. Instead, encourage any talk about the initiative—even complaints and heated discussion. They might be the only things that keep a conversation about the change alive. Explain Why Help people who aren’t involved in planning the change understand why their jobs are being upended. Example: An IT executive wanted to improve her hospital’s computer systems for patient registration and insurance reimbursement. She communicated regularly about the change with the rest of the executive team. But no one explained to rank-and-file employees how the move would benefit patients and the bottom line. Launch meetings were contentious until the executive arranged meetings for the entire hospital staff explaining the reasons for the change. Look for the Pitfalls Gather input from people who voice their reservations about the change. Often, they genuinely care about getting things right and are close enough to the company’s inner workings to recognize a proposed change’s pitfalls. Example: The COO of a large manufacturing company wanted to consolidate two groups—product-design engineers, and capital-planning engineers—to improve collaboration and efficiency. The capital-planning engineering manager objected in strong but vague terms. When the COO probed deeper, the manager revealed that key players would leave if the consolidation took place. The manager ultimately proposed an entirely different plan that met the company’s goals more effectively than the original one. Elicit Ideas To build participation and engagement in your change initiative, simply ask employees for their ideas on how to make the change work. By using their good ideas, you stoke their enthusiasm, sense of ownership, and commitment to the change. Uncover Past Failures Resistance to change can stem from unhappiness over problematic earlier initiatives. People expect history to repeat itself—and they resist going through it all over again. Find out what happened to previous change efforts. You may uncover clues to resistance to your current initiative. Example: A manager of a vehicle-service organization who proposed updating the group’s technology encountered stiff resistance. He learned that his predecessor had promised raises and promotions to employees who mastered new technology tools. Though the employees came through, they never got the promised rewards because their then-boss left the company. After the new manager apologized for his predecessor, employees’ skepticism about his proposed change dissolved. When change initiatives run aground—as they so often do—change agents can be quick to point a finger at the people who never got on board. The assumption is that they resisted a perfectly logical move, so it fell apart. However, blaming resisters not only is pointless but can actually lead to destructive managerial behaviors. When managers perceive resistance as a threat, they may become competitive, defensive, or uncommunicative. They are sometimes so concerned with being right—and not looking bad—that they lose sight of their original goals. In stubbornly pushing things through without understanding the resistance, they sacrifice goodwill, put valuable relationships in jeopardy, and squander the opportunity to engage skeptics in service of a better plan. They don’t hear about missing pieces and faulty assumptions. And, in true us-versus-them fashion, they presume that only the other folks—the resisters—need to alter their behavior and that the change would succeed if not for the resisters’ irrational and self-serving actions. It’s true that resistance can be irrational and self-serving. But like it or not, it is an important form of feedback. Dismissing it robs you of a powerful tool as you implement change. It takes a strong leader to step up and engage when a change effort meets with pushback. If you can gain perspective by paying attention to, understanding, and learning from behaviors you perceive as threatening, you will ultimately deliver better results. Resistance Is a Resource In our research and consulting work, we’ve had the opportunity to study change initiatives at scores of large and small companies, and we’ve found that to understand resistance to a program, you need to start by adjusting your own mind-set. Ask yourself two questions: “Why am I seeing this behavior as resistance?” and “If I viewed the resistance as feedback, what could I learn about how to refine the change effort?” Once you’ve honestly answered those questions, you can begin to see resistance as a resource—as energy to be channeled on behalf of the organization. (See the sidebar “Defining Resistance.”) Even difficult people can provide valuable input when you treat their communications with respect and are willing to reconsider some aspects of the change you’re initiating. Here are five ways you can use resistance to effect change more productively. Defining Resistance Managers have many terms to describe resistance: pushback, not buying in, criticism, foot-dragging, and so on. And they may perceive as resistance a broad spectrum of behaviors they don’t like—from an innocent question to a roll of the eyes to overt sabotage. Moreover, whether something constitutes resistance is a subjective matter, on both sides. Consider the experiences of David, Elaine, and Allen, managers at an insurance company who held meetings in their respective units to inform people about the launch of a new performance-management system. These meetings were the first opportunity for frontline employees to learn the particulars. The three compared notes afterward. David said he’d gotten considerable “pushback” in the form of “a ton of questions.” He’d felt as if he were being “interrogated”; employees were “irritated” when he didn’t know the answers. Elaine didn’t get a single question and characterized the shallow comments and silence as “stonewalling.” Allen described his people as “very receptive.” They’d asked many questions, and although some employees were disappointed when he didn’t have an answer, he promised to get back to them. Overall, he reported a “very engaging and energizing” meeting. We didn’t attend these meetings, but disparate attitudes toward resistance are nonetheless evident in the managers’ responses. Two opposite behaviors—asking questions and not asking questions—were perceived as resistance, depending on the manager. Asking questions was itself seen in different ways, either as resistance or as engagement. Meanwhile, so-called resisters probably didn’t view their own behavior as inconsistent with the organization’s objectives. (When managers themselves exhibit “resistant” behavior, they often rightly don’t see it as such. Indeed, it’s usually a manifestation of a rational, reasonable desire to be heard.) Quite possibly, Elaine unconsciously discouraged questions; alternatively, the members of her group might legitimately have had nothing to ask—they’d heard enough. She simply chose to see stonewalling in their silence. David didn’t consider the possibility that either his lack of answers or his failure to promise to get them might have contributed to people’s irritation. His folks might even have been surprised to hear him label their questions as “pushback,” given that the meeting was seemingly an opportunity to get answers. Allen, in contrast, appeared to enjoy the dialogue, questions and all—a receptiveness that exemplifies a productive reaction to resistance. 1. Boost awareness. By the time you’re ready to implement a change program, you’ve probably had ample opportunity to process what it will mean for you as an individual. It’s easy to forget that the change hasn’t been similarly internalized by those who will be most affected by it—in ways you can’t imagine. Drop two levels down in the hierarchy, and the tasks people are doing are probably invisible to you. Their jobs will change in ways that you don’t understand, and if you suppress dialogue, you’ll miss opportunities to gain their buy-in. In the early stages, any talk—even a litany of complaints or a highly charged discussion—may be the one thing that keeps a conversation about change alive. A litany of complaints may be the one thing that keeps a conversation about change alive. 2. Return to purpose. Awareness is about what; purpose is about why. People who aren’t involved in the planning need to understand not only what is about to change but also why their jobs are being upended. We worked with Alison, an IT executive who was preparing for a change in her hospital’s computer systems for registration and insurance reimbursement. With those two functions at the opposite ends of the business cycle, the new systems would touch almost every employee, including clinical and laboratory personnel, in some way. The initiative was a crucial one because delays in reimbursement are costly to hospitals, and the most common reason for rejecting claims is incomplete or inaccurate information. When a bill bounces back, it can take a long time to track down the error; some irregularities are never resolved. Throughout the design process, Alison had communicated regularly with the rest of the executive team, preparing handouts for them to take back to their groups. Given that effort on her part, she’d assumed that the executives would explain to rank-and-file employees how the move would benefit not just the company’s bottom line but also the patients the company served, by ensuring they received the right treatments and were not wrongly billed. As it turned out, the executives had been reluctant to deliver what they feared would be seen as bad news, and leaders from functions such as finance and clinical services didn’t feel equipped to answer questions about the new technology. They’d hoped that Alison would take charge of the kickoff, so their people had heard only rumors—and no explanation of the rationale for the change. Consequently, her launch meetings were contentious. The insurance team, which feared that historical files would become inaccessible, was particularly annoyed. Alison had to postpone the rollout and arrange a series of meetings to explain the changes, with IT team members at the ready to describe their implications. Though she was disappointed that the members of the management team hadn’t communicated with their own people, she acknowledged a key lesson: The pushback from frontline employees made her appreciate the need to educate the entire hospital staff about the purpose of the systemic change. 3. Change the change. Frustrating though it is, resistance can lead to better results. People who are outspoken about their objections to a change are often those who genuinely care about getting things right and who are close enough to the inner workings of an organization to recognize a plan’s pitfalls. Consider Harold, the COO of a large manufacturing organization we worked with. He had drawn up a plan to consolidate two groups: the product design engineers, who worked at the main office, and the capital-planning engineers, who worked in the plants. His objective was to improve collaboration, communication, and efficiency. But when Harold announced his plan, Eric, the manager of the capital-planning engineers, voiced strong objections at every turn. As the meeting progressed, Harold grew reluctant to allow Eric to speak; his vague and ambiguous complaints were incomprehensible to Harold and made people uneasy about the change. Harold later invited Eric in for a private discussion and, with some probing, discovered what was really bugging him. The capital-planning engineers worked closely with a third group, plant maintenance, to make decisions about what equipment to buy, lease, repair, and so on. “You don’t want to have me reporting to the product design group or even the engineering VP,” Eric told Harold. “I belong with the plants because that’s where my work is.” Furthermore, the head of maintenance had informed Eric that he would start looking for a new job—taking a couple of his best mechanics with him—if he was not on the same team with the capital-planning engineers. He didn’t want to have to beg for engineering support or miss chances to offer his input about capital purchase decisions. Eric was surprised when Harold asked him for alternative ideas that would still meet the objectives of the consolidation plan. Eric proposed a biweekly, half-day “consolidation meeting” of all the engineering teams in the company. The gathering would have a specific agenda: to address machine status and maintenance issues, equipment needs related to partnerships and product lines, and capital investment plans. “My consolidation plan was out the window,” Harold admitted. But the new plan met the company’s goals more effectively than his initial proposal had. 4. Build participation and engagement. Buy-in can be a simple matter of being heard, as the experience of Sharon, the leader of a 110-person phone center we worked with, shows. Sharon was preparing to integrate a group of 30 billing specialists with the existing workforce. Her plan called for telephone staff to learn how to send and adjust bills, and for billing staff to become skilled at other customer service tasks. She believed the company would benefit from having a larger group of people who were cross-trained in the two aspects of customer relationships. Sharon anticipated some pushback when she introduced the change in a series of meetings with the staff, and she got it in spades. So she took careful note of everyone’s concerns and ideas, ultimately creating a “worry list” and an “idea list” from among the most common and important items. The biggest worries concerned pay scales and the apportionment of physical space when the groups merged. The idea list included proposals that had been offered in every group (for instance, mix the staff together in similar cubicles); ideas suggested by only a few people with specialized knowledge (get a second intranet server to support faster communication); and a few wild cards, which Sharon thought were unlikely to go anywhere. Among the wild ones: let the billers train the phoners and the phoners train the billers, and give the staff the unspent training dollars as a bonus; forget about cross-training and move everybody into the same area but keep their functions separate; go ahead with the cross-training but don’t move the billers into the call center. To Sharon’s surprise, they jumped at the prospect of training one another. Sharon took the worry and idea lists to the rest of the executive team and, with their input, created a third “executive action list.” She then brought the three lists into follow-up meetings with staff. Employees bypassed suggestions to reject cross-training and relocation; they knew those were basically nonnegotiable. But, to Sharon’s surprise, they jumped at the prospect of training one another—a proposal she’d considered so ridiculous that she hadn’t even taken it to the executive team. Employees were so enthusiastic about that idea that the group came up with a way to integrate it into the plan. Sharon said that, regardless of her own opinion, it was worth the effort to let them “get something they felt was at least partly their own.” She willingly embraced the core concerns of her people—which were really about whether they’d get along and whether different groups would remain socially separate even after they were collocated—and she held events to forge stronger relationships among them. In the process, Sharon bonded with her employees and fostered good cooperation as they underwent training and then collaborated in their new location. 5. Complete the past. As employees listen to new proposals, they remember previous experiences. Given the dismal rate of success in change efforts, it’s not surprising that people expect history to repeat itself—and resist going through it all over again. If you don’t know the history, an explanation for the resistance can remain elusive. George, the head of a vehicle service organization we studied, planned to upgrade his maintenance team’s technology by giving the group GPS and computer communications systems. He had met with the fleet and service supervisors one-on-one, and he knew they wanted these systems. But when he spoke to them as a group about the installation and training schedules, the supervisors surprised him by saying, “This isn’t going to be fair for the backroom machine guys,” “You’re going around us again,” and “This won’t work any better than last time.” When George probed into their skepticism, one supervisor finally mentioned an incident from a training program two years earlier. George’s predecessor had promised promotions and pay raises to the purchasing and inventory staffers if they could switch to a new system within eight weeks. The four men involved buckled down and learned the new system, transferred inventory data, and updated their records in time—but they never received their promotions or pay hikes. Embarrassed, the manager at the time found a poor substitute for three of them—some overtime opportunities—and promised the fourth a promotion when he reached his two-year anniversary. But that never came to pass because the manager left the company before the anniversary. The men believed that the manager had never intended to obtain raises and promotions. They’d also convinced themselves that his decisions had racial and cultural overtones. Although George hadn’t been the cause of the problem, he knew he would have to live with its consequences. His solution: a heartfelt public apology to the employees, on behalf of the company, for their having been misled and for the lack of respect demonstrated by leaving the problem unresolved. He went further, offering his personal apology to each man and promising he would do what he could to “make it right.” George kept his promise. He met with the director of HR and the VP of operations to see that the purchasing and inventory personnel got their promised titles and the best pay increases the budget would allow. Three weeks later, the HR director met personally with the men to tell them when the pay hikes would take effect. As their skepticism finally began to dissolve, one inventory manager said, “You know what made the biggest difference to me? Seeing that George was shocked and sorry to find out we had been treated like that in the first place. The way he said he was sorry, even though he hadn’t done anything, I knew we had a friend.” George’s experience makes clear that responses to a change proposal may have little or nothing to do with the current plan. Unacknowledged failures in past change efforts, questionable ethical incidents, and negative cultural tendencies are often invisible backdrops to a newly planned change.• • • Our work has turned up many instances in which people resisted a change for no apparent reason other than that change didn’t suit them. However, in the end, it doesn’t really matter why folks are dragging their feet. When we pin failure on resistance, we risk overlooking opportunities to strengthen operational outcomes—and to correct our own biases. We also lose credibility in the eyes of change recipients, who may in turn withhold their specialized knowledge and sabotage the success of the change initiative. Resistance, properly understood as feedback, can be an important resource in improving the quality and clarity of the objectives and strategies at the heart of a change proposal. And, properly used, it can enhance the prospects for successful implementation.CNET's Cheapskate scours the Web for great deals on PCs, phones, gadgets and much more. Questions about the Cheapskate blog? Find the answers on our FAQ page. And find more great buys on the CNET Deals page. Whew! After yesterday's orgy of Prime Day deals, I need a break from all things Amazon. In fact, I need a break from life, making this the perfect time to strap on the ol' virtual reality headset. Think today I'll go for a stroll in the soothing, puzzle-enriched landscape that is Land's End. Samsung Yep, I'm going to once again devote an entire post to one of my favorite products in recent memory, the Samsung Gear VR. Because it's once again on sale for half price: Today only, and while supplies last, A4C has the refurbished Gear VR for $49.95 shipped. (Best Buy is close at $56.99, but there you're on the hook for sales tax -- so more like $60.) List price for a new one: $99.99. This is not just a branded Google Cardboard -- far from it. The Gear VR relies on Oculus-powered software, meaning you can enjoy at least some of the same apps and games as owners of a $600 Oculus Rift. And the core experience is way better as well, starting with a gorgeous UI that appears the moment you dock your phone in the headset and place it on your head. (Sensors make everything pause when you remove the headset.) There's a touchpad built into the side of the Gear VR, and while it can be cumbersome for certain activities, at least it's there; Google Cardboard, for some apps at least, requires some kind of external controller. And even with one, there's no way to switch between apps without taking off the headset, taking out the phone, running the new app, putting the phone back in, etc. Hassle city. Of course, you also have the option of pairing a gamepad to the Gear VR if you decide you want one. For the life of me, I can't understand why this isn't a more popular product. Everyone who tries it, loves it. (Well, in my circle of friends and family, anyway.) Actually, I can understand: The Gear VR has one fairly significant limitation, and that's compatibility. It works with only half a dozen Samsung phones. That leaves out iPhone owners (where's your VR gear, Apple?) and plenty of Android users. But if you own a compatible phone, I really must insist you grab one of these. I paid full price for mine and don't regret it one bit. At $50 out the door, it's a steal -- and a great way to get started in the wonderful world of VR. Once it arrives, check out the 5 Gear VR games you need to try right now. Your thoughts? Bonus deal: It seems only fitting to help you find a Gear VR-compatible phone. Like this one: TextNow has the refurbished Samsung Galaxy S6 (32GB) for $229.99, the lowest price I've seen. You do have to choose a service plan, starting at $18.99 per month, but you can cancel after the first month if you just want to use the phone for VR. Unfortunately, you can't take the phone to another carrier, not unless you're willing to restore the stock Samsung firmware. (TextNow installs special firmware to enable Wi-Fi calling.) Might be worth the hassle, though, as most other S6 refurbs sell for at least $300.Evocative and provocative, a game born of the anxiety about George W. Bush's polices abroad would have included a Chinese invasion of the U.S. and the emotional journey of a soldier struggling over whether to flee military service. But the game was killed, not by politics but the popularity of the other game that developer David Jaffe was working on. During our weekly Kotaku Talk Radio podcast, special guest Jaffe spoke at length about his canceled PSP game, Heartland. Read about how the game came to life, how it died, and the game developer that rose from its ashes. Following the release of God of War for the PlayStation 2, David Jaffe was eager to create another story-based game. It was this desire that gave birth to Heartland, a first-person shooter for the PlayStation Portable that he hoped would make players weep openly. Advertisement "Heartland was a very liberal response to the Bush administration and the Iraq War. What I really wanted to do was to create a first-person shooter on the PSP that really tried to evoke emotions beyond the traditional emotions you get in a first-person shooter – you know, adrenalin and competition. I wanted to also evoke fear and sadness. "It was basically an invasion of the United States by a greater military power and you basically played a reserve guy who was trying to get back to his family. It was really sort of my attempt at speaking through video games about George Bush the second and the war and all that stuff. That's what Heartland was." Jaffe spoke of the game in relatively simple terms, but his vision for the title was much more powerful. In a lengthy article about the title posted at The Escapist in 2008, David spoke at length about the game's Chinese invasion of the states, which would explore the brutal reaction American's would have to an invasion by foreign powers. In one planned scene, the player would be ordered to set fire to a Chinese American family, herded into their home and doused with gasoline. Advertisement It would've been an extremely provocative title. Unfortunately, that's exactly the sort of game Jaffe's development team wasn't used to working on. "Scott Campbell and I –- my business partner and co-designer with Eat Sleep Play — are very similar in some areas. We like arcade-y stuff, we like action stuff, we like pick up and play stuff. I tend to also like the more arty-farty, storytelling, you know, really trying to push the medium in that direction. I think it was just a bad marriage when it came to that particular design. Advertisement "I think they felt, 'This isn't the kind of game we like to make.' If you look at some of the great games they made on their own – Downhill Domination, War of the Monsters – those are games that really speak to the kind of company we are now and the kind of games that they've made." It wasn't simply developmental differences that caused the downfall of Heartland. The team had gone as far as creating the basis for an engine for the PSP first-person shooter, before Sony started stealing team members to work on a "more important" project. "What happened was Scott would always call and say, you know we probably started with a team of about 20, and every couple of days he's like 'You know this guy got Warhawked. This guy got Warhawked.' Basically Warhawk was in production at the studio at same time, and it obviously was a much bigger game from a standpoint of Sony's agenda and lineup. It was a much more important title, because it was originally meant to be a launch title for the PS3, so we would keep losing members of our team to go over to help finish up Warhawk." Advertisement Stranded in Santa Monica with a dwindling team with no passion for a portable story-based first-person shooter filled with controversial themes, Jaffe and company found inspiration in the Xbox Live Arcade. "By the end we were down to a skeleton crew of about six guys, and we were just like 'You know what? This is stupid. What are we doing?' That's when we started looking at XBLA and saying 'Hey, there's this thing called Geometry Wars. There's this option out there to start doing games like that.' And that kinda gave rise to how we started Eat Sleep Play. "So it all kind of led to where we are now, and that's what happened to Heartland." Advertisement So that's the beginning of Eat Sleep Play, the studio that's produced Calling All Cars for the PlayStation Network and is rumored to be working on the next Twisted Metal, but is that the end of Heartland? Could it see the light of day once more, perhaps, as Crecente suggested during the podcast, as an episodic title? Perhaps, but not at Eat Sleep Play. "To go in and try to say to Scott, 'Hey man, we gotta make this kind of game' is kinda like somebody coming to me and saying, 'Jaffe, we need to do this football arcade game.' I mean, arcade games I do, but football simulation, I'm like 'Dude, it's just not my thing.' Advertisement "So maybe one day, but I certainly don't think it's going to happen with Eat Sleep Play." It's disappointing that Heartland wasn't made. The title had so much potential, exploring themes that many Americans either can't or won't ponder. If we were invaded, would we react any differently than the citizens and soldiers of Iraq? It's a question we'll hopefully never find the answer to, but exploring it hypothetically could lead to a better understanding of ourselves. Listen to the full story in Wednesday's episode of Kotaku Talk Radio. [Pic]The Nevada Athletic Commission handed Conor McGregor a reduced punishment for the infamous UFC 202 pre-fight press conference bottle-throwing melee, and now it wants to look into doing the same for Nate Diaz On Wednesday, the NAC fined McGregor $25,000 and sentenced him to 25 hours of community service for hurling water bottles and a Monster energy drink can at Diaz after Diaz left the dais early during a pre-fight press conference on Aug. 17, 2016. McGregor was initially fined $75,000 and ordered to perform 50 hours of community service before being granted a rehearing.Diaz, meanwhile, was fined $50,000 and given 50 hours of community service for throwing water bottles on stage toward McGregor. That figure represents 2.5 percent of the disclosed $2.5 million purse Diaz received for UFC 202. While Diaz accepted the punishment, the NAC is interested in reaching out to the Stockton, Calif., native for a potential rehearing and reduced sanction.“I believe that it is appropriate to put in a motion for reconsideration on our next agenda for Nate Diaz,” NAC chairman Anthony Marnell said. “He did not contest his adjudication, but in trying to keep things fair and equal, I believe he needs the opportunity to have a re-hearing granted.“I think we should at least grant that fighter that opportunity, if he would choose to come back before us to keep this issue between these two fighter on a very even and equal playing field. I will probably be reaching out to him and putting that on a future agenda.”Diaz currently does not have a fight booked and has not competed since losing a majority decision to McGregor in their rematch at UFC 202 on Aug. 20.This will be my 4th year doing this study, and for the 4th straight year I've found a number of interesting results. For this study I used Ourlads' depth charts, which are the most up to date depth charts that I’m aware of. I was in contact with the people at Ourlads, and more specifically, the person in charge of their depth charts, and he explained that his methodology of publishing accurate depth charts was similar to mine, in that he enlisted the help of people who cover all 32 teams. This time of year, he noted that there are sure to be errors deep into the 3rd strings, but he felt very good about the OL starters. Obviously, training camp performances and injuries could change the landscape of various offensive lines around the league between now and the start of the season, and there may
apartment at the Trump, I only slept there once.” One has to be always be on guard, because mega-success comes up behind you when you’re high from all the attention, and sucks the vitality out of one’s creativity. You strive so hard to get the brass ring that when you get there, it can be blinding. That’s why all the dark glasses. You don’t want the fans looking into the windows of your soul, and seeing nothing! It seems that someone is pulling the strings, or ropes holding those brass rings, higher and higher … further out of reach. Only those with really long arms can pull themselves up to the inner circle. The question is: how do I get seen? Due to today’s technology, just about everybody can make a movie, CD, book, or videogame. Then the real challenge comes: see me, feel me, touch you, hear me. How can one get people aware of what you’re doing? How many vids are on YouTube? Trillions? So, you become a hustler … a drug dealer of sorts. You send out freebies to hook folks. Every waking hour you process how to get your work out into the public. That’s the way it was with the Doors … for several years, until we hooked the masses. Jim and I and Robby paised the streets, going from bar to bar trying to talk them into a gig. Some places had never had live music, but we tried anyway. Mostly unsuccessful, but we were driven. With music sales dwindling, many groups try to get a leg up by lending their songs to sell products. My new book, The Doors: Unhinged Jim Morrison’s Legacy Goes on Trial tackles this subject in detail. In fact, I was counter-sued for not allowing this to happen. I certainly don’t condemn a new band hawking stuff to pay the rent, but after one gets a toehold on success, maybe it’s good to drop the soundtrack to “Love Me Two Times … cause I just took Viagra.” Although there are some really “cool” ads by some really “cool” directors. Millions of bucks are spent to make them really “cool.” But the bottom line is that you’re changing the meaning of your lyrics. As Tom Waits said in a letter to The Nation in response to my piece on this subject, “corporations are hoping to hijack a culture’s memories for their product. They want an artist’s audience, credibility, good will and the energy the songs have gathered as well as given over the years. They suck the life and meaning from the songs and impregnate them with promises of a better life with their product.” Even our great poet prince Dylan has succumbed to the temptation. I think his reasons are different though. It’s not the dough (although money is an addiction), but he hates so much being put on a pedestal, that he deliberately does things to throw us all a curve. Everyone is so desperate to get attention for their project, they will do almost anything, and the corporate world has always encouraged this. In fact, I had to pass on a nice book deal, good front $$, for Unhinged because they wanted me to write more about Jim (Morrison). I said, “I’ve done that. It’s called Riders on the Storm (my first self-centered memoir). It was released in the ’90s. New York Times bestseller. You should pick it up.” Their answer, “there’s got to be more stories about Jim.” My answer: “Look I’m sorry I didn’t shoot heroin like Keith Richards (although I liked his book very much), or have seven wives like Gregg Allman, but this book is the antitheses of ‘Sex, Drugs, and Rock ’n’ Roll.’ Maybe that should be your marketing campaign.” They kept pressing and I passed on a lot of “gitas.” On the other hand, with competition as tough as ever, it’s a real battle to get through. Willy Loman will never die. It’s in our nature. The survival instinct to put food on the table. But on the other end of the scale, when the banquet is overflowing and one has caught the brass ring, some people just keep eating, or keep counting those “gitas” as Morrison used to say. Money is like fertilizer; when hoarded it stinks, when spread around, things grow. So with a tight fist around their dough, the people at the top are damning up the flow of capitalism. Currency is a current, but corporate beavers are putting rocks in the riverbed stream of our economy. All of us have this impulse, to greater and lesser degrees. It’s a strain running through our veins called the greed gene. This music has fed us spiritually, so when it seems to be losing its center, new movements come in to try to shore it up. Reinvigorate the muse. Each new creative wave that comes along seems to have to challenge the previous modus operandi. Elvis shocked Ike’s generation with sexuality. The hippies were too grubby for the early ’60s crowd. The punks were too angry for the “flower power” folks. But all of these musical movements had the same message: vitality. Don’t compromise the life force. Yes, to be human is to be hu-miliated, but in the face of that, is spirit which transcends the physical. When rock loses integrity it’s time for renewal. When my ge-generation got too intoxicated with self importance, the punks came along and yelled at us. It was a wake-up call. Patti Smith was fed by the Doors, but when complacency became the main course for hippies, she wrote, “We feared that the music which had given us sustenance, was in danger of spiritual starvation.” In his book The Gift, Lewis Hyde explains that there is a mystical exchange between artist and audience which feeds each other, and has nothing to do with the price of admission. But if the work is changed entirely into a commodity, you lose the “gift.” It’s hard to pin down this exchange, as it should be. But elusive as it is, it has something to do with the shared experience of being human. Why did Jim Morrison say he’d smash a Buick on television if we did “Come On Buick, Light My Fire?” It wasn’t even his song. Because he cared about our entire catalogue, the whole body of work we created. He was paying the rent in the “Tower of Song” for a long time. He knew what was sacred, and what was profane. I’m not an atheist, I always say I believe in “the mystery,” because I hate fighting wars over the “G” word, but now I’m feeling that maybe music is my religion. It’s been the single most important thru line in my 68 years on this planet. So I don’t want my mythology diluted. Look what that did to the Native Americans. We took their spirit, and substituted the spirit in the bottle. I want my metaphysics potent. I want to get drunk and pass out on it (metaphorically). I want to crash against the rocks in ecstasy over the sound I hear. Praise be to Debussy’s Sirens … I don’t want to “Break on Through” to a new deodorant.A surprising new study came out this week that contradicts a long-standing mentality among the LGBT community: gays and lesbians living in metropolitan areas may not be as happy, healthy, nor enjoying a quality of life on par with their counterparts living in rural areas or smaller towns. The study "Does Place of Residence Matter? Rural–Urban Differences and the Wellbeing of Gay Men and Lesbians," released by the Journal of Homosexuality, centralized on the experiences of 632 gays and lesbians, communicated through three sample surveys spanning the years 1988 to 2006. The results reportedly found that rural gays and lesbians are no worse off than those living in urban meccas. In fact, living in large metro areas seems to negatively impact the health and well-being of these city queers, though more so that of lesbians than gay men. The findings suggest that the benefits for gays and lesbians living in urban settings comes with a cost: For gay people, large cities tend to provide more social-networking opportunities, more social and institutional supports and more tolerant social climates. Yet, they also typically have more noise, pollution, traffic, crime and ethnic conflict – stressors that tend to erode wellbeing. Other drawbacks of urban life may include high taxes, inferior public schools, substandard housing and a relatively high cost of living. While the sample size is limited and also constrained to the U.S. population, researchers theorize that the quality of life experienced by rural or small-town gays and lesbians often outweighs the challenges and threats associated with living in one of the nation's 12 largest metropolitan areas. As noted by Queerty, these findings contradict the research conducted in a 2012 book titled The Challenges of Being a Rural Gay Man: Coping with Stigma, theorizing that conservative climates and stigmas associated with LGBT individuals in rural and small town settings tend to negatively impact the health and well being of gay and lesbian locals. Lived experience seems to support the study conducted by the Journal of Homosexuality, with projects such as "South of Ohio: A Queer Photo Documentary" evidencing LGBT life within small town settings that is often overshadowed by the cultural production of metropolitan areas. Christian Hendricks, the photographer behind this project, stated, "Gay culture is thriving down here. We're not this completely marginalized group of people. We have our own sense of pride. It's just a different region. We're not any different from gays in L.A. or New York just because we don't have a city." Additionally, small town and rural gays and lesbians have been gaining more visibility within national queer consciousness, particularly with threats to LGBT rights in conservative climates gaining prominence as LGBT individuals are increasingly folded into social and political life elsewhere. However, the same may not be true for transgender individuals living in rural areas or small towns, who seem to face adversity and hostility that parallels that of gays and lesbians decades ago. Earlier this year, hundreds organized a Facebook "prayer" page in response to a high school student in North Mississippi coming out as transgender. Additionally, Lilly Mossiano, a transgender parent living in a small North Carolina town, spoke with The Huffington Post yesterday about the different forms of violence and prejudice she has experienced living and working as a southern trans mother.Princess Twilight Sparkle stood by her older brother, the Captain of The Royal Guard, Shining Armour, and the Captain of the Crystal Empire Royal Guard, Glint Glass. A large army of Earth ponies, Pegasi, Unicorns and Crystal ponies stood behind them, looking towards the approaching black swarm. Something nudged her arm and she tilted her head up to her now very large, former dragon assistant standing tall next to her. I GOT ON EQUESTRIA DAILY!!!!! www.equestriadaily.com/2015/05… "Are you ready for this?" he whispered to her. "I've been ready for this for years." Twilight said seriously, looking at her friend with one eye. Her other was covered by a Changeling Optic, able to see straight through a Changeling's disguise. Every pony in the army was equipped with one, a masterful object made by the Leader of Weapons and Defence Design, Scootaloo. Some drastic measures were taken in acquiring some of the parts, but this was a war, and the Equestrian Army would do whatever it took to protect the ponies and their land. "Ponies!" Twilight, Shining and Glint shouted at the same time. "At arms!" The ponies armed guns strapped to their sides and drew swords with their mouths. Flags emblazoned with the Equestrian Mark rose above the army, lifted by a few brave Pegasi. The swarm stopped a few hundred meters away from them. The hissing mass looked towards them, baring their fangs. The Mega-Changelings stomped their hole riddled hooves at the front of the army. The Changeling drones morphed to copy the ponies, un-aware of the new pony technology. "Ready..." the leaders shouted, and Spike roared at the Changeling hoard. All the ponies yelled out in confident confirmation. Twilight Sparkle drew in a deep breath and yelled, "CHARGE!"The PC Gamer Weekender is full of fun and frolics, but there’s a chance for some learning too – and not that horrible, terrible learning we all became immediately bored of back at school. No, this is learning about games, thanks to the Developer Stage and its array of presentations. Among the names featured in the presentations – some huge, all interesting – are the likes of the recently announced Project Cars 2, in which the studio will show off new video footage and in-game action on Sunday. You’ll also be able to watch a video from Overwatch developers on the same day, who will be answering a selection of questions posed to them from their community. That not your thing? Then why not check out the Star Citizen presentation by Chris Gardiner, narrative designer on the game, which will take place both on the Saturday and Sunday. You’ll also be able to attend chats on Frozen Synapse 2, Tokyo 42, Sunless Skies, For Honor and more across the whole weekend – something for everyone? We’d say so, yes. The Developer Stage line-up will be joined by many more speakers, games and booths, all at the PC Gamer Weekender, which is being held February 18-19 at the Olympia, London, in the UK. For more details see the site, and follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news. Tickets are available now from £12.99.Credit: Michael Bruntonspall on Flickr. Some rights reserved The NRS PADD report combines monthly figures from comScore with a monthly average of the annual data recorded by NRS. Free daily newsletter The Guardian website is again the most widely read newspaper site in the UK according to new figures from the National Readership Survey (NRS), recording just under 8 million web-only readers in June 2014.The Telegraph came second with 7.4 million web-only readers, while the Daily Mail dropped to third as the NRS reported 6.8 million web-only readers.The Independent (4.16 million) and Mirror.co.uk (4.15 million) see out the top five in terms of readers who visit the website but do not read the print edition.A Guardian News and Media spokesperson said: "Our digital first strategy and open approach places us at the forefront of media organisations who are adapting to changing habits in news consumption."Every audited title except the Daily Star experienced a drop on reported figures on web-only readers, as online readership increased to just under one million each month.In terms of year-on-year growth, the Daily Star was also the strongest performer with a 115 per cent increase on 0.32 million registered in June 2013, followed by the Daily Express, with a 92 percent increase, and the Metro (69 per cent).The Sun and The Times, which both operate behind a paywall, saw the largest decreases in traffic year-on-year, dropping by 47.5 per cent to 0.21 million web-only readers and 67.7 per cent to 0.92 million readers respectively.The only titles to have a larger online readership than print are The Independent, with 9.1 per cent more online readers; The Telegraph, with 81 per cent more readers online; and The Guardian, which more than doubles its net readership.The Daily Mail still outperforms the competition where total readership is concerned, reaching 17.7 million readers through its print edition and website.The reported figures are for adults aged over 16 in the UK.This article has been updated with a quote from Guardian News and MediaAdditional reporting by Catalina Albeanu If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).A car bomb explosion on Saturday ushered 16 Syrian soldiers into the ranks of the more than 120,000 killed in civil war between embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad and rebels. With the end of the conflict nowhere in sight, a British report points to new levels of depravity as part of the battles tearing Syria apart – bored snipers have begun taking practice shots at pregnant women, specifically aiming for their unborn fetuses. Related stories: The testimony of a British doctor who spoke with ITV claims that snipers have been engaging in a "death game" in which they target specific body parts of innocent civilians as target practice. Death games: Fetus shot in head in utero The doctor, David Nott, said that he began noticing the phenomenon after identifying certain trends in the victims he was treating: "One day we'd have pregnant women being brought in with gunshot wounds to the uterus. Not just one or two, but seven or eight, which meant to me they (the snipers) must be targeting pregnant women. "And the following day, we would get people coming in with chest wounds to the right side of the chest. The next day it would be the left side and no other injuries. Then it would be groin… so it seemed to me that there was a death game going on with the snipers," Dr. Nott said. Nott is convinced the snipers are playing with their victims, specifically with the attempt of wounding them: "Most of the victims are woman and children. I've seen very few fighters since I've been here. There are gunshot wounds to the groin, chest and abdomen but very few wounds to the head, so it means sometimes the snipers are out there to wound and hurt people rather than to kill them outright." According to the Daily Mail, as part of the sniper games, snipers receive a cigarette for every such hit. "It's pitiful because we receive cases of pregnant ladies who are shot in the uterus and removing dead babies from the uterus is a very unpleasant experience," Nott told ITV. Children dying Meanwhile, in a strongly-worded statement, US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki condemned the regime's continued siege of Ghouta and other Damascus suburbs, such as Mouadimiya, citing attacks on humanitarian aid convoys. There were now "unprecedented reports of children dying of malnutrition-related causes in areas that are only a few miles from Bashar Assad's palace in Damascus," Psaki said. She added that the "people of Mouadimiya have been without basic necessities for nearly a year, and the regime's deliberate prevention of the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian supplies to thousands of civilians is unconscionable." "We call on the Syrian regime to immediately approve relief convoys into these areas," the spokesperson said. Psaki also warned the Assad regime against using limited evacuations of some civilians as "an excuse to attack those residents who remain behind. Those who are responsible for atrocities in the Damascus suburbs and across Syria must be identified and held accountable," she said. Saturday, at least 16 soldiers were killed in a car bomb attack and fighting that followed between Syrian government forces and Islamist rebels near, a monitoring group said. The bombing, carried out by a suicide bomber from the al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra Front, triggered heavy fighting at a key checkpoint between the rebel-held town of Mleha and Jaramana, a pro-regime area populated by Christians and Muslim Druze, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. AFP contributed to this report Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and TwitterIn August it will be nine years since Fredy Villanueva was shot and killed by a police officer in a park in Montreal North. It will also be four years since a friend of the Villanueva family lodged a private criminal complaint against that officer, Jean-Loup Lapointe, after the Crown decided in December 2008 not to lay charges. But the Court of Quebec has yet to decide whether that complaint should go forward. Frustrated by the wait, the friend, Alexandre Popovic, has submitted a motion for a writ of mandamus — meaning literally “we command” — urging the Quebec Superior Court to compel the lower court to make a decision. “Forty-three months have passed since I submitted my private criminal complaint. I don’t know what is taking the Quebec Court so long to reach a decision,” said Popovic, who is also the head of the Coalition Against Police Repression and Abuse, in a statement released Thursday. “An injustice was committed when Fredy Villanueva was killed by the police. Another injustice is being committed when a court takes an eternity to accomplish what the law obliges it to do — to judge the merits of the private criminal complaint.” A coroner’s inquest into the death of Fredy Villanueva heard from 47 witnesses over 106 days of testimony, ending in 2011. While Lapointe testified he had acted in self-defence when he fatally shot Villanueva and wounded two other men while trying to arrest Villanueva’s brother, in his report in 2013 the coroner, Quebec Court Judge André Perreault, concluded that the 18-year-old, after being accosted in a park while playing dice, was not trying to threaten the officer’s life or disarm him when he was shot twice at close range. Villanueva’s death sparked riots the next day throughout the neighbourhood and resulted in another police officer being shot in the leg. The coroner also concluded that the investigation into the shooting by provincial police was botched on several levels. The two police officers involved in the altercation were not separated after the incident nor questioned by investigators, but instead were given one month to provide their version of events in writing. Popovic believes Quebec’s Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales — the Crown prosecutor’s office — should have waited until after the coroner’s inquest to decide whether to criminally charge Lapointe. Under the circumstances, Popovic opted for filing a private criminal complaint against Lapointe, who by then was working for the Montreal police’s SWAT team. A first hearing on the mandamus motion is scheduled for April 21. If a judge ultimately decides the complaint is well-founded, it could spark a homicide trial for Lapointe. “The best thing would be a criminal trial,” Popovic said. “It would be good for the family and for the population to have an idea of what really happened.” csolyom@postmedia.com twitter.com/csolyomEric Holder’s first arrest in the string of Knock-Out attacks across the country is a first in more than one way. The arrest is unique in that it is of a white offender. Knock-Out attacks have been, almost exclusively, black-on-white hate crimes. Were it not so frightening, it would be quite comical. Heeding the attorney general, the “U.S. attorney for the southern district of Texas” has arrested 27-year-old Conrad Alvin Barrett, who broke the jaw of a 79-year-old man, “laughing and saying ;Knockout’ as he [ran] away.” The question is not whether this is a good arrest. Let Barret sit if he’s guilty. The question is why have there been no arrests for the killing and maiming of innocents, perpetrated by black thugs across the country? Holder’s Justice is obviously attempting to deploy the law to frame the Knock-Out phenomenon as an equal-opportunity crime. It’s the administration’s racial reprisal against the honky victims of hate crimes."When history witnesses a great change, Razgriz reveals itself... first, as a dark demon. As a demon, it uses its power to rain death upon the land, and then it dies. However, after a period of slumber, Razgriz returns..." ― Albert Gennette, quoting A Blue Dove for the Princess Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (エースコンバット5 ジ・アンサング・ウォー Ēsu Konbatto Go Ji Ansangu Wō, or Ace Combat: Squadron Leader in PAL regions) is the fifth installment in the Ace Combat franchise. It was released in 2004 exclusively on the PlayStation 2. The game's single-player campaign takes place in Strangereal in 2010. The player takes control of Blaze, a rookie Osean Air Defense Force pilot in the Wardog Squadron, who gets caught up in the Circum-Pacific War between Osea and Yuktobania. Amidst the conflict, Blaze and his wingmen unintentionally fulfill the Razgriz prophecy and uncover a conspiracy pulling the strings behind the war. Ace Combat 5 is one of the most expansive Ace Combat games, featuring more playable aircraft and campaign missions than most other installments, three controllable wingmen in most missions, and a large number of fully-animated cutscenes. The game received the second-highest aggregate review scores (behind Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies) and the third-highest sales figures (behind Ace Combat 04 and Air Combat). On September 19, 2018, Bandai Namco announced that players who pre-order Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown for the PlayStation 4 will receive a digital copy of Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War on the PlayStation 4 as a free bonus.[2] Contents show] Plot Synopsis pencil We've still got some work for you, too, so don't slack off now. This article or section is a stub. You can help by expanding it Characters Callsign Blaze (real name unknown) is the player character and the protagonist of the game. Formerly a pilot trainee on Sand Island, he is selected as Captain Bartlett's fourth wingman for the first two missions of the game. After Bartlett is shot down and goes MIA, Blaze is promoted to Wardog leader and leads his squadron throughout the rest of the game. (real name unknown) is the player character and the protagonist of the game. Formerly a pilot trainee on Sand Island, he is selected as Captain Bartlett's fourth wingman for the first two missions of the game. After Bartlett is shot down and goes MIA, Blaze is promoted to Wardog leader and leads his squadron throughout the rest of the game. Kei Nagase (callsign "Edge") is the sole trainee survivor of the attack on Wardog Squadron prior to the game's events. After Bartlett goes MIA in the second mission, she refuses promotion to flight lead (offered as the most experienced pilot of the squad), instead resolving to protect Blaze no matter what. (callsign "Edge") is the sole trainee survivor of the attack on Wardog Squadron prior to the game's events. After Bartlett goes MIA in the second mission, she refuses promotion to flight lead (offered as the most experienced pilot of the squad), instead resolving to protect Blaze no matter what. Alvin H. Davenport (callsign "Chopper") is another member of the squadron. While loud and disrespectful of his superiors (including Blaze, whom he refers to as "Kid" instead of "Captain" despite the seniority), Chopper proves to be a valuable asset to the team as well as comic relief to lighten the mood during tense moments. (callsign "Chopper") is another member of the squadron. While loud and disrespectful of his superiors (including Blaze, whom he refers to as "Kid" instead of "Captain" despite the seniority), Chopper proves to be a valuable asset to the team as well as comic relief to lighten the mood during tense moments. Hans Grimm (callsign "Archer") is the youngest member of Wardog Squadron. While still a trainee, during a Yuktobanian air raid early in the game, Grimm helps the base mechanics prepare the last working aircraft and climbs into it himself, officially joining the squadron in battle. He lacks self-confidence and experience but proves to be a talented pilot throughout the game. (callsign "Archer") is the youngest member of Wardog Squadron. While still a trainee, during a Yuktobanian air raid early in the game, Grimm helps the base mechanics prepare the last working aircraft and climbs into it himself, officially joining the squadron in battle. He lacks self-confidence and experience but proves to be a talented pilot throughout the game. Jack Bartlett (callsign "Heartbreak One") is a renowned ace pilot who fought in the Belkan War and dedicated his life to training the next generation of pilots. He has a long history with Pops as well as an old Yuktobanian love interest, which causes superiors to be suspicious of him early on when he goes MIA after getting shot down. Following this event, Blaze is promoted to flight lead of Wardog Squadron. (callsign "Heartbreak One") is a renowned ace pilot who fought in the Belkan War and dedicated his life to training the next generation of pilots. He has a long history with Pops as well as an old Yuktobanian love interest, which causes superiors to be suspicious of him early on when he goes MIA after getting shot down. Following this event, Blaze is promoted to flight lead of Wardog Squadron. Peter N. Beagle (callsign and nickname "Pops") is an aging mechanic attached to Sand Island. He and Captain Bartlett have a history together in the Belkan War, but much of his past is secretive, prompting suspicion from the base superiors. (callsign and nickname "Pops") is an aging mechanic attached to Sand Island. He and Captain Bartlett have a history together in the Belkan War, but much of his past is secretive, prompting suspicion from the base superiors. Marcus Snow (callsign "Swordsman") is the commander of the OFS Kestrel's air defense squadron. He has recurring appearances throughout the game's events. (callsign "Swordsman") is the commander of the's air defense squadron. He has recurring appearances throughout the game's events. Albert Genette is a freelance journalist who arrived to Sand Island to do a report on the unique squadron leader stationed at the base. Due to the surprise attacks, he is initially cut off from contact with other journalists to keep the attacks secret, but after war breaks out he finds himself swept up in the middle of Wardog Squadron's activities. He usually narrates the game for the player, although sometimes Chopper or Nagase will narrate as well. Gameplay During the course of the game, the player has the opportunity to purchase 53 different aircraft, ranging from real-life aircraft to prototypes and fictional aircraft. Most of the aircraft are grouped into "families", where the more advanced variants of a particular craft are unlocked after earning a certain amount of experience with the less advanced variants. All aircraft feature alternate paint schemes, which can be acquired by progressing through the story or shooting down hidden Ace pilots. There are a total of 32 missions in the campaign mode, but due to varying paths the player can take in the story, only 29 of these are completed in a single campaign. As with other entries in the Ace Combat series, once the mission objectives are complete, the player is awarded with money for purchasing aircraft, as well as additional money for performing above and beyond the requirements of the mission. Bonus money can be earned by completing landing or mid-air refueling sections quickly. Unlike other entries, the player does not have to purchase special weapons, as each aircraft only has one special weapon which is provided upon purchasing the aircraft. Difficulty The difficulty setting affects the amount of damage the player's aircraft can take, the artificial intelligence of enemy aircraft, the amount of ammunition carried by the player's aircraft, whether named aces can spawn in a mission, and the fill rate of the Kill Rate gauge. From easiest to most difficult, the settings are Very Easy, Easy, Normal, Hard, Expert, and Ace. On the hardest two difficulty levels (which cannot be played until the next-easiest difficulty on the list is completed), even a single missile from the enemy will destroy the player's airplane, whereas on Very Easy it takes several missiles. Wingman interaction During missions, the player can issue orders to their wingmen through the DUALSHOCK2's D-pad. Commands include engaging enemies directly in front, directly attacking the player, or to engage at will. When the latter option is enabled, the wingmen will focus primarily on their aircraft role; for example, if a wingman is flying an Attacker, they will focus their attention on ground targets. (This was changed in Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War, where the player has direct control over what targets the wingman fires upon when engaging at will.) In a similar fashion, the left and right D-pad buttons also allow the player to respond "Yes" or "No" to dialogue prompts within the missions. Usually, these serve no purpose to the game besides adding additional story elements, though some missions do rely on this system for how the mission will play out or even what mission will play next. Soundtrack The Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War Original Soundtrack was produced and partly composed by Keiki Kobayashi, who previously worked on Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies. Other composers for the Ace Combat 5 soundtrack include Tetsukazu Nakanishi (who also produced the game's sound effects), Hiroshi Okubo, and Junichi Nakatsuru. In a first for the Ace Combat series, Ace Combat 5 features a licensed song, Blurry by Puddle of Mudd, which is used and referred to as one of the game's main themes. Other major songs include The Journey Home, The Unsung War, and a remix of Blue Skies. Arcade mode Ace Combat 5 also features an "arcade mode" separate from the main story. This gameplay mode, named Operation Katina, continues the story of Ace Combat 04 and allows the player to fly as Mobius 1 again to fight the new threat of Free Erusea. The player's objective is to fly through a number of relatively short missions and defeat a certain number of enemies before the timer runs out in order to advance. In a similar fashion to arcade games (where the series has its roots), the player can achieve high scores by completing each mission as fast as possible; destroying enemies will add time to the clock. The missions get more difficult as the player progresses; however, akin to the dialogue prompts that have limited control on what missions will play during the campaign, the player has some control over the difficulty of the missions through a branching tree. Missions at the top of the tree are easier, whereas missions at the bottom of the tree are challenging. In contrast to the gameplay mechanics of any other entry in the series, Arcade Mode restricts the player to very low ammo on missiles and special weapons (machine guns are unlimited). Wasting ammunition, especially on more difficult missions, can be extremely dangerous. Throughout the various missions, special enemy targets can be destroyed that will award the player with extra missiles or special weapons - they are identified by an "M" or "S" after their name, respectively. For example, an enemy named "MiG-21 S" is a MiG-21bis that will award the player with additional special weapon ammo. Reception The game received generally high praise and garnered both critically positive reception and a strong response from the playerbase. The aggregate website Metacritic gives the game a critic score of 84 based on 57 critics, which is considered "Generally favorable reviews", and a user score of 8.9 based on 92 reviews, which is also considered "Generally favorable reviews". IGN gave the game a score of 9.3 and praised its graphics, presentation, gameplay and score, but criticized the voice acting. GameSpot rated the game at an 8.3 and commended the game's presentation, variety of aircraft that you can fly, and the story, while noting the absence of multiplayer and unrealistic elements of the gameplay as drawbacks. Game Informer ranked Ace Combat 5 as their 298th best game of all time. Gallery Box Art Trivia Director Kazutoki Kono attempted to include a VS Mode as in the previous entry, Ace Combat 04, but it had to be cut in order to develop the Arcade Mode.[3]Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard says that those responsible for bomb threats at dozens of schools in the province will be prosecuted. Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard says those responsible for the bomb threats targeting schools will be prosecuted. (CBC) On Tuesday morning, 71 schools in the province and in the Ottawa region were evacuated, closed or searched after receiving a threatening email from an anonymous mailer. (The number of schools targeted has been updated by police.) "Frankly, the people responsible for this tactic, whatever the nature of it is — and of course, we will allow the investigation to take its course — they have to know that they will be prosecuted, and that the investigation will be rigorous, if we are successful in identifying them," Couillard told reporters Tuesday at the National Assembly. "It's unacceptable. It's condemnable… Words escape me. It's criminal." Provincial police sent out a statement late Tuesday afternoon confirming that searches were completed. No bomb was found. The Montreal police were in charge of searching seven schools on its territory. Nothing was found in any of those searches either. "Notwithstanding the fact that these threats seem to be unfounded, they are taken very seriously by police and will be the subject of an investigation which will be co-ordinated by the Sûreté du Québec," read the police statement. Of the province's 48 CEGEPs (pre-university colleges), 20 received threats and five were evacuated, according to the Federation of CEGEPs. The schools that were evacuated are the CEGEPs in Drummondville, Lanaudière (Assomption campus), Sept-Îles, Saint-Hyacinthe and Heritage. Dawson College and John Abbott College were both searched by Montreal police as a precautionary measure. Schools across the province and in the greater Montreal region were searched and in some cases, evacuated, as well. The Sûreté du Québec says it will launch an online investigation to find out who sent the threatening note and is asking anyone with information about the case to call 1-800-659-4264. Ties to threats in Ottawa? The group claiming responsibility for the threatening notes calls itself "Red Scepter." CBC has learned that it is the same group that sent threatening emails to Ottawa schools last week. Last Thursday, at least five schools in the Ottawa-Gatineau area received threatening emails. There were further threats to a few schools on Friday morning. Police investigated and said all the threats were hoaxes. Investigations in Quebec underway Police officers across the province were called to the schools to conduct searches after bomb threats were received on Tuesday morning. (Radio-Canada) Montreal police searched some local schools and CEGEPs, but no evacuations took place. Both Montreal police and Quebec provincial police have launched investigations into the threats. Montreal police will meet with principals of schools that have been targeted or searched. Interim Quebec Security Minister Pierre Moreau said the note cited anger at teachers' unions and quality of education as the main motivations for the threats. "The nature of
, but you can’t cure being a giant douchebag, Harvey. No matter what fancy intensive therapy you paid for at this hoity-toity facility. There will be no redemption for him and if there is, Hollywood is done. “Harvey Weinstein finishes sex treatment into a plant” — Matt’s Idea Shop (@MattsIdeaShop) October 21, 2017 Meep. He’ll have a sit down with Dr. Phil & all will be forgiven. — Adam (@thedirectway) October 21, 2017 Better not be. IT'S A MIRACLE! — Phil Hartmark (@philhartmark) October 21, 2017 Yeah.. 1 week is CLEARLY enough to become "Cured"…… Dude has been doing this for who know how many years… 1 lifetime isnt even enough — Only in death i live (@HarkenReborn) October 22, 2017 Not even in Hollywood, nope. It's all abt power. Not addiction. Neutering him (I literally wish I cld) of that will make him almost impotent. He will always be dangerous — Jean Maree (@JeanMaree_ND) October 21, 2017 Well, THAT would certainly curb things a bit … and we’re not totally opposed. Has he been cured of being a total prick as well? — Dave Wombat (@surgefoot) October 21, 2017 Doubtful. Weinstein is not a sex addict, he's a sex predator. Going to rehab was a PR stunt. — America❤️ItorLeaveIt (@crisshoog) October 22, 2017 Playing the ‘it’s a disease’ card to avoid taking responsibility for being a disgusting, evil, predator. Yup. And yay, he’s cured! *and ANOTHER eye roll* Related: CRIPES another one?! 30+ women accuse director James Toback of sexual harassment VILE: 5th woman accuses Roman Polanski of sexual assault, says she was 10 when it happened“She Comes First” is very highly recommended. It has opened my eyes. It has significantly increased my confidence. It has made me a much better partner/lover. I stumbled upon the book while searching for "The Joy of Sex." At the time, I was newly divorced and in search of direction prior to re-entering the dating world. Based on the reviews, I purchased both books. Unfortunately, I read TJS first. It was somewhat enlightening, but nothing I would recommend. After sitting in my desk for more than a year, I read SCF. It was an eye-opener. I never realized how little I knew about the female anatomy. After reading the book I better understood why over the years women said I was "too fast" and/or "too rough." Although I was a little overwhelmed at times with the technical aspects of the book, the first time I put the techniques into practice I was shocked how easy it was to step up my game. I made a VERY GOOD first impression with the new woman in my life. The responses to my moves were overwhelming. For the first time, I felt like I knew what I was doing. Throughout the night and in to the early morning, I always prioritized her. My contentment took her by surprise. I truly focused on savoring all aspects of pleasing her instead of worrying about my needs/desires. Since this was our first time together, this approach went a long way towards allaying her concerns that my interest might be short-term. As a result, I have laid the ground work for building a key facet for a strong, long-term “relationship.” I stress relationship because the book is about much more than sex. It's a paradigm shift. Unfortunately, my ex-wife will never experience the benefits of my enlightenment. Our sex life was very routine/dull. Although SCF wouldn't have saved our marriage, it might have eliminated an Achilles heel we never discussed. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ P.S. - The more I practice, the better I be"come." So far, my record is providing five orgasms in one day, across two sessions. I have discovered three ways to GUARANTEE results. I have gone from an amatuer to an expert. Trust me, the techniques work wonders. MOST IMPORTANTLY, my insecurities are gone. Also, by prioritizing my lady-friend, I have rightly made her feel very special. SHE ALWAYS COMES FIRST, in and outside of the bed!!! This makes my life easier and enhances our relationship :-) +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ P.P.S. - As recommended, candle light is essential!!!Spotted a few minutes ago on Google+, the invitation to enter the phrase "completely wrong" into Google Images -- written over a photograph of Mitt Romney - promised to produce the predictable results of a prankish Google bomb. So who could resist? I did as recommended and the payoff was the above photo. But there may be a bit of an unexpected twist here in that it's possible this is not the work of a prankster. Romney may have unwittingly done this to himself, notes Slate writer Will Oremus, when the candidate attempted to walk back those "47 percent" remarks that have proven so troublesome to his campaign... by calling them "completely wrong." "... This doesn't seem to be the work of a prankster or political foe," Oremus writes. "As far as I can tell, Romney's association with 'completely wrong' is a natural product of Google's search algorithms in action. So many news outlets picked up his retraction of the '47 percent' comments that those articles simply dominate the top results. In other words, this is entirely self-inflicted. And it's not likely to go away anytime soon: A quirk of these types of Google problems is that they tend to be self-reinforcing as more people search the phrase to see the results for themselves." Go ahead, you know you want to.The Adelaide Crows will wear a new-look clash jumper in 2015. With the guidance of apparel partner BLK, the Club has created a guernsey featuring claw-like marks which reveal the Crows tri-colours. The design symbolises the fierce and aggressive nature of the Crow, while the Club’s 25th season is also celebrated with a special logo. All-Australian defender Brodie Smith described the design as bold and modern. “It certainly has the thumbs up from the boys who are back at the Club and getting stuck into pre-season training this week,” Smith said. You can pre-order the 2015 clash guernsey at CROWmania now BLK has teamed with the Crows until at least the end of season 2018, supplying the Club’s AFL and SANFL teams, administration and support staff with innovative clothing. In 2015, BLK will supply on and off-field apparel to more teams in the AFL than any other brand.Ukraine says Saturday's attacks by pro-Russian militants in eastern Ukraine are "an act of external aggression" by Russia, and security officials are preparing to implement "an operational response plan."Interior Minister Arsen Avakov's evaluation appeared on Facebook Saturday, shortly after armed militants with Russian weapons seized more government buildings in the Russian-speaking east, including police headquarters in Donetsk and Kramatorsk.Witnesses, including western journalists, say the Kramatorsk facility was captured after a firefight, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.The takeover of police facilities in Donetsk prompted the city's police chief to resign, while elsewhere, Western news accounts late Saturday said militants controlled the eastern city of Sloviansk.Moscow has repeatedly denied any role in Ukraine's unrest, which erupted in full two months ago, when anti-Russian protesters in Kyiv forced then-president Viktor Yanukovych to flee the country.Meanwhile, the United States has called on Russia to "cease all efforts" to destabilize Ukraine. A White House National Security Council spokeswoman said Saturday the United States is concerned that Russian separatists -- with apparent support from Moscow -- are "inciting violence and sabotage" against the Ukrainian state.Secretary of State John Kerry spoke by telephone with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the State Department said."During the call Kerry expressed strong concern that attacks today by armed militants in eastern Ukraine were orchestrated and synchronized, similar to previous attacks in eastern Ukraine and Crimea,'' said a senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity."Militants were equipped with specialized Russian weapons and the same uniforms as those worn by the Russian forces that invaded Crimea. The secretary made clear that if Russia did not take steps to de-escalate in eastern Ukraine and move its troops back from Ukraine's border, there would be additional consequences,'' the official added.The official did not state what those consequences would be.US officials met Friday with Ukrainian finance officials to discuss a "range of strategic and economic issues" according to a State Department statement.In Moscow, Russian state television reports Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry Saturday that the crisis is caused by the Kyiv government ignoring "the legitimate needs and interests of the Russian and Russian-speaking population" of the region.Lavrov also warned that any use of force by Kyiv could undermine diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis.At the Donetsk police headquarters, the Russian colors fly alongside the regional separatist flag.Around 200 pro-Russian protesters armed with clubs and knives took over the building Saturday and met no resistance -- forcing the police chief to resign.“Here in Donetsk, everyone is sick of the powers in Kyiv,” complained Oleksander Korfman, one of the organizers. “That includes the police. They can’t break their pledge to the state, but they are with the people.”Later around a dozen heavily armed Ukrainian police -- known as Berkut -- were welcomed into the headquarters. It appears there is much sympathy for the protesters among security forces.Most of the protesters then left the police building in the hands of special forces. One protester -- who did not want to be named -- said the takeover was aimed at ensuring police weapons are not used against the demonstrators.“The special forces will secure the place so no one steals the weapons inside. We will go back to our positions at the regional administration building," the protester said.Armed pro-Russian groups also stormed police buildings in the nearby city of Slovyansk Saturday. There were reports that the demonstrators seized around 400 firearms. One who gave the name Sergei explained their actions.“Our people want to live quietly and peacefully, without the junta who seized power in Kyiv," he said, "and so that we are not under America and the West. We don't want to be their slaves. We want to be with Russia.”Building by building, the protesters are gaining ground. Their challenge to Kyiv's authority is so far unanswered; the dangers of conflict are growing.NATO says Russian armed forces are massing on Ukraine's eastern border, while Moscow says they are on normal maneuvers.There were other signs of heightened cross-border tensions Saturday, with the Kyiv government saying it is suspending natural gas payments to Moscow. Details of the move were not immediately clear.Moscow says its neighbor owes $ 2.2 billion in payment arrears. Early this month, the Russian energy giant Gazprom announced two price increases that effectively raise Ukrainian gas costs by about 80 percent. Additionally, Russian President Vladimir Putin has hinted that Moscow may begin demanding energy payments from Kyiv at the time of delivery.Top diplomats from Russia, the United States, Ukraine and the European Union are set to hold emergency talks on the crisis April 17 in Geneva.Some information for this report provided by ReutersA source with knowledge of the excavation told the Telegraph archaeologists will name the skeleton found beneath a Leicester car park in September as the Plantagenet king even if long-awaited DNA results on the bones prove inconclusive. Additional evidence not revealed at a major press conference after the remains were found demonstrates beyond all reasonable doubt that the body is the King's, even without genetic proof, the source said. Leicester University experts announced earlier this year that there was convincing evidence suggesting the remains were those of Richard III, but have always insisted DNA analysis is needed before a conclusion can be reached. Clues to the body's identity include a wound to the skull and a twist in the spine which match historical accounts of the King and his death in battle, but these alone are not enough to prove it is the King, archaeologists said at the time. A spokesman for Leicester University denied any information had been withheld from the public at the press event in September, but said various new evidence gathered since then will be announced to the public next month. This will include the results of radiocarbon dating tests, which will indicate the date the individual died within an 80-year range, and analysis of dental calculus which could reveal details about their and lifestyle, as well as the first images of the body. The spokesman said: "There will be things that have been discovered during the course of the investigation that will be announced at the press conference, but everything we were willing to reveal and that we were sure of, we revealed [in September]." A Channel Four documentary, which initially led to the university's involvement, will also be screened in January and is expected to reveal new information about the project. The University insists it has been open about the analysis of the skeleton from the start, but a number of people close to the study have become uncomfortable that new evidence is not being published. A source told the Telegraph: "Unfortunately, an awful lot of stuff is being kept from the public. "I am told that circumstantial evidence of the find which is not going to be broadcast until this programme (on Channel Four) is brought out in January will confirm the body is Richard III's, even if the DNA does not." The University said all available information will be announced at the press event and insisted it had no knowledge of any information which is being withheld for the documentary. The body was identified just weeks into a project which began when experts identified a council car park in Leicester as the most likely historical location of the church of Grey Friars, where the King was said to have been buried after his defeat in the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. The archaeologists initially described the dig as a "long shot" but have since uncovered the foundations of a church along with two bodies, one of which is thought to be that of the King. Telegraph Travel offers the Richard III and the War of the Roses tour, operated by Travel Editions, from £299pp for three days. Offer includes return two nights accommodation with various meals, visits to sites, guided tours with Julian Humphrys and coach transfers. Call 08448730323 or visit www.telegraph.co.uk/richardiiiSwedish police have arrested a woman on suspicion of keeping her daughters confined to an apartment amid media reports that they were locked away for a decade. Police suspected the 59-year-old woman had "restricted her children's freedom... for quite a few years," spokeswoman Ewa-Gun Westford told AFP. According to tabloid Expressen, one of the now adult children managed to briefly leave the apartment and convince a neighbour to call the police, saying that they had been locked up for over a decade. "The blinds were always pulled down there and we haven't heard any noise from the apartment," a neighbour told the paper. Expressen also reported that the woman had moved the children around to different locations in an effort to keep them away from their father. Investigators were questioning the woman and the children, all aged over 18, at a police station in the southern town of Kristianstad.Canadian Blood Services is shutting down several permanent and mobile clinics as well as its Bloodmobile program as the demand for blood declines. There was a four per cent decline in the need for red blood cells last year, according to Michael Betel, Canadian Blood Services director of donor relations for central and southern Ontario. With demand for blood dropping, Canadian Blood Services is reducing the number of permanent and mobile clinics used to collect donations. ( RYAN REMIORZ / THE CANADIAN PRESS ) “There have been improvements in procedures and also in blood conservation. Hospitals are working better with the blood that they have so they don’t need as much of it,” he says, noting it is a worldwide trend. Nationally, the blood collection goal will be reduced by 40,000 units. The organization is replacing its permanent clinic in Sarnia with a mobile clinic over the summer and will shut down three permanent clinics in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and B.C. by June 1. Article Continued Below It is also closing 34 mobile clinics across the country and 293 mobile clinic events. The Bloodmobile program, including two vehicles in Ottawa and South-Central Ontario, will cease operations by the end of September. Betel says the downsizing has to do with efficiency — targeting larger areas where more blood can be collected and reducing labour and transportation costs. “Because of the decline, we had to align better with the resources we have.” But he stressed that donating is still important, especially as people tend to forget about giving blood during the summer months. Those who want to donate can download the GiveBlood app or check blood.ca to find a nearby clinic. As an alternative to giving blood, Betel says people can promote the program on their social networks or sign up for the stem cell donation program. Blood is most often used in emergencies, surgeries and in procedures involving leukemia patients, Betel says. There will be 36 permanent sites open across the country as well as 909 mobile clinics in operation. Read more about:Photo credit: WWE.com. WWE Hall of Famer George "The Animal" Steele died at the age of 79. Steele's death was confirmed on WWE.com. ESS Promotions agent Eric Simms sent out a tweet Thursday reporting Steele's wife said the former wrestling star was in hospice care. WWE also released a video honoring Steele on Saturday: The Animal left a long-lasting impression on the wrestling business, which led to many of his peers offering their condolences and memories on Twitter. WWE legend Hulk Hogan was among them: Another WWE Hall of Famer and pop culture phenomenon, The Iron Sheik, chimed in as well: Hall of Fame announcer Jim Ross also tipped his cap to Steele with the following tweet: Steele made his professional wrestling debut in 1967 and competed in the squared circle for more than two decades. The Detroit native was known for several distinguishing characteristics, including a green tongue. He also set himself apart from the rest with his signature act of tearing open the turnbuckle covers and eating the stuffing inside. Although Steele was a villain for much of his career, he turned face in 1985 and went on to engage in a feud with Randy "Macho Man" Savage. Steele lost an Intercontinental Championship match to Savage at WrestleMania 2 and was in Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat's corner when he beat Savage for the title at WrestleMania 3 in what is widely considered one of the greatest bouts in wrestling history.Enlarge Image CNET/Marguerite Reardon CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee -- It was once so polluted here that people had to drive through town with their headlights on all day. You could smell the stench from the tannery and heavy metal foundries in town before reaching the city limits. In 1969, news anchor Walter Cronkite dubbed it "the dirtiest city in America." "Cronkite and others had basically written us off for dead," said former Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield. "That day was a wake-up call to turn ourselves around." The old Chattanooga is long gone. Today, the city has some of the cleanest air and water in the region. Outdoor Magazine has twice in the past four years named the city the "best town ever." Instead of smokestacks and foundries, you'll see rock-climbing enthusiasts scaling the outdoor wall of High Point Climbing and Fitness on Broad Street -- just a block away from the city's revitalized waterfront and the nation's largest freshwater aquarium. And rather than a dirty, polluted river running through the center of town, you'll see kayakers and standup paddle boarders drifting along a rejuvenated Tennessee River. Chattanooga's transformation has been decades in the making, but the construction of one of the largest and fastest Internet networks in the Western Hemisphere will be key to helping the city write the next chapter for the 21st century. The city represents the vanguard of communities pushing for better Internet service and serves as a model for the benefits that can stem from broader online access. The Gig, as the locals call its network, has attracted billions of dollars in new investment and a flock of entrepreneurs to the city, who may come to the city for the promise of superfast broadband, but stay for the easy, affordable lifestyle, abundant outdoor activities and hip culture. Chattanooga may seem like an unlikely place for a tech hub, but a long history of progressive thinking has put the midsize southeastern city -- two hours north of Atlanta -- in an enviable position. In 2010, Chattanooga turned on its so-called gigabit service, an industry term for a network able to connect to the Internet at 1 gigabit per second, or 50 to 100 times faster than your average US Internet connection, through a faster fiber-optic line. That was two years before Google broke ground on its first gigabit market in Kansas City. Today, the network, which has been recognized as a model of innovation by President Barack Obama, is the largest and longest-running deployment of gigabit broadband in the nation, spanning 600 square miles and covering the entire population of Chattanooga -- 170,000 -- with access to ultra high-speed broadband. Giving them what they want I drove through town on a tour of the city with Littlefield, now in his late 60s. Littlefield moved here in 1968, a year before Cronkite's denouncement. He worked as a city planner through the city's transformative years and served as the city's mayor from 2005 to 2013, taking the reins just as the city-controlled utility EPB, which once stood for Electric Power Board, began dreaming up the gigabit network. Enlarge Image CNET/Marguerite Reardon Littlefield's biggest priority was keeping the city's youth from leaving. "A city can afford to lose old industries, but not its young people," he said. "You lose them, you lose your future. I'm happy to say today we're shamelessly proud of the fact that we are stealing other cities' young people." Littlefield catered to young people by giving them what they want: superfast Internet. With a gigabit network, you could stream at least five high-definition videos at the same time and still have plenty of bandwidth to surf the Web, check email and upload pictures to Facebook. You can download an entire high-definition movie in about 33 seconds. While Chattanooga was early, it is no longer alone. Large companies, such as AT&T and Google, have announced dozens of planned deployments, and cities large and small see broadband infrastructure, and gigabit networks in particular, as a ticket to preparing their economies for the future. "Ten years from now, many critical things a city and its residents can do, and the attractiveness of the city from many perspectives, will be affected by the quality of its broadband networks," according to a report prepared by Gig.U and the Benton Foundation. A new tech hub is born Startups have been flocking to Chattanooga in the past few years, fueling even more growth. Construction crews dot the landscape in the heart of downtown, where the city is promoting its so-called "innovation zone." This 140-acre patch of downtown is where the city hopes tech startups will set up shop. Anchored by the Edney Building, an 11-story office building where workers for the Tennessee Valley Authority have been housed for decades, the zone also includes the building where venture firm Lamp Post Group is located, as well the historic Ross Hotel, a four-story landmark at Patten Parkway and Georgia Avenue. Lamp Post bought the building and is renovating it to create micro-apartments designed to house budding entrepreneurs and innovators in a shared living space. Enlarge Image CNET/Marguerite Reardon While the Gig is often credited with Chattanooga's most recent renaissance, there are a number of other factors that help make Chattanooga an attractive hub for tech entrepreneurs. The city boasts investors, such as Lamp Post, which are willing to bet on early-stage startups. There is also the nonprofit, The Company Lab, or CoLab for short, which in 2012 launched "GigTank," an annual 14-week summer entrepreneur program focused on making the best uses of the gigabit broadband. And there is the INCubator program sponsored by the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hamilton County Business Development Center, which offers office space, advice and mentoring opportunities for startups. The city has been working for nearly 30 years to foster a collaborative environment that is conducive to economic development. The superfast network compliments that effort. "It makes a thousand small things better," said Greg Compton, chief operating officer for the color sensor startup Variable, which is based in Chattanooga. There are other practical reasons that convince them to stay. "One of the biggest reasons companies come here is that it costs three to four times less than operating a business in Silicon Valley or New York City," said Ted Alling, a partner at Lamp Post Group. "We may not have all the same resources, but we can build that infrastructure to support successful startups." High-end rental rates for commercial space in prime downtown locations of Chattanooga run about $20 a square foot, according to J. Matthew McGauley, president of Fidelity Trust Company, a commercial real estate brokerage that specializes in properties in downtown Chattanooga. "Compare this to commercial rents in the San Francisco Bay Area, which can easily cost startups $80 to $100 a square foot." But even though the real estate expenses are low in Chattanooga, these companies are still paying competitive wages to their technically skilled workers. "These are jobs that bring young people back to Chattanooga," Littlefield said. The city's current mayor, Andy Berke, said at the annual GigTank Demo Day in July, where startups pitched investors, that over the past few years Chattanooga has experienced the third highest wage growth of all midsize US cities. Many of these jobs pay an average of $69,000. The statewide average is $40,000 a year, according to 2014 data from US Bureau of Labor and Statistics. "It really becomes a no-brainer," McGauley said. "The cost of living is so much less here. You can live really well in Chattanooga on a $100,000 a year. You feel rich. In the [San Francisco] Bay Area, you'd still be racking up credit card debt on that salary." How it began It all started when Chattanooga's municipally owned power company, EPB, wanted to modernize its electrical grid with fiber-optic lines to better manage power interruptions. Service disruption is a big problem for power companies and can result in $100 million in losses per year to local businesses, EPB officials estimate. To offset the cost of the investment, Harold DePriest, head of the utility, suggested selling Internet, television and phone services on top of power. Meanwhile, Google began its search for a city in which to launch its first Google Fiber service that would deliver 1Gbps broadband to residents. More than 1,100 cities across the country were doing all sorts of crazy things to get Google's attention, such as naming their city Google for the day or mayors painting their faces. But Littlefield, who was Chattanooga's mayor at the time, said he wasn't interested in courting Google. "I didn't want to see Chattanooga get back in a position where we only had one choice and were beholden to a company like Google," he said. So the city moved forward with its plan. "Chattanooga is the Goldilocks of cities," DePriest said. "We are big enough that we can try new things, but still small enough that everyone who needs to be involved in figuring it out knows each other." Even though EPB's primary goal of improving its electrical grid was fully within the scope of its traditional business model, the idea of a municipally owned utility competing against private industry in the broadband market was somewhat controversial in the eyes of some in the business community and Tea Party activists, who were at their height of popularity as plans for the gigabit network were being laid. DePriest said he first approached the business leaders and politicians he thought would oppose the construction of EPB's gigabit network. He said it took only a couple of meetings before he had their support. "People just got it," he explained. "We knew the big broadband companies weren't going to do anything for us. So this kind of network wasn't going to happen unless the community built it." The biggest benefit to residents in Chattanooga is the competition the Gig has inspired among the existing cable and phone companies serving the city. Comcast, which has unsuccessfully sued EPB multiple times to stop the network and to curtail its expansion, is now promising to deliver 2Gbps speeds to local customers. EPB's Colman Keane, director of fiber technology for EPB Fiber Optics, said his firm will be able to deliver 10Gbps service to some Chattanooga residents by the end of the year. It's unlikely consumers or even startups will actually need 2Gbps or even 10Gbps broadband anytime soon. There's question about whether they even need 1Gbps, as consumers and businesses still try to find ways to take advantage of that speed. But Littlefield said this gigabit arms race is exactly the kind of one-upmanship the city hoped for when it gave its support to EPB's plans. "We were a small market for the big broadband companies," he said. "We weren't on the top of the list. But now we are, because we're competing with them. God bless America! Isn't competition a wonderful thing?"Palaeontologists have uncovered half-a-billion-year-old fossils demonstrating that primitive animals had excellent vision. An international team led by scientists from the South Australian Museum and the University of Adelaide found the exquisite fossils, which look like squashed eyes from a recently swatted fly. This discovery will be published on June 30, 2011) in the journal Nature. The lead author is Associate Professor Michael Lee from the South Australian Museum and the University of Adelaide's School of Earth & Environmental Sciences. Compound Eyes Modern insects and crustaceans have "compound eyes" consisting of hundreds or even thousands of separate lenses. They see their world as pixels -- each lens produces a pixel of vision. More lenses mean more pixels and better visual resolution. (Each lens does not form a miniature image -- a myth often perpetuated by Hollywood.) Evolutionary Advantage The fossil compound eyes were found on Kangaroo Island, South Australia and are 515 million years old. They have over 3000 lenses, making them more powerful than anything from that era, and probably belonged to an active predator that was capable of seeing in dim light. Their discovery reveals that some of the earliest animals possessed very powerful vision; similar eyes are found in many living insects, such as robber flies. Sharp vision must therefore have evolved very rapidly, soon after the first predators appeared during the 'Cambrian Explosion' of life that began around 540 million years ago. Given the tremendous adaptive advantage conferred by sharp vision for avoiding predators and locating food and shelter, there must have been tremendous evolutionary pressure to elaborate and refine visual organs. Who owned them? As the fossil eyes were found isolated, it's not certain what animal they came from, but they probably belonged to a large shrimp-like creature. The rocks containing the eyes also preserve a dazzling array of ancient marine creatures, many new to science. They include primitive trilobite-like creatures, armored worms, and large swimming predators with jointed feeding appendages. More pixels: more chance of survival The recently discovered fossil eyes would have seen the world with over 3000 pixels, giving its owner a huge visual advantage over its contemporaries, which would have seen a very blurry world with about 100 pixels. This is much better than the living horseshoe crab, which sees the world as 1000 pixels, but not as good as living dragonflies, which have the best compound eyes and see the world as ~28 000 pixels.The end of 2017 is near, which means it is time for annual year-end “best of” lists to pop up everywhere. Here, The Root presents our annual list of the most compelling books published in 2017 by black authors in affordable, regular print runs—which is why Beyoncé’s $300 literary opus on the making of Lemonade that dropped this August does not make the list. What will make your Christmas list? Enjoy. A recent National Book Award in fiction for her second novel makes Jesmyn Ward the first woman to win the major honor twice. “I like to think I know what death is,” Ward begins in Sing, Unburied, Sing. “I like to think it’s something I could look at straight.” Here, Ward again mines the rich territory of her Southern upbringing to construct an epic Faulknerian tale. 2. Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body, by Roxane Gay Advertisement In Hunger, Roxane Gay, best known for her essays and cultural criticism, explores the formation of self in relation to trauma and the world around us. “This story is not about triumph,” Gay writes in the opening of her book. “Mine is not a success story. Mine is, simply, a true story.” It is about living with, and how we live with the aftermath of, the many types of violence done to our minds and bodies. A haunting, lyrical read. 3. We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy, by Ta-Nehisi Coates Advertisement Here, Ta-Nehisi Coates, best known for the recent Between the World and Me and his ongoing column in The Atlantic, publishes his third book, a collection of essays titled We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy. Here, compiled, are some of Coates’ most groundbreaking and provocative essays, including the seminal “Case for Reparations” and “My President Was Black.” 4. Akata Warrior, by Nnedi Okorafor Advertisement The author of over a dozen novels, Nigerian sci-fi/fantasy legend Nnedi Okorafor released this second offering in her Akata Witch sci-fi series this fall. Okorafor, next set to write an arc of the Black Panther comic for Marvel, most recently had her postapocalyptic novel Who Fears Death optioned by HBO. 5. Don’t Call Us Dead, by Danez Smith Advertisement This second full-length collection from Danez Smith, an acclaimed poetry-slam champion who has won virtually every award for young poets, explores blackness, masculinity and gender. It includes Smith’s famed poems “summer, somewhere” and “dinosaurs in the hood”—the former, a portrayal of a pastoral heaven created for slain black boys; the latter calling for films to affirm the lives of black children. 6. Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Advertisement This little book from a literary superstar slipped quietly into 2017 but is one of the most delightful reads of the year. Here, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s customary, elegantly clear, profound prose is couched in the form of a letter to a friend who requests advice on how to raise a feminist daughter. Perfect for any young, as well as grown-up, girls you know. 7. We’re Going to Need More Wine, by Gabrielle Union Advertisement Acclaimed actor and director Gabrielle Union, best known for her performance in the title role of Being Mary Jane, has penned a memoir whose title, of course, evokes one of Mary Jane’s famed catchphrases. Here, Union reveals that her hilarious wit and insightful observations on life are not just part of her acting acumen but translate to the written page, too. 8. What We Lose: A Novel, by Zinzi Clemmons Advertisement What We Lose was heralded as one of the best books of the year, and in this debut novel by writer and editor Zinzi Clemmons, a young woman of South African and American descent reckons with the death of her mother. Here, Clemmons, herself born to a South African mother, reckons masterfully with themes of loss, identity and home. 9. What It Means When a Man Falls From the Sky, by Lesley Nneka Arimah Advertisement This debut short-story collection from Nigerian-American writer Lesley Nneka Arimah sings with effortless energy. Ranging from locales in Nigeria to the United States, from realism to fantasy, these 12 stories showcase the deep range of Arimah’s talent. 10. The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas Advertisement One of the most eagerly anticipated releases of the year, this debut young-adult novel by Angie Thomas does not disappoint. It is the story of Starr, a young girl who becomes an activist after her best friend’s death. 11. City of Bones, by Kwame Dawes Advertisement The prolific poet, writer and educator published his latest poetry collection in early 2017. Dawes’ poems are electric, resonating with controlled energy. Also released this year was New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set (Nne), Dawes’ annual anthology of new work by contemporary African poets, co-edited with Chris Abani. 12. There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé, by Morgan Parker Advertisement Rising star Morgan Parker’s second collection of poetry embodies a deceptive chaos, a controlled sophistication. Parker, a former editor for Amazon.com’s literary imprint Day One, crafts poems such as “13 Ways of Looking at a Black Girl,” a splatter-collage of words functioning much like a Jackson Pollock or Pablo Picasso painting. 13. We Are Never Meeting in Real Life, by Samantha Irby Advertisement The hilarious Samantha Irby releases her third essay collection, and her words only get more humorous and insightful with each installment. The opening salvo, written in the form of a Bachelorette application, is one not to miss. 14. City of Saviors, by Rachel Howzell Hall Advertisement This is the fourth addition to Hall’s Elouise Norton series, featuring Rachel Howzell Hall’s Los Angeles-based detective. Here, Hall flexes her increasing range in the hard-boiled detective genre, a must-read for fans of crime thrillers. 15. New People: A Novel, by Danzy Senna Advertisement A modern, witty take on race, labels and self-definition, this third novel by Danzy Senna profoundly articulates the contemporary anxiety of identity. In this nuanced yet humorous portrayal of a relationship between contemporary New Yorkers, Senna crafts an entertaining, thoughtful read. Advertisement Comedian and TV personality W. Kamau Bell offers his own awkward thoughts in response to Issa Rae’s insecure ones. Here, Bell riffs on everything from family, parenthood, education and present-day social issues. A bright light in the world of comedy.The United
two or three films in time. I'm sure they are coming up with ideas and attempting to kind of have some arrangement that five or six years down the track they go, “Okay, this is where we're heading” but they don’t tell us until the day before usually. Like this fight scene we learned this morning. How much connection does Thor still have with Asgard, or is he divorced from it completely? Up until the third act or sort of halfway through, he begins to have suspicions about what's going on here or what this bigger picture is here and who's involved. He starts to think something’s not right here. This is all a little too convenient why this has happened, which certainly points his focus back there. Marvel Does anything really impress Thor in terms of what’s thrown his way? I think he openly admits, “I don't think we’re going to win this one.” Yeah, the threat is so great that I think all of them are sort of scratching their heads going, “Is this it?” rather than, “Okay, we have to kill this many things.” It's just an onslaught and it doesn't stop. It's sort of an open floodgate and what it could also set in motion is an even bigger threat. I think that's what's Thor’s kind of stuck on or where his attention certainly is, an even bigger picture of Thor being from Asgard. He can just say, “Hang on, there's a whole universe here which is signaling something else.” Someone mentioned Scarlet Witch bringing out the inner demon for each character. Can you talk about what that is for Thor and does that eventually turn them against each other? It's more kind of within their individual selves rather than the team so much. I think they'll begin to have sort of their fears held up in front of them, and for Thor, I think it's a corruption of power. With all of them having this much power and trying to have the understanding that we're in this sort of endless battle here and when this is going to end and how does it end? That scene is actually being rewritten at the moment, if you want to talk to Joss about it, so it's hard to even say what it will be in Thor’s dream sequence but it kicks in motion his movement. That's where he really starts to kind of move through the story. Once that dream occurs he goes, “Oh, I can see what's coming and my fear could be true” so yeah, it’s a ticking clock. Each time we see Thor his power and abilities keep getting amped up. Are we going to see that in a new display or more powerful or more a more trained version of Thor? Yeah, I mean in this fight you see it's hand-to-hand combat because it's someone of his equal strength or moreso than him, so he can afford to do that. Whereas with the people who were far less capable than him and not as strong, I said, “You know, let's make sure he's picking up cars and throwing them and ripping things in half and spending a bit more time up in the air and using the elements as opposed to being stuck kind of in a hand-to-hand sort of fist fight with the bad guys.” So yeah, I think it keeps getting kind of amped up and then the stunts become more elaborate. We see him fly a bit more.NEW YORK -- Tom Benson brought stability to the Saints nearly three decades ago and now plans to do the same for the Hornets in small-market New Orleans. The Saints' owner agreed Friday to purchase the Hornets from the NBA. "We expect this club to be one of the most outstanding clubs in the league, otherwise I don't want to get involved," Benson said. "This is just a good thing and I'm just glad to be a part of it." A person familiar with the deal says the purchase price is $338 million. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the financial terms have not been announced. The NBA has been trying to sell the Hornets since buying the club from founder George Shinn in December 2010. While preparing the team for sale the league negotiated a new lease for the Hornets to remain in the state-owned New Orleans Arena through 2024. The sale of the team to Benson has to be approved by the NBA's Board of Governors, which was meeting in New York on Friday. "The city is one of the country's treasures and we really have found the perfect owner," NBA commissioner David Stern said. "Our goal all along has been to get the Hornets bought by somebody whose commitment to New Orleans would be unrivaled." The framework of ownership negotiations were handled in a way that a new Hornets owner would have to accept the lease worked out between the NBA and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. The lease agreement also called for $50 million in improvements to the basketball stadium, which sits right across the street from the Superdome. Once the NBA approves the sale of the team to Benson, the next step is for the state legislature to approve the arena lease deal because of the funding needed for stadium improvements. But legislative leaders already have publicly voiced support for the proposed lease deal, which would take effect in July. The 84-year-old Benson, a New Orleans-native, has owned the Saints since 1985, when he stepped in to block efforts by other prospective investors to move the NFL franchise to Jacksonville, Fla. Now Benson has made another major investment to stabilize the NBA's presence in the Big Easy on the same day that the Hornets were hosting the Utah Jazz, the very team New Orleans lost to relocation in 1979. Benson helped bring the Saints their first playoff appearance in 1987 and finally a Super Bowl title in 2010. His ownership of the Hornets means the two small-market franchises both will be locally owned and now can work as partners in their efforts to attract corporate sponsorships, and Hornets fans can at least hope that will translate to a better product on the hardwood. "When you have somebody like Mr. Benson, I think it makes it a ton easier because you have stability and you have a foundation," Hornets coach Monty Williams said before Friday night's tip-off. "It can only be good for me as a coach, our players and especially our city." Hornets forward Carl Landry, who signed only a one-year deal with New Orleans this season in part because of the ownership situation, said Benson's involvement "definitely will help." "That was definitely a question mark this past summer, not knowing if the team was going to stay, not having an owner," Landry said. "Being a free agent again this summer, the Hornets are a team I've been with the last two years and have grown accustomed to, and with the owner now, that definitely will help with resigning with the team." At the very least, the move provided Benson with some refreshingly positive publicity on the heels of the Saints' bounty scandal, which led the NFL to suspend head coach Sean Payton for the entire 2012 season -- the same season that will see New Orleans host the Super Bowl. Only a day before the Saints announced Benson's purchase of the Hornets, the NFL club announced that assistant head coach Joe Vitt, who also oversees linebackers, would be elevated to interim coach for the coming football season, despite his own six-game suspension in connection with the bounty probe. While the Saints have become a cherished institution that has become entrenched in the local culture since the club's founding in 1967, the Hornets are relatively new to Louisiana's pro sports landscape. The Hornets moved to New Orleans from Charlotte in 2002, but have often been on shaky ground since, including when the club spent two full seasons in Oklahoma City after Hurricane Katrina devastated large parts of southeast Louisiana in August 2005. In 2010, former owner George Shinn decided to pull out. He was unable to find a buyer who would commit to keeping the team in New Orleans, so the NBA took the unprecedented step of taking ownership of the team and has been working to find a new permanent local owner for a year-and-a-half. As part of the effort to attract a new owner, team officials spent the past offseason conducting an unusual campaign to build the club's season-ticket base to 10,000, which the league considers a benchmark for successful franchises. The campaign involved social mixers in the homes of prominent business people in the region. The team also attracted more major corporate sponsors for the 2011-12 season than it had ever had since moving to the Big Easy. It was not immediately clear how a change in ownership might affect the front office personnel who led marketing effort for the Hornets in the past year or the coaching staff, as there was no immediate word from Benson or his associates on that front. Williams and general manager Dell Demps each are in their second seasons, having joined forces to help the Hornets make the playoffs last season. This season, the team decided to honor star guard Chris Paul's request for a trade and went into rebuilding mode. Benson will take control of a club that will miss the playoffs, but which also will have at least one -- probably two -- picks in the NBA's draft lottery. The Hornets also control the Minnesota Timberwolves first-round pick in 2012. Williams said he has not spoken with Benson yet but would understand if it takes a few days for him to meet with the new owner. "I bought a Subway sandwich today, and he spent $300 million," Williams said. "I'm pretty sure he got more to do than I do. I'm looking forward to talking to him." According to The Times-Picayune, Benson said he will seek to change the name of the Hornets to better fit New Orleans. "We need to find a name like (Jazz)," Benson said, according to the newspaper. "Whether we can get that or let us use that, you've got to know we're working on it. We'd like to change it tomorrow. We have not gotten that approved, but we're not letting up on it, either. Because we've got a good relationship with the commissioner and his people and we're going to be on them daily to do something." Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.Qf3: Winner Pool D v Runner Up Pool C at Millennium Stadium, Sunday, 18 October, 13:00 Opening Ceremony and England v Fiji at Twickenham Stadium, Friday, 18 September, 20:00* Australia v Wales at Twickenham Stadium, Saturday, 10 October, 16:45* QF1: Winner Pool B v Runner Up Pool A at Twickenham Stadium, Saturday, 17 October, 16:00* QF4: Winner Pool A v Runner Up Pool B at Twickenham Stadium, Sunday, 18 October, 16:00* Managing Director of England Rugby 2015, Steve Brown, said: "With over 2 million tickets sold and less than 100 days to go, the appetite to watch the world's best teams is continuing to grow. This latest release of tickets will see further availability for five big matches at Twickenham including England's opening game against Fiji and the two quarter-finals, as well as England v Uruguay, giving fans who missed out last time another opportunity to come to the tournament."The official ticket resale service is still live via tickets.rugbyworldcup.com and provides support to fans who wish to sell tickets for matches they can no longer attend. Fans should only buy tickets from official sources to ensure their ticket is valid for entry at Rugby World Cup 2015 matches.”Tickets are also still available via the official travel (domestic and international supporter tours) and hospitality programmes. More details on these programmes can be found at www.rugbyworldcup.com/ticketing OFFICIAL RESALE SERVICEFans can also sell tickets for any match they can no longer attend at face value, through a secure, transparent and authorised system via tickets.rugbyworldcup.com The simple resale service, which is free to use, allows fans to choose which tickets they want to sell. This self-service option will keep fans informed of the status of their tickets with updates throughout the posting and resale process. Fans can also log into their account at any stage and withdraw tickets from resale should they change their mind. Any ticket posted for resale will appear on the website, tickets.rugbyworldcup.com, within 72 hours.Posting a ticket for resale does not guarantee a sale; the seller will only receive payment if the ticket is purchased. If the ticket is sold the selling customer will receive an email notification to confirm the sale.The official resale programme will run up to and during the Tournament. There will be a 24 hour cut-off point prior to a match when, if a ticket hasn't been sold, it will remain the property of the selling fan and made available for them to use to attend the match.BUY OFFICIALIn order to enjoy the best possible spectator experience and not be let down or misled, Rugby World Cup 2015 are urging fans to only buy tickets from official sources. For more information and to check whether a company or certain website is an official RWC2015 channel, fans can see the 'Official Checker' list of agents located at www.rugbyworldcup.com/buyofficialAn Australian man has reportedly become the first foreigner to die alongside Kurdish militants fighting Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) extremists in Syria. The 28-year-old man, who had assumed the Kurdish nomme de guerre Bagok, was one of dozens of Westerners to have travelled out to the Middle East to join the YPG, the Syrian Kurdish militia that has defended the border town of Kobane. The Australian was reportedly killed when his unit were drawn into a firefight with Isil militants. This week, Kurdish forces launched a new offensive against Isil in areas of the northeast near the Iraqi border. Fellow fighters on Thursday posted laudatory tributes to Bagok on Facebook, sharing photographs of the sandy-haired man in khaki fatigues alongside smiling pictures from his life back in Australia. “He’s the one who first help teach me how to strip and put together my kalesh (sic), this is crazy,” wrote Robert Rose, an American volunteer fighter who has recently returned to New York. A friend claimed that Bagok had heard about the Kurds’ foreign battalion – known as the Lions of Rojeva – during a backpacking trip around Europe. Like many others who have joined the Kurdish fight, friends said that Bagok had a military background. Most have been tasked with defending the self-styled Kurdish enclave of Rojeva, a patch of territory squeezed between the deserts of eastern Syria, the far east of Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan. In some cases, trips have been funded by online fundraising drives. A handful of British men have joined the fight – a former British infantryman who served in Afghanistan, James Hughes, recently returned home with another mercenary, Jamie Read, apparently due to security concerns. The well-organised YPG has emerged as a key partner for the US-led alliance against Isil in Syria. Mainstream rebels fighting Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, have mostly been eclipsed by jihadists, complicating a US plan to train and equip Syrian opposition forces to fight Isil. This week’s Kurdish offensive is intended to shake the group’s grip on a key highway stretching eastwards from its heartland in the Syrian province of Raqqa to Iraq’s second city of Mosul. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Kurdish fighters recaptured three Assyrian villages and a nearby Arab village on Wednesday. Like many others who have joined the Kurdish fight, friends said that Bagok had a military backgroundMonster Hunter Generations Tops 4.1 Million In Sales, 2 Million Expected From MHXX By Sato. October 28, 2016. 3:00am Capcom released their consolidated results for the 6 months ended September 30, 2016 with new sales data showing that Monster Hunter Generations has surpassed 4.1 million in global sales. Previously, the total worldwide sales for Monster Hunter Generations was at 3.3 million but with the added 800,000 it surpassed 4.1 million, putting it on par with Monster Hunter 4, which currently sits at the same figure for its total lifetime sales. Capcom also noted that Monster Hunter Generations achieved solid sales in the West. Back in May, Capcom announced their plans for three major titles, with expectations for the first major title to sell around the 4 million unit-range, a second major title at the 2 million unit-range, and a new Monster Hunter title to sell around 2 million units as well. New information from a Japanese press release has revealed the first title (4 million) as Resident Evil 7, the second title (2 million) as Dead Rising 4, and the new Monster Hunter game expected to sell in the 2 million unit-range as the recently announced Monster Hunter XX. Monster Hunter Generations is currently available for Nintendo 3DS. Monster Hunter XX releases in Japan on March 18, 2017 for 3DS.photo by: Peter Hancock TOPEKA — A member of the Kansas State Board of Education said Monday that he thinks it’s no longer urgent for the board to make a statement or take action on new federal guidelines for dealing with transgender students in public schools. But Ken Willard, a Hutchinson Republican, said he does want the State Department of Education to issue some sort of guidance on the issue for local school districts. The state board is expected to resume a discussion about transgender issues when it holds its regular monthly meeting next week, June 14-15. “There are going to be questions that come up, without any doubt,” Willard said. “Ultimately, it’s a local issue, and I think it ought to be handled locally.” Willard initially called for the state board to respond during its regular meeting in May, which came only a few days after the U.S. Departments of Justice and Education issued guidelines, directing all public schools to allow transgender students to use restrooms and locker rooms and to participate in other sex-segregated activities that correspond to their gender identity. Willard called those guidelines “an infringement on states’ rights” and “a violation of the Kansas constitutional provision for local control of public schools.” He also made a motion calling on the Legislature and Gov. Sam Brownback “to take whatever legal measures deemed necessary to protect and defend” the state from what he called “this unprecedented overreach of federal executive authority.” On a 6-4 vote, however, the board chose to put off any action until the June meeting. Since then, though, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt has announced that his office will join a multistate federal lawsuit filed in Texas challenging the new guidelines. And that same day, the Kansas Senate passed a resolution condemning the new guidelines and encouraging Schmidt to fight it in court. Willard said Monday that those actions satisfy most of what he had been seeking, but he still thinks the state education agency should offer local districts some guidance. “I think in our role as chief supervisors of public education in Kansas, we ought to be able to provide some guidance and help for situations that are maybe a little difficult to handle,” he said. Also at next week’s meeting, the board will be asked to give final approval to a sweeping overhaul of the way public schools in Kansas are accredited. The new system calls for accrediting each individual building rather than school districts as a whole. Those schools also will be reviewed on a five-year schedule rather than annually, and the reviews will encompass much more than just how well students are performing on the state’s standardized English language arts and math tests. The new accountability standards for schools are being called the “Five Rs”: “Relationships” among staff, students, families and communities; “Relevance” of the curriculum and instruction; the “Responsive culture” of the school system; “Rigor” of the academic standards; and the “Results” produced by the time students graduate.ALBUM: SOMETHING FOR EVERYBODY NEW YORK (Billboard) - Devo’s ninth studio album, “Something for Everybody,” is more than the new wave art rockers’ first record in 20 years — it’s an ongoing multimedia performance-art-project-slash-marketing-campaign designed to reintroduce the band as “DEVO Inc.” with engaging and hilarious commentary on American corporate culture and conformity. The album’s 12 tracks were chosen through a crowd-sourced “Song Study” and are true to the band’s longstanding formula of synth-and-guitar jolts, hyper-catchy riffs and winking comment on the human condition. While there’s a uniformity across the tracks in tempo and vibe, first single “Fresh” booms out of the gate with an unforgettable refrain, and “Please Baby Please” and “Human Rocket” have a bounce and crunch made for the gym or dance floor. “Step Up” is hard-beating and inspirational compared with the slight cynicism of political disco jam “Sumthin’.” There’s also a contemporary fullness and distortion in the album’s production that updates Devo’s sound without sacrificing its unmistakable essence. ARTIST: MEAT LOAF ALBUM: HANG COOL TEDDY BEAR (Roadrunner/Loud & Proud Records) With Rob Cavallo, who produced Green Day’s 2004 rock opera, “American Idiot,” onboard, it’s no surprise that Meat Loaf’s “Hang Cool Teddy Bear” is fit for the stage. But while old-school rap nods and blunt lyricism add to the set’s allure, its fluidity suffers. More familiar-sounding Meat Loaf cuts like “Did You Ever Love Somebody” punctuate such rebellious tracks as the punky “Peace on Earth” (“The only thing you can count on in this life is regret”). The song “Love Is Not Real” is infused with compassion, while the raunchy “Like a Rose” reflects a cliched rock star attitude (“It doesn’t really matter that she isn’t 21/‘Cause she’s always backstage when the band gets done”). And on the hip-hop-flavored “Los Angeloser,” the veteran rocker introduces a scratch-laden beat with a dispassionate “yo” before incorporating more slang, proving he’s as progressive as he is wistful. ARTIST: TONI BRAXTON ALBUM: PULSE (Atlantic Records) In recent years, Toni Braxton has had label issues, health problems and other difficulties that put her music career on hold. Five years after her last release, “Libra,” the 42-year-old singer is back with her sixth studio album, “Pulse,” full of a whole other dilemma: men. On the song “Yesterday,” Braxton breaks up with her partner, singing, “You are so yesterday, won’t let you rain on my parade,” and she complains about abandonment on “Woman,” where she warns over a slinky production, “I hope that you don’t wake up when it’s too late to make up.” On top of a pulsating beat, the title track finds the singer hopeful and “not giving up on love.” When Braxton isn’t sulking about heartbreak, she’s enjoying being a woman. Atop hand claps on “Lookin’ at Me,” she flirts with a clubgoer, and over the piano strokes of “Hands Tied,” she reassures her man that she can “love him with her hands tied.” ARTIST: MATT KENNON ALBUM: MATT KENNON (BamaJam Records) Matt Kennon got his first taste of acceptance in country music when Randy Travis recorded his song “Turn It Around.” On Kennon’s self-titled debut, the artist demonstrates there’s as much substance and emotion in his singing as in his songwriting. There’s a gritty soulfulness that resonates warmly in such tunes as “The Man I Used to Be,” and it serves him even better on honest declarations like “Some People Piss Me Off.” The opener, “Drive It Like You Stole It,” is a high-octane number that encourages living every moment to the fullest, while single “The Call” is a poignant ballad about the power of a phone call. (In the first verse, a man who’s about to commit suicide puts the gun down when he gets a call from his best friend, and the second verse involves a teenage girl about to have an abortion.) With a distinctive voice that won’t be confused with anyone else on country radio, Kennon has delivered a potent album that makes him a newcomer to watch. ARTIST: ANA TIJOUX ALBUM: 1977 (Nacional Records) Chilean rapper Ana Tijoux’s latest album, “1977,” is titled for the year she was born, and it plays like the diary of a young woman. An introspective lyricist with a low voice that makes the listener want to lean in closer, Tijoux has only her thoughts to reveal. But she does so with conviction, whether musing about happiness (“Humanidad”), laying down a heartbreak confessional (“Mar Adentro”) or getting autobiographical on the standout title track. Her personal universe encompasses hip-hop existentialism (“Crisis de un MC”) and broader social consciousness (“Sube,” “Avaricia”). A laid-back mix of hip-hop, jazz, reggae and R&B — which perhaps provides too weak a background for a strong personality — backs Tijoux on the set. A star of Santiago’s hip-hop scene, she’s probably best known for appearing on Julieta Venegas’ song “Eres Para Mi.” And during a recent U.S. tour, she was tabbed as Latin America’s leading female MC. But Tijoux is an artist with the promise to cross borders and genres. ARTIST: BONE THUGS-N-HARMONY ALBUM: UNI-5: THE WORLD’S ENEMY (Reprise/Asylum Records) The original members of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony (including longtime collaborator DJ U-Neek, who was absent from the group’s 2007 album, “Strength & Loyalty”) have reunited for the first time in 15 years to record its newest set, “Uni-5: The World’s Enemy.” And the rap outfit has one message to deliver: Haters, take heed. “Smiling in my face, hating on the side, they don’t wanna see me shine,” the members rap over a simple piano line on the motivational “See Me Shine.” On top of a repetitive keyboard pattern, the group continues calling out naysayers on the upbeat “Everytime,” spitting, “I can’t turn my back around without these haters tryin’ to shut me down.” The group gets a bit more insightful on tracks like “Wanna Be” — about women selling themselves for fame — and “My Life,” which finds the rappers reflecting on the struggles they’ve faced. ARTIST: FLYING LOTUS ALBUM: COSMOGRAMMA (Warp Records) Flying Lotus’ third album, “Cosmogramma,” is a strangely cohesive amalgam of exotic sounds. On the new set, the follow-up to his critically acclaimed 2008 album “Los Angeles,” the underground California beat-head balances the futuristic sounds of warbling synths and the natural purr of a live harp. Flying Lotus’ appeal lies in his ability to seamlessly combine disparate sounds. Starting with a dance-worthy bass and hand clap before launching into a soaring Eastern melody backed by the buzz of a synthesizer, “Do the Astral Plane” is the closest song on the album to a radio single. “Arkestry” drops the heavy rhythms for a track with free jazz sensibilities; “MmmHmm” is a lullaby set to the chatter of cutlery; and “Table Tennis” uses a bouncing ping-pong ball for percussion and includes the ghostly singing of frequent collaborator Laura Darlington. “Cosmogramma” may evade complete comprehension, but its colorful arrangements entice even the most casual listener.The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at comingsandgoings@washblade.com. Congratulations to Earl Fowlkes who has joined the board of Damien Ministries, which was founded in 1987 by Louis Tesconi to serve the poorest of the poor living with HIV and AIDS. Damien Ministries, Inc., was entirely volunteer run until 1996 when the organization hired a paid executive director and expanded services to include case managers, faith-based outreach and a food bank. Fowlkes serves as president and CEO of the Center For Black Equity, Inc. (formerly the International Federation of Black Prides). He founded the IFBP in 1999 as a coalition of organizations in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and South Africa to promote a multinational network of Black LGBT Pride and community-based organizations. There are now more than 40 Black Pride events around the globe. Previously, Fowlkes served for 15 years as executive director of the D.C. Comprehensive AIDS Resources and Education Consortium and Damien Ministries, organizations that provide services to persons living with HIV/AIDS. He has worked on health, political and LGBTQ issues in many communities for nearly 30 years. He is the current chair of the D.C. Commission on Human Rights. In 2009, he was appointed by then-Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as an At-Large member of the Democratic National Committee and in 2013 was reappointed, and elected chair of the DNC LGBT Caucus. In December 2014, he was elected president of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club. Congratulations also to John Westfall-Kwong, the new director of development for the National LGBT Bar Association Washington, D.C. The National LGBT Bar Association is the country’s largest organization of LGBT and allied legal professionals. D’Arcy Kemnitz, executive director of the LGBT Bar said, “As a longtime leader in the community and an individual with unparalleled development experience, I have no doubt that he will be a valued part of our organization. We are eager to see where John will help take the LGBT Bar at this time of unrest in our nation.” He most recently served for 12 years as the director of development at Lambda Legal. Prior to that he served as vice president for Individual Giving & Development Administration at Lighthouse International and as national director of direct marketing for the American Foundation for AIDS Research. He received his bachelor’s in Business Administration & Marketing from California State University Long Beach. Finally, congratulations also to Thomas Murphy who has joined the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association as its new communications intern. Murphy is a Tennessee native majoring in foreign languages at Austin Peay State University. He spent a semester abroad studying at a French university and also interned in the Tennessee State Legislature. Outside of school Murphy writes book reviews for a Nashville-based regional LGBT newspaper. Murphy came to NLGJA through a partnership with The Washington Center, which places students with organizations whose work they show interest in. “I am really excited to be working at NLGJA this semester,” he said. “I understand the importance of clear and accurate coverage of LGBTQ issues in the mainstream media, which is what first interested me about the organization.”Getting more loot chests from Heroes of the Storm is now easier than ever thanks to Funbie Studios, who have created the files so that you can 3D print them at will. This scaled down version of the chest comes out in three pieces (the main body, a lid and a stand) and it’s shown off holding dice for your favourite tabletop game. At this size you’re able to fit a handful of dice inside, but it’s simple enough to scale up or down to fit your desired loot. The files to print your own are available on both Thingiverse and MyMiniFactory depending on your preference. You’re also going to need to spend some time finishing and painting it so it looks as good as the test print in the gallery below.Disney is truly for all ages and I think Disney should be experienced by all ages. As a Disney Mom, I get to see Disney in the best way possible, through my boy’s eyes. I truly believe the most magical moments Disney offers happens with my babies. For my me-time moments, I head to Disney too! Disney World is truly one of the best places to celebrate a girls night out or moms day out for a handful of reasons. Here are a few reasons why mom’s day out at Disney is a must and why Disney for adults is the best. Mexico is my favorite place in Epcot and spending quality time there is a must each time I visit without the babies. My boys do love Epcot and request the boat ride in Mexico, but when I do Disney adult style I make special time for La Cava Tequila Bar (the bar inside Mexico). This is when I tell you that the wait for La Cava is always worth it and skipping the margarita stand outside of Mexico is my suggestion. The drinks offered inside Mexico are different than what’s offered outside and they’re a bit stronger too. I recently celebrated my 34th Birthday at Disney with one of my best friends and a girls-only Birthday celebration at Epcot is just a must, y’all. There’s often a festival occurring at Disney (Flower and Garden is my favorite) and it makes for epic Disney days with your girls! The Food and Wine festival is probably the most popular of the festivals and that’s typically when I plan a staycation with my girls and split ALL the food and wine samplings to enjoy together. Pace yourself in each country because drinks around the world seems a bit impossible to me. A few favorite spots are Italy, England, Canada, Germany, and Mexico. If you can swing by those posts you’ll create the perfect day easily! I use to have hardcore guilt any time I went to Disney without my kids, but sometimes mama needs Disney with besties time. Disney Springs is probably my top spot for Disney for adults. The Springs stay open until 2 am with many of the restaurants and bars offering some of the best cocktails around. Raglan Road will forever be my fave spot at Disney Springs, but I stop for specialty drinks all over the area. Live music at the Margarita dock is my favorite quiet hidden spot. A beer, live music, and a pretty view… this is a side of Disney Springs not everyone gets. I often lose track of time in that tucked away area. While you don’t have to drink to have a great adult date at Disney I can’t get enough of the cocktail options. There’s a drink in Asia at Animal Kingdom that I love, so look out for cocktails and adult sips there too! Epcot’s Food and Wine Ladies night out Animal Kingdom cocktails Birthday resort staycation Disney Springs Those are just a few of my favorite adults do Disney special occasions and spots. Give me your favorite adults do Disney spots and drinks, friends. Do you celebrate moms night out at Disney or do you leave that just for the kiddos?CLICK TO PLAY CLICK TO LISTEN ON ITUNES In Today’s Episode You Will Learn: 1.) How Mike made his way from MySpace CEO to founding one of the nation’s most successful startup incubators? 2.) Firstly, what is a token in the world of crypto? How does securitized and utility tokens differ? Why does Mike believe the current state of utility tokens is reminiscent of the early days of domain names? 3.) What are the core barriers to traditional investors transferring assets on mass into crypto? What will be the catalyst causing this asset allocation shift in the future? What needs to happen to crypto for it to be attractive for traditionals? 4.) How have we seen the M&A market respond to tokenization? How can we as an ecosystem look to build a framework and structure that allows for a healthy M&A environment? 5.) With so many ICOs occurring today, what will be the determining factors between those that succeed and those that do not? How can individuals from around the world look to assess potential ICO’s? Items Mentioned In Today’s Show: Mike’s Fave Book: Ready Player One As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Mike on Twitter here! Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC. Pendo delivers the only complete platform that helps companies create great products. The Pendo Product Experience Platform enables product teams to understand product usage, collect user feedback, measure NPS, assist users, and promote new features in-app – all without requiring any engineering resources. This unique combination of capabilities helps companies improve customer satisfaction, reduce churn, and increase revenue. Pendo is the proven choice of Salesforce, Cisco, Optimizely Citrix, BMC and many more leading companies. Start a free trial at http://go.pendo.io/harry Treehouse is an online school where you can learn how to build websites and apps. Their course library has thousands of hours of content, where you can learn all sorts of topics, including Javascript, iOS, Android and more. With high-quality video instruction from real industry experts teaching you all you need to know, and quizzes and code challenges keep you engaged and on track. Learn on your own schedule and go from beginner to pro. Go to teamtreehouse.com to start your free trial.The road to absolution is long and fraught with hardship. But you are not alone. Absolver is an online action game in which players explore the ruins of the fallen city of Raslan, which was destroyed by a massive earthquake centuries ago. As they explore Raslan, players will meet other Prospects like them — volunteers who have vowed to become Absolvers — and build relationships with each other. The road to Absolution is a hard one, and to prove their worth to those that are watching, Prospects will have to hone their combat skills. When we created our studio Sloclap two years ago, our intention was to make an action game with a combat system that was accessible, but deep enough to support PvP combat in the long term. We had some taglines which we always referred to: “Combat is a dance,” “Movement is your weapon,” and “Make your Move.” This would be a game in which the beauty and subtlety of martial arts combat can be seen and felt, where body dynamic and impact sensations are paramount, and in which players will create their own combat choreographies in real-time. As seen in the above video, we based the game system of Absolver on two main components — the Combat Deck and the Combat Styles — to reach these objectives. The Combat Deck is the list of attacks that are available to the player in combat. While fighting, players can select one of four stances which correspond to their orientation relative to their enemy. In each stance, players have different attacks: a sequence of up to three attacks, and one alternative attack. Each attack starts and finishes in a specific stance, so a sequence of attacks can loop on itself, or send the player to a different stance. With different parameters (damage, speed, range, etc.) and special properties, players can create their own unique strategy, and execute it tactically in real-time. Alternative attacks can be used during a sequence to switch to a different stance and create mix-ups. Attacks usable in the Combat Deck are learned by fighting others in
, running as an independent. Beat Chappell with 44.15 per cent of primary vote, 59.37 per cent on two-party preferred. Accepted an offer in 2007 from premier Morris Iemma to become NSW Legislative Assembly speaker. Elected University of New England chancellor in 2008. Pre-selected as Nationals candidate for federal seat of New England in 2013 to challenge Tony Windsor. He has not been talking today, other than to issue a statement saying the events of recent days have forced him to consider other options. A statement released by the Nationals this afternoon said: "The information was provided to the ICAC on a confidential basis and the Party makes no comment on the content of that information. "As the issue is now being considered by the ICAC, the party will make no further comment." Earlier today Nationals Senate Leader Barnaby Joyce said he is willing to challenge sitting independent Tony Windsor in New England, given Mr Torbay is now out of the race. Senator Joyce, who has been looking for a move into the Lower House, says he wants to replace Mr Torbay. He says he has had encouraging talks with party members today. "I will definitely be turning up to the preselection and they will then make their decision," he said. "No doubt there will be other candidates; I wouldn't be so bold as to say who will win. "The reason I will do that is that we can't go on with this current government. This is insane. "This has gone beyond a joke down here; there is no-one running the show." Senator Joyce grew up in the New England region and was interested in seeking pre-selection before Mr Torbay was chosen. "Now I am prepared to put myself forward if that is what the people wish. I'll be making sure that these people are given the respect of having their say before I go too far with having mine," he said. However, Queensland's Liberal National Party says it would prefer Senator Joyce to continue representing the state in the Senate. But director Brad Henderson says the party will respect whatever he decides to do. "That decision will be respected by our party members because whatever decision he does make will be all about maximising our opportunity to win government at the next federal election," he said. The Coalition had been pinning its hopes on Mr Torbay taking the seat from Mr Windsor, one of the key independents in the hung Parliament. Mr Torbay's campaign was due to be launched by the federal Nationals leader Warren Truss this Friday. Meanwhile, Mr Windsor said he would welcome Senator's Joyce's challenge. "I think anybody's entitled to stand," he told AM. "Barnaby's on record as saying that New England is his second choice. He's actually the second choice to Mr Torbay. "I don't think it's about New England for Barnaby. It's very much about him and positioning himself, his view of himself in terms of being a great leader of the Nationals." Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has described Senator Joyce as a "friend, a colleague, a very senior member of my team". "In the end it is a matter for the National Party, but I am sure he would make a very, very strong candidate," he said this morning. Topics: nationals, federal-government, armidale-2350 First postedMajor New Google Fiber Expansion Shines Massive Spotlight On Lack Of Broadband Competition from the sign-me-up dept While Google Fiber will never likely see a full-fledged national deployment, we've noted repeatedly how the effort is worth its weight in gold for the way it draws attention to the lack of competition in the broadband marketplace and elevates what can often be an immensely inane conversation about telecom policy. While incumbent giant ISPs have feebly tried to argue that consumers don't really want faster, cheaper speeds, the thousands of cities screaming for better broadband burns a hole right through all-too-common flimsy defenses of the status quo.This week Google Fiber announced a major new expansion effort that's sure to shine an even brighter spotlight on the nations stumbling, bumbling broadband duopoly. According to a Google blog post, the company has chosen Nashville, Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, and Atlanta as the next cities in line for the Google Fiber's symmetrical 1 Gbps broadband offerings. What's more, Google says that Portland, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, San Antonio and San Jose will be getting Google Fiber at a later date.As with previous Google Fiber launch markets of Austin, Kansas City and Provo, users have the choice of a 1 Gbps symmetrical line for $70, a 1 Gbps symmetrical line and TV service for $120, or a 5 Mbps offering that's free after you pay a $300 installation fee (either all at once or in installments). That's compared to the 100 to 300 Mbps top speeds offered by many ISPs for around four to five times the price. That's if you're lucky -- recent FCC data suggests that three quarters of the U.S. can't get anything more than 25 Mbps from just one ISP That said, it's a shame Google Fiber didn't stick to the company's original promise to run Google Fiber as an open access (other ISPs can come in and compete on top of Google's offerings). And while promising, these deployments are slow going and highly selective; Google Fiber is five years old and only has an estimated few thousand actual customers in Provo, Austin and Kansas City. Still, Google knows the effort not only shines a bright light on broadband competition issues, it's helping to expose the lame protectionist laws ISP lawyers have written to help keep their cozy little fiefdoms protected from the winds of change.Google Fiber's launch target areas in North Carolina, for example, fall under a state protectionist bill lobbied for by Time Warner Cable, AT&T and CenturyLink that was passed in 2011 after three previous failed attempts. That bill hinders towns and cities from being able to make their own choices on broadband deployment, and while it could have been vetoed by then North Carolina Governor Bev Purdue, she chose not to put up a fight. For good measure those ISPs also passed a bill lowering the definition of broadband in the hopes of obfuscating market failure. These companies have made every effort to ensure states like North Carolina remain broadband backwaters. Google Fiber now setting up three locations in their backyards is well deserved.While Google Fiber isn't going to magically cure the nation's lack of broadband options, it continues to not only elevate the policy conversation about broadband, it's inspiring many communities to demand something better. Another bit of good news? Google is about to try the same thing with wireless Filed Under: broadband, competition, google fiber Companies: googleDetroit resident Valerie Jean addresses the panel during a United Nations fact-finding Detroit Town Hall meeting on Sunday at Wayne County Community College in Detroit. (Photo: Jose Juarez, Special to The Detroit News ) — Water shutoffs have brought out the best and worst in city residents, the United Nations learned Sunday. The shutoffs, enacted by the city after many residents failed to pay their bills, have led to residents helping neighbors by giving money, jugs of water or running hoses to their homes. But a woman said her water bill jumped $600 after neighbors helped themselves to her outside faucet, using it so often they broke the handle. The woman, Barbara Russo, said she didn't blame her neighbors for their actions. "If you treat people like animals, you can only expect them to behave like animals," she said. The residents spoke during a public hearing held by two U.N. officials trying to determine if the water shutoffs have led to human rights violations. About 350 people attended the meeting in the atrium of the downtown campus of Wayne County Community College District. Monica Lewis-Patrick, a member of the Detroit People's Water Board, one of the citizen groups that organized the hearing, led a chant with the crowd: "Whose water? Our water. Whose water? Our water." Members of the group held signs and hung others along the walls: "Water is a Human Right," "Water Justice for All," and "Turn on the Water." As residents recounted their personal tribulations with the loss of water, they were often supported vocally by the boisterous crowd. "Today I charge genocide against the president of the United States," Lewis-Patrick said to cheers. "Today I charge genocide against Mayor Mike Duggan." Resident Nicole Hill said her water was turned off after a billing mix-up. Nine months after moving, she was still being billed for water at her old residence, she said. The mother of three said she couldn't turn to her neighbors for help because most of them had lost their water as well. "I went to court but they can't have a hearing until 2015," she said. Another resident said the loss of water has aggravated problems in a neighborhood already ravaged with blight and foreclosures. Gregory Price said he hoped the UN officials could do more than just hold a hearing. Otherwise, its effort would amount to little more than "people hollering and clapping." "I'm hurt. The community is hurt," said Price. "I hope you can do something about it." One of the U.N. officials tried to temper the expectations of the crowd. Leilani Farha, U.N. special rapporteur on adequate housing, said the organization can make recommendations but can't force the city to make changes. She and the other representative plan to meet with city officials Monday and then will propose ways for the city to help the residents. fdonnelly@detroitnews.com (313) 223-4186 Read or Share this story: http://detne.ws/1tDI9QZIn the early years of the 14th Century, scandal rocked the French monarchy to its core and inadvertently contributed to the end of the Capetian dynasty. 1314 was a tumultuous year for France; the final act in the destruction of the Knights Templars was played out when Grand Master, Jacques de Molay and the Preceptor of Normandy, Geoffrey de Charney, were burned to death on the Ile de la Cite. De Molay cursed Philip IV, King of France, and his descendants from the flames. Philip IV would be dead within a year and his dynasty’s rule over France would end with the death of his youngest son, Charles IV, in 1328. Philip’s eldest son and heir, Louis, was married to Marguerite de Burgundy. Louis seems to have been a hard person to live with – his nickname was Louis the Quarreler – and the marriage was said to be unhappy. A daughter, Jeanne, would survive childhood to eventually become Queen of Navarre. The second son, Philip, was married to Marguerite’s cousin, Jeanne d’Artois and Charles, the youngest, was married to Jeanne’s sister, Blanche d’Artois. The royal scandal of 1314 was uncovered due to 2 rather innocuous items; silk purses. On an earlier visit to France Isabella of France, wife of Edward II of England, had given silk purses to her sisters-in-law, as souvenirs of the knighting of her 3 brothers, Louis, Philip and Charles, the sons of Philip IV. When she visited again in 1314, Isabella saw these same silk purses on the belts of 2 knights of the French court; Gautier and Philippe d’Aunay. When Isabella brought this to her father’s attention, the matter was investigated and the brothers were put under surveillance. The 2 knights, it seems, were meeting with the princesses in secret. The whole scandal became known as the Tour de Nesle Affair, as the clandestine meetings were supposed to have taken place in this small palace on the outskirts of Paris (although some sources suggest that events happened at Philip IV’s country retreat of Maubuisson Abbey). Whatever the location, the affair was discovered; all 3 princesses were arrested and questioned. When confronted in a secret court, Marguerite and Blanche confessed to adultery with the d’Aunay brothers. Their heads were shaved and they were sent to life imprisonment in Chateau Gaillard. Blanche’s sister, Jeanne, fared better; she was also arrested, and placed under guard at the Chateau Dourdan. Her marriage with Philip was a very happy one, and it seems she was only guilty of knowing of the affairs. Philip defended his wife before the Paris Parlement and, with Philip’s support, Jeanne pleaded her innocence to the king, and was allowed to return to her husband and the court. The 2 knights were arrested and, after being questioned and tortured, they confessed to the adultery and were condemned to death for the crime of ‘lese majeste’. The unfortunate brothers were castrated and ‘broken on the wheel’ – they were strapped to large wheels, which were spun while their limbs were shattered with iron bars. And finally, they were decapitated. Marguerite’s imprisonment was the most severe. She was badly treated and some sources suggest she was held in a cell at the top of the donjon, open to the elements. On his accession to the throne in November 1314, Louis X applied to the Pope for an annulment of the marriage. However, Pope Clement V died before he could grant the divorce and no new Pope would be elected until 1316. Shortly after Clement’s death, however, Marguerite died – probably strangled on the orders of Louis. Louis married Clemence of Hungary, but died in June 1316, whilst Clemence was pregnant with their son. Jean I the Posthumous, was born and died in November of the same year and the crown passed to Louis’ brother, Philip V – with Jeanne d’Artois (by then Countess of Burgundy) at his side. Philip died in 1322, leaving only daughters and the crown passed to his brother. On his accession, Charles divorced Blanche – still in an underground cell in Chateau Gaillard – and transferred her to a monastery at Gavray, in Normandy, where she became a nun, dying there the following year. Charles IV died in February 1328, leaving his 3rd wife, Jeanne d’Evreux, pregnant. In April 1328, she gave birth to a daughter, Blanche, and, following Salic Law, the crown passed to Charles’ cousin, Philip of Valois, grandson of Philip III. Salic Law, however, was not in force in Navarre, a kingdom which had come to the French crown when Jeanne I of Navarre had married Philip IV. Louis’ daughter, Jeanne, therefore inherited Navarre as Jeanne II, despite the questions that the scandal raised over her parentage. It has been suggested that the Tour de Nesle Affair was all an elaborate plot to destabilise the French monarchy, but most historians believe the adultery took place. The harsh punishments reflected the need for queens and princesses to be above reproach, and the parentage of their children to be beyond question. The scandal cast a long shadow on the last years of the Capetian dynasty, with neither of the 3 brothers producing a son to carry on their line. * Sources: Pierre Goubert The Course of French History; Paul Doherty Isabella and the Strange Death of Edward II; J Huizinga The Waning of the Middle Ages; H.G. Koenigsberger Medieval Europe 400-1500; maison-hantee.com; herodote.net; histoirefrance.net. Pictures taken from Wikipedia. * My book, Heroines of the Medieval World, is now available in hardback in the UK from both Amberley Publishing and Amazon UK and worldwide from Book Depository. It is also available on Kindle in both the UK and USA and will be available in Hardback from Amazon US from 1 May 2018. Be the first to read new articles by clicking the ‘Follow’ button, liking our Facebook page or joining me on Twitter. ©2015 Sharon Bennett ConnollyDon’t wait for people to smile. Show them how. Let your guard down. Talk to someone you don’t know straight from your heart. Compliment them. Don’t anticipate awkwardness. Just be you in that beautiful way only you know and give them the chance to smile and connect with you. Remember, your best friend was once a stranger too. Love whoever is around to be loved. -Kurt Vonnegut Smile often. Hold a door open for someone. Pay for the person in line behind you. Send a hand-written thank you card to someone who assisted you with something. Clean out all your old clothes and donate them to someone in need. Give a compliment about a waiter, waitress, sales clerk, etc. to his or her manager. Compliment a stranger’s appearance. Flatter them. Leave encouraging post-it notes in a library books and other random places. (Read Operation Beautiful.) Help an elderly person carry something. Send flowers to someone anonymously. Be a courteous driver. Let people merge in front of you. Volunteer at a children’s hospital or nursing home. Donate blood. Buy house warming gifts for new neighbors. Introduce yourself. Make new colleagues, classmates, etc. feel welcome. Inspire others online. (Check out Makes Me Think.) Send letters of appreciation to business owners/managers and other people who support you. Treat everyone with the same level of respect you’d give to your grandfather. Give everyone the same level of patience you’d have with your baby sister. Appreciate people the way they are. Share your lunch or a snack with someone who doesn’t have one. Put some change in an expired parking meter. Check up on someone who looks lonely. Tell your boss, teacher or professor that he or she is doing a great job and that you appreciate what they’ve taught you. Create places and things for others to enjoy. Like decorating your house for the holidays or creating a piece of art. If you overhear that it’s someone’s birthday, go out of your way to wish them a happy one. Ask someone for their opinion or advice. Bring cookies or bagels to work for everyone. Tip waiters and waitresses well when they deserve it. Be a part of something you believe in. Those around you will notice your enthusiasm. (Read The Alchemist.) Leave a thank-you note for the office janitors. Help bag your own groceries at the checkout counter. Offer your seat to someone when there aren’t any left. Let someone with only a few items cut you in line at the grocery store. Wave to a kid in the car next to you. Spread good news. Repeat something nice you heard about someone else. Remember people’s names and address them accordingly. When you make eye contact with someone, smile. Replace what you’ve used. For example, fill up the copier or printer with paper after you’re done using it. Share your umbrella on a rainy day. Listen intently to people’s stories without trying to fix everything. Dance with someone who hasn’t been asked. Call a stranger’s attention to a beautiful sunset or full moon. (Check out What Money Cannot Buy.) Give words of encouragement toward someone’s dream, no matter how big or small it is. Ask someone who enjoys cooking for a recipe. Let someone else eat the last slice of pizza or cake. Stop and buy a drink from a kid’s lemonade stand. Help someone get your parking space in a crowded parking lot when you’re leaving. Ask someone you see every now and then if they’ve lost weight. Do a little something extra to make someone else’s life easier. Use all the manners you learned in Kindergarten. Listen to someone’s pain and help them find a path through it. Give without expecting to get back. Encourage others to do one unanticipated kind or helpful act at least once a week. Observe everyone without judging. Say “Please” and “Thank you.” Forgive and let go of anger. For instance, if somebody accidentally cuts you off in traffic, just let it go. Believe in yourself with all of your heart. People will notice. Don’t be so serious all the time. (Read The Happiness Project.) Treat every small interaction with another person as an opportunity to make a positive impact in both your lives. Greed, anger and ignorance. Avoid all three. Speak the truth. Teach others how to make a difference by setting an example. Help others be independent. Give people the space they need. Lend your shoulder to cry on. Offer encouragement after a failure. Acknowledge people for a job well done. Tell a good joke. Clean up after yourself. Excel at what you do. People appreciate professionals. Create a care package and send it to an active duty military unit. Redirect gifts. Instead of having people give you birthday and holiday gifts, ask them to donate gifts or money to a good cause. Stop to help. The next time you see someone pulled over with a flat tire, or in need of assistance, stop and ask how you can help. Put a small personal touch on everything you do. People notice and appreciate individuality. Take the time to teach someone a skill you know. Help someone get active. There’s a coworker or acquaintance in your life who wants to get healthy, but needs a helping hand. Offer to go walking or running together, to join a gym together. Send a nice email to a tech support representative who has assisted you. Donate food to a charity. Stand up for someone. Lend your voice. Often the powerless, the homeless, the neglected in our world need someone to speak up for them. If you see a couple taking a self-pic, offer to take the picture for them. Help the weary shopper in front of you who needs that extra two or three cents to avoid breaking a 20-dollar bill. Come to the rescue. If you realize someone is sick, bring them some hot tea, etc. Stand up for your beliefs without flaunting them. Make yourself available and approachable. Over-deliver on all of your promises and obligations. Be positive and focus on what’s right. And above all, live proudly. Inspire people with who you are and how you live your life.Dope Comet of 1882. Image: Sir David Gill/South African Astronomical Observatory On Thursday, a comet dramatically peaced out on life by swan-diving straight into the Sun. Its final moments were recorded by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), a spacecraft operated jointly by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). As it accelerated towards its death, this spacefaring Icarus was traveling at an insane 1.3 million miles per hour—faster than any object in the solar system, according to SOHO astrophysicist Karl Battams. Ooh fun fact - this comet will *easily* be the fastest (non-particle) object in our solar system right now! Prbly ~450km/s and accelerating! Karl BattamsAugust 4, 2016 First spotted on August 1, the comet was torn apart by the tumultuous forces surrounding the Sun before it ever reached the surface. The dearly departed space rock was survived by a larger family of comets called Kreutz sungrazers, named in part for their daredevil passes with the Sun at perihelion. Scientists think that Kreutz comets were originally part of one giant super-comet that broke into thousands of shards upon a close approach with our star several centuries ago. Some of the brightest and most widely observed comets in history were Kreutz sungrazers, including the Great Comet of 1843, the Great Comet of 1882, and Comet Ikeya–Seki in 1965. SOHO, launched in 1995, has imaged many of these Kreutz comets before, but this one was particularly radiant as it bit the stellar dust. So farewell, brave sungrazer, and thanks for the reminder that the Sun eats planetary bodies for breakfast.Hey guys! Hope everybody had a fun and safe St Patrick’s Saturday, Midtown was crazy packed with people everywhere, I don’t know where they all came from! Hopefully everybody got their festivities out of their system, because it looks grey, rainy, and gloomy outside from where I’m sitting now, as if the whole world has a hangover. Fittingly, there aren’t too many events today. Noni’s Bar and Deli (357 Edgewood Ave) has Get Lucky, their Sunday St. Patrick’s Day event, with DJs and Noni’s brunch specials. Starts at 2pm. If you want to eat before that, Manuel’s Tavern (602 North Highland Avenue) is making a delicious sounding lunch special today, two organic eggs from their roof-top chickens, a 7oz grass-fed organic ribeye steak, a fluffy biscuit, and a side of grits or home fries, for $17. I’m hungry just thinking about it. Also, all the food specials I listed on Friday are still going on today. The Homestead ATL is celebrating their first birthday at Wrecking Bar Brewpub (292 Moreland Ave) at 5pm today with music, free snacks, food and drink, and a fermentation workshop if you get there around 3pm. Eyedrum Gallery (115 MLK Jr. S.W. Suite 225.) is holding the closing reception for their Zalop exhibit, in the form of a twee-pop dance party. 6pm, no cover. The Full Moon Lunatics are meeting in Piedmont Park tonight at 6pm and staying until the park closes to see the sunset, moonrise, and have a group picnic. I didn’t know this was a thing but it sounds interesting. Handful of interesting shows going on tonight (image): Gonna take the opportunity to plug this again since they have a show tonight, but if you guys have enjoyed any of the events at The Mammal Gallery over the past few months, throw them a few bucks at their Save the Mammals Kickstarter. They’re trying to fix the building and make it more awesome. In addition to that, there’s also the usual Sunday stuff, as well as everything ongoing! Honestly if this rain keeps up it’s going to be a tea/popcorn/netflix day, but I bet Agent Orange would be a fun show at the Masq. If it wasn’t so awful outside I’d be down for the hangover breakfast at The Earl, but it just looks so gloomy outside I want to stay inside, warm, and dry. Let me know if anyone ventures outside and finds something cool to do! Be sure to follow me on Twitter, Tumblr, or Facebook, put me in your RSS reader, or sign up for daily emails, whatever works best for you! As always, remember that the Tumblr will be the most up-to-date version of the list.O's name Nolan as player-manager The Club are extremely pleased to announce the appointment of Kevin Nolan as the new player-manager on a two-and-a-half year deal.Kevin brings with him invaluable expertise and know how, with 17 years’ experience in high level football. A number of strong candidates were interviewed by the Chairman, but Kevin’s hunger, desire and passion to succeed at Leyton Orient, coupled with his experience, were key in the decision process and the Club believe they have the man to take Leyton Orient forward and improve the Club's position.Nolan, 33, has enjoyed a successful playing career at the top level of English football with the likes of West Ham United, Newcastle United and Bolton Wanderers, amassing over 500 career appearances, and will continue to add to that in a Leyton Orient shirt as he combines playing with his first managerial role following the completion of his coaching badges.Kevin will take charge of first-team affairs with immediate effect, overseeing his first training session tomorrow morning ahead of leading the side for the very first time in Saturday’s Sky Bet League Two game at Wycombe Wanderers.Everyone at Leyton Orient would like to welcome Kevin to the Matchroom Stadium and look forward to working with him.‘Suicide by laptop’ riddle of two brilliant students found dead in hotel room Two brilliant university students were found dead together in a hotel room after apparently rigging up a laptop to deliver lethal injections in what is thought to have been a suicide pact. Friends Robert Miller, 20, and 19-year-old James Robertson – both described as highly intelligent – were found slumped in chairs. Their bodies were discovered facing each other at the £65-a-night Ramada Jarvis Hotel in Ayr – 80 miles from where they were both studying for joint maths and physics degrees at Edinburgh University. Grim discovery: The Ramada Hotel where the pair were found slumped in chairs Staff entered the room after becoming concerned that the young men hadn’t checked out. The tragedy has raised fears the pair were influenced by Australian doctor Philip Nitschke, dubbed Dr Death, inventor of the so-called ‘Deliverance Machine’. Pro-euthanasia campaigner Dr Nitschke’s device involved a computer connected to a syringe driver which could deliver a lethal dose of medication at the touch of a button. It killed four terminally ill Australians before being outlawed in 1997. The students’ deaths have sent shockwaves through the remote Orkney communities where they were raised. A friend, who asked not to be named, said: ‘No one can understand why this has happened. They were just boys next door – good fun and good friends to have.’ Bright future: Orkney lad James Robertson was a gifted musician as well as a top class maths and physics student Mr Robertson had attended Stromness Academy, while Mr Miller, who was just days away from his 21st birthday, went to Kirkwall Grammar on the other side of the Orkney mainland. However, Mr Miller’s page on social networking site Facebook shows that they shared mutual friends. They had arrived at the seafront hotel on Tuesday and were said to have been ‘happy and chatty’ when they spoke to staff. When they did not appear back at reception the next day, staff made the grim discovery. Strathclyde Police examined the laptop and said they are not treating the deaths as suspicious. Tragic ending: Highly-intelligent Robert Miller was found dead with fellow student Mr Robertson was a gifted musician known as Jim. Last night, the mother of one of his friends said no one had any idea what had caused the pair to take their lives. She said: ‘Jim was just the nicest, sweetest boy and everyone is in total shock. He played in a band and was a very good guitarist. He was a gentle soul and always looked out for his friends. But he had a dry sense of humour too and liked a joke. ‘He decided to go off to study in Edinburgh as many of the young folk here do. He was highly intelligent, with an exceptional grasp of numbers, so it seemed the right step. This has just come like a bolt out of the blue.’ Mr Robertson used to be in an indie-rock band in Orkney called Feedback. He played a number of instruments but specialised in the guitar. His devastated parents Barbara and William, of Stromness, travelled to the mainland after their son’s body was discovered. Mr Miller’s parents, James, and Christine, from Finstown, also made the journey to Ayrshire. Both families are well known in the community. Mrs Robertson works with charities and voluntary groups. Mr and Mrs Miller are directors of the Orkney Media Group, which owns the newspapers The Orcadian and Orkney Today. They had the heart-breaking task of identifying the two men’s bodies and it is understood they are now making arrangements to have their sons’ remains transported back to Orkney. Last night, Stromness councillor Ian Johnston said: ‘Nobody has any idea what is behind this and we are absolutely shattered. I knew Jim. He was in the same year at school as my own son, so it has hit my family hard as well. ‘They will be very badly missed by the community.’ Edinburgh University has been helping police piece together any motive the pair might have had for taking their own lives. There has been growing concern about the availability of suicide ‘self-help’ guides. Critics have said they are a rich hunting ground for predatory intruders seeking to exploit the vulnerable. Nicola Peckett, of the Samaritans, said: ‘Suicide is a complex issue and is not usually the result of just one factor or event. It is very important not to let your feelings spiral out of control and to seek help when you don’t feel able to cope.’ The Samaritans can be contacted on 08457 90 90 90 or by emailing jo@samaritans.orgFebruary 18, 2015 The "West's" Dilema After Debaltseve: What To Do About Poroshenko? Despite the best that has been done by everyone — the gallant fighting of the military and naval forces, the diligence and assiduity of Our servants of the State, and the devoted service of Our one hundred million people — the war situation has developed not necessarily to Japan's advantage, while the general trends of the world have all turned against her interest. Emperor Hirohito acknowledging Japan's defeat The Ukrainian puppet president Poroshenko should have delivered a similar speech. Indeed the war situation in Ukraine has developed not necessarily to his governments advantage. But the speech Proshenko gave (see below) was even more delusional than Hirohito's whitewashing. Since six days ago several thousand Ukrainian government troops were surrounded in the Debaltsevo pocket. The only road out towards friendly lines was mined and under direct and indirect opposition fire. Several attempts to break out and also into the pocket were defeated with lots of lives and material lost. Since yesterday and after severe artillery preparations the federalist troops are storming the city. They claim that some 3,000 government troops died there and some 1,000 capitulated (vid) and went into captivity. A few hundred sneaked out at night mostly by foot and today reached the government controlled Artemivsk some 30 kilometers to the north of Debaltsevo. Others fled south away from their own lines and deeper into the pocket. They will be mopped up in due time. Huge amounts of weapons and ammunition was left behind for the federalists to pic up. Reporters in Artemivsk observed some 40-50 dead and some 200 wounded arriving. These were, reporters said, mostly casualties of the escape under fire, not of the earlier fights in Debaltseve. Those who made it out alive are in seriously angry about their higher-ups. The Minsk-2 meeting was urgently arranged by the German chancellor Merkel when the situation around Debaltsevo deteriorated. But during the negotiations in Minsk Poroshenko insisted that there was no pocket and that his troops were in total control of the situation. The French president Hollande tried to explain the real situation to him but to no avail. The ceasefire was arranged but the Debaltsevo pocket was not mentioned in the protocols. The federalists reasonably concluded that the pocket was within their acknowledged lines and could be eliminated without breaking the general agreed upon ceasefire. Over the last days we have heard very little protest against this move from the "western" side. Was there a silent agreement to make Poroshenko eat his necktie over the issue like his new adviser Saakashvili once did? Now the above is the reality. And here is Proshenko's delusional version delivered in a speech today: I can inform now that this morning the Armed Forces of Ukraine together with the National Guard completed the operation on the planned and organized withdrawal of a part of units from Debaltseve. We can say that 80% of troops have been already withdrawn. We are waiting for two more columns. Warriors of the 128th brigade, parts of units of the 30th brigade, the rest of the 25th and the 40th battalions, Special Forces, the National Guard and the police have already left the area. ... We were asserting and proved: Debaltseve was under our control, there was no encirclement, and our troops left the area in a planned and organized manner with all the heavy weaponry: tanks, APCs, self-propelled artillery and vehicles. ... It is a strong evidence of combat readiness of the Armed Forces and efficiency of the military command. I can say that despite tough artillery and MLRS shelling, according to the recent data, we have 30 wounded out of more than 2,000 warriors. Many "western" journalist are no streaming into Debaltsevo and their will soon be reports about the real disaster and the real losses the Ukrainian government troops had there. Those will be hard to hide. It will then be difficult for the "west" to continue working with Poroshenko. He has now been shown to be completely off his rockers. He can no longer be sold to the public as the bearer of the truth, the sincere white knight against the dark forces of Russia. How will the "west", Obama and his neoconned State Department react to that? Will they prepare a coup against Poroshenko or do they have other means to get rid of their useless puppet or to save the situation? Posted by b on February 18, 2015 at 10:51 AM | Permalink Comments next page »NEW YORK — AT&T’s pending acquisition of Time Warner, an $85 billion media deal that could shake up how Americans watch TV, is being held up by the government. That’s raising red flags for some who worry that the White House is trying to put pressure on CNN, the news network owned by Time Warner. The Justice Department told AT&T that it wanted the telecom company to sell its DirecTV satellite unit or Time Warner’s Turner, which houses CNN, TBS and TNT, to get the deal approved, said a person familiar with the situation, who was not authorized to speak publicly. According to a Justice Department official, AT&T has offered to divest CNN. The official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, said the department rejected that offer as insufficient to resolve its concerns, which it did not specify. Advertisement AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said in a statement, ‘‘I have never offered to sell CNN and have no intention of doing so.’’ An AT&T spokesman did not respond to other questions, although one company executive told an investor conference Wednesday that timing of the deal is ‘‘uncertain.’’ Get Talking Points in your inbox: An afternoon recap of the day’s most important business news, delivered weekdays. Sign Up Thank you for signing up! Sign up for more newsletters here The deal’s holdup has raised suspicions of political retaliation — even from people who oppose the deal entirely. As a candidate, Donald Trump vowed to block the deal because it concentrated too much ‘‘power in the hands of too few.’’ As president, Trump has often blasted CNN for its coverage of him and his administration, disparaging it and its reporters as ‘‘fake news.’’ ‘‘While there are plenty of good reasons to oppose AT&T’s Time Warner takeover, punishing CNN for trying to hold this administration accountable isn’t one of them,’’ Free Press’ president, Craig Aaron, said in a statement. The consumer group opposes the deal and media consolidation in
there – on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.” WOW: AND I THOUGHT I MADE RUN ON SENTENCES. WOW. Besides nerdy and pretentious I couldn’t follow that and won’t. That turned this speech into a rant. “The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena.” That statement shows that Sagan had little to no conscience. It’s a stage for narcissists like you and sociopaths and psychopaths and the arrogant, who think or act like life is a game. Life is not a game or act. When little kids are physically and emotionally abused and cry in pain, scream out in pain and feel like committing suicide, hey are not acting, they are not putting on a show to entertain, nor are others of any age who are severely abused or in the process of being murdered. “Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors, so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot.” Yes: and atheist leaders like Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot, and the Chinese atheist government and the atheism supporter Hitler and Roman Catholics Mussolini and Franco, who together, in less than 100 years, murdered over 300,000,000 people, and severely persecuted those who loved God. And the Chinese government still severely persecutes Christians who won’t conform to their atheist-approved version of Christianity, and there are still many atheist leaders and police in Russia and it’s former satellite states who persecute Christians, including Belarus, which right now is ruled by someone worse than Hitler (because unlike Hitler, this man has much easier access to information about God, and so knows better not to do what he is doing). “Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner,” So, the Anglo-Saxons look like Pygmies? Muscovites look like the Ashkens and Sephars of Israel? Many Israelites have a rough and crude appearance. Their aren’t many fine Israelis. “how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds.” This rant had no point. It seems to be a more pretentious form of the logical fallacies: “War is bad/War is bad because people die (and it causes pain)” and “Arguing is bad (because it’s unpleasant)” which as far as I know never have what I put in brackets, and so are still pointless. Even saying, “because people die” is pointless, because why is death bad in all cases? On top of that anti-population expansion people want people to die, in huge numbers (which by the way shows that they could care less about technological progression, such as colonizing space, and are therefore boring and anti-scientific, and yet are often evolutionists and supporters of the Mainstream Science religion which is supposed to be about having fun learning and making money and helping others, technological progression, scientific progression and colonizing space, though many in that cult if not all are also against population expansion, which therefore shows that Mainstreamers and non-scientists which are against population expansion but who support Mainstreamers are a self-conflicted, confused (or forgetful) and hypocritical group. Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. How does Earth, which you pretentiously call a point of pale light, challenge “the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe” if Earth is not alive? And what makes it a delusion to think God gave us the privilege of seeing his creations, enjoying them, serving him and being one of the focuses of his attention and other things? Further, why did he “Universe”, rather than God or aliens? I sure don’t see any mention of Geocentrism in this rant in any way, so why did he just speak out against it? Was there something Carl the liar didn’t want the world to realize, but to keep a secret for the elitists he served? “Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark.” This liar was bribed by elitists to mislead people away from the fact that Earth is often visited by aliens (and he took the bribe), every day now, and that the U.S. government had possession of alien ships and bodies. In my last post I even have pictures of a UFO I saw a few days ago. “In our obscurity,” We’re not obscure if aliens are always coming here of many kinds, in ships that can travel to other planets with life that is alien to them, and when thousands of angels and demons know about us and fight against or protect us every day. “in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves.” God’s word is everywhere, the book he wrote through mankind is the most popular, widespread, numerous, free and priced, most influential book in the world and has been translated into the more languages than any other book. And it clearly says God will save those he loves from those who hate Him and therefore them. Further, one time a saucer did help an army to get through a wall, so that is a hint that they might help SOME humans and save them, again, one day. And they be populating other parts of the universe with humans. There are many missing people that have never been found, and aliens are known to take blood samples and cattle parts, which they might be using for cloning and medicine. “The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life.” Liar. And that statement is pointless. “There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit yes. Settle, not yet.” We already have alien ships and probably ones based on their technology, and even if we don’t, the richest countries could easily colonize the Moon or Mars if they haven’t already, or make space stations near Europa and Titan and use the resources from them to live, and after doing those things, continuing to colonize the solar system, and from there, the rest of the galaxy, until the whole universe is filled with humans. The things which stop us from doing those things are people with anti-scientific and anti-truth beliefs and belief systems like and worse than Carl Sagan’s and evil behavior and speech in general, which Christians also do at times.If true Christians used their money for space colonization instead of evangelization, charity, and luxury goods, then they would be successful at it, so long as they didn’t totally forsake their main goals, and didn’t commit any atrocities which God would hold them responsible for as a group, and punish them for in such a way that it would stop them from space colonization. “Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.” What does it matter where location you “take a stand” against something is? And take a stand for what? Against people like you? Satan? And I thought he was against taking stands against people? Or did he expect those warring against each other to just tolerate child abuse, murder, stealing, lying, fraud, drunkenness, stalking, harassment and insane people always disturbing their peace or encouraging such things with illogical rants? Did he expect people to just get up and stand at a podium and speaker and complain, “Why can’t we all get a long?” as if merely asking with sadness would make everyone more logical and kinder or perfectly? “It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character building experience.” Who said this, and what does it matter? It was because Carl Sagan was a narcissist, and one who was an astronomer and so wanted everyone to think that he was a humble person (a good person) with a “character” (and what kind of character?). Typical sign of a narcissist: use some eloquent or big word in a way that is vague, and therefore makes no point, because narcissists are careless with logic and lazy when it comes to thinking and more interested in sounding smart for easy friends, money, please, praise, admiration, and so just put out catch words for those things. “There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world.” How is a distant image an example of Earth an example of “the folly of human conceits” Mr. “People Say That Astronomers Are Said to Be Humble and Have a Built Up Character?” Or were you talking about that conceited statement being that it was the last action you mentioned? “To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.” Why does “a distant image of Earth being “the best demonstration of folly of human conceits” underscore to you that “we” (me and the millions of kind charitable Christians you hated, too full of hate and self-centered to bother to get to know?) need to “deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot”? Besides that not making sense: are you God that your desires should be followed over anyone else’s? And what do you mean by “kind” or “more” kind Mr. Morally Vague Astronomer With the Built Up Moral Character? Why should anyone do what you advise, even you had been specific by saying, “Don’t lie, don’t steal, don’t murder, don’t make images of or worship imaginary gods, love your neighbor as yourself, forgive your enemies, be kind to strangers, bless your enemies not just your friends, and by doing these things are doing, “Do to others as you would have them do to you” which is what you should do”? If there is no God, then shouldn’t we take this advice, given by God: “If the dead [will] not rise [(be resurrected)] at all? Why [would] people baptized on their behalf? Why are we [putting ourselves] in danger every hour [if they won’t be brought back to life]? I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, [for whom] I die every day! What do I gain, if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead [will] not rise, [then]: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” – 1 Corinthians 15:29-32 Most people are reckless like Carl Sagan, and for a bribe that he couldn’t take with him to the grave, to enjoy forever, and so was only temporary, would imprison everyone forever on a “lonely obscure pale blue dot filled with conceited people who hate each other and kill each other.” And how would such people preserve their home if that is what they are like, and don’t grow out of? If they are liars and bribe takers like Carl? Will they change because of a nonsensical pretentious poem, even by being a little kinder, whatever that means to anyone? How could they if nothing changes them according to astronomers and Mainstreamers like Carl? Why should anyone listen to him, especially if they know he was a liar and bribe taker and took a bribe to consign all humans except some illogical elitists like him, to an obscure death? And why would it be conceited if we are trapped on this obscure planet then, in which life alone may exist, to then try and be the center of attention, especially if it’s merely a stage with many viewers nearby and no where else, and when our lives are supposedly only going to be short and the only ones we will ever have, according to atheists, which Carl was? It is obvious to me that Carl Sagan was a narcissist, from his past words, like his arrogant insult on the Jay Leno Show, which was that there is no “old man with a beard in the sky,”and this Pale Blue Dot speech, which is illogical. Update: 4/7/2011 Carl the Credit Theif About an hour ago I discovered, that on February 19, 2011, bandpitdeviant made a post on Reddit in which he implied that on his own, Carl Sagan came up with a logical fallacy list, as did Sagan, in his book, “Demon Haunted World”. I pointed out in repeated replies that it was Christians who came up with those lists, and that even Darwin, whom Carl trusted in, had stolen credit from others by pretending to have come up with the theory of natural selection on his own, when Edward Blyth, a naturalist creationist was the one who mainly came up with it. Now besides pride being why the atheists of Reddit would be deleting my replies, meaning their pride was offended, it’s also obvious that they might be deleting them because that page bandpitdeviant made, shows how gullible atheists are, and prideful: at the time of me posting this, about 200 people voted bandpit’s post up, and because I kept replying to it (it was dying in popularity before I started replying to it again), and most likely, it was atheists doing so, because Reddit is an atheist-oriented website, which promotes atheism, and it can see from the replies, that atheists are the ones supporting the post and claim that Carl came up with the logic fallacy list. Deliberate atheism is truly a denial of truth. Related Posts: Richard Dawkins: A Narcissist Who Requires Christians to Have “Credentials” Skeptic ‘Dr.’ Michael Shermer Speaks On Coast to Coast A.M. Yet Another Atheist With Narcissism Disorder Just Have Faith: Stephen Hawking says, “Gravity did it.” The Vain Mark Twain ”Evil Bible”? What Anti-Christians Conveniently Ignore Atheists Fail at Logic Characteristics of the Mainstream Science Cult and How It Imprisons the World The Signs of a Sociopath, Psychopath and Narcissist [Comments are closed to this article because no atheist has been able to come up with anything useful to say other than to show that atheists are careless readers, hypocrites, immoral and very irritating. There are plenty of comments to read here and on other articles though].Top Rank, which promoted three boxing events in Macau, China, in 2013, including last month's Manny Pacquiao-Brandon Rios fight, is returning to the Asian gambling capital for another card at the CotaiArena at the Venetian Macao on Feb. 22. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum is calling the card "Ring of Gold" because, besides a pair of world title bouts, he said three of the four 2012 Olympic gold-medal winners he signed will appear on the show, which will be televised on HBO2 in the United States. The card will be headlined by flyweight Zou Shiming (3-0, 0 KOs), the Freddie Roach-trained Chinese national hero and three-time Olympic medalist (gold in 2012 and 2008 and bronze in 2004), who will take on an opponent to be determined as he moves into his first scheduled eight-round fight. Zou, the driving force for having professional fight cards in Macau, has had all of his pro fights there.Arbitrary Day Santa decided to spread the love around this year. He/she sent gifts for my whole family. So generous! (You really didn't need to go through all that trouble.) On behalf of me and my family, I want to formally thank Santa so much for the gifts. I really love everything. Great job! Inside the package, I found: -an awesome book that I can't wait to read -a wood burning kit (a new skill I want to learn) -a foam castle kit -a glow in the dark lanyard kit Plus, I got a letter explaining why AD Santa chose these gifts. (Personalized letters are the best! Thanks for including this.) AD Santa has also stated that he/she will send my son some steam games. To get them, Santa left a few clues in the letter. My son can't wait to figure the clues out and collect the gift. Excitement!! Update: Got the steam games. Magicka Collection, Torchlight, & Torchlight 2. Thank you so much! So much awesomeness! :DEpicurus of Samos Sovran Maxims ... Squashed down to read in about 10 minutes "No pleasure is a bad thing in itself" Wikipedia - Full Text - Print Edition: ISBN 0879758104 INTRODUCTION TO Sovran Maxims Epicurus was born in 341BC on the island of Samos. He studied philosophy under the successors of Democritus and Plato, and eventually founded his own school and community at the 'garden' in Athens. Epicureanism, a philosophy of refined and calculating pleasure-seeking (in contrast to the rival creed of Soicism, (see Marcus Aurelius - Meditations) with its watchword of 'duty'), flourished for centuries, spawning colonies and followers throughout Europe, only to fade with the coming of Christianity. ABOUT THIS SQUASHED EDITION This Squashed edition is unusual in that the abridged version presented here, known as the Ta Kuria, was made from Epicurus' (now mostly lost) writings by an unknown editor and reproduced in Diogenes Laertius Lives of the Eminent Philosophers some time in the 3rd Century AD. No Time? Read THE VERY, VERY SQUASHED VERSION... Epicurus of Samos, 270BC Sovran Maxims "No pleasure is a bad thing in itself" Death is nothing to us; for that which has no sensation is nothing to us. The magnitude of pleasure reaches its limit in the removal of all pain. It is impossible to live a pleasant life without living wisely and honorably and justly, and it is impossible to live wisely and honorably and justly without living pleasantly. No pleasure is a bad thing in itself, but the things which produce certain pleasures entail disturbances many times greater than the pleasures themselves. If we had never been troubled by weather, death and pain, we should have had no need of natural science. The wealth required by nature is limited and is easy to procure; but the wealth required by vain ideals extends to infinity. Chance seldom interferes with the wise man; his greatest and highest interests have been, are, and will be, directed by reason throughout his whole life. The just man is most free from disturbance, while the unjust is full of the utmost disturbance. If you fight against all your sensations, you will have no standard to which to refer Of all the means which wisdom acquires to ensure happiness throughout the whole of life, by far the most important is friendship. The Squashed Philosophers Edition of... Sovran Maxims Epicurus of Samos 270BC Squashed version edited by Glyn Hughes © 2011 1. A blessed and indestructible being has no trouble himself and brings no trouble upon any other being; so he is free from anger and partiality, for all such things imply weakness. 2. Death is nothing to us; for that which has been dissolved into its elements experiences no sensations, and that which has no sensation is nothing to us. 3. The magnitude of pleasure reaches its limit in the removal of all pain. When such pleasure is present, so long as it is uninterrupted, there is no pain either of body or of mind or of both together. 4. Continuous bodily pain does not last long; instead, pain, if extreme, is present a very short time, and even that degree of pain which slightly exceeds bodily pleasure does not last for many days at once. Diseases of long duration allow an excess of bodily pleasure over pain. 5. It is impossible to live a pleasant life without living wisely and honorably and justly, and it is impossible to live wisely and honorably and justly without living pleasantly. Whenever any one of these is lacking, when, for instance, the man is not able to live wisely, though he lives honorably and justly, it is impossible for him to live a pleasant life. 6. In order to obtain protection from other men, any means for attaining this end is a natural good. 7. Some men want fame and status, thinking that they would thus make themselves secure against other men. If the life of such men really were secure, they have attained a natural good; if, however, it is insecure, they have not attained the end which by nature's own prompting they originally sought. 8. No pleasure is a bad thing in itself, but the things which produce certain pleasures entail disturbances many times greater than the pleasures themselves. 9. If every pleasure had been capable of accumulation, not only over time but also over the entire body or at least over the principal parts of our nature, then pleasures would never differ from one another. 10. If the things that produce the pleasures of profligate men really freed them from fears of the mind concerning celestial and atmospheric phenomena, the fear of death, and the fear of pain; if, further, they taught them to limit their desires, we should never have any fault to find with such persons, for they would then be filled with pleasures from every source and would never have pain of body or mind, which is what is bad. 11. If we had never been troubled by celestial and atmospheric phenomena, nor by fears about death, nor by our ignorance of the limits of pains and desires, we should have had no need of natural science. 12. It is impossible for someone to dispel his fears about the most important matters if he doesn't know the nature of the universe but still gives some credence to myths. So without the study of nature there is no enjoyment of pure pleasure. 13. There is no advantage to obtaining protection from other men so long as we are alarmed by events above or below the earth or in general by whatever happens in the boundless universe. 14. Protection from other men, secured to some extent by the power to expel and by material prosperity, in its purest form comes from a quiet life withdrawn from the multitude. 15. The wealth required by nature is limited and is easy to procure; but the wealth required by vain ideals extends to infinity. 16. Chance seldom interferes with the wise man; his greatest and highest interests have been, are, and will be, directed by reason throughout his whole life. 17. The just man is most free from disturbance, while the unjust is full of the utmost disturbance. 18. Bodily pleasure does not increase when the pain of want has been removed; after that it only admits of variation. The limit of mental pleasure, however, is reached when we reflect on these bodily pleasures and their related emotions, which used to cause the mind the greatest alarms. 19. Unlimited time and limited time afford an equal amount of pleasure, if we measure the limits of that pleasure by reason. 20. The flesh receives as unlimited the limits of pleasure; and to provide it requires unlimited time. But the mind, intellectually grasping what the end and limit of the flesh is, and banishing the terrors of the future, procures a complete and perfect life, and we have no longer any need of unlimited time. Nevertheless the mind does not shun pleasure, and even when circumstances make death imminent, the mind does not lack enjoyment of the best life. 21. He who understands the limits of life knows that it is easy to obtain that which removes the pain of want and makes the whole of life complete and perfect. Thus he has no longer any need of things which involve struggle. 22. We must consider both the ultimate end and all clear sensory evidence, to which we refer our opinions; for otherwise everything will be full of uncertainty and confusion. 23. If you fight against all your sensations, you will have no standard to which to refer, and thus no means of judging even those sensations which you claim are false. 24. If you reject absolutely any single sensation without stopping to distinguish between opinion about things awaiting confirmation and that which is already confirmed to be present, whether in sensation or in feelings or in any application of intellect to the presentations, you will confuse the rest of your sensations by your groundless opinion and so you will reject every standard of truth. If in your ideas based upon opinion you hastily affirm as true all that awaits confirmation as well as that which does not, you will not avoid error, as you will be maintaining the entire basis for doubt in every judgment between correct and incorrect opinion. 25. If you do not on every occasion refer each of your actions to the ultimate end prescribed by nature, but instead of this in the act of choice or avoidance turn to some other end, your actions will not be consistent with your theories. 26. All desires that do not lead to pain when they remain unsatisfied are unnecessary, but the desire is easily got rid of, when the thing desired is difficult to obtain or the desires seem likely to produce harm. 27. Of all the means which wisdom acquires to ensure happiness throughout the whole of life, by far the most important is friendship. 28. The same conviction which inspires confidence that nothing we have to fear is eternal or even of long duration, also enables us to see that in the limited evils of this life nothing enhances our security so much as friendship. 29. Of our desires some are natural and necessary, others are natural but not necessary; and others are neither natural nor necessary, but are due to groundless opinion. 30. Those natural desires which entail no pain when unsatisfied, though pursued with an intense effort, are also due to groundless opinion; and it is not because of their own nature they are not got rid of but because of man's groundless opinions. 31. Natural justice is a pledge of reciprocal benefit, to prevent one man from harming or being harmed by another. 32. Those animals which are incapable of making binding agreements with one another not to inflict nor suffer harm are without either justice or injustice; and likewise for those peoples who either could not or would not form binding agreements not to inflict nor suffer harm. 33. There never was such a thing as absolute justice, but only agreements made in mutual dealings among men in whatever places at various times providing against the infliction or suffering of harm. 34. Injustice is not an evil in itself, but only in consequence of the fear which is associated with the apprehension of being discovered by those appointed to punish such actions. 35. It is impossible for a man who secretly violates the terms of the agreement not to harm or be harmed to feel confident that he will remain undiscovered, even if he has already escaped ten thousand times; for until his death he is never sure that he will not be detected. 36. In general justice is the same for all, for it is something found mutually beneficial in men's dealings, but in its application to particular places or other circumstances the same thing is not necessarily just for everyone. 37. Among the things held to be just by law, whatever is proved to be of advantage in men's dealings has the stamp of justice, whether or not it be the same for all; but if a man makes a law and it does not prove to be mutually advantageous, then this is no longer just. And if what is mutually advantageous varies and only for a time corresponds to our concept of justice, nevertheless for that time it is just for those who do not trouble themselves about empty words, but look simply at the facts. 38. Where without any change in circumstances the things held to be just by law are seen not to correspond with the concept of justice in actual practice, such laws are not really just; but wherever the laws have ceased to be advantageous because of a change in circumstances, in that case the laws were for that time just when they were advantageous for the mutual dealings of the citizens, and subsequently ceased to be just when they were no longer advantageous. 39. The man who best knows how to meet external threats makes into one family all the creatures he can; and those he can not, he at any rate does not treat as aliens; and where he finds even this impossible, he avoids all dealings, and, so far as is advantageous, excludes them from his life. 40. Those who possess the power to defend themselves against threats by their neighbors, being thus in possession of the surest guarantee of security, live the most pleasant life with one another; and their enjoyment of the fullest intimacy is such that if one of them dies prematurely, the others do not lament his death as though it called for pity. Epicurus of Samos 341BC-271BC Epicurus died in Athens, probably from kidney disease. His last resting place is unknown.After the 2010 elections, the American Legislative Exchange Council was arguably at the height of its power. Though it had been around since the 1970s (President George W. Bush is pictured at ALEC’s 2005 annual meeting above), Republican wins in statehouses across the nation that year gave the group an outsized influence in policymaking. Its model legislation covered everything from Stand Your Ground laws to new voter ID requirements and popped up everywhere. But these few years of prominence seem to be catching up to ALEC as it has enthusiastically pursued its mission to, in the words of one liberal watchdog to the New York Times: “Bring together corporations and state legislators to draft profit-driven, anti-public-interest legislation.” Starting in 2012, less than two years after ALEC allies seized power in state legislatures, the group’s corporate partners have undergone a mass exodus, at times for their own ideological reasons, other times under public pressure. And by some counts, more than two dozen companies have severed their ties. That exodus has continued into this week, as Google chairman Eric Schmidt said Monday that his company would leave ALEC over climate change. Below is an exhaustive — but likely not comprehensive — list of the major businesses that have left the group and why. GOOGLE, September 2014 “The facts of climate change are not in question anymore. Everyone understands climate change is occurring, and the people who oppose it are really hurting our children and our grandchildren and making the world a much worse place,” Google Chairman Eric Schmidt told NPR’s Diane Rehm in explaining the decision. “And so we should not be aligned with such people — they’re just, they’re just literally lying.” MICROSOFT, August 2014 CNET linked Microsoft’s withdrawal to the company’s support of renewable energy projects, which would be at odds with ALEC’s environmental positions. The year before it left the group’s communications and technology task force, the software giant began investing in renewable energy projects, such as having one of its data centers powered by windmills. VISA, December 2013 The credit-card company quietly dropped its membership, according to the Center for Media and Democracy, after a year of being lobbied by a “socially responsible” investment firm to reexamine its participation. MERCK AND CO., September 2012 The pharmaceutical titan told the Star-Ledger that it was a combination of money and policy that drove its departure from the group. “Merck reviews its memberships every fall to decide which will be retained for the upcoming calendar year based on budget constraints and policy priorities,” Merck spokeswoman Kelley Dougherty said. “As a result of this review, the company will not be renewing its membership for several organizations. ALEC is one of these groups.” GENERAL MOTORS, July 2012 ALEC came under particularly scrutiny after the Trayvon Martin killing in 2012 because it has advanced Stand Your Ground legislation. Liberal groups started a coordinated campaign to pressure companies to drop their support. Dozens of companies did, though many, like GM, were not explicit in their announcements. “We routinely evaluate our support for a variety of organizations,” Greg Martin, a GM spokesman, told Bloomberg. “As such, we have decided to discontinue our support and funding of ALEC.” WALGREENS, July 2012 “We recently informed ALEC that effective immediately Walgreen Co. will not be renewing its membership in their organization,” James Graham, a Walgreens spokesman, told Bloomberg. The company’s departure also occurred amid the widespread public pressure to withdraw from ALEC. WAL-MART, May 2012 Without getting specific, Wal-Mart explained that the group had gotten away from its founding “Jeffersonian principles of free markets,” according to the Los Angeles Times. “We feel that the divide between these activities and our purpose as a business has become too wide,” Maggie Sans, the company’s vice president for public affairs, wrote in a letter explaining its departure. AMAZON, May 2012 Amid that ongoing campaign to pressure groups out of ALEC, Amazon cited “public concerns” when announcing its decision to leave the group. PROCTOR AND GAMBLE, April 2012 A company spokesperson was refreshingly frank while explaining why it was cutting ties with ALEC, according to Think Progress: It’s bad for business. “Decisions about which memberships we retain are guided by budgetary considerations, value to the business and engagement on issues core to our ability to compete in the marketplace,” the spokesperson Elizabeth Ratchford, said. “The multinational corporation made the determination that ALEC does not help P&G compete for consumers’ loyalty and support.” MCDONALDS, April 2012 The same principle apparently applied to the fast-food giant. “While [we] were a member of ALEC in 2011, we evaluate all professional memberships annually and made the business decision not to renew in 2012,” spokeswoman Ashlee Yingling told Mother Jones. KRAFT, April 2012 Kraft made clear that it had only been concerned with economic issues as ALEC attracted controversy for its gun control and voter ID legislation. “ALEC covers numerous issues but our involvement has been strictly limited to discussions about economic growth and development, transportation and tax policy. We did not participate in meetings or conversations related to other issues,” the company said. “Our membership in ALEC expires this spring and for a number of reasons, including limited resources, we have made the decision not to renew.” COCA COLA, April 2012 Coke also stressed that it had had narrow interests in working with ALEC, according to Think Progress, implying that the group’s forays into other issues were not in its best interest. “The Coca-Cola Company has elected to discontinue its membership with the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Our involvement with ALEC was focused on efforts to oppose discriminatory food and beverage taxes, not on issues that have no direct bearing on our business,” the company said. “We have a long-standing policy of only taking positions on issues that impact our Company and industry.” Corporate logos via Facebook and AP.Torture as a tool of jurisprudence was little known in the darkest part of the Dark Ages. The ability of human beings to discover the truth was thought to be limited. Thus the reliance not on judges or juries but on iudicium Dei—the judgment of an all-knowing God—to determine guilt or innocence. This often took the form of trial by ordeal. The accused would be submerged in water, or made to walk on red-hot coals, or forced to plunge an arm into boiling water. If he or she suffered no harm, or if the wounds healed sufficiently within a certain period of time, then it was the judgment of God that the accused was innocent. This regime was common in Europe for many centuries. It was unquestionably primitive and certainly barbaric. In its favor, it was devoid of hubris about what mere mortals can ever really know. The late-medieval revolution in legal thinking—manifest everywhere, from Church courts to secular ones—took the pursuit of justice out of God’s hands and put it into the hands of human beings. In his book Torture, the historian Edward Peters explains that the medieval legal revolution was based on one big idea: when it came to discovering guilt or innocence—or, more broadly, discovering the truth about something—there was no need to send the decision all the way up the chain of command, to God. These matters were well within human capacity. But that didn’t quite settle the issue, Peters goes on. When God is the judge, no other standard of proof is needed. When human beings are the judges, the question of proof comes to the fore. What constitutes acceptable evidence? How do you decide between conflicting accounts? In the absence of a confession—the most unassailable form of evidence, the “queen of proofs”—what form of questioning can properly be applied to induce one? Are there ways in which the interrogation might be … enhanced? And in the end, how do you know that the full truth has been exposed—that a bit more isn’t waiting to be discovered some little way beyond, perhaps with some additional effort? So it’s not hard to understand, Peters concludes, how torture comes into the picture. From time to time, exhibits of torture instruments go on tour. The effect is oddly Disneyfied—a theme-park view of interrogation. The very names of the instruments reinforce a sense of distant fantasy: Brazen Bull, Iron Maiden, Judas Cradle, Saint Elmo’s Belt, Cat’s Paw, Brodequins, Thummekings, Pilliwinks, Heretic’s Fork, Spanish Tickler, Spanish Donkey, Scold’s Bridle, Drunkard’s Cloak. They could just as easily be the names of pubs, or brands of condoms, or points of ascent on a climbing map. The Inquisition rarely resorted to these specific instruments. It relied on three different techniques, all of them used today. Before a session began, the person to be interrogated would be brought into the torture chamber and told what was about to be done. The experience of being in conspectus tormentorum was often enough to compel testimony. If not, the session commenced. A physician was generally in attendance. Meticulous records were kept; the usual practice was for a notary to be present, preparing a minutely detailed account. These documents survive in large numbers; they are dry, bureaucratic expositions whose default tone of clinical neutrality is punctuated matter-of-factly—“Oh! Oh!”—by quoted screams. The first technique used by the Inquisition was known in Spanish as the garrucha (“pulley”) and in Italian as the strappado (“pull” or “tug”). It was a form of torture by suspension, and worked through simple gravity. Typically, the hands of the person to be interrogated were tied behind his back. Then, by means of a rope threaded through a pulley or thrown over a rafter, his body would be hoisted off the ground by the hands, and then be allowed to drop with a jerk. The strain on the shoulders was immense. The weight of the body hanging from the arms contorted the pleural cavity, making breathing difficult (asphyxiation was the typical cause of death in crucifixion, for the same reason).House and Senate Republican leaders are forging ahead with plans to repeal Obamacare then replace it later — dismissing mounting pressure from their own party to delay the repeal vote until they have a fully formed alternative. But they’re hoping
it’s still early days for the Apple Watch and the broader wearable-gadgets market. It took Apple more than two years to sell 2 million iPods, and several months to sell that many iPhones. And, to reiterate: This is a projection based on one company’s data in one country. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its accuracy. Bigger picture, the Watch is still figuring out its purpose. Most early adopters seem to like it so far, but it’s hardly a must-have device yet. And it seems the sort of gadget that will be most popular around the holidays, much like Apple’s other consumer devices. One Wall Street analyst, Morgan Stanley’s Katy Huberty, recently increased her projection of first-year global Apple Watch shipments to 36 million, based on survey results showing increased purchase intentions among US consumers. A second firm, however, just reportedly decreased its estimates to less than 15 million watches, based on weak demand. To reach 36 million shipments, Apple would need to average almost 100,000 per day worldwide. One big question is how Apple Watch sales will change once people are able to simply walk into an Apple Store, try one on, and buy it. That hasn’t happened yet. Apple’s online store is still showing several-week backorders for common configurations, and its retail stores do not yet have inventory.WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to take a second look at the use of race in admissions decisions by the University of Texas at Austin, reviving a potent challenge to affirmative action in higher education. The move, which supporters of race-conscious admissions programs called baffling and ominous, signaled that the court may limit or even end such affirmative action. The advocates speculated that the court’s most conservative members had cast the four votes needed to grant review of the case in the hope that Justice Anthony M. Kennedy would supply the fifth vote to strike down the Texas admissions plan. Justice Kennedy has never voted to uphold an affirmative action program. The consequences would be striking if the court sided with the plaintiff in the case, a white woman named Abigail Fisher, and did away with racial preferences in higher education. It would, all sides agree, reduce the number of black and Latino students at nearly every selective college and graduate school, with more Asian-American and white students gaining entrance instead. “Over the last few days, liberals have been celebrating a string of important victories involving health care and same-sex marriage,” said Justin Driver, a law professor at the University of Chicago. “But liberals have also been bracing themselves for the other shoe to drop. This decision to grant review means, at a minimum, that the other shoe will remain suspended in midair for the next several months.”Our colleague and friend Steve Deace is the most popular conservative radio talk show host in Iowa. His rise in conservative talk radio has helped him to become one of the most influential voices on the Iowa political scene, and his endorsement of [score]Ted Cruz[/score] for President has helped make the Senator one of the leading candidates in Iowa. take our poll - story continues below Will the media learn anything from their biased reporting of the Jussie Smollett story? Will the media learn anything from their biased reporting of the Jussie Smollett story? Will the media learn anything from their biased reporting of the Jussie Smollett story? * Yes, they've gotten so much wrong recently that they're bound to be on their best behavior. No, they suffer from a bad case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. Jussie who? Email * Email This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Completing this poll grants you access to Eagle Rising updates free of charge. You may opt out at anytime. You also agree to this site's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Trending: Pastor Asks for Cake, Bakery Refuses and Calls the Cops! Not to long ago it looked almost certain that Cruz would walk away from the Iowa caucuses with an easy victory, but that win has become less certain over the last few weeks as Donald Trump has regained the lead in Iowa’s polls. This fact has begun to worry Iowa conservatives, and many of our colleagues seem ready to hit the panic button… but Deace is counseling Cruz supporters to be patient and optimistic about our chances in Iowa. How can Deace remain level-headed, even as the polls continue to turn against Cruz? Because Deace knows conservative evangelicals in Iowa will play the most important role in the primary. From Facebook: Let’s play Iowa Caucus math. Santorum got 32% of the evangelical vote when he won Iowa in 2012. Huckabee got 46% of it when he won in 2008. Cruz will definitely do better than Santorum did, but I’m not sure he’ll do as well as Huckabee did. So let’s say Cruz splits the difference between the two, which would put him at 39%. Let’s say turnout is 140,000 voters on caucus night, which would be a pretty hefty increase of 15,000 voters over the all-time record. If evangelicals are their average 60% of that, that’s 84,000 voters. 39% of that is 32,760 voters for Cruz from just evangelicals alone. In other words, he’d have almost 80% of Huckabee’s all-time caucus vote record from that one segment by itself. Now, let’s say Trump gets 25% of those evangelical voters, which is a pretty favorable estimate. That would put him at 21,000 voters. Trump would need to win roughly 21% percent of the remaining 56,000 voters from the 40% who are non-evangelical voters to pass Cruz (and that’s in a crowded field). And that’s if Cruz doesn’t pick up a single vote among those other remaining groups. Let’s say Cruz gets just 7,230 of those remaining 56,000 to get to an even 40,000 voters. Trump would then need 34% of those remaining voters in a crowded field. Finally, let’s say Cruz gets Huckabee’s record of 46% of the evangelical vote. That’s almost 39,000 votes. Trump would then need 32% of those remaining voters to win if Cruz doesn’t get a single one of those votes. Translation: this caucus will be decided by the same thing the previous cacucses were decided by — who has the best organization among evangelicals in Iowa. Deace followed up that wisdom with one more tidbit that should encourage Cruz supporters. There have been 3 contested GOP Iowa Caucuses this century. All 3 were won by the candidate who won the evangelical vote. So will this one. Posted by Steve Deace on Tuesday, January 26, 2016 So, is Deace right? Should Cruz fans be optimistic about what will happen in Iowa in less than a week? Or is the “Trumpmentum” just too much? It won’t be long now; we’ll soon have our answers. The views expressed in this opinion article are solely those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by EagleRising.comThe nation’s eyes have turned to Spokane and the two teenagers accused of murdering an 88-year-old World War II veteran. Police say two 16-year-olds beat Delbert “Shorty” Belton to death Wednesday night after robbing him. One suspect, Demetruis Glenn, turned himself in and was arrested late Thursday night. The other, Kenan D. Adams-Kinard, remained at large Friday night. “We hope Mr. Kinard or his family will do the right thing and surrender quickly without incident, and we can resolve this and bring closure to the family of the individual who lost his life,” police Chief Frank Straub said. Both boys have a history of violent crime: Glenn has a conviction of fourth-degree assault, riot and eluding police capture, as well as two pending charges of malicious mischief and driving without a license. On June 26, Adams-Kinard was convicted of third-degree theft and fourth-degree assault. Security officers with Spokane Public Schools helped identify the suspects. Adams-Kinard was a student at Lewis and Clark High School. Demetrius Glenn went to North Central and Bancroft but dropped out in February. Both face charges of first-degree murder and first-degree robbery and will be tried as adults. Glenn is scheduled to make his first court appearance Monday afternoon. The beating prompted passionate responses across the country and a maelstrom of media attention from national news organizations. Belton’s name trended nationally on Twitter, and several Facebook pages have launched demanding justice for the dead veteran. Nationally, broadcast commentators including conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh have touted the story as an example of “black-on-white” violence. Straub said racial motivation was not a factor in the incident. What’s more important is that two young men thought it was acceptable to beat an old man to death, he said. “We have somebody who served his country during World War II, is a distinguished veteran,” Straub said. “He has no right to be assaulted, nor does anybody else.” Belton was in his car Wednesday night near the Eagles Lodge at 6410 N. Lidgerwood St., waiting for a friend to arrive so he could walk in with her. When she arrived just after 8 p.m., she found Belton’s parked car in the lot and Glenn and Adams-Kinard fleeing over a nearby fence, according to court documents. She found her friend’s body wedged between the two seats, covered in blood from injuries to his face and head. Lillian Duncan, another close friend, said he was “totally unrecognizable,” and “beat to a pulp.” “It took no courage at all for them to bash him up like that,” Duncan said. Police found a broken flashlight on the front seat of the car but have not said whether it was used as a weapon. They also found a black glove that appeared to be covered in blood, believed to belong to one of the suspects, at the corner of Lidgerwood and Francis Avenue. Surveillance footage shows the two running through several parking lots. One was wearing shiny basketball shorts, court documents said. Glenn turned himself in Thursday night after his attorney contacted police at about 9:45 p.m., saying he was in the area of Francis and Market Street and wanted police to pick him up, according to the documents. After Glenn was arrested, police saw a cut and abrasion on his right hand. During an interview, police asked Glenn to stand up and show what he was wearing. Glenn said, “These are not the shorts from the video,” according to the document. Belton died of his injuries early Thursday morning. The Spokane County medical examiner said Friday that Belton died of “blunt facial and head injuries” and called his death a homicide. Hundreds gathered Friday night for a candlelit vigil outside the Eagles Lodge to honor Belton. As a chorus of “Amazing Grace” filled the air, several members of the crowd lifted American flags, mirroring the flag flown at half-staff by the entrance. A memorial that started as a small pile of flowers grew throughout the evening, covering the entryway of the lodge. Candles circled a photo of Belton. “Thank you for your service to our country!” the photo caption read. Belton, nicknamed “Shorty” for his 5-foot stature, was born and raised in Spokane. He fought in the Pacific Theater during World War II, surviving the Battle of Okinawa. He returned to Spokane after the war and was married for almost 60 years to Myrtle “Giggles” Belton, who died in 2008. Belton is survived by three sisters and his son. Friends and family described Belton as a kind, gentle man who would have done anything to help those he loved. “I’m beyond glad that they caught one,” Duncan said. “Now if they could just catch the other, I’d be extremely happy.” Staff reporter Jody Lawrence-Turner contributed to this report. This story has been changed from its published version; the spelling of Demetruis was corrected on 8/26/2013.JACKSON, Georgia (Reuters) - The state of Georgia executed convicted murderer Troy Davis on Wednesday in a case that drew international attention because of claims by his advocates that he may have been innocent. Reverend Archie (last name not given) holds a sign protesting the execution of convicted killer Troy Davis in front of the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification prison, where Davis is set to be executed by lethal injection, in Jackson, Georgia September 21, 2011. REUTERS/Tami Chappell Davis was put to death by lethal injection at 11:08 p.m. EDT/0308 GMT on Thursday at a prison in central Georgia for the murder of a police officer in 1989, prisons spokeswoman Kristen Stancil said. The execution was delayed by more than four hours as the Supreme Court considered whether to issue a stay. The case provoked protests and an online petition accumulated nearly a million signatures because of doubts expressed in some quarters over whether he killed police officer Mark MacPhail in 1989. MacPhail was shot and killed outside a Burger King restaurant in Savannah, Georgia, as he went to the aide of a homeless man who was being beaten. MacPhail’s family say Davis is guilty and his son witnessed the execution. Since Davis’s conviction, seven of nine witnesses have changed or recanted their testimony, some have said they were coerced by police to testify against him and some say another man committed the crime. No physical evidence linked Davis to the killing. Davis went to his death saying he was innocent, according to journalists who witnessed the execution. “The incident that night was not my fault. I did not have a gun,” Davis said, according to Rhonda Cook of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper. “I did not personally kill your son, father and brother. I am innocent,” Cook quoted Davis as telling members of MacPhail’s family who were present in the death chamber. Hundreds of protesters rallied outside Georgia Diagnostic and Classification prison earlier, chanting “I am Troy Davis” and other slogans and a cheer briefly went up when it was reported that the execution had been delayed. But the crowd dwindled as the evening wore on, and by the time the execution took place they were outnumbered by police in riot gear. Most of Davis’ supporters slipped away in silence as the execution was announced. “This is a tragic moment. We were hoping for a different result,” said Raphael Warnock, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, whose church was once led by slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King. ONE SENTENCE ORDER A majority of Americans support the death penalty and most executions attract little national attention, but the Davis case prompted a rash of protests as well as expressions of concern from Europe. France and the Council of Europe this week urged U.S. authorities to stay the execution. Defense attorney Thomas Ruffin put Davis’ death in a racial and class context, and pointed out that a disproportionate number of inmates in Georgia’s prisons and on death row are black men, as was Davis. “This night the state of Georgia legally lynched a brave, a good and indeed an innocent man,” Ruffin told a news conference, in a reference to the lynchings of blacks in Georgia and other southern states from after the Civil War through the 1960s. The Supreme Court took the rare step in 2009 of allowing the defense to present its case to an evidentiary hearing but a federal judge in Savannah said it cast “minimal doubt” on the conviction. Once a death warrant was signed, Davis’s best hope of avoiding execution had rested with the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles, but on Tuesday it denied him clemency following a one-day hearing. On Wednesday, his lawyers went through a series of maneuverers in an attempt to stay the execution, finally reaching the Supreme Court. Slideshow (6 Images) It took the court more than four hours to issue its one-sentence order, an unusually long time in such cases. Brian Kammer, a lawyer for Davis, said in seeking a stay from the Supreme Court that newly available evidence revealed false, misleading and inaccurate information was presented at the trial, “rendering the convictions and death sentence fundamentally unreliable.” A handful of supporters of capital punishment in the case also protested separately from Davis’ supporters.Batman: Zero Year Artwork by Greg Capullo, Danny Mik and Fco Plascencia Written by Scott Snyder Lettering by Nick J. Napolitano Edited by Mike Marts and Katie Kubert Published by DC Comics Available: Comics shops (print) / Amazon (hardcover pre-order) / DC (iOS + Android + Web + etc.) Rebooting an origin story is always a risky proposition. There are stacks of pre-existing history to somehow live up to while ignoring, mountains of bad feelings and expectations to traverse. New fans need to be hooked and the old readers need to be convinced that everything is still the same even as their idols are broken down into compost. The risk doubles when the character is a particularly iconic one, someone on the level of Superman, Wonder Woman, or the Flash. But Superman was in flux for years, and underwent a major rewrite in the 1980s. Wonder Woman has already undergone more revisions than a term paper, and there are so many versions of the Flash that a new one was never going to seriously annoy even the most-devoted fans. It’s still a big task to hit the reset button on those characters, but it’s also almost a tradition. In Wonder Woman’s case, it was practically a rite of passage. Batman is different. His origin didn’t undergo any real changes after DC Comics rebooted its narrative continuity in the 1980s, it was just updated and expanded by Frank Miller and David Mazzuccheli to become one of the finest stories the superhero genre has to offer. In addition to that noise, at the time DC's New 52 rolled back the continuity odometer once again in 2011, Grant Morrison and co. were almost finished with their epic reconstruction of Batman, and the franchise was in a better state than it had been in a while. Of all the iconic characters set for a new start, Batman was the biggest challenge by a country mile. Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, and the rest of the team on Batman have responded with hands-down the best new origin of the New 52. “Secret City,” the first arc of the year-long “Zero Year,” revamps the Dark Knight while reaffirming him, adding new layers to the existing origin and remixing the fundamentals into something bigger, wilder, and more mythic. It feels almost incorrect to call Zero Year a reboot. It’s more like a modernization, an update that draws from the best previous versions -- including Christopher Nolan’s movies and the Warner Bros. animated series -- without trying to recreate them. It re-examines everything we know, applying new twists to old plot points. The Red Hood gang is transformed into a snarling mouth of terror organization; the Joker’s possible beginning is reshaped into something more savage, but cleverly left ambiguous; the moment of Bruce Wayne’s inspiration is given odd sci-fi poetry; it’s been hinted that there’s a new twist to the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne; the Riddler is finally interesting. By placing Batman in the context of our modern fears, Snyder and Capullo have redefined his role, made him more relevant because he challenges the things that make us feelirrelevant. Not just random, senseless crime or urban decay, but terrorism and catastrophe. In addition to being an avenger of the night and the world’s greatest detective, Batman is now the first line of defense against societal collapse, our best hope against the forces that strive to make us feel meaningless. A pitch-perfect reinvention for the hyper-accelerated, paranoid times we live in, “Zero Year” is a classic in the making. - John Parker• French teenager has been compared to Arsenal’s record goalscorer • Martial: ‘I do not think we have the same characteristics’ Manchester United’s Anthony Martial has rejected comparisons with the former France striker Thierry Henry and insisted he still has a lot to prove despite his blistering start to life at Old Trafford. Martial, who is in Didier Deschamps’ France squad for the friendlies against Armenia and Denmark, has scored three times in the Premier League since completing his move from Monaco for an initial £36m. That start has prompted comparisons with Henry, another former Monaco striker who ended up becoming Arsenal’s record goalscorer. But Martial, who made his debut for France last month, insists they “do not have the same characteristics”. Manchester United’s ‘fantastic’ Anthony Martial needs time, warns manager Read more “I know this is a very great player who is a legend in England,” Martial told French TV channel BFM. “I do not think we have the same characteristics. Thierry Henry is Thierry Henry. I still have everything to prove. By continuing to work, I will try to reach his level but I am still very far off.” Martial also lifted the lid on the process which brought him to England on the final day of the transfer window, with the teenager revealing he needed his mother to translate a personal phone call from the United manager, Louis van Gaal. “Basically, I was told ‘untransferable’ so I thought staying in Monaco,” he said. “When I knew about the offer, I did not hesitate a second and it was done quickly. I really wanted to continue to play in the Champions League. Van Gaal called me and spoke to my mother who did the translation. When I arrived in Manchester I met him, we discussed at length and it was done quickly.” Of his hefty transfer fee, which could reach a reported £58m if all of the clauses are met, Martial added: “It did not bother me too much. It was more my family with all that was written in the newspapers and what was said. I was just in a hurry to go to Manchester and play football. “I try to ignore it all. I stay in my bubble, I concentrate on the football, I work and I try to learn English as quickly as possible.”Update: Google says Now Launcher is available for all Android 4.1+ devices: Upgrade your home screen with the #GoogleNowLauncher - launching today for all #Android 4.1+ deviceshttp://t.co/2blmlJE0Vh — Android (@Android) August 1, 2014 It looks like the Google Now Launcher might soon be available on a long list of new devices as a small update to the app brings reports of expanded compatibility for a number of notable Android phones. AndroidCentral points us to users seeing compatibility with devices including the LG G3, Verizon’s Galaxy S5, the HTC One M8, One E8, One Mini 2, Desire 816, and the Huawei Ascend P7. The expanded compatibility isn’t officially included in the release notes nor has Google officially made an announcement, but we expect to hear more shortly. The Google Now launcher, which was previously only available for Nexus and Google Play Edition devices, adds Google Now to the home screen for a more integrated experience with the OS. The Google Now Launcher is available on Google Play here.TOKYO, June 30 (Reuters) - Japan's top military commander said on Thursday that Chinese military activity was escalating in the East China Sea, with a spike in emergency jet scrambles in the past three months. "It appears that Chinese activity is escalating at sea and in the air," Admiral Katsutoshi Kawano, chief of the Japanese Self-Defence Forces, said at a regular press briefing in Tokyo. Japanese air force jet scrambles rose by more than 80 in the three months ending on Thursday from 114 a year earlier, he said. Detailed figures for the period will be announced next week. Kawano also said that Japan was "very concerned," about how China will react to the expected ruling by an international court on China's territorial claims in the South China Sea on July 12. (Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Nick Macfie) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.Nice navigation of the paint defense by John Wall to Marcin Gortat, #Wizards pic.twitter.com/jJhLEtPDh4 — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) December 3, 2016 Without context, the Washington Wizards, coming off a tough overtime road loss in Oklahoma City two nights earlier, fought one of the best teams in the NBA—perhaps the best franchise that we’ll know in our lifetime—in a game that came down to one possession. Over the last 60 seconds, the Wiz exchanged a total of 10 points with the San Antonio Spurs. A Wizards star, Bradley Beal, hit a 3 to put his team up 103-102. A Spurs sharpshooter, Danny Green, answered with his own 3. Washington’s franchise player, John Wall, sliced down the lane for a layup to tie the game. San Antonio’s star, Kawhi Leonard, answered in seemingly his favorite scenario: an isolation long 2 near the top-of-the-key with the defender back-peddling. With six seconds left, down two and the ball side out, Washington ran action against a stifling Spurs defense, which perhaps gets more credit than it deserves on this one play considering how disorganized the Wizards looked. Still, 2013’s third overall draft pick, the homegrown Otto Porter, found himself with a lane and a decent look. Porter’s right-handed runner missed; his team lost, 107-105. And that’s how the NBA goes sometimes. Unfortunately, it’s gone that way a lot for the Wizards in San Antonio—their 17th loss in a row there (but the closest contest thus far). Something to build on, one could say, for the 6-12 team from the East. Now the context. The Wizards stink. There’s no getting around it, they just plain stink right now. Sure, sometimes they play well, but more times than not they are playing against themselves and undoing their own good deeds on the court. Washington’s final chance to tie the game is dubious enough. Porter was the inbounder; the ball was thrown to Markieff Morris in the adjacent corner for some reason, and San Antonio’s defense almost threw a blanket over the scrum right then and there to end it. But as the inbounds scene unfolded, Beal, curling toward the ball from the paint, did not gain enough separation from Green. Wall got caught up in screening action with Gortat on the ballside with Leonard in his pocket. Both star guards just sort of faded from the picture as Morris somehow found Porter with a bail-out pass, and Porter somehow found himself with a paint to attack. Can’t blame Porter for the chance, but that last play was akin to carefully preparing a hearty meal of spaghetti for friends and family only to serve it on flimsy paper plates with no garlic bread and asking them to eat it with a straw. It all seemed really normal. The Wizards fighting hard only to lose in the waning moments. Predictably, Washington bounded out of the gates, using a 15-2 run to build an early 18-7 lead that generally hovered around 8-to-10 points throughout the first quarter. That was until the pick-and-roll defense of Kelly Oubre and Jason Smith versus Manu Ginobili and David Lee created a corner Patty Mills 3-pointer, and soon after that Ginobili completely buzzed Oubre to receive a long inbounds pass and hit a first quarter buzzer-beater off the glass. Spider Kelly Oubre got buzzed by Manu here, and off the glass. pic.twitter.com/AfAEgXN2SI — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) December 3, 2016 The Wizards led 28-24 after one but they also left a ton of points on the board. Wall missed a two-foot layup. Morris missed a three-foot bunny and then followed that up with a point-blank layup miss on the break. Gortat missed a one-foot tip. Trey Burke missed a one-foot layup (swatted from behind). The trend continued into the second quarter when Marcus Thornton missed a layup, and Gortat missed both a putback and a layup right at the basket. It wasn’t all negative. Or rather, Washington’s starters weren’t imperfect, but they also looked pretty, pret-ty good against a Spurs team that, while missing Tony Parker, can’t exactly be considered short-handed. Over 30.3 minutes (they average 20.2 minutes per game), the Wizards starters were plus-13, shot 50 percent from the field, 7-for-9 from 3, 12-for-13 on free throws, and had 19 assists to 11 turnovers. The Spurs starters of Nicholas Laprovittola, Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green, LaMarcus Aldridge and Pau Gasol played 14.3 minutes, finished minus-7, shot 37.5 percent, 4-for-11 from 3, 3-for-7 on free throws, and had six assists to four turnovers. That should be enough to win. But Washington’s bench continued to victimize the season. The downright criminal foursome of Burke, Thornton, Oubre, and Smith (who spent over 10 minutes on the court together!) actually had some decent moments early in the game. Jason Smith even hit two jumpers in a row at one point. They finished a mere minus-1 in 6.8 first half minutes—perhaps as much as you could ask for, really. But they also peppered their play with several head-smacking moments, and finished minus-6 in 3.7 second half minutes. [Click-to-watch, if you dare, this terrible close-out by Thornton versus a 39-year-old Ginobili. Thornton is as terrible on defense as he’s ever been and is shooting a career-worst 36 percent from the field.] There was a particularly absurd span late in the third quarter, catalyzed when Burke and Oubre replaced Wall and Porter, joining Thornton, Smith, and Gortat on the floor. The Wizards had just put David Lee on the line, who tied the game at 73 (at that point, the Wizards were actually up 75-73 after Lee’s free throws; more on that soon). Burke bricked a no-pass possession off the back of the rim and soon after gave up a 3 to Patty Mills. Oubre next dribbled it off his foot and then made a lazy pass to Thornton, just to get rid of the ball. It was stolen, Thornton fouled right away, and Ginobili hit two free throws. Oubre immediately followed that with a turnover while dribbling into a crowd—the Wizards stole the ball right back but then missed two panicked shots on the same possession. Smith then fouled Lee, who also scored the bucket; San Antonio got an offensive board off a missed free throw; and the Wizards were a mess as the Spurs closed the third on what would become a 9-1 run. [Insult to injury: this unfathomable Jason Smith shot clock buzzer-beater at the 3:42 mark of the third quarter, which at the time put the Wizards up 73-71, was negated upon review during the break before the fourth quarter and taken off the board, giving Washington just 14 points over the third period.] #1) What was Wall doing passing it to Jason Smith here (late in shot clock)? #2) Jason Smith! pic.twitter.com/9DBHE8mojJ — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) December 3, 2016 Scott Brooks small-balled the start of the fourth with Burke, Thornton, Oubre, Porter, and Smith, and they battled to an early 4-4 draw with the Spurs before the starters were inserted (Gortat and Morris at 10:34; Wall at 10:10; and Beal, on a 30-minute restriction, at 9:34). But a sloppy tone had been set and the referee whistles were tight, and often not in favor of the Wizards. San Antonio scored 24 points off 20 Washington turnovers; the Wizards scored 20 points off 15 Spurs turnovers. Then a Thornton and Oubre foul parade, bad pass turnovers from Morris left and right, and a Wizards backcourt violation turnover after fragmented offense—for crying out loud. Washington quickly went down 78-88 only to claw within 85-88 in two-plus minutes... only to get back down 85-94 in another couple minutes. What appeared seamless for the Spurs seemed hard for the Wizards, but they had one more push—a 10-2 run made it a game, 95-96 Spurs, with 3:35 left. Good initial D by Otto on Kawhi, Spurs get offensive board, Wall gets burned by Laprovittola, then Otto forgets Kawhi in corner. pic.twitter.com/E9WB4Y4SnP — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) December 3, 2016 Despite all the missed bunnies, the bad bench, and often poor defense by John Wall, who looked quite stiff on defense throughout the night (perhaps he is playing hurt), the Wizards were right where they wanted to be. Their best traded blows with San Antonio’s best. It was good basketball (for select cuts), let’s not forget. The starters’ own hard work—work both against the Spurs and their own second unit—became unraveled during times of pressure due to their habitual lack of focus and lack of direction when it comes to what the game is truly all about (putting a peach in a basket). And it came down to one, good, tough possession—one bad break against the sum of all their broken parts. Washington seemed destined not to win. The Wizards will trudge against their reality with two days off before facing the Nets in Brooklyn on Monday. Then they’ll face a critical, likely season-defining stretch featuring home games against Orlando, Denver, and Milwaukee; a road game in Miami; then home again versus Charlotte and Detroit before culminating with a Verizon Center duel versus Chris Paul and the L.A. Clippers on Sunday, December 18.Sinn Fein petition leaves DUP's conscience clause dead in the water BelfastTelegraph.co.uk The DUP's attempt to introduce a conscience clause Bill looks set to be defeated after Sinn Fein teamed up with the Green Party and NI21 to block it. https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/sinn-fein-petition-leaves-dups-conscience-clause-dead-in-the-water-31006994.html https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/article31006993.ece/f4d52/AUTOCROP/h342/2015-02-20_new_7151228_I1.JPG Email The DUP's attempt to introduce a conscience clause Bill looks set to be defeated after Sinn Fein teamed up with the Green Party and NI21 to block it. Sinn Fein's Caitriona Ruane said her party would use a petition of concern to stop the Private Member's Bill in its tracks when it comes before the Assembly. It's being introduced by the DUP MLA Paul Givan after the Equality Commission said it would take legal action against Ashers Bakery following its refusal to bake a cake with a pro-gay marriage message iced on top. The commission took the case on behalf of the gay man who requested the cake, claiming the family-run bakery had been in breach of legislation preventing discrimination. The DUP has said its move would allow those with strongly-held religious beliefs to legally refuse to provide goods and services which contravened those beliefs. But the Bill looks set to be blocked by the petition of concern - effectively an Assembly veto that requires the the support of 30 MLAs. Sinn Fein has 28 MLAs, but with support from Green Party MLA Steven Agnew and Basil McCrea of NI21 it has reached the number required. The SDLP's Alex Attwood said if the Bill was ever tabled, his party would also sign the petition of concern. Mr Givan claimed Sinn Fein was not prepared to even have the matter debated in Stormont, and there was nothing to even petition against at the moment. "What they are seeking to do is shut down the debate my consultation document has started on how freedom of conscience might be protected through reasonable accommodation. Sinn Fein, along with their helpers, are not blocking legislation but seeking to stifle debate," he said. "By preventing the Assembly even discussing the issue or allowing a committee to examine it, you are indicating that you simply don't care about how people with deeply-held religious beliefs are treated." Ms Ruane said later: "We have lobbied other MLAs in the Assembly to back a petition of concern to block what in our view is an attempt to bring in discriminatory legislation. I have called on the SDLP and Alliance parties to support us but am now confident that we can reach the threshold to block this Bill from becoming law. "It's important, therefore, that we as a society send out a clear signal that the days of banning certain sections of society from shops or services are long gone." Mr Agnew yesterday confirmed that he had signed the petition. "The so-called 'conscience clause' is nothing but a thinly veiled attempt to legalise discrimination against LGB people," he said. A public consultation on the bill closes on February 27. Story so far The so-called conscience clause was introduced by Paul Givan MLA as a Private Member's Bill in December 2014 in response to the furore over the 'gay cake' row. The owners of Belfast baker Ashers have been taken to court by the Equality Commission of Northern Ireland for its refusal to supply a cake to a gay man with slogan that supported gay marriage rights. Belfast TelegraphPresident-elect Donald Trump has yet another “cabinet member” to nominate: first pet. That role may soon be filled by an adorable 9-week-old goldendoodle (golden retriever/poodle designer hybrid) puppy named Patton, according to The Washington Post. Lois Pope, a Trump booster from Florida, says she has offered to gift the puppy to Trump, and she’s confident the little doodle will canoodle with the next president soon enough. “I’m sure,” she told the Post. “He said, ‘Go over there and show it to Barron,’” Pope recounts of her Thanksgiving weekend conversation with Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida. Barron is Trump’s 10-year-old son with wife Melania. A “big smile came over” the boy’s face, Pope says. Patton is named after the famous World War II general, whom Trump admires. Hope Hicks, a spokeswoman for the incoming president, says “no decisions have been made” about pets, according to the Post. Trump does not currently have any pets. Gifts of pets are quite common for U.S. presidents. Even if Trump does accept the puppy, it’s not known whether the cute ball of fur would be joining him at the White House. Melania
greatest shot ever. — 48 Minutes of Hell (@48MoH) January 4, 2015 He also showed off the rare Baynes floater. What do you think, is the Big Banger floater a shot for the ages? Off the court: Baynes also participated in a culinary challenge at the San Antonio Food Bank this week, cooking up roasted vegetables and having fun with the students from Estrada Achievement Center. “If I can be someone that they look up to and they take one good thing away from today then I’m happy.” – @houseobayne A photo posted by San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) on Jan 1, 2015 at 12:54pm PST Cameron Bairstow (Chicago Bulls) Date Team Mins Points Shots 3P FT Rebounds Assists Steals Blocks TO PF +/- 7 Jan 2015 UTA 3 2 1/1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 Cam saw brief action this week. He was sent on for mop up minutes in the fourth quarter, being tasked with defending Rudy Gobert. The Bulls failed to prevail against Utah at the United Center, in what was a somewhat unexpected 97-77 loss to the Jazz. Bairstow played well within the Chicago defense, and successfully disrupted a drive attempt for a steal – good instincts! Danté Exum (Utah Jazz) Date Team Mins Points Shots 3P FT Rebounds Assists Steals Blocks TO PF +/- 7 Jan 2015 @CHI 24 2 1/3 0/2 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 25 5 Jan 2015 IND 30 13 5/14 3/9 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 -1 3 Jan 2015 @MIN 23 3 1/7 1/5 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 -12 2 Jan 2015 ATL 22 13 1/7 3/7 0 2 2 3 0 1 3 17 What a week it’s been for Danté! Stat milestones New career scoring high twice (13 points, against IND 5 Jan 2015, ATL 2 Jan 2015) New career steals high (3 steals, against ATL 2 Jan 2015) Tied previous career high field goals made (5, against IND 5 Jan 2015, ATL 2 Jan 2015) Tied previous career high three pointers made (3, against IND 5 Jan 2015, ATL 2 Jan 2015) The historic start Aside from statistics, Danté also notched his first ever start in the NBA against Indiana, due to fellow guard Trey Burke’s absence. Dante Exum signs a few autographs before his first NBA start. pic.twitter.com/XFNWBbNHah — Aaron Falk (@tribjazz) January 6, 2015 He formed an all-Aussie starting backcourt with Joe Ingles, and had a career high of 13 points (including back-to-back threes in the second half) in a close loss to the Pacers. According to Angus Crawford of NBA Australia, this is the second time in NBA history that two Aussies started in a game (earlier: Mills/Baynes.) When asked about his overall performance for the night, Dante had this to say. It was a big thing. I found a couple of guys a few times, but you know, not getting any assists as starting point guard is not good enough, so it’s just something I got to work on, hopefully when I get the chance again, I can step up. – Danté Exum Postgame interview 1.5.15 Stay humble, stay hungry. It’s good that he’s focused on the primary role of the point guard. A refreshing and very welcome perspective for any basketball lover, I must say. Shooting it up Although, his shooting does need to get better. Danté’s only making 38.7% of his shots, and his shot chart reveals the shooting deficiencies. Especially that sea of red from outside. Dante Exum’s short chart as at 8 Jan 2015 for the 2014-2015 NBA season. Dante Exum’s short chart as at 8 Jan 2015 for the 2014-2015 NBA season. That corner shot looks wet though. We all know Danté’s working very hard on getting his shot better, and it is just a matter of time before this trend reverses itself. It’s also very encouraging to see that he’s finishing his attempts in the restricted zone at an elite 68.2%. Shots taken at less than 5ft away look even better – Exum finishes them at 75.7%. Like this. Danté was shifted back to the bench on their next game against the Chicago Bulls, which Utah won very handily on the road. Danté had a +/- of 25 on this late victory. While nowhere on the level of the legendary Stockton/Malone duo, you can easily imagine Dante and Gobert growing into the one-two punch of Utah’s future. Joe Ingles (Utah Jazz) Date Team Mins Points Shots 3P FT Rebounds Assists Steals Blocks TO PF +/- 7 Jan 2015 @CHI 27 7 3/8 1/3 0 4 (1 off) 3 1 0 2 3 1 5 Jan 2015 IND 37 8 4/10 0/4 0 9 (1 off) 7 2 0 2 2 -4 3 Jan 2015 @MIN 30 7 3/7 1/2 0 3 (1 off) 4 2 0 2 2 17 2 Jan 2015 ATL 21 8 3/4 2/2 0 3 1 1 2 4 1 15 Stat milestones New career rebounding high twice (9 rebounds, against IND 5 Jan 2015) New career assists high (7 assists, against IND 5 Jan 2015) New career blocks high (2 blocks, against ATL 2 Jan 2015) An equally historic start Lost amongst all the talk about Exum’s start, might have been the fact that Ingles also received his first career start this week, contributing 7 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds to a win over the Timberwolves. He also did very well as the all-Aussie backcourt against Indiana, toeing the triple double milestone on 8 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Ingles, being the team-first guy that he is, modestly laid the credit to their comeback victory on teamwork. “The best thing about playing with these guys is the attitude, and obviously we were missing some guys tonight and others had to step in, but we never gave up,’’ he said. “That is impressive and now we need to build on that for the next trip.” – Jazz rookie Joe Ingles making the most of his opportunity Slicing it up Starts aside, this cut and finish is a precise example of what I want Ingles to be doing all the time, when playing off-ball. Obviously, court spacing is an equation in itself, but I don’t believe in camping for the open shot when it comes to Ingles. Defenses know his game, and good shots are going to be hard to come by. Just in case you were wondering how Jingles is shooting this season. Bonus: Blake Griffin talked about his Summer League teammate Joe Ingles on his recent teleconference with the media. Matthew Dellavedova (Cleveland Cavaliers) By Alistar Sullivan Date Team Mins Points Shots 3P FT Rebounds Assists Steals Blocks TO PF +/- 7 Jan 2015 HOU 35 9 3/8 2/5 1/2 1 5 0 0 1 2 0 5 Jan 2015 @PHI 39 3 1/7 1/2 0/2 2 (1 off) 8 1 0 2 2 -3 4 Jan 2015 DAL 32 10 4/10 2/3 0 3 (1 off) 7 0 0 3 3 -16 2 Jan 2015 @CHA 34 3 1/4 1/2 0 7 (1 off) 4 0 0 0 5 5 Stat milestones New career rebounding high twice (7 rebounds, against CHA 2 Jan 2015) New season assists high (8 assists, against PHI 5 Jan 2015) Coming off last week’s average shooting performance from the field, Dellevadova has had another tough run this week. Matthew is playing the most amount of minutes per game in his career so far, averaging 35mpg over the last 4 games due to the injuries of Irving and LeBron. These minutes are great for his experience, but are coming at a dear price. His efficiency on both ends of the floor has significantly decreased. Delly has been selective with his shots, but is still shooting a poor 31% from the field this week. Tuesday night against Philadelphia, Matthew had a forgettable night. He shot 1/7 along with an opportunity gone begging. With 19 seconds were left on the clock, Delly missed a pair of free throws, and then the potential game winner. His 3 point shot has been a little more consistent. Shooting 39.1% from deep, Delly is spacing the floor well and running off hard screens to get an open shot. He just needs to finish all the hard work and knock down a few more. With the elevated playing minutes, Delly is gaining invaluable experience and it’s showing over the last few games. On the video below, you can see just how much he has developed as a guard player. He is more patient with the ball and is using his body and positioning much more effectively than in the past to protect the ball. Delly has improved his assets significantly over the last few games. His assists have been more efficient, and he’s slowing his game down to be more composed and look for more openings with cutters and off-ball screens. Patty Mills (San Antonio Spurs) Date Team Mins Points Shots 3P FT Rebounds Assists Steals Blocks TO PF +/- 6 Jan 2015 DET 21 6 2/10 1/5 1/2 3 ( 2 off) 1 1 0 2 4 13 3 Jan 2015 WAS 15 15 6/8 3/5 0 2 (2 off) 1 0 0 1 5 -3 Patty had an exciting game against the Washington Wizards this week, splashing 6 of 8 shots enroute to a 15 point, 15 minute night. While consistency is still a work in progress, he’s proving himself to be as sharp as ever when it comes to moving off the ball. He hit a slump against the Pistons later in the week, hitting only 2 of 10 shots. The open shots clanked, his floaters were really off – it was tough to watch. That being said, it feels like Patty’s pace is a little too rushed right now, when coming off the screen and stepping into the shot. Detroit would go on to win, in what will likely become NBA lore as the “form a f**king wall” game. If you have no idea what I’m talking about: Game schedule for the week featuring Aussies in the NBA We are switching to an embedded Google Calendar format, which would hopefully make it much easier for all of you to keep track on when our favourite Aussies in the NBA are hitting the court! Game schedules courtesy of NBA on ESPN."The Moon-Bog" June 1926 cover Author H. P. Lovecraft Country United States Language English Genre(s) Horror Published in Weird Tales Media type Print (magazine) Publication date June 1926 "The Moon-Bog" is a short story by American horror fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft, written in or before March 1921. The story was first published in the June 1926 issue of the pulp magazine Weird Tales. Plot summary [ edit ] In the story, the unnamed narrator describes the final fate of his good friend, Denys Barry, an Irish-American who reclaims an ancestral estate in Kilderry, a fictional village in Ireland. Barry ignores pleas from the superstitious local peasantry not to drain the nearby bog, with unfortunate supernatural consequences. The story was written at speed and to order, for oral delivery as an after-supper "shocker" for a Hub Club gathering of amateur journalists in Boston on March 10, 1921. The meeting had a St. Patrick's Day theme, and so required an Irish setting.[1] "The Moon-Bog" is described by S. T. Joshi and David E. Schultz as "one of the most conventionally supernatural in HPL's oeuvre."[2] As with many of Lovecraft's stories, "The Moon-Bog" has strong elements of his own autobiography woven into it - like Barry, Lovecraft had dreams of buying back his ancestors' home in England, and of reclaiming his standing among the landed gentry.[3] The same theme is treated with greater depth in Lovecraft's more substantial story "The Rats in the Walls" (1923). There is also a further autobiographical element in "The Moon-Bog" - Lovecraft had seen his boyhood haunt of Cat Swamp purchased by the city authorities with the declared aim of protecting it from developers. But instead the city allowed it to be drained for development, and 200 new houses were erected on the site in 1919.[4] In his story Lovecraft leans on authentic Irish legend, that of the first invaders of Ireland, the Partholonians - and the sudden plague that wiped them out in around 1200 BC. He also leans on the belief, then very common and persistent among the Irish, of the Mediterranean origins of the Irish race and that the Partholonians had "originally come from Greece"[5] The story bears a similarity in its theme and approach to Lord Dunsany's later Irish novel The Curse of the Wise Woman (1933), although S. T. Joshi discounts the possibility of any influence of Lovecraft on Dunsany.[6] See also [ edit ] References [ edit ]EXCLUSIVE! Mexico’s First Lady Makes History As She Takes On The Cover Of Marie Claire Mexico! Wow!! This is huge! Mexico├óΓé¼Γäós first lady, Mrs. Angelica Rivera de Pe├â┬▒a has the coveted cover of Marie Claire Mexico├óΓé¼Γäós July issue!! Never ever in the nation├óΓé¼Γäós history has their first lady covered a fashion mag, but not only did Angelica do it, she did it fearlessly! Posing alongside her daughter, Sofia Castro, the once-upon-a-time soap opera star, gives her most intense stare for the camera. Pretty fitting for her first cover, right?? And the mother-daughter duo go for matching combos on the front page with their ruffled white blouses, black blazers, and bottoms! As for the editorial, Angelica invited the mag to shoot the spread inside their very own presidential home, giving a glance at her luxe style!! Leather trench coats and chic jumpsuits were just the highlights! Ch-ch-check out a peek of the spread in the gallery (above)! [Image via Marie Claire Mexico.]A 16-year-old boy is in critical condition after being shot following an alleged road rage incident in Everett Monday afternoon. (Photo: KOMO News) EVERETT, Wash. - A 16-year-old boy is in critical condition after being shot following an alleged road rage incident in Everett Monday afternoon, according to police. Witnesses called 911 around 3:45 p.m. to report a case of road rage near a Denny's on Casino Rd and Evergreen Way, between a white SUV or truck and a black Honda Civic. When officers arrived, they did not find the vehicles, but witnesses said the vehicles fled north. A short time later, police received reports of shots fired in the 8000 block of Beverly Blvd. and the same two vehicle descriptions matched those in the road rage case. "All of a sudden we heard gunshots. There were at least six or seven shots," said Tat, a neighbor who didn't want his last name used. "I heard squeaking tires and then they made a U-turn and pretty much they were exchanging gunfire and they were chasing each other." Officers found multiple shell casings at that scene, but again did not locate the vehicles. Around 4:15 p.m., police were told a 16-year-old boy with a gunshot wound arrived at Providence Colby Medical Center in a black Honda Civic. He was listed in critical condition. Right now, detectives don't have any information on the other SUV or truck involved in the incident. They're still trying to figure out how the incident escalated into a shooting. Anyone with information about the case or suspects is ask to cal the Everett Police Tip Line at 425-257-9450 or Crime Stoppers or Puget Sound at 1-800-222-TIPS.I'm sure you've all wanted this. The ability to have lights dance to your own music! They get brighter and dimmer as the music has more or less bass. Unlike this, there are no expensive parts or programming involved. This is a really simple guide that requires only about $5 of material and absolutely no soldering (unless you want to). Things You Will Need Step 1 Step 2 one Step 3 Step 4 Step 5 Step 6 Tips & Warnings REQUIRED6 LED's of the same color. If you're a beginner you'll probably need more because you will burn them out. ($1.50)A transistor, this will amplify the signals sent from your iPod. There are many kinds almost any will work. ($2.00)A resistor, more if you are a beginner. Anywhere from 375 to 425 Ohms will be fine.($0.50)Some electrical wire.3 AA batteries you may need more if you are using high voltage LED's.1 pair of headphones that you can destroy.OPTIONALA wire cuttersA small housing box for your project.Some way to hold your batteries ( I used a remote from an old remote controlled car).Read the tips and warnings at the bottom of this page.Arrange and connect your five LED's in parallel. This is done by connecting all the negative wires of the LED's and connecting all the positive wires of the LED's to each other. See the picture for more help.Take theearphone and cut it off. Cut at the very highest so there is more wire to use. The other earphone can be cut off and attached to a speaker but this guide won't be covering that. Inside one of those earphone wires there should be two wires, separate them.Take the two wires you obtained from one earphone and connect them on opposite sides of your resistor.Take your LED's wired in parallel and connect one positive side to the positive power source. It does not matter which positive side you connect.Obtain your transistor. Connect the base wire from the transistor to one end of the resistor. Connect the collector wire of the transistor to a negative end of the LED's. Connect the emmiter wire to the negative power source.Verify all your connections with the full picture.There you have it! Connect the wire from the earphone into a jack in your iPod or computer, crank up the volume and enjoy the light show.The negative cathode wire of an LED is always shorter.The positive anode wire of an LED is always longer.All transistors are not the same. Find out the base, emmiter, and collector of your transistor before you leave the store. If you don't it will be a real haggle trying to figure out which one is which.China and India have agreed to a withdrawal of troops after a two week-long standoff near their de-facto border, Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj was quoted as saying by the Indian NDTV television channel Friday. MOSCOW, September 26 (RIA Novosti) - China and India have agreed to a withdrawal of troops after a two week-long standoff near their de-facto border, Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj was quoted as saying by the Indian NDTV television channel Friday. "Both nations have sat down and resolved the [border standoff] issue. Timelines have been decided," Swaraj told journalists on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly currently taking place in New York. He added that the withdrawal of troops from the Ladakh region will begin Friday and is due to be completed by Tuesday. "I talked about this with the Chinese foreign minister. I believe this is a big accomplishment," she said. The two countries were engaged in a standoff in the Chumar region of Ladakh in the western Himalayas. According to the Indian media, tensions in the area arose last Sunday, when Chinese workers who were constructing a temporary road crossed into the Indian side claiming that they had an order to build some five miles of the road inside the Indian territory. The territories on the Himalayan borders have been a source of dispute for decades. In 1962 China and India fought a month-long war over these areas.Author: Goldensundown Band: Ceremented Song: Altars of Waste Genre: Death/Doom Metal Label: Independent Alright guys, my wish came true and Ceremented are dropping new material this year and we’ve got a premiere of a track, Altars of Waste, from an upcoming demo streaming at Decibel’s site next Tuesday and its fucking filthy, check it out! The track opens up with absolutely filthy sounding bass and slow drumming, dragging along at a dirge pace. Vocals vomit forth not long after, sounding like they’re being belched forth from some unearthly creature, and the two bass attack and savage drums continue their assault through out the 3 minutes of this track. If the rest of the release sounds as hectic as this, that’ll be two fucking killer releases under these guys belt this year. This new release and the Unbound Horror demo are up for release on LP out on Heavy Metal Vomit Party in the near future with a self-release cassette on the way; details on the Decibel stream I hope! Colour me hyped guys, Ceremented continue to be a band to watch with this filth. AdvertisementsToday a disturbing piece of whisky news shocked readers on Facbook and Twitter: Bladnoch Distillery has gone into liquidation. The news was confirmed by Raymond Armstrong on the Bladnoch Forum. He also stated that the step was not taken because of financial difficulties but because of differing views of the directors and shareholders whether to sell the distillery or not. A distillery going into liquidation in boom times when new distillery projects are announced literally every day? This may sound surprising indeed, but when you have been following the news about Bladnoch over the years, you could notice that the business has not been booming for them. You could read remarks by Raymond Armstrong reporting about the difficulty of keeping the distillery going with the high cost for barley and fuel, and there have been prolonged periods when the distillery has not been operational at all. Originally bought from Diageo (then UDV) as a holiday home, production resumed in 2000 under the condition that not more than 100,000 litres of alcohol per year were to be produced. It appears that not even this minimal level of production could be kept up. Fortunately the warehousing so far has provided a steady source of income. So even if the business was not in risk of imminent failure, it looks as if not all of the shareholders have been happy with how Bladnoch was doing. Obviously it was not possible to give the distillery operation enough momentum to create a sustainable cash flow, even in an economic climate that can only be described as booming. I have never really grown to love Bladnoch’s style of whisky, but this is not the point here. Most of their whiskies I have tried were made by the previous owners anyway. But it is really sad to see a small distillery going like that, and I truly hope there will be new life breathed into it by new owners as soon as possible.- Advertisement - "The collapses of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre, on September 11, 2001, were the most frightening images that I have ever seen, up until May 24th, 2011, when Binyamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of the United States Congress and received 29 standing ovations, along with many other outbursts of sycophantic applause. It was the final nail in a coffin, the construction of which began long ago, and in it all remaining vestiges of democracy were joyfully laid to rest--by those sworn to protect it--as it became clear that the United States was now controlled by Enemies Inside its Gates." - It was the final nail in a coffin, the construction of which began long ago, and in it all remaining vestiges of democracy were joyfully laid to rest--by those sworn to protect it--as it became clear that the United States was now controlled by Enemies Inside its Gates." - Anthony Lawson, July 7, 2011. Israel is not Sparta, America is not the Athenian empire, and Islamic Iran is not the Persian empire of old. But that is what the corrupt and delusional neocons like to think. They've read the ancient Greeks so much that they actually think they are them. But the neocons are not modern-day philosopher-kings. Washington is the kingdom of rats, and the neocons have climbed up to become the top rats. As the children of modern totalitarianism, ancient oppression, and Medieval tyranny they are the poisonous destroyers of freedom, not its proud defenders. These dangerous nuts and armchair warriors don't live in reality, but through their influence on America's Middle East policy their insane ideas have caused real havoc in the Middle East. They live, breathe, think and dream in their own little crazy world. They are after blood and glory, not peace and freedom, but the blood that is being spilled is not their own, and the glory they seek is an illusion. - Advertisement - America was deceived and tricked on 9/11 to be an instrument of destruction and tyranny by the neocons, the U.S. Shadow Security State, and Israel, all of whom share responsibility for the false flag attacks on that day. At the heart of this evil deception is the belief that America should fight one last world war before its powers are destroyed and its constitutional government is replaced once and for all by a global authoritarian government that will become the Babel for the global financial empire that has secretly ruled America since the establishment of the private Federal Reserve Bank in 1913. - Advertisement - The treacherous money printers love it when an empire as big as America goes to war because they make an insane amount of money by lending the empire money that is to be paid back at usurious interest rates. The day America accepted paper money issued by private banking thieves as its currency was the day it went to hell. Today, America is being used in the service of evil and tyranny. Douglas Miller, editor and translator of Goethe's book 'Scientific Studies,' said Goethe hated paper money because it is not real money, but supported by convention and maintained by fraud. "Goethe's negative views on paper money," writes Miller, "are reflected in Part II of Faust when Mephistopheles persuades the Emperor to introduce paper money based on the value of an undiscovered buried treasure. This plan later proves ruinous for the empire." (Goethe; Scientific Studies, pg. 322). The use of paper money printed by greedy private bankers is the biggest reason for America's current economic collapse and destruction. If the American government was forced to tax its people every time it went to war instead of borrowing money from a private banking cartel who magically make money out of thin air then it would not go to war so much because the people would not accept the heavy price. The reason why members of the giant military-industrial complex in America and private financiers love each other so much is because they pay each other's bills and make themselves extremely wealthy in the process. - Advertisement - A war is only good for a few powerful men who make money off of an empire's blood, sweat and tears. Everybody else gets screwed, especially the empire's foot soldiers. Since Israel, along with the neocons and AIPAC, is the biggest lobby that is pushing America to a new war with Iran it should be the first to get crushed once the wrath of the American people gets to a tipping point. An attack on Iran will lead to a catastrophic world war and will bring total devastation to all involved in the comi-tragedy. Below I list 29 reasons why the American people should cut off ties with Israel until it gets its act together and learns to join the community of civilized nations. Why 29? Because the Congress, led by traitors and rats like Eric Cantor, gave 29 standing ovations to that arrogant and disgusting bully Benjamin Netanyahu when he spoke in Congress on May 24, 2011. 1. Israel's attack on the USS Liberty on June 8, 1967, was "an attack on America," as Paul Craig Roberts said in his article Israel's attack on the USS Liberty on June 8, 1967, was "an attack on America," as Paul Craig Roberts said in his article 'USS Liberty: Govt. Betrayal & Cover-up Finally Exposed.' Israel should have been taught a lesson and humbled right then and there. Instead, lips were closed shut, and America was betrayed. Such a small nation like Israel should not be so arrogant that it can attack an empire and get away with it. A big reason why America has no honour today is because the attack on the USS Liberty was not treated as an act of war by Israel. Sitting silent in the face of treason from within and betrayal by allies abroad means the death of a nation's honour and independence. 2. Israeli spying in the U.S. government is a known fact. And it is unforgivable. If you have not already, watch this Israeli spying in the U.S. government is a known fact. And it is unforgivable. If you have not already, watch this Fox News report from 2001 about Israeli spying in the U.S. before the September 11 attacks. Fox News is 99% wrong and evil, but it is not totally evil. In this case, it got it right. 3. Israel's Mossad had a big hand in the 9/11 attacks. This is reason enough to tell Israel's state terrorists, Ehud Barak and Netanyahu, to go to hell. Israel is also involved in other false flag attacks that create international confusion, regional chaos, popular hatred, and war. 4. AIPAC's control of Congress and its subversion of America's political process is unhealthy for a nation as powerful as America and also unjust. 5. Numerous Israeli leaders have disrespected American leadership and undermined America's efforts on the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. Recently, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu publicly spat in the face of both Numerous Israeli leaders have disrespected American leadership and undermined America's efforts on the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. Recently, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu publicly spat in the face of both President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden 6. Israel's expansionist, war-like and racist policies makes it an outlaw state. It routinely breaks international law and starts wars for land and water while saying to the world "we must defend ourselves because our existence is threatened by Muslim extremists." Riiight. As the British say, that's bollocks, mate. 7. America's "till death do us part" relationship with Israel diminishes America's image as neutral, honest and fair. For America to be a great power it must be balanced, just, and bring both the Palestinians and the Israelis to the table. America must tell Israel that it is not special and that it will enforce international law because a nation that believes it is special and above all other nations will commit all kinds of crimes. 8. General David Petraeus, the current CIA director and former commander of U.S. Central Command, issued a report in January that said Israel's actions towards the Palestinians reflects badly on America in the Islamic world and provides propaganda ammo for Muslims to attack American troops in Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Mark Perry wrote in an article called General David Petraeus, the current CIA director and former commander of U.S. Central Command, issued a report in January that said Israel's actions towards the Palestinians reflects badly on America in the Islamic world and provides propaganda ammo for Muslims to attack American troops in Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Mark Perry wrote in an article called 'The Petraeus briefing: Biden's embarrassment is not the whole story' at ForeignPolicy.com that Petraeus's message was, "America's relationship with Israel is important, but not as important as the lives of America's soldiers." 9. Israel pressures America to fight unnecessary wars and support unpopular policies. The U.S. military lobby is bad enough, why have another war lobby around Washington that does nothing but inject poisonous lies into the minds of Congressmen and Senators? 10. Israeli leaders Netanyahu and Barak are mentally unstable, and devious criminals who are pursuing an irrational policy towards Iran, Palestine, and the greater Middle East. Former Mossad Chief Meir Dagan has recently Israeli leaders Netanyahu and Barak are mentally unstable, and devious criminals who are pursuing an irrational policy towards Iran, Palestine, and the greater Middle East. Former Mossad Chief Meir Dagan has recently said that the Netanyahu government is "irresponsible and reckless," and will lead Israel to ruin and destruction by attacking Iran. 11. Israel is an intellectually bankrupt state that is afraid of any international criticism and blocks world intellectuals like Noam Chomsky from visiting the occupied Palestinian territories. 12. Israel's deep influence on the U.S. mainstream media through AIPAC and the neocon gang damages democracy and deforms the national dialogue about issues relating to the Middle East. All healthy and free nations allow different viewpoints to be heard in the public square, but that is not the case today in America and other Western nations as a result of the slanted coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian crisis by the unethical mainstream media. 13. Israel's hegemonic goals is destroying the balance of powers among the nations of the Middle East. By pitting itself along with America against hundreds of millions of people Israel is preventing any chance of peace. This is not a policy, it is madness. Moving forward, Israeli leaders need to learn how to cooperate and make peace with Israel's neighbours, instead of bullying everyone into a state of fearful submission. Israel will achieve security and peace through love, not fear. 14. Israeli leaders have sabotaged the peace process time after time, making it harder each time for America to present a straight face to the Arab public and Middle East governments. 15. Israel is not a democracy, it is a dictatorship in which "18 families control 60% of the equity value of all companies in Israel," according to Israel is not a democracy, it is a dictatorship in which "18 families control 60% of the equity value of all companies in Israel," according to Shir Hever, an economic researcher who works for the Alternative Information Center in Jerusalem. Israel has an army of spies and propagandists who spread lies in the world media and intimidate people from criticizing Israel's unjust policies. The Israeli state also brainwashes its own population and uses state terror and fear to make Israelis believe that they will always be under threat from their neighbours which is not true. 16. Israel's extremist leadership and crazy religious communities do not want to compromise. They think they can get away with disrespecting international law and the natural rights of the Palestinians because they have greater military power. But that won't always be the case. Instead of relying on fear and power, Israel must be told in clear terms by American military and political leaders to use diplomacy to solve its political problems. 17. Israel irresponsibly Israel irresponsibly offered to sell its nuclear weapons to the apartheid regime of South Africa, proving that it is a dishonourable and untrustworthy state that has no problems with making money from dictatorships at their people's expense. 18. Israel's collective punishment of a million and more Palestinians is barbaric, unjust, and totally criminal. It is a big sign that the Israeli state is weak and pathetic when it prevents international activists from sending humanitarian goods to the people of Gaza who deserve to have access to goods and education. 19. Israeli leaders make a mockery of the history of the Jewish people by exploiting their past trauma and grief to justify their barbaric treatment of Palestinians. They also unjustly blacken Jews and non-Jews alike as anti-Semitic and Jew-hating. This obnoxious propaganda tactic is getting on everyone's nerves. Israel is not a victim. It is an aggressive state that uses deception and terror to get what it wants. 20. Israeli hardline leaders are ungrateful for what America has done for Israel's security. A lack of gratitude and love in a nation for its friends is a poisonous trait. A nation that only cares about its own survival and interests does not deserve to be called a nation. The people of Israel have been brainwashed into thinking that it is their tiny island against the world, and that everybody hates them. This is a big and dangerous delusion that has brought suffering to the people of Israel and its neighbours. American leaders must tell the people of Israel that the world hates Israel not because of its ethnicity but because the Israeli government refuses to abandon destructive, unjust and murderous policies towards the Palestinians and other countries in the region. 21. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is an arrogant bully and a pathological liar who wants war, not a honest statesmen who wants peace. On May 24, 2011, Netanyahu stormed into Congress, and basically treated Congressmen and Congresswomen like weak and impressionable children, taking their lunch and dignity away from them. In his Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is an arrogant bully and a pathological liar who wants war, not a honest statesmen who wants peace. On May 24, 2011, Netanyahu stormed into Congress, and basically treated Congressmen and Congresswomen like weak and impressionable children, taking their lunch and dignity away from them. In his speech, Netanyahu used bombastic rhetoric like all dangerous warmongers. If you allow a bully like Netanyahu to take your lunch today, he'll come back for more tomorrow. The only way you
(INM), which regulates migration in the country, is already working flat out to contain the problem, but it has a fraction of the resources that U.S. agencies have. "We're at the limit of our resources," Humberto Roque Villanueva, Mexico's deputy interior minister responsible for migration, told Reuters. The number of families stopped at the U.S.-Mexico border jumped 122 percent between October 2015 and April 2016 from the same period a year earlier, according to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The number of detained "unaccompanied minors" - children traveling without relatives - was 74 percent higher. Most of the Central Americans come from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Despite those increases, fewer migrants are being caught as they move through Mexico. Over the same period, Mexico detained and deported about 5 percent fewer people than in 2014/15. So far this year, 3.5 percent fewer unaccompanied minors have been stopped. The DHS is considering sending more agents south to train Mexican officials on how to track human traffickers and stop migrants crossing the Mexico-Guatemala border, according to an internal briefing document obtained by Reuters. U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar, who sits on the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, said DHS officials told him they hope to help Mexico strengthen its southern border. "When you're constantly working at full speed and don't have all the resources because your primary mission is to fight the drug cartels, yeah, you're going to be stretched," Cuellar said. DHS spokesman Daniel Hetlage declined to say whether it aimed to send more officers to work with the INM, but said the DHS and CBP have an "excellent" relationship with the INM and Mexico's government. Roque Villanueva attributed the migrant surge to people finding new routes past checkpoints. He said he was unaware of any U.S. plan to send reinforcements, and that there are already U.S. agents at Mexico's southern border, albeit only for training. LEAKY BORDER In 2014, Mexico launched the "Plan Frontera Sur" to tighten border controls, register migrants and stop them using the perilous network of trains known as "La Bestia", or "The Beast". But migrants quickly adapted. Elisabel Enriquez, Guatemala's vice-consul in Tapachula, said migrant smugglers now rent trucks and shuttling migrants from southern Mexico all the way to the U.S. border over 2,000 km away for up to $8,000 per person. Two such trucks were stopped in recent weeks, she said, one stuffed with about 115 migrants and the other about 60. Some migrants immediately apply for asylum on arrival in Mexico. Once granted a refugee visa, they can travel through Mexico without fear of being deported, said Irmgard Pund, who runs the local Belen migrant shelter. So far this year, asylum applications with Mexican refugee agency COMAR are up over 150 percent compared with 2015, and could reach 10,000 by the end of the year, said Perrine Leclerc, head of the Tapachula field office for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.The F-35 joint programme office (JPO) has revealed the first details of a three-year, block-buy proposal for the Pratt & Whitney engine that powers the Lockheed Martin fighter. The programme could sign contracts for 477 F135 engines over a three-year period beginning in FY2017, according to a JPO notice posted online on 25 March. A JPO spokesman clarifies that the 477 number excludes spares, so it could be matched with an equivalent number of airframes. The details of the block-buy proposal were not revealed previously as the US Congress has not yet authorised the approach, and some of the international partners have not made formal commitments to acquire the aircraft. Acquisition rules require the JPO to notify the industry of potential sole-source contracts. AirTeamImages The US Department of Defense typically buys aircraft and engines in annual lots through the end of low-rate initial production. Once production costs have stabilised during full-rate production, programmes sometimes shift to multi-year procurement, but only if the contractor agrees to deliver a minimum discount of 10%. The timing of the three-year block buy, however, begins in the final year of low-rate initial production in FY2017, so the JPO needs specific authorisation from Congress to move forward with the deal. The JPO is currently authorised to negotiate a block buy of nearly 150 F-35s that are expected to be ordered between FY2015 and FY2016. F-35 programme officials have committed to reducing the flyaway cost of the F-35 by more than 25% over the next five years. Four-fifths of that cost reduction is expected to come from increasing the production rate more than five-fold from 35 aircraft in 2014. The remainder would be the result of a cost reduction initiative by Lockheed and a “war on cost” initiated by P&W.If you’ve been following the non-political news lately you probably saw the tragic story out of Boston this past week. A double murder which took place there had all the elements of the beginning of a best selling murder mystery novel. Richard Field, 49 and Lina Bolanos, 38 were anesthesiologists working in the Boston area and were engaged to be married. The successful couple was found brutally murdered in their apartment, raising all manner of questions. Then a backpack full of jewelry was located on the scene. The Boston PD put in the hard work required and a suspect, thirty year old Bampumim Teixeira, was rapidly identified and apprehended after a brief gunfight. But now things have taken an even stranger twist. Teixeira was in the country legally with a green card (and had been since 2010) but had been in jail until recently for multiple counts of bank robbery. How was this guy not deported, possibly preventing this tragic double murder? Turns out it all came down to technicalities in our immigration system and clever defense attorneys. (CBS Boston) The man accused of murdering two doctors inside their South Boston penthouse likely avoided the threat of deportation last year when he agreed to a plea deal for two different bank robberies. According to court documents and an audio recording reviewed by WBZ-TV, Bampumim Teixeira’s punishment for those crimes allowed him to keep his green card and skirt federal immigration laws. Teixeira admitted to robbing the same Citizens Bank twice – once in 2014 and later in the summer of 2016. At his hearing in September, prosecution and defense attorneys made a joint motion for a 364-day jail sentence. So they had this guy on charges of robbing the same bank twice (I guess you stick with what works…) and his attorney knew that it could get him booted out of the country. So rather than fight it out in a jury trial he worked out a plea deal with the prosecutors where they would take 364 days in jail for his crimes. Had it been a year or more Teixeira would have been eligible for deportation. Also, he could have been kicked out of the country if he’d been convicted of bank robbery, but despite the fact that he admitted to robbing the bank twice he was given a deal to plead guilty to “larceny from a person.” Because of that, after serving only a pitifully short portion of his sentence, a few months later Teixeira was fleeing the apartment of Richard Field and Lina Bolanos, their bloody bodies left on the floor and a bunch of their jewelry in his backpack. Why are our immigration laws structured in this way to begin with? And even if we must work under such constraints, why do we have prosecutors and judges cutting deals like this? If someone isn’t even a citizen and is in the country on a green card they are supposed to be under some level of scrutiny to begin with because they are being considered for possible citizenship. We don’t want to automatically terminate that process if someone comes up with a few parking tickets, but one would assume that multiple bank robberies should be sufficient proof that you’re not the type of person we’re looking to add to the melting pot. Clearly we have more problems in our immigration system than just porous borders and not enough law enforcement officials working on the deportation of illegal aliens. The entire visa and green card system is fraught with issues. We can’t track those who overstay their visas and now it’s becoming clear that we’re not doing a good enough job weeding out the bad apples who wind up with green cards. So yes… we are in need of immigration reform, but it has nothing to do with amnesty. Rest in peace, Mr. Field and Ms. Bolanos. Your deaths could have and should have been prevented, but perhaps this will serve as a sign that we need to do better and hopefully stop this from happening to someone else.For years, people who share Netflix accounts have befuddled the streaming service's recommendation engine, the tool that in theory is supposed to use what you've watched before to suggest movies, documentaries and TV shows you'd like. But your kids may stream Disney movies and Sesame Street, and you may binge on episodes of "House of Cards" and "Breaking Bad," leading Netflix to suggest movies and TV shows that may not appeal to anyone in your household. In an attempt to fix this, Netflix today begins rolling out profiles, a free feature that allows any of the company's 37 million subscribers to create up to five different profiles on one account. Each profile will be treated like its own account, so recommendations will be more aligned with a single person's interests. The point, Netflix said, is to give subscribers a better experience. "The truth of it is that over the years we've really personalized for households rather than individuals within those households," Todd Yellin, Netflix's vice president of product innovation, told The Huffington Post. "Profiles is the next logical step in making personalization even better." Although Netflix is available to stream on dozens of devices and game consoles, profiles for now can only be created on the Netflix website and Playstation 3. Subscribers who set up profiles can access them on the website, Playstation 3, Xbox 360, iOS devices, Blu-ray players and some smart TVs. Netflix said more devices will be compatible with profiles over the next few months. Profiles will be available to some members on Thursday, and available to all within the next two weeks. Figuring out what people want to watch is key to Netflix's success. In an increasingly competitive streaming environment, where Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime Instant Video ink their own deals for exclusive and original content, Netflix needs not only to continue to attract new subscribers, but also keep existing ones happy. One way the company can do that -- and keep people from ditching its service for a competitor -- is by suggesting content that subscribers will like. Introducing profiles is a move to combat "churn," the number of people who sign up and then quit paying the $7.99 monthly fee if they feel like it's not valuable, said Mike McGuire, a vice president at Gartner, the technology research firm. "When you're in the subscription business, churn is your worst enemy," said McGuire. "If there's not something else they're surfacing that meets your interest beyond what you initially dialed in for, then you're out." About 75 percent to 80 percent of what people watch on Netflix comes from what Netflix recommends, not from what people search for, said Yellin. Netflix isn't shy about revealing that it uses vast amounts of subscriber data -- what titles, genres and actors subscribers like, where they rewind and where they pause video -- to make decisions not only about what content recommend, but also what to license and produce. McGuire said profiles will give Netflix even more detailed information about its subscribers and their viewing habits, allowing the company to make better decisions about what movies and TV shows to offer.GloveTacts™, maker of the world’s first-ever adhesive conductive fingertip tech, comes out swiping with a high-tech yet simple, affordable solution to connect gloved consumers with their devices. The patent-pending GloveTacts use ConnecTec™, an ultra-thin material more conductive than human skin, for precise touchscreen sensitivity. The ConnecTec pads attach securely and durably to nearly any glove via an advanced adhesive developed with 3M for a low-profile addition you’ll hardly notice, aside from the enhanced functionality. Since ConnecTec doesn’t require contact with human skin, GloveTacts are a versatile solution for limitless applications in work and play, tested with motorcycle and snowmobile gloves, cycling gloves, ski/snowboard gloves, industrial work gloves, garden gloves, football and baseball gloves, equestrian gloves, and even prosthetics. The secret lies in micro carbon filaments embedded in the outer polyurethane layer of ConnecTec, creating a resistance of 104 ohms (Human skin conductivity typically is 105). The conductive layer is blended seamlessly with a polyester adhesive layer for a durable product that will likely outlast the gloves it’s attached to. GloveTacts retail for $9.99 USD and are available now at GloveTacts.com.Moon Express, the ambitious Silicon Valley commercial venture aiming to be one of the first Moon resource companies, announced last night at the annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference that Dr. Andy Aldrin was joining the company as its new President. Dr. Aldrin, the son of Buzz Aldrin, is leaving United Launch Alliance, the joint venture of mega-companies Boeing and Lockheed Martin for the relative uncertainty of a small yet growing "NewSpace" company with promise but no guarantees of success. Dr. Aldrin was Director of Business Development and Advanced Programs at United Launch Alliance. Previously he served in various positions in Business Development and Strategy at the Boeing Company, including vice president and director of Boeing Launch Services and director of Business Development for Boeing NASA Systems. "Andy is a space industry veteran with an exceptional talent for strategic management and assimilating advanced technology concepts into market winners," said Bob Richards, Moon Express Co-Founder & CEO. "I have known Andy for decades, admiring the expanse of his space career from big picture thinker to street smart business executive. Andy's experience will be invaluable to MoonEx, and I have every confidence in an Aldrin piloting us toward the Moon." Dr. Aldrin's previous career included leading U.S. policy research institutes, including the RAND Corporation and the Institute for Defense Analyses. He is currently a member of the adjunct faculty at International Space University and has also served as an adjunct professor at California State University at Long Beach and the University of Houston-Clear Lake. He holds a PhD. in political science from the University of California at Los Angeles, writing his dissertation on the creation of the Soviet space program, a Masters of Business Administration from Trium, a Master's degree in science, technology and public policy from George Washington University, and a Bachelor's degree in political science and international relations from University of California at Santa Barbara. "I am thrilled to be part of an entrepreneurial company that is helping transform the commercial space industry," said Aldrin. "It is exciting to join a pioneering enterprise filled with passion and dedication to the bold dream of unlocking the Moon's mysteries and resources, and putting the United States back on the surface of the Moon in a permanent way." Dr. Aldrin will be responsible for day-to-day operations of the company. Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.UK-based Sally Morgan, known by her moniker “Psychic Sally,” has become embroiled this week in another dispute with skeptics. Earlier today an undercover video was released showing rather disturbing threats being made against a skeptic from people who apparently work for the psychic performer. — “Right, so I’m gonna hit you in a minute, I’m gonna knock you out.” — “I don’t want any trouble.” The video is below, but first some background is in order. A skeptic named Mark Tilbrook has been handing out leaflets outside Ms. Morgan’s appearances as a form of skeptical activism since earlier this year. These leaflets offer some questions for attendees to consider to make “sure you are not tricked or misled into something that may not be real” along with some hyperlinks to skeptical resources online. Ms. Morgan’s team took a dim view of this campaigning and have threatened Mr. Tilbrook with legal action, according to his account in The Guardian on Tuesday. He subsequently reached out to the Good Thinking Society, a skeptical UK non-profit run by Simon Singh for help. They are offering him legal assistance, but are also taking Tilbrook’s campaign to the next level, which I will also detail below. Other skeptical groups have engaged in similar campaigns to Mr. Tilbrook’s many times in the past. For instance the Granite State Skeptics have handed out psychic “bingo cards” outside psychic readings in their area. (I’ve also supported a group doing the same thing at DragonCon in Atlanta). Psychic Awareness Month handout Revised version of the pamphlet being handed out this month, courtesy Good Thinking Society. The aim of all these campaigns is to prime the audiences to techniques and effects that psychics depend upon. These include biases well known to skeptics such as confirmation bias and the Forer Effect or Barnum Effect. Leafleting like this can be an effective form of local skeptic activism. It is easy to forget the importance of local boots-on-the-ground skeptic activism like this. Conversely, famous debunkings of paranormalists such as James Randi’s undoing of Peter Popoff in 1986, are remembered by most skeptics. What many skeptics may not realize is Randi’s appearance on the Tonight Show that year was the culmination of a long investigation that involved the help of several local skeptic groups, as the late Robert Steiner recounted in a later article. (Our own Daniel Loxton also covered this story in detail last year in his essay on the purpose of skepticism). This is the important work of investigation and campaigning that skeptics must do, in order to educate the public and get the attention of the press. Coincidentally, another related skeptic campaign, against American psychic Chip Coffey, took place in California just a few weeks ago. More investigative than educational, “Operation Bumblebee” saw a group of skeptics led by Susan Gerbic and including Sheldon Helms, Jim Preston and others attending a session by the psychic medium. Echoing the 1986 Popoff investigation, several of them adopted false personas and carried prop photos, to see if they could lure Coffey into contacting non-existent dead relatives. They were successful in this. We may post more on this in the future. Today’s controversy involving Morgan is the latest in a long series. Back in 2011 she was accused by callers to a radio program of using an earpiece during a show in Ireland. Skeptics pointed out that such an earpiece could be of great use to someone wanting to pretend to be psychic—as Randi had discovered of Popoff back in 1986. This resulted in much coverage in the press and Ms. Morgan eventually disclaiming the use of earpieces. There followed a very interesting post by Simon Singh which correlated the online audience ratings of Morgan’s shows with when she was and was not using an earpiece. The back-of-the-napkin study showed a definite drop in audience satisfaction correlated with the loss of her earpiece. Back in May of this year, skeptic Myles Power also related a personal account about an interesting failure at one of Morgan’s shows. That involved some unsatisfied audience members as well. It has not been all skeptic wins against Morgan, however. When magician Paul Zenon wrote about her shows and her use of an earpiece in the Daily Mail, the newspaper was sued. The case was settled for a sum of £125,000—though this was an out-of-court settlement, not an actual libel judgment. Today’s controversy has flared due to this video, posted on Boing Boing by author Cory Doctorow and apparently recorded from a lapel camera during Mr. Tilbrook’s leafleting earlier this year. As you can see, two representatives of Morgan’s come out and threaten Tilbrook not only with legal action, but also with physical violence. They also make a number of anti-gay slurs against him and several other people who have campaigned against Morgan. Quite disgraceful on every level. This video was posted early this morning (UK time) and a few hours ago Sally Morgan’s official website posted a response titled SME Statement. Sally Morgan Enterprises would like to apologise for any offence caused by the material. Since April 2014, Mark Tilbrook has targeted Sally Morgan’s live performances; handing out leaflets to audience members. On several occasions theatre staff have had to call the police in order to get him removed. (Astute readers will note the first sentence is a classic “notpology“). Via Twitter, Tilbrook contacted me to deny the detail about the police. He says, “I have never ‘been removed’ from any show—if they called the police, they haven’t showed up on any occasion.” The statement goes on: Due to the continual presence of Mark Tilbrook and John Morgan’s ever-growing concern for Sally, he reacted angrily and out of character. Sally was not aware of the comments made in this video. She is very upset by the events, does not condone any of the behaviour and can only assume that this was the cause of persistent hounding that lead to this altercation. It remains to be seen if the legal threats against Tilbrook will come to fruition. Meanwhile I am told by Michael Marshall, Project Director at the Good Thinking Society, that the Guardian article from Tuesday was the third most read item on that site the next day. Moving forward, the Good Thinking Society is capitalizing on Mr. Tilbrook’s work, and turning it into a month-long campaign for October. Called Psychic Awareness Month, it features a spruced up version of Tilbrook’s leaflet (see above) which will be handed out at many different psychic shows in the UK—not just Morgan’s. Clearly, challenging the claims of psychics and educating the public about their techniques is a key skeptic task. These grassroots campaigns show that you don’t need to be a celebrity skeptic to accomplish real good. Social media backlash against psychics and effective press coverage can result from very simple grassroots techniques. But it is very important for skeptics to plan their campaigns carefully and seek help from experts in various fields (legal, conjuring, technology and more) as they go forward. I wish Mr. Tilbrook and the Good Thinking Society good luck with their Psychic Awareness Month campaign."I plan to vote for Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence on November 8," Sen. Deb. Fischer said Tuesday. | Getty In reversal, Sen. Fischer renews support for Trump The Nebraska senator called for him to step aside Saturday. Now she says he should stay, Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer on Tuesday reversed her call for Donald Trump to resign from the GOP ticket, telling a local radio station that it's "not a tough choice" to back him just three days after she urged him to quit. "I plan to vote for Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence on November 8," she said on Nebraska's KLIN. "I put out a statement... with regard to Mr. Trump's comments. I felt they were disgusting. I felt they were unacceptable and I never said I was not voting for our Republican ticket." Story Continued Below What Fischer had actually said was that "It would be wise for [Trump] to step aside and allow Mike Pence to serve as our party's nominee." She said in the radio interview that she would no longer advocate that position because Trump had already made up his mind. (In fact, Trump tweeted barely an hour after Fischer's call, that he would "never" quit the race.) "He decided he would not step aside. I respect his decision," Fischer said Tuesday. "I support the Republican ticket and it's a Trump-Pence ticket." Her decision comes less than a day after the state's governor, Pete Ricketts, also reaffirmed his support for Trump, even though he canceled a pair of fundraisers scheduled for Tuesday evening with Pence. Fischer stood by in May as the state's junior senator, Ben Sasse, was rebuked by state party activists for his advocacy for a third-party conservative to enter the race. That's why her initial call Saturday for Trump to step aside startled some GOP insiders. Now, though, she's back aboard the Trump train. "To me it's not a tough choice," she said.ORLANDO, Fla. — It seemed as if all of Orlando was here, crowded around a glittering lake to remember the 49 people who died in a fit of violence. Among the people, estimated by the police at 50,000, present at a vigil on Sunday for the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting were: Minnie Perez, 47, a Pulse regular who said she had lost 14 friends. She wore a blanket bearing their faces. Megan Elkins, 25, who held her 7-year-old nephew as if it was the last time she would have the chance to do so. And Syed, Ivette and Sasha Shamsuzzaman, a Bangladeshi-Puerto Rican family sitting under a black umbrella at the edge of the lake. Mr. Shamsuzzaman, 61, a Muslim from Bangladesh, wore a peace sign around his neck and called for Pulse to reopen as quickly as possibly.Top 7 Most Common Reactions to Your High-Fat Diet (and How to Respond) By Mark Sisson A couple weeks back, I wrote about the top 8 most common reactions you get when people hear you don’t eat grains, and I offered up some concise responses to those reactions. It was well received, so I thought I’d do the same thing for “your high-fat diet.” If you thought having to explain your grain-free diet was tough, explaining a high-fat diet – in particular, a high-animal fat diet – may seem even harder. At least with a grain-free diet, you’re merely removing something that many hold near and dear to their hearts. It’s “healthy” and “delicious,” sure, but at least you’re not adding something that will actively kill you. Fat is that deadly thing, for many people. It’s “fat,” for crying out loud. It’s bad for you, practically a poison. Everyone knows it. I mean, have you seen what fat down the kitchen drain does to your plumbing? Actually, like the grain-free diet, explaining the high-fat diet is not that hard. I’ll even promise you that there are ways to do it, explanations and answers that don’t make you seem like a crazy person who hates his heart (I make no such promises for those of you with a stick of butter with bite marks and a tub of coconut oil with a greasy spoon beside it on your office desk, however). Now let’s get right to their questions and responses you can use: “Isn’t all that fat gonna glom onto your arteries?” That isn’t how it works. Atherosclerosis is caused by oxidized LDL particles penetrating the arterial wall, inciting inflammation, and damaging the arterial tissue. It is not caused by fat mechanistically attaching itself to the surface of the arteries like fat in a kitchen pipe. Also, it’s not like you eat some butter and that butter gets directed straight into your bloodstream. Your blood doesn’t have oil slicks running through it, or congealed droplets of grease gumming up the passageways. You are the product of millions upon millions of years of evolution, and I think our bodies can do better than trying to ape modern plumbing. Response: “My arteries are not pipes. Fat is not solidifying in my blood like it can in the plumbing. Atherosclerosis is a complex process with dozens of factors beyond what’s in your diet, let alone the fat content.” “Isn’t all that cholesterol gonna raise your cholesterol?” If I were a rabbit, sure. When you feed cholesterol to an herbivorous animal, like a rabbit, whose only encounters with dietary cholesterol occur in a lab setting, their blood lipids will increase and they will usually develop atherosclerosis. For many years, the “cholesterol-fed rabbit” was a popular model for studying heart disease and gave rise to the now-popular idea that dietary cholesterol also elevates blood lipids in humans (thus immediately condemning them to a heart attack, naturally). Except it isn’t the case. Save for a select few who are “hyper-responders,” the vast majority of people can eat cholesterol without it affecting their cholesterol levels. And even when dietary cholesterol affects blood lipids, it’s usually an improvement, increasing HDL and the HDL:TC ratio while leaving LDL mostly unchanged. As for where all that blood cholesterol comes from, we make pretty much all the cholesterol in our blood in-house, and dietary cholesterol tends to suppress endogenous cholesterol synthesis. Boy, between “staying local” and “only making as much as we need,” our livers are downright green. I bet our HDL is GMO-free and organic to boot (not so sure about those sneaky LDL particles, though). Response: “Dietary cholesterol does not affect total blood cholesterol. In fact, when we do eat cholesterol, our bodies make less of it to keep our blood levels in balance.” “Isn’t all that fat gonna make you fat?” Fat doesn’t make you fat. While you can technically overeat enough fat calories to accumulate adipose tissue, thus getting fat, this is a difficult feat, for two primary reasons: Fat is very satiating, especially when paired with low-carb eating. Grass-fed pot roast, ribbed with yellow fat, connective tissue, and ample protein is far more filling than some crusty bread spread with butter. You’ll eat a decent slice of the former and be done, but you could easily polish off half a loaf of the latter with half a stick of butter and still be hungry. It’s difficult to overeat on a high-fat, low-carb diet. Dietary fat in the presence of large amounts of dietary carbohydrates can make it difficult to access fat for energy, while dietary fat in the presence of low levels of dietary carbohydrates makes it easier to access fat for energy. Couple that with the fact that fat and carbs are easier to overeat together, and you have your explanation. In fact, studies have shown that low-carb, high-fat diets not only reduce weight, they also retain or even increase lean mass. That means it’s fat that’s being lost (rather than the nebulous “weight”), which is what we’re ultimately after. Response: “No. Eating a high-fat, low-carb diet is the easiest way to inadvertently eat less without sacrificing satiation or satisfaction. It also improves your ability to access stored body fat rather than lean mass, which is helpful for fat loss.” “But Dean Ornish/my mom/Walter Willet/the AHA/my doctor said saturated fat will give you heart attacks.” They all may say that, and sound pretty convincing as they say it, but the science says differently. I tend to listen to the science, rather than what I think the science is saying: A 2011 study found that “reducing the intake of CHO with high glycaemic index is more effective in the prevention of CVD than reducing SAFA intake per se.” From a 2010 study out of Japan, saturated fat intake “was inversely associated with mortality from total stroke.” A 2010 meta-analysis found “that there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of CHD or CVD.” That looks pretty clear cut to me. Response: “The most recent studies have concluded that saturated fat intake likely has no relation to heart disease, contrary to popular opinion.” “Where do you get your energy?” I get my energy from fat, both dietary and stored body fat. At 9 calories per gram, fat is the densest source of energy. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but humans tend to store it on their bodies. That’s not just for show, you know. We actually store it in our bodies as energy for later, for leaner times, for when food isn’t available. Fat is the ideal energy source for life’s daily activities; walking, working, even going for a hike or a light jog all access the oxidative, or fat-based energy pathway. Carbs only really come into play when you’re doing repeated bouts of intense exercise, like sprint intervals or high-intensity endurance training. But for just about everything else? Fat is king. Response: “Fat is the body’s preferred and most reliable form of energy, which is why we store excess energy as fat on our bodies. Unless you think we accumulate body fat just to make pants fit tighter.” “But isn’t fat totally free of nutrients? How do you get your vitamins if you’re eating all that fat?” The richest source of natural tocotrienols (vitamin E), potent antioxidants, is red palm oil – a fat. One of the richest sources of choline, a vital micronutrient for liver function, is egg yolk – a fat. One of the better sources of vitamin K2, an oft-ignored nutrient involved in cancer prevention, arterial health, and bone metabolism, is grass-fed butter – a fat. The best dietary source of vitamin D, a nutrient most people are deficient in, is cod liver oil – a fat. See what I mean? Also, even when you’re cooking with a fat that doesn’t contain many vitamins, that fat is still going to improve the bioavailability of the fat-soluble vitamins (like A, D, E, K, K2) in the food you’re cooking. Response: “Certain fats, like egg yolks, palm oil, extra virgin olive oil, cod liver oil, and grass-fed butter, are some of the most nutritious foods in existence. And without fat in your meals, you often won’t absorb all the nutrients that are present in other foods like leafy greens, since many of them require fat for full absorption.” “Doesn’t the brain run on carbs, not fat?” Yes, the brain requires glucose. That is true. However, the brain is more of a gas/diesel hybrid. It can run on both fat and glucose. Ketones, derived from fatty acids, can satisfy the majority of the brain’s energy needs, sparing the need for so much glucose. You’ll still need some glucose, as the brain can’t run purely on ketone bodies, but you won’t need nearly as much. And, best of all, your brain will run more efficiently on a combination of ketones and glucose than on glucose alone. That improved efficiency means you can actually function without food. Since you have ample brain energy stores on your body (even the lean among us have enough body fat to last for weeks), and a high-fat diet allows you to access that body fat for brain energy, you’ll no longer suffer brain fog just because your afternoon meeting went a little long and you missed lunch. Instead, you’ll enjoy steadier, more even energy in mind and body. Additionally, your body, through a process know as gluconeogenesis, can make up to 150 grams of glucose a day – more than the brain even needs (roughly 120 grams/day). Response: “While it’s true that the brain requires some glucose for energy, using fat-derived ketones as well can make the brain run more efficiently and reduce its glucose requirements. On top of that, your body can probably create more glucose than your brain even requires.” Compared to last week’s grains post, there were fewer entries today, the simple reason being that while grains are hyped beyond belief, people have but a few scant – albeit robustly defended – justifications for fearing dietary fat. The backlash almost always revolves around the visceral fear of “fat.” It’s a scary word, after all, but it shouldn’t be. No one should fear something so vital to life, so crucial for nutrient absorption and hormonal function, and so delicious with roasted vegetables. Hopefully, these responses will help curb some of that fear. So, what’d I miss? What else have you heard, and how did you respond? Let me and everyone know in the comments! Prefer listening to reading? Get an audio recording of this blog post, and subscribe to the Primal Blueprint Podcast on iTunes for instant access to all past, present and future episodes here. Post navigation If you'd like to add an avatar to all of your comments click here!Pearl Izumi has released a video asking riders to ditch the earbuds in an effort to promote safer, more responsible cycling. “This film is really about interactions between people; riders with other riders, trail users and drivers. A lot of us have had frustrating interactions or close calls on the bike because we couldn’t communicate with another person. We want people to think about the broader effects of what is a personal decision, to wear earphones while riding, and encourage riders to be good to each other out there,” said Andrew Hammond, Pearl Izumi’s global brand manager. Listening to music while riding is an issue our staff has tackled in opinion columns over the years as well. What do you think? Are earbuds a hindrance to safety on the roads and trails? Have you encountered issues with other cyclists using earbuds? Sound off in the comments section below.Refugee charities are paying people smugglers to ferry migrants to their rescue boats patrolling off Libya, it was claimed last night. A senior Libyan coastguard official told The Mail on Sunday he had evidence that aid agencies were stumping up cash for migrants desperate to reach Europe but who cannot afford to pay ruthless traffickers. Colonel Tarek Shanboor said he had obtained bank details and phone records that proved the charities were making payments to criminal gangs who have put hundreds of thousands of migrants into unseaworthy boats – leading to thousands of deaths each year. His claim will raise concern because there have long been fears that Islamic extremists could be among the migrants. Col Shanboor said that in a desperate effort to stamp out the smuggling trade once and for all he had resorted to hiring a Tripoli- based militia to patrol the coast with his police force Charities patrolling off northern Africa claim they are only there to rescue migrants. But Colonel Shanboor said aid agencies were now encouraging more and more migrants to make the perilous trip. He claimed he had handed evidence of collusion between charities and traffickers to EU border security officials in Brussels, though he refused to go into detail. Speaking exclusively to the MoS he said: ‘The non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are adding to the crisis by actively encouraging increasing numbers of migrants. Now we have the evidence they are in cahoots with the smugglers. We have evidence the smugglers call the NGOs directly and there are business deals between them.’ Col Shanboor claimed charities were paying up £450 for each migrant’s passage. He believes their motives are well-meaning but misguided. Col Shanboor’s extraordinary accusation comes just months after an internal EU report revealed charity officials in boats were in direct contact with migrant vessels and even gave them precise directions to find rescue vessels. This year has already seen record numbers of migrants attempting the perilous crossing from Libya to Lampedusa and Sicily, turning Italy into the
. Katie Couric, the former “Today” co-host and CBS anchor, lasted two years in an ABC-backed daytime show whose first executive producer was Jeff Zucker, now CNN’s president. CNN anchor Anderson Cooper also lasted two seasons in daytime. The largely female audience tends to favor entertainment and lighter fare over serious news topics. NBC did not announce a time for Kelly’s new show. Trump’s sharp criticism of Kelly after the first presidential debate, when she asked him about his demeaning comments toward some women, brought her a torrent of online abuse and, she disclosed in her book, her family was forced to use security guards. The two buried the hatchet in an interview that aired on the Fox broadcast network.OMAHA, NE – Local churches are a major part of the current anti-LGBT petition drive, in most cases they are THE location where the petition will be signed. There is a huge coalition of churches involved going by a variety of names, as vast and varied as their own hatred for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered people, pushing their hatred upon their church goers. According to the Omaha World Herald, Christ Community Church, Omaha Catholic Parishes, Omaha Trinity Hope Foursquare Church, Westside Church, Lifegate Church, King of Kings Lutheran Church, and Salem Baptist Church are among the churches actively participating. The reality is, even more churches are involved and most of them belong to the Nebraska Heritage Coalition, which help create the bigoted Omaha Liberty Project. One of the guys that is in charge of the Omaha Liberty Project is from Nigeria, Femi Awodele. I think its unusual that these Tea Party types would except a foreigner in their ranks. I guess when you’re anti-gay its A-OK, right? These are same type of people who had no problem bringing Africans as slaves over in the boats, but have issues when people seeking a better life want to cross the Rio Grande. Only foreigner’s who agree with Tea Party bigotry are allowed, I suppose? Awodele is the one who set up the website to take people’s donations and owns the Christian Couples Fellowship. To those who have never seen the First Amendment, this is what it looks like: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” As you can see it says Congress shall make NO LAW respecting an establishment of religion, which means, quit shoving your anti-LGBT religious beliefs down my throat. Thanks. I will never understand why a group of people who are supposed to help people will spend their time and money to destroy the lives of people who do not even concern them in the first place. Speaking of religion: Harvey Milk said it best, ““The fact is that more people have been slaughtered in the name of religion than for any other single reason. That, that my friends, that is true perversion!” Now they are using it to strip away people’s rights!! 0.000000 0.000000Description An impressionist seascape oil painting of Laguna Beach. The beautiful Laguna Beach was founded in 1887 and is in south Orange County, California, United States, between Los Angeles and San Diego. With 7 miles of coastline it is famous for its mild sunny climate, beautiful sandy beaches and 20 coves. Approximately 3 million people visit the beach each year. It is very popular with artists, hikers, photographers, bird watchers and filmmakers for its beaches, rocky hills and canyons. It holds the world famous Brooks Street Surfing Classic which began in 1955 and is open only to Laguna Beach residents. Volleyball is another popular beach sport at Laguna. Laguna Beach scene is featured in the 'Five Star Artist' Group on Fine Art America. Beach prints are available as stretched canvas prints, acrylic, metal, framed, posters, phone cases, greeting cards, duvet covers, beach bags, duvet covers, tote bags, phones and throw pillows. I have over 200 beach, tropical and coastal decor paintings to browse. Just click on my name (above left) and go to my Beach Paintings Gallery and Coastal Decor Gallery.A scuffle in a Michigan Walmart over a notebook escalated when a woman pulled a loaded gun, scattering shoppers, and now state prosecutors reportedly are weighing whether to bring charges. The trouble began when the woman’s 20-year-old daughter allegedly grabbed the notebook at the Walmart in Novi Monday from two other women. “There was one left, some pushing resulted,” Novi Police Detective Scott Baetens told Fox 2 Detroit. “They began to argue who was the rightful purchaser of that notebook.” The gun appeared when the scuffling grew more violent, with hair-pulling. “She’s a valid (Concealed Pistol License) holder,” the detective said. “She pulled out her firearm and tells them to stop attacking her daughter while pointing the gun at them.” A shopper recorded the incident on a cellphone, the Detroit Free Press reported. According to the paper, police reviewed the footage as part of their investigation and then submitted the case to the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office for review and possible charges. Baetens told the paper that the 20-year-old left with the notebook after purchasing it. Click for more from Fox 2 Detroit.Private Lunar Mission On September 17, 2018, SpaceX announced fashion innovator and globally recognized art curator Yusaku Maezawa will be the company’s first private passenger to fly around the Moon in 2023. To date, only 24 people have visited the Moon, with the last of them flying in 1972. This first private lunar passenger flight, featuring a fly-by of the Moon as part of a weeklong mission, will help fund development of SpaceX's Starship and Super Heavy (formerly known as BFR), an important step in enabling access for everyday people who dream of flying to space. STARSHIP AND SUPER HEAVY SpaceX's Starship and Super Heavy Rocket represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to service all Earth orbit needs as well as the Moon and Mars. This two-stage vehicle—composed of the Super Heavy rocket (booster) and Starship (ship)—will eventually replace Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and Dragon. By creating a single system that can service a variety of markets, SpaceX can redirect resources from Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and Dragon to Starship—which is fundamental in making the system affordable.Initially this post was intended to part of a three-part series that would cover my skin care routine, how to build the foundations of your skin care routine and how I maintain such an extensive routine without spending a fortune. But in light of a recent thread on the Asian Beauty Reddit I decided to move this post to the front of the que. In addition much of the information on building your own routine can be found on other blogs. The fact is that over spending can easily happen. Especially with all the Korean companies making their products easier to locate. While my beauty interests combine both Korean skin care with all Natural products (hey, I like to dabble in everything), I still face the same problem of wanting to purchase in numbers far greater than me or my face could possibly use. While I have found a way to cope with this desire to spend this post is mostly meant to get you thinking about ways you can do the same. I warn you, this post will be a bit boring and wordy with all that finance talk. So if that is not your cup of tea you are welcome to skip. But if you are interested in reading on in this post you will find Building your beauty routine There are a huge number of blog posts out there that outline some simple ways to build your routine to suit your specific needs. I would strongly advise you start with reading Deborah‘s post on determining what ingredients don’t work for your skin. From there I would head on over to Fifty Shades of Snail and read up on building your routine which gives you a good idea on where to get started. Finally, if you are interested in some more specifics on how to further refine your routine, and the science behind what you are doing, I recommend the entirety of Snow White and the Asian Pears Skin Care Discovery series. At this point the fun begins. But before you whip out your credit card (or continue to do so if you already have a routine going) you may want to have an idea of some good practices to save your budget. Saving your budget In addition to there being a fair amount of posts on how to build your routine there are also posts on how to save your wallet. Though the fact is the former is in much greater numbers than the later. That being said in order to not rehash the same information over and over a little primer on what is out there is warranted. The two most relevant readings that I have found within the Asian Beauty community are Snow White and the Asian Pear’s thoughts on hauling responsibly and Deborah’s post on the same topic. I figured I would throw my hat into the ring with these bloggers. Since the beauty blogging community is so sparse on posts about how to save your budget another idea of how to handle things couldn’t hurt. How I budget for beauty The easiest way I can think of is to walk you through a step by step of exactly what I did to set up my budget. While I am still in the process of hammering out some specifics for my budget numbers this will present a different view. This will also make available step by step guide to walk you through at least one method for determining how much you should spend on any beauty product. While obviously not everyone has the same love of math and numbers I do, nor the desire to put so much effort into their financial planning of their purchases, you don’t have to share my same level of crazy. You can easily step off the train at any point and decide you have reached a sufficient level of planning. This is supposed to give you a look into how I chose to allocate my money, and some ideas beyond the standard setting a flat monthly budget to stick to. If you would like to skip my gabbing, I have enclosed the calculations I used within quotes. You simply need to scroll from section to section and insert the values that match your desired level of financial commitment. Choosing your monthly budget This is a highly personal decision. I did run an initial google search to see how much financial advisors recommend you allocate for beauty spending as a percentage of your income. While the internet was rife with examples of individuals asking on boards about how much others spend there was no real number to start with as a jumping off point. For the sake of this post I am going to use some made up numbers. This is mostly because I am currently on the job hunt and have no real numbers to speak of. As a result my beauty shopping is limited to only replacing what I must and at the lowest price point possible. Additionally, the percentages I come up with based on these numbers are obviously in no way telling you what to do with your income but simply giving you insight into how I determined my numbers. The first thing is to figure out what your financial budget for beauty includes. In mine I am only considering beauty products I purchase. Haircuts, which I get at regular intervals I have categorized separately since I know exactly how much they will cost me per year. I also do not include feminine hygiene products within this category as I buy them at the food store so shuffle them in with my grocery shopping. Further I am only buying for myself, so this budget will reflect that. To make the math as simple as possible lets say I had a monthly income of 4000 dollars. That would not only be amazing, but it is also the lowest income value where I would feel comfortable setting aside 100 a month on beauty products. That would make it 2.5% of my income a year on beauty products. One could easily stop at this point and just not go over budget, but I really like planning and working with numbers. Monthly Income × percentage (as a decimal point) = Monthly Budget 4000.00 × 0.025 = 100.00 Determining spending Maximums per product The next thing I did was to sit down and write a list of all the beauty products I replace on a regular basis. I did not include things I only purchases on super rare occasions. This mean means hair styling devices and hair spray (which I have only purchased 2 times in my adult life). For this portion determining how much to spend per product was pretty easy. Lets say I use 20 products (my actual number was 29, but I like whole numbers). I started by dividing my monthly budget by the number of products I use per month. Monthly Budget ÷ Product Number = Single Product Monthly Budget 100.00 ÷ 20 = 5 $/product/month This number (5 USD/Product/Month) is the first half of the equation. The second half of the equation depends on how long it takes you to use up a product. Since most tend to be around the same size, and you tend to use them at the same rate this gives you a rough Idea of much you can spend and still spend less than. So for a product you use up at a rate of 1 a month, 5 dollars would be your limit. But what about products you use up less often? Lets say an eye cream takes you 4 months to use up. You simply need to multiply your previously determined single product monthly budget by how long it takes you to use up the product. Be sure that if your product is used up in under your set budget time (so in less than a month) you write it as a decimal point. Single Product Monthly budget × Time complete = single product budget 5 $/Product/Month × 4 months/eye cream = 20 $/Eye cream Determining spending maximums per ounce Okay so obviously this is not needed by everyone. But I like making ridiculous rules for myself, but this also helps prevent me from crazy over spending on one product and running out of funds for necessities. It also helps limit my spending to only products that I know I am going to use up. So in addition to a little more math, this will also involve a little bit of habit tracking. You really just need to next time you purchase a product in a category that you use regularly (and that you haven’t figured these calculations out for yet) mark down the volume that comes in a container, and how long it takes to use up. I have only just begun this step, and will be using the method from the previous section for categories that I have not been able to complete this step for as of yet. Once you complete the tracking for a container you take the total volume of the container and divide it by the maximum spending per product to determine the maximum you should spend by volume (say an ounce). Single Product Budget ÷ ounces per product = Maximum $/ounce 20 $/eye cream ÷ 0.5 ounces = 40 $/ounce Next post I hope to get back to something a little less math related (though If it is knitting related, it may be math heavy).SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes announced today that they have partnered with local club San Jose FC of the Central Valley Soccer Club to grow their youth development system. The deal includes all youth teams – boys and girls – under San Jose FC’s current structure. "This makes sense for us on many levels" said San Jose Earthquakes technical director Chris Leitch. “With the continued growth of SJFC as a premier competitive club in the San Jose area, it’s a great next step for both parties to have San Jose FC become the competitive development arm for the San Jose Earthquakes youth academy. As an Earthquakes youth club, SJFC players will have full access to the San Jose Earthquakes youth development pyramid, giving them elite competitive, collegiate and ultimately professional opportunities. This is also a fantastic opportunity to work with SJFC to jointly take their girls program to even greater heights.” Through the partnership, San Jose FC will become the official club team of the Earthquakes. Each of their teams will be outfitted with Earthquakes gear and will fall under the club’s Academy umbrella with Leitch overseeing the technical direction. Players who participate on San Jose FC’s club team will be eligible to participate on the Earthquakes’ Academy teams at the U-14, U-16 and U-18 levels. Additionally, San Jose FC’s coaching staff will remain intact. San Jose FC is one of the fastest growing club teams in the Bay Area with over 800 participants. They are part of Central Valley Soccer Club, a league with recreational and competitive opportunities. Since the Earthquakes began their Academy program, over 30 players have joined the ranks through SJFC. That list includes Philip Hausen, the U-18’s leading scorer who has committed to play college soccer at Harvard next fall.The Chargers have expressed real frustration with the City of San Diego over the last several days. So announcing an LA stadium plan seems like the next logical step. But the Raiders? Say it ain’t so, Mark!?!? The LA Times’ Sam Farmer has the scoop, describing the deal as a Plan B for both teams if they can’t work out “publicly financed” stadium deals in San Diego and Oakland, respectively. The teams quickly followed up with their own joint statement, explaining their plans with a surprising amount of detail – at least at this early stage. The statement: We have both been working in our home markets to find a stadium solution for many years, so far unsuccessfully. We remain committed to continuing to work in our home markets throughout 2015 to try to find publicly acceptable solutions to the long-term stadium issue. We also both understand and respect the NFL’s relocation process, and we intend to adhere strictly to the relocation procedures that the League has set forth for Los Angeles. In particular, we respect the right of the NFL’s owners to decide on all Los Angeles-related relocation issues and understand that any relocation application that is filed for Los Angeles must obtain the approval of three-fourths of the NFL’s owners. Both teams have kept the NFL owners’ committee on Los Angeles, and the Commissioner, fully informed about our joint efforts. We are pursuing this stadium option in Carson for one straightforward reason: If we cannot find a permanent solution in our home markets, we have no alternative but to preserve other options to guarantee the future economic viability of our franchises. In short, for the remainder of 2015, we intend to move down two tracks simultaneously: On track one, we will continue to work in our home markets to find permanent stadium solutions that are publicly acceptable. On track two, we will work in Carson to preserve our options, and the future economic viability of our franchises, in the event that our efforts in our local markets fail. Throughout this process we will respect the rules and procedures set forth by the League and defer completely to the ultimate decision of the NFL’s owners. There’s a lot to unpack here, so let’s start from the top. The first five bullets are meant to curry favor with the true audience for this statement, the NFL and its constituent team owners. It’s Dean Spanos and Mark Davis saying to the owners, Look, if you want someone who’s going to play by the rules, who won’t go rogue *cough*Kroenke*cough, it’s us. Stan Kroenke’s actions have taken much of the leverage over LA away from the NFL despite the league’s protestations, so the play here may be that if Kroenke gets stuck in litigation with the league, Spanos and Davis may benefit by getting the two LA slots. By the time the dust settles, the Chargers and Raiders will already be in LA and the Rams may be stuck in St. Louis. Most importantly, Farmer’s report revealed that the Chargers and Raiders bought the 168-acre plot of land in Carson on which the stadium would sit. That’s more than a mere verbal threat, that’s real action. Kroenke, who didn’t buy land in Inglewood to sit on it, probably anticipated this, while having talks with Spanos and Davis about partnering up in The Wood. He claims to have a privately financed stadium there. Spanos & Davis claim to have a privately financed stadium in Carson. Let’s be clear, though, TWO privately financed stadia in LA don’t work. Even with a market the size of LA, that’s too many suites to sell, too many sponsorship commitments. Two stadia would compete with each other for Super Bowls, NCAA playoff games and any number of other big events, effectively cutting into each other’s profitability and feasibility. If we want to term this a race to LA, there are at most two teams that can win and one stadium plan that can win. That’s the hedge part, or so we’re being led to believe. The leverage play from Spanos and Davis is that they’re still working on plans in their hometowns. Spanos has allowed team lawyer Mark Fabiani to be the bulldog, quickly getting into a war of words with San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer. Davis, who appeared to say the right things only a month ago when he said he wanted to pursue his own stadium plan, is now running back to Floyd Kephart and Coliseum City. If Davis wasn’t on board with CC before, what’s going to change now to make him sign on, besides being backed into a corner? Having LA as an option is a hedge against that very possibility. If you look at what’s been happening in both cities, there isn’t much progress. Neither city wants to to provide any public funding. Both cities’ greatest asset is land, which isn’t nearly as good as money. The Chargers are being aggressive, whereas the Raiders are waffling. The Chargers’ attacks on San Diego can be considered the first blink after Kroenke’s plan was unveiled. This joint-stadium plan is the second blink. Who blinks next? San Diego and/or Oakland, in order to force everyone to the table? Or is it Kroenke, who may want to accelerate his plan in order to keep others from taking his leverage away? Or perhaps it’s Roger Goodell, who is in danger of losing control over the process? The boldest move would come from either Faulconer or Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. These cities don’t have to be pawns in the stadium extortion game, one that has gotten exponentially more complex because of the number of factors involved. They could call this bluff. The only winning move is not to play, right? It’s one thing for the teams have land. It’s another to actually assemble a shared stadium deal that works for both teams. While MetLife Stadium can be considered a success for the Giants and Jets financially, in use it’s a lifeless gray mess, terribly lacking in home field advantage and absent either team’s character or signature. Do Spanos and Davis really want to go down that path? The LA stadium renderings, done by Warriors’ SF arena firm Manica Architecture, look like Levi’s Stadium 2.0 – similar caste system bowl layout, red seats, and no façade. At least there’s a partial roof. In the end, the promise of a huge valuation raise may prove too alluring to dismiss for these teams. It’s easy to give lip service in trying to build at home, but it may be the toughest challenge to stay. Even with things moving as fast as they are in 2015, it’s still too early to predict how this is all going to shake out. There are many, many moves left in this game. It’ll be fascinating to watch, that’s certain.Lebanon's President Michel Aoun has said nothing justifies the apparent detention of Saad Hariri in Saudi Arabia. In a statement on Wedneday, Aoun called the incident a Saudi act of aggression. Hariri, a Sunni Muslim politician and longtime ally of Saudi Arabia, suddenly announced his resignation as Lebanon's prime minister during a visit to Riyadh last week. He has been promising to return home soon but Saudi leaders say they fear for his safety if he does. In an interview on Sunday night with the Future TV station owned by him, Hariri drew attention to the risk of economic sanctions and a threat to the livelihoods of Lebanese expatriate workers in Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies. Hariri's latest pledge to return came on Tuesday via Twitter after he met the visiting head of Lebanon's Maronite Christian Church in Riyadh, Patriarch Beshara al-Rai. READ MORE: The Machiavellian Prince - Welcome to Salman Arabia Rai became the first Lebanese public figure to visit Saudi Arabia since Hariri announced his resignation in a televised speech from Riyadh on November 4. In that speech, Hariri blamed interference in Lebanon by Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah for his decision, adding that he feared an assassination attempt. Saad Hariri's father, Rafik Hariri, was killed in a devastating truck bombing in 2005. Aoun's allegation In his statement on Wednesday, Aoun said: "We will not accept him remaining a hostage whose reason for detention we do not know. "Nothing justifies Hariri's lack of return for 12 days. We, therefore, consider him detained." Aoun also said Lebanon had confirmed that Hariri's family were under detention in their house in Saudi Arabia and were searched whenever they entered or left it. Up until now, Lebanese officials had said Hariri was probably under either house arrest or in temporary detention in Riyadh. Under a political deal reached last year, a coalition government was formed in Lebanon, with Hariri as prime minister and Aoun as president. Hezbollah also joined the 30-member unity government. Last week, after a ballistic missile fired by Yemen's Iran-aligned Shia Houthi rebels was intercepted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia accused Lebanon of declaring war on the kingdom. Saudi Arabia and its Arab Gulf allies view Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation because of its role in Arab countries ranging from Syria to Yemen. In a speech from Beirut on Friday, the leader of Hezbollah said Hariri's "forced" resignation was unconstitutional because it was done "under pressure". Hassan Nasrallah said he was sure Hariri was forced to resign as part of what he called Saudi Arabia's policy of stoking sectarian tensions in Lebanon. 'Mistaken calculations' For its part, Iran said on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia had made "multiple mistaken calculations" in the Middle East. In Lebanon it had "made a completely childish mistake", Abbas Araqchi, Iranian deputy foreign minister, told Fars news agency. In another development, Jean-Yves Le Drian, France's foreign minister, was due to arrive in Riyadh on Wednesday. He was expected to hold talks on Lebanon with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and meet Hariri on Thursday, a French diplomatic source said. Meanwhile, Edouard Philippe, the former French prime minister, has appealed to Hariri to return to Lebanon. Lebanon was under French control between the world wars and maintains close relations with the country, and especially with the Hariri family.#OpMaryville Protest - October 22nd a guest Oct 14th, 2013 9,317 Never a guest9,317Never Not a member of Pastebin yet? Sign Up, it unlocks many cool features! rawdownloadcloneembedreportprint text 1.18 KB #OpMaryville Justice for Daisy A live demonstration in Maryville has been planned and we are encouraging the online community to attend. Please organize with your followers and make plans to attend this important event. Tweet with #Justice4Daisy if you plan to attend the demonstration. Details: On Tuesday, October 22, 2013, at 10:00am we will meet at the Nodaway County Courthouse in Maryville, Missouri with daisies in our hands for a peaceful protest in support of Daisy Coleman. We are calling on Missouri's Attorney General Chris Koster to immediately open an investigation into the lack of charges against Matthew Barnett, despite a confession and evidence of his guilt. We are asking members of the press to investigate and file FOIA requests to discover any connections between Matthew's grandfather, Missouri State Rep. Rex Barnett, Maryville law enforcement and the prosecutors who dropped Daisy's case. For Facebook users, an event page has been created: https://www.facebook.com/events/648396251860031/?fref=ts For details regarding the case, please read this article: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/10/12/4549775/nightmare-in-maryville-teens-sexual.html Thank you RAW Paste Data #OpMaryville Justice for Daisy A live demonstration in Maryville has been planned and we are encouraging the online community to attend. Please organize with your followers and make plans to attend this important event. Tweet with #Justice4Daisy if you plan to attend the demonstration. Details: On Tuesday, October 22, 2013, at 10:00am we will meet at the Nodaway County Courthouse in Maryville, Missouri with daisies in our hands for a peaceful protest in support of Daisy Coleman. We are calling on Missouri's Attorney General Chris Koster to immediately open an investigation into the lack of charges against Matthew Barnett, despite a confession and evidence of his guilt. We are asking members of the press to investigate and file FOIA requests to discover any connections between Matthew's grandfather, Missouri State Rep. Rex Barnett, Maryville law enforcement and the prosecutors who dropped Daisy's case. For Facebook users, an event page has been created: https://www.facebook.com/events/648396251860031/?fref=ts For details regarding the case, please read this article: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/10/12/4549775/nightmare-in-maryville-teens-sexual.html Thank youGet the biggest politics 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 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the war on terror has failed and the West must find a ‘smarter’ way to tackle terrorism Despite criticism he was politicising the Manchester attack, Mr Corbyn used his first major speech since the atrocity, to say that British foreign policy decisions had contributed to terrorism in the UK. In a nuanced speech he said that standing up to terrorism also meant taking a full part in our democracy. He said: "We cannot carry on as if nothing happened in Manchester this week. So let the quality of our debate be worthy of our country." He paid tribute to all those who have died and pledged that: "Terrorists with their atrocious acts of cruelty will never divide us and will never prevail". But he said that it was right to think about how we tackle these issues. (Image: REUTERS) (Image: PA) He told the audience: “We must be brave enough to admit the ‘war on terror’ is simply not working. We need a smarter way to reduce the threat from countries that nurture terrorists and generate terrorism. “Many experts, including professionals in our intelligence and security services, have pointed to the connections between wars our government has supported or fought in other countries and terrorism here at home.” He said: “That assessment in no way reduces the guilt of those who attack our children. Those terrorists will forever be reviled and held to account for their actions.” He pledged to reverse Tory cuts to the police, after it was revealed there are 20,000 less officers than in 2010. He said: “Labour will reverse the cuts to our emergency services and police. Once again in Manchester, they have proved to be the best of us. (Image: PA) (Image: Cavendish Press/Pat Isaacs) “Austerity has to stop at the A&E ward and at the police station door. We cannot be protected and cared for on the cheap. “There will be more police on the streets under a Labour Government. And if the security services need more resources to keep track of those who wish to murder and maim, then they should get them.” Mr Corbyn said the government could not prevent every attack but said more should be done to reduce risk. He said: “No government can prevent every terrorist attack. If an individual is determined enough and callous enough sometimes they will get through. “But the responsibility of government is to minimise that chance - to ensure the police have the resources they need, that our foreign policy reduces rather than increases the threat to this country and that at home we never surrender the freedoms we have won and that terrorists are so determined to take away.” (Image: AFP) (Image: AFP) Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now But critics hit out at the timing of Mr Corbyn's speech. Labour's Neil Coyle, who is seeking reelection in Bermondsey said today's speech was “badly timed”. “Personally I think this intervention is badly timed and I struggle to see the analysis,” he told Sky News. Nigeria, Sweden and France are all under attack too, he added. Former leader of the Librral Democrats Paddy Ashdown said: "Now is not the time, and this is not the event, to seek political advantage." Tory security minister Ben Wallace said: "I think his timing is incredibly disappointing and crass given there’s a live police operation.” He accused Mr Corbyn of trying to “make a political statement about it,” adding: “His timing is appalling... I don’t think the substance of what he says is correct at all."Christopher Nolan’s new movie Dunkirk opened this weekend and is on target to become one of those iconic war movies, much like Saving Private Ryan did. Dunkirk is a gritty and heart-pounding movie that is vividly portrayed on the big screen with classic war themes of duty, trust, honor and the raw tragedy of war. It’s a story of survival, depicted during the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force on the beaches of Dunkirk, France during World War II. Nolan tried to be as accurate as he could when recreating this moment in time, even spending $5 million on a German Leftwaffe airplane only to crash it. Movie critics and ratings give it 4/5 stars for the acting, cinematography and historical accuracy, but, according to one USA Today writer, there aren’t enough women or “people of color” in it. USA Today’s Brian Truitt wrote a rather positive review of Dunkirk, but still left a little room to take issue with the movie’s lack of diversity, writing, “…the fact that there are only a couple of women and no lead actors of color may rub some the wrong way.” Yes, it may be true that a war movie about the rescue of the British Expeditionary Force during World War II isn’t diverse enough – but that’s history and you can’t change it to try and make it a “one size fits all” movie to accommodate everyone. Unlike other war movies, Dunkirk doesn’t show the families and loved ones fraught with worry over these soldiers. Dunkirk isn’t a movie with fluff that would potentially give it the diversity some apparently crave. Instead, reviews show Nolan has made a movie about a historical event at a certain place and time. Dunkirk was made with care in order to be historically accurate. If there were any deviation from anything – the location, the year, much less those actors who made up the British Expeditionary Force, it wouldn’t be historically accurate, would it?Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) endorsed Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-OK) to be the next Administrator of NASA today. Shelby chairs the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA, making his support quite significant. Bridenstine also has submitted answers to questions posed by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee in preparation for his nomination hearing. They lay out what he sees as the key challenges facing the agency. President Trump nominated Bridenstine on September 2. Initial reaction was mixed, with Florida’s two Senators, Bill Nelson (D) and Marco Rubio (R), expressing reservations because Bridenstine is a politician and they believe NASA should be free of politics. Another concern is that Bridenstine is too pro-commercial space, preferring that the private sector, not NASA, develop new rockets, for example. A case in point is the Space Launch System (SLS). By direction of Congress, NASA is currently developing SLS, but some commercial space advocates complain that companies like SpaceX are developing their own rockets that are sufficiently capable to meet America’s space exploration needs and SLS is unnecessary. SLS is managed at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Shelby’s home state of Alabama. Not surprisingly, he is a strong advocate for SLS and other Alabama-based space activities. Whether or not Shelby would support Bridenstine therefore has been an open question. He answered it today by tweet: Met w/ @POTUS nom for @NASA Administrator, Jim Bridenstine. We had a good meeting. I look forward to supporting him throughout this process. — Richard Shelby (@SenShelby) September 19, 2017 Bridenstine also has been criticized for his views on climate change based largely on a statement he made on the floor of the House in 2013 asking that President Obama apologize to the people of Oklahoma for spending more money on climate change research than weather forecasting and warning. “Global temperatures stopped rising 10 years ago,” he said, which is incorrect. While temperatures have fluctuated over the centuries, he argued, that is due to natural forces, not humans. In a June 2016 interview with Aerospace America (the complete transcript of which was posted online by the magazine in September 2017) he repeated that the climate has been changing for centuries and he is not convinced humans are the determining factor, but also said he supports climate change research to get the answers. “That’s why we need to continue studying it. Again, I am not opposed to studying it.” In the last Congress, Bridenstine chaired the Environment Subcommittee of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, which has oversight of NOAA. He drove passage of legislation that established a commercial weather data pilot program at NOAA to assess whether commercial weather data can be infused into NOAA’s weather models (and, separately, a parallel effort at DOD). While he has expressed concerns about NOAA’s weather satellites as “Battlestar Gallacticas” that are vulnerable to a range of threats, he also makes clear that he does not see commercial systems supplanting government satellites, but as augmentations. His repeated refrain is that his goal is zero deaths from tornadoes in Oklahoma, which means better forecasting. More broadly, Bridenstine made his mark in space circles through introduction in the last Congress of the American Space Renaissance Act (ASRA), which he referred to as a repository of provisions that could be inserted into various pieces of legislation as appropriate. They dealt with a broad range of civil, commercial, and national security space issues. Among them was his advocacy for expanding the role of the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation to include regulatory responsibility for non-traditional space activities like asteroid mining. He modified his views this year, however, joining with Reps. Lamar Smith (R-TX) and Brian Babin (R-TX) in introducing legislation that assigns that role to the Department of Commerce instead. As for NASA,
back and forth trying to recover. It didn’t help that so much US attacking was about once again pulling wide, with not much going through the middle with Allie Long or Rose Lavelle. There really wasn’t a ton of support in Long-Mewis territory, which left Dunn and Press carrying a lot of offensive weight. When Klingenberg or O’Hara were holding the ball high on the wings, there just didn’t seem to be many options for either of them. More than once O’Hara was caught high surrounded by two or three Norwegians, not even a teammate to whom she could drop the ball. And so the teams went into the second half at 0-0, the US having started to slowly cohere but still looking too frustrated to put together something substantial. The second half started with one sub for the US with Lindsey Horan in and Klingenberg out. Horan pushed higher on the pitch with Press and Dunn switched over to the left side of the pitch. Ball movement improved, although Lavelle seemed a bit overeager to get on frame, resulting in several balls over the net and some heavy touches on the dribble that resulted in turnovers. But the US in general finally took hold of ball possession and looked much better for it, at least in moving the ball up the field. Getting the final pass to someone who could score was a different matter. Yes, the US had the ball, but what were they doing with it? Moving it around faster and more accurately, but not in really dangerous areas of the field. The breakthrough came in the 60’ in very classic fashion, with Sauerbrunn hitting a long ball that dropped just right for Press, who got through a nice big gap between defenders and finished the ball through the keeper’s legs. “Long ball over the top for speedy forward” is certainly a useful tool, but it hearkened back to the days when it was the United States’ only tool, with how the rest of the game was going. There was a bad moment in the 62’ when Abby Dahlkemper slammed the back of her head on the ground going into a tough tackle to cut out a Norway counter. She tried to walk it off but took a knee minutes later, eventually returning to the game after seeing the trainer. For a random away friendly, perhaps it would have been preferable to play it safe with concussion protocol and make a sub, but Ellis seemed determined to play this random away friendly under tournament conditions. The team was still pressing up together decently through the midfield; Lavelle moved out right to start the half and looked useful there with her incredible acceleration and ability to put in good crosses. Still, even as the midfielders swept up into the forward line to put four or five players in the box at a time, chances were lacking and balls continued to go back to the defense to hold and look for options. Ellis finally made her second sub in the 83’ with Julie Ertz on for Kelley O’Hara. The team didn’t have time to adjust at all as Rose Lavelle went down shortly after, clutching her left thigh. She was forced to sub off for Carli Lloyd in the 84’; Lloyd looked as though she was actually supposed to sit this game out, but went in higher up on the pitch. The team seemed thrown by the last-minute injury; Ellis probably intended to play Lavelle for another full 90 minutes after she already went 90 against Sweden. Five minutes of stoppage went on the clock due to an earlier collision between Ingvild Landvik Isaksen and Lindsey Horan that had Isaksen leaving the field with a bloody head wound. The US went into containment mode, just trying to remain stable and see out the result. Norway pressed harder but didn’t manage to find the equalizer, and full time ended at 1-0. It was another messy game with a rescued result, although at least Sauerbrunn, Dahlkemper, and Short all looked very capable and kept at least one part of the pitch from being cause for worry. The rest was a group of talented players, some of whom were having bad games, while getting shifted all over the pitch by their coach. That’s it for the United States in Europe this summer; the team returns home and players go back to their clubs to resume NWSL play, including Carli Lloyd, whose stint with Manchester City has concluded. NWSL returns on Saturday, June 17 with all 10 teams in action.Alabama Senate Republican nominee Roy Moore has addressed the accusations made by women against him in recent weeks for the first time in a TV ad. The 30-second ad, titled "Right Choice," refers to "false allegations" before connecting those allegations to "a scheme by liberal Democrats and the Republican establishment to protect their big government trough." "Alabama voters see straight through the charade of the past few weeks," Moore campaign chairman Bill Armistead said in a statement Monday. "As President Trump said last week, Doug Jones would be a disaster for Alabama -- for our borders, for our military, for our gun rights, for putting conservative justices on the Supreme Court, and for everyday Alabamians whose paychecks are devoured by taxes. We can count on Judge Moore to stand up for God, for the people, for our Constitution and for conservative values. It's what he has always done." The image during the voiceover pointing the allegations to Washington D.C. includes Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as well as the top Democrats in the House of Representatives and Senate - Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Shumer, respectively. Judge Roy Moore - Right Choice from Roy Moore on Vimeo. The Moore campaign has purchased about $200,000 in television advertising since The Washington Post first reported on the allegations on Nov. 9, according to Federal Communications Commission public records. That's in addition to previously purchased air space. Moore has been accused of pursuing unwanted romantic or sexual relationships by women who were then in their teens and Moore was in his 30s. Moore has repeatedly denied the allegations. The full voiceover text of the ad: "Five state campaigns. Forty years of honorable service. Roy Moore has been intensely scrutinized and not a hint of scandal. But four weeks before the election, false allegations. A scheme by liberal Democrats and the Republican establishment to protect their big government trough. But we know a vote for Roy Moore means conservative judges, tax cuts and rebuilding the military. Roy Moore, the right choice." The election against Democrat nominee Doug Jones is Dec. 12.Description App Game Kit: includes an easy, instant game development engine for building apps for multiple platforms includes an easy, instant game development engine for building apps for multiple platforms Giant Asset Pack : contains over 500 royalty-free sprites, sprite sheets & sprite construction sets providing more than 2,000 individual action orientated sprites : contains over 500 royalty-free sprites, sprite sheets & sprite construction sets providing more than 2,000 individual action orientated sprites Giant Asset Pack 2: contains over 1,500 royalty-free sprites & sprite sheets providing more than 3,000 individual puzzle and adventure orientated sprites contains over 1,500 royalty-free sprites & sprite sheets providing more than 3,000 individual puzzle and adventure orientated sprites The Official AppGameKit Tutorial Guide: gives you the expertise you need to fully express your imagination & create your own professional-level games gives you the expertise you need to fully express your imagination & create your own professional-level games GameGuru: allows you to make a multiplayer game in a few minutes, including hosting & sharing your game online allows you to make a multiplayer game in a few minutes, including hosting & sharing your game online GameGuru - Mega Pack 1: contains over 530 game-ready 3D entities contains over 530 game-ready 3D entities GameGuru - Mega Pack 2: contains over 600 game-ready entities including castles, dungeons, caves & special effects Get everything you need to start building your own epic PC and mobile games with this seven-part package. From detailed instruction to the actual game engine to awesome 2D and 3D assets, this bundle will have you creating and sharing your own games in no time.Because getting up shouldn't be the hardest part. The early bird gets the worm. Early to bed, early to rise. We've heard these idioms and plenty of others growing up about the importance of waking early. More time to eat breakfast, work on a side project, or just not feel rushed on the way to work are all fantastic reasons we've wanted to get out of bed early. We've even experienced it a few times and it felt great! “I should get up this early every day,” we think. But we don't. In college I assumed getting up early was so hard because of how late I went to bed. A pretty obvious and common reason. But even being out of school and in the working world for a few years, where the schedule is much more consistent, I still find getting out of bed at the time I set my alarm clock for to be incredibly difficult. I've always found it so frustrating that there are essentially two of me. One who has all of the motivated feelings to wake up early the next morning when choosing an alarm time, and the other who can create an excuse for not waking up faster than it takes my arm to swat my phone. I've wondered why alarm clock noises were so irritating. Sure, when they were first invented they were just bells, then digital alarm clocks had to use what was available with the technology. But today? Why do they have to be so jarring? On the other hand, I've tried waking up to soft music or classical music. But the problem with that is two-fold. First, it was so peaceful I would end up sleeping through it. And second, I would end up hating all of those songs. I had a theory a few months ago: What if the reason I hit the snooze button so many times is because the alarm sound I'm using is just so repulsive I'll do anything to turn it off as fast as I can? And what if my motivated self in the evening could encourage my groggy morning self to remember why I wanted to get up early in the first place? So I created some motivational ringtones that weren't irritating buzzes or music but passages that would remind me why I wanted to get up. And wouldn't you know, it actually worked. So, I created some more and had them recorded by two talented voice-over actors and offer them here free to share. Each one includes a bit of silence at the end so that it plays once, pauses for a few moments, and then plays again. I hope they help! I look forward to hearing what you think. “I never knew a man come to greatness or eminence who lay abed late in the morning.” – Jonathan Swift http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/LateInTheMorning.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “The man that went to bed last night wanted you to wake up right now.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/ManWhoWentToBed.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep.” – Rumi http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/BreezeAtDawn.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “It is well to be up before daybreak, for such habits contribute to health, wealth, and wisdom.” – Aristotle http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/UpBeforeDaybreak.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “A strong man never shies away from early work.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/EarlyWork.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Do not convince yourself you can stay in bed.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/StayInBed.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Every day you regret not waking up sooner. No one has ever regretted giving themselves more time in the morning.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/RegretMorning.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Get out of bed and do 10 pushups. Don't think about it, just do it.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/Pushups.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Lose an hour in the morning, and you will be hunting for it all day long.” – Richard Whately http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/LoseAnHour.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “How much better would the day be if you got up and made breakfast?” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/breakfast.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Will you sleep while there's someone else out there working hard?” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/WorkingHard.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “It's time to start your day.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/StartYourDay.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Morning is when the wick is lit. A flame ignited, the day delighted with heat and light, we start the fight for something more than before.” Jeb Dickerson http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/WickIsLit.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “The day Einstein wrote the theory of relativity, he first got himself out of bed.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/Einstein.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhone “Successful people do what unsuccessful people do not.” http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MotivationalAlarmRingtones/mp3/SuccessfulPeople.mp3 mp3 | wav Download: iPhoneThe Competition Bureau has lost a high-profile attempt to force the Toronto Real Estate Board to make it easier for web-based real estate brokerages to compete, a case that was being closely watched across the country. The Bureau said late Monday that its case has been dismissed. A spokesman said that an appeal is possible. The case, which had been years in the making, came after the Bureau accused the nation's largest real estate board, which represents about 35,000 agents, of anti-competitive practices. It alleged that the board was unfairly keeping data about home sales away from online services that threaten to compete with real estate agents and potentially eat into their commissions. Story continues below advertisement The matter was heard by the Competition Tribunal last fall, and the decision had been pending since then. The Tribunal's brief order, released to parties involved in the case on Monday,suggests that the Bureau filed under the wrong section of the Competition Act, and that a case argued under a different section of the Act (under which less extensive remedies would be allowed) could have been more successful. "This was a classic case of a legal technicality where nothing gets resolved," said Lawrence Dale, head of real estate business at Zoocasa. "The Tribunal said the case was filed under the wrong section and has now steered the Bureau to re-file under the correct section. Once these technicalities are addressed, the fundamental issues still remain to be determined. How long that takes to get resolved is anyone's guess." For its part the Toronto Real Estate Board had argued that it was upholding privacy laws and protecting the personal information of home buyers and sellers. The case could have implications for real estate boards across the country, and the Tribunal's decision comes at a time when home sales are now in a slump. Following a lengthy investigation the Bureau had filed its case in 2011, a year in which more than $40-billion worth of properties changed hands in the Greater Toronto Area via the Multiple Listing Service, earning the city's real estate agents an estimated $2.2-billion. The Bureau had noted that the top five agencies earned more than 70 per cent of the commissions in recent years, with two alone – Re/Max and Royal LePage – responsible for more than 40 per cent of them. The bureau argued that the real estate board, which operates the Toronto Multiple Listing Service system, had a stranglehold on the most accurate and up-to-date data about home sales and that rules restricting how real estate agents provide that information – including previous listings and previous sales prices – were anti-competitive because they deny agents the ability to set up new online services such as virtual office websites (VOWs). VOWs are password-protected sites on which consumers can search data on listings. Rokham Fard, co-founder of TheRedPin.com, said that if the Bureau had won the case his firm would have been able to put data about what homes have sold for in the past online. Right now consumers can request it from an agent in person, or by email, fax or phone, but cannot look it up themselves on the web. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement Editor's Note: An earlier online version of this article spelled the name Rokham Fard incorrectly. This has been corrected.1 October, 1964. After returning from Europe in January, 1963, being trained as an instructor on the T-33, working as a line instructor for ten months, and being sent to coward’s cove (simulator section) for the winter, I was transferred to the Flying Instructors School. The job change was a pleasant surprise as the Advanced Flying School was being moved to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, and had it not been for the posting, I would have been part of the move. I had nothing against Moose Jaw, but I was beginning to enjoy Portage La Prairie. After four months as an “instructor’s instructor,” I was feeling comfortable in the job and enjoying teaching other pilots to become instructors. According to my logbook, most of the flying was dual time with one of the instructors-to-be; so if a solo trip appeared on the schedule, it was to be appreciated. When such a trip presented itself on the first day of October, it was welcomed like a lost friend. At the time, we were tailoring our navigation towards the requirements of the CF-104 operations in Europe in the nuclear and the reconnaissance roles. Navigation was taught using “strip” maps that were created by plotting the normal nav tracks on map sheets and then cutting the maps into strips with only about three inches showing either side of track. To save on map stock, there were “canned” trips covered in plastic maptac and placed in folders that could then be used by many. I elected to undertake one of these. Low-level navigation was conducted at two hundred feet above ground at a speed of three hundred knots (if I remember right… it may have been three hundred and sixty). This translated into five or six miles per minute making maintenance of time along the track and over the target relatively easy. To maintain time, corrections were made by increasing or decreasing speed by 30 knots for ten times the seconds early or late. Sounds complicated, but in practice it was quite easy and often resulted in times-over-target of plus or minus five seconds. Aircraft 283 had been assigned when I reported to Servicing; I signed for the aircraft and proceeded to the flight line. The ramp, which used to see eighty Silver Stars take to the skies three times a day, was now home to the twin engine C-45 School, a handful of T-33s and a couple of DHC-2 Chipmunks. My aircraft was in the front row and already connected to a power cart. I exchanged pleasantries with the technician (commenting how warm it was for the first day of October), placed my parachute and helmet on the wing and went about completing the external preflight checks. Nothing was amiss so ‘chute and helmet were placed in their appropriate places and I clambered up the ladder into the cockpit. Pre-start checks complete, the starter switch was activated followed by the opening of the low-pressure fuel cock at the prescribed engine RPM. The god-awful engine rumbling caused by fluttering auxiliary engine intake plenum doors atop the fuselage eased to a high-pitched whine as the Nene 10 reached idle; the starter was disengaged and the power cart waved away. Unlike the CF-5 and the CF-104, the technician did not stay to assist in the pre-taxi tests. After disconnecting and coiling up the power cord, he inquired as to my status with a “thumbs up” which resulted in my return “thumbs up”, indicating everything was A-OK. Taxi and take-off checks revealed nothing amiss and with a nod from the tower, I lined up on the active runway. Power was increased to 65 percent and the TOE (take-off and Emergency) switch was selected. As expected, the fuel pump went to full stroke and boosted the RPM to in excess of eighty percent. Temps and pressures were “in the green.” We were good to go. Brakes were released and engine RPM increased to maximum. In those days, acceleration checks and the like were still in the future and experience was the only guide to a properly performing engine. However, a good push in the pants seemed a good omen and a sustained tug on the stick at around ninety knots saw the nose wheel lift shortly thereafter. Main wheel lift off around 105 knots was followed by retraction of the gear and flaps and a turn to pickup the initial point of the nav trip. Even at this early stage, the large canopy was turning the cockpit into a green house, so the temperature was lowered and maximum air demanded for cooling. The nav trip was a resounding success; the cloudless, windless Manitoba skies allowed easy maintenance of timing and track that resulted in a perfect time over target. (This is my story and I’ll tell it the way I want…) As the trip progressed, the cockpit temperature continued to climb resulting in going back to the temperature control again and again in an effort to cool off. Finally, after being selected full cold for several minutes with no alleviation in high cockpit temperature, the air conditioning was turned off and all the outside vents were opened. The rest of the nav trip was accomplished in relative comfort. After delivering my pretend weapons on time and on target, I headed for home for the usual half-dozen touch-and-goes that normally followed any training sortie. After completing the three-mile run-in from initial, the sixty-degree bank, two “g” pitchout was accompanied by the reduction of power to 65 percent and the extension of speed brakes. Rolling out downwind abeam the button at one hundred and ninety-five knots, the landing gear was selected down with three green lights and a “shake test” of the gear handle giving assurance that it was locked into position and not “floating” and unsafe. As the button of the runway moved to the forty-five degree position aft of the wing, half flaps were selected as the aircraft was banked back towards the runway, maintaining a minimum of 140 knots in the turn. Rolling out on final, full flaps were selected and the speed slowly bled back to cross the end of the runway at the target airspeed: power was reduced to idle and the aircraft allowed to slowly settle so that the vertical sink rate zeroed just as the wheels touched the asphalt. I couldn’t believe they paid me to do this. At touchdown, the speed brakes were retracted, the flaps re-selected to “half” and the power advance to full. As the airspeed never fell below eighty knots, nose wheel rotation and lift off occurred shortly after the power application. Airborne again, the gear and the flaps were selected up. At one hundred and ninety-five knots, a steep climbing turn was entered to commence the right hand closed pattern. This was too easy. As the nose passed through about forty-five degrees up with a bank angle of sixty degrees, my morning calm was shattered by an extremely loud explosion underneath me that knocked my heels off the rudder pedals. What the…? I was immediately transported back in time to my engine failure in Germany some nineteen months before when my aircraft and I alit in different fields separated by time and space. My thought was that this can’t be happening; lightning can’t strike the same person twice. I immediately reduced the throttle to idle, thinking that I’d had a compressor stall; this action was followed shortly by a thought process of: “Now, let me see: I’m forty-five degrees nose up with sixty degrees of bank and I’ve just pulled off any power which might be remaining and the speed is starting to fall. ” Even without the benefit of higher education, I knew this was not good. I scanned the instrument panel for any answers it could give me…the temps and pressures were in the green for the engine condition I had selected: idle. Hmmmmm. I gingerly started feeding in throttle making sure that I didn’t over temp the engine in my haste to get some thrust back into my life. (The T-33 had no sophisticated fuel control unit; the throttle basically controlled a spigot between the fuel tank and the engine. Attempting to feed fuel to an engine turning at a speed too low to accept it could lead to over temping at the least or turbine blade melting at the worst). There was no protest from the engine as I fed in fuel; I kept the nose coming down and started rolling off bank as I reached circuit altitude and reduced power to sixty-five percent to maintain one hundred and ninety-five knots. In the process, I shared my predicament with the tower and declared an emergency. As he advised me of the wind and altimeter, the “B” Stand (his assistant) hit the crash alarm bell that alerted everyone on the base with any interest in an aircraft emergency that something untoward was occurring and to get ready. Interested parties included the Base Commander, the Fire Hall, the Hospital, and the like. Now, it should be noted that the first of October, 1964 was a Thursday, and it was on Thursday mornings at 1000 hours that the Base Commander held his weekly flight safety meetings. All important section heads were in attendance. When the crash alarm went off in the Headquarters, the Base Commander looked at his Flight Safety Committee and intoned: “To the Flight Line.” So as I was nursing my supposedly crippled ship to a safe landing, the senior hierarchy of Base Portage was streaking for the flight line. Of course, all of this was unbeknownst to me as I dropped the gear abeam the button of the runway and then commenced the turn towards final. Everything appeared to be normal: no lights, no abnormal temperatures or pressures. With a final check to make sure the gear is down, I eased off the power and settled onto the runway. On the roll-out, I advised the tower that I would pull off the runway at the end and shut down to await a tow back to the hangar. As I pulled off the runway, I could see a cortege of cars coming down the taxiway. Stopping well off to the side of the run-up area, I opened the canopy, turned off all non-essential items, and stop-cocked the engine. I killed the battery switch and undid the seat harness. I wanted to be on the ground when the audience arrived but I sat there for a second or two: the adrenalin was still pumping and I needed to relax. Lap strap and shoulder harness unbuckled, I stood up in the cockpit but a slight tug at my left side reminded me too late that my zero altitude parachute lanyard was still attached to the aircraft. This lanyard was connected below five thousand feet and, overriding the normal opening system, ensured that the ‘chute started to deploy as soon as the ejection seat started up the rails. It was to be disconnected before standing up to leave the cockpit: if you didn’t, the pins in the backpack were pulled, and the pilot chute popped out, propelled by a spring. Unfortunately, right behind the pilot chute was a half-a-pound or so of chaff, the “cut-to-the-right-length-to-be-seen-by-radar” tin foil that showed up as a large “bloom” on radar showing the ejection point. I immediately sat down to trap the pilot chute and the chaff, but tin foil swirling around me was a good indication that I had failed. I disconnected the parachute and hoisted myself onto the edge of the cockpit and then slid to the ground just as the Base Commander’s flotilla arrived. I immediately became the center of attention as the Base Commander asked: “What happened?” I related my story about the closed pattern, the big explosion under my feet, the heroic climb into downwind, and the subsequent smooth landing. As I was relating my tale, the tech warrant officer peered down the intake, up the tail pipe, and then jumped up on the wing to look into the plenum chamber. He reported back to the Commander that he could see nothing amiss. He then asked me if I had noticed anything different during my nav trip. I explained that the only thing out of the ordinary was that I couldn’t cool the cockpit sufficiently, so I turned off the air conditioning and relied on ambient air from the cockpit vents. With that, the warrant officer dove under the nose of the aircraft and disappeared into the wheel well. The sound of snaps being undone was heard followed by an exclamation of recognition. He reappeared from under the nose and informed the Base Commander that this pilot managed to blow a five-inch air conditioning hose off its mounting, an outcome that was a certainty if you flew around with the air conditioning turned off. With that, the Base Commander and his entourage headed back to their flight safety meeting. I was left alone with my thoughts and a half pound of chaff still eddying around the aircraft and drifting slowly across the airfield: I had gone from a hero to a goat in less than two minutes. The tow-tug arrived and I was left to “ride the brakes” as the aircraft is pulled back to the flight line. Fame is such a fickle mistress…Arizona Teen Starts an Anti-Bullying Snowball Young people in the United States have a tremendous amount of power to affect change in the communities around them. At Start A Snowball, we want to remind young people that they have the power to change things for the better. We want to encourage them and empower them to act on their desire to help those around them. When Josh Kaplan, a then Arizona elementary school student, began receiving negative text messages from classmates, his older brother Matthew took notice. High school student Matthew Kaplan saw that the text messages his younger brother was receiving said things like, “you suck” and “you’re a jerk”. Matthew realized that when you hear things like this enough you may start believing it, and he decided he was going to do something about it. Once Matthew saw the trouble his brother was having, he realized he could make a difference for his brother and many others as well. Determined to change what he had witnessed, not only for his brother, but for other middle school kids, Matthew created an anti-bullying campaign structured through interactive workshops. He called his program The Be O.N.E. Project. During a fun-filled day of interactive games, The Be O.N.E. Project builds bridges, opens lines of communication, and instills a sense of trust and community. Most efforts to address bullying focus on high school. The Be O.N.E. Project recognizes that, by high school, bullying behavior is often ingrained. The time to intervene comes earlier – in middle school – before the bullying behavior becomes habit. The Be O.N.E. Project challenges students to focus on their similarities and to celebrate their differences. The magic of The Be O.N.E. Project is its cornerstone philosophy that peer pressure can be captured and reversed, so that students challenge each other to include rather than to exclude, and to support rather than discourage each other. Matthew has shown that the focus and determination of youth is a powerful force. He is spreading his anti-bullying program throughout his home state of Arizona, and is now being asked to work with officials in other states around the country to discuss how his program may be able to be spread even further. He is showing us all what it means to create a snowball. Because of this, Start A Snowball is pleased to help Matthew’s project by awarding him with one of its first grants. Click to learn more about Bullying and what you can do about it. To apply for a grant to start your own snowball, click the button below. Related articles across the webSome years ago, when the Google Books project, which aims to digitise all of the world's printed books, was getting under way, the two co-founders of Google were having a meeting with the librarian of one of the universities that had signed up for the plan. At one point in the conversation, the Google boys noticed that their collaborator had suddenly gone rather quiet. One of them asked him what was the matter. "Well", he replied, "I'm wondering what happens to all this stuff when Google no longer exists." Recounting the conversation to me later, he said: "I've never seen two young people looking so stunned: the idea that Google might not exist one day had never crossed their minds." And yet, of course, the librarian was right. He had to think about the next 400 years. But the number of commercial companies that are more than a century old is vanishingly small. Entrusting the world's literary heritage to such transient organisations might not be entirely wise. Compared with my librarian friend, we have the attention span of newts. We are constantly overawed by the size, wealth and dominance of whatever happens to be the current corporate giant. At the moment, the four leading monsters are Apple, Google, Facebook and Amazon. Yet 18 years ago, Apple was weeks away from extinction, Amazon had just launched, Google was still three years away from incorporation and Facebook lay nine years into the future. At one level, all this proves is that in the technology world one can go from zero to hero is a very short time. (Or, in Apple's case, from hero to zero and back to hero again in 36 years). Some of the industry's greatest executives understood this very well. Andy Grove, for instance, who led Intel for 11 years, was famous for his mantra "Only the paranoid survive". For many years – when he led Microsoft and before he embarked on saving the world – Bill Gates appeared to have the same sentiment tattooed on his forehead. And in both cases they turned out to be right: though Intel and Microsoft are still significant companies, their dominance has ended. The processors that dominate the market for mobile devices are designed by ARM, a Cambridge company, not by Intel; and Microsoft's monopolistic grip on the desktop computing market turned out to be a wasting asset. We understand pretty well the factors that determine the fortunes of companies that make things people buy – which is why, for example, one can predict thatApple won't be able indefinitely to sustain its huge profit margins on its iDevices. Likewise, it's pretty easy to predict where Amazon is headed: it aims to be the Walmart of the web, and is therefore likely to be around for quite a while. Google has a well understood and currently profitable business model and a huge technical infrastructure but ultimately is vulnerable to a well-resourced competitor armed with better search technology. This leaves Facebook, a company that has one billion products (called users) and earns its living by selling information about them to advertisers. Given that holders of Facebook accounts don't pay for the service – and are therefore free to depart at any point – you'd have thought that its long-term durability would be questionable. And yet lots of informed and canny investors disagree. They appear to regard the company as a sure-fire bet. The two key factors that will determine Facebook's future are the power of network effects and the "stickiness" of its service – ie, the extent to which it can dissuade users from leaving. A network effect comes into play when the value of a product or service is dependent on the number of people using it. A telephone network with a million subscribers is infinitely more valuable then one with only 10. In technological ecosystems, network effects are very powerful: they explain, for example, how Microsoft came to dominate the market for desktop operating and office systems. In the early days of online social networking there were a range of different, incompatible networks – Friendster, Orkut, MySpace and Facebook. But, over time, Facebook won out by attracting more users and growing more quickly than the others. And the more quickly it grew, the more powerful the network effect became, with the result that it is now the de facto standard for social networking. In fact, it is now so dominant that millions of people around the world think that Facebook is the internet. If you put your faith in network effects, therefore, Facebook looks like a good investment because it'll be around for the long term. If people want to do social networking, then it'll be the only game in town. Facebook users will constitute a captive market and will be correspondingly exploited. And the company will be regulated as a monopoly. Which is where "stickiness" comes in. How much exploitation will users tolerate before they decide to quit? We know a lot about network effects but relatively little about this, which is why a new study by three scientists at the Swiss university ETH Zurich makes interesting reading. They examined several social networking services, seeking to identify what makes them resilient and what could cause them to decline. And they performed an empirical autopsy on a failed service – Friendster – using data gathered just before it closed. The key determinants of success or failure were (i) the average number of friends that users have and (ii) whether the difficulty of using the site comes to outweigh the perceived benefits. Facebook is doing OK on the first of these criteria but – in my experience – becoming increasingly vulnerable on the second as the company tries to "monetise" its users. If Mark Zuckerberg's empire can't square this circle then not even the power of network effects will save it in the long run.Income inequality has long been one of the liberals' favorite issues. So there is nothing surprising about its being pushed hard this election year. If nothing else, it is a much-needed distraction from the disasters of ObamaCare and the various
the Communications Act, significantly curtailing oversight of broadband access. Pai, who was appointed FCC chairman by President Donald Trump in January, has characterized his mission to end net neutrality as an effort to restore and improve the internet by dismantling “burdensome and unnecessary regulations,” which—despite evidence to the contrary—Pai claims are responsible for deterring innovation and investment in the expansion of broadband infrastructure. Net neutrality advocates, among them internet giants like Google and Amazon, say the rules are necessary to prevent ISPs from becoming powerful gatekeepers to the internet. The companies fear that without net neutrality, ISPs may restrict access to services and content, or charging exorbitant fees to companies like Netflix to ensure faster and more reliable access over their competitors. Advertisement Another fear is that service providers like AT&T might begin chopping up the internet the way they’ve done cable television, charging individual fees to access different types of online services: news, entertainment, social media, and so on. Pai has openly criticized concerns over the death of net neutrality as “hysterical prophecies of doom.” Specifically, his order would return broadband access to its former classification as an information service. The rules approved in 2015 under the Obama administration reclassified broadband access as a “common carrier” under Title II of the Telecommunications Act. This granted the FCC authority to prevent internet providers, like Comcast and Verizon, from entering into agreements that would slow consumer access to some website while speeding up traffic to others. Advertisement The order further seeks to “preempt” state and local governments from enacting regulations that would supercede the federal government, preventing states from crafting their own rules to protect consumers. “Allowing state and local governments to adopt their own separate requirements, which could impose far greater burdens than the federal regulatory regime, could significantly disrupt the balance we strike here,” the order states. “The hypocrisy is staggering,” writes Gigi Sohn, a former counsel to ex-FCC chairman Tom Wheeler. “When the FCC in 2015 voted to help consumers by pre-empting the laws of two states that prohibit communities from expanding and building their own broadband networks, Pai dissented vociferously. In this case, where the FCC is removing pro-consumer protections, Pai is delighted to preempt the states from ensuring that their citizens are protected from anti-consumer and anti-competitive practices of broadband companies.” “Our Internet economy is the envy of the world because it is open to all,” FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat, said in a statement. “This proposal tears at the foundation of that openness. It hands broadband providers the power to decide what voices to amplify, which sites we can visit, what connections we can make, and what communities we create. It throttles access, stalls opportunity, and censors content. It would be a big blunder for a slim majority of the FCC to approve these rules and saddle every Internet user with the cruel consequences.” Advertisement The FCC’s current makeup puts net neutrality supporters at a significant disadvantage. The two Republicans on the FCC other than Pai typically support his positions, and they are the majority. When the new rules pass on December 14th—and without significant pressure from Republicans in Congress, it seems likely they will—we can expect to see a flurry of lawsuits that will drag this issue out into court, potentially well into 2019. A complete version of the draft of Pai’s 210-page order is below.No office space is not a problem for a voice over casting site Have you ever wondered why Voice123 is capable of staying on top of industry trends in technology, getting work for voice talent at low cost to the talent; all without having to occupy a large office or building? If you want to know how, it can best be explained here in video filmed by the Wall St. Journal: General Assembly in New York City, collaboration workplace of Voice123! Voice123 does its best to stay on top of industry web trends today, by collaborating with other companies, to help the voice over industry for tomorrow! Did you know that we worked in New York City, both in the office above, and at home? If you would like to ask us any questions about this video, please ask us in the comments below! About the Author Steven is the Community Manager of Voice123 Photo by This guy on staff, Leo Lopez, a marketing manager who made me write this, so now I can go to lunch. YUMMY!A citizens-backed initiative petition that sought to end the state's use of Common Core learning standards was improperly certified by Attorney General Maura Healey and is now ineligible for the November ballot, according to a Supreme Judicial Court ruling on Friday. The decision "will prevent the proposed measure in the petition from being placed on the 2016 Statewide ballot," the court said in a ruling written by Judge Margot Botsford. The petition sought to roll back the 2010 incorporation of the Common Core standards into the state's curriculum frameworks and revert Massachusetts to its previous standards. It also would have set up a new review structure for learning standards and mandated that education officials annually release all state assessment test "questions, constructed responses and essays, for each grade and every subject." The court ruled that a section of the question requiring test item disclosure did not meet the requirement that petitions contain only subjects "which are related or which are mutually dependent" so that voters can decide on a unified statement of public policy. "The SJC decision will not only save teachers and students from unnecessary upheaval, but also means cities and town will not incur the significant costs that the ballot proposal would have created," William Walczak, a plaintiff in the case and board chairman of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, said in a statement. During oral arguments in May, Assistant Attorney General Juliana Rice had said the release of assessment items was related to the repeal of Common Core because the tests were an "implementation tool" that would show whether the chosen standards were taught in classrooms. Donna Colorio, Worcester School Committee vice chair and chair of the End Common Core Massachusetts, did not have an immediate comment when reached by the News Service Friday morning. When the suit was filed in January, the End Common Core ballot campaign blasted the move as "a desperate ploy to stall the petition's positive momentum." In March, Colorio alleged that "the wealthy special interests behind Common Core are going to continue the frivolous lawsuits, misrepresentations of the ballot measure, and using money the buy their influence at the state and local level."Leading up to the trial, Hotfile has scored several significant wins against the MPAA. The Florida federal court ruled on several motions this week, and many went in favor of the file-hosting service. Most prominently, Judge Kathleen Williams decided that the movie studios and its witnesses are not allowed to use “pejorative” terms including “piracy,” “theft” and “stealing” during the upcoming proceedings. The ongoing legal battle between Hotfile and the MPAA is nearing its climax. In August the movie studios won summary judgment on the issues of DMCA defense and vicarious liability, while the file-hosting site was cleared of direct copyright infringement. The remaining issues, including the damages amount, will be decided during a trial early next month. In preparation for the trial both parties have submitted motions to the court in recent weeks. Hotfile, for example, asked the court to prevent the MPAA from using “pejorative” terms including piracy, theft and stealing as these could misguide the jury. District Court Judge Kathleen Williams has now ruled on these motions, with the file-hosting service scoring several important victories. The Judge granted Hotfile’s “pejorative” terms motion, which means that the movie studios and its witnesses are not allowed to use words including “piracy,” “theft” and “stealing” during the trial. “Defendants’ Motion in Limine to Preclude Use of Pejorative Terms is GRANTED IN PART. The parties may not use pejorative terms but may use terms of art,” the order reads. The file-hosting service previously argued that since piracy and theft-related terms are derogatory, their use could mislead the jury and possibly influence their judgment. According to Hotfile there is no ground to substantiate the use of such terms. “In the present case, there is no evidence that the Defendants (or Hotfile’s founders) are ‘pirates’ or ‘thieves,’ nor is there evidence that they were ‘stealing’ or engaged in ‘piracy’ or ‘theft.’ Even if the Defendants had been found to have directly infringed on the Plaintiffs’ copyrights, such derogatory terms would add nothing to the Plaintiffs’ case, but would serve to improperly inflame the jury.” The MPAA countered that there is absolutely no reason to exclude words that are commonly used in cases related to copyright infringement. Banning the terms would make it hard for MPAA’s lawyers and the witnesses to describe the events that took place, according to the movie studios. “Terms like ‘piracy’ and ‘theft’ are commonplace terms often used in court decisions, statutes, and everyday speech to describe the conduct in which Hotfile and its users engaged, and for which the Court has already found Defendants liable,” MPAA’s legal team wrote. With her ruling Judge Williams clearly sides with Hotfile’s argument that the jury could be misled by piracy and theft-related descriptions. This is a clear win for the file-hosting service, but it also leads to the awkward situation that several witnesses can’t name their job titles, such as Warner’s head of Global Corporate Anti-Piracy. Additionally, the MPAA can no longer quote Vice President Joe Biden’s famous comment: “Piracy is theft, clean and simple.” The full list of motions Judge Williams ruled on includes more good news for Hotfile. For example, with regard to Hotfile’s countersuit over alleged DMCA abuse by the movie studio, Warner’s motions to exclude the term “perjury” and the studio’s audit of its anti-piracy system from trial were both denied. On the downside, Hotfile’s request to prevent the MPAA from bringing up the criminal indictment against “Megaupload” was denied. This means that in describing the Megaupload case the movie studios can’t quote passages that reference piracy or theft. It will be interesting to see how the MPAA tackles Hotfile now that they are restricted in the language they can use. It probably means that the term “copyright infringement” will be used more often than they had hoped. To be continued.But leading marine conservationist warns that MCZs are ‘paper parks’ and will offer wildlife no real protection from destructive dredging and trawling Seahorses, stalked jellyfish, dolphins and seagrass meadows are among the marine wildlife gaining better protection with the announcement of 23 new marine conservation zones (MCZ) by the government on Sunday. However, a leading expert criticised the MCZs as useless “paper parks” that offer no real protection from the dredging and trawling that has devastated large areas of England’s seas for decades. The 23 new zones stretch from the coast of Northumberland down to Land’s End and include Europe’s longest chalk reef off Cromer in Norfolk. But, with the 27 MCZs designated in 2013, the total of 50 is far below the 127 sites proposed by an earlier £8m government consultation. The 50 MCZs, along with other types of protected areas, now cover 20% of all English waters, almost 8,000 sq miles (20,700 sq km). “As an island nation, the UK is surrounded by some of the richest and most diverse sea life in the world – from the bright pink sea-fan coral colonies off the south-west coast, to the great chalk reef stretches in the east,” said marine environment minister George Eustice. “It’s vital we protect our marine environment to ensure our seas remain healthy, our fishing industry remains prosperous and future generations can enjoy our beautiful beaches, coastline and waters.” England's new marine conservation zones – in pictures Read more Professor Callum Roberts, at the University of York and one of the UK’s leading marine conservation experts, welcomed the new MCZs but said: “We need more because the network we have is far from complete. Despite the [50] MCZs, the UK’s rich marine life has very little protection. That may sound paradoxical, but six years after the Marine Act was passed, MCZs are still paper parks. They have no management at all, so life within them remains unprotected. They will be worse than useless, giving the illusion of protection where none is present.” The government said it was working to ensure management measures are put in place within two years, but Roberts said: “I am deeply skeptical of what it will achieve.” He said, for example, there are already moves to open up a “special area of conservation” in Cardigan Bay to scallop dredging: “It is one of the most destructive fishing methods in the world, turning habitats into rubble and leaving trails of dead and dying creatures in its wake.” Facebook Twitter Pinterest Bloody Henry starfish at the new Holderness Inshore MCZ. Photograph: George Stoyle/Wildlife Trusts He said 65 “reference areas” of complete protection from fishing, proposed on top of the original 127 MCZs had been abandoned: “The one bit of the network that was really critical was dropped.” Prof Roberts led 86 marine scientists in condemning the government in 2013 for reneging on the recommended 127 MCZs. Among the newly created MCZs are Mounts Bay, covering St Michael’s Mount and the Marazion where seagrass, stalked jellyfish and crayfish live, and Greater Haig Fras, the only substantial area of rocky reef in the Celtic Sea. Joan Edwards, head of Living Seas at The Wildlife Trusts, said: “We are pleased by this government’s commitment to addressing the decimation of our seabed over the past century. This second step towards the completion of a ‘blue belt’ in UK seas is crucial but there’s still work to be done.” She said the 50 MCZs must be properly managed and a third and final tranche of MCZs must be delivered. The government will open a consultation on further MCZs later in January. Melissa Moore, the Marine Conservation Society’s head of policy, said: “We’re recommending that the final tranche in 2017 includes South Celtic Deep – a site that supports short-beaked common dolphin; Norris to Ryde, which is rich in seagrass meadows; Mud Hole off the north west coast - 35 metres deep and home to rare sea pens - and Compass Rose off the Yorkshire coast, which is an important spawning and nursery ground for herring and lemon sole.” The government is also set to consult on new special areas of conservation for harbour porpoise and special protection areas to protect feeding and bathing areas used by birds, such as spoonbills in Poole Harbour and puffins on the Northumberland coast. But Prof Roberts said the low level of protection the government was giving to UK waters was in sharp contrast to its leadership on the international stage: “The UK is giving full protection from fishing to huge areas of our overseas territories in the Atlantic (Ascension Island), Indian (Chagos) and Pacific Oceans (Pitcairn). We urgently need the same high levels of protection in our home waters.” Kerry McCarthy, Labour’s shadow environment secretary, said: “It is now six years since the last Labour government’s Marine and Coastal Access Act and during that time the government has delayed and prevaricated on delivering a much-needed ecologically coherent network of marine protected areas. Facebook Twitter Pinterest White Beaked Dolphins at the Coquet to St Mary’s MCZ. Photograph: Martin Kitching/Wildlife Trusts The 23 new Marine Conservation Zones North Sea 1. Coquet to St Mary’s 2. Farnes East 3. Fulmar 4. Runswick Bay 5. Holderness Inshore 6. Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds South East 7. The Swale Estuary 8. Dover to Deal 9. Dover to Folkestone 10. Offshore Brighton 11. Offshore Overfalls 12. Utopia 13. The Needles South West 14. Western Channel 15. Mounts Bay 16. Lands End 17. North-west of Jones Bank 18. Greater Haig Fras 19. Newquay and the Gannel 20. Hartland Point to Tintagel 21. Bideford to Foreland Point Irish Sea 22. West of Walney 23. Allonby BayFor other people named Michael Morton, see Michael Morton. Michael Morton (born August 12, 1954) is an American who was wrongfully convicted in 1987 in a Williamson County, Texas court of the 1986 murder of his wife Christine Morton.[1] He spent nearly 25 years in prison before he was exonerated by DNA evidence which supported his claim of innocence and pointed to the crime being committed by another individual. Morton was released from prison on October 4, 2011; the prosecutor was convicted of contempt of court for withholding evidence after the judge had ordered its release to the defense.[2][permanent dead link][3] Conviction, DNA testing and acquittal [ edit ] Morton was arrested and charged with beating his wife to death in 1986. He was convicted in 1987 and sentenced to life in prison.[4] Pro bono civil attorney John Raley of Houston, Texas, together with Nina Morrison of the New York-based Innocence Project, filed Morton's motion for DNA testing in February 2005. In 2010, Morton was offered parole if he expressed remorse over murdering his wife. Raley told the Texas Tribune about the conversation he had with Morton on the subject: "...Michael said that he understood that he would be paroled if he only showed remorse for his crime. And I said, 'What are you going to do?' I didn't feel like I could advise him on that because, I mean, you know [it had been] 23 years now. I don't think anybody would have blamed him if he said, 'I'm really sorry, let me go.' But Michael is a man of great integrity, and he would not lie to get out of prison. And he said, 'All I have left is my actual innocence, and if I have to be in prison the rest of my life, I'm not giving that up.'...And I said, 'Michael, I promise you, I will never quit.'"[5] Raley and Morrison relentlessly sought a court order for DNA testing in state and federal courts until the testing was finally achieved in June, 2011.[4] Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley "tenaciously fought" against DNA testing for six years before a judge finally ordered the tests.[6] Release of Morton, conviction of Mark Alan Norwood [ edit ] Morton was freed on October 4, 2011 (and formally acquitted by Bexar County District Judge Sid Harle on December 19, 2011)[7] after DNA tests linked another man, Mark Alan Norwood, to Christine Morton's murder. Norwood, a Bastrop dishwasher who lived in Austin in the mid-1980s, was charged and, on March 27, 2013, convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1986 murder of Christine Morton. In September 2016 he was convicted in a separate case[8] for the 1988 murder of Debra Baker in her Austin home. Both women were beaten to death in their beds.[4] The Innocence Project subsequently filed a motion to remove Bradley from further court proceedings, but stopped pursuing it after Bradley agreed to dismiss the indictment against Morton, which allowed Morton to collect compensation. Under Texas law, he became eligible to receive a lump sum based on the number of years served in prison, plus a lifetime annuity of $80,000 per year, as well as job training and educational aid.[9][10] Arrest and imprisonment of prosecutor Ken Anderson [ edit ] On November 16, 2011, Morton's original prosecutor, Ken Anderson, told reporters: "I want to formally apologize for the system's failure to Mr. Morton. In hindsight, the verdict was wrong." Baker's daughter said she was unmoved by Anderson's apology and held him partially responsible for her mother's death because he and investigators allowed a killer to escape detection by focusing so intently on Morton. "It is harder for me to hear him not holding himself accountable. He is not taking responsibility," she said.[11] The same day as Morton's formal acquittal, Morton's attorneys (including Raley, Morrison, Barry Scheck of the Innocence Project, and Gerald Goldstein and Cynthia Orr of San Antonio) asked Harle to order a "court of inquiry" into the actions of Anderson, who was then a district judge in Williamson County. A court of inquiry is a special court that investigates allegations of misconduct by elected officials in Texas.[7][12] Morton has accused Anderson of failing to provide defense lawyers with exculpatory evidence indicating that another man might have killed Morton's wife, including information that his 3-year-old son witnessed the murder and said his dad was not home at the time.[13][14][15] Morton's attorneys discovered this evidence while preparing a final appeal, and were able to get Anderson and others involved in the investigation deposed under oath. On February 20, 2012, Harle asked the Texas Supreme Court to convene a court of inquiry, finding that there was evidence to support Morton's contention that Anderson had tampered with evidence and should have been held in contempt of court for not complying with the trial judge's order to let him review all possible exculpatory evidence. The court of inquiry began on February 4, 2013.[16] On April 19, 2013, the court of inquiry ordered Anderson to be arrested, saying "This court cannot think of a more intentionally harmful act than a prosecutor's conscious choice to hide mitigating evidence so as to create an uneven playing field for a defendant facing a murder charge and a life sentence."[17] Anderson responded by claiming immunity from any prosecution under the expiry of applicable statutes of limitation.[18] On September 23, 2013, Anderson resigned from his position as district court judge. On November 8, 2013, Anderson was found to be in contempt of court by 9th Judicial District Judge Kelly Moore. Anderson pled no contest to the charges as part of a plea bargain. He was sentenced to 10 days in county jail, and was ordered to report to jail no later than December 2, 2013. He received credit for one day he spent in jail in April 2013, when he was arrested following the court of inquiry. He was also fined $500, and ordered to perform 500 hours of community service. He agreed to give up his license to practice law in exchange for having the charges of evidence tampering dropped. He will be eligible to apply to have his law license reinstated after five years.[2][3][19] On November 15, 2013, Anderson was released from jail after having served five days of his 10-day sentence; he was released early after receiving credit for good behavior.[20] After the plea agreement was announced, it was publicly revealed that Williamson County District Attorney Jana Duty agreed to authorize an independent review of every case that Anderson ever prosecuted, along with every case in which Bradley successfully opposed DNA testing.[21] The Michael Morton Act: Texas Senate Bill 1611 [ edit ] On May 16, 2013, Governor of Texas Rick Perry signed Texas Senate Bill 1611, also called the Michael Morton Act, into law. The Act is designed to ensure a more open discovery process. The bill's open file policy removes barriers for accessing evidence. Morton was present for the signing of the bill, which became law on September 1, 2013.[22] In popular media [ edit ] Morton's case was featured on CBS's 60 Minutes on March 25, 2012.[13][23] It was also featured on "Katie", the Katie Couric show, on November 13, 2012.[24] A novel based on the case, entitled Depraved Prosecution, was published in July 2012 by Kurt Johnson, a writer living in Williamson County; in the novel the fictional location of "Wiyamsun County" is the setting.[25][permanent dead link] The Morton case is also depicted in a 2013 documentary film, An Unreal Dream: The Michael Morton Story, directed by Al Reinert.[26] The film was featured on CNN Films December 8, 2013 and re-aired throughout the month.[27] It is currently available for viewing on Amazon Prime. Mr. Morton's memoir, Getting Life: An Innocent Man's 25-Year Journey from Prison to Peace, was released nationwide on July 8, 2014. See also [ edit ] References [ edit ] Further reading [ edit ]Jammu Kashmir assembly passes anti-India resolution. What's that?: Explained India oi-Nairita Srinagar, Aug 28: Jammu Kashmir assembly on Thursday, Aug 28 passed a crucial resolution which is believed to be an anti-India resolution. The resolution was unanimously adopted in the state legislative council. Here are the information regarding the resolution. What is the resolution? Jammu and Kashmir assembly pressurised Narendra Modi government at the centre by passing the resolution. The assembly urged centre to resume bilateral talk with Pakistan. Union government should resume Indo-Pak dialogue to maintain peace in region, especially in Jammu and Kashmir, says the resolution. According to the resolution, Modi government should take up the ceasefire violation issue with Pakistan. The resolution also insists that the central government should take immediate steps for relief and rehabilitation of the victims of LoC firing and provide all required help and facilities to them in this regard. Why the resolution can create new controversy in India: According to many experts, the resolution may create a new controversy in the country as the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir clearly states that foreign affairs is not under the purview of the state government. India called off bilateral talk with Pakistan: Recently, India cancelled foreign secretary level talks with Pakistan after Pakistani envoy to India -- Abdul Basit snubbed India's warning and met many separatists in New Delhi. Another reason of cancelling the talk was continuous violation of ceasefire at Line of Control (LoC) by Pakistani army. What did Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah say? Omar Abdullah slammed Narendra Modi government for cancelling the bilateral talks. He said, "Given the breakdown in communication between India and Pakistan, I don't know how the Narendra Modi government plans to resolve this issue but they have an obligation to resolve it because they promised the people of this country ‘acche din'." "The people living along the border are people of this country. They have as much of right to ‘acche din' as anybody else but they are yet to see those ‘acche din'." "If anything, they have seen their days go from bad to worse. Therefore, I think it is time for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government to fulfill their commitment of ‘acche din' and restore peace and normalcy along the border." OneIndia NewsThe Library History Buff Promoting the appreciation, enjoyment, and preservation of library history Benjamin Franklin, Friend of Libraries Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts. Franklin is probably best known in the library community for founding the Library Company of Philadelphia in 1731. It was America's first lending library and can lay claim to being the predecessor of the free public library. For a brief period (Dec. 1733-Mar. 1734) Franklin actually served as the librarian for the Library Company. He also served as its secretary from 1746 to 1757. Franklin considered the Library Company to be the "Mother of all N. American Subscription Libraries....". Franklin appeared on the first United States postage stamp (at left) and has been depicted on more U.S. postage stamps than any other American except George Washington. The United States Postal Service issued a set of four stamps on April 1, 2006 in Philadelphia to honor Franklin. This image of the four stamps is provided by the USPS. Each stamp is a collage of artifacts representing different aspects and activities of Franklin's life. Regretfully, none of the stamps shows Franklin's significant interest in libraries. Franklin is prominently featured on the First Day Cover to the left which was produced by the American Library Association on the occasion of the issuance of the America's Libraries postage stamp on July 13, 1982 at the Association's annual conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It contains the signatures of Ben Franklin (signed by a Franklin impersonator) and Betty Stone, President of ALA at the time. In addition to the Library Company of Philadelphia, Franklin also assisted in the establishment and development of other libraries in his lifetime. These included: US Library People on StampsNot every light bulb moment should be turned into a product. In fact, some light bulbs should be removed from their socket and smashed into a million tiny pieces. Technology is particular susceptible to bad ideas, where someone invents a new concept in a drawing room and then somehow gets the funding they need to create the product, build the Web site, or unleash the technology. Strangely, the following ideas were not only turned into real products and services, they have lived on for many years past their expiration date. Is it time to send them out to pasture? Yes, please. 1. Wikimedia Commons A controversial project by any standards, this repository contains a wealth of useful imagery – it's essentially a visual encyclopedia. Unfortunately, by allowing users to post any content and with loose controls over how images fit a given category, the Wikimedia Commons is now a wasteland of pornography. The project has been disavowed vehemently by Larry Sanders, the Wikipedia co-founder. Other links contain child pornography, animal sex, and random images showing sexual positions – with no filters or warnings. 2. Trackballs What were we thinking? Trackballs are still widely sold, but here's an experiment. Have a new user sit down with a trackball and play a game, visit a web site, or even use Microsoft Paint to draw an object. While some have sworn by the trackball for decades and use them to relieve repetitive stress disorders, the reality is that a standard mouse is much more accurate for just about any computing task. Trackballs: not that accurate 3. Feature phones More like featureless phones, these crippled devices have worn out their welcome. Usually equipped with a T9 keypad (you press digits successively to type phrases), you can't load any apps, the operating system is slow, the thin plastic casing breaks easily, and the tiny screen looks like it is blurred over with Vaseline. Yet, for some reason, retailers still doll these out to unsuspecting customers. Feature phones: yesterday's news 4. Browser-enabled televisions The traditional browser works well on a computer or phone, but somehow Samsung and many other television manufacturers have insisted on including a browser on so-called smart televisions. The lean-back environment of a living room is not conducive to traditional browsing, where text fills the screen, you have to type a URL, and there's a forward and back button. A smart idea, one that is finally gaining some traction this year, is to use apps that are designed for televisions. This means less typing, and data is fed into the app without user involvement, hopefully at a more appealing screen size. 5. Home energy monitors When Microsoft abandons a project, take note: it must have had some serious problems. (This from the company that still makes a split keyboard.) When Google also leaves their users in the dust, the situation must be quite dire. Microsoft Hohm and Google PowerMeter are now defunct, and for good reason. Part of the problem is that smart meters are not as common as they should be, so end-users were not able to tap into their appliances or even the home furnace. There is a better way, and it is more home intelligence. Smart meters make sense, but the gauges should know when you are not home, adjust temps for the weather, and monitor home appliances on their own, without our involvement. 6. Single-purpose web sites Every once in a while, a new site will pop up that serves a single purpose – for example, a site that is nothing but an alarm clock or one that tells you whether the next episode of Lost is a repeat. These sites require very little programming, and we appreciate the minimalism. But they are quickly forgotten. Case in point: Lost went off the air in May 2010. 7. Micro cars Sure, a tiny car has one distinct advantage. According to the laws of physics, a smaller object requires less energy to move. Unfortunately, they also crush easier in an accident. Projects like the GM EN-V car have potential – we like that the vehicles are connected and can run autonomously. In certain controlled environments – such as a small urban area – they have merit. For the vast majority of drivers, micro cars are an incredibly bad idea, considering how many people drive SUVs.Zipline, a California-based robotics company that has made a name for itself delivering blood by drone in Rwanda, has just announced plans to operate its services in Tanzania by early next year. In an interview with The Verge, Zipline co-founder and chief executive Keller Rinaudo said that the company plans to work with the Tanzania Ministry of Health and the country’s Medical Stores Department to open four distribution centers in Tanzania over the next four years, with the intent to deliver blood via drone to over a thousand public health facilities in the country. Zipline also wants to expand services in Tanzania to include on-demand delivery of other medical supplies, things such as emergency vaccines, HIV medications, and anti-malaria drugs. Emergency restocks “might not sound that exciting,” Rinaudo said, but “that’s the real goal, delivering all of these products. It’s been a problem for over a hundred years, but it’s a problem that global health experts have been trying to solve for the past 50 years.” Zipline first launched its services in Rwanda in the fall of 2016, calling it the world’s first national drone delivery service. The company has raised more than $35 million in venture capital funding to date. Since last October, Rinaudo said, Zipline has completed 1400 commercial flights and delivered 2600 units of blood, a quarter of which were for emergency services. (These are numbers Zipline hasn’t shared previously.) The company designs and builds its own 25-pound drones, called Zips, that can fly up to 150 kilometers per charge and carry up to 1.5 kilograms of blood. But the real value lies in Zipline’s software and logistics, not the hardware. Health professionals can use Zipline to order supplies via mobile phones — sometimes using WhatsApp, Rinaudo said — and can receive the necessary supplies within 30 minutes, on average. Fifty percent of the supplies are going to mothers with postpartum hemorrhaging, and 30 percent is going toward kids under the age of five who have severe anemia due to malaria. This is not only vital in emergency situations, but it also helps eliminate waste: Rinaudo claimed that “zero units” of blood have expired in the Rwanda health centers that have been relying on Zipline over the past several months. For its Tanzania launch, Zipline says it will partner with the Human Development Innovation Fund, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Saving Lives at Birth initiative to conduct research on the Zipline’s impact on the region. Zipline has talked before about testing its services in the US, where it’s based, but so far this hasn’t happened in any official capacity. The regulatory environment for drones here is still too challenging, Rinaudo said, something he elaborated on earlier this year in a Recode podcast interview. Still, he’s hopeful, adding that the US government is “looking at what’s happening in Rwanda and is excited.” “The cool thing is now that we’ve shown that this can be done safely, operate at national safety levels,” Rinaudo said. “There’s a lot of evidence and data that we can show.”This artist’s concept shows a supermassive black hole with millions to billions times the mass of our sun, like the one in the film Interstellar. Kip Thorne has recently been in the public eye as the physicist who brought real-world physics to the science fiction epic "Interstellar." But this isn't Thorne's first foray into discussing this kind of mind-bending science with the public: 20 years ago, Thorne wrote a best-selling book about black holes and other awesome astrophysical phenomena for a general audience. Thorne's book, "Black Holes and Time Warps: Einstein's Outrageous Legacy" (W. W. Norton & Company, 1994), touches on many of the same subjects discussed in his more recent book, "The Science of Interstellar" (W.W. Norton & Company, 2014), including the possibility of interstellar travel through wormholes and the potential for time dilation around black holes. Two decades later, Thorne's first book remains a premier resource on the subject. Kip Thorne's popular science book on the history and science of black holes and twisted space-time is still relevant 20 years after its publication. (Image: © W.W. Norton & Company) "I actually hadn't realized it was the anniversary, because I've been so swallowed up with 'Interstellar,'" Thorne told Space.com. (Thorne is also a theoretical physicist at the California Institute of Technology.) "I do wish that I had time to update the book. I hope to do so in the next few years." So what new physics would Thorne add to an updated version? First: new ideas about how exactly a black hole would kill you. When Thorne wrote "Black Holes and Time Warps" in the early '90s, he and other theorists believed that falling into a black hole resulted in death by a process called "spaghettification" or "the noodle effect," in which a person would be stretched and squeezed until his or her body resembled a very long string of pasta. [Time Travel and Wormholes: Kip Thorne's Wildest Theories ] But newer theories suggest that black holes might kill you by crushing rather than stretching. "When you fall into a black hole, everything that falls in after you over millions of years, as seen by you inside the black hole, comes pounding down on you in a fraction of a second, because of the enormous differences of time flow," Thorne explained. This would create a singularity: a location where the laws of physics break down and measurements of gravity go to infinity. "That produces sort of a'sheet singularity' descending on you at the speed of light." This idea, called a mass inflation singularity, was proposed in the 1990s. More recently, theorists showed that the crushing death would also come from below. "Stuff that fell into the black hole before
P) European fishing fleets are given equal access to EU waters and fishing grounds up to 12 nautical miles from the coasts of EU member states. The policy also seeks to conserve fish stocks, and EU fishing quotas are imposed. Leave campaigners say EU rules have devastated British fishing, while Remain supporters say policies were helping fish levels to recover. Mr Johnson, the former London mayor, said EU restrictions had inflicted a "tragedy" on the industry and as a result the number of people involved in fishing in the UK had halved. "Look at what's happened to our coastal towns, they are areas where in many cases you've seen too much poverty. Bringing back the fishing industry in those areas would be fantastic," he said. "I'm not hostile to our friends and partners in the European Union, I just think we can do it just as well ourselves if we managed our waters. "Some of the rules, chucking back perfectly good fish to manage the quotas, I mean come on that's got to be crazy, there's got to be a better way of doing it." 301 Moved Permanently Moved Permanently The document has moved here. EU referendum issues guide: Explore the arguments http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36027205 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/2016/newsspec_13606/content/iframe/english/index.inc.app.html Explore all the issues Choose an issue: What both sides are saying All issues Main views Share this page EU referendum issues guide What the leave and remain sides are saying in the #EUref campaign But Mr Cameron said the value of the British fishing industry and fish processing industry "has gone up" during his time as prime minister. He said "big changes" had taken place, bringing in more regional control and removing the "mad discards policy". "With this greater regional control that we've managed to negotiate you're seeing fish stocks recover. "Look at the most recent figures: we're actually allowing our fishermen now to land more plaice, more cod. Over the last five years, the UK-landed fish has actually increased by 20%." He added: "Is it perfect? No. Are we better off fighting from within? Yes. Is this market vital for our farmers and our fishermen? Absolutely, yes." Fishing quotas Image copyright Getty Images The European Commission sets total allowable catches (TACs) or catch limits (expressed in tonnes or numbers) for most commercial fish stocks TACs are set annually for most stocks (every two years for deep-sea stocks) by the council of fisheries ministers TACs are shared between EU countries in the form of national quotas. For each stock, a different allocation percentage per EU country is applied for the sharing-out of the quotas EU countries can exchange quotas with other EU countries EU countries have to use transparent and objective criteria when they distribute the national quota among their fishermen EU countries are responsible for ensuring that their quotas are not overfished. When all the available quota of a species is fished, the EU country has to close the fishery Source: European Commission In December last year, increases were agreed for the UK fishing industry in quotas for fish including North Sea cod. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said at the time the cod quota would rise by 15% and that for English Channel plaice would double. In the interview with the BBC's Countryfile, Mr Cameron also said the EU had a "mixed score card" on environmental protection - but defended measures such as protection for newts, which has often thwarted house building. "Sometimes it feels a bit over prescriptive and can be frustrating but generally speaking, actually, we have to have rules on habitat," he said. "If you look at species and biodiversity, things are getting better." Mr Johnson said leaving the EU would give the government more freedom to decide over controversial issues, such as GM crops. Te BBC's Countryfileairs at 19:00 BST on BBC One on Sunday 5 JuneIf you listen to popular songs, you might conclude there’s no day as depressing as a Monday. But a new study shows that lyricists may have gotten it all wrong and that Wednesday is really the darkest day of the week. The study, published in Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, found that people are far more likely to kill themselves in the middle of the week than in the beginning or the end: almost 25 percent of suicides occur on Wednesdays as compared to 14 percent on Mondays or Saturdays, the two days tied for second-highest suicide rates. The study also found if you make it through Wednesday, your risk for suicide plummets by more than half the following day; Thursdays have the lowest rate, with only 11 percent of suicides. Research up until now has pointed a finger at Mondays, said the new report’s lead author, Augustine J. Kposowa, a professor of sociology at the University of California, Riverside. “Everyone talks about the Monday blues,” Kposowa added. “But if you look at more recent data, it looks like things have shifted and now it’s the middle of the week that’s the problem.” More study is needed to fully understand the findings, but researchers suspect that we may be seeing a positive impact of technology on suicide and depression. With the advent of e-mail, Internet discussion groups and text messaging, people can now stay in touch with the outside world even if they are holed up by themselves at home the entire weekend. As for the spike in suicides in the middle of the week, Kposowa suggested that the increase may indicate job stress. “People may be fed up and stressed by their jobs by the middle of the week,” he said. “By Wednesday, the traffic has gotten to be too much, their co-workers are getting on their nerves and they can’t figure out how they’re going to make it to the end of the week.” Why Wednesdays? Kposowa and his co-author examined data on deaths in people over the age of 18 for five years — 2000 through 2004 — from all 50 states. On average, the researchers found that there were about 30,000 suicides per year in this group. The researchers detected another interesting change in the suicide data. Contrary to earlier studies that showed an increased rate of suicides in winter and spring, the new data showed almost no seasonal effect on suicide rates. Slightly more occurred in the summer — 26 percent — while the fewest occurred in the winter, at 23.8 percent. Kposowa again looks to the nation’s higher connectedness — through the Internet and cell phones — to explain the lack of a seasonal effect. Winter just doesn’t isolate people as much as it used to, he said. The new study is “intriguing and provocative,” said Dr. Alan Manevitz, a psychiatrist at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. “It goes against a lot of what we take as lore. We think about the classic problems people have on Sunday nights thinking about going back to school or work, and the winter blues, especially in people with Seasonal Affective Disorder.” The strength of the new study is that it looked at the entire country over five years, said Alexandre Y. Dombrovski, a research assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. But Dombrovski cautioned against reading too much into the Wednesday effect. “While it’s tempting to conclude that people choose Wednesday because it’s the most stressful day, you have to remember that many suicides are premeditated and they don’t necessarily occur as a result of the events on the day the suicide occurred,” he said. Still, it is possible that a particularly stressful day can push someone into implementing previously devised plans, Dombrovski allowed. Intervention works One important message people should take from this study is that there is no day or season when someone can be considered to be safe from suicide, Manevitz said. “If someone you know is showing warning signs, don’t take for granted that it’s not something to worry about because of the day of the week or the season of the year,” he cautioned. “Friends and family need to take suicidal ideation seriously at all times.” Any time someone sounds preoccupied with death or seems particularly depressed about their lives, you need to follow up, even if you think they’re just focusing on small things, Manevitz said. “You should never be afraid to ask questions like, ‘Are you feeling so badly that you’re thinking about suicide?’” Evidence shows that intervention by friends and family members works when it comes to suicide prevention, Manevitz said. “If you’re worried about suicide, don’t leave the person alone,” he said. “Don’t let him isolate himself.” Linda Carroll is a health and science writer living in New Jersey. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Newsday, Health magazine and SmartMoney.Back around the time the Smashing Pumpkins were conquering the world in the mid ’90s, I’m not sure anyone would’ve guessed that Billy Corgan would approach middle age and his second decade as a public artist quite as he has. Of all the artists from America’s ’90s alt-boom, Corgan remains the most relevant and vital — even if the road to this point has been uneven, it still feels totally plausible that Corgan has another masterwork in him. And part of that vitality comes from his willingness to just do a bunch of kinda crazy things and just ride with them to see how they play out. That includes the ambitious initial concept for the Teargarden By Kaleidyscope project (the most opaque title Corgan’s offered in a career full of them), but it also includes improvisational synth performances, posing with his cats, writing a “spiritual memoir,” and starting an indie pro wrestling league and then deciding maybe that it’d be cool to have a reality show about said wrestling league. With all his various interests, it’s somewhat surprising Corgan still has time to write Smashing Pumpkins music, but he’s got two records on the way. This is in addition to having spent the last several years preparing a massive, exhaustive reissue of 1998’s misunderstood Adore. (If I could rewrite my Smashing Pumpkins list from last year, I have a feeling I’d rank it above Gish and Pisces Iscariot — aside from Zwan, it is perhaps the most underrated and wrongfully maligned work of Corgan’s career.) Corgan’s been considered many things in his career, but no matter your stance, you couldn’t say the man is anything short of magnanimous with his creative output and activity. I found him to be the same in conversation — far more affable than his old reputation would suggest, never offering an answer that didn’t feel as brutally honest as it was exactingly thought-through. We spoke for twice as long as we were supposed to, digging into the past as well as discussing what’s on the table for the future of the Smashing Pumpkins. STEREOGUM: Hey Billy, how are you doing today? CORGAN : Good, I’m almost halfway [through] my book, which has been a monumental effort. So, about one more day and I think I’m at the official halfway point, which is really exciting because I started like four years ago. It doesn’t mean it took me four years to get halfway, it took me [four years] to where I could finish halfway. STEREOGUM: I was going to ask you about the book a little later, but since you brought it up, let’s talk about it now. I saw it described as a “spiritual memoir,” and I was wondering if you’d tell me a little bit more about that, or about the style of the writing. CORGAN : Of course, I’ve never written a book before, so it’s sort of an evolving process, but the reason I sort of qualified it as a spiritual memoir is I wanted people to know up front that I’m not writing the book from the perspective of, you know, a “celebrity life.” Because I feel like I’ve read those books, and actually I do like reading some of those books, particularly old ones from the ’30s and ’40s, but I just didn’t want it to be that book, because it’s not really about naming names. It’s more about a spiritual journey a la Siddhartha, where you start one place and you end up somewhere else and you kind of just chart the process. And of course it involves all sorts of things I “believe” — in quotations — happened, but, you know, life being a dream, can’t say they happened for sure. STEREOGUM: So it’s not going to strictly be an autobiography then. It sounds like it’d be a little more interpretive? CORGAN : I wanted it to be emotionally honest without having to be honest to the truth, and what I mean by that is — having been in bands, having been in long-term relationships, everybody has their version of what happened, and rather than try to write something that was a constant defense of my position, I’ve just written it from the standpoint of, this is what I feel I’ve experienced. What is my sensory recall, and then I guess you could say part of what the book explores is that our perception of memory changes vis-à-vis our own place and our own spirituality. Just how a person can look at a tragedy in a spiritual light as a positive experience as opposed to a negative one. And being in a very material life — which, public life is ultimately very material — it’s hard to quantify the experience without going into some sort of version of the dream because it literally is like a dream. I will look up stuff that happened to me and my memory of it is probably as clear as a dream. So I write about it almost like it was a dream, because in a way it is a dream. It’s hard to explain any further than that, because at the end of the day, it’s still storytelling, and ultimately I’d say the book is a work of fiction and is more like a fable than a “here’s what happened,” like a court of law transcript. I just think there’s no way to do that with as much as I’ve experienced. And I’m not interested in writing that book. Luckily I found a publisher who understood that that was the book I wanted to write. I had no interest in writing the book that most people write. STEREOGUM: The title is going to be God Is Everywhere From Here To There, right? CORGAN : It changes, but as of right now it’s back to that title. [laughs] I lopped off the “God” for a while but somehow it came back. It’s back to God Is Everywhere From Here To There. STEREOGUM: Do you mean “God” in an abstract spiritual way or in a more defined religious sense? CORGAN : Well, I start from this, which is that I think God is imbued in everything. And I qualify — when you talk about God in public, people automatically flash into their own belief system or they start rejecting the one they think you have. I’m ultimately a pagan, I don’t really subscribe to any particular religious dogma, so when I say “God,” I can replace it with the word “Truth” or “Love.” I basically see God as an absolute, by which you can contrast your position. And then by extension, the world’s position. So when the United States does something and cites God, it’s hard for me to measure that, because in the absolute, I don’t see how the absolute would condone using drones to kill somebody. So it gets into that kind of qualifier for me, and the book does kind of document that sort of transitional space of how I began to process this vast material life that I entered into thinking I was going to have a spiritual payoff. Which gets into the classic rock ‘n’ roll stuff of the Faustian bargain. You sign a deal with a devil and somehow you think it’s all going to work out for you in the end, and there are very few rock ‘n’ roll tales that end where that works. Most end exactly as you imagine they would. STEREOGUM: So you’re about to release the Adore reissue, and you’re also working on one for MACHINA, correct? CORGAN : Yeah, we’ve just now started to dive into the deep end of the pool on that one. But the plan there is to actually … the record was written as a pseudo-rock-opera type deal, and when the band completely fell apart in the middle, the album never really got finished in the way I’d written it, so I view it as kind of an unfinished album. So the idea is to still present it in its original form, MACHINA I and MACHINA II, kind of like the other [reissued Smashing Pumpkins] albums, but at the same time present it in what we would call a finished form. STEREOGUM: So what spurred on the decision to do that and Adore? Because there’s no real anniversary moment or anything like that. So why did you want to return to those albums right now? CORGAN : It’s a really long story, but essentially, at different times we’ve discussed with then EMI, now Universal Music Group, the notion of a reissue campaign, and there was a lot of back and forth on what that meant. I refused to do the typical run and dump, you know, throw a couple extra tracks on an album and call it a reissue. I wanted something much more comprehensive, and then in the middle of all that, which was an extensive negotiation with what was then the old label, then the two ex-band members de facto sued the label, who in turn sued me. Which threw this massive wrench in the works, and then that had to be sorted out. So by the time this all finished and everything was tied up with a bow, I got a lot of time to think about what I wanted to do, so this is a really direct reflection of what I planned to do for years and years, but the amount of work involved has been way more intense than I ever would’ve imagined. STEREOGUM: In what sense? Just the digging back through all the old material? Or getting to the point where you were even able to start the project because of the legal stuff? CORGAN : It’s more just like … you say something simple like, “Hey, where’s that reel?” and then somebody comes back and goes, “It’s missing.” [laughs] And you don’t know, because you haven’t looked for it in fifteen years, you don’t know where it went. Currently, on MACHINA, I think there’s about seven reels missing. As in “probably stolen.” So you’re trying to create sessions from old Pro Tools files. It’s a lot of stuff people don’t need to hear about, but it becomes a lot of detective work. And then by the time you get stuff compiled, it gets into, same subject, your memory vs. reality. You thought some track was great, and then you listen to it and you realize you never finished the vocal. So do you put it out half-cocked? Or do you say, well, it’s a document like any other, and I still think it’s interesting if you’re a fan of this album because it shows something that was a dead end. And then there’s other stuff where fans come up and say, “Gosh, I can’t believe you didn’t put that out,” and it was something that was finished, and I go, “Eh, I don’t think it held up over time. I think we can live without that particular one.” So it’s a bit of decision-making on stuff that you think would go on, that it would be a no-brainer, that you leave off because in your eyes it doesn’t really add value to the package. And then looking for stuff that is illuminating. My general approach being, if you’re a fan of a particular album, not only would you be reminded of why the album was good, but then you’d sort of feel the big moat around the album that maybe illuminates the process in and out of the album in a way that would also make you appreciate the album more. STEREOGUM: There were a lot of different things going on in your life and in the band at the time, and I know dreamlike memory could kind of make it hard to qualify now, but how were you approaching or thinking about music differently at that time relative to the other Pumpkins records? I’m interested in how the process was different for you on a personal level than the albums that bookended it. CORGAN : We had actually discussed taking a more radical approach before we did Mellon Collie. And in a rare moment of democracy, we actually voted to make one more quote-unquote “rock record,” which became the Mellon Collie record. Because I was ready to jump more into the experimental end in ’94. So now fast-forward to ’97, Jimmy’s out of the group, the band relationships are in a different place, obviously the band’s coming off the massive run of Mellon Collie. Now I felt like, now I’ve got both the musical opportunity, because the band’s no longer intact, and secondarily — and I use this word jokingly — kind of a mandate from the public. Like, “Oh, we like your experimentation,” because obviously “1979” had been a big hit song, which was more electronic. “Eye,” which came out before Adore if memory serves me correctly, was also a hit song — which was also electronic, which I’d basically done on my own. So I had this, uh … a little bit of swagger, like, “Oh, I can pull this off. I can transition the band out of a traditional rock band into something more experimental.” And even though you wouldn’t hear it in the record, I was thinking like, you know, what the Beatles did with Sgt. Pepper’s. Why can’t we make a really different type of record? So that was my thinking going into it. STEREOGUM: Given the time elapsed and hindsight, what kind of position does the album occupy for you now in the grand scheme of the Pumpkins discography? CORGAN : I think it’s probably the most important album, and what I mean by that was: the first three Pumpkins albums were very much about, “Gotta get on MTV, gotta win, gotta beat the other bands.” It was very ambitiously minded. And, that Faustian bargain, we got everything we bargained for. We got the good and the bad and that path, which is well-documented, pretty much blew the band up internally. So Adore is kind of the moment where I decide, “Right, if I’m going to keep doing this, I’ve gotta do it in a way that’s more personal to me.” I don’t mean personal like personal songwriting, I mean personal to how I would dream of making an album. How I would like to work. What I would like to hear at the end of the day. It’s a really big leap into the abyss of, “OK, let’s see where that takes me.” Of course, I didn’t think it through. I was so in my mind at that point that I thought there was no way that I could fail, so when the album quote-unquote “failed” on a public level — and, by the way, ha ha, only went platinum, which when you consider the numbers people do these days … that was a massive disappointment to our label. I mean, massive. They basically, from that point on, went off the band. STEREOGUM: And that’s why they wouldn’t release MACHINA the way you wanted, right?Nobody involved with the $130 million sale of Chicago's old main post office last week would say whether the man who owned it was alive when the deal closed. Turns out, he wasn't. Bill Davies, the eccentric British multimillionaire who owned the vacant 2.5 million-square-foot building that straddles Congress Parkway, died May 7, five days before the sale to New York-based 601W Cos. closed on Thursday, according to a copy of Davies' U.K. death record obtained by the Tribune Tuesday. Martin Mulryan, a British business consultant who acted as Davies' emissary to Chicago until three months ago, said the 80-year-old Davies' death after a short fight against pneumonia "was hushed up for a week to make sure that there were no problems with the deal going through." Davies had a long history of scuttling deals as they were about to close and might not have allowed the deal to go through had he lived, Mulryan said. His death was revealed Friday morning, about 16 hours after the deal was closed, in a vaguely worded email sent by his spokeswoman, Sue Sadler, that made no reference to his time of death. Lawyers and real estate firms tied to the deal and a City Hall spokesman all declined Friday to comment on exactly when Davies died. The revelation that Davies died before the deal closed could complicate the repeatedly delayed redevelopment of the hulking post office building that has been vacant since the 1990s. Davies' intransigence and reluctance to sell the site that he bought for $24 million was long considered an obstacle to its development, and Mayor Rahm Emanuel had threatened to use eminent domain to seize the property if a deal was not concluded by June 1. The old Chicago main post office was built in 1921 by Graham, Anderson, Probst & White. A major expansion in 1932 added nine floors and more than 60 acres of floorspace. When it was expanded, a hole was reserved at its base for the planned Congress Parkway extension to run through it. The post office vacated the building in 1996 in favor of a more modern facility. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. (Chicago Tribune) (Chicago Tribune) City Hall announced that a deal with 601W Cos. was struck Thursday, with Emanuel hailing the building's proposed $500 million revamp as "another significant step toward transforming the Old Main Post Office site into an economic driver for the City of Chicago." On Tuesday, Emanuel spokesman Grant Klinzman said the city learned of the death on Friday from Davies' attorneys, but said that it was not told how long Davies had been dead. The redevelopment plan calls for the post office to be rehabilitated into offices with a 3-acre rooftop park complex, outdoor cafes, an events space and a sports and fitness center with a riverfront space that includes a riverwalk and a grand plaza with outdoor dining. Told Tuesday by the Chicago Tribune that Davies' U.K. death record shows that he died at a hospital near Liverpool, England, five days before the deal closed, Mark Karasick, the principal of 601W Cos., said, "This is the first I'm hearing of it." Karasick said he also only learned of Davies' death on Friday, following Sadler's email. Asked if he felt he'd been misled during the $130 million deal's closing, Karasick said Davies had given powers of attorney to his lawyers who handled the deal so "I have to assume it's immaterial." He said the May 12 closing date for the deal was agreed upon with Davies' representatives before May 7. Still, the timing of Davies' death could pose a wrinkle if beneficiaries of Davies' estate choose to make an issue of it. Davies contracted pneumonia while traveling to his vacation home in Barbados in February and was flown back to the U.K. about a month ago, according to Mulryan and Vicky Flores, who ran Davies' Chicago office. Though both Mulryan and Flores said they were close to Davies, neither had spoken to him since he became ill and neither learned of his death until Friday, they said. The precise terms under which the deal was signed have not been made public. Jack George, a Chicago real estate attorney with Schuyler, Roche & Crisham who handled Davies' end of the deal, did not return calls seeking comment Tuesday. But Ben Neiburger, an elder law attorney who specializes in probate cases with Generation Law in Elmhurst, said that "powers of attorney only work while you're breathing." Davies could instead have delegated corporate authority to officers of his company, said Neiburger, who was not involved in the post office deal. Davies' company, International Property Developers, held the title to the property. While such corporate authority would be unaffected by Davies' death, there could be an issue if he "wasn't competent when he signed over that authority," Neiburger added. But unless there is a bad "family dynamic," he said, Davies' heirs are unlikely to complain, because they'll "have to pay estate taxes and the sale turned an illiquid asset into cash." Still, he said, "It smells bad." Charles Hubbard, a British businessman who worked with International Property Developers and was involved in the closing, said Saturday that the time of Davies' death "is a private matter for his family" and declined to answer further questions. Told Tuesday that a death record shows that Davies' daughter Julie Newland reported Davies' death to the borough of Wirral in northwest England on May 11, four days after he died and a day before the deal closed, Hubbard said that there was "a bad connection" and hung up, then did not return follow-up calls. kjanssen@tribpub.com Twitter @kimjnewsSexually-transmitted diseases are more common in America than you think. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, approximately 20 million new sexually transmitted infections are reported each year, split between eight commonly transmitted conditions: HPV, chlamydia, trichomoniasis, gonorrhea, genital herpes, syphilis, HIV and hepatitis B. LiveScience reports the CDC's best estimate is that 110 million Americans, or about 1 in 3, suffer from these conditions at any particular moment. And the infections cost around $16 billion to treat each year. It's what LiveScience calls America's "hidden STD epidemic." The most recent estimates are from 2012, and the CDC illustrated the problem in several squick-inducing graphs below. They likely underestimate the problem, as only a fraction of cases are reported to the federal government. Young people in the 15-24 age range are particularly vulnerable, receiving a disproportionate 50% of all new infections. State breakdowns: Here, for example, is gonorrhea, which ranges from just 10.8 infections per 100,000 people in Montana to over 230 in Mississippi. Since 2009, the CDC says that the gonorrhea rate "has increased slightly each year to 107.5 cases per 100,000 population in 2012, a 9.6% increase overall" following a sustained period of improvement from 1975-1997. Nationally, the total rate in 2012 was some 106.3 per 100,000 citizens. Chlamydia is even more common, with a national rate of 453.5 infections per 100,000 people. But much of the country soars well above that rate, like New York's rate of 517 infections per 100,000 and Mississippi with 774. Most of the South, Southwest and mid-Atlantic fares poorly. It's pretty bad — the CDC reports that "This is the largest number of cases ever reported to CDC for any condition." Then there's syphilis, which actually comes with some good news: It's comparatively rare, with an incidence rate of 5.1 per 100,000. Similar regional trends were observed for other STDs, like herpes and HPV. U.S.T.D: So yes, it seems certain regions of the country have serious problems with STDs. But knowing is half the battle. The CDC data raises awareness of elevated levels of STDs so people can seek proper testing and treatment. For example, a government report from June estimated that up to 400,000 out of the 1.8 million people with chlamydia don't know about it. The same report also found that STDs disproportionately affect minorities: Black teenage girls who are sexually active have an 18.6% chance of having an STD, while white teenage girls have a rate of 2.4%. The CDC adds that in 2012, the chlamydia rate was 6.8 times higher for blacks than whites. Prevention: An awful lot of people aren't getting the tools and resources needed to protect their sexual health, and the problem is much worse for vulnerable populations like minorities and young people who may not have consistent access to health care. While the topic is unpalatable, the plateauing of progress fighting STDs means state and local health officials need s to do better a job of informing young people of the risks of unprotected sex. Some states, particularly in the Sun Belt, are doing worse than others. In the meantime, use protection. But be aware condoms aren't 100% effective at preventing transmission, so get tested regularly. And maybe use a Scroguard.What to Know Virginians will vote in primary elections for both Democrats and Republicans on June 13. The nominees for each party will vie to replace Democrat Terry McAuliffe. The Virginia governor's race is one of only two in the country in 2017; the other is in New Jersey. Two Democrats and three Republicans are vying to be Virginia's next governor in the state's primary June 13. So where do they stand on the issues most important in the Old Dominion? We asked Republicans Ed Gillespie, Corey Stewart and Frank Wagner, as well as Democrats Ralph Northam and Tom Perriello, to make their positions clear. See what they said below. Jump straight to the issue that you care about most: economy, education, transportation, the Dominion pipeline, abortion and their views on President Trump. Economy: Va. Governor's Candidates on the Issues The candidates for Virginia governor, in their own words, on the economy. (Published Friday, May 26, 2017) ECONOMY Perriello suggested cutting spending, closing tax loopholes used by large companies, and raising taxes on those earning more than $1 million each year (his personal income tax hike would actually start with those making $500,000 per year). By investing in the middle class, “everybody wins,” he said. He’d also raise taxes on some corporations. Northam proposed training rural Virginians in science, technology, arts and math (STEAM) because “the economy isn’t working for everyone,” he said. Gillespie recommended decreasing individual income tax rates by 10 percent “across the board.” He’d grow small businesses by lowering tax rates “responsibly” over three years, he said. Stewart suggested cutting overall spending in Virginia by 3.8 percent in the first year, which he said would enable Virginia to reduce the top marginal income tax rate to 4.75 percent. “You have to cut spending,” he said. Wagner emphasized the need for skilled candidates to fill modern job openings. Career and technical education, not liberal arts programs, will help businesses “fill the jobs we have today,” he said. Education: Va. Governor's Candidates on the Issues The candidates for Virginia governor, in their own words, on education. (Published Friday, May 26, 2017) EDUCATION Gillespie favors “more options” for parents with students in secondary schools, including education savings accounts and more public charter schools. As for higher education, Gillespie would give strict instructions to each university’s board of visitors to “hold down costs,” he said. Schools need more local control, Stewart said. Higher education should center on career and technical training “where there are actually jobs,” he said. “We’ve got to get away from this idea that every child has to go out and get a four year degree from a college,” he said. Wagner pitched providing a technical education path in K-12 schools. As for higher education, he’d “sign a letter to each university president” saying he’s going to cap tuition, he said. Northam’s priority at the K-12 level would be raising teacher wages. At the college level, he proposed offering Virginians two free years of community college with the “understanding they will give one year back to public service.” Perriello proposed reshaping K-12 into P-14, adding one year of universal pre-K on the front end and two years of career and technical training or a “pathway into community college” on the back end. The goal: move more people into the middle class. Transportation: Va. Governor's Candidates on the Issues The candidates for Virginia governor, in their own words, on transportation. (Published Friday, May 26, 2017) TRANSPORTATION The economy won’t grow without a bigger investment in transportation, Wagner said. His focus would be putting “more money into transportation.” Lawmakers must look at further increasing the gas tax, he said. Gillespie said congestion relief and Northern Virginia should be the main priorities. He advised mimicking Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s plan to separate federal and state dollars into separate accounts for “state spending in a more timely manner,” he said. Tax increases and additional tolling “don’t work,” Stewart said. He recommended widening I-95, I-66 and Route 1 and spending less on heavy rail. Perriello proposed “bringing the parties together” and investing in infrastructure in Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads and Richmond. A permanent change in infrastructure spending will “create real job growth,” he said. Northern Virginia hasn’t received as much tax revenue since gas prices have dropped. Since the tax is tied to gas prices, implementing a floor on the regional gas tax “needs to be done,” Northam said. Tolls also must be minimized so everyone can use public transit, roads and interstates, he said. The Dominion Pipeline: Va. Governor's Candidates on the Issues The candidates for Virginia governor, in their own words, on the proposed Dominion pipeline. (Published Friday, May 26, 2017) DOMINION PIPELINE Northam approves of the pipeline as long as it is constructed with the environment in mind and accounts for the “property owner’s rights.” The jobs of the future are in “distributed energy” Perriello said, and Virginians are being “choked out” of those jobs because of energy monopolies. He firmly opposes the construction of the pipeline. Stewart said the pipeline gives Dominion Energy “too much power.” They are “trampling on property rights of Virginians across the state,” he said. Wagner is “absolutely supportive of it” it because it’s a “cheap source” of natural gas, which is a “critical component” of manufacturing processes. Gillespie backs the construction of the Dominion Pipeline because affordable and reliable energy will “foster greater economic growth.” Abortion: Va. Governor
not fully explained, but it raised the question of whether the attackers were attempting to use gas canisters in Las Ramblas to cause even more casualties. The Las Ramblas attack, which took place over a few terror-filled minutes just before 5 p.m. local time, set off a wave of panic and confusion as authorities sought to track down the perpetrators, and fearful people hid for hours in barricaded shops, restaurants and churches. Witnesses described chaos as the white delivery van suddenly swung off a street and onto the wide pedestrian mall that draws tourists and residents to its bars, cafes and shops. As people started to run, the driver swerved the vehicle from side to side, in an apparent effort to inflict more damage. When the van came to a halt, its front was smashed and crumpled inward from the impact of the people hit. People were sprawled on the sidewalk, some not moving. Hats, handbags and other items were strewn about. “All of sudden, everyone started running, so we ran, too,” Andrew Roby, 35, who was visiting from Washington, said in a phone interview. Roby said he saw several people, apparently wounded, lying in front of and beside the van. “We saw people on the ground,” he said. “I heard a bunch of people screaming.” Some locals expressed frustration at authorities’ failure to place barricades at the entrances to the boulevard in a new era of vehicular terrorism. Las Ramblas is one of the city’s top tourist areas, with a wide pedestrian promenade flanked by roadways. The van was “going entirely too fast. It looked to me as if he was going left to right, hitting people with the little stand,” Tom Markwell, another American tourist, told the BBC. “All of a sudden, people were just screaming and running.” One British tourist said she hid beneath the counters of a phone shop with 20 other people for half an hour. “We heard gunshots and people were running and screaming,” said Mandy Wood, 54. “By the grace of God, we could have been here two minutes earlier,” she said. “We would have been on the street where it happened.” Another witness said police suddenly told the crowd to run. “There was a really loud kind of crashing noise. I didn’t stop to look back,” Ethan Spieby, a witness caught up in the commotion, told the BBC. Hours after the attack, he said he was holed up in a church with about 80 tourists and locals. “They have locked the doors, and I think the police are outside. We’re just waiting in here right now to hear more news. It’s quite scary to be caught up in it,” he said. More than four hours after the attack, police finally started evacuating those who were hiding in nearby buildings. Citizens of Australia, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands were among the dead and injured, said officials from those countries, a measure of the international draw of the cosmopolitan Las Ramblas area, which has long stood at the heart of Barcelona. Underlining the confusion after the attack, police found the identification card of one local resident in the cab of the van and spent hours searching for him. After his name was widely circulated in local media, he turned himself in to police and said that he had lost his identification card, a security official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss an open investigation. And adding to the sense of unease, the Catalan Interior Ministry said late Thursday that a car broke through a police checkpoint outside Barcelona and injured two officers. It was not immediately clear whether the incident, which took place near the town of Sant Just Desvern, just west of Barcelona, was connected to the attack. Spanish police did not immediately give details about the driver or the incident. After the attack, Spanish authorities shared the names of at least two people with European and Arab intelligence agencies, but the suspects did not appear to have been flagged for connections to extremism, according to an Arab and a European intelligence official, neither of whom was authorized to speak on the record. Authorities appear to think that a small group of two or three people planned the attack, the Arab intelligence official said. Catalan authorities said they will stand firm in the face of terrorism. “There have been people arrested, and this investigation is still ongoing,” Carles Puigdemont, president of the Catalan regional government, told reporters in Barcelona. “Catalonia will always prevail in the face of terrorism. We will always stand for democracy and freedom. We will always be united.” Islamic State supporters celebrated the Barcelona attack Thursday and promoted previous threats made against Spain, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors extremist activity. The Islamic State, also known as ISIS, has called on supporters to carry out attacks using vehicles. The group has claimed responsibility for car attacks in Europe, as well as at Ohio State University last year. After the attack Thursday, offers of assistance flooded in from around the world, including the United States. “The United States condemns the terror attack in Barcelona, Spain, and will do whatever is necessary to help. Be tough & strong, we love you!” President Trump wrote via Twitter. Later in the day, Vice President Pence said that the United States would punish the perpetrators. “Whoever is responsible should know that the United States of America, together with our allies, will find and punish those responsible, and drive the evil of radical Islamic terror from the face of the Earth,” he told reporters in Panama City, where he is wrapping up a tour of Latin America. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said U.S. authorities will offer to help in any way they can. The Catalonia region of Spain has faced repeated terrorist attacks over decades from the ETA Basque separatist group. Catalonia is planning an independence vote Oct. 1 over the objections of the national government in Madrid, which calls it unconstitutional. In July 2016, a truck was driven into Bastille Day crowds along a seaside corniche in the southern French city of Nice, killing 86 people. In December 2016, 12 people were killed when a driver used a hijacked truck to drive into a Christmas market in Berlin. In March, a man in a rented sport-utility vehicle plowed into pedestrians on London’s Westminster Bridge, killing four people before he ran onto the grounds of Parliament and fatally stabbed a police officer. A month later in Stockholm, a rejected asylum-seeker from Uzbekistan crashed a truck into a central department store in an attack that killed five people. Booth reported from London and Branigin from Washington. Raúl Gallego Abellan in Barcelona, Karla Adam and Anne-Marie O’Connor in London, Souad Mekhennet in Edinburgh, Philip Rucker in Panama City, and Brian Murphy, Mark Berman and David Nakamura in Washington contributed to this report. Read more: Was the Charlottesville car attack domestic terrorism, a hate crime or both? In France, murder of a Jewish woman ignites debate over the word ‘terrorism’ An attack on Muslims leaving a mosque in London is exactly what ISIS wanted Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign newsSo we meet. It's one thing to see the new MacBook Pro with Retina display behind thick, protective glass. It's another to see it up close and personal, where you can actually get a feel for the weight and thinness of the device. The laptop we're using is a 2.6GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 with a 3.6GHz Turbo Boost, Nvidia GeForce GT 650M graphics, 8GB DDR3L SDRAM, a massive 512GB of flash storage, and of course, the 15.4-inch 2880 x 1800 Retina display — no more turning down settings to play Diablo 3 (remains to be seen, but rest assured we'll test this when we get a moment's breath). Like the MacBook Air, the power button has been moved in line with the keyboard. It otherwise matches the layout of the "traditional" 15-inch MacBook Pro, with speaker grills along each side and a large trackpad in the middle. The new MagSafe adapter is indeed thinner — the current one looks to be just a hair too thick for the side panel. Screen is, alas, highly reflective but incredibly crisp and bright. And of course, here's a macro shot of the screen:Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for the national anthem has drawn qualified support from his fellow NFL players, but one group are not happy: league executives, who say they wouldn’t sign Kaepernick to their teams. Colin Kaepernick can protest racism. Even if he has white adoptive parents | Rebecca Carroll Read more Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report spoke to seven anonymous NFL executives, and found that their outrage over Kaepernick’s stance was near universal. One official said Kaepernick was as disliked among the league as Rae Carruth, the former Panthers player who was found guilty of conspiring to murder his pregnant girlfriend. Carruth is currently serving a 24-year prison sentence in North Carolina. “I don’t want him anywhere near my team,” one front office executive said of Kaepernick, according to Freeman. “He’s a traitor.” Freeman said each executive he spoke to wouldn’t sign Kaepernick to play on their team. “He has no respect for our country,” one said. “Fuck that guy.” One general manager told Freeman: “In my career, I have never seen a guy so hated by front office guys as Kaepernick.” Freeman wrote in his piece that the disdain towards Kaepernick was hypocritical. “Personally, I think the dislike of Kaepernick is inappropriate and un-American,” he wrote. “I find it ironic that citizens who live in a country whose existence is based on dissent criticize someone who expresses dissent. But in NFL front offices, the feeling is very different.” One owner told Freeman that he would rather resign than sign Kaepernick. Each executive said they thought Kaepernick would be released by the 49ers – and never play in the NFL again. Freeman pointed out that Kaepernick had not broken any rules, and that several players who had committed actual crimes were still playing in the NFL. “When challenged that Kaepernick didn’t break a law, or an NFL rule, and that it’s his right to sit during the anthem, the response, consistently, was that it’s also a team’s right to not sign him. And to also dislike him,” Freeman wrote. Kaepernick, 28, was taken by San Francisco in the second round of the 2011 draft. In 2012, he replaced the injured Alex Smith midway through the regular season, and led the 49ers to their first Super Bowl since 1994, where they lost to the Baltimore Ravens. He announced that he wouldn’t be standing for the national anthem last week. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick said. “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.”Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong arrived in Israel from Jordan yesterday, on the second leg of his week-long trip to the Middle East. His first stop here was the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he met its leadership and received an honorary doctorate. Speaking at the ceremony and thanking them for the honour, he took stock of Singapore's long friendship with Israel, in particular the role it played in helping build a credible and professional Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). "Without the IDF (Israel Defence Forces), the SAF could not have grown its capabilities, deterred threats, defended our island, and reassured Singaporeans and investors that Singapore was secure, and had a future," he said. "We will always be grateful that Israel helped us and stood by us at a time of great need." PM Lee also expressed the hope that Israel and the Palestinians will take steps to resume direct negotiations and work towards a just and lasting two-state solution. VISION OF ISRAEL I sincerely hope that one day, Mr Peres' vision will be realised. Swords will be turned to ploughshares, Israel and your neighbours will live side by side in peace and prosperity, and your friends in Singapore and around the world will rejoice with you too. PM LEE, who was moved by former Israeli PM Shimon Peres' vision of Israel in 2048. He noted that over the years, Singapore's relationship with Israel has broadened beyond defence and security to collaborations in technology research and development. Yesterday, PM Lee witnessed the signing of three agreements between the university and Singapore's National Research Foundation, the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University, respectively. Hebrew University president Menahem Ben-Sasson said awarding the doctorate to PM Lee was to recognise his longstanding leadership as a champion of economic and civil reform, his investment in education, research and development, as well as his warm support of Israel-Singapore friendship and of the Jewish community in Singapore. Singapore, he noted, was a model of a state run by scholars, "where the PM is himself in charge of research and innovation". In his speech, PM Lee noted that ties between the people of Israel and Singapore began long before both became independent. The earliest Jews in Singapore arrived in the 19th century, mostly from the Middle East, and their descendants have contributed out of proportion to their numbers in the country. Among them Singapore's first chief minister David Marshall. Mr Lee noted that renowned physicist Albert Einstein visited Singapore in 1922, met the local Jewish community and urged them to contribute to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which was set up in 1918 and opened its doors in 1925. The Jewish people in Singapore raised some £750 - worth about S$400,000 today. Israel, he added, reflects a remarkable human talent and "the indomitable spirit to overcome overwhelming odds" - from irrigating the desert to revolutionary advances in technology. Singapore had much in common with Israel. Both are young nations that had to integrate diverse groups to create a common sense of nationhood, and both are determined to thrive despite their circumstances. But there are also striking contrasts, he said. Israel can trace 5,000 years of Jewish history and its identity is as a Jewish state, while Singapore "is emphatically not a Chinese nation, but a multiracial, multi-religious society". Israel had to fight several wars to defend its right to exist, while Singapore has been fortunate never to have been at war with its neighbours, except during the Konfrontasi period - when Indonesia waged an undeclared war in the 1960s to oppose Malaysia's formation. Mr Lee noted that the Israeli-Palestinian problem is complex, and a solution remains elusive. "Progress will require enormous imagination, determination and political leadership on both sides - as well as getting the stars aligned, in the right places in the firmament, with the great powers supporting you," he said. This is why he was also visiting the Palestinian National Authority in Ramallah this week "to signal our friendship with both Israel and the Palestinians", he added. He also noted that the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew once told an Israeli general who helped start the SAF that Singapore learnt two things from Israel: "How to be strong, and how not to use our strength." PM Lee said he was also moved by former Israeli PM Shimon Peres' vision, in a recent interview, of Israel in 2048 - 100 years after its founding. Mr Peres believes 2048 will be much better for Israel and the Middle East, where borders will become less relevant and science and technology will transform societies, connect peoples and force them to become more open-minded to the world. "Today, such a Middle East looks a long way off - more distant even than 2048," Mr Lee said. "But I sincerely hope that one day, Mr Peres' vision will be realised. Swords will be turned to ploughshares, Israel and your neighbours will live side by side in peace and prosperity, and your friends in Singapore and around the world will rejoice with you too." Yesterday, PM Lee also visited Jerusalem's Old City. He will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today.It's true: Pregnancy can permanently change the size of a woman's feet, a new study has confirmed. A University of Iowa study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation showed that during pregnancy the arch of the foot flattens out, a the woman's shoe size. "I had heard women reporting changes in their shoe size with pregnancy, but found nothing about that in medical journals or textbooks," study author Dr. Neil Segal, associate professor of orthopaedics and rehabilitation at the University of Iowa, said in a press release. Researchers studied the feet of 49 pregnant women and took static and dynamic arch measurements during the first trimester and five months after their babies were born.. For 60 to 70 percent of the women in the study, their feet became longer and wider. On average, the arch height and rigidity decreased significantly, which caused the foot to lengthen between 2 and 10 mm (or 0.08 to 0.4 inches). First pregnancies caused the most changes in feet size, and second pregnancies and onward may be less likely to affect foot shape and size. Scientists have previously said the arch may flatten out because of the extra weight and increased looseness (laxity) of the joints while the woman is pregnant, the authors noted. They hope to research whether these changes can lead to health problems like arthritis later in life in follow-up studies. "We know that women, and especially women who have had children, are disproportionately affected by musculoskeletal disorders," Segal told HealthDay. "It is possible that these foot changes that occur during pregnancy may help explain why, in comparison with men, women are at higher risk for pain or arthritis in their feet, knees, hips, and spines," he added.The Columbus Blue Jackets and the city of Columbus have been selected to host the 2015 National Hockey League (NHL®) All-Star Celebration. The official announcement was made by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman during the Blue Jackets game vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins on November 2. The League’s mid-season showcase will take place Saturday, January 24 and Sunday, January 25 and will include the NHL All-Star Skills Competition and the NHL All-Star Game. “The All-Star Celebration is a marquee event featuring the best players in the world and the Blue Jackets are thrilled to be able to bring it to Central Ohio for our fans and community,” said club Majority Owner John P. McConnell. “Columbus and the Arena District offer an unmatched setting for this celebration of hockey and the NHL’s commitment to having the event here speaks volumes about the support of our fans and the strength of our market.” The 2015 NHL All-Star Game will be the first time the NHL All-Star activities will take place in Columbus, becoming the third consecutive first-time All-Star host city. Raleigh in 2011 and Ottawa in 2012 also were first-time hosts. The Blue Jackets and Columbus previously hosted an NHL signature event, successfully welcoming thousands of NHL fans, executives and personalities for the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. "Columbus is an ideal host city for our All-Star Celebration," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "The facilities are first-rate, the Blue Jackets are exciting and entertaining and the fans passionately support their team and our League. Our players, sponsors, media and guests are looking forward to being in Columbus for the All-Star activities." The 60th NHL All-Star Celebration will feature various hockey-themed events, entertainment and activities. Details about all of the All-Star events and television broadcasting will be released at a later date. Current Blue Jackets full, half and quarter season ticket holders who renew their tickets for the 2014-15 season will be guaranteed the opportunity to purchase All-Star Game and/or NHL All-Star Skills Competition tickets. For more ticket information, click here or call 1-800-NHL-COLS.Although women play a limited role in management at conglomerates, their presence is slowly growing. Lotte Department Store named two female department store managers on Monday.Women have headed smaller stores and outlet malls for the group before, but none have ever been put in charge of a department store branch.Promoting the two women reflects Lotte Chairman Shin Dong-bin’s announcement last year that he would put more women in higher positions.Lee Min-sook will be the chief manager of Lotte Department Store in Gwanak District, southern Seoul, while Lee Joo-young will take the top position at the Ansan branch in Gyeonggi.Lee Min-sook, 45, started her career at Lotte in 1988. Before her promotion, she was the manager of Lotte Young Plaza in Cheongju, North Chungcheong, and was a retail and marketing specialist in food and household goods.Lee Joo-young, 46, started her career at GS Square, which was later acquired by Lotte Group, and was the chief manager at Lotte Young Plaza in Daegu. She specializes in marketing and promotions.In Korea, women represent a miniscule 1.9 percent of board directors, according to a GMI Ratings survey from 2013, which puts South Korea at the bottom of the ranking out of 45 countries.In response to the low ratings, Shin Dong-bin, the chairman, said last year that the group would work toward filling 30 percent of its executive posts with women.“For a company to ensure its future competitiveness, including women in the workplace is critical,” Shin said last year.“Lotte will take the lead in creating a business environment where talented women can work without having to worry about balancing family life and housework.”Lotte Group is the only one among the country’s 10 biggest chaebol that has more female employees than male employees. In 2013, Lotte employed 23,922 women, accounting for 50.4 percent of its total workers. Last year, the proportion of female employees exceeded 60 percent.But the plain figure does not necessarily mean that Lotte offers quality jobs for women.Lotte has the highest proportion of contract-based employees among all major conglomerates.Chances are high that many of the women are stuck in temporary positions while the vast majority of executive-level posts are filled by men.But Lotte vowed to narrow the gap between male and female employees.“Women workers will serve as a key force driving the company in the future,” said Park Wan-soo, head of the management support division at Lotte Department Store.“In the marketing section, the role of women is really important in terms of communication.”BY PARK EUN-JEE [ejpark@joongang.co.kr]The last 100 years of shark attacks in the Bay Area mapped Photo: Neil Hammerschlag, Associated Press Photo: Neil Hammerschlag, Associated Press Image 1 of / 27 Caption Close The last 100 years of shark attacks in the Bay Area mapped 1 / 27 Back to Gallery If the recent news of shark attacks around the country or the increase in shark sightings along the California coast (possibly due to El Niño) have you worried, it may comfort you to see a map of the last 100 years of shark attacks in the Bay Area. Don't panic — there are lots of dots but only one fatality in the recorded history of the region. That unfortunate swimmer was 18-year-old Albert Kogler Jr., who was killed while treading water at Baker Beach in 1959. The story is a tragic one you can read about here; his heroic classmate Shirley O'Neill towed him 20 minutes to shore and was awarded the Young American Medal for Bravery by President John F. Kennedy. Also reassuring is the fact that one of San Francisco's handful of shark attacks happened on land at the Steinhart Aquarium. In 1962, a misguided aquarium guest dove into a tank to try to capture a shark. The 55-year-old male was bitten on his arm by a sevengill shark but survived the encounter. It's a little unfair to call that an "attack"; that shark had every right to not want to taken out of its tank. If you click on each marker, you can find out the date and specifics of the attack: Another interesting historical note: Two shark attacks in the bay both took place before 1930 and involved people swimming near canneries. It's probably not a coincidence sharks were drawn into the bay by those canneries. State-wide, only 10 people have been killed by sharks since 1926: two in San Diego County, two in Santa Barbara County, two in Monterey County, two in San Luis Obispo and one each in San Francisco and Mendocino. If you're interested in reading more about the history of California shark attacks, the Global Shark Attack File keeps a fascinating incident log.Traffic is a beast most of us have to deal with, so you might as well try to tame it. One way to do so: move. That is, if your city is in the top 10 most congested North American cities list, recently released from GPS company TomTom. Los Angeles confirmed its car obsession and dependency by securing the number one spot. Angelenos experience a whopping 40-minute delay per hour driven in peak traffic. Click through the slideshow below to see if your city made the bumper-to-bumper list. As much as it is despised and inefficient, traffic is generally a sign of economic growth. According to TomTom, national congestion levels have remained mostly flat since early 2011, reflecting lackluster job and economic growth. Here are the top five North American cities where traffic has increased most in the past year: 1) Seattle 2) Houston 3) Ottawa, Ontario 4) San Francisco 5) Miami If you prefer smooth-sailing traffic over a smooth-sailing economy, these are your cities. Traffic has decreased most in the past year in: 1) Edmonton, Alberta 2) New York 3) Boston 4) Minneapolis 5) Toronto Perhaps more helpful (and if moving isn't an option), TomTom reports the least and most congested commuting hours for each of the 10 cities on its traffic-from-hell list. For a number of the cities, it is as follows: Worst congested: Thursday morning. Friday evening. Least congested: Monday evening. Friday morning. But unless you plan on sleeping at work Monday through Thursday (and if you perpetually feel like this guy), All photos courtesy of Alamy:CTV British Columbia Mounties in Williams Lake, B.C. say they’re dealing with what appears to be an open and shut case of jaw-dropping stupidity. A local woman was arrested Tuesday after she allegedly tried throwing a bag of marijuana to her common-law husband – as the man sat in a courtroom prisoner’s box. Needless to say, the attempt was overruled. “From my understanding, it was quite blatant,” Insp. Warren Brown said. “This was in the presence of courtroom workers. There was a sheriff, there was a judge and there was a courtroom clerk.” The provincial court proceedings were put on hold while authorities confiscated the baggie and took the woman into custody. Brown said police are recommending drug trafficking charges against the suspect, whose name has not been released, in hopes of teaching her a valuable lesson. “There are few out of bounds places left in our society, and one would think a courtroom would be one,” said Brown, who added that he’d never heard of an incident like this in all his 25 years in policing. “You can’t make this stuff up.”An irate man interrupted a Catholic meeting about global warming in California this past weekend to accuse the church of selling its soul – another indication of how many Catholics feel uneasy about Pope Francis parroting rhetoric about global government and climate change. The event, organized by Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, featured a number of speakers, from relief workers to scientists, who parroted the official view that man is causing global warming and that anthropogenic climate change represents an environmental crisis. Earlier this summer, Pope Francis wrote a letter to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics calling for a new global authority to tackle climate change – a form of world government. The very notion of a “world government” makes many Christians uncomfortable because the Bible makes indirect references to such an “Antichrist” system in the final days, notably in the Book of Revelation. Entitled “Laudato Si: Engaging Pope Francis’ Encyclical on Ecology,” the program for the event featured a number of recommendations for how Catholics could help fight climate change, including eating less meat and reducing their carbon footprint. A handful of protesters stood outside the Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, Orange County before the Saturday meeting making their opposition heard, but the action really kicked off when a man suddenly stood up in the middle of a presentation and began yelling. Before the man spoke, a woman in the crowd is heard to remark, “I’m sorry I can’t take this anymore.” “This is the biggest instance of heresy….Im here to advocate for traditional Catholicism….how dare you,” asserts the man, before accusing some of the speakers of advocating abortion. After quoting a bible verse, the man states, “I am here to present my concerns to the bishop,” accusing the church of “selling its soul”. After briefly trying to carry on with the event, the organizers hastily call for the whole audience to recite a prayer in order to drown the man out. The man first becomes angry with a security guard and is then escorted out by a police officer. The Orange County Register later published a noticeably bias piece which venerated the church group. “One woman walked out, saying she couldn’t take it anymore. A man shouted – and didn’t stop shouting – that he wanted his old church back. I’m not sure what church he was talking about,” wrote David Whiting. Whiting noted how when the prayer began, the shouting stopped, asserting that this represented a “powerful” moment of “hope”. In reality, the fact that the prayer was used to drown out voices of dissent made it look like some kind of creepy cult-like invocation. Many Catholics and Christians in general are becoming extremely concerned about why the Pope is parroting new age talk about global government and Mother Earth, the kind of rhetoric usually spouted by pagans. Indeed, environmental activists, many of whom advocate population reduction, are now literally creating idols out of Hindu Goddesses to whom sacrifices were made in the name of saving humanity, as seen in the clip below. The fact that the Pope is turning what should be a scientific debate – the environment and climate change – into a spiritual crusade – perhaps underscores how weak the science really is if it requires divine intervention to give it some kind of legitimacy. So long as Catholics carry on regurgitating whatever the Pope says without a shred of skepticism, incidents like the one in the video above will continue to happen. SUBSCRIBE on YouTube: Follow on Twitter: Follow @PrisonPlanet Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/paul.j.watson.71 ********************* Paul Joseph Watson is the editor at large of Infowars.com and Prison Planet.com.Religious female Muslim athletes trying to find a way of dressing modestly while still competing in high-level sporting events like the Olympics are getting a new and surprising ally: Nike. The American sportswear giant has just announced the “Pro Hijab,” a head covering made of lightweight, stretchy polyester that the company says will allow hijab-wearing Muslim women to compete without headscarves that sometimes hurt their performances. The hijabs will go on sale next spring and are expected to cost around $35. The announcement only escalates Nike’s ongoing expansion into Middle Eastern markets and boosts a broader push for inclusion and representation in athletics. Its release also comes at a politically-sensitive for many US companies, where products and ads featuring Muslims are seen as political statements directed against the Trump administration, even if they don’t mention politics. Amazon, for example, aired a commercial in November last year featuring two old friends sharing tea: a Muslim imam and Christian priest. While many people praised the ad, it also drew criticism and anti-Muslim hate from right-wing websites and viewers, including Infowars which called the ad “Islamic propaganda.” Some people have similarly responded to Nike’s announcement about the Pro Hijab. One commenter named “Blue Pizza” posted in response to an article on Heat Street, saying, “I wish western companies would not cooperate with sharia by making such products. Is the future of western civilization worth the minor percentage of Nike's profits these products represent?” Like Amazon and other companies, Nike didn’t frame its announcement of the new hijab in any political terms. Still, many commentators are calling it a game-changer for directing attention and giving voices to Muslim women who have been kept out of sports because of social stigmas and regulations against wearing a hijab while competing. ESPN columnist Kavitha A. Davidson said, “While it shouldn't take a major global brand to ‘legitimize’ the inclusion of women of all faiths in sports, it certainly can't hurt.” The hijab has already been tested by several athletes, including Zahra Lari, a figure skater from the United Arab Emirates and Olympic hopeful. "I was thrilled and a bit emotional to see Nike prototyping a hijab," said Lari in a statement reported by The Christian Science Monitor. "I've tried so many different hijabs for performance, and... so few of them actually work for me. But once I put it on and took it for a spin on the ice, I was blown away by the fit and the light weight.” Nike-sponsored Olympic weight lifter Amna Al Haddad from the United Arab Emirates helped inspire the company to develop the hijab after she had difficulty finding a head covering that was comfortable and would adhere to competition standards, according to the New York Times. Haddad appeared in a Nike advertisement in April 2016, wearing a hijab without a logo. Now Nike’s signature swoosh is displayed prominently on the side of the Pro Hijab. Nike’s announcement pushes the conversation on representation in sports and what it called in a statement a “cultural shift that has seen more women than ever embracing sport” and an increased acceptance of the inclusion of all women in sports. In February, Nike celebrated Muslim athletes in a campaign video called “What Will They Say About You,” featuring women breaking stereotypes. The video went viral and was the first step in Nike’s expansion into the Middle East. But while it is important for Nike to finally recognize hijab-wearing athletes, Davidson pointed out that there are still many hurdles to overcome in leveling the playing field for Muslim women athletes. It wasn’t until 2014 that FIFA, the international soccer organization, lifted the ban on athletes wearing religious head covers. FIBA, the world’s basketball governing body, still bans religious head covers, including hijabs and turbans. “Now that Nike has released this line of headgear, the hope is that FIBA, and the sports world at large, will start making Muslim woman a priority, too,” wrote Davidson. Nike is not the first company to release a line of hijab sportswear. As The Guardian’s Shireen Ahmed noted, smaller sports companies have been designing hijabs for decades, including Oregon-based Oiselle and Capsters, which has sold sports hijabs since 2001. But Nike’s announcement is still important as the global company pushes the conversation on inclusion. “I don’t expect Nike to become a savior for Muslim women, who can certainly defend themselves, but solidarity and support is important,” wrote Ahmed. Many Muslim women continued this conversation on inclusivity in sports on Twitter, with one woman tweeting:Continue Reading She got the house in a foreclosure sale for about $80,000, renovated it — the previous owner used to have a bonfire on the bare cement floor in the living room and the house, built in 1974, hadn’t really been updated since then — and moved in with Angelica. They spent the first Christmas decorating a Christmas tree. “It felt so good to be home, to be in our own actual home,” Washington says now. At that point, Washington was working as a special education employment counselor in HISD, and was sure she could manage the house note and Huntington Village Community Association’s dues of $144 a year. But then Washington’s hours were reduced and she fought to keep up with her bills. She quickly fell behind on the dues. First there were politely worded letters from Marshall Management Group, the management company then in charge of collecting fees and enforcing deed restrictions for the homeowners’ association. Then there were letters from Lewis “Chip” Smith IV, the lawyer who represents Huntington Village Community Association. The first letters stated there would be legal action if she didn’t pay the late dues plus the attorney fee of $150, but they also mentioned that she might have to pay her debt and about $3,000 in legal fees if the case went to trial. Smith filed a lawsuit against Washington on behalf of Huntington Village Community Association in 2013. Since Washington still didn’t have the money to pay, let alone the funds to hire a lawyer, she settled with the attorney, agreeing to pay $487.15 per month until the debt, $4,871.45, including his legal fees, had been paid. “The thing is, by paying two payments, I’ve already paid more than I actually owed the association. But it’s that or lose the house,” she says. Washington isn’t alone. Across the country, homeowners’ associations like Huntington Village Community Association run neighborhoods, governing everything from deed restrictions to the collection of association dues. Some of these private organizations have been filing lawsuits against homeowners for years for everything from deed restriction violations, like the length of a homeowner’s grass, to using the power of foreclosure to collect delinquent homeowners’ association dues. HOAs are almost completely unregulated and the law is heavily weighted on the side of the homeowners’ associations — they almost always win. As Smith puts it: “End of the day, you’ve either paid your bill or you haven’t. “It’s not like there’s much of a defense or a debate on that.” In Texas there is no regulatory agency overseeing homeowners’ associations. Most county attorneys and district attorneys won’t get involved with an HOA unless there’s evidence of criminal wrongdoing, and the website of the Texas Attorney General’s Office explicitly states that the office does not investigate homeowners’ associations and advises homeowners to get a private attorney. Most private attorneys conclude that the business just isn’t worth it. “Typically by the end of the lawsuit, it’s been such a hassle, most of the lawyers representing homeowners swear they’ll never do it again,” David Kahne, a Houston lawyer who has been representing homeowners against HOAs for more than a decade, says. Each HOA is governed by bylaws and deed restrictions created by the neighborhood developers when the subdivisions were first built. From there board members are allowed to interpret those rules as they see fit, without any kind of government oversight. Texas has even expanded the authority of HOA boards with extra powers enumerated in the Texas property code that allow boards to more easily change their bylaws. These associations have also spawned a mini-industry with lawyers who specialize in representing HOAs against homeowners and charge legal fees running from about $150 to $200 for the demand letters attorneys send out to residents
patent "relates generally to a method for delivering structured messages comprised of information and data parts to an intended audience in a reliable and predictable manner." The Buckly patent "generally relates to a multi-user display system and method for controlling a communal display that includes at least two independent workstations and an interface server for connection to a data network." The Beddus patent "relates generally to a communications system in which a user is provided with different communication mechanisms and each mechanism is associated with a call control protocol." BT claims that Valve has ignored repeated attempts to get in contact and resolve the situation. Valve has yet to comment on the lawsuit. 23/08/2016: Game developers can now use YouTube annotations to link directly to their Steam store pages. Google has now added Steam to YouTube's list of 'approved merchandise sites', which means that it can be used with YouTube cards and overlays. The system helps content creators make money, by making it easier to direct fans to storefronts where they can buy their goods or merchandise. Other accepted outlets include Songkick, Spreadshirt and Kickstarter. The move will likely prove incredibly beneficial for developers, as it will allow the thriving industry of games critics and livestreamers and lets-players to direct their considerable fanbases to a game's store page, thereby driving sales. Online video, particularly on YouTube, has become one of the biggest marketing avenues for game developers. Over 470 million people globally watch online gaming videos on a regular basis, according to research by Newzoo, with YouTube controlling that market by a 2:1 margin. Steam is currently the only digital games marketplace on the list, but alternatives like GOG, Itch.io, the Humble Store and Green Man Games may be soon to follow. 14/07/2016: Valve has announced its intention to begin cracking down on unofficial Steam gambling sites in the wake of the CS:GO Lotto scandal. Many multiplayer games, such as Counter Strike: Global Offensive, feature cosmetic items and weapon skins as unlockable extras. These skins have become sought-after commodities, with rarer examples going for thousands of pounds. A cottage industry has even sprung up around them, allowing players to wager their skins against each other on the result of a coin toss. Although this is not legally defined as gambling, these sites have drawn severe criticism for allegedly encouraging gambling in younger players. Earlier this month, it emerged that two prominent YouTubers had allegedly been using their channels to promote one such site without disclosing that they owned it, leading to a lawsuit from a collection of parents. Valve, which is named in a related suit, has responded to the controversy by distancing itself from the many gambling dens. "We'd like to clarify that we have no business relationships with any of these sites," Valve's Erik Johnson said in a blog post. "We have never received any revenue from them. And Steam does not have a system for turning in-game items into real world currency." The company also levelled threats at sites like CS:GO Lotto, stating that using Steam to run a gambling business is "not allowed by our API nor our user agreements". "We are going to start sending notices to these sites requesting they cease operations through Steam, and further pursue the matter as necessary," Johnson said. He further hinted that players using these sites may be in danger of receiving bans, adding that "users should probably consider this information as they manage their in-game item inventory and trade activity". 04/06/2016: Nearly half of Steam gamers are using Windows 10, according to figures released by the platform's owner, Valve. According the Valve's analysis for June, 42.94 per cent of computers accessing Steam are running the 64 bit version of Microsoft's latest OS, an increase of 3.26 per cent compared to May, with all other Windows platforms declining. Notably, the use of Windows 7 64 bit has reduced by 1.64 per cent, now totalling 30.61 per cent, while Window 8.1 has reduced by 1.01 per cent to 10.07 per cent of the install base. Alhough 95.5 per cent of Steam users run Windows on their computers, itself an increase of 0.08 on previous figures, there is a small sliver - 3.6 per cent - that runs OS X. While the latest results show there has been a 1.13 per cent shift towards the most recent version of the operating system, OS X 10.11.5, overall there has been no change in the total proportion of computers running Steam that use OSX. Instead, Windows' overall growth in Valve's rankings seems to be at the expense of Linux, where the number of computers running the operating system that also use Steam shrinking by 0.04 per cent to 0.8 per cent of the total install base. 13/06/2016: Valve has released a free tool on Steam that allows users to create their own virtual reality scenes. Destinations Workshop Tools allows designers to create VR locations either by stitching together real-life photographs – a technique known as photogrammetry – or 3D models, reports The Verge. Sounds and interactive elements can also be added to the locations. Valve describes Destinations as a "VR content creation package that enables the creation, sharing, and exploring of both real and imaginary worlds on the Steam Workshop". The tool is compatible with all headsets supported by OpenVR and supports both motion-tracked controllers and x-input controllers, such as the HTC Vive. Several demo scenes are included with the download, including a churchyard, a close-up of a pile of popcorn (based on photos taken from an iPhone 6S) and the surface of Mars complete with the Curiosity Rover. Those who are interested can get the beta version of Destinations for free from Steam's Early Access. 10/06/2016: Valve brings back Steam Dev Days for 2016 Valve has announced the return of its two-day developers' conference. Steam Dev Days debuted in 2014 as a conference to bring game makers together to talk about their work, attend lectures and obtain SteamOS and new Steam hardware. Valve decided to forgo the event last year however, deciding to focus its efforts on the Game Developers Conference instead, but it is bringing it back for 2016. Topics at this year's conference will include virtual reality, Steam hardware, user-generated content and business and marketing, reports PC Gamer. This year's Steam Dev Days will take place 12-13 October in Seattle. It is a "press-free event," so there will be no on-site reporting during the conference. Those who are interested in attending can register at the Steam Dev Days Page. Signing up doesn't guarantee one a ticket, but does ensure priority in the virtual queue. Tickets are $95 each. 06/06/2016: Valve has sold just 500k Steam Controllers Valve has sold more than half a million Steam Controllers since the launch of the Steam Machine last November. The number was shared in Valve's Steam Controller June Update post, which announced updates to the controller's functions. These include enabling users to configure and use the controller from their desktops. Additionally, Valve stated that developers are fine-tuning their games to work better with the Steam Controller, citing DOOM, XCOM 2 and Dark Souls III as recent examples. Because the company has also verified that the 500,000 controllers sold encompasses console-bundled controllers, it is likely that even fewer Steam Machines have been sold. Comparing these numbers to the competition emphasises just how low sales were. PlayStation 4 and Xbox One respectively reached 10.2 million and 5.5 million in sales in their first seven months on the market, according to Yahoo Tech. Enough controllers have been sold, however, to give Valve a user base from which to gain valuable feedback. "With every controller that comes online we get the opportunity to get more feedback on how to make the Steam Controller even better," Valve stated in their update. 20/05/2016: Steam Summer Sale 2016 date leaks Steam’s annual price-drop bonanza, the Steam Summer Sale, could begin on 23 June, according to a Reddit user. MrFreemanBBQ posted a Russian-language screenshot, supposedly from Valve, suggesting that this year’s sale will run from 16:45 BST on 23 June until 17:00 BST on 4 July. Steam’s summer sales have quickly become an annual treat for PC players. Scores of indie games can be picked up for less than £1, and in some cases for free, while classic games and major titles can be bought in bundles or at greatly reduced prices. The fervour for these limited-time offers has meant that leaks have become more frequent. Last year, MrFreemanBBQ tipped off Steam users when the 2015 Summer Sale was set to begin. Shortly after, Valve announced the dates for the sale, which matched those that the tipster had predicted. The observant informant has previously done the same with Steam sales in 2012 and 2013. Valve has not yet announced any information on a summer sale, but it is a safe bet that they are planning to hold more, especially given the Steam community’s attachment to them. 28/04/2016: Valve to take payment in Bitcoins Steam is to accept Bitcoin as payment for games. News of the tie-up was confirmed by Valve's partner Bitpay. "Valve reached out to us because they were looking for a fast, international payment method for Steam users in emerging gaming markets in countries like India, China, and Brazil," Rory Desmond, director of business development for Bitpay in North America and APAC, said in a blog post. "While more users are coming online in these countries, traditional payment options like credit cards often aren't available. As the Internet's universal currency, Bitcoin will allow Steam to easily reach gamers in every market around the world - without the high fees or the risk of chargeback fraud that come with card payments," he added. The cryptocurrency firm is also looking to partner with more gaming platforms in the future, Desmond added. 26/04/2016: Valve offers feature films to Steam customers Steam is expanding its digital marketplace to offer features films, pitting it against rival video services Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, and those offered by Sony and Microsoft’s online game platforms. Valve, the owner of Steam, has signed a deal with Hollywood film studio Lionsgate allowing its users to rent more than 100 of the studio's films. Some of Lionsgate’s best-known titles include the Hunger Games, Saw and Divergent series, as well as Reservoir Dogs, Dredd and The Cabin the Woods. However, these titles are not yet available to UK Steam users, who are currently being offered a narrower set of Lionsgate releases, which includes the Leprechaun series, Russkies and Natural Born Pranksters. Lionsgate's president of worldwide television and digital distribution, Jim Packer, said: “With over 125 million users, Steam represents a unique, exciting and disruptive opportunity to expand our global distribution business.” Valve head of marketing Doug Lombardi added: “Lionsgate has emerged as a major creative force with a deep pipeline of blockbuster franchises, making them important content suppliers for our platform." This not the first time Steam has offered films on its digital service. It also hosted docu-films about game development and the eSports scene, namely Indie Game: The Movie and Free to Play. Other film releases, such as Mad Max: Fury Road and Temps, have appeared from a handful of studios. Although Steam boasts 125 million users, its new video ambitions are unlikely to threaten lead video streaming players Netflix or Amazon just yet. Netflix reportedly has fewer subscribers than Steam – 81 million worldwide as of April 2016. But Steam is currently only offering video streams to compatible platforms, which are predominantly desktop devices - PC, Mac and Linux. Films from Lionsgate and other distributors are also limited by region, meaning Valve won’t have the content reach that Netflix has in its markets outside the US. And pricing will also be an issue. Currently, films from Lionsgate are available to rent for 48 hours on the UK Steam store for between £3.49 and £5.59, while cheapest independent films can be rented for £1.59. Where Steam does stand to ruffle feathers with its video rental ambitions is against the Sony and Microsoft, both of whom offer their users film and TV programmes on their respective online gaming platforms. PlayStation Video and Microsoft Moves & TV both have much larger video libraries than Steam, but they also offer films at £3.49 each. The selection of Lionsgate releases on the Steam store can be viewed here.Academic performance in high school remains the top-ranked factor in college-admissions decisions on prospective first-time freshmen, according to a new report from the National Association for College Admission Counseling. In its latest State of College Admission report, the association says that grades in college-preparatory courses were rated as “considerably important” by about 80 percent of institutions it surveyed. Grades in all courses, the strength of the curriculum, and admissions-test scores were the next most important factors, with each rated as considerably important by about 60 percent of colleges. In other findings, the report notes that a long decline in the average yield rate for first-time freshmen appears to have stabilized. The rate, which is the percentage of accepted students who go on to enroll, rose in the fall of 2014 to 36.2 percent, a slight increase from the previous year’s 35.7 percent. The rate had fallen steadily since 2002, when it was 48.7 percent. Strategies that institutions are using to improve their yield rates, says the report, include putting more focus on bringing in transfer students and international students, increasing the number of early-decision applicants they accept, and making greater use of wait lists. The report is based on data collected from two annual NACAC surveys, the Counseling Trends Survey and the Admission Trends Survey, which were conducted in 2014 and 2015.Medical Discovery News By Norbert Herzog and David Niesel New research shows that aspirin truly deserves its nickname as the wonder drug, since it now has been shown to help fight cancer. It’s naturally found in willow bark, which has been used as herbal medicine for thousands of years. People have been taking aspirin in its current form for more than 100 years. Ancient Greeks used ground willow bark to treat fevers and control pain during childbirth. Then, in the early 1800s, English physicians and scientists wanting to discover the key to willow bark’s effect isolated its active component, salicin. In 1890, a German chemist named Friedrich Bayer (sound familiar?) created a synthetic salicin molecule called acetylsalicylic acid. This derivative was less irritating to the stomach than willow bark and became the modern form that lines drugstore shelves. Since then, researchers have found even more medical uses for aspirin. In the 1960s, scientists began exploring aspirin’s ability to thin blood and tested its usefulness in preventing heart disease. To summarize many extensive clinical trials, it is now generally believed that taking low-dose aspirin on a daily basis helps reduce the chances of a second heart attack — but not the first — in men. But these studies also revealed some negative side effects of regular aspirin use, including bleeding ulcers and hemorrhaging retinas. Recent studies may have uncovered another, quite wonderful, effect of aspirin — reducing the risk of some common cancers. Initial studies found the occurrence of colorectal cancer was lower in those who took aspirin regularly. These studies followed individuals who took aspirin for its cardiovascular benefits, but also ended up decreasing their risk of developing certain tumors by almost 40 percent. And low-dose aspirin also appeared to reduce the spread of tumors in people with established cancer. In a 2010 British study, those taking daily aspirin for at least five years reduced their risk of dying from colorectal, esophageal, stomach, pancreatic, brain, lung and prostate cancers by more than 20 percent. These studies also cited issues of bleeding in the stomach and retinas, especially in older individuals. New guidelines for aspirin therapy suggest starting an aspirin regime at age 50 and stopping by age 70 in order to reduce this risk. Several properties of aspirin might explain its cancer-fighting abilities. Aspirin inhibits enzymes called cyclooxygenases or COX, which normally convert a type of fatty acid into compounds that protect the stomach lining. This may be why aspirin can lead to stomach irritation, but may also explain why aspirin works well as an anti-inflammatory, since COX can contribute to inflammation. And preventing inflammation also prevents the growth of tumor cells. Given its ability to combat the nation’s two most serious killers, the potential for expanding low-dose aspirin therapy looks positive. Overall, these results have scientists on the verge of declaring aspirin the first “general anticancer drug.” Of course, you should consult your physician before starting any drug regime. .Professors Norbert Herzog and David Niesel are biomedical scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch. Learn more at medicaldiscoverynews.com.Three years ago today, The Guardian published the first story based on the huge archive of documents that that Edward Snowden stole from the National Security Agency while working as an NSA contractor. Then-Attorney General Holder’s Justice Department quickly charged Snowden with felonies for theft of government property and mishandling classified information. Last week, however, Holder praised Snowden. “I think that he actually performed a public service by raising the debate that we engaged in and by the changes that we made,” Holder said. This seems like an improbable claim. Snowden compromised scores of surveillance techniques, representing billions of dollars of investments over many years. U.S. firms that secretly cooperated with government intelligence agencies stopped doing so to the extent they could, and public defiance became the business-compelled norm. Firms made encryption more readily available and easier to use, which made it harder for the U.S. government to monitor communications and access data. Many foreign governments responded with countermeasures like data localization laws, tighter privacy rules, and closer judicial scrutiny of U.S. collection practices. The Defense Department claimed that the “scope of the compromised knowledge related to US intelligence capabilities” as a result of Snowden was “staggering.” This claim is unverifiable but seems plausible in light of the breadth of and reaction to the disclosures. The intelligence losses extend beyond counterterrorism, the main context in which these issues are typically discussed. NSA collections undergird every element of U.S. national security and foreign policy—including its extensive military operations around the globe, its pervasive diplomatic engagements, and its numerous economic negotiations and initiatives. Knowledge of what an adversary or other foreign intelligence target is doing or planning gives the United States a huge advantage in its myriad international affairs, and is central pillar of American power. Such knowledge is harder to come by as a result of Snowden. And yet Holder is still right. At the dawn of the Snowden revelations, many wondered (and hoped) that the U.S. intelligence community would be destroyed. But the opposite has happened. Despite undoubted intelligence losses, new collection barriers, and diplomatic embarrassments, the community has emerged as a stronger organization despite, indeed because of, Snowden. Snowden forced the intelligence community out of its suboptimal and unsustainable obsession with secrecy. “Before the unauthorized disclosures, we were always conservative about discussing specifics of our collection programs, based on the truism that the more adversaries know about what we're doing, the more they can avoid our surveillance,” Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said in 2013. Post-Snowden, the intelligence community operates on the principle that secrecy is not an absolute value, but one that needs to be traded off for other values, including domestic legitimacy. Snowden made it realize that, in the words of former NSA Director Michael Hayden, “although the public cannot be briefed on everything, there has to be enough out there so that the majority of the population believe what they are doing is acceptable.” Forced transparency meant that the intelligence community had to justify itself before the American people for the first time ever—about what it did in the domestic arena and abroad, about the legality of and accountability for its actions, and about its importance to U.S. national security. It had to open itself up to through scrutiny and judgment by many new institutions, including the President’s Review Group, and a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB). Initially this was a painful, even bewildering process since the intelligence community had no experience at, and thus wasn’t any good at, explaining itself. But the transparency turned out to bring many benefits. First, the intelligence community opened up. It got much better at talking to the public. And the sky did not fall. Second, the intelligence community had a good story to tell. Credible public evidence emerged that the NSA was a thoroughly accountable institution performing a vital intelligence role. “Every program was authorized and approved, and whatever one thinks of the programs, it was not a case of running amok or exceeding its authority,” said civil libertarian and Chicago law professor Geoffrey Stone, a Review Group member. And the value of NSA programs were publicly revealed more extensively than ever. The PCLOB concluded that the 702 PRISM and upstream programs “played a key role in discovering and disrupting specific terrorist plots aimed at the United States and other countries.” These claims by outsiders to (and in some instances, adversary critics of) the intelligence community are significantly more credible, and legitimizing, than when the community itself makes the same sorts of claim. Third, the main criticisms of the NSA ended up having silver linings. It emerged from the Snowden documents (and further voluntary releases by the government) that the NSA sometimes had problems complying with judicial orders, usually because of the difficulty of meshing legal directives with extraordinary complex technical collection processes. And yet these embarrassments also showed that the FISA court that monitors the NSA in secret was not, as many claimed, a rubber stamp. It was, instead, an important independent check on NSA activities. As a result of Snowden, the FISA court is a much more credible institution that can and in the future will be relied upon more thoroughly to monitor expanded NSA activities in secret. Another criticism of the NSA was that its aggressive collection processes abroad did not consider the rights and interests of foreign individuals and firms. The main response was Presidential Policy Directive 28, which imposed restraints on collection abroad in the interests of non-U.S. citizens. PPD 28 does not have sharp teeth and, while it has reportedly been a pain to implement, will not likely have a material impact on U.S. collection practices. Like many post-Snowden reforms, it imposes process and oversight constraints and forces NSA to be more prudent in its collection practices. PPD-28 (along with the Judicial Redress Act, which extended Privacy Act protections to foreign citizens) has the side-benefit that the United States can now proudly and truthfully claim to have the most robust protections for non-citizens of any signals collection agency in the world. Fourth, and perhaps most surprisingly, the intelligence community has been able to maintain and strengthen the legal authorities for its collection practices. The bulk telephone metadata program was legally and on the merits the most controversial program that Snowden revealed, and the one that the NSA seemed least interested in preserving. The USA Freedom Act made some important reforms to this program—most notably, by replacing NSA collection and storage of the metadata with carrier storage of the data and by requiring more limited NSA querying of the data pursuant to court approval. And yet the NSA has ended up in a stronger position as a result. It gets access “a greater volume of call records” than before, according to the NSA general counsel, and probably at a lower cost to itself, since it no longer needs to store and organize the massive quantities of data. And even more importantly, the program has now been vetted publicly and expressly baked into the legal system, giving it a legitimacy and almost certainly a longevity that it never could have achieved in secret. The improbable preservation and strengthening of the bulk telephone metadata program—the least valuable and hardest-to-justify of the programs that Snowden revealed—is emblematic of the types of changes Snowden wrought. Few if any important intelligence collection programs have ended as a result of Snowden, and the USA Freedom Act reforms actually expanded some intelligence community authorities. The intelligence community has had to subject itself to more scrutiny and process checks, and it has had to trim its sails a bit to make its practices more proportional to the ends it seeks. But the transparency resulted in public debates that concluded that the NSA practices were in the round worth preserving. From the baseline of what almost everyone expected when the scale of Snowden’s revelations first became apparent, the intelligence community, and especially the NSA, have emerged in astonishingly good shape. The NSA is still very much in the business of aggressive signals intelligence around the globe. Its domestic legal authorities are sounder. Its value is more apparent to the American public. It is much more adept at public diplomacy. And its central and expanding role going forward—not just for signals intelligence collection, but for cybersecurity and offensive cyber operations—are secure. These are but some of the public services for which the U.S. government has Snowden to thank.Her Universe’s Ashley Eckstein Cosplays as the Star Wars Character She Voices Ashley Eckstein is a very talented 34-year-old. Early in her acting career, she appeared as Muffy on the Disney Channel’s That’s So Raven. She later went on to found the lady’s sci-fi clothing company Her Universe where she also models most of the clothing on their website. Baseball fans like myself also know her as the wife of former World Series MVP David Eckstein (they married at Disney World!) But many people know her as the voice of Ahsoka Tano, a character that made its debut on Star Wars: The Clone Wars in 2008. Her role was announced eight years ago today. To celebrate, Ashley posted an Instagram of her dressing up as Ahsoka and the result is unbelievable. I never would’ve known it was her under all the makeup. Happy Anniversary, Ahsoka, and thanks for everything Ashley!A new Reuters poll has found an overwhelming number of Americans opposed to attacking Syria, with only 10 percent in favor and 61 percent firmly averse to the idea. Even if the Syrian government began using chemical weapons, posed as a separate question in the poll, the number in support is only 27 percent, well below the 44 percent that remain opposed. This is the second poll in as many days reflecting an opposition to starting a new war in Syria, with a NY Times/CBS poll yesterday showing a 24-63 percent opposition in a differently worded question about “responsibility” to attack Syria on behalf of the rebels. That poll also showed opposition to attacking North Korea, something not mentioned in today’s. The Obama Administration has yet to comment on the popular opposition, but reports suggest that they are moving toward arming the rebels, perhaps seeing his as a more politically palatable alternative to a direct invasion. Last 5 posts by Jason DitzThis page serves as a partial list of countries by adult mean body weight and incidence of obese and overweight populations as calculated by body mass index (BMI). The data for 2014 was first published by the World Health Organization in 2015. Methodology [ edit ] Mean body mass index (BMI) provides a simplified measure of the comparative weight of populations on a country by country basis. BMI calculates a person's mass (weight) divided by the square of their height. An individual with a BMI of 25 kg/m2 or more is considered overweight. An individual with a BMI of 30 kg/m2 or more is considered obese. The data highlighted on this page comes from World Health Organization statistics for adult (18 years old and older) populations. Mean BMI data is shown separately for males and females, as well as a combined figure. Mean data highlights the central tendency of the population data and is but one method of calculating relative body weight between populations. Limitations on the usefulness of comparative BMI data [ edit ] There are significant limitations to the usefulness of comparative BMI data cited by both the medical community and statisticians.[1] BMI data has significant weaknesses in terms of scalability and in accounting for variations in physical characteristics. WHO Data on Mean BMI (2014) [ edit ] Data published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2015.[2] WHO Data on Prevalence of Obesity (BMI ≥ 30kg/m2) (2016) [ edit ] Data published in 2017.[3] WHO Data on Prevalence of Overweight (BMI ≥ 25kg/m2) (2014) [ edit ] Data published in 2015.[4]The Project Gutenberg EBook of Maria, by Mary Wollstonecraft This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: Maria The Wrongs of Woman Author: Mary Wollstonecraft Release Date: March 8, 2006 [EBook #134] Last Updated: November 20, 2016 Language: English Character set encoding: UTF-8 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MARIA *** Produced by Judith Boss and David Widger MARIA or The Wrongs of Woman by MARY WOLLSTONECRAFT (1759-1797) After the edition of 1798 ============================================================ Original Etext Editor’s Note: In editing the electronic text I have put footnotes at the bottom of the paragraph to which they refer. This sometimes means that I have moved the text of the footnote to maintain proximity to the text to which it refers. Spellings as in the original are retained; only obvious typographical errors have been corrected. ============================================================= MARIA or The Wrongs of Woman PREFACE THE PUBLIC are here presented with the last literary attempt of an author, whose fame has been uncommonly extensive, and whose talents have probably been most admired, by the persons by whom talents are estimated with the greatest accuracy and discrimination. There are few, to whom her writings could in any case have given pleasure, that would have wished that this fragment should have been suppressed, because it is a fragment. There is a sentiment, very dear to minds of taste and imagination, that finds a melancholy delight in contemplating these unfinished productions of genius, these sketches of what, if they had been filled up in a manner adequate to the writer’s conception, would perhaps have given a new impulse to the manners of a world. The purpose and structure of the following work, had long formed a favourite subject of meditation with its author, and she judged them capable of producing an important effect. The composition had been in progress for a period of twelve months. She was anxious to do justice to her conception, and recommenced and revised the manuscript several different times. So much of it as is here given to the public, she was far from considering as finished, and, in a letter to a friend directly written on this subject, she says, “I am perfectly aware that some of the incidents ought to be transposed, and heightened by more harmonious shading; and I wished in some degree to avail myself of criticism, before I began to adjust my events into a story, the outline of which I had sketched in my mind.” * The only friends to whom the author communicated her manuscript, were Mr. Dyson, the translator of the Sorcerer, and the present editor; and it was impossible for the most inexperienced author to display a stronger desire of profiting by the censures and sentiments that might be suggested.** * A more copious extract of this letter is subjoined to the author’s preface. ** The part communicated consisted of the first fourteen chapters. In revising these sheets for the press, it was necessary for the editor, in some places, to connect the more finished parts with the pages of an older copy, and a line or two in addition sometimes appeared requisite for that purpose. Wherever such a liberty has been taken, the additional phrases will be found inclosed in brackets; it being the editor’s most earnest desire to intrude nothing of himself into the work, but to give to the public the words, as well as ideas, of the real author. What follows in the ensuing pages, is not a preface regularly drawn out by the author, but merely hints for a preface, which, though never filled up in the manner the writer intended, appeared to be worth preserving. W. GODWIN. AUTHOR’S PREFACE THE WRONGS OF WOMAN, like the wrongs of the oppressed part of mankind, may be deemed necessary by their oppressors: but surely there are a few, who will dare to advance before the improvement of the age, and grant that my sketches are not the abortion of a distempered fancy, or the strong delineations of a wounded heart. In writing this novel, I have rather endeavoured to pourtray passions than manners. In many instances I could have made the incidents more dramatic, would I have sacrificed my main object, the desire of exhibiting the misery and oppression, peculiar to women, that arise out of the partial laws and customs of society. In the invention of the story, this view restrained my fancy; and the history ought rather to be considered, as of woman, than of an individual. The sentiments I have embodied. In many works of this species, the hero is allowed to be mortal, and to become wise and virtuous as well as happy, by a train of events and circumstances. The heroines, on the contrary, are to be born immaculate, and to act like goddesses of wisdom, just come forth highly finished Minervas from the head of Jove. [The following is an extract of a letter from the author to a friend, to whom she communicated her manuscript.] For my part, I cannot suppose any situation more distressing, than for a woman of sensibility, with an improving mind, to be bound to such a man as I have described for life; obliged to renounce all the humanizing affections, and to avoid cultivating her taste, lest her perception of grace and refinement of sentiment, should sharpen to agony the pangs of disappointment. Love, in which the imagination mingles its bewitching colouring, must be fostered by delicacy. I should despise, or rather call her an ordinary woman, who could endure such a husband as I have sketched. These appear to me (matrimonial despotism of heart and conduct) to be the peculiar Wrongs of Woman, because they degrade the mind. What are termed great misfortunes, may more forcibly impress the mind of common readers; they have more of what may justly be termed stage-effect; but it is the delineation of finer sensations, which, in my opinion, constitutes the merit of our best novels. This is what I have in view; and to show the wrongs of different classes of women, equally oppressive, though, from the difference of education, necessarily various. CHAPTER 1 ABODES OF HORROR have frequently been described, and castles, filled with spectres and chimeras, conjured up by the magic spell of genius to harrow the soul, and absorb the wondering mind. But, formed of such stuff as dreams are made of, what were they to the mansion of despair, in one corner of which Maria sat, endeavouring to recall her scattered thoughts! Surprise, astonishment, that bordered on distraction, seemed to have suspended her faculties, till, waking by degrees to a keen sense of anguish, a whirlwind of rage and indignation roused her torpid pulse. One recollection with frightful velocity following another, threatened to fire her brain, and make her a fit companion for the terrific inhabitants, whose groans and shrieks were no unsubstantial sounds of whistling winds, or startled birds, modulated by a romantic fancy, which amuse while they affright; but such tones of misery as carry a dreadful certainty directly to the heart. What effect must they then have produced on one, true to the touch of sympathy, and tortured by maternal apprehension! Her infant’s image was continually floating on Maria’s sight, and the first smile of intelligence remembered, as none but a mother, an unhappy mother, can conceive. She heard her half speaking half cooing, and felt the little twinkling fingers on her burning bosom—a bosom bursting with the nutriment for which this cherished child might now be pining in vain. From a stranger she could indeed receive the maternal aliment, Maria was grieved at the thought—but who would watch her with a mother’s tenderness, a mother’s self-denial? The retreating shadows of former sorrows rushed back in a gloomy train, and seemed to be pictured on the walls of her prison, magnified by the state of mind in which they were viewed—Still she mourned for her child, lamented she was a daughter, and anticipated the aggravated ills of life that her sex rendered almost inevitable, even while dreading she was no more. To think that she was blotted out of existence was agony, when the imagination had been long employed to expand her faculties; yet to suppose her turned adrift on an unknown sea, was scarcely less afflicting. After being two days the prey of impetuous, varying emotions, Maria began to reflect more calmly on her present situation, for she had actually been rendered incapable of sober reflection, by the discovery of the act of atrocity of which she was the victim. She could not have imagined, that, in all the fermentation of civilized depravity, a similar plot could have entered a human mind. She had been stunned by an unexpected blow; yet life, however joyless, was not to be indolently resigned, or misery endured without exertion, and proudly termed patience. She had hitherto meditated only to point the dart of anguish, and suppressed the heart heavings of indignant nature merely by the force of contempt. Now she endeavoured to brace her mind to fortitude, and to ask herself what was to be her employment in her dreary cell? Was it not to effect her escape, to fly to the succour of her child, and to baffle the selfish schemes of her tyrant—her husband? These thoughts roused her sleeping spirit, and the self-possession returned, that seemed to have abandoned her in the infernal solitude into which she had been precipitated. The first emotions of overwhelming impatience began to subside, and resentment gave place to tenderness, and more tranquil meditation; though anger once more stopt the calm current of reflection when she attempted to move her manacled arms. But this was an outrage that could only excite momentary feelings of scorn, which evaporated in a faint smile; for Maria was far from thinking a personal insult the most difficult to endure with magnanimous indifference. She approached the small grated window of her chamber, and for a considerable time only regarded the blue expanse; though it commanded a view of a desolate garden, and of part of a huge pile of buildings, that, after having been suffered, for half a century, to fall to decay, had undergone some clumsy repairs, merely to render it habitable. The ivy had
there I am amazed people can wait for heroin packages. I hate waiting for weed but I don't start going thru withdrawl. Post Extras: Slayer1024 Registered: 03/08/11 Posts: 397 Loc: At his place ^^ Last seen: 4 years, 7 months Stranger ShroomerRegistered: 03/08/11Loc: At his place ^^Last seen: 4 years, 7 months Re: The most popular drugs bought with bitcoin on Silk Road [Re: TheApprentice] #19343513 - 12/29/13 10:56 PM (5 years, 1 month ago) Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply Quote: TheApprentice said: I thought heroin would be on there 2 weeks shipping for heroin no junkie has time for that. Even if it's 2-4 day shipping they wouldn't wait. -------------------- If it's not white, it's not right. RR Post Extras: D.M.T Registered: 10/31/09 Posts: 10,989 Loc: In your brain Last seen: 5 days, 6 hours Shroomery ContaminantRegistered: 10/31/09Loc: In your brainLast seen: 5 days, 6 hours Re: The most popular drugs bought with bitcoin on Silk Road [Re: Slayer1024] #19343540 - 12/29/13 11:01 PM (5 years, 1 month ago) Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply With all the weed in the US, UK and Australia, I'm surprised it's #3 on the list though I guess I shouldn't be since MoM has had its niche since the conception of the internet. not surprised how popular NBOMe is in the US. it's the 'new acid'. NBOMes arent that bad (I rather liked 25c despite the side effects it carried) but that phrase makes me Post Extras: People buying NBOMes mad cheap and selling it as Lucy, no shame Post Extras: Why the fuck would people buy weed online? -------------------- Random topics you may find interesting Post Extras: Quote: KingKnowledge said: Why the fuck would people buy weed online? Their local weed sucks and they can get the best weed world that way. The difference in cost in oz of weed in NYC and california is huge too. Post Extras: I'm surprised LSD was near the top on all 3 lists, I guess more people like to trip then I thought. Post Extras: D.M.T Registered: 10/31/09 Posts: 10,989 Loc: In your brain Last seen: 5 days, 6 hours Shroomery ContaminantRegistered: 10/31/09Loc: In your brainLast seen: 5 days, 6 hours Re: The most popular drugs bought with bitcoin on Silk Road [Re: my3rdeye] #19343852 - 12/29/13 11:59 PM (5 years, 1 month ago) Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply Quote: my3rdeye said: Quote: KingKnowledge said: Why the fuck would people buy weed online? Their local weed sucks and they can get the best weed world that way. The difference in cost in oz of weed in NYC and california is huge too. I don't know anywhere outside of Mexico the local weed sucks in North America. It's the imported shit that sucks. unless you're buying bulk often from legal states I can't see the advantage of buying weed online if not to say 'I smoked bud from X, Y, and Z land' Post Extras: Quote: Greendreams said: I'm surprised LSD was near the top on all 3 lists, I guess more people like to trip then I thought. That was basically all anyone that I knew used it for most of my friends enjoy tripping though good lsd with tons of reviews mail ordered to your door? yes please -------------------- Free Spore Ring Canada Edited by A Day InThe Life (12/30/13 02:40 AM) Post Extras: Quote: A Day InThe Life said: That was basically all anyone that I knew used it for most of my friends enjoy tripping though good lsd with tons of reviews mail ordered to your door? yes please Too bad they didn't do Canadian user survey. I saw LSD prints on there that my guy in real life sells for much less, almost half as much. LSD would have been the last thing i would have bought if I had used SR. Post Extras: Quote: my3rdeye said: Quote: A Day InThe Life said: That was basically all anyone that I knew used it for most of my friends enjoy tripping though good lsd with tons of reviews mail ordered to your door? yes please Too bad they didn't do Canadian user survey. I saw LSD prints on there that my guy in real life sells for much less, almost half as much. LSD would have been the last thing i would have bought if I had used SR. Really? -------------------- Free Spore Ring Canada Post Extras: I guessed acid before I clicked on this. It just seems like the people who would actually seek out a black marketplace on the internet are more likely to buy something like that than say, coke or weed. -------------------- ---------> Acacia confusa trip report <-------- ############ DPT HCL trip report with Q&A ########### Follow my psychedelic instagram @psychedelicpage Post Extras: availability is the biggest contributor and the SR has the most availability in the world ever im not surprised molly is the most popular drug -------------------- Constantly checking my dick and nips to see if im not dying Post Extras: Quote: Greendreams said: I'm surprised LSD was near the top on all 3 lists, I guess more people like to trip then I thought. I guess not many people have real life access to it, also, it ships too easily. Post Extras:BERLIN (Reuters) - The next European Central Bank president should come from Germany, German conservative politicians said on Monday, ramping up pressure on what they see as too much free-spending by the ECB and not enough rigour. The head quarter of the European Central Bank (ECB) is illuminated with a giant euro sign at the start of the "Luminale, light and building" event in Frankfurt, Germany, March 12, 2016. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach One said the current president, Italian Mario Draghi, had weakened the ECB’s reputation. Such conservatives have complained loudly in recent weeks that the ECB’s ultra-low rates are creating a “gaping hole” in savers’ finances and pensioners’ retirement plans as returns have dropped. Germany also has a long history of preferring strict fiscal and monetary policy. Hans-Peter Friedrich, a leading lawmaker for the Christian Social Union (CSU) and former interior minister, told mass-selling daily Bild the policy of current ECB President Mario Draghi, an Italian, had “lead to a massive loss of credibility. “The next ECB chief must be a German, who feels bound to the German Bundesbank’s tradition of monetary stability,” Friedrich added. Hans-Peter Uhl, the CSU’s spokesman on interior affairs, called for a German financial specialist to head the central bank. Meanwhile, Markus Soeder, finance minister for the state of Bavaria, told the Bild am Sonntag paper it was time for a “change of direction” and more German influence. A spokeswoman for the German Finance Ministry said the question of who will succeed Draghi was not relevant at present since he is not due to step down until November 2019. Nonetheless, the fact that some lawmakers in Merkel’s coalition government are raising the topic now underscores how fraught relations between the euro zone’s biggest country and Draghi have become. Mario Gruppe, an economist at Nord LB, described the latest comments as a new episode in a serial called “The Germans get annoyed about monetary policy”. “It shows that unhappiness among German politicians about the ECB is increasing. And if there are no signs of change, the tone should get even louder,” he said. However, Gruppe does not expect a serious debate about Draghi’s successor for another two years. PRUSSIAN HELMET Early on in his term as president, Draghi was presented with a black-and-gold spiked helmet dating from 1871 by Bild to symbolise the newspaper’s confidence that the Italian boss would stick to Prussian-style discipline against inflation. But relations with Europe’s biggest economy have soured as the central bank has unleashed round after round of monetary easing, including cutting its deposit rate into negative territory and expanding asset buys, in an effort to stimulate growth and stave off the threat of deflation. A storm of protest erupted in thrifty Germany after Draghi last month described the idea of “helicopter money” - sending money directly to citizens - as a “very interesting” - if unexamined - concept. Last week, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said the ECB’s policy was causing “extraordinary problems” for banks and risks undermining support for European integration and reportedly blamed its policy. The ECB itself is not immune to the criticism and Draghi recently bemoaned what he described as the “nein zu allem” (“no to everything”) approach - a swipe at Germany.RANGERS ON DEMAND Watch Most Recent Highlights of Prust in Action Watch Interview: Prust Looks Back on 2009-10 Season Watch Known throughout the NHL for toughness, winger Brandon Prust showed a scoring touch after coming to the Rangers last season. He had goals in three straight April games during the push for the playoffs. New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with forward Brandon Prust on a new contract.Prust, 26, skated in 69 games with the Rangers and Calgary Flames last season, registering five goals and nine assists for 14 points, along with 163 penalty minutes and a plus-nine rating. He established career-highs in goals, assists, points, plus/minus rating and penalty minutes. He also notched a career-high, three game-winning goals.Prust made his Rangers debut on February 2 at Los Angeles after being acquired from Calgary along with Olli Jokinen, in exchange for Christopher Higgins and Ales Kotalik, earlier that day. He finished the season with 25 fighting majors, ranking third in the league and ninth in penalty minutes.He tallied a career-high, five-game point streak from April 2 at Tampa Bay to April 9 vs. Philadelphia (three goals and two assists), including the game-winning goal in back-to-back contests on April 2 at Tampa Bay and April 3 at Florida. Prust recorded four points (three goals and one assist) on the Rangers season-high, six-game road trip from March 25 at New Jersey to April 6 at Buffalo.He notched his first goal as a Ranger while skating in his 100th career NHL game on March 10 at New Jersey, and recorded his first point as a Blueshirt with an assist on February 6 vs. New Jersey.Prior to joining the Rangers, Prust led Calgary with 98 penalty minutes and ranked second on the Flames with a plus-six rating at the time of his trade.The 5-11, 195-pounder has appeared in 115 career NHL games with the Rangers, Calgary Flames and Phoenix Coyotes, registering six goals and 11 assists for 17 points, along with 296 penalty minutes.In 2008-09, Prust began the season with Calgary before being traded to Phoenix along with Matthew Lombardi and a first round pick, in exchange for Olli Jokinen on March 9, 2009. He was dealt back to Calgary, in exchange for Jim Vandermeer on June 27.Prust made his NHL debut on November 1, 2006 at Detroit, as a member of the Flames, and he tallied his first career point with an assist on October 11, 2008 vs. Vancouver. His first goal was the game-winner in a 4-1 win at Phoenix on October 25, 2008.Prior to turning professional, Prust captured the 2005 CHL Memorial Cup as a member of the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).The London, Ontario native was originally selected as Calgary's third round draft choice, 70th overall, in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.3D fold effects are pretty popular nowadays, mostly because they have been integrated quite often in mobile apps. A beautiful example is the iOS Peek Calendar app. Thanks to CSS3 transformation and transitions, we can create a similar interaction in the browser! Sometimes these 3D effects feel too strong, unnecessary. It’s a point I can’t argue with. However, there will be cases when you need to load content, a process that requires time (even if it’s just half a second). In these cases an animation can be a nice way to replace a loading bar, or a loading gif. Besides, with the growth of native apps built on top of web frameworks, learning how to create complex CSS transformations is an ace up your sleeve ;) Creating the structure The HTML is structured in 2 main elements: an unordered list, containing the.cd-item blocks and wrapped in a <main> element, and a.cd-folding-panel element, containing the panel content (.cd-fold-content ) and the 2 folds (.left-fold and.right-fold ). <main class="cd-main"> <ul class="cd-gallery"> <li class="cd-item"> <a href="item-1.html"> <div> <h2>Title 1</h2> <p>Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur.</p> <b>View More</b> </div> </a> </li> <li class="cd-item"> <!-- content here --> </li> <!-- additional list items here --> </ul> <!--.cd-gallery --> </main> <!--.cd-main --> <div class="cd-folding-panel"> <div class="fold-left"></div> <!-- this is the left fold --> <div class="fold-right"></div> <!-- this is the right fold --> <div class="cd-fold-content"> <!-- content will be loaded using javascript --> </div> <a class="cd-close" href="#0"></a> </div> <!--.cd-folding-panel --> Adding style To realise our animation, we used CSS3 Transformations applied to the.left-fold,.right-fold,.cd-main and.cd-item elements. The 2 folds are created animating the ::after pseudo-elements of the.left-fold and.right-fold. On mobile, we animate only the right fold (.left-fold element has a display: none): by default, the.cd-folding-panel (and its child.right-panel ) has a position fixed and covers the entire viewport (but its visibility is set to hidden), while the.right-panel::after is translated to the left and rotated ( translateX(-100%) rotateY(-90deg), with transform-origin: right center ). When user clicks one of the.cd-item, the.cd-main content is translated to the right (using the.fold-is-open class), while the.right-fold::after is translated into the viewport and rotated back (using the.is-open class assigned to the.cd-folding-panel ). .cd-main { overflow-x: hidden; }.cd-main > * { transition: transform 0.5s 0.4s; }.cd-main.fold-is-open > * { /* on mobile - translate.cd-main content to the right when the.cd-folding-panel is open */ transform: translateX(100%); transition: transform 0.5s 0s; }.cd-folding-panel { position: fixed; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100vh; visibility: hidden; overflow: hidden; transition: visibility 0s 0.9s; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-left,.cd-folding-panel.fold-right { /* the :after elements of.fold-left and.fold-right are the 2 fold sides */ width: 100%; height: 100vh; overflow: hidden; /* enable a 3D-space for children elements */ perspective: 2000px; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-right { perspective-origin: 0% 50%; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-left { /* on mobile only the right fold side is visible */ display: none; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-right::after { /* 2 fold sides */ content: ''; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; height: 100%; width: 100%; transform-origin: right center; transform: translateX(-100%) rotateY(-90deg); transition: transform 0.5s 0.4s, background-color 0.5s 0.4s; }.cd-folding-panel.is-open { visibility: visible; transition: visibility 0s 0s; }.cd-folding-panel.is-open.fold-right::after { transform: translateX(0); transition: transform 0.5s 0s, background-color 0.5s 0s; } On desktop devices (viewport width > 1100px), both ::after pseudo-elements are animated: the.cd-folding-panel is now placed in the center of the viewport (width: 800px), the.left-panel and.right-panel have a float: left and width equal to half of their parent (400px). Their ::after pseudo-elements are both rotated (rotateY(-90deg)) and translated to the left (.left-panel::after - translateX(100%)) or to the right (.right-panel::after - translateX(-100%)). When user clicks one of the.cd-item, they are translated to the left ( :nth-of-type(2n+1) ) or to the right ( :nth-of-type(2n) ), while both ::after pseudo-elements are translated and rotated back (rotateY(0) translateX(0)). @media only screen and (min-width: 1100px) {.cd-item { width: 50%; float: left; transition: transform 0.5s 0.4s; }.fold-is-open.cd-item { transition: transform 0.5s 0s; transform: translateX(-400px); }.fold-is-open.cd-item:nth-of-type(2n) { transform: translateX(400px); } } @media only screen and (min-width: 1100px) {.cd-folding-panel { left: 50%; transform: translateX(-50%); width: 800px; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-left,.cd-folding-panel.fold-right { width: 50%; float: left; height: 100%; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-right { /* change perspective-origin so that the 2 fold sides have the same vanishing point */ perspective-origin: 0% 50%; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-right::after { transform-origin: right center; transform: translateX(-100%) rotateY(-90deg); }.cd-folding-panel.fold-left { display: block; /* change perspective-origin so that the 2 fold sides have the same vanishing point */ perspective-origin: 100% 50%; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-left::after { transform-origin: left center; transform: translateX(100%) rotateY(90deg); }.cd-folding-panel.is-open.fold-right::after,.cd-folding-panel.is-open.fold-left::after { transform: translateX(0); transition: transform 0.5s 0s, background-color 0.5s 0s; } } One important note: each ::after pseudo-element has, as default vanishing point for its 3D space, the center of its parent (so in our case, the center of the.left-panel and.right-panel ). For the animation to work properly, we changed perspective-origin of these 2 elements in order to have the center of the viewport as vanishing point. .cd-folding-panel.fold-right { perspective-origin: 0% 50%; }.cd-folding-panel.fold-left { perspective-origin: 100% 50%; } Events handling In the index.html file, the.cd-fold-content element is initially empty. When user selects one of the.cd-item elements, we used the load() function to insert the proper content inside the.cd-fold-content (we created a new html file - item-1.html, item-2.html,... - for each.cd-item in order to store the new content). Once the new html content has been inserted, the proper classes are assigned and the animation is triggered. /* open folding content */ $('.cd-gallery a').on('click', function(event){ event.preventDefault(); openItemInfo($(this).attr('href')); }); function openItemInfo(url) { /* check if mobile or desktop */ var mq = viewportSize(); if( $('.cd-gallery').offset().top > $(window).scrollTop() && mq!='mobile') { /* if content is visible above the.cd-gallery - scroll before opening the folding panel */ $('body,html').animate({'scrollTop': $('.cd-gallery').offset().top }, 100, function(){ toggleContent(url, true); }); } else { toggleContent(url, true); } } function toggleContent(url, bool) { if( bool ) { /* load and show new content */ $('.cd-fold-content').load(url+'.cd-fold-content > *', function(event){ $('body').addClass('overflow-hidden'); $('.cd-folding-panel').addClass('is-open'); $('.cd-main').addClass('fold-is-open'); }); } else { /* close the folding panel */ $('.cd-folding-panel').removeClass('is-open') $('.cd-main').removeClass('fold-is-open'); /*...*/ } } Note: we implemented a basic load() function to upload new content, but you may want to replace it with, for example, a proper $.ajax call in order to handle errors, beforeSend request etc. according to your project.Dayton, Ohio-The 16th year for the Dayton Dragons featured several major storylines. They included: The Streak Marches On The Dragons consecutive game sell-out streak continued through the 2015 season. After the final home game on September 7, the streak now stands at 1,121 consecutive sold-out games, an all-time record for sports in North America (see more on the sell-out streak below). Home Field Advantage On the field, the Dragons enjoyed one of their finest home seasons ever at Fifth Third Field. The Dragons posted a home record of 43-27, including nine consecutive home victories from July 9-21. Most notably, the home games featured an amazing variety of exciting, comeback wins, and thrilling finishes. The Dragons notched 12 "walk-off" wins at Fifth Third Field, three more than they enjoyed over the previous two seasons combined. From May 28-July 12 alone, seven of the Dragons 14 home victories came in walk-off style, including six extra-inning wins. For the year, the Dragons were 8-0 in extra inning games at home. New High Definition Video Board at Fifth Third Field The Dragons installed a new 2,050 square foot, high-definition video board at Fifth Third Field prior to the start of the 2015 season. The video board features the newest and latest high definition technology, and provides the clearest picture quality of any board ever utilized in a Minor League Baseball venue. The new addition is one of the first "13HD" video boards in a Minor League ballpark. Notably, only three of the 30 Major League Baseball stadiums have 13HD video boards. No Minor League ballpark featured a 13HD video board in 2014 or beforehand. The video board is 35 feet high by 65 feet wide, making it the tallest and widest in all of Single-A baseball and among the top five tallest and widest in any Minor League stadium. It has five times more display area than the previous video board at Fifth Third Field. It is five times larger than the previous board. 50/50 with Big Brothers/Big Sisters The Dragons introduced a new partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Miami Valley for a 50/50 Raffle at each Dragons home game. At each game, fans were able to purchase raffle tickets electronically from Big Brothers Big Sisters volunteers or at a stationary kiosk near the main entrance of Fifth Third Field. Through the use of mobile technology provided by Industry leader Pointstreak 5050, every raffle ticket sale is electronically tallied and updated in real time to display areas throughout the ballpark, letting fans know exactly how large that night's pot has become. New Friday Night Orange Jerseys The Dragons introduced a new orange uniform jersey that was worn by the team for all Friday games at Fifth Third Field. The jersey features "Dragons" in black script on the front, outlined in green and white. It also includes black piping around the sleeves and neck, and down the front of the jersey. The orange jersey became the fourth Dragons game jersey. The Dragons primary home jersey is white with green lettering worn with black sleeves. The Dragons road jersey is gray with black lettering and black trim. The Dragons also wear an alternate green jersey with white lettering that is worn with an alternate white cap. The green jerseys are primarily worn on Sundays. Expanded Dragons MVP Program The Dragons expanded their elementary school MVP Program into two additional counties in 2015, taking the program to more than 1,100 classrooms. A total of 274 classrooms in 34 schools in Miami and Warren counties were added to the program, which already included 842 classrooms in Montgomery, Greene, and Clark counties. In 2015, the program included 1,116 fourth and fifth grade classrooms in 183 schools over 48 school districts. About 34,000 children participated (up from 26,000 in 2014). The program completed its 10th year in 2015. Due to the support of the participating sponsors, the program is completely free of charge to the schools. How does the Dragons School MVP Program work? The teacher in each of the 1,116 classrooms over the five-county area selects five MVP's based on the teacher's judgment of performance, effort, citizenship, and improvement. The five MVPs selected by their teacher in each classroom receive four tickets to a Dragons game, tickets to a special Field Day event at the stadium during the season, an MVP certificate and a Dragons MVP hat. Dragons players and mascots visit selected classrooms over the course of the season. Additionally, 12 Dragons games during the season are designated as "MVP Game Nights." On those nights, one MVP gets to throw out the ceremonial first pitch to the game, another does an on-air interview during the Dragons game broadcast on Fox Sports 980, and another participates in an entertainment skit during the Dragons game. Two times each season, all classroom MVP's are invited to attend the Dragons MVP Field Day at Fifth Third Field and interact with Dragons players. The Dragons MVP Program presented by Bob Evans is also made possible by the generous support of Sinclair Community College, WDTN TV and Dayton's CW Television. Milano's Tap Room The Dragons introduced a major ballpark renovation in 2015 with the creation of the Milano's Tap Room at Fifth Third Field. Located on the first base side of the stadium, the Milano's Tap Room featured 10 different craft beer selections on tap that rotated throughout the season, spotlighting breweries and craft beers from around the world and those within the local community. The Dragons teamed up with two local craft beer experts in Heidelberg Distributing and Milano's Atlantic City Submarines to design the new concept. Located at the end of the first base concourse, the space was completely renovated into an open-air craft beer lover's paradise. The space was closely modeled after the popular Dayton-based Milano's chain. Season Review The Dragons season began on April 9 and concluded on September 7. Here are some of the facts and statistics: The Dragons completed the 2015 regular season with an attendance total for the year of 574,830. The Dragons have led all of Single-A baseball in attendance in each of their 16 seasons. Dayton averaged 8,212 per date over 70 home openings in 2015. Longest Sell-Outs Streaks in Professional Sports History No. Team League Years 1,121 Dayton Dragons Minor League Baseball 2000-current 820 Boston Red Sox Major League Baseball 2003-'13 814 Portland Trail Blazers National Basketball Association 1977-'95 662 Boston Celtics National Basketball Association 1980-'95 610 Chicago Bulls National Basketball Association 1987-'00 Dayton Dragons 2015 Recap Final Record: 71-68 First Half: 39-31 (3rd in Eastern Division) Second Half: 32-37 (6th in Eastern Division) Final Attendance: 574,830 Per Game Attendance Average: 8,212 So Close, Again In 2014, the Dragons playoff hopes can down to the final day of the regular before they were eliminated as the club came within one win of qualifying for post-season play. In 2015, they came even closer, but again came up short. The Dragons finished the first half with a 39-31 record, finishing in a virtual tie with the Great Lakes Loons for the East Division wildcard spot. But the Loons, who played two fewer games due to rain, finished at 38-30. Their.559 winning percentage was two points better than the Dragons mark of.557, just enough to keep the Dragons out of the playoffs. Just as had been the came in 2014, one more Dragons win, any win, would have put the Dragons in the post-season hunt for the Midwest League championship. 2015 Dragons Midwest League Full-Season All-Star: Tyler Mahle, Right-handed Starting Pitcher 2015 Dragons Midwest League All-Star Game Participants: Tyler Mahle, Starting Pitcher Tejay Antone, Starting Pitcher Brian Hunter, Relief Pitcher Midwest League Batter/Pitcher of the Month Brian O'Grady MWL Batter of the Month in June (.326, 5 HR, 19 RBI) Tyler Mahle MWL Pitcher of the Month in July (4-0, 0.58 ERA) 2015 Dragons Team Leaders Batting Batting Average: Jonathan Reynoso,.273 Home Runs: Narciso Crook, 9 Runs Batted In: Gavin LaValley, 53 Stolen Bases: Brian O'Grady, 21 Games Played: Gavin LaValley, 125 Pitching Victories: Tyler Mahle, 13 Earned Run Average: Tyler Mahle, 2.43 Saves: Conor Krauss, 9 Games Pitched: Conor Krauss, 42 Innings Pitched: Wyatt Strahan, 164.1 Dragons 2015 Midwest League Leaders Innings Pitched: Wyatt Strahan, 164.1, first Games Started, Pitcher: Wyatt Strahan, 28, tied for first Other Dragons on the League Leader Board Wins: Tyler Mahle, 13, second Earned Run Average: Tyler Mahle, 2.39, second Innings Pitched: Tejay Antone, 158, second Innings Pitched: Tyler Mahle, 152, third Strikeouts: Tyler Mahle, 135, third Earned Run Average: Jake Paulson, 2.60, fourth Strikeouts: Wyatt Strahan, 132, fourth Opponent Batting Average: Jake Paulson,.233, fourth At-Bats: Luis Gonzalez, 497, fourth Earned Run Average: Wyatt Strahan, 2.80, eighth Earned Run Average: Tejay Antone, 2.96, 10th Dragons Club Records Set in 2015 Most Consecutive Home Runs, Game 3, June 13 vs. Beloit (see description below) Most Triples, Season 49 (previous record: 48 in 2014) Fewest Walks Allowed, Season 371 (previous record: 396 in 2001) Fewest Home Runs Allowed, Season 54 (previous record: 84 in 2011 and 2014) Notable Dragons Performances On June 13 at Fifth Third Field, three consecutive Dragons batters blasted home runs against the Beloit Snappers. In the second inning, Jose Ortiz started the back-to-back-to-back home run barrage with a two-run shot to center field. Jimmy Pickens hit the very next pitch for a home run to center, and Luis Gonzalez made it three in a row when he hit the second pitch for a home run to left. Four pitches-three home runs. It was the first time in franchise history that three straight Dragons batters connected on home runs. One of the season's most exciting finishes took place at Fifth Third Field on July 1. The Dragons and the Great Lakes Loons were tied 2-2 in the top of the ninth inning when the Loons Justin Chigbogu belted a two-out, two-run home run to give the Loons a 4-2 lead. In the bottom of the ninth, the Dragons were down to their final out with a runner at first base when Shed Long drilled a triple off the center field fence to make it 4-3. After back-to-back walks loaded the bases, Ronald Bueno singled to right field, driving in Long with the tying run and Jimmy Pickens with the winning run to give the Dragons a walk-off victory. While the July 1 game was thrilling, the Dragons comeback win on Sunday, July 12 against the Lansing Lugnuts was the game of the year at Fifth Third Field. The Dragons trailed 6-5 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth when Paul Kronenfeld lined a single to left field to drive in Jonathan Reynoso to tie the game. On the same play, Luis Gonzalez was tagged out at the plate attempting to score from second with what would have been the winning run, sending the game to extra innings. Lansing broke the 6-6 tie with a run in the top of the 11th, only to see the Dragons, again down to their final out, score once in the bottom of the 11th to send the game to the 12th. Lansing loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the 12th, but Dragons pitcher Jacob Moody got out of the jam. The game appeared to be lost in the top of the 13th when Lansing broke through for two runs to take a 9-7 lead. But in the bottom of the 13th, Kronenfeld again came through with a game-tying two-run triple, and Argenis Aldazoro drove in Kronenfeld with a single to right to give the Dragons a 10-9 win in the 13-inning marathon that finished one minute short of four hours. Mr. Eight and Two-Thirds: Dragons pitcher Tejay Antone came within a strike, twice, of tossing the first nine-inning shutout by a Dayton pitcher since 2008, but he came up short both times. On June 17, Antone and Dragons led South Bend 3-0 with two outs in the ninth, but Tejay gave up a two-out, two-strike RBI hit. He still earned the win in a 3-1 Dragons victory. Then on July 23 at Fifth Third Field against West Michigan, Antone dominated West Michigan and was within one strike of a 1-0 win. With two outs in the ninth, the bases were empty, and Antone had not even allowed a runner past first base in the game. But incredibly, Mike Gerber belted a game-tying home run on Antone's 100th pitch of the night. Antone did not face another batter. The Dragons eventually won the game in 13 innings. The Dragons connected on two inside-the-park home runs in 2015, the first at Fifth Third Field since Billy Hamilton did it in 2011. Paul Kronenfeld had an inside-the-parker against Fort Wayne on May 4, and Shed Long circled the bases against Lake County on August 31. Dayton's Brian O'Grady enjoyed an amazing power surge in mid-June on the way to being selected Midwest League Batter of the Month. Twice in an eight-day period, O'Grady hit two home runs in one game. He did it against Wisconsin on June 12 and against Lake County on June 20. Both games were played at Fifth Third Field. Cory Thompson, Paul Kronenfeld, and Narciso Crook also enjoyed two-homer games for the Dragons in 2015. The Dragons beat South Bend on September 2 by a score of 10-1. What made the game particularly unique was that Dragons pitchers Jake Paulson and Jacob Moody did not surrender a fly ball over the entire game. No Dragons outfielder recorded a putout. Only three balls left the infield, all on base hits. Other 2015 Highlights at Fifth Third Field: Hometown Heroes Celebration Nights: Two times during the 2015 baseball season, the Dragons partnered with the Dayton Development Coalition and their partners to pay tribute to all service men and women associated with Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the Springfield Air National Guard Base. Festivities included a welcome home to servicemen returning from their deployment, a video greeting card from an airman serving oversees to his family back in the Dayton region, and swearing in ceremonies for a group of local Air Force recruits. Dates were May 30 and August 15. Home Run for Life: Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield and the Dragons teamed up to provide five kids battling serious medical conditions with once-in-a-lifetime opportunities during Dragons games. Each honoree got to take an honorary home run "lap" around the bases of Fifth Third Field during a game and receive an honorary bat from Dragons manager Jose Nieves. Dates were May 6, May 27, June 10, July 22, and August 12. Community All-Stars: For the fourth straight year, the Dragons Community All-Stars Program honored individuals who have gone above and beyond to improve the quality of life in the Miami Valley. From fire fighters to first responders to volunteers and good Samaritans, the Dragons honored 35 all-stars, five of whom appeared on the field during a game with a tribute video telling their story. Dates were May 8, June 15, July 9, August 11, and August 27. Honor Them : For the second year in 2015, the Dragons partnered with Dayton Area Ford Dealers to honor Miami Valley veterans at Dayton Dragons games. The Honor Them program was a season-long tribute
For example, Elder David A. Bednar states, “Our physical bodies make possible a breadth, a depth, and an intensity of experience that simply could not be obtained in our premortal existence. Thus, our relationships with other people, our capacity to recognize and act in accordance with truth, and our ability to obey the principles and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ are amplified through our physical bodies. In the school of mortality, we experience tenderness, love, kindness, happiness, sorrow, disappointment, pain, and even the challenges of physical limitations in way that prepare us for eternity. Simply stated, there are lessons and experiences we must have, as the scriptures describe, “according to the flesh.”” Daivd A. Bednar, “We Believe in Being Chaste,” Ensign, April 2013 conference, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/04/we-believe-in-being-chaste?lang=eng. [Back to manuscript]. [4] Analiesa Leonhardt, “The Sacrament of Birth,” SquareTwo, Vol. 3 No. 1, Spring 2010, http://squaretwo.org/Sq2ArticleLeonhardtBirth.html. [Back to manuscript]. [5] Alma Don Sorensen, “The Story of Eve,” in Alma Don Sorensen and Valerie Hudson Cassler, Women in Eternity, Women of Zion, Springville, Utah: Cedar Fort, pp. 68-101. [Back to manuscript]. [6] Dallin H. Oaks, “The Great Plan of Happiness,” Ensign, November 1993, pp. 72-75 [Back to manuscript]. [7] Russell M. Nelson, “Constancy Amid Change,” Ensign, October, 1993, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1993/10/constancy-amid-change?lang=eng. [Back to manuscript]. [8] Henry B. Eyring, “Daughters in the Covenant,” Ensign, April 2014, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/daughters-in-the-covenant?lang=eng. [Back to manuscript]. [9] Bruce C. Hafen and Marie K. Hafen, “Crossing Thresholds and Becoming Equal Partners,” Ensign, August 2007, pp. 24-29. [Back to manuscript]. [10] Aaronic Priesthood manual, “What is the priesthood?” https://www.lds.org/youth/learn/ap/priesthood-keys/what?lang=eng. [Back to manuscript]. [11] Analiesa Leonhardt, “The Sacrament of Birth,” SquareTwo, Vol. 3 No. 1, Spring 2010, http://squaretwo.org/Sq2ArticleLeonhardtBirth.html. [Back to manuscript]. [12] Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, LDS Church, February 9, 2008, p. 12. [Back to manuscript]. [13] James E. Faust, “The Prophetic Voice,” Ensign, May 1996, p.4. [Back to manuscript]. Full Citation for this Article: Cassler, V.H. (2016) "The Two Trees," SquareTwo, Vol. 9 No. 1 (Spring 2016), http://squaretwo.org/Sq2ArticleCasslerTwoTrees.html, accessed <give access date>. Would you like to comment on this article? Thoughtful, faithful comments of at least 100 words are welcome. Please submit to SquareTwo. COMMENTS: 4 Comments I. Bonnie J. Gonzales I appreciated this article, well written and from the perspective of a woman who is a convert and obviously has experienced a different perspective on how women are viewed. Thank you for putting my thoughts into words… The LDS church is of God, and as a woman I feel very much cherished and loved by my Father in Heaven. _______________________________________________________________________________ II. Lana Wimmer I've always felt the role of women and our unique contributions to the Kingdom of God should be recognized, and that women trying to get the priesthood are akin to men trying to get the power to give birth. If you reverse the situation it seems ridiculous! We have completely different roles, yet both are necessary and will help men and women both prepare themselves for eternal life. Thank you for the clarity you've brought to this ongoing debate. ________________________________________________________________________________ III. Russ Parker As for women and priesthood, I find the idea very intriguing that there may be a priestesshood which is conferred on women as part of their ability to bear children. Might I suggest that this priestesshood may have played a significant role in our pre-existence or first estate. Just as it appears that the male priesthood is responsible for getting us to the second tree, the tree of life, the female priestesshood may have played the role of preparing us for mortal life in our first estate. Women may have received their training in nurturing and teaching from our Heavenly Mother in the pre-existence with lots of practice on their sibling spirits. Just a thought. ______________________________________________________________ IV. Tom Kunz I love this article. It resonates deeply with me for two reasons. First, it explains the equality between men and women in a new and deeper way. Not just the what, but also the why. Second, it puts both trees and the Garden experience into a better perspective for me. It makes the temple endowment more meaningful and is consistent with recent changes. Thank you so much!Ammo Grrrll offers personal advice for single ladies in TRUMP MADE ME BREAK UP! She writes: A story appeared a few days after the election about a poor, troubled woman who had just started a new relationship with a real live man, but now was so upset by the election of President Trump whom she feared and hated, that she felt compelled to end her new relationship and hunker down in terror. I say: “Run, guy! You dodged a bullet!” Since Valentine’s Day was equidistant from last and this Friday, let’s discuss romance a few days late. Sometimes ladies observing my happy, long-term marriage (350 years in dog years) have asked me where to meet men. Most friends seeking companionship are not lifelong singles, but are widowed or divorced. Some have even asked me to fix them up. This has not gone at all well with one awesome exception. One attempt many years ago led to an awkward dinner party that seemed to last for days. Though I liked both of the individual “fix-upees” a lot, the hostility between them was palpable. They could have set a land speed record by breaking up in advance before dating. Ah, but that was nothing compared to the subtle attempt to seat an attractive, single Jewish woman next to a fit Israeli man at our Passover seder. As it happened, this macho man was a closeted gay guy, a rather important fact I learned later from my hairdresser whose friend was dating him. Oopsie. Some shadchen! (old country marriage broker). Luckily, they said, “Next year in Jerusalem” and each went their separate ways after the seder. No harm, no foul. So I’m pretty much out of the shadchen business. I did retire a winner, fixing up one of my best friends with the best friend of the Paranoid Texan, and it is going swimmingly. I could be an ecstatic brides “maid” (or, technically, “matron” of honor, which unfortunately, conjures up an image of a large, stern woman in charge of a women’s prison) in the near future. It does make me sad that many women looking for good men do not seem to know where to find them. I’m here to help. Movies are useless, with men and women always meeting “cute.” She drops her purse on the street, stuff falls all over, and a gorgeous man picks up her things. They bump heads going for the lipstick, eyes lock, hands touch. Most cities, you drop your purse on the street, you are never going to see its contents again, let alone the purse. If a guy does pick up stuff, he is likely to be a homeless guy lunging for your embarrassingly large secret stash of Fun Size Snickers. Now (trigger warning) I’m about to get very cis-normative here, so grab some Play-Doh. Ladies, with rare exceptions, men are not going to be at your yoga class, your line dancing class or your card-making class. They may be at your flower arranging class, but will only notice the flowers, see above. So where do appropriate men hang out? You know, the kind who are never even momentarily ambivalent about which restroom to use. You can look for a husband at the grocery store, another movie favorite, but they are likely to be someone else’s husband. With some impressive exceptions, single men do not shop or cook. Their fridges contain yogurt, mustard and bologna, many of which are expired, and beer. They go out a lot or eat things that can be microwaved and eaten on a paper plate or over the sink. If you do find a straight, single man who cooks, grab him! Men do go to strip clubs, but unless you are the one “dancing” around the maypole, you are not likely to attract anyone’s notice. Lot of competition there. Heck, Mr. AG gets distracted by a fully-clothed rabbit on our walks; trying to get his attention with several naked women one-third my age in the room would be beyond my meager ability to enchant. I noticed that there were a lot of men our age at Physical Therapy but, again, these tended to be married men. Single guys do not go to doctors. As Dave Barry says, men hope everything is a “sprain” that can be fixed with an Ace Bandage or denial. Men’s wives MAKE them go to doctors and monitor their rehab exercises. A carpenter who installed my new bookcases learned that I had a torn rotator cuff and promptly showed me that he had limited range of motion with his left arm. He said, “Do your exercises, ma’am! I was going through a divorce when this happened and had nobody to nag me to do them.” And you guys say, “Don’t nag!” like it’s a bad thing… Naturally, church or synagogue would be something to try. Many of these institutions even have clubs or outings for singles. But they will be heavily imbalanced toward the ladies. Mr. AG’s older brother says that in his Jewish senior singles group, simply not having a pot belly can elevate a man to the category of “hottie.” Lastly, we come to one of the best places to meet men. A place where the male to female ratio is exceedingly favorable. A place where, for some reason, few women go on a regular basis. I’m talking, of course, about the gun range. A marriage between two gun aficionados will not only provide a lifelong hobby to share, but could double your arsenal. Notice whether or not he has some cool guns. Notice whether or not he can reliably hit the target, a skill that translates to other skills, indicating dedication to patient practice and the wherewithal to afford a lot of ammo. Though much cheaper than golf, target shooting involves considerable expense. But it’s not the guns that will put the biggest crimp in your budget. It’s the ammo. Worth it, though! An afterthought: Next year, when texting holiday wishes to friends, avoid the temptation to abbreviate Valentine’s Day. Happy VD is nothing to wake up to first thing in the morning. And a big thank you to all the Facebook friends who believed the big fat lie I told nosy Facebook about my birth date. It wasn’t my birthday, but it warmed my heart that so many people sent kind greetings. Sir Walter Scott hit it on the nose when he wrote: “Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” Next year, just wish me a Happy Birthday any time in October.This article is about the unit of length. For the letter, see L. For other uses, see Ell (disambiguation) "Aune" redirects here. For the surname, see Aune (surname) Ell The ell was originally a cubit, later replaced by the cloth-ell or "double ell". General information Unit of Length Conversions 1 in...... is equal to... Inches 18 An ell (from Proto-Germanic *alinō, cognate with Latin ulna)[1] is a unit of measurement, originally a cubit, i.e., approximating the length of a man's arm from the elbow (elbow literally meant the bend (bow) of the arm (ell)) to the tip of the middle finger, or about 18 inches (457 mm); in later usage, any of several longer units.[2][3] In English-speaking countries, these included (until the 19th century) the Flemish ell (​3⁄ 4 of a yard), English ell (​1 1⁄ 4 yards) and French ell (​1 1⁄ 2 yards), some of which are thought to derive from a "double ell".[4][5] An ell-wand or ellwand was a rod of length one ell used for official measurement. Edward I of England required that every town have one. In Scotland, the Belt of Orion was called "the King's Ellwand".[6][7] Several national forms existed, with different lengths, including the Scottish ell (≈37 inches or 94 centimetres), the Flemish ell [el] (≈27 in or 68.6 cm), the French ell [aune] (≈54 in or 137.2 cm),[8] the Polish ell (≈31 in or 78.7 cm), the Danish alen (24 Danish inches or 2 Danish fod: 62.7708 cm), the Swedish aln (2 Swedish fot ≈59 cm) and the German ell [Elle] of different lengths in Frankfurt (54.7 cm), Cologne, Leipzig (Saxony) or Hamburg. Select customs were observed by English importers of Dutch textiles: although all cloths were bought by the Flemish ell, linen was sold by the English ell, but tapestry was sold by the Flemish ell.[8] The Viking ell was the measure from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger, about 18 inches. The Viking ell or primitive ell was used in Iceland up to the 13th century. By the 13th century, a law set the "stika" as equal to 2 ells which was the English ell of the time.[9] 45 inches [ edit ] In England, the ell was usually 45 in (1.143 m), or a yard and a quarter. It was mainly used in the tailoring business but is now obsolete. Although the exact length was never defined in English law, standards were kept; the brass ell examined at the Exchequer by Graham in the 1740s had been in use "since the time of Queen Elizabeth".[10] Ell (Scots) [ edit ] The Scottish ell (Scottish Gaelic: slat thomhais) is approximately 37 inches, just over twice an ell. The Scottish ell was standardised in 1661, with the exemplar to be kept in the custody of Edinburgh.[11] It comes from Middle English elle.[12] It was used in the popular expression "Gie 'im an inch, an he'll tak an ell" (equivalent to "Give him an inch, and he'll take a mile" or "... he'll take a yard", and closely similar to the English proverb "Give him an inch, and he'll take an ell", first published as "For when I gave you an inch, you tooke an ell" by John Heywood in 1546[13]). The Ell Shop (1757) in Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross (National Trust for Scotland), is so called from the 18th-century iron ell-stick attached to one corner, once used to measure cloth and other commodities in the adjacent market-place. The shaft of the 17th-century Kincardine mercat cross stands in the square of Fettercairn, and is notched to show the measurements of an ell. Scottish measures were made obsolete, and English measurements made standard in Scotland, by act of parliament in 1824. The Scottish ell was equivalent to: In literature [ edit ] Ells are used for measuring the length of rope in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.[15] In the epic poem Sir Gwaine and the Green Knight, the Green Knight's axe head was an ell (45 inches) wide.[16] References [ edit ] This article incorporates text from "Dwelly's [Scottish] Gaelic Dictionary" (1911). Further reading [ edit ]In addition to his work as the Editor-in-Chief of Dark Horse Comics, Scott Allie is also 16 issues into his term as the writer of the Abe Sapien solo comic (#16 is out today), working closely with Hellboy Universe creator Mike Mignola to craft a story about Abe’s struggle to clear his name, deal with his fears and find out who and what he really is. In this exclusive interview with Allie, we discuss Abe Sapien’s journey, working with Mignola, Hellboy in Hell delays and the eventual end of the Hellboy Universe. Den of Geek: Can you describe the collaborative process working with Mike Mignola when you’re writing Abe Sapien? Scott Allie: Mike and I, we talk through the story in a lot of broad strokes and with all of Mike’s collaborations, at minimum, he’s sort of guiding the big mythological moves of the Hellboy Universe. You know, the big changes and the ways in which the characters kind of evolve in really important ways to the plot. A lot of the smaller details are kind of left to me or John [Arcudi] and the personal stuff is generally left to me and John, although not all the time. Like with Abe, this morning, we were going over Abe Sapien #23 (which is a ways out still) and with this one he [Mike] just had more ideas specifically about how to tell the story so there was some panel to panel details that we were going over together. Normally that’s not really the process but it can kind of vary anywhere from, we talk over a three to five issue story in a pretty short phone call and then it’s sort of left to me. It can vary all the way from that to where he's saying “Okay, put panel one like this” and we might go through a page or a couple of pages at that level of detail. So it really varies, but at the minimum it’s always the big turning point stuff and the way that the world is changing and how the demonology stuff works; [that] always kind of revolves around his input and his decisions. What is it about Abe that makes him an appealing character for you personally to write? Abe is really trying to understand himself. Abe and Hellboy have really strong similarities but one of the big differences is that Hellboy really decisively turned his back on what he was and what he really might be and all that. Abe thought it out more. Abe was more curious and more determined to find out what he was all about. He went out of his way to figure it out, but that was kind of before there was this indication that it might have something to do with the end of the world. So Abe has shown a willingness to really dive into the secrets behind his own origin, but right now the truth of that whole thing seems to be too scary for him. So while we’ve seen him really examine himself very closely in the past he's too scared to really hit it head on these days and I find the conflict there to be the really interesting thing about Abe for me. Can you talk a little bit about how the decision to make Abe kind of the object of this cult’s worship is going to affect his process here as he's trying to discover where he's at? Hellboy was revealed to the public in the late forties or fifties, and so people knew since then that there is some sort of supernatural business out there but it didn't really change the world drastically. It was when the Lovecraft monsters started poking up out of the earth a few years ago in B.P.R.D. that the world really changed for these characters. When Mike started doing Hellboy he was doing a comic that pretty much took place in the real world but there were just some shadowy corners where he could set some stories in that were a little bit different. These days the real world is changing drastically and it’s changing because there's monsters rearing their heads up, and so we felt like that would have to change the world pretty drastically and it would change the way people relate to the world and it would have an influence on religion. So you would have fundamentalists, traditional religious people that would kind of push their religious agenda even harder but then you'd have people in search of something to believe in who would see all of these monsters and things and decide that that's the answer. So whether it's some 200 foot tall phallic cthulhu in California or whether it's Abe, there's gonna be people that are gonna try to build new ways of looking at the world around all of this crap that's happening. We wanted to kind of introduce those other cults a little bit first and then introduce the idea that there was one around Abe, that this belief that Abe had something to do with the end of the world. You know, from [inaudible] and the Black Flame to have suggested it a while ago and for Phoenix and other characters in the B.P.R.D. to suspect that maybe Abe has something to do with what's going on with the world was very very personal for Abe. But then the revelation that there's actually a cult of people that believe this kind of takes it from the personal to the global level -- not that there's a global cult, but you know what I mean, figuratively the global level for Abe -- to just not really be able to deny all of this stuff. And it's going to be part of what pushes him to really look at it and really try to solve the mystery of his own origins and his own purpose. Spoiler Alert - you may want to skip this question if you haven’t read Abe Sapien #16 Now that it's been confirmed for Abe that Hellboy is really dead, are we going to to see him process that in subsequent issues or is there just no time for that? We're not really going to see him process it, it may come up again but Abe’s version of processing it was sort of clinging to denial and a couple of times raising the idea that, “No, Hellboy’s not dead”. Now in that vision, well first in the vision and then I guess what you’re referring to is when Stazz [Hansen]... Yeah, just basically just flat out tells him. Yeah, now his denial... that's like another defeat for Abe’s very powerful skill for denial so he can no longer deny that Hellboy is dead. Stazz’s confirmation is kind of the thing. Tanya had already told him that, but he didn't really have a leg to stand on in terms of clinging to the idea that Hellboy was alive. But yes, Stazz put that to rest. And no, I don't really see him… there won't be an issue or anything where he's wrestling with it. There may be more conversations that pop up where he has to face it... Is he going to face it or will the denial continue on? No, the denial is over. The denial is at an end now. Like that part of his denial is at an end and over the next five issue story that follows the one that you're referring to, his denial about the questions about his own self are put to rest and now he's really on the path to solving the mystery of his on own existence. I know you can't rush genius but with Hellboy in Hell, do you sometimes wish that you could? (Chuckles) Oh yeah… We're at this point now where we're all so voracious and we have such a want for “now, now, now”. How do you explain the acceptance of Hellboy in Hell’s staggered release schedule because there's not a lot of complaints -- I mean, I want it more obviously, but there aren't a lot of vocal complaints about it. How do you explain that? Well, there's a little bit of complaining about it, but I think the way that you explain the general acceptance of it is just that... we did really well when Duncan [Fegredo] was drawing Hellboy. It sold great but fans always ask for Mike to draw the character himself and I think they just understand. You know, nobody kids themselves that Mike is going to draw a monthly book, and the thing is, Mike really is focusing as much of his energy as he can on Hellboy in Hell. We're cutting back on him doing covers for... even his own other books. The Fiumara twins are doing covers on Abe Sapien and Lawrence Campbell is taking over covers on B.P.R.D. and that's going to extend to the trade paperbacks going forward. So we really want Mike, and Mike really wants Mike to focus his own energy on Hellboy in Hell, but it's not going to be monthly. And he really agonizes about this stuff, he really puts his all into it. He's writing two books for us right now. He's writing the Alex Maleev book -- he’s writing the plot for that and then Arcudi does the dialogue for Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. So he’s writing that, he's writing another book that we haven't announced yet, but he's really trying to put everything he can into Hellboy in Hell, He enjoys Hellboy in Hell more than anything else because he loves drawing it. You know, I really think in so many ways that Hellboy in Hell is the book that he really wanted to create when he created Hellboy in the first place. It’s like Hellboy in Hell is finally him getting to the version of Hellboy where he doesn’t have to deal with cars or government organizations or anything to deal with the real world that he doesn't want to draw. He gets to draw crooked houses and all sorts of weird mythological characters and twisted dudes from the Victorian era -- that's all he ever wanted to do and now that's all he has to do in doing Hellboy in Hell. It’s a tremendous book, it’s worth the wait. Yeah, I think it’s worth the wait and he likes to do it the way that he's able to do it best and so we don't solicit it until he's so close to being done with it that there's no real pressure deadlines. It's all about letting him do it the right way. He has a particular story. You know, a lot of Hellboy in Hell is kind of setup as one shots or two issue stories, but it’s really telling a big overarching story and he's gotta get to the end of that in his own good time. Now, at some point, Hellboy will end. Obviously you can't and you wouldn't reveal a when, but do you know approximately when and how Mike wants to wrap things up? If you don't, do you think that he knows right now or is it just going to happen organically? It's going to happen organically but we know how it ends. We don't know on the calendar when it ends but we know the big pieces that have to happen before it ends. There's some X-factors in there in terms of how long it will take to get there, but it’s there. Is it far away? You know, it's all relative, right? If I said far away than that could be anything. But Mike had it pretty well worked out by the time that we ended the first cycle of B.P.R.D. -- when we ended B.P.R.D. and then started doing B.P.R.D.: Hell on Earth. At that point, mostly me, John and Mike were able to talk about it in a way where we couldn't tell you how many issues but we knew the big moves before you get to the end. And I've got to say that there's a lot of room for it to evolve. There's one huge huge move coming up, there's one big big story beat coming up that we didn't know about that came out of conversation along the way and it's huge and it's great and it takes place in B.P.R.D. We didn't know about that one when we sort of mapped out the end, but you leave room to kinda figure it out as you go along so there is room for inspiration and there is room to surprise yourself and I think surprise the readers. But there's certain milestones that we've seen clearly for some time that we're slowly getting to and it’s weird when you tick those off. It’s weird when you get to them and it's like, “okay, we're that much closer to really wrapping this thing up”. Now, when that does happen is it all inclusive? Is that it for B.P.R.D. as well as other characters or can they still continue? The things that are in motion in their world, in Abe’s world and the world of The B.P.R.D. -- we are heading toward a big big end to things. Because of the way time works in the B.P.R.D. universe, we're doing Hellboy in the B.P.R.D. starting in December which takes place in 1952 and then we kind of had this planned with Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. where we'll do a mini-series or so a year slowly advancing through the fifties into the sixties. So that right there allows us a long time to keep doing Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. before we potentially catch up to 1994 when Seeds of Destruction took place. So there's a lot of room to keep on doing comics. There's Lobster Johnson stories to be told, there's Witchfinder stories that we can tell for some finite period of time. But it’s not like, dare I say, Star Wars or something where you can just keep sandwiching in whole novels and trilogies until, like, “well there was this one time between when Luke went to the bathroom and Luke went to go get his lightsaber fixed where we can stick a mini-series in”. We can't do that. There is a finite quality to the Hellboy Universe that we can't… you know, we'll get to a point where like, “alright, that's it, we've told it all”, but we've got a ways to go yet. Abe Sapien #16 is on sale at your local comic book shop and on Dark Horse Digital. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for all news updates related to the world of geek. And Google+, if that's your thing!The safety of an area is always top of mind when searching for a new home. Statistics Canada recently released their study on police-reported crimes in 2015. The 2015 report examines the Crime Severity Index (CSI), which measures the volume as well as the seriousness of each crime in comparison to others. This year marked the first time in 12 years that Canada experienced an increase in CSI -- up five per cent year over year. The overall volume and severity of violent crime was up six per cent, while non-violent crime was up four per cent from 2014 to 2015. The significant increase in Alberta's police-reported crime contributed to the national increase. On a positive note, however, the CSI is still 31 per cent lower when compared to ten years ago in 2005. This rise in the CSI is largely attributed to more incidences of fraud, breaking and entering, robbery, and homicide. More than half -- eight out of 13 provinces and territories -- reported an increase in the CSI by the end of last year. Alberta experienced the largest increase (+18 per cent), which was largely attributed to more reported incidents of breaking and entering, theft of $5,000 or under, and motor vehicle theft. This was followed by New Brunswick (+12 per cent), the Northwest Territories (+10 per cent) and Saskatchewan (+10 per cent). Ontario's increased two per cent, due to a rise in police-reported fraud. However, there were a number of provinces and territories that witnessed a decrease in CSI including, Prince Edward Island (-10 per cent), Nova Scotia (-7 per cent), Nunavut (-4 per cent), Quebec (-3 per cent) and Yukon (-2twe per cent). Out of the 33 census metropolitan areas (CMAs), 20 reported an increase in CSI. Moncton had a 20-per-cent increase in CSI, Victoria and Edmonton both experienced a 16-per-cent increase, and Abbotsford-Mission had a 14-per-cent increase. Calgary was up 29 per cent -- the largest year-over-year increase. This jump was largely due to an increase of breaking and entering, theft under $5,000 and motor vehicle theft. These types of crime were also responsible for the uptick in New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories. Saskatoon and Regina had the highest increase in CSIs, a trend that has sustained itself since 2010, with a 112.5 and 107.6 CSI respectively. Other cities with high CSIs were Edmonton, Kelowna, Abbotsford-Mission and Vancouver. These cities also experienced an increase in traditional crime rate, which looks at the volume of police-reported crime relative to the population size, and led to a national increase of three per cent. The highest increases were found in Calgary, with a 25-per-cent increase, and Moncton, experiencing a 21-per-cent increase. However, similar to the CSI, crime rates have also been on a downward trend since the early 90s. Naturally, notable increases in both CSI and crime rate raise questions about safety in cities across Canada. That said, we've rounded the top 10 safest cities, based on data from Statistics Canada. So which ones came out on top? Hint: the safest cities all reside in two provinces, Ontario and Quebec. Here is the full list of each CMA's CSI and crimes rates from western to eastern Canada: View full report by Statistics Canada. Read more on YPNextHome. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook ALSO ON HUFFPOST:Full Text Transcript: Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Charles Ferguson — Inside Job, No End in Sight: The American Occupation of Iraq — has created a new film, Time To Choose. And it is devastating. It’s not only about the rampant, worldwide destruction of climate change; it is also about how climate change is leading to a highly volatile situation — global inequality. But despite the alarming news, Ferguson also explains why there is still reason for hope. In his conversation with WhoWhatWhy’s Jeff Schechtman, Ferguson tells of the death spiral that is the coal industry and how it has already destroyed Appalachia and brought so much death to China. He discusses the refusal of oil industry executives to talk on camera and spells out the cost of deforestation and industrial agriculture and the corruption they spawn. And yet he’s not all doom and gloom: he introduces some world-class entrepreneurs and innovators who fill the void left by the almost total abdication of government leaders and are making a difference to the future of the planet. Click HERE to Download Mp3 Jeff Schechtman: Welcome to radio Whowhatwhy. I’m Jeff Schechtman. You all know the story of the group of blind men and the elephant. Each one touches the elephant in a different way and in a different place. Each comes away with a totally different idea of what the elephant is. In a way, large subjects, large issues are like this: understanding the financial crisis, understanding the totality of healthcare, and understanding the enormity and scope of climate change. Most of us know a little: the impact of coal, the air in China, the advantages of solar, the concern about rising sea levels, holes in the atmosphere, and of course the political noise surrounding the issue. Now with a new documentary Time to Choose by my guest Academy award-winning documentary filmmaker Charles Ferguson, we have both an in-depth and a 30,000 foot look at the totality of climate change and some of the real solutions that are taking place and must be expanded. Charles Ferguson is a filmmaker and writer. He is the director and producer of Inside Job, winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, and, of No End in Sight: The American Occupation of Iraq, which was an Academy Award nominee as well. He’s also the author of five previous books and he’s written for the Huffington Post, The Guardian, The New York Times, and numerous other publications. It is my pleasure to welcome Charles Ferguson to radio WhoWhatWhy to talk about his new documentary Time to Choose. Charles, thanks so much for joining us. Charles Ferguson: Thank you for having me, sir. Jeff: Great to have you here. I want to talk first about the idea and how it evolved of dealing with the scope of things that you’ve dealt with in this documentary – climate change, potential solutions, and climate change around the world – all in the context of essentially a 97-minute documentary. Charles: That was difficult without question. Taking such an enormous subject and trying to convey it in such a short time is a very difficult thing to do, but it’s also a very rewarding thing to do and film helps. There are indeed times when the pictures were worth a thousand words and I tried very hard to convey visually the impact, both of what we’re doing to the environment, and the effect of climate change, and also the reality and possibility of solutions to the climate problems. Jeff: In approaching this, to what extent did you know very specifically the points that you wanted to hit, the things you wanted the public to understand, and how much of it evolved as you were working on the project? Charles: A great deal of it came to light only after I started doing my research. When I began making the film, I am ashamed to say that I actually didn’t know that much about the subject. I had seen An Inconvenient Truth, the first major documentary about climate change of course, made ten years ago. I have a general awareness and affection for the natural world, but I really did not know a great deal about either the problem or the solution to it, and I found a great deal of what I learned is extremely surprising, quite shocking, and horrifying in some cases and unexpectedly optimistic in others. It was quite a surprising research project actually. Jeff: One of the things that you brought into this was not only the impacts of climate change but also the impacts of environmental degradation that came about as a result of many of the processes that were contributing to climate change. Charles: That’s absolutely correct and that was one of the surprises that I found
have any good stories that you would like to share about him?” JC: “Oh my God, do you want good funny? Do you want good crazy? I don’t even know where to begin! You have to understand, the two of us wrestled each other so many times. 2004 was the first time we really had an insane match. It was a tables, ladders and chairs match in Manasquan, New Jersey which is really close to our hometown, just a couple miles away. The place probably fit five to six hundred people but on this night there were probably one thousand people there, standing room only. I did the swanton off the top of the ladder into the table. He gave me the nutcracker for the finish off the top of the ladder onto the table. It won Match of the Year 2004 on the website Declaration of Independence. Then we had these crazy cage matches where he would duct tape me to the cage and he would drop a leg from the top of the cage, or I would put him on a table and swanton off the top of the cage. Just a funny story that sticks out is when I was the NWA Midwest Champion. I had to defend my title a few times so the promoter asked me who I wanted to wrestle. I said, ‘You know, I’d like to wrestle Balls! Me and him have been going back and forth so let’s bring him out.’ And he said, ‘Alright.’ So, I picked Balls up and we were driving to the airport and we were super hyped, listening to rap and heavy metal, drinking and having fun. When we got to O’Hare Airport [in Chicago, Illinois], Ed Chuman (long-time NWA promoter) picked us up. He had this big Lincoln Town Car and there were two dudes in the back. One dude’s name was Silas Young and the other guy’s name was Tyler Dux. I was sitting in the back with them and Balls was in the front. The guy in the front, Ed Chuman, the man who runs the company who was the booker and everything, lights up a joint, starts smoking it and passes it to Balls. Now Balls doesn’t smoke weed. Balls takes the joint and started smoking it like he was fucking Snoop Dogg! He was like, ‘Me and Jonny are going to have a great flight. We just had a great match, we’re on top of the…’ and at this moment he just stops talking. He puts his head down and he goes, ‘Pull over, pull over, pull over, pull…ahhhh!’ He projectile vomited all over the front of this guy’s car, all up on the windshield and everything. After that, Ed pulled over and Balls now pukes all over the door. He then gets up on all fours and he’s got his ass in the air. Ed looks over to see what’s going on when Balls goes… [farting noise]. He farts right in Ed’s face! Ed goes, ‘You farted all over my damn face!’ All of us in the back fell out of the car laughing so hard. It was the funniest thing I’ve ever seen in my entire life. It was freaking hilarious. Balls was known for, well, let’s just say that he was a different kind of character. He would always go nuts or throw up, you know, do something like get into a fight. Me and him had a bunch of physical fights over stupid shit. It was always just something else when you traveled with Balls. But I loved the guy like a brother.” JC: “It was funny, me and my brother would go spying on Balls. We were sitting in my brother’s backyard one day, castin’ lines into the river. We’re just sitting there, and we were like, ‘What does Ball do? What does he do in that house? Let’s go see what he does…’ We would go look through his windows, he’d be sitting there, you know, reading a book, eating something and we would knock on his windows and freak him out. The first time we went, we crept into the bushes and we looked in. He was sitting on a couch and he’s got a little tray table in front of him. You know, like what you put TV dinners on. On that tray table, he’s got one slice of pork roll. It’s like one single slice of baloney, and a fork and knife, on a little tiny plate. So we look at it – already, the two of us are like cracking up in the bushes, right? Cause he’s got just one little slice of baloney and a fork and knife. So, we go over to the window, and my brother just goes (knocks three times), light little knocks. Balls stops, looks up in the air, listens, then goes back to cuttin’ his baloney. Knock, knock, knock, stops, looks up, looks around, goes back to cuttin’ his baloney. We do it one more time. Then he’s like, he starts thinking about yelling. So, I’m like, ‘Alright bro, get ready to run.’ Boom, boom, boom, and I bang on his windows. Both of us run. He comes running out. We hid in the car. Of course, later on, he calls us. ‘Jon, Chris, there’s apparitions. They’re at my window; they’re knocking. I saw them. There’s two of them. They’re ghost or ghostly figures!’ Balls used to just go way overboard. So, we’re like, ‘No way dude, really?’ A couple nights later, we were like, ‘Let’s go back and spy on Balls.’ And we went back, and he was laying on the ground in this pair of underwear that he’d always wear that had these yellow smiley faces on ‘em. He’s laying there and he’s got the Mick Foley book, I believe. He’s lying on the ground, and we start doing the tapping on the window again. Again, we run away. It was funny just growing up in that whole business and living near all these guys. It’s harder to try to learn a different way of life when you’ve grown up living in that industry, you know?” JC: “I have so many great memories of Balls. I’m going to tell you one more story. Balls lived half a mile away from my parent’s house. Everything was really close. So Balls was like, ‘Why don’t you guys come over tonight? I’m making Chicken Mahoney,’ which was his famous chicken he used to make. So me and my brother get over there. We walk from our mom’s house. He’s like, ‘I’m making spaghetti bolognese. I have meatballs, I have chicken. Whatever you guys want. Pour yourselves a glass of wine. Sit down. Hang out.’ So we’re hanging out. He’s sittin’ there with his smiley pants underwear on. He’s got raw chicken, he’s got egg, and he’s got breading. Before you know it, his left hand is in his pants, in his boxers, scratchin’ his nuts. He’s got his right hand picking the chicken, putting it in the egg. His left hand comes off the nuts, under the chicken, into the breading, into the pan, back onto the nuts. Chicken with the right hand, egg, off the nuts, breading, he’s doing this whole cycle. Me and my brother are watching him, and I’m like, ‘Dude, are you serious?’ He would go from puttin’ the chicken into the egg, then taking his hand out of his underwear from scratchin’ his balls, picking it up, and then puttin’ it in the pan of oil, and putting the hand back on his balls. After he did that, I remember he goes, ‘Chris, you gotta try this!’ He reached into the pot with the left hand that he was scratchin’ his nuts with, grabs a little piece of meatball, and then goes over and tries to put it in my brother’s mouth. My brother turns his head and goes, ‘Brother, brother! I just watched you scratch your nuts for a half hour. I’m not gonna eat it, I’m sorry.’ Balls goes, ‘What, what? That was my inner thigh!’ My brother was just like, ‘I’m sorry, you’re not gonna put your fingers in my mouth after I just saw that.’ I loved the guy like a brother. He was the best. If it weren’t for him, I never would have had the chance to wrestle for WWE.” JC: “I was laying on the beach one day. Me and my buddies were surfing and I just came back in, I was sitting on my towel and my phone rang. It was Balls. He was like, ‘Yo, JC. Come to the Meadowlands tonight!’ I’m like, ‘Why, what’s up?’ He’s like, ‘We’re filming Raw and I don’t want to wrestle anybody but you. Get here right now.’ It was like 3:30 and you had to be on at like six. I was like, ‘Holy shit!’ He really was just such a great guy. I really loved him.” PWS: “Was this your first time wrestling for WWE and did this turn out to be a try-out for you?” JC: “Yeah, it was, and I guess it was a try-out. It worked out well because they kept having me back. Then it came out in the newspaper and it said, ‘Wrestling champion honors his brother in the ring,’ and it said, ‘Wrestles for WWE.’ When my parents saw it, they freaked out. You have to remember, this was right after my brother died, so I can’t really blame them. It’s just so weird because I can still imagine Balls’ standing outside of my parent’s house smoking a cigarette, you know? It’s pretty freaking crazy that he’s not here. Plus, I was close to Axl Rotten too, which is also pretty weird. There was a time in 2004 when he didn’t have a place to stay, when shit was not going well with him, and my brother was like, ‘Yeah dude, come stay with me and my brother.’ So he came down and stayed at our place in Manasquan for however long he did. He was freaking great. Me and [Axl] stayed in contact up until I went to Costa Rica, which was two days before he died. I had to turn my phone on global and when I got there, I had a DM on Twitter saying, ‘I’m leaving where I’m at. I don’t want to get into too many details. I can’t take it anymore. I’m going back home.’ I tried to call him and there was no answer. You know the whole deal. I found out he had died while I was on vacation with my wife. It was tough, man. I guess when you’re in the sport, everyone pretty much knows everyone. I could pretty much conjure up a story about anyone. If you were to name any name to me, I probably worked them or shared a hotel room with them. Everybody just kind of knows everybody. That’s how it is.” PWS: “Let’s go back for a moment to your first match with WWE. You got the call from Balls at 3:30 and you had a match at 6. What happened when you got there? Who did you see? Who did you talk to? You mentioned the match went well. Did you have any contact at all with Vince?” JC: “I have known Vince since I was a kid. When I saw him, I was standing around talking with Tazz and Scotty 2 Hotty. Vince walked by and went, ‘Oh, it’s the three stooges!’ and then gave us a hug and told me, ‘Jonny, fantastic!’ As soon as I got there, Shane McMahon was also like, ‘Candido, it’s great to see you! Shake it up kid! Let me see you do it! Kick ass!’ I had a very small amount of time to talk to Balls and Axl before the match. I tagged with Damien Adams. ‘So what are we going to do?’ ‘Let’s keep it simple…’ Then Axl goes, ‘Just don’t fuck up!’ on the way out. The experience was surreal and this is what pretty much stands out in my mind. I remember sitting in the locker room putting my boots on or whatever and Shawn Michaels sits down next to me. Of course, you know my brother and Shawn had a little bit of beef. Now I’m more of the kind of guy that will physically beat you up, but my brother was kind of a pacifist. I was always the kind of guy who was down to throw the dukes. My brother always used to say, ‘You’re going to come across Shawn Michaels one day. When you do, just don’t fucking go crazy and beat the shit out of him. It’s over. It’s squashed.’ Jericho was the first one to see me and he was like, ‘Dude, it’s so cool to see you here!’ So I sit down, Shawn Michaels sits down right next to me and I looked at him and he shakes my hand like, ‘How are you doing?’ At this point, Jericho just looks at him, smiles, nods and goes, ‘Candido’s brother.’ Shawn at this point makes these eyes like he doesn’t know if I’m going to sock him or what. He then was like, ‘You know what, kid? Your brother was really great. I gotta tell ya, if you want to make it in this business, you have to be out for yourself. You kind of have to be a jerk. I’m really sorry about what happened to your brother.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, whatever.’ I didn’t like blow him off, I was nice to him as at this point it was after [Chris] had passed. So I geared up and we talked a little bit and then the most nerve-wracking part of it all was you go to what they call the Gorilla Position behind the big titantron and Sergeant Slaughter is back there, Shane McMahon is back there, and he’s freaking out. They’re doing the highlight reel to get everybody amped and he’s like, ‘Let’s go kid! Let’s see those bumps! Let’s do this man!’ He’s trying to hype me all up. And then they were like, ‘Five minutes until it starts.’ ‘Three minutes.’ ‘One minute.’ ‘Thirty seconds.’ ‘Ten, nine, eight….’ and then: BOOM! You know, all this pyro and all that shit went off. Then we walked down to the ring. What totally put me at ease was when I got to the ring and started jumping around, I looked over and there were all kids from my area in the first row. They were shouting, ‘Jonny! What the hell?’ It was all the kids I was surfing on the beach with a couple hours ago. They were yelling, I was yelling. You can see me pointing at them and it completely put me at ease. It made it feel like any other show. It was really cool, that really put me at ease and I had a great time. And everybody there was totally cool. I thought it was great. To be honest, the best part was after the match was over. If you didn’t fuck up, you just felt like you were on top of the world. You have to think, I was still pretty green. I wasn’t like my brother. I lifted weights and I’d train and all that stuff, but I wasn’t as insane as he was with the wrestle, wrestle, wrestle all day, all day. Growing up, I pretty much played every sport and all that stuff, but my brother was just wrestling 24/7. That’s all he really cared about. I liked basketball, baseball, football, amateur wrestling, boxing, lifting weights, but for him it was wrestling, lifting weights, protein shakes and that’s it. I was nowhere near as dedicated as he was. He was just insane about wrestling. I was just happy that match went so smooth, especially for Balls and Axl. I was hoping everything would work out there for them. It was definitely a crazy, crazy trip.” PWS: “What an incredible accomplishment to have been able to wrestle in front of a WWE audience like that for the first time on such short notice and do so well, in front of your hometown friends and the guys in the back. Aside from this experience, what are some of the biggest wrestling accomplishments that you are most proud of?” JC: “I have to say, working at the ECW Arena was really, really awesome. I got to do that a bunch of times. Working out in Puerto Rico for Carlos Colón was really cool, too, because me and my brother were out there doing that together. And then I got to wrestle a ton of the legends. I came from the school of thought like my brother where we would just make our opponent look good. You know, just bump and feed, bump and feed and take big, high back drops and do all this shit. So any time when I was wrestling for the NWS, if a legend would come to town, let’s say, Lex Luger or Jimmy ‘Super Fly’ Snuka or Tito Santana or Brutus the Barber or King Kong Bundy or Kamala or Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts, it would be me and them in the main event because I would always feed and bump and make them look good. I wrestled so many of the guys that I grew up watching. It really felt good that they trusted me to make sure that they looked good. Not only did I get the chance to wrestle a lot of those guys, I then got the chance to wrestle a lot of the next generation of legends like Sandman, Raven, Steve Corino, Spike Dudley, Balls, Axl and pretty much all of the guys in ECW. So it was really freaking cool. I got to tag with Dreamer, I got to wrestle my brother, plus I got to wrestle Balls a thousand times. I really have had so much cool stuff that has happened to me. Honestly, had I not been my brother’s brother, this never would have happened to me. Luck of the draw, I guess. I just kind of followed the way my brother taught me. I remember always coming up with all of these different finishes and these different spots I wanted to do and he was always like, ‘Dude, slow it down. What do I do for offense? I do a suplex, a leg drop off the second rope and that’s pretty much it. Stop worrying about doing all this crazy shit and just wrestle. Just slow the fuck down.’ That kind of made me slow down and stopped me from wanting to do too much. You know, you wrestle some guys like Rhett Titus who has so much shit in his repertoire and I was always happy as hell to wrestle him because we would always have these great matches, going spot for spot. He would be like, ‘Give me a Michinoku Driver and I’ll give you the double stomp.’ I loved doing that but I also loved learning how to actually wrestle and executing it, not just learning how to do it, but doing it in front of a crowd, getting it over and getting everybody to love it. But I’ll be honest, my favorite matches were the ones with me and Balls, when the two of us went balls-to-the-wall in hardcore matches. Those are my favorite because you get so many cheap pops because it looks so insane when somebody jumps off a latter and crashes into someone on a table. Those were absolutely some of my favorite matches because we just did so much off-the-wall stuff. Both of us were pretty much fearless when it came to anything. Like I would go find the highest place in the building, places people wouldn’t even think about, and I would go, ‘I’ll just do this swanton, you move and I’ll just take the bump.’ It was stuff like that that I really loved. I really loved those kinds of matches. My whole time in the wrestling industry was great. I loved it so much. And like I said, I miss it all the time. I wish I could go back.” PWS: “You’re still a young guy at thirty-three. Surely you’ve still got something left in the tank, right? What’s stopping you from wrestling right now?” JC: “Oh, my family, my wife, all of them. They hate it. You have to understand, they’ve seen a lot of the bad sides of shit. For a while there, stuff was messed up. Like when my brother and Tammy were going through it, obviously there were drugs and there was crazy stuff, people showing up gimmicked up [on drugs] on Christmas, people showing up gimmicked up on Thanksgiving. [My family] just didn’t like it. They just didn’t like the lifestyle. I’ll leave it at that. And plus, I was kind of falling down that lifestyle too until my brother woke the fuck up and pretty much stopped doing everything cold turkey.” PWS: “You and I talked back in January and in our conversation you mentioned that Chris went through some depression. Of course, I respect it if you don’t want to talk about it…” JC: “I can talk about it. I just don’t want to say the wrong shit, you know, and offend or get into an argument with somebody.” PWS: “What you say is completely up to you and we respect that. Chris was very close to you. Your Twitter account is dedicated to him and I think it is absolutely wonderful what you do to keep his memory alive.” JC: “That’s my brother.” PWS: “It must have been quite hard for you to witness many of the things that he went through, especially with his relationship with Tammy. We haven’t really talked about that much, but he was with her from high school. They went through so much. They got into wrestling together, and then, of course, the relationship changed. They were introduced to drugs and a different lifestyle, and things changed. What was their relationship really like? From what is out there already, to put it lightly, it wasn’t pretty.” JC: “An average night, like when I was in high school and I would stay over at their house, it would be normal. We would be having dinner, me and him would be watching TV, those sorts of things. Then I’d go to sleep and in the middle of the night I would hear her screaming, I’d wake up and he’d be passed out on the couch. She’d be raining punches down on his head. She’d go grab a knife from the butcher block and try to fucking stab him while he was sleeping. I’d try to block it. He’d come to, she’d run away, she’d grab the phone, she’d lock herself in the car, he’d break the window, she’d jump out of the car, start running down the street, I’d chase her. Dude, it was madness. It was fucking madness! To be quite honest, it was insane. I just want to clarify: The shit I am about to say, all the crazy, traumatizing shit, is what sticks out most of all. Growing up though, you have to understand, Tammy was really cool. She’d babysit me and my sisters. And even later in life, after Chris passed, after all of that crazy stuff happened, we still stuck together through a lot of shit. She managed me [while I was wrestling]. I would always have her back. If anybody fucked with her, they fucked with me. So it wasn’t always so fuckin’ terrible. So, I just wanted to put it on record that I do really have some closeness with her. Even though, you know, obviously we’ve been through a lot. Of course, she was a part of my life since I was seven years old. I don’t want it to come off like I’m being cold, trying to bury her. It’s like this: you ask me the questions and I will tell you what happened!” This concludes part one of ProWrestlingStories.com’s exclusive interview with Jonny Candido. We do hope you enjoyed what you have read so far. If you have, do us a favor and share this story by using one of the social media share links at the top or bottom of this post and don’t forget to tell us what you felt in the comments section below. We appreciate all of our readers. We do this just for you! Catch part two entitled, ‘The CHRIS CANDIDO Story: Drugs, Deception, and Betrayal.’ In this, Jonny opens up about the relationship between Tammy and Chris, giving many tales of drug abuse, infidelity, and deceit. Shawn Michaels is brought up, as is the rumor revolving around Chris leaving WWF. Did Chris really leave WWE after renting out Tammy to Ahmed Johnson for the night in exchange for drugs? All of this is addressed and so much more. You will not want to miss this! *A BIG thank you to Moris as well as Joey from Nerdopotamus.net for helping out with today’s story. An additional thank you goes out to Turnbuckle Magazine for your continued support. You can check out the trailer for their upcoming Chris Candido documentary below: WANT MORE? Follow Pro Wrestling Stories on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram Be sure to also read one of these recommended articles from our site:Karin Laub and Hamza Hendawi, The Associated Press GAZA, Gaza Strip -- Backed by tank fire and airstrikes, Israeli forces pushed deep into southern Gaza on Friday, searching for an Israeli army officer believed to be captured by Hamas fighters during deadly clashes that shattered an internationally brokered cease-fire. The apparent capture of the soldier and the collapse of the truce set the stage for a possible expansion of Israel's 25-day-old military operation against Hamas. President Barack Obama and U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon called for the immediate release of the soldier but also appealed for restraint. In Israel, senior Cabinet ministers convened late Friday in a rare emergency meeting after the start of the Jewish Sabbath. The search for the missing soldier centred on the outskirts of the town of Rafah, on the Egypt-Gaza border. At least 140 Palestinians were killed Friday in Gaza, with at least 70 killed in the Rafah area along with two Israeli soldiers. Earlier Friday, Israel and Hamas accused each other of breaking the truce, which had been announced by the U.S. and the U.N., and took effect at 8 a.m. The breakdown meant there would be no reprieve for the 1.7 million residents of Gaza, where large parts have been devastated by airstrikes and shelling, and at least 1,600 people -- mostly civilians -- have been killed and more than 8,000 wounded. Israel has lost 63 soldiers and three civilians. The fighting in the Rafah area continued into the night, with residents reporting airstrikes along the Egypt-Gaza frontier as well as heavy tank and artillery shelling. The Israeli military said it was searching for the missing soldier and had sent automated calls or text messages to Rafah residents to stay indoors. "We are under fire, every minute or so tanks fire shells at us," said Rafah resident Ayman Al-Arja. "I have been thinking of leaving since 2 p.m., but tank fire can reach anywhere, and I was scared they will hit my pickup truck. Now we are sitting in the stairwell, 11 members of my family, my brother, his nine children and wife. We just have water to drink and the radio to hear the news." The 45-year-old Al-Arja added: "We are just staying put waiting for God's mercy." The heavy shelling in Rafah was part of operational and intelligence activity to locate the missing officer, 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin, the Israeli military said. An hour after the cease-fire began, gunmen emerged from one or more Gaza tunnels and opened fire at Israeli soldiers, with at least one of the militants detonating an explosives vest, said Israeli army spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner. Goldin, a 23-year-old from the central Israeli town of Kfar Saba, was apparently captured in the ensuing mayhem, while another two Israeli soldiers were killed. "We suspect that he has been kidnapped," Lerner said. Obama called for Goldin's unconditional and immediate release and said it would be difficult to put the cease-fire back together. However, he said the U.S. will continue working toward a cease-fire. He said Israel committed to the truce, but at the same time called the situation in Gaza "heartbreaking" and repeated calls for Israel to do more to prevent Palestinian civilian casualties. "Innocent civilians caught in the crossfire have to weigh on our conscience, and we have to do more," Obama said. He added that Israel must be able to defend itself, but that irresponsible actions by Hamas have put civilians in danger. Israel has gone to great lengths in the past to get back its captured soldiers. In 2011, it traded hundreds of Palestinian prisoners for an Israeli soldier who had been captured by Hamas-allied militants in 2006. The capture of two soldiers in a cross-border operation by Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrillas in 2006 sparked a 34-day war between the Iranian-backed Shiite group and Israel. A Hamas spokesman, Fawzi Barhoum, would neither confirm nor deny the capture, saying the event was being used -- along with the killing of two Israeli soldiers in the Rafah area -- as a cover for what he called a "massacre" in Rafah. The violence killed at least 70 Palestinians and wounded 440 in the Rafah area, according to Gaza Health Ministry official Ashraf al-Kidra. The dead included paramedic Assef al-Zamily, killed when an Israeli tank shell hit an ambulance in which he was riding, al-Kidra said. Another 70 Palestinians were killed elsewhere in Gaza on Friday, according to al-Kidra. Ban blamed Hamas for violating the cease-fire and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Goldin. The U.N. chief also urged both sides "to show maximum restraint and return to the agreed 72-hour humanitarian cease-fire that tragically lasted such a brief period of time," U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry by phone that Palestinian militants had "unilaterally and grossly" violated the cease-fire and attacked Israeli soldiers after 9 a.m. "Israel will take all necessary steps against those who call for our destruction and perpetrate terrorism against our citizens," Netanyahu told Kerry, according to a statement from the prime minister's office. Moussa Abu Marzouk, Hamas' deputy leader, denied that Hamas violated the truce. He told Al-Arabiya news channel from Cairo that the movement's military wing carried out no military operations after 8 a.m. A longtime friend of Goldin's said he is engaged to get married and that he studied at a Jewish seminary in the West Bank settlement of Eli. Goldin has a twin brother who also is in the military on the Gaza front lines, said the friend, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he did not have the family's permission to discuss Goldin's personal details with the media. The soldier's father, Simha Goldin, is a Tel Aviv University professor specializing in Ashkenazi Jewry, the friend said. "We want to support the military in the fighting against Hamas in Gaza. We are sure the military will not stop before it turns over every stone in Gaza and returns Hadar home safe and sound," the father said in a statement to reporters outside his home. The shelling in Rafah sent families fleeing from apartment blocks. One woman carrying two children rushed toward a parked car, yelling to a bystander, "Quick, open the car door!" Ambulances ferried the wounded to al-Najar hospital, where family members frantically searched for loved ones among the bloodied bodies on stretchers. Many of the wounded were children. In one room, four children were treated on a single bed, while others were examined on the floor. On July 8, Israel began an aerial campaign against Gaza aimed at halting Palestinian rocket fire and later sent in ground troops to target launch sites and tunnels used by Hamas to carry out attacks inside Israel. Four brief humanitarian cease-fires were announced, but each broke within a few hours. The Israeli military said Gaza militants fired at least 38 rockets and mortars at Israel since the start of Friday's cease-fire, and two were intercepted. The latest cease-fire, announced by Kerry and Ban, was intended to be the first step toward a lasting truce, with Egypt inviting Israeli and Palestinian delegations to Cairo for talks. Despite its collapse, an Egyptian government official said Cairo had not cancelled its invitation for Palestinians and Israelis to hold talks. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to the media. Soon after the cease-fire started, Gaza's residents took advantage of the lull to return to their homes, many of which had been destroyed. In the heavily bombarded Gaza district of Shijaiyah, less than 1.6 kilometres (a mile) from the Israeli border, residents surveyed the damage. Bassem Abul Qumbus found that his three-story home -- in which he had invested tens of thousands of dollars - had been shattered. Shells had punched a hole in the ceiling of one bedroom and a wall had collapsed into the kitchen. "The work of all those years is gone," he said as he struggled to salvage flour from bags that had been torn apart by shrapnel. In the southern town of Khan Younis, residents searched for bodies amid destroyed homes. Rescuers and volunteers used makeshift stretchers to carry away corpses, some badly burned. Nidal Abu Rjeila found the body of his disabled sister on the side of the road, her wheelchair flipped upside down. He said her body had been there for five days. "I tried to reach human rights groups and the Red Cross, but no one was answering me," he said, overcome by grief. Israel says it has tried to spare civilians by warning them before military strikes, and that Hamas endangers Gazans by firing rockets from residential areas. Palestinian militants have shot hundreds of rockets into Israel during the conflict, extending their reach to major cities but causing few casualties, in part because Israel's "Iron Dome" defence system has intercepted many of the missiles. Hamas has vowed to keep fighting until Israel and Egypt lift a crippling blockade of Gaza imposed after the Islamic militant group seized power there in 2007. ------ Hendawi reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City, Yousur Alhlou in Jerusalem and Aron Heller in Kfar Saba, Israel, contributed to this report.It’s not a “must-win” game. It’s not a “season-defining” game or even a “statement” game. Three weeks into the Major League Soccer season, such proclamations about Toronto FC’s road match against Real Salt Lake would be completely over the top. But Sunday’s contest is important, however, a serious test of the Reds’ character and roster depth. It could give us an indication of just how much the culture of failure still weighs on this franchise, and how much work needs to be done to come out from under it. Watch 11 Toronto FC matches live on Sportsnet this season, starting with Real Salt Lake vs TFC on March 29. Consult our broadcast schedule by clicking CLICK HERE Here’s what we know for sure. Captain Michael Bradley and forward Jozy Altidore are away on international duty for the U.S. national team, and won’t be in Utah. feft fullback Justin Morrow, one of TFC’s most reliable and consistent performers last season, is suspended. Veteran centre back Steven Caldwell is questionable due to lingering calf and Achilles injuries. Also questionable are backup defenders Mark Bloom (quad) and Eriq Zavaleta (ankle). Centre back Damien Perquis is dealing with a minor calf strain, but the Frenchman is expected to be available for selection on Sunday. If he can’t play, though, Toronto will be without three of their four starting defenders against Salt Lake. The fourth, right fullback Warren Creavalle, has hardly looked solid through the Reds’ first two games of the campaign. So the Reds will be missing their top scorer (Altidore), their midfield linchpin (Bradley) and most likely their defensive quarterback (Caldwell). In all likelihood coach Greg Vanney will be forced to start a makeshift back four, with limited defensive options off the bench. To top it all off TFC has to play on the road, at altitude, against no less of an opponent than Real Salt Lake, one of the best teams in the Western Conference. For all TFC’s marquee signings in the off-season, the depth of the roster remains a major question. Perquis and Zavaleta were brought in to bolster the middle of the defence, but the team still lacks quality backups at the fullback positions. At the start of the season Toronto appeared to be one or two defensive injuries away from being in a precarious situation. And so it has come to pass. Altidore was signed to replace Jermain Defoe and thus far the American striker has thrived, scoring goals, offering a physical presence up front and holding up the ball to bring teammates into the play. Will Luke Moore be able to fill his boots on Sunday? How will Sebastian Giovinco do without the service of Bradley and Altidore? Benoit Cheyrou has formed a formidable partnership with Bradley in the centre of the park. How will the Frenchman get on with Collen Warner in Bradley’ absence? Dealing with adversity has never been Toronto’s strong suit. It has a history of crumbling under pressure, of folding when the odds are against them. Two weeks ago in Columbus, the Reds more than held their own with the Crew, and carved out a few quality scoring chances before Justin Morrow earned a red card in the dying seconds of the first half. Playing a man down is difficult, especially on the road. But it’s not a death sentence. Teams have been known to overcome the disadvantage and scratch out a positive result. It’s not impossible. It does, however, require character and grit—qualities that have been in short supply at TFC since they entered the league. TFC allowed Morrow’s red card in Columbus to completely knock the fight out of them, and they were outplayed and outclassed by the Crew in the second half. It wasn’t so much the result that was disappointing as it was the performance. Toronto lacked organization and spirit, meekly accepting they were going to lose without putting up any serious resistance. One wonders, then, how the Reds will
by 50% last year. This past April, Yu said he was transferring his last $500 million to his foundation, bringing it to $1.2 billion. "I have nothing more to give away," he told the press. Yu, who comes from humble roots, focuses his giving on education, health and disaster relief. NEXT GEN: Do his kids object to not getting his money? "They didn't oppose the idea, at least not in public." 23. Huang Rulun Century Golden Resources Hailed as "China's Carnegie," Huang donated an estimated $315 million in the past year to schools and universities across China. He's giving $88 million for a massive expansion of a science museum. Huang grew up in a small fishing village in East China and eventually became a hotel and a mall tycoon. Rethinking Money: "Wealth is just a symbol and some numbers," he has said. 24. Jennifer & Peter Buffett NoVo Foundation Countesy of C. Taylor Crothers The Buffetts are sticking to the meaning of the name of their foundation: Novo is Latin for "change, transform, alter." The Buffetts are using their share of paterfamilias Warren's philanthropic legacy to transform the lives of women and girls in developing nations, as well as improve the educational system at home. They've helped women in Bosnia, Congo and Iraq get skills and business training, and they've funded antiviolence programs. In all they've reached some two million people. CRIME FIGHTERS: New grants are aimed at undermining the global sex-trafficking business. 25. George Soros Open Society Foundations Courtesy of Bloomberg Hedge-fund billionaire Soros was once billed as "the man who broke the Bank of England." These days he is known for his largesse. He supports nonviolent democratic movements around the world and is also investing heavily in social-justice campaigns. He's giving $100 million to Human Rights Watch this year to expand its global efforts. PENCIL TO PAPER: Soros gave every New York state family on welfare $200 for school supplies. That came to $35 million, letting the state win another $140 million in federal funding. E-mail: editors@barrons.com· New chemotherapy breakthroughs have increased the 5-year survival for pancreatic cancer from 16% to 27% (and is getting better) · Scientists figured out how to link robotic limbs with the part of the brain that deals with intent to move so people don’t have to think about how they will move the limb, it can just happen. · Child mortality is down everywhere and it keeps going down. · Thanks to the ice bucket challenge the gene responsible for ALS has been found, meaning we are closer to an effective treatment. Let me rephrase that: we are close to getting a treatment for a very bad disease because a lot of people (including really hot celebrities) got wet. · A solar powered plan circumnavigated the world. · Michael Jordan donates 2mil to try and help bridge connection between police and the community. · Tiger numbers are growing. · And manatees. · And pandas. · Pakistan has made strides toward outlawing honor killings. · 70,000 Muslim clerics declared a fatwa against ISIS. · Pokemon Go players went insane with placing lure modules near hospitals for sick kids. · California is now powering over 6 million homes with solar power, a record in the US (and that is the tightest shit) · Volunteers in India planted 50 million trees in 24 hours. · Apparently world crime as a whole has drastically declined as a whole in the last couple of decades. · Coffee consumption has been proved to help curtail cancer and suicide rates. · Speaking of coffee Starbucks figured out how to donate perishable food in a food safe way. · 500 elephants were relocated to a better, safer and bigger home. · We made massive strides in Alzheimers’ prevention (my grandmother literally told me that scares her more than getting cancer this is very good news) · The ozone layer is repairing itself and all the work we did to get rid of those aerosol chemicals was actually worth it. · A new therapy developed in Israel could cure radiation sickness. · The Anglican church resolved to solemnize same-sex unions the same as opposite-sex unions which required a super majority of all three orders of the church (lay, clergy, bishop). · The Rabbinical Assembly issued a resolution affirming the rights of transgender and non-conforming individuals. · Precision treatments for cancer are hitting clinical trials and WORKING (as someone who’s had relatives with cancer this is the best news) · Dentists are once again providing free care to veterans who need it. · The Orlando Shakespeare Festival showed up with angel wings to block funeral-goers for the Orlando Pulse victims, view from anti-gay protesters · Rise Women’s Legal Centre opened · Death by heart disease has decreased by 70% in the United States · Two brothers saw color for the first time thanks to specially-designed glasses • Portugal ran its entire nation solely on renewable energy for four days straight · A retiree is launching a project to transport 80 endangered rhinos to an Australian reservation to save the animals from poaching · An Afghan teacher has been delivering books via bicycle to villages that lack schools · Harriet Tubman is going to replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill. · 200 strangers attended the funeral of a homeless WW2 veteran with no family · A teen battling cancer married his sweetheart · Bank firm pays for college tuition for the children of employees who died in the 9/11 attacks · New medicine has been shown to increase melanoma survival rate to 40% · Over 800 Boko Harem Hostages were rescued by Nigerian Army · Toys R Us is Offering Quiet Shopping Hour for kids with autism this holiday season · Volunteers made special tiny Halloween costumes for NICU babies · A 4-year old befriends a lonely man and helped him heal after losing his wife · Families grew · People survived c ancer · People overcame depression · Any kind of victory, even if it affects only one person, is a victory · Now for the pop culture good news · LEONARDO DICAPRIO WON AN OSCAR! EVERYONE READING THIS LIVED LONG ENOUGH TO SEE LEO FINALLY GET WHAT HE DESERVED · There’s a new Harry Potter book · And a movie · Harry Potter has no plans on vanishing with time · This sweet father gave candy to passengers on a flight so his little girl could trick or treat on Halloween · LET ME TALK ABOUT ALL THE KICK ASS MOVIES WE GOT THIS YEAR OH MY GOD · Kung Fu Panda 3, this franchise is still going strong despite that its about a panda played by Jack Black · Jungle Book. The amazing remake none of us saw coming · Finding Dory. I haven’t seen it yet but I’ve heard good things · Kubo and the Two Strings. Haven’t seen that yet as well but its Laika so I know it’s a masterpiece · Deadpool. The beautiful and super accurate R-rated marvel film · Captain America: Civil War. Seriously is the best marvel movie yet in my opinion I need more. · Zootopia. Oh don’t mind me I’m just a movie that tackled the issue of racism and not only game changed animated films but also made a billion dollars · The Hamilton Mixtape is coming out. Which is a bunch of artists singing songs from the musical (Sia, Usher, Regina Spketor, etc.) I’m excited. · A personal victory for myself, I joined Tumblr and met angels in blog form so…that’s uplifting. · And I met my favorite voice actor at a con which was a bucket list accomplishment. Good Things that have yet to happen this year · Birthdays · Thanksgiving · Black Friday · Moana · Christmas Good things that have nothing to do with the year but will hopefully make you feel better · Puppies · Chocolate · Rainbows · Rain (I like listening to rain it’s one of the most calming sounds) · Cartoons · Kissing · Music · Friends · FF: If you are a religious person you are an imperfect masterpiece · FF: If you are not then you are a splendid coincidence · Any year spent with loved ones be they family or friends is a good year. Trust me. · ”A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it’s the only weapon we have” –Roger Rabbit #NeverForgetTheGood *Plz feel free to add other good news (even if it’s something small like you ate cheesecake THAT is good news) *at the end of the year I plan to remake this list with new things, fixed mistakes and links but will be posting from my side blog @iamrainbowVarje politisk ideologi är i grunden en teologi, det lär oss både Schmitt och Cortes. Politisk korrekthet är intressant att betrakta religionspsykologiskt, det är en världsbild där den rätta tron trumfar både karaktär och gärningar. Det finns visserligen ett inslag av intresse för vem du är, men det handlar då om ytliga egenskaper som hudfärg och eventuella genitalier snarare än egenskaper som mod, visdom eller ärlighet. Det viktiga är att du har rätt åsikter, att du tillhör rätt grupp är en bonus, men dina personliga egenskaper i övrigt är inte intressanta. Detta är en historiskt ganska ny företeelse, och avviker exempelvis från de antika och kristna kardinaldygderna. Det är också en i grunden icke-nordisk företeelse. Det nordiska människoidealet summeras av Günther i begreppet humanitas, där dessa kardinaldygder i hög grad ingår. En stormenska, för att använda det gamla nordiska begreppet, kan inte väga upp avsaknad av visdom eller mod med läpparnas bekännelse till en samling senmoderna klyschor. Detta är i hög grad själva kärnan i den kulturkamp som just nu pågår, humanitas mot ”humanism”. Det är en fråga om antropologi. Edward Feser …a soul which primarily values open-mindedness, empathy, tolerance, and fairness, and either rejects the traditional cardinal virtues or relegates them to second place, is disordered. – Feser Ett bra resonemang om kardinaldygderna och de ”dygder” som ersatt dem finner vi i filosofen och bloggaren Edward Fesers artikel Cardinal virtues and counterfeit virtues. Han beskriver där de fyra kardinaldygderna, visdom, mod, måttlighet och rättvisa (den sistnämnda avser inte egalitär rättvisa, kanske ska tilläggas). Mot dessa står idag en samling senmoderna ”dygder”, open-mindedness, empathy, tolerance och fairness. Det är också viktigt att vara inkluderande, och att ”check your privilege”. Feser tar upp hur ett sådant samhälle tenderar att utvecklas, då kardinaldygderna är objektiva och de senmoderna ”dygderna” är mer subjektiva. Att det handlar om subjektiva ”dygder” är viktigt, för det leder i en kaotisk riktning med ständigt nya krav och tolkningar. I jämförelse med detta är kardinaldygderna mer objektiva, och mer förenliga med hälsa och utveckling både individuellt och kollektivt. Var och en kan sträva efter att bli visare, modigare, mer måttlig, men hur vet man när man är tillräckligt ”tolerant” eller ”öppen”? Utan visdom, mod och måttlighet är ”tolerans” och ”öppenhet” potentiellt farliga mål. Feser summerar: A soul which strives primarily to acquire those traditional cardinal virtues, even while acknowledging the value within limits of open-mindedness, empathy, tolerance, and fairness in the process of acquiring them, is rightly ordered. But a soul which primarily values open-mindedness, empathy, tolerance, and fairness, and either rejects the traditional cardinal virtues or relegates them to second place, is disordered. Samtidigt konstaterar han att hans analys inte innebär att de senmoderna ”dygderna” saknar värde. Det finns många situationer där det är positivt att vara tolerant eller öppen, mitt eget intryck är att sådana egenskaper ofta följer naturligt när man utvecklat kardinaldygderna (jämför Sloterdijks slutsats att den som har thumos ofta är generös). Men att lägga fokus på dem istället för kardinaldygderna borgar för problem. Vi läser Fesers artikel här: Cardinal virtues and counterfeit virtues Feser och Haidt Feser är något spännande på spåren när han inte helt förkastar de senmoderna ”dygderna”. Socialpsykologen Jonathan Haidt har identifierat ett antal ”moraliska matriser”, som är mer eller mindre i fokus för olika människor och kulturer. Dessa är de följande: Care/harm, Fairness/cheating, Loyalty/betrayal, Authority/subversion, Sanctity/degradation, Liberty/oppression Vissa människor prioriterar frihet, dessa kallar sig i vissa specifika historiska sammanhang libertarianer, et cetera. Det intressanta är att Haidt använder dessa matriser för att jämföra ”liberals” och ”conservatives”. Slutsatsen för tankarna till Feser, för vilken kardinaldygderna är centrala men de senmoderna ”dygderna” inte helt kan förkastas. Haidts slutsats är nämligen att ”liberals value Care and Fairness much more than the other three moral foundations whereas conservative endorse all five more or less equally.” Det som för en ”liberal” är viktigt är för en ”conservative” också viktigt men samtidigt en del i en större helhet, inte det enda viktiga. Detta torde förklara, delvis, varför ”conservatives” kan vara mottagliga för argument från ”liberals”, men även varför de flesta försök att gå ”bortom höger och vänster” härrört från höger. Vi hittar en presentation av Haidts forskning här: Scientific American – Jonathan Haidt and the Moral Matrix: Breaking Out of Our Righteous MindsThere are days when Josh Hartman envisions his life without cycling. He would likely still live in Brooklyn’s East New York neighborhood, far beyond the borough’s creeping wave of gentrification. Perhaps he would string electrical wire, like his father, or attend a junior college like his high school classmates. Or perhaps his life would have followed a different path altogether. He might sell drugs, like some of his childhood friends, or sit in a jail cell. “I would be a typical dummy from East New York,” Hartman says. “Most of my friends have been to jail, two are still locked up. That could be me.” Hartman isn’t in jail on this chilly December afternoon; he’s in Colorado Springs in a rented house on the east side of town. Cycling brought him here. Hartman is the newest member of USA Cycling’s Olympic development squad for velodrome racing, and if he maintains his current trajectory, he will compete in the 2020 summer games in Tokyo and perhaps multiple Olympics beyond. The house sits just three blocks from the U.S. Olympic training center and velodrome. Every weekday Hartman rides down to the training center to lift weights and perform plyometric exercises; he spends another one to two hours in the velodrome, spinning laps around its 333.3-meter oval. In his off-time Hartman takes classes at the local community college and sleeps. It’s hardly the preferred lifestyle for the average 19-year-old male, yet Hartman says it’s the perfect situation for him at this point in his life. “Real people have a 9-5, they work a double shift and struggle to live. I get to live in play-land,” Hartman says. Should Hartman qualify for the 2020 U.S. Olympic team, he will pen another chapter to an already improbable story. Cycling is Hartman’s passion, and he has pursued it on his own, often without the blessing of his parents. It’s a passion that nearly killed him; in 2013 he crashed hard on his face and spent two weeks in a coma. And then there are the invisible hurdles that have stood in Hartman’s way since he first turned a pedal stroke. It’s no secret that cycling in America has become a sport for the affluent, those with six-figure incomes who can afford expensive gear and racing fees. It is a sport where the pro and amateur peloton is overwhelmingly white and born with privilege. Hartman is the first-generation American scion of immigrants from Guyana. He is black. He grew up in a working class neighborhood famous for producing mobsters and boxers; gangster Henry Hill and Mike Tyson both came from the neighboring Brownsville neighborhood. In East New York, 34 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. Throughout his short cycling career, Hartman repeatedly crossed cycling’s socioeconomic barriers with the help of his friends from New York City’s cycling community. These amateur riders, coaches, and teammates helped finance Hartman’s progression through the sport; they also imparted wisdom and motivation to help Hartman overcome his toughest moments. Now, Hartman straddles two disparate worlds: the cycling world, and the world of East New York. Along his life’s journey, he’s learned to embrace his individuality. “When I go back home, I don’t fit in. When I’m with my riding buddies, I’m the only black guy,” Hartman says. “I guess you could say I’m a standout.” NEW YORK CITY’S AMATEUR racing scene is a melting pot of ethnic groups and nationalities, and no borough better reflects this than Brooklyn, where weekly series take place at Prospect Park and Floyd Bennett airfield. In eastern Brooklyn, riders from Jamaica, Guadeloupe, Suriname, and Guyana fill out the local teams. One of the scene’s local heroes is Randolph Toussaint, 62, who raced for Guyana at the 1984 Olympics. One day in 2010, Toussaint sat down to have a talk with Hartman at the behest of his grandmother. The boy was in need of activities outside of school, she said. Touissant put 12-year-old Joshua Hartman on an old mountain bike and took him for a ride in Prospect Park. Toussaint says young Joshua was a natural on the bike. “I saw something. The way he spins, it was natural, so I continued with him,” Touissant said. “Then I put him on a road bike and would take him out with the guys. In a short amount of time he impressed everyone.” Touissant and his friends assembled a road bicycle for Hartman from spare parts. Hartman loved the freedom and challenge of cycling, and was immediately hooked. While other kids from his neighborhood played video games or hung out after school, Hartman rode around Prospect Park’s three-mile loop for hours. Hartman needed riding mentorship, so Touissant introduced him to riders from the Major Taylor/Iron Riders cycling club. The New York City club is named for the early 1900s African American world track cycling champion and the predominantly black Army infantry division that traversed the American west on bicycles. It is open to riders of all backgrounds and abilities, yet it is predominantly comprised of African American professionals who ride for fun. The club welcomed Hartman onto its racing development team, and paid his entry fees and travel costs for local events in Brooklyn. After just a few months on the bike, Hartman began to win junior events at Floyd Bennett and Prospect Park. The victories gave him confidence, and bolstered his self-identity in the sport. At some point, he earned a nickname amongst riders on the development team. “Everybody knew him as ‘Pro’ or ‘Josh Pro,’” says Tonya Miller, the club’s former president. “He said he was going to be a pro cyclist.” In the club, Hartman also found a new social group comprised of adult mentors; its membership includes lawyers, doctors, and businesspeople. They talked to Hartman about careers and culture, and gave him an outlet away from his peers at school. By the time he was 15, Hartman says his childhood friends from East New York were already joining gangs and falling into trouble. He witnessed a shooting on his way home from school one day; another day, a police officer pushed him up against a chain-link fence, mistaking him for the instigator of a fight. “At some point it was like, ‘This isn’t what I want,’” Hartman says. “I could just go ride my bike and be a normal person. At some point I just decided to focus on riding.” Riding, however, brought a danger of its own. The defining moment of Hartman’s early life came on the afternoon of June 8, 2013, at the Red Hook Criterium race at Brooklyn’s Navy Yards. As Hartman sprinted around the twisting track in his qualifying round, he struck his pedal on the pavement, and the impact flung him off of the bicycle. Hartman crashed face first into the foot of the race’s barriers. The metal bar pierced the skin of his cheek and shattered the bones underneath. Blood poured from Hartman’s facial wounds, and in the first moments after the wreck he nearly asphyxiated. Emergency personnel cut into his trachea to insert a breathing tube, which saved his life. They rushed Hartman to Brooklyn Hospital, where surgeons pieced his face together with metal plates and 23 screws. He spent the next two weeks unconscious, kept alive by a ventilator. As the reality of Hartman’s tragedy set in, Miller says club members understood what the crash meant for Hartman. “We were all heartbroken,” Miller says. “Nobody thought he would come back from that. He’d never be riding a bike again.” THE DARK SCAR FROM Hartman’s crash still stretches from his nose across his left cheek and down to his lips. Doctors have volunteered to remove it from Hartman’s face, but he has decided to keep it, for now anyway. “When I wake up in the morning, I see the scar and it motivates me,” Hartman says. “It’s like, ‘I’ve gotten this far with [cycling], I’m not going to turn back now.’” When Hartman finally regained consciousness, his recovery began with multiple surgeries and painful dental procedures. He lived in constant pain; simply turning on the lights made him dizzy. He was moved to Kings County Hospital in neighboring East Flatbush. For three days he shared the room with a gunshot victim. On day four, the victim died. “I was a really emotional time,” Hartman says. “I was mad at the sport for doing this to me.” Outside the hospital, the cycling world rallied to Hartman’s aid. His family had medical insurance, and the race’s event insurance had limited coverage for participants. Tonya Miller still feared the avalanche of medical costs that were bound to hit Hartman and his family, and launched a donation page on the website GoFundMe.com. Donations poured in from club members at first, then from cyclists throughout greater New York City, and eventually, from cyclists across the globe. When Miller’s efforts were over, she had raised nearly $50,000 for Hartman’s bills — the sum eventually covered the lion’s share of the cost. The fund drive also caught the attention of media; stories about Hartman’s crash and recovery appeared in The Wall Street Journal and on the New York news website Gothamist.com. Hartman left the hospital three months after his crash. Doctors forbade him from riding; his jaw was wired shut, and his weakened facial bones could not survive another crash. He went back to school, but he was painfully behind the other students. He had missed the ninth grade New York State Regent’s Examination, which is a prerequisite to graduate. Following the advice of his parents, he enrolled in Brooklyn Automotive High School, a public school that teaches kids to be auto mechanics. “When I wake up in the morning, I see the scar and it motivates me. It’s like, ‘I’ve gotten this far with [cycling], I’m not going to turn back now.’” – Joshua Hartman His life at home was also strained. Hartman’s parents were terrified by what had happened to their son. Prior to the wreck, they had not understood Hartman’s passion for cycling, he says. After it, they tried to steer him away from anything related to cycling. Hartman’s father pushed him toward education, or finding a job. “They wanted me to have a trade,” Hartman says. “I told them that’s not my path in life.” Friends from the Major Taylor club invited him to social functions and doled out help anyway they could. Teammates paid for a tutor to help him with mathematics and reading. They also helped him secure internships and work. He worked one summer at an auto garage and disliked it, so the following summer he pursued an internship with a club member who worked as a computer tech. Miller, who worked for an entertainment agency, even took him to New York Fashion Week. Miller said the team wanted to show Hartman that a professional life existed for him, beyond his trade school. “We told him, ‘You don’t want the bike shop to be your only option in life,’” Miller says. “Everyone took him on. We wanted to help frame where he was going with his life.” WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE U.S. peloton is African American or Hispanic? Nobody can say for sure. USA Cycling surveys its membership by gender, age, and income level, but not ethnic background. The cycling industry at large has produced a handful of studies on overall bicycle usage — metrics that include commuters and casual riders — to determine demographics: a 2010 study by the National Sporting Goods Association determined that five percent of adult cyclists are African American, and six percent are Hispanic. Other studies paint a more positive picture. A 2010 study conducted by the Outdoor Foundation found that road, mountain, and BMX biking was the second-most popular outdoor activity for Asian/Pacific Islanders and Hispanics (14 percent of respondents) and third most popular for African Americans (10 percent). And a 2009 study referenced by the League of American Bicyclists said that the total number of bicycle trips for African Americans, Asian Americans, and Hispanics grew from 16 percent to 23 percent from 2006 to 2010. Still, anecdotal evidence even in cycling’s hotbeds of diversity point to a domestic peloton dominated by Anglo Americans. American cycling has produced few African American Olympians: Major Taylor and Nelson Vails are the most famous; sprinter Giddeon Massie is the most recent. “We woke up a monster. Josh’s eyes lit up. He was sparkling.” – Peter Taylor, Star Track coach “It’s no secret that the sport remains very white — we get asked why that is all the time,” says Lynne Tolman, president of the Major Taylor Association, a historical group that promotes the memory of Major Taylor. “The fact is that it’s a hard sport for all kids to get into, no matter what race. It’s not something that most schools even have.” Tolman and others believe that a key to diversifying the sport of cycling exists in youth development programs that help young cyclists overcome the financial burden associated with the sport. In Detroit, the BikeVon nonprofit attracts children from the city’s predominantly black and Hispanic neighborhoods for after-school cycling sessions, where the bike, helmet, and mentors are provided free of cost. Kids can also race on Detroit’s velodrome at Bloomer Park as part of the program. In New York City, the cycling nonprofit Star Track supports a similar model at the Kissena velodrome in Queens. Founded by Irish Olympic track racer Deirdre Murphy Bader, the program provides bikes, helmets, and coaching for young riders, free of charge. The program does not explicitly work with minorities, however the 120 participants are largely African American, Asian American, and Hispanic. Hartman was one of Star Track’s all-star riders before his crash. He had joined the program in 2013, around the time he joined Major Taylor, and he quickly became a standout racer. He was the ideal kid for the program; he was dedicated and physically gifted, and in need of the financial assistance to ride and race. Like the members of the Major Taylor team, the coaches at Star Track took Josh under their wings to show him the nuances of the sport. In the months after his crash, Hartman ventured back to the Kissena velodrome to see the Star Track coaches and riders. He missed the community, and asked the director if he could come on as a coach. Star Track happily hired Josh, and he worked with the younger kids, helping them adjust to the fixed-gear bikes. “Josh had lost a bit of his sparkle after the crash,” says Peter Taylor, one of the program’s coaches. “He’d come to the races, go home, and you’d never see him all week. It was like he’d forgotten that cycling was fun.” Taylor recognized that something was wrong with Hartman, beyond the obvious health challenges posed by his recovery. By early 2015 Hartman had moved out of his parents’ house and was living with his grandmother — the result of disagreeing about his life goals, he says. He was back riding his bicycle for hours on end in Prospect Park, but he rarely raced in road races, fearing crashes and injury. Friends worried that he lacked a specific goal in life. Taylor reached out to Hartman, regularly inviting him to spend time with his family. Hartman became friends with Taylor’s son, Billy, and began spending time at the family’s apartment in Manhattan’s east side. By that spring, Hartman had moved in with the Taylor family. He accompanied the family on trips to Trexlertown, Pennsylvania, to watch Billy race at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center. During that time, coach Taylor encouraged Hartman to pursue racing again. If road racing presented too many opportunities to crash, then why not race on the track? On a whim, Hartman participated in a track race at Trexlertown in May of 2016. He finished fourth overall. He was hooked. “We woke up a monster,” Taylor says. “Josh’s eyes lit up. He was sparkling.” HARTMAN IS NOT AMERICA’S best track sprinter — not yet, anyway. He still lacks the raw power to accelerate alongside the country’s Olympic racers. But Hartman can propel a track bike from a dead stop to top-speed faster than almost anyone in the country. It’s a violent, somewhat awkward effort that requires Hartman to wrench his body forward on the bicycle while simultaneously stomping his legs on the pedals. The skill makes him the optimal lead rider for the team sprint competition, in which a team of three cyclists complete three laps of the velodrome after starting from a standstill. The lead rider requires brute strength, as well as a willingness to load his leg muscles and connective tissue with the maximum stress in the shortest amount of time. “Josh’s job is to go from zero to 65 kilometers per hour in 250 meters,” says Mark Tyson, USA Cycling’s longtime sprint coach. “It’s pretty awesome to watch — it’s like watching an Olympic weight lifter.” The skill helped Hartman excel in sprint competitions soon after he returned to racing; by the summer of 2016 he qualified for USA Cycling’s junior national championships at the Trexlertown track. The three-day meet transformed Hartman from a virtual unknown into a rising star. In the match sprint, he handily defeated riders with national experience in the early rounds, eventually finishing second place overall. He collected another silver medal in the Keirin and a bronze in the team sprint. The results put him on USA Cycling’s radar. In August he participated in the Junior Pan-American games, and in late 2016 he was invited to train at the Colorado Springs complex with the Olympic coaches. Hartman was overjoyed at the opportunity, yet he knew the step would require a lengthy conversation with his father. In November, the two met to talk about Hartman’s future. “At first I told him what he wanted to hear, that I’d do college and get a job, just stuff to get him off of my back. Then we got serious,” Hartman says. “I told him about this opportunity, and that I wanted to pursue it. At first he didn’t like it, but I think he saw how serious I was.” The trip to Colorado transformed into a long-term stay with the Olympic training program. The experience was beyond what Hartman could afford by himself. Taylor stepped in to help fund Hartman’s Olympic development. The Major Taylor team also chips in, regularly sending him cash for shoes, food, and other day-to-day purchases. Beyond the financial assistance, Hartman’s friends from cycling also talk to him about his newfound spot in the sport. Like the other riders in any given race, Hartman has talent and a desire to win. Yet everything else about Hartman — his background, his ethnicity, and even his path to the sport — is different. “Everyone on the team knows what it’s like to walk into a meeting and be the only black person in the room,” Miller says. “We talk to Josh about what it’s like. Unfortunately the burden sometimes falls on us to break the ice and take the initiative.” That’s where Hartman finds himself on this December afternoon. Soon, he will head home for a holiday break to see friends and family. He is eager to tell his father about his training; his dad is now proud of his progress, Hartman says. Then, he will return to the house in Colorado Springs. He lives at this house with his two track teammates, Dominic Suozzi and Joe Christiansen. Christiansen hails from Lyons, Colorado, where he was a standout on the high school cycling team, and traveled to Europe to race with the national team. Christiansen teases Hartman about a recent training session; Hartman has developed a reputation for pushing himself to the point of vomiting. Hartman laughs and then teases Christiansen back. In the moment, thoughts of East New York, the crash, and Hartman’s recovery melt away. Hartman is another hopeful Olympian, working toward greatness. He’s well on his way.From free milk to the first toilets and much more Since its beginning in 1970, Glastonbury has steadily got bigger and bigger over the past 43 years, starting with 1500, and now currently draws over 170,000 to Pilton in Somerset each summer for a celebration of music, art, and culture. Somehow, even while drawing more prolific and varied artists to perform on it's many stages, it has kept an inkling of its hippie roots. The idea to start the festival was that of Michael Eavis, who owns Worthy Farm in Pilton, and was inspired by a festival he attended in 1969 where Led Zeppelin performed in Bath. Glastonbury has changed a lot from the price to the size, but it's obviously got something that keeps people flocking to Somerset every year. We have taken a look every event since 1970, and have pulled together weird and wonderful facts from every year. 1970: The first festival, and originally called Glastonbury Fayre. Costing one pound (with free milk included) Glastonbury 1970 was held the day after Jimi Hendrix died. Around 1500 people attended, and it was headlined by Tyrannosaurus Rex - stepping in for the Kinks who failed to show up. 1971: Back for a second year Glastonbury Fayre had Hawkwind and Traffic headlining, while David Bowie played his first, of three appearances (to date), on Worthy Farm. 1978: This, the third year of Glastonbury Fayre one wasn't planned as per se. People showed up, en route from Stone Henge as they heard a festival was set to take place. After a discussion, it was decided that indeed, a festival would happen. It was powered by a caravan and a makeshift stage, there were no headline acts as such. 1979: Grown to a three day event, Eavis raised funds for this by securing a bank loan against the deeds to his farm. Peter Gabriel was one of the headliners. However, unfortunately the festival was a huge financial loss and thus 1980 there was no Glastonbury. But it was back in 1981 with 'proper management'! 1981: Back with a new name, Glastonbury Festival, 1981 saw the arrival of a permanent Pyramid Stage, which when not used as a stage was a cow shed. Hawkwind were among the bands performing. 1982: This year Glastonbury Festival was involved with the Mid-Somerset and Western Region 'Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament'. To deter an anti CND plane, Festival organiser Michael Eavis aimed a £70 firework at it, in order to chase it away. There was also the festival's first laser light show was backed by backed Tubeway Army's iconic 'Are Friends Electric'. 1983: This was the first year of proper toilets! And the first of Glastonbury's Radio Station Radio Avalon broadcast the three day festival. 1984: This year The Smiths played, which led to uproar amongst those who attended, who questioned whether popular bands should perform on the Pyramid Stage... 1985: The festival was now so big that it took over neighbouring land on Cockmill Farm, to add another 100 acres. It was also hit with seriously bad weather. However Michael Eavis, said he was pleased that "we have had the mud bath and proved we can still cope with the conditions." This is just as well, for there
, a difficult time,” the 24-year-old admitted. “I felt bad but that is normal. I wanted to play, I want to play all the time and I was disappointed. It is the same for all the players – we want to play for the red shirt and, in a big game, it is important for us. I think it was natural that I was disappointed because I want to play for this shirt and I am ready to fight for the club.” Despite a difficult start on Merseyside, that included being sidelined for over two months by the thigh injury, the youngest captain in PSG’s history insists he never contemplated a quick exit. “I never doubted I would come back,” Sakho said. “I never thought to leave. “I don’t know if I have proved I belong here, that is for others to decide. But I am happy, very happy at the club, and very happy with the team. I have two and a half years left on my contract and I never say I want to go. I am happy here in Liverpool, my family is happy and everything is settled for me. I like being at Liverpool.” Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge may start against Everton, says Rodgers Read more Liverpool’s defensive record has improved significantly since Sakho was restored to the left of Rodgers’ three-man back-line. The Liverpool manager dealt with the defender’s breach of protocol internally, describing it as a “real light-switch moment” for Sakho, and believes there is more to come from the expensive recruit. “He hadn’t intended to cause any offence,” Rodgers explained. “He was obviously really disappointed, like most players are, and I don’t turn my back on players when I know they care and want to work and that’s all he’s ever wanted to do. You see consistency in him now. He’s still got improvements to make but you see that he really cares, he’s a real warrior, he’s strong and he’s playing very well.”ADVERTISEMENT Losing Money? Stop the Bleeding! Learn How... Kucinich hits 'Virtual Army Experience' as 'deceptive' Stephen C. Webster Published: Thursday March 12, 2009 Print This Email This 'Army simulation' tour cost taxpayers $9.8 million in 2007; Kucinich wants funds pulled In real war, a "frag" does not earn more points or a higher ranking. It means something else entirely. And you don't respawn. Ever. That's essentially the message carried by Congressman Dennis Kucinich in a letter to the leaders of the House Committee on Armed Services, urging them to pull funding for the Army's "deceptive recruitment" with its traveling VR simulation. The popular, liberal representative's response was triggered by the latest "virtual reality" incarnation of America's Army, a multi-player, squad-based tactical shooting video game for the PC and consoles. When it released in 2002, the game drew praise from reviewers, many of them ranking it among the best first-person shooters of its day, such as Unreal Tournament and Counterstrike. It was released initially over the Internet free of charge. "America's Army: Operations clearly has a lot going for it, not the least of which is a level of realism that's constantly palpable and brought to life with very high production values," opined GameSpot writer Scott Osborne in 2002. "However, at this point, the game is limited by its focus on small-scale engagements between foot soldiers." He must have been using the word "realistic" in relative terms. Today, the game is even more "realistic," thanks to the elaborate technology involved in the "Virtual Army Experience" (VAE). Sporting prop Humvees in a massive VR combat scenario, a LAN (Local Area Network) room for multiplayer gaming and a team-based mission simulation encompassing a number of the various jobs inherent to soldiering, the VAE represents the latest generation of how America's military appeals to the 13-and-up demographic. The Army even pulls scenarios from "real missions." That's a bit much for Kucinich. "Although participants score points for shooting people in uniform and lose points for firing on noncombatants, no blood or carnage is ever seen in the simulation," writes the Ohio lawmaker and former presidential candidate. "The VAE shields participants from the realities of killing while glorifying the taking of human life in a thinly veiled attempt to recruit new soldiers. Making matters worse, if a child wants to take part in the simulation, the Army collects his or her contact information, as well as an assessment of the child’s performance in the simulator. "The VAE travels around the country to family oriented venues such as amusement parks, air shows and county fairs. When the VAE came to the Cleveland Air Show in 2008, I raised concerns and objections with the Army. Allowing children as young as thirteen years of age to participate in a simulation endorsed by the United States Government that glorifies and sanitizes extreme violence is unacceptable." "I had fun during the intense but short experience," summarized C-Net writer Will Greenwald in 2007, when the VAE first launched. "It felt surprisingly real, with the gun and Humvee shaking and rocking wildly as I shot at terrorists on a huge screen. Unfortunately, it didn't really present the same level of risk most video games offer. As far as I could tell, nobody in the simulation died or got hurt. Sure, bullets flew and bombs exploded, but nobody lost a life..." Kucinich insisted that funds be pulled from the "Virtual Army Experience," noting that in 2007 taxpayers footed a $9.8 million bill for the program. Thursday morning, Kucinich's staff isssued a memo calling on the committee to "eliminate deceptive Army recruitment." America's Army is not the only virtual recruiting tool used by the military. During a launch party for the popular Xbox 360 game Halo 3, underage kids were turned away from a GameStop location in New Hampshire because the game is rated "M" (Mature) and recommended for players ages 17 and up. According to Game Politics, Air Force recruiters across the street welcomed the underage GameStop castoffs with their own Halo 2 tournament, including pizza, Mountain Dew and a "pimped-out military SUV" housing the consoles. Kucinich is not the only one protesting military use of video games to pique the interest of teens. Iraq Veterans Against the War has confronted America's Army demos before, garnering widespread coverage across technology media. In 2008, an activist group staged a protest outside of the game developer's headquarters. In San Francisco, Ubisoft was picketed by protesters who carried a banner that read "War is not a game." Wired also reported the group tried to put warning stickers on copies of America's Army for Xbox 360. The following video of an IVAW protest in St. Louis, MO. was uploaded to YouTube August 19, 2007. Congressman Kucinich's full letter follows. #### Dear Chairman Skelton and Ranking Member McHugh: I urge you to eliminate budget authority for the Virtual Army Experience (VAE) in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010. The VAE is a state-of-the-art, interactive recruiting tool used by the Army to give participants as young as 13 years old a naïve and unrealistic glimpse into the world of Soldiering. The VAE allows participants to perform missions using adapted combat training technology meant to imitate the feel of real Army equipment through the use of air-pressured guns that mimic recoil and kickback, and Humvees that shake slightly from simulated IED explosions. Although participants score points for shooting people in uniform and lose points for firing on noncombatants, no blood or carnage is ever seen in the simulation. The VAE shields participants from the realities of killing while glorifying the taking of human life in a thinly veiled attempt to recruit new soldiers. Making matters worse, if a child wants to take part in the simulation, the Army collects his or her contact information, as well as an assessment of the child’s performance in the simulator. The VAE travels around the country to family oriented venues such as amusement parks, air shows and county fairs. When the VAE came to the Cleveland Air Show in 2008, I raised concerns and objections with the Army. Allowing children as young as thirteen years of age to participate in a simulation endorsed by the United States Government that glorifies and sanitizes extreme violence is unacceptable. Like many towns across the U.S., Cleveland is trying to do the opposite because of its very real struggles with violence. Exposing children to America ’s heroes is beneficial to both the children and members of the armed service. However, this exposure must be honest and complete, rather than portraying an unrealistic or incomplete picture of what choosing future service to our country might entail. I appreciate the difficult job the Committee faces when setting the priorities for fiscal year 2010. I hope you will agree that it is irresponsible to continue the touring of the VAE exhibits. In 2007 the reported estimated cost to operate the VAE was $9.8 million. This money can be better spent. I urge you to eliminate from the budget the Virtual Army Experience in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2010. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. Sincerely, Dennis J. Kucinich Member of Congres This story has been updated to clarify the target of the congressman's letter. Get Raw exclusives as they break -- Email & mobile Email - Never spam:Stephen Pannell in one of his new sheds. Photo: Philip White Since Stephen Pannell graduated from Roseworthy in 1989, he has made wine at Seppelt, Andrew Garrett, Wirra Wirra, and Knappstein. He usually heads north between Australian vintages. He’s made wine at numerous great houses in Bordeaux and Burgundy. He loves working in Barolo in Italy and has done three vintages in Spain. Pannell worked at Hardy’s Tintara from 1995 to 2003, becoming Hardy’s chief red wine maker before leaving to begin the S.C. Pannell line with his wife and partner, the former prosecuting lawyer Fiona Lindquist. Advertisement He made the first of these S.C. Pannells at Warren Randall’s Tinlins on McLaren Flat until he and Fiona bought the Tapestry winery and vineyards from Rob Gerard a few years back. Since then, Pannell has won the McLaren Vale Bushing King crown twice – in 2015 and 2016 – both with audacious reds containing the Portuguese vintage port variety Touriga nacional. Oh yes, he also won the Bushing previously in 2011. Not to mention the Jimmy Watson Trophy. Twice. But that was years back. The Bushing crown goes to the best red wine in the annual McLaren Vale wine show. None of those Touriga-based or influenced reds are anything like vintage port, by the way. They’re more along the lines of what we used to call “drinking wine”. Since then, they’ve been through what the trade called the “bistro wine” and “brasserie wine” phases and seem now free of fad nomenclature to be back to honest, easy, entertaining, hunger-provoking things you can just sit back and drink. They will, as he says, help the dinner table conversation but never dominate it. I like that. In fact, a vast proportion of the most talkative winetards, hipstercrites, chefwits and skronky presstitutes from this wine column/blogging racket flounder when they hit S.C. Pannell. I mean, they’ll rave about it with lugubrious weasel words, but I reckon those types don’t really get it. Like they’ll sit there playing their mouth, scouring their plonkous vocab for words that glorify much more expensive standards from much further away, amazed to see their carefee partners ploughing into the next bottle of something from Pannell’s funky second line. Since he hoisted his name on that old Tapestry winery on Oliver’s Road in The Vales, Pannell’s been making exquisite wine from Shiraz (of course), Touriga nacional, Tempranillo, Cabernet sauvignon, Nero d’Avolo, Aglianico, Mataro, Nebbiolo (best one in Australia forthcoming), Barbera, Montepulciano, Gewurztraminer, Pinot grigio … you name anything distinctive or noble or brave, it’ll be in there somewhere, often in an unusual but always intelligently-constructed blend. Advertisement He’s now planning the importation and establishment of varieties unknown here, which he’s found in Greece, and more recently, Croatia. Stuff he thinks will work in Shiraz-choked McLaren Vale. Or the adjoining Adelaide Hills. He showed me, for example, a barrel sample of the most distinguished and individualistic Shiraz I can remember drinking anywhere. From Echunga. Intelligence is in everything Pannell does. Not just intelligence gathered, but intrinsic brightness. Like DNA. He’s one of the very few winemakers in the country I would include in my privately-nominated oenological/gastronomic Mensa. Like great departed wine heroes I’ve known, and loved, personally – think Grange god Max Schubert and the genius Dr Ray Beckwith from Penfolds – Pannell seems buoyed as much as driven by his innate, unwavering faith in his own curiosity. That powers his tireless engine. Endless, persistent, feverish questioning. The pursuit of more. Of further. But you know what? It’s not that rare vinous IQ that really sets him apart. What sets Pannell apart, and to extreme effect, is his very simple, pure passion. On the other hand, he’s a bit like, say, virtuoso guitarist Andrés Segovia, but a Segovia who, having played brilliant concert-hall classical and flamenco guitar for one lifetime, suddenly sheds a million ornate, hard-learned and rehearsed trills and arpeggios and counterpoints to switch to good old 12-bar blues and starts again. With about 95 per cent fewer tricks and flourishes. Fewer dots. Back to three chords. This is what confounds those pretenders and winey blatherskiters. The wines Pannell regards as his best never seem to win a gong. Like, I really enjoy schlücking away at his latest Bushing winner, but he has much more brilliance in his arsenal. “That’s just a bit of fun that winner,” he says when I ask him of such stuff. “My Shirazes get nothing. “And like check the stunning Grenache wines now coming out of this district. They’re brilliant wines. But no straight Grenache has ever won the Bushing. Wine shows are all fashion and politics … “My new Grenache is always far too tightly-wound for them to get it. Like, I know what happens judging shows. You listen to the chairman’s urging to go for new things with elegance and balance and whatever, you know, approachabilty, intensity, elegance, whatever it is they want, but you always seem to end up going for the gloopy-doopy.” Which his Touriga Cabernet Mataro 2015 blend, the current Bushing Trophy holder, most certainly is not. It’s a dry, almost dusty, bistro-buster. A verandah wine. One can imagine the chairman of judges instructing his or her teams of gun tasters to look for things out of the ordinary and approachable and fun, which in this case they have tried to do, but in so doing missed the beauty of more subtle and carefully-poised wonders elsewhere in the arsenal. Pannell’s a whizzer in the blending bullring, with all those exotic wonders, but his heart is in our history. Which is why he’s bought land just over the rise from the revered vineyards the late Bob Hardy owned and nurtured at the oldest winery site in the McLaren Vale embayment at Bob’s home at what is called Upper Tintara, pushed in against the wild Hardy’s scrub off Whiting’s Road to the north-east of the McLaren Vale township. It’s in a nest, that new purchase: a precious hollow hidden over the hills to the east of Seaview/Rosemount and Kays. Very few know it’s in there. It carries remnants of the old vineyards Dr AC Kelly sold to Thomas Hardy in 1876, bits of old buildings and the remnants of an orchard with long-forgotten strains of quince, pear and even a mulberry tree I recognised immediately as the same type as the famous one on Kangaroo Island – the first European tree planted in the colony. I recognised its shape and leaf, having grown up playing in another one surviving in Kanmantoo since the miners there propagated a cutting taken from that same original KI pioneer a century-and-a-half ago. “You’re spot on, Whitey,” he said. “That’s from a cutting from that same tree.” Whew. Pannell is ruthlessly renovating and customising the old vines, repairing the damage done by 30 years of mindless industrialisation and brutal mechanical management during the years of economic rationalisation that eventually brought Hardy’s undone and helped lose its penultimate owner, the US-based Constellation Wines, a cool $1.6 billion over a few short years. Pannell’s planting heaps of Touriga in there now, and bits and pieces of many of those exotic names listed. This last wet winter, he spent seven weeks in there alone in the rain, pruning the old ones. Thinking. Which brings us back to the 12-bar blues. What this remarkable man is committed to, above all else, beyond all that experimentation, is to re-establish the sort of winemaking that same rank industrialisation and lazy fall to turbocharged alcoholic gloop removed from Australian winemaking in the last 20 years. “I’m picking everything now at 13 or 13-and-a-half per cent,” he says cheerfully. “That’s all the alcohol I need. It’s all anybody needs, if they think about it. They’ve all forgotten. Or they never knew. “And every year my profits go into these really big oak vats. It’s like buying a few new cars or a new wooden boat each year. The ratio of exposed wood to wine volume is diminished. This cuts out the sap and caramel and soot everybody seems to like getting from new small French barrels – toasted oak. “That’s not an Australian flavour. “And you know what, Whitey,” he continued with a chuckle, cutting me an exquisite sample, “eventually I’ll no longer have to buy a truckload of new barriques every year. These big beauties will outlast my kids. Initially they’re more expensive per litre than new conventional barrels, but once I have enough of them that’s it. Forever, as far as my life goes. “I’m using them to make all my straight varieties and blends, but most significantly Shiraz and Cabernet blends like I found in the Hardy’s cellars when I started there. Beautiful, elegant Australian wines … and guess what? Nobody understands them.” I certainly do. It’s what I’ve written about, begging for, over the last two decades. Comrades, enjoy the new wave of “drinking wines” from S.C. Pannell while you prepare to learn our forgotten past. “I’m not making wine for export,” he said. “I’m making wines for Australia. I want to get us back to our own reality.” Polish a glass, take a seat, strap yourself in and watch this space. Welcome to the S.C. Pannell time machine. drinkster.blogspot.com We value local independent journalism. We hope you do too. InDaily provides valuable, local independent journalism in South Australia. As a news organisation it offers an alternative to The Advertiser, a different voice and a closer look at what is happening in our city and state for free. Any contribution to help fund our work is appreciated. Please click below to become an InDaily supporter. Powered by PressPatronFrench political establishment tries to bury the Oslo neo-fascist massacre By Anthony Torres 3 September 2011 The political establishment in France is trying to hide the significance of the massacre of 77 people in Oslo by neo-fascist Anders Breivik, in order to conceal the great dangers posed by the promotion of right-wing conceptions and parties by the French and European ruling elite as a whole. That is what emerges from the political blank stare with which the official media has responded to the comments of Jean-Marie Le Pen, honorary president of the National Front (FN), the French neo-fascist party. The latter, a filthy figure in French politics for decades, has legitimized the fascist ideology that motivated Breivik, evoking, to explain the Oslo slaughter, the naïveté of the Norwegian government confronted with the “danger” of “massive immigration.” The political establishment has to a large extent kept silent on these comments. Mild criticism, directed against Marine Le Pen, the current FN leader, emanates from second rank politicians—such as Minister for Budgetary Affairs Valerie Pécresse and the former Socialist Party (PS) presidential candidate in 2007, Ségolène Royal. Le Monde cites these comments: “Questioned on RMC radio, Ségolène Royal [currently seeking the PS nomination for the 2012 presidential election] claims that ‘by saying nothing she [Marine Le Pen] is in agreement’. Mrs. Royal judged the lack of any reaction from the president of the FN ‘very strange and shocking’. On the political right, several UMP politicians [the ruling Union for a Popular Movement Party] also denounced ‘the deathly silence’ of FN president Marine Le Pen, according to the government’s spokeswomen Valérie Pécresse. She concluded by saying that ‘nothing has changed at the FN.’” The comments by Royal and Pécresse are thoroughly dishonest and aimed at lulling the population to sleep. Given that the FN is an extreme right-wing party espousing essentially the same ideas as Breivik, there is nothing at all surprising in the reactionary comments of Jean-Marie Le Pen. Royal and Pécresse imply that the FN could become a respectable party and that Le Pen’s comments might be limited to a minority voice within it. There is no evidence to support such a conclusion. Marine Le Pen defended her party, denouncing the attempts to “politically exploit” the Oslo tragedy. A second Le Monde article pointed to the conflicts within the National Front. Some FN activists have openly hailed Breivik as a “resistance fighter” and “a visionary confronting the rise of Islam in Europe.” They were suspended from FN membership, but not expelled. That changed nothing in the FN’s general political sympathy for Breivik’s ideas. France’s big business parties have adopted more and more right-wing policies in recent years, and the timid criticisms of the political establishment directed at the silence of Marine Le Pen will not change the trajectory of French and European politics. The political establishment has in fact cultivated neo-fascist forces as a barrier and weapon against the radicalization of the working class. In this policy, they have had the co-operation of the entire French political establishment, including the petty bourgeois “far left.” It is important to note that the New Anti-Capitalist Party (NPA) of Olivier Besancenot and Alain Krivine has been very discreet following the Oslo massacre and has not commented on Jean-Marie Le Pen’s declaration. The NPA merely published a brief regional communiqué and an article by an ex-leader of the Norwegian electoral Red Alliance. The NPA is not able to attack the extreme right on a principled, class basis because that would cut across its relations with the Socialist Party (PS) and the French Communist Party (PCF), both of which reject offering serious opposition to the policies of President Nicolas Sarkozy. The latter has attempted to divert attention from his deeply unpopular social austerity measures and the neo-colonial war on Libya and Afghanistan by targeting the Muslim population in a chauvinist and racist campaign. The NPA and the other “far left” parties, in reality part of the French political order, by their acquiescence to the PS, PCF and the unions have objectively assisted in the emergence of nationalist and right-wing notions in official French politics. Every European country is prey to intensifying class struggle in the context of the world financial crisis that broke out in 2008. Each major political crisis and each setback for the working class, the latter attributable directly to the worthlessness of the trade unions and the “left” parties, has been followed by a renewed assault on democratic rights, focused above all on ethnic minorities and immigrants, and a further lurch to the right by the French political set-up. In France in 2003, the right-wing Raffarin government attacked public sector workers’ pensions. This social regression was intended to extend the pay-in period of public workers in line with those in the private sector. While workers in large numbers were opposed to this “reform,” the unions found common ground with the Minister of Social Affairs François Fillon at the time. Only a few months later the government led a campaign banning the wearing of headscarves in schools. During the 2007 presidential elections, both Sarkozy and Royal pursued right-wing campaigns based on law and order. Sarkozy, who sought to make inroads into the FN electorate, had moreover obtained the political support of Gianfranco Fini from the Italian Alleanza Nazionale (National Alliance), the “post-fascist” descendant of Mussolini’s party, which was allied to Silvio Berlusconi’s government. In 2009, the unions, the Socialist Party and the “far left” called for one-day demonstrations in support of the alternative PS policy of economic recovery, which was not a real alternative to Sarkozy’s project, but represented an attempt to legitimize handing over hundreds of billions of euros to bail out the banks. Following this, the Sarkozy government launched a “debate” on national identity and prepared a ban on the wearing of the Muslim burqa punishable by fines—as well as the implementation of other racist measures, such as the expulsion of the Roma. The PS, PCF and the Greens participated in the parliamentary commission on the burqa ban, chaired by André Gerin of the PCF. The NPA through Besancenot declared that it was not opposed in principle to the imposition of fines on Muslim women wearing the garment. The policy of these successive governments, and the complicity of their “left” hangers-on, created conditions in which the extreme right could make a breakthrough in the 2011 regional elections, and recently among a layer of union representatives. Marine Le Pen took advantage of Sarkozy’s policies and of the sympathy of a section of the media to give a “respectable” image to the FN. If the French political establishment can only offer the pious and empty wish that the FN distance itself from Breivik and the Oslo massacre, this is because, after years of inciting political reaction, it is incapable of conducting and, in fact, is hostile to a political struggle against the neo-fascist forces.A group of Utah State fans made a hyperlapse of their visit to Knoxville for their team’s game against Tennessee this past weekend. The fans captured their road trip to East, Tennessee and were willing to share it with the internet. The outcome? This awesome video found below: The video captures the fans walk through from downtown Knoxville to Neyland Stadium and features a view of in-game action from the top bowl section. This gives fans a glimpse of the incredible atmosphere at Neyland Stadium during Tennessee’s season opener. Neyland Stadium saw its first sellout crowd for a home opener since 2007. The official recorded attendance was 102,455, which was the most attended SEC game of the weekend. According to head coach Butch Jones, the Vols are expecting another sellout for their afternoon game against Arkansas State on Saturday. Tennessee went on to capture a convincing 38-7 win over the Aggies. Despite the loss, it seems as though the Utah State fans enjoyed their trip to Knoxville. Related Article: Tennessee fan support impressive in openerMitchell made his international debut in 2005 Wales and England could face Matt Giteau and Drew Mitchell at the 2015 World Cup after Australia made a key change to their selection policy. Only home-based players used to be considered, ruling out the likes of Toulon duo Giteau and Mitchell. But Wallabies coach Michael Cheika can now pick anyone who has at least 60 caps and played for seven years in Super Rugby with an Australian team. Australia are in the same World Cup group as Wales and hosts England. The move comes as the Australian Rugby Union, which is struggling financially, sees several players heading abroad after this year's World Cup, which begins in September. "This is a pivotal moment for rugby in Australia," said chief executive Bill Pulver. The decision means New Zealand and England are the only major nations whose rules ensure only home-based players can play Test rugby. Fly-half or inside centre Giteau, 32, has 92 caps, while winger or full-back Mitchell, 32, has represented his country 63 times.If Blizzard can continue to deliver, Legion sets the stage for what could be the best chapter of World of Warcraft yet. NEED TO KNOW What is it? A demon-obsessed expansion with a renewed affection for its classes. Reviewed On Windows 10, i5 3570k, 16GB Ram, GTX 970 Price $50/£35 Release Date Out now Publisher Blizzard Entertainment Developer Blizzard Entertainment Multiplayer MMO Link Official Website World of Warcraft: Legion bears a terrible weight. In some ways, it feels like an apology for the mistakes made during the previous WoW expansion, Warlords of Draenor. Those mistakes also led many to believe World of Warcraft's days were numbered, and now Legion is tasked with not only making up for lost time, but also proving that World of Warcraft still has time left. Despite all that, Legion is the most confident expansion Blizzard has ever made. The Burning Legion's invasion of Azeroth might be one of the most dire conflicts explored in World of Warcraft, an impression driven home by the Broken Shore intro that pulls a few pages from Game of Thrones by nonchalantly killing off important characters. But that confidence I see in Legion doesn't just come from going all in on the story—it comes from understanding that this is Blizzard's sixth time releasing an expansion. As I imagine the Lord Illidan would say, they are prepared. Read more: World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth review Above: Stormheim is a bleak coastal zone populated by a race of totally-not-vikings, the Vrykul. On the broken shore The pre-expansion introduction to Legion starts and, if you're with the Alliance, ends with a bang, but I was a little disappointed that it doesn't keep up that D-Day-style tension beyond its opening chapter. Where Warlords of Draenor captured the feeling of invading a hostile land and establishing a tenuous foothold, the first few hours of Legion feel safe and not nearly as dramatic. I was let down at first, but as I ventured out into the new zones and began digging into their respective questlines, I hardly cared. There are times when Legion is outright silly despite its apocalyptic main story, injecting a wonderful sense of personality into the characters I meet. Each of the new zones demonstrates Blizzard's experience in storytelling and world design at its best. The new zones are gorgeous, and effortlessly funnel me from one quest to the next. The rainy coastline of Azsuna is my favorite. The crumbling elven ruins that dot its sombre landscape evoke a sad beauty, like a classical painting weathered and broken by time. The quest about the ghost of a prince seeking redemption is just as tragic. A generous sprinkling of voice acting and cutscenes throughout these quests help me sympathize with the characters I fight alongside. It's almost odd that things seem so bleak when, at the same time, I'm having so much damn fun. At their heart, the quests in Legion remain focused on collecting and killing, but each one takes a chore and turns it into a game of charades where you'll never know what you're expected to do next. Where there isn't a unique wrinkle, like using a squadron of drakelings to destroy defensive towers while an insane mage rains magic missiles on my head, there's always some oddball character stuck in some bizarre predicament, like a pack of stranded sailors being used in Pokémon battles by giants. Even a simple escort quest became delightful when the scheming, mana-addicted elf I rode alongside had to frequently stop to feed his cravings. Above: A slight update to WoW's lighting does wonders in some areas. There are times when Legion is outright silly despite its apocalyptic main story, injecting a wonderful sense of personality into the characters I meet. Because of that, Legion achieves something kind of remarkable for an MMO: I don't see a question mark on my map and consider it some chore to be completed on my quest to level 110, but an invitation for fun. The meat of Legion's endgame raids won't be available for a few weeks, but the world quest system is a smart revamp of daily quests that won't supplant the need for new updates down the road, but should keep Legion from feeling stale during the months in between. World quests are essentially Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls' adventure mode stitched wholesale onto Warcraft, and turns the entirety of the Broken Isles into an endgame zone at 110—meaning I'm not stuck in the same area repeating the same quests over and over, but rather jumping around the Broken Isles day to day completing a variety of objectives for better loot drops. Once I've had some time with the full endgame experience, I hope to have a better idea of whether or not Legion will become stale months down the road. For now, I'm optimistic that as long as Blizzard can keep pace, Legion's endgame will be more accessible and satisfying than Warlords of Draenor ever was. Staying classy Still, questing for hours on end can be a grind no matter how inventive the quests are, so I'm always relieved when Legion gives me an excuse to take a quick break. Tending to the new 'order halls' that serve as my headquarters breaks up the questing every few hours. In the most reductive sense, order halls are the garrisons of Warlords of Draenor. While I still have followers that I send out on missions that can take days to complete, there's only five to manage instead of dozens. I like not having to worry about erecting and leveling up buildings, instead focusing on a simple, more focused system of researching new upgrades to my base. Best of all, I'm no longer alone when I'm in my order hall like I was with garrisons. It's fun to return home and see all my druid brethren hanging out together. While the functionality of order halls is great at establishing some longer term goals, my favorite aspect represents something that World of Warcraft has been lacking for years: class identity. Each order hall is unique to each class, and they all evoke the associated mythos and personality in powerful ways. The Dreamgrove, where druid players call home, is an enchanting meadow that feels heavy with ancient mysticism. By comparison, The Fel Hammer, the demonic spaceship where demon hunters kick back after a day of murder, is burning with nefarious green energy amid the gnashing of the demon prisoners chained to its walls. There's a generous helping of quests associated with each class that further help establish this renewed sense of identity. I love digging deeper into the lore of my druid, and many quests require using abilities unique to my class, even ones I would never use in any other context. It's a great feeling to dust off an old spell for some clever use in a quest, but, more importantly, there's a selfish satisfaction in knowing that I'm doing something not every class can do. Above: Some order halls also have extra perks, like the Dreamgrove having portals to various locations in Azeroth. That sense of affection I'm beginning to feel for my character might just be the most rewarding part of Legion for me. For the first time, I don't just feel like I'm playing a druid—I am a druid. Not that I'm frolicking around in the forest behind my house and trying to commune with trees, but Legion has me more curious about roleplaying in World of Warcraft than I've ever been. There's no better way to see Warcraft's improved class identity than to take the new demon hunters for a spin. They are, without a doubt, the most well-realized class that Blizzard has ever created. I'm not fond of their dour emo nature, but that's easy to ignore as my demon hunter transforms into a savage monstrosity and obliterates a pack of murlocs with laser beams that shoot out of his damn eyeballs. While I don't find them quite alluring enough to consider switching from my druid, demon hunters are badasses of the highest order. What makes demon hunters so fun, especially their damage-dealing specialization, is how agile they feel in and out of combat. Whether I'm dashing through a pack of monsters, backflipping away from an attack, or just using their bat-like wings to glide through the air, I always feel like the coolest thing to walk Azeroth since the Arthas first took hold of Frostmourne. Above: Step aside Cyclops, there's a way cooler hero who shoots lasers from his eyes. Legacy and lore If there's one element of Legion that attempts to contribute to that fantasy but falls short, it's the new artifact weapons. Each class specialization now has its own unique weapon that will stay with them until the next expansion, growing in strength alongside the character that wields it. I'm somewhat indifferent to the way artifact weapons work, however. On one hand, I like that they earn their own form of experience points that I can use to unlock nodes in a talent tree, augmenting my abilities. On the other, I resent the way they attempt to appear so legendary and one of a kind when every other player of the same specialization shares the same weapon. That sense of affection I'm beginning to feel for my character might just be the most rewarding part of Legion for me. There are cosmetic options to alter the appearance of the weapon to try and make it more unique, but I'm not convinced it's a better system than the traditional method of farming better weapons from dungeons and raids. Fortunately, the weird disconnect that artifact weapons create isn't powerful enough to detract from the enthusiasm I have for what Legion accomplishes. Above: Druids are extra cool because their artifact weapon also alters their shapeshifted forms. When it comes to that enthusiasm and those accomplishments, however, there's one massive caveat that hangs above them: Warlords of Draenor had me just as excited at launch before Blizzard ignored it for over a
ing. The boycott was an act of war not solely in metaphor: it was a means, well crafted, to destroy Germany as a political, social and economic entity. The long term purpose of the Jewish boycott against Germany was to bankrupt her with respect to the reparation payments imposed on Germany after World War I and to keep Germany demilitarized and vulnerable. The boycott, in fact, was quite crippling to Germany. Jewish scholars such as Edwin Black have reported that, in response to the boycott, German exports were cut by 10 percent, and that many were demanding seizing German assets in foreign countries (Edwin Black, The Transfer Agreement - The Untold Story of the Secret Pact between the Third Reich and Jewish Palestine, New York, 1984). The attacks on Germany did not cease. The worldwide Jewish leadership became ever the more belligerent and worked itself into a frenzy. An International Jewish Boycott Conference was held in Amsterdam to coordinate the ongoing boycott campaign. It was held under the auspices of the self-styled World Jewish Economic Federation, of which famous New York City attorney and longtime political power broker, Samuel Untermyer, was elected president. Upon returning to the United States in the wake of the conference, Untermyer delivered a speech over WABC Radio (New York), a transcript of which was printed in The New York Times on August 7, 1933. Untermyer's inflammatory oratory called for a "sacred war" against Germany, making the flat-out allegation that Germany was engaged in a plan to "exterminate the Jews." He said (in part):...Germany [has] been converted from a nation of culture into a veritable hell of cruel and savage beasts. We owe it not only to our persecuted brethren but to the entire world to now strike in self-defense a blow that will free humanity from a repetition of this incredible outrage.... Now or never must all the nations of the earth make common cause against the... slaughter, starvation and annihilation... fiendish torture, cruelty and persecution that are being inflicted day by day upon these men, women and children.... When the tale is told... the world will confront a picture so fearful in its barbarous cruelty that the hell of war and the alleged Belgian atrocities pale into insignificance as compared to this devilishly, deliberately, cold-bloodedly planned and already partially executed campaign for the extermination of a proud, gentle, loyal, law-abiding people... The Jews are the aristocrats of the world. From time immemorial they have been persecuted and have seen their persecutors come and go. They alone have survived. And so will history repeat itself, but that furnishes no reason why we should permit this reversion of a once great nation to the Dark Ages or fail to rescue these 600,000 human souls from the tortures of hell.......What we are proposing and have already gone far toward doing, is to prosecute a purely defensive economic boycott that will undermine the Hitler regime and bring the German people to their senses by destroying their export trade on which their very existence depends....We propose to and are organizing world opinion to express itself in the only way Germany can be made to understand.... Untermyer then proceeded to provide his listeners with a wholly fraudulent history of the circumstances of the German boycott and how it originated. He also proclaimed that the Germans were bent on a plan to "exterminate the Jews": The Hitler regime originated and are fiendishly prosecuting their boycott to exterminate the Jews by placarding Jewish shops, warning Germans against dealing with them, by imprisoning Jewish shopkeepers and parading them through the streets by the hundreds under guard of Nazi troops for the sole crime of being Jews, by ejecting them from the learned professions in which many of them had attained eminence, by excluding their children from the schools, their men from the labor unions, closing against them every avenue of livelihood, locking them in vile concentration camps and starving and torturing them without cause and resorting to every other conceivable form of torture, inhuman beyond conception, until suicide has become their only means of escape, and all solely because they are or their remote ancestors were Jews, and all with the avowed object of exterminating them. Untermyer concluded his largely fantastic and hysterical address by declaring that with the support of "Christian friends... we will drive the last nail in the coffin of bigotry and fanaticism...." The Biggest Secret of WWII? Why Germany Began Rounding Up Jews and Deporting Them to the East Why did the Germans begin rounding up the Jews and interning them in the concentration camps to begin with? Contrary to popular myth, the Jews remained "free" inside Germany - albeit subject to laws which did restrict certain of their privileges - prior to the outbreak of World War II. Yet, the other little-known fact is that just before the war began, the leadership of the world Jewish community formally declared war on Germany - above and beyond the ongoing six-year- long economic boycott launched by the worldwide Jewish community when the Nazi Party came to power in 1933. As a consequence of the formal declaration of war, the German authorities thus deemed Jews to be potential enemy agents. Here's the story behind the story: Chaim Weizmann (above), president of both the international "Jewish Agency" and of the World Zionist Organization (and later Israel's first president), told British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain in a letter published in The London Times on September 6, 1939 that: I wish to confirm, in the most explicit manner, the declarations which I and my colleagues have made during the last month, and especially in the last week, that the Jews stand by Great Britain and will fight on the side of the democracies. Our urgent desire is to give effect to these declarations [against Germany]. We wish to do so in a way entirely consonant with the general scheme of British action, and therefore would place ourselves, in matters big and small, under the coordinating direction of His Majesty's Government. The Jewish Agency is ready to enter into immediate arrangements for utilizing Jewish manpower, technical ability, resources, etc. [Emphasis in red added by The Scriptorium.] That his allegations against Germany were made long before even Jewish historians today claim there were any gas chambers or even a plan to "exterminate" the Jews, displays the nature of the propaganda campaign confronting Germany. However, during this same period there were some unusual developments at work: The spring of 1933 also witnessed the beginning of a period of private cooperation between the German government and the Zionist movement in Germany and Palestine (and actually worldwide) to increase the flow of German-Jewish immigrants and capital to Palestine. The modern-day supporters of Zionist Israel and many historians have succeeded in keeping this Nazi-Zionist pact a secret to the general public for decades and while most Americans have no concept of the possibility that there could have been outright collaboration between the Nazi leadership and the founders of what became the state of Israel, the truth has begun to emerge. Dissident Jewish writer Lenni Brennar's Zionism In the Age of the Dictators, published by a small press and not given the publicity it deserves by the so-called "mainstream" media (which is otherwise obsessed with the Holocaust era), was perhaps the first major endeavor in this realm. In response to Brennar and others, the Zionist reaction has usually consisted of declarations that their collaboration with Nazi Germany was undertaken solely to save the lives of Jews. But the collaboration was all the more remarkable because it took place at a time when many Jews and Jewish organizations demanded a boycott of Germany. To the Zionist leaders, Hitler's assumption of power held out the possibility of a flow of immigrants to Palestine. Previously, the majority of German Jews, who identified themselves as Germans, had little sympathy with the Zionist cause of promoting the ingathering of world Jewry to Palestine. But the Zionists saw that only the anti-Semitic Hitler was likely to push the anti-Zionist German Jews into the arms of Zionism. For all the modern-day wailing by worldwide supporters of Israel (not to mention the Israelis themselves) about "the Holocaust", they neglect to mention that making the situation in Germany as uncomfortable for the Jews as possible - in cooperation with German National Socialism - was part of the plan. Note to readers of this article who can also read German: a booklet discussing the emigration of Jews from Third Reich Germany, and the Transfer Agreement that facilitated their emigration, may be found here! This was the genesis of the so-called Transfer Agreement, the agreement between Zionist Jews and the National Socialist government to transfer German Jewry to Palestine. According to Jewish historian Walter Laqueur and many others, German Jews were far from convinced that immigration to Palestine was the answer. Furthermore, although the majority of German Jews refused to consider the Zionists as their political leaders, it is clear that Hitler protected and cooperated with the Zionists for the purposes of implementing the final solution: the mass transfer of Jews to the Middle East. Edwin Black, in his massive tome The Transfer Agreement (Macmillan, 1984), stated that although most Jews did not want to flee to Palestine at all, due to the Zionist movement's influence within Nazi Germany a Jew's best chance of getting out of Germany was by emigrating to Palestine. In other words, the Transfer Agreement itself mandated that Jewish capital could only to go Palestine. Thus, according to the Zionists, a Jew could leave Germany only if he went to the Levant. The primary difficulty with the Transfer Agreement (or even the idea of such an agreement) was that the English [!!!; Scriptorium] were demanding, as a condition of immigration, that each immigrant pay 1,000 pounds sterling upon arrival in Haifa or elsewhere. The difficulty was that such hard currency was nearly impossible to come by in a cash-strapped and radically inflationary Germany. This was the main idea behind the final Transfer Agreement. Laqueur writes: A large German bank would freeze funds paid in by immigrants in blocked accounts for German exporters, while a bank in Palestine would control the sale of German goods to Palestine, thereby providing the immigrants with the necessary foreign currency on the spot. Sam Cohen, co-owner of Hanoaiah Ltd. and initiator of the transfer endeavors, was however subjected to long-lasting objections from his own people and finally had to concede that such a transfer agreement could only be concluded on a much higher level with a bank of its own rather than that of a private company. The renowned Anglo-Palestine Bank in London would be included in this transfer deal and create a trust company for [this] purpose. Of course, this is of major historical importance in dealing with the relationship between Zionism and National Socialism in Germany in the 1930s. The relationship was not one merely of mutual interest and political favoritism on the part of Hitler, but a close financial relationship with German banking families and financial institutions as well. Black writes: It was one thing for the Zionists to subvert the anti-Nazi boycott. Zionism needed to transfer out the capital of German Jews, and merchandise was the only available medium. But soon Zionist leaders understood that the success of the future Jewish Palestinian economy would be inextricably bound up with the survival of the Nazi economy. So the Zionist leadership was compelled to go further. The German economy would have to be safeguarded, stabilized, and if necessary reinforced. Hence, the Nazi party and the Zionist organizers shared a common stake in the recovery of Germany. Thus one sees a radical fissure in world Jewry around 1933 and beyond. There were, first, the non-Zionist Jews (specifically the World Jewish Congress founded in 1933), who, on the one hand, demanded the boycott and eventual destruction of Germany. Black notes that many of these people were not just in New York and Amsterdam, but a major source for this also came from Palestine proper. On the other hand, one can see the judicious use of such feelings by the Zionists for the sake of eventual resettlement in Palestine. In other words, it can be said (and Black does hint at this) that Zionism believed that, since Jews would be moving to the Levant, capital flight would be necessary for any new economy to function. The result was the understanding that Zionism would have to ally itself with National Socialism, so that the German government would not impede the flow of Jewish capital out of the country. It served the Zionist interests at the time that Jews be loud in their denunciations of German practices against the Jews to scare them into the Levant, but, on the other hand, Laqueur states that "The Zionists became motivated not to jeopardize the German economy or currency." In other words, the Zionist leadership of the Jewish Diaspora was one of subterfuge and underhandedness, with only the advent of German hostility towards Jewry convincing the world's Jews that immigration was the only escape. The fact is that the ultimate establishment of the state of Israel was based on fraud. The Zionists did not represent anything more than a small minority of German Jews in 1933. On the one hand, the Zionist fathers of Israel wanted loud denunciations of Germany's "cruelties" to the world's Jews while at the same time demanding moderation so that the National Socialist government would remain stable, financially and politically. Thus Zionism boycotted the boycott. For all intents and purposes, the National Socialist government was the best thing to happen to Zionism in its history, for it "proved" to many Jews that Europeans were irredeemably anti-Jewish and that Palestine was the only answer: Zionism came to represent the overwhelming majority of Jews solely by trickery and cooperation with Adolf Hitler. For the Zionists, both the denunciations of German policies towards Jews (to keep Jews frightened), plus the reinvigoration of the German economy (for the sake of final resettlement) was imperative for the Zionist movement. Ironically, today the Zionist leaders of Israel complain bitterly about the horrific and inhuman regime of the National Socialists. So the fraud continues.Substitute Jin Hanato struck one minute to time as Yokohama F. Marinos extended their perfect start to the J.League season to six games with a 2-1 victory over Kawasaki Frontale on Saturday. Hanato opened his 2013 account after coming on late for Manabu Saito, pouncing on a loose ball from captain Shunsuke Nakamura’s corner. Marinos drew first blood through Seitaro Tomisawa just before the intermission, and Yusuke Tanaka netted for winless Frontale. “I was hoping I could score the winner and be the hero,” said the 22-year-old Hanato, who was on loan to Giravanz Kitakyushu last season. “I don’t even remember the goal. I just hit it with all my might.” “Right now, no one on our team thinks we can lose.” Marinos’ win streak is the best start in J1 since the league adopted a single-stage format in 2005. “All we’re trying to do is play hard and that’s really all you can do because you win some, you lose some,” said Nakamura, who also set up Tomisawa’s opener with a corner. “In close games like this, set pieces can be crucial as they were today.” Kawasaki have just one win in nine games combined in the league and the Nabisco Cup, and coach Yahiro Kazama has come under fire over the team’s poor start. Asked if he felt his job was in danger, Kazama said, “All I can do is keep my chin up and focus on my job. It’s not for me to worry about because it’s out of my control.” For most of the first half, the game seesawed back and forth with both teams doing little creating until the 44th minute, when Marinos won a corner after Rikihiro Sugiyama parried away a stinging effort by Marquinhos. Tomisawa made the most of the opportunity, heading home off the palms of Sugiyama after Nakamura swung in a corner from the right flag as the hosts grabbed the halftime lead. After the break, Marquinhos missed a pair of great chances that would have put the visitors to bed. In the 55th minute, the former Kashima Antlers man struck the bar with a free kick from almost 30 meters out and four minutes past the hour, the 2008 league MVP chipped wide of the target in a one-on-one with Sugiyama. Kawasaki managed to equalize in the 65th minute through Tanaka, who nodded in his first goal of the season from a corner. Frontale almost took the lead after 76 minutes, when Renato forced a diving save from Tetsuya Enomoto with a curling free kick from the inside right channel. But Marinos had the last laugh as Hanato fired into the bottom corner from a penalty-box scramble to open up a five-point lead over Urawa Reds, who host Shonan Bellmare on Sunday. Marinos are away to Albirex Niigata next weekend. Kawasaki could have sorely used World Cup striker Yoshito Okubo, who missed the match with a hernia that flared up a day earlier and is out indefinitely. Elsewhere in J1, Omiya Ardija overcame the sending off of Shohei Takahashi to tie Kashima Antlers’ record unbeaten run of 17 games after beating Cerezo Osaka 2-1 away as Zlatan Ljubijankic decided the match in the 85th minute. Shin Kanazawa opened the scoring in the first minute for Omiya before Yoichiro Kakitani leveled moments before halftime at Nagai Stadium. Takahashi was issued back-to-back yellow cards in the 64th minute to reduce the visitors to 10 men, but Ardija stayed in the game before Ljubijankic won it in the dying minutes. Omiya is in second, four points behind Marinos, with Urawa in third another point back. J2 champions Ventforet Kofu stomped Emperor’s Cup holders Kashiwa Reysol 3-1 at home where Kensuke Fukuda, Hugo and Yukio Tsuchiya netted for the hosts in the first kickoff of the day. Nagoya Grampus collected another three points with a 2-0 home win against Albirex, improving to 11 points on the year, while Vegalta Sendai edged FC Tokyo 2-1 at home for their second win. Yuya Osako struck a 90th-minute winner for Kashima, who won 3-2 away to Oita Trinita, and Shimizu S-Pulse defeated Jubilo Iwata 1-0 in the Shizuoka derby thanks to Taisuke Muramatsu’s goal in the 80th minute. Reysol lose standouts Kashiwa Reysol midfielders Leandro Domingues and Kenta Kano will be both be sidelined for two weeks and four weeks, respectively, due to injuries, the J.League club said Saturday. Both are former J.League Players of the Year, Domingues and Kano, a winter signing from Yokohama F.Marinos, sustained left thigh injuries in last weekend’s 3-3 draw at home to Nagoya Grampus.Congratulations PS4 owners / HBO Go users, your long wait is over and the app is ready for your console. It's been over a year since HBO and Sony announced it was coming to the PlayStation 3 and 4, and one day shy of a year since it arrived on PS3. That wait apparently wasn't long enough for everyone though, as Comcast is the lone provider that won't let its subscribers log in via the new app. Otherwise, system owners can download the app today and activate it online, all with plenty of time to catch up before the next season of Game of Thrones hits, or HBO opens up its non-cable subscription options. HBO and Comcast aren't entirely out of sync though, as HBO and Cinemax's live channels came to the Xfinity TV Go streaming apps today, and in other premium channel news Dish Network customers have access to Showtime Anytime.Share. What happens when genres collide and Pokemon go to war? Pokemon Conquest, that's what. What happens when genres collide and Pokemon go to war? Pokemon Conquest, that's what. In the land of Ransei, there exists a legend - one so deeply ingrained in the people's subconscious that few distinguish the myth from fact. It is told that if any warlord is able to conquer all of the land's 17 kingdoms, then the Pokemon that created Ransei will reveal itself. This myth is the unintentional force behind the ongoing battle for control ravishing the peaceful land, as greedy warlords seek the ultimate power offered by this mythical creature. Exit Theatre Mode Such is the basis for Pokemon Conquest, the unexpected crossover between the feverishly popular Pokemon franchise and the strategy RPG series Nobunaga's Ambition. It takes the familiar RPG stylings PokeManiacs have come to know and love over the past 16 years and mashes them up with the strategy elements and heavier storyline of Nobunaga. The result is something wholly original, and a marked departure for the monster-catching franchise. Though the Pokemon name has been subject to numerous spinoffs of varying success (Pokemon Ranger, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Pokemon Rumble, and so on), few have felt as bold or fully realized as Pokemon Conquest. At the game's outset you're given the choice of playing as either a male or female warrior - the select, privileged few able to communicate wordlessly with Pokemon. During my recent demo I took control of a young lady from the kingdom of Aurora - a talented warrior who shares a remarkably close bond with her companion Pokemon, Eevee. Just like in Pokemon, play as a boy or girl. Unlike in Pokemon, take your Eevee to war. Fans of Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy Tactics Advance should find themselves right at home with the turn-based gameplay, though the traditional strategy RPG setup is supplemented by a handful of unique Nobunaga- and Pokemon-specific additions. As mentioned, the land houses 17 kingdoms, each with a warlord from the Nobunaga series to overthrow, as well as several training grounds to hone your skills. Each kingdom contains different types of Pokemon and human warriors to befriend, as well different surroundings best suited to the monsters harbored within (a fire castle might have lava pits, for instance). Forming and strengthening links with monsters is Conquest's equivalent to catching 'em all. Although secondary to battling and castle management, doing so increases the effectiveness of your army. This allows you to better protect your castle from attack and ups your chances of conquering all the kingdoms and successfully challenging the warlord Nobunaga (who, naturally, is out to destroy everything). Conquest features nearly 200 monsters spanning all five Pokemon generations, and includes a Pokedex of sorts (called the Gallery) where you can see stats, descriptions and so on of all the monsters you've befriended. While you certainly can (and let's be honest, probably will) make it a point to seek out every monster in the game, the focus here is more on figuring out the best Pokemon/warrior pairings and deciding how best to use the resources at your disposal. It's a fascinating twist to the normal Pokemon state of mind, and one that befits this crossover quite well. Watch out for that lava, Eevee. Battles have you placing your warriors and Pokemon on the field, strategically moving, attacking, and using special abilities to take down the opposing force. How you use your units in battle affects how they grow - for instance, attack with Pikachu frequently and its attack statistic will strengthen over time. There are numerous other things to keep in mind as well (range of movement, the time system, melee vs ranged moves, type compatibility and so on), all resulting in the kind of depth RPG aficionados should appreciate. During my demo I barely scratched the surface of all that Pokemon Conquest has to offer. Though I never imagined taking my Eevee into the raging inferno of a brutal war, having the opportunity to do so proved quite captivating. If you too are holding your breath to find out if Fire Emblem: Awakening will be gracing store shelves wherever you call home, you'd do well not to ignore this game. While most Pokemon spinoffs leave much to be desired, and don't nearly do credit to their source material, Pokemon Conquest is a happy exception. The mixing of strategy gameplay with the joys and challenges of fostering Pokemon is truly masterful and unexpectedly successful. It's an amalgamation of the best both brands of RPG have to offer, and a bold deviation for Pikachu and pals. Hopefully the finished product is as satisfying as my brief taste - if so, Pokemon Conquest may just be the most worthy and fully realized Pokemon spinoff yet. Audrey Drake is an Associate Editor of IGN.com and a proud member of the IGN Nintendo team. She is also a lifelong gamer, a frequent banisher of evil and a wielder of various legendary blades. You can follow her zany exploits on her IGN blog and Twitter. Game on!“See This Amputee’s Amazing Halloween Costume as Lumiere From ‘Beauty and the Beast’” originally appeared on ABC News and was reprinted with permission. One amputee took a page out of a fairytale this Halloween. Josh Sundquist, who had his left leg amputated after being diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer at the age of 9, is dressing up as Lumière from “Beauty and the Beast.” A photo of the Santa Monica, California, man as the animated candlestick is now going viral online. In an Instagram caption, Sundquist wrote, “Want to see my #HalloweenCostume? Be my guest.” Sundquist, 32, told ABC News he’s been brainstorming his Halloween costume for about three months. He keeps a running list of ideas on his phone. The motivational speaker gets help from his assistant, Lisa McLaughlin, to create his costumes each year, which have gone viral before. “They’re pretty time-consuming,” he said. “But Lisa basically builds them from scratch. She’s incredibly good at crafting.” McLaughlin spent weeks creating Lumière. According to Sundquist, McLaughlin purchased a metallic gold morph suit. Next, the base was made out of papier-mâché and covered with gold fabric. The candle holder was made out of decorative tubes — or poster board glued into a cylinder — topped with clay to create the illusion of dripping wax. “On my face is a silicon nose that I bought on Amazon and clown makeup,” Sundquist added. Previously, Sundquist has dressed up as the Gingerbread Man, an IHOP sign and even a pink flamingo. “The flamingo — that was really crazy,” Sundquist recalled. “Probably no matter how many costumes I make there’s never going to be one that’s quite as uncanny looking as this one.” Related Post Mom Recreates Iconic Pop Culture Moments with Her 4-Year-Old, and the Results Are Awesome Article Posted 2 years AgoNic Maddinson is taking an indefinite break from cricket due to personal reasons and will not feature in this week's Sheffield Shield match. Maddinson did not play in the NSW Blues' innings victory against Victoria as the Sheffield Shield resumed last week, and no timetable has been set for the 25-year-old's return. Maddinson was a surprise selection for Australia, alongside 20-year-old opener Matt Renshaw and 25-year-old Victorian Peter Handscomb, as the Test team had an injection of youth following a crushing defeat by South Africa in Hobart last November. "Cricket Australia and Cricket NSW advises that Australian and NSW batsman Nic Maddinson will not be available for selection due to personal reasons, until further notice," CA and CNSW said in a joint statement before NSW's match with Victoria. It is understood Maddinson's NSW and Australia teammates have been in touch with the batsman and rallied around him, but his return to playing remains unknown. Maddinson had the roughest of introductions to Test cricket, facing a rampaging Kagiso Rabada with the swinging pink ball under lights in his debut at Adelaide, bowled for a second-ball duck. Rabada gives Maddinson a departing spray He scored 1 and 4 in the Brisbane Test match against Pakistan – also played under lights – and reached his highest score of 22 in the Boxing Day Test. He was dropped for the third Test against Pakistan, on his home ground at the SCG, with Western Australia allrounder Hilton Cartwright added to the Test XI. Maddinson returned to the Sydney Sixers in the KFC Big Bash League where form continued to elude him, and he scored 75 runs at 10.71 in seven matches. In his final two games he was bowled by another former Australia batsman in Joe Burns for one in the first over, and run out in the third over of the BBL semi-final, also for 1. In six Shield innings preceding his Test selection to open the 2016-17 season, Maddinson had scored 235 runs at 39.16, including a brilliant 116 on a turning SCG pitch against Western Australia. Maddinson marches to Shield century Maddinson recently reflected on his Test matches and said he "did not feel out of place being in Test cricket". "I don't know whether I was trying to convince myself I was ready or I actually believed it but I thought I was," Maddinson said. "Still, you don't know until you're there and have to perform under that pressure. "At the time I didn't feel out of place being in Test cricket. "When I was batting I felt comfortable, I wasn't nervous or stressed about being up to the challenge. "I thought I was adequate and had a few good opportunities to nail down a spot which I missed out so that was disappointing. "I might not have had the couple of scores in the Shield game before leading up to that Test but I still felt like once I was there I could perform there." Keep the faith in Maddinson: Clarke Just a week ago, the powerful left-hander had vowed he would maintain the same mindset as he approached the second-half of the Shield season. "I'm not going to change anything," Maddinson said last Monday. "I'm just going to play the same way I was and still have the same mindset as what I did when I was playing those Tests. "It's more about shot selection at times more so than changing my game and needing a new technique or whatever. "I'm out there to score runs. If they come at a run-a-ball or come at striking at 30 (runs per 100 balls faced) it doesn't bother me. "It's pretty cliché to say you want to win games for New South Wales and do well but that's the main goal. "I want to score hundreds, as many as I can. I don't want to think about Test cricket. "It is hard (getting dropped) but at the end of the day I've had my chance and couldn't grab so it's back to Shield cricket to score runs again." NSW are expected to announce a squad for Friday's match against the Queensland Bulls at the SCG on Thursday morning.Charlie, Matt and Dana are about to finish high school with little fanfare. In a last-ditch effort to earn their classmates' respect, the trio aims to win the local horror film festival. Things might finally be going their way—until their attempt to film an exorcism scene results in the demonic possession of their lead actress. The boys are in for a raucous and hilarious weekend as they try to save the girl and somehow finish their film, all while navigating the treacherous world of high school. Update: Check out our official Kickstarter T-shirt! Bad Exorcists is 100% filmed and is currently being edited. This means the riskiest and most challenging part of making this film a reality has already been completed, and we are so grateful for all the support we’ve received getting to this point. Our performances and production value have completely exceeded our expectations and we are confident we have made something special. We have launched this Kickstarter in an effort to raise the funds necessary to hire a colorist, a composer, a sound designer and a special effects artist - all highly specialized fields that are cost prohibitive with our current budget. Bad Exorcists is a low-budget independent film shot entirely in and around Portland, OR. With our limited resources, it would have been impossible to achieve the cinematic look we desired without the incredible generosity of the Portland community. Many typically cost-prohibitive locations generously allowed us to film at no cost. The fact that we were able to shoot a comedy about Exorcism in an active church (for free!) speaks volumes about the warmth and generosity the Portland community shows young filmmakers. We know there are certain assumptions that accompany a film with limited resources. Many low-budget indies are more introspective and scaled back, or often produced with a smaller audience in mind. There's nothing wrong with this approach, but that’s not Bad Exorcists. From the outset, we wanted to make a smart comedy with wide appeal. Thus far we've stayed true to this original vision, and we're extremely excited at how everything is coming together. We're asking for your help to get us through postproduction. We are seeking $20,000 for color correction, sound design, music composition and visual effects. These figures listed below are quotes from established specialists. So many people have helped get us this far. As we continue post-production, any amount of support is truly appreciated! Thanks so much, and please help give us that push to get Bad Exorcists to the finish line! * Song featured in teaser is "Trap to the Acid" by HugLIfe. https://soundcloud.com/huglifeofficialBlueStacks, the app that lets users play Android games on their PC, is today announcing integration with Twitch that it says will make it easier than ever before to live stream Android games. Best iPhone, iPad, & Apple TV game controllers With today’s introduction of BlueStacks TV, users of the PC app will be able to both live stream and watch streams from others playing Android games. The company is using Twitch’s recently launched mobile streaming APIs to offer the functionality. BlueStacks says it has around 130 million users. Compare that to the approximately 1.7 million users broadcasting on Twitch with mostly PC games. “This was a natural combination,” said BlueStacks CEO, Rosen Sharma. “BlueStacks has mobile equivalents of the most popular games on the Twitch platform, midcore RPG titles especially. It used to be hard to stream a mobile game. It involved multiple devices: a tablet, a webcam and wires. We’ve cut all of that out. From a PC it’s easy to stream. It’s why Twitch has become so popular so fast. BlueStacks users are already playing mobile games like Hearthstone, Castle Clash, Vainglory and others ­ we just built a bridge between our platforms. This combines the power of two huge user bases.” There are already some options on Android for sharing gameplay videos and live streaming, but it usually requires the right mix of hardware for a fluid experience that not every user has access to. Nvidia’s Shield gaming tablet can stream Android gameplay to Twitch, for example, and Android has its own system level screen recording APIs to get gameplay video onto YouTube and elsewhere. And other gameplay recording platforms like Kamcord are working on live streaming directly from Android devices. But BlueStacks notes its implementation of the Twitch APIs will make for one of the smoothest experiences, allowing users to stream games using only a PC without the need of any additional hardware or even a smartphone running Android. You’ll be able to access the live streaming features in the latest version of the BlueStacks for PC starting today. And the company is hosting a tournament with the game Hearthstone to celebrate the launch on Twitch.For most people, financial freedom can only be achieved after a few decades of ploughing hard at a job. If the expenses are controlled well and the remainder is invested prudently during the working years, one could possibly look forward to a golden retirement. However, the foundation upon which wealth is built for most is still a job; a good job. Our quarter-retirement was only possible because we worked hard at jobs that paid us decently well the moment we graduated. And most entrepreneurs started out as employees in companies too, only venturing out after gaining valuable experience and of course, savings. Therefore, it’s been quite alarming to read that retrenchments are on the rise in Singapore, and judging by articles like this, many of us should be duly worried. I am hoping that companies lay off Singaporeans last and if new jobs are being created, Singaporeans would be given first consideration. National Service (NS) Before pro-NS readers heckle me, I belong to the camp arguing that there is no war in Singapore because of NS. But no matter how you look at it, the two years served in National Service has a huge opportunity cost. One could be studying or working full-time instead of donning greens and training in the jungle. You might think this only applies to half the Singapore population since National Service is only compulsory for Singaporean males. However, for the ladies out there, it’s likely you have a father, husband, brother or son out there who has served the nation for the best part of 2 years. The opportunity costs also apply since the household income could be affected. Even though we pride ourselves as a meritocracy, I am hoping the “Consider Singaporeans First” movement would help to truly level the playing field for Singaporeans. At the very least, it should provide a leg up to that Singaporean who has 2 fewer years of working experience than a foreign counterpart of a similar age. Singaporeans must not be disadvantaged at the workplace because of a duty to our nation. Resources provided to businesses from the government Being a pro-business government, the Singapore government has provided plenty of help to companies throughout the years. From the Job Credit Scheme during the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) to the current Productivity and Innovation Credit Scheme (PIC), companies in Singapore have benefited tremendously from tax payers’ money. By and large, the Singapore government had hoped that these benefits will trickle down and ensure that Singaporeans benefit. Whether it is jobs being retained or higher remunerations for Singaporeans in better jobs created. Wouldn’t it be ironic if all these benefits are just being filtered to companies which are not committed to hiring Singaporeans? What’s Being Done To Help Singaporeans From the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) to the National Jobs Bank, the government has introduced a slew of measures in the past couple of years to ensure that there will be a two-third Singaporean core in our workforce. Incidentally, NTUC has been lobbying for these since a few years ago; for instance, Labour MP Patrick Tay has been lobbying for the FCF since 2011. (Labour MP Patrick Tay has been championing for Singaporean Core and PMEs, including mooting the FCF idea in 2011. Source: Asiaone) However, the Labour Movement is not resting on its laurels to further help Singaporeans workers. In their recommendations submitted to the Ministry of Finance for Budget 2016, NT
into wins and they will once again go back to the drawing board and figure out how to use their latest addition and why Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo has suffered from that move. Team CLG secure a playoff spot The random factor of the Swiss system has created a positive surprise in the shape of team CLG. For a team that hasn’t attended a notable event for three months and has revamped the majority of the player core, there weren’t too many optimists in this project. However, after losing their opener to the best team in the world Astralis, CLG recovered with a comfortable win against the Chinese squad UYA. On the third day, CLG faced Hellraisers, the team that has been gradually improving online. European mix led by Kirill “ANGE1” Karasiow, destroyed CLG on the Counter-Terrorist side of mirage with, letting only one round slip away in the process. Counter Logic gaming did manage to produce a glimpse of a comeback, but Karasiow’s team managed to close it out 16-11. That meant CLG had to win both of their coming two matches in order to advance. In a thriller against Gambit on inferno, the American team secured a 16-14 win. That surely brought some confidence, which turned out true as they cruised to a 16-8 win against Immortals as well, eventually proceeding to playoffs. Rickeh displayed versatility with both rifle and the AWP In the elimination stage, the draw brought together two worlds - on one side we had Astralis, clearly the best team in the world with Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz who has been rocking the +1 kill-to-death ration with unseen consistency, with his versatility with dupreeh finally confirms the hype behind the duo that was supposed to launch them into history. Gla1ve’s calling, Kjaerbye being a complete x-factor and has proved he can provide MVP performances and Xyp9x’s consistency and role playing was too much of a task for CLG, so despite getting to double digits on both maps, they couldn’t cause a complete upset. Ninjas in Pyjamas fall short to fnatic With their newest signing William "draken" Sundin, Ninjas in Pyjamas will once again have to pack their bags early. This time around, the Swedes showed more composure and we saw once again how good can Patrik “forest” Lindberg play. His versatility and clutch-play, combined with friberg’s more impactful entry fragging, simply wasn’t enough to secure a place in the knockout phase. Once again we didn’t see a top level performance from GeT_Right and without him it’s tough to expect for Ninjas to become a threat. G2 show glimpses of brilliance The french super team G2 looked amazing throughout the whole tournament so far. Admittedly, a best-of-three schedule will show are they able to translate superior performances to longer series, but their cruise through the group does add a lot of new passengers on the G2 train. This was the first event where we saw Kenny “kennyS” Schrub and Richard “shox” Papillon play on the same side, but the most exciting G2 player this tournament was Alexandre “bodyy” Pianaro. His individual performance definitely shut down all doubts about him securing the fifth spot on this roster. Exactly, who is questioning bodyy’s talent now? In the first playoff round, the Frenchmen were drawn against FaZe, another uprising team that has benefited during the transfer window by acquiring the star player Nikola “NiKo” Kovač from mousesports. The game went back and forth during the whole session, but it was karrigan who proved that he found a way to integrate NiKo to a proper role and with k1o excelling with his performance, it was FaZe who came out on top. HellRaisers on a Heroic venture As mentioned, HellRaisers have been improving their performance in the online portion of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tour, but they haven’t managed to transform the same play into offline events. In their opener, they shocked everyone by beating FaZe Clan, and with a complete team effort, the European mixture lost only to G2 Esports. In the first playoff round, they faced North, a team that was one of the most stable playoff attendees in the past few months. The Danes took off to an early lead with a win on overpass, but trailing behind didn’t demoralise Karasiow’s team who pulled out a miracle on cache and overpass, sending North home. Next stop for the European mixture was FaZe, a team that they’ve already beaten in groups on cache, but with 16-13 and 16-14 wins on mirage and train, we didn’t even manage to see a re-match on cache. FaZe went on to win the tournament, while HellRaisers were finally given proper recognition and a place in the world’s top ten. Natus Vincere finally break the curse Natus Vincere is the other team that marched on to playoffs with a flawless 3-0 record. Interestingly enough, this is the third time in a row that the CIS-team displays dominant performance in a best-of-one group stage. Considering that the last two times they faced relatively easy defeats, Fnatic seemed like a more suitable team in that phase for Denis “seized” Kostin’s stars. With GuardiaN once finally on point with his AWP, Na’Vi looked a force to be reckoned with, especially on the home soil. GuardiaN retrieved his confidence back Even though they managed to secure the first step and defeat fnatic, they simply didn’t manage to match Astralis in the semi-finals. In conclusion, Na’Vi and GuardiaN in particular, did look better and once they widen their map pool, we might see them in future events as contenders. FaZe hold back the Astralis domination The grand final match was a replay from IEM Katowice where we had FaZe completely pumped out, with an astounding pistol round record in the whole tournament. On the other hand, Astralis had lost only to North in the group stage which once again showed that Danish teams are good at countering each other which always produces amazing matchups. Besides the initial hiccup, Astralis looked powerful in every other match and we were definitely in for a treat. On mirage as the first map, we have seen great composure from both teams with the whole game going back and forth, with both teams tied at 14-14 before gla1ve’s team once against showed how good they are and closing maps, taking it with a minimal score difference. With nuke next, FaZe had shown why are they considered to having one of the strongest Counter-Terrorist sides in the world. After winning the pistol round once again, and even going to 4-0 scoreline, they slipped three rounds in Astralis favor, before completely annihilating their attacks and securing the half. Amazing performance from k1o made things much easier and the match was tied 1-1. Coming into inferno, Astralis started strong, winning the pistol rounds and having their defense locked, giving away only five rounds to FaZe. In the second half, karrigan's squad won yet another pistol round, and slowly grinded their way back into the game. In an ecstatic finish, they forced the game to overtime by keeping the composure on the CT side. Despite Astralis having the opportunity to take the title with two match points, FaZe turned it around, getting their revenge for the loss at IEM Katowice. That win meant a lot for Nikola “NiKo” Kovač who finally won a major event for the first time since Acer Predator Masters against Flipside, where they took $20,000. This time around FaZe took home a respectable check with $125,000, and a spot within top three teams in the world. by Toni “anakintm” Milicevic, featured writer for GG.bet. You can reach him on twitter.com/anak1ntmATWATER, Merced County (CBS / AP) — A crash that nearly sliced a bus in half on a central California highway killed four people, not the initial report of five, a local sheriff said Wednesday. Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke, who also serves as coroner, gave the new total after canvassing hospitals and checking with coroner’s officials in a neighboring county. He said he knew of no deaths among those taken to hospitals. Shortly after Tuesday’s crash, a California Highway Patrol officer at the scene said five people died. The dead include Fernando Ramirez, 57, and Petra Carillo Ruiz, 64, a married couple from Mexico who were traveling to visit a daughter in Pasco, Washington, and Jose Morales Bravo, 58, of Avalon, California, whose spouse was hospitalized, Warnke said. A fourth victim was only identified as a man born in 1978 whose name was withheld while family was being sought through a Mexican consulate. Investigators, meanwhile, were working to find out why the bus suddenly veered sharply off the highway, smashing into a pole that tore through the vehicle. Eighteen people were injured, but none of the victims remained in critical condition. Warnke has said rescuers pulled “bags of body parts” from the bus along with survivors, some of whom suffered severed limbs. Moments before the crash, it appeared the driver was trying to pass another vehicle that he apparently expected to yield, but it would not let him merge, said a passenger headed from Mexico to her home in Pasco. “It kind of ran him off the road,” Nakia Coleman told Washington state’s Tri-City Herald newspaper. Investigators have not been able to interview the 57-year-old driver, Mario David Vasquez of the Los Angeles area, because of the extent of his injuries, CHP Officer Moises Onsurez said. CBS Sacramento has confirmed that Vasquez had his commercial driver’s license suspended for two months in 2015 over a “serious traffic violation.” DMV initially would not specify the violation that caused Vasquez to lose his commercial license from January 24, 2015 to March 24, 2015. However, they later released the information. On Jan 20, 2014, Vasquez was cited in Washington for illegal passing in left hand lane while driving a truck or trailer, not a bus. He also was cited for a problem with a medical certificate during the same incident. He did not pay the ticket on time and a fine was added, but he later paid the ticket and fine in full after a couple months. On October 23, 2014, Vasquez was cited in Oregon for speeding. Federal records show on February 5, 2015, someone who was driving the same bus involved in Tuesday’s crash, was caught driving on a suspended commercial driver’s license. CBS Sacramento has not confirmed if that driver was Vasquez. DMV records show Vasquez’s license was active at the time of Tuesday’s crash. The bus was traveling north on State Route 99, through the center of California farm country, and was only a couple of miles from its next stop when the crash occurred. It was approaching Livingston, a farming and industrial town of about 13,000, where it was scheduled to change drivers before continuing on to the Northwest. Passenger Leonardo Sanchez was sleeping peacefully before dawn on the bus carrying him to Oregon to pick blueberries when he was suddenly thrown face-first into the back of the seat in front of him. “There was lots of screaming and crying,” Sanchez told The Associated Press hours after the crash. He said only about eight people, including himself, escaped largely unscathed. The accident sliced the bus from front to back, with the vehicle coming to a stop when its first rear axle hit the pole. “We couldn’t pull people out because there was shattered glass everywhere, seats destroyed,” Sanchez said. Some victims were thrown from the bus and landed in a ditch. In all, 18 people were admitted to four hospitals, three initially in critical condition. They have been upgraded to serious condition, and the others have lesser injuries, officials said. Autobuses Coordinados USA was operating the bus. Calls to various telephone listings for the company have gone unanswered. Its counter at a Los Angeles depot was open Tuesday, but nobody was present when an Associated Press reporter arrived midmorning. A sign in Spanish advertised daily 7:30 p.m. departures to destinations up the West Coast to Washington. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration listed the carrier as having a “satisfactory” rating as of May 17. The bus was inspected in April and had three violations, including a lack of or a defective brake warning device. Some highway signs, like those for the speed limit, have support poles designed with points that break away during a crash. But the poles supporting the much larger overhead signs like the one the bus hit are designed to “stay put,” said Vanessa Wiseman, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation. © Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.I recently visited my wife’s family in Puerto Rico. I returned home with a better understanding of Republicans’ anger over the enormous amount of federal aid given to Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory whose residents don’t pay federal income taxes. Though not a majority, a significant number of the Puerto Ricans I’ve observed don’t care about learning English, the Pledge of Allegiance or the national anthem. Whether Puerto Rico becomes a state — a presidential task force this month recommended that the U.S. territory hold a referendum on its relationship with the United States — is beside the point. As long as Puerto Rico and its residents receive U.S. aid and enjoy the benefits of U.S. citizenship, they should pay federal income taxes in addition to the Social Security and Medicare taxes they already pay. The United States provided Puerto Rico with $21.4 billion in aid and benefits in 2009, according to the Consolidated Federal Funds Report compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau. The total for 2010 likely will reach $25 billion, not counting about $4.4 billion in stimulus funding and $430 million in rum rebates that Puerto Rico annually receives from the U.S. Treasury. The amount that the U.S. spends on Puerto Rico will increase significantly over the next 20 years, probably hitting $35-40 billion. Though Puerto Ricans pay federal taxes on income generated outside of Puerto Rico, there’s still a more than $20 billion imbalance between the taxes they pay and the benefits they receive. Although some states receive more federal funds than they contribute, Puerto Rico’s per capita imbalance is far larger than any state’s. Residents of Washington, D.C., another federal territory, also lack voting representation in Congress — but they pay federal income taxes. When Alaska and Hawaii were U.S. territories, their residents also paid federal income taxes. The four million Puerto Ricans residing in Puerto Rico should do the same. We should not allow the thousands of millionaires residing on the island to get the best of both worlds: U.S. citizenship without having to pay federal income taxes. This gravy train for Puerto Ricans should end immediately. If Puerto Ricans don’t like this, they can advocate for statehood or an independent republic — but the federal government shouldn’t be supporting a Caribbean welfare paradise. Congress should not allow Puerto Ricans to continue taking advantage of the U.S.’s benefits. Puerto Ricans need to contribute their fair share to the U.S. Treasury. Francisco A. Rullan, born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is Regional VP of the Puerto Rican Bar Association of Florida, where he is an attorney for the firm of GrayRobinson in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.In the summer of 2013, researcher and illustrator Nickolay Lamm introduced America to a new kind of Barbie doll -- one that doesn't promote an impossibly skinny, busty standard of beauty, but instead, shows that "average is beautiful." Using data from the CDC, Lamm determined the measurements of the average 19-year-old American woman and used them to print a 3D model of a toy doll. "I wanted to show that average is beautiful," Lamm says in a video promoting the doll, Lammily. "Lammily promotes realistic beauty standards, because she is made according to typical human body proportions." Advertisement: A side-by-side comparison of Barbie, left, and a model of Lammily. Credit: Nickolay Lamm In addition to her realistic proportions, Lammily wears minimal make-up and comes in everyday wear -- shorts, a denim shirt and sneakers. On March 5, Lamm launched a crowdfunding campaign to help him manufacture the doll. "I need your help to cover the costs of tooling and molding, and to meet the manufacturer's minimum order quantity," Lamm says via his Web site. He's been consulting with Robert Rambeau, former Vice President of Manufacturing at Mattel, who "has offered his experience and expertise in selecting a highly qualified manufacturer." A $25 donation secures buyers a first edition Lammily doll, which will not be sold in retail stores. As of Wednesday afternoon, the doll has just over $6,000 towards its $95,000 goal. Update: Lam hit his target Thursday morning, currently has $164,497 in funds. Lam told Salon via email that the money will go into fixed and variable costs, with the fixed costs totaling a little more than $50,000, "which include the tooling and molding." The dolls will be shipped to backers in November.As the class of 2015 heads out into the work force this summer, they are going to have their heads examined by the companies they hope to work for. Convinced by the gurus of Big Data that a perfect work force can be achieved by analyzing the psyche and running the results through computers, thousands of employers now insist that job candidates submit to personality tests. The phenomenon spans the pay scale from burger-flipping to high finance. And the questions range from the intrusive (“I dislike the high taxes we pay in this country,”) to the positively bizarre (“Sometimes I’m not sure what I really believe.”) In a cover story for this week’s magazine, TIME explores the growing $2 billion testing industry. Employers say the tests are a critical tool in fighting costly employee turnover, increasing productivity, and raising customer satisfaction. Want to know what the new kinds of tests are like? Below, we’ve reproduced parts of three personality tests created by Hogan Assessments, an assessment provider which has worked with companies since 1987. Contact us at editors@time.com.Washington (CNN) An email released by WikiLeaks on Wednesday appears to show a senior Justice Department official sending information about the State Department's review of Hillary Clinton's emails to her presidential campaign -- a move that comes as the Justice Department is under increased scrutiny for its handling of the email investigation. Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Peter Kadzik, who essentially serves as the Justice Department's lobbyist to Congress, sent the email in question to Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta from a private Gmail account on May 19 last year with the subject line, "Heads up." "There is a (House Judiciary Committee) oversight hearing today where the head of our Civil Division will testify," he wrote. "Likely to get questions on State Department emails." "Another filing in the (Freedom of Information Act) case went in last night or will go in this am that indicates it will be awhile (2016) before the State Department posts the emails," he added. The exchange is one of tens of thousands of emails stolen from Podesta's Gmail account and published by WikiLeaks in recent weeks. CNN cannot independently verify the authenticity of any of the emails, and the Clinton campaign has so far declined to verify individual emails. The Department of Justice declined to respond to questions regarding the email, and Clinton campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri, who was among the officials to whom Podesta forwarded the email in 2015, also declined to comment when asked by a reporter aboard Clinton's campaign plane. The email plays into Republican candidate Donald Trump's long-running narrative that Clinton and her entourage belong to a corrupt political elite seeking to exert influence at the Justice Department. Over the summer, days before the FBI announced it had completed its investigation into the private server, Bill Clinton met with Attorney General Loretta Lynch aboard her government plane, sparking accusations of a conflict of interest. Trump was quick to raise the Kadzik email during a campaign rally in Florida Wednesday afternoon, calling Kadzik "a close associate of John Podesta." "These are the people that want to run our country, folks," Trump said to a chorus of boos. "The spread of political agendas into Justice Department -- there's never been a thing like this that has happened in our country's history -- is one of the saddest things that has happened to our country." The legal filing referenced in the second part of Kadzik's email had been submitted to the court a day before Kadzik sent it, and had already been reported on in the media. But Kadzik's phrasing, and his decision to write from his personal email account, gives the impression he was passing the information along as an informal tip, not knowing whether it had been filed. Information about the congressional hearing was also publicly available. Podesta later forwarded Kadzik's note to Clinton's other senior campaign staff with the comment, "Additional chances for mischief," though it wasn't clear to whom or what he was referring. The conversation suggests Kadzik may have felt inclined to keep Podesta informed about developments at the Department of Justice that related to the fledgling campaign. The FOIA case in question involved the State Department, not the campaign, and Podesta was not directly involved in the legal proceedings. Kadzik previously worked for Podesta as a lawyer, and additional emails released by WikiLeaks suggest the two men were friends. For example, in January, Kadzik and his wife emailed to wish Podesta a happy birthday and invite him to dinner next time he was in town. Kadzik's wife, Amy Weiss, worked in the White House in the late 1990s when Podesta was then-President Bill Clinton's chief of staff. It's unclear how Kadzik learned of the FOIA filing, which was submitted by Department of Justice attorneys representing the State Department in ongoing lawsuits. Despite Trump's assertions to the contrary, Kadzik was not directly involved in the FBI's investigation into Clinton's private email server, nor is he involved in its current review of emails found on a computer belonging to the estranged husband of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. The stolen email is one of several published by WikiLeaks in recent weeks that raise questions about the coziness between the Clinton campaign and government officials. Last month, the group published an email in which Brian Fallon -- a former spokesman for the Department of Justice now working for the Clinton campaign -- indicated he has spoken with "DOJ folks" about pending FOIA litigation. And on Wednesday, an email emerged showing communication between a State Department spokeswoman and top Clinton aides about how the State Department would respond to reports about the former Secretary's emails. This particular exchange was from March 1, 2015 -- one day before Clinton's private server was first revealed by The New York Times, and about a month before the official launch of her presidential campaign. The spokeswoman outlined the State Department's response to the upcoming report, indicating that the press office had incorporated input from the Clinton aides. The email was forwarded to Palmieri, who in turn forwarded it to Podesta. "You may have already heard from other channels, but NYT will have a story tomorrow on HRC's Benghazi emails," Palmieri wrote, along with speculation about how the reporter learned of the server. "Better now than April," she added.Looking for news you can trust? Subscribe to our free newsletters. President-elect Donald Trump and his team are celebrating the announcement that a company that came under fire for planning to move 1,400 jobs to Mexico will keep around 1,000 of those jobs in Indiana. The announcement late Tuesday came after Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence, the outgoing governor of Indiana, applied pressure to Carrier, an Indianapolis furnace manufacturer, to keep jobs in the state. At a rally in April, Trump had promised “100 percent” to rescue the jobs at the plant, and Trump and Pence plan to visit Indiana this week to publicize the victory. But there are still questions about what kind of deal was struck to persuade the company to keep production in the state. Any deal-making would be an about-face for Trump, who as recently as last month derided government incentives to keep companies in the United States. “I’ve been watching these politicians go through this for years,” Trump said at a rally in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, on October 10. “I’ve been watching them give low-interest loans. I’ve been watching them give zero-interest loans. These companies don’t even need the money, most of them; they take the money. There were a couple of instances where geniuses with great lawyers gave them money and then they moved anyway…I mean, the whole thing is crazy.” Trump made the same point in August at a rally in Erie, Pennsylvania. (The Democratic super-PAC and opposition research outfit American Bridge found these examples and shared them with Mother Jones.) “Over the years, I’ve watched, for years, for 10 years, for 12 years, for 15 years, beyond Obama, and I’ve watched as politicians talked about stopping companies from leaving our states,” Trump said. “Remember, they’d give the low-interest loans. Here’s a low-interest loan if you stay in Pennsylvania. Here’s a zero-interest loan. You don’t have to pay. Here’s a this. Here’s a tax abatement of any kind you want. We’ll help your employees. It doesn’t work, folks. That’s not what they need. They have money. They want to go out, they want to move to another country, and because our politicians are so dumb, they want to sell their product to us and not have any retribution, not have any consequence. So all of that’s over.” If the Indiana deal is any indication, however, these kinds of corporate incentives are not over yet. Neither Trump nor Carrier, which is owned by Indiana-based United Technologies, has disclosed the terms of the deal. CNBC reported that the state of Indiana offered the company incentives to stay. The report also indicated that the company may have chosen to keep the factory in Indiana in order to curry favor with the new administration. United Technologies does lucrative work for the US government making engines for military jets. Trump was correct that without strict enforcement mechanisms, incentives often fail to keep jobs in the country in the long term if the company stands to make more money by shifting production abroad. Even as Trump has apparently stopped Carrier’s relocation for now, a company a mile away is in the process of shutting down its plant and sending nearly 300 jobs to Mexico. Both Carrier and the second company, Rexnord, had already benefited from tax incentives to stay in Indianapolis when they both decided to move operations to Mexico. Carrier had agreed to pay back $1.2 million to the city. The Indianapolis Star reported in August that under Pence, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation had awarded $24 million in incentives to companies that sent production overseas. Of that sum, $8.7 million had already been paid out. Trump had railed against corporate welfare long before he launched his presidential campaign. In 2011 and 2012, he repeatedly criticized the Obama administration’s loans to Solyndra, the solar technology company that declared bankruptcy in 2011 despite receiving a $535 million federal loan guarantee through the 2009 stimulus package. “Washington is wasting over $2 billion this year on Solyndra type loans,” Trump tweeted in October 2011. The following March, he tweeted that President Barack Obama “has wasted billions of our tax dollars on speculative green projects like Solyndra. He is an economic ignoramus.”PenAir’s new planes arrived in Unalaska last month with the promise of faster service. But as of Tuesday, about 100 people were on the standby list waiting for flights. Download Audio According to Missy Roberts, the Vice President of sales and marketing for PenAir, the Saab 2000 has had mechanical issues, the airline has been short on crew, and there have been weather delays. “So its sort of that perfect storm where the scenarios all happened at the same time creating the cancelations that you see that has created the backlog of individuals trying to get to their destination,” Roberts said. With the Saab 2000 coming on board, crewmembers must be trained to operate it. Crews are specific to an aircraft type meaning if there is a mechanical problem, they cannot cross over to a different plane. Roberts said that’s a standard Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulation across the industry. “If you are in a major carrier, if that carrier operates both 737’s and 757’s, those operators are not cross-trained to operate on either one,” Roberts said. The rule comes out of safety concerns. “The aircrafts themselves are completely different styles when it comes to operations,” Roberts said. “And even though somebody might be really talented and might be able to operate both, they — really from a safety standpoint — want crew to be focused at one aircraft type at a time.” Roberts said weather cancelations are interfering with the ability to train staff. “If there’s a weather cancelation and we cant get that aircraft in there, then we also can’t get the crew trained and certified so we can check them off and they can be a fulltime crew member on that aircraft type,” Roberts said. Once everyone is certified, the airline should be fully operational. The 2000’s are flying to many airports in PenAir’s network including Dutch Harbor, Cold Bay, King Salmon, and Dillingham. Right now, the airline has three of the planes in operation; eventually, there will be two more joining the fleet.The Tintin movie is due for a 2011 release British actor Daniel Craig, best known for playing secret agent James Bond, has signed up to play the villain in the new Tintin movie. The 40-year-old has landed the role of Red Rackham opposite Billy Elliot star Jamie Bell, who will play the intrepid young reporter Tintin. Filming for The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn, directed by Steven Spielberg, has already begun. Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Mackenzie Crook will also appear in the film. Sequel planned Writer Steven Moffat had been working on the script, but was forced to leave the project when he replaced Russell T Davies as lead writer and executive producer on Doctor Who. Moffat blamed the US writers' strike for delaying his work schedule. The original Tintin character was created in 1929 by Georges Remi, better known by his pen name Herge. His adventures were played out through two dozen books. Over 200 million copies have been sold worldwide and the popular series has been translated into 70 languages. It is thought the Tintin movie, planned for release in 2011, will be the first of two or three movies featuring the character. Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson, who is co-producing the project with Spielberg, has been lined up to direct the sequel.New Delhi: The government has initiated a move to bring a Bill in Parliament to make marriage laws more women friendly and allow both parties to file for divorce on the ground of “irretrievable breakdown" of marriage. The law ministry has circulated a draft cabinet note on Marriage Laws (amendment) Bill for inter-ministerial consultations. Once it receives the feedback, newly-appointed law minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda will take the proposal to the Union cabinet for a final nod, a top ministry official said. According to the draft, marriage laws will now become more women friendly with a slew of measures being proposed including providing for sufficient compensation for the wife and children from the husband’s immovable property in case of a divorce. Seeking to put an end to prolonged legal battles in divorce cases, the lawministry has proposed that courts will be free to exercise discretion in granting divorce after three years if one of the partners does not move a second ‘joint application´ for divorce with mutual consent. There is a provision for ensuring compensation for the wife and children from the husband’s immovable property in case of a divorce and the amount will be decided by the court. It has also been proposed to empower courts to decide the compensation amount for a wife and children from the husband’s inherited and inheritable property once a marriage legally ends. A new section 13 (f) has been added to this effect. A six to 18 month waiting period or cooling off period already exists in the present law when the two parties move joint application for divorce with mutual consent. The previous UPA government had struggled for a consensus on the bill after it was first introduced in Rajya Sabha in 2010. It had gone back to the then cabinet on four occasions for changes. It was finally passed in August 2013 in the upper house but could not be cleared by the lower house. The legislation lapsed following dissolution of 15th Lok Sabha. The present draft is on the lines of the previous Bill and any change would be made after inter-ministerial consultations. The proposal, which seeks to alter the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and the Special Marriage Act, 1954, introduces the option of divorce on grounds of “irretrievable breakdown of marriage". Legislative department in the law ministry is the nodal unit dealing with marriage laws in India.The the only thing more dangerous on the boardwalks of Santa Carla than all the damn vampires are the shirtless, greasy saxaphone players. Here's a preview of Lost Boys #1 from DC's Vertigo imprint, including a variant cover of the infamous Sexy Sax Man by Joelle Jones, scheduled to be released October 12. THE LOST BOYS #1 Written by TIM SEELEY • Art by SCOTT GODLEWSKI • Cover by TONY HARRIS • Variant cover by JOËLLE JONES The stakes are raised in this nostalgic and unstoppable sequel to the ’80s cult classic vampire film, The Lost Boys. Veteran horror writers Tim Seeley (GRAYSON, NIGHTWING, Hack/Slash), and Scott Godlewski (THE DARK & BLOODY, Copperhead) deliver a gruesome and stylish return to the bloody boardwalks and big hair of 1987! Santa Carla, California is on edge. The eccentric coastal town and haven for the undead was finally returning to “normal” after its last supernatural scuffle left the local coven’s head vampire dead and gave newcomers Michael and Sam Emerson a housewarming both violent and bizarre. Now the brothers must once again team up with militant vampire hunters Edgar and Allan Frog when a new gang of ruthless, stunning, life-sucking nightcrawlers known as the Blood Belles emerges from the aftermath to collect Michael’s love interest and their lost sister, Star. On sale OCTOBER 12 • 32 pg, FC, 1 of 6, $3.99 US • MATURE READERSGeorgia State University plans to pay students to become “multicultural ambassadors” who will help their peers “explore the world through a more progressive perspective.” The position, which requires students to work 12 hours per month at a rate of $100 per, asks prospective candidates to “train and educate the Georgia State University community in multicultural competence” by guiding peers through “workshops, discussion forums, and inclusive programs.” "[Participants] will begin learning how to identify and counteract stereotypes." [RELATED: University paying students to be ‘Social Justice Advocates’] As such, the new hires, who will be formally referred to as “Multicultural Competence and Peer Education Ambassadors,” are required to facilitate “at least two programs per month,” among which are titles such as “Game of Oppression,” “Diversity 101,” and “Safe Zone.” In “Game of Oppression,” participants are “broken into two groups, observers and participants” with the “object” of reaching “enlightenment.” “Through this community building exercise, visible and invisible inequities and injustices in the American social system are brought to life. Issues of race and class are explored,” a description for the exercise adds, noting ominously but ambiguously that the “audience risk level” will be “medium to high.” Another potential workshop, titled “Off the Wall,” explores “the prevalent use of stereotypes in daily conversations,” while addressing “how these stereotypes influence individuals on an ongoing basis.” [RELATED: UCLA pays students to fight ‘whiteness,’ ‘patriarchy’] “In addition, the workshop provides participants with opportunities to begin learning how to identify and counteract stereotypes embedded in all facets of current social systems,” a description for the workshop explains. Finally, the multicultural ambassadors will be responsible for conducting “cultural competence” focus groups with the intent of assessing a university “class and/or department” for ways of improving its “cultural competence.” Dean of Students Darryl Holloman told Campus Reform that the university will hire six ambassadors each at a rate of $100 per month, meaning that if the school keeps the program operating continuously the annual expense would come to $7,200, more than enough to cover the combined cost of in-state tuition, student fees, and books for one student. Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @mstein81Due to the bugs and balance issues that occurred in the Crystal Dragon Update on August 8th, 2012, Sakai plans to distribute compensation to all players affected by these bugs. Compensation Conditions: To those who cleared a quest on the Floating Continent field before the August 15th, 2012 maintenance. Compensation Item: 「レアドロップ倍率+50%」×5個 「Rare Drop Boost +50%」 x5 Distribution Date August 30th, 2012 @ 16:00 JST Gameguard nPro Issues Continue A GameGuard update was carried out on Tuesday August 21st, 2012, however, many players have reported that the same issues persist. Again, they would like you to send the.erl files in your gameguard directory with your Direct X file. You can now send all the files even if they surpass 5MBs of space. For more information please read this post. List Style Account Hacking Again like in the previous notice, they have noted that malicious users may try to login to your account through a list of leaked passwords. As a precaution, they have changed the account management page so that you can not change the information you provided to them when you registered. (Due to this change, you must enter a hiragana captcha that times out at a much quicker rate.) Read more about List Style Account Hacking. Towards the Future Towards the upcoming large scale update in September and October, there will be a new survey collecting feedback and opinions. This will allow them to examine if any changes are necessary through any aspect of the game. Also the logo for the next update coming in September is called “New Power!” It appears this large scale update is split up somewhat like the Crystal Dragon
or more, to curb emissions than the U.S. They say coal-fired electricity plants south of the border produce something like 32 times the amount of greenhouse gases as the oilsands, and argue the massive Keystone project will not significantly add to emissions. What Harper can do For Harper, Keystone is the biggest, but not the only, pipeline project needed to carry Alberta's oilsands crude to world markets. Where his government can act, it has: streamlining the federal environmental review process for major energy projects, cultivating new markets in Asia and approving more foreign investment in Canada's energy sector. He and Obama initiated the Clean Energy Dialogue in 2009, committing the two countries to working together to reduce the impact of climate change. Canada and the U.S. have already adopted the same regulations to reduce car and truck emissions. But, for all that, approval of Keystone XL remains a huge hurdle, especially for Harper. The prime minister treats politics as a game of chess, every move thought out in advance as part of a strategy to checkmate his opponents. Obama's plays are unorthodox and unpredictable, making it hard to anticipate, let alone counter, his moves. For all of Harper's speeches about Canada's emergence as an energy superpower, for all the time he has played up the proximity and security offered by Canada's energy reserves, the oilsands approval process drags on. A decision by the president, once expected soon after the 2012 election, might not be made until 2014. Meanwhile, the U.S. government insists oilsands crude is far more carbon-intensive than other oil used by Americans. And the president's own position on the project remains ambiguous, to say the least. Canadian officials had hoped that Friday's quick chat at the G20 summit would be a chance to flesh some of that out, or at the very least, to hear something more tangible than the hints dropped by David Jacobson, the former U.S. ambassador to Canada, who told Canadian reporters before he left the job that the White House would like to see more progress in Canada to reduce emissions. "Give us a hard target," one source told CBC. "Don't make us guess." So the Harper government grimly plays on. Millions are being spent on the "Go with Canada" ad campaign that pops up on major U.S. websites, reminding Americans that Canada and the U.S. adopted the same greenhouse gas reduction targets at Copenhagen, that Canada is a friend and ally and that, together, the two countries can achieve energy independence. Canadian oil companies are looking at shipping bitumen by truck, rail and tanker. And the review process south of the border drags on. Regulations twice delayed In the meantime, work continues to move Canada closer to its target to reduce emissions by 17 per cent below 2005 levels by 2020, a target critics in this country argue can't be met even without further development of the oilsands. Canada has been promising to bring in regulations for the energy sector for years, but missed deadlines set by the former environment minister, Peter Kent, the first one for the end of 2012, the other this past summer. There's no indication now, with a new environment minister, when those regulations will be ready. Alberta is proposing what's known as 40/40 solution: a 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gases produced for each unit of oil produced, and a $40-a-tonne charge on any emissions above that regulated level. Industry says it's too much. Environmentalists say it isn't enough. And south of the border, the environmental movement continues its drumbeat. A report released this week by the Sierra Club and others, titled FAIL: How the Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline Flunks the Climate Test, concluded, once again, that the best thing to avoid climate armageddon is to say no to the pipeline, and leave the oilsands in the ground.Nottingham Rugby club have been saved from liquidation after securing £750,000 of new investment over the next three years. The Championship side have been taken over by a 15-strong consortium called the Friends of Nottingham Rugby, but some members are remaining anonymous. Chief executive Simon Beatham and chairman Alastair Bow are in the group. "It's definitely saved Nottingham Rugby club, there's no doubt about it," Bow told BBC Radio Nottingham. The Green and Whites have been plagued by financial difficulties in recent years and have been seeking new investment for several months. We probably wouldn't be here today if we hadn't have done this. It would have been administration and immediate liquidation Alastair Bow Nottingham Rugby chairman They were on the verge of liquidation when the new deal was signed on Christmas Eve. "The club has been in serious financial problems from June and the Friends of Nottingham have been helping get the club through, right up until November," Bow explained. "When it came to December, we were getting pretty serious. To be fair, we probably wouldn't be here today if we hadn't have done this. It would have been administration and immediate liquidation." The new investment will enable the club to continue at its current level of funding and, Bow hopes, maintain their Championship status. But they are seeking further "Friends" to double the annual budget to £500,000 so they can compete at the top end of the table and push for promotion to the Premiership. Bow added: "We were looking for around about a quarter of a million pounds a year, for three years, so we're talking three quarters of a million pounds. "What that will enable us to do is get back on a sound financial footing. What it won't allow us to do is move forward. That will do nothing more than hold us in the Championship, and probably fighting in that bottom four. "Our strategy and ambition is to get that number of Friends of Nottingham increased to where we can probably invest around half a million pounds a year. That will hopefully enable us to be competing again in that top half of the table." Interview by BBC Radio Nottingham's Charlie Slater.About This coffee has been brought to life through the wisdom of three generations of coffee roasters and the knowledge of health and nutrition professionals. We’ve searched the world looking for the best ingredients and we’ve found them! Wylder coffee is made to satisfy a connoisseur’s taste for the finest coffee and to supply the unique health benefits of probiotics. Our extremophile probiotics are selected to withstand the heat of brewing coffee and the acidic environment of your digestive system. We present to you the next generation of coffee: exquisite 100 percent organic Arabica beans blended with our proprietary extremophile probiotics. NATURAL PROPERTIES OF OUR EXTREMOPHILE PROBIOTICS... exceeds high temperatures of coffee brewing survives gastric acidity in digestive tract supports digestive and immune function recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration non-GMO and gluten free suitable for vegans allows the exceptional organic coffee taste to come through The Wylder team is a health conscious bunch with a love of adventure. No matter where we travel we love to bring our coffee along. We’re taking this delicious and healthy coffee to the four corners of the Earth and telling our stories along the way. We want you to join the adventure @WylderCoffeeCo. After all, what is a life if it’s not lived WYLDER and FREE? Share your own #WylderJourneys with us on Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram. Digestion begins at the mouth. With a probiotic coffee like this you will be adding probiotics into the system from the get go. What a great way to start off the day! Our craft roasted Probiotic Coffee has been knocking the socks off coffee connoisseurs. We are thrilled! BUT! We want to be clear that we are far more than a delicious coffee. We are also a PROBIOTIC. Wylder is for those who wish to update their ritual of coffee with the benefits of probiotics. The Wylder people take on their own lives with kind attention to the vitality of their own bodies. Wylder’s Probiotic Blend is for those who wish to share healthy rituals with their community and seek adventure with an energetic body. We believe that our best self is available to all when we show up happy, healthy and well fueled for the journey ahead. We’re here to help you show up as your best self through providing you with the next generation of coffee - WYLDER COFFEE CO.’s Probiotic Blend. We are the first in the world to combine extremophile probiotics and organic coffee. This is the next generation of probiotics that do not need to be kept at refrigerated or room temperatures for survival. They are stable at high temperatures and acidic environments. People may drink coffee and take probiotics. The convenience of these two rituals being combined into one drink is very exciting. Our pre-blended mixture of organic coffee and extremophile probiotics will deliver probiotics to your body every time you drink Wylder’s Probiotic Blend. Just make your coffee exactly how you already make it. No need to change your patterns. We’re just updating your daily ritual of coffee. It is commonly believed that probiotics do not withstand high temperatures. For most probiotics this statement is truth. Our extremophile probiotics naturally withstand high temperatures, acidity, and harsh environments. What this means is that your body will be supplied with probiotics every single time you drink your Wylder Probiotic Coffee. Two generations ago, our paternal grandmother roasted fine small batches of coffee in Los Angeles, California. Whilst roasting stateside, our maternal grandparents were opening Lava Java in Kona, Hawaii. Needless to say, craft roasted coffee has been in our family for generations. However, this is not the only place where our story begins. With a grandfather as a Naturopathic Medical Doctor, another grandmother as a holistic health specialist and a father who once created and ran his own nutrition company, one can see that the lineage of health consciousness has impacted our lives. As children, healthy clean living was a primary part of our upbringing. We were taught to eat consciously, spend active time outdoors and have a deep connection to nature and ourselves. Here we are, well into adulthood and we’re meshing all of this familial knowledge and wisdom into one product. We’ve gone back to the roots our father and grandfather pioneered in probiotics back in 1993. We’ve connected with the top probiotic specialists in the world and with our team of experts, we’ve created one EPIC Probiotic Blend. Our proprietary probiotic has been regarded as safe by the FDA and has been used for over 20 years. This extremophile probiotic survives even the harshest environments including your brewing method and acidic environments. With an extremophile probiotic like this, we had to discover the finest coffee to blend with it. So, yet again, we took off on a journey of tasting, brewing, and testing. We went back to our native California roaster and landed on the most exquisite blend of ORGANIC coffee. We can’t wait for you to try it! Ecommerce is the way to go! We want to make our coffee completely available to the masses of America (and eventually beyond) through the web. We’re sending our Probiotic Blend to Amazon so that we can get out to the Amazon market and all of those who love the ease of Amazon Prime. We’re selling through our own website, Amazon Marketplace, and offering subscriptions for those with busy schedules who want their coffee to show up on time, every time. Community is key to this endeavor. We’ve dove in deep to this venture with amazing mentors, silver-haired wisdom of our family’s business experience, and the professional experience of our own careers. We’ve spent over a year on this project while holding other jobs. We are ALL IN and fully COMMITTED to making this an epic success. BUT we still need you! We can’t do it alone and we are working hard to make this amazing project come to fruition. Support our KICKSTARTER campaign to join our mission, our community, and bring Probiotic Coffee to your doorstep. Follow us on social media, join in on our #WylderJourneys. Show us how you take #WylderJourneys. We want to see what you're doing with your authentic life.Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Professor Carl Heneghan said side effects included serious "psychiatric adverse events, renal adverse events and metabolic adverse events" Hundreds of millions of pounds may have been wasted on a drug for flu that works no better than paracetamol, a landmark analysis has said. The UK has spent £473m on Tamiflu, which is stockpiled by governments globally to prepare for flu pandemics. The Cochrane Collaboration claimed the drug did not prevent the spread of flu or reduce dangerous complications, and only slightly helped symptoms. The manufacturers Roche and other experts say the analysis is flawed. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Barry Clinch from Roche said Tamiflu had been approved by 100 regulators around the world The antiviral drug Tamiflu was stockpiled from 2006 in the UK when some agencies were predicting that a pandemic of bird flu could kill up to 750,000 people in Britain. Similar decisions were made in other countries. Hidden data The drug was widely prescribed during the swine flu outbreak in 2009. Drug companies do not publish all their research data. This report is the result of a colossal fight for the previously hidden data into the effectiveness and side-effects of Tamiflu. It concluded that the drug reduced the persistence of flu symptoms from seven days to 6.3 days in adults and to 5.8 days in children. But the report's authors said drugs such as paracetamol could have a similar impact. On claims that the drug prevented complications such as pneumonia developing, Cochrane suggested the trials were so poor there was "no visible effect". Image copyright SPL Image caption Tamiflu was widely used during the swine flu outbreak Another justification for stockpiling was to slow the spread of the disease to give time for a vaccine to be developed. The report's authors said "the case for this is simply unproven" and "there is no credible way these drugs could prevent a pandemic". It also claimed that the drug had a number of side-effects, including nausea, headaches, psychiatric events, kidney problems and hyperglycaemia. Carl Heneghan, Professor of Evidence-Based Medicine at the University of Oxford and one of the report's authors, told the BBC: "I think the whole £500m has not benefited human health in any way and we may have harmed people. Analysis "Does a drug work?" should be an easy question to answer. Yet after hundreds of millions of pounds, either down the drain or saving lives depending on your stance, this question is being asked of Tamiflu. It stems from the way drugs are approved. Pharmaceutical companies conduct trials, some but not all of the data is made publicly available and regulators decide if it works. It is estimated that, entirely legally, half of clinical trials have never been reported and that favourable data is more likely to published. The UK Public Accounts Committee said the lack of data available to researchers and doctors was "of extreme concern". So the Tamiflu saga raises another important question - what other drugs are we using that might not work as well as we thought? Analysis: Do any drugs work? "The system that exists for producing evidence on drugs is so flawed and open to misuse that the public has been misled." Dr Tom Jefferson, a clinical epidemiologist and former GP, said: "I wouldn't give it for symptom relief, I'd give paracetamol." The Cochrane Collaboration researchers have not placed the blame on any individual or organisation, instead saying there had been failings at every step from the manufacturers to the regulators and government. 'Wrong statistics' However, there is disagreement about the findings and accusations that a simultaneous campaign to open up drug research is influencing the findings. The pharmaceutical company Roche said "we disagree with the overall conclusions" and warned they could "potentially have serious public health implications". Its UK medical director, Dr Daniel Thurley, told the BBC News website: "The definitive piece of research stands as the randomised control trials, which were shared with the regulators, which led to them in 100 countries around the world approving Tamiflu for treatment and prevention of flu." He said the Cochrane group had used the wrong statistics, which "systematically underestimate the benefits" of the drug, and used "unorthodox" methods to analyse the side-effects. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Dr Daniel Thurley, Roche, and British Medical Journal editor Dr Fiona Godlee on Today He concluded: "One of the challenges we have here is actually knowing what they've done." Prof Wendy Barclay, who researches the influenza virus at Imperial College London, said reducing symptoms in children by 29 hours would be "pretty beneficial". She told the BBC: "Tamiflu works as well as any drug we have now or [that] is on the cards. "Yes, I think they should replenish the stockpile. What else can you do if a pandemic strikes? We won't have a vaccine for the first six months." It is a potential limitation of this study that the work has been carried out alongside campaigning on access to trial data Prof Kevin McConway, Open University She also questioned the validity of the research as it analysed the impact during seasonal flu: "If it works a little bit in season flu, the chances are they'll work quite a lot better in a pandemic situation and get more people back to school and work." Kevin McConway, a professor of applied statistics at the Open University, said it was an "impressive" piece of work. He said: "It is a potential limitation of this study that the work has been carried out alongside campaigning on access to trial data. "The writers of the review have a clear position in this controversy, and, although I personally do generally agree with their position, I feel it does at times lead to some confusion between reporting the results of the review of these particular drugs and commenting on the general position on access to and use of unpublished data." The Department of Health, which took the lead for the UK, said Britain was recognised as "one of the best prepared countries in the world for a potential flu pandemic" and "our stockpile of antivirals is a key part of this. "We regularly review all published data and will consider the Cochrane review closely." The World Health Organization, which classes Tamiflu as an essential medicine, said: "We welcome a new and rigorous analysis of available data, and look forward to consideration of its findings after it appears."An MRI conducted on Friday morning confirmed that Crew defender Gláuber suffered a torn left Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in the sixth minute of Thursday's 2-1 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup loss to the Chicago Fire. The Brazilian centerback will miss the rest of the 2013 season due to the injury, his first for the Black & Gold. "The MRI confirmed that Gláuber tore his left ACL," Team Physician Dr. Pete Edwards said. "The injury didn't do any other damage besides the torn ACL. Obviously, it is a season-ending injury that will require surgery once he gets his knee moving." Gláuber's injury is the second significant loss for the Black & Gold in Open Cup play as midfielder Eddie Gaven also tore his left ACL in a match with Dayton Dutch Lions FC on May 29. Chad Marshall and Josh Williams, who have been upgraded to questionable ahead of Saturday's home match against the Montreal Impact, are candidates to replace the Brazilian in the center of the Crew backline with Eric Gehrig, Kevan George and Tyson Wahl providing additional options for Head Coach Robert Warzycha. Edwards also confirmed that Gláuber's surgery is expected to take place in two weeks, while Gaven is scheduled to undergo surgery on Friday, June 21. Gláuber scored one goal in 13 starts this season for the Black & Gold.Donald - Trump - Speech - Detroit - Monday Trump - Candidate - Race - Hillary - Clinton Work - Trump - Pro-growth - Candidate (Excerpt) Read more at: Newsmax Wake Up To Breaking News! SUBMIT Did Hillary Clinton actually propose raising middle-income taxes in a recent speech? The audio suggests she said “we are going to raise taxes on the middle class,” although the prepared remarks indicate she meant “we aren’t.”Well, these things happen. But the fact remains that Hillary Clinton’s proposals to raise taxes on so-called rich people, rich corporations, Wall Street, investors (capital gains, dividends, and financial transactions), and estates will greatly harm middle-income wage earners who have essentially not had a pay raise since the year 2000.Donald Trump is set to give a major economic speech in Detroit on Monday. In general terms he will be lowering marginal tax rates on both large and small businesses and on all income classes. He also will propose a hike in the standard deduction for families and special deductions for childcare and the elderly.All of these polices will help the middle class. Trump’s plan will generate substantial new investment, business formation, jobs, and growth -- and hence higher wages.Trump is the pro-growth candidate in this race. Hillary Clinton is the anti-growth candidate. Trump wants to expand national income and the economic pie. Clinton wants to redistribute income and shrink the pie.In past writings I have equated Trump’s tax-reduction plan to the JFK and Ronald Reagan tax cuts, which generated economic booms of roughly 5 percent growth per year. President Obama, by comparison, has raised taxes, spending, and regulations, producing the worst recovery since World War II. And Clinton intends to follow in Obama’s footsteps with a Bernie Sanders-like, left-wing policy mix. She is the Democrats’ anti-JFK. What a pity.I want to draw on some academic work to validate how Trump is the pro-growth, pro-middle-class candidate.Let me begin with AEI economists Aparna Mathur and Kevin Hassett. They have written extensively on...From Bulbapedia, the community-driven Pokémon encyclopedia. Durant (Japanese: アイアント Aiant) is a dual-type Bug/Steel Pokémon introduced in Generation V. It is not known to evolve into or from any other Pokémon. Biology Durant is an insectoid Pokémon with a steel body that has three distinct sections. Its ovoid abdomen is dark gray with a light gray band wrapping around the middle and two circles resembling rivets near a jagged seam. Durant's thorax is slightly smaller, but identical in design with its abdomen. The only difference being one circle instead of two. Its head is spherical, containing the same light gray wrap design as its body. However, it wraps from front to back on the head. On each side of its head are large red eyes with hollow black pupils. It has two round mandibles that it uses to grab things and feed itself. The mandibles are attached below its eyes and are situated in front of its horizontally opening mouth. Atop its head are two long antennae, each tipped with small spheres. Durant has six black legs sprouting from its thorax. Each leg has one claw at its tip, except the front legs that each have two. Durant is extremely territorial. It only lives in colonies and digs mazes underground designed to be as complicated as possible. It grows steel armor to protect itself from its natural predator, Heatmor. When attacked, Durant gathers in groups to attack as a whole to keep Heatmor away. As seen in the anime, Durant prefers to eat vegetation, namely leaves. It will attack swiftly and aggressively if bothered, but will not pursue intruders once outside of its colony. In the anime Major appearances Multiple Durant debuted in Battling the Leaf Thieves!, where they accidentally kidnapped Iris's Axew while gathering food. Minor appearances A group of Durant appeared in Genesect and the Legend Awakened as some of the Pokémon living at Pokémon Hills. At one point, they attacked Team Rocket. Pokédex entries Episode Pokémon Source Entry BW074 Durant Ash's Pokédex Durant, the Iron Ant Pokémon. Durant build twisting tunnels in the mountains where they form their nests. They are covered with a steel armor for protection. This concludes the entries from the Best Wishes series. In the manga In the Pokémon Adventures manga Emmet has a Durant, which was seen next to him while White was testing the Battle Subway in A Stormy Time in the Battle Subway. A Durant appeared in Pinsir Changes. A Durant appeared in a flashback in Charizard Transforms. In the Pocket Monsters BW: The Heroes of Fire and Thunder The Hooligans owned a Durant each. In the TCG Game data Pokédex entries This Pokémon was unavailable prior to Generation V. Generation V Black They attack in groups, covering themselves in steel armor to protect themselves from Heatmor. White Durant dig nests in mountains. They build their complicated, interconnected tunnels in mazes. Black 2 Individuals each play different roles in driving Heatmor, their natural predator, away from their colony. White 2 Generation VI X Individuals each play different roles in driving Heatmor, their natural predator, away from their colony. Y They attack in groups, covering themselves in steel armor to protect themselves from Heatmor. Omega Ruby Individuals each play different roles in driving Heatmor, their natural predator, away from their colony. Alpha Sapphire They attack in groups, covering themselves in steel armor to protect themselves from Heatmor. Game locations In side games Held items Stats Base stats Stat Range At Lv. 50 At Lv. 100 HP : 58 118 - 165 226 - 320 Attack : 109 102 - 177 200 - 348 Defense : 112 105 - 180 206 - 355 Sp.Atk : 48 47 - 110 90 - 214 Sp.Def : 48 47 - 110 90 - 214 Speed : 109 102 - 177 200 - 348 Total: 484 Other Pokémon with this total Minimum stats are calculated with 0 EVs, IVs of 0, and a hindering nature, if applicable. Maximum stats are calculated with 252 EVs, IVs of 31, and a helpful nature, if applicable. Type effectiveness Learnset Side game data Evolution Sprites Trivia Durant and its rival were designed by Ken Sugimori. Durant being the prey of Heatmor is reflected in their types. Durant and Heatmor have many statistical similarities. They share the same leveling rate, catch rate, hatch time, base experience yield, and base stat total. Origin Durant is based on an ant, possibly the Argentine ant, as its jaw is similar to Durant's. Its coloration may be based on the natural silver coloration of the silver spiny ant (Polyrhachis sp.). Name origin Durant may be a combination of durable or endurance (referring to its Steel type) and ant. Aiant may be a combination of アイアン aian (iron) and ant. In other languages Language Title Meaning Japanese アイアント Aiant From アイアン aian and ant French Fermite From fer and Termite Spanish Durant Same as English name German Fermicula From ferrum and Formicula Italian Durant Same as English name Korean 아이앤트 Aiant Transliteration of Japanese name Cantonese Chinese Mandarin Chinese 鐵蟻 / 铁蚁 Tiěyǐ Literally "Iron ant" More languages Russian Дюрант Dyurant Transcription of English name NotesAbout This Game Organised Chaos – More than your typical stealth game, The Marvellous Miss Take is a fluid, high-speed game of cat and mouse! Random guard patterns require players to think on their feet rather than hiding in the shadows, and one false move means escape can be snatched away from you in seconds. – More than your typical stealth game, The Marvellous Miss Take is a fluid, high-speed game of cat and mouse! Random guard patterns require players to think on their feet rather than hiding in the shadows, and one false move means escape can be snatched away from you in seconds. Wits, Not Fists – Forget violence, takedowns or picking off guards one by one… distraction's the key to success here! Each stage stays tense from the first step to the last, so put your gadgets to good use to keep out of trouble and pilfer everything you can before someone spots you! – Forget violence, takedowns or picking off guards one by one… distraction's the key to success here! Each stage stays tense from the first step to the last, so put your gadgets to good use to keep out of trouble and pilfer everything you can before someone spots you! The Bigger Picture – Sneak into the 25 multi-floored galleries as one of three different characters, each of which has their own unique skills and goals. Can you escape safely with the maximum amount of loot and grab yourself a perfect ranking? – Sneak into the 25 multi-floored galleries as one of three different characters, each of which has their own unique skills and goals. Can you escape safely with the maximum amount of loot and grab yourself a perfect ranking? Artfully Accessible – Streamlined, intuitive mouse controls let you explore the colourful world of The Marvellous Miss Take with ease, making the exciting puzzle-cum-stealth action accessible to players of all ages and skills. The stealth genre gets turned on its head in The Marvellous Miss Take – the only heist adventure that invites you to steal with style!Break into 25 unique art galleries as three different thieves in search of the ultimate score, evading guards and using gadgets to get away with your priceless haul. Unlike other stealth games though, there’s no time for waiting in the shadows until the right moment! Wandering guards decide their patrol routes on the fly, security cameras keep watch over everything and even innocent gallery goers just visiting to admire the art might raise the alarm if they see something suspicious. Only quick wits and even quicker reflexes can help you grab the loot and escape unseen – there’s no option for violence and the clock is ticking!Islamic mysticism "Sufi" redirects here. For other uses, see Sufi (disambiguation) Not to be confused with sophism Sufism, or Taṣawwuf[1] (Arabic: الْتَّصَوُّف‎; personal noun: صُوفِيّ‎ ṣūfiyy / ṣūfī, مُتَصَوِّف‎ mutaṣawwif), variously defined as "Islamic mysticism",[2] "the inward dimension of Islam"[3][4] or "the phenomenon of mysticism within Islam",[5][6] is mysticism in Islam, "characterized... [by particular] values, ritual practices, doctrines and institutions"[7] which began very early in Islamic history[5] and represents "the main manifestation and the most important and central crystallization of" mystical practice in Islam.[8][9] Practitioners of Sufism have been referred to as "Sufis" (Arabic plurals: صُوفِيَّة‎ ṣūfiyyah; صُوفِيُّون‎ ṣūfiyyūn; مُتَصَوُّفََة‎ mutaṣawwifah; مُتَصَوُّفُون‎ mutaṣawwifūn).[5] Historically, Sufis have often belonged to different ṭuruq, or "orders" – congregations formed around a grand master referred to as a wali who traces a direct chain of successive teachers back to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad.[10] These orders meet for spiritual sessions (majalis) in meeting places known as zawiyas, khanqahs or tekke. They strive for ihsan (perfection of worship), as detailed in a hadith: "Ihsan is to worship Allah as if you see Him; if you can't see Him, surely He sees you."[12] Sufis regard Muhammad as al-Insān al-Kāmil, the primary perfect man who exemplifies the morality of God, and see him as their leader and prime spiritual guide. All Sufi orders trace most of their original precepts from Muhammad through his cousin and son-in-law Ali, with the notable exception of one. Although the overwhelming majority of Sufis, both pre-modern and modern, were and are adherents of Sunni Islam, there also developed certain strands of Sufi practice within the ambit of Shia Islam during the late medieval period.[5] Although Sufis were opposed to dry legalism, they strictly observed Islamic law and belonged to various schools of Islamic jurisprudence and theology.[14] Sufis have been characterized by their asceticism, especially by their attachment to dhikr, the practice of remembrance of God, often performed after prayers.[15] They gained adherents among a number of Muslims as a reaction against the worldliness of the early Umayyad Caliphate (661–750)[16] and have spanned several continents and cultures over a millennium, initially expressing their beliefs in Arabic and later expanding into Persian, Turkish, and Urdu, among others. Sufis played an important role in the formation of Muslim societies through their missionary and educational activities.[18] According to William Chittick, "In a broad sense, Sufism can be described as the interiorization, and intensification of Islamic faith and practice." Despite a relative decline of Sufi orders in the modern era and criticism of some aspects of Sufism by modernist thinkers and conservative Salafists, Sufism has continued to play an important role in the Islamic world, and has also influenced various forms of spirituality in the West. Definitions [ edit ] The Arabic word tasawwuf (lit. being or becoming a Sufi), generally translated as Sufism, is commonly defined by Western authors as Islamic mysticism.[20][21] The Arabic term sufi has been used in Islamic literature with a wide range of meanings, by both proponents and opponents of Sufism.[20] Classical Sufi texts, which stressed certain teachings and practices of the Quran and the sunnah (exemplary teachings and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad), gave definitions of tasawwuf that described ethical and spiritual goals[note 1] and functioned as teaching tools for their attainment. Many other terms that described particular spiritual qualities and roles were used instead in more practical contexts.[20][21] Some modern scholars have used other definitions of Sufism such as "intensification of Islamic faith and practice"[20] and "process of realizing ethical and spiritual ideals".[21] The term Sufism was originally introduced into European languages in the 18th century by Orientalist scholars, who viewed it mainly as an intellectual doctrine and literary tradition at variance with what they saw as sterile monotheism of Islam. In modern scholarly usage the term serves to describe a wide range of social, cultural, political and religious phenomena associated with Sufis.[21] Etymology [ edit ] The original meaning of sufi seems to have been "one who wears wool (ṣūf)", and the Encyclopaedia of Islam calls other etymological hypotheses "untenable".[23][24] Woollen clothes were traditionally associated with ascetics and mystics.[24] Al-Qushayri and Ibn Khaldun both rejected all possibilities other than ṣūf on linguistic grounds.[25] Another explanation traces the lexical root of the word to ṣafā (صفاء), which in Arabic means "purity". These two explanations were combined by the Sufi al-Rudhabari (d. 322 AH), who said, "The Sufi is the one who wears wool on top of purity".[26][27] Others have suggested that the word comes from the term ahl aṣ-ṣuffah ("the people of the bench"), who were a group of impoverished companions of Muhammad who held regular gatherings of dhikr. These men and women who sat at al-Masjid an-Nabawi are considered by some to be the first Sufis.[28][29] History [ edit ] Origins [ edit ] [30] Ali is considered to be the "Father of Sufism" in Islam. According to Carl W. Ernst the earliest figures of Sufism are Muhammad himself and his companions (Sahabah).[31] Sufi orders are based on the "bay‘ah" ( بَيْعَة bay‘ah, مُبَايَعَة mubāya‘ah "pledge, allegiance") that was given to Muhammad by his Ṣahabah. By pledging allegiance to Muhammad, the Sahabah had committed themselves to the service of God.[32][33][31] Verily, those who give Bai'âh (pledge) to you (O Muhammad) they are giving Bai'âh (pledge) to Allâh. The Hand of Allâh is over their hands. Then whosoever breaks his pledge, breaks it only to his own harm, and whosoever fulfils what he has covenanted with Allâh, He will bestow on him a great reward. — [Translation of Quran, 48:10] Sufis believe that by giving bayʿah (pledging allegiance) to a legitimate Sufi shaykh, one is pledging allegiance to Muhammad; therefore, a spiritual connection between the seeker and Muhammad is established. It is through Muhammad that Sufis aim to learn about, understand and connect with God.[34] Ali is regarded as one of the major figures amongst the Sahaba who have directly pledged allegiance to Muhammad, and Sufis maintain that through Ali, knowledge about Muhammad and a connection with Muhammad may be attained. Such a concept may be understood by the hadith, which Sufis regard to be authentic, in which Muhammad said, "I am the city of knowledge and Ali is its gate".[35] Eminent Sufis such as Ali Hujwiri refer to Ali as having a very high ranking in Tasawwuf. Furthermore, Junayd of Baghdad regarded Ali as sheikh of the principals and practices of Tasawwuf.[30] Historian Jonathan A.C. Brown notes that during the lifetime of Muhammad, some companions were more inclined than others to "intensive devotion, pious abstemiousness and pondering the divine mysteries" more than Islam required, such as Abu Dhar al-Ghifari. Hasan al-Basri, a tabi, is considered a "founding figure" in the "science of purifying the heart".[36] Practitioners of Sufism hold that in its early stages of development Sufism effectively referred to nothing more than the internalization of Islam.[37] According to one perspective, it is directly from the Qur'an, constantly recited, meditated, and experienced, that Sufism proceeded, in its origin and its development.[38
1NXvAo6tDoSxAqsrcNQ5PPJJM87gR4dHr7 I want to announce http://bip32.org, a JavaScript implementation of BIP32. This project is based on my Multisignature P2SH project. BIP0032 is a Bitcoin Improvement Proposal that describes a method to determinsiticly generate Bitcoin addresses and private keys. It also describes some really cool features such as public key derivation which allows you to generate new addresses without needing a private key.If you're like me, then you just care because this Bitcoin stuff is cool. If you're not quite like me, then you're probably only interested in this if you like and/or use Brain Wallets. This implementation allows you to produce Extended Private Keys based only on a single passphrase, which is in turn used to produce multiple Bitcoin addresses. You have the advantage of deriving new addresses without ever needing to type in your passphrase.Simple. Type in a passphrase into the "Passphrase" box and tweak the value in "Account index". If you select another derivation path, "Keypair index" is available to change as well. The generated keys are shown at the bottom of the page, along with a Bitcoin address you can send coins to.In order to spend, copy the "Derived private key", change the button at the top of the page to "BIP32 Key" and paste in the key you just copied to the BIP32 extended key field. Now copy the "Key" in the Key Info section. This is the Bitcoin private key, and it can be used to spend by using the transaction generator at http://brainwallet.org/ More advanced users can use the site to do the following things:Thanks. Feedback appreciated! Donations are welcome: 1NXvAo6tDoSxAqsrcNQ5PPJJM87gR4dHr7 Your Bitcoin transactions The Ultimate Bitcoin mixer made truly anonymous. with an advanced technology. Mix coins Advertised sites are not endorsed by the Bitcoin Forum. They may be unsafe, untrustworthy, or illegal in your jurisdiction. Advertise here. Sarchar Offline Activity: 88 Merit: 10 MemberActivity: 88Merit: 10 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator January 12, 2014, 06:20:35 PM #3 Quote from: stick on January 12, 2014, 03:26:32 PM I am not sure if inventing special BIP32 versions for altcoins is a good idea. There's no reason why you couldn't use the same BIP32 tree for all altcoins. Let's say path m/0/... for bitcoins, m/1/... for crapcoin and m/2/ for different shitcoin, etc. I wondered this as well, however, I think it's worthwhile to make the effort to keep the keys separate. The same argument applies to standard addresses: there's no reason any of the altcoins changed their version byte. Also, why not use the same version bytes for bitcoin test and main networks? I wondered this as well, however, I think it's worthwhile to make the effort to keep the keys separate. The same argument applies to standard addresses: there's no reason any of the altcoins changed their version byte. Also, why not use the same version bytes for bitcoin test and main networks? fluxist Offline Activity: 35 Merit: 0 NewbieActivity: 35Merit: 0 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator February 07, 2014, 07:41:25 AM #5 Sarchar, the "version" values your BIP32 implementation uses for DOGE/DOGE-testnet and LTC/LTC-testnet, are these in some specification somewhere or is this your own? I'm implementing BIP32 for some alts and I'm curious what version values I ought to use. I see in Base58 yours result in: Ltpv, Ltub, dgpv, dgub prepended to the extended keys. Ok so I get the convention you're using -- first two characters denote coin, ub/pv denote public/private. Is this a standard defined or discussed somewhere? The testnet version strings are problematic since yours are: ttpv, ttub, tgpv, tgub. This leaves only one character to denote the coin and in these cases already it's awfully ambiguous. For altcoins something like XXmP/XXmp to denote mainnet public/private keys (where XX is the coin code) and XXtP/XXtp to denote testnet public/private keys would at least leave two characters to denote the coin. DGmP/DGmp, DGtP/DGtp, LTmP/LTmp, LTtP/LTtp? What are your thoughts? fbueller Offline Activity: 412 Merit: 250 Sr. MemberActivity: 412Merit: 250 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator February 07, 2014, 01:21:31 PM #6 I've been curious about this as well. Maybe there should be consensus before we plough ahead with this. People would freak if they had sent coins to an address derived from these scripts but the key wouldn't import in a client eventually. They would have to base58_decode, change the magic bytes, encode, and go with that, but they probably won't manage unless they can code. If your code/bytes get implemented elsewhere the problem would be widespread, and cause a lot of fuss for those people. Bitwasp Developer. Sarchar Offline Activity: 88 Merit: 10 MemberActivity: 88Merit: 10 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator February 09, 2014, 08:10:26 AM #7 There isn't a spec for the alt coins as far as I'm aware. It'd be nice if there was. TBH, I was hoping that my version bytes would become the standard. Hypothetically, if my implementation were actually used by alt-coiners then when drafting the spec it'd be more of an issue that the spec has to deal with (that people have already adopted a standard to use). Unfortunately, there's just no BIP-style development for any of the other coins, so I was forced to improvise if I wanted to support altcoins. I was indeed going with XXpv/XXub for the public/private keypair prefixes. For testnet, I was a little less concerned about consistency but it seems you have gotten the general gist of things. The code isn't set in stone. If you guys want the version bytes changed, let me know:) jlp Offline Activity: 266 Merit: 261 Sr. MemberActivity: 266Merit: 261 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator February 10, 2014, 05:44:06 PM #8 Quote from: Sarchar on January 09, 2014, 07:46:27 AM How do I use it? Simple. Type in a passphrase into the "Passphrase" box and tweak the value in "Keypair index". The generated keys are shown at the bottom of the page, along with a Bitcoin address you can send coins to. In order to spend, copy the "Derived private key", change the button at the top of the page to "BIP32 Key" and paste in the key you just copied. Now copy the "Key" in the Key Info section. This is the Bitcoin private key, and it can be used to spend by using the transaction generator at Simple. Type in a passphrase into the "Passphrase" box and tweak the value in "Keypair index". The generated keys are shown at the bottom of the page, along with a Bitcoin address you can send coins to.In order to spend, copy the "Derived private key", change the button at the top of the page to "BIP32 Key" and paste in the key you just copied. Now copy the "Key" in the Key Info section. This is the Bitcoin private key, and it can be used to spend by using the transaction generator at http://brainwallet.org/ Where is the "Keypair index"? You wrote: "...paste in the key you just copied." Paste it where? Most of the fields cannot be pasted into. Quote from: Sarchar on January 09, 2014, 07:46:27 AM More advanced users can use the site to do the following things: It seems that this is already for more advanced users. I just want to enable my users to send and withdraw bitcoin. I'm trying to see if the approach suggested by just_someguy at Where is the "Keypair index"? You wrote: "...paste in the key you just copied." Paste it where? Most of the fields cannot be pasted into.It seems that this is already for more advanced users.I just want to enable my users to send and withdraw bitcoin. I'm trying to see if the approach suggested by just_someguy at https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=22368.msg5058875#msg5058875 is the way to go. I've already spent 2 months to see if I can integrate Bitcoin to my web app. Do I need to understand cryptography, Depth, Parent Fingerprint, Child Index, Chain Code, Derivation Path, Derived Private Key, Private Key (WIF), Derived Public Key, Public Key (Hex), XXpv/XXub, base58_decode, magic bytes, encode, DOGE, Ltpv, Ltub, dgpv, dgub, etc. in order to do so? fluxist Offline Activity: 35 Merit: 0 NewbieActivity: 35Merit: 0 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator February 10, 2014, 05:56:21 PM Last edit: February 10, 2014, 06:57:56 PM by fluxist #9 Quote from: Sarchar on February 09, 2014, 08:10:26 AM There isn't a spec for the alt coins as far as I'm aware. It'd be nice if there was. TBH, I was hoping that my version bytes would become the standard. Hypothetically, if my implementation were actually used by alt-coiners then when drafting the spec it'd be more of an issue that the spec has to deal with (that people have already adopted a standard to use). Unfortunately, there's just no BIP-style development for any of the other coins, so I was forced to improvise if I wanted to support altcoins. I was indeed going with XXpv/XXub for the public/private keypair prefixes. For testnet, I was a little less concerned about consistency but it seems you have gotten the general gist of things. The code isn't set in stone. If you guys want the version bytes changed, let me know:) I like the mainnet convention you're using. It's probably the most human-readable to be done in 4 characters. Would you consider changing the testnet prefix to XXtv, XXtb for private and public extended keys, respectively? Quote from: jlp on February 10, 2014, 05:44:06 PM I just want to enable my users to send and withdraw bitcoin. I'm trying to see if the approach suggested by just_someguy at https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=22368.msg5058875#msg5058875 is the way to go. I've already spent 2 months to see if I can integrate Bitcoin to my web app. Do I need to understand cryptography, Depth, Parent Fingerprint, Child Index, Chain Code, Derivation Path, Derived Private Key, Private Key (WIF), Derived Public Key, Public Key (Hex), XXpv/XXub, base58_decode, magic bytes, encode, DOGE, Ltpv, Ltub, dgpv, dgub, etc. in order to do so? BIP32 is likely not the relevant standard if you want users to send and withdraw bitcoin. Also that post is from 2011 and the approach may no longer be best. I like the mainnet convention you're using. It's probably the most human-readable to be done in 4 characters. Would you consider changing the testnet prefix to XXtv, XXtb for private and public extended keys, respectively?BIP32 is likely not the relevant standard if you want users to send and withdraw bitcoin. Also that post is from 2011 and the approach may no longer be best. Sarchar Offline Activity: 88 Merit: 10 MemberActivity: 88Merit: 10 Re: [ANN] bip32.org - JavaScript BIP32 deterministic wallet generator February 11, 2014, 02:13:56 PM #11 Quote from: jlp on February 10, 2014, 05:44:06 PM Quote from: Sarchar on January 09, 2014, 07:46:27 AM How do I use it? Simple. Type in a passphrase into the "Passphrase" box and tweak the value in "Keypair index". The generated keys are shown at the bottom of the page, along with a Bitcoin address you can send coins to. In order to spend, copy the "Derived private key", change the button at the top of the page to "BIP32 Key" and paste in the key you just copied. Now copy the "Key" in the Key Info section. This is the Bitcoin private key, and it can be used to spend by using the transaction generator at Simple. Type in a passphrase into the "Passphrase" box and tweak the value in "Keypair index". The generated keys are shown at the bottom of the page, along with a Bitcoin address you can send coins to.In order to spend, copy the "Derived private key", change the button at the top of the page to "BIP32 Key" and paste in the key you just copied. Now copy the "Key" in the Key Info section. This is the Bitcoin private key, and it can be used to spend by using the transaction generator at http://brainwallet.org/ Where is the "Keypair index"? Where is the "Keypair index"? Ah, you're right. I'll update the text. The keypair index is only available if you pick a derivation method that includes "i". Quote You wrote: "...paste in the key you just copied." Paste it where? Most of the fields cannot be pasted into. When you change the button at the top to BIP32 key, you can paste extended private keys into the "BIP32 Extended Key" field. Quote Quote from: Sarchar on January 09, 2014, 07:46:27 AM More advanced users can use the site to do the following things: It seems that this is already for more advanced users. It seems that this is already for more advanced users. Perhaps there's layers of advanced-ness Quote I just want to enable my users to send and withdraw bitcoin. I Do I need to understand cryptography, Depth, Parent Fingerprint, Child Index, Chain Code, Derivation Path, Derived Private Key, Private Key (WIF), Derived Public Key, Public Key (Hex), XXpv/XXub, base58_decode, magic bytes, encode, DOGE, Ltpv, Ltub, dgpv, dgub, etc. in order to do so? You don't really need to understand these things if you're just a user of wallet software. If you're going to be writing wallet software, it helps to know what these things are. Some of them are critical pieces of knowledge. Ah, you're right. I'll update the text. The keypair index is only available if you pick a derivation method that includes "i".When you change the button at the top to BIP32 key, you can paste extended private keys into the "BIP32 Extended Key" field.Perhaps there's layers of advanced-nessYou don't really need to understand these things if you're just a user of wallet software. If you're going to be writing wallet software, it helps to know what these things are. Some of them are critical pieces of knowledge.Welcome to the ‘60s! If you haven’t loudly belted out hits from “Hairspray” in your car/shower/kitchen after you think your mom has gone out, then you haven’t lived. The Tony Award-winning musical follows teenager Tracy Turnblad as she wins a role on a local television show and attempts to use her celebrity to integrate the program. NBC has revived the iconic musical for a live televised production on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Here’s what audiences can look forward to: More Stars Than You Can Handle Have you seen the cast list? The show has enough star power to keep the lights of Broadway running for weeks. Speaking of Broadway, the show will feature stage sensations Harvey Fierstein, Kristin Chenoweth, Ephraim Sykes, Martin Short and Andrea Martin. MY LATEST VIDEOS MY LATEST VIDEOS Audiences can also look forward to performances by television’s Sean Hayes and Rosie O’Donnell, as well as “Dancing With the Stars” champion Derek Hough and teen dreams Dove Cameron and Garrett Clayton. Rounding out the cast are vocal powerhouses Jennifer Hudson and Ariana Grande. MY LATEST VIDEOS A Book-Movie-Musical Mix-Up The show will be a mix of the book, the movies and the musical. The beloved hits from the stage production, such as “Good Morning Baltimore,” will be included, as well as numbers that were written specifically for the recent film adaptation, such as “Ladies’ Choice.” The live show will close with a grand finale duet from Grande and Hudson, who will perform “Come So Far (Got So Far to Go),” the song from the credits segment of the 2007 film. Bigger Is Better Unlike NBC’s previous musical endeavors, “Hairspray Live!” will not be filmed on a contained soundstage. The show will follow in the footsteps of Fox’s production of “Grease: Live” and take place in front of a live studio audience in Los Angeles. The ambitious staging boasts 18 sets, half of them outdoors. This means the cast and crew will need to prepare to battle the elements on the day of the show. Rain or shine, the show must go on. Triple the Tracy’s The live show will introduce the world to newcomer Maddie Baillio, who stars as teenage dreamer Tracy Turnblad. But why have just one Tracy? Former Tracy Turnblads Ricki Lake and Marissa Jaret Winokur will make guest appearances in the television special as Mr. Pinky’s assistants. Six Degrees of Hamilton Forget six degrees of Kevin Bacon — this is the new game we should all be playing. Sykes, who plays Seaweed, has come straight off the stage from the original Broadway cast of “Hamilton.” Based in New York, Sykes has appeared on Broadway since 2008, scoring roles in the original casts of “Memphis,” “Newsies” and “Motown the Musical.” Secrets of the Sets Be on the lookout for the “Back to the Future” clock tower plaza, as it is rumored to be making an appearance as one of the sets. Also, “Hairspray Live!” screenwriter and actor Fierstein revealed that the set for the opening number is a “Hairspray” tribute. Many of the buildings have been purposefully designed and named after someone connected with the show over the years, including some of Fierstein’s costars and the chairman of NBC. Check them out here. Don’t Forget the Pre-Show Chenoweth fans can tune in a half hour before the live broadcast to see her co-host the pre-show with fellow cast member Hayes, who plays Mr. Pinky. It’s likely to be both charming and hilarious. You Can Join In on the Fun Broadway sensation and “Glee” alum Darren Criss will host an online broadcast via Facebook Live. He will interact with viewers on social media and give a behind-the-scenes look throughout the show. Viewers will also be able to see the show from a variety of unique camera angles both on and off the set. Unlike previous live shows, “Hairspray’s” digital platform will give fans an all-access experience, allowing them to completely immerse themselves in the show. Want a preview? Check out the cast performing “You Can’t Stop the Beat” during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. What you are hoping to see most from “Hairspray Live!”? Leave a reply below…Google hosted GTAC 2013 this past week, with several very interesting presentations. The videos are currently only available in one long stream. Here are the GTAC videos, along with the time stamp when the particular talk begins. Day 1 Time: 00:16:30, Keynote, Ari Shamash, Evolution from QA to Test Engineering Time: 1:06:00, James Waldrop, Testing Systems at Scale at Twitter Time: 2:20:00, David Burns & Malini Das, How Do You Test a Mobile OS? Time: 4:04:15, Igor Dorovskikh & Kaustubh Gawande, Mobile Automation in Continuous Delivery Pipeline Time: 4:47:00, David Rothlisberger, Automated Set-Top Box Testing with GStreamer and OpenCV Time: 5:03:00, Ken Kania, Webdriver for Chrome Time: 5:17:45, Vojta Jina, Karma – Test Runner for JavaScript Time: 5:32:50, Patrik Hoglund, Automated Video Quality Measurements Time: 5:47:10, Minal Mishra, When Bad Things Happen to Good Applications Time: 6:34:00, Tao Xie, Testing for Educational Gaming and Educational Gaming for Testing Time: 7:17:20, Simon Stewart, How Facebook Tests Facebook on Android Day 2Ten years ago today, on January 4, 2007, New Orleans filmmaker Helen Hill was murdered by an intruder who broke into her home on North Rampart Street in the Marigny. Her husband, Paul Gailiunas, was shot three times as he shielded their two-year-old son (fortunately both of them survived the attack). Hill was only 36-years-old when she was killed. She and Gailiunas had returned to the city just a few months earlier, having spent a year in South Carolina after evacuating for Hurricane Katrina. Hill was a talented animator and documentarian who, by all accounts, had fallen deeply in love with New Orleans, the city she had called home since 2000. At the time of her death she was working on The Florestine Collection, a documentary about a local seamstress whose dresses she had discovered along an Adams Street sidewalk a few years earlier. Hill’s murder, along with the killing of Hot 8 Brass Band drummer Dinerral Shavers the week before, sent shockwaves through New Orleans’ arts community. Their deaths came amid a particularly violent post-Katrina crime wave, and inspired thousands of people to march on City Hall the following week. No one was ever charged with her murder. I met Hill on a few occasions as a student at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, where she was a frequent guest instructor for the Media Arts program (NOCCA still gives out a scholarship, the Helen Hill Memorial Award in Media Arts, in her honor every year). Though I never had the chance to really get acquainted with her, it was clear that she was passionate and knowledgeable when it came to animation and experimental filmmaking. It was also clear that she was loved by many, and that her murder profoundly affected some of my teachers and classmates at NOCCA, just as it no doubt affected countless others in New Orleans and beyond. I don’t recall seeing much of Hill’s work when I was a student, so it was a nice surprise to learn that some of her friends had digitized a bunch of her shorts and put them on the internet. As a film purist, she eschewed the use of digital video and made sure to shoot all of her works on old-fashioned celluloid. It was a choice that added another layer of beauty to her films, but one that probably made the task of uploading them a bit more difficult as well. The digital versions of her works can now be found via the new Helen Hill page on Vimeo, which features a number of her animated, live-action and hybrid animated/live-action shorts. I’ve heard a lot about Hill’s joyous, fun-loving demeanor over the years, and this side of her shines through nearly all of these films. She had a penchant for using varied techniques to find whimsy in the mundane, or to examine themes like love and loss from rarely-explored angles. Watching her films has been an altogether enjoyable experience. I recommend others do the same. Hill’s 1995 short Scratch and Crow, which you can view here, was added the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry in 2009. More of her films can be found via the new Vimeo page.Share selection to: In a galaxy far, far away there is a maternity ward for stars. At the centre of the ‘Phoenix Cluster’ of galaxies some 5.7 billion light years from earth, stars are forming at an unusually stupendous rate. Every year between 500 and 800 stars are born whereas in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, only a couple of new stars form each year. And what is more odd, the stars are being born despite there being a ‘supermassive’ black hole at the centre of the cluster that would normally prevent stars from growing. That’s because black holes shoot out hot gas that disperses the cold clouds that help form stars. But University of Melbourne observational cosmologist Dr Christian Reichardt says the Phoenix Cluster’s supermassive black hole is acting like a cosmic thermostat to regulate the growth of stars and galaxies. “It could also explain how the most massive black holes were able to both suppress run-away starbursts and regulate the growth of their host galaxies over the past six billion years or so of cosmic history.” Dr Christian Reichardt has been fascinated by the Phoenix Cluster for the last six years after being part of the team that discovered it in 2009. He studies the origin, evolution, and eventual fate of the universe using the most powerful telescopes in the world. “The Phoenix Cluster is located 5.7 billion light-years from Earth, and derives its name from its location in the constellation of the Phoenix, a minor constellation in the Southern skies,” Dr Reichardt says. “A super-massive black hole lives inside the galaxy at the centre of the Phoenix Cluster. “While these black holes are common, the situation in the Phoenix cluster is intriguing because it is undergoing an extraordinary burst of new stars. In other clusters, the black holes usually prevent new stars from being born.” Dr Reichardt is part of an international research team led by the University of Cambridge that have just revealed more about the special relationship between the black hole and star production in a paper published in the Astrophysical Journal. They have been using the world’s most powerful radio telescope, the Atacama Large Millimetre Array (ALMA) that is located in the Chilean mountains. “As the black hole devours nearby gas, it fuels a pair of powerful jets that erupt from the black hole in opposite directions into intergalactic space,” he says. Regulating Galaxy Growth “Astronomers refer to this type of black-hole powered system as an active galactic nucleus, or AGN,” explains Dr Reichardt. “These jets create expanding bubbles of hot gas, blowing apart the cold gas clouds that can collapse to form the next generation of stars. “But our latest ALMA observations have revealed long filaments of cold molecular gas condensing around the outer edges of the radio bubbles. These filaments extend up to 82,000 light-years from either side of the AGN. They collectively contain enough material to make about 10 billion suns. The results surprised the research team because it appears that the supermassive black hole is regulating the growth of the galaxy by blowing bubbles and heating the gases around it. Remarkably, it also is cooling enough gas to feed itself. “These results help us understand the workings of the cosmic “thermostat” that controls the launching of radio jets from the supermassive black hole.’’ The team hopes to discover whether this newly identified supply of cold, dense gas could eventually fuel future star birth as well as feed the black hole itself. “Whatever happens, the Phoenix cluster is 5.7 billion light years away so it will not affect Earth, but will be an amazing phenomenon for us to observe and understand.” Banner Image: Still from an animation showings how large numbers of stars form in the Phoenix Cluster. It begins by showing several galaxies in the cluster and hot gas (in red). This hot gas contains more normal matter than all of the galaxies in the cluster combined, and can only be detected with X-ray telescopes like Chandra. The camera then flies in towards the large elliptical galaxy at the centre of the cluster. The hot gas near this galaxy is giving off copious amounts of X-rays and cooling quickly over time, as shown by the change to a blue colour. This cooling causes gas to flow inwards along filaments and form huge numbers of stars when it continues to cool. Picture: NASA/CXC/A. HobartStoke City boss Mark Hughes believes striker Wilfried Bony will remain at the club despite a clause that could see him move to China. The Potters signed the Ivorian international on loan from Manchester City on the basis he could be sold outright to the Chinese Super League. “I think that might well be true,” Hughes said of the release clause in Bony’s contract. “But a lot of things need to happen for that to happen, not least Wilfried wanting to leave himself and I don’t think he will want to. “He very much sees himself as a Premier League player in the years to come and I don’t anticipate it happening, certainly not in January. “Clearly his club thought it would be a good deal and people will try and influence that.” Bony, 27, has only found the net twice in nine Premier League games this season for the Potters, but Hughes isn’t concerned about the prospect of him leaving in January. “There seems to be significant amounts of money being banded about but Wilfried isn’t short of a few quid to be perfectly honest. “I think he’s more focused on continuing his career in the Premier League with us so unless he knocks of my door to say he’s got an offer I’ll be very surprised.” Hughes was also asked if Stoke would buy if any potential offer did arise, adding: “We’re not thinking on those terms. “We’re delighted he is here until the end of the season and we will look at it again.” (pic courtesy of Stoke City)Hironobu Sakaguchi’s studio, Mistwalker, announced that both Terra Battle 2 and Terra Wars will be coming to the West. It was announced yesterday that the creator of Final Fantasy, Hironobu Sakaguchi, was currently working on the sequel to his free-to-play mobile title, Terra Battle, along with a separate title, Terra Wars. It was confirmed today that both titles will be released outside of Japan and that Terra Battle 2 will be available this summer. The game is being co-developed by both Mistwalker and Silicon Studio, the developers behind the Bravely Default Series. A trailer for Terra Battle 2 was released, featuring background music by Earthbound Papas, a rock band led by Nobuo Uematsu. Additionally, screenshots for both games were released as well. Terra Battle is a tile-based tactical role-playing game developed by Mistwalker in 2014. The game contains collectible card game elements with its gacha system, allowing players to use in-game currency to unlock new characters. Terra Battle 2 will feature a new story and world, separate from the first game. The game will be the first in what Sakaguchi considers a new franchise – Terra World. Sakaguchi informed players of the original Terra Battle that the game will continue to receive support, adding new story and gameplay elements to the title. “Following the success of “Terra Battle”, I have created Terra Battle 2 and Terra Wars. While both share the same fundamentals as Terra Battle, they offer redesigned gameplay, and a completely new world and story. I intend to use a similar numbering structure as my past work: the Final Fantasy series. Each instalment of the “Terra” franchise will have its distinct feel, unique from any other. Yes, I have become old enough that some call me a “legend,” of the industry, but I wish to try and remain an active creator. Until the day I retire, I (secretly) wish to expand the “Terra World” and create 9 experiences. (As I have created 9 installments for the Final Fantasy series.)” Sakaguchi explained. Sakaguchi’s other title, Terra Wars, has been confirmed to be in development by Mistwalker and Arzest, the developers behind Nintendo’s upcoming 3DS title, Hey! Pikmin. Arzest previously worked with Mistwalker on the original Terra Battle, working on graphic designs for the game. Not much is known about Terra Wars other than that the game will feature stop-motion graphics and is also planned to launch this year. Both Terra Battle 2 and Terra Wars will be available on Android and iOS devices along with PC.(CNN) In a speech in Iowa on Tuesday night, Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump -- who has regularly promoted his negotiating skills as a selling point for his presidency -- used broken English to briefly impersonate Asian negotiators. "When these people walk into the room, they don't say, 'Oh hello, how's the weather? It's so beautiful outside. How are the Yankees doing? They're doing wonderful, that's great," Trump said, to some laughter from the crowd. "They say, 'We want deal!'" Trump said Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor and his chief Republican primary opponent, is "low energy" and would "jump out of the seat" at such a declaration. In many polls, Bush is polling second nationally behind Trump and is the most frequent target of Trump's ire. Read MoreThe battery life of the brand new MacBook Air is an enviable 12 hours (or more, as some reviewers found). If you can’t afford to run out and buy a new one, don’t worry: there are still things you can try to help preserve and extend the life of your older MacBook’s battery. Whether you’re traveling, at an off-site meeting, are not able to get the one table at your favorite coffeeshop next to the power outlet, or just cannot charge your MacBook for an extended period of time, you should know these secrets of power-saving. Check the condition of your battery. Before you attempt to maximize the health of your battery, you first need to determine if your battery is healthy or not. The easiest way to do that is to hold down the option key as you click on the battery status icon to access the Battery menu bar extra. You want to see a condition of Normal. If you instead see a condition of “Replace Soon” you may need to bring your Mac in for service and likely get the battery replaced. Determine your battery’s cycle count. You find this by clicking first on the About this Mac menu in the Apple menu. Then click on the More Information button then the System Information button. In the left column, select Power from the list and locate Cycle Count. You can typically expect to get about 500 to 1,000 cycles out of your battery before it reaches 80 percent of its original capacity, depending on the model year of your Mac. Use a better battery monitoring utility. There are utilities that make gathering information about your battery’s health much easier. One is Battery Health (Free, Mac), which will tell you the original maximum capacity possible for your MacBook’s battery, which you can compare that to the maximum capacity the battery is currently reaching. An alternative utility is coconutBattery (donation, Mac). coconutBattery has the same information, but will also upload your battery’s statistics to its online service for comparison to other batteries in use by Macs similar to yours. Calibrate your battery. Calibrating your battery basically maximizes its full charge potential by first fully charging it, then fully draining it, and finally fully charging it again. Apple does not recommend leaving your MacBook plugged in all the time. Furthermore, Apple even recommends charging and discharging your MacBook’s battery at least once per month — it even has a calendar event to remind you. Restore Energy Saver defaults. The first step you need to take to ensure that you are getting the most out of your battery as possible is to restore your Energy Saver setting to their default values. Open up the System Preferences and select Energy Saver. Make sure that the Battery settings are exposed and click on Restore Defaults. This should turn the Mac off after 10 minutes of no use, the display off after two minutes, allow the hard disk to sleep when possible, and slightly dim the display when on battery power. Do not enable power nap, as that will consume power even when you think your Mac is sleeping. Dim all the lights. This includes dimming both the screen and keyboard lights. The function keys on the keyboard are the best place to adjust the brightness of both. Keep the display on a setting as low as you can tolerate and turn the keyboard backlight off entirely if you can. In the System Preferences for the Display be sure that you do not allow your Mac to automatically adjust brightness. This goes for the Keyboard preferences too: there is no point in having your Mac adjust the keyboard brightness in low light if you intend on keeping it turned off in the first place. Turn off the screen saver. After setting the Energy Saver back to the default settings, the screen will be turning itself off after just two minutes. And since there is no screen saver on the Mac that consumes little to no energy, just turn the screen saver off entirely. To do that, you need to set the Start After property to “never.” This is located on the Screen Saver tab within the System Preferences for Desktop and Screen Saver. Get rid of Adobe(s ADBE) Flash – If you do not feel you need Flash, then do not install it in the first place. If you have it, unfortunately Adobe does not have a convenient kill switch for Flash in such situations. But there are apps like FlashFrozen ($0.99, Mac) and FlashBlock ($0.99, Mac), which are both available in the Mac
-lived resurrection of the cult British series The Tomorrow People this past season. Still, if we’re talking about classic science fiction series that could be amazing if rebooted properly, Blake’s 7 has got to be near the top of the list. And, in fact, a reboot has been in development for years in one form or another, but so far hasn’t made it to screen. However, we have just gotten a small glimpse at what new Blake’s 7 might look like, courtesy of this concept art shared by Nerdist. Created by Terry Nation (who also gave us Doctor Who’s Daleks), Blake’s 7 ran for four seasons on BBC1 between 1978 and 1981. The show followed a group of convicts who abscond with an alien ship (you can see the proposed redesign for the ship up top) and go on the run from the oppressive Terran Federation. Their leader is the titular Roj Blake (Gareth Thomas), a political dissident who uses the alien vessel — dubbed the Liberator — and his new crew to wage war on the Federation. Even though it was created with the typical BBC budget of six shillings and a pile of Halloween masks, the writing was mature, morally ambiguous, and often dark as hell, and you can see its DNA in shows such as Firefly, Farscape, and Babylon 5. In short, it’s the sort of property that could be truly amazing if resurrected with a decent modern budget. It’s also pretty obscure outside of die-hard sci-fi fan circles, so it would be a great opportunity to introduce an excellent story to viewers who might never have run across the original. And indeed, people have been trying to bring Blake’s 7 back to life since at least 2000, when there was talk of a TV movie to celebrate the show’s 20th anniversary. More recently, the project has surfaced as a potential Syfy series to be directed by Casino Royale’s Martin Campbell, and then rumored to premiere on Microsoft’s Xbox Live network. We haven’t heard a peep about it in ages, but Nerdist’s new story suggests the project is still in the works, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed that it does happen, and that it finds the right talent to do the original series justice. Incidentally, the Blake’s 7 reboot was being developed by Georgeville Television, the folks behind both Chris Carter’s Amazon series The After and the upcoming Netflix sci-fi series Sense8, which is a collaboration between Straczynski and The Wachowskis. That connection makes me envision a dream scenario where we get a Blake’s 7 reboot with Straczynski at the helm…but since he’s apparently planning to resurrect his own Babylon 5, I probably shouldn’t hold my breath.Mixed martial arts is illegal in New York no longer. Lawmakers in the New York state assembly approved legislation on Tuesday that will allow MMA events to take place in New York, making it the 50th and final state to legalize and regulate the sport. The bill clears the path for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the sport’s leading promoter, to hold events at Madison Square Garden and other venues in the state. The final floor vote was 113 to 25, having cleared three committees earlier in the day. The yes total well exceeded the 76 required for passage. The fight game reloaded: how MMA and UFC conquered the world | Andy Bull Read more Now the bill heads to the desk of Governor Andrew Cuomo, who included MMA revenue in an executive budget proposal earlier this year and is widely expected it sign it into law. Bill NoA02604 “establishes protocols for combative sports; authorizes mixed martial arts events in this state; establishes procedures for applications for licenses; establishes penalties for violations; imposes taxes on gross receipts of such events.” The senate had passed a legalization bill in each of the last seven years, but it consistently stalled in the assembly due to the staunch opposition of former speaker Sheldon Silver, who was arrested on federal corruption charges in January. New York first banned professional MMA bouts in 1997, when the sport was unregulated by state athletic commissions and before unified rules were implemented. It was the last remaining state in the union with a ban in place. The New York state athletic commission will have 120 days to promulgate guidelines and regulations to govern the sport before the first event can be held, said assemblyman Joe Morelle, who sponsored the the legislation. The bill was opposed by some of the assembly’s most prominent lawmakers, who raised concerns about the brutal nature of the sport and purported associations with domestic violence and homophobia. “Two naked hot men rolling around on top of each other trying to dominate each other,” said Daniel J O’Donnell, a Democratic assemblyman from the Upper West Side who strongly opposed the bill. “That’s gay porn with a different ending.” Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy, a Democrat from the Albany region who was also in opposition, cited health risks as her deciding factor: “I do believe we’re putting our short-term economic concerns ahead of what could be the long-term health of the athletes and the finances of the taxpayers, particularly as they relate to brain injuries.” Added assemblywoman Deborah Glick, a Democrat from Lower Manhattan: “This is a sad day. If this is one of the most popular sports in the country, it says more about our society than it says about how edifying this particular activity may be.” A number of assemblymen acknowledged that while they weren’t overly fond of MMA, they would will support it. “I’m not a particular fan of MMA but I believe in freedom and opportunity,” said Steven F McLaughlin, a Republican from the Albany region. “There are a lot of people that enjoy this sport.” Added Matthew Titone, a Democrat assemblyman who in 2007 became Staten Island’s first openly gay public official, and who voted in favor of the legislation: “If I wanted to see half-naked men fighting over a belt where the winner gets a purse, I’d go to Fire Island.” “It is a terrible, nasty, violent sport,” said Michael Benedetto, a Democrat from the Bronx. “But it’s everywhere else. At least now we will be able to regulate (it).” Amateur MMA fights had been permitted in New York but were not overseen by the state’s athletics commission. That body will now oversee the sanctioning of both amateur and professional MMA events. The legislation includes a promoter-funded $1m minimum insurance policy for fighters who sustain life-threatening brain injuries sustained in a fight within state lines. “These provisions will make New York State a national leader as far as protecting fighters,” Morelle said. The UFC expressed thanks to the state assembly on Twitter shortly after Tuesday’s vote.Your browser does not support HTML5 video tag.Click here to view original GIF Roboticists have developed a “mother” robot that can build and evaluate her own “children,” and then decide which version performs best to inform the design of the next generation. Remarkably, the system doesn’t require any human intervention. Unlike biological species that evolve autonomously over time, robots are dependent on humans for reproduction and refinement. To overcome these limitations, a research team led by roboticists from the University of Cambridge have leveraged Darwinian principles to create a robotic system capable of artificial evolution. Their paper now appears at the open access journal PLOS ONE. Advertisement Here’s how the system works: A so-called “mother” robot is programmed to build a “child” robot that’s capable of rudimentary locomotion. This child can consist of anywhere from one to five plastic cubes, each with a small motor inside. Then, without any human intervention or computer simulation, the mother robot evaluates the quality of her offspring according to a speed test, and then uses that information to inform the design of next generation of progeny. It’s survival of the fittest, but applied to robots. Advertisement “In all experiments,” write the researchers in their study, “the fitness increases relative to the initial generation.” (Credit: University of Cambridge) “Natural selection is basically reproduction, assessment, reproduction, assessment and so on,” noted lead researcher Fumiya Iida in a statement. “That’s essentially what this robot is doing—we can actually watch the improvement and diversification of the species.” In five separate experiments, the mother designed, constructed, and evaluated ten agents over ten generations (for a total of 100 candidates). Each experiment typically began with a randomly generated child-bot. As the experiment progressed, the mother robot mutated her offspring by manipulating the physical configurations of the five blocks, which in this case can be construed as the robotic equivalent of genes. Advertisement By the time the mother robot got to the last generation, her spawn performed a speed task twice as quickly as the best individuals in the first generation. What’s more, her ability to improve performance increased over time. The researchers say this was on account of the robot’s ability to fine-tune design parameters during later generations. Advertisement Results from one of the five experiments. (Credit: University of Cambridge) Fascinatingly, the researchers say some designs weren’t likely to have been conceived by a human; it was truly doing it’s own thing. “One of the big questions in biology is how intelligence came about—we’re using robotics to explore this mystery,” added Iida. “We think of robots as performing repetitive tasks, and they’re typically designed for mass production instead of mass customisation, but we want to see robots that are capable of innovation and creativity.” Advertisement Interestingly, locomotion studies like these have been conducted before, but only in computer simulations. One of the strengths of the new study is that it’s not prone to the so-called “reality gap”, a mismatch between simulated and real-world behavior. Read the entire study at PLOS ONE: “Morphological Evolution of Physical Robots through Model-Free Phenotype Development”. Contact the author at george@io9.com and @dvorsky. All images University of Cambridge/L. Brodbeck et al., 2015/PLOS ONE.Pakistan’s national team was scheduled to face the host India on Wednesday in the opening game of the 2015 South Asian Football Federation Championship, but it won’t play after Pakistan’s soccer federation withdrew from the tournament in November. It was the latest soccer-related turmoil for Pakistan, whose biggest rival seems to be itself at the moment and where most action takes place not on the field, but in the courts. The national team has not played since March, and the withdrawal from the eight-team SAFF tournament means the inaction will continue well into 2016. Ranked No.184 in the world by FIFA, Pakistan has never won the competition, but the decision not to participate at all was met with fierce criticism at home. “It’s a great loss for football and the players,” acknowledged Sardar Naveed Haider Khan, the vice president of the Pakistan Football Federation. “I feel sorry for them. It hurts as these games are opportunities to be seen by scouts by clubs.”Each year, a towering Yule Goat is constructed for the holidays in Gävle, Sweden. But more often than not, the Gävle Goat — or Gävlebocken as it is called in Sweden — doesn’t make it to Christmas. Since it was first built in 1966, it’s almost annually been burned, although arson isn’t its only misfortune. Here’s a timeline of the rise and fall of the Gävle Goat by Atlas Obscura’s graphic designer Michelle Enemark (scroll right to follow the destruction): ---- So what will be the fate of the Gävle Goat in 2013? We’re keeping a close eye on its live web cam, as well as its Twitter and Instagram. Godspeed giant and incredibly flammable Christmas goat! UPDATE: The Gävle Goat burned on December 20 this year! Here’s a screenshot just after the flames. RIP Gävlebocken: Click here to read more about the Gävle Goat.Several members of the Afghan security forces were killed on Friday when a US military aircraft opened fire during an overnight operation in Helmand province, according to officials. The incident took place in the Loy Bagh area of Nad Ali district on Friday, said Razia Baluch, a provincial council member from the southern province. There were conflicting reports about the number of officers, members of the Afghan Border Police, killed in the air raid. Local media reported at least two deaths, while the Reuters news agency quoted Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the Helmand governor, as saying that three officers had lost their lives and two were wounded. The DPA news agency, meanwhile, placed the death toll at 10 members of security forces, adding that another 16 had been wounded. The US military command in Afghanistan released a statement saying that the "friendly-fire" incident "resulted in the deaths and injuries" and that an investigation is being conducted. It said the officers were killed when a US aircraft "returned fire" during the operation, which included Afghan and American special forces. "We would like to express our deepest condolences to the families of the ABP members affected by this unfortunate incident," the statement added. READ MORE: Sending more troops is like 'adding wood to fire' Taliban fighters have made widespread gains in Helmand, seizing many of the province's districts and threatening the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah. Hundreds of US Marines recently arrived in Helmand to take over an advising mission as part of a NATO-led coalition training and assisting local forces. American troops, including special forces, also carry out separate counterterrorism missions. Air raids by US fighter jets have sharply increased in recent months as the White House considers requests from military commanders to send thousands more troops to Afghanistan. Civilian casualties from both US and Afghan air raids increased dramatically last year according to the UN's most recent report on threats to civilians. At least 891 civilians were killed or injured in 2016, with the highest casualties in areas outside of the capital, Kabul.23 Days Antoni 'Joe' Podolski 1923 - 1999 23 days is the true and epic account of three and a half years during World War 2. Antoni Jozef (Joe) Podolski was born on January 17th 1923 in Baranowicze, in eastern Poland. He grew up as an only child on an estate of some 1000 hectares (about 2500 acres) surrounded by animals and nature. His hobbies included riding, skiing and hunting, becoming very familiar with many types of gun, and used them to stalk wild boar from a very early age. He became an expert shot with a rifle. He developed a passion for flying, learning to glide as a young teenager. On September 1st 1939 Germany invaded Poland. Being in the east of the country Joe was little affected by the Blitzkrieg although he records a deadly encounter with German spies and infiltrators. On September 17th 1939, Russia invaded Poland citing their mutual co-operation pact with the Nazis. Stating their aim “to protect Russian citizens residing in Poland” they attacked with force and cruelty. Joe’s war became a fight against the Red hordes from the East. He witnessed their brutal justice first-hand and, as part of an ad-hoc force of young partisans, did his best to resist the invaders. After a number of bloody encounters there followed a final shoot-out in a potato field following which he was captured and imprisoned. On being transferred to another interrogation centre he briefly escaped from a moving train avoiding death before being recaptured. Further imprisonment, involving interrogation and torture, resulted in being sentenced to death. 23 days in a condemned cell watching his fellow inmates being executed one by one was followed by an unexpected reprieve and sentence to 25 years in an Arctic Gulag. A long and unpleasant journey to the Arctic was briefly interrupted by 9 days interrogation in Moscow’s notorious Lubyanka prison. Escape from the Gulag, then journey to freedom via a frozen lake bordering Finland is detailed together with the tragic deaths of his co-escapees. A fortunate encounter with Finnish soldiers meant that he was rescued by Polish Authorities from neutral Sweden and smuggled to England arriving in May 1940. His experiences with the British and Polish Intelligence services is documented leading to an unbelievable “invitation” to travel back, by submarine, to Russia to witness the expected invasion of Russia by Germany in May 1941. His experiences there in a refugee camp and his good fortune to meet a protector and companion in the shape of a young Russian girl, the daughter of a high-ranking NKVD (KGB) officer are recalled. Their subsequent efforts to join up with the Polish Forces then gathering in the Middle East following their release by their new allies, the Russians, is documented. Following this, a mission organised by Polish Military Intelligence involving the assassination, by Joe, of two German agents is described as a mixture of courage, daring and farce. A final journey back to Britain in February 1943 by way of a torpedoed ship completes this first part of Joe’s war with arrival in Liverpool. Reference is made to his later career as a P-51 Mustang fighter pilot in England before the end of his war two and a half years later. At this time he was just 22 years of age. Read this remarkable true story told in his own words. ISBN: 9780992933104 - 23 days Share our page: Tweet If you would like to contact us for more information then please Click here to send us a message Please feel free to leave us feedback on our Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/23days“Now, if I were running the party, I’d say, ‘Excuse me, if you can’t win the state of X, a major state, if you can’t win Virginia because you’re not allowed to go in, or if you can’t win South Carolina or you can’t win this one or that one, because you didn’t file, that means it’s taken off your list, you’re not allowed to be in the debate anymore,’ ” Trump said at a rally in Iowa on Saturday. ADVERTISEMENT “When you’re at like, this guy [former New York Gov. George] Pataki, he’s been at zero for months. He couldn’t get elected dog-catcher in New York. The guy’s at zero for months. And he keeps on staying and staying,” he added. The real estate mogul said the bloated primary field does not allow for serious policy discussions at debates.Feds Arrest TSA Agent For Her Role In Alleged Phony Marriage Scheme Share Tweet A Transportation Security Administration agent was arrested this week on federal charges for her role in an alleged phony marriage scheme that sought to secure U.S. citizenship for her purported spouse, a Lebanon native. The case against Krista Taha, 34, is, in part, based on information provided by two male TSA agents who told investigators that they dated her while she was reportedly married to Ali Taha, who was also named as a defendant in a felony criminal complaint unsealed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Detroit. Taha, pictured above, and one of the male TSA agents are the parents of a four year-old boy. The federal criminal complaint does not detail Taha’s alleged motive for taking part in the sham February 2002 marriage (or whether she was paid in return for the marriage vows). Taha, charged with conspiracy and making false statements, has worked as a TSA agent at the Detroit airport since late-2002.Bride Emma Boyd and Groom JC Hutchison at their wedding reception at Radstone hotel Rutherglen Glencairn footballer who had the GBX remix of ‘Bits n’ Pieces’ as his last dance song described the moment it went viral as unbelievable. Newly-weds JC (John-Charles) and Emma Hutchison tied the knot at the Radstone Hotel on Saturday, June 18 and decided they wanted to ditch wedding traditions and include something that their guests would never forget. The 31-year-old Glencairn goalie, who has had stints at Clyde Hibernian and Falkirk in his career, watched their video claim over 396,000 views. He said: “I just couldn’t believe that so many people had watched it. “I had put the video on Facebook on Sunday after we got married on the Saturday. On the Monday I woke up and my phone was going mental with people telling me how many folk had watched it. It’s just unbelievable. “It was actually one of my teammates, Brian Eadie, who filmed it.” The couple, who have been together for seven years, kept their song choice under wraps and even had their band start off by playing something else to add to the surprise. JC added: “Me and my wife decided we’d do something a wee bit different because weddings are always quite emotional. So we told the band to start off with something traditional and then they went into ‘Bits n’ Pieces’ so no-one was expecting it. It’s our favourite song. “It was a brilliant day, the best day ever.” The video put online by JC on June 19, surprised the couple with the response it received but not the ‘keeper’s gaffer. Glencairn manager Willie Harvey didn’t make the wedding due to work commitments but watched the video back the next day. He said: “It’s apparently went viral. I’m not surprised, JC is quite a character but you need that in the dressing room.” JC is one of several players from Rutherglen Glencairn’s squad last season who have signed with the club for another year. Commenting on the wedding day, his wife Emma added: “We wanted it to be remembered by all of our guests and it’s our favourite song, so it made sense to do it. “Everyone thought it was going to be a song from Runrig. It turned out to be a huge hit with everyone, after all it’s a song that everyone loves to dance to. “Never for a second did we think it would go viral. We still can’t believe it.”ADVERTISEMENT: By: Travis Allen Khans of Tarkir is nearly upon us. Players from every format can’t wait to start cracking packs due to the long-awaited return of the Onslaught Fetchlands. The return of the fetches, along with the curious nature of the block, the change to the Standard rotation model, and the official arrival of wedges has sent people into a tizzy. It’s that lovely time of year when every card is bursting with potential and brewers are salivating uncontrollably. The pricing for this set, like most fall sets before it, will have its own little wrinkles. The major factor in thinking about card prices for Khans is the fetches. Demand for these is going to extend across virtually every single format. Vintage, Legacy, Modern, Standard, Cube, and EDH players alike are going to want copies. With such a massive amount of demand they will easily be the most expensive rares. When five rares are hogging the lion’s share of the box value it’s going to suppress the price of the entire rest of the box. Rares that would have been $10+ in another set will be $4-$6 instead. Mythics will still be worth the most, but their ceilings will be lower than they would have been otherwise. Of course card prices are still limited by the value of a box. As soon as cracking packs gets more valuable than selling boxes sealed, vendors will immediately start doing so. A natural balance is reached and demand is satiated while prices stabilize. This means we won’t be seeing any $30 Polluted Deltas, but it does mean we’re going to see a lot of the non-fetch rares in circulation. Oh, did I also mention this is going to be the most opened set in history? It will be. Theros was similarly the most opened at its launch, and hype for Khans is higher what with the fetches in the set. Because of this, it may appear that a lot of my prices are on the low side. I prefer to err on the side of prudence anyways, but it is especially wise in light of this set’s dynamics. In fact, take a look at Theros prices right now. There are a whopping three non-land rares over $3. These prices should rise a bit between now and Christmas, so while a few more may break into the $5+ range I doubt it will be more than a small handful. Also notice that all five rare lands are sub-$4. Imagine what the set breakdown looks like when you jack those five up into the $8-$15 range. All the rest of the cards, mythics included, get noticeably cheaper. I bring all of this up to make a point that nearly all of these cards will drop from their current values, and they will drop hard. I discuss prices for many of these rares that would be over $2-$3, but only two or three from all that I discuss will manage that. The rest will drop firmly into bulk. One last thing before I jump into the review. It’s important to remember when reading any set review that we are forced to evaluate cards in a pseudo-vacuum, but they never exist as such. When I look at Brimaz, King of Oreskos I have to consider the card individually, free of whatever the metagame looks like that particular month. Brimaz’s text box isn’t going to change, but the cards other people are playing will. I need to focus on what concrete information I have available to me. Because of this, set reviews are especially challenging. I have to look at Brimaz and make an evaluation based strictly on the words printed on the card, but his true worth will be dependent on the cards around him, a pool that will change significantly over time. Cards that are excellent right now may have been trash in an alternate timeline. It would be easy to construct a Standard environment where Desecration Demon is crap (such as he was in INN-RTR when Lingering Souls was legal,) or where Prime Speaker Zegana is a chase mythic. Even the hallowed Jace, the Mind Sculptor was nigh unplayable at release since there wasn’t a single other playable blue card in the format and Bloodbraid Elf + Blightning threatened to shut him down as soon as he resolved. The point I’m making is that when considering this review, and all other reviews, it’s important to be good Bayesians and recognize that while a powerful card should be good, and a weaker situational card should be bad, the constraints of the format around them, complete unknowns to the hapless reviewer, will be the true determining factor in identifying whether a card is a bulk mythic or a $20 rare. If you just want to know what to expect from the lands, click here. White Bulk: Herald of Anafenza High Sentinels of Arashin Master of Pearls End Hostilities 1 Month: $2-$4 Fate Reforged: $2-$3 With the departure of Supreme Verdict, the cheapest unconditional sweeper we are left with is End Hostilities at five mana. (I believe there has only been one other brief period where there was no four-mana sweeper.) Even given that history it isn’t terribly surprising Wizards finally tossed it, as morph really wants the format to slow down a bit so it has time to shine. End Hostilities will certainly be played, but only in Standard. While Verdict was exciting because of applications in Modern and Legacy, Hostilities has none of that appeal. Supreme Verdict hung around $3-$6 for most of its lifespan. End Hostilities should be a tad lower; probably in the $2-$4 range for the most part. People will play it and there will be demand, but they will do so because they have to, not because they want to. Wingmate Roc 1 Month: $4-$6 Fate Reforged: $3-$5 Imagine for a minute that instead of mythic this was printed at rare. Would you even give it a second look? If I told you this was an intro deck rare, would you believe me? I’m thinking it’s likely. Perhaps I don’t “get” Roc. That’s entirely possible. It’s just that this feels rather underwhelming to me. Broodmate Dragon was good during his time, but as long as you tapped the mana you were getting eight flying power. Roc loses 25% of the damage and becomes conditional in exchange for easier mana and a small lifegain trigger. I’ve heard people compare Wingmate to Archangel of Thune. I don’t see them as being similar though. Archangel immediately put an end to racing. Attacking into it was so difficult because of the lifegain, and as soon as your opponent untapped with it their entire army was growing along with their life total. That raid trigger isn’t just going to fire every time either. There are plenty of situations where you either will be unable to trigger it at all, or you’ll be chump-attacking to turn it on. In those situations you trade whatever for a ¾ flyer. Occasionally you’ll be happy to make that exchange, but not always. Finally, the lifegain is fairly minimal. If you only attack with your two Rocs you’re gaining a whopping two life. Sure you can alpha strike and gain maybe five or six, but aren’t you in great shape at that point anyways? Archangel was pretty expensive. Archangel was also a major Standard threat, Modern playable, and an Angel. I don’t see Roc doing much at all in Standard, but I accept that I could be totally wrong on that. If we see it start putting up results then the price will certainly rise and you’ll have time to get in, but until then, I’d trade my copies away. Blue Bulk: Dig Through Time Icy Blast Kheru Spellsnatcher Clever Impersonator 1 Month: $7-$10 Fate Reforged: $5-$8 First things first, EDH is going to love this. If you have blue in your deck this is basically an auto-include. Impersonator is getting a good chunk of demand from there, especially the foils. Now how about sixty card formats? The last time a clone was playable was back in the M12 days when we had both Phantasmal Image and Phyrexian Metamorph. We also had something else at that time: Birthing Pod. Birthing Pod decks brought a giant pile of ETB creatures to the table that both Image and Metamorph were happy to copy, and Metamorph could even copy Pod as well. Image continued to see support in Modern and Legacy where it acts as another two-drop lord for fish. You’ll notice that no merfolk decks are running any other clones though. Unless there’s a deck with a great deal of ETB effects, I don’t see Impersonator making huge waves in Standard. Yes, cloning your opponent’s Planeswalker is awesome, but it doesn’t actually solve the problem of your opponent having a Planeswalker. (Unless it’s Garruk.) They also got theirs down before you. When using a clone effect cloning your opponent’s creatures is usually plan B, so you’re really only playing this to clone your guys. Without a Pod deck, is it going to be good enough? Given that Siege Rhino is in Abzan, I’d guess not. As I said, EDH demand will persist for Impersonator. There will also be people eager to try it out at FNM. As such, the price is likely to stay north of $4, but I doubt by too much. I’d expect a slow descent until next Spring. Pearl Lake Ancient 1 Month: $2 Fate Reforged: $1-$3 Pearl Lake Ancient is a control finisher, and by definition, a one or two-of. Even Aetherling, the most obnoxious control finisher in years, spent his entire Standard tenure dwindling towards his current price of seventy cents. Pearl Lake will hang out at mythic bulk. Black Bulk: Retribution of the Ancients Bloodsoaked Champion 1 Month: $2-$4 Fate Reforged: $2-$5 Bloodsoaked Champion is a curious one. Normally it would be a pretty easy bulk rare. A few aggro black lists would run it, but generally it would be unlikely to have a large enough presence to warrant a real price tag. The equation this time around is changed by the Mardu hotness Butcher of the Horde, which we’ll discuss further down in the multicolor section. The hook here is that you can sac Champion to Butcher for haste or lifelink, swing with Butcher, then rebuy your champion for 1B. As a creature that can come down on turn one then become relevant with your curve-topper later, Champion has potential. I don’t think he hits bulk anytime soon. His preorder price is in the $4-$5 range and cards don’t typically drop to bulk from there too quickly. There are two possible paths for Champion. The first is that there aren’t enough lists running him alongside Butcher, which means his price dwindles towards bulk further down the road. The second path is that he and Butcher become bestest buds, which should shore his price up in the $3-$5 range, depending on how good the lists end up being. Empty the Pits 1 Month: $2-$4 Fate Reforged: $1-$4 When I read this at first I saw “XBBBB” and I figured it was a real card. Then I noticed it was XX instead. Oof. What happens when you pay real mana for this? Six mana gets you a 2/2. Eight for four power. Ten for six. Twelve mana for eight power. Meanwhile, Wingmate Roc up there is getting you six power for half the cost, and it’s all in the air. Clearly we’re supposed to be paying for this with Delve. How reliable is delve going to be? On average I’d say you could probably expect to get one to three extra zombies around turn six. Let’s say that on turn six you can exile four cards. That means you’re paying six mana (one zombie) and exiling four cards (two more zombies) for a total of three zombies. At that point it’s a six-mana instant that says “put three 2/2 zombies into play tapped.” Limited all-star perhaps, but we’re playing constructed here. As the game goes late this clearly gets much stronger, and with that mana cost later rather than sooner is going to be the game plan anyways. On turn eight you could potentially threaten fix or six zombies at end of turn which will certainly win a game, but hardly feels format-breaking. Even if you imagine this in a best-case scenario, how often do decks run more than two copies? Only the most devoted self-mill decks could conceivably run four. As with any delve card, each copy of Empty the Pits in your deck makes the rest of them worse. That doesn’t bode well for financial gains. I have difficulty seeing Empty the Pits doing much to really shape the way the format plays. I don’t doubt it will see action, perhaps even consistently, in a few black lists. It’s just that the quantity used will be limited and the slot fillable by other late-game finishers if you prefer. As for casual demand, Army of the Damned seems like it would be better in 80% of situations, and that card is $1.80. I see Empty the Pits petering out over the next few months towards mythic bulk. Grim Haruspex 1 Month: Bulk Fate Reforged: Bulk – $2 I’m tossing this in here basically as a heads up that I think this card may be playable. The drawing condition is a bit restrictive, but with Bloodsoaked Champion and Butcher of the Horde you’re certainly setting up a machine to get paid. The unmorph cost is about as aggressive as it gets, and while a 3/2 for 3 isn’t winning any awards it isn’t shameful either. I don’t think this ever really breaks $3 but I wouldn’t hesitate to pick up a set now if you want to play a Bloodsoaked Champion/Butcher list. Necropolis Fiend 1 Month: Bulk Fate Reforged: Bulk – $2 Is this the next Desecration Demon? Maybe. A 6/6 body was pretty legit because it was bigger than nearly every other creature in the format. A 4/5 is nothing to shake a stick at, but he loses to Polukranos straight up. You also can’t just slam him on T4 and run away with the game. On the flip side he can come down on turn five or six for two or three mana while easily leaving removal up, and he’ll let you Avatar of Woe a relevant creature about once a game. Perhaps Fiend is bulk for the next eighteen months. Perhaps he’s bulk until 5/5s for four mana rotate and suddenly he becomes way more playable. I’m honestly not sure. I know that I want him on our radar though. Red Bulk: Crater’s Claws Dragon-Style Twins Howl of the Horde Jeering Instigator Ashcloud Phoenix 1 Month: $3-$4 Fate Reforged: $1-$3 I’ve been bullish on four-drop red mythics once or twice in the past few years and they haven’t panned out a single time. While Hellrider and Hero of Oxid ridge saw gigantic spikes in price in their day, we haven’t seen anything of that sort since Innistrad. Whether we just haven’t had the right card or the right format I’m not sure. What I do know is that Ashcloud Phoenix will not be that card. A 4/1 flyer for four is about on par with what to expect out of red’s aggressive deck curve-topper so long as it has lots of other good text. Unfortunately, Ashcloud doesn’t. When it returns to the battlefield it’s as a morph that will be easily blocked or killed. If it hasn’t been unmorphed it will stay dead the second time. Meanwhile the unmorph cost is prohibitively expensive at six. Any deck reasonably interested in Ashcloud is not going to be getting excited about getting to six mana to be able to unmorph this. Even if you do, it’s trigger is good but not necessarily game-winning. The end result is that it’s a weak-ish creature whose condition for repetition is too difficult or costly to satisfy. We won’t be seeing this one’s prices rise from inevitable ashes. ADVERTISEMENT: Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker 1 Month: $15-$20 Fate Reforged: $12-$18 Chandra, Pyromaster was the best red Planeswalker ever when she first hit the scene last year. This year it appears Sarkhan is wresting that trophy away from her. The turn he comes down he has two choices: become a 4/4 flying indestructible haste dragon, or do four damage to something on the other side of the table.
jpg Even an individual photon can travel along both arms of the interferometer at the same time. When it is unknown which path it is travelling along, we observe interference and the appearance of interference fringes. A strong signal is visible where the crests of light waves meet, and a weak signal is obtained at the meeting point of the troughs. If it is possible to determine which arm the photon travelled along, following leakage of information from the interferometer, the fringes disappear. (Source: NLTK/Tentaris/Maciej Frolow)Ever wonder what your furry little friend is dreaming about when he or she goes to bed at night? According to one Harvard psychologist, they’re probably dreaming about you. Dr. Deirdre Barrett, a teacher and a Clinical and Evolutionary Psychologist at Harvard Medical School, told People that dogs likely dreaming about their owners. She says that while there’s no way to know for sure what dogs are seeing when they dream, it’s safe to assume that their dreams draw from everyday experiences, like humans. “Humans dream about the same things they’re interested in by day, though more visually and less logically,” Barrett told People. “There’s no reason to think animals are any different. Since dogs are generally extremely attached to their human owners, it’s likely your dog is dreaming of your face, your smell and of pleasing or annoying you.” But what about cats? According to Barrett, past research shows that cats likely dream about “hunting mice in their dreams.” Barrett also confirmed that dogs are likely acting out their dreams when their legs move in running motion in their sleep. She also offered advice to pet owners who want to make sure their friend’s dreams are sweet. “The best way to give ourselves or our children better dreams is to have happy daytime experiences and to get plenty of sleep in a safe and comfortable environment. It’s a good bet this is also best for pets’ dreams.” Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.Joblessness in the 18-member bloc using the euro currency held steady at a seasonally-adjusted rate of 12 percent for the fourth consecutive month in January, the European Union's statistics agency, Eurostat, reported Friday. It said more than 19 million people were out of work, with youth unemployment remaining a big headache for policy makers. In the first month of the current year, more than 3.5 million people under the age of 25 were without a job, resulting in a youth unemployment rate of 24 percent for the second month in a row. Subdued deflation worries Watch video 02:57 Share Eurozone strengthens but not all feel the gains Send Facebook google+ Whatsapp Tumblr linkedin stumble Digg reddit Newsvine Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/1B9Zv Eurozone strengthens but not all feel the gains Eurozone members Austria and Germany once again logged the lowest overall jobless figures at around 5 percent, while Greece and Spain posted the highest number of people out of work, at 28 percent and 25.8 percent respectively. Eurostat also reported the area's monthly inflation rate was unchanged at 0.8 percent for the third consecutive month in February. Consumer prices stayed well below the European Central Bank's annual inflation target of under, but close to 2 percent. A further lowering of the inflation rate would have put the ECB under more pressure to act at its upcoming board meeting next week. "But the likelihood of the ECB to further lower its benchmark interest rates or take other measures has now diminished," HSBC Trinkaus analyst Lothar Hessler told the Reuters news agency. hg/msh (dpa, Reuters)Dr. Holly Ordway has published a book titled Not God’s Type, telling her personal story. She begins “I had never in my life said a prayer, never been to a church service. Christmas meant presents and Easter meant chocolate bunnies–nothing more.” But her views get hardened: “In college, I absorbed the idea that Christianity was historical curiosity, or a blemish on modern civilization, or perhaps both. My college science classes presented Christians as illiterate anti-intellectuals who, because they didn’t embrace Darwinism, threatened the advancement of knowledge. My history classes omitted or downplayed references to historical figures’ faith.” Still later, “At thirty-one years old, I was an atheist college professor–and I delighted in thinking of myself that way. I got a kick out of being an unbeliever; it was fun to consider myself superior to the unenlightened, superstitious masses, and to make snide comments about Christians.” (p.15-16) Ordway was a trained academic without a history in religion. But she was no disinterested intellectual: “There was something about the idea of faith that made it stick with me. I didn’t have faith, I didn’t want faith, but I felt compelled to have a good reason why not. I constructed an elaborate analogy for myself, one that I felt gave satisfying explanation of why ‘faith’ was impossible... I could not believe, no matter how much I might want to...I thought ‘faith’ was a meaningless word, that so-called believers were either hypocrites or self-deluded fools, and that it was a waste of time to consider any claim that Christians made about the truth.... I didn’t want to deal with that. Easier by far to read only books by atheists that told me what I wanted to hear: that I was smarter and more intellectually honest and morally superior than the poor, deluded Christians. I had built myself a fortress of atheism, secure against any attack by irrational faith.” (p.17-18) Ordway had carefully built up a defense, but not so careful as to protect her mind from the ideas of the great English poets. She speaks of being surprised by such writers as John Keats, John Donne, and Gerard Manley Hopkins, men who wrote of a beautiful concept: hope. A day of hope... was there such a day to hope for? The rest of Ordway’s book tells of her meeting a fencing coach that she trusted, a person who she did not discover was a Christian until after she had begun working with him. He and his wife merely answered her questions, not pressing anything religious on her. She is intellectually honest enough to investigate the sources... When she asks for reasonable works on the resurrection of Jesus, she is given N. T. Wright’s The Resurrection of the Son of God, 740 pages of scholarly examination. She reads Lewis’ Surprised By Joy, and Does God Exist? by Kreeft and Moreland, among others. Both Ordway and C. S. Lewis were credentialed professors of literature before becoming Christian. Both were committed atheists who had created intellectual defenses against belief in Jesus. Later in her story, Ordway writes, “I read through the Gospel narratives again, trying to take in what they said. I had to admit that — even apart from everything else I had learned — I recognized that they were fact, not story. I’d been steeped in folklore, fantasy, legend, and myth ever since I was a child, and I had studied these literary genres as an adult; I knew their cadences, their flavor, their rhythm. None of these stylistic fingerprints appeared in the New Testament books that I was reading.” (p.117) So here we have a trained, experienced, atheist professor of literature, who if anything knows a myth when she sees it, declaring that it is not such, but rather “The Gospels had the ineffable texture of history, with all the odd clarity of detail that comes when the author is recounting something so huge that even as he tells it, he doesn’t see all the implications.” (p.117) Like Lewis, who was a professor of literature at Oxford and Cambridge, Ordway made the conclusion of an expert in literature, that the New Testament has all the signs of an eyewitness account. Ordway gives a very personal account of what it was like to be changed, speaking of how difficult and fearful it was for her to change her beliefs and become a Christian: “It is a hard thing to look at the truth when it runs contrary to what you’ve always believed. The experience is like pulling back the curtains in a dimly lit room and looking out the window to see what’s really inside. When your eyes are used to artificial light, the bright sunlight is almost blinding; your eyes may sting and even water at the brightness, and the temptation is to turn away to the more comfortable dimness.” But in the end she knew her intellectual drive for truth could not let her turn away. She knew she was drawn to the truth, that the New Testament is true and Jesus is real. AdvertisementsCongressional Quarterly via Getty Images Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said he is "delighted" that the Labour Party elected Jeremy Corbyn its leader. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) hailed the election of Jeremy Corbyn to the leadership of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party as a promising development in the global fight against inequality. "At a time of mass income and wealth inequality throughout the world, I am delighted to see that the British Labour Party has elected Jeremy Corbyn as its new leader," Sanders, a Democratic presidential candidate, said in a statement emailed to The Huffington Post Saturday. "We need leadership in every country in the world which tells the billionaire class that they cannot have it all. We need economies that work for working families, not just the people on top." Sanders’ appreciation of Corbyn is mutual. A week before his victory, Corbyn said he was following Sanders’ campaign with "great interest." Corbyn’s upset election as head of Labour, which makes him the de facto opposition leader in the U.K. parliament, has drawn comparisons to Sanders’ rise in the American political landscape. Like Corbyn, Sanders has achieved unexpected popularity by proposing dramatic solutions to end income inequality and reform the political process. The two left-leaning legislators also share an unglamorous demeanor. Corbyn is nonetheless to the left of Sanders, advocating for policies like the nationalization of Britain’s main power providers. Historically, the UK’s economic policies have been more socialistic than those of the U.S. Also on HuffPost:This police officer resigned. And during his interview, he stated that resigning from the police force was the hardest decision he’d ever made. My question is: wouldn’t the hardest decision you ever made be to shoot Michael Brown? And yet, to him, that wasn’t as hard of a decision. I find that very strange. So resigning from your job is a harder decision than taking a human life? Does that make sense? To me, taking a human life would be the hardest decision you could ever make. That’s very telling to me. What it tells me is that Darren Wilson's value on human life isn’t that high. When you shoot someone six times or more that’s not defensive shooting, that’s offensive shooting. There should have been an indictment because now we’ll never know. Whenever you’ve got conflicting stories, you need a trial. Now we’re never going to get closure, and that’s wrong. -JV Hear what else the Governor has to say about Police Brutality in this episode of #OffTheGrid:Signup to receive a daily roundup of the top LGBT+ news stories from around the world A pastor and a bishop in North Carolina have married a gay couple in an act of “civil disobedience”. John Romano and Jim Wilborne, both 52, were married in Charlotte North Carolina yesterday. The wedding was kept secret to stop “people having time to organise a protest”, and even had to hire security to keep demonstrators out. Wilborne has attended the church for two decades. Bishop Melvin Talbert and Pastor Val Rosenquist agreed to marry the couple, despite knowing that they could be defrocked by the United Methodist Church (UMC). The bishop, who has a history of making a stand against injustice, was arrested alongside Martin Luther King Jr during the Atlanta sit-ins in 1960. He previously caused a controversy by offering to officiate a same-sex wedding in Alabama. Saturday’s wedding ceremony comes as the Church prepares to debate a proposed plan to repeal a ban on clergy members performing same-sex weddings. The Bishop told Buzzfeed News the church’s policies currently banning clergy from performing same-sex weddings “are immoral, unjust, and oppressive, and they no longer deserve our loyalty and support.” He described the act as “civil disobedience”, saying he knew he could lose his role as bishop over the act. Adding: “I have to make a choice between my church and God, and I am choosing God. “Discrimination is discrimination no matter where it is. It was race discrimination then, and it is discrimination based on sexual orientation now.” He added: “It’s time to make a stand. I am willing to face whatever consequences I encounter. I am totally at peace with this decision.” The United Methodist Church has 7 million members, and is the largest protestant denomination in the US. The wedding also comes as North Carolina faces controversy over passing HB2, which limits the rights of LGBT people, and stops local authorities from passing laws to protect LGBT rights. Check out a video of the wedding below:The Syrian war stalemate appears to be over. The regional powers surrounding Syria – especially Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, and Jordan – have re-ignited their war against the Syrian government. After over 200,000 dead and millions of refugees, the U.S. allies in the region recently recommitted to deepening the war, with incalculable consequences. The new war pact was made between Obama’s regional darlings, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, who agreed to step up deeper military cooperation and establish a joint command in the occupied Syrian region of Idlib. Turkey and Saudi Arabia are now openly backing Islamic extremists under the newly rebranded “Conquest Army.” The on-the-ground leadership of this “new” coalition consists of Jabhat al-Nusra – the “official” al-Qaeda affiliate – and Ahrar al-Sham, whose leader previously stated that his group was the “real al-Qaeda.” The Huffington Post reports: “The Turkish-Saudi agreement has led to a new joint command center in the northeastern Syrian province of Idlib. There, a coalition of groups – including Nusra and other Islamist brigades such as Ahrar al-Sham that Washington views as extremist – are progressively eroding Assad’s front. The rebel coalition also includes more moderate elements of the Free Syrian Army that have received U.S. support in the past.” The article admits that the Free Syrian Army – that Obama previously labeled as “moderates” and gave cash and guns to – has been swallowed up by the extremist groups. This dynamic has the potential to re-engulf the region in violence; deep Saudi pocketbooks combined with reports of looming Turkish ground forces are a catastrophe in the making. Interestingly, the Saudi-Turkish alliance barely raised eyebrows in the U.S. media. President Obama didn’t think to comment on the subject, let alone condemn it. The media was focused on an odd narrative of Obama reportedly being “concerned” about the alliance, but “disengaged” from what two of his close allies were doing in a region that the U.S. has micromanaged for decades. It seems especially odd for the media to accept that Obama has a “hands off” approach in Syria when at the same time the media is reporting about a new U.S. program training Syrian rebels in Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey. It’s inconceivable that Obama would coordinate deeply with Turkey to set up a Syrian rebel training camp on Turkish soil, while at the same time be “disengaged” from the Turkish-Saudi war coalition in Syria. One possible motive behind the fake narrative of “noncooperation” between Obama and his Turkish-Saudi allies is that the U.S. is supposed to be fighting a “war on terrorism.” So when Turkey and Saudi Arabia announce that they’re closely coordinating with terrorists in Syria – like al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham – Obama needs an alibi to avoid being caught at the crime scene. He’s not an accomplice, simply “disengaged.” This is likely the reason why Obama has insisted that his new “moderate” rebels being trained in Turkey will fight ISIS, not the Syrian government. But this claim too is ridiculous. Is Obama really going to throw a couple hundred newly-trained “moderate” Syrian rebels at ISIS while his Turkish-Saudi allies focus all their fire on the Syrian Government? The question answers itself. The media has made mention of this obvious conundrum, but never bothers to follow up, leaving Obama’s lame narrative unchallenged. For example, the LA Times reports: “The White House wants the [U.S. trained rebel] proxy force to target Islamic State militants, while many of the Syrian rebels – and the four host nations [where Syrian rebels are being trained] – want to focus on ousting Syrian President Bashar Assad.” The article simply shrugs its shoulders at the irreconcilable. The article also fails to mention that Obama’s “new” training camps aren’t new at all; he’s been arming and training Syrian rebels since at least 2012, the only difference being that the “new” training camps are supposedly meant to target ISIS, compared to the training camps that were openly used to target the Syrian government. Here’s the LA Times in 2013: “The covert U.S. training [of Syrian rebels] at bases in Jordan and Turkey began months before President Obama approved plans to begin directly arming the opposition to Syrian President Bashar Assad, according to U.S. officials and rebel commanders.” This is media amnesia at its worse. Recent events can’t be understood if the media doesn’t place events in context. In practice this “forgetfulness” provides political cover to the Obama administration, shielding his longstanding direct role in the Syrian war, allowing him to pretend to a “passive,” “hands off” approach. When it was reported in 2012 that the Obama administration was funneling weapons to the Syrian rebels, the few media outlets that mentioned the story didn’t bother to do any follow up. It simply fell into the media memory hole. After the weapons funneling report came out, Obama incredulously stated that he was only supplying “non lethal” support to the rebels, and the media printed his words unchallenged. Consequently, there was no public discussion about the consequences of the U.S. partaking in a multi-nation proxy war against Syria, a country that borders war ravaged Iraq. In 2013 when Obama announced that he would be bombing the Syrian government in response to a supposed gas attack, the U.S. media asked for no evidence of the allegation, and strove to buttress Obama’s argument for aggression. And when Pulitzer Prize winner Seymour Hersh wrote an article exposing Obama’s lies over the aborted bombing mission, the article didn’t see the light of day in the U.S. media. Critically thoughtful voices were not welcome. They remain unwelcome. In 2015 direct U.S. military intervention in Syria remains a real possibility. All the conditions that led to Obama’s decision to bomb Syria in 2013 remain in place. In fact, a U.S. intervention is even more likely now that Turkey and Saudi Arabia are fighting openly against the Syrian government, since the Saudi-Turkish alliance might find itself in a key battle that demands the special assistance that only the U.S. Air Force can offer. Unsurprisingly, there has been renewed discussion of a U.S. enforced “no fly zone” in Syria. ISIS doesn’t have an air force, so a no fly zone would be undeniably aimed at the Syrian government to destroy its air force. The new debate over a “no fly zone” is happening at the same time as a barrage of new allegations of “chemical weapons” use are being made against the Syrian government. If a no fly zone is eventually declared by the Obama Administration it will be promoted as a “humanitarian intervention, that strives to create a “humanitarian corridor” to “protect civilians” – the same rhetoric that was used for a massive U.S.-led NATO bombing campaign in Libya that destroyed the country and continues to create a massive refugee crisis. As the Syrian war creates fresh atrocities the Obama administration will be pressured to openly support his Saudi-Turkish allies, just as he came out into the open in 2013 when he nearly bombed the Syrian government. History is repeating itself. But this time the stakes are higher: the region has already been destabilized with the wars in Iraq, Libya, and Syria, and the regional conflicts have sharpened between U.S. allies on one hand, and Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and Russia on the other. Such a volatile dynamic demands a media willing to explain the significance of these events. The truth is that Obama has been a proxy war president that has torn apart the Middle East as badly as his predecessor did, and if the U.S. public remains uninformed about developing events, an even larger regional war is inevitable. Shamus Cooke is a social service worker, trade unionist, and writer for Workers Action. He can be reached at shamuscooke@gmail.com Read more by Shamus CookeYou might've missed it, but West Virginia coach Bob Huggins recently said one of the smartest things you'll hear any coach say this season. I'm going to run it back for you below, and before you balk at Huggins' old-school thoughts on basketball players in today's culture, read all of his quotes and take a minute to appreciate where he's coming from. His points are fair, and they're shared by plenty of people decades younger than him. This isn't a boilerplate, nostalgic we-walked-uphill-both-ways-in-the-snow rant. It's a critique that permeates throughout all levels of basketball. Pro, college and high school. Here's the issue: The overall build and quality -- the athleticism and size -- of the modern basketball player is better than 15, 20, certainly 30 years ago. That is undeniable. Dudes are just so much more physically impressive and athletically dynamic than what we saw in the 1980s, let alone the 1960s. But in terms of competitiveness, instinct, knowledge for team hoops and overall want-to, there's room for a whole lot of debate. Last week, Bob Hertzel, who covers the West Virginia basketball beat locally, ran a piece with some loud quotes from Huggins, things that deserve to be discussed. I'm block-quoting all of what Huggins said in the article, because it's all very good and much of it, in my opinion, is dead-on. "I don't think they know how to play," Huggins said. It isn't their fault, he says, but it is the reality of the times. "I think they play all of the time but they don't," Huggins said. "It's kind of long and complicated and I'm not trying to kill AAU because I think it has some good. But I think when you used to have to go to the playground to play, you had to win, or you sat for four or five games."... "The older guys expected the younger guys to pass them the ball and screen, and guard their man, and do all of those things and they were going to shoot the ball," Huggins said, inferring that the older guys were usually the better scorers. "You learn how to win."... "I think when you go out there and play three games a day and you know you get two Whoppers with cheese, and fries, and a shake twice, and a pizza afterwards whether you win or lose (it takes away from the ultimate goal of the game, which is to win.) "I mean," Huggins continued, "I didn't have anybody buying me pizza if we didn't win. I just think it's a product of the older guys used to help the younger guys. Now they're never around. "You drive by courts now, you don't see anyone out there playing. It's just a different culture, I think. And in fairness, the athletes now are bigger, stronger, faster. They're better. It's just their idea of how to play sometimes baffles me." Plenty to unpack here. I'm going to number out my thoughts. 1. Don't mislabel this as a Huggins-hates-AAU thing. He doesn't, and he says as much. That's a lazy take, and anyone who actually covers the sport knows that broad-brush criticism of AAU always lacks actual legitimacy. The system isn't perfect, but it's a whole hell of a lot better in 2016 than it was in 2006. 2. Regarding AAU/elite-level travel basketball and the mindset it has created, there is a lot of truth there. The product itself is very good, the system in place in a lot of places has been upgraded thanks to millions of dollars poured into the system by Nike, Adidas and Under Armour. Players are getting exposed to high-level competition and are learning a lot of things (dealing with the media, for instance) that will prepare them for college and, for the lucky few, eventually the NBA. But Huggins' issue is the lack of meaning for the games. In elite youth basketball, you play tournaments or one-off events wherein you'll have two or three games a day, the losses don't matter so much, so long as you find your way to a mixtape that will be uploaded to YouTube and shared on Twitter/Instagram within 24 hours. When learning how to play on the playgrounds, it sucked having to wait an hour after losing. You didn't have all day; you weren't getting shoes and gear handed to you. Winning meant getting better, it meant learning in a primal way, and a lot of that has been lost. Call it romanticism, but everyone from NBA coaches to high school assistants share this concern. Playground basketball used to be where guys went to get better, where they went because they wanted to be there because it was the best place to prove yourself -- and to do it on your time and in your free time. Now these prospects don't want to and/or don't have the time because they're traveling so frequently between April and October with their grassroots teams. 3. Huggins was sparked to this pontification due to West Virginia's interesting road to 8-1. WVU has a great road win against Virginia, and it turned Manhattan and Western Carolina over a combined 74 times, an outrageous effort. But the 'Eers also fell against mercurial Temple, and it's clear that loss is sticking with Huggs. He's seeing a lack of understanding for team play within his own guys, but obviously this is something that college basketball has been struggling with for a very long time. 4. Despite all of this, college hoops is doing well. The style of basketball is different, but college hoops isn't in trouble because of this. It's hindered but not handicapped. Win No. 800 should come Saturday for Huggins. His first one was in November of 1980, when he was coaching NAIA Walsh College. He was a different person then, a young man not that far removed from a tremendous playing career at West Virginia. Now 63, Huggins has come full circle by returning to his alma mater. Generations have passed through college hoops, and with that transition, the game has changed. Huggins knows it won't ever return to what it once was, and maybe it shouldn't, but it wouldn't be a bad thing to see more players have less entitlement. It wouldn't be a bad thing for college basketball if freshmen didn't demand starting time. It wouldn't be a bad thing for college basketball if players arrived on campus with a more well-rounded knowledge of team basketball and a basic understanding of the game's fundamentals. Some players still do, but what used to be the majority has now become the exception, and it's why coaches like Huggins frequently find themselves frustrated not with what college basketball has become, but with how the developmental culture has -- perhaps unintentionally -- altered the player.“I Don’t Bite” is a light blue-purple shimmer nail polish with a frost finish. I Don’t Bite is from the Safari Luxe line. Sephora officially describes this shade as “opaque soft purple with fine holographic glitter.” Swatch/Photo Gallery MICRO SHOT OF I DON’T BITE The last shot was taken with my iphone using a Micro lens to get a really CLOSE UP shot. Review While this shade is advertise as having hollographic glitter, it is actually a very fine multi-color shimmer nail varnish formula. The formula is semi sheer and you will need 2-3 coats for an even coverage. There is some greyish blue undertones in this color, so it looks like a muted purple when applied. Looks are a bit deceiving when it comes to shopping online, because the purple on my hands look nothing like the shade of purple on the actual nailpolish bottle. FORMULA Semi-Sheer LIMITED EDITION No AVAILABILITY Worldwide via Sephora & Amazon. xoxo, Emmy Disclosure: I bought this shade. I was not compensated for my review.Two states are racing to become the first in the country to let people legally treat opioid addiction with medical marijuana. In New Mexico, a bill to add opioid use disorder as a qualifying condition under the state's existing medical cannabis program was given final approval by the legislature late Friday night and is now headed to the desk of Gov. Susana Martinez. Also on Friday, in Nebraska, a bill to allow nonsmokable forms of medical cannabis to treat a number of conditions, including opioid addiction, was approved by the unicameral Legislature's Judiciary Committee. The relationship between marijuana and opioids is quickly becoming one of the most contentious debates in drug policy. While several studies show that states with legal marijuana access see reduced overdoses and other opioid issues, prohibitionists continue to argue that cannabis use is a "gateway" to misuse of other, more dangerous drugs. In a recent speech, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said: "I’m astonished to hear people suggest we can solve our heroin crisis — have you heard this? — by having more marijuana. I mean, how stupid is that! Give me a break!" The New Mexico bill adds a number of qualifying conditions to the state's medical marijuana law, in addition to opioid use disorder. Also included are PTSD, Crohn's disease, ALS, hepatitis C, Parkinson's disease and severe chronic pain, among others. (Those conditions were already approved administratively by the Department of Health, but if the new bill is signed into law they will be protected by statute so they can't later be removed through an act by regulators.) The legislation would also protect child custody rights of medical marijuana patients and would prevent people from being denied organ donations just because they participate in the medical cannabis program. And the bill directs regulators to create reciprocity rules to "enable nonresidents who qualify as medical cannabis patients in another state to participate in the medical cannabis program." Martinez, a Republican, isn't generally supportive of cannabis law reform and recently vetoed industrial hemp legislation. She has 20 days to either veto or sign the new medical cannabis legislation. The governor "has the opportunity to save lives by signing" the bill, Jessica Gelay, New Mexico policy coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, said in a press release. "Marijuana is a safe and effective medicine for problematic substance use, and we need to recognize it as such, not doing so would be negligent. Research has shown that marijuana can lower opioid cravings, side effects, and withdrawal symptoms and enhances the analgesic effects of opioids.” Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) is opposed to his state's pending medical marijuana legislation. New Hampshire lawmakers defeated two separate bills to allow treating opioid issues with medical cannabis this year.Location Day 1: Silverstone International Start / Finish Line: 52 4’5.8″N 1 1’24.5″W (Circuit Guide / Track Map) Location Day 2: Donington Park (National) Start / Finish Line: 52 49’47.3″N 1 22’46.4″W (Circuit Guide / Track Map) Team: Nielsen Racing Goodbye, Radical SR1 Cup. Hello, Radical Challenge Championship. After a P5 Championship finish in my first year in the Radical SR1 Cup, it’s time for me to move from Novice to Amateur racer. In 2017 I’ll be contesting the Radical Challenge Championship in a Radical SR3rsx. After my first few days in the seat, I’m pining slightly for the relaxed and simple days of the SR1 but I’m completely hooked on the mental and physical challenge of a significantly quicker car. Has this season given me a decent primer for what’s to come in 2017? “You’re Not As Quick As I expected You To Be” Those words from Stuart Moseley, my coach for the day and the Silverstone SR3 lap Record Holder. To be fair, I took his comment as a compliment. This is from a driver with more experience in his little finger than I have in every bone in my body. Before the big day at Donington we took the SR3 to Silverstone National for a first run. It was a bit of an eye opener to say the least. He expected more, I’d underestimated the step up. Given the cockpit of this Radical SR3 RSX is going to be my office for the next few years, I’d better get myself upto speed. James (Littlejohn) happened to be with us testing the soon to be Masters Championship winning Radical SR8. He had a hearty laugh at my pace (6 seconds off Stuart’s), and carried on with his day. Challenge Accepted. After a few hours in the car; I’d learned just how much a step up a Radical SR3 is compared to the similarly powered, but far less grippy SR1. They’re almost a universe apart. On a difficult morning at Silverstone International I had to learn a new circuit, learn left foot braking, learn a new car, learn how to warm the cold, hard slick tyres and hopefully, not go off. By the end of the day, I’d made some progress. At least, I understood what I needed to improve. The Car The prettiest of the Radical Sportscar family, the SR3 RSX is also the most popular. It’s quick in a straight line, powered by an RPE-tuned Suzuki Generation 3 4-cylinder, 1500cc DOHC motorbike engine. That translates to 0 to 60 mph in just 3.1 seconds with a top speed of 155 mph. Its 260 horsepower (155 kW) is delivered via a six-speed sequential transverse gearbox, pneumatic paddle gearshift system with an auto-blipper. The final drive system incorporates a Quaife torque-biasing limited-slip differential. Torque meets the track via Dunlop bespoke slick tyres. Once warm, there’s a large and very obvious helping of grip through the slick tyres and plenty of aerodynamic down force provided by the front splitter and rear wing. For the budget, you have a serious piece of racing hardware that you’d have to spend in order of magnitude more to beat. That’s what makes the Radical series so tempting for AM and PRO drivers. When you’re at a test day threading your way past GT spec Porsche 911’s and Ferrari 458’s, you can enjoy the fact you’re running at a significantly lower cost for a pure racing experience. Here’s my first run at Donington National: The Manufacturer Radical put itself on the motorsport map with the iconic Clubsport model in 1997, a model, along with its successor, the Prosport you still see in club racing championships such as 750 Motor Club today. In 2002 Radical launched the SR3 and a year later the compact SR4, Radical’s successor to the original Clubsport. Then, in 2005, Radical launched the SR8, powered by a 380bhp V8 RPE engine, making near LMP2 pace accessible to the AM driver. James Littlejohn, 2016 Masters Champion in the Radical SR8 Later, Radical launched the RXC which competes in the Masters Series along with the Radical SR8. The Series Radical “Racing Ladder” starts with the SR1 Cup, a UK series for novice drivers comprising of race meetings at Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Cadwell Park and Snetterton. After you’ve graduated, entry into the Challenge Championship in either your SR1 or your new SR3 becomes an option. The Challenge Championship offers 3 classes of entry: the SR1 Challenge, Solo Challenge and Team Challenge. Finally, the European Masters Championship offers racing at European circuits in the Masters Class (for SR8s and the RXC Spyder), Coupe Class (for the RXC GT3) and Supersports Class (for the SR3 RS and SR3 RSX) teams. Running in each category is extraordinarily cost effective with SR1 Cup races generally costing in the low thousands. The Ride The Radical SR3 is a well balanced, stiff racing car. Weight transfer is predictable under braking and easy to manipulate. The trick with this fast car at a circuit like Donington Park is to drive smoothly, especially off throttle and off brakes. It’s incredibly easy to adjust to; and quite forgiving of mistakes. The difference in driving technique from the SR1 to the SR3 is stark, especially in corner entry speed, exit speed and braking: Comparing my corner entry / exit speeds in blue and brake pressures into Stowe (highlighted in dark box). They are massively different to Stuart’s. Given my 150 hours of seat time in the SR1 I thought I could be pretty much up to speed within a few hours. That’s definitely not the case. Here are the big differences: Tyre Warming Cold days and hard slicks are not a fun prospect. When we spoke to Oli Hancock (who was running the same car, same tyres, same day) he said the tyres were taking 6 or 7 laps to fully come up to temperature. Warming the tyres is a tentative process to say the least. It’s also critical, if your tyres aren’t warm you’re going to have a very bad time. Like any procedure this is something you must learn in an SR3, and it’s something I think is worth dedicating a test session to at least. In cold conditions it’s wise to take 3 or 4 laps to gradually build heat in the tyres. As I learned, spinning up the rear tyres a few times as you exit the pits (carefully!) gets a little surface temperate in the rear tyres. From there, throttle on, brake, throttle on, brake in as straight line as possible. As you enter corners, you’ll find you have massive understeer as the front tyres are still cold. The trick is to warm the rears so you can safely start to weave to warm the fronts a lap
ergartens around the country. Shock and censorship When CNN tried to visit the RYB Xintiandi kindergarten last Friday, it was relatively quiet around the campus with some parents and onlookers gathering outside the gate where a corporate statement was posted. One grandfather, who had just picked up his granddaughter but declined to be named, told CNN that the 4-year-old mentioned her classmates being forced to take white pills for disobedience and everyone was told to keep it a secret. Another resident of the neighborhood who gave his surname as Liu said the kindergarten is the best in the area and costs as much as 5,000 yuan ($750) a month for bilingual class students. He said he was furious at the news, but believes those were isolated cases. Past incidents involving RYB kindergartens included two cases in northeastern China, where four teachers were each sentenced to more than two years in prison for abusing 17 children. Parents take photos of a notice posted by the RYB kindergarten announcing measures taken in response to allegations of children abuse in Beijing, China. Amid an unrelenting outcry by the public over the scandal, Chinese government censors appear to have moved to contain the fallout. Many users have complained that their posts on the subject have disappeared from social media. The comment section for many online news reports on this story are disabled. Zhang Quanling, a former anchor at state broadcaster CCTV with more than 11 million followers on Weibo, echoed the sentiment of many when she re-posted the police statement Tuesday night along with a sarcastic note. "The stock price for the surveillance equipment maker should take a dive," she wrote. "What brand is it?" Her post attracted hundreds of comments before it was removed. A security guard stands behind the gate of the RYB Education New World kindergarten in Beijing. Across Chinese cyberspace, parents of young children have started sharing tips on detection and prevention of child abuse and molestation -- some directly copied from school literature in the United States. Earlier this month, videos of teachers at a Shanghai kindergarten physically attacking kids and force-feeding them what appeared to be mustard went viral. Shanghai police quickly detained several employees at the facility, while the agency involved had to apologize to the parents and to the public. Critics have argued for many years that China's laws are too vague and lax on child abuse and sexual molestation cases. Media in China have documented a rising number of incidents of abuse at childcare facilities, often in small cities and towns. In a lengthy investigative piece published last year, the state-run Xinhua news agency said 968 cases of sexual abuse against children were recorded nationwide between 2013 and 2015, involving at least 1,790 children, with many remaining unreported.LACBC Starts Save the 1st Street Bike Lane Campaign and Some Alternate Designs for the “LAPD Lane” Last night, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition e-mailed an action alert to members, asking them to write LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, Mayor Villaraigosa and others asking them to save the 1st Street Buffered Bike Lane that runs in front of LAPD Headquarters. The bike lane has become a de-facto parking lane for LAPD cruisers, as documented by Streetsblog contributor and author Roger Rudick. While complaints mounted, the LAPD responded with a request that the buffer be eliminated so that the lane run against a “car stopping” lane for the police. Yesterday, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition responded with an action alert for members asking city officials not to change the bike lane design. The LAPD officals confirm that emails are already starting to flow in, as cyclists take to the keyboard. A full copy of the action alert can be found at the end of the article. For Rudick, the debate is about more than just one bike lane. “We have a new bike plan in place. It’s not an accident that a buffered bike lane was placed right in front of LAPD headquarters. It’s supposed to send a message to cops, every day, that bikes have all the rights of cars–and that they’re required to enforce the law. Many officers, as we know, have been highly supportive. But LAPD still has vestiges of the bad old days. The same cops who park on that bike lane, trust me, are the same ones who are going to look the other way when a car runs a cyclist off the road.” Despite the assertations in the letter and earlier this week in Streetsblog. We don’t actually know what the LAPD’s complaint against the bike lane is. Advocates and journalists assume it has to do with access to the headquarters, but requests to LAPD for the exact cause of the complaint have yet to be answered. For the sake of argument, the rest of this article assumes that access is the key problem identified by the LAPD. There are other solutions to the issue outside of removing the buffered bike lane completely. A popular one, posited on Biking In L.A., is to remove most of the buffer to allow parking, but put the parking on the north side of the bike lane. Creating a fully protected bike lane may run afoul of official Caltrans policy, but recently altered state legislation has opened the door for more experimental bike planning. But “experimental bike planning,” even when it’s a design that has been proven world wide, takes time and the LAPD need access to their station now. Rather than changing the design, bollards mixed with a painted curb that allows stopping in an emergency. “Emergency only,” or “LAPD use only” would limit the number of cars that used the lane for anything besides bicycling and a painted and properly marked curb could alert officers that the lane is not a parking zone. For now, the who (LAPD) and where (1st Street) and what (changing of bike lane design) are known. But the “why” and “where” are still unknown. As Streetsblog learns more about the plans and complaint, we’ll let you know.Still in the mood to draw stuff from the Warhammer 40,000 setting. A while back I drew the "Lost and the Damned" pic showing a follower of Nurgle. This time, I figure I'd do a follower of Khorne. Okay, for those who don't know the Warhammer 40k setting: The forces of Chaos (bad guys) have four gods that they worship. They are Tzeentch, Slaanesh, Nurgle, and Khorne. Khorne is the chaos god of blood, murder, rage, and several other warm fuzzy emotions. Hmmm....I also thought, while I'm at it, why don't I make this chaos follower a woman as well? Sounds good right? Alright, I know some of you are thinking that if its going to be a girl, she should worship Slaanesh. Well, that would be very predictable of us now would it? Nope, not gonna do that. This Khorne follower is a girl and she swings a chainsword for a living. Hope you like.IN A region gripped by jihadist violence, civil war and the return of authoritarian rule, Tunisia’s parliamentary election on October 26th was an exception on many counts. Alone among the countries that saw popular revolts in the “Arab Spring” of 2011, it has remained on a path to democracy. Seemingly against the trend of Arab politics, voters inflicted a firm rebuke on Islamists and instead gave victory to the secularist coalition known as Nidaa Tounes. And the defeated Islamists of the Nahda party bowed peacefully before the verdict. A stint out of power, said its leader, Rached Ghannouchi, could be salutary. Nidaa Tounes (“Tunisian Call”) won 85 of the 217 seats in parliament, against 69 for Nahda (“Awakening”). Nahda can still count on loyalists nationwide and has an organisational reach that is envied by other parties. Nevertheless, voters have been unimpressed by the Islamists’ two years at the helm of government, in 2012–13, particularly its inability to pull the economy out of stagnation and its failure to quash the emergence of violent jihadism. Senior Nahda figures concede that the job of running the country proved to be harder than they had expected. Get our daily newsletter Upgrade your inbox and get our Daily Dispatch and Editor's Picks. Though often fractious and tainted by the presence of members of the ancien régime of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the ex-president overthrown by a revolt in January 2011, Nidaa Tounes was helped to victory by the popularity of its leader, Beji Caid Sebsi. Three times a minister, he emerged from retirement in 2011 as a reassuring figure and headed the interim government that handed over to the Nahda-led coalition at the end of that year. Rattled by the army coup that deposed Egypt’s Islamist president, Nahda handed power to a technocratic government in January, after two political assassinations raised tensions. It also softened the Islamist flavour of the proposed new constitution. Nahda would like to join a coalition under Nidaa Tounes, which has not yet made its intentions clear. The secularists could put together a government with smaller factions, albeit a rather fragile one. Moreover, opposition to Islamists is part of the raison d’être of Nidaa Tounes. The party accuses the former Nahda-led government of having undermined the separation of religion and state that was laid down by Habib Bourguiba, Tunisia’s first post-independence president. Some admire the Egyptian army’s suppression of Islamists. Beyond the economy and the balance between secularism and Islam, security has been an important issue. Many Tunisians reckon that the Nahda-led coalition government was culpably slow in responding to the spread of jihadist ideology in mosques after the fall of Mr Ben Ali. Just days before the election, a shoot-out with alleged jihadists left one policemen and six others dead (five women among them). The presence of armed national guardsmen and soldiers outside polling stations made for a more sombre mood than the celebratory post-revolutionary election three years ago. Nidaa Tounes still struggles to shake off claims that it represents an attempt by members of the previous ruling party, the Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD), to regain influence. In what was in effect a single-party state, the RCD built clientelistic relations running from taxi-drivers to corner-shop owners, lawyers, senior civil servants and—importantly for its funding—business people. Although the RCD as an organisation is long dead, these networks may have played a role on polling day. A government is unlikely to be formed before Tunisians return to the polls to elect a new president on November 23rd. The new constitution passed in January gives more powers to the prime minister and parliament, now produced by genuine elections, rather than the president. Given that Mr Caid Sebsi, 88 next month, is the front-runner to get the job (Nahda is not fielding a candidate), it is still unclear who will become prime minister. One possibility would be to ask the popular outgoing technocrat, Mehdi Jomaa, to form another government. He has not entirely ruled out the prospect.It’s telling that Logan, Hugh Jackman’s final outing as Wolverine after playing the character for 17 years, heavily references a moment in Shane, the legendary 1953 Western. Specifically, it references the moment when gunfighter Shane tells Joey, the young son of some local ranchers, “Joey, there’s no living with, with a killing. There’s no going back from it. Right or wrong, it’s a brand, a brand that sticks. There’s no going back.” It’s one of the most famous indictments of violence in cinema history, and by citing it, James Mangold’s Logan clearly hopes to suggest that it, too, is challenging traditional notions of violence and masculinity. This desire comes through in so many facets of Logan. This film does away with the glossy, sanitized brand of violence we’ve come to expect from so many superhero films, including many of the X-Men films, in which characters in tights have time for banter and wisecracks and the violence they engage in rarely leaves a lasting mark. Logan feels more like a Western itself, and Logan, as the violent, grizzled hero of this particular Western, is a figure genre audiences are all too familiar with: the brutal, emotionally closed off man who has disconnected himself from the world, but who forges a new connection with a younger person that peels away the layers to reveal that somewhere deep inside, he still has a beating heart. He shares some cinematic DNA with figures ranging from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s T-800 in Terminator 2 to Casey Affleck’s Lee Chandler in Manchester by the Sea, but because of the beard, the gruff attitude, the parental relationship he forges with a young girl and the long journey the two of them take, it was Joel from the game The Last of Us who Logan reminded me of most. Logan is a film at odds with itself The film’s setup works well. It’s been years since the events of the last X-Men film. Logan, old, tired, grizzled, and utterly broken in every way, is trying to stay under the radar. A montage shows Logan driving a limo for an Uber-like service, drinking on the job and sizing up his customers with disdain: business executives, a bachelor party, a group of drunken frat boys chanting “USA! USA!” outside the limo roof while a border patrol officer looks on without a care. But this time it’s not about Logan just trying to stay away from everyone he cares or could care about. On the contrary, he is working to raise money to protect his old friend Charles Xavier, who has a degenerative disease that causes him to be one of the deadliest weapons in the world. This movie is not light. It’s heavy all the way through, weighed down with time, loss, and grief, and any levity we encounter is in the sharp banter that exists between Logan and Xavier, two men who love each other in that frustrating way only family can, a relationship in which Logan has shifted from student to caregiver. Neither Xavier nor Logan are entirely comfortable with their new roles, and at one point Xavier tells Logan, “I wish I could say you were a good pupil but the words would choke me!” It’s biting, funny and sad all at once. Chaos ensues when Logan extremely reluctantly takes on the responsibility of protecting a new mutant named Laura, once he discovers that she is just like him: bred with his genes, she heals just like he does, and just like he was, she was surgically “enhanced” with adamantium claws, born and bred to be a little killing machine. Unlike Wolverine, however, she also has blades that emerge from her feet, which the film justifies with some nonsense about how female lions are the hunters and protectors of their species. As Logan and Laura journey together, we see him actively keeping his distance from her, being short with her, not letting himself get attached to her. I bet you can guess how that ends up. The violence in the film is atrociously gruesome, from the very beginning all the way to the end. There were so many claws through skulls that I lost track. Heads go flying, limbs get severed, blood spurts everywhere. Wolverine may explain to his young protege that violence is damaging to one’s psyche whether the victims are “bad guys” or not, and the film repeatedly reminds us of Shane’s words to young Joey, but this is also a film in which the action sequences are beautifully choreographed and meant to thrill and tantalize. Some of them would have looked right at home in George Miller’s symphony of glorified violence, Mad Max: Fury Road. So Logan is a film at odds with itself, telling us one thing about violence while showing us another. Watching a young girl single-handedly destroy an army of men twists my brain up in knots. It is incredible to watch and satisfying because it challenges the feelings of weakness and frailty that girls learn to internalize. At the same time, it’s horrifying that this child or any child would be capable of such emotionless violence. Laura embodies a trope we’ve seen a few times in recent years, most notably in Hit Girl from Kick-Ass. But while I found the gleeful, comedic, psychological abuse of Hit Girl’s formation into a violent child assassin revolting, Laura’s story arc is presented more seriously and with a bit more respect. She was bred to be a military monster, and if the movie went on any longer we’d probably see her actively grappling with what that violence has done to her and how, or if, she can ever overcome that trauma. I really wanted to see the movie this was supposed to be Significantly, Laura was born in Mexico, and like her, all the children bred as mutant killing machines by the evil Transigen corporation are children of color, born to Mexican mothers who have since been disappeared. There was an opportunity here for the film to say so much about race, about corporations unscrupulously exploiting people in other countries, but Logan doesn’t seize that opportunity. On the contrary, its racial politics are typical and troubling. Logan is introduced to us in an altercation with a group of stereotypical “cholos” whom he slaughters. The disappeared mothers of the mutant children receive only a passing mention in the film, concerns about their fates out of sight and out of mind. The Mexican nurse who risks her life to bring Laura to Logan in the hope that he might protect the child is murdered, her death serving to fuel his angst and uncertainty. Later, an entire black family is killed after offering Logan, Laura and Charles a place to stay for the night. People of color are introduced just to die, sacrificed to represent the inescapability of the violence that Logan has cultivated as a way of life. The film’s one and only saving grace here is the children themselves, who do survive; we can speculate that perhaps they are able to carve out a new, more peaceful kind of life for themselves, but whatever their fate, it happens offscreen. It’s not what this film is actually about. It’s about Logan being tough and brooding as audiences expect of him, even as he is rotting from the inside out, swinging his claws even when he can barely stand up, resisting any ounce of human companionship. This is not anything new. It’s just packaged differently. During one scene in the film, three different groups of men vie for dominance, each trying to out-masculine the other, and it’s clear that one group is out of their league in the contest to be the most violent and manly of them all, and their “inferior” masculinity is played for laughs. But perhaps the greatest symbol of just how internally conflicted this film is about its own attitudes around violence is the fact that Logan must face a clone of himself, the soulless X-24, and the battles between them are the most relentlessly savage in the entire movie. I didn’t hate Logan. It was entertaining, peculiar, and even kind of touching at moments when I wasn’t jerking my eyes away from the screen after a particularly gruesome butchering sequence. But I really wanted to see the movie this was supposed to be. The one buried deep inside, the one that explores how toxic masculinity and violence destroyed this man, and maybe even how men can change. Even old, curmudgeonly, cold-hearted men.If you’ve put any serious study into the Book of Mormon, you know it is filled with significant and often remarkable things; in fact, sometimes it’s hard to read more than a few pages without finding something new and noteworthy, even if you’ve already read it dozens of times. At least, that’s the way it has been for me. Recently, I went through it with a different emphasis and focus: I wanted to determine how many evidences were found in the Book of Mormon itself supporting the fact that it was translated from an ancient document and not written by Joseph Smith in the early 19th century. Talk about a soul-quenching, satisfying search! Scattered throughout its pages was one piece of evidence after another—right there, in black and white—things that could not possibly have been known when it rolled off the press in 1830. The experience was absolutely astonishing, and I want to share a bit of it with you—just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. But please sit up, take note, and be prepared to marvel at what the book itself tells you “as the voice of one crying from the dust” (2 Nephi 33:13). Along with my own insights I’ve provided evidence from archaeologists, historians, gospel scholars, and others who have made such study the pursuit of a lifetime—people to whom I am forever grateful and who are lots smarter than I am. So let’s take a look at some of what I found. Olives, Steel, and Horses Let’s start out with the allegory of the olive tree—the prophet Zenos’s extraordinary parable of the Lord’s four visits to his vineyard—the world. It is obvious from reading Jacob 5 that Zenos had considerable knowledge of the very complicated process of olive cultivation. Scholars Paul R. Cheesman and C. Wilfred Griggs both comment on “the numerous casual references to pruning, cultivating, fertilizing, grafting, preserving species by grafting, bud sprouts, scion vigor, root rejuvenation, double graftage, root-top growth balances, and invigoration from graftage of wild species” that make this chapter so in-depth and compelling (Scriptures for the Modern World [Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, 1984], 119). Honestly, think about it. Could Joseph Smith, who had only three years of formal schooling, have been acquainted enough with ancient horticultural practices to write the allegory of the olive tree, with all its detailed description? Not likely. Next there’s the issue of steel. There are many references to steel in the Book of Mormon. For example, “And it came to pass that as I, Nephi, went forth to slay food, behold, I did break my bow, which was made of fine steel...” (1 Nephi 16:18). Early critics of the Book of Mormon had a heyday with this one, pointing out that steel did not exist at the time Nephi would have written this passage (the prevailing knowledge in 1830), so the Book of Mormon couldn’t possibly be true. Then, along came the archaeologists to save the day. Long after the Book of Mormon was published, they found that various combinations of iron and steel existed near Jerusalem as early as 600 B.C. George Reynolds and Janne M. Sjodahl note that weapons of steel were even found in ancient tombs in Egypt; it is only the method for producing steel that is modern, not steel itself (see Commentary on the Book of Mormon [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1955], 1:38). And let’s not forget the horses. Nephi said that as they journeyed in the promised land, “there were beasts in the forests of every kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals, which were for the use of men” (1 Nephi 18:25; emphasis added). Again, the critics went to town. As gospel scholar Susan Easton Black points out, in 1830, U.S. scholars maintained that there were no horses in North or South America before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the late 1400s. But once more, archaeological evidence discovered in the past few decades proves that horses existed on the American continent as early as 2600 B.C. There is no way Joseph Smith could have known such evidence existed as he was translating the ancient records. Fortifications and the Land of Bountiful A little more than one-third of the Book of Mormon deals with war, whether preparing for it, fighting in it, or recovering from it. That alone has the critics in a tizzy. For centuries, historians and anthropologists painted a picture of Mesoamerica as an agrarian, peace-loving civilization in which there would have been no need for fortification of cities. Not only that, but critics also claim that the “fortifications” described in the Book of Mormon are of such illogical construction that they never would have worked. “That does it,” the critics say, “Joseph Smith must have created the book.” Not so fast. Recent archaeological evidence has shown that military fortifications around Mesoamerican cities were, in fact, fairly common, and that the type of construction described in the Book of Mormon is completely consistent with what evidence shows. In fact, scholar John L. Sorenson shows that similar fortifications have recently been found throughout Mesoamerica: “When Cortez crossed southern Mexico during his epic journey to Honduras, he discovered fortifications around the Laguna de Terminos area very similar to those Moroni erected in the first century B.C.... The Book of Mormon describes a ditch being dug around the protected area; the excavated earth was piled inward to form a bank. Atop it a fence of timbers was planted and bound together with vines. That very arrangement is now well documented archaeologically” (An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, [Provo, Utah: FARMS, 1985], 261). And what about the land of Bountiful? You remember it. Lehi and his family camped there for a period before crossing the sea to the promised land. Critics shunned that whole notion, saying there was nowhere in the Middle East that met Nephi’s description of Bountiful: a place that contained water, fruit, large trees for a ship, grass, wild honeybees, flowers or blossoms, a mountain, a shoreline, a cliff overlooking the depths of the sea, and metal ore. Oh, but wait—there is such a place, after all. Lynn M. and Hope A. Hilton write, “Incredible as it seems, the south coast of the Arabian peninsula from Perim to Sur has only one place in its entire length of 1,400 miles that meets that description. It is a tiny sickle of land curved around a little bay, about 28 miles long and 7 miles wide, backed by the Qara Mountains. For three months of the year, the monsoon clouds gather on the slopes fronting the sea and cover them with summer fog, mist, and rain. This place is Salalah, in the state of Dhofar, the Sultanate of Oman. The coast in both directions stretches away in unbroken barrenness. This is the only place on the whole Arabian peninsula seashore that receives significant rainfall and where large trees grow—and it is known to have been this way for well over two thousand years” (“In Search of Lehi’s Trail: Part 1, The Preparation,” Ensign, Sept. 1976). The Language The casual reader of the Book of Mormon would probably never notice or worry much about the wording used in the book. But those seemingly insignificant phrases provide powerful evidence that the book was translated from records written in ancient Semitic language. Take, for example, 1 Nephi 1:6, in which Nephi clarifies that his family pitched their tent in a valley by the side of a river of water. What young Joseph Smith never would have known was that in the Middle East, there are both rivers of water and wadis, dry streambeds that contain water only when they are swollen by rain. Year-round “rivers of water” are actually very scarce. Why would Joseph Smith, who grew up on the verdant east coast with large, flowing rivers that ran all year round, make that distinction? Here’s another: in the very next verse (1 Nephi 1:7), Nephi mentioned that he built “an altar of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord....” Another bit of trivia Joseph never would have known: to the ancients, an “altar of stones” was made of a pile of separate uncut stones, whereas a “stone altar” was made of hewn stones cemented together with mortar. The Israelites of the time believed that stone altars were not appropriate to use because when one used a tool to strike the stone, the stone was then polluted (see Exodus 20:25). And yet another: when Ishmael died while the group was wandering in the wilderness, Nephi tells us “that the daughters of Ishmael did mourn exceedingly” (1 Nephi 16:35). Another tidbit Joseph Smith almost certainly wouldn’t have known: in the desert Arab culture, only the women were allowed to officially mourn. It goes on and on. The Ultimate Test All of these things, and many more found in the Book of Mormon, are certainly compelling, but they do not “prove” that the Book of Mormon is a true account that was translated by the Prophet Joseph Smith from ancient plates that he unearthed with the assistance of an angel. Because while such evidences are certainly interesting, they are not the stuff of testimony. Testimony comes only from reading with real intent, pondering, and praying. If you haven’t yet done so, apply the formula found in Moroni 10:3–5. Rely on the Holy Ghost to teach and testify to you. It works every time. In October 2012, as the second counselor in the Young Women General Presidency, Sister Ann M. Dibb made a statement that almost instantly became a motto: “I’m a Mormon. I know it. I live it. I love it.” I humbly borrow her words to challenge you to do the same thing with the Book of Mormon: Learn it. Live it. Love it. For additional theories and insights into the Book of Mormon, check out Kathryn Jenkins Gordon’s book, Scripture Study Made Simple: The Book of Mormon, available at Seagull Book stores, Deseret Book stores, and deseretbook.com. Lead image from iStock.Settings --> About device --> Software update --> Update now. If you're in ownership of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 or Note 5 through Sprint, then you'll be pleased to hear that the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update is now en route to your device. Along with the glut of enhancements offered by Marshmallow 6.0 such as the Doze battery-saving feature, the 1.4 GB bundle includes the emoji pack and March security patch brought forth with Android 6.0.1.Given that Marshmallow has been around for a number of months now, it has taken a while for Sprint Galaxy Note 4 and Note 5 owners to get their hands on the latest flavor. Still, it's good to see that both handsets are being catered to simultaneously, and if you've been eager to test the new features of Android's most recent installment on your Note device, your wait is effectively up.As aforementioned, the update is around 1.4 gigs in size, so it may take a while to download dependent on the state of your connection. If you haven't already gotten the OTA notification and processed the update, you should navigate throughAs ever, the update may not be available immediately to all, but if you don't have any joy at the first try, simply wait a little and check again at regular intervals.source: SamMobile ( 1 ), ( 2.- By now, everyone's probably seen the ads on YouTube touting the “romantic comedy of the year.” A young, shapely woman in a red dress, and a handsome man – in a wheelchair? The short clips are brilliant, and the intrigue is palpable. Could it be? A mainstream, box-office hit that portrays a person with disabilities as a desirable partner? The answer is both a yes, and a horrifying no. While everyone can handle death as a tragic but compelling end of a good romance, it's a bit different when a character – despite being happy in love – chooses to kill himself. But this is the premise of “Me before You,” originally a best-selling book in the U.K. before it was made into a film with breakout stars Emelia Clarke and Sam Claflin. When a cautious small town girl takes a caretaker job for a moody business mogul paralyzed in a recent accident, their unlikely relationship becomes a friendship that eventually blossoms into love. He teaches her to broaden her horizons and abandon the timid outlook that has been holding her back in life, while she helps him find happiness despite disability. In the end, he admits that his six months with her have been the best months of his life, and acknowledges that he could have “a very good life” going forward. But it is not the life he wants – and so he kills himself, ultimately with her support. Released this week, it's already garnering rave reviews along with some tough criticism over how it plays into some unfortunate stereotypes of persons with disabilities. Yet beyond this, there's something eerily familiar about the movie. The youth, beauty and gripping narrative recall another campaign for assisted suicide, and that was the very real death of Brittany Maynard in 2014. After receiving a grim prognosis of six months to live due to an aggressive brain tumor, Maynard and her husband relocated to Oregon in order to take advantage of the Death with Dignity law, which legalized physician-assisted suicide in the state. Compassion and Choices, an advocacy group for right-to-die causes, latched on to Maynard’s youth and beauty after she approached them, asking how she could advocate for rights to assisted suicide for other people. They produced a video featuring Brittany and her family, complete with soothing music and beautiful photos, in which she calmly explains her situation and decision to kill herself. So what do these two have in common? Both attempt to normalize assisted suicide by taking the “ick” factor out. A glittering romantic blockbuster, a heart-wrenching People magazine spread with gorgeous photos of the brunette sufferer – both say “look at these beautiful people doing this – you can too.” How else is anything advertised to us? But when emergency hotlines exist for those on the same edge, how do we differentiate between rescuing someone from the depths and “respecting their decision”? Take the real story of Luke, a fresh-faced, 19-year-old man with a full life ahead of him. Luke was depressed for four years and tried to kill himself by crashing his car at 60 miles an hour. He survived. He wants to live now. And what he said about the assisted suicide movement was stark: if someone was on a bridge and wanted to jump, we'd try to save them, right? Right? Perhaps it's the violence that makes us shudder. Putting a gun to your head, throwing yourself off a building, slitting your wrists – what if Claflin's character or Maynard chose one of these methods? What would the narrative be then? But no, taking a lethal dose of barbiturates and passing “in peace” as your vital organs shut down one-by-one makes all the difference. And yet, there is no difference. All we've done is put lipstick on something which, despite our glamorizing attempts, is the same awful, isolated despair. What's arguably most insidious about the character's decision to kill himself is the tired but re-dressed “quality of life” argument: that existence isn't worth it if it's not on our ideal terms. Never mind that this logic justifies ethicists such as Peter Singer making the case for selective infanticide. The most important thing is that we actualize ourselves the way we see fit – and that anything less renders us the right to shut it down, to call it all off. Let's be clear: suffering is real, suffering is hard. Suffering makes us not want to live. But when did we determine that life could be without it? It simply can't. And it's the ones who've chosen to keep existing through great adversity that ironically show us how much life is worth living. When we make reality our enemy, anything is justifiable if it threatens what we've imagined for ourselves. And so we don't flinch at anyone – a fictional hero, a beautiful brunette, a victim of horrific sexual abuse – pulling the trigger.Yes, really! A few weeks ago I went to UX Scotland where there was all kinds of super interesting chats and because I am a massive science dork one really caught my eye. “Designing for visualisation systems in endovascular surgery” may be the hardest thing to say with a mouthful of Maltesers, but it also frames a presentation around how surgeons need very specific visual information during incredibly complex procedures. Tim began the chat with this ‘minimal’ slide: And if you’re like me you are probably thinking “eh?” or “cool battery indicator bro!”; I get that. But what is it? Context Endovascular surgery – put simply – is an operation that provides support structures for collapsing arteries in patients. This support takes the form of ‘stents’ (short pieces of mesh) which surgeons manoeuvre into place using a particular set of tools. During the operation certain visualisation methods assist the physician. Typically an X-ray machine will ‘scan’ a patient and a series of systems will plot a representation of the artery on screen in front of the operating team. Research As Tim explains, the set-up looks nothing like this: Well, it does kinda, but much less ‘romantic’. More like this: This kind of ethnographic research discovered operating theatres are complicated environments; but at the heart of it all is a surgeon and the surgeon needs access to certain things. The patient is one (hahaha!) but the visualisation of an artery via an ‘interface’ is another. During various interviews Tim was able to describe exactly was going on with this interface: It consists of a fluorescent overlay and 3D representation of the artery, along with some peripheral data. Further research discovered that some data was more important than others: Opportunity: redesign the interface so that overlay structures were more visible “I can see these things better”. And this is where the project got even more interesting: it became apparent that the state of things on screen was super important. Eh? During the operation the system uses data from the X-ray machine and the position of various vertebrae to determine how the computer generates overlays. But! If the patient moves the position of the vertebrae is thrown off and the overlay becomes inaccurate meaning …. the machine has to recalibrate itself. During recalibration the system works through four different states: ‘in position’; ‘get position’; ‘verify position is correct’; ‘confirm position is correct’. With the old system surgeons had no way of determining which state the system was in and this could cause problems. Opportunity: redesign the interface so the system showed states better “I know what the machine is doing so I can do x,y,z while I wait”. After many iterations a design was developed showing the transitions through the four states: The
why, but it all comes out within a week. How to Reward (Values During Performance Management) No matter how good your interviewers are, any screener will result in false positives (people who you thought fit your values, but don’t once they’re hired) and false negatives (people who you thought would not fit your values, but would have if you had hired them). Companies that prioritize culture are willing to accept some false negatives in order to avoid false positives. If you get some false positives anyway, the solution, as entrepreneur and president of Y Combinator Sam Altman said, is to “fire quickly.” Few people have the psychological wherewithal to resign of their own accord if they still want the job, but know they aren’t the right fit. That’s why baseball coaches have to pull starting pitchers out of the game when their performance declines, and substitute a relief pitcher instead. In the same way, it’s a manager’s job to be a good coach and pull people out, compassionately, so they can find a better fit in another role or company. The major issue that I’ve seen with startups is that even if they claim to have a “No Asshole Rule,” they hardly ever practice it. Rationales I’ve heard include: “We’ve decided that we’re not going to fire him because he’s a high performer” or “for that one bad trait, he has four good traits going for him,” and, of course, the “[data scientists/engineers/product managers] are hard to replace, so we’ll make do.” The moment that leaders start weighing values-congruent against values-incongruent behavior, as if they can cancel one another out, is the moment when they have compromised their values. The best way to avoid this pitfall is to make values-congruent behavior a formal and prioritized part of your company’s performance management process. I’ll share the system I designed and helped implement at my company. It starts with evaluating each employee on the Performance-Values Matrix. Whatever employee evaluation system you use — whether that’s a formal annual review or regular one-on-ones — employees should be evaluated on both their performance-based behavior and values-based behavior. Both should be quantified on a spectrum (e.g. a 1–10 point scale), but I’ve simplified into a 2x2 matrix for illustrative purposes. (Note: I use gender-neutral language throughout this piece, but I use “guys” in the matrix due to space constraints. I also usually use more PC terms, but the colorful language helps me cheekily make my point here.) © Dr. Cameron Sepah 1. Incompetent Assholes (Fire Fast) Incompetent assholes are not only low-performers, but their behavior is incongruent with company values. In this matrix, they are in the lower-left quadrant and thus can only earn 25 percent of the maximum employee evaluation score. Hopefully, there should be very few of these folks at your company, but occasionally a few will slip through the hiring cracks, or something may have happened that caused performance and values-congruent behavior to permanently degrade over time. Nevertheless, they sap overall employee motivation by not contributing equally to the workload and are toxic to company morale. Needless to say, incompetent assholes should be identified and fired as fast as possible. 2. Competent Assholes (Remediate or Separate) Competent assholes are high-performers, but exhibit behavioral tendencies that are incongruent with company values. Given that “asshole” is not a clinical term, I will define it here as someone who lacks empathetic behavior to the point that it causes interpersonal issues. The biggest mistake that I see companies make is that they retain competent assholes because they are seen as critical to the company or difficult to replace. However, by doing so, they not only passively reinforce the competent asshole’s behavior by tolerating and promoting them, but they implicitly send the message to the rest of the company that you can basically get away with murder so long as leadership believes you to be indispensable. You can imagine what kind of culture this creates over time. In contrast, using the Performance-Values Matrix, an employee who’s competent but a complete asshole can only earn 50 percent of the maximum employee evaluation score, given that the other 50 percent of their evaluation is based on their values-congruent behavior. There’s a reason Professor Sutton called it the “No Asshole Rule.” It’s because exceptions shouldn’t be made, otherwise it shows your values are merely aspirational. The solution for competent assholes is a tactic that I call “remediate or separate.” Despite the fact that these folks are strong performers, it should be made clear that value-incongruent behavior is not tolerated and they will need to remediate their behavior in a measurable way within a given period of time. Thus, competent assholes should be put on what I call a “Values Improvement Plan” (VIP). For this, 360-degree reviews — from an employee’s manager, peers and direct reports — are a great way to assess improvement, or else be separated from the company. The reason I like giving these folks a chance is that sometimes employees that aren’t entirely inflexible (or pathological) can improve when they realize that their job depends on it. Often times, this requires entering therapy or executive coaching with a skilled psychologist, which is worth its weight in gold if the employee is willing to change. 3. Incompetent Nice Guys (Manage or Move) Incompetent nice guys and gals are the exemplars of your culture and are well-liked by almost everyone, but unfortunately are not high-performers. Like competent assholes, completely incompetent nice guys and gals also can only earn a 50 percent maximum possible employee rating. That’s because it is nearly as much of a sin to tolerate incompetent people as it is to tolerate assholes. Giving free license to someone to underperform just because they are kind or likeable sends the message that your company is not a meritocracy, and that it’s more important to be socially skilled (or at worst, be a brown noser). However, the solution here is different than with component assholes, in that the best solution is to manage or move them. Incompetent nice guys and gals should be put on a traditional performance improvement plan (PIP), and skillfully managed in order to give them training and feedback to improve their abilities. When their incompetence stems from a fundamental disconnect between their strengths and their current role’s demands (e.g. mediocre social skills in a client-facing role) one solution I’ve seen prove fruitful is to move them into a different role. (The person may be an analytical whiz if moved to a more technical role). Of course, if that is not possible or does not work out, they should also be separated from the company. Encouraging incompetent nice guys and gals find a position that’s a better fit for their strengths is, ironically, the nicest thing you can do for them. 4. Competent and Outstanding Nice Guys (Praise and Raise) Hopefully most of the employees at your company are both competent and nice; you must exhibit both behaviors in order to be in the top-right quadrant of the Performance-Values Matrix. Competent nice guys and gals earn up to 75 percent of the maximum employee evaluation score, and should be both praised and given the opportunity for advancement. But in order to set the bar high, employees should only earn the full 100 percent score if they exhibit both outstanding performance and value-congruent behavior. They are what Sarah Tavel of venture capital firm Greylock Partners calls the “mitochondria” of startups, because they are the company’s power plants — adding value beyond their job description by asking and doing what is best for the company. Given how rare these individuals are, founders should go out of their way to attract and retain them. By building this designation directly into the evaluation matrix, outstanding nice guys and gals should be formally recognized and rewarded with raises and promotions. These are the current or future leaders of your company, and need to be nurtured and cherished given that they are the foundation for your company’s performance and morale. Of note, while I distinguish between competent and outstanding nice guys [and gals] in the matrix, I do not do so for assholes. That’s because I believe it is nearly impossible to be an outstanding asshole. For example, there is a myth of the “10x engineer” in Silicon Valley, where a truly talented engineer is 10 times as valuable and productive as an average engineer. Even if one engineer could possibly do the work of 10, if they are an asshole — especially in a management position — they will decrease the performance of the people around them to such an extent that their team’s net productivity will break even or be at a loss long-term. Call to Action: Reinforce Your Culture When leaders become Machiavellian and hire and retain mercenary employees, they resemble a Hermann Hesse novel reaching “the “place on the journey where everything falls apart” and the company’s culture degrades. While company engagement scores typically decline as they scale — given they have to hire quickly from a limited talent pool and are too overworked to fire quickly — this does not have to be an inevitable outcome. Culture can only improve when there’s a baseline of openness, where people feel they can come forward and share concerns or opportunities for people and teams to do better. If people don’t trust what happens after they give their feedback, then reviews will be “positive” and not provide any useful information. This requires both anonymous surveys and the promise that aggregate feedback is valued and will be acted upon. So if you want your company’s culture to be congruent with those noble aspirations written on your walls, you must continually assess how well your employees are behaving compared to those aspirational values, and develop ways to bridge the gap between aspiration and practice. I believe the best way to do this is to directly reinforce value-driven behavior, including making it an integral part of employee’s reviews and weighting it as highly as performance. As the old saying goes, you reap what you sow. As leaders, you get the behavior that you reward. Continued in Part 2: Anatomy of a Workplace AssholeSubclass of English Reformed Protestants "Puritan" redirects here. For other uses, see Puritan (disambiguation) The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and needed to become more Protestant.[1] Puritanism played a significant role in English history, especially during the Protectorate. Puritans were dissatisfied with the limited extent of the English Reformation and with the Church of England's toleration of certain practices associated with the Roman Catholic Church. They formed and identified with various religious groups advocating greater purity of worship and doctrine, as well as personal and corporate piety. Puritans adopted a Reformed theology and, in that sense, were Calvinists (as were many of their earlier opponents). In church polity, some advocated separation from all other established Christian denominations in favour of autonomous gathered churches. These separatist and independent strands of Puritanism became prominent in the 1640s, when the supporters of a Presbyterian polity in the Westminster Assembly were unable to forge a new English national church. By the late 1630s, Puritans were in alliance with the growing commercial world, with the parliamentary opposition to the royal prerogative, and with the Scottish Presbyterians with whom they had much in common. Consequently, they became a major political force in England and came to power as a result of the First English Civil War (1642–1646). Almost all Puritan clergy left the Church of England after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 and the 1662 Uniformity Act. Many continued to practice their faith in nonconformist denominations, especially in Congregationalist and Presbyterian churches.[2] The nature of the movement in England changed radically, although it retained its character for a much longer period in New England. Puritanism was never a formally defined religious division within Protestantism, and the term Puritan itself was rarely used after the turn of the 18th century. Some Puritan ideals, including the formal rejection of Roman Catholicism, were incorporated into the doctrines of the Church of England; others were absorbed into the many Protestant denominations that emerged in the late 17th and early 18th centuries in America and Britain. The Congregational churches, widely considered to be a part of the Reformed tradition, are descended from the Puritans.[3][4] Moreover, Puritan beliefs are enshrined in the Savoy Declaration, the confession of faith held by the Congregationalist churches.[5] Terminology [ edit ] In the 17th century, the word Puritan was a term applied not to just one group but to many. Historians still debate a precise definition of Puritanism.[6] Originally, Puritan was a pejorative term characterizing certain Protestant groups as extremist. Thomas Fuller, in his Church History, dates the first use of the word to 1564. Archbishop Matthew Parker of that time used it and precisian with a sense similar to the modern stickler.[7] Puritans, then, were distinguished for being "more intensely protestant than their protestant neighbors or even the Church of England". "Non-separating Puritans" were dissatisfied with the Reformation of the Church of England but remained within it, advocating for further reform; they disagreed among themselves about how much further reformation was possible or even necessary. "Separatists", or "separating Puritans", thought the Church of England was so corrupt that true Christians should separate from it altogether. In its widest historical sense, the term Puritan includes both groups.[9][10] Puritans should not be confused with more radical Protestant groups of the 16th and 17th centuries, such as Quakers, Seekers, and Familists who believed that individuals could be directly guided by the Holy Spirit and prioritized direct revelation over the Bible. In current English, puritan often means "against pleasure". In such usage, hedonism and puritanism are antonyms.[12] In fact, Puritans embraced sexuality but placed it in the context of marriage. Peter Gay writes of the Puritans' standard reputation for "dour prudery" as a "misreading that went unquestioned in the nineteenth century", commenting how unpuritanical they were in favour of married sexuality, and in opposition to the Catholic veneration of virginity, citing Edward Taylor and John Cotton.[13] One Puritan settlement in western Massachusetts banished a husband because he refused to fulfill his sexual duties to his wife.[14] History [ edit ] Puritanism has a historical importance over a period of a century, followed by fifty years of development in New England. It changed character and emphasis almost decade-by-decade over that time. Elizabethan Puritanism [ edit ] Elizabethan Puritanism contended with the Elizabethan religious settlement, with little to show for it. The Lambeth Articles of 1595, a high-water mark for Calvinism within the Church of England, failed to receive royal approval. Jacobean Puritanism [ edit ] The accession of James I to the English throne brought the Millenary Petition, a Puritan manifesto of 1603 for reform of the English church, but James wanted a religious settlement along different lines. He called the Hampton Court Conference in 1604, and heard the teachings of four prominent Puritan leaders, including Laurence Chaderton, but largely sided with his bishops. He was well informed on theological matters by his education and Scottish upbringing, and he dealt shortly with the peevish legacy of Elizabethan Puritanism, pursuing an eirenic religious policy, in which he was arbiter. Many of James's episcopal appointments were Calvinists, notably James Montague, who was an influential courtier. Puritans still opposed much of the Roman Catholic summation in the Church of England, notably the Book of Common Prayer but also the use of non-secular vestments (cap and gown) during services, the sign of the Cross in baptism, and kneeling to receive Holy Communion.[15] Some of the bishops under both Elizabeth and James tried to suppress Puritanism, though other bishops were more tolerant and, in many places, individual ministers were able to omit disliked portions of the Book of Common Prayer. The Puritan movement of Jacobean times became distinctive by adaptation and compromise, with the emergence of "semi-separatism", "moderate puritanism", the writings of William Bradshaw (who adopted the term "Puritan" for himself), and the beginnings of Congregationalism.[16] Most Puritans of this period were non-separating and remained within the Church of England; Separatists who left the Church of England altogether were numerically much fewer. Fragmentation and political failure [ edit ] The Puritan movement in England was riven over decades by emigration and inconsistent interpretations of Scripture, as well as some political differences that surfaced at that time. The Fifth Monarchy Men, a radical millenarian wing of Puritanism, aided by strident, popular clergy like Vavasor Powell, agitated from the right wing of the movement, even as sectarian groups like the Ranters, Levellers, and Quakers pulled from the left.[17][18] The fragmentation created a collapse of the centre and, ultimately, sealed a political failure, while depositing an enduring spiritual legacy that would remain and grow in English-speaking Christianity.[19] The Westminster Assembly was called in 1643, assembling clergy of the Church of England. The Assembly was able to agree to the Westminster Confession of Faith doctrinally, a consistent Reformed theological position. The Directory of Public Worship was made official in 1645, and the larger framework (now called the Westminster Standards) was adopted by the Church of Scotland. In England, the Standards were contested by Independents up to 1660.[20] The Westminster Divines, on the other hand, were divided over questions of church polity and split into factions supporting a reformed episcopacy, presbyterianism, congregationalism, and Erastianism. The membership of the Assembly was heavily weighted towards the Presbyterians, but Oliver Cromwell was a Puritan and an independent Congregationalist separatist who imposed his doctrines upon them. The Church of England of the Interregnum (1649–60) was run along Presbyterian lines but never became a national Presbyterian church, such as existed in Scotland, and England was not the theocratic state which leading Puritans had called for as "godly rule".[21] Great Ejection and Dissenters [ edit ] At the time of the English Restoration in 1660, the Savoy Conference was called to determine a new religious settlement for England and Wales. Under the Act of Uniformity 1662, the Church of England was restored to its pre-Civil War constitution with only minor changes, and the Puritans found themselves sidelined. A traditional estimate of historian Calamy is that around 2,400 Puritan clergy left the Church in the "Great Ejection" of 1662.[22] At this point, the term "Dissenter" came to include "Puritan", but more accurately described those (clergy or lay) who "dissented" from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.[23] The Dissenters divided themselves from all Christians in the Church of England and established their own separatist congregations in the 1660s and 1670s. An estimated 1,800 of the ejected clergy continued in some fashion as ministers of religion, according to Richard Baxter.[22] The government initially attempted to suppress these schismatic organisations by using the Clarendon Code. There followed a period in which schemes of "comprehension" were proposed, under which Presbyterians could be brought back into the Church of England, but nothing resulted from them. The Whigs opposed the court religious policies and argued that the Dissenters should be allowed to worship separately from the established Church, and this position ultimately prevailed when the Toleration Act was passed in the wake of the Glorious Revolution in 1689. This permitted the licensing of Dissenting ministers and the building of chapels. The term "Nonconformist" generally replaced the term "Dissenter" from the middle of the 18th century. Puritans in North America [ edit ] Some Puritans left for New England, particularly in the years after 1630, supporting the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and other settlements among the northern colonies. The large-scale Puritan immigration to New England ceased by 1641, with around 21,000 having moved across the Atlantic. This English-speaking population in America did not all consist of original colonists, since many returned to England shortly after arriving on the continent, but it produced more than 16 million descendants.[24][25] This so-called "Great Migration" is not so named because of sheer numbers, which were much less than the number of English citizens who immigrated to Virginia and the Caribbean during this time.[26] The rapid growth of the New England colonies (around 700,000 by 1790) was almost entirely due to the high birth rate and lower death rate per year.[27] Puritan hegemony lasted for at least a century. That century can be broken down into three parts: the generation of John Cotton and Richard Mather, 1630–62 from the founding to the Restoration, years of virtual independence and nearly autonomous development; the generation of Increase Mather, 1662–89 from the Restoration and the Halfway Covenant to the Glorious Revolution, years of struggle with the British crown; and the generation of Cotton Mather, 1689–1728 from the overthrow of Edmund Andros (in which Cotton Mather played a part) and the new charter, mediated by Increase Mather, to the death of Cotton Mather.[28] Beliefs [ edit ] Calvinism [ edit ] Puritanism broadly refers to a diverse religious reform movement in Britain committed to the continental Reformed tradition.[29] While Puritans did not agree on all doctrinal points, most shared similar views on the nature of God, human sinfulness, and the relationship between God and mankind. They believed that all of their beliefs should be based on the Bible, which they considered to be divinely inspired.[30] The concept of covenant was extremely important to Puritans, and covenant theology was central to their beliefs. With roots in the writings of Reformed theologians John Calvin and Heinrich Bullinger, covenant theology was further developed by Puritan theologians Dudley Fenner, William Perkins, John Preston, Richard Sibbes, William Ames and, most fully by Ames's Dutch student, Johannes Cocceius. Covenant theology asserts that when God created Adam and Eve he promised them eternal life in return for perfect obedience; this promise was termed the covenant of works. After the fall of man, human nature was corrupted by original sin and unable to fulfill the covenant of works, since each person inevitably violated God's law as expressed in the Ten Commandments. As sinners, every person deserved damnation. Puritans shared with other Calvinists a belief in double predestination, that some people (the elect) were destined by God to receive grace and salvation while others were destined for Hell. No one, however, could merit salvation. According to covenant theology, Christ's sacrifice on the cross made possible the covenant of grace, by which those selected by God could be saved. Puritans believed in unconditional election and irresistible grace—God's grace was given freely without condition to the elect and could not be refused. Conversion [ edit ] Covenant theology made individual salvation deeply personal. It held that God's predestination was not "impersonal and mechanical" but was a "covenant of grace" that one entered into by faith. Therefore, being a Christian could never be reduced to simple "intellectual acknowledgment" of the truth of Christianity. Puritans agreed "that the effectual call of each elect saint of God would always come as an individuated personal encounter with God's promises". The process by which the elect are brought from spiritual death to spiritual life (regeneration) was described as conversion. Early on, Puritans did not consider a specific conversion experience normative or necessary, but many gained assurance of salvation from such experiences. Over time, however, Puritan theologians developed a framework for authentic religious experience based on their own experiences as well as those of their parishioners. Eventually, Puritans came to regard a specific conversion experience as an essential mark of one's election. The Puritan conversion experience was commonly described as occurring in discrete phases. It began with a preparatory phase designed to produce contrition for sin through introspection, Bible study and listening to preaching. This was followed by humiliation, when the sinner realized that he or she was helpless to break free from sin and that their good works could never earn forgiveness. It was after reaching this point—the realization that salvation was possible only because of divine mercy—that the person would experience justification, when the righteousness of Christ is imputed to the elect and their minds and hearts are regenerated. For some Puritans, this was a dramatic experience and they referred to it as being born again. Confirming that such a conversion had actually happened often required prolonged and continual introspection. Historian Perry Miller wrote that the Puritans "liberated men from the treadmill of indulgences and penances, but cast them on the iron couch of introspection". It was expected that conversion would be followed by sanctification—"the progressive growth in the saint's ability to better perceive and seek God's will, and thus to lead a holy life". Some Puritans attempted to find assurance of their faith by keeping detailed records of their behavior and looking for the evidence of salvation in their lives. Puritan clergy wrote many spiritual guides to help their parishioners pursue personal piety and sanctification. These included Arthur Dent's The Plain Man's Pathway to Heaven (1601), Richard Rogers's Seven Treatises (1603), Henry Scudder's Christian's Daily Walk (1627) and Richard Sibbes's The Bruised Reed and Smoking Flax (1630). Too much emphasis on one's good works could be criticized for being too close to Arminianism, and too much emphasis on subjective religious experience could be criticized as Antinomianism. Many Puritans relied on both personal religious experience and self-examination to assess their spiritual condition. Puritanism's experiential piety would be inherited by the evangelical Protestants of the 18th century. While evangelical views on conversion were heavily influenced by Puritan theology, the Puritans believed that assurance of one's salvation was "rare, late and the fruit of struggle in the experience of believers", whereas evangelicals believed that assurance was normative for all the truly converted.[40] Worship and sacraments [ edit ] The sermon was central to Puritan public worship. The sermon was not only a means of religious education; Puritans believed it was the most common way that God prepared a sinner's heart for conversion. Puritans eliminated choral music and musical instruments in their religious services because these were associated with Roman Catholicism; however, settings of the Psalms were considered appropriate. Church organs were commonly damaged or destroyed in the Civil War period, such as when an axe was taken to the organ of Worcester Cathedral in 1642.[43] Puritans taught that there were two sacraments: baptism and the Lord's Supper. They rejected confirmation as unnecessary.[44] Puritans unanimously rejected the Roman Catholic doctrine of baptismal regeneration, but they disagreed among themselves on the effects of baptism and its relationship to regeneration. Most Puritans practiced infant baptism, but a minority held credobaptist beliefs. Those who baptized infants understood it through the lens of covenant theology, believing that baptism had replaced circumcision as a sign of the covenant and marked a child's admission into the visible church. In "A Discourse on the Nature of Regeneration", Stephen Charnock distinguished regeneration from "external baptism" writing that baptism "confers not grace" but rather is a means of conveying the grace of regeneration only "when the [Holy] Spirit is pleased to operate with it". Therefore, one cannot assume that baptism produces regeneration. The Westminster Confession states that the grace of baptism is only effective for those who are among the elect; however, its effects are not tied to the moment of baptism but lies dormant until one experiences conversion later in life.[45] Puritans rejected both Roman Catholic (transubstantiation) and Lutheran (sacramental union) teachings that Christ is physically present in the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper. Instead, Puritans embraced the Reformed doctrine of real spiritual presence, believing that in the Lord's Supper the faithful receive Christ spiritually. In agreement with Thomas Cranmer, the Puritans stressed "that Christ comes down to us in the sacrament by His Word and Spirit, offering Himself as our spiritual food and drink". Ecclesiology [ edit ] While the Puritans were united in their goal of furthering the English Reformation, they were always divided over issues of ecclesiology and church polity, specifically questions relating to the manner of organizing congregations, how individual congregations should relate with one another and whether established national churches were scriptural. On these questions, Puritans divided between supporters of episcopal polity, presbyterian polity and congregational polity. The episcopalians (known as the prelatical party) were conservatives who supported retaining bishops if those leaders supported reform and agreed to share power with local churches. They also supported the idea of having a Book of Common Prayer, but they were against demanding strict conformity or having too much ceremony. In addition, these Puritans called for a renewal of preaching, pastoral care and Christian discipline within the Church of England. Like the episcopalians, the presbyterians agreed that there should be a national church but one structured on the model of the Church of Scotland. They wanted to replace bishops with a system of elective and representative governing bodies of clergy and laity (local sessions, presbyteries, synods, and ultimately a national general assembly). During the Interregnum, the presbyterians had limited success at reorganizing the Church of England. The Westminster Assembly proposed the creation of a presbyterian system, but the Long Parliament left implementation to local authorities. As a result, the Church of England never developed a complete presbyterian hierarchy. Congregationalists or Independents believed in the autonomy of the local church, which ideally would be a congregation of "visible saints" (meaning those who had experienced conversion). Members would be required to abide by a church covenant, in which they "pledged to join in the proper worship of God and to nourish each other in the search for further religious truth". Such churches were regarded as complete within themselves, with full authority to determine their own membership, administer their own discipline and ordain their own ministers. Furthermore, the sacraments would only be administered to those in the church covenant. Most congregational Puritans remained within the Church of England, hoping to reform it according to their own views. The New England Congregationalists were also adamant that they were not separating from the Church of England. However, some Puritans equated the Church of England with the Roman Catholic Church, and therefore considered it no Christian church at all. These groups, such as the Brownists, would split from the established church and become known as Separatists. Other Separatists embraced more radical positions on separation of church and state and believer's baptism, becoming early Baptists. Family life [ edit ] The Snake in the Grass or Satan Transform'd to an Angel of Light, title page engraved by, title page engraved by Richard Gaywood, ca. 1660 Based on Biblical portrayals of Adam and Eve, Puritans believed that marriage was rooted in procreation, love, and, most importantly, salvation.[51] Husbands were the spiritual heads of the household, while women were to demonstrate religious piety and obedience under male authority.[52] Furthermore, marriage represented not only the relationship between husband and wife, but also the relationship between spouses and God. Puritan husbands commanded authority through family direction and prayer. The female relationship to her husband and to God was marked by submissiveness and humility.[53] Thomas Gataker describes Puritan marriage as: ... together for a time as copartners in grace here, [that] they may reigne together forever as coheires in glory hereafter.[54] The paradox created by female inferiority in the public sphere and the spiritual equality of men and women in marriage, then, gave way to the informal authority of women concerning matters of the home and childrearing.[55] With the consent of their husbands, wives made important decisions concerning the labour of their children, property, and the management of inns and taverns owned by their husbands.[56] Pious Puritan mothers laboured for their children's righteousness and salvation, connecting women directly to matters of religion and morality.[57] In her poem titled "In Reference to her Children", poet Anne Bradstreet reflects on her role as a mother: I had eight birds hatched in one nest; Four cocks there were, and hens the rest. I nursed them up with pain and care, Nor cost nor labour I did spare. Bradstreet alludes to the temporality of motherhood by comparing her children to a flock of birds on the precipice of leaving home. While Puritans praised the obedience of young children, they also believed that, by separating children from their mothers at adolescence, children could better sustain a superior relationship with God.[58] A child could only be redeemed through religious education and obedience. Girls carried the additional burden of Eve's corruption and were catechised separately from boys at adolescence. Boys' education prepared them for vocations and leadership roles, while girls were educated for domestic and religious purposes. The pinnacle of achievement for children in Puritan society, however, occurred with the conversion process.[57] Puritans viewed the relationship between master and servant similarly to that of parent and child. Just as parents were expected to uphold Puritan religious values in the home, masters assumed the parental responsibility of housing and educating young servants. Older servants also dwelt with masters and were cared for in the event of illness or injury. African-American and Indian servants were likely excluded from such benefits.[59] Demonology and witch hunts [ edit ] Like most Christians in the early modern period, Puritans believed in the active existence of the devil and demons as evil forces that could possess and cause harm to men and women. There was also widespread belief in witchcraft and witches—persons in league with the devil. "Unexplained phenomena such as the death of livestock, human disease, and hideous fits suffered by young and old" might all be blamed on the agency of the devil or a witch. Puritan pastors undertook exorcisms for demonic possession in some high-profile cases. Exorcist John Darrell was supported by Arthur Hildersham in the case of Thomas Darling.[61] Samuel Harsnett, a skeptic on witchcraft and possession, attacked Darrell. However, Harsnett was in the minority, and many clergy, not only Puritans, believed in witchcraft and possession.[62] In the 16th and 17th centuries, thousands of people throughout Europe were accused of being witches and executed. In England and America, Puritans engaged in witch hunts as well. In the 1640s, Matthew Hopkins, the self-proclaimed "Witchfinder General", was responsible for accusing over two hundred people of witchcraft, mainly in East Anglia. In New England, few people were accused and convicted of witchcraft before 1692; there were at most sixteen convictions. The Salem witch trials of 1692 had a lasting impact on the historical reputation of New England Puritans. Though this witch hunt occurred after Puritans lost political control of the Massachusetts colony, Puritans instigated the judicial proceedings against the accused and comprised the members of the court that convicted and sentenced the accused. By the time Governor William Phips ended the trials, fourteen women and five men had been hanged as witches. Millennialism [ edit ] Puritan millennialism has been placed in the broader context of European Reformed beliefs about the millennium and interpretation of biblical prophecy, for which representative figures of the period were Johannes Piscator, Thomas Brightman, Joseph Mede, Johannes Heinrich Alsted, and John Amos Comenius.[65] Like most English Protestants of the time, Puritans based their eschatological views on an historicist interpretation of the Book of Revelation and the Book of Daniel. Protestant theologians identified the sequential phases the world must pass through before the Last Judgment could occur and tended to place their own time period near the end. It was expected that tribulation and persecution would increase but eventually the church's enemies—the Antichrist (identified with the Roman Catholic Church) and the Ottoman Empire—would be defeated.[66] Based on Revelation 20, it was believed that a thousand year period (the millennium) would occur, during which the saints would rule with Christ on earth. In contrast to other Protestants who tended to view eschatology as an explanation for "God's remote plans for the world and man", Puritans understood it to describe "the cosmic environment in which the regenerate soldier of Christ was now to do battle against the power of sin". On a personal level, eschatology was related to sanctification, assurance of salvation, and the conversion experience. On a larger level, eschatology was the lens through which events such as the English Civil War and the Thirty Years' War were interpreted. There was also an optimistic aspect to Puritan millennianism; Puritans anticipated a future worldwide religious revival before the Second Coming of Christ. Another departure from other Protestants was the widespread belief among Puritans that the conversion of the Jews to Christianity was an important sign of the apocalypse. David Brady describes a "lull before the storm"[further explanation needed] in the early 17th century, in which "reasonably restrained and systematic" Protestant exegesis of the Book of Revelation was seen with Brightman, Mede, and Hugh Broughton, after which "apocalyptic literature became too easily debased" as it became more populist and less scholarly.[71][further explanation needed] William Lamont argues that, within the church, the Elizabethan millennial beliefs of John Foxe became sidelined, with Puritans adopting instead the "centrifugal" doctrines of Thomas Brightman, while the Laudians replaced the "centripetal" attitude of Foxe to the "Christian Emperor" by the national and episcopal Church closer to home, with its royal head, as leading the Protestant world iure divino (by divine right).[72][jargon] Viggo Norskov Olsen writes that Mede "broke fully away from the Augustinian-Foxian tradition, and is the link between Brightman and the prem
x to the playground so I can look good for the other mommies. And the cute stay-at-home Dad, of course.' The blog was set up by Julia Fierro, a mother and author, to mark the release of her new book Cutting Teeth, about the worries of midlife parents in which a group of thirty-somethings gather with their children in a beach house on Long Island. Speaking to Mail Online, she said: 'I think the blog has really confirmed a lot about parenting for me. It shows that it's this really heightened time in people's lives. 'The joy is so extreme and so is the frustration because you're often dealing with a very demanding little person. 'You can really tell, I think, when people are enjoying the humour of what they're posting, or when they're lifting a weight from their shoulders. 'I hoped it would be a place for people, whether they're parents or not, to enjoying all the emotions that come along with raising children.' Insecurities: In another set of posts, two worried parents reveal their darker moments. One admits letting her's get the better of her, while another confesses to treating their own mother badlyAs almost everybody is now aware, this happened over the weekend: Two uniformed NYPD officers were shot dead Saturday afternoon as they sat in their marked police car on a Brooklyn street corner — in what investigators believe was a crazed gunman’s ­assassination-style mission to avenge Eric Garner and Michael Brown. “No warning, no provocation — they were quite simply assassinated, targeted for their uniform,” Police Commissioner William Bratton said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This, it should go without saying, was an abomination. But I must respectfully disagree with those who have taken to suggesting that, because this happened after some fractious anti-police protests, those protestors now have “blood on their hands.” Certainly, we have seen a fringe element within recent demonstrations, and one that has behaved in an unhelpful and a grotesque manner. Whatever one’s view of the police writ large, to call for the execution of individual officers is uncivilized and it is dumb, and it deserves to invite strict condemnation on the grounds of taste alone. If anybody started talking about “dead cops” near me, I would of course leave rather quickly. As Mrs. Thatcher once put it: “No, no, no.” That being said, the suggestion that those who chanted these words somehow “caused” or are “culpable” for the actions of a killer strikes me as a real stretch — as, for that matter, does the proposition that “anti-police protestors” bear some sort of collective “responsibility” for what happened on Saturday. Unless I am very much mistaken, nobody who chanted their death-wishes proposed any concrete action whatsoever. Nobody singled out a target or discussed tactics or agreed to return later with weapons. Nobody established a training camp or organized a rendezvous point or planted a bomb. Indeed, nobody did anything much at all. As is now clear, there were no ”mobs” or “groups of rioters” involved in the murders at all. Rather, some members within a group of peaceful protestors said something terrible (if abstract), and a troubled man in another locale went on a killing spree. Were these two events in some way correlated? Perhaps, yes. There is no doubt that the man intended to target cops in New York. But can we establish causation, or even blame? Nope. All told, those of us who value robust free expression should be extremely reluctant to so casually transmute “there may have been a vague connection between these words and these actions” into “those who spoke the most forcefully are morally culpable and their entire movement should be shunned in consequence.” This latter approach was preposterous back when Sarah Palin was blamed for the shooting of Gabby Giffords. It was bizarre when the shooting at the Family Research Council was blamed on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s (sophomoric) “hate map.” It was farcical when the Isla Vista shooting was blamed on “white privilege” and “rape culture.” It was ridiculous when Timothy McVeigh was blamed on “militias” or on talk radio. And it is wrong in this case, too. Words, as ever, do not pull triggers, however harsh those words may be. Advertisement Advertisement Now, I will accept that, in this instance, those words were significantly more direct than is usual. In the case of Giffords, hyperventilating commentators were reduced to relying upon inchoate notions such as “the climate” and “the national temperature”; here, by contrast, they can point to a direct expression of desire. (“What do we want?” some of the protesters sang, “Dead Cops. When do we want it? Now.”) And yet, as clear as that wish is, I’m still not sure that one can apportion blame to its promulgators. I can sound “seditious” from time to time, as can a good number other figures in the media and in politics in general. A few weeks ago, I suggested on Twitter that tarring and feathering public officials wouldn’t be so bad, and I have proposed before that if the likes of Sam Adams were faced with our current Leviathan he would probably have started a revolt. My colleague Kevin Williamson, meanwhile, has confessed that his heart would probably ”leap at the sight of Americans setting fire to a tax office”; and argued, too, that Cliven Bundy’s act of resistance made perfectly the “case for a little sedition.” For better or for worse, these are not uncommon sentiments in the United States. Arguendo, suppose that a crazy person were to read any of these sentences and to act upon them. Could Kevin or I honestly be said to be “responsible”? I would suggest that we could not — at least, not unless we are happy to blame faraway speakers for the actions of deranged individuals. It is one thing for a speaker within a crowd to actively spur that crowd on to lawbreaking and to violence, but it is quite another for a speaker to be blamed for the acts of those who were not even present. As we know, troubled individuals often pick up on currents within society and use them as justification for their misdeeds. Indeed, more often than not, if it’s not one thing it is another. For this reason, I have long been skeptical toward those who would blame entire movements or political philosophies for the actions of isolated individuals. Really, I see no reason to buck that trend here. Are those who call for the death of cops reprehensible? Yes, they are. Are their words unhelpful? Sure. But are they in any way to blame for what Ismaaiyl Brinsley did on Saturday afternoon? No, they are absolutely not.The discovery of a map drawn in 1861 may reignite a simmering territorial row between South Korea and Japan, and further damage bilateral relations that are already strained. The map was drawn by Korean cartographer and geologist Kim Jeong-ho and clearly marks the rocky islets that are known in South Korea today as Dokdo as being part of the kingdom of Korea. The map covers the Korean Peninsula and has Dokdo close to the island of Ulleung, off the east coast. Japan, however, has long disputed South Korean control over the inhospitable islands and insists they are an integral part of the Japanese archipelago. Tokyo says the islands should be known as Takeshima. Ironically, the map was in the collection of a Japanese national and had previously been in a library in Pyongyang. Serial numbers on the map show the date that it was obtained - August 30, 1932, when Japan was the colonial master of the peninsula - but little is known about its whereabouts in the intervening years. Japan has long disputed South Korean control over the inhospitable islands and insists they are an integral part of the Japanese archipelago Hailed as more proof The discovery has been reported in South Korean media and hailed as yet another piece of evidence that Dokdo - which have a detachment of armed police permanently stationed on them - are sovereign Korean territory. "All Koreans know that the islands are Korean and we are committed to protecting them," said Song Young-chae, a professor in the Center for Global Creation and Collaboration at Seoul's Sangmyung University. "There have been songs written about Dokdo and they have appeared on postage stamps, so they are constantly in our minds as being Korean," he told DW. "The Japanese claims to the islands have no basis in historic fact and we find it stunning that they continue to claim the islands as theirs," he added. According to Seoul's position on Dokdo, they only came under the control of Tokyo when Imperial Japan invaded the Korean Peninsula in 1910. The islands were then ceded to Shimane Prefecture, the closest part of mainland Japan, until Japan was defeated in World War II and surrendered in August 1945. The fine print of the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951 now becomes important in the dispute. South Korea says that early drafts of the agreement included Dokdo among the thousands of islands and parcels of territory that had been seized by Japan and were to be returned to their historic owners across Asia. By the sixth draft of the agreement, however, all the place names had become so cumbersome that for the sake of convenience only three major Korean islands were identified by name. And Seoul believes if the islands were being returned to their historic owners, then they are clearly Korean. Seeking settlement Supporting South Korea's claims are ancient descriptions of the islands being part of the Silla Dynasty in 512 AD as well as maps and documents - Korean, Japanese and those made by Western explorers - amassed by the Seoul-based Northeast Asian History Foundation. Arguably the most persuasive piece of evidence is a map produced as late as 1877 by Japan's Department of the Interior and which is held at the National Archives in Tokyo. The document shows that in a reply to a letter from the department to Japan's Great Council of State in March of that year, the council made it clear that Japan had no relationship with Dokdo. But in Tokyo, the government now brushes aside Seoul's claims and insists that the islands are an inherent part of Japanese territory, based entirely on historical facts and international law. An extensive section on the website of the Japanese foreign ministry states, "The Republic of Korea has been occupying Takeshima with no basis in international law. Any measures the Republic of Korea takes regarding Takeshima based on such illegal occupation have no legal justification. "Japan will continue to seek the settlement of the dispute over territorial sovereignty over Takeshima on the basis of international law in a calm and peaceful manner," it adds. To support its claim, Japan has proposed that the dispute be taken to the International Court of Justice in The Hague and that both sides be given the chance to stake their claims to the islands. Seoul has so far refused. Demands that South Korea return the islands to Japanese control are most vociferous in Shimane Prefecture, which is 211 kilometers to the south. Takeshima Day On February 22 every year, the prefecture marks Takeshima Day with a series of events that invariably attract nationalist politicians from Tokyo and, equally inevitably, attract criticism from South Korea. Hiromichi Moteki, acting chairman of the rightwing Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact, says the growing animosity toward Japan demonstrated by the administration of South Korean President Moon Jae-in is "not a normal human attitude." "I am not an expert on maps and I believe that careful analysis needs to be carried out to determine the accuracy of this newly discovered map," he said, but added that there has been a concerted campaign against Japan by the South Korean leadership that threatens to further harm the bilateral relationship. On February 22 every year, the Shimane Prefecture marks Takeshima Day with a series of events that invariably attract both nationalist politicians from Tokyo as well as criticism from South Korea One of the biggest areas of contention is the agreement signed in 2015 by the leaders of Japan that was designed to draw a final line under the issue of "comfort women," the women in occupied countries forced to work in brothels for Japanese troops. Since his election in May, Moon has overseen the creation of a panel to look into scrapping the agreement. "I would say that at present, this is the worst two-way relationship between Japan and South Korea that I have ever experienced," said Moteki. "And this map could make things even worse. I hope things will improve, but I fear that they will only get worse."Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Arlene Foster says that if attempts were made to alter papers it "wasn't on my say-so" Top DUP advisers "intervened" to prevent the closure of a catastrophic energy scheme that could cost taxpayers £400m, a former minister has alleged. Overgenerous offers of fuel subsidies meant the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme went vastly over-budget. Jonathan Bell, who succeeded Arlene Foster as minister at the department that set up the scheme, made the claim. Mrs Foster, Northern Ireland's first minister, has denied any wrongdoing in the so-called "cash-for-ash" scandal. The RHI scheme was set up by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (Deti) to encourage businesses and other non-domestic users to stop using fossil fuels and instead install renewable heating systems, mostly burning wood pellets. But the subsidies it paid out were far greater than the cost of the pellets, leaving the scheme open to abuse as claimants could earn more cash the more fuel they burned. One whistleblower has said that some applicants are in line to pocket as much as £1.5m over 20 years for heating empty sheds and factories. About £20m a year for the next two decades could be taken from the public purse to cover the overspend. 'Cleanse the record' In an exclusive interview with the BBC's Stephen Nolan, Mr Bell claimed that two senior DUP advisers "were not allowing this scheme to be closed" at the point when costs were spiralling out of control in autumn 2015. One of those, he said, was Timothy Johnston, who was advising then first minister and DUP leader Peter Robinson. The other was Dr Andrew Crawford, an aide at the Department of Finance and Personnel, which at that point was under the control of Mrs Foster, who now leads the party. Image copyright Thinkstock Image caption Taxpayers could face a £400m bill over 20 years to cover the RHI scheme's spending commitments According to former enterprise minister Mr Bell, the advisers, who deny the allegations against them, secretly tried to "cleanse the record" of references to Mrs Foster. Those alleged attempts to alter the papers were made "without my knowledge, without my consent", Mr Bell said, and were revealed to him by a senior Deti civil servant. An email trail exists to prove the claim, he said. And the two most senior civil servants in the department are prepared to put evidence of the interference "formally on the record in an inquiry", he added. 'Documented email trail' Mr Bell also claimed that Mrs Foster was "hostile", "abusive" and "highly agitated" when she "overruled" his move to finally close the botched scheme early this year. He said the first minister owes the people of Northern Ireland an apology, and he called for a full public inquiry. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Arlene Foster says Jonathan Bell "used his physical bulk" during their confrontation However, the first minister said Mr Bell "took all the decisions" and insisted that she would not stand down from her role. When Mrs Foster was enterprise minister, a whistleblower raised concerns about the flaw in the RHI scheme, but they were ignored by Deti officials. Mrs Foster has since said that civil servants did not tell her of any issues arising from the whistleblower's alert. Analysis: Mark Devenport, BBC News NI political editor "Cui bono?" The old Latin question about who stands to gain needs to be asked again and again. While the blame game is necessary and inevitable, no-one must lose sight of the fact that Stormont is committed to paying out for this scheme for the next 20 years. Those contracts must be re-examined in order to see if the "too good to be true" deal can be renegotiated. Read Mark's blog on the 'cash-for-ash' scandal fallout here Mr Bell said he wanted the scheme to be amended from 1 October last year to reduce the subsidy rate. That came after Deti permanent secretary Dr Andrew McCormick told him there was "significant concern" that its costs would soon become unsustainable. But Mr Bell said: "I was then informed by my special adviser in the department that other DUP [advisers] were not allowing this scheme to be closed. "I believe my officials when they tell me there is a documented email trail, which shows an attempt - behind my back, without the knowledge of the minister of the department - to cleanse the record." He said that, given the severity of the issue, he wrote to Mrs Foster, the DUP's deputy leader Nigel Dodds and Lord Morrow, the party's chairman, to tell them of his concerns. Crucially, the initiative's lucrative tariff offer remained in place for almost another seven weeks, until mid-November 2015. During that period, there was a spike in applications to the RHI scheme - 429 in October and 452 in November. The approved applications during those two months are expected to drain the public purse of £485m. 'Took the decision' But Mrs Foster said no-one from from the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister intervened to keep the lucrative scheme open and nor did she as finance minister. "What I do understand is that advisers, of course, will advise but the minister takes the decision," Mrs Foster said. She accused Mr Bell of "trying to distract from the fact that he took the decision". Mr Johnston and Dr Crawford said they never sought to keep the RHI scheme open against the wishes of the minister, adding that their roles were simply "to offer advice" and not to "influence any decision". Dr Crawford acknowledged that his brother is a director of a company that availed of the scheme. In January, the Treasury told the Northern Ireland Executive that it would not foot the bill for Stormont's enormous overspend on the RHI scheme. Mr Bell said he was told by Dr McCormick, his top civil servant, that the scheme must immediately be halted. The former minister told the BBC: "In fact, what [Dr McCormick] said to me was: 'You have to close the scheme and I'm no longer prepared to deal with these outside influences - I'm putting this on the record to you.' "[Dr McCormick] said to me: 'If you want me to continue the scheme as your principal civil servant you must issue me with a ministerial directive.'" 'Advisers dropped heads' But Mr Bell suggested that during a confrontational meeting with Mrs Foster, which he claimed was witnessed by three of the DUP's top advisers, she ordered him to keep it running for a further two weeks. "In the strongest terms, both in volume and force, Arlene Foster, as first minister, overruled me and told me to keep the scheme open," he said. "To be fair, I was fairly strongly telling her back: 'No.' "I will never break the law, and if I'm not prepared to do it I'm certainly not prepared to instruct somebody else to do it." Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Arlene Foster was "highly agitated" when Jonathan Bell tried close the RHI scheme, he says He said he "turned to the special advisers" - Mr Johnston, Stephen Brimstone and Richard Bullick - and asked them: "What on earth are you thinking of now reopening [the scheme]?' "They sat and dropped their heads, they had no answers to me." Mr Brimstone and Mr Bullick said they did not witness the exchange between the ministers. Mr Brimstone, who left his job as an adviser to Mrs Foster last month, confirmed to the BBC that he was a claimant of the scheme. But he added that his installation has been inspected by auditors, who have given him "written confirmation... that they are satisfied" it is compliant with the scheme's regulations. 'Intimidated and bullied' Mrs Foster also contested Jonathan Bell's version of events, and said that instead of proposing an immediate closure of the scheme Mr Bell wanted it to end in March this year, a date that she deemed to be too late. He was then advised to bring it forward, she added, but he became "very aggressive with me" when his decision to cease it immediately was refused because it was believed it could lead to legal challenges from applicants "still in the system". Image copyright Tchara Image caption The RHI scheme offered claimants £1.60 for every £1 of fuel they burned "He came in and used his physical bulk to stand over me in quite an aggressive way," Mrs Foster said. "The Jonathan Bell that appears [in the BBC interview] is not a Jonathan Bell that would be familiar to many of his political colleagues, to many of his civil servants that he worked with in the department or to many in the business community. "I have many female colleagues who have felt intimidated and felt bullied over the years - I certainly did on that occasion." The RHI scheme continued for two more weeks after the confrontation between Mr Bell and Mrs Foster. The first minister hopes that more than half of the scheme's projected £400m cost to the Northern Ireland budget can be saved, with the executive working on a "very substantial plan" to deal with the issue. "A mark of a politician is not in good times, it's in challenging times," she said. "I'm determined, while others walk away, to make sure that we find a solution to all of this. "I owe it to the people of Northern Ireland, and I take my duties and responsibilities as first minister very, very seriously."The Senators’ appearance in an outdoor game this spring at B.C. Place won’t be their last. NHL chief operating officer John Collins, the man who has helped spearhead the success of the stadium games, confirmed Monday the Senators will get an outdoor game in Ottawa. The Heritage Classic is coming to the national capital, likely in 2017 at the newly-built Lansdowne Live against the Montreal Canadiens. That year is Canada’s 150th birthday, the 125th anniversary of the Stanley Cup, the 100th anniversary of the NHL and the Senators 25th year in the league. "Ottawa is going to get one," said Collins. "It’s a great market. We had a great all-star experience (in 2012). It’s just a matter of picking a date to commit to it." Collins said the Senators aren’t the only Canadian team that wants an outdoor game. The Leafs and Habs have both put in requests. The league will host six games outside this year. "There have a been a number of clubs in a number of markets that have expressed interest in hosting a game," said Collins. "Ottawa is one, Toronto is one, Montreal, all these (teams) have not held a game in their market. They want to know how quickly they can host one. That’s one of the reason why we’re doing more than one or two games a year. It makes sense." bruce.garrioch@sunmedia.ca Twitter: @sungarriochNirvana’s third, final, and arguably best album, In Utero, turns 20 this September. Naturally, Universal Records is celebrating the momentous anniversary with a robust reissue of the 1993 classic. On September 24, the label will unveil a “Super Deluxe Edition” box set featuring more than 70 (!!!) remixed, remastered, rare, unreleased, and live recordings. We know one college mascot who’s counting the days. In Utero will be reborn in a number of different configurations, including a standard digital/CD remaster, a triple-vinyl LP set, and a four-disc version that comes with three CDs and a single DVD. According to an official announcement, fans can expect “a veritable treasure trove of never-before-heard demos, B-sides, compilation tracks, and live material featuring the final touring lineup of [Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, Dave Grohl], and Pat Smear.” The upcoming birthday package also marks the long-awaited release of Nirvana’s complete MTV Live and Loud show, recorded at Seattle’s Pier 48 on December 13, 1993. A stand-alone DVD release of the Live and Loud gig will also arrive on September 24. Track listings for the various formats have yet to be revealed. The impending re-release was confirmed a few weeks back, when Universal dug up an old commercial for In Utero dating back to 1993. Watch the ad, which stars Bobcat Goldthwait in drag, below. And be sure to check out SPIN’s extensive Nirvana coverage, including our recent feature, No Alternative: 40 Hard-Rock Songs That Nirvana Couldn’t Kill.'Tonight the streets are filled with love': Royal family and prime minister lead the nation in mourning as crowd of 150,000 gather in Oslo for 'rose march' tribute to Norway's dead Advertisement More than 150,000 Norwegians gathered in Oslo last night carrying red and white roses to show their support for the 76 people who were slain on Friday. Joining them in the 'rose rally' were Norway’s prime minister Jens Stoltenberg, his wife Ingrid, and members of the country’s royal family - Crown Prince Haakon and his wife Princess Mette-Marit and Princess Martha Louise. Prince Haakon addressed the solemn crowd outside the city hall, saying that ‘tonight the streets are filled with love'. Rallies were also held in other cities around the nation. Tribute: Over 150,000 people gathered in Oslo to take part in a 'rose march' vigil to mourn the 76 people who were killed on Friday's twin attacks Unity: The streets of Oslo were turned into a sea of flowers by those attending the memorial march Bond: Prince Haakon and Princess Mette-Marit stood among the crowds during the demonstration as a mark of unity Pain: Princess Mette-Marit, right, and Princess Martha Louise pay their emotional respects during the rose march Distraught: Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and his wife Ingrid joined the vast crowed taking part in the rally Dressed all in black, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg led the nation in its solemn vigil, standing on the steps of Oslo university next to a flame. Leading the nation: Norway's royal family and prime minister stood shoulder to shoulder with their people Mr Stoltenberg greets members of the public standing in line to sign a book of condolence in Oslo University, which King Harald also signed before taking part in the minute's silence Untold grief: People pay their respects at a sea of floral tributes to the victims of Friday's attacks, outside the cathedral of Oslo Spirit of togetherness: Tearful mourners embrace as Norway begins to come to terms with the terror attacks, which claims the lives of dozens of innocent people A muffled ripple of applause spread through the crowd as King Harald arrived at Oslo University to sign a book of remembrance, before he and the prime minister faced the crowd standing hushed in the summer drizzle. 'In remembrance of the victims... I declare one minute's national silence,' Mr Stoltenberg said, flanked by Norway's king and queen outside the neo-classical building. The silence stretched to five minutes as thousands stood outside the university and around a carpet of flowers laid outside the nearby Oslo cathedral. The only sound was the squawking of seagulls and a lone dog barking. Cars stopped in the streets and their drivers got out and stood motionless as traffic lights changed from red to green. Mass murderer Anders Breivik today appeared in court after he planted a bomb on Friday outside Stoltenberg's Oslo office which killed eight, then drove to the island of Utoeya and shot dead 68 at a youth camp of the ruling Labour Party. Solemn: A couple stand in central Oslo as they observe a minute's silence to pay tribute to victims of the twin attacks International support: British scouts observe a minute of silence on the Town Square in Copenhagen, in memory of the victims of last Friday's attacks in Norwa A people in mourning: Thousands observe a minute's silence near the Blue Stone in Bergen Life savers: Volunteers from the Red Cross and other organisations stand to attention during a one-minute period of silence at noon near Utoya island Deep sadness: Members of the public lay flowers opposite Utoya Island Hurt: Relatives gather to observe a minute's silence opposite Utoya Island BRITISH FATHER TELLS HOW LAST MINUTE DECISION SAVED HIS SON FROM SUMMER CAMP MASSACRE A British father has told how a last minute decision saved his son from the Norweigan summer camp massacre. Offshore worker Bob Davies, originally from Stockton-on-Tees, settled in Norway after marrying a local woman. Mr Davies's son Stian, 16, pictured above, had been due to take part in the event with two friends from their village of Askxy, near Bergen, but opted to go to a badminton camp instead. His classmates who attended the summer camp on the island of Utoya were among Anders Breivik's victims. Mr Davies, 63, said Stian is struggling to come to terms with the horrific events. 'He's very down,' said Mr Davies. 'I thank God he decided not to go - he could easily have been one of them. It just makes me shiver thinking about it.' Scores of bodies with gunshot wounds were found strewn across the island. More victims were discovered in the nearby waters after they had desperately tried to swim to safety. 'I just thank my lucky stars he changed his mind about going,' said Mr Davies. He told the court he slaughtered his victims to save Europe from Marxists and a takeover by Muslims. The current death toll stands at 76 after police revised down their estimates, but many more are still missing. His court appearance, which took place behind closed doors, lasted just 35 minutes during which a judge ruled he should be initially remanded in custody for eight weeks. Nordic neighbours Sweden, Finland and Denmark also held official minute's silences in remembrance of the mainly young people Breivik murdered. Among the crowd assembled in Oslo, people spoke of their distress and horror at the atrocities which gripped the usually peaceful nation. Shortly before the silence, mechanic Sven-Erik Fredheim, 36, said: 'This is a tragic event to see all these young people dying due to one man's craziness. 'It is important to have this minute of silence so that all the victims and the parents of the families know that people are thinking about them.' Kent Udvigsen, 42, who came to central Oslo to stand with his countrymen, said: 'This is so very, very sad, so sad.' Anetta Ronningen, 32, a teacher, said: 'This minute of silence was needed for the dead and the families. 'This will be a significant day for Norway in the future, for the people and the families after this horrible thing that happened.' Signs of normality began to return to Oslo this afternoon. A wide police cordon around the bomb site was lifted on the first workday since the attacks, leaving just a narrower zone closed off. Most shops were open and trams were rumbling through the city's streets. But the flag on the courthouse where Breivik appeared remained at half staff, and the world's media was buzzing around the building. The search for more victims continues and police have not released the names of the dead. But Norway's royal court said Monday that those killed at the island retreat included Crown Princess Mette-Marit's stepbrother, an off-duty police officer, who was working there as a security guard.Report Gives Graphic Details of Guantanamo Force-Feeding WASHINGTON, Jul 12 2013 (IPS) - “Bleeding”, “vomiting”, “a quarter or even a third” of bodyweight lost, “torture”. These are characteristic descriptions from testimony by hunger strikers at the detention centre at Guantanamo Bay of their experience being force-fed at the hands of U.S. officials, published in a report released Thursday. The report, produced by Reprieve, a U.K.-based legal assistance and advocacy group that is representing more than a dozen of the Guantanamo prisoners, collates testimonies from the prisoners’ unclassified letters, calls and discussions with attorneys. “It diminishes the standing of the U.S. in the world that we don’t follow the established ethics of the medical profession." -- Dr. Scott Allen of Physicians for Human Rights The views “from the inside” presented in these descriptions are extremely disturbing, and advocates say they raise serious questions concerning the United States’ commitment to human rights. “From a medical standpoint, the force-feeding of a competent hunger striker is a serious violation of ethics,” Dr. Scott Allen, a medical advisor to the advocacy group Physicians for Human Rights, told IPS. Allen spent seven years as a physician working within the U.S. prison system, during which time he dealt with hunger strikers. He points out that force-feeding is counter to the standards of the World Medical Association. Further, those standards have been accepted by the American Medical Association, which has expressed opposition to the practices at Guantanamo Bay. There are currently some 140 U.S medical personnel tasked with carrying out the force-feedings that are being done to 45 hunger strikers at the detention centre. More than 100 detainees are currently on a hunger strike that has gone on since February, in protest of what they view as their indefinite detention. The accounts from inmates in the Reprieve report indicate that U.S. practices go even beyond the concerns expressed by Allen and the associations he mentions. Some of the accounts describe forcible cell extractions (FCEs), as the procedure of physically removing prisoners from their cells and subjecting them to force-feeding is officially known. The U.S. military has claimed that strikers “present themselves daily, calmly, in a totally cooperative way, to be fed through a tube”. Prisoner accounts of FCEs contradict that claim, however. “They wanted me to undergo tests and, when I refused, they called in the anti-riot [FCE] squad, who stormed into my hospital room,” Ahmed Belbacha, an Algerian detainee who was cleared for release in 2007, is cited in the report as saying. “They shackled my hands and feet to the bed and then force fed me intravenously for twenty-four hours.” Of the 166 detainees in Guantanamo, 86 have been cleared to be let free, but they remain held in the prison because of complications that have arisen in facilitating their releases. Another prisoner quoted by the report, Abu Wa’el Dhiab, a Syrian national who was cleared for release in 2009, explains in graphic detail the pain he has experienced as a result of being force-fed. “I vomited blood for three days. I had a very strong cough and felt that my throat was injured,” Dhiab recounts. “[A] while ago they broke a rib in my chest. After it healed, the FCE again broke the same rib. It happened over and over again and the injury gets worse.” Transcriptions of Torture: Prisoner testimonies “I will never forget the first time they passed the feeding tube up my nose. I can’t describe how painful it is to be force-fed this way. As it was thrust in, it made me feel like throwing up…There was agony in my chest, throat and stomach. I had never experienced such pain before. I would not wish this cruel punishment upon anyone.” - Samir Moqbel “There is one man from hospital who is particularly cruel. He puts the liquid food in too fast. When the detainee is vomiting they usually take the tube out, but he refused. That leaves the detainee vomiting on himself during feeding.” - Shaker Aamer “The guard entered the tube through my nose, and then pumped the feeder. The food rushed into my stomach too quickly. I asked him to reduce the speed. He not only refused, but tried to turn it up. However, it was already as high as it could go. This was barbaric. After he finished his work, he roughly pulled the tube from my nose, threw it onto me, and left the room.” - Ahmed Belbacha Adversarial approach In a manual outlining standard operating procedure for 2013, which was leaked to the press, Guantanamo officials express their approach to hunger-striking patients using terminology reminiscent of war. “Just as battlefield tactics must change throughout the course of a conflict, the medical responses to Guantanamo detainees who hunger strike has evolved with time,” the manual states. As Dr. Allen notes, this adversarial approach would constitute a highly atypical stance for medical professionals to take toward their patients. Moreover, he says, it is not one which is likely to solve the issue. “Handling the strike this way will lead the doctors to lose the trust of their patients,” he says. “And having no trust means there will be little chance of properly resolving the strike.” The debate over force-feeding has rekindled talk of Guantanamo officials being engaged in torture, a public debate that seemingly ended after President Barack Obama banned the practice of water-boarding (a form of interrogation that simulates drowning) there in 2009. Indeed, there are accounts in the Reprieve report which explicitly call force-feeding torture. “The force-feeding itself is simple torture,” explains Shaker Aamer, a Saudi prisoner cleared for released in 2007 and again in 2009. “Now they are using the metal-tipped tubes, forcing them in and pulling them out twice a day, leaving people vomiting on themselves in the restraint chair, and so forth.” Just as the controversy surrounding water-boarding was viewed by many as damaging to the United States’ international image, so the continuing subjection of inmates to force-feeding may degrade the country in the minds of citizens and governments around the globe, Dr. Allen explained to IPS. “It diminishes the standing of the U.S. in the world that we don’t follow the established ethics of the medical profession,” he says. There is currently political pressure building on the administration of President Obama to end the use of force-feeding. Influential Senators Dianne Feinstein and Dick Durbin sent a letter to the administration on Wednesday imploring it to end the force-feeding and ultimately close the prison. “The growing problem of hunger strikes is due to the fact that many detainees have remained in legal limbo for more than a decade and have given up hope,” the letter states. “This should be alarming to all of us, and it is imperative that the Administration outline a formal process to permanently close the Guantanamo facility as
Boals and Pomrenze. Yon Pomrenze (left) and Connor Boals They were processed and transported to Central Booking in Manhattan.We need to have a conversation about Coldplay. Chris Martin’s band has been a punchline since that first fresh-faced beach walk, and there are some good reasons for that. When your debut album sounds less like a spongy facsimile of Bends-era Radiohead than a facsimile of Travis, themselves a spongy facsimile of Bends-era Radiohead, you invite ridicule. When you and your movie-star wife name your child Apple, you invite ridicule. When your band dresses up like French revolutionaries and/or the Beatles, not just for promo photos but interviews too, you invite ridicule. And when you release a concept album about “the story of a war against sound and color by a supremacist government” and call it Mylo Xyloto, you have come to embody the very essence of ridiculousness. Such awkwardly polite young Englishmen playing such wholesomely saccharine music with such shamelessly grandiose ambitions were always destined to be written off as lames. Martin knows this. As he told The Telegraph in 2008, “We aren’t cool and never will be.” But as Chuck Klosterman explained in his 2002 essay collection Sex, Drugs, And Cocoa Puffs, it’s one thing to be cool and another thing entirely to be great. Klosterman presented Billy Joel as the evidence for his theory: Joel “has no intrinsic coolness, and he has no extrinsic coolness,” but as a songwriter he’s responsible for a baffling number of modern classics. Thus, Klosterman concluded, “there is absolutely no relationship between Joel’s greatness and Joel’s coolness (or lack thereof), just as there’s no relationship between the ‘greatness’ of serving in World War II and the ‘coolness’ of serving in World War II.” Ironically, in the first chapter of the same book, Klosterman goes on a rant about how much Coldplay sucks, a position he recanted in 2013’s I Wear The Black Hat. This wasn’t his rationale, but logically, he had every reason to revise his anti-Coldplay stance because Coldplay are exactly the same as Billy Joel. The fact that they are perilously uncool has no bearing on their greatness. And it’s time we all agreed that Coldplay are great. The two low-key tracks they’ve released so far from their forthcoming Ghost Stories — the spectral “Midnight” and the groovy “Magic” — are among the best songs any musician has released this year. They are marvels of construction and execution, first-class singles that trigger the pop pleasure centers while incorporating sounds foreign to the Top 40. Do “Midnight” and “Magic” borrow heavily from Bon Iver and the xx, respectively, just as Coldplay has previously borrowed from indie-rock causes célèbre Arcade Fire, My Bloody Valentine, LCD Soundsystem, and Animal Collective? (It can’t be just me who heard some Merriweather Post Pavilion in Mylo Xyloto.) Sure, but it’s just a higher-pay-grade version of what Radiohead does. Thom Yorke and the boys have spent their whole career gleaning inspiration from lesser-known talents (DJ Shadow, Liars, Flying Lotus) and repurposing them in a more accessible context, and they’re still widely recognized as one of the greatest bands of their generation. Why not cede the same honor to Coldplay? Is it because their irrepressible earnestness isn’t balanced out by cynicism? You might say it’s because Coldplay still throws themselves into goofy shit like the dancing in the “Midnight” video, but have you seen Yorke’s dancing lately? Or, like, ever? The pair of moody numbers Coldplay debuted at SXSW, “Always In My Head” and “Another’s Arms,” are similarly triumphant, but excellence isn’t a new trend for this band. Every album in the group’s discography is loaded with classic songs, from the sleepy folk-pop of “Don’t Panic” to the gleaming neon theatrics of “Every Teardrop A Waterfall.” Speaking of that span: The band has traversed an incredible stylistic gulf over these past 14 years. Their songwriting has maintained its essential core of vague arena-rock sentimentality, but the aesthetic trappings have evolved daringly from Coldplay’s humble beginnings. Their one major misstep was 2005’s X&Y, on which they pushed the pap to the forefront and betrayed their more adventurous instincts, but even the relentlessly cloying “Fix You” is a jam. (Just ask Chance The Rapper, one of the many MCs who’ve pledged allegiance to Coldplay over the years.) Besides, after veering too far into mush they hooked up with Brian Eno and made 2008’s Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends, as fine an art-rock achievement as we’ve seen this century and “exactly the record this band needed to make.” Go listen to the title track or “Lost!” or “Strawberry Swing” — they’re all fantastic. Shit, follow the thread further back and bask in the softhearted glow of “The Scientist” and “Yellow.” Power ballads don’t come any better. It takes a special understanding of what moves the human spirit to accumulate two hour’s worth of songs that can bring an arena to its feet. Coldplay boasts that kind of catalog, and from the sounds of the early Ghost Stories material, it’s about to get even stronger. Some of that strength is due to sheer longevity — stick around long enough and eventually you rack up enough highlights that the lowlights start to fade out of memory — but that trick only works when you continue to release tremendous music, which is exactly what Martin and his anonymous bandmates have pulled off. Time has been good to those blokes behind “Clocks,” but they’ve been good to us, too. CHART WATCH The critical consensus on Mastermind is that it finds Rick Ross in coast mode; per our own Tom Breihan’s review, “It’s that old Ross persona with none of the energy of his best music.” But Rozay affirmed his bawse status last week by beating Pharrell to land his fifth #1 album. Mastermind moved 179,000 copies — fewer than God Forgives, I Don’t’s first-week sales of 218,000 in 2012, but enough to far outpace Pharrell’s G I R L, which logged 112,000 in sales for a #2 debut. Billboard notes that Mastermind’s top-spot debut puts Ross in the company of DMX and 2Pac as rappers with five #1 albums, bested only by Nas and Kanye west (six each), Eminem (seven), and Jay Z (13!). Other top 10 debuts include Glee star Lea Michele’s Louder at #4 with 60,000 sold, country group Eli Young Band’s 10,000 Towns at #5 with 36,000 sold, and Ashanti’s R&B comeback Braveheart at #10 with 28,000 sold. The Frozen soundtrack stays strong at #3; it has sold 1.3 million copies to date and 994,000 in 2013 and is expected to become the first album to sell a million copies in 2014 this week. The rest of the top 10 is a quite tasteful Beck (#6), Lorde (#7), Schoolboy Q (#8, down from a #1 debut last week), and Eric Church (#9). Over on the Hot 100 singles chart, Pharrell’s “Happy” remains at #1 for a third straight week, likely thanks in part to his appearance on the Oscars. Another Oscar beneficiary is Broadway actress and singer Idina Menzel (Rent/Wicked), whose “Let It Go” from Frozen won for Best Original Song and promptly leapt from #17 to #9. (The hubbub over John Travolta mangling Menzel’s name, viewable below, probably didn’t hurt either.) It’s a good thing Menzel’s there, too, because the rest of the top 10 is unconscionably static. TRACK CITY Foster The People – “Best Friend” It’s no “Pumped Up Kicks,” but Foster The People has finally kicked out another song that grabs your attention rather than simply exists. The influence of 2013’s disco-funk revival is palpable, and even though Mark Foster is arguably the least funky man in music, he pulls this song off. Iggy Azalea – “Impossible Is Nothing” Does it seem possible that the best Eminem song in years is actually by a 23-year-old Australian woman? Impossible is nothing. Sevyn Streeter – “Next (Remix)” (Feat. Kid Ink) Besides penning tunes for the likes of Alicia Keys, Kelly Rowland, and Trey Songz, Sevyn Streeter is the songwriter behind a bunch of Chris Brown hits as well as her own smash Brown duet “It Won’t Stop.” Hold that association against her if you like, but the woman knows how to construct an R&B hit. That’s evidenced on “Next (Remix),” in which she wonders, with convincing bewilderment, “How can my ex-boyfriend be my next boyfriend?” Talentless breakout rap star Kid Ink, another rising urban radio star orbiting Brown’s dark star, is there to play the boyfriend she can’t shake. Ronika – “Shell Shocked” Q: Is this song more heavily influenced by Gloria Estefan’s “Rhythm Is Gonna Get You,” Paula Abdul’s “Straight Up,” or Madonna’s “Holiday”? A: Shut up and dance! Elliphant – “Revolusion” Elliphant is affiliated with Diplo’s Mad Decent label and Dr. Luke’s Kemosabe Records, but “Revolusion” leans more towards Wes Pentz’s edgy, globetrotting tendencies than Lukasz Gottwald’s state-of-the-art radio bait. NEWS IN BRIEF Taylor Swift tops Billboard’s list of the 40 highest paid musicians with $39,699,575.60 in 2013 earnings. (Surprisingly, Bon Jovi is all the way up at #4; notably, Beyoncé far out-earned Jay Z.) [Billboard] Diddy has allegedly bid $200 million to buy Fuse TV and merge it with Revolt TV, which he launched last year. [Bloomberg] Alicia Keys, Kendrick Lamar, Pharrell, and Hans Zimmer collaborated on a song called “It’s On Again” for The Amazing Spider-Man 2. [Idolator] Lily Allen agreed with a critic on Twitter that her new singles are “rubbish.” [The Independent] Bill O’Reilly thinks Beyoncé’s “Partition” video harms children. [Spin] will.i.am and Pharrell have settled their trademark dispute over the phrase “I am.” [The Hollywood Reporter] Lorde is releasing her own makeup line. [Sugarscape] Kylie Minogue’s new album Kiss Me Once is streaming in full. [The Guardian] HOLD ON WE’RE GOING HOME [Coldplay photo by Tim Mosenfelder / Getty Images]TEL AVIV – The British government has suspended all taxpayer funds channeled to U.S.-based Christian charity World Vision after it emerged that the funds for its Gaza branch were being appropriated by Hamas for terror purposes. The decision made by the Department for International Development, a UK government aid agency, follows similar moves made by Germany and Australia earlier this month after Israel indicted World Vision Gaza manager Muhammad el-Halabi over allegations that he was a mole for Hamas who infiltrated the charity in order to provide funds for the terror group. Secretary of state for development aid Priti Patel said she was “deeply concerned” by the charges. “DFID does not provide any current funding to World Vision operations in Gaza, or in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) more widely,” she wrote in the letter to the UK’s Jewish Leadership Council and Board of Deputies. “We have written to World Vision to inform them that we will not consider any future funding to their work in the OPTs until World Vision has completed its audit and we have had the opportunity to fully consider our position,” she added. Israel claimed that some £60,000 ($80,000) in World Vision donations from the UK had been used to build a Hamas military base, The Daily Telegraph reported. The British Conservative Friends of Israel praised Patel for a “rapid and thorough investigation.” “The hardworking taxpayers of this country will be relieved to learn that every effort is being made to ensure that their hard-earned money will not end up in the pockets of the wrong people but will be helping those that are most in need,” said CFI Honorary President Stuart Polak. £72 million ($95 million) was earmarked by the Department for International Development for Gaza in 2015-2016, down from 91 million pounds ($120 million) in 2011-2012. On June 15, the Shin Bet arrested Muhammad Halabi, a Hamas member and head of operations for World Vision in Gaza. According to the security agency, Halabi was a member of Hamas since 1995 and was groomed to infiltrate the international charity more than a decade ago. “This was a meaningful and important investigation that showed — above all — the cynical and crude way in which Hamas takes advantage of funds and resources from international humanitarian aid organizations,” the Shin Bet said in a statement. 60 percent of the charity’s total operating budget, amounting to approximately $7 million per year, was funneled to Hamas. Part of the diverted funds were used by Hamas to build underground terror tunnels into Israel, the Shin Bet said. World Vision originally denied the charges but has since ceased its Gaza operations until the investigation is over.The sanest thing we could have ever done after the two hijacked planes crashed into the Twin Towers in 2001 was ask why. What motivates people to take so many lives and their own so spectacularly? After all, when a crime is committed, the first thing any law official looks for is a motive. But this was the age of the Project for the New American Century, multiple theatre wars and redeployment of American forces in pursuit of American interests. The neocons had successfully managed to hack into the US government and somehow Tony Blair at the same time. We all know the story: it’s painfully repetitive and would be stupid if it wasn’t so gloriously engineered. American writer Gore Vidal acutely labelled it “perpetual war for perpetual peace”: Peace, not desired but a disingenuously given excuse for war to reign indefinitely. And so in pursuit of power, resource and hegemony, we set off to war and never looked back. Black gold and Sykes-Picot have made sure that the Middle East has never been a stable place. But the last 15 years of organised violence have accelerated the degeneration to the point of breaking up any stability left into splinters of abject chaos. Each bomb we, the West, dropped on Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya rippled through the desert sands, winning hearts and minds to hatred, forever changing the landscape of a region already traumatised from a century of systematic and sustained abuse. Every war we fought, dictator we propped up, terrorist we armed and proxy conflict we encouraged, can be found in the genesis of what happened yesterday in Brussels. Militant political Islam from the East, whether we like it or not, is a bastard love child of the West: midwifed in the dungeons of Nasser’s Egypt, aided by the CIA as counterweight to Pan-Arab nationalism then raised on the milk of Kalashnikovs in Afghanistan as proxy force to fight Russia. Al-Qaeda via Iraq's occupation grew until the gory propaganda of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi bubbled over, creating ISIS. The NATO-backed destruction of Libya and support for the destabilisation of the Syrian government, with a wishful view to easily deposing Assad, added to the perfect storm. If September 11 was blowback, what is happening now is a collection of multiple backdrafts, where world leaders fight to be chief fireman, clambering to put out flames foolishly using only oxygen. And as fire engulfs, spreading to every capital, so blame increases. It’s not me it’s you. It’s your hijab, beard, minaret and inability to take a joke. Who cares if the number one victims of ISIS worldwide are Muslims? What does it matter that the people fighting ISIS on the frontline, by and large, are Muslim. And so, within an hour of the Brussels bombings, #StopIslam starts trending worldwide, even though every Muslim I encountered yesterday on social media was actively praying for Brussels. Racism is ultimately a tool used by the powerful to divide and rule for economic purposes. In slavery the white power structure could only benefit from the bodies of black people if it successfully argued that black people didn’t have souls. Today, imperial wars in the Middle East in pursuit of power and resources can only truly be maintained if victims of the bombings, dug out of the rubble, are a sub-human other: terrorists in short. Fifteen years of rapidly growing hostility towards Muslims in the West coupled with a foreign policy that both indirectly and directly fuels militant political stands of Islam, is a powerful recruiting sergeant. Enter hashtag Caliphate. In a globalised word, where borders are becoming more irrelevant, what happens a hundred miles away can never be distanced or dismissed. The rise of social media has seen the spreading of information wrestle the monopoly of ideas from the hands of the few to the smartphones of the many. Today 140 characters on Twitter are more powerful than 140 RPGs in Raqqa, and don’t ISIS know it. Contrary to belief, ISIS is a wholly modern phenomenon; a product of sour times, with a nucleus firmly traced back to a resource war. But analysis and declarations of “I told you so” won’t do much in the way of combating what evidently is a very clear, present, rising and physical threat. So, if bombs and racism are not the answer, what is? Something we should have done 15 years ago: Ask why. Many of us argued in the years following the attacks on the Twin Towers, that in order to be tough on terrorism you had to be tough on the causes of terrorism. Those voices, like the two million that marched against the war in Iraq were maligned and ignored, to the peril of a future generation. Drain the swamp if you don’t want flies. If the bog of material excuses invoked by the demigods of al-Qaeda in 2001 could fill a river, today they make up an ocean. Yemen, Turkey, Syria, Tunisia, Libya, Nigeria, France, Belgium, Britain, Spain, Iraq, Sudan, Palestine, I could go on; the list is unfortunately long and perilously connected. As a human my natural instinct is defend humanity therefore I sincerely wish to see an end to inhumane violence on a international scale, irrelevant of country. Je suis human. On a personal level: what happened in Brussels could quite easily happen in London. And of course, it already has. In July 2005 I was on the tube, a stop away from Russell Square, as the bombs struck the London underground leaving hundreds of fellow Londoners dead or injured. I am not willing to become victim of someone else’s graphic spectacle without a serious fight. This world is as much my stage as it is their’s. Acting is too important to be left to David Cameron, Francois Hollande or Barack Obama. My role is to hold power to account for failing us terribly. Terror begets terror. Brussels just proved this, once and for all, spectacularly. - Charles B. Anthony is a writer, filmmaker, columnist, producer/host of Middle East Eye's Blink News and researcher for Will Self. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye. Image: Victims of the Brussels airport attack in the immediate aftermath of the blast (Facebook)Malcolm Turnbull has talked down the prospect of another coalition MP defection following reports Queensland MP George Christensen could call it quits. Mr Christensen reportedly penned a resignation letter this week after becoming furious about government inaction over an ongoing row between a foreign-owned sugar mill and cane growers in his Queensland electorate. The backbencher warned he will do "whatever it takes" - including defecting to the crossbench - to ensure the establishment of a mandatory sugar industry code of conduct with enforceable penalties. "This issue is the most important one to confront me in my six years in politics and that's why I'm committed to doing whatever it takes to get an outcome," he told News Corp Australia on Friday. "If it takes ruffling a few feathers here, crossing the floor or going rogue to get an outcome, then you just have to do it." The government holds onto office with a one-seat majority in the lower house, making any MP defection disastrous. Asked about the report, Mr Turnbull said: "I've never seen any indication that he is anything other than a committed member of the coalition party room." Finance Minister Mathias Cormann insisted the MP was loyal and made clear he would remain in the coalition. "He's standing up for his electorate, he's standing up for his constituents. That's his job," he said. Queensland Labor senator Murray Watt said Mr Christensen had become a laughing stock and challenged him to quit his party. "Every day of the week he comes up with a different threat and he never follows through," Senator Watt told reporters in Canberra. "He's like a kid who keeps threatening to his parents to run away from home but then comes crawling back to his bedroom and hides under his blanket again." Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce said he spoke with Mr Christensen on Thursday night and he remained loyal to the party. "We are good mates. He is loyal to me. I hope and I believe that George will be loyal to his nation and stick with a good government," he told the ABC. Mr Christensen said in a lengthy podcast interview, The Convict Report, the government was not addressing "bread and butter issues that concern everyday people". "Along with that, though, is concern about things like national security, immigration levels, our culture... people want leaders to be standing up," he said. "We haven't seen that sort of leadership for a long while." Leadership was also on the mind of former prime minister Tony Abbott who told radio 2GB on Friday voters were warming to politicians like Pauline Hanson because she was listening to people. "What the public want are leaders who look at the problems honestly, speak clearly and offer straightforward solutions," Mr Abbott said. "Sadly they don't at the moment think they are always getting that from the political establishment." Christensen told the Seven Network on Friday: "There was no resignation letter so the story is a little bit beefed up." "There was a letter of demand that I wrote to the prime minister which was never sent," he said. © AAP 2019Guest post by Mark Johnson What would the climate change debate be without a quote from Rosie O’Donnell. Al Roker was interviewing the talk show host on a Weather Channel segment Monday morning during “Wake Up with Al.” Here’s how the exchange went: ROKER: “What do you think about the controversy about the people who say, ya know, this whole global warming thing is a scam…a sham?” ROSIE: “It’s ridiculous. Its absurd. There’s scientific proof. And those are the people who also believe in Creationism, right? I don’t know how you can argue with science in that way when…we’re alive in 2012, and every kind of from of measuring and scientific data. Its a ridiculous thing to say it is not occurring.” ROKER:”During this winter, when all this weird stuff was going on, were you like a lot of us, going ‘What the heck is going on?’ ” ROSIE: “You know, I was in Chicago for the winter and everyone said to me, ‘You better get thermal underwear and heated boots!’ Literally, I spent all this money getting all this stuff. It was like spring…it was a joke! It was spring the entire winter! I used my coat once!”July 10, 2017 09:36 IST The flood situation in Assam deteriorated further with one more person losing his life, while nearly five lakh people are hit across 15 districts. According to a report by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, one person died in the swirling flood waters in Karimganj district. IMAGE: A woman with her child, in a utensil, moves to a safer place from the flood affected Khanamukh village in Morigoan, Assam. Photograph: PTI Photo With this, the total number of persons losing their lives in this year’s flood-related cases has gone up to 26, including seven in Guwahati. The ASDMA said more than 4.87 lakh people are currently suffering in Lakhimpur, Jorhat, Golaghat, Cachar, Dhemaji, Biswanath, Karimganj, Sonitpur, Majuli, Barpeta, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Morigaon and Chirang districts. Till Saturday, 3.83 lakh people were affected in the latest wave of flood across the state. IMAGE: Due to the floods, many roads, embankments and bridges have been damaged in several districts, including Majuli, Dhemaji, Morigaon, Biswanath, Sivasagar, Golaghat, Jorhat, Karimganj, Sonitpur and Nagaon. Photograph: Rediff.com Around 1,096 villages are under water and nearly 41,200 hectares of crop area have been damaged, ASDMA said, adding, the worst affected is Lakhimpur, where over 1.21 lakh people have been affected by the deluge, followed by Karimganj with more than 1.19 lakh sufferers. Authorities are running 181 relief camps and distribution centres in 10 districts, where 17,744 persons are currently taking shelter. IMAGE: Across the state, 1,88,148 animals and poultry have been affected by the flood waters. Photograph: Rediff.com Across the state, 1,88,148 animals and poultry have been affected by the flood waters. Due to the impact of flood waters, many roads, embankments and bridges have been damaged in several districts, including Majuli, Dhemaji, Morigaon, Biswanath, Sivasagar, Golaghat, Jorhat, Karimganj, Sonitpur and Nagaon. IMAGE: Villagers use a makeshift bamboo bridge to move across flooded areas of Morigaon district in Assam. Photograph: Anuwar Hazarika/Reuters Currently, the Brahmaputra is flowing above danger mark at Nimatighat in Jorhat, Tezpur in Sonitpur, along with Dibrugarh, Goalpara and Dhubri towns. Other rivers like Dikhow at Sivasagar town, Dhansiri at Numaligarh in Golaghat, Jia Bharali at NT Road Crossing in Sonitpur and Kushiyara at Karimganj town in Karimganj are also flowing above danger mark. IMAGE: Authorities are running 181 relief camps and distribution centres in 10 districts, where 17,744 persons are currently taking shelter. Photograph: Rediff.com Meanwhile, concerned over the grim flood condition in Assam, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and took stock of the prevailing situation in the state besides assuring him of all central help. During the telephonic conversation, the prime minister enquired about measures taken by the Assam government to provide succour to the marooned people, damage caused by flood waters and status of relief and rescue operations. IMAGE: PM Modi has assured all help to the state after having a call with Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. Photograph: Rediff.comThe UK should form an alliance with the army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad if they are serious about confronting the Islamic State group in Syria, according to veteran foreign correspondent Patrick Cockburn. The Independent’s Middle East editor said he relayed his belief to MPs from both Labour and the Conservatives when asked to brief them before a Commons debate on Wednesday that ended with the UK joining the US-led coalition and bombing IS in Syria. In an interview on Thursday with Middle East Eye, Cockburn said: “There has to be some relationship between those who are attacking IS and the real forces on the ground. “You have to think about a relationship with the Syrian army backed by the Russians as a piece on the board. The largest military force in Syria is the regular Syrian army with Russian air support.” The international community has so far baulked at allying with Assad, arguing that it is beyond reason to work with a man responsible for the vast majority of deaths in the Syria civil war, in which more than 200,000 have died. But Cockburn argued that there was no ideal partner on the ground: “Everybody is a difficult partner. The Syrian army has lost 47,000 troops. This is a genuine civil war and everybody hates each other. You have to deal with real facts. You can’t just pretend he [Assad] isn’t there – in the same way you can’t pretend IS isn’t there either.” Cockburn poured scorn on Prime Minister David Cameron’s claim that there were 70,000 “moderate” forces in northern Syria who could be relied on to fight IS. 'You can raise an army - but they might not fight' “Syria and Iraq are full of incredibly poor people, many of whom have a rusty Kalashnikov and you can raise an army of 70,000 quite quickly – they might not fight anybody but you could do that," he said. "You have fragmentary groups in Syria who are loyal to the local tribe, their clan, their village, and they probably hate Assad and they hate IS too but they may hate the next village even more. “The whole purpose of saying 70,000 is to give the impression that there is an ultimate moderate power centre in Syria, which means we don’t have to choose IS, we don’t have to choose Assad, we can look to these [rebel groups] as our partner. I think that’s demonstrably untrue.” Cameron has not named who makes up the 70,000 fighting force, and has simply said it is mostly units in the Free Syrian Army. However, Cockburn dismissed the idea that the FSA is a cogent force capable of acting as an effective army against IS. “The Free Syrian Army even at its best, which was some time ago, was an umbrella organisation with various fragmentary units," he said, adding that some rebel factions in northern Syria "aren’t particularly Islamic but the general trend is that the opposition is getting more Islamic there." He said that even those who weren't members of extreme groups were still controlled by "the jihadists" of al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra and other similar movements. “You might have a group that doesn’t look like they are extreme jihadi but it operates under licence from those who are.” Cockburn dismissed rebel claims that Assad had not fought IS, referencing IS videos in which Syrian army soldiers have been beheaded, as well as pointing to battles in Palmyra, near Raqqa, and at an airbase east of Aleppo. 'The UK wants a seat at the top table' But Cockburn said he did not believe the UK was serious about confronting IS at all, and argued that the desire to join the US-led coalition was a political manoeuvre. "Why did the UK go into Iraq? Why did they go into Afghanistan? They wanted to remain America’s main military ally," he said. "They want that today and they want to remain at the top table." Cockburn said it was made clear that the UK was not serious about fighting IS when Cameron focused in Wednesday’s debate on what to call IS – the prime minister believes they should be called Daesh, the anglicised acronym of its Arabic name, because he thinks the group is neither Islamic nor a state. "[This debate] shows that they aren’t doing things that might be effective and are instead focusing on propagandistic, basically trivial things. To my mind, this shows a certain lack of seriousness about really confronting Islamic State despite the rhetoric yesterday," he said. "It’s important to remember that, despite David Cameron saying IS is not a state, it is a pretty well organised state. It taxes people effectively. It conscripts soldiers quite effectively – and quite a lot of people want to join because they are no other jobs." “The bombing has made it harder for IS to use their tanks and it has meant they suffer more casualties. But has it had a big impact? No. "The Americans thought the bombing was stopping IS launching attacks that were successful in the summer of 2014," he said, in a reference to the group’s takeover of Iraq’s second city of Mosul. "But just as they were saying that IS captured Ramadi in May and five days later they captured Palmyra in Syria. There were an enormous number of air attacks being made in the Ramadi-Fallujah area at that time according to the Americans and IS still captured these places. "It’s not that the bombing has no effect but it certainly doesn’t have the effect the Americans imagined it would." He said UK bombs would make very little difference. “The rate of bombs might increase but one should point out that the American-led coalition has launched in the region of 8,500 air strikes. There are more planes looking for targets than there are targets available. The British will add a few more planes but that’s not going to increase the number of targets.” 'In Iraq, the Shia fighters are key' Cockburn said that Iraq's Shia militias should be backed by coalition efforts. “You have to take on board that the Shia militias in Iraq are more numerous and better motivated and more likely to fight than the Iraqi army. You can’t pretend the Iraqi government is in complete control – it is one power centre in Iraq and a somewhat feeble one.” Cockburn concluded that the current plan to fight IS was not working – but he added that those who oppose military action were not offering anything either. “If you’re going to confront this properly neither Jeremy Corbyn (the people opposing air strikes) nor the people who are pro-bombing are actually proposing to do anything which is going to trouble Islamic State too much.” Reports have suggested that Cockburn was asked by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to brief only his MPs before the Commons vote on Wednesday. However, Cockburn said his briefing was to politicians from both sides of the House, and added that he was not party political.Real estate bullies have become so zealous in Toronto's Leslieville neighbourhood, they sometimes don't wait for the "for sale" sign before making a bid to buy a house. On Alton Avenue recently, Sameer Ismail of ReMax Hallmark Realty Ltd. was getting ready to list a two-bedroom rowhouse across from Greenwood Park. He put up a sign saying "coming soon" to let avid house hunters know that the house would soon be launched onto the multiple listing service of the Canadian Real Estate Association. Story continues below advertisement Listings swelled in April compared with the inventory in the first quarter, he says, but even the 40 or 50 properties that arrived right after Easter weren't enough to fill the demand. "That was massive compared to what we were seeing in January, February and March but the demand is still greater than the supply." When Mr. Ismail signalled that the listing on Alton Avenue was imminent, a bidder who had recently lost in competition on a house a few doors down was quick to put an offer on paper. The "bully" made the bid good for only four hours. The homeowners were a bit frazzled, but Mr. Ismail advised them to reject the bid. "It is someone that just wants to jump the queue – who doesn't want to wait – and just bully you into selling the home." If a prospective buyer was that eager before the house even hit the MLS, he pointed out, imagine what the owners could fetch at auction. "Based on my pulse on the market and the lack of inventory, I said 'let's just wait it out.'" The sellers also did not warm to the bully's strategy of disparaging the improvements they had made to the small house, which had been opened up and renovated with new windows and bamboo floors. If the prospective buyer had seemed to actually love the house, they say, they might have been more tempted by the bid. In any case, they turned it away, listed the house with an asking price of $499,000 and set an offer date. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement On the night set for reviewing offers, 12 parties came to the table and the house sold for $683,000, or $184,000 above the asking price. That 37-per-cent premium was far more than the homeowners expected and it also trumped the bully's original offer. When a prospective buyer makes a "pre-emptive offer," as bully bids are more formally known, the usual tactic is to make it clear the bully won't come back on offer night if the offer is spurned. Mr. Ismail says the practice is just another gambit in a blazing hot market. "It's a strategy and, lo and behold, they did come back They weren't the winners." He says bidding in the segment between $550,000 and $750,000 or so is particularly rabid because lots of people who own condo units and starter homes want to move up to that range. A lot of them have equity from a first property and many also have help from the older generation. Parents are remortgaging their own houses or dipping into savings to help out young adults. "It's probably the most competitive price range you could possibly be in because so many people can afford that. There's hefty competition," he says. Mr. Ismail tells another tale of a detached house in the Upper Beaches that he recently listed with an asking price of $699,000. A pre-emptive offer quickly arrived, only to be surpassed by another. "The bully got bullied by another bully." Story continues below advertisement The second bidder beat the first with an offer of $969,000, or $270,000 above asking. "They're shattering any sort of record because they really, really want the house." The agent believes buyers are full of brio because Canada's banks are strong and the rules around borrowing are generally stringent. "You're getting a very robust pool of buyers." And battles are not just happening in $600,000 territory. Plenty of houses in the $3-million range are selling within days at more than the asking price – which usually signals there was more than one buyer vying for the luxury listing. "This means many people are competing for multimillion dollar properties,"
guardian [for Rufus] a black woman to watch over him in a society that considered women perennial children” and blacks sub-human. (77) The use of a black female character as a vehicle to explore chattel slavery is effective. It brings the narrative to the least powerful and most oppressed group. These women endured harsh labor, rape, and the separation of their families. They were particularly effected as mothers and women, as well as blacks. The theme of motherhood is also an important component of Kindred. Sarah, the cook, has had all her children sold. Many of the other slave women had their children sold. Alice sees two of her children die and the other two are used to control her. “The children become objects that Rufus employs to control Alice’s affection and sexual behavior towards him.” (Mitchell 63) Dana herself acts as a mother to many of the slaves on the plantation. She teaches the young children to read, she nurtures Alice back to health, she desperately tries to minimize the suffering of her fellows. The plight of the mother is to struggle not only for your own survival, but for your children’s as well. Dana struggles with this concept throughout the novel. She must tailor her actions so that she can ensure her own survival while ensuring the survival of others. The intensity with which these mothers must feel the loss of the children and families as well as the absence of freedom for both is evident throughout the narrative. Kindred is an example of fiction by and about female women of color. The narrative serves to show the complexities surrounding issues that affect women of color. Slavery, power, community and motherhood are all themes from the book and are dealt with in nuanced and careful prose. Historical implications on the present and on women of color are called in to play. Oppressed women across the world face these difficult decisions regarding their personal survival and the survival of their children and communities. Oppressive institutions, such as slavery, render these choices difficult, if not impossible. Butler, however, presents a story in which a woman must struggle with her limited ability to help those she loves and to help herself. The end of the book depicts Dana making the ultimate decision to murder her attacker / would-be-rapist / enslaver at the possible expense of her fellow slaves. Dana finally met her breaking point and took her personal survival into her own hands. Kindred is a complex novel that taps into the emotional pain of the experiences of slavery, and of oppressed women across the globe. Notes: Alaimo, Stacey. “’Skin Dreaming’: the Bodily Transgerssions of Fielding Burke, Octavia Butler, and Linda Hogan.” Ecofeminist Literary Criticism. Chicago: University of Illinois Press,1998. Butler, Octavia. Kindred. Boston: Beacon Press, 1979. Francis Consuela, ed. Conversations with Octavia Butler. Jackson: University Press Mississippi, 2010. Govan, Sandra Y. “Homage to Tradition: Octavia Butler Renovates the Historical Novel” Melus 13 Nos. 1-2 (spring-summer 1986): 79-96 Hairston, Andrea. “Octavia Butler – Praise Song to a Prophetic Artist.” Daughters of Earth: Feminist Science Fiction in the Twentieth Century. Middeltown: Wesleyan University Press, 2006. Mitchell, Angelyn. “Not Enough of the Past: Feminist Revisions of Slavery in Octavia E. Butler’s “Kindred.”” Melus, Vol 26, No #, 2001 AdvertisementsI’m always a huge fan of tracks from the 90’s golden age of hip-hop that are slightly faster and more on the disco tip. Generally more at the front end of the 1990’s there are a bunch of classics like De La Soul’s “Roller Skating Jam” or Black Sheep‘s “Strobelite Honey” that always kill it on the dancefloor. Another track on that same type of tempo (105 bpm) and vibe is Positive K‘s “I Got A Man“. As stated by Complex pretty good article on the subject (link), it is on the biggest one hit wonders in the history of rap. This single actually peaked at #14 on the Billboard charts! A very little known fact about this track is that Positive K actually did all female vocals for the back and forth by pitching up his voice in post-production. The track features a bunch of samples but mainly the backing track is a 1980 disco single “Rescue Me” by A Taste of Honey. Also, the video as expected is pretty damn priceless. s. I’m in Toronto for a gig tonight and I brought the 12″ so let’s see if it gets people moving!As part of an ongoing effort to improve and coordinate Church curriculum for youth, the LDS Church recently released a new version of the “Doctrine and Covenants and Church History” seminary manual. When the First Presidency authorized the new Youth curriculum in 2013, they also authorized the revision of seminary and institute manuals and encouraged curriculum developers to make the materials more student-centered. The new Church History manuals — one for teachers and one for home-study students — come after the release of a new Book of Mormon seminary manual in 2013 and precede new manuals for the Old Testament (2015) and New Testament (2016). “Everyone feels the urgency now to prepare these young people,” said Robert Lund, manager of seminary curriculum. “I believe that today’s youth have an advantage because they get a more consistent approach between seminary, lessons in Young Women and Young Men, and Sunday School than they ever have in the past. They’re being well-prepared for the temple and are learning to rely on the atonement of Jesus Christ. I think that’s one reason the minimum age for missionary work can be lowered.” Controversial topics The new Church history manual speaks frankly about controversial Church history issues that are popular among critics of the Church. While coverage of these topics — like race and the priesthood, plural marriage and the origins of the book of Abraham — is getting a lot of attention, it isn’t anything new. “As writers, we don’t get to pick the topics that we’re going to cover,” Lund said. “We only have the revelations (in the Doctrine and Covenants) themselves. We didn’t have a checklist of topics that we wanted to bring up. That wasn’t our job. We didn’t bring up plural marriage; section 132 did. These topics are there only because they’re reflected in the standard works.” Revised editions of the Old Testament and New Testament study manuals will receive similar treatment. If difficult issues arise in the scriptures, the seminary study guides will discuss them openly. “In the Old Testament, issues like the origin of the Book of Abraham don’t come up,” Lund said. “However, what does come up is Sodom and Gomorrah. We let the Lord deal with it in the scriptures, then we comment on it. Our goal is to build faith as we go through the scriptures. As we looked at the revelations we were not afraid to allow the fullness of the revelation to come out and even acknowledge what critics say.” Some topics, like the Mountain Meadows Massacre, don’t appear in scripture but are still covered in the manual. That’s because the manual is for the Doctrine and Covenants and Church history, so it includes some historical topics not included in the standard works. HTML vs. print edition The seminary lessons were designed to work hand-in-hand with Gospel Topics pages and other Church media, but it’s difficult to incorporate external resources into a printed book. But there are no space constraints online, and there’s more opportunity for functionality as well. The HTML version of the manual available at LDS.org has more commentary and more background information than the printed book and includes dynamic content with direct links to lesson helps. While the printed manual is 577 pages, the online version has enough information to fill 850. “I’d encourage others to use the HTML version whenever possible,” Lund said. “It not only saves on printing costs, but the online version is also more robust, with more functionality and media.” Correlation of Church education for youth If it seems like the Church is taking a special interest in the youth lately, it’s not your imagination. In light of the lower age requirement for missionary service, youth are being more prepared by improved curriculum on all fronts. “We unified the manual with the basic doctrines taught in the new youth curriculum,” Lund said. “We placed them in our manual and realigned our scripture mastery scriptures to go along with those basic doctrines. Those doctrines come from chapter 3 of ‘Preach My Gospel.’ There’s a united effort to qualify for the blessings of the temple and go into the mission field. It’s given me greater faith in the First Presidency to see how everything has been orchestrated. We think of ourselves as a foot — just a part of the larger body of the Church.” Ideally, all of these tools work together to prepare future missionaries for service in the mission field and throughout their lives. “I love that some of my children got to come through the tail end of this,” Lund said. “My daughter is a missionary in Scotland. She was the beneficiary of the new youth curriculum. I believe she’s a better missionary than I was because she’s better prepared.” Help from the Joseph Smith Papers Project As it happens, the revisions of seminary manuals coincided with the timing of the Joseph Smith Papers Project and the associated updates to the Doctrine and Covenants headings. More accurate historical information that was discovered as part of the Joseph Smith Papers Project was valuable to the seminary manual writers as they studied the same time period. “The people at the Joseph Smith Papers Project were very kind and did some courtesy reviews for us before the new edition of the scriptures came out,” Lund said. “Especially in sections 78, 82 and 104, there were some substantial changes in the headings. We’re grateful for the scholarship that they have and for their willingness to looking at the manual prior to its publication to make sure the manual and the scriptures were in harmony.” Meeting the needs of a global church When the commission came for a complete revision of the seminary curriculum, the committee did their homework. The seminary program has 391,680 students in 149 countries, so they knew they had their work cut out for them. Church seminaries and institutes representatives spoke to thousands of seminary teachers in more than a dozen countries about their needs. They learned that teachers wanted the lessons to be more student-centric, which happened to be the same thing the First Presidency wanted. They also learned that the new manual needed to better accommodate the needs and resources of seminaries around the world. “In the previous edition, we wrote to an audience with more resources, mainly in the United States,” Lund said. “We assumed teachers would like these kinds of lessons, and the ones with a lot of access to resources do. But when we got feedback for this edition, we knew we had to help the global audience a little better.” The formula is simple: each lesson follows a simple format that has been taught by Church authorities as an effective way to teach. In the new manual, each lesson aims to help teachers and students: 1. Understand the context and content of the scriptures 2. Identify doctrines and principles 3. Understand the meaning of those doctrines and principles 4. Feel the truth and importance of the principles and doctrines through the influence of the Spirit 5. Apply the doctrines and principles “We’re not just there to learn academically,” Lund said. “The students can change their lives because of what they learn in seminary. This method was in the old lessons; it was just trickier and a little harder to see. In the new edition it’s more overt. I don’t know how you’d miss it.”Several Central Texas school districts are pushing for changes to the state’s school finance system, saying state government relies too much on local tax revenue to fund education. Under the state’s school finance system, districts with high property values — including Austin and several smaller districts in the city’s western and northern suburbs — must send a portion of their property tax revenue to the state to subsidize districts in other parts of Texas, where property values are low. The state contributes about 41 percent of the total funding for schools in Texas, while local revenue from property taxes accounts for 48 percent. Two interim committees are examining the state’s school finance system, charged with making recommendations before the next legislative session that begins in January. Nicole Conley, the Austin district’s CFO, will testify Wednesday on the so-called state recapture payments before two legislative committees. Conley said she’s testifying to explain "the severe financial effect that recapture has on Austin ISD and Austin taxpayers." The Austin district has long been the largest single payer of recapture, this year expecting to pay $406 million of local property revenue to the state. In 2015, the district’s property tax revenue accounted for 13 percent of the total recapture payments to the state. During the next five years the district is projected to pay almost $2.6 billion in recapture payments. And if nothing changes, by 2019 more than half of every property tax dollar collected for education in Austin will go to the state, Conley said. "We need more of our local dollars to stay in our local schools," Conley said. "We know there are districts throughout the state that need additional funds to educate their students, but it is the duty of the state to provide those funds, not local property taxpayers. The state’s over-reliance on recapture is leading to an unintended, inequitable burden for Austin taxpayers who are shouldering much more of the expense to educate our state’s children." But advocates for equitable school funding say that Austin and other property wealthy districts have long had more money than property-poor districts. School leaders from other Central Texas districts required to make recapture payments, including Eanes, Georgetown and Lake Travis, are hoping to get support from the Legislature. They are also hoping to ally with other districts, such as Houston, which is being required to make a recapture payment for the first time this year. "The school finance system is broken," said Gina Hinojosa, who serves on the Austin school board but is vacating her local post to run for the state House District 49 seat in the November election. "It’s punitive to Austin like no other community. When we have to send over $400 million to the state this year alone in local property taxes, it ties our hands and longtime residents are priced out of their homes." Drew Scheberle, senior vice president over education and state advocacy at the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, calls recapture the biggest issue for Central Texas taxpayers in the coming Legislative session. "The Legislature needs to make changes," Scheberle said. "They are pricing families out of Austin and crowding our ability to make other needed investments." When the state first began using recapture, 35 districts were required to make recapture payments, but the number keeps growing. This year, there are more than 400 such districts, including Austin. Taxpayers in the Dripping Springs school district earlier this month approved increasing the the operations portion of its tax rate (and lowering the debt portion of the rate by an equal amount) in efforts to generate more money for its budget as it estimates its recapture payment at $2 million. Elaine Cogburn, the district’s assistant superintendent of business services, said the move helps offset the funds Dripping Springs must send to the state.Navigation bars play an important role for the incoming visitors to your website, since they can easily jump to the other parts, pages or posts of your website linked through the navigation bar. Today, I’ll teach you that how can we create a minimal navigation bar using CSS and HTML. The task is damn easy to be done and in the end you will be able to get a very basic and smart navigation bar with cool visual looks. Structural HTML Code for the navigation bar: Now, as we all know that the navigation bars are included in the top section of any webpage. Thus first of all we will define a division (div) at the top of our html page with a unique id name “navigation“, so that we may be able to apply CSS code to this div later. <div id="navigation"> <!-- navigation bar content goes here --> </div> So, above we have created a division at the top of our page below the <body> tag, which has been given an ID navigation. Next, step will be to add an un-ordered list in the above div, which is going to contain a list of our links which we want to be appeared in the navigation bar. So, the code for the navigation bar is: <div id="navigation"> <ul> <li><a href="http://www.talkofweb.com">Home</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.talkofweb.com/contact-us/">Contact Us</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.talkofweb.com/about-talk-of-web/">About Us</a></li> </ul> </div> Thus, I have added three links in the lists of the unordered list above through the HTML code. Now, the time is to style this very basic navigation. Styling the Navigation bar using CSS which is made in HTML: Assigning Width and Background color to Div: In CSS we can define the width of the division which will be 900px and next step will be to define the background color of this navigation which will be grey. (You can easily change all these properties once you end up with this tutorial explaining how to code a navigation bar). So, lets give a width and background color to the div which has id of navigation. (In CSS we select id through hashes #) <style type="text/css"> #navigation { width: 900px; margin: auto; overflow: hidden; background: #ccc; } </style> The margin auto, means that the div is going to be placed in the center of the page. The overflow hidden property will expand the div up to the content contained in the div. Rest the background property gives grey color to the div. Designing the links in the navigation bar and <li> elements: Now, we need to specify the color for the links and the background color of the parent element the <li>. Thus for this, we need to target the <li> tags and <a> tags contained in the div of id navigation. We will do it like this: <style type="text/css"> #navigation ul { list-style:none; } #navigation li { float: left; margin: 6px; list-style: none; } #navigation a { color: #fff; padding: 8px; background: #000; font-family: verdana; text-decoration: none; } </style> And the code is complete, let me explain you the above code. The first thing we did is to give a property of “list-style: none” to both <li> and <ul> elements, actually we don’t want dots to appear with out list, as if you have used Microsoft word and Microsoft outlook during composing a document. Second thing I did is to add a margin to the element <li> so that it may not collide with the inner edges of the container. The third task is to define the color of a element and to give it inner padding of 10px. Fourth task is to give a background to the <a> element of the black i-e #000. Rest, I floated the <li> to the left so that it may be aligned in the line i-e horizontally. How to use this navigation bar: You can use it anywhere, if you copy the <li><a href=”link”>Title</a></li> elements in the code and re paste below with custom title and link and then paste it below other <li> elements then you will be able to add as many more links as you want. Rest, wherever you use it, don’t forget to paste the style sheet also. Don’t forget to merge the both style sheets given in one style sheet code. That is it, now you can also change the fonts, background colors and other things. You can use this navigation bar in Blogger as well as WordPress. Depends on how much beyond the limits can you think 😉MILLWALL kicked off their 2016-17 League One campaign with a comfortable win over Oldham at The Den on Saturday afternoon. Lee Gregory opened the scoring in the 13th minute before Aiden O’Brien’s strike at the end of the first half extended the lead. Centre-back Byron Webster made it three just after half-time as Millwall completely dominated their opponents. This was the perfect start to the season for the Lions, who showed no signs that the disappointment after last May’s League One play-off final defeat to Barnsley still lingers. Millwall looked vibrant and hungry, the only blot on the afternoon an injury to Gregory, who went off at the break. Oldham, though, played like a side justifying their short relegation odds and that should be warning enough for Millwall that this result and performance doesn’t necessarily mean a promotion push is guaranteed. There were 10 players making their competitive debuts for Oldham, while this was also Steve Robinson’s first league game in charge of a club as a senior manager. Neil Harris gave David Worrall his league debut, with another attacking recruit, Gregg Wylde, starting on the bench before coming on in the second half. Shaun Hutchinson failed to recover from the tight hamstring that forced him off against Brentford last week. But it was one of Millwall’s emerging stars from last season who forced the breakthrough in the 13th minute. The Lions had already made a strong start with Gregory lifting an early effort over before Ben Thompson picked the ball up on the edge of the box and skipped past Cameron Burgess, who brought him down. Referee Roger East immediately pointed to the spot and Gregory stepped up to send Connor Ripley the wrong way. Millwall were playing like a side who knew their roles in Harris’ second full season as boss. Oldham, perhaps understandably, struggled to impose their game plan. The home side’s four attacking players’ directness and movement also troubled the Latics’ defence, and 34-year-old Peter Clarke could be seen bent over catching his breath before Morison set off on another run down the left channel. Some neat combination, and evidence of the early understanding Worrall has developed with his team-mates, resulted in the winger sending Gregory away with a ball over the top, and from his pass Thompson’s shot was deflected wide. Morison headed the corner towards goal, but Ripley saved at the near post. Millwall’s confidence was signalled when Morison tried to lob Ripley from 40 yards, but the ball just cleared the crossbar. And that feeling was reinforced five minutes before the break when the Millwall striker nutmegged Ousmane Fane and picked out O’Brien whose cross was cleared. It always felt in the first half that set-pieces would be Oldham’s most likely route back into the game, and after Webster had given away a free-kick 24 yards out substitute Josh Law – who had come on for the injured Jamie Reckford in the 11th minute – fired inches wide. And Millwall deepened Oldham’s misery in first-half injury-time when Worrall’s corner broke to O’Brien in the box and he rifled a half-volley past Ripley. The one worry for Millwall was an injury to Gregory, who had gone down off the ball in the first half and didn’t reappear in the second, Joe Martin coming on with Shane Ferguson moving to the left wing and O’Brien up front. It took Millwall just a minute of the second half to extend their lead, Webster reacting quickest at the back post to fire home after Oldham had failed to deal with Worrall’s corner. Later in the half Webster was lucky Ollie Banks’ dangerous tackle didn’t do more damage, with the Oldham midfielder fortunate referee East didn’t pull red rather than yellow from his pocket. Millwall eased off as the second period went on, but Oldham couldn’t take advantage of a number of corners and free-kicks, substitute Marc Klok trying his luck from a tight angle but Jordan Archer gathered cleanly at his near post. In the 78th minute Darius Osei found a chink of space in the box, but he rolled his effort wide when he really should have tested Archer. Klok again went close with a free-kick from 25 yards out in the 81st minute, but the ball just cleared Archer’s right-hand post. NewsAtDen's live action is brought to you by:A University of Connecticut professor feels he was “bullied” into resigning from his position as an adjunct professor in the computer science and engineering (CSE) department. Dr. Peter Zeno was hired to teach a section of CSE 1010 - Introduction to Computing for Engineers for the fall 2017 semester. Zeno quit after several conflicts arose between him and the CSE department, the last of which was a conflict over his decision to give the class extra credit work and two midterms instead of one. “The second midterm was voted on by the students and won unanimously,” Zeno said. “They didn’t want 45 percent of their grade resting on two exams, especially when they spent so much time on homework and labs.” Zeno said CSE department head Dr. Alexander Shvartsman told him in an email the day before the second midterm to “be very careful in deviating from the syllabus,” and CSE department member Dr. Joseph Johnson “called him out” in front of students and other department members for adding the second midterm and the extra credit for his section. “By this point, the TAs were no longer getting back to me, I had Dr. Johnson and perhaps Prof. (Jeff) Meunier (relaying) my every move to Dr. Shvartsman and I had to tell my students we were not going to have a second midterm. I really had no option but to quit this adjunct position with three weeks to go in the semester,” Zeno said in an email. Zeno said he first attempted to quit his job on Sept. 28 because he wasn’t receiving return emails to his questions and was consistently receiving weekly lecture material from Meunier, another CSE 1010 professor, either right before or after his lectures for the week had already started. “I would send questions to (Meunier) asking what topics were going to be covered, when I was going to get the slides, other questions about HuskyCT, teaching the class, etc. But he would never get back to me,” Zeno said. Zeno said the lack of communication went on for weeks “He was giving me material just before or after I was already teaching, and I myself needed to learn the programming language, at least enough to the point to teach it for that week,” Zeno said. “After a month of this, I got fed up and quit.” Zeno said when he told Shvartsman he was quitting, Shvartsman told him he could “take over (his) class and do as (he) saw fit.” “So, I covered some topics I thought were important for the class, but had never been taught in this course before,” Zeno said. “I asked the class if they wanted this background knowledge and many shook their heads yes.” Shvartsman said he gave Zeno autonomy in how he delivers the course material, but required him to coordinate with the other two lecturers to ensure consistency throughout all sections of the class. “I asked Dr. Zeno to take control of his part of the course ‘in any professional way,’” Shvartsman said. “It is unprofessional to deviate from the syllabus and the grading policy that is common to all sections of a course with hundreds of students and three faculty.” Shvartsman said it’s important that the assignments and grading for CSE 1010 is consistent throughout its five sections taught by three different professors. “If this is not the case, the students from the ‘harder’ sections will rightly complain – and they did,” Shvartsman said. “Equally important is that all students have consistent homework assignments. If this is not the case, then the students from ‘easier’ sections will not be as prepared for subsequent coursework.” Zeno said he feels “terrible” that he let his students down by going back on the promises he made of extra credit work and the second midterm. An anonymous first-semester mechanical engineering student who is in Zeno’s CSE 1010 class said Zeno’s departure was “pretty unexpected.” “He seemed pretty into the subject of computer science,” the student said. The student said Zeno taught his class differently than other professors in multiple ways, including by covering material that wasn’t taught in other professors’ sections and promising them chances to improve their grade, opportunities they never actually received. “He promised us a regrade on the first midterm, which never happened,” the student said. “(And) he was giving a second midterm that, not only no other class was doing, but it wasn’t a part of the syllabus.” The student said Zeno quitting was “the talk of the week.” “But we’re all still pretty bummed that we never got extra points or a way to do better on our first midterm because the grades weren’t so hot,” the student said.Back in 2011, Channel 4 in the UK used the Smiths' "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" to promote Gordon Ramsay's meat-packed "Christmas Cookalong Live". But they didn't ask Morrissey's permission. Moz earned a £10,000 payout from Channel 4 for the unauthorized song use. Today, The Guardian reports that Morrissey has donated the entire sum of money to PETA, for use in the animal rights organization's campaign against the disgusting delicacy known as foie gras. The PETA advertisements will go after the London-based department store Fortnum & Mason, which sells the cruelly produced duck meat (animals are force-fed to eat more than normal). Back in May, Moz posted a message on True-to-You asking fans to write the company and call for a ban on foie gras. Morrissey offered the following statement (via The Guardian): Ramsay may very well stick his head in his microwave when he hears that the money I received from Channel 4 because one of my songs used to promote his Christmas show is being donated to PETA to fight foie gras. Foie gras is so cruelly produced that he'd be against it if he had an ethical bone in his body. Meanwhile, PETA's associate director Mimi Bekhechi said, "With this generous gift, Morrissey is literally putting his money where his mouth is and combating cruelty to animals." Watch Morrissey perform "Meat Is Murder" last year, and check out an undercover PETA video about foie gras narrated by Kate Winslet.The phrase “family values” has become a proxy for a suite of policy preferences championed by the religious right. But what would a set of policies that truly reflected the value of American families look like? A good place to begin in creating such policies would be addressing our uniquely inflexible workplaces. Over the past couple of generations, two-earner households have become more common as women have come to play an increasingly vital role in the American workforce. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, between 1971 and 2011, while men’s participation in the workforce fell by 11 percent, women’s increased by more than a third. That’s also true of women with children under the age of 18 – seven out of 10 mothers worked in 2011. And despite our happy talk about gender equality, women continue to bear the lion’s share of the burden of caring for kids, elderly parents and ill family members. In the Unites States, many juggle these realities without access to paid sick leave, parental leave or the ability to work a flexible schedule. But there’s an effort underway to push America’s employers to catch up with the realities of the 21st-century family. Last month, two think tanks — the Center for American Progress and the Center for Economic and Policy Research — issued a report, “Job Protection Isn’t Enough: Why America Needs Paid Parental Leave,” which laid out the reasons that effort is so important. BillMoyers.com spoke with economist Heather Boushey, executive director of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and one of the report’s coauthors. Below is a transcript of our discussion that has been lightly edited for clarity. Joshua Holland: The primary effect of having inflexible workplaces, where few people are eligible for paid parental leave, is obvious: People who take unpaid time off to care for a baby or an elderly parent lose those wages. But there’s also a longer-term effect. Karen Kornbluh, US representative to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, says that the gender wage gap should be thought of as a “baby gap” — she estimated that a first child lowers a woman’s earnings by an average of almost eight percent. Can you explain why that is, and how paid leave might help? Heather Boushey: We’ve moved to an economy where most mothers are breadwinners, where people increasingly have responsibilities for aging family members, even as they’re employed in the workplace. And yet, we haven’t really thought about how we need to revamp our workplace policies to make sure that those people who have caregiving responsibilities are able to stay in jobs, move up the ladder, not have this every day conflict between work and family that makes it impossible for them to do their job well and to be a good family member. The issue of paid leave is so important for families at a number of different times in life. They’re important when a new child comes into the family, but they’re also really important when an aging parent falls down and breaks a hip, or has a heart attack or needs some help from an adult child — when that caregiver may need to take some time off. And all of those moments can derail careers. They can make it very challenging in terms of the income shock; if you can’t go to work because you have to provide care for a family member, you don’t have that income. But it’s also about whether or not you’re able to keep your job and your position in the workplace. So these are the big challenges that people are facing today. Holland: So when you have to temporarily exit the workforce to do these things, you lose seniority, you lose opportunities for advancement and there are holes in your resume. It has a ripple effect. Boushey: Exactly. Not only does it have that ripple effect on all these other pieces of your labor market experience, but we know that this is more likely to happen to people in the bottom half or bottom two-thirds of the wage distribution than the folks at the very top. About half of all workers have access to job-protected leave. Thanks to the Family and Medical Leave Act, they can take up to 12 weeks of leave and their job is protected. But a lot of workers still don’t have access to that, and people who don’t have access to it tend to be younger workers, tend to be people with an intermittent work history, tend to be in the lower end of the wage distribution, tend to work for small employers, so by definition they aren’t eligible for Family and Medical Leave. So those folks don’t have that job protection. And then, of course, only people who live in California, New Jersey and now Rhode Island have any pay when they take leave. So it causes people to have to make that tough choice about staying on the job. Maybe they lose their job, and then they can’t move up. Holland: Economist Gene Sperling also noted that the average time a worker needs to put in to get pension benefits is five years. Men’s average length at the same job is 5.1 years, but for women it’s less than four years. So, again, we see that ripple effect. You mentioned the FMLA, the Family and Medical Leave Act. Can you give us a sense of how many people were left uncovered by FMLA? Boushey: It only covers people who’ve worked a minimum number of hours over the past 12 months with a single employer. So if you’ve switched jobs in the past year then you’re not eligible. If you work less than part-time, you’re ineligible. And you have to work for an employer that has at least 50 people at your workplace or within a 75-mile radius, so it excludes small employers. The most recent estimates are that, at any given time, about 50 to 60 percent of people who are currently working are covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act. I do think it’s important to note that in some states, they now have programs in place that offer workers paid leave. There are statewide insurance programs that every worker pays into, and then they get benefits when they take the kinds of leave covered under the FMLA. So that’s a very exciting new development. And we’re really hopeful that other states will be able to move forward on that, too. Holland: How do we stack up on paid leave compared with other rich countries? Do women everywhere face these kinds of challenges? Boushey: One of my good friends, Joan Williams, says the United States has the most family-hostile policies of the developed world. And it’s true to the extent that we are a country that claims to value families, and yet, when you look at our policies, we are the extreme outlier in not providing paid parental leave to workers and their families. Holland: When Harvard’s Project on Global Working Families did a study of these policies, it looked at 170 countries, including developing countries. They found that the only countries that didn’t offer paid leave were Australia — which has since enacted it — the US, Lesotho, Papua New Guinea and Swaziland. Boushey: It’s remarkable. The reality is that most other countries have had a national conversation about the importance of care and how workers need to be able to provide for their families, and yet, we in the United States have not had that same conversation and made that same decision. It’s an embarrassment, quite frankly. When you tell people from other countries about this, you get these wide eyes. It really is quite humbling to see just how un-“family friendly” we are. Holland: We’ve been discussing this in the context of working women, and I don’t want to downplay the disproportionate role that they play in caregiving. But the reality is that it isn’t an issue that only impacts women. Women head up a huge number of households. More than one in four businesses in this country are owned by women. Do you think these issues get less attention because they’re defined as women’s issues? Boushey: These are family issues. One of the things that we’ve seen over the past few years is that surveys that track work-family conflict have found that men are now reporting more conflict than women
the self-described”global leader in natural gas engines.”The Westport Carbon Project (WCP), according to its website,“was established to monetize the carbon emission reductions associated with the Westport HD engine, the Cummins Westport ISL G and other natural gas engines developed with our OEM partners. The WCP enables customers to earn annual carbon rebate cheques for the natural gas vehicles in their fleet as of January 1, 2010.” Farallon also owns more than $8 million worth of shares of Fuel Systems Solutions, which according to its website “designs, manufactures and supplies proven, cost-effective alternative fuel components and systems for transportation and industrial applications. Its gaseous fuel technology for propane (LPG) and natural gas (CNG) generates savings, reduces emissions, and promotes energy independence.” While a 2011 Forbes profile on Steyer quotes him as saying: “I am a true believer that we have to change the way we generate and consume energy in the United States,” it would also be easy to view his combined investment and politicking efforts as “self-interested,” as he does stand to profit from the polices he’s promoting. Senator David Vitter (R-LA), in the Fox News story accuses Steyer of having financial interest in the death of a pipeline he opposes on environmental grounds.Vitter says: “I think it’s hypocrisy, quite frankly. Who knows when he’s going to divest of these investments... maybe in a few months when his helping kill Keystone will boost them up to top value.... Who knows?” According to Steyer spokesman Chris LeHane, “This divestment has been taking place consistent with the applicable legal requirements.” Steyer calling traditional energy companies “self-interested” is like the presumed morally superior pot calling the proven economically superior kettle black. Perhaps he really is a “true believer.” If so, he should remove himself from any form of financial gain he can reap from his political activism and donations. But maybe, like I do, those self-interested oil companies truly believe that developing our own resources to provide all Americans with energy that is efficient, effective and economical is in America’s best interest. The 2014 elections give Americans the opportunity to decide whether they side with the 28 Democrat Senators at Monday night’s sleepover who are dancing at the behest of the organ grinders-or if we want to learn from the mistakes of their failed green-energy projects only profiting the wealthy while robbing taxpayers, raising electricity rates and hurting the poor. Do we lean-in or back-away?Along with "I liked their old stuff' better", and "kids these days?!", "Triple J isn't what it used to be" is one of those perennial complaints that never gets old, especially for music purists in denial that they themselves are getting older. But the mantra could be debunked as of Thursday afternoon. Part of the digital evolution... Triple J will focus on musicians like Nick Cave. Credit:AFP The national youth network will take control of the ABC's digital station Dig Music from 5pm, rebranding it as "powered by Triple J", with a playlist targeting listeners aged 30-50 who have drifted from the Triple J fold, alienated by suspicious music forms like dubsteb (aka car-alarm techno) and folk-indie (aka car-ad folk). "We've heard that message for many years," says Triple J's station manager, Chris Scaddan. "People get to a point that they don't feel like Triple J works for them any longer and we are responding to that.OMG! The writers of ‘Saturday Night Live’ have been working ‘like crazy’ to write up hilarious jokes and skits for the Oct. 8 episode, making sure to tackle Donald Trump’s latest lewd video scandal. We’ve got the EXCLUSIVE details on what they’ve got in store for fans here! Donald Trump, 70, has been in hot water ever since The Washington Post released a bombshell tape on Oct. 7, showing the Republican nominee making vulgar remarks about Nancy O’Dell in 2005. So of course, the scandal would be featured in the opening sketch of SNL only one day later, which often tackles political issues. “Last night was a long night and all the writers are working like crazy figuring out some jokes and skits to tackle all the Donald Trump news,” a source tells HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY. “Michael Che and Colin Jost have been working overtime to make Weekend Update heavy on the Donald bashing.” Talk about dedication! Our source continued, “They also are considering having a dream sequence sketch where Donald & Hillary [Clinton] dream about how their debate will go on Sunday.” This isn’t the first time the hit NBC comedy series has portrayed the presidential candidates for the upcoming election. Only one week ago, for the premiere episode of the 42nd season, the superstar cast put on a hilarious mock debate where Alec Baldwin, 58, took on the role of Donald. Lets just say, he did such a great job with his spot-on impersonation! SNL star Michael served as the moderator Lester Holt while Kate McKinnon slayed as usual with her portrayal of the Hillary. The vintage tape continues to make it’s rounds on the internet, leading many to come forward to slam the Republican nominee for his comments about his distasteful comments towards women. Since it’s release, Donald made a public statement, claiming the ordeal was merely a “distraction” to more important issues. Meanwhile, his opponent, Hillary, also took to Twitter to take a stand against his inexcusable language. She wrote, “We cannot allow this man to become president.” The two candidates will face off on Oct. 9, for the second presidential debate! HollywoodLifers, will YOU be tuning into Saturday Night Live tonight?! Let us know!While there's a good variety to the VR headsets you can buy, from high-end options like the HTC Vive to middle-of-the-roaders like Gear VR and Google Daydream, and extremely affordable choices like Google Cardboard, AR doesn't currently enjoy the same variety. You can buy a developer version of HoloLens or enterprising-facing options from Epson and Vuzix, but that's kind of it. The only affordable way to experience AR is to use your smartphone. Essential reading: The AR startups and studios you need to know Mira is hoping to change that with its new $99 Prism headset, which can be best described as a Google Daydream or Gear VR for AR. You take your regular iPhone, slip it in, open up an app and off you go. We got a chance to try out the new headset and even play a couple games, so what's it like to use? In the Prism Prism looks like a headband with two big lenses attached to the front, making it difficult to figure out where the hell you put your smartphone. Turns out, it's in the bill of the headband. You simply slip your regular iPhone 6 or 7 into that area, display out. That's it. No opening compartments or squishing it into a small area. From there you just open up Mira's app to dive into some augmented reality. I was given two demos, the first of which was an Asteroids-type game. The Prism is bundled with a touch remote not dissimilar from the remotes bundled with the Gear VR and Daydream. I used that to navigate my little rocket ship around some planets and asteroids, and not just vertically and horizontally; I could make the ship fly into the distance and come back again. The field of view, by the way, is about double that of Microsoft HoloLens. Bad guys with angry faces soon started attacking my rocket ship, and I promptly used the touch controller to shoot them down. Looking around with the headset moved the level around, while I used the controller's trigger to fire at my enemies. The AR holograms were vivid and bright considering the sun that was pouring in the room the entire time. The headset is also light, with only the weight of an iPhone sitting on your brow. Those lenses can also easily be pulled off since they're attached via magnets. Mira tells me there'll be other lens options you can swap in if you'd like, including darker ones. So how does it work? How is Mira able to find a way to deliver augmented reality in a small, light and mobile package? It's literally one of the oldest tricks in the book, the Pepper's Ghost effect. The iPhone displays stereoscopic images, kind of like it does for Google Cardboard. The lens then has a special film on it that reflects that image in a way that makes it look like it's layered on top of the world in front of you. The second demo used Mira's markers, which we placed down on a table. When I looked at the table, Mira's app used the iPhone's front-facing camera to identify the marker and placed an overlay of a maze on top of it. I then played a quick game as a rolling donut collecting collectables and exiting the maze. It turns out that wasn't just a solo experience, as co-founder and CEO Ben Taft threw on a Prism of his own and we were able to play a quick game together, looking at the same exact overlay on the marker. And Mira's app also has a spectator mode, so co-founder and COO Matt Stern was able to pull out his iPhone and watch us play our game. The lenses on the Prism don't block out what you're seeing for other people. So when someone is looking at you, they can see that iPhone's display. Mira's ghost Mira was simply an answer to the biggest problem AR has right now: it's too expensive. The team wanted to buy a HoloLens for development, but they couldn't afford it, so they decided to make their own. They sourced Android spec phones from China and bought components from Alibaba to build makeshift HoloLens headsets. Thousands of iterations later, they came up with a prototype that helped the company get funded. With that money they partnered up with Astro Design, the same team that designed the Xbox 360 and Nike FuelBand (RIP), to give the Prism its final form. That form is bursting with potential. It's hard not to imagine third parties getting extremely excited about leveraging smartphone AR in a more convenient wearable experience (because really, holding up your phone or tablet gets tiring). However, Mira is still figuring this part out. The team has funded and created its own AR content, but is also already working with select unnamed third-party developers to create unique content, Stern says. In fact, that's why the Prism will head to developers first this autumn before being available for consumers during the holidays this year (something we're seeing many AR players do). Mira wants to be able to build up an ecosystem of AR content by getting its device, and Unity-based SDK, in as many developer hands as possible. Most of the first pieces of content will be focused on gaming, as Mira believes it's the easiest way for people to get into and understand Prism and AR. How that third-party content will be delivered is also up in the air. While Mira wants to offer all of these experiences within its app, it also doesn't want to break any of Apple's App Store rules, which usually forbids creating any kind of store experience within an app. However, Mira isn't opposed to using a Google Cardboard or Gear VR approach, in which developers can just release their Prism-compatible apps within the App Store with a badge to identify it as Prism-compatible. Speaking of the App Store, the Prism only works with the iPhone 6, 6s and 7 right now. Taft and Stern say the company wanted to focus on one device with the same measurements and capabilities before branching out to the iPhone Plus models and Android. It also arrives at an opportune moment, as Taft sees ARKit as a means of getting more people interested in AR headsets. "With ARKit and all these awesome handheld tools being introduced, people are just gonna start getting used to AR on this level," he said. "But a big subset of that population is going to want a more premium experience, and a more hands-free immersive experience." That's why a cross-platform approach, where people using Prism headsets and spectators using their phones can participate together, is important to Mira. In fact, Taft says the Nintendo Switch of all things was an inspiration. It wants people to be able to go out and have an AR experience that's not necessarily tied to a headset, because Mira doesn't believe people are ready to wear AR headsets out in public yet. But then they can come back home, put on the headset and get a more immersive experience. Hardware-wise, Mira is ready to go. The first units come off the production line next month, and Stern says the company will be able to mass produce the Prism due to it being built around a smartphone rather than building a tech-filled AR headset (therefore avoiding some of the challenges in building for AR). The big question for the Mira, and the Prism, is how much content it can build out and whether it can get big third-party developers on board, turning the Prism into the wearable AR gateway drug it so wants to be.My rematch NJwasteland sent me the absolute best box of gifts I could ever want! As a fellow retro gamer, I was pleased to receive: -2 issues of a retro gaming magazine -"The illustrated history of electronic games" -2 vintage Nintendo strategy guide books -a vintage 'top secret' code book for NES, SNES, and Game Boy -What appears to be a drawing of Mario in a dog house from Nintendo World -Bubble Bobble for Commodore 64/128 -An epic Castlevania 20th anniversary set, with an awesome art book, timeline book, music CD, and a ds stylus and game case -A Game Boy-shaped case, I presume it was originally intended for Game boy games and accessories :D -2 double-sided vinyl singles from facundo (my rematch) and bandcamp downloads (awesome!) -An 8-bit Castlevania figurine -A little Dragon Quest keychain (one of my favorite RPG series) -Dragon Quest fridge magnets! -What appears to be (it's in Japanese) a gamecube disc with several Famicom games on it. -Ice Climber display thing..I'm not sure what to call it, but it makes noise, and it looks amazing. -2 micro arcade LCD games -A Mario block with a mushroom on it..not sure how it works yet, but it's cool nonetheless! -A facundo pin -The 2010(?) Club Nintendo elite award: an authentic Mario hat! -A nice wool-ish winter hat with a frog on it. This will be nice as the school I go to has incredibly harsh winters :) Words cannot describe how awesome these gifts are... NJWasteland/facundo, if I could, I would give you all the karma in the world :D Happy arbitrary day! Thank you!ESL have drawn the match-ups for the second day of the ESL One Cologne Offline qualifier. The first day of competition in Katowice, Poland is over, as eight teams picked up much-needed victories, while eight will have to fight back for a chance to advance. In the Swiss system, winners of day one matches will be facing each other on day two in randomly drawn match-ups, while the same applies for losers. shox's G2 will be playing HellRaisers tomorrow ESL have just completed the draw, which sees the favourites G2 matched to HellRaisers, while the rest of the day will offer potentially exciting matches such as Cloud9 versus mousesports, TYLOO up against Immortals and more. The complete draw and tomorrow's schedule looks as follows: * times are approximate, matches will start as soon as possible after previous endsJust a few months away from the Lok Sabha elections, the business community seemed to be unanimous that the country needs a balanced, stable government that would be able to take executive action. Not impressed by the recent populist decisions taken by Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) after they formed the Delhi government, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) said that going back on executive or legislative decisions once taken is not going to prove to be beneficial for the country in the long run. Right after the National Executive Committee met Gujarat chief minister and BJP's Prime Miniterial candidate in Gandhinagar, Sidharth Birla, president, told the media that, "We are not concerned or bothered about just one party, we are concerned about whether actions are being taken or not." He elaborated on a few things found disturbing. "When the had come, they had spoken about power and water. FICCI's point of view was if the system could be made more efficient, leakage be reduced and the benefits can be given to the common man, it would be very good indeed. However, the announcement that has come now, has gone back to dolling out subsidies again. We are against needless subsidy. Same is in the case of water. This is not good for the country at such." Only recently the government withdrew the approval given by the previous government on allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in multibrand retail in Delhi. The chamber feels that is a complicated issue, while the previous Delhi government had given approval to FDI, this has now been reversed, and reversing any executive or legislative decision once taken is not good for the country, except in very extreme circumstances. Birla did not mince his words when he said, "It was AAP's prerogative, and they exercised it. Where we feel sad is that this was done without exploring any other viable alternatives. Today, there has been a policy reversal on one issue, tomorrow, there would be more such instances." Adding that he is commenting on the policies and not on the politics of AAP, he lamented," Whether such stands (policy reversals) would take us forward. How will the industries evolve their business models. The point is whether this 'romance' will create more jobs." On its part, however, FICCI has sent a letter to the new Delhi chief minister Kejriwal and invited him for an interaction, which is likely to take place in a month's time. FICCI, on the other hand, admitted that legislative functions in the UPA-II government got stuck as there was not a clear mandate, however, there is no room for any more experimentation. Birla said, "Each party has its own 'romance', the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has its own romance, the Congress and their own, same is true for regional parties. However, if the public takes a decision based on just this 'romance', we feel that it would not be right for the country." The industry chamber felt that the economic policies and development agenda of each and every major party including even the regional parties should be brought in front of the citizens such that the people take an informed decision in the next elections. An unstable government, which finds it difficult to take executive or legislative decisions could affect the growth prospects of the country at large. "If we have another six to thirteen months delay in environmental clearances, if we have issues whether we want development or not, then it is not going to work for the country," Birla claimed.Voters waited in line at Pilgrim Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mesa. Some voters reported waiting in line for several hours. (Photo: Michael Chow/The Republic) The Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice informed the Maricopa County Recorder's Office on Friday that it was investigating how the office handled the March 22 Presidential Preference Election. County Recorder Helen Purcell and her elections director, Karen Osborne, seriously misjudged voter turnout for the races pitting Donald Trump against Ted Cruz and Hillary Clinton against Bernie Sanders. After the number of polling places was cut to 60 from a 2012 total of 200, voters waited in line for up to five hours to vote. Some polling places stayed open until after midnight to accommodate voters who were already in line at 7 p.m. when the polls officially closed. In a letter dated April 1, Chris Herren, chief of the DOJ's Civil Rights Voting Section, asked for information to be turned over by April 22. Herren asked for: A list of polling places. Procedures for determining the number and locations of polling places. Whether voters could vote at any polling places. A complete list of registered voters. Data totals on who cast votes. Details on staff who manned the polling places. Provisional ballots. The actual times that polls accommodated the last of their voters. Procedures for recording party registration. Response to public outcry. "It's a request for information," Osborne said. "Throughout the years we've had other requests like this," she said. "We will answer all the questions, we will answer them by April 22, and we will make the response public. That's all I know to say about it." Purcell and Osborne told the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors last week that they anticipated voter turnout of 23 percent based on the number of eligible voters and the number of early voting ballots. But more than twice as many voters turned out, in part because independent voters were no longer able to participate in the primary election unless they registered as Democrats, Republicans or Green Party members. Snags with mail-in ballots — including candidates on the ballot who were no longer in the race — also prompted more than the expected number of voters to go to polling locations. The misjudgment triggered protests at the state Legislature and Maricopa County Board of Supervisors meetings. Clinton and Trump won handily, but an attorney representing the Sanders campaign raised questions as to whether his client was cheated of delegates. Read or Share this story: http://azc.cc/1MOGfqKBetting Odds NBA odds have made Indiana a +2.5 underdog. Although the juice is a little bit higher I think this is good value on an Indiana team that could very well win this game. For my selection tonight I'm going to back Indiana plus the 2.5 to do just that. Indiana Pacers Indiana is averaging 99.6 points per game, shooting 44% from the field, and 38.8% from beyond the arc. They have really changed their identity this season from last season being more of an outside in team compared to last year where they went inside out. This is displayed pretty dramatically in their three-point shooting percentage which ranks fourth in the league and their overall tempo attempting 84.2 shots per game which ranks in the upper part of the league. With Paul George once again establishing himself as one of the best players in the league Indiana looks more like a playoff team every day. I think much should be attributed to head coach Frank Vogel who has adapted this line up to play more up-tempo, stretching the floor, moving the ball, and shooting the three. Defensively Indiana's allowing 94.5 points per game, 44% shooting from the field, and 31.2% from distance. Even with the new style on offense Vogel has not abandoned his foundation of putting out a very tough defensive team. The Pacers rank fourth in the league in points against, opponent assist per game, and in opponent three-point shooting percentage. They are following the trend of what the best teams in the NBA are trying to mimic, shoot the three and defend the three. Washington Wizards Washington is averaging 103.6 points per game, shooting 45.4% from the field, and 35.9% from beyond the arc. They won three games in a row and now have Bradley Beal back in the lineup who makes their backcourt one of the best in the NBA. Offensively they have been very efficient and although they are not attempting a lot of shots per game at 82.3 per contest they are still making buckets at a high rate. They seem to have a good core group of players but I think they might have a tough time tonight against a fundamentally sound defense in Indiana. Defensively Washington is allowing 105.3 points per game, 45.6% shooting from the field, and 37.2% from beyond the arc. This is the guts of this play tonight in that Washington simply has not played good defense this season and rank as one of the worst statistically in the NBA. This could be a problem tonight against an Indiana team that has been efficient in their own right offensively. Across the board it seems like these teams matchup pretty well, but for me the nod goes to Indiana who is a better defensive team. For one of your NBA picks I recommend taking the Pacers plus the small number to take this game to the wire or to win straight up. Until Washington improves their defense they will be on the outside looking in come playoff time. NBA Pick: Pacers +2 at Pinnacle [/]{"component":"oddswidget", "eventId":2882669, "sportsbooksIds":[1096,19,93,92,238,349], "LineTypeId":1, "PeriodTypeId":1}[/]UK Pensioner Could Face Arrest For Atheist Poster from the best-use-of-police-time? dept Along with ridiculous libel cases, the UK is also infamous for laws that are designed to stop people hurting the feelings of others. Maybe that's a laudable aim, but the end-result is that they can cast a chill over freedom of speech. Here's a classic case from the English town of Boston in Lincolnshire: A Boston OAP [Old Age Pensioner] who vowed to defy police advice and display an atheist poster has attracted national interest -- and an offer of support from the National Secular Society. John Richards was advised that putting up a poster at his Vauxhall Road home denouncing religions as 'fairy stories' could be an offence under the Public Order Act. Following the outcry that greeted this story, the Lincolnshire police naturally responded by issuing a press release: LincolnshirePolice have not advised Mr Richards that he faces arrest for the specific posters he is displaying and he is not committing any offences by doing so. The 1986 Public Order Act states that a person is guilty of an offence if they display a sign which is threatening or abusive or insulting with the intent to provoke violence or which may cause another person harassment, alarm or distress. This is balanced with a right to free speech and the key point is that the offence is committed if it is deemed that a reasonable person would find the content insulting. If a complaint is received by the police in relation to a sign displayed in a person’s window, an officer would attend and make a reasoned judgement about whether an offence had been committed under the Act. In the majority of cases where it was considered that an offence had been committed, the action taken by the officer would be to issue words of advice and request that the sign be removed. Only if this request were refused might an arrest be necessary. So the good news is that the police haven't told Mr Richards that he faces arrest for his atheist poster -- yet; the bad news is that if someone says they are offended by his poster, and the police decide that a reasonable person would agree with them, then he will indeed face arrest unless he takes it down. Since the UK government claims that the current threat level from terrorism is "substantial", you can't help feeling that one way of tackling that would be to free up the police from having to worry about posters in a pensioner's window. Follow me @glynmoody on Twitter or identi.ca, and on Google+ Filed Under: atheism, boston, libel, lincolnshire, police, ukSize of kangaroo arm muscles big lure in attracting females Updated The males stand out from the crowd, arms flexed in the sunlight, muscles bulging, surveying their surroundings as they look for a likely partner. It's a scene repeated at the gym and in bushland the nation over. Now, a Perth university research team may have unlocked the key to the mating success of the western grey kangaroo. The team, led by Dr Natalie Warburton from Murdoch University's School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, has been studying several roo mobs in Perth and Dunsborough. They identified several possible criteria for sexual attractiveness and found the size of a male kangaroo's forearms was a key factor in their ability to find and keep mates. "Forelimb measurements showed that whereas female musculature growth was proportional to body size, male musculature was overwhelmingly exaggerated," Dr Warburton said. Much like elsewhere in the animal kingdom, it is the habits of youthful play that contribute to the kangaroo's ability to find a role in the mob as an adult. Dr Warburton says males engage in wrestling and other strength-based play as juveniles, skills that take on a more aggressive component as they age. "Male kangaroos establish and maintain their dominance hierarchy through sparring contests that involve grasping their opponent and using their back legs to box them," she said. She says the stronger the males get, the more wrestling contests they win which means they stand out and appear more attractive to potential partners. 'Body builder' roos spend time posturing Team member Dr Trish Fleming says the dominant males are also able to ward off some challenges through physical display. "You'll usually have a couple of really large individuals and they'll be very bulked up," she said. "If you look at them from front-on, they look like they're body builders and they'll spend quite a bit of time posturing and displaying to females, but also to other males. "Obviously, that's part of their competitive success." Dr Fleming says the dominant male's strict control of his females makes it dangerous for smaller males looking to secure a mate. "There's the possibility of males getting a sneaky mating in but they would have to be very brave," she said. "They'd have to be able to get in and distract the dominant male and it would be quite unlikely. "When the female is in oestrus [in heat] she'll be hounded quite relentlessly by the dominant male." Larger muscles come at cost of own survival But evolution has always been a matter of trade-offs and the kangaroo is no exception. While larger muscles may lead to more opportunity for securing its lineage, the extra bulk may actually lead to shorter life spans. "We think that could be due to them having higher body mass and bulk that they've got to maintain," Dr Fleming said. "So, they get hit by drought and lack of food much more readily than the females do. "That is a really telling part of the trait. "It might be advantageous to be very muscly for getting a mate, but it comes at a cost of your own survival." Topics: animal-behaviour, perth-6000 First postedThe Cafe Irreal is a quarterly webzine that presents a kind of fantastic fiction infrequently published in English. This fiction, which we would describe as irreal, resembles the work of writers such as Franz Kafka, Kobo Abe, Clarice Lispector and Jorge Luis Borges. As a type of fiction it rejects the tendency to portray people and places realistically and the need for a full resolution to the story; instead, it shows us a reality constantly being undermined. Therefore, we're interested in stories by writers who write about what they don't know, take us places we couldn't possibly go, and don't try to make us care about the characters. We would also suggest you take a look at the current issue, archives, and theory (especially the essay, "What is irrealism?") pages on this web site. We accept unsolicited fiction up to 2,000 words in length. Translations are welcome. There is no minimum length. We accept only electronic submissions via e-mail at editors@cafeirreal.com. We cannot, due to the various computer viruses and worms, accept attachments anymore, so please paste your story into the body of the e-mail. Also include your name, address, e-mail address, and a short bio in the text of the submission; please put the word "submission" in the subject heading of the e-mail to ensure that your submission doesn't get lost among all the spam. We pay an honorarium of one cent U.S. per word ($2 minimum) to buy first-time internet rights (the story will then be archived). Payment is made upon publication. PLEASE NOTE THAT WE DON'T ACCEPT SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS and are only interested in reprints in unusual cases (e.g., the story has appeared in print but not on the internet). Therefore, if the story or translation has been published before, please specify where and when. Regarding submission of more than one story at a time, we will consider up to 2,000 words submitted by a single author at a given time, either one story or a number of short shorts. Please note, however, that if you submit several short shorts, they must be enclosed within a single e-mail. We do not publish the same author in consecutive issues, except when we have specifically solicited the material. We accept submissions year-round and usually respond in two months, though it can take as long as four months. The Cafe Irreal is a quarterly publication, publishing on February 1, May 1, August 1, and November 1 of each year. The deadline for submissions for each issue will be one month before the date of publication. The deadline for the next issue (Spring 2019) will be April 1, 2019.You knew you shouldn’t have said it, but you did. As the words tumbled from your mouth, embarrassment burned your face. Everyone’s disgusted looks confirmed it: This was the last straw; you had to leave. So now here you are, lumbering through the jungle, your heart pounding. It’s almost nightfall. You’re sweating; pushing through sharp palm fronds and whining mosquitoes when you hear it. Was that the growl of a tiger? Or the rattle of a venomous snake? You scramble for the nearest tree, but deep down, you know you’re going to die out here tonight. And it’s all because you said something stupid in front of the tribe when you probably should’ve kept your mouth shut. Is this the latest episode of Survivor on steroids? Actually, no. This could have really happened to you thousands of years ago. In fact, some believe early humans feared this “ultimate rejection” so much, our behavior is still affected by it today. And believe it or not, understanding this fear can help you to be outgoing and feel confident when talking to new people. Which is great, because if you’re like I was, you often feel too quiet socially and come up with excuses NOT to talk to the people who interest you. Thousands of Years Ago, Your Reputation Meant Life or Death See, for a long part of our evolution, humans lived in hunter-gather tribes of 50-150 people. Everyone knew each other, so your reputation was everything. If you said or did something the tribe didn’t like, you could be shunned from the community. That could mean the end of you. You’d be left alone in the wilderness where wild animals, hunger and exposure were real threats. So fear of rejection was a VERY useful instinct back then. Thankfully, you no longer have to worry about being shunned into non-existence because of something you say or do. But here’s the bad news: Your primal brain doesn’t realize that and in some social settings, it’s keeping you overly cautious, quiet and isolated from potential new friends. See, some evolutionary psychologists now believe humans evolved so long in that “small tribe” environment, we have this “social anxiety” hardwired into our brains. So any time you enter a social setting where you might face rejection, your brain gets nervous. It’s still stuck believing rejection means your life is over – literally. That’s why even though you WANT to talk to that new person, you have this overwhelming impulse inside you screaming, “DON’T DO IT! YOU CAN’T; YOU MIGHT FAIL!” And as an added fun bonus, all that nervousness and anxiety prevents you from acting naturally. In many cases, this is why you feel awkward and “not yourself.” Build Social Confidence by Catching Your Head Up with the Times These days, this instinct to be cautious socially isn’t so necessary, right? There are now 7 billion of us on the planet. And with so many opportunities to meet new people, it’s possible to be completely shunned by one group yet easily start over with another. And while you might realize this consciously, your subconscious still fears that wild jungle. You tell yourself it’s no big deal to talk to those strangers; just do it. But your brain starts feeding you fear signals, trying to warn you of your impending sprint from a tiger. So how do you get past these fears of rejection and failure? How do you eliminate a reaction that’s hardwired into your makeup? You don’t. Those feelings are here to stay. They’re part of being human. Everyone has them to some degree or another. However, you can minimize the effects of that anxiety so you can be more authentic and outgoing. Here are a couple of suggestions: Realize there’s nothing wrong with you when you feel you can’t talk to people. A certain amount of social anxiety is built into all of us. It’s our mind trying to be helpful by warning us of possible danger. The intensity of this warning signal varies by individual. For whatever reason, you may feel it more severely than others, but there are ways to chip away at it. In many cases, that involves simply changing your perspective. Repeatedly remind yourself that rejection is not a big deal. Not once, not twice – constantly. Every time you’re in a situation you want to talk to someone but can’t, remind yourself: It’s not necessary for everyone to like you Your life won’t implode if this person doesn’t accept you There are plenty of other people in the world No matter what, you’ll still be: good at your job, a compassionate person, [insert your strength here] THEN, go talk to the person Unwind Your Social Anxiety Clock Through Repetition But remember, it’s the repetition that’s key. This irrational fear was formed by repetition over millennia AND by the repetition of bad experiences in your past. It’s through repetition in the opposite direction that you’ll unwind the limiting beliefs keeping you quiet and unsatisfied. As I mentioned above, these suggestions won’t eradicate your fears of rejection. But it can reduce the intensity of those fears. You can train yourself to act in spite of those anxious feelings to the point it’s second nature. It just takes time. And as you begin to truly see rejection as acceptable, your world expands. You become more authentic and bold You speak your mind and voice your opinions You take the opportunity to talk to the people you WANT to talk to Because deep down you truly understand, if the encounter doesn’t go well, so what? There’s plenty other people in the world to befriend, right? And besides, there doesn’t seem to be any loose tigers roaming nearby. You should be fine. What about you?
misses the chip shot 31-yard FG, which would have meant the Redskins go up 10-0.... Cundiff at half time with his teammates.... Alfred Morris has a 100+ yards rushing at half time...what he quietly is to this offense... Bad advice for RGIII.... A pretty comparable scene for the thunderous hit laid on RGIII and everyone's reaction, which ended up being a concussion trying to scramble for extra yards... Kirk Cousins steps in and on his second possession throws a 77-yard TD to Santana Moss.... Michael Turner runs for a TD and Matt Bryant kicks a FG to take the lead for Atlanta... Kirk Cousins throws back-to-back interceptions to end the game.... This is how DeAngelo Hall probably feels about Falcons' head coach, Mike Smith, spanning back to the heated loss and sideline brawl in 2009.... Shanahan's message to Redskins fans... Mike Shanahan to the locker room post game... How every Redskins fan watches a Cundiff field goal attempt... To all my Giants and Eagles' friends that continue to remind me the Redskins registered yet another home loss... How I plan to get through the rest of the season.... Related PostsJeremy Jones takes us 'Higher' Slated for a September 2014 world premiere, "Higher" traces the origins and pinnacle achievements of Jeremy Jones, one of the greatest big mountain snowboarders of our time. Under the famed cables of the KT-22 lift at Squaw Valley, California, thousands of fans arranged themselves on a grassy lawn to see the latest Jeremy Jones/TGR project "Higher." The evening had a brisk fall chill, indicating snow season is right around the corner, so it was a fine time to load up the sensory receptors on inspirational snowboarding. Which is exactly what Jones and his big-mountain brethren have been doing for the past six years: inspiring. Their adventures, going from Antarctica to Nepal, have resulted in countless snowboarders turning to splitboarding around the world, which is nothing to scoff at. But Jones says his move toward the foot-powered method of accessing backcountry lines was a natural transition, not one done with making movies in mind. However, we're glad he brought the cameras along. With "Higher" -- the final installment in a trilogy that includes the groundbreaking "Deeper" and its follow-up, "Further" -- we see Jones' other career transitions: from racing gates in Vermont in his decade-plus-long dominance of steep lines, to dropping out of the helicopter for a hike. The new footage that comprises the meat of this final chapter shows Jones in classic form, accompanied by Brian Iguchi, Ryland Bell and Luca Pandolfi in the Tetons, Alaska and the Himalayas, respectively. Night fell as the film began, with hoots and hollers echoing around the valley as the first shots of the massive peaks glowed onto crowd. Here's what Jones had to say about being the heartbeat that fuels the pulse of big-mountain snowboarding. This foot-powered stuff, I didn't do that because I thought it would make for a good film, it's where I'm at with my life.... My excitement for snowboarding and real adventure, for unplugging and camping and spending lots of time in the wilderness, my love for that is stronger than it's ever been. -- Jones ESPN: How is "Higher" different than the first two movies in the trilogy? Jeremy Jones: For starters, the film is based on three major descents, as opposed to with the other films where I more went to the areas and sessioned a bunch of different lines. "Higher" is about three of the biggest, most tech lines I've ever done. It also weaves my story, and takes the viewer from Cape Cod to the Himalayas, and throughout the film we go into these archives of different stages of my life. It's really more personable, meaning you hear more from me about what's really going on mentally with how I justify the risks and why I do it. I get asked the hard questions that I've never been asked in the previous films. What did you learn over the course of making the three movies and what did you learn from the first two that applied to "Higher"? I've learned so much with all of them, really in three categories. First and foremost my snowboarding. The mountains I go to, my way of hiking them, all that is a track that I would be on with or without these films. Never was a trip or a mission decided because we thought it would be good for the film. The cameras just [have documented] where I'm at with my progression as a snowboarder. I went through this huge progression as a snowboarder over the six years [of filming the trilogy], and almost on a daily basis I found myself in a position that I couldn't have gotten into a day earlier in my life. That's so exciting, needing the whole toolbox to be where I was at in that moment in the mountains. That's why it's been such a crazy, rich, invigorating experience. The only time in my life as a snowboarder that's been this exciting were the first six years of snowboarding where you're learning something new every day. I'm always envious of the beginner snowboarder. Their Mount Everest is the blue square right under the lift. Second, the component of documenting the snowboarding has been super challenging and an incredible learning experience. From a technical side with "Higher," for example, we shot it all on 4k cameras which are three times heavier than the cameras we used in "Further" -- and the cameramen are hiking to everything. In "Deeper," we had these little DSLR cameras and by the end of the trip we'd be down to one camera and one minute of card space, broken tripods, fogged lenses -- we made every mistake you could make. Then we took a big step with "Further," and then an even bigger step with "Higher" from a production side. Third, the post production, that's been equally as challenging as every other stage of the actual riding. Documenting the riding is really learning how to tell this complete story with Acts 1, 2 and 3, and keeping the viewer intrigued through the length of this film and not just relying on the action. With this film especially I reached out to some award-winning documentary [makers]. I screened it more than any other film and got advice from people. At times the advice was very deflating and challenged me and TGR on our movie-making, and that's been really exciting too. Courtesy Teton Gravity Research It really is impossible to overstate how steep and scary hiking to, and riding down, something like this is. What was the scariest part of filming "Higher?" Every line is really intense for me. Without giving away some of the film, there are some really intense moments on the mountain that were some of the scariest moments I've had in the mountains. They were not something that I am proud of at all, and I would love to not have that stuff in the film, but it happened and it's a disservice to the viewer to not show my mistakes. I wish they weren't there, but they were a reality and they're in the film. How did you come about choosing the small cast of riders in this movie? For the three locations -- the Tetons, Alaska and the Himalayas -- I went and found the best riders I could find for those locations. For the Tetons, I continue to spend more and more time there with Brian [Iguchi] and he's probably my favorite person in the world to be in the mountains with. His level of knowledge and joy, and actual snowboarding, is just at a spot that you don't get to without 25 years of committing your life to it. We jibe really well together. For Alaska, Ryland Bell is from Alaska, and I always try and connect with locals where possible. It's a good omen. You want to stack as many good omens or karma into a trip, and since Ryland has been coming out on these on-foot trips we've had a lot of success. It's like, why change that? Luca Pandolfi, going into the Himalayas, I knew I would be at my max, and I couldn't be concerned with another rider and if that person knows how to set up an anchor, or drill in an ice screw, or fix a crampon that falls off in the middle of a sketchy face. Luca is from Italy and lives in Chamonix and has done arguably some of the heaviest lines ever ridden on a snowboard in the last couple years in Chamonix. Plus he has Himalayan experience. That was really hard to find, someone who could handle the altitude and could handle these long trips. I really only snowboarded with Luca one day before the trip. But I hung out with him, he rides for Jones Snowboards, and was basically the best rider that I could find for that expedition. What kind of technology was used for the filming of the aerial shots in the film? Another huge difference in the film is the aerial cinematography. TGR acquired this new heli-mount, a cutting edge gimbal camera, called a GSS. We used that one day in the Tetons and two days in the Himalayas and the footage was just shocking, and we used it for a half a day in Alaska. The footage was so spectacular it's actually a big part of the film, even though out of the 80 or so days spent filming it was only there for three and a half. TGR has so much experience with aerial filming. My brother Todd shot that stuff and it was really cool connecting with him on that. As you mentioned using the heli-mount camera system for some of the filming, did anyone give criticism for that in what is promoted as a foot-powered movie and did you have any conflict in that department? I am very aware of my impact and always critical of my carbon output. In all areas of my life I continue to reduce my impact on the planet. This includes snowboarding and filming "Deeper," "Further" and "Higher." They have a much smaller carbon footprint than the traditional films I have worked on over the last 15 years. But they do have an impact and this is why I have never called them "eco" films. Courtesy TGR Jeremy Jones: Just another day at work. Ever since I started Protect Our Winters I have received criticism and this will probably continue. But of the three films, "Higher" has the smallest footprint because it was only three locations, two of which required long plane flights, Alaska and the Himalayas. The impact of using the heli for three days was far less then the plane travel it took to get us to these places. The aerial footage we did capture is a significant part of the film and helps take "Higher" to the next level. If there is one message to your movies or one idea that you want to relate to your average viewer, what would that be? Life is precious, don't let anyone get in the way of your passions. Challenge yourself -- and that doesn't mean you have to go jump some huge cliff, just challenge yourself in life. Don't settle. Reach for the stars. You must get asked this a ton, but can you comment on any future plans? Is there an encore movie in the works? I'm hoping for a foot-powered trip in Alaska next year with Travis Rice. That's on a technical side, more from an overall perspective, though. This foot-powered stuff, I didn't do that because I thought it would make for a good film, it's where I'm at with my life. It's really opened up the world from my home range, the Sierra, and my hit list now is 10 times bigger than six years ago when I started these films. My excitement for snowboarding and real adventure, for unplugging and camping and spending lots of time in the wilderness, my love for that is stronger than it's ever been. I'm at a level that I've never been to on that front, in terms of getting into unknown mountains and figuring them out and hiking up them and camping. I'll continue on that path and how that's documented -- or if that will be documented -- I don't know.FORMER GREEK MINISTER for Finance Yanis Varoufakis has said that fears that Ireland may end up as “collateral damage” in negotiations between London and Brussels are “well-founded”. Speaking to RTÉ’s This Week, the economist said if Britain chooses to leave the capital union, Ireland would not be negotiating with London over the status of the border: ”there will be negotiations between London and Brussels on this”. This comes as Gerry Adams said that Brexit could destroy the Good Friday Agreement, and that Brexit was a ”hostile act against this island”, because it could mean taking the North out of the European Union. Other concerns The main challenges that Brexit poses for Ireland include higher taxes on imported and exported products, and the future for the border between the Republic of Ireland and the North. When Britain leave the European Union, higher taxes on goods exported from Ireland are likely; but how much higher they are will signify just how tough Brexit will be for small Irish businesses here. Because the UK voted to leave the EU on a mandate of limiting the free movement of people, the worry is that a physical border of some sorts will return, seriously impacting relations in the North – especially at a time of political uncertainty. “I think that it’s imperative for the Irish government to ensure that it’s not sidelined,” Varoufakis said today. You have to use your special geographical place and the historical links between the Republic and the United Kingdom to knock some sense into both London and Brussels. Varoufakis was made Greek Finance minister after his far-left party Syriza rose to power in the 2014 general elections. He and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras promised to get a better – or less austere – deal from the European Union, but failed in negotiations to achieve that. Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, right, and Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis. Source: AP/Press Association Images Varoufakis then resigned, he says because Tsipras was told he would get a better deal for the Greek people if Varoufakis stepped aside. Since his resignation in 2015, Varoufakis has been a vocal critic of the EU – often expressing his disillusionment with the way the European Union functions. “My great fear having experienced negotiations [like these] is that negotiations are not rational – indeed they are often fake negotiations. Often there is a power-play that leaves behind the common interest for both sides,” he said today. The PM’s Speech Earlier this week Theresa May outlined her ‘wish-list’ for Brexit negotiations. Included on that list was her desire to acknowledge the unique relationship they have in the North. She also said that if they didn’t get a good deal, that they would get competitive on trade by lowering corporate tax rates. Various opposition politicians, including Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, expressed concern about Theresa May’s speech, saying that it doesn’t include much detail about how negotiations will proceed.The Houston Dynamo will participate in Group 1 of the 2013-2014 CONCACAF Champions League, it was announced Monday night at the tournament’s official draw in Miami. The Dynamo will face Árabe Unido of Panama and W Connection of Trinidad and Tobago in the group stage, set to begin in August. The Dynamo qualified for the regional tournament by advancing to the 2012 MLS Cup final. Árabe Unido qualified as the 2012 Apertura Champion of the Panamanian Football League. W Connection enters the tournament by virtue of winning Group 1 in the Carribean Football Union (CFU) Club Champions’ Cup. “We are honored to be back in the CONCACAF Champions League this year,” said Houston Dynamo President of Business Operations Chris Canetti. “It is an important tournament for us. We look forward to representing MLS and the challenge of competing for the group title.” This is the sixth appearance for the Dynamo in the regional championship, including semifinal runs in the 2007 and 2008 Champions Cup tournaments. Houston reached the quarterfinals of the 2012-2013 CONCACAF Champions League before falling to Santos Laguna of Mexico, 3-1 on aggregate. Árabe Unido, from Colón, Panama, has participated in CONCACAF’s regional tournament four times prior. Their best finish came during the 2009-10 tournament, in which they reached the quarterfinals of the competition. That year, Árabe faced the Dynamo in the group stages, with the teams drawing the first match in Panama 1-1 and the Dynamo winning the return leg 5-1. Los árabes have won 12 first division domestic league titles, second most in Panama. W Connection are from Marabella, Trinidad and Tobago. This is their fifth time appearing in the regional championship. The only time they have advanced came in 2009 against the New York Red Bulls in a preliminary round match-up. The Savonetta Boys have won four domestic league titles, as well as three domestic cups and three CFU Club Championships. The group stage of the tournament will begin in August. Each team will face each other twice in a home-and-home series with only the first place team in each group advancing to the quarterfinal round, which will take place in spring 2014. Group stage matches against Árabe Unido and W Connection are included in Dynamo full season ticket packages. Individual match tickets along with the exact dates and times of all matches will be announced in the coming weeks. The CONCACAF Champions League is a 24-team tournament featuring the best club teams in North and Central America and the Caribbean. Founded in 1962 as the Champions Cup, it was reformatted in 2008 under its new name. The 2013-14 edition follows the same format as last tournament, with 24 teams divided into eight groups of three.First of all, are you totally serious? Yes. "No funny shtuff". Except Dudeism is pretty funny. Laughable, man! So it's pretty hard to be totally serious about it. But the Dudeist tradition has always been light-hearted and humorous, in comparison to mainstream culture: Taoist vs Confucianist, Troubadours vs Theologists, Stoners vs Alcoholics, Dude vs. Lebowski. We think funny and true go together better than serious and true. Is Dudely Lama your official ordained title? As the current fella in charge, I'm the "Dudely Lama". So that's what you call me. But it's not permanent. I hope to step down one day and let someone else take over before I burn out and get very undude about it all. © lebowskipainting.com Are you, like, a 'high' priest? Ha ha... Yes, I'm all fucked up on life. I'm adhering to a strict Dudeist regimen to keep my mind limber. And you say Dudeism's based on Taoism? What’s it all about? We believe that the Dudeist tradition started as a response to the excesses of civilisation. That was Lao Tzu's deal anyway. Lots of similar traditions dealt with issues of work and status and anxiety and nature the same way. But they were all, pretty much, taken over by fascists and real reactionaries. Even Taoism was taken over by charlatans and phonies. But the pure undogmatic centre of lots of traditions (Christianity, Vedism, Buddhism etc) is all the same. And that's Dudeism. Oliver at Lebowskifest 2009 © Andy Sternberg Is smoking weed and drinking White Russians part of it? Sure, if that's what you dig. A lot of people find that smoking dope and having a nice creamy cocktail can be profoundly relaxing. But it doesn't have to be that - you can also take a bath with candles and whale sounds, lay on your rug and meditate to tapes of old bowling tournaments, or go bowling with your buddies. Anything that helps you relax and not take life so seriously. So bowling's quite important then? Bowling is probably the most accepting, un-athletic sport in the world. Where else can you smoke and drink while you compete? And it doesn't matter if you're fat, thin, young or old. Plus, it's a perfect metaphor for life: ups and downs, strikes and gutters... And Metallica? The Dude says they're a bunch of assholes. But they're cool about being called a bunch of assholes in the movie, so that makes them not a bunch of assholes. On the other hand, Glen Frey of the Eagles was supposedly unkind to Jeff Bridges for the same reason (the Dude says he "hates the fucking Eagles, man"). So that makes him undude. It doesn't matter if you're an achiever or not, only if you're dude or undude. © Sage Idiot 1 Do you see The Stranger character as a kind of God figure? Dudeism is non-theistic. We don't see anything as a kind of God figure. That's not to say we're not religious. We do think there's some far out shit out there, but it's not some old guy with a moustache. Anyway, The Stranger is probably more like a mirror of ourselves. He also may be the ghost of America's past - taking stock of what's become of the nation's integrity. Where are your head offices? Los Angeles, but I live most of the year in Thailand. It's an easy place to take 'er easy. And what's your background? I grew up in the '80s, in "The Valley" - which is where shopping malls were invented, I think. The '80s were very undude. As soon as I graduated university, I hit the road. I wrote three novels during that time, all of which desperately need an editor. After that I was a travel writer, journalist and graphic designer. I'm also a musician and I'm currently working on an album of Lebowski-inspired material. To quote The Big Lebowski, “Are you employed, sir?” At the moment, I earn enough to pay the bills selling t-shirts and other stuff on the website. But that's not saying much - life in Thailand is very cheap, so the monkey is easily fed. I still have a few writing gigs. And I'm just finishing up a book called The Abide Guide, that will be published in August. It's a Dudeist self-help book I'm writing with Arch Dudeship Dwayne Eutsey and other members of the church. So is it an official religion, according to the law and so on? Separation of church and state is so strong in the US it's hard to say what's "official" or not. Each state seems to have its own take on it, so we ask our ordained Dudeist priests to check with their local county clerks before presiding over a wedding or whatnot. Other countries tend to be a lot stricter. At some point we're going to have to launch a full scale recognition program, so we can stop being discriminated against. Hopefully we'll get recognised faster than the Christians did. It took them at least 100 years. We're hoping for five. What’s your take on other pop culture-related religions, like Jediism? Jediism is cool. There's a lot of Dudeism in Jediism. But that's probably because Jediism is based on Taoism and Zen, and those are the two most Dude religions that currently exist. Besides Dudeism, of course. What about Scientology? Uh, no comment. Those guys have an army of lawyers and will sue you for even looking at them funny. Oliver and real-life Dude Jeff Dowd at Lebowskifest You’ve met Jeff Dowd (the basis for The Dude character), what’s he like? Dowd admits he's not all that much like The Dude. He's full of energy and ambition, for one thing. He was part of the Seattle Seven, he's a political activist and a film producer. So he might be a lot like The Dude when he was younger, full of vim and vigour and idealism. Anyway, he's a nice guy with a good sense of humour and a liver of steel. What are his thoughts on Dudeism? We only hung out for a few minutes, so I can't say for sure. But we made him one of our Great Dudes in History and he dug that. Have you met Jeff Bridges and the Coens? Nope. I hope to one day. Other Dudeist priests have met Bridges and say he's the coolest guy ever. Supposedly he digs Dudeism but for now he's keeping his distance. It would be great to get him involved somehow. The Coens seem to have less affinity for the cult of Lebowski than Bridges, so it's hard to imagine them being very proud of what they've spawned. But I can't think of two people I'd rather shoot the shit with. Besides Bridges, of course. How many ordained members do have now, worldwide? We're coming up to 120,000. Not exactly a lightweight. But I'm hoping that after this article is published, that number will at least double. Are the members mainly male or female? About three quarters male. But that's going to change, especially once we set up our Dudeist social network, tentatively titled, "The Rug". Are you a fan of the Coen brothers’ other films? Most of them. I'm a bit puzzled why most critics think Miller's Crossing is their best. I find it too cold and postmodern. But pretty much everything else is amazing. I think some of their lesser-loved films, like The Hudsucker Proxy and The Man Who Wasn't There are my favourites. But then, Barton Fink, Raising Arizona, No Country For Old Men... They're really the best films of our time. The Coens are better candidates for heroes of modern literature than Philip Roth, Don DeLillo, Will Self, Ian McEwan or any other award-winning novelist. Lastly, what are your views on interior design? What ties your room together? The most important element of Fungin Shway (Dudeist Feng Shui) is a nice big sectional sofa. Everything else is just vanity. For more information (or to get ordained and buy a t-shirt), check out Dudeism.com, The Dudespaper or get in touch on Facebook.It looks like Hillary Clinton is turning a new leaf with the general election by doing something she rarely does: talking to journalists. And even more remarkable, the conversation focused on one of the most important issues of the moment: race. The Democratic nominee hasn’t held a formal news conference in more than 200 days. But on Friday afternoon, Clinton broke the mold, engaging in a Q&A with black and Latino journalists at the conference for the National Associations of Black Journalists and Hispanic Journalists in Washington, DC. "I want you to hold me accountable, because the stakes are as high as they’ve ever been in our lifetime," Clinton told the audience. Her Republican rival, Donald Trump, was also offered an opportunity to speak but declined. Clinton’s remarks and the questions she received were tailored to the concerns of black and brown communities. She spoke about systemic racism, noting youth unemployment rates plaguing African Americans and Latinos and the importance of investing in black- and Latino-owned small businesses. "For me, these aren’t just systemic issues," Clinton told the audience. "These are a part of a long, continuing struggle for civil rights." Historic inequalities paved the way for existing racial wealth gaps in the US. Redlining practices targeting black communities have deprived entire neighborhoods of their economic viability for generations. A 2015 report by the Century Foundation found that more than one in four African Americans lived in concentrated poverty, compared with one in 13 white people. Meanwhile, white families have six times as much wealth as black families, and the poverty rate for black people (27.2 percent) is almost three times that of their white counterparts (9.6 percent). Additionally, unemployment is far higher for black people, and always has been higher compared with white people, by at least 60 percent, since data collection started in 1972. And while the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the national unemployment rate at 4.9 percent in July, the African-American and Latino unemployment rates were 8.4 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively. And while Clinton promised comprehensive immigration reform, Lori Montenegro, a national correspondent for Telemundo, asked frankly how Clinton would work to not inherit the title of "deporter-in-chief." "As I have said, we are not going to be deporting hardworking people and break up families," Clinton responded. In the speech prior to taking questions, she also noted she would close private detention centers and proposed an Office of Immigration Affairs for the White House. Clinton has promised comprehensive immigration reform within her first 100 days in office. As Barack Obama’s presidency has shown, that promise may be difficult. Nonetheless, Clinton remained hopeful. "We need to build an economy and a future that every American can be proud of and be a part of," she said. "An economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. That will be my mission as president."There’s a lot that’s right with Lanier’s analyses, and it’s accomplished with a concision and wit that occasionally spills over into genuine hilarity, as in Lanier’s satire of the power relations between the Siren Servers and the average participant in the digital economy. In this funny segment, he imagines a real world functioning similarly to our current or near-future digital world. In the imagined scenario, the parents of some children setting up a lemonade stand receive notice that they must apply to the fictional über-Facebook, StreetBook, for a jointly operated “Lemonade Stand” app. An accompanying contract blatantly advantages StreetBook over the Lemonade Stand partners at every turn. Finally, at the end, in all caps, the contract reveals the totality of StreetBook’s domination: “STREETBOOK MAY CHANGE OR AMEND ANY AND ALL ASPECTS OF THIS AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY YOU AT ANY TIME. STREETBOOK ACCEPTS NO LIABILITY OF ANY KIND.” This cracked me up, having read contracts not dissimilar to this on a few occasions. But then I realized that the contracts I was remembering were from conventional, pre-digital media corporations. And therein lies one of the biggest flaws in Lanier’s tome. His view of pre-digital capitalism — and the middle-class lifestyle it granted to a fairly substantial number of (white) people — is more than a little bit gauzy. In fact, once you get past the critical part of the book and begin to gather glimpses of its advocacy, there’s a strong undercurrent of nostalgia for a very specific set of economic and social conditions that defined Western democratic capitalism during the second half of the 20th century. To wit: according to Lanier’s late-20th-century sensibility, in order to have a thriving middle class with economic dignity, we must recode our networked system in a way that causes the market to reward efforts with payments in currency. The trouble is — in the face of disintermediation and automation — said system has to contort itself in peculiar (and, most of all, unlikely) ways for this to occur. The market, left to its current devices, won’t have a reason to pay enough people enough money for what they do to support a booming middle class. Lanier’s solution for this is… well… very complicated.Husband of Christian woman whose apostasy death sentence was overturned says she and children doing well The husband of a Sudanese Christian woman facing threats after her apostasy death sentence was overturned has expressed relief that the family has been given refuge at the US embassy in Khartoum. "Really, it's good," Daniel Wani, the American husband of Meriam Ibrahim, told Agence France-Presse by telephone on Friday, adding that embassy staff had been "very helpful and very nice". He said his wife and two children, who could be heard in the background, were doing well at the heavily guarded facility. Ibrahim holds her baby in a car shortly after her release in Khartoum. Photograph: EPA Ibrahim, 27, went to the US embassy on Thursday after being detained at Khartoum airport as she tried to leave Sudan. Her arrest came days after her release from death row. Wani confirmed they had sought the embassy's protection because of death threats against his wife. A US state department spokeswoman, Marie Harf, said the family were in a safe location and Sudan's government had assured the US of their continued safety. Ibrahim was detained with her husband and two young children at Khartoum airport on Tuesday over allegations she had forged travel documents. But she was discharged from a police station, on the condition she remained in Sudan, after the government came under pressure from foreign diplomats. Ibrahim, whose father was Muslim but who was raised by her Christian mother, was last month convicted of apostasy and sentenced to hang. She was also sentenced to 100 lashes for adultery after a court ruled her marriage to Wani, a Christian, was invalid. Under Sudan's penal code Muslims are forbidden from changing faith, and Muslim women are not permitted to marry Christian men. Ibrahim insisted she had been brought up as a Christian. The case prompted outrage, with more than a million people backing Amnesty International's campaign for her release. On Monday the appeal court annulled her death sentence and freed her, after which she went into hiding because of death threats. Wani, a US citizen since 2005, said he hoped the family could start a new life in America. But 24 hours later security service agents apprehended the family, including a baby girl born while Ibrahim was shackled to the floor of her cell, claiming that her travel documents were forged. Ibrahim's lawyer, Elshareef Mohammed, said more than 40 security officers stopped them boarding a plane to Washington. The US state department said its envoy then met Sudanese foreign ministry officials at their request and told them the family needed to be able "to depart as swiftly as possible from Sudan and that we are happy to help in any way we can". Wani has claimed that those who triggered the case against his wife, whom he married in 2011, were attempting to muscle in on her business interests, including a hair salon, mini-mart and agricultural land.AT&T Brings Gigabit Fiber to Indianapolis AT&T has brought its ultra-fast "U-Verse with Gigapower" gigabit broadband service to Indianapolis, Indiana. According to a company announcement the ultra-fast service is now available in single-family homes, more than 25 apartment complexes and small businesses in parts of Indianapolis, Brownsburg, Carmel, Fishers, Noblesville, Plainfield and surrounding communities. How many customers this actually covers remains unclear, as many AT&T Gigapower launches are intentionally dressed up by the company's marketing department to appear larger than they actually are. "The AT&T GigaPower network is currently available in over 1.6 million locations across 26 of the nation’s largest metro areas. We have plans to expand the availability of ultra-fast internet speeds up to 1 gigabit per second in parts of 30 more areas – at least 56 metros in total," the company states. Granted roughly one million of those addresses were already served with fiber years ago, AT&T simply capping those users at DSL speeds to, as the company told us in 2007, to create a "more consistent user experience." Similarly, some of these AT&T launches may consist of just a few development communities, frustrating AT&T DSL customers who call in to see if gigabit speeds are available in a "launched" market. Prices for AT&T's gigabit service can vary from $70 per month to $130 per month depending on the level of competition in the area. In Indianapolis AT&T says it's pricing its service at around $90 per month -- likely a pre-emptive strike against Comcast's looming deployment of DOCSIS 3.1-based gigabit cable speeds. Prices for AT&T's gigabit service can vary from $70 per month to $130 per month depending on the level of competition in the area. In Indianapolis AT&T says it's pricing its service at around $90 per month -- likely a pre-emptive strike against Comcast's looming deployment of DOCSIS 3.1-based gigabit cable speeds. News Jump Tuesday Morning Links Monday Morning Links TGI Friday Morning Links Thursday Morning Links Wednesday Morning Links Tuesday Morning Links Friday Morning Links Thursday Morning Links - Valentines Edition Wednesday Morning Links Tuesday Morning Links ---------------------- this week last week most discussed Most recommended from 14 comments Chubbysumo join:2009-12-01 Duluth, MN ·Charter Ubee E31U2V1 (Software) pfSense Netgear WNR3500L 6 recommendations Chubbysumo Member Its only $70 if you opt in to their snooping. If you want to opt out of the snooping(AKA Deep packet inspection), then its going to cost you an additional $60. Fucking scammers should list this up front. They log every website you visit, and how long you stay there, and probably everything you type, so unless you pay for a VPN that supports full gigabit connections to obscure your traffic through full encryption, then they will have no problem handing over your web history to the police. TIGERON join:2008-03-11 Boston, MA 4 recommendations TIGERON Member more fiber to the press where's that bridge to buy? notonto join:2015-06-26 3 recommendations notonto Member FTTH? Wonderful, now what about those of us sill waiting for anything better than 1.5 Mbps?Real-time strategy game Company of Heroes 2 will avoid the "sensitive issues" of the Eastern Front by focusing more on the soldiers on the ground than the politics of their leaders, developer Relic has said. The Canadian developer hopes to make COH2 as authentic as possible in its treatment of the brutal battle between the Soviets and the Nazis. In the game's campaign the player assumes control of the Soviet Red Army, under the command of Communist dictator Joseph Stalin, as it defends against Hitler's German invasion. You then lead the counter attack towards Berlin. "We don't spend too much time on the sensitive issues of political ideology," lead campaign designer Jasen Torres told Eurogamer in an interview. "Company of Heroes is an in close game. It's about the troops on the battlefield. It's about their stories. When you get down to it, they're regular guys fighting for their homeland and their family. They're not by and large a high up political leader with ideologies spreading to the masses. They're just the normal guy saying, if I don't guard my homeland I won't have a homeland. That's the story that's evident even in gameplay. "It's these guys and how they act together.
_ptr < game_state > state ) { state -> on_enter (); _game_states. push_back ( std :: move ( state )); } void pop () { if (! _game_states. empty ()) { _game_states. back () -> on_exit (); _game_states. pop_back (); } } void update () { if (! _game_states. empty ()) { _game_states. back () -> update (); } } }; Note that game_state_machine::update() will only call update on behalf of the active state, and that’s essential for the machine to work as expected. I showed the implementation of abstract class for game state, but it’s also important to understand how an actual game state could be implemented by deriving from it. Check it out: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 class menu : public game_state { public : void on_enter () override { // load menu sprites... } void on_exit () override { // clean up goes here... } void update () override { // if user clicked on play button, switch to play state. if (... ) {... game_state_machine. push ( std :: make_unique < play > ()); } } }; Very easy, no?! If we’re in play state, and want to go back to menu, all we need to do is to call game_state_machine::pop(). This was the most efficient way I found to handle game states in my own game. If you know a better way to do it, please leave a comment! PS: the comment section only shows up when you click on the blog post’s title. See you,Special By By Alexander Baron Jun 12, 2011 in Crime An interview with retired armchair detective John Aidiniantz who runs a website dedicated to Britain's longest serving miscarriage of justice prisoner, Michael Stone. The surviving victim, Josie Russell, was left for dead, and indeed was believed to be dead when she was found. She remembered very little about the attack, and although sufffering serious brain damage, made a miraculous recovery, relocating to Wales with her father, and completing her education with a BA in Graphic Design. She is now both a successful Michael Stone has been tried and convicted twice for the crime that became known as the Chillenden Murders. His first conviction was quashed when immediately after the trial one of the key prosecution witnesses – another prisoner who'd said Stone had confessed to him – went to the media and claimed he’d told a pack of lies under oath. Although the crime was committed in Kent and the proceedings were moved to Nottingham, the deluge of post-trial publicity from Stone’s 1998 conviction made it difficult for him to receive a fair trial. At both trials he was convicted by majority verdicts. Last year, the Since February 2009, there have been two websites devoted solely to his case. The In an exclusive interview he spoke to Digital Journal about this bizarre case. AB: You have an interest in the law; have you ever worked as a lawyer? JA: I used to have an academic interest in both the criminal and civil law, but never trained as a lawyer. AB: Up until recently you worked at the JA: As a former assistant in charge of exhibits, I was able to learn of Conan Doyle's attempts to highlight perceived miscarriages of justice which occurred in his time. I think the trial and conviction of Michael Stone would have caused the author of the Sherlock Holmes stories to choke on his pipe. AB: Have you ever met Michael Stone? JA: No - and I have no wish to meet him. He seems a thoroughly dislikeable character, although one should not believe everything one reads in the newspapers. AB: Why did you decide to set up your Michael Stone website? JA: The Michael Stone page is just one of several cases I covered and analysed on the Justice site I set up some years ago. I suppose what attracted me to the case was the utter absurdity of his conviction and the desire to see justice done for the sake of the victims - Lin, Josie and Megan Russell. AB: Recently you met Stone’s lawyer Paul Bacon, in London. What was the result of that meeting? JA: I think Mr Stone's solicitor had found the information on the site helpful and he wanted to explore the evidence - or rather lack of evidence - relating to the forensic aspects of the case and how best to proceed to ensure that the main items found at the crime scene were examined properly by an independent forensics expert. This is something that has so far not been done satisfactorily in the light of advances in DNA investigations, while many items have not even been examined. AB: There have been cuts in Legal Aid over the past few years; how does that affect Michael Stone? JA: I think Mr Stone's solicitor Paul Bacon deserves a medal at the very least because Legal Aid for the defendant dried up many years ago and his legal team is working pro bono. AB: Stone is a most unappealing character; he has serious convictions for violence, and is the sort of man many people think would be capable of committing the Chillenden Murders. Why do you believe he is innocent? JA: It is not so much a question of believing him to be innocent, but rather the question of believing whether any man - even the proverbial man sitting on the Clapham Omnibus - can safely be tried and convicted of murder solely on the strength of a prison confession which merely repeats facts that are in the public domain. Michael Stone is alleged to have confessed to the crime on 23rd September 1997, on the very day when all the details of the confession were published in the morning newspapers! This vital evidence was withheld from the juries in both his trials. Even if he had presented his confession on a plate to the police, it would only have proved that he had read the morning newspapers like everyone else and would not have proved he was the murderer. If he had stood on the rooftops overlooking the Old Bailey on 23rd September 1997 and shouted out his 'confession' for the whole world to hear, it might have supported a charge of wasting police time, but certainly not of murder. This is because there is no value in merely quoting the same details of a crime which have already been published in the national press. As to whether he is innocent, the fact that his so-called confession included all six details of the crime which had ever been published - and no others - must surely raise a doubt about it even on the basis of statistics, because we all know how hard it is to win the lottery. Like most prisoners, Michael Stone and Damien Daley would have had access to the newspapers published on 23rd September 1997. It would not have been difficult for either of them to have concocted a confession, yet the whole criminal justice system from police to prosecutors lined up behind the words of one self-confessed liar and drug addict to prove that the person in the next cell was guilty. They could have saved themselves a lot of time and public money by simply reading the newspapers for themselves without asking Michael Stone to step into the dock. AB: I gather there is another, far better suspect whom you cannot name for legal reasons. What steps have been taken or are being taken to bring him to the attention of the authorities? JA: I don't know if the authorities are willing to consider any other suspect - they certainly weren't during the time of Stone's two trials, when such was the desire to convict him that the vital newspaper evidence was simply covered up with a vague admission that the details of the crime had at some time appeared in the public domain. If the prosecution had revealed to the jury that the details found in the confession had actually been published in the newspapers on 23rd September 1997 – the day of the supposed confession - there would have been no trial, because any jury would have been able to consider that the confession was merely a rehash of those articles. The police issued an e-fit of the Chillenden Murderer shortly after the crime and said “Make no mistake, this could be the murderer”. Well, anyone is free to view the e-fit on the Michael Stone page and draw his or her own conclusions as to whom it might represent in the light of recent court cases. AB: Can you tell us a bit about the identification evidence? JA: Josie Russell was in direct physical contact with the murderer and described him as “blonde, clean-shaven, about 25 years old and tall, like my father”. She used her thumb and finger to pull her hair up from her head when describing the killer's hair as “kind of spikey”. As a nine year old girl in close physical contact with the murderer (he ran after her and dragged her back when she tried to escape) she would have known whether the attacker was as tall as her father (6’), or shorter. Michael Stone is much shorter than her father at 5' 7" tall and also older than the attacker she described, so it is hardly surprising that she did not pick him out at an ID parade - she was looking for a much bigger man, “like my father”. [A point to note here; one person who may be alluded to as an air-head conspiracy theorist (like some of those debating the recent JA: Evidence from other witnesses in the vicinity indicates that the main suspect was “balding with fair hair” or had “short gingery-blond hair with a fringe” but most significantly he had “a red face with round chubby cheeks”. One witness at the ID parade thought that Stone “looked familiar” but when cross-examined in court she admitted it was because he resembled her uncle. AB: Then there is the forensic evidence. Some of this has been “lost” I gather. JA: The forensic evidence in this case ought to have been the key to solving the crime, but we are dealing with a careful attacker who tried his best to avoid leaving DNA evidence. The main exhibit which might have been useful to Michael Stone in his recent appeal was the 99cm bootlace that was dropped near the scene of the crime by the murderer. That lace however has since been mislaid either by Kent Police or the Forensic Science Service, so it could not be re-examined using more modern DNA testing procedures. Many other items which were painstakingly recovered by the police at the scene of the crime have not been “lost” - they've simply not yet been examined, so perhaps the time has come to bring them out of the cupboard. At the present time it is not a question of ruling out Michael Stone because no DNA found at the scene of the crime has been attributed to him. It has become a question of ruling in somebody else. AB: What about the telephone evidence? JA: The problem for Michael Stone - if one can call it a problem because most people cannot remember the events of last week never mind the previous year - is that he was not able to call any alibi in his defence. He simply couldn't remember where he was on 9th July 1996 - like most of us. So other evidence such as telephone calls he might have made at the time to prove that he was somewhere else other than Chillenden might have been of some assistance to him, but telephone records are difficult to retrieve at the best of times never mind after gaps of some years. Interestingly, the journalist Jo-Anne Goodwin writing in the Daily Mail said that she had received a call on her mobile phone following Stone's conviction from a man with a “South coast accent” who purported to be Damien Daley. He claimed he was forced to lie in return for favours. Jo-Anne Goodwin stated that she could not be sure if the caller was indeed Damien Daley, but if any telephone records should be checked then it should be her mobile phone record for that call. [Something that should be added here is Stone believes he may now have an alibi for the time of the murders. In July 1996, junkie Stone was regularly dealing in small quantities of drugs, for which he used both his mobile phone and a number of telephones boxes in the Maidstone area. What is not widely known is that the time, duration and destination of calls from the majority of telephone boxes (operated by British Telecom) is recorded and held on computer. This was definitely the case with boxes in the London area in 1998, and almost certainly two years earlier. When this information was relayed to the Criminal Cases Review Commission, they investigated and were informed that for the boxes in question, there was no information available before 2001. That is if either the police or British Telecom are to be believed]. JA: The irony of course with Stone's conviction is that even if Daley were to retract his evidence and claim he told a pack of lies (like other prisoners before him) nobody would be any the wiser as to whether Stone was really the murderer, and it is likely his conviction would still be considered “safe” according to the standards of the Court of Appeal. It would definitely confuse the judicial minds of our learned friends to have two confessions relating to the same conviction. AB: Some people have been convicted of and then cleared of murder even though the evidence against them appears far more compelling than the evidence against Michael Stone, and I am thinking in particular of Siôn Jenkins. How do you think the two cases compare? DJ: I believe Michael Stone's case must be unique and beyond comparison with any other. In the case of Siôn Jenkins he at least was fortunate to know the details of the case against him and could therefore mount a spirited defence within the context of a fair trial on the issues, whereas in Stone's case he literally had no defence as the relevant newspapers were never revealed to the jury and hence he did not have a fair trial. Therein lies the difference. AB: Are you au fait with the case of JA: I think Stone's conviction hasn't received any attention because people - especially the prosecuting authorities - have always from day one wanted to believe he was guilty. The alternative view doesn't bear thinking about and indeed, we would all prefer not to think about it, let alone give it some public airing as in the case you quote. In that case there was no harm in re-considering all the facts behind the conviction, but to do so in the case of Michael Stone would mean facing the prospect that the real perpetrator was never caught and has probably continued to commit other similar hammer attacks on young women over the years. Who wants to stir up that can of worms? AB: What have you done and what are you planning to do with regard to Stone in the near future? JA: As a retired 'armchair detective' I have not updated his web page or any other cases for some time and do not know what the future holds - perhaps he will languish in prison like others who have not had the benefit of a fair trial. We must remember however that he is not the only victim of this miscarriage of justice, and indeed there may be many more victims other than the Russell family. The paradox of the Chillenden Murder trials is that Michael Stone and even Damien Daley have never been relevant to the solution of the case, so asking the jury in two trials to decide 'which drug addict was telling the truth' was simply a red herring. They are not in fact the real villains of the piece. It is the prosecuting authorities who need to ask themselves questions about the merit of obtaining convictions when vital evidence is knowingly withheld from a jury, as the resulting miscarriages of justice can have wide repercussions on society. AB: You are also JA: No - but as a father myself I wish her every success in life. Next month, Michael Stone will have been behind bars for fourteen years. In October 1998, he was convicted of murdering Dr Lin Russell and her 6 year old daughter Megan in one of the most controversial murder cases of the 1990s on what is arguably the most tenuous evidence ever used to convict any man of murder in a British courtroom, a confession he is alleged to have shouted through a prison wall to a drug addict and habitual criminal. To add insult to injury, Stone is supposed to have made this confession while in voluntary isolation from other prisoners because they were making up confessions about the case left, right and centre – a claim that has been verified by this correspondent, who was given access to Stone’s legal papers.The surviving victim, Josie Russell, was left for dead, and indeed was believed to be dead when she was found. She remembered very little about the attack, and although sufffering serious brain damage, made a miraculous recovery, relocating to Wales with her father, and completing her education with a BA in Graphic Design. She is now both a successful commercial artist and an ambassador for the Born Free Foundation Michael Stone has been tried and convicted twice for the crime that became known as the Chillenden Murders. His first conviction was quashed when immediately after the trial one of the key prosecution witnesses – another prisoner who'd said Stone had confessed to him – went to the media and claimed he’d told a pack of lies under oath.Although the crime was committed in Kent and the proceedings were moved to Nottingham, the deluge of post-trial publicity from Stone’s 1998 conviction made it difficult for him to receive a fair trial. At both trials he was convicted by majority verdicts. Last year, the Criminal Cases Review Commission declined to refer his conviction back to the Court of Appeal for a third time.Since February 2009, there have been two websites devoted solely to his case. The second is run by John Aidiniantz and began as a page on his Court of Appeal site.In an exclusive interview he spoke to Digital Journal about this bizarre case.AB: You have an interest in the law; have you ever worked as a lawyer?JA: I used to have an academic interest in both the criminal and civil law, but never trained as a lawyer.AB: Up until recently you worked at the Sherlock Holmes Museum. What do you think Conan Doyle would have made of Michael Stone’s conviction?JA: As a former assistant in charge of exhibits, I was able to learn of Conan Doyle's attempts to highlight perceived miscarriages of justice which occurred in his time. I think the trial and conviction of Michael Stone would have caused the author of the Sherlock Holmes stories to choke on his pipe.AB: Have you ever met Michael Stone?JA: No - and I have no wish to meet him. He seems a thoroughly dislikeable character, although one should not believe everything one reads in the newspapers.AB: Why did you decide to set up your Michael Stone website?JA: The Michael Stone page is just one of several cases I covered and analysed on the Justice site I set up some years ago. I suppose what attracted me to the case was the utter absurdity of his conviction and the desire to see justice done for the sake of the victims - Lin, Josie and Megan Russell.AB: Recently you met Stone’s lawyer Paul Bacon, in London. What was the result of that meeting?JA: I think Mr Stone's solicitor had found the information on the site helpful and he wanted to explore the evidence - or rather lack of evidence - relating to the forensic aspects of the case and how best to proceed to ensure that the main items found at the crime scene were examined properly by an independent forensics expert. This is something that has so far not been done satisfactorily in the light of advances in DNA investigations, while many items have not even been examined.AB: There have been cuts in Legal Aid over the past few years; how does that affect Michael Stone?JA: I think Mr Stone's solicitor Paul Bacon deserves a medal at the very least because Legal Aid for the defendant dried up many years ago and his legal team is working pro bono.AB: Stone is a most unappealing character; he has serious convictions for violence, and is the sort of man many people think would be capable of committing the Chillenden Murders. Why do you believe he is innocent?JA: It is not so much a question of believing him to be innocent, but rather the question of believing whether any man - even the proverbial man sitting on the Clapham Omnibus - can safely be tried and convicted of murder solely on the strength of a prison confession which merely repeats facts that are in the public domain.Michael Stone is alleged to have confessed to the crime on 23rd September 1997, on the very day when all the details of the confession were published in the morning newspapers! This vital evidence was withheld from the juries in both his trials. Even if he had presented his confession on a plate to the police, it would only have proved that he had read the morning newspapers like everyone else and would not have proved he was the murderer. If he had stood on the rooftops overlooking the Old Bailey on 23rd September 1997 and shouted out his 'confession' for the whole world to hear, it might have supported a charge of wasting police time, but certainly not of murder.This is because there is no value in merely quoting the same details of a crime which have already been published in the national press.As to whether he is innocent, the fact that his so-called confession included all six details of the crime which had ever been published - and no others - must surely raise a doubt about it even on the basis of statistics, because we all know how hard it is to win the lottery.Like most prisoners, Michael Stone and Damien Daley would have had access to the newspapers published on 23rd September 1997. It would not have been difficult for either of them to have concocted a confession, yet the whole criminal justice system from police to prosecutors lined up behind the words of one self-confessed liar and drug addict to prove that the person in the next cell was guilty. They could have saved themselves a lot of time and public money by simply reading the newspapers for themselves without asking Michael Stone to step into the dock.AB: I gather there is another, far better suspect whom you cannot name for legal reasons. What steps have been taken or are being taken to bring him to the attention of the authorities?JA: I don't know if the authorities are willing to consider any other suspect - they certainly weren't during the time of Stone's two trials, when such was the desire to convict him that the vital newspaper evidence was simply covered up with a vague admission that the details of the crime had at some time appeared in the public domain.If the prosecution had revealed to the jury that the details found in the confession had actually been published in the newspapers on 23rd September 1997 – the day of the supposed confession - there would have been no trial, because any jury would have been able to consider that the confession was merely a rehash of those articles.The police issued an e-fit of the Chillenden Murderer shortly after the crime and said “Make no mistake, this could be the murderer”. Well, anyone is free to view the e-fit on the Michael Stone page and draw his or her own conclusions as to whom it might represent in the light of recent court cases.AB: Can you tell us a bit about the identification evidence?JA: Josie Russell was in direct physical contact with the murderer and described him as “blonde, clean-shaven, about 25 years old and tall, like my father”. She used her thumb and finger to pull her hair up from her head when describing the killer's hair as “kind of spikey”.As a nine year old girl in close physical contact with the murderer (he ran after her and dragged her back when she tried to escape) she would have known whether the attacker was as tall as her father (6’), or shorter. Michael Stone is much shorter than her father at 5' 7" tall and also older than the attacker she described, so it is hardly surprising that she did not pick him out at an ID parade - she was looking for a much bigger man, “like my father”.[A point to note here; one person who may be alluded to as an air-head conspiracy theorist (like some of those debating the recent Bilderberg Group article ) has suggested that Dr Shaun Russell was responsible for this crime. The basis for this claim appears to be the above statement “like my father”. It goes without saying that Dr Russell – and everyone else known to the victims – would have been screened very carefully by Kent Police at the time, and eliminated from the inquiry. Shaun Russell had a rock solid alibi, and is also distressed that some people won’t let go of this case. While Mr Aidiniantz and all Michael Stone’s supporters have no wish to cause either him or his surviving daughter Josie distress, they regret that this is something of which they cannot let go until Michael Stone’s conviction for the Chillenden Murders has been quashed, and hopefully the real perpetrator has been brought to book. Returning to Mr Aidiniantz...]JA: Evidence from other witnesses in the vicinity indicates that the main suspect was “balding with fair hair” or had “short gingery-blond hair with a fringe” but most significantly he had “a red face with round chubby cheeks”. One witness at the ID parade thought that Stone “looked familiar” but when cross-examined in court she admitted it was because he resembled her uncle.AB: Then there is the forensic evidence. Some of this has been “lost” I gather.JA: The forensic evidence in this case ought to have been the key to solving the crime, but we are dealing with a careful attacker who tried his best to avoid leaving DNA evidence. The main exhibit which might have been useful to Michael Stone in his recent appeal was the 99cm bootlace that was dropped near the scene of the crime by the murderer. That lace however has since been mislaid either by Kent Police or the Forensic Science Service, so it could not be re-examined using more modern DNA testing procedures. Many other items which were painstakingly recovered by the police at the scene of the crime have not been “lost” - they've simply not yet been examined, so perhaps the time has come to bring them out of the cupboard.At the present time it is not a question of ruling out Michael Stone because no DNA found at the scene of the crime has been attributed to him. It has become a question of ruling in somebody else.AB: What about the telephone evidence?JA: The problem for Michael Stone - if one can call it a problem because most people cannot remember the events of last week never mind the previous year - is that he was not able to call any alibi in his defence. He simply couldn't remember where he was on 9th July 1996 - like most of us. So other evidence such as telephone calls he might have made at the time to prove that he was somewhere else other than Chillenden might have been of some assistance to him, but telephone records are difficult to retrieve at the best of times never mind after gaps of some years.Interestingly, the journalist Jo-Anne Goodwin writing in the Daily Mail said that she had received a call on her mobile phone following Stone's conviction from a man with a “South coast accent” who purported to be Damien Daley. He claimed he was forced to lie in return for favours. Jo-Anne Goodwin stated that she could not be sure if the caller was indeed Damien Daley, but if any telephone records should be checked then it should be her mobile phone record for that call.[Something that should be added here is Stone believes he may now have an alibi for the time of the murders. In July 1996, junkie Stone was regularly dealing in small quantities of drugs, for which he used both his mobile phone and a number of telephones boxes in the Maidstone area. What is not widely known is that the time, duration and destination of calls from the majority of telephone boxes (operated by British Telecom) is recorded and held on computer. This was definitely the case with boxes in the London area in 1998, and almost certainly two years earlier. When this information was relayed to the Criminal Cases Review Commission, they investigated and were informed that for the boxes in question, there was no information available before 2001. That is if either the police or British Telecom are to be believed].JA: The irony of course with Stone's conviction is that even if Daley were to retract his evidence and claim he told a pack of lies (like other prisoners before him) nobody would be any the wiser as to whether Stone was really the murderer, and it is likely his conviction would still be considered “safe” according to the standards of the Court of Appeal. It would definitely confuse the judicial minds of our learned friends to have two confessions relating to the same conviction.AB: Some people have been convicted of and then cleared of murder even though the evidence against them appears far more compelling than the evidence against Michael Stone, and I am thinking in particular of Siôn Jenkins. How do you think the two cases compare?DJ: I believe Michael Stone's case must be unique and beyond comparison with any other. In the case of Siôn Jenkins he at least was fortunate to know the details of the case against him and could therefore mount a spirited defence within the context of a fair trial on the issues, whereas in Stone's case he literally had no defence as the relevant newspapers were never revealed to the jury and hence he did not have a fair trial. Therein lies the difference.AB: Are you au fait with the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal? Why do you think his case has received so much attention while Stone’s has not?JA: I think Stone's conviction hasn't received any attention because people - especially the prosecuting authorities - have always from day one wanted to believe he was guilty. The alternative view doesn't bear thinking about and indeed, we would all prefer not to think about it, let alone give it some public airing as in the case you quote. In that case there was no harm in re-considering all the facts behind the conviction, but to do so in the case of Michael Stone would mean facing the prospect that the real perpetrator was never caught and has probably continued to commit other similar hammer attacks on young women over the years. Who wants to stir up that can of worms?AB: What have you done and what are you planning to do with regard to Stone in the near future?JA: As a retired 'armchair detective' I have not updated his web page or any other cases for some time and do not know what the future holds - perhaps he will languish in prison like others who have not had the benefit of a fair trial. We must remember however that he is not the only victim of this miscarriage of justice, and indeed there may be many more victims other than the Russell family.The paradox of the Chillenden Murder trials is that Michael Stone and even Damien Daley have never been relevant to the solution of the case, so asking the jury in two trials to decide 'which drug addict was telling the truth' was simply a red herring. They are not in fact the real villains of the piece.It is the prosecuting authorities who need to ask themselves questions about the merit of obtaining convictions when vital evidence is knowingly withheld from a jury, as the resulting miscarriages of justice can have wide repercussions on society.AB: You are also designing scrolls. Have you considered doing a double act with Josie Russell?JA: No - but as a father myself I wish her every success in life. This opinion article was written by an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not necessarily intended to reflect those of DigitalJournal.com More about Michael Stone, Chillenden Murders, Josie Russell, false confessions, Kent Police More news from Michael Stone Chillenden Murders Josie Russell false confessions Kent Police Dr Lin Russell Damien Daley Paul Bacon John Aidiniantz fabrication confessi... Shaun RussellOff road in the California desert, Jesse Williamson is getting ready for the Baja 500, a grueling 500-mile dirt bike race that takes place on Mexico’s Baja California peninsula. But Williamson also faces an additional challenge. He's attempting to become the first double-amputee to compete in the race. The retired Marine lost his legs below the knee from an I.E.D(Improvised Explosive Device) in Afghanistan in August 2009. When he came back home, Williamson he got hooked on pain medications, slipped into depression and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. "The things I was doing up there — not too proud of. I got into doing heroin,” Williamson, 23, said. His friend 1st Sgt. Nick Hamm, a fellow Marine also from Wildomar, California, who was also wounded twice in combat, came to the rescue. Hamm recruited Williamson to join 'Warrior Strong', a foundation he created to provide new motivation, camaraderie and support as veteran’s transition back to life after war. The foundation provides vocation therapy in the Warrior Built Garage, a space devoted to off-road biking in Elsinore, California. It is staffed entirely by combat veterans. The Baja 500, which is today to Sunday, will be the third race for Williamson, Hamm and friend Eric Nolan. For these wounded warriors, motocross offers a new mission, a reason to soldier on.On Thursday, we were the first to expose GM's latest strong car sales data as nothing more than the latest in a long series of accounting gimmicks known as 'channel stuffing' when excess inventory is offloaded to a vendor channel, in this case GM dealers, while allowing the company to book revenue, and, of course, profits (most likely on a FIFO basis thus further making numbers a complete myth in a time of once again surging input costs). The problem with channel stuffing is it can only go on for so long before the intermediary collapses under its own weight due to so much excess inventory the only next possible step is wholesale dumpin, in the process destroying the brand. Sure enough, it took about 24 hours for this latest speculation to be proven right as GM announce it was "temporarily" halting production of its Volt electric car. Per The Hill: "We needed to maintain proper inventory and make sure that we continued to meet market demand," GM spokesman Chris Lee said in a telephone interview." Translated into English, this means that GM has flooded dealer floors with so many of the spontaneously combusting cars that it has managed to bring demand to zero. But not before it took benefit for "selling" them over the past several months, in the process completely fooling the market and the adminstration sycophants into believing that the SAAR for US auto sales has risen to a whopping 15.1 million in February compared to 13.3 million year ago, and 14 million expected, when in reality all that has happened is that excess inventory has flooded the market and now sales, which can no longer be masaged via channel stuffing, are about to drop off a cliff. And adding insult to injury, the halt also means that thousands of GM workers will now be "temporarily" fired. One wonders how many millions of workers will be laid off when the SAAR decline to its fair value, somewhere about 2-3 million lower? More from The Hill: General Motors has temporarily suspended production of its Volt electric car, the company announced Friday. GM, which is based in Detroit, announced to employees at one of its facilities that it was halting production of the beleaguered electric car for five weeks and temporarily laying off 1,300 employees. Chevy has argued the debate about the Volt has become too political. "We did not develop the Chevy Volt to be a political punching bag," General Motors CEO Daniel Akerson testified before Congress in the same January hearing. "We engineered the Volt to be a technological wonder." Chevy has sought to give a boost to the public image of the Volt, releasing a commercial in January tying the Volt to the effort to reduce dependence on foreign oil. "This isn’t just the car we wanted to build,” a narrator says in the commercial over footage of Volts being manufactured in Hamtramck, Mich. “This is the car America had to build.” So GM was actually lying about its true sell through rate? That should not come as a surprise to ZH readers. But at least it is good to know that neither they, nor the government, could possibly lie about the safety of the car which has ostensibly been known to blow up in a puff of flames for no reason. Because luckily the government would never lie about something like that: after all, it only engages in "modest fibs."It’s showtime! RadarOnline.com has learned Lisa Rinna has begun filming another season of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Filming for the upcoming season of RHOBH has already begun with “Lisa Rinna shooting this week, along with Eileen Davidson,” a source told Radar. “Even though new cast members haven’t been cast yet to replace Kim Richards and Brandi Glanville, that won’t delay filming.” Last season, Kim Richards had been spreading rumors that Rinna’s hunky husband Harry Hamlin had cheated on the actress. PHOTOS: Meow! Relive The Top Craziest “Real Housewives’ Reunion Moments The former Days of Our Lives star, who’s been married to the L.A. Law hunk since 1997, told Access Hollywood Live recently that while “Harry didn’t do anything,” the idea that her co-star rival “threw that out into the universe … fired me up, to be honest with you.” Even though Bravo insiders have previously told Radar Richards was fired from the show, Paris Hilton’s aunt continues to insist she quit. The source added, “Lisa is just happy Kim is gone, and is excited to do another season. There was so much buzz about her and it’s had a very positive impact on her career.”Google started testing this week a new compose and reply experience in Gmail, making it easier to reference other emails without having to close a draft. Similar to a pop up chat screen, an email draft would rest on top of the main inbox without overtaking the entire screen. "How many times have you been writing an email and had to reference something in another message?" Google said. "Saving a draft, opening the old email, and then reopening your draft wastes valuable minutes. The new compose pops up in a window, just like chats (only larger)." The concept also allows you to do a search and monitor new mail as it rolls in, while composing an email at the same time. You can also write multiple emails at once and minimize the message if you want to wrap it up later. "The new compose is designed to let you focus on what's important: your message." Google added. "The controls are still there when you need them but get out of the way when you don’t. We’ve even added some new features like the ability to easily insert inline images and have more to come." Another feature Google is testing is the ability to see profile pictures of contacts, so you can find who you want to reach faster. "You can also drag and drop the new address chips between to:, cc: and bcc:," Google said. "When you’re done adding recipients, the address area collapses automatically to get out of your way." What do you think of the features being tested? Would you like to see them roll out to Gmail? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.For the past few months, we’ve been using React.js here
part of feeling squirrelly is you can’t call people. Ain’t that a bitch. My sponsor is this document I am typing into. White page: I feel motherfucking squirrelly. Deep breath. Daytime went OK yesterday. Woke up not hung over. Weird feeling, but good. Long commute. Instead of NPR I listened to music. It was Threefer Thursday. David Bowie was winding down. Next up in just a second, folks, we got some AC/DC coming. FUCK YES I screamed at the instrument panel, and accelerated. The ads started. I haven’t heard a full string of radio ads in five years. But with AC/DC you don’t want to miss the first riff. How bad can ads be. Skit after skit about Valentine’s Day. Awful actors, awful writers, awful production… people fucking get paid for this shit. I languish in obscurity. Take your valentine to Pachonga Casino and Spa. She will delight in 2800 different slots. Buy your special lady a Hyundai at Glendale Auto Mall. Pay only 279 a month. Take out an auto loan for your fucking girlfriend, a failed weatherman was telling me. Has no one ever seen Judge Judy. Fifteen more ads. Finally the guitar kicks in. DUH NUH NUH– fuck yeah! It’s Highway to Hell, my personal soundtrack for daily living. No Brian Johnson era Adam Sandler soundtrack shit. This was Bon Scott, the realest of the real. Fuck yeah, I told the speedometer. Right then I hit that mountain pass on the 10 East. Lost all reception out of L.A. Had to switch to Inland Empire NPR. A journalist talking to two other journalists. They discuss how other journalists discuss Gay Rights in Russia. Gay journalist says: Western journalists don’t discuss Gay Rights in Russia enough. Ivy League woman who owned multiple horses in her youth says: well Larry, the reality on the ground in Sochi is more nuanced. If I’d been hung over I’d have broken something in the car when Highway to Hell cut out. But I listened patiently. Did you know you can buy an NPR membership for your pet, a jovial man told me. You’ll receive a stylish pet bandana. I did not daydream about lining up every person who had purchased an NPR membership for their pet. Their stylish bandana-clad pets with them. Taking a Vietnam era napalm thrower to the group. Highway to Hell plays loud enough to mask their screams. This is what it felt like to not be hung over. The day was OK. Then the night. Like someone slowly peeled back my entire skin and hosed me down with ice water. And again today. Deep breath. Jerk off. Everything will be fine.“Right here in Israel, Muslims don’t just get to come into Israel without some clearance," Mike Huckabee said. | AP Photo Huckabee likens Trump’s Muslim ban to Israel’s immigration policies Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee showed support for Donald Trump’s proposed ban on Muslims, comparing it to Israel’s immigration policies. “Right here in Israel, Muslims don’t just get to come into Israel without some clearance," Huckabee, who endorsed Trump for president, said in an interview with an Israeli radio station that aired Thursday, which was first reported by Jewish Insider. "In fact, I am not sure that they are allowed to immigrate here at all. So it’s not unusual — when everybody acts like ‘Oh what Trump has said is so amazing,’ it’s not that amazing in Israel. You don’t have open borders to Muslims here. " Story Continued Below Trump reiterated his call to ban Muslims from immigrating to the United States after Omar Mateen, a U.S.-born Muslim whose parents were born in Afghanistan, opened fire at an LGBT night club in Orlando, Florida, killing 49 people. "When I am elected, I will suspend immigration from areas of the world when there is a proven history of terrorism against the United States, Europe or our allies, until we understand how to end these threats," Trump said in a speech Monday in Manchester, New Hampshire in which he accused his likely Democratic opponent of wanting to admit thousands of Muslim immigrants to the United States with little to no vetting. "Hillary Clinton’s catastrophic immigration plan will bring vastly more radical Islamic immigration into this country, threatening not only our security but our way of life," he charged. Clinton responded with a fiery speech of her own on Tuesday, condemning Trump's “bizarre rants” and “outright lies." “His plan comes down to two things," she said. "First, he is fixated on the words ‘radical Islam.’ Now, I must say, I find this strange. Is Donald Trump suggesting that there are magic words that once uttered will stop terrorists from coming after us?” Second, she said, "Donald’s words are especially nonsensical because the terrorist who carried out this attack wasn't born in Afghanistan, as Donald Trump said yesterday. He was born in Queens, New York, just like Donald was himself. So Muslim bans and immigration reforms would not have stopped him. It would not have saved a single life in Orlando. And those are the only two ideas Donald Trump put forward yesterday for how to fight ISIS.”Earlier this week we spotted an entry in the Windows Device Recovery Tool that appeared to hint at a new, open market version of the phone hitting the market. Now it appears that this has been confirmed as what appears to be Alcatel Mobile France (I will note that while we’re confident it is legit, it has no verified checkmark and no way to be 100% certain) has tweeted out that the Idol 4S will be hitting European markets – France included. Vous avez été nombreux à nous interroger sur l’IDOL 4S Windows 10. Good news : quelques pays en Europe (France?) vont l’avoir! #staytuned — alcatel mobile FR (@alcatelmobileFR) December 13, 2016 You have had many questions about the IDOL 4S [for[ Windows 10. Good news: Some countries in Europe (France?) will have it! # staytuned The Idol 4S for Windows is currently limited to T0Mobile USA, but this tweet – combined with the earlier reference to “open-market” devices, provides hope of wider availability for the device. Currently, it is not clear if Alcatel will be selling the device through carrier partners like in the USA, or if it will stick to being an unlocked, online only device. Nevertheless, there’s no doubt that this is good news for Windows phone fans in Europe who have been waiting for a flagship to replace their fast aging 930s and 950s. While HP’s Elite x3 may provide some relief, that phone is too expensive and large for most people to bother with. In contrast, the Alcatel Idol 4S ticks the boxes of what one can expect of a modern Windows phone in 2016 – with access to continuum and VR as useful extras. Interested in the Alcatel Idol 4S for Windows? Read our review here and let us know what you think in the comments.Advertisement While the country they created is ravaged by civil war, the men who built today's Syrian regime - along with their families - are living a much different reality. Sleeping safely in their London and Paris mansions and driving their luxurious supercars, they enjoy a life far removed from that of most Syrian civilians. They are the lucky few, relatives of three men who helped to establish the Assad clan's rule in Syria, starting with Hafez al-Assad's coup in 1970. As Aleppo burns in flames, Rifaat al-Assad, the uncle of current Syrian president Bashar, swaps between his nine-bedroom house in Mayfair, London, for a property in Marbella's exclusive Gray D-Albion estate. Akram Junior, grandson of Mustafa Tlass, a former Syrian defence minister, shows no sign of letting the situation back in Syria trouble him, his social media pages awash with images displaying his vast wealth Akram Junior happily posts pictures to his Facebook and Instagram accounts showing him driving Bugattis and Ferraris, to name just a few, or even Kalashnikov machine guns Another image taken from the social media page of Akram Junior shows the incredible wealth he enjoys while living in Paris Nahed Ojjeh (left), who inherited her large wealth following the death of her Saudi arm-dealing husband, is well known among Paris as a hostess of grand parties. She is the daughter of Mustafa Tlass, former defence minister to Hafez al-Assad Meanwhile, his son Siwar isn't too far away, living in an eight-bedroom luxury home in the Crown Estate in leafy Oxshott in Surrey. Then there is Abdel Halim Khaddam, who helped Hafez seize power in the seventies and forged the alliance between Syria and Iran which led to the killing of 241 US troops, and now lives in a gated road, the Villa Said, in Paris. The third is Mustafa Tlass, former defence minister to Hafez who, like the other two men, now claim to be opposed to the current regime. Tlass, 84, has also left Syria behind since the outbreak of civil war, and is perhaps outdone in terms of an opulent life by his daughter and grandson. Nahed Ojjeh, who inherited her large wealth following the death of her Saudi arm-dealing husband, is well known among Paris as a hostess of grand parties. The socialite's son Akram also shows no sign of letting the situation back in Syria trouble him, his social media pages awash with images displaying his vast wealth. As Aleppo burns in flames, Rifaat al-Assad, the uncle of current Syrian president Bashar, swaps between his nine-bedroom house in Mayfair, London, for a property in Marbella's exclusive Gray D-Albion estate Rifaat has since spent more than 30 years living a life of luxury moving between homes in Paris, London and the southern Spanish city of Marbella (pictured is Marbella's exclusive Gray D-Albion estate) While the country they created is ravaged by civil war, the men who built today's Syrian regime - along with their families - are living a much different reality Akram also shows no sign of letting the situation back in Syria trouble him, his social media pages awash with images displaying his vast wealth Akram Ojjeh Junior is the son of socialite Nahed Ojjeh, herself the daughter of Mustafa Tlass, 84, who left Syria behind since the outbreak of civil war He happily posts pictures to his Facebook and Instagram accounts showing him driving Bugattis and Ferraris, to name just a few, or even Kalashnikov machine guns. It may not last forever for at least one exile, however, with Rifaat al-Assad facing probes into how he amassed multi-million pound fortune despite being kicked out of Syria 'with nothing' 30 years ago. Mr al-Assad went into exile in Europe after staging a failed coup against his brother Hafez al Assad, who was Syria's president at the time and is also Bashar's father. He has since spent more than 30 years living a life of luxury moving between homes in Paris, London and the southern Spanish city of Marbella. The inquiry into the former Syrian vice president's finances was triggered by Sherpa, an activist group representing the victims of financial crime, which claims his fortune was stolen during his time at the heart of the Syrian regime. His family's assets, outlined by French customs in a May 2014 report, are valued at around £64million - much of it held through a web of businesses based in Luxembourg. A wounded Syrian kid cries after the war-crafts belonging to the Russian army bombed the opposition controlled Firdevs neighborhood in Aleppo Syrian Civil Defense workers search through the rubble in eastern Aleppo, Syria, after bombs were dropped on the area Pictured during regime: Rifaat al-Assad (right) is seen with brother Hafez (left) and politician Abdel Halim Khaddam (centre) The French probe also asks questions as to why the British government has not itself examined the coming and goings of Mr al-Assad and his sons. Mr al-Assad has vehemently denied acquiring assets in France through illegal means. A judge in Paris, named Renaud Van Ruymbeke, has frozen his French assets - mostly tied up in property and thought to be worth around £80 million. Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding, spoke to Michael Sheridan, who undertook a special investigation on behalf of The Sunday Times. He said: 'Rifaat al-Assad, Mustafa Tlass and Abdel Halim Khaddam were the kingpins and founding godfathers of the brutal Assad regime that has decimated Syria for decades. 'Having fleeced Syria for so much wealth, it is galling to Syrians to see them flaunt their ill-gotten millions all across Europe while millions of Syrians languish in refugee camps.'Far Cry 5 Petition Says Game Should be Cancelled as it’s an “Insult to Americans” A petition to cancel Far Cry 5 has been set up on Change.org, calling the game an “insult to Americans” that “make up [Ubisoft’s] main player base.” The petition, which has been circulating on Twitter and Facebook all morning, has been set up by “Gamers United” and immediately criticizes Ubisoft’s “multicultural lectures” and their “preachy games aimed at degenerates and miscegenators.” “Us Gamers have had to endure a lot of crap over the last few years,” the petition continues. “The targeted harassment by the mainstream press through Gamergate, the terrible launch and outright lies of highly anticipated video games, the outright censorship of art through “localization” policies, the continued rejection of romantic partners when they find out our hobby, the appropriation of our culture by so-called “gamers” on twitter. NO MORE!” The petition goes on to suggest four ways in which Far Cry 5 can be redeemed: either Ubisoft alters the villains (“Even if you insist on making the villains American Christians, consider mixing the races a bit to not target white people exclusively”), alters the plot, or alters the setting (“for America, right now, Anti-Americanism is out. You gotta play your market. Change the setting to Canada for America”). “Follow one of more of these and this game will be saved from PC hell and multicultural development,” the petition concludes. “We Americans have so few games to call our own, and we’re tired of losing them to multi-cultural bullshit.” Far Cry 5 received a lot of attention following its announcement as a result of its characters and setting, with the series moving to the US for the first time and focusing on a Christian extremist cult. The idea was quickly bandied about that the game was going to be politically charged, and that Ubisoft may have drawn inspiration from the fallout of Donald Trump’s US presidential campaign, though these suggestions seem to have been proven wrong by the game’s pre-release marketing. Though it garnered plenty of attention online, the petition to cancel Far Cry 5 seems too far-fetched to be real. Though similar petitions have arisen in the past when a controversial game has reared its head, that this one ticks every “self-righteous gamer” box is more than a little suspicious. But regardless of whether or not this petition is penned by a sincere individual looking to save the game from “PC hell,” or if it’s a stab at satire mocking the outrage culture so prevalent among gamers, it’s highly unlikely that this will affect Ubisoft’s approach to Far Cry 5.Kate Chastain started this new season of Below Deck with a new love, her girlfriend Ro Hernandez, who The Daily Dish confirmed she had begun seeing in January. However, Kate and her new lady love made waves in the press this summer when it was reported that the yachtie had been arrested after things allegedly got physical between the two. Kate addressed the drama on Watch What Happens Live Tuesday night. “As much as I would love to speak about this, and I’ve wanted to for a while, I’ve been advised not to because it’s still pending," she told a caller. "But I’ll just say that I have dangerously bad taste in romantic partners, but luckily, I have impeccable taste in attorneys.” The yachtie reiterated this when The Daily Dish caught up with her on Wednesday. "I would certainly love to give so much information about my legal issues, but unfortunately, I can't at this time," she said. "But I'm looking forward, very much so, to having my day in court." Kate said that she and Ro are no longer dating and that she is currently single. "I'm not dating anyone," she confirmed to The Daily Dish. "I'm kind of just taking some time to realign my judgment." When Kate does decide to date again, she said she's not looking for anything specific in her next partner. "You know, I don't really have a type. I've dated a billionaire, a pro surfer, a lacrosse player, a female soccer player, a guy who had a medicinal marijuana mansion in California with a ponytail. I have no type," she explained. "But I think at this point, the only common denominator has been a level of crazy, so maybe I want an engineer named Doug." Kate doesn't have any plans to settle down with anyone anytime soon but said she is looking forward to feeling more settled in life overall. "I try not to strive for anything I have no control over," she said. "I'm just really enjoying spending more time on land than I used to, have a car, an apartment, a dog. The most exciting thing for me is decorating an apartment. Travel is just like, ugh, I've been doing that. Now I'm like, throw pillows and potted plants." But it looks like this season of Below Deck will be as chaotic as ever. See what high-seas shenanigans are on the way for the crew, below.I won’t waste anytime trying to seduce you readers with an elaborate introduction. Let’s make this very simple. BLACK MEN ARE TIRED OF YOU BLACK WOMEN’S BULLSH*T! For years, we sat back and watch you go on the White man’ talk show and talk about how we are gay, lazy, and terrible fathers. But now, its PAYBACK!!! You must understand that the African American woman presents herself to be sinless in the context of her relationships with African American Men. She presents herself as the most educated and also the most ambitious. However, she is the SAME FEMALE who is the most SINGLE! Contrary to popular belief, Black men are usually not the buffoons that the media and Black Women make us out to be. Many of us are educated, own businesses, and have awesome job training which make us viable in the economy. However, Black Women will continue to act like ALL Black Men are horrific. Well, if Black Men are so horrific, then explain why Black Men have more marriages than Black Women? Despite Black men having 2 million less in the population in comparison to Black Women, we are married 364,000 TIMES than they are. Don’t believe me? Click the link for yourself! . I know I know. It is hard to believe right? Yet, the propaganda against Black Men continues in an negative fashion to depict black men as being unfaithful, inconsiderate, and dysfunctional. However, if there are more black men Married with a population of 2 million LESS compared to black women, then WHO is REALLY “undateable?” YOU GUESSED IT! Ratchet and uncompromising BLACK WOMEN! They are the evil despicable creatures who have pissed off a great majority of black men in the Negromanosphere. I will now give 7 reasons why Black Men are constitutively tired of Black Women’s Bullshit. WE ARE TIRED OF YOUR LOUD MOUTH Have you women ever heard of “Shutting the F*CK UP?” The only time you stop talking is when you need to hold your head still to get that stanky sweaty ass weave installed in La Keisha’s apartment. Black men are tired of your mouth! 2) When you do talk, You sound like a MAN Black women not only look a lot like men, they sure do sound like it. Most of you speak with the same lingo as men do and that is VERY UNFEMININE! 3) You don’t Know What You Are Talking About Most of you women are pretty dumb. You have no idea what you are talking about. I know one of you will say that you are the most educated group of females with regards to education. However, how do you explain being the number one group in Obesity and leading in STDS? The reason why that is because YOU ARE NOT THAT SMART! You have NO IDEA what you are doing! JUST STFU! 4) We are tired of all your kids Your kids are bad as sh*t. You expect us to provide for these satanic heathens and also take them places. Yet, these kids come first? What black man wants to come second fiddle to a child (OR CHILDREN) that do not belong to us? 5) We are tired of your Obesity If we wanted to date something wide, we would ask a shopping mall out on a date. We don’t want our women resembling the same size arena that the Los Angeles Clippers play in. 6) Tired of Your Friends and Family Black Women like to keep their friends and family in the business of the relationship. For example, black women like to use male cousins or brothers to intimidate the boyfriend or husband. She will disrespect the man and if the man reacts, she will call her male relatives to fight the guy. Black men are tired of this stupid game. Nobody got time for that. 7) We are tired of that stanking weave Black men do not want to help support your weave habit. If we want a non black woman, we will get one. I’m out! Remember…the Buffoonery remains at an ALL TIME HIGH!!!!!NBN Co and Strata Community Australia (SCA) are set to trial a regime to make it easier for NBN Co to obtain the contact information of owners of apartments in the National Broadband Network (NBN) fibre roll-out area where consent is needed in order to install fibre in each building. One of the more complex issues with rolling out the fibre broadband network across Australia is installing it in existing multi-dwelling units [MDUs]. NBN Co CEO Mike Quigley said that the average number of units in a MDU is nine, but this is widely varied. In addition to the physical difference, there can be a number of different owners requiring consent to install the fibre to those units and to assist to design the best method to install the fibre into the buildings. The company announced today with SCA that they would conduct a six-month pilot to make it easier get contact details from owner corporations and body corporates of MDUs to get consent to install the fibre using a new online register with SCA. SCA CEO Mark Lever said that it would help to ensure that NBN Co was talking to the right people at the right time. "The last thing anyone wants is for households to miss out on the benefits of the NBN simply because no one could be contacted to assist with building access," he said. "NBN Co does not currently charge for a standard installation into a multi-unit residential community, or for the ongoing maintenance of the NBN equipment and cables, so there is no reason not to get on board." SCA will begin listing which buildings NBN Co is seeking to contact later this week on its website, which currently only lists suburbs. In December, Universal Communications Group and Downer EDI were awarded AU$87 million in contracts to roll out fibre into existing MDUs across New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria, and Tasmania.For the past five months, a newly formed rebel group in the North Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) has been attacking government forces and seizing small towns, and it just took control of the city of Goma a week ago. The movement, called the March 23 Movement (M23), is made up of former members of previous rebel groups and is largely a continuation of hostilities in the region that date back to the First Congo War in 1996. Amid a complicated web of proxy battles, political posturing, defections, and re-defections, M23 rebel forces (purportedly supported by Rwanda) have fought fierce battles against DR Congo government troops and local Mai-Mai militias, sending civilians fleeing for shelter. UN peacekeeping forces in the region have not resisted the advances of the rebels, claiming their duty is to protect civilians, not to act as a substitute national army. Several hundred rebels, soldiers, and civilians have reportedly been killed, and many more wounded, so far. At the moment, M23 refuses to leave Goma and has a stated intention of overthrowing the national government.Alberta: Canada is poised to lose energy companies as the industry faces the “new normal” of lower and more volatile oil prices along with tougher climate and regulatory policies, billionaire investor Murray Edwards warned Friday. The chairman of the nation’s largest heavy-oil producer, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., likened the oil industry to a horse race in which western Canadian producers are struggling to compete with developers of light crude from US shale. While cost cuts and innovation are allowing some oil-sands developers to stay in the game, parts of the Canadian industry will go by the wayside, Edwards said at a conference hosted by Bennett Jones LLP in the mountain community of Lake Louise, Alberta. “We have a lot of wind blowing in our face right now, a lot of challenges before us,” Edwards told reporters after delivering remarks to a crowd of more than 300 at a ski resort hotel. “Only those that are going to be top in class on execution are going to be able to survive in that environment.” Snow-covered peaks in the background at the conference offered an uplifting contrast to the pall cast over Calgary. Office buildings in the Centre of the nation’s oil patch are emptying with a persistent price slump that began in June 2014, which has led to 40,000 lost jobs across the Canadian industry and 100,000 cumulatively with the spillover to other industries, according to the latest figures Friday from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. US crude is down about 60 per cent since its high last year, hovering just above $40 a barrel. Higher Levies Oil companies in Alberta are facing higher levies, with a new climate policy this month including a rising carbon tax, and await the results of a policy review to finish later this year on the royalties the provincial government collects on their production. Some parts of the industry won’t outlive the new regime, said Peter Tertzakian, chief energy economist at ARC Financial Corp. and a member of the royalty review panel. “I am confident that segments of the industry will remain competitive,” Tertzakian told reporters. In an earlier presentation, he outlined a “new world” facing oil companies since the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries last year decided to maintain output amid a supply glut, boosting competition, complicated by rising use of renewable energy that’s damping demand for crude. “We are in the mother of all market share battles.” Canada is one of the most expensive places to extract crude, yet some of its largest energy companies publicly embraced the province’s new climate policy even if it means that only oil-sands projects with the lowest carbon footprint get developed in the future, Edwards said. Producers are seeking to “change the conversation,” he said, after years of environmental opposition that has held back the development of export pipelines, including Keystone XL to the US and Northern Gateway to Canada’s Pacific Coast. Edwards, who joined environmentalists on stage Nov. 22 to announce the policy, challenged the US and other countries to tax the emissions from their oil and natural gas production to level the playing field. “I hope that Canadians are taking a leadership role on this one and that others will start to follow,” Edwards said. “It’s going to lead to a more positive discussion, rather than the adversarial discussion we’ve had in the past.”Three Malaysian transgender women on Friday won their landmark bid to overturn an Islamic anti-cross dressing law in the conservative Muslim-majority nation. A three-judge appeals court panel ruled that the provision of southern Negri Sembilan state that bars Muslim men from dressing as women was unconstitutional, saying it "deprives the appellants of the right to live with dignity". "It has the effect of denying the appellants and other sufferers of GID [gender identify disorder] to move freely in public places... This is degrading oppressive and inhumane," judge Hishamudin Yunus said. The verdict overturns a 2012 lower court ruling, which had dismissed the challenge by the three appellants — Muslims who were born male but identify as women — over their arrest four years ago under the law. Malaysia has a double track court system with state Islamic laws governing civil matters for Muslims, who account for 60 percent of the country's 30 million people. Under state Islamic laws, the offense of men dressing or acting as women is punishable by up to three years in jail. Some Malaysian states also outlaw cross-dressing by women. Aston Paiva, the plaintiffs' lawyer, said the ruling could be used to challenge any arrest of transgender people throughout Malaysia. "It's quite historic... This will be a precedent... This court binds all other high courts," Paiva said. A Negri Sembilan state legal advisor declined to comment on whether his side would seek to appeal the verdict to a higher court. The three plaintiffs were not present in court. The case is the first attempt to overturn the prohibition on cross-dressing in the Southeast Asian nation, where homosexuality and transgender lifestyles remain taboo. Human Rights Watch (HRW) in September called on the government to repeal all laws that criminalize transgender lifestyles after the New York-based group found that they face systematic and constant repression, harassment, mistreatment, social ostracism and "risk arrest every day". HRW said in a report that transgender people in Malaysia face worsening persecution due to the steady rise of conservative Islamic attitudes. The abuses include arrest, physical and sexual assault and extortion by authorities, public shaming by forcing transgender women to strip off their clothing in public, and barriers to healthcare, employment and education. Authorities face no accountability in their treatment of transgender people, the report said. AFP Sign up to receive UCAN Daily Full Bulletin Thank you. You are now signed up to our Daily Full Bulletin newsletterPresident Obama announced in an unscripted moment during his speech Wednesday at the "Together We Thrive: Tucson and America" memorial, that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords - Gabby - "opened her eyes" shortly after his visit with her and her husband Mark Kelly at University Medical Center. Scroll down to see President Obama announce that Giffords opened her eyes. Complete Coverage: Tragedy in Tucson Obama: Rep. Giffords "Opened Her Eyes" Today Obama Calls for Civility in Wake of Tragedy @katiecouric: Tragedy in Tucson (Video) An aide to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) confirms that Pelosi, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) were present when Giffords opened her eyes. The three women are all close friends of Rep. Giffords. During the speech, Mr. Obama said, "Gabby opened her eyes for the first time. I can tell you, she knows we are here, she knows we love her, and she knows that we are rooting for her through what is undoubtedly going to be a difficult journey We are there for her." When Mr. Obama made the announcement, the crowd at McKale Memorial Center in Tucson erupted in applause. Giffords was shot outside a grocery store in Tucson, Saturday, Jan. 8, 2011. Six people were killed. Giffords was shot in the head and 13 other people were wounded in the attack. Jared Loughner was arrested for the attack and charged with, among other things, attempted assassination of a member of Congress. Giffords has been making progress since the attack that has been described as miraculous, including taking breaths on her own and responding to simple commands from doctors. The other victims killed in the shooting are Gabriel Zimmerman, 30, an aide to Giffords who was her director of community outreach; Christina Taylor Green, a 9-year-old who wanted to be a politician; Dorwin Stoddard, 76, a retired construction worker; Dorthy Morris, 76, a retired homemaker and secretary; Phyllis Schneck, 79, whom Mr. Obama described as a gifted quilter; and John Roll, 63, a federal judge.In 2016, Oxenfree took the gaming world by surprise. Released by debut studio Night School Studio and playing to the same 80s vibe that acclaimed TV series Stranger Things did, Oxenfree quickly made its mark on the YouTube Let’s Play scene. Gamers were fascinated by the odd mysteries that Night School Studio had crafted, and the music, created by eclectic composer Scntfc, put the soundtrack in high demand. It was its characters and the game’s approach to narrative, though, that made Oxenfree so outstanding. Let’s start with the characters. Oxenfree follows a central cast of five high schoolers named Alex, Jonas, Clarissa, Ren, and Nona. Alex stars in the game and Jonas plays a close second as her new stepbrother. Ren is her childhood best friend and gets a significant amount of dialogue as well. Clarissa and Nona are important, but aren’t as central to the story. There are also a number of secondary characters, like Alex’s biological brother, Michael, a mysterious group known as The Sunken, as well as characters who are referenced throughout the game. The game has an extensive amount of exploration and a number of light puzzle elements to it, as well as a unique radio feature that lets the player tune in to otherworldly signals for hints as to what happened on the island. However, given the lack of traditional gameplay, there are large sections of the game where the player doesn’t technically ‘do’ anything except walk... and talk. Oxenfree’s genius lies in its character relationships and the way those unfold, so it’s impossible to talk about characterization without discussing narrative options at the same time. As the player walks around the island, there is a nearly unceasing amount of dialogue occurring between Alex and her friends. In fact, you could say your dialogue choices are the primary gameplay mechanics. Choices you make influence how others feel about you, how they talk to you, and how they respond to your decisions. For instance, when faced with a choice about who to bring with you to the beach, picking one character over another will leave the person you left out resentful for the rest of the game. Of course, you can always try and patch things up with them later, because Oxenfree affords conversations down the road where you can discuss past actions. Then again, even apologizing might not be enough to patch things up entirely once you’ve hurt somebody’s feelings. Do these impact the game? Not in the sense of the science fiction plot, but they do influence the ending, who ends up dating who, and what your relationship with those characters is like once Oxenfree concludes. Narrative reigns supreme, and what you say will have an impact on the feelings of everyone around you. Why should you care about how these characters feel? Because the dialogue is good. As you explore the history of each character and talk to them longer and longer, you become attached to everyone. They feel like genuinely real people. Well, real people who are still in high school, with all of the same insecurities, occasional shallowness, and fears. The writing is of such quality that many of these characters are likely to remind you of people you knew growing up. Clarissa is bossy and needs to have things her way, but she genuinely cared about Mike and is carrying a lot of baggage. Ren wants to impress Nona, but the minute someone tries to broach the topic with her, he has an insecurity meltdown. Jonas is looking for a home and a place to belong following the death of his mother. And Alex... She’s special. She keeps the group together when it’s about to fall apart and encourages people when they’re down. At least, she did in my play through (but that’s because I make good choices). Part of why these character dynamics are so amazing is because of how they unfold. You have a very limited window in which to make your responses, and sometimes you’ll find yourself interrupting other people or talking over them, just like you would in real life. This adds a very genuine, very natural feeling to the dialogue. There are times you’ll say something off the spur of the moment and find yourself regretting it within half a second, something most people can relate to. The natural back and forth, the commitment to creating layered, complex characters, and the genuine sense that these characters are worth caring for is what carries the game. While other games might be content to ride the backbone of the 80s-esque science fiction mystery at play, it’s the way these people interact with one another, hurt each other, or uphold each other, that makes Oxenfree a standout example of narrative in gaming fiction. Oxenfree is available on PS4, XBox One, PC, and was just released for iOS. If you like this article, remember to like and share it. Jason Luthor is the author of the science fiction and dystopian horror, FLOOR 21.** Hey guys! ** It's been a good run (close to ten years now, whoa), but my interest in keeping the booklist up to date has waned over the past few years, and rather than pretending like I'll get back to it Any Day Now, I think it's time to call it to a close. Partly it's because that I'm not reading as much, most of my time going into my leatherworking business, and partly because I'm finding it increasingly difficult to write fairly about the books I read. I started this site when I was a voraciously-reading undergrad who had inexplicably just realized that there were real, existing books that had both fantasy settings and queer protagonists. That I could actually have both, rather than having to choose between straight fantasy and gay boring shit bildungsromans. There weren't many, but they were out there, and by god I was going to find them. Ten years later, the publishing scene is rather dramatically different. Queer protagonists are still less prevalent than straight ones, of course, but they are no longer the Outliers Who Should Not Be Counted that they once were, nor do publishers and back-cover summaries try so hard to hide it when they are. YA lit in particular has witnessed a boom in openly gay characters, possibly due
heat wave off with totally clear skies and a high of 90. Unlike previous evenings this week, the low overnight will only dip to 60 degrees making it harder to cool off living spaces. Please remember to check on the elderly and on folks living without cooling systems. There's still some debate from the forecast models on what high temps will be on Saturday. At this point it looks likely we'll climb over the mid 90s and get very close to 100 degrees. The coast looks toasty as well with the beaches seeing temperatures into the high 80s or low 90s. So, no relief there. Here's a list of Multnomah County cooling centers and Washington County cooling centers open this weekend. 16 cool Oregon hikes to try on a hot day The temperatures are rising but that doesn't mean you need to stay inside. Instead, find a cooler spot to take a hike. Forecasters are also watching for a possible southwest marine surge moving along the central coast Saturday night and Sunday. This could cool things off a bit for Sunday especially in areas south of Salem where it's possible temps will stay in the low 90s. However, temperatures should remain very high (near 100) for the north and central Willamette Valley, Clark County and the western section of the Gorge on Sunday. This extreme heat isn't expected to hold on for long. By Monday we should see a shift to a more onshore flow and temperature moving back down about 15 degrees with highs in the mid 80s.‘Star Wars’ toys are a massive deal, you need only look at Disney’s EIGHTEEN hour long live-stream during which they unveiled ‘Episode 7′s toy line-up ahead of the big launch yesterday (4 September). What we’ve seen reveals little more than what we already knew about the new film, showing the heroes, villains and vehicles we know will be a big part of 'The Force Awakens’ this December. Tradition dictates that the full range of 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ toys will include action figures, dolls and play sets for every character - big or small - who appears on screen in the film, so we’ve put together a run down of the toys we’ve yet to see. The Original Heroes Chewbacca, Han Solo, R2-D2 and C-3PO all feature in this initial line-up, but not nearly to the extent of new characters like Finn, Rey, Kylo Ren, Captain Phasma and of course, BB-8. Clearly this has been done because these toys are aimed at children (though my Twitter feed suggests otherwise) so it’s best to focus on the new, not the old. Han and Chewie characters will get more toys in the months ahead. Likewise we will certainly see the older versions of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia who appear in the film - Luke’s toy in particular will be generate a lot of interest. - Disney Could Make $3bn From Star Wars Merch - First Look At Kylo Ren’s Full Helmet - Star Wars Christmas 2015 Toy Line-Up Revealed The Unseen Characters (And Background Characters) Andy Serkis and Lupita Nyong'o are both playing performance capture characters who have yet to be seen officially or unofficially. The former plays Supreme Leader Snoke, the not very nice bloke heard in the film’s first trailer. Nyong'o meanwhile will play an alien pirate called Maz Kanata, whose castle will be a location in the film. Said castle will also be filled with colourful characters, as per the Vanity Fair image above, so expect those characters to be turned into toys too. Max Von Sydow’s unnamed character probably will be as well. The First Order Walker Our own Tom Butler spotted a new look walker in the background of one of the latest shots from the film, which depicts the massive First Order army. Star Wars’ vehicles are almost as big a deal as the characters, so undoubtedly kids will be playing with one of these alongside their X-Wing and TIE Fighters this Christmas (but only if they’ve been good). Domhnall Gleeson It’s safe to say General Hux wouldn’t make the most exciting action figure ever based on the pose above (cheer up mate, you’re in bloody ‘Star Wars’!) so we can see why Disney are waiting on releasing his. It will happen though. - Tom Baker Confirms Star Wars Role - Benecio Del Toro In Episode 8 Talks - Han Solo Spin-Off Movie Details This Whatever it is. Random Resistance Power Droid Oscar Isaac’s impossibly handsome Poe Dameron was in danger of being overshadowed in his own promo shot by the Power Droid going about its business underneath Dameron’s black and orange X-Wing. We love this fella, and he’ll likely be toy as well. If there’s any justice in the world he’ll be more sought-after than BB-8. The Unseen Locations Often play sets - particularly Lego ones - give away a film’s action sequences (see every Marvel film) but this hasn’t been the case for ‘The Force Awakens’. The absence of certain characters from the line-up indicates Disney aren’t about to let merchandise spoil any (or many) surprises. Some locations we know we’ll see include the market on the desert planet of Jakku, Kanata’s aforementioned castle, that ominous snowy forest area that keeps popping up, a Resistance base and wherever the above action scene takes place. Then of course, there’s any locations that have been kept well under wraps. 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ will be released on 18 December. - 7 Actors Who Hated Being In Star Wars - Simon Pegg’s Extensive Star Wars Role - Rogue One Returns To The Death Star Picture Credits: LucasFilm / Vanity Fair.PORTLAND ― Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) is not about to let armed, pro-gun enthusiasts intimidate her when she advocates for gun control, even if they hang and burn an effigy of her on the steps of the state capitol. Which they did. Last week, dozens of people advocating open carry laws strung up and set afire a mannequin that represented Brown, which they taunted as it smoldered on the ground. The guy hanging the effigy was wearing a mask. Someone on a microphone mentioned white supremacy. Another attendee talked about all the money she had to spend to put her son in a Christian school “so his gender can be preserved.” It was all kinds of crazy. Here’s a video from the scene: .@itsmikebivins here's the video -- had to wait to get it sent to me because Facebook wouldn't let me save to the phone pic.twitter.com/HqHB75cd2V — Delana (@illbeyourwater) September 24, 2016 ”Oh, look at Kate burn,” one man says. “Take that, Kate Brown!” shouts another woman. “Down with Brown.” The governor wasn’t in Salem at the time. But on Friday, she had a message for those trying to scare her away from taking action on gun control. “If these extreme groups continue to burn mannequins of me, an effigy, every time I stand up for the safety of Oregonians, then they’re going to run out of mannequins,” Brown said during a gubernatorial debate in Portland. She got a round of applause. The governor has been pressing legislators to pass bills limiting gun sales when background checks take longer than expected, and banning a gun sale for 30 days if someone warns authorities that the buyer may be going through a mental health crisis. She signed an executive order earlier this year to give police more tools for tracking gun transactions, and to create a work group to review firearms-related domestic violence offenses.There have been some consistent performers in the circuit that were deprived of the Grand Slam Singles title. For the last 5 years or so, the person most recognized as the best player without a major doubt, was definitely, Andy Murray. With some dominating breakthrough performances, Murray shed this particular tag off him by winning the US Open in 2013. Now the question arises again – who are the best players in the last decade and half (Open era had commenced in 1989, but the focus would be primarily on the last 15 years) to not have a Grand Slam title in their trophy cabinet. Here are 10 players (both male and female) based on Career-high rankings and Grand Slam results: 1. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Career High: #5 Grand Slam Results: One-time Finalist and Four-time Semi-finalist The Frenchman had a perfect chance to capture his first ever Grand Slam in the Australian Open of 2008. But he lost a hard fought battle to Novak Djokovic 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 in a classic final. Tsonga has also reached Semis in both French Open and the Wimbledon twice.FALLBROOK (CBSLA) — A gracious former Marine who lost the lower half of his body in an I.E.D. blast is being honored by the Los Angeles Rams this weekend, though he says he was just doing his job. “Do I regret it? No, I don’t,” veteran Jason Ross told CBS2 News. “I tell people that I had a blast,” Staff Sgt. Ross jokes about the explosion that completely took off his legs during his 2011 tour in Afghanistan. It’s in keeping with the Marine’s good nature and modesty. “I tell people that I was stubborn,” he chuckled, talking about the lesson he wants to impart on his young daughters who do not really remember their father before he suffered his injuries. Ross was given a 2 percent chance of surviving after the blast and has had over 200 surgeries, but that does not dissuade him from his purpose in joining the Marines. “It’s about serving your country. It’s about feeling a sense of pride and being able to actually do something, give back to the country that has given you so much,” said Ross ahead of a hero’s honor he’ll receive this weekend, about which he is a bit ambivalent. For Veterans Day, the L.A. Rams will name Ross “hero of the game” before their game against the Houston Texans Sunday. “When it comes to things like this, I’m kind of like, I guess I don’t want to say “humbled,” but I’m very kind of like, ‘Why, I just did my job?'” The Rams and his family see it a little differently. “It don’t get worse than what he got hit with,” father and fellow veteran George Ross told CBS2. He believes its his son’s fighting spirit that is being recognized, and he hopes others appreciate the sacrifice soldiers make. “Try to step up and help the foundations that are helping the veterans, ’cause there’s so much of need there,” the senior Ross said. The Rams will honor Sgt. Ross this Sunday, November 12 before a 1:05 p.m. kickoff.Well I had a Corsair TX650 before and that lasted 8 years so I thought I'll have a punt on another Corsair, researched on the net and most of the technical testing and the RM650x looked ok (for what I'll be using it for anyway) plus the 'Silent Fan' option kind of swung it for me (I have a super quiet Fractal R5 case with all round quiet low RPM fans). The old corsair PSU fan was slowly getting noisier and it stood out agains everything else. The RM650 however, heck, not managed to really push the PSU far enough to need to turn on to become remotley audible, infact the HO Gen 8 Microserver on the other side of the room is more audible than the PC 3 feet from me now! Only 1 issue, the short spacing between SATA Power connectors was a bit of a pain, in the Drive rack, spacing was just ok and no more but the 2 SSD on the back of the MB tray means losing one connectoron the cable due to the short spacing of the connectors that leaves me with a single cable of 3 for expansion at a later date (although with 4 SSD and 1 spinning rust, I dont think that's likley in the future). Well made, black screws in the box, could do with a few more cable ties but I did have a 10m roll of double sided velcro so I was ok there. other than that it's all good, at present I have run it for a weekend, 4 hours straight on the Division and some time puttering away on Rust, and everything is fully stable according to my system monitoring even when i5 overclocked to 4.9. At the end of the day, it's a 10 year warranty (£9 a year at the Amazon price when I bought it) no brainer for me!The grand irony of Monica Lewinsky’s life is that she can’t stop talking about how the media humiliated her because that is the only thing she has to sell. But her speech in Philadelphia attempted to fuse her tragic past with a current cause: a campaign against slut-shaming. It seems impossible to talk about Lewinsky without rehashing the battles of 1998. Back then, she said on Monday, “I would go online, read in a paper or see on TV people referring to me as: tramp, slut, whore, tart, bimbo, floozy, even spy… Overnight, I went from being a completely private figure to a publicly humiliated one. I was Patient Zero.” Let’s stipulate that as a White House intern who flashed her thong at Bill Clinton, Lewinsky made a tremendous mistake. (She says she felt “shame” and “came close to disintegrating.”) Let’s also stipulate that with Clinton in demand on the Democratic campaign trail 16 years later, it seems unfair that so much animosity should continue to be directed at Lewinsky for carrying on with her powerful boss. Indeed, after joining Twitter and posting a total of two tweets, she was flooded with nasty messages. Does she have a point about the caustic cyberculture of 2014? The answer is undoubtedly yes. Lewinsky has to stretch a bit to paint herself as “the first person to have their reputation completely destroyed worldwide via the Internet.” She was outed by the Drudge Report, but what Matt Drudge reported was that Newsweek was holding a story about special prosecutor Ken Starr investigating her affair with Clinton—a story that was broken days later by the Washington Post. (The online world was such that virtually all news organizations ignored the Drudge scoop.) So it was really what we now call the legacy media that triggered the events that led to impeachment. And as Lewinsky acknowledges, “there was no Facebook, Twitter or Instagram back then. But there were gossip, news and entertainment websites replete with comment sections and emails could be forwarded.” Not to mention old-fashioned tabloids: “The New York Post’s Page Six took to calling me, almost daily, the Portly Pepperpot. I was shattered.” But social media can be a very rough neighborhood, especially for women, and even more especially for women who have some kind of public profile. Every time I’ve asked a female journalist about this, on or off the air, it has touched a nerve. They talk about sexually abusive insults that disparage them and their looks. Some defiantly retweet these; others say they stay off Twitter or refuse to read their @ replies, while still others develop a rhino-like skin. The latest example is the Gamergate furor, where video game developer Zoe Quinn was viciously attacked by an ex-boyfriend who described her allegedly cheating on him at voluminous length. Another game developer, Brianna Wu, said she and her husband had to leave their home, tweeting: “I want to be crystal clear - I am scared of the death threats I've gotten. I am terrified of the #gamergate blame-the-victim witch hunt.” This has sparked a fierce debate about the male-dominated nature of video gaming, not unlike the tech industry, where some major-league whiz kids have had to apologize for sexist messages and misbehavior. In Britain last year, an activist named “Caroline Criado-Perez faced a deluge of hostile tweets over the course of more than a day, including threats to rape and kill her, after she successfully campaigned for a woman's picture to be put on a new banknote,” as the Guardian reported.One of the more printable ones was “Die you worthless piece of crap.” Lewinsky says she wants to “put my suffering to good use” and calls for “a cultural revolution. Online, we’ve got a compassion deficit – an Empathy Crisis — and something tells me that matters a lot more to most of us.” All right, a revolution ain’t gonna happen. Social media are too massive for that. But how about an evolution? Could we begin to change societal attitudes by shaming the slut-shamers and make such behavior uncool? Monica is a flawed messenger, to say the least. Anything she says tends to drown in recriminations over the blue dress and the Starr Report and the is-oral-sex-cheating debates of that era. But just as former felons take up prison reform and former drug addicts crusade about addiction, maybe her very notoriety is the ingredient that generates attention —at least judging by how many times I’ve seen clips of her speech replayed on television. Click for more from Media Buzz.Ireland is one of just three countries in the EU27 where the right to collective bargaining is not enshrined in law AN END to zero-hour contracts has been called for in a new Sinn Féin’s Workers’ Rights policy document launched on Thursday by Senator David Cullinane. Sinn Féin has also called for the introduction of robust anti-victimisation legislation and collective bargaining rights in line with International Labour Organisation conventions. Senator Cullinane, who was joined at the launch by Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald and Enterprise spokesperson Peadar Tóibín TD, said: “One hundred years after the 1913 Lockout, Ireland has the dubious distinction of being only one of three countries in the EU27 where the right to collective bargaining is not enshrined in law. “We must ensure that collective bargaining rights are introduced without delay and that they are in keeping with International Labour Organisation conventions. “Legislation must copperfasten the right to trade union recognition and treat collective bargaining as a basic human right. “Watered-down legislation will not protect workers in the current economic climate. We need robust legislation that makes it compulsory for employers to recognise trade unions and that prohibits victimisation of vulnerable workers. “According to Eurostat, over one fifth of the Irish workforce is low-paid. We also have a widening of the gap in terms of income distribution and an increase in the numbers of adults and children living in relative deprivation. “Sinn Féin is committed to working with an independent and progressive labour movement to bring about change. “Working together, our task is to create a true republic that can deliver equality and justice for all our people and strong and robust workers’ rights are a fundamental cornerstone of this project.” • Below: David Cullinane, Mary Lou McDonald and Peadar Tóibín at the workers' rights launch0 SHARES Facebook Twitter Google Whatsapp Pinterest Print Mail Flipboard Even a short term debt ceiling agreement is up in the air now. Not the actual debt ceiling limit, but a short term agreement. We can’t even do that now, if Robert Costa’s readings are accurate. Costa tweeted, “One of my best House R sources thinks Boehner may, just may, be able to get votes for short-term DL ext, but even that is up in air” One of my best House R sources thinks Boehner may, just may, be able to get votes for short-term DL ext, but even that is up in air — Robert Costa (@robertcostaNRO) October 7, 2013 Robert Costa just published a detailed breakdown at the National Review, in which he writes that many House conservatives are unlikely to support any debt ceiling “deal”. “They may try to throw the kitchen sink at the debt limit, but I don’t think our conference will be amenable for settling for a collection of things after we’ve fought so hard,” Representative Scott Garrett (R-NJ) told Costa. “If it doesn’t have a full delay or defund of Obamacare, I know I and many others will not be able to support whatever the leadership proposes. If it’s just a repeal of the medical-device tax, or chained CPI, that won’t be enough.” They must get something more than everything they want, in order to stop destroying America. Got it? We had an indication this was coming. “You’re seeing the tremor before the tsunami here,” Ted Yoho (R-FL) said a few days ago, swearing, “I’m not going to raise the debt ceiling.” So there. Neener neener, economy! It is indeed the House of Indecision, as Costa quoted a Republican aide saying in a separate article. “It’s the House of indecision,” says a weary Republican aide familiar with the talks. “We don’t have the votes for a big deal, small deal, or short-term deal.” Of course, that’s not true. Boehner does have the votes, unless he’s still pretending that the Hastert Rule is a real thing, and it’s not. It’s only real as far as his career goes, so while we can understand that Boehner is choosing to let the country implode in order to save his own skin, it’s becoming harder and harder to justify. Unless, of course, they’re not dealing with reality. To wit, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) is pretending that not raising the debt ceiling is no biggie: Burr: “I’m not as concerned as the president about the debt ceiling bc the Fed are the only people buying our bonds.” — daveweigel (@daveweigel) October 7, 2013 This opinion places Burr in opposition to actual experts on the economy, but hey. Whatevs. As the Maddow Blog pointed out in late September, Burr wasn’t always this extreme. He once called the idea of shutting down the government over ObamaCare “dumbest idea” he’d ever heard. “I think it’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard of,” Burr said at the time. “Listen, as long as Barack Obama is president, the Affordable Care Act is going to be law.” And who can forget Republican Representative Dennis Ross of Florida admitting that this entire debacle is all about wounded GOP pride. Seriously. If you’re wondering how Republicans can be so out of it when the polls keep instructing them otherwise (as if the ONLY issue here is their own political survival, forget the people or this country), perhaps this level of utter cluelessness will be informative. When asked if the Republicans have their next move mapped out and if Boehner has any legislation drawn up regarding the debt ceiling, “Negatory,” Representative Pete Sessions replies. You see, it’s all about “messaging”. “We’re going to keep with our great, positive attitude and tell the president, ‘you’ve got to sit down and negotiate.'” So, their great positive attitude involves tanking the economy and shutting down the government because they lost an election. Huh. Also: Only in Republican world is holding a gun to the country’s head before being willing to “talk” an act of good faith. Republicans don’t understand this president very well at all, but then, we tend to project our own values onto others so this is understandable. They never should have threatened the country. They could have threatened anything but the American people and the democratic process, and this President wouldn’t have felt compelled to take a stand. But they don’t know who Barack Obama is, and they don’t even know what they want. They certainly don’t know how to get what they want, unless losing 2014 has been their secret goal. Republicans shutdown the government and they can’t sort out how to pass the CR that was funded at levels they requested. Now they can’t figure out how to pass a short term agreement to raise the debt ceiling in order to pay for the bills they themselves approved. Republicans are obviously incapable of governing. If you’re ready to read more from the unbossed and unbought Politicus team, sign up for our newsletter here! Email address: Leave this field empty if you're human:About two weeks ago, I noticed a Facebook post from Bowers & Wilkins regarding the release of their newest and largest headphone to date – the P7. This left me in a loop of suspense and excitement, as I have always been greatly appreciative of the premium products that Bowers & Wilkins construct, as well as a frequent headphone fanatic (see my other reviews here). The P7 is based upon the same aesthetic design as its little brothers; the P5 and P3 – this time however, being an over-the-ear concept, tempered with luxurious dark leather features. Although, the P7 is considerably larger in stature than other premium over-ear headphone models, they are still easily portable due to their ability to fold up (fitting snugly in to the carry-case provided). The P7 comes with an anti-tangle cable, optimised for use with Apple products, with a built-in microphone and remote. Like all Bowers & Wilkins products, the P7 sounds impeccably brilliant. I first began to test the strength of the P7 using Gabrielle Aplin’s ‘Dreams’ (featuring Bastille). I often use this song to assess audio equipment, because it consists of a lot of alternating frequencies – a deep bass line, soft white noise, and somewhat low and soft vocal from Bastille, as well as Gabrielle Aplin’s higher pitched and more intense verses. The P7 brings this song to life, immediately providing a beautifully smooth vocal response to Bastille’s soft introduction, all the while juggling the boomy bass drum and higher piano-note being played in the background of the vocal. Gabrielle begins to sing and the backing track picks up, the intense kick-snare pattern of the drum beat is not lost behind against her voice, and vice versa – the P7 dissects these two elements in a way I have not heard from any other pair of headphones, they seem to make every note, instrument and frequency perfectly audible, but do not compromise the way these elements have been mixed. Next, I switched to a more up-beat track from American singer/rapper ‘Deuce’, titled ‘I Came To Party’ which was released earlier last year and features Gym Class Heroes frontman Travie McCoy. This song utilises thick guitar licks, a heavy drum pattern, delicately dirty synthesiser riffs and intense vocal. The P7 reproduces these elements almost flawlessly, although does seem to focus more so on the low-end aspects of the song (which is not necessarily a bad thing, at all). The contrasting sounds between Travie McCoy’s cool and smooth rap, and Deuce’s loud and intense chorus vocal may throw lesser headphones off slightly; however the P7s have no issue with blasting these choruses out, with no added distortion or impurity, while verses remain crystal clear with transparent-like detail – every T, B, and S is easily audible from both artists. Finally, I played Mike Posner’s explicit track ‘Shut Up’, which was a collaborative effort from Posner and EDM giant Flux Pavilion. This track employs predominantly low-frequencies, with most of the higher aspects being either a vocal sample or Posner’s actual vocal. This track has been at the top of my ‘Favourite Tunes’ playlist for a while now, and the P7 really did the track justice. During an extensive listening session with the P7s, I was able to pin-point and pick out exciting sonic elements to the track that I had not previously heard (such as a twinkly-style synthesizer riff towards the back of the mix, heard in the bridge). Similarly to the Deuce track, Mike Posner’s vocal T’s, B’s and S sounds are so audibly clear that it almost feels as though I am sat in the recording studio with him. This unbeatable clarity, combined with the response to Flux Pavilion’s now seemingly liquid bass-line – the P7 makes this one of the most spine-tingling listening sessions I have ever experienced with this track. To conclude, the P7 headphones are some of the most sonically superior headphones I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. They’re firm and tight when placed on your head – but at no point during my extensive listening sit-down did I begin to feel fatigued or uncomfortable. The soft and voluptuous leather ear-cups and headbands, along with the delicately brushed metal backing and clean ‘twisted’ metal connecting the cups to the headband, makes the P7 an aesthetic pleasure, complete with the classy attitude a Bowers & Wilkins product should have. The only real qualm I can think of against these particular headphones in a totally unbiased view, is that they do focus more so on the low-end than other headphone models – but as previously said, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, personally, I prefer the bassier contribution these headphones bring. _____________________________________________________ Demonstration opportunities: We have a demonstration pair of these headphones, as well as many other premium brands and models, available at our show-room in Hereford. Phone on 01432 354921 or visit us in-store for your chance to try them out Review by Stephen GoodeIf you thought the Trump administration’s war on women had peaked with their recent move to imperil birth control coverage, think again. A leaked memo obtained by Crooked Media gives a glimpse into the administration’s views on reproductive health, revealing a policy agenda that would gut evidence-based pregnancy prevention and family planning programs in order to fund abstinence-based education and “fertility awareness” initiatives — otherwise known as “the rhythm method,” a type of birth control that fails to prevent pregnancy for one out of every four couples who use it. Among the programs on the chopping block are Title X — the nation’s only federally funded family planning initiative — and the US Agency for International Development’s (USAID) family planning budget, as well as a federal teen pregnancy prevention program and the World Health Organization’s (WHO) “Let Girls Learn” initiative. If enacted, the funding cuts would undo years of progress in reproductive health outcomes — including record-low rates of teen pregnancy and abortion — and threaten to reverse progress in the fight for gender equity in the United States and abroad. The memo, which reads like a wish-list straight out of The Handmaid’s Tale, says Title X funding to help low-income women afford birth control “should be cut in half at least.” The money would be diverted in part to “childcare programs” — a move that suggests the Trump administration knows cutting Title X funding would result in more (unintended) pregnancies and births. And it would: according to the Guttmacher Institute, Title X services prevent an estimated one million unintended pregnancies each year. The rest of the funding from Title X would be diverted to “fertility awareness” programs. Fertility awareness is another term for the rhythm method, a “natural” form of birth control that relies on abstinence during the period a woman is fertile each month. Used widely among Catholics and other socially conservative Christians, fertility awareness requires women to keep perfect track of their menstrual cycles, which is difficult given that many women have irregular cycles. Furthermore, fertility is not always predictable. A variety of factors, including pheromones in men’s sweat and saliva, can trigger early ovulation and therefore shift the window of fertility. This explains why the rhythm method fails to prevent pregnancy for about 25 percent of those who use it. In comparison, IUD’s and birth control implants have failure rates of less than one percent, while the birth control pill has a failure rate of about 9 percent (though it can be reduced to as low as one percent when used perfectly). In other words, as the Trump administration makes it harder to access effective forms of contraception, they’d also like to pour more money into teaching women how to use less effective methods. Another section of the memo calls for completely defunding the Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) program, an initiative that began under President Obama in 2010 as part of the administration’s embrace of evidence-based policymaking. The memo says the program “needs to be defunded as it has not worked, there is no positive evidence and some negative evidence.” That’s categorically false. The teen pregnancy rate has fallen dramatically over the last two decades, a trend that is attributed to increased use of contraception, better sex education in public schools, and initiatives like those funded by the TPP grants. In 1991, the teen birth rate was 61.8 births per 1,000 young women and girls (ages 15–19), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By 2014, that figure had dropped to 24.2 births per 1,000 teens. After the teen pregnancy prevention grants took effect in 2010, the rate plummeted even further. Between 2010 and 2015, the teen birth rate fell from about 34 births per 1,000 teens to 22 per 1,000 — a 35 percent drop. Today, the rate is at an all-time low. Teen birth rates have fallen continuously over the past two decades, plummeting to a record low in 2015. The steep drop between 2010 and 2015 is attributed in part to the Obama administration’s Teen Pregnancy Prevention grants program. (Image credit: STAT News) As STAT News reported in April: “This unprecedented decline suggests that the Office of Adolescent Health’s funding strategy for teen pregnancy prevention has been highly effective.” While expanding access to affordable contraception plays a critical role in reducing teen pregnancy, it’s only effective if teens know about the methods available to them. This is why the TPP grants are so important, explains Dr. Christine Dehlendorf, director of the Program in Woman-Centered Contraception and an associate professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of California-San Francisco: Teens require especially creative outreach efforts about contraception. Their communication methods are always evolving, their privacy is paramount, and the criteria they use to select birth control can be complex. Outreach to teens must be highly customized and continually evaluated and improved — precisely what the Office of Adolescent Health has made possible through its smart, effective TPP grant making. The Trump administration is already taking steps to defund this effective initiative. In August, CBS News reported that the Department of Health and Human Services would be cutting off TPP grants two years before they were due to expire. The grants, which were scheduled to run through 2020, will now end in June 2018. Instead of funding evidence-based teen pregnancy programs, the Trump administration wants to divert the money to promote “sexual risk avoidance” — also known as abstinence-only education. Years of research shows that abstinence-only education fails at every single thing it sets out to achieve: it doesn’t delay the initiation of sexual activity, it doesn’t reduce teen pregnancy or STDs, and in some cases it can even lead to riskier sexual behavior. According to the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), students who take abstinence pledges as part of their sex education curricula are six times more likely to have oral sex and four times more likely to have anal sex than their non-pledging peers. These teens are also one-third less likely to use contraceptives and ten percent less likely to use condoms if they do become sexually active, which most do at some point — nine out of ten teens who take a pledge of abstinence from sex before marriage break that pledge. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, then, that states and communities that place a greater emphasis on abstinence-only education also have significantly higher rates of STDs and teen pregnancies. Beyond being ineffective, researchers and doctors say abstinence-only education is a “morally problematic” approach that “violates medical ethics and harms young people.” In a review of the evidence on abstinence-only programs published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, researchers summed it up like this: We believe that abstinence-only education programs, as defined by federal funding requirements, are morally problematic, by withholding information and promoting questionable and inaccurate opinions. Abstinence-only programs threaten fundamental rights to health, information, and life. Just last month, a panel of scientists published another review of abstinence-only until marriage (AOUM) programs, calling them “scientifically and ethically flawed”: Policies or programs offering abstinence as a single option for unmarried adolescents are scientifically and ethically flawed. AOUM programs have little demonstrated efficacy in helping adolescents to delay intercourse, while prompting health-endangering gender stereotypes and marginalizing sexual minority youth. While abstinence from sexual intercourse is theoretically fully protective against pregnancy and STIs, in actual practice, AOUM programs often fail to prevent these outcomes. AOUM programs have generated considerable political support from social conservatives, despite their lack of scientific evidence of efficacy and the fact that they withhold critical health information. The leaked memo also outlines a plan to slash USAID’s family planning budget and stipulates that “no other family planning programming for girls should be provided except fertility awareness methods.” Beyond the implications for pregnancy prevention, cutting funds for global family planning initiatives threatens to worsen maternal and fetal health outcomes, reduce the likelihood that girls will complete their education and enter the workforce, and even exacerbate gender based violence. Welcome to the front line of the war on women.This article is about the drink in ancient Rome and Greece. For the Rome character, see Posca (Rome character). For other uses, see Posca (disambiguation) Posca was the name of the mixture of vinegar and water which constituted the drink of the soldiers, the lower classes, and the slaves of ancient Rome. Usage [ edit ] The widespread use of posca is attested by numerous mentions by ancient sources ranging from the natural histories of Pliny the Elder to the comedies of Plautus. When on campaign, generals and emperors could show their solidarity with common soldiers by drinking posca, as did Cato the Elder (as recorded by Plutarch) and the emperor Hadrian, who according to the Historia Augusta "actually led a soldier’s life…and, after the example of Scipio Aemilianus, Metellus, and his own adoptive father Trajan, cheerfully ate out of doors such camp-fare as bacon, cheese and vinegar." The Christian Gospels describe Roman soldiers offering Jesus sour wine on a sponge during the Crucifixion.[1] A decree of AD 360 ordered that lower ranks of the army should drink posca and wine on alternate days.[2] Girolamo Cardano, in his Encomium Neronis of 1562, attributed the superiority of the Roman armies to only three factors: the great quantities of levies, their sturdiness and ability to carry heavy weights due to training, and good foods such as salted pork, cheese and the use of posca as a drink.[3] Etymology [ edit ] The word posca is derived from either the Latin potor (to drink
19:11:23 - Polly * Arozzi killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -22 - T: -30) 2015-05-12 19:11:25 - nkl * Thermaltake join team CT 2015-05-12 19:11:29 - Mystic *XTRFY killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -23 - T: -30) 2015-05-12 19:11:30 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (CT: -23 - T: -31) 2015-05-12 19:11:31 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: -23 - T: -32) 2015-05-12 19:11:32 - Mystic *XTRFY join team Spectator 2015-05-12 19:11:35 - Mystic *XTRFY join team TERRORIST 2015-05-12 19:11:36 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed DREAMER↪ Plantronics with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -24 - T: -32) 2015-05-12 19:11:36 - Camilla : You can ready when you are 2015-05-12 19:11:37 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (CT: -24 - T: -33) 2015-05-12 19:11:38 - nkl * Thermaltake killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: -24 - T: -34) 2015-05-12 19:11:40 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (CT: -24 - T: -35) 2015-05-12 19:11:43 - Polly * Arozzi killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -25 - T: -35) 2015-05-12 19:11:44 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: -25 - T: -36) 2015-05-12 19:11:46 - Mystic *XTRFY killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -26 - T: -36) 2015-05-12 19:11:49 - nkl * Thermaltake killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: -26 - T: -37) 2015-05-12 19:11:49 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed nkl * Thermaltake with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: -27 - T: -37) 2015-05-12 19:11:51 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: -27 - T: -38) 2015-05-12 19:11:52 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: -27 - T: -39) 2015-05-12 19:12:01 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX :!ready 2015-05-12 19:12:01 - nkl * Thermaltake : we are ready 2015-05-12 19:12:02 - Mystic *XTRFY killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -28 - T: -39) 2015-05-12 19:12:03 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Mystic *XTRFY with awp (CT: -28 - T: -40) 2015-05-12 19:12:10 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (CT: -28 - T: -41) 2015-05-12 19:12:14 - Polly * Arozzi : 1min 2015-05-12 19:12:15 - Mystic *XTRFY killed nkl * Thermaltake with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -29 - T: -41) 2015-05-12 19:12:16 - jEyKeM * Ekelund join team Spectator 2015-05-12 19:12:16 - jEyKeM * Ekelund join team TERRORIST 2015-05-12 19:12:17 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (CT: -29 - T: -42) 2015-05-12 19:12:18 - Polly * Arozzi killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with ak47 (headshot) (CT: -30 - T: -42) 2015-05-12 19:12:21 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ join team Spectator 2015-05-12 19:12:21 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ join team CT 2015-05-12 19:12:24 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with awp (CT: -30 - T: -43) 2015-05-12 19:12:26 - nkl * Thermaltake killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: -30 - T: -44) 2015-05-12 19:12:27 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with awp (CT: -30 - T: -45) 2015-05-12 19:12:27 - Mystic *XTRFY killed DREAMER↪ Plantronics with ak47 (CT: -31 - T: -45) 2015-05-12 19:12:32 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (CT: -31 - T: -46) 2015-05-12 19:12:34 - Mystic *XTRFY join team Spectator 2015-05-12 19:12:34 - Mystic *XTRFY join team TERRORIST 2015-05-12 19:12:36 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (CT: -31 - T: -47) 2015-05-12 19:12:39 - Polly * Arozzi join team Spectator 2015-05-12 19:12:39 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with glock (headshot) (CT: -32 - T: -47) 2015-05-12 19:12:39 - Polly * Arozzi join team TERRORIST 2015-05-12 19:12:43 - nkl * Thermaltake killed Mystic *XTRFY with cz75a (CT: -32 - T: -48) 2015-05-12 19:12:44 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed nkl * Thermaltake with ak47 (CT: -33 - T: -48) 2015-05-12 19:12:44 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: -33 - T: -49) 2015-05-12 19:12:46 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (CT: -33 - T: -50) 2015-05-12 19:12:48 - INFO: Starting Knife Round 2015-05-12 19:12:48 - Mystic *XTRFY :.ready 2015-05-12 19:12:48 - Polly * Arozzi :!ready 2015-05-12 19:13:14 - nkl * Thermaltake killed Mystic *XTRFY with knife_m9_bayonet (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:13:14 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with knife_tactical (CT: 5 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:13:26 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR killed nkl * Thermaltake with knife_karambit (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:13:26 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with knife_gut (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:13:28 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with knife_default_ct (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:13:28 - Situation spécial! 1v5 (RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR) 2015-05-12 19:13:28 - Polly * Arozzi killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with knife_tactical (CT: 3 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:13:32 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Polly * Arozzi with knife_default_ct (CT: 3 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:13:34 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: 2 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:13:40 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR : gh 2015-05-12 19:13:41 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR : hf 2015-05-12 19:13:46 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX :!ready 2015-05-12 19:13:47 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS : hfhf 2015-05-12 19:13:47 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX :!stay 2015-05-12 19:13:50 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX :!ready 2015-05-12 19:13:52 - INFO: Launching RS 2015-05-12 19:13:52 - Mystic *XTRFY :.ready 2015-05-12 19:13:54 - nkl * Thermaltake : hfhfhf 2015-05-12 19:14:25 - nkl * Thermaltake killed Polly * Arozzi with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: 1 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:14:25 - Situation spécial! 1v1 (nkl * Thermaltake) 2015-05-12 19:14:27 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with usp_silencer (CT: 2 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:14:28 - Mystic *XTRFY killed nkl * Thermaltake with glock (headshot) (CT: 1 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:14:28 - Situation spécial 1v1! - Le joueur nkl * Thermaltake est en 1v1 2015-05-12 19:15:24 - Mystic *XTRFY killed DREAMER↪ Plantronics with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: 1 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:15:25 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with tec9 (headshot) (CT: 0 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:15:28 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Mystic *XTRFY with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: 0 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:15:29 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with tec9 (headshot) (CT: -1 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:15:39 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR planted the bomb 2015-05-12 19:15:41 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with usp_silencer (CT: 0 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:15:53 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS is defusing bomb 2015-05-12 19:15:59 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS is defusing bomb 2015-05-12 19:16:03 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS is defusing bomb 2015-05-12 19:16:07 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: -1 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:16:07 - jEyKeM * Ekelund a mis un 1v1! 2015-05-12 19:16:07 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (0) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:16:46 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with cz75a (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:16:48 - Mystic *XTRFY killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:17:38 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with fiveseven (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:17:42 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Mystic *XTRFY with fiveseven (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:17:47 - nkl * Thermaltake killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with cz75a (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:17:47 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (Polly * Arozzi) 2015-05-12 19:17:53 - Polly * Arozzi killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with tec9 (headshot) (CT: 3 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:17:54 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with fiveseven (CT: 3 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:17:54 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (1) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:18:36 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Mystic *XTRFY with famas (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:18:36 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with famas (CT: 5 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:18:38 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with glock (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:18:38 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:18:40 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:18:40 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (Polly * Arozzi) 2015-05-12 19:18:44 - Polly * Arozzi planted the bomb 2015-05-12 19:18:47 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed Polly * Arozzi with ssg08 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:18:49 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics is defusing bomb 2015-05-12 19:18:55 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (2) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:19:38 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with famas (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:19:40 - Mystic *XTRFY killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:19:41 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Mystic *XTRFY with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:19:41 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:19:44 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:19:44 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (jEyKeM * Ekelund) 2015-05-12 19:19:46 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed DREAMER↪ Plantronics with ak47 (CT: 3 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:19:53 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed nkl * Thermaltake with ak47 (CT: 2 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:19:57 - Pausing match 2015-05-12 19:20:19 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with ak47 (CT: 2 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:20:19 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (3) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:20:27 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX : ts prob 2015-05-12 19:20:31 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR : k 2015-05-12 19:21:14 - nkl * Thermaltake : ready? 2015-05-12 19:21:14 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX : rdy 2015-05-12 19:21:15 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX :!unpause 2015-05-12 19:21:15 - prb[9] *Xtrfy : hf 2015-05-12 19:21:16 - jEyKeM * Ekelund : go 2015-05-12 19:21:19 - Unpausing match 2015-05-12 19:21:19 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR :.unpause 2015-05-12 19:21:19 - jEyKeM * Ekelund :!unpause 2015-05-12 19:21:26 - nkl * Thermaltake : hf 2015-05-12 19:21:28 - Mystic *XTRFY : hf 2015-05-12 19:21:39 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with ak47 (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:21:44 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed Mystic *XTRFY with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 5 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:21:49 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with ak47 (CT: 5 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:21:50 - Polly * Arozzi killed nkl * Thermaltake with p250 (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:21:58 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:21:58 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (Polly * Arozzi) 2015-05-12 19:22:02 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:22:02 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (4) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:22:37 - nkl * Thermaltake killed Polly * Arozzi with ak47 (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:22:44 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: 5 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:22:45 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:22:48 - Mystic *XTRFY killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:22:48 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Mystic *XTRFY with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:22:48 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (jEyKeM * Ekelund) 2015-05-12 19:22:48 - nkl * Thermaltake killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:22:48 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (5) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:23:37 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Mystic *XTRFY with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:23:44 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:23:45 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:23:46 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:23:47 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with awp (CT: 4 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:23:47 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR) 2015-05-12 19:23:48 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR killed nkl * Thermaltake with galilar (CT: 3 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:23:49 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with awp (CT: 3 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:23:49 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (6) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:24:24 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:24:26 - nkl * Thermaltake killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:24:27 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with tec9 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:24:29 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with tec9 (headshot) (CT: 3 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:24:30 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (CT: 3 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:24:58 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed DREAMER↪ Plantronics with tec9 (CT: 2 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:24:59 - nkl * Thermaltake killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: 2 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:24:59 - Situation spécial! 1v2 (Mystic *XTRFY) 2015-05-12 19:25:08 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: 2 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:25:08 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (7) - (1) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:26:12 - jEyKeM * Ekelund killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 5) 2015-05-12 19:26:17 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed Polly * Arozzi with awp (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:26:22 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed nkl * Thermaltake with awp (CT: 3 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:26:26 - RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR killed DREAMER↪ Plantronics with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 2 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:26:52 - jEyKeM * Ekelund planted the bomb 2015-05-12 19:26:53 - Mystic *XTRFY killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with ak47 (CT: 1 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:26:53 - Situation spécial! 1v4 (v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ) 2015-05-12 19:26:55 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (CT: 1 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:26:57 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: 1 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:27:05 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ with awp (CT: 0 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:27:05 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (7) - (2) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:27:13 - nkl * Thermaltake : hp prb? 2015-05-12 19:27:15 - prb[9] *Xtrfy : 11 2015-05-12 19:27:17 - nkl * Thermaltake : ty 2015-05-12 19:27:34 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:27:41 - Polly * Arozzi killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with awp (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:27:56 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Mystic *XTRFY with hegrenade (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:28:04 - nkl * Thermaltake killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:28:08 - Polly * Arozzi killed nkl * Thermaltake with awp (headshot) (CT: 3 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:28:19 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: 3 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:28:19 - Situation spécial! 1v3 (prb[9] *Xtrfy) 2015-05-12 19:29:07 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (8) - (2) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:29:39 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:29:40 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:29:41 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:29:44 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (headshot) (CT: 5 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:29:44 - Situation spécial! 1v5 (Polly * Arozzi) 2015-05-12 19:29:47 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Polly * Arozzi with usp_silencer (headshot) (CT: 5 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:29:47 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (9) - (2) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:30:18 - nkl * Thermaltake killed jEyKeM * Ekelund with m4a1_silencer (CT: 5 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:30:19 - Mystic *XTRFY killed nkl * Thermaltake with ak47 (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:30:21 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with fiveseven (headshot) (CT: 4 - T: 3) 2015-05-12 19:30:24 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Polly * Arozzi with m4a1_silencer (CT: 4 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:30:25 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS with ak47 (CT: 3 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:30:29 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed spyleader[eN] * HyperX with ak47 (headshot) (CT: 2 - T: 2) 2015-05-12 19:30:35 - DREAMER↪ Plantronics killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_silencer (CT: 2 - T: 1) 2015-05-12 19:30:35 - Situation spécial! 1v2 (prb[9] *Xtrfy) 2015-05-12 19:30:39 - v1c7oR♛♛♛ * BenQ killed prb[9] *Xtrfy with m4a1_silencer (CT: 2 - T: 0) 2015-05-12 19:30:39 - Un round a été marqué - GPlay (10) - (2) LGB eSports 2015-05-12 19:31:18 - prb[9] *Xtrfy killed nkl * Thermaltake with p250 (CT: 4 - T: 5) 2015-05-12 19:31:19 - bubblecm * VALICOMPUTERS killed RUBINO <3 ML * GUNNAR with awp (CT: 4 - T: 4) 2015-05-12 19:31:21 - spyleader[eN] * HyperX killed Mystic *XTRFY with m4a1_s
told concerned factory owners, asserting the building was safe for another hundred years. He was also unmoved when the local engineer who’d been called in to inspect the site was shaken by the large cracks he’d found in the building’s pillars and walls. For days, Rana had been planning a counterprotest against the BNP-​ordered hartal, and his reputation in Savar hinged in large part on his ability to mobilize grassroots defiance. On the morning of April 24, he was in his basement office with colleagues calling people by phone, haranguing them to report for work. When workers outside refused, he joined the factory owners to bully them inside. Oddly, the basement turned out to be one of the safest places in the building. After the building caved in, bodyguards called Rana’s cell phone, discovered he was trapped in his office, and dug him out. Three days later, he was arrested in the border town of Benapole while preparing to cross into India. His arrest was announced during a news conference at the disaster site, where weary crowds burst into raucous cheers and chanted for his hanging. The menial workforce has always been susceptible to exploitation, and for nearly a century the garment industry’s sweatshops have acted as de facto laboratories for a variety of abuses and endangerment. Other than mining, it is difficult to name another industry that has produced so many public, large-​scale catastrophes. And yet, for all the lives damaged and lost in these sweatshops, little has been done in the way of reform. When the rescue and recovery operations were called off at Rana Plaza on May 13, seventeen days after the collapse, at least 1,100 people had been killed and some 2,500 injured, making it the deadliest event in the history of the garment industry. Perhaps it was the scale of the disaster, or the timing, occurring so soon after the fire at Tazreen Fashions. Likely both factors forced the industry’s hand, so that by summer 2013, more than seventy companies, most of them European, adopted the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh—​a five-​year, legally binding commitment that subjects factories to independent inspections and public reports while requiring retailers to fund annual safety upgrades of up to $500,000. (As of March 2014, more than 150 companies have adopted the accord.) Participants include Swedish mega-​retailer H&M (the largest buyer of ready-​made garments from Bangladesh), France’s Carrefour, Britain’s Marks & Spencer, and the Inditex Group, the Spanish clothing giant that owns the Zara chain. Prior to the collapse, just two companies—​American PVH Corp (Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein) and Germany’s Tchibo—​had signed on. The about-​face drew comparisons to the infamous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City in 1911. On March 25 of that year, 146 garment workers, mainly immigrant women in their teens and twenties, perished in a factory that had been locked by owners. The horror of workers jumping several stories to their deaths sparked an unprecedented public outcry that ultimately led to improved safety standards, stronger unions, and limits on working hours—​a turning point for labor rights in the United States. Scott Nova, the executive director of the Washington, DC–based Worker Rights Consortium, hailed the post–Rana Plaza safety accord as a “sweeping transformation” that departs from the failed models and evasions shown by brands in the past. American companies Walmart, Gap, J. C. Penney, Sears, Target, and others refused to commit to the accord and in early July announced an alternate five-​year plan, the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety. It parallels the Accord on Fire Safety but allows the retailer to “opt-​out” of the agreement if disaster strikes. Critics labeled their effort a foot-​dragging attempt to avoid costly, long-​term investments, expressing doubt over whether the companies could legitimately police themselves—​noting, for instance, how an audit conducted by Walmart at Tazreen Fashions the year before the accident pointed out obvious fire hazards, and yet the company subsequently approved a higher fire-​safety rating. To some observers, the Accord-​Alliance divide was emblematic of clashing approaches in the way European and American companies do business abroad. But in the months after Rana Plaza fell, big-​box Western retailers linked to the complex were uniformly apathetic toward victims and their families. Statements of sympathy were concluded with denials. No long-​term payment packages were formalized, neither to the families of victims nor the rescue volunteers who were left traumatized by the experience. Only nine of twenty-​nine firms sourcing from the complex attended September compensation talks in Geneva. By the time the talks ended, only one company, the Irish budget-​fashion chain Primark, had agreed to provide short-​term aid. Since then, other brands have slowly begun to follow Primark’s lead, signing on to a proposed $40 million compensation fund, though none are American. And while these companies have indeed made contributions to the fund, there is no mechanism that guarantees it will reach $40 million. Nor is there a timetable for when families will begin receiving payments. As rescue gave way to recovery, Rashida Begum returned to Rana Plaza almost every day with a photo of her daughter Nasima in a plastic sheath. Just sixteen, with almond features and a fair complexion that made the darker Rashida proud, Nasima had worked three years in garment factories, two at New Wave Bottoms, on the plaza’s third floor. In mourning, Rashida would kneel in front of the barbed wire that surrounded the disaster area and wait, along with other relatives of the missing, for the off chance that a government agent or brand representative would come and give them something for their loss. Most days were spent under a searing sun, staring at a dark pool of water that marked where the plaza once stood. The void was heartrending, and yet somehow, Rashida says, she felt solace lingering at the last place where her daughter was alive. After dozens of amputee victims were paid large, well-​publicized settlements, some relatives of the confirmed dead received payments of about half as much, with promises of more. Hundreds of others without positive identification of recovered remains, like Rashida, got nothing. According to the Bangladesh Institute of Labor Studies, none of the four thousand families affected by the tragedy received the full payments promised by the government or the BGMEA. Protests over back pay and compensation broke out around the city, including one occasion when police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at former workers and victims’ relatives. In mid-​September, Rashida and her husband traveled to the forensic lab on the campus of Dhaka University, where, in a sterile tenth-​floor chamber, bone samples were tested for the purposes of finding a match to the missing. Samples were stored in batches of test tubes that vibrated on metal trays, part of the process of decalcification that helped glean a genetic profile. This process was the couple’s last hope for any government compensation. They had submitted blood samples back in May. A match would qualify them for 100,000 taka (about $1,250)—​a pittance for a child’s life, but no small sum for a Savar family without a breadwinner; a negative result would spell the end of their fight for a settlement. After DNA samples were extracted, all unidentified remains were buried at a cemetery in south Dhaka, a stone’s throw from where unidentified victims of the Tazreen fire had been laid to rest. After five months of waiting, Rashida was greeted by a technician with disappointing news: Final results would not be ready for at least several more weeks, at which time they would be published in local newspapers. The technician explained that software was on its way from the US to help sort through tens of thousands of possible DNA matches, but that more time was needed. In the end, many relatives would be left empty-​handed: Nearly 550 blood samples had been submitted for 322 unidentified victims. Picking up her folder for the long trip back to Savar, Rashida was forlorn. “We go from place to place for some aid, but they all tell us to come back later,” she sighed. Tears carved a line down her dusted cheeks. “It was supposed to be that we would die and our kids would bury us, but it happened in reverse. We thought we’d see happiness when Nasima started work. But now she’s gone.” The headquarters of the BGMEA stands apart from the fray of downtown Dhaka. A tower of blue-​green glass surrounded by water, it is the preserve of the country’s garment barons, accessible via a single, guarded footbridge. As much as the trade body tries to project power and modernity, the building is also a symbol of a corrupt industry culture. In 2011, Bangladesh’s High Court ruled that the land had been illegally obtained and the building constructed without proper approvals, jeopardizing a natural drainage system that runs through the heart of the city. The court went on to call the headquarters “a scam of abysmal proportions” and ordered it demolished within ninety days. Three years on, the building still stands. When I first arrived in August 2013, I had to push through a crowd of protesters clutching pictures of missing relatives. Rashida was not there, but Nasima’s picture was, held by an elderly woman on Rashida’s behalf. Riot police loitered in the parking lot below, flanked by rows of white SUVs being carefully wiped down by their drivers. I took the stairs up to the fourth floor, passing cracked windows that let in the odor of the stale water below. Reaz Bin Mahmood, the BGMEA’s co-​vice president, was on time for our meeting, no small feat in Dhaka. A flurry of underlings came into his office with papers to sign, only to be dispatched in an authoritative baritone. Switching to crisp English, honed as an MBA student in Texas, he said he could give me fifteen minutes; an event was planned that afternoon in support of Rana Plaza orphans. And what of the protesters below? Mahmood said that compensation packages were still being worked out with the government, while extra money was raised by BGMEA members. Sohel Rana and the arrested factory owners should pay, he added, but the banks had frozen their money. “We are not a profitable organization, you know.” Though technically true—​the BGMEA is a trade body—​the notion was disingenuous. Its members form the backbone of the national economy, with an outsized role in government, media, banking, and insurance sectors that gives it a degree of influence rarely seen in other countries. Of the national parliament’s 300 members, more than thirty own garment factories outright. These owners sit on high-​level committees that regulate and administer an industry that accounts for 80 percent of the country’s total exports, exceeding $20 billion per year. For labor activists, the association’s ongoing defiance of the court order against its headquarters is Exhibit A that Bangladesh is a government of garment-​factory owners, for garment-​factory owners. When I pressed Mahmood about complaints that the BGMEA was not doing enough to clean up the industry, he countered that inspections were underway and that twenty at-​risk factories had already been shut down. “We want to do it sincerely and transparently,” he said, but the task was immense. The BGMEA had just ten inspectors on staff, the fire department a tenth of what it needed. The Labor Ministry was struggling to hire more than 200 inspectors by year’s end. This shortage in manpower was compounded by the absence of a central coordinating body that could ensure some factories weren’t being inspected twice while others got a pass. Of the 5,000 registered factories around the capital, Mahmood said, about half were operational. Assessments took anywhere from several days to several months, after which owners had to make costly upgrades for re-​approval. All of these factors made compliance a sluggish campaign at best. What’s more, in addition to the export factories covered under the Accord and Alliance frameworks, there were also thousands of second-​tier facilities requiring inspection. “You have seen the traffic in Dhaka, our communications. Everything takes longer than planned,” he said. “But we must try.” In late June, the United States announced it would suspend Bangladesh’s trade privileges, citing concerns over safety hazards and labor violations in the garment industry. The move was largely symbolic—​garments were excluded—​but it rattled garment-​factory owners, who feared a similar move by the European Union, Bangladesh’s top global customer, which buys 60 percent of the country’s exports duty-​free. Mahmood blamed the measure on labor unions, a reckless attempt to bring jobs back to the US. “I am a manufacturer, but if I close down my factory I will still make a living,” he said. “But what about my workers? At the end of the day, if the factories are closed and the workers are unemployed, will the AFL-​CIO pay their salaries?” If there was an upshot to the “harsh” US decision, he added, it was to push owners to fast-​track safety reforms. A new workers’ rights law was on the books, and he expected the minimum wage to increase in the coming months. “There should be no more excuses,” he said. My time was up, but Mahmood wasn’t finished. Grabbing the collar of his black tunic, he went on the offensive. “A shirt like this—​ c’mon, everyone knows how much it costs. Fabric, buttons, and trims”—​he did some quick calculations. “It’s very clear how much profit we’re making. The books are very open. But no one wants to pay more.” He recalled, for instance, an H&M executive who came to Bangladesh demanding a wage increase at a supplier while assuring shareholders in Stockholm beforehand that prices would not be raised. “If you really care about the workers, you must have proper pricing,” he insisted. “If buyers paid a little bit more, they could make sure more money was going to wages and safety improvements—​they could check the books and talk to workers.” As a businessman with 1,500 employees, however, he was adamant that it was consumers who needed to assume greater responsibility. “When Rana Plaza collapsed, we saw lots of propaganda on the streets of London and New York. But when you’re selling three-​pound jeans, everybody loves it. So you have to come out of that mentality as a consumer. You have to stop and think: Where are these clothes coming from, and at what cost?” Aftermath Although Lutfer Rahman is grateful for the government’s 200,000-taka settlement, and hopes to someday use it to help pay for his daughters’ weddings, the fact that injured victims have received greater compensation than the families of the dead doesn’t make sense to him. After all, Rina supported the whole family with her wages from Rana Plaza. “She took care of me, and made sure I had food for the day before she left for work— ​I doubt if modern-​day wives care for their husbands so much,” he said when I visited him in September. He shook his head. “The future is bleak with the burden of raising two girls on my shoulders.” Asked what she missed most about her mother, twelve-​year-​old Arifa gave a blank stare. The silence lingered a few seconds until Latifa, not yet fourteen, interjected: “We are in trouble now. I don’t want to work in a garment factory. I’m afraid of that job. But we have to survive. My father is weak, and if I don’t earn money my sister will not be able to continue her studies, so I must leave school.” For what kind of work? “What job is there,” she shot back, “except in a garment factory?” Paki Begum, meanwhile, considers herself one of the lucky ones. Two months after the accident, she was discharged with 2.2 million taka ($28,000) from the prime minister’s fund. While recovering in the hospital, she befriended two fellow amputees, Shahinur and Lovely. The women have since continued their physical therapy together at a rehabilitation clinic, where they practice walking along parallel bars, adjusting to the awkwardness of prosthetic limbs. Taking a break, Paki massaged her stumps and winced from the residual pain. She blamed Sohel Rana for what happened, but didn’t want him to hang. “I want him to experience the suffering I’m going through—​of being a burden on others’ shoulders,” she said. Her husband, Jahangir, brushed off the thought and teased her playfully, stealing kisses and darting away when she tried to swat him. His affections hadn’t wavered. Ironically, the family now has the financial security that first drew them to the capital in the first place. To Paki, the signs were clear: She wanted no more of the city. “I’m done with Dhaka,” she said. Once her therapy was completed, she hoped to move back to her village to open a small shop and raise her two children. Paki left school for good when she was eight years old and began garment work as a teenager. She swore her girls would not follow in her footsteps. “I want my children to grow up educated, but let’s see what Allah does,” she said. For his heroic efforts, Abul Khair received a promotionand was once again thanked in person by the prime minister. But he saved credit for the civilians who stepped up during the crisis. “We worked shoulder to shoulder,” he told me in September, at the fire brigade headquarters in Dhaka. “A few got in our way, but largely the volunteer rescuers were of great help.” He still thinks of Shahina almost every day. “I spent nearly thirty hours close to her during the rescue effort—​she told me I was like her brother,” he told me. “I think that if I could have rescued her, I would have some peace of mind.” Before the Eid al-​Fitr holiday, Khair and his boss delivered clothing to Shahina’s son, Robin, who insisted she was still at work and would be back by the afternoon. Like so many volunteer rescuers at Rana Plaza, Faisal Muhid and Rafiqul Islam have struggled to recover from the trauma of their experiences. For both men, the scars are obvious. Fitful nights give way to disorientation and sudden outbursts during waking hours. These days, Muhid collects documents from victims’ families to lobby the government to pay for those who have not received DNA confirmation. If a family calls him in need of money, he tries to raise funds from his network of friends, who also support him so he can afford a cocktail of prescription drugs to alleviate his sudden mood swings. “Am I going to be psycho?” he once asked me, wondering if he should seek clinical help. Rafiqul, too, has never fully surfaced since he plunged into the rubble on April 24. Following three weeks in a hospital, he left to be with his wife before the birth of their fourth child, a son. Since then, his wife has been uneasy around him, and he’s had trouble holding down a job. The first time I went to the family home, deep in one of the bastis that recedes from the highway, I found Rafiqul standing alone in a baking-​hot tin room, bewildered in the dark. The only nod to his sacrifice was a medal from a local workers’ rights organization that rested on his nightstand. He confessed that thoughts of bodies he’d left behind made him angry and restless, and that he found himself wandering the alleys at odd hours, unable to silence the voices in his head. They often drew him back to Rana Plaza, where he said the cries grew louder. On the day I followed him there, he stopped at the edge of the rubble and stared, glass-​eyed. A police officer nearby told him to leave. Rafiqul ignored him. When the officer seized his elbow to escort him out, Rafiqul flew into a rage: “Do you know what I did here? Do you know how many people I cut out? Touch me again and I’ll do the same for you!” He picked up a metal rod and cocked it back. A friend intervened, walking Rafiqul out to the street to cool off. Then another outburst—​one that silenced all the chatter at the corner tea stand nearby. For a month or so after the disaster, Saiful Islam’s dreams were a tortuous loop of workers plunging from the plaza’s upper floors. These days the pastry-​shop owner grapples with what he calls a “building-​collapse phobia.” Backfiring vehicles trigger a momentary panic. A while back, he ran a snack bar inside the Rana Plaza complex and befriended several garment-​factory workers during his time there. Many of those same customers followed him to his store across the street. Their absence burns, as does his resentment over the “greed and negligence of a few men to make money at the expense of the poor.” And yet his grief is tempered by a deep admiration for his neighbors. “I had no idea the people of Savar were so helpful and generous, so sincere and sympathetic,” he said to me in his shop, recalling how teams of locals spent their own money to procure food, oxygen, and tools for the rescue. “These efforts were, for me, a never-​before-​seen example of goodness and humanity in Bangladesh.” Despite the industry’s exploitive reputation, there are plenty of garment factories in Bangladesh where ethical management and profitability go hand in hand. At one six-​story facility I visited in Gazipur, the work floors were well lit and fan-​cooled, with multiple stairwells and emergency instructions posted at every exit. Working mothers dropped their children off at a child-​care center, free of charge, and regular tea breaks were allowed at a discount canteen. Though most of the supervisors were men, women were clearly climbing the ranks. When I asked one young woman who was recently promoted what her goal was, she didn’t miss a beat. “I want his job,” she said, pointing to the startled factory manager guiding me around. Such a direct challenge was hard to imagine elsewhere; here it was part of the company culture. The factory owner, a top-​ten jeans producer who counts H&M and Zara among his clients, agreed to meet with me at his corporate headquarters in Banani, an upscale Dhaka neighborhood. In exchange for keeping his name out of print—​we’ll call him Tareq—​he poured me a coffee and offered an honest assessment of the industry that has made him very rich. At the time of Bangladesh’s founding in 1971, tea and jute fiber were the top export sectors. But within a few years, its economic trajectory was forever altered by the Multi-​Fiber Arrangement, an international trade agreement intended to limit textile exports from the developing world. In 1977, entrepreneurs from South Korea seeking to expand their output through quota-​free partnerships established a joint venture with a Bangladeshi firm, Desh Garments Ltd. Within several years, more than a hundred Desh employees left to start their own companies or work with other emerging textile companies for better pay. Preferential market access to Europe accelerated the industry’s growth, so much so that by 1980 garments were the country’s main export. Tareq’s break came two decades later. Under the terms of the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, in effect from 1995 to 2005, more-​industrialized countries agreed to export fewer textiles while less-​industrialized countries saw their export quotas increase. The new regime was a boom for Bangladeshi garment makers, who enjoyed quota-​free access to Europe and higher exports to the US and Canada. Seeing the writing on the wall, Tareq and some college friends pooled their resources and started producing pants. In a highly unregulated industry with low start-​up and labor costs, dominated by unscrupulous players, he built a loyal client base by upholding higher quality and safety standards, which soon distinguished him among his competitors. Today Bangladesh is the largest garment exporter behind China, where rising costs and the growth of a middle class are driving manufacturers to outsource more stages of production. Despite political unrest in early 2014 that has disrupted production and led to order cancellations, stoking fears that summer and fall exports may plummet, Tareq is confident that Bangladesh’s bottomless supply of cheap labor will remain a long-​term trump card against would-​be competitors like Vietnam and India. “They simply can’t compete with us on this level,” he contended. “Business is not leaving Bangladesh.” Tareq’s high standing among factory owners has given him access to negotiations with top Western companies working to improve safety conditions post–Rana Plaza. More than 170 companies have signed the Accord and Alliance pacts combined; for those companies that fall outside the purview of the pacts, there is a third government-​sponsored program. The three groups have agreed to common inspections enforced by qualified inspectors, with support from the International Labor Organization. While he thinks it is an important step toward better regulation, Tareq insists the “wild west” style of doing business is fundamentally the same today. Government inspections remain toothless, since agents have neither the resources nor the competence to conduct them thoroughly. What’s more, he said, bribery is rampant. Although auditing certificates on the walls of his factory attested to a sterling record on safety compliance, he was adamant: “Everybody is taking money.” Then there is the murky matter of subcontracting, of thousands of lower-​level suppliers that are directly or indirectly involved in the export trade, making zippers and trimming threads, attaching buttons or brand labels. Located in basements, on rooftops, often sign-​less and buried deep inside teeming residential areas, they defy the notion of what a factory is and remain completely outside the purview of inspection, with no incentive to invest in safety. The truth is that no one knows how many of these operations actually exist. And with frequent political violence, worker strikes, shipping delays, and other variables that threaten to stymie production, subcontracting is the only reliable way to improvise around a work stoppage. “There will be subcontracting every day—​you cannot stop it,” Tareq said, conceding that he must occasionally farm out smaller stages of production to deliver orders on time or risk losing lucrative contracts. “Officially, the brands will say no more, that they are controlling it. But unofficially, it will always happen, and they know it.” Late one afternoon in Dhaka’s Mirpur district, I went to see for myself. Without thinking twice, I walked past a security guard who must have assumed I was a foreign buyer, passing through a rusted gate and up a dark staircase thronged with boxes marked for shipment to Spain. The second floor was a windowless maze, full of workers ironing T-​shirts beneath fans and fluorescent lighting. The fire-​code violations were plenty: Evacuation maps were covered with flyers; hoses were missing from their hinges; stacks of boxes and piles of fabric blocked emergency exits. To my left, a man was affixing labels to a set of pink children’s jumpsuits. The retail price tag read: five pounds sterling. Another woman was vacuuming glittery pants with hearts and suns printed on them. The workers who had initially looked at me with curiosity suddenly appeared more anxious. I turned around to face a supervisor, head low, eyes raised. “Please follow me,” he instructed. In an office strewn with clothing samples, he asked what my business was. I lied that I was a wholesale buyer from the United States looking for new suppliers, that I’d come to meet with his boss on a friend’s recommendation. I posed some questions about their factory’s pricing and output capacity, which he said he could not answer. Instead, he took down my false name and contact information and advised me to call back tomorrow to set up a proper appointment. I thanked him for his time and walked out into the fading light, joining the stream of workers on their way home. It was easy to presume that those strangers I encountered in the factory had difficult jobs, but it was also reasonable to wonder how long it would be before they found themselves in danger. Indeed, before the Rana Plaza collapse, fires were the most common killer of garment workers in Bangladesh, averaging two to three fires a week during some stretches. That choked stairwell wasn’t just a random hazard, but emblematic of the country’s more pervasive industrial horrors. Ten weeks before the Rana Plaza tragedy, on my first visit to a Bangladeshi garment factory, I saw a burnt-​out, second-​story facility on the outskirts of Dhaka, where eight people had died in a stairwell with a locked gate, just a few steps shy of daylight. The blackened walls were still streaked with hand marks. On October 8, not six months after the Rana Plaza collapse, a late-​night blaze that tore through a garment factory in Gazipur killed seven workers. Once again, inspectors found the fire-​safety equipment lacking. Shipping records found at the scene tied a familiar cast of Western brands to the factory, as well as connections to producers at Rana Plaza. Spokesmen for Loblaw, the Canadian owner of the Joe Fresh label, denied that the company had placed any orders with the Gazipur factory and claimed to be investigating whether subcontractors had done so. Primark maintained that it had ceased using the factory several months before, as did Hudson’s Bay. A Walmart spokesperson responded that the company did not have “a direct contractual relationship” with the factory and was therefore not responsible for its safety protocols. The Gazipur fire broke out amid a rising tide of wage protests, which in many cases turned violent. In Dhaka’s industrial zones, hundreds of factories were forced to close as thousands of workers turned out to demand a minimum wage of 8,100 taka ($104) a month, about triple the existing amount. Owners continued to resist, walking out of meetings with labor unions and threatening shutdowns until finally, last November, the BGMEA, under intense pressure from the government to acquiesce ahead of elections, agreed to raise the minimum wage to 5,300 taka ($68) a month. In December 2013, another landmark was achieved: Delwar Hossain, the owner of Tazreen Fashions, was charged—​along with his wife and eleven factory managers—​with culpable homicide. Police initially said they did not have enough evidence to bring a case against them following the deadly 2012 fire; some even suggested that saboteurs were responsible. But a high-​level state investigation accused Hossain of “unpardonable negligence.” This marks the first time Bangladesh has tried to prosecute a factory owner in its garment industry. Activists hope the case will set a precedent. Sohel Rana, meanwhile, remains in jail ahead of his trial, which is expected to begin this year. On the southern edge of Dhaka, the Jurain cemetery is walled off from the swarm of the old city. Under the shade of palms, attendants sweep around the graves of martyred fighters from Bangladesh’s 1971 war for independence, which freed the country from Pakistan’s control. Farther along a brick footpath, the crow calls fade and the cemetery becomes a field of overgrown grass rows that stretch under the open sky. It is here that the poor and anonymous are laid to rest, a repository for dead garment workers. It is where Rashida Begum’s search for her daughter ended early one morning last November, after the Bangladeshi government announced the first round of results from the DNA testing. Of the 157 confirmed identifications, 116 were female, and Nasima was among them. Three days later, Rashida traveled to Jurain. Upon arriving, she was issued a number from a list. She then walked among the rows, looking for her daughter’s resting place. All around her, relatives wore their grief in different ways. Some wailed hysterically, others prayed, and others still stood motionless as photographers snapped pictures from a respectful distance. In a far corner of the field, a group of boys played cricket. Rashida stopped in front of a black placard—​dna #155—​and dropped to her knees, hugging the plot mound with both arms. “My dear, look. I am here,” she said, sobbing. “You have gone too long without us, and I cannot live without you.” Then she offered a prayer: “Oh, Allah, please keep her in peace, for she suffered a lot in her life. We couldn’t provide her good care, education, or even food. We are very poor, and so we had to send her to work. Please, Allah, forgive us for our sins, and keep her in heaven.” She lingered for an hour or so, surrounded by grazing goats and curious onlookers. Beyond her, receding into the hazy distance, most of Jurain’s burial plots were empty, a vast and foreboding number of them at the ready. This story was reported with a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. It is complemented in the print issue by a photo essay of the rescue and recovery immediately following the disaster by Atish Saha. Explore the interactive timeline that traces the stories of some of the Rana Plaza disaster’s key characters, as well as a more detailed description with images.A black box is a device, object, or system whose inner workings are unknown; only the "stimuli inputs" and "output reactions" are known characteristics. Black box may also refer to: Science and technology [ edit ] Black box (phreaking), a device to defeat telephone toll charges Eucalyptus largiflorens, a tree species with the common name black box Transportation [ edit ] Computing [ edit ] Black box theory, a systems engineering theory for black boxes Black-box testing, a form of software testing that involves adjusting inputs to an application without reference to the source code of the application Blackbox, a window manager that works on X Window System platforms BlackBox Component Builder, software development environment for Component Pascal Sun Modular Datacenter, prototype name Project Blackbox Medicine [ edit ] Any of a number of devices developed and sold by Albert Abrams, based on the pseudo-science of radionics Film and television [ edit ] Games [ edit ] Literature [ edit ] Music [ edit ] Other uses [ edit ]Chelsea Clinton, the former first daughter, has jumped to the defence of Barron Trump after a report criticised the way he dressed. While his mother Melania receives most of the attention in the family when it comes to fashion, the 11-year-old has caused a stir of his own for his style choices. Two months ago, President Donald Trump's youngest son set social media alight by wearing a blue T-shirt that said "the Expert" on the front. And on Sunday night, the "first boy" caused a stir again when he returned to the White House with his father and mother wearing another J. Crew T-shirt that bore the phrase "On your mark tiger shark", along with an image of a shark. Preach! Barron is a tshirt expert pic.twitter.com/KF920ZAE0n — Ben Fox Rubin (@benfoxrubin) August 21, 2017 While many social media users praised his style, right-wing website The Daily Caller was not impressed. "Barron looked like he was hopping on Air Force One for a trip to the movie theater," an article said, under the headline "It’s High Time Barron Trump Starts Dressing Like He’s In the White House". It concluded: "The youngest Trump doesn’t have any responsibilities as the president’s son, but the least he could do is dress the part when he steps out in public." Ms Clinton, who lived in the White House from the age of 12 to 20, tweeted a link to the article, saying: "It's high time the media & everyone leave Barron Trump alone & let him have the private childhood he deserves." It's high time the media & everyone leave Barron Trump alone & let him have the private childhood he deserves https://t.co/Wxq51TvgDX — Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) August 21, 2017 It is not the first the 37-year-old daughter of Hillary and Bill Clinton has leapt to the defence on Barron. Related: After the young boy was mocked by comedians and social media users for looking bored on inauguration day, Ms Clinton, a friend of Barron’s sister Ivanka, said the boy should be allowed to “be a kid”. “Barron Trump deserves the chance every child does - to be a kid,” she tweeted on Sunday. Barron Trump is the first boy since John F Kennedy Jr to live in the White House. He has spent his life living in Trump Tower, where he has a whole floor to himself – close to his grandparents. He speaks Slovenian with them and with his mother. He was thrust into the spotlight on election night when he stood alongside his father as he celebrated his victory. Since then, the media attention has grown, even apparently becoming a manga character in Japan.The new "Celebrity Apprentice" host is campaigning against the old "Celebrity Apprentice" host. GOP presidential candidate John Kasich announced on Thursday that he would be holding a campaign rally on March 6 with Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former governor of California and the new host of NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice." The news came moments after the former "Celebrity Apprentice" host, Donald Trump, spoke of Schwarzenegger during a campaign speech in Maine. Trump said NBC and Comcast CEO Stephen Burke asked him to do another season of "The Apprentice" instead of running for president, and got on the subject of his replacement, Schwarzenegger. "How will Arnold do, by the way?" Trump asked the crowd. "Who would be better? Arnold or Trump?" The crowd was silent when he asked, "Arnold?" and cheered when he asked, "Trump?" "Well, we're going to find out if Arnold is quick because if he's not quick he's not going to look good," Trump continued. "When you got Omarosa and all the other ones coming at you, you got to be quick. You got to be smart." Trump ended his comments about Schwarzenegger saying, "We'll find out, we're going to learn a lot about Arnold. I hope he does well." This isn't the first time that Schwarzenegger has spoken at a Kasich event. The
gay", "faggot", and "queer" to describe when something was stupid or wrong. Eventually that's how I felt - I felt like something was wrong with me, and worst of all I couldn't even look at myself in the mirror because I was so ashamed of who I was. You know that saying, "sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me"? I couldn't disagree more. There were some days I'd rather get hit with a two-by-four than hear the crude comments some people made. These words weren't just something I heard in the halls, they were all to common words in the locker room as well. One saying that has guided me through all of this: "It Gets Better." It's hard to realize that when you're stuck in the middle of the country hearing gay slurs every day. As I opened up my true self to people, I learned the power and truth of those three words. It's meant so much that I tattooed it on my arm. As long as I could remember, sports have been a major part of my life. Ever since middle school I spent my summers in the weight room, falls on the field, winters on the court and springs on the track. There was just something about competing that I truly loved. To me there was nothing better then laying it all out on the field, court or track. Football was by far my biggest passion. I loved everything about it: the intensity, the hitting, the brotherhood of it all. I had always pushed myself hard because I felt as if I had to compensate for being gay. This wasn't something just physically draining, but it took a mental and emotional toll as well. I was always so worried about making mistakes and letting down my teammates that it held me back as a competitor. After a while it all became too much for me to handle alone, so I decided to make a big change. It was halfway though my junior year of high school. Years of holding in so much emotion was physically manifesting itself. My family and friends could tell something was wrong. I was constantly brushing off people's worries by saying I was just stressed about school. One night I finally decided to tell my best friend, Aubrey. I was driving her home after a basketball game, and I told her I needed to talk. After that there was about a two-minute silence. I was so nervous that I couldn't stop shaking. Finally the words "I'm gay" came out. When she said, "I love you for you, this doesn't change a thing," it's like the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders. It was something I needed to hear for the longest time. For the first time I had someone to confide in, and it was amazing. I decided to wait a few months before I told another person. A lot of guys on the football team were also some of my best friends, which made me even more nervous about sharing this with them. I wanted to tell them one-on-one, and one of the most important was the quarterback of the team, who also happened to be one of my best friends, Brooks. I remember it vividly. We were having a causal conversation about the upcoming season. It was our senior year so we were extremely pumped. After a lull in the conversation I come out to him. "No way," he said as I cringed. "Dalton I'm so happy you told me. Nothing changes anything dude. How long have you known?" He's the best. Months later, I had just gotten out of the locker room and was sitting on the staircase waiting for practice to start. As usual, I was stressing out about something - It was kind of par for the course. My buddy Chase sat down and we started talking about linebacker stuff and how great the upcoming season would be. Eventually Chase asked me what has been up with me lately - He, like so many, had noticed the stress. I explained it all to him. The shocked look on his face was priceless. Just like Brooks, he reassured me that nothing would change and that he'd always be there for me. That season Chase and I were both middle linebackers and got all conference awards. By the time summer came I knew I had two last people to tell: my parents. So I picked the perfect time to tell them: a party. We had just gotten back from my birthday dinner, the big 1-8, and we were all sitting in out living room. "I'm gay," I blurted out after a short pause in the conversation. "Is that all?" My mom said. She stood up gave me a hug, and that was the end of it. I was their son and nothing was going to change that, my parents love me still to this day unconditionally. That senior year flew by. The football team had an undefeated conference season and made it to the second round of the playoffs, which hadn't happened in a very long time. I got an all-conference award for my position at middle linebacker. Track season went great too; I ran the 110 high and 300 intermediate hurdler. I was voted the president of my senior class. After I graduated I started college at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. In many ways I went back "in the closet" when I got there. I don't really understand why I did, but I think I was just nervous about meeting so many new people. I wanted them to know me for me, not for me being gay. For the first couple weeks of college, it was rough again. I felt as though I left a huge part of me behind. Thankfully it only lasted a couple weeks before I shared my "secret" with a couple of friends. Even just knowing them for a couple weeks, it was the same supportive reaction. That gave me the strength to make a Facebook post on National Coming Out Dayabout my sexuality. This fear I had for so many years was finally gone. I was once the boy who told himself he was never going to come out; I become the kid who came out to everyone. I look back now, even as I type this, and am amazed at how far I've come. The support I've gotten from my family, friends, peers, teachers, teammates and couches has been unbelievable. I've also met so many amazing people in the LGBT community, and I have made some even more amazing friends. It got better. You can reach Dalton Ray via email at dalton.leo59@gmail.com or on Twitter @DaltonLRay. It Gets Better can be found at itgetsbetter.org.In this issue – bionic arms, enhancing humans and its consequences, a 3D printed soft robot, Amazon tests delivery drones on a farm somewhere in England, CRISPR, haptic gloves and more! More Than A Human Yuval Noah Harari: “We are probably one of the last generations of Homo sapiens.” Historian and author of the international bestseller Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari predicts the future of humanity (either we destroy or augment ourselves) on BBC Radio. The World’s First Bionic Knee Brace Makes Its Debut It’s called Levitation and it enhances your knee strength and mobility by storing energy when you bend your knee and releasing it when you need it. What If We Become Superhuman? Here’s a panel discussion from World Economic Forum about using pharmacology, genetic engineering and robotics to enhance humans and give them superpowers. How will it change the world? How will it change the job market, when being enhanced might be mandatory to get a job? You can get a glimpse of the future from this hour-long talk exploring the possible, plausible and probable impacts of human enhancement. This Mind-Controlled Bionic Arm Can Touch and Feel Motherboard visited the laboratory developing a bionic arm that isn’t just controlled by its user’s mind, but can also provide sensory feedback. They show how it works, talk with the people who build it, but also with people using it. New Startup to Solve Memory Loss With Brain Prosthetics In order to help solve problems associated with memory loss, a new startup called Kernel is aiming to create a brain prosthesis that mimics the way that neurons fire. Augmented Reality Or Augmented Humanity? The makers of the Deus Ex: Mankind Divided video game host a bioethics conference focusing on the problem of augmenting humans by using prosthetic limbs, inserting electronics into bodies or by using biotechnology. Artificial Intelligence Artificial Intelligence or Humanity: Which Is a Greater Threat to Our Survival? Our technologies may be more powerful than ever, but what is the real threat to our future? Here, Oxford Artificial Intelligence professor Nigel Shadbolt investigates. We don’t understand AI because we don’t understand intelligence Both sides of the AI eventually getting a consciousness think that it is inevitable. With enough processing power and right algorithm, the mind will emerge. But they might miss the point that there isn’t even a clear definition of consciousness and there is more than one type of intelligence. This article argues that reverse-engineering the brain is only half of the equation. We don’t know exactly what is the second half. The next wave of AI is rooted in human culture and history An interesting interview with an anthropologist and a futurist at the same time. It gives you a different perspective on technology, AI and human interaction with both through the lens of anthropology. Robotics The first autonomous, entirely soft robot Made by guys at Harvard, Octobot is powered by a chemical reaction controlled by microfluidics. This 3D-printed has no electronics and could pave the way for a new generation of completely soft, autonomous machines. Roborace reveals a working prototype of its self-driving racecar About a year ago, the Roborace, a racing series of autonomous cars, has been announced. Now, Roborace have shown DevBot, a test car for the teams to have something to work on and to polish their artificial intelligence drivers. Amazon Has Begun Testing Drones At This English Farm Somewhere south of Cambridge in England, Amazon has started testing its delivery drones. Festo’s Fantastical Flying Robots Festo is a German robotics company known for their beautiful bioinspired robots. Here’s a video of three of their flying robots – a butterfly, a flying jelly and a penguin. Tiny, Soft Robotic Caterpillar Creeps, Climbs, And Crawls This tiny bioinspired robotic caterpillar is so small that you could have problems to spot it, but it’s powerful, able to push objects ten times its size. Biotechnology Aubrey de Grey Announces Progress in MitoSENS Aubrey de Grey was quite excited to share the news that his team made a progress in researching mitochondrial mutations. More details about it you can find here. CRISPR: gene editing is just the beginning Here, Nature examines five ways in which CRISPR–Cas9 is changing how biologists can tinker with cells. A Defense of Genetic Enhancement Nicely laid pros and cons of the genetically enhanced humans and why we should not be afraid of going the path of taking control of our genes. Virtual Worlds Dexta Shows Off Latest Exoskeleton Gloves That Let You Touch VR Dexta is back with their newest exoskeleton glove that allows you to feel and touch objects in virtual reality. This article explains in details how the glove works plus it includes an interview with Dexta’s CEO. PowerClaw is a Haptic Glove Ready To Freeze, Burn, and Shock You (Virtually) And here’s a glove that allows you to feel a virtual flame, ice or electricity. VR, AR, And MR: What’s The Difference? If you were confused by the terms virtual, augmented and mixed reality, then this infographic should put everything on their place.Electric sports car maker Tesla Motors is sueing the BBC's Top Gear TV programme for allegedly faking a scene showing the company's Roadster car running out of electricity and slowing to a halt in a race. The legal move is the culmination of a row that has rumbled on between the show and Telsa since the episode was first broadcast in 2008. Specialist libel law firm Carter-Ruck issued the writ on behalf of the firm on Tuesday at the high court because the scene was still being shown on worldwide repeats and was available on DVD, and the BBC had failed to correct it. The firm expects to recover not more than £100,000 in damages. In the race with a petrol-powered Lotus Elise, the £87,000 electric car was shown having to stop for a recharge. But the car never ran out of electricity. Tesla said after the race aired that neither of the two Roadsters that it loaned Jeremy Clarkson's team had gone below 20% of charge. Earlier in the same episode, Clarkson had praised the Tesla: "I cannot believe this – that's biblically quick. This car is electric, literally. The top speed may only be 125mph but there's so much torque it does 0-60 in 3.9 seconds. Not bad from a motor the size of a watermelon and which has only one moving part." Tesla is sueing the show for libel and malicious falsehood, and says the show misrepresented the car's true range – claiming 55 miles rather than 211 – and that claims a second Roadster on loan had broken brakes was untrue. In a statement, the California-based company, whose first cars were based on British-made Lotuses, said: "Tesla simply wants Top Gear to stop rebroadcasting this malicious episode and to correct the record, but they've repeatedly ignored Tesla's requests." A Top Gear spokeswoman said: "We can confirm that we have received notification that Tesla have issued proceedings against the BBC. The BBC stands by the programme and will be vigorously defending this claim" On Monday Tesla, which plans to introduce a cheaper "Model S" car next year, said the 1,500 Roadsters it had sold since 2008 had collectively saved over 2,404 tonnes of CO 2 emissions. Top Gear magazine, which is separate from the TV show, has also been critical of previous electric cars, and in 2007 released shocking images of a G-Wiz crash-tested at 40mph. But analysts have predicted 2011 will be a "breakthrough" year for the vehicles, which became eligible a £5,000 government grant in January. Last week, the first few hundred Nissan Leafs, the UK's first mass-produced electric car, were delivered to customers. Unlike the Tesla Roadster, the Leaf is limited to around 110 miles and 90mph. A new generation of around 10 different electric and plug-in hybrid cars are expected in the UK by the end of 2012. Separately on Wednesday, green group WWF released a report warning that the UK will needs millions of electric vehiclesto meet its carbon targets. Around 1.7m will be needed by 2020 and 6.4m by 2030, it said, in an echo of calls by government watchdog the Committee on Climate Change for a similar number to meet the target of cutting greenhouse gases emissions 80% by 2050. 4 April update: Andy Wilman, executive producer on Top Gear, has responded to the claims on his blog, writing: "We never said that the Tesla's true range is only 55 miles, as opposed to their own claim of 211, or that it had actually ran out of charge. In the film our actual words were: "We calculated that on our track it would run out after 55 miles". The first point here is that the track is where we do our tests of sports cars and supercars, as has happened ever since Top Gear existed. This is where cars are driven fast and hard, and since Tesla calls its roadster "The Supercar. Redefined." it seemed pretty logical to us that the right test was a track test. The second point is that the figure of 55 miles came not from our heads, but from Tesla's boffins in California. They looked at the data from that car and calculated that, driven hard on our track, it would have a range of 55 miles."Mainers protest Rep. Poliquin’s health care repeal vote outside closed-door cocktail reception Rep. Poliquin’s constituents aren’t forgetting or forgiving his vote for a Republican health care repeal plan that would devastate rural Maine. Dozens of them packed the sidewalk outside the Tarratine Club in Bangor on Tuesday night as the congressman was attended an exclusive cocktail reception hosted by the Maine Heritage Policy Center. “While Poliquin enjoys cocktails and conversation we will be outside and remind him that his vote for the AHCA was a vote that threw Mainers under the proverbial bus,” said Marie Follayttar Smith, co-founder of the group Mainers for Accountable Leadership. The American Health Care Act that Poliquin supports would raise premiums to an astronomical degree for Maine seniors and rural residents, allow insurers to deny coverage for certain conditions and would drastically cut Medicaid, which hundreds of thousands of Mainers rely on for health care. The bill was halted in the Senate when Senator Susan Collins of Maine and two Republicans colleagues broke ranks and voted with the Democratic minority to prevent the legislation from passing. Both before and after his vote, Rep. Poliquin has refused to hold public town halls and has avoided discussing the issue with his constituents. In July he fled a retirement facility out a side door rather than answer questions from seniors about the consequences of his vote. Demonstrators on Tuesday held signs reading “Poliquin: wanted for questioning,” “look in our eyes, hear our voices, explain your choices” and “repeal and replace Republicans.”As the Republican Party’s chance for a majority in the U.S. Senate hangs in the balance, Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) appears determined to stay in his race despite Tuesday’s withdrawal deadline, releasing an ad begging for forgiveness and calling rape “an evil act,” even has his prior words and acts come back to haunt fellow Republicans. “Rape is an evil act,” he said in Tuesday’s ad. “I used the wrong words in the wrong way, and for that I apologize. As the father of two daughters, I want tough justice for predators. I have a compassionate heart for the victims of sexual assault, and I pray for them.” He adds: “The fact is, rape can lead to pregnancy… The mistake I made was in the words I said, not in the heart I hold. I ask for your forgiveness.” Despite the national uproar over Akin’s comments about “legitimate rape” and his apparent misunderstanding of how female reproductive organs work, a Public Policy Polling survey found that Missouri voters are largely unswayed by the remarks, leaving Akin statistically tied with his opponent, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO). Public Policy Polling found that Akin’s comments significantly impacted the public’s perceptions of him and drove down his favorability rating to just 24 percent. However, his comments did not prove to be a boon to McCaskill, who’s still technically trailing Akin 43 percent to 44 percent. And despite 75 percent of voters disapproving of Akin’s remarks, just 51 percent of Republicans said they strongly disagree, and 43 percent even said they still like him. Those numbers seem to be in line with a SurveyUSA poll released late Monday, which found that 52 percent of Missouri Republicans think Akin should stay in the race. In combined totals representing both parties, 54 percent overall said he should drop out. Should Akin choose to remain in the race beyond Tuesday, he’s not likely to enjoy the support of the Republican Party establishment. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and former Bush political strategist Karl Rove, who runs the biggest Republican super PACs, have issued statements indicating some antipathy toward Akin, whose defeat could mean the party losing a chance to control the U.S. Senate. Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney has also tried to distance himself from Akin, saying his administration would not oppose abortion in instances of pregnancy by rape. But even facing that kind of pressure, Akin still enjoys some support from the religious wing of the Republican Party, with groups like the Family Research Council and the American Family Association coming to his defense. Both organizations are key sponsors of the Values Voters Summit, planned for September in Washington, D.C., with featured speaker Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Romney’s running mate. Akin’s website brags that the Family Research Council gave him a “100 percent lifetime rating.” They support him largely because of the congressman’s longstanding commitment to Republican anti-abortion causes, illustrated by a 2008 speech he gave on the House floor that was being widely recirculated on the Internet by Tuesday morning. “We have one of the most polarizing issues that has confronted our nation since the days of slavery,” he said. “And yet, just as slavery is fundamentally un-American, so even moreso, anything that violates the most fundamental right, the right to life, is contrary to everything that Americans have stood for and fought for.” He added later in the speech: “We have terrorists in our own culture called ‘abortionists.'” Even more troubling for Republicans: Akin was joined by Ryan in sponsoring two bills, the “Sanctity of Life Act” and the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act,” that would have banned all abortions and narrowed the definition of what “rape” is. The later passed the House by a vote of 251 to 175, but the Democratic-controlled Senate never took it up. Speaking to reporters on Monday, President Barack Obama said Akin’s comments are an example of “why we shouldn’t have a bunch of politicians, a majority of whom are men, making health care decisions on behalf of women.” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) chimed in as well, insisting that “Akin’s offensive comments are simply one more part of the Republican attack on women’s health.” Rep. Jackie Speir (D-CA) told Raw Story that if Republicans were put in charge of the courts and the presidency, “a woman’s right to choose would be the very first proposal that would be put before the Congress to overturn.” This video was published to YouTube by Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) on Tuesday, August 21, 2012. This video was broadcast by C-SPAN on January 28, 2008, republished to YouTube on August 20, 2012.We might not always realize it, but a lot of the stuff we're putting into our mouths has been meticulously engineered by Big Brother to turn us into robust, super-human specimens. Sure, it kind of sounds like the plot of a corny sci-fi flick—but we'd be nothing more than rickets-stricken piles of rotting teeth without it. The conspiracy theorists and tin-foil-hat-wearers can say what they will about government nutrient initiatives, and their wild ramblings are generally harmless—until it comes voting time, that is. So as the curious, science-minded folks we know you are, you'll want to arm yourself with a thorough knowledge of the good Big Bro's help can actually do. Advertisement Here's a rundown of three of the United States' longest-running, most important health initiatives. All the Fluoride You Can Drink Water fluoridation may be something we consider man-made now, but the original water fluoridation was totally, 100 percent Gaia-grown. The first known case of natural fluoridation came about in 1901, when Dr. Frederick McKay of Colorado notice some bizarre staining that seemed to be related to the water supply. But it wasn't just staining—decay rates were lowering, too. Advertisement It wasn't' until 1925, when UK dentist Norman Ainsworth published a groundbreaking study about fluoride, that we really began to understand what was behind these mysteriously pristine choppers. After examining over 4,000 children, Ainsworth discovered that children living in the areas where mottled teeth were most prominent also tended towards far lower rates of decay. Then, in 1931, an American chemist named H.V. Churchill became concerned that the results of the study were due to aluminum in the drinking water. However, after analyzing water samples from areas in which staining was endemic, the only common chemical factor turned out to be higher levels of fluoride. What's more, it was eventually determined that at 1 ppm, fluoride still had the beneficial effects without the less desirable symptom of teeth staining. As there had been no negative health effects stemming from the naturally fluoridated water, health authorities in the US came to the conclusion that areas with low fluoride should also be able to benefit from this happy accident—by artificially fluoridating their waters. And it wasn't long at all before they started seeing results. Grand Rapids, Michigan became the first town in the world to be artificially fluoridated in 1945, and soon after, studies proved that the tooth decay levels in Grand Rapids' children were nearly half that of those in Muskegon. And what do you know—that very same year, the fine people of Muskegon started artificially fluoridating their water, too. The American Dental Association has vocally endorsed the practice ever since. Advertisement Currently, about 72.5 percent of Americans live in areas with fluoridated drinking water, but that doesn't mean this dentists' dream hasn't had its opponents over the years. Water fluoridation has been linked to nearly every possible disease known to man, as well as a few that don't quite seem to exist yet. Plus, it certainly didn't help that in 1964, the film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb included a scene that spoke to the hearts of many a conspiracy theorist by describing fluoridation as "the most monstrously conceived and dangerous Communist plot we've ever had to face." Of course, it didn't matter that the film was a satire poking fun at the very same theorists who were so inspired by its words. But as far as science goes, there's never been any real, widely accepted proof that artificially fluoridated water has posed any potential health problems. Quite the contrary, in fact—its saved many of us from a lifetime of stained, rotting chompers. Advertisement Sweet, Salted Iodine Ever since the 1920s, Americans have been shoveling the majority of their necessary iodine quota into their mouths with every salty, savory bite of food they consume. Because that's when iodized salt got the former portion of its name tacked on in an effort to reduce the prevalence of goiter—the inflammation of the thyroid gland. People certainly weren't getting it elsewhere—potassium iodide (the form of iodine we find in our salt) is a micronutrient, which means that our bodies can't naturally synthesize it. We're totally and wholly dependent on the crap we stuff down our throats to provide us with the micronutrients we need. Advertisement And we really need iodine. Currently, iodine deficiency is the leading cause of (preventable) mental retardation throughout the world. About 30 percent of the world population's diet is iodine-deficient, and this isn't something you're only going to find in third-world countries. Take Europe for instance—iodized salt isn't nearly as common across the pond, a factor that majorly contributes to its title as a holder of nearly one-fifth of the world's cases of iodine deficiency. So in 1924, the United States government decided to take a page out of the Swiss' book (who were already churning out iodized salt), and approached the Morton Salt Company about fortifying their salt with iodine after noticing markedly high instances of illnesses (like goiters) that stemmed from iodine deficiencies around the Great Lakes and the Pacific Northwest—the soil around these areas being naturally deficient. It was pretty easy to narrow down the cause of the goiters, too, since about 90 percent of those that are subjected to them have a lack of iodine in their diets to blame. The government looked to salt, specifically, for no reason other than the fact that it's one of the most universal ingredients imaginable. Advertisement Of course, all that was back in the 20s—the Gatsby era. These days, thanks to advances in travel and food storage, most of the food we eat in the United States isn't locally grown anymore, so any food that comes from more iodine-starved soils would generally be counterbalanced by food grown in other locales. In fact, we're getting more iodine on average than we actually need; the FDA recommends 150 micrograms of the stuff per day, and US-dwelling men get about 300 micrograms per day while women get around 210. Given iodine's importance, though, Uncle Sam isn't taking any chances. You'd need about 1,100 micrograms in a day to hit the Tolerable Upper Intake Level and 2 million micrograms to actually overdose, so the benefits severely outweigh the risks. Wonder Bread By 1938, the AMA Council of Foods and Nutrition had become reasonably comfortable endorsing food fortification—assuming the science was there to back it up. It was also around this time that the American diet was becoming more and more dependent on a brilliant, new invention: Refined flour. With an increasingly industrialized US came the need to extend bread's shelf-life, which was cut short by the fatty acids of traditional grain's outer germ. The germ would start reacting as soon as it was exposed to oxygen, so by simply removing it, producers were left with a batch of beautiful, white flour that was totally immune to becoming rancid. Everybody wins—or so they thought. Unfortunately, people at the time knew nothing of the vitamins, micronutrients, or the amino acids that made wheat germ essential to bodily health. Advertisement So it wasn't long before pellagra (a vitamin deficiency disease caused by a chronic lack of niacin) started running rampant across the United States, and that certainly made health officials to take notice. Because with pellagra comes the four delightful D's: diarrhea, dermatitis, dementia, and last but certainly not least, death. And that was just the most prevalent condition. Soon, other outbreaks started cropping up from micronutrient loss, including a neurological disorder from thiamin deficiency and a redness/swelling of the tongue that's brought on by a riboflavin deficiency. So it quickly became painfully apparent that there was a problem. To counteract these tortuous effects, bakers started adding high-vitamin yeasts to their products along with synthetic B-vitamins. Then in 1942, just four years after food producers first started de-germing their wheat, 75 percent of the white bread being made in the US was fortified with thiamin, niacin, iron, and riboflavin—damning many of these conditions to relics of a past era. Advertisement After World War II, though, the FDA decided against mandating flour enrichment. Instead, the agency established two standards of identity (SOIs) for bread, allowing companies to put out both enriched and non-enriched loaves for the masses. And though that double SOI rule still applies today, the qualifications for carrying that "enriched" label have certainly evolved. In 1998, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took the recommendation of the US Public Health Service and made folic acid fortification mandatory in enriched grains. Studies had proved that folic acid supplementation was highly beneficial in minimizing the number of babies born with neural tube defects, and as folic acid fortification went up, instances of neural tube defects went down by one-third between 1995 and 2002. Now you know why they call it "Wonder" Bread. [Washington Post, Nature, Today I Found Out, Discover, Food Insight, Wikipedia] Photo by Shutterstock / ConstantinosZ; Photo by Shutterstock / UltraViolet; Photo by Shutterstock / TriffShari Graydon is the Founder of Informed Opinions and author OMG – What if I Really AM the Best Person?, to be published next month. ------------------------ Was Justin Trudeau's promise to have women fill 50 per cent of his cabinet positions: (a) A crass play for progressive optics? (b) A lamentable abandonment of our long tradition of meritocracy? (c) Good public policy? Story continues below advertisement Congratulations if you correctly guessed (c). In the days to come, many will analyze the merits of Mr. Trudeau's individual choices. But let's be clear about this: His decision to appoint equal numbers of male and female ministers is not only defensible, but also advisable. The federal cabinet makes decisions that profoundly affect all Canadians, more than half of whom happen to live lives irrevocably shaped by their extra X chromosome. Public policy – on health and labour, taxation, justice – needs to reflect and accommodate their realities. Consider Brian Mulroney's cabinet in 1989, featuring future prime minister Kim Campbell as one of only a handful of women in a cast of 40. During a discussion on access to abortion, a member of the anti-choice cohort proposed that women really ought to be educated about birth control. Ms. Campbell generously shared her considerable experience on the matter. She pointed out that many children are conceived by people who actually are practising responsible birth control. Then – too much information be damned – she described her own challenged contraceptive history. She cited a failed IUD (intrauterine device), the impracticality of the diaphragm and the reluctance of men to use condoms. Her discomfiting impromptu sex-ed class reminded many of her cabinet colleagues that they truly had no idea how to anticipate or address the needs of half the population they were elected to serve. As for meritocracy, let's not forget that female candidates continue to face greater challenges raising money, winning nominations and being perceived as leaders through a pervasive veil of unconscious bias. When they are elected, it's important to recall the famous words of Charlotte Whitton, two-time mayor of Ottawa, who noted, "Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good." Selecting cabinet talent has always been balanced against the necessity of appointing ministers from different regions of the country. What is shocking, in retrospect, is that gender has, until recently, never been seen as a default category in need of consideration. How is it that previous PMs have catered to the interests of Atlantic, Prairie, Northern and Pacific Canadians, but not women? Now, in light of the substantive body of research documenting the benefits of diversity in decision-making, there's even less justification than ever before to not strive to improve all kinds of representation. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement This is not to say that the optics of a gender-balanced cabinet aren't significant. As the 2011 documentary Miss Representation points out, if you can't see her, you can't be her. High-profile, diverse women in varied careers and positions of authority allow their younger counterparts to imagine and pursue alternative futures for themselves. Vigdis Finnbogadottir spent 16 years as president of Iceland. The length of her service meant that a generation of Icelandic kids grew up knowing only a female head of state. After announcing her retirement in 1996, she was reportedly watching television with her young grandson as the candidates to succeed her were profiled on the news. In confusion, he turned to her and said, "But Grandmother, they can't be president – they're men!" This speaks volumes about the power of role modelling: It has the capacity to make women's leadership not only conceivable, but also inevitable. (A number of observers credited the Commander in Chief TV series, about a female president, with increasing Americans' ability to imagine a woman in the White House, giving a bump to Hillary Clinton's run in 2008.) Similarly, research into what kinds of interventions make a difference to students who are statistically more likely to drop out of college finds that when women and members of other traditionally excluded groups receive messages such as "You belong here," their graduation rates increase. Canadians are justly proud of our democracy, but the fact that women's political representation is stalled at 26 per cent at the federal level remains an embarrassment. Today's gender-balanced cabinet is a great start, but let's not stop here.× Colts fighting perception they aren’t physical enough INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The tone was set early, but will it erase a perception that clearly gnaws at Chuck Pagano’s competitive nature? You know, the perception his Indianapolis Colts must shed their not-physical-enough reputation during what has been hyped as a more physical training camp. During one goal-line session Tuesday morning, two Pro Bowl Colts went MMA. Cornerback Vontae Davis squared off against wideout T.Y. Hilton. They locked each other up and had to be separated by teammates. “Just two guys that love the game, competing,’’ Hilton said. “Sometimes your competitive nature comes out. “It showed that offense, defense won’t back down. Guys gonna compete and you want to show that dog. Me and him showed our dog. As soon as the period’s over, we shook hands. We’re just competing.’’ Almost immediately after tangling with Davis, Hilton beat him with a sliding touchdown catch at the pylon. He jumped up, tossed the football in the air and chest-bumped the other receivers. “I had to let him know I won today,’’ Hilton said. “We were just having fun.’’ Davis addressed the scuffle on his Twitter account: One of the biggest competitors I know... Nothin but respect @TYHilton13. He added a video link of the dust-up. Later, Davis was back at it, this time with Phillip Dorsett. He body-slammed Dorsett, prompting Pagano and several players to run to the scene of the fight. Linebacker John Simon made light of the Hilton-Davis bout. “It’s nice when the little guys get into it,’’ he said with a smile. “Us big guys do it every play.’’ The perception, though, has been the Colts haven’t done it every play, every game. No one has levied that dreaded four-letter word at them – soft – but neither has anyone extolled their ability to stand toe-to-toe and trade shots with a top-tier opponent. On that, Simon took issue. He’s faced the Colts the last three years as a member of the Houston Texans. “They’ve been a physical team when I played against them in the past,’’ he said. “Any time you have Frank Gore at running back, it’s a physical team. That O-line’s tough up there. “It’s a physical team. Every team in the NFL is a physical team.’’ Some more than others. Whether the physicality – or lack thereof – of the Colts is perception or reality can be debated. But first-time general manager Chris Ballard has been committed to developing a younger, faster, stronger and – yes – more physical roster. He noted that includes with a more physical training camp. “It’s hard
think that’s how you get in the playoffs. Hopefully, we can do that this year." Whether it's difficult to be patient with waiting for the Bills and Sabres to become contenders. "No, not for me. We just keep trying and working. If you’re talking about the Sabres, we built on draft picks, we tore the existing team apart and built through the draft. With the Bills, you can see what we do. Obviously we do our draft work, but we’re trying to bring in quality free agents, leaders, the kind of guys Sean and Brandon want on a football team that can help them in the locker room." Whether, after firing Rex Ryan two years into a five-year contract, he has a different mindset with McDermott. "When we talk to Sean, he’s such a diligent planner and he’s so thorough that he commands that. He’s got a plan, and part of his plan is bringing in players who think the way he thinks, and I think that’s a good way to start." Whether he feels the Bills are disrespected on the field by those around the NFL. "No, but that’s what you need to win. You need to have respect. When teams come in to Buffalo to play, they need to be talking about it on the way up saying, ‘Oh, gosh, we’ve got to go to Buffalo. Let’s hope we can get one out of here.’" The Bills not picking up the fifth-year option of the rookie contract of wide receiver Sammy Watkins. "I don’t like to talk about a player’s contract publicly, but it’ll play out this season. Sammy looks pretty good right now and we’ll see what happens." The state of the Bills' quarterback position. "Well, we have three quarterbacks on the roster right now that are battling for playing time and we’ll see how it plays out. Tyrod (Taylor) can be a weapon, (Nate) Peterman is young, seems to be intelligent, and T.J. (Yates) is a guy that’s been around before, won a playoff game, so we’ll see what happens. It’s what we have on our roster and we’re going to go with it." Whether there's any concern that a long-term deal for Sabres star Jack Eichel won't get done before the season. "I don’t want to discuss any negotiations with Jack publicly. But, I can tell you this: we want Jack and Jack wants to be in Buffalo. That’s all I can say about that."The Taliban claimed Sunday that they killed a U.S. sailor and kidnapped another as NATO forces ramped up a massive search for the servicemen, who went missing two days earlier in an area held by the militants. The coalition force set up checkpoints and distributed fliers with the sailors' pictures and are offering thousands of dollars in rewards for their return. There were conflicting reports about whether the body of one of the two had been recovered. U.S. and NATO officials confirmed that, after an armored sport utility vehicle was seen driving into a Taliban-held area. NATO officials were unable to say what they were doing in such a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan. Special Section: Afghanistan Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid also said the pair drove into an area under insurgent control, prompting a brief gunfight in which one American was killed and the other was captured. He said both were taken to a "safe area" and "are in the hands of the Taliban." CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports the two sailors, members of a team training Afghans, left their base at Camp Julian near Kabul in an SUV for the relatively short drive to Camp Eggers. Their badly shot up vehicle was found 80 miles south of Kabul. Why they strayed so far and why they drove into Taliban-controlled territory by themselves — a blatant violation of security procedures — remain unknown. Another local official, Abdul Wali, the deputy head of the provincial governing council, said the Taliban sent a message through intermediaries offering to hand over the body of one sailor in exchange for jailed insurgents. He said local authorities told the Taliban, "'Let's talk about the one that is still alive.'" He said the insurgents indicated they would have to talk to superiors before making any deal. Mujahid, in a telephone call Sunday with The Associated Press, did not mention any Taliban demands. "We are going to talk about that later," he said. The Taliban did not claim responsibility for the missing sailors for more than 48 hours after the ambush. That suggested that the Friday attack was unplanned and the militants were trying to figure out how to handle it. Later Sunday, the Taliban posted a message in English and Arabic on their website that claimed one American service member had been kidnapped in Logar and said another was killed in a shootout, according to SITE Intelligence Group. The website message included a picture of one of the fliers, showing the photo of one of the sailors, but did not say whether he was alive or dead. According to a translation of the website message by SITE, the Taliban have one of the sailors in a "safe place" where he will not be found. The message also mentions Spc. Bowe Bergdahl, the only other U.S. service member known to be in Taliban captivity. Bergdahl of Hailey, Idaho, disappeared June 30, 2009, in Paktika province, also in eastern Afghanistan. That area is heavily infiltrated by the Haqqani network, which has deep links to al Qaeda. He has since appeared on videos posted on Taliban websites confirming his captivity. CBS news analyst Jere van Dyk, who was held captive by the Taliban for 45 days, can tell you exactly what it feels like. "You're constantly afraid the door is going to open up and behind that door is going to be a man with a black turban and he's going to hold a rifle and he's going to take you outside and they're going to cut off your head," said van Dyk. New York Times reporter David Rohde was also kidnapped in Logar province while trying to make contact with a Taliban commander. He and an Afghan colleague escaped in June 2009 after seven months in captivity, most of it spent in Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan. Hundreds of fliers, with reprinted photos of the two missing sailors, have been distributed throughout Logar province where NATO troops were stopping motorists, searching people, peering inside vehicles and searching trunks. The photographs show one clean-shaven sailor wearing a soft cap and another with short-cropped hair, wearing a blue civilian shirt and a white undershirt. The fliers say: "This American troop is missing. He was last seen in a white Land Cruiser vehicle. If you have any information about this soldier, kindly contact the Logar Joint Coordination Center," run by coalition and Afghan forces. A phone number is listed along with information about a $20,000 reward being offered for information leading to their location. "Our latest, accurate information reports are that they are still in the area," said Din Mohammed Darwesh, spokesman for the provincial governor of Logar. He said the governor's office was upset because the two Americans left their base without notifying Afghan security forces in Logar, which is the normal protocol. "This was an abnormal situation," Darwesh said. The visiting chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, told reporters Sunday that while he did not have all the details about the missing servicemen, "from what I know right now, this is an unusual circumstance." Mullen said he could not comment on the Taliban claim that one American was killed and the other captured. He says the U.S. was doing all it could to "return to American hands anybody who has been captured or killed." "There's a tremendous amount of effort going on to find them, to search, and beyond that I can't discuss any additional details at this time. "It serves to remind of the challenges that we have and also the service and sacrifice that so many make, but that's really all I can talk about." The Afghan security official who spoke on condition of anonymity claimed that the body of one of the sailors was recovered Sunday in the village of Argan in Charkh district, but a NATO official said the coalition did not have confirmation of the status or condition of either of the two. The NATO official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to disclose the information, declined to say which base the two left from, or why they were traveling in Logar. Samer Gul, the chief of Logar's Charkh district, said a four-wheel drive armored sports utility vehicle was seen Friday night by a guard working for the district chief's office. The guard tried to flag down the vehicle, carrying a driver and a passenger, but it kept going, Gul said. "They stopped in the main bazaar of Charkh district. The Taliban saw them in the bazaar," Gul said. "They didn't touch them in the bazaar, but notified other Taliban that a four-wheel vehicle was coming their way." The second group of Taliban tried to stop the vehicle, but when it didn't, insurgents opened fire and the occupants in the vehicle shot back, he said. Gul said there is a well-paved road that leads into the Taliban area and suggested the Americans may have mistaken that for the main highway - which is much older and more dilapidated. The security official in Logar said the Taliban fired AK-47s and machine guns at the sailors' armored vehicle and then struck the vehicle with a rocket-propelled grenade. The two then left the vehicle, and continued to return fire. The official said one sailor was killed and the other gave himself up.Your browser does not support HTML5 video tag.Click here to view original GIF Bitcoin devotees and other cryptocurrency fans say that math gives their radical ideas so much potential. But starting a new value system also requires a level of faith in the people using the math. As “shitcoin” scams pile up, it’s becoming clear that new currencies need trust, too. And they don’t have it. Nowhere is this more evident than the chaotic Paycoin saga. Paycoin, an alt-coin launched late last year, was marketed as a more stable alternative to Bitcoin. In the months since its launch, however, Paycoin founder Josh Garza has become a figurehead for crypto-chicanery. The contentious response to Garza and his coin highlights how volatile the fickle fraternity of digital dreamers can be. Advertisement Garza has been accused of suckering people into investing in Paycoin and his businesses under false pretenses and then straight-up stealing money. Online forums like Reddit and Bitcointalk paint him as man peddling a “promise ponzi,” getting people to invest in schemes and then failing to deliver before moving onto the next one. There is an entire subreddit called joshgarzaisafraud. But Garza and Paycoin loyalists claim the altcoin, which debuted last December to frenzied speculator interest, is getting deliberately tanked by crypto-extremist trolls and hounded by bitter blackmail tactics. Badbitcoin.org, a group that calls out fraudulent crypto schemes, has actually fiercely defended Paycoin, calling its detractors “haters” and “FUDsters”—FUD stands for “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” Advertisement But are the FUDsters really vengeful trolls, or is entrenched skepticism the only rational stance in a community walloped with scams? Just look at Mt. Gox, once the top dog Bitcoin exchange. CEO Mark Karpeles lost $473 million in his customers’ money in a full-on meltdown. Time after time people promote their hot new alternative coins as panacea to the problems of Bitcoin, convince people to invest time and money in their fledgling currency, and then “pump and dump,” aka take the money and run. There’s an entire category of investors known as “Coin Wolves,” who use their influence in the community to run up prices on coins, so they can sell out during the peak. MyCoin, VootCoin, XICoin, CryptoDouble are all scam projects from recent years that have left people poorer and more suspicious. So when it looked like Paycoin’s creators were reneging on a number of promises, it’s understandable that people would fear fraud. Advertisement Paranoia is sharp from all angles. Whether or not they’ve lied about literally everything else, Garza and and his CTO John Caceres are right on this point: Their efforts have given rise to a community of suspicion. Before ascending to the dubious Olympus of altcoin-supervillainy, Josh Garza rose to prominence in the crypto world by building GAWMiners, a Bitcoin mining hardware business. Mining is one way people can get Bitcoin: If you use hardware to solve complicated mathematical problems, you’re awarded with a portion of Bitcoin. Compared to sketchy competitors like Butterfly Labs, which sold obsolete equipment or just never fulfilled orders, GAWMiners had a fairly solid reputation. Advertisement GAW fueled enthusiasm for Paycoin by implying it would establish a $20 price floor for the currency. This made many people think they’d have no problem buying low and selling high, and excitement grew at the prospect of an easy buck. Early trades valued Paycoin at around $24. Then it plummeted dramatically. Now, Paycoin is currently valued well under a dollar. The SEC is inquiring into GAW Miners. Shapeshift.io, a crypto exchange where people traded Paycoin, made an unprecedented move and took the coin off its exchange for “a high threshold of evidence as fraud.” Advertisement Garza later backpedaled and insisted that while he had, in fact, estimated that the coin wouldn’t go lower than $20, he had never promised. This pissed people off. And when buzzed-about partnerships with big vendors like Amazon didn’t pan out, they got even angrier. Add a failed side projects into the mix—a service called “Hashlets” didn’t work out, with former friends calling the price “exploitative” before GAW shuttered it—and the roiling contingent of people speaking out against GAW kept growing. Shapeshift.io CEO Beorn Gonthier told me he’s never seen anything like the hatred for Paycoin. “The extent of the outrage caused us to look into Paycoin ourselves,” he said. “We didn’t want to succumb to the mob mentality, and indeed much of the antagonism toward Paycoin was mob mentality.” Yet despite his wariness about bandwagon jumping, Gonthier felt obligated to ban the coin from his exchange— he found it too untrustworthy to trade. Whether GAW is a struggling business addled by an angry mob or a convoluted string of scammy tactics—or a little bit of both—anti-Paycoin people are not backing down. Last month, someone leaked a trove of Garza’s emails, including the ones I’d sent to Paycoin. The first batch made Paycoin look terrible, with emails detailing plans to rip off an investor named Rishab Jain called out as especially damning. Advertisement But when I wrote Jain to find out how he felt about the deception, he was pissed for a different reason than I’d assumed: His “hacked” emails had been faked. “Most of these emails were edited or entirely created in the past few days from people who don’t like Garza I guess,” he told me. Okay, so there were clearly people into tanking GAW so much that they’d fake hacked emails to make them look bad. Then again, I know some of the emails are legit because they include the ones I sent. And just because people want to tank a company doesn’t mean they don’t have a good reason. After the hacked email debacle, people started complaining that they were unable to withdraw funds from Paybase, GAW’s exchange platform for Paycoin. Garza vehemently denied that he was leeching money from Paybase, but later the exchange announced it was shutting down on April 30, according to users—another GAW plan shuttered after resentment festered. Advertisement The whole altcoin industry is hobbled by fraud, aggrandizement that sets up huge flame-outs, major security flaws, and the persistent problem that their currency systems remain difficult to use on a daily basis. The biggest name in cryptocurrency is still, by far, Bitcoin, and while it is making inroads at mainstream acceptance—albeit far more slowly than supporters would like—even the movement’s OG coin is saddled with security problems that breed paranoia. Researchers recently identified hundreds of scams since Bitcoin gained popularity, pinpointing over $11 million lost to fraud. In a climate like that, it’s easy to see why Garza’s often-shifting promises are regarded with such intense suspicion. As for Paycoin, it’s still uncertain exactly where it all fell apart. “It could be a scam, or just a foolish economic experiment, or even a good economic experiment that was just executed poorly,” said Beorn. “We don’t have enough evidence to judge these things, but we did have enough evidence to remove the coin from ShapeShift because a clear term and promise of the coin had been violated.” Advertisement The maelstrom around Paycoin is emblematic of one of the cryptocoin community’s biggest weaknesses—the culture’s erratic vacillation between bombastic ambition and sharp failure. It’s a movement that, by necessity, needs optimism and trust to survive, but with the continuous stream of disappointments, flame-outs, and heists, people are quick to cry scam. And they’re right often enough to keep doing it. GIF by Tara JacobyCynthia: Imagine rising to the top of a valley and discovering the above vista: green hills, snowcapped mountains, seemingly pristine waters, and an obelisk, tens of thousands of years old, humming with magical (or mechanical?) power. You could be the first to learn all of its secrets, or simply find out how it works, and harness its power. And that could be just the beginning of your earthly adventures. For this uncanny place is our Earth, far, far, far into the future, after our civilization and seven others have climbed, peaked, fallen, and been rusted over. More than one alien invasion has occurred, and more than one alien species has mingled genes with humanity. A new civilization has arisen, but hasn’t really gotten past the middle ages. The perplexing debris of past civilizations, from humming obelisks and transdimensional portals to enchanted amulets and portable CD players, is everywhere. The people of earth call these weird objects “filled-with-power-things”: numenera. Welcome to the Ninth World, the setting of Monte Cook’s Numenera. I would say, “come on in, the water’s fine,” but it’s probably filled with flesh-eating microdroids or laced with bubble-gum flavored psychotropic drugs or something. But forget the water, there’s so much here. This place is so ancient, and vast, and tremendous. Let’s explore! Look over there! The words “We will help you” keep appearing in the sky in bright orange. No, nobody knows who is going to “help,” but I do hope they start helping soon. Oh, and did you find out why that thick black bracelet you found knows how far you’ve walked today? Anyway, let’s see if the giant Face of Ghan can answer our burning existential questions. Or we could visit the miniature city of Archeol and find out what creatures live there. Or we could go north, to the Unseen Lake, where I hear that fish seem to swim through the air. Let’s start exploring now because it might take years to visit just the regions of the Ninth World described in the Numenera core book. There’s also The Ninth World Bestiary, The Ninth World Guidebook, and the Technology Compendium, as well as sourcebooks for the sky, the sea, and more. Always more. There’s even a small official.pdf called Love and Sex in the Ninth World. If you’re into that sort of thing. You see, Numenera lures you in with the promise of infinite adventures in a relentlessly enchanting setting where something completely new is always just around the bend. Then it ruthlessly captures you with a streamlined d20 system that’s easy to play and to learn. Every task you attempt has a difficulty level with a target number: you must roll above that number. For instance, figuring out how to operate a liquid sword might start off as a level 5 task, meaning you need to roll at least 15 to succeed. Easy. Skills and equipment then lower a task’s difficulty, so that if you’re trained in numenera, using the device goes down to level 4: you need to roll at least 12. If you want to put in some effort, spend a few points from your Intellect pool and take the task down to level 3. Now the odds are in your favor and you need only to roll above 9. Now you can cause this device to spurt fluid in the shape of a sword that is somehow still highly viscous and sharp enough to cut people. Congratulations? You might also be able to do some fancy tricks like operating machines telepathically, using two weapons at once, or singing in a way that people actually enjoy. Those tricks usually cost Might, Speed, or Intellect points, but don’t worry. Unless your blood has been drained by a sentient floating saw, or you’re trying to outwit a psychopathic cult leader, or you’re outrunning a ravenous, blind, pointy-tusked bear, you’ll have points for days. Conveniently, this trio of Might, Speed, and Intellect point pools also constitutes your character’s health, so you can be low on Might but still have all your brainpower, or the ability to make a quick getaway. But there’s one Numenera mechanic I find particularly sexy: any time the GM has a clever idea, they can turn to you (with a wicked smile) and offer you two of the Experience Points that let you grow your character, one for you, one for you to pass to a friend. Accepting the proffered “XP” means giving the GM the go-ahead to put their idea into action. If you’re afraid of what the GM has in mind, then spend an XP you’ve got on hand in order to dispel their devious plan. This give-and-take lets the GM bend the narrative a little according to their will –– but in a way that characters always benefit and never feel picked on or railroaded. In return, if you roll a 19 or 20, you can declare a minor or major effect. A minor effect might be distracting an enemy or making a harsh climb easier for the whole party. A major effect would be disarming that enemy or conquering that climb with unprecedented ease. All in all, it’s a bit like the latest edition of Dungeons and Dragons but with even clearer rules, less math, more give-and-take, and a lot more flexibility. You don’t need to worry about choosing the right weapon or provoking an attack of opportunity. You can try things you’re not trained in and still frequently succeed. You can invent skills. You can levitate, or have tentacles, or have chlorophyll in your skin, or all three. You can be a lover and a fighter and a thinker and whatever else you want to be. Really. And what will you do in this marvelous new persona? Really, begin by just exploring. Look at this map! Click on it to see it a little bigger! Scroll around it. Listen to the promises it makes. Plenty of dangerous, miraculous things will happen to along whatever road you choose. You could go to the City of Bridges and then take to the seas in the employ of smugglers, or dedicate yourself to protecting a vulnerable town in the uncouth lands of the Beyond. You could walk along a continent-spanning pilgrimage circuit with thousands of other nomads. Numenera works well for Lovecraft-esque horror stories. And medieval fantasy adventures. And dark, urban religio-political intrigues. And colonization epics. It really is a brave new world. You might even find the Miranda to your Caliban… or something. Now, this next bit is serious: I think we know each other well enough that it’s time I tell you something about my history with RPGs and Numenera in particular. This is embarrassing, but reader, I trust you. The first time I played a roleplaying game, I had a severe anxiety attack. The players chose our pre-generated characters and were introduced to the setting, rules, and adventure. Then the GM turned to me and asked that fundamental question: what was my character doing? I froze. I could barely speak. I ran to the bathroom, and hid there crying for at least half an hour. But Numenera (and the coaxing of a very patient GM) got me to come back downstairs. The Ninth World was intriguing enough that I wanted to play despite the anxiety. The system was transparent enough that by the end of the session, I felt much more comfortable. Indeed, Numenera got me into RPGs. And I’m rather thankful for that. I bring this up because my rough first time has made me aware that, if you did not spend your teenage years playing Dungeons and Dragons, it can be quite scary to dive into RPGs. Clearly, Numenera works as a first RPG, which is why I ran it for my nineteen-year-old nephew and his friends, but I think an experienced GM should coach you on your first steps. The mechanics are simple, but not basic, so its good to have a confident and practiced guide at the table. And a fair amount of prep work is needed to keep players from becoming lost in this vast, unfamiliar place –– even with a pre-written adventure. A Numenera Starter Set (seen above) does now exist, theoretically designed to for people new to RPGs, but it’s not good. It’s “entry-level” adventure has no grabbable plot hook and gives the GM a lot to manage with not much guidance. The pre-generated characters are bland and poorly representative of the possibilites. The components include flimsy character sheets you can’t erase on, two plain red dice, and a poorly detailed single-sided map. And this Starter Set costs a few dollars more than a well-indexed.pdf of the system’s beautifully illustrated core rulebook, filled with creatures and cultures and cults and mysterious landmarks and glowing oddities and everything. IN CONCLUSION, Shut Up and Sit Down highly recommends that you leap into the vast abyss of Numenera, which might be packed with more sheer, marvelous, possibility than any other RPG. There seem to be no limits to the Ninth World, no way to run out of adventures. So download that core rulebook, or perhaps invest in the Numenera Corebook Bundle, which contains a few extra useful things. Then, relax. Don’t be afraid. Take a deep breath. Find a good GM (or step up to the plate yourself if you’re comfortable), open your eyes and ears and let the game take you somewhere that you never dreamt of before. Yup, A Whole New World is stuck in my head now too. It’s fine. It’s great. Go play Numenera and HAVE FUN.Former student Drew Sterrett filed a lawsuit against the University on April 23 after he was suspended from school following allegations of sexual misconduct. Sterrett, who was a student in the College of Engineering, has taken legal action because he said he was denied due process during the investigation, after a complaint was filed against him by a female friend whom he had sexual relations with. Sterrett’s attorney Deborah Gordon told The Michigan Daily she finds the University was “completely neglectful” in almost every aspect of their internal investigation, which ultimately left Sterrett “deprived of his educational opportunity.” Gordon added that the University’s “sloppy” investigation led to a false result and maintains her client’s innocence based on official affidavit statements that Sterrett obtained from witnesses in an attempt to provide evidence to clear his name. She explained that with all other crimes, from minor in possession to public indecency charges, the accused is allowed a hearing and chance to speak with witnesses as part of their due process rights. These allowances are not offered to those accused of sexual assault, which Gordon said she believes is the result of the administration’s efforts to streamline investigations regarding sexual assaults to “look like they’re making strides towards stamping out sexual assault” on campus. University Spokeswoman Kelly Cunningham denied allegations of negligence in a statement released to The Michigan Daily. “The University is reviewing the complaints and plans to defend them vigorously,” she said. “What we can say now is that our student sexual misconduct policy and practices meet or exceed due process requirements.” The University has 28 days from the time the suit was filed to respond. Gordon called Sterrett’s case the “ugly other side of sexual assault on campus,” because outside pressure seems to create rush judgments that often lead to wrongful punishments. She added that the University is put in a hard position with these cases, because they assume a role closer to that of a police officer than an academic institution, which she believes is inappropriate. Gordon said the administrator who initially interviewed Sterrett had a linguistics degree, which she believes isn’t adequate training for conducting an investigation of this magnitude. Gordon said that Sterrett’s only opportunity to plead his innocence was in a phone interview shortly after the complaint was filed, five months after the act in question actually took place. She emphasized that no one from the University ever met Sterrett in person, which she viewed as one of the many faults of the investigation. According to the details of the lawsuit, Sterrett and the female friend who eventually filed the complaint went out “socializing” and had sexual relations in his dorm room, where she stayed the entire night. She filed the complaint with the University about five months later but never contacted the police. Sterrett was told if he postponed the interview to consult a lawyer, the investigation would continue without him – which Gordon also cited as an infringement of legal rights. Gordon added that the proceedings will be a long road, and that the next step is the “discovery phase,” where she will perform depositions on the University officials involved in Sterrett’s case. She anticipates it will be many months before a court date is set. Sterrett is currently unable to attend the University unless he admits to committing the sexual assault, a confession that Gordon said is just “not possible” to make. She added that he’s had difficulty finding employment or gaining admission at other schools once institutions learn of the allegations against him. “My heart really goes out to Drew because the University’s reckless actions really turned his life around in an instant,” Gordon said. “He came to (the University) expecting to go to this great school and have all of these great opportunities, and now this unfortunate event will define his college experience.” Under the University’s recently adopted sexual misconduct policy, officials need only preponderance of evidence to find alleged assailants responsible for sexual misconduct. That policy was enacted after the U.S. Department of Education recommended institutions amend their policies to adopt a lower standard of evidence in cases of sexual misconduct. Earlier this year, federal officials launched an investigation of the University’s handling of sexual misconduct allegations after receiving a complaints related to the permanent separation of former kicker Brendan Gibbons. In January, the Daily reported Gibbons had been permanently separated from the University after being found responsible for committing sexual misconduct.A friend and I were discussing engineering education yesterday. The state of the education system, the constant lamenting of fewer engineers coming out of the US and our own experiences. Of course there are a ton of problems right now. And yes, there are also a lot of potential solutions in place. But out of this discussion came an irrefutible argument and idea: (Most) engineering students need a remedial tinkering class “Hunh? A what? I’ve never heard of that,” you say. Well, it’s because it doesn’t exist. But it exists for a lot of other subjects. If you weren’t all that great at math in high school, you can usually find a remedial math class to brush up on your algebra. If you’re from out of the country and english is a second language, there are often resources to help bring you up to a level where you’ll have a chance at an introductory literature class. It’s the same for many other classes. But what about tinkering? What about playing around? What about blowing shit up and learning how to fail? It’s as important as any other skill in engineering and one that is woefully lacking in graduates (just check how many graduates can solder when they leave school). So do we really need this? You tell me! Here’s what I know about the state of tinkering in the US: shop class is on the decline and most schools don’t support the budget anymore. Kids are so busy working on their college extracurriculars that they can’t spend time playing with toys and making things go (with some exceptions like FIRST). Both manufacturing and enrollment in engineering programs in the US are on the decline, meaning we make less stuff and have less of a clue how our stuff works. There is a resurgent hobby community, but hardly enough to staff the world of tomorrow with top notch engineers. I think students could use a primer on how to get their hands dirty. I know I didn’t have anything like this but I sure would have appreciated it in school! I didn’t truly start working on electronics until halfway through school. The rest was on my own or theoretical work. Shouldn’t I have known prior to dropping $50K of my and the government’s money (thanks Uncle Sam!) whether or not I enjoyed breathing in solder fumes?? Here’s what I like about the idea of a remedial tinkering class: You learn how to fail — It’s such an important skill and one that students are shielded from for much too long. Students need to learn that this is a natural part of any design process and that no matter what Fluxor’s corporate overlords say, you can’t prevent every bug. Troubleshooting — There’s a reason that engineering students are recruited into countless (higher paying industries) other than the “makin’ stuff” industry. Engineers know how to analyze a problem and teach themselves. They’re also strong in math, logic and programming. But of all these tenable skills, troubleshooting is the most valuable. Being able to dissect a problem you’ve encountered pays dividends far beyond the classroom. Tinkering remediation would necessarily teach this skill often, mostly by virtue that people that don’t know much about electronics or making mechanical models or chemical concoctions are likely to mess up at first. And then the student will quickly need to learn how to fix the problem they just made. You figure out if you like engineering — I don’t know the exact numbers at my alma mater, but I can say with certainty that a lot more students went into the engineering program than came out. While a tinkering class won’t weed out the ones without the focus to put down the video games and go study, it will tell the ones who might not like engineering in the first place to try something new. It gives context — There’s nothing more demotivating than sitting in a math class being forced to learn a technique that just seems like it will NEVER be useful. I mean, Fourier transforms? Did anyone know what those were useful for when they started? Doubtful. But had you been an ambitious young lad or lass and had worked on a super regenerative IF HF spectrum analyzer (using a 555 timer perhaps!), you would understand just why frequency transformations are so damn important. And you would be very very sure that you understood how to do them. At the very least, you would understand the concept behind how the transformation works conceptually. It would be fun as hell — Coupling education and fun is bound to have a positive effect. When students (or workers) are enjoying what they’re doing, they’re more likely to dig deeper into the material, gaining a better understanding and persisting to become experts. A tinkering class, where students are encouraged to try out new things, blow stuff up and MAKE things, all while getting college credit could be a strong launch pad into a strong academic and personal career in engineering. Places like Australia and Europe have a tradition called a “gap year” where a student would go out and work and vacation and generally figure out what they want to do with their lives. This would be a smaller, more controlled and more engineering-based than that and would be part of a university. Getting perspective into the world of engineering can help drive many more students into the field and drive interest in science. And in times like the one we currently live in, it could not be more welcome. Have you ever heard of a system like this? Were you a tinkerer? Sound off in the comments!Some people have skeletons in their closet. I have an enormous Barbie in mine. She stands about six feet tall with a 39" bust, 18" waist, and 33" hips. These are the supposed measurements of Barbie if she were a real person. I built her as a part of the first National Eating Disorder Awareness Week (NEDAW) at my high school, later introducing her to Hamilton College during its first NEDAW in 2011. When I was a little girl, I played with my Barbie in her playhouse, sending her and Ken on dates that always ended with a goodnight kiss. I had fond times with my Barbie, and I admired her perfect blonde locks and slim figure. Barbie represented beauty, perfection and the ideal for young girls around the world. At least, as a seven-year-old, that is what she was to me. In January 2007, I was looking for a way to make my peers realize the importance of eating disorders and body image issues. I was frustrated after quitting the cheerleading squad, frustrated with pressures to look and act a certain way and most of all frustrated with the eating disorder controlling my life. I wanted to do something that would turn others' apathy into action. That evening, my neighbor and I found two long pieces of wood and started measuring. With a little math, nails and hammering, we built a stick figure that stood about six feet tall. The chicken wire came next. Surrounding her wooden frame, we created a body that wasn't much thicker than a stick figure, but had the womanly and unattainable curves and proportions that impressionable young girls idealize. We stuffed the chicken wire with newspaper and created a body that creepily leaned against the wall in my neighbor's basement. She now needed some skin, so I brought her back to my apartment and employed the masterful art of papier maché. Taking stacks of newspaper, glue and water, I skipped my high school semi-formal dance to give my girl some skin. Oddly, I started to feel my fondness for Barbie return, now not as a plaything but as a tool to reveal the negative body image that she promotes. As I papier machéd, I couldn't forget Barbie's impressive bust and blew up balloons over and over again to achieve a perfect 39" measurement. Once her chest was secured, I
a not deleted quickly enough facebook message, because you weren’t responding to your emails. DoorDie Gi collab. This was a fucking nightmare. Communication was tough. It took forever for this to get started but once Pascal and I got on the phone and knocked down some ideas, we got stuff underway pretty quickly. I had never really heard anything negative about DoorDie other than a copyright dispute they had with someone, which seemed like bullshit, but it was months prior and I didn’t remember it at the time. Regardless, it didn’t seem like a big deal. During the middle of our collab Brendan lost his fucking mind because they didn’t send him a sample Gi. From the get go, we always talked about one sample. They got sent an A2, which is my size, so it got sent to me. The emails between Brendan and DoorDie reached toddler level of hissy fit on his part. They were rude, unprofessional and it seemed like he was trying to piss them off enough to pull the plug. Accusing them of lying when they said their factory was on holiday…all sorts of stuff. I talked to them on the phone and told them to ignore him and that I had no idea why he was acting like that. We had a lot of people wanting the collab Gi, so I wanted to go through with it, plus as a freelance photog and designer who had just moved I needed the extra cash, plus I didn’t see any reason why we shouldn’t work with them. We had already made a commitment and I planned to see it all the way through. Brendan again contributed zero to the collab and even made it almost not happen. Our next planned collab was with Tatami Fightwear. I was the sole point of contact for these collabs. Garreth from Tatami had sent a lot of design concepts that I didn’t feel were right, but kept suggesting to him to keep it subtle. He eventually sent an amazing design concept to me one day, and then asked if I wanted to have the kids in my kids class review his kids gi line. I thought this was super awesome on their part and mentioned both things to Brendan. Brendan said no because Tatami stole his brands design aesthetic. It was because they were his competitors. I really wanted to get those kids gis to review so the kids could get some new ones (they needed them) and worked it out through another company that I could review them through there, and accidentaly sent a message I had meant for someone else to Garreth before I had asked him if it had been ok, which was dicked on my part, to be fair. Brendan told me he wanted nothing to do with Tatami and was even not reviewing the Estilo 4.0 he had sent them because he hated them, and now magically is collabing with them again. It’s likely because the design Tatami came up with is awesome (his tone changed when I sent him the design) and he knows it will sell well and he can make money off of it. That was the final straw. Saying the kids I teach who are in need of Gis can’t get them because they are his brands competitors. He stole from me, he TRIED to steal from our fans, and his super uber nice guy persona is bullshit. He’s a master manipulator, I’ll give him that. It’s the sickest thing in the world to see someone play off peoples inner good to market themselves. Why did I write this? Because I choose to pick a side, always. Because I don’t believe in people not having as much information as they should to make decisions. And I can caveat all of this with these being my perceptions. The truth is the only thing we have that can help us make the correct decisions. A lot of this is cold hard facts, another fair portion is my perception of things and how they unfolded, take it all for what you will. I quit GR despite it being a hugely fun time of my life. I met tons of couple people while doing it, and I thank them for being great people, fans and BJJers. AdvertisementsCaptain Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) has had a tumultuous journey on “Once Upon a Time,” evolving from villainous pirate to somewhat reformed pirate with aspirations of heroism. His hard-earned goodness will be put to the test in the March 22 episode, “Poor Unfortunate Soul,” which explores Hook’s “complicated” history with Ursula (Merrin Dungey). Variety spoke to O’Donoghue ahead of Sunday’s episode to learn more about Hook’s past with the sea witch, his suspicions about Mr. Gold/Rumplestiltskin (Robert Carlyle) and his deepening relationship with Emma (Jennifer Morrison). Light spoilers ahead. In the present day, we know that Hook’s is investigating Rumplestiltskin’s plans by quizzing Ursula for information — what’s their dynamic like? Hook has a complicated history with Ursula, and when they first saw each other a few episodes ago in Storybrooke, it was kind of an icy “Captain” from Ursula. So we learn exactly what happened in the past between them. Hook befriends the young Ursula [Tiffany Boone], and he agrees to help her because her father, Poseidon [Ernie Hudson], uses her voice to ruin pirate ships and run them into rocks, and she doesn’t want to do that. They do genuinely have a mutual respect for each other at the start in the past, and then we learn what exactly went on. Given that icy reunion, it’s obvious that his attempt to help her didn’t quite go according to plan — what can you preview about his motivations during their flashback encounter? He’s out for himself but… even in that “badass Hook” phase, he had a code. Hook always tried to live by this crazy code that he had, even though sometimes it meant he would step on people. But Ursula does something to help him and he’s willing, then, to help her run away. Then he does something… else. [Laughs.] Does he feel any remorse for how things transpired between them in the past? You see that in present day, Hook decides to take a leaf out of Emma’s book and he offers her a chance at her happy ending in exchange for finding out what Gold is really after, and so Hook at the minute is trying to be the best man that he can be, because he genuinely loves Emma and he wants to make a real go at it. Sometimes he makes mistakes, but everybody does. [Showrunners] Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis recently told reporters that Hook has some things going on in his head that he’s concerned about — can you elaborate on that at all? You can see even in last week’s episode and the week before, he’s still struggling with trying to shake off the darkness he’s allowed in over those hundreds of years. And that’s a very difficult thing for him to do; psychologically, it’s very difficult for him to all of a sudden try to become a hero. He’s always going to fall through the cracks here and there, and as much as he doesn’t want to, sometimes the old pirate just comes back. Right now Emma’s parents are keeping a massive secret from her, just as she’s starting to open up her heart again — will Hook be her rock when everything hits the fan? Hook is a rock for Emma. he tries to help her navigate her way through the emotions she’s feeling and in some ways draw on his past to try and help guide her. But you’ll find out later in the season how exactly that goes… But he’s definitely there for her and trying to help guide her in the best way that he can. We’ve seen hints that Emma could channel her own dark side and align with the Queens of Darkness; if she did go bad, do you think Hook would want to embrace his villainous side along with her, or do you think he’d want to try and keep her on the side of good? That’s a difficult question, because we have seen, since he’s tried to become a hero, he has slipped here and there and done some things… out of what he felt was trying to do the right thing, he’s done a couple of bad things. He’s still a pirate, he’s still Captain Hook, so maybe he could embrace a little bit of his darkness again. I don’t know, I guess we’ll have to wait and see… In the midseason return, Hook told Belle that love is a weapon — does that apply to his relationship with Emma now that he’s finally allowing himself to be vulnerable and love someone again? I’m not sure if that’s the case with Emma; I think he’s given over all of himself to Emma. At the start, he was scared to allow that love in because of what had happened with Milah and how that sent him on a hundreds of years [long] journey of hate. But I think now that he’s allowed himself and admitted to himself that he’s in love with Emma and that he’s willing to do that again… Hook commits whole-heartedly to something. When he’s decided that’s it, he’s 100 percent committed, so that’s where he is with regards to being in love with Emma. He’s clearly still suspicious of Rumpelstiltskin’s motives in Storybrooke and the two have a very long history, so what’s coming up for the two of them? Hook spent so long trying to find a way to kill Rumpelstiltskin, they just plain don’t like each other. At the moment, because Hook is trying to be a better person, he’s trying not to give in to that hatred again. But he still can’t stand Rumpelstiltskin so you see some of that come into play. And Rumpelstiltskin pretended to be Hook in the last episode, so he can’t get away with that. [Laughs.] “Once Upon a Time” airs Sundays at 8 p.m. on ABC.I can't even begin to express how beyond all expectations my secret santa went with my gift this year. I tried to photo document the whole experience, but I'll walk you through the high points, too: *My secret santa knows that I like puzzles and puzzle games, so they sent me puzzles AND a game. The first photo is the unopened box; the second picture shows the contents. *The message says I should start with the tin. You can see the contents in the photo -- it's a game (FANTASTIC, thank you!) but it's also a puzzle for me to solve. We had to unscramble the letters in the "yep" bag to find what to do next. It was a struggle, but when we figured out "combination", the rest of the words fell into place. *The puzzle box was tricky. My wife, daughter and I spend more than 20 minutes trying to figure it out. Eventually we got the box to release its clues (without smashing it with a hammer -- an option I considered). It was the combination. *The safe opened easily -- and contained NOT JUST a nice little personal note, NOT JUST a pair of amazing socks, NOT JUST two pairs of socks, but a $10 Amazon gift card, too! I can't say THANK YOU enough times, Secret Santa, for a truly amazing experience. Your creativity and generosity are appreciated more than I can express in words. Thank you SO MUCH! /u/i-am-ajpowellone of three dominant foundation sires The Darley Arabian (foaled c. 1700) was one of three dominant foundation sires of modern Thoroughbred horse racing bloodstock, whose arrival in England during the reign of Queen Anne was the event which "forms the great epoch from which the history of the Turf should be dated". The other two founders were the Godolphin Arabian and the Byerley Turk. This bay Arabian horse was bought in Aleppo, Syria, by Thomas Darley in 1704 and shipped back to Aldby Park in England, as a present for his brother. There he stood at stud, usually private but sometimes open to outside mares. He was Leading sire in Great Britain and Ireland in 1722. By all accounts, the Darley Arabian stood about 15 hands high and was of substantial beauty and refinement.[3] The Darley Arabian sired the undefeated Flying Childers. He also sired Bartlett's Childers, an unraced brother of Flying Childers, who was the great-grandsire of the extremely influential Eclipse. The Darley Arabian was to become the most important sire in the history of the English Thoroughbred.[3] His son Bulle Rock was the first Thoroughbred to be exported to America, in 1730.[4] Most Thoroughbreds can be traced back to Darley Arabian. In 95% of modern Thoroughbred racehorses, the Y chromosome can be traced back to this single stallion.[5][6] References [ edit ]457 SHARES Facebook Twitter Linkedin Reddit HTC have announced that, in addition to its TPCAST wireless add-on, it’s also working with Intel on a WiGig powered wireless VR solution and it’s keen to find more partners to work with on further solutions too. HTC seems to be ‘all in’ on ensuring its Vive VR headset is well supported for wireless upgrades in order to rid us of those pesky cables. Not content with helping to incubate the development of the soon-to-be-released TPCAST wireless VR solution, HTC announced at its CES press conference this week that semiconductor giant Intel is also working on its own wireless VR solution based on a different transmission protocol. Update 30th May 2017: HTC have let us know that the new solution developed in conjunction with Intel is taking shape and will be demonstrated to press at this year’s E3 convention due to start June 13th. They state: “To create this high-end VR experience, Intel and HTC recognized the need to better integrate the HMD with high-computing capabilities. The WiGig technology, based on 802.11ad standard, works solely in the interference- free 60GHz band, and enables high throughput and low latency in both directions, from the PC to HMD and from HMD to PC. This means pristine video quality with <7ms latency in any environment, supporting multiple users sharing the same space. All of this results in the seamless wireless VR with the Vive.” Road to VR will be at E3 to get some hands on time with the new system. Original story from Jan 9th 2017 continues below: Both TPCAST and Intel’s solution both using the same 60Ghz band to broadcast compressed video and input / output data to and from a PC base station, albeit using different standards. The former however has opted to choose the ‘WirelessHD’ standard whilst the latter is going with WiGig. What’s the Difference Between ‘WiGig’ and ‘WirelessHD’? Everyone hates format wars, but it seems no shift of any significance happens in the consumer electronics industry without one. Anyone over 40 will recall Betamax versus VHS video tape and then HD-DVD versus Blu-Ray and most recently HDR10 versus Dolby Vision. In this case though, although WiGig and WirelessHD both share some technical similarities they differ in scope and implementation. WiGig (Intel’s chosen solution) is, as the name suggests, a wireless multi-gigabit networking standard which dramatically increases over-the-air bandwidth over standard WiFi over short distances (the same room). In actual fact, the name ‘WiGig’ is a shortening of the organisation (Wireless Gigabit Alliance) which helped define the IEEE 802.11ad 60GHz standard. WiGig is aimed at very high bandwidth data uses, such as the broadcast of multi-gigabit uncompressed video and audio streams. Although its uses are more limited (short range, doesn’t work well through walls) it is ultimately a very high speed general purpose network standard in the same way as other WiFi standards. Bottom line, if you buy an 802.11ad compatible router, it’ll not only be backwards compatible with your older devices, you’ll be able to use that extra bandwidth for any sort of data transfer, not just video and audio. WiGig data rates max out at 7 gigabits per second per channel. WirelessHD (TPCAST’s chosen solution) on the other hand is an older standard designed exclusively for the transmission of high definition video over short distances. WirelessHD once again adopts the 60Ghz band and, as of version 1.1 of the standard, can transmit at data rates up to 28 Gigabits per second (much higher than WiGig’s. WirelessHD solutions comprise two boxes, a receiver and a transmitter and each is dedicated to transmitting just video and audio between the source and the destination. Unlike WiGig, you won’t be copying files between devices or browsing the Internet via it. As such, devices that use WirelessHD will likely ship with dedicated receivers and transmitters for use only with that product. WirelessHD (aka UltraGig) is a proprietary standard, as opposed to WiGig’s, which is IEEE standards approved. Both the above technologies suffer from one of the same issues, inherited from their shared 60Ghz band – namely that it doesn’t deal with line-of-sight blockages (walls, people etc.) well at all. However, both are able to beam-form – that is use walls and ceilings to reflect to avoid occlusion by ‘bouncing’ the signal. You can see why HTC may want to entertain the idea of a WiGig solutions as, despite the maximum bandwidth being lower than WirelessHD, it’s likely we’ll see WiGig routers in people’s homes over the next few years, so a wireless VR product that’s able to work with an existing device will also be cheaper, should the transmitter not be required. As of now, neither HTC or Intel were ready to share any details about the wireless VR project or any timelines as to when we’d hear more. It’s clear however that HTC are not only keeping their options open as far as wireless VR is concerned they’re actively encouraging technical diversity. To further emphasise this, HTC has indicated it’s interested in hearing from other companies about alternativeActress Lena Dunham complained about the “kind of world we live in” after she faced ridicule for posting a picture of herself sitting on the toilet to her Instagram account. Dunham, star of the HBO series Girls, posted the picture of her on the toilet accompanied by the caption, “model citizen ❤️❤️❤️photo by @jackantonoff who may regret having essentially married me (it would be very hard to detangle our assets).” The photo showed Dunham sitting on the toilet pulling a contorted face. Lena Dunham is now posting gross pictures of herself on the toilet https://t.co/cKNjWNes6x pic.twitter.com/fvlM9vzQLG — Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) December 7, 2016 However, Dunham later deleted the picture, complaining in another post, “When you delete your own peeing Insta cuz you chronically forget what kind of world we live in but you still gotta shout out your visual influence,” accompanied by a picture of Jenny McCarthy on the toilet. https://www.instagram.com/p/BNsYcuwFTrI/?taken-by=lenadunham&hl=en The actress is known for her extreme left-wing views, having previously called for the extinction of white men and pledging to leave America should Donald Trump win the presidency, a promise she has since gone back on. You can follow Ben Kew on Facebook, on Twitter at @ben_kew, or email him at bkew@breitbart.comBack in March, Stephen King had announced a new book in The Dark Tower series. Titled The Wind Through the Keyhole, this story will take place between the 4th and 5th books. While it ties into The Dark Tower series, it is also being written as a stand-alone novel that is described as a "wonderful introduction to the series". "For readers new to The Dark Tower, THE WIND THROUGH THE KEYHOLE is a stand-alone novel, and a wonderful introduction to the series. It is a story within a story, which features both the younger and older gunslinger Roland on his quest to find the Dark Tower. Fans of the existing seven books in the series will also delight in discovering what happened to Roland and his ka tet between the time they leave the Emerald City and arrive at the outskirts of Calla Bryn Sturgis. This Russian Doll of a novel, a story within a story, within a story, visits Mid-World's last gunslinger, Roland Deschain, and his ka-tet as a ferocious storm halts their progress along the Path of the Beam. (The novel can be placed between Dark Tower IV and Dark Tower V.) Roland tells a tale from his early days as a gunslinger, in the guilt ridden year following his mother's death. Sent by his father to investigate evidence of a murderous shape shifter, a "skin man," Roland takes charge of Bill Streeter, a brave but terrified boy who is the sole surviving witness to the beast's most recent slaughter. Roland, himself only a teenager, calms the boy by reciting a story from the Book of Eld that his mother used to read to him at bedtime, "The Wind through the Keyhole." "A person's never too old for stories," he says to Bill. "Man and boy, girl and woman, we live for them." And stories like these, they live for us." Stephen King didn't originally have the idea for this book when planning The Dark Tower series. He previously mentioned the how the idea for The Wind Through the Keyhole came to be: “At some point, while worrying over the copyedited manuscript of the next book (11/22/63, out November 8th), I started thinking—and dreaming—about Mid-World again. The major story of Roland and his ka-tet was told, but I realized there was at least one hole in the narrative progression: what happened to Roland, Jake, Eddie, Susannah, and Oy between the time they leave the Emerald City (the end of Wizard and Glass) and the time we pick them up again, on the outskirts of Calla Bryn Sturgis (the beginning of Wolves of the Calla)? There was a storm, I decided. One of sudden and vicious intensity. The kind to which billy-bumblers like Oy are particularly susceptible. Little by little, a story began to take shape. I saw a line of riders, one of them Roland’s old mate, Jamie DeCurry, emerging from clouds of alkali dust thrown by a high wind. I saw a severed head on a fencepost. I saw a swamp full of dangers and terrors. I saw just enough to want to see the rest. Long story short, I went back to visit an-tet with my friends for awhile. The result is a novel called The Wind Through the Keyhole. It’s finished, and I expect it will be published next year." The Wind Through the Keyhole and will be available in the spring of 2012. It has been revealed that there will be a limited signed edition of the novel, featuring artwork by Jae Lee. We'll have have more information on the novel and cover art as it gets closer to release.The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety has signed off on geology reports that found that no active earthquake fault runs under the site of the Millennium Hollywood development, even though the state geologist last year concluded there was one, it was reported today. The move ends a controversial two-year debate over whether two massive skyscrapers could be built safely due to seismic conditions. New studies completed for the city by Millennium’s geologist concluded an earthquake fault was probably located deep beneath the property. But city officials agreed with the developer that the fault was too old to be considered active, the Los Angeles Times reported. ADVERTISEMENT The conclusion is markedly different from those made by state geology officials, who had analyzed previous data and said last year that an active fault slices through part of the project site, south of the Capitol Records tower. “Our conclusion from the data is that there is an active fault, and it does run right along the course that’s right along the map,” state geologist John Parrish told the Times last November when his agency, the California Geological Survey, released its regulatory map of the Hollywood fault. California law defines faults that ruptured within the last 11,000 years as active. The Hollywood fault was forced into the spotlight in 2013, when the L.A. City Council approved the Millennium project even after state officials said the project might lie in an active earthquake fault zone. The California Geological Survey accelerated its analysis and mapping of the Hollywood fault, which stretches from the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood to Atwater Village, The Times reported. Under state law, developers in the fault zone are generally required to prove that new buildings can be constructed safely away from any active faults. The final say over whether a structure can be built lies with city building officials.Russian and U.S. relations are at a low due to the situations in Syria and Ukraine. Putin wishes Obama Happy July 4th Russian President Vladimir Putin called for improved U.S.-Russian relations in a congratulatory July 4th message to President Barack Obama released Friday. “Mr. Putin said that he hopes that ties between the two countries, which have a rich history, will continue successful development on a pragmatic and equal basis despite the current differences and difficulties,” the Kremlin wrote in a statement. Story Continued Below “The president also stressed that Russia and the United States are both countries bearing particular responsibility for ensuring international stability and security,” the statement continued, “and should therefore cooperate not just for the benefit of their own peoples but also in the entire world’s interest.” ( PHOTOS: Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin’s relationship) Russian and U.S. relations are at a low point because of disagreements regarding the situations in Syria and Ukraine. The White House imposed sanctions on several Russian companies and individuals regarding its annexation of Crimea and buildup of troops on Ukraine’s eastern border. Obama has also accused Putin of “protecting” Syrian President Bashar Assad, whom the Obama administration concluded used chemical weapons on his own people. A White House official confirmed to POLITICO that it has seen the statement but had no comment.Signup to receive a daily roundup of the top LGBT+ news stories from around the world The first ever Catholic priest in the world to enter a civil partnership, has married his long-term partner. Father Bernard Lynch married Billy Desmond on Friday at the Armada Hotel at Spanish Point in County Clare on Friday. Around a hundred and twenty guests cheered as the couple was pronounced “husband and husband”. The priest, who grew up in Ennis in the 1950s, was the first to enter a civil partnership when he did so in 2006. The ceremony on Friday was accompanied by a booklet titled ‘Our Right to Love is our Right to Justice’. Tributes were also paid to Father Lynch at the ceremony for being a “tireless advocate for the right of LGBT people for more than 30 years, as an out gay and proud Roman Catholic priest,” reports the Irish Times. The priest, who came out as gay in 1986, he said: “If I did lie, if I did pretend, I’d have a job. I could even have a lover on the side... I didn’t come out publicly until 1986. As soon as I went public, I lost my job.” Lynch last year took to the streets of London at the weekend to protest the closure of the Black Cap pub, and what he says in his speech should move you. Father Bernard Lynch officiated at performer Reg Bundy’s (Regina Fong’s) funeral and knew the venue well. He says the Black Cap was “the first gay pub in London I ever went to.”Italy has produced some quality young talent in recent years. The latest such talent emerges from the young ranks of Inter Milan in the form of Federico Bonazzoli. Amogh Patki has a scout report on the 17 year old Italian youngster. Being a tall forward can be a pain in the arse. After all, the big frame is supposed to hinder acceleration and ball control. Height itself does not make you a hero: you need to make those extra few inches count. Getting ahead of your man at the most opportune moment and the ability to disregard the occupational hazards needs balls, massive balls. That’s not all; you have to be the good on the ball and have an eye for the goal. But if you do have these, you make up a very tasty proposition and that can mean a happy headache for the manager. And that’s what Federico Bonazzoli has been, ever since he got promoted to Inter Milan senior team this year. Bonazzoli is a 17 year old forward who has been at the Milanese outfit for ten years now. He made his debut on May 18th this year when he came on in for Ruben Botta against Chievo Verona aged just 16 years, 11 months and 27 days thereby becoming the second youngest debutant in Serie A. His performances in the youth league recently earned him permanent promotion to the first team. There’s no dearth of praise for him as he has been christened the new Vieri who was as much known for bullying as feared for his left foot. While on paper this seems blown out of proportion, one really has to see the 6ft 4in striker brush the defenders aside with strength or bamboozle them with finesse and hit a thunderous volley from outside the box, to really understand his potential. After all, how often do you see tall strikers waltz their way past defenders as if they weren’t there? Talent Radar Accolades: Named in 100 to Watch in 2016 feature The current scene at Inter Milan is quite an interesting one: the senior team is a massive 18 points off pace, meanwhile the youth team leads the conference unbeaten with ten wins and two draws. Inter did top their Euro league table, but the unforgiving nature of fans doesn’t really help. Also as the clouds of FFP regulation refuse to leave San Siro just yet, it is imperative that the management pays heed to their young starlets, among whom, Bonazzoli tops the chart. Rightly so, he was the first to be promoted full time. Bonazzoli featured in our list of 100 Best Young Players to watch in 2016. Style, Strengths and Weaknesses At 1.92m, you’d expect Bonazzoli to be an aerial bomber. However, statistics have a different story to tell: most of his goals are from his fearsome left foot. Not the one to shy away from taking a first time shot from outside the box, Bonazzoli has an eye for the spectacular, and doesn’t disappoint too often. With adequate shot power and accuracy on tap, his shooting tests the goalkeeper more often than not. He also does show occasional flashes of an acrobatic brilliance, something that usually doesn’t go hand in hand with the taller strata of the striker society. Propensity to break into a dancing, weaving dribble (a la Ibra!) adds another dimension to his already wonderful game and possibly another couple of millions to his already inflating market value. Bonazzoli’s current tally stands at 5 goals in 3 games in primavera (includes a 4-for against Perugia). He’s currently goalless in the senior team but you’d fancy him to break the deadlock soon. Unfortunately, there are a few things that threaten to burst this bubble: extreme selfishness in the final third is one of them. Bonazzoli refuses to acknowledge the presence of a team mate once he gets inside the penalty area with the ball at his feet. Sure, forwards are expected to have that kind of single-minded mentality, but the Italian has taken it too seriously, it seems. His aerial ability is largely unknown, but it should be a strong point, given his height and the considerable physicality of play. While not really a poacher, he makes up with his potent long range shooting and volleys. He has shown commendable poise in retaining the ball against professional defenders, but one cannot be too critical if he fails to do so, at this stage. Although currently not too bad with movement off the ball, he could certainly look to improve it. Despite heading becoming a fading art, it is something that he can work on and make the most of, given his physical stature. Hitting the gym could only help him, given that the taller players who are less strong could go down easy because of their high centre of gravity. The Future As always, the problem with further development of precocious talents is identification of a proper environment for the lad. Inter Milan as an establishment, doesn’t really shine in that area, as many academy graduates after being rejected from the first team, found greener pastures somewhere else. The name “Andrea Pirlo” inflicts more pain on a Nerazzurro than anyone else, in that case. That said, the next step for Bonazzoli will be very crucial. But there’s a certain amount of truth to the adage that talent shines irrespective of condition; and we’ll hope that it’s true. The Azzuri have undergone resurgence in the talent department. While the likes of El Sharawy and Veratti are already in the thick of the things, Domenico Berardi and Simone Scuffet seem to have followed in their slipstream. You almost get the feeling that with guys like Bonazzoli and Hachim Mastour, Italian attack will reclaim its lost glory, by the scruff of its neck. And with a hairstyle not too fancy for a 17 year old footballer, Bonazzoli is a future star and he is damn right aware of it! Written by Amogh PatkiHow much should you spend on an engagement ring? IS it one month’s salary, or maybe three? Donald Trump splashed out $2,000,000 on Melania’s engagement ring, dwarfed only by Jay Z’s romantic gift of $5,000,000 to his wife, Beyonce! To help you understand whether you’re spending too much or too little, Venuswithlove have looked at how much men in each US state spend on an engagement ring and how many month’s salary that equates to. Nevada men are the nation’s highest spenders, splashing out an average of $9,523 for an engagement ring, closely followed by guys from Washington and Minnesota. The top spending states are: State Cost Nevada $ 9,523 Washington $ 9,478 Minnesota $ 9,173 Indiana $ 8,853 Montana $ 8,763 Source Now, the states whose men came out at the bottom of the list. The less said about that the better… State Cost Maine $ 4,105 Nebraska $ 3,835 Arkansas $ 3,176 Vermont $ 2,665 South Dakota $ 1,251 But this is only half of the story, seeing as men in different states earn different income. So we took the average salary per state, divided it by 12 to work out how many month’s salary each state spends on an engagement ring. On average we saw that the US will spend 1.34 times their monthly salary, meaning a guy on a $24,000 salary will spend $2,680. The most generous states were: State Month’s salary Montana 2.22 Nevada 2.19 Alabama 2.17 Indiana 2.02 Kentucky 1.89 States who came out at the bottom of the list: State Month’s salary Alaska 0.86 Utah 0.82 Nebraska 0.76 Vermont 0.54 South Dakota 0.27 To put that in to context, if your job pays $24,000 in South Dakota then spending more than $540 will put you above the state average! The full lists are below. Average ring cost by state: State Average spend Montana $ 9,523 Nevada $ 9,478 Washington $ 9,173 Minnesota $ 8,853 Indiana $ 8,763 North Dakota $ 8,616 Massachusetts $ 8,574 New Hampshire $ 8,556 New Jersey $ 8,427 Alabama $ 8,062 California $ 7,991 New York $ 7,789 Illinois $ 7,753 Maryland $ 7,331 Texas $ 7,233 Florida $ 7,128 Connecticut $ 6,971 Colorado $ 6,938 Missouri $ 6,908 Hawaii $ 6,896 Idaho $ 6,794 North Carolina $ 6,762 Kentucky $ 6,677 Wisconsin $ 6,395 Wyoming $ 6,355 Arizona $ 6,347 Georgia $ 6,099 Mississippi $ 6,065 Iowa $ 6,056 Virginia $ 6,024 Kansas $ 5,955 Louisiana $ 5,754 Pennsylvania $ 5,726 Michigan $ 5,605 Ohio $ 5,546 Oregon $ 5,525 Alaska $ 5,353 West Virginia $ 5,196 New Mexico $ 5,131 South Carolina $ 4,868 Oklahoma $ 4,835 Rhode Island $ 4,821 Delaware $ 4,684 Utah $ 4,537 Tennessee $ 4,535 Maine $ 4,105 Nebraska $ 3,835 Arkansas $ 3,176 Vermont $ 2,665 South Dakota $ 1,251 Followed by how many month’s salary men in each state spend: State Month’s salary Montana 2.22 Nevada 2.19 Alabama 2.17 Indiana 2.02 Kentucky 1.89 Mississippi 1.82 North Dakota 1.80 Florida 1.75 Washington 1.64 New York 1.61 North Carolina 1.60 Idaho 1.58 Minnesota 1.55 Illinois 1.54 Texas 1.54 Massachusetts 1.52 California 1.51 Louisiana 1.50 New Jersey 1.48 Arizona 1.46 West Virginia 1.46 Georgia 1.44 Missouri 1.40 Wisconsin 1.38 New Mexico 1.36 New Hampshire 1.36 Kansas 1.30 Hawaii 1.28 South Carolina 1.26 Wyoming 1.25 Colorado 1.25 Ohio 1.25 Michigan 1.24 Oklahoma 1.23 Maryland 1.20 Iowa 1.19 Virginia 1.18 Tennessee 1.15 Connecticut 1.15 Pennsylvania 1.14 Oregon 1.09 Rhode Island 1.04 Delaware 0.97 Maine 0.97 Arkansas 0.89 Alaska 0.86 Utah 0.82 Nebraska 0.76 Vermont 0.54 South Dakota 0.27 Do any of these surprise you? I guess it matters only to you how much to spend on an engagement ring.Over the last little while, I have dedicated more of
to defer to the wisdom of others. I myself regularly defer to the directives of the Jedi council. The council itself defers to the teachings of our order, which have been honed over millenia of practice." "A Jedi prone to take matters into his own hands is a dangerous thing indeed. I cannot take the responsibility of educating such a student." "Our path is not easy," Shayn added, "it requires forbearance and patience. There is danger of yielding to the dark side." He paused as if to let Noval work out the implications of his words. After a few moments of silence, he continued. "The prevailing consensus is that you are too headstrong. Too attached to your opinions. Argumentative. Unwilling or unable to defer to the wisdom of your superiors. These are traits that lead to the dark side." "You may attempt to find a master who thinks differently," Pavarr took over again, "that is, of course, your prerogative. Rest assured, we will do our utmost to aid you; for the moment, you remain a student under our tutelage. But I must advise you that such efforts are unlikely to bear fruit." There was something almost clinical about Pavarr's way of speaking, as if he was delivering fatal news at a patient's bedside. "There are indeed many Jedi masters who have not interacted with you," Pavarr went on, "and some of them occasionally visit Dantooine to see if any of our initiates are promising candidates for further tutelage. I believe we have such a group of visitors arriving soon after our return to the academy. But they usually pick students based on proficiency with the saber, and in that area, I am afraid, you are not very advanced." Noval stood in silence, too many thoughts seeming to race through his head at once. He had enough experience with Shayn and Pavarr over the years that know that once their minds were made up, attempts at persuasion were futile. "Thank you, masters," he said finally, having collected himself. "I appreciate the advance notice you have given me." Shayn and Pavarr shared a quick glance. "We are pleased to see you take the news with the equanimity of a true Jedi," Shayn said. "We expected nothing less." He reached over to the desk behind him and picked up a bulging brownish folder stuffed with papers. "There are a number of agencies within the Republic that have historically been keen to employ our former students. Do take a look at the references we have put together for you." Noval took the folder, bowing slightly in thanks, and turned to exit the tent. 7. "In many ways," Pavarr said when they were alone again, "he is one of our best students." Shayn sighed to himself. It was an irksome habit his friend had, to revisit each decision after it was made, to rehash the arguments that had been discussed again and again. "Indeed," he replied. As always, he would humor his friend. "His saber skills nonwithstanding," Pavarr continued, "he is quite adept in the force." It was Pavarr's way of assuring himself that he did not making a mistake, to play the devil's advocate. Now it would be up to Shayn to persuade him, which he would by repeating the very same arguments that proved decisive not less than an hour ago. "He is full of longing and desire," Shayn said. Pavarr nodded, as if acknowledging a point has been scored. "We cannot mold him," Shayn said. "He honors our authority for the time being but he does not accept it in his heart." Pavarr nodded again. "He does have some talents. One of us could take him on or we might pass along a strongly worded recommendation. But what if the Sith arise in the galaxy again? Can we be certain he will not by seduced by their whispers?" They had made the right decision, Shayn said to himself, smothering away any doubt that remained within him. It was too easy to see himself in Noval, to be reminded of the person he used to be. He had once been on the verge of being expelled from the order himself, long ago when one of the masters caught sight of him kissing another initiate in the temple gardens. It was all so perfectly innocent. Her name was Amaeda and they were both young and quite in love with each other - or so they told themselves. The masters had given them a stern lecture about the Jedi rules on attachments and ordered them to break it off or leave the order. Amaeda, hotheaded as she was sometimes wont to be, refused to back down; standing in front of the academy council, she accused the masters of heartlessness and malice before storming off. He joined her, only to reconsider the very same night as he lay awake and visions of his dreary life-to-be flashed before him. He went back to the masters with apologies on the following day. She had not taken it well. Words of anger burned on her lips: he still remembered some of the names she called him. He thought she would come back to the order as well but to his surprise she did not. Declaring that she wanted nothing to do with the Jedi, she took the next shuttle to her homeworld. Years later, he had come to understand that it was all a test for him, and that he had passed. Likely the masters had known of their secret dalliance for some time; and it would have been obvious to all involved that Amaeda was too passionate and quick-tempered to become a Jedi. Her fate was set in stone from the start; it was only his future that had been decided. Strangely enough, he met her for the first time since not two months ago. He was surprised to learn that she had become a senator in the meantime, a rare honor though not entirely unexpected for someone who could draw on the force, even weakly. Engine trouble on a trip to the outer room brought her for an unscheduled stopover at Dantooine and the masters invited her to take supper alongside them. He sat a few seats across from her, making polite conversation as they all partook of a simple but pleasant meal. She glanced at him occasionally and when she did her gaze was cold and unfeeling. Not a word between the two of them was exchanged and she made no allusions to their past connection. Like Amaeda, Noval had made his choice. He had made it a thousand times when he preferred his own wisdom to the teachings of the order, when he trusted his reason over the teachings of the Jedi masters. There was much pride in him and pride led to the dark side. "You speak the truth, my friend," Pavarr said solemnly. "I fear this one's path lies elsewhere." 8. He felt as if the floodgates within him had broken and his emotions poured forth uncontrollably. Years of hard work and all for nothing! His dreams of playing a part in the fight for justice, perhaps of being part of the generation of Jedi that finally ushers in lasting peace in the galaxy, all gone in an instant and the order tells him to find himself a job - a job! Would he spend the rest of his days writing reports and getting pleasantly drunk with coworkers at the local cantina? He found himself walking as fast as his legs could take him and soon he was deep inside the ancient forest. It didn't seem as menacing as it did at first and he found the disorderly web of branches mirrored the disquiet within his own soul. The pulsating energy passed through him and sharpened the edges of his thoughts, which seemed to bounce around in his mind like lightning. He wondered once again if he was imagining things, and the thought struck him that it mattered little now, for without anyone to train him he would never be able to probe into the mysteries of such things. To think of all the evenings he spent memorizing the mystical gibberish of the order, the days wasted trying to get a glimpse of what the old masters meant by their cryptic remarks. The number of times he held his tongue and dutifully accepted a rebuke. What now? He could try to impress the masters visiting the academy by entering a saber tournament, but it was pointless, he could not make up for years of neglect within weeks. Damn the Jedi and their closed-mindedness, he thought bitterly, damn their senseless obsession with hand-to-hand combat. There was something deeply wrong the order, something rotten to the core. It was - and the thought struck him so clearly now that he could not believe it hadn't occurred to him before - it was a failed order. The Jedi were the peacekeepers but there was no peace, the galaxy was always convulsing in war after war, more often than not led by former Jedi. Deference, he remembered suddenly the words of Master Pavarr, it was the ability to defer that he lacked. Perhaps if there was a little less of that, perhaps if the council deferred less to the old teachings and experimented more with new ideas, the order might be more successful at its mission. Maybe it was for the best, he thought, for now he could stop pretending that he wasn't human. The order trained him to suppress his emotions but it was those emotions that made him what he was. "Peace is a lie, there is only passion." He could not recall where he heard the phrase, but it popped into his mind now and the words felt right on his tongue. His feelings were a part of who he was and any peace achieved at their expense was not worth having. All of a sudden, he gasped with pain. Something was burning, something scalding pressed to his leg. He tore open his robe and it rolled out of it. The holocron. It was blinding red now and the rays it emitted were coalescing into something. Noval squinted. It was a woman, he realized. Short white hair, robe the color of coffee beans, a harshly sloped face, looking only a decade or two older than himself. She had an elegant sort of beauty to her that flustered him. He searched his mind for something to say to someone who hasn't been in the world for ages and came up blank. She looked at him appraisingly for a moment and smiled. 9. Noval did better at lightsaber practice the following afternoon. He won a series of quick victories against the younger students, including several against the boy who disarmed him only on the previous day. It was hard to say what, exactly, he was doing better but he appeared to be full of new energy, somehow seeming lighter in the fighting ring. His final bout of the afternoon was against Jann. This time the duel seemed to go on interminably, the initiative changing hands several times, and it looked as if Noval might prevail. A circle of students had gathered, most of them wondering whether Noval's skill with the saber was finally improving or whether he was only having a run of good luck. Finally, Noval's made an awkward step and the split second before he righted his balance was enough for Jann to shave off a winning touch. Noval did not seem much disappointed, bowing gracefully in thanks, his face calm as he surveyed the initiates standing around them. Master Shayn wondered if he was going through one of the stages of grief, and he was not the only one to guess something along these lines, for gossip traveled fast in the Jedi camp and there was scarcely anyone who did not know that Noval's days with the order were numbered. Noval continued to improve in the following days. His form tightened up, his strokes became quicker, his movements more nimble. After a few days, he was making short work of Jann each time their sabers crossed: sometimes defeating him with an energetic sequence of thrusts just as the duel began, sometimes slowly wearing him down over time, and sometimes with a sequence of feints that that led Jann to thrust in wrong directions and leave himself vulnerable. He seemed to take no joy in his victories, much to the surprise of the rest of the students who had thought him impulsive and poor at self-control. It was not long before the masters began to pair him up with students from his own year. He did not seem to be exerting himself much: no sweat ever broke his brow and no cries ever came from his lips. His movements were calm, methodical, and, in retrospect, even somewhat predictable, though none of his opponents seem to be able to predict them during the bout itself. "How is it even possible to learn so much so quickly?" Shayn asked one day as both masters stood beside the fighting ring. Neither of them could help noticing that Noval's swordsmanship had improved by months of work from the bouts of the previous day. "Perhaps he has had a predilection for the saber all this time," Pavarr replied uncertainly and the two of them shared a troubled glance. They began to scrutinize Noval's fights each day. Ostensibly they behaved no different than before, walking slowly through the afternoon's saber practice and offering occasional instruction to the sparring students. But their minds were focused solely upon Noval and there was not one movement of his that they failed to sense, nor one stray thought they failed to detect. But though they kept at this for some weeks, they sensed nothing unusual, only intense concentration on his part and strong efforts to align body and mind. They had now spent many weeks on the planet and the trip was turning out to be something of a failure. No artifacts were discovered, despite a thorough search of the ancient temples and the vegetation surrounding them. Scavengers must have stripped the planet clean over the past decades, which, in retrospect, was not entirely unexpected: there were many collectors of Sith paraphernalia throughout the galaxy and functional relics could fetch a hefty price. The council had hoped to learn something new from the ruins themselves, which might bear Sith markings or otherwise reveal something of the rituals performed within their walls, but they were much decayed and little of interest could be gleaned from them. Although the masters were reluctant to return from their expedition empty handed, for a while it seemed as if they would have little choice. Fortunately, one of the initiates soon stumbled onto a find of some value, a collection of shards infused with dark energy, all of unknown origin and purpose. The masters surmised that these were once parts of an apparatus which played some part in the Sith rituals, but beyond that nothing could be inferred. The shards were passed around that afternoon, each student holding one briefly and peering into it. It was a safe way to expose the pupils to the corruption of the dark side, lest any of them be one day tempted to stray. The shards were destroyed that very day, to much rejoicing round the camp, and the students spent the evening telling each other stories of the unadulterated evil they had all apparently sensed within them. The following morning, Master Shayn announced they would be packing up and returning to the academy within days. There was much acclaim all around, as the novelty of the expedition had worn off long ago and the students were all eager to get back to the comforts of Dantooine after having spent months sleeping in tents on bare ground. By now Noval was routinely beating all the other students at camp. That morning, as Reena watched him gracefully disarm the tall, lanky boy who was the best among them only recently, she thought he might have been dancing. His motions had a continuity to them, one movement seemingly flowing into the next, all the parries, feints, and thrusts blended into a single waltz of movement. It should not have been surprising to Noval that his preeminence in the fighting ring would translate into a rise in social status; nonetheless, he seemed to be astonished at the attention that was now directed at him. Before he was almost invisible, no one bothering to take notice of his movements about the camp; now he became a bit of a celebrity, the eyes of others always upon him, always approached for a passing attempt at conversation whenever he dallied. One day, a group of pupils arrived at his tent with follow-up questions on whether holocrons should be considered people. They sat patiently in a circle, seemingly hanging on to his every word. Reena, who came along out of curiosity, thought he seemed disconcerted by it all. She expected him to feel a little happier to be the recipient of all the attention, especially after years of being considered unworthy of notice by most of his fellow students; and, though he smiled at times, there was also a strange undercurrent of anxiety flowing through him. Perhaps he would relax, she thought, once the question of finding a master would be resolved one way or the other. When asked how he was able to improve his saber skills, he answered only that he had finally decided to put his mind to it. Reena put the same question to him when she caught him alone and was vexed to receive the same answer. He looked at her apprehensively, leading her to question him further, but despite her many questions he had said nothing else. 10. As their ship lifted off the planet, Master Shayn's gaze settled on Noval. The shuttle was drowning in an enthusiastic buzz as the students chatted excitedly with one another. Noval sat apart, eyes closed and body taut and steady. He seemed as if he could be meditating though he was not using any of the familiar Jedi stances. "He must have been working hard indeed," Shayn said leading over to Pavarr. "Do you suppose it will do him any good?" "Unlikely," Pavarr scrunched his lips, "he will have to defeat the best swordsmen in the academy to get any attention. He has improved much in recent weeks but nowhere near enough." For a time, it seemed as if the masters' prediction might come true: hours after landing on Dantooine and checking in with the academy's steward, Noval left his chambers with a small bag on his shoulders and was nowhere to be found in the following days. Master Shayn thought to himself that he would likely never see the boy again. Was he drinking down his sorrows at the local cantina? Did he use his newfound freedom to chase members of the opposite sex, as so many who left the order were wont to do? Did he join a guild of bounty hunters in search for adventure? With a sigh, the master turned his thoughts to other, weightier, matters. But ten days hence, moments before the annual lightsaber tournament was about to commence, Noval walked into the arena of the Jedi academy and calmly wrote his name on the roster. "I thought you had abandoned us." Master Shayn, in charge of determining the tournament pairings, stood nearby. Noval smiled. "Perish the thought, master." "Where have you been?" Noval made an all-encompassing gesture with one of his hands. "This planet, master, its hills and its fields and its caves, that is where I have been. Dantooine lives, it abounds in the force, does it not?" He smiled again before moving off to join the rest of the contestants. It was uncharacteristic behavior, Master Shayn reflected, but Noval had broken none of the academy's rules with the term winding down and classes long over. Over the next few hours, Master Shayn witnessed an event to which he had only recently ascribed a very low probability: under the eyes of more than a hundred masters gathered in the arena, Noval defeated all his competitors, one after the other, and placed first in the tournament. He seemed to have an uncanny ability to guess his opponent's moves. No one could say how he always seemed to be in the right place; some of the students claimed he foresaw his opponent's intentions using the force, but he was not drawing upon it more heavily than anyone else; others said he was merely good at reading footwork and tried to fool him by improvising, always unsuccessfully. It was not merely his victory that was eye-catching but also his measured demeanor. Whereas his opponents seemed to bring a fierce determination to the matches, coupling thrusts of the saber with spikes of emotion that were instantly felt and disapproved of by the watchful masters, Noval's exterior remained calm and no outbursts were noticed coming from him. His assured appearance matched his clean and efficient saber style, which was free of the theatricality and exhibition that one often saw in tournaments at the academy. To the visiting masters who were seeing him for the first time, he appeared to be an ideal padawan. 11. When Reena heard that Noval received several offers of tutelage, she stopped by his chambers offer her congratulations. She had always hoped that he would go on to become a Jedi. Even though he never quite seemed to fit in, and even though his irreverent attitude had morphed into an unpleasant bitterness as of late, somehow the Jedi order felt as if it would be less without him. But he was nowhere to be found and his roommate told her that he had been distant as of late, leaving early in the mornings and coming back in the middle of night. Sometimes he was gone for days. She left Noval several messages with warm congratulations and requests for a celebratory meal, all unreturned. She had received several offers of her own and was having a difficult time choosing. One of them was from Master Shayn, currently in the process of planning another expedition, this one to one of the far corners of the galaxy. The archaeological work was important but tedious, painstaking, requiring much forbearance, and she was sure it would strain her patience. She was more inclined towards an offer from one of the order's most celebrated negotiators, master Elysar. They had gotten along instantly during their meeting. Master Elysar was startlingly informal - "Call me Cora," she had said barely after they had bowed to one another. They ended up talking for hours, and it felt less like talking to a master than to an older sister or a friend. She imagined what life would be like for an envoy's apprentice: traveling the galaxy, seeing hundreds if not thousands of worlds, shepherding along negotiations that would bring peace to the world. It was breathlessly exciting. And that was also the problem. Reena recalled something she had heard years ago from one of the oldest and wisest masters in the academy: "Adventure. Excitement. A Jedi craves not these things." Was it wise to put herself into temptation's way, to let herself indulge the very impulses she should be working to excise? She sought guidance from the masters who had taught her in the past, receiving much advice, most of it conflicting. The most common suggestion was that she should choose master Elysar - but only after curbing her impulses and expunging the emotions that would be a stumbling block for her. One day she stayed up late into the night, unable to stop thinking about the possibilities before her. She overslept the next day, not having the strength to rise with the dawn as she usually did, and it was after some hours, late into the morning, as she drifted fitfully between sleep and wakefulness, that she heard Noval's name mentioned by someone walking past the door of her chambers. Forcing herself to awaken, she strained her hearing. "...hasn't talked to anyone." "I heard he barely said a word to his roommate." "Selfish of him not to share his secret with all of us." "Maybe there is no secret." "Come now, no one can become that good so quickly." "Maybe he stumbled onto an ancient sparring technique." "I suppose we'll never know. His shuttle departs on the hour." Throwing on her clothes (if there was one advantage to the Jedi attire, it was that the robes did not take long to put on), she rushed to the landing pad, and there he was, shoulders hunched, looking around uncertainly as the droids carried crates onto a shuttle that was prepping for take-off. He seemed to be anxious, eyes darting aimlessly in the morning breeze, hands buried deep in his pockets. His eyes brightened when he recognized her. She thought that she might get a stiff reception after he ignored her messages earlier, but he greeted her with a warm smile and a tight hug. "Congratulations," she said disengaging, "I can't begin to tell you how happy I am. Which master have you chosen? Wait, I know - I'd bet anything you've picked Master Doshan." Doshan was a scholar before he joined the ranks of the Jedi at an unusually old age and was thought to be the most cerebral of the Jedi masters. His students told stories of staying up late into the night, arguing fine points of Jedi doctrine. She heard a rumor several days ago that he had made an offer to Noval. "In fact, I've chosen Master Nimbo," Noval replied. Nimbo was known for his obsession with combat skills, which he prized above all else. He was often mocked by the initiates for his less than complete knowledge of Jedi practice. Several years ago one of the older students swore he heard him mangle the Jedi code, though this was mostly likely exaggeration. "You surprise me," she said. "I surprise myself," he said somewhat bitterly. They stood awkwardly for a moment. "Tell me, Reena," he said all of a sudden, "do you believe the order will bring peace to the galaxy?" She looked at him with confusion. "That came out of nowhere," she said. She paused for a moment. "Peace - isn't that what we are fighting for?" "Of course it's what we are fighting for," he parried. "Do you think we will succeed?" She considered it. "You know, I never thought much about it." She hesitated. "Fighting for the right thing is honorable, regardless of whether one succeeds or not. That is enough for me." "I'm not sure it's enough for me," he replied curtly. "The order has existed for thousands of years. You know the history as well as I do - the one thing the galaxy has not had is lasting peace. Do you really think we will succeed where the famous masters of old have failed?" "When you put it that way, perhaps not." She looked intently into his eyes. "But if not this, then what? What else is there besides serving the Republic in its mission?" "Good question," he said, meeting her gaze. The droids had ceased carrying crates and the shuttle's pilot could be heard shouting orders over the roar of the engines. "You and I," he went on quickly, "we were always the ones with questions, weren't we? The ones no one else wanted to ask?" She nodded. In fact, she thought, he was usually the one asking the questions no one wanted to hear, but she had at least been willing to play along. "Maybe one day we'll have some answers." He began to say something else but it was lost in the ear-piercing rumble coming from the landing pad. He reached over and gave her a brief hug before turning to the shuttle and walking away.German Journalist Gernot Kramper compared two videos showing the US-made M1 Abrams tank and the Russian-made T-90 being hit by anti-tank missiles. He found that the Russian-made military vehicles demonstrated much better resistance and a higher level of armor protection than the American one. The recent military operation in Mosul shows that the US-led coalition is superior in the air, but its land operations leave much to be desired, Kramper wrote for German magazine Stern. One of the videos released by Daesh fighters shows how an anti-tank missile hit an American M1 Abrams tank and turned it into a "ball of fire." "The tank, weighing more than 60 tons, was supposed to protect its crew from something like that. The M1 Abrams is a combat armor tank of the US forces that is still in use. It was introduced for the first time in 1979, and since then it has been modernized several times. The Iraqis, however, have only reclaimed older versions available. The main problem is that the tanks have obviously not been reequipped with modern defense features," the journalist wrote. Apparently, a rocket hit the most vulnerable part of the tank — the compartment with ammunition. However, the 60-ton tank was still supposed to provide protection for the crew. Obviously, the tank in question did not possess active defense systems. There was also no reactive armor on the vehicle that could have reduced the damage, Kramper stated. The author also noted that in contrast to Iraqi troops equipped with the old US military vehicles, the Syrian Army was provided by Moscow with the new efficient tanks. To prove his opinion, Kramper published a video depicting the US-produced TOW missile hitting the Russian-made T-90 tank in Syria. The machine turned out to have an active protection system that didn't let the missile to penetrate the armor and enabled the crew to get out of the cab.The World Toilet Organization ( WTO ) is a global non-profit organization committed to improving toilet and sanitation conditions worldwide. It was founded in 2001 [1] with 15 members and has now grown to 151 member organizations in 53 countries. All these members work towards eliminating the toilet taboo and delivering sustainable sanitation solutions worldwide. [2] Furthermore, the WTO is also the organizer of the World Toilet Summit, the Urgent Run and initiated the United Nations World Toilet Day. [3] WTO was founded by Jack Sim in Singapore on 19 November 2001. Since its inception, WTO has brought together governments, academia, civil society, multilateral agencies and the private sector to explore innovative and sustainable solutions to end the global sanitation crisis. WTO’s mission is to promote the global sanitation movement through collaborative action that inspires and drives demand for sanitation and provides innovative solutions to achieve sustainable sanitation for all. Jack Sim is the founder of the World Toilet Organization, the BoP HUB and is a global advocate for sanitation. Formerly in the construction industry, he founded WTO in 2001 after attaining financial independence at age of 40 and deciding to devote the rest of his life to social work. For ‘creating good will and bringing the subject into the open’ and ‘mobilizing national support in providing on-the-ground expertise’ Jack Sim received the Schwab Foundation award for Social Entrepreneur of the Year in 2001. In 2007, Jack became one of the key members to convene the Sustainable Sanitation Alliance composed of key players for sanitation. He is an Ashoka Global Fellow, and was named one of the Heroes of the Environment for 2008 by Time Magazine. World Toilet Summit Edit The World Toilet Summit & Expo (WTS) is a global platform that brings together sanitation stakeholders to share, learn and collaborate to address the global sanitation challenge. The annual summit is jointly organised by a host government or organization involving policy makers, toilet associations, non-profits and for-profit entities and private sector stakeholders in the sanitation sector. WTS aims to empower these key players to exchange knowledge, expertise and resources in scaling up impact and innovation in the sanitation marketplace. World Toilet Day Edit WTO was founded on 19 November 2001 and the inaugural WTS was held on the same day. WTO recognized the need for an international day to draw global attention to the sanitation crisis – and so established World Toilet Day.[4] NGOs, the private sector, civil society organisations and the international community joined in to mark the global day. The Urgent Run in Senegal organized to celebrate WTD 2014 Urgent Run Edit Each year, WTO commemorates WTD with the Urgent Run. The Urgent Run is a call for urgent action to end the sanitation crisis and aims to bring communities around the world together to raise awareness for the global sanitation challenge and engage people with sanitation issues in their local communities. For the past few years, in the lead-up to UN World Toilet Day, communities worldwide have come together to organize sanitation-themed Urgent Runs in varying formats and include fun runs, educational events, awareness walks, toilet cleaning programs, carnivals and even motorbike parades. They are organised by community groups, companies, universities, volunteers and NGOs to engage their local communities on their sanitation challenges.[5] Rainbow School Toilet Initiative Edit Many school toilets in rural China face problems of having old, unhygienic dry system toilets, absent hand washing facilities, and are often designed where the excreta disposal site is located right behind the toilet building – uncovered and exposed to the environment. Often, these schools lack a cohesive management system to upkeep and maintain the facilities, resulting in the toilet falling into a state of disrepair and neglect. This coupled with students who do not practice good hygiene habits, like handwashing with soap, can result in long-lasting health and environmental consequences. With the aim of inspiring positive, long-lasting behavioural change among Chinese students, WTO`s Rainbow School Toilet Initiative was launched in 2015. In 2016 4 rural schools, with an estimated 1,300 students (average 300 students per school) benefited from the new toilet buildings equipped with a recyclable wastewater treatment plant.[6] Floating Community Toilet Project Edit Until recently, no proper sanitation solution existed for the almost 100,000 people living in floating communities on Cambodia’s Tonle Sap Lake. To address sanitation issues in these floating communities, Wetlands Work! (WW) developed the HandyPod, a product that contains the raw sewage and treats it by harnessing various biological processes. This project aims to eliminate open defecation by providing sanitation systems to floating schools and teaching students to use toilets; improve sanitation and hygiene; reduce school absences due to diarrhea; increase school attendance especially for girls, as well as driving demand for household toilets. WTO and WW raised funds for the project through various platforms and in 2016 a total 8 HandyPods have been installed befitting approximately 900 students and 650 indirect beneficiaries in their households. The project was developed with a holistic and sustainable approach of technology (Handypods) and behavioural change (hygiene awareness classes) to the communities. World Toilet College Edit The World Toilet College (WTC) started as a social enterprise in 2005 with the belief that there is a need for an independent world body to ensure best practices and standards in toilet design, cleanliness and sanitation technologies. While the lack of toilets is an endemic problem, poor management and hygienic maintenance are equally serious issues. A well-kept toilet will encourage proper usage and prevent deadly diseases.[7] The goal of WTC’s programmes is to ensure the dignity of sanitation workers and elevate the otherwise poor image (and consequent low pay) reserved for this employment category in many places around the world. WTC does this by training and providing toilet cleaners with professional skills in both cleaning and performance of small repairs, thereby boosting their self-confidence. This empowers them with the opportunity to master the profession while at the same time enhancing their productivity. Since 2005 WTC has trained more than 5,000 people across its various courses and conducted programmes and courses. SaniShop Edit WTO created SaniShop, a social enterprise that improves sanitation conditions globally by empowering local entrepreneurs. The organization started its market-based approach in Cambodia in 2009 in collaboration with the University of North Carolina, Lien Aid and iDE in Kampung Speu. Since then SaniShop has built more than 12,000 household toilets and trained more than 526 sales entrepreneurs in 7 provinces. The SaniShop model is a self-sustaining market ecosystem. WTO teaches community members to educate and spread messaging regarding the importance of good hygiene and sanitation, whilst training masons to build new toilets and to market them to their community. WTO believes in addressing the issue of inadequate sanitation and to end open defecation via a multi-pronged approach that inspires behavioural change both in the individual, and community.Villagers lynched a youth and critically injured his associate in Kurumgarh area of Gumla district in Jharkhand on Friday, as they suspected them to be behind the gangrape and murder of a 35-year-old married woman on January 8, police said. Advertising The deceased, identified as Lal Mohan Mahato, and one of his associates were allegedly rounded up by a mob in the village and beaten up. While Mahato succumbed on the spot, his associate was severely injured. He was later handed over to the police. Gumla ASP (operations) Pawan Kumar Singh said: “It appears to be a case of mob justice. The woman used to go to the forest to collect wood. On one such occasion, the accused had allegedly accosted her. She was later raped and murdered. The villagers had apparently identified the accused.” Asked whether the decision of attacking the duo was taken in a panchayat meeting, Singh said there was a huge presence of villagers and it appeared to be a case of mob justice. However, it was not a case of rebels holding a panchayat and handing out orders, he added. Advertising Gumla subdivisional police officer Anjani Jha said: “We got the information about Mahato’s death. His associate is injured. However, we have not yet got the possession of the body. We are in the process of reaching the spot.”Build any small structure you need, easily & economically! Starplates are steel plates, with channels to hold 2x2's, 2x3's or 2x4's. You simply drill holes in each end of 25 struts of equal length and bolt them into the 11 star plates to build a solid, mini-dome framework in UNDER TWO HOURS! USE STARPLATE FRAME CONNECTORS Anyone can erect a sturdy, good looking building... in record time and using up to 15% less material and labor than conventional construction would require. Set includes 11 starplates, complete instructions, bill of materials, dimensions achieved by using various sized struts, and helpful suggestions. Building Is Easy With Starplates! Visit our aviary supply page for additional materials to help you make aviaries, poultry and gamebird housing using the Starplate Building System! Order Starplate Building SystemAthens: Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says the country has a "moral obligation" to claim reparations from Germany for the damages wrought by the Nazis during World War II. Greece had "a moral obligation to our people, to history, to all European peoples who fought and gave their blood against Nazism," he said in a key address to parliament. Berlin has already sounded a firm "no" to requests for reparations nearly 70 years after the end of the war, but Mr Tsipras and his radical left party have vowed to tackle the issue. The issue risks aggravating already strained ties between Athens and Berlin, as Mr Tsipras bids to reverse austerity measures imposed by its international creditors. "Our historical obligation is to claim the occupation loan and reparations," the new prime minister said, referring to Germany's four-year occupation of Greece and a war-time loan which the Third Reich forced the Greek central bank to give it, and which ruined the country financially. Mr Tsipras's anti-austerity Syriza party claims Germany owes it about around €162 billion ($236 billion), about or around half the country's public debt, which stands at over €315
7th above the root (11 half-steps). Another way to look at this construct would be to count the intervals from one note to the next. In that case we would count a major 3rd (M3) from the root to 3rd, a minor 3rd (m3) from 3rd to 5th, and major 3rd (M3) from 5th to 7th. – Max Wild Ableton Live Tutorial: Pitch Modulation Using Operator w/ Adam Partridge This tutorial focuses on a form of pitch modulation known as pitch bend, by exploring the recreation of the lead synth line in “Look At Me Know”. Please do not get stuck on following the exact envelope automation displayed in this tutorial. The idea is to use your ears and eyes to achieve the pitch modulation desired. Pitch modulation is a common technique used to add movement to leads, chords and bass lines. – Adam PartridgeShare. The mega-retailer scores a rare and unique Pokémon promotion. The mega-retailer scores a rare and unique Pokémon promotion. If you haven't yet picked up a copy of Pokémon X or Y – or if you've already finished one and are now thinking about buying the other version for a second runthrough – you may want to consider making your purchase at Walmart. The retailer has scored a rare exclusive distribution for a pair of special monsters, and it's only available through making new purchases of either edition. If you decide to pick up Pokémon X, you'll find an unlock code inside for a special Garchomp. If you go with Pokémon Y instead, you'll be able to add a special Scizor to your in-game party. Garchomp and Scizor are two of the most popular Pokémon introduced in previous generations, and both monsters have gained renewed relevance in this latest sequel through the arrival of their new Mega Garchomp and Mega Scizor forms. The nature of this promotion is rare, as Walmart doesn't often offer added in-game content as an incentive for video game purchases. And it's even more rare from the Pokémon side of the coin, as I personally can't remember a time before when an Event Pokémon distribution has been tied specifically to a new product purchase, rather than being made freely available for all fans. (If you can recall an example, let me know in the comments below.) No word yet on what makes these Pokémon "special," either – if you pick up one of these Walmart copies and download the Scizor or Garchomp, let us know that too. Are they shiny? Are they holding a rare item? We do know the deadline, though – this promotion will run until June 30 of next year. Lucas M. Thomas has been writing for IGN since Nintendo's active console was still the GameCube. You can follow him on Twitter, @lucasmthomas.During the early George W. Bush years, when a boy king seemed to be inhabiting the White House, Bill Clinton appeared as sage as King Solomon, minus the latter’s 700 wives and 300 concubines (although it might depend on how you count), and people sought him out as a shepherd. In 2008, however, Barack Obama made Clinton lose his cool, in more than one way, and, today, people are suggesting that Clinton has lost the magic entirely. This Wednesday, he defended his support for tough crime measures in 1994 and welfare reform in 1996, putting on a spirited and sincere show, but one that earned him accusations of being condescending and tone-deaf and “very dehumanizing.” Just a couple of weeks ago, he spoke of the “awful legacy of the last eight years,” a complaint probably uttered with Republican opposition in mind, but one that could not have pleased the current White House. Some have now urged Hillary Clinton to bench her husband. “She can’t divorce him,” Michelle Goldberg wrote recently in Slate, “but she can fire him.” Picking on the Clintons is not without its rewards, campaign stumbles aside. Their habit of approaching the line of vulgarity (or illegality), like a drunk trucker swaying almost (but not quite fully) out of his lane, can drive even their fans crazy. But while Clinton’s mind may be as disorganized as ever, it is still strong; his unvetted remarks are excusable; and his voice—for all its foibles—remains valuable. In fact, it might be insidiously valuable during this particular election cycle. We’ll start with the gaffes, which have set people talking about mental decline. This narrative is a pesky one that’s hard to get rid of once it takes root, and every misstep becomes another confirmation of it. But it’s silly. While all of us are going downhill after age 25, more so at 70 than at 50, Clinton’s mind still seems to be in fine repair. Politicians say rash things all the time. That’s unavoidable in the profession, unless you want to go pure robot. Anyone remember “I didn’t inhale”? That dumb line was voiced over two decades ago, but no one thought it meant Bill Clinton had lost his political gifts. They simply concluded that he could be full of it, a belief that subsequent years didn’t dispel. This year, however, Clinton is making far less trouble than in 2008, when he was insisting, for instance, that Hillary and Obama hadn’t really differed on Iraq. Despite a few glancing digs at Bernie Sanders, he has been pretty peaceful. Even when protesters try to disrupt events, he’s patient. The charitably minded will also acknowledge that mastering the twin roles of ex-president and spousal campaign surrogate is tough, not to mention unprecedented. Sit out the campaign, and it looks weird, generating other sorts of embarrassment and headlines. Is Bill under house arrest? Is Bill being hidden? Exclusive: Bill has 6 months to live! On the other hand, any president, even a former one, looms dangerously large on a stage next to a mere aspirant. Get too involved in the mud-throwing of a primary, and you not only lose your statesmanlike aura but also look like you’re taking the wheel of the car. That happened in 2008, when Clinton couldn’t help but act like someone desperate to be in charge again. In 2016, though, he looks much more like a supporting player. He’s performing before Podunk venues across New York and doing his best to play to his strength: connecting with people in a non-giant room. Are you going to advise Hillary not to send her husband to talk to 850 people at the Grapevine Banquets in Depew (just east of Cheektowaga, if you’re looking to place it) on the grounds that it’ll hurt more than help? Please.Microsoft is set to begin the rollout of Windows 10 on July 29. As the final version of Windows, the Redmond-based company is moving away from big releases and will instead issue incremental updates to keep the OS up to speed. Automatic updates aren’t anything new in Windows but if you’re planning to purchase or otherwise upgrade to Windows 10 Home edition, you need to know that Microsoft will install updates and new features automatically whether you like it or not. In the final version of Windows 10 that was distributed to beta testers this week, Microsoft added a small clause to its end user license agreement (EULA) which states that users will receive automatic updates without any additional notice. In other words, the updates will be mandatory (unless you disconnect from the Internet, I suppose). It’s a bold move, one that some will no doubt view as a double-edged sword. Having the latest security patches and features installed seems like a noble cause that would protect users from various vulnerabilities. If you’ve ever had to work on a friend or family member’s computer because they contracted something from not having the latest security updates, you can certainly relate. Yet at the same time, it’s not uncommon for a particular Windows update to cause more harm than good. Whether a patch is incompatible with specific hardware, installs unwanted drivers or is downright buggy, Windows updates have been known to cause all sorts of trouble for end users. What’s more, the automatic downloads could be an issue for those on tight bandwidth caps. What do you think about this policy? Is Microsoft doing the right thing by making updates mandatory or will it ultimately cause more harm than good? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.While birding at Jamnagar on the New Year's eve, Mumbai-based wildlife biologist Shashank Dalvi spotted a Common Ringed Plover just an hour before dusk. While for others it might have been the end of a typical birding day, for him it meant being the first Indian to not only successfully complete the prestigious "Big Year" challenge taken up by birders, but also record a whooping 1,128 birds in a calender year. The "Big Year" is an informal competition initiated in the United States amongst birders to check who can record the maximum number of birds in a span of one calender year where birders follow the 'Birder Code of Honour' meaning that they will not cheat. In 2013, the 32-year-old decided to take up the challenge in 2015. For this, he also had to quit his job and the entire 2014 was spent planning the itinerary. "I travelled to some of the most beautiful birding hotspots in 22 states and union territories like Andaman and Nicobar throughout the year and visited four places, including Nicobar islands, Kashmir, Desert National Park and Sela Pass in Arunanchal Pradesh, twice. I began on January 1 from Tansa Wildlife Sanctuary close to Mumbai by spotting four species of Owls," shared Dalvi, an Andheri resident who is known as one of the most experienced birders in the community and has a Masters degree in Wildlife Biology from WCS-NCBS Bengaluru. He played an important role in not only exposing the mass huntings of Amur Falcons in Nagaland along with few naturalists, but also initiating several key conservation plans for the birds. The highlight of the "Big Year" for Dalvi was that he managed to spot over a dozen bird species across the country that have just been recorded only a couple of times by birdwatchers so far and he even visited Nicobar islands where he spotted some species that were never recorded. "I got to record Longbilled Bush Warbler that was last recorded in 1977, Purple-throated Sunbird and Arctic Warbler that were the second recording ever in India and birds like Sooty Gull that has been only recorded five times so far," he said, adding that while he photo documented several of the birds he also was accompanied by various birders from the area he visited most of the times. Dalvi also informed that there were also several challenges for him, including to ensure that he is at the right place at the right time for some species. "There are around seven species of birds that are passage migrants and travel through the Northwest part of the country only and can't be seen in any part of the country stopping for just couple of days. To spot them one has to be present at the right place at the right time and fortunately, I could spot such birds like Spotted Flycatcher, Red backed Shrike, Greater whitethroat and European Nightjar. Meanwhile, some birds are only found around the borders of the country like the Tibetan Lark can only be seen in eastern Ladakh while Chinese Francolin is spotted only in Manipur," he stated, adding that similarly to find some species like Petrels, Skua, Shear Water and others he even had to venture deep into the sea. Speaking about how he prepared himself for this one year of birding, Shashank — who completed his education at Bhavan's College — shared that being an experienced birder it was not difficult for him though the whole exercise is extremely taxing as one is constantly travelling. "Birding in the northeastern states has always been my stronghold. Hence, I managed to spot two third birds of my total bird count in these states itself and since i had to give up my job to fund my trips, I took several birding trails to various parts of the country. Also, as soon as my friends from various parts of the country came to know about my "Big Year", they helped me by providing accommodation as well as transportation," he said. He added that he could only visit home only twice in the entire year and to ensure he could be with his family he invited his wife and other family members to different parts of the country he was visiting for bird watching. However, as Dalvi is in Mumbai now, taking a break from all the travel he did in 2015 he has his task cut out. "One of my main aims to do the "Big Year" was to understand the bird distribution across the country along with understanding by getting a first hand experience of the kind of habitat destruction and other issues that are plaguing some of the most rare and endangered ones as well as the fairly commonly seen birds and now with all the information and documentation that i have carried out i am planning to initiate several conservation programmes as well across the country," he informed. There are about 1,300 species of birds in India (including all the vagrants) and roughly there would be around 1,170-1,180 regularly occurring species in India, he added. The Big YearOregon-based birder Noah Strycker, who took up the "Big Year" challenge in 2015, travelled to 41 different countries and created a record by spotting 6,042 species of birds and broke the earlier record of 4,341 species set in 2008 by Alan Davies and Ruth Miller. He was recently in Tansa Wildlife Sanctuary to spot the Forest Owlet A Hollywood film, too, was made titled "The Big Year" in 2011 starring Jack Black, Steve Martin, and Owen Wilson and was based on the non-fiction book The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession which was written by journalist Mark Obmascik. Some interesting birds spotted by DalviNicobar Jungle FlycatcherGreat Nicobar crakeCentral Nicobar Serpent EagleSooty GullPale legged leaf warblerArctic WarblerPurple Throated SunbirdChinese FrancolinLong billed bush warblerBoobyShear WaterSkuaStorm PetrelsPetrelsEuropean NightjarGreater White ThroatRufous Tailed Scrub RobinRufous Tailed ShrikeRed backed ShrikeSpotted FlycatcherA group of central Ontario parents is demanding their children's schools turn off wireless internet before they head back to school next month, fearing the technology is making the kids sick. Some parents in the Barrie, Ont., area say their children are showing a host of symptoms, ranging from headaches to dizziness and nausea and even racing heart rates. They believe the Wi-Fi setup in their kids' elementary schools may be the problem. The parents complain they can't get the Simcoe County school board or anyone else to take their concerns seriously, even though the children's symptoms all disappear on weekends when they aren't in school. "Parents are getting together and realizing this is the pattern," said Rodney Palmer of the Simcoe County Safe School Committee. "We went to the school board and they did nothing." P.O.V.: Are you concerned about Wi-Fi’s potential health risks? Take our poll. The symptoms, which also include memory loss, trouble concentrating, skin rashes, hyperactivity, night sweats and insomnia, have been reported in 14 Ontario schools in Barrie, Bradford, Collingwood, Orillia and Wasaga Beach since the board decided to go wireless, Palmer said. "These kids are getting sick at school but not at home," he said. "I'm not saying it's because of the Wi-Fi because we don't know yet, but I've pretty much eliminated every other possible source." The Simcoe County school board could not be reached for comment Friday because their offices were closed. The parents group has offered to pay for wired connections if the board switches off the Wi-Fi, Palmer said. "They didn't even say no," he said. "They ignored it and … reaffirmed their position supporting Wi-Fi. "They are culpable and … they have the gall to go on the record and say they haven't had any doctor's notes. Well what doctor has been schooled about the rate of microwave infections?" Susan Clarke, a former research consultant to the Harvard School of Public Health, said Wi-Fi technology alters fundamental physiological functioning and can cause neurological and cardiac symptoms. Young kids most susceptible "We have the physics that show that children, especially young children, are going to absorb much more radiation than older children and adults because of their thinner skulls and because the size of their brains more closely approximates the size of the wavelength being deployed," Clarke said. Wireless technology also wastes energy, is less secure than wired connections, could be violating a student's right to a safe environment and should be turned off in schools, Clarke added. "The simple solution is plug back in the wired, ported system that's already there and unplug the wireless," she said. "It's real easy and it costs nothing. In fact, it will save money." Professor Magda Havas of Trent University in Peterborough, Ont., who does research on the health effects of electromagnetic radiation, issued an open letter to parents and boards saying she is "increasingly concerned" about Wi-Fi and cellphone use at schools. Claims by Health Canada that Wi-Fi is safe provided exposures to radiation are below federal guidelines are "outdated and incorrect," based on the growing number of scientific publications reporting adverse health and biological effects, Havas wrote. "It is irresponsible to introduce Wi-Fi microwave radiation into a school environment where young children and school employees spend hours each day." The Ontario Ministry of Education said it has heard from the parents in Simcoe County and received a complaint passed along from a Peterborough family worried about Wi-Fi in schools. But the ministry said it is up to local school boards to deal with the issue. "The boards, the principals and the teachers should work together to address those concerns," said ministry spokeswoman Erin Moroz. The provincial New Democrats said they too had been hearing from parents worried about the effects of wireless technology on children, and called on the chief medical officer of health to investigate. "Within a few months of Wi-Fi being installed, stories start coming forward with kids complaining about headaches, neurological effects, loss of balance and problems with fine motor skills," said NDP health critic France Gelinas. "There is enough anecdotal evidence from parents that this is worth looking into." Palmer plans to find alternate schools or even home school his two children this fall if the board doesn't agree to turn off the Wi-Fi and said other parents will likely follow suit if the symptoms return. "If they're going to continue to endanger the health of children, I can predict that many of the parents who are now writing us saying their kids have been fine all summer are going to have a change of heart about the third week of September when their kids are coming home from school with these problems, particularly the ones that are passing out and falling down, hitting their head on the gym floor," he said. While parents worry about younger children, concerns about the health effects of wireless technology prompted Lakehead University to virtually ban Wi-Fi from its campuses in Thunder Bay, Ont., and Orillia, Ont. "There will be no Wi-Fi connectivity provided in those areas of the university already served by hard wire connectivity until such time as the potential health effects have been scientifically rebutted or there are adequate protective measures that can be taken," says Lakehead's policy on Wi-Fi and cellular antennas.Federal prosecutors in Baltimore on Thursday said they will charge a former National Security Agency contractor with violating the Espionage Act, alleging that he made off with “an astonishing quantity” of classified digital and other data over 20 years in what is thought to be the largest theft of classified government material ever. In a 12-page memo, U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein and two other prosecutors laid out a much more far-reaching case against Harold T. Martin III than was previously outlined. They say he took at least 50 terabytes of data and “six full banker’s boxes worth of documents,” with many lying open in his home office or kept on his car’s back seat and in the trunk. Other material was stored in a shed on his property. One terabyte is the equivalent of 500 hours’ worth of movies. Martin, who will appear at a detention hearing in U.S. District Court in Baltimore on Friday, also took personal information about government employees as well as dozens of computers, thumb drives and other digital storage devices, the government memo said. The government has not alleged that Martin passed any material to a foreign government, but contends that if he is released on bail he could do so. A federal contractor suspected in the leak of powerful National Security Agency hacking tools has been arrested and charged with stealing classified information from the U.S. government, according to court records and U.S. officials familiar with the case. (Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post) Though he lacks a valid U.S. passport, the government said Martin could still flee to a foreign government that might wish to help him. Prosecutors said he has communicated with unnamed people in Russian and in June downloaded information on Russian and other languages. The prosecutors also said Martin had an “arsenal” of weapons in his home and car, including an assault-rifle-style tactical weapon and a pistol-grip shotgun with a flash suppressor. In a complaint unsealed earlier this month, the government charged him with felony theft of government property and the unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials, a misdemeanor. The prosecutors said that when an indictment is filed, they expect charges to include “violations of the Espionage Act,” offenses that carry a prison term of up to 10 years for each count. [NSA contractor thought to have taken classified material the old-fashioned way] Prosecutors will argue Friday that Martin, 51, of Glen Burnie, Md., presents “a high risk of flight, a risk to the nation and to the physical safety of others,” and that he should not be released from jail. “The case against the defendant thus far is overwhelming, and the investigation is ongoing,” said Rosenstein, Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Myers and trial attorney David Aaron. “The defendant knows, and, if no longer detained, may have access to a substantial amount of highly classified information, which he has flagrantly mishandled and could easily disseminate to others.” Continued detention without bail is necessary, prosecutors said, because of “the grave and severe danger that pretrial release of the defendant would pose to the national security of the United States.” Martin’s attorneys argued in a memo filed Thursday that their client is not a flight risk and should be released under court-approved conditions pending trial. “The government concocts fantastical scenarios in which Mr. Martin — who, by the government’s own admission, does not possess a valid passport — would attempt to flee the country,” wrote public defenders James Wyda and Deborah L. Boardman. [Read Harold Martin’s arguments to be released from detention] Martin’s wife and home are in Maryland, they said. He has served in the U.S. Navy. “There is no evidence he intended to betray his country,” they said. “The government simply does not meet its burden of showing that no conditions of release would reasonably assure Mr. Martin’s future appearance in court.” The government also alleged that Martin took a top-secret document detailing “specific operational plans against a known enemy of the United States.” Prosecutors did not name the enemy. The document, prosecutors said, contained a warning, in capital letters, that said: “This conop [concept of operations] contains information concerning extremely sensitive U.S. planning and operations that will be discussed and disseminated only on an absolute need to know basis.” Martin was not involved in the operation, the government said, and had no need to have the document or know its specifics. [Read the government argument to keep former NSA contractor Harold Martin in jail ] Another document found in his car contained handwritten notes describing NSA’s classified computer systems and detailed descriptions of classified technical operations, the prosecutors said. In an interview before his arrest, Martin denied having taken classified material and only admitted to it when confronted with specific documents, prosecutors said. He had access to classified data beginning in 1996, when he was with the Navy Reserve, and that access continued through his employment with seven private government contractors. The government alleged that Martin was able to defeat “myriad, expensive controls placed” on classified information. They said the devices seized show he made extensive use of sophisticated encryption. He also used a sophisticated software tool that runs without being installed on a computer and provides anonymous Internet access, “leaving no digital footprint on the machine,” they said. In August, a cache of highly sensitive NSA hacking tools mysteriously appeared online. Although investigators have not found conclusive evidence that he was responsible for that, he is the prime suspect, said U.S. officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. That is the event that set off the search that turned up Martin, the officials said. In July, according to the prosecutors’ memo, he watched a video about how law enforcement authorities catch computer users who wish to remain anonymous on the Internet. “He has a demonstrated ability to conceal his online communications and his access to the Internet,” the prosecutors said. To support their argument that Martin poses a danger to the community, they noted that in late July, he went to Connecticut to buy a “Detective Special” police-package Chevrolet Caprice. While searching his house, the FBI also recovered 10 firearms, only two of which were registered, the government said. Prosecutors said a loaded handgun was found in a case on the floorboard of the Caprice, in violation of Maryland law. Martin’s wife, Deborah Vinson, was “very upset” to learn about his arsenal, prosecutors said, and asked the FBI to take custody of the firearms because she was afraid that he would kill himself if he “thought it was all over.” If Martin had taken the classified material “for his own edification, as he has claimed, there would be no reason to keep some of it in his car, and arm himself as though he were trafficking in dangerous contraband,” prosecutors said.Comcast’s customer satisfaction score for subscription TV service fell 6 percent in a new survey, putting the company near the bottom of rankings published by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Comcast’s score fell from 62 to 58 on ACSI’s 100-point scale, a drop of more than 6 percent between 2016 and 2017. The ACSI’s 2017 report on telecommunications released this week attributed the decrease to “price hikes for Xfinity (Comcast) subscriptions.” Satisfaction with pay-TV providers dropped industry-wide, tying the segment with Internet service (a product offered by the same companies) for last place in the ACSI’s rankings. The ACSI summarized the trend as follows: Customer satisfaction with subscription television service slips 1.5 percent to 64, tied with Internet service providers for last place among 43 industries tracked by the ACSI. Many of the same large companies offer service for Internet, television, and voice via bundling. The threat of competition from streaming services has done little to spur improvement for pay TV. Customer service remains poor, and cord-cutting continues to accelerate. More than half a million subscribers defected from cable and satellite TV providers during the first quarter of 2017—the largest loss in the history of the industry. Customers still prefer fiber optic and satellite to cable, putting FiOS (Verizon Communications) in first place with a 1 percent uptick to 71. AT&T takes the next two spots with its fiber optic and satellite services. The ACSI tracks more than 300 companies, interviewing 180,000 customers each year. The average score is 76.8, about 20 percent higher than the TV and home Internet industries. Click here for a list of all industries that rank better than cable TV and Internet providers. Comcast has blamed price increases on things it doesn’t control, namely the amount it must pay for programming. But no other company in the survey saw as big a decline in customer satisfaction with pay-TV, and most of the major ones were able to increase their scores. Verizon and AT&T put up the highest scores, while Comcast was second to last, ahead of Mediacom. These charts show satisfaction scores for individual companies and for industry-wide benchmarks such as picture quality and the ease of understanding bills (ACSI notes that "very few elements of the customer experience have improved"): Comcast is facing a lawsuit from customers over rising “Broadcast TV” and “Regional Sports” fees that Comcast says it uses to recover the costs of programming. These fees push the actual prices customers pay above the advertised rates. Comcast is the largest cable and broadband company in the US. Comcast rises in broadband while TWC drops By contrast, Comcast’s score improved on the broadband side of its business, rising from 59 to 60, ranking 8th out of 11 services that were big enough to have their scores broken out in the rankings: “Customer service aside, subscribers like fast Internet access, and Comcast has increased Internet speed 16 times over the past 14 years,” the ACSI report said. Comcast has also been trying to improve customer service for years after facing extensive criticism from subscribers and US lawmakers. Many US customers are still stuck with slower speeds and no option to switch to higher-speed providers. "Data-rich video accounts for more than half of all Internet traffic, but ISPs are falling short of providing higher-capacity networks at an affordable price," the ACSI said. "Competition is limited across most of the country, and customers are unhappy to be locked into service contracts when prices rise. Service is still largely considered to be slow and unreliable." Charter, the second biggest cable company, provides an interesting case because the ACSI is tracking the pre-merger “Spectrum” service separately from the former Time Warner Cable (TWC) territory that Charter acquired in May 2016. Charter was able to raise its TV satisfaction scores for both Spectrum and Time Warner Cable, and it raised Spectrum’s Internet satisfaction score. But TWC customers have gotten less satisfied with Internet service: the TWC score dropped from 66 to 62, putting it ahead of Comcast but behind most other major Internet service providers. We’ve contacted both Comcast and Charter about their scores and will update this story if we get responses. Charter is also facing a lawsuit over broadcast TV and sports fees. Former TWC video subscribers have been leaving the company in significant numbers after being hit with price increases. On the Internet side, Charter is facing a lawsuit from New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who accuses the TWC subsidiary of “conducting a deliberate scheme to defraud and mislead New Yorkers by promising Internet service that they knew they could not deliver.” Charter has promised network improvements, but speed increases planned by TWC before the merger have reportedly been slow in coming. Mobile customers benefit from competition Mobile carriers performed much better than cable TV and home broadband companies. Industry-wide, wireless phone satisfaction scores rose from 71 to 73 from 2016 to 2017, with TracFone Wireless leading the way at 77. Verizon Wireless led the four major carriers, with an increase from 71 to 74. Sprint rose from 70 to 73, T-Mobile USA dropped from 74 to 73, and AT&T improved from 71 to 72. "Customer satisfaction with wireless telephone service climbs 2.8 percent to 73, as carriers engage in increasingly competitive price wars," the ACSI said. "Compared with other telecom categories where customers have little choice, the wireless industry is a good example of how competition impacts customer satisfaction. When companies fight for customers, prices are competitive, service improves, and customer satisfaction is higher." Disclosure: The Advance/Newhouse Partnership, which owns about 13 percent of Charter, is part of Advance Publications. Advance Publications owns Condé Nast, which owns Ars Technica.If you’re reading this right now, I assume you’re coming from my video or you just happen to be among the few thousand who still follow this account- either way, and regardless of if you know me personally or not, I just have to start off by saying thank you. A genuine thank you- one that could make me cry just thinking about. I know anyone who couldn’t give a rats ass about me or my life wouldn’t be here, so by default, I’m guessing (secretly hoping) the rest of you do. Anyway, thank you for reading this. I know it’s long as hell and will take up some of your minutes here on earth, and that’s important to me, that you chose to be here rather than anywhere else. I want it to be like we’re sitting on the bed talking like best friends do when they really need to open up about something that’s been hurting them, even if I’m a complete stranger or just another “youtuber” to you. And speaking of best friends, I haven’t really fully opened up to mine about what’s been going on, so if you’re reading, I’m sorry for being so distant this past year and a half, and I hope this blog post helps everyone and anyone in whatever way it can. It will surely be helping me. So, where to begin? is the question I am haunted by every time I think about actually writing this blog post. I begin obsessing over the starting point and then never end up starting, which can be so utterly frustrating. I have a thousand thoughts racing through my head, it’s hard enough to grab onto one, let alone place it in the perfect sequence. While writing used to ease my mind, now I am just overwhelmed by the never-ending options of words to use, opportunities to make run-on sentences, and ways to say everything I wish I would’ve said differently. I over-analyze every sentence, read it over and over and have to convince myself not to delete it. So as you can imagine, I’ve avoided any kind of writing lately- journaling, blogging, texting friends and emailing companies back, etc… You get the idea. Basically, something I used to love has turned into a struggle, something I avoid like the plague. And my mentioning this is to make a comparison of what my life’s turned into- something I used to love and now completely struggle to manage on a daily basis. If you happened to sit through my agonizingly long video titled “Where Have I Been?”, then you’re probably already familiar with the fact that I’ve struggled with mental illness for a while now. If you didn’t watch it, and don’t want to, I basically explained that in the beginning of 2015, I began losing myself. I started questioning my religion that I had put my entire identity into, thus launching me into an identity and existential crisis, which I couldn’t really recognize at the time and surely didn’t know how to process. I felt extreme guilt, shame, and self-hatred for not being the person I thought I was for so many years, and who others expected me to be. I only confided in very few people, and they all told me to just keep praying and trying to mend my relationship with God, and when that didn’t work, I felt obligated to wear a mask of certainty to compensate for how terrified I was of actually admitting I didn’t know what I believed. It was exhausting and painful to keep up that facade, especially being so formerly open and confident about it online. Now that I’ve spent the time analyzing exactly what happened and asking myself “where did it all go wrong?”, I’ve discovered the questioning and doubting actually began in 2013. I just couldn’t handle it anymore after two years of feeling like a fake, a sinner, a liar, and a person who was surely going to hell if I had died. And as it goes, those internalized emotions that I had been bottling up for years eventually manifested into harming myself in a desperate attempt to get the people around me to realize I was not okay. And it worked. I got the attention I desired, and it quickly turned into an obsession that I had not prepared myself for at all. I always believed I was in control of it, but just like with any addiction, it soon took control over me. I was powerless to the urges and addicted to the rush. I started cutting on February 7th, 2015 and didn’t stop until October 5th- 3 trips to the ER, 25 stitches, and 4 days in a psych ward later. It was the worst time of my life, and I was sure I had hit rock bottom. Nope haha. After months of therapy, I thought things were starting to look up. I moved out of my apartment that encased those terrible memories, and planned to start completely fresh. I was determined to get happy again. I began embracing the unknown and started aligning my actions with my morals. I discovered veganism and realized what I had been missing my entire life. I started smoking marijuana again after 5 years of demonizing it, which in turn helped keep me away from the heavy drinking which was a major trigger for my self-harm (I finally quit after cutting through a nerve that made me lose feeling in half my forearm.) I moved into an even bigger apartment, started dating someone who thought like I did, and spent all my time and energy trying to control and perfect every aspect of my life to make up for the years I felt I had wasted. I made my beauty room white and sparkly like everyone else’s, bought a better camera, new lighting, a monitor, a green screen, a new microphone, etc… and once everything was perfect in my eyes, I vowed to my subscribers that I was back, that “2016 would be my bitch”. Nope again haha. I still felt empty. I still wasn’t satisfied. I was still filling a void. While I attempted to make everything around me perfect, I just felt more and more imperfect. Thoughts of being incompetent, a failure, not good enough, and a waste of talent were all I could focus on. Filming gave me anxiety like I had never experienced before, and I was never satisfied with any video I tried to produce. My heart was simply no longer in it because the perfectionism I acquired inhibited any form of enjoyment that I formerly got from creating youtube videos. And this shattered me, because I had no plan B. I had no college degree to fall back on, no other passions, this was it for me. So I pushed on, and tried my best, but fell short over and over. The shame of not feeling capable of doing a job I used to be in love with, and that others would kill for and find incredibly easy, weighed on me every day like a ton of bricks. I watched other youtuber’s execute videos so flawlessly and passionately and instead of getting inspired, I became crippled with envy and decided I could never be as talented, as professional, as funny, as naturally beautiful as them, and this was so disheartening coming from a person who used to make videos called “how to be confident”. I realized that while I had recognized that I lost myself somewhere along the way, I never truly found myself, and still haven’t
why he was limited on Friday. Also missing practice Friday for the Saints were guard Ben Grubbs (undisclosed), receiver Kenny Stills (quad), defensive tackle John Jenkins (pectoral), cornerback Terrence Frederick (undisclosed), receiver Steve Hull (undisclosed) and offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe (undisclosed).The Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans has declared an "extreme emergency" to hasten the repairs of an unusual electricity-generating turbine that's been in disrepair for more than a decade. Without so-called Turbine 4, the agency can't produce enough electricity to power the city's aging drainage system during heavy thunderstorms, S&WB deputy superintendent Bruce Adams wrote Sunday (Oct. 8) in a letter calling for the emergency. New Orleans pumps: Turbine repair costs increase again Turbine 4 repairs were supposed to cost $12.5 million. That price has doubled. The declaration gives the agency's executive staff free rein to buy any parts and equipment and hire any outside specialists to finish a repair job that ballooned to $24 million and has stretched on for more than five years. The board of directors' finance and administration committee approved the declaration Friday, although the board's executive counsel, Nolan Lambert, described that action as perfunctory for the sake of transparency. State law gives the S&WB executive director the power to declare such emergencies without approval from the board. "The law and the wisdom of the Legislature, they knew time was precious in the time of emergency," Lambert said. The committee's vote irked board member Alan Arnold. "We're not providing any oversight at all," he said, calling the board's vote "superfluous" because their approval came after the declaration was already in place. Arnold also said he was concerned that he hadn't had time to review the declaration before voting. "This has been a problem with this board's operations since I've been on it," Arnold said. The embattled agency, which also runs New Orleans' water and sewer systems, has been limping along on two steam-powered turbines capable of producing an uncommon electricity known as 25-cycle. Many of the city's largest drainage pumps on the east bank and west of the Industrial Canal rely on that form of power. The rest of the system uses the more common 60-cycle electricity produced by Entergy and an emergency gas-powered generator -- Turbine 6 -- that was installed by the Army Corps of Engineers in 2012. Turbines 1 and 3, the only two 25-cycle generators working Friday, can produce a combined 16 megawatts of power, Adams wrote. That's far short of even the lowest estimates of how much energy it would take to power New Orleans' entire drainage system. Turbine 5 remains down for repairs and Turbine 2 was decommissioned decades ago. The S&WB does have frequency changers that can convert some 60-cycle electricity to 25-cycle power. Severely damaged during the floods that followed Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Turbine 4 was scheduled for repairs in 2011. The board hired Industrial & Mechanical Contractors to refurbish the generator. But the original $12.5 million proposal has almost doubled through 15 change orders as engineers continued to find more parts in need of replacement. After the Aug. 5 flood, Mayor Mitch Landrieu declared a state of emergency for the entire drainage system, and repairs to Turbine 4 sped up. But an electrical fire during a test on Sept. 6 further damaged the generator.Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Trump changes mind over Nato US President Donald Trump has reversed course in the space of 24 hours on an array of populist positions he adopted during the election campaign. He declared Nato was "no longer obsolete" and dropped his pledge to declare China a currency manipulator. Mr Trump also said he was no longer opposed to a federal exports agency he once dismissed as "unnecessary". And the president signalled he was open to reappointing Janet Yellen as head of the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, his administration dropped a freeze on federal hiring that it imposed in January. The about-faces suggest the mercurial Mr Trump may be favouring a more pragmatic, moderate approach to the hardline economic nationalism that helped elect him. The startling series of flip-flops come amid reports of a titanic White House power struggle between chief strategist Steve Bannon and senior adviser Jared Kushner. According to the Washington rumour mill, Mr Bannon - the former Breitbart News executive - has been sidelined after falling out with the president's son-in-law, Mr Kushner. China no longer a currency manipulator Mr Trump's decision not to label China a "currency manipulator" emerged in an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. That U-turn follows his talks last week with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Mr Trump repeatedly pledged to label Beijing a "currency manipulator" on his first day in office, during an election campaign when he also accused the Asian powerhouse of "raping" the US. But experts said a formal declaration to that effect by the Treasury Department could have led to US sanctions, which would have prompted retaliation from Beijing. Trump now'respects' Fed chairwoman Mr Trump's last campaign ad depicted Janet Yellen, head of the Federal Reserve, as a member of a shadowy globalist cabal "who control the levers of power in Washington". On Wednesday, he told the Wall Street Journal he "respects" the US central bank chief. He also indicated he might consider reappointing her next year, saying she would not be "toast". Mr Trump was once highly critical of the Fed, saying its low interest rate policy had hurt savers. Now he says he likes "a low-interest rate policy". Federal hiring freeze dropped On his first working day in office, Mr Trump signed a presidential memorandum to suspend hiring of non-military federal workers, in a move that delighted small government conservatives. The order mandated that "no vacant positions… may be filled and no new positions may be created". But that policy was gone on Wednesday. White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said: "It does not mean that the agencies will be free to hire willy-nilly." He said they were "replacing it with a smarter plan, a more strategic plan, a more surgical plan". Export-Import Bank no longer 'unnecessary' In the Wall Street Journal interview, the president praised the Export-Import Bank, which he dismissed in August last year as an "unnecessary" agency with "a lot of excess baggage". The bank, which provides taxpayer-backed loans for the purchase of US exports, is accused by conservatives of corporate cronyism and welfare. Now he plans to fill two vacancies on its board. "It turns out that, first of all," Mr Trump told the Journal, "lots of small companies are really helped." Now a fan of Nato Mr Trump repeatedly questioned the military alliance's purpose during the campaign. But as he hosted Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House on Wednesday, the US president said the threat of terrorism had underlined the alliance's importance. "I said it [Nato] was obsolete," Mr Trump said. "It's no longer obsolete." Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "European allies will have to step up to the plate" and pay their fair share says former Nato Secretary General Does it matter? CNN political pundit David Gregory says the shifts show Trump is willing to be a dealmaking president. "He's flexible, perhaps unprincipled, with a pragmatic approach to government," he said. But he warned that, although tacking back and forth is fine, it is dangerous to be "all over the map" because people stop believing what you say. More on Trump so far Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Many Trump voters are happy with his progress Where Trump stands on key issues What has Trump done so far?crayon-angle asked: Hi John. I just watched a wonderful video of you and Megafaun covering the Grateful Dead's "Friend of the Devil." I was wondering what your relationship with the Dead is? Are you a big fan? Have you seen them live? I only ask because in the past year I've become very obsessed with them. Only problem is I'm kind of alone in my love for the dead as most of my friends are more into Emo or punk. Seeing you cover them came as a sort of vindication for me as you are one of my favorite musicians. I was a reactionary Dead hater when I was a teenager because in the town I come from everybody loved the Dead and liked to drop acid/smoke weed and go to the shows and I was into Strictly Hard Drugs That Can Kill Me and super-judgey about anything that seemed hippie to me. Prior to this dark period I had been kinda into the Dead though I couldn’t really understand how they’d become this countercultural thing when their music was essentially country-rock. In 2007, I decided to investigate this band, because as a grown-up one of the things I enjoy doing is examining my biases to see if they’re bullshit or not. The Dead, as it turned out, are fucking amazing; a band that remained deeply engaged with playing their music for decades, who always put the live show ahead of the album / album sales, and who (while very on top of their business, don’t get me wrong, they knew what they were doing) did not care at all about when or whether they were hip or anything. They were dedicated to 1) their music and 2) the people to whom that music spoke. In this sense they are, I hope obviously, a model for me; they always grew, but didn’t just grow & change for the sake of it; they were more into listening than being heard. their relationship to the audience while playing for that audience can only be described as a loving relationship. I think that’s deeply inspiring. I think most people who hate on them are usually acting out scene politics (”I hate hippies” / “I hate jamming”), though I can get my hate on still about hippie gender / sexual politics – there’re lines in “Looks Like Rain” that ruin it for me every damn time. Still, what can you do, asking a band / musician to be perfect is absurd. When they are playing together and really listening and in that response-loop with the audience, there is absolutely nothing like them – they carved out a space that was theirs alone, which I cherish. I like the ‘68 shows a lot even though I’m not really a Pigpen guy, once they hand him the mic I tend to check out; I think ‘73 is generally undersung but there’s a reason why ‘72 gets all the props, they were routinely on fire in ‘72. My friend Matt is very into ‘74, and more people should know about the Wall of Sound – I feel like ‘74 shows often suffer from Wake of the Flood material, which I don’t like as well as American Beauty / Workingman’s Dead / Aoxomoxoa et al. ‘77 is a miracle. There’s some rad shows from ‘76 though too which are very worth seeking out, like the Oakland one. I also know a guy, a doctor, a grandfather, who was struggling with depression after losing a leg after an accident that shouldn’t have cost him his leg, and another doctor asked him “do you listen to music at all to relax or escape?” and he said no, I’ve never really been into music much, and the doctor said, well, you might try listening to the Grateful Dead, they really help me, and the guy who’d lost his leg took his doctor’s advice and the music really elevated his spirit in that way that only music can do, and to this day provide him with joy and comfort and space to reflect. I think the Dead are really amazing for this purpose: they don’t speak directly to your malaise, but they help you transcend it. That’s very incredible, in my opinion. There are some preliminary thoughts on the Dead from me, and now I must retrieve a casserole from the oven, it’s past dinner time.ADVERTISEMENT "Now I have to tell you, it's an unbelievably complex subject," President Trump said on Monday, speaking about the Republican effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act. "Nobody knew that health care could be so complicated." By which I suppose he meant, "Everybody except me knew that health care is really complicated, but they just explained it to me, and wow." Hard though it may be to determine what lurks in the depths of the president's mind, he now appears to be realizing that his promise to repeal the ACA and replace it with "something terrific" may not be so easy to achieve. In his defense, it does seem that congressional Republicans are also only now grappling with the complexity of health care reform (they probably knew it was complicated, but preferred not to think about it until they were forced to). But the truth is that the problem isn't just that it's complicated. Overhauling a car's transmission is complicated, but if you know what you're doing you can accomplish it to everyone's satisfaction. The trouble with health care reform is that it requires tradeoffs between competing goals, like low cost and comprehensive insurance, or universal coverage and individual flexibility. And once you have a system in place that reaches some kind of compromise between all those goals, undoing it will not only create tremendous upheaval, it will also create winners and losers. Which may be hard to accept, if you thought that once you took power there'd be so much winning we'd all get tired of winning. One explanation for why the president is suddenly realizing the complexity of this task may lie in some meetings he has had recently. As The Washington Post reported, last Friday he met with Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), who accepted the ACA's expansion of Medicaid and as a result was able to see 691,000 more of his constituents get coverage, almost entirely at the expense of the federal government. Kasich tried to convince Trump that turning Medicaid into a block grant and then cutting it — what many Republican plans call for — would be a bad idea: Over the next 45 minutes, according to Kasich and others briefed on the session, the governor made his pitch while the president eagerly called in several top aides and then got Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price on the phone. At one point, senior adviser Jared Kushner reminded his father-in-law that House Republicans are sketching out a different approach to providing access to coverage. "Well, I like this better," Trump replied, according to a Kasich adviser. [The Washington Post] But the next day, Trump met with two Republican governors who had rejected the Medicaid expansion, Scott Walker of Wisconsin and Rick Scott of Florida, who told him something different. And on Monday he met with CEOs from insurance companies, who accepted the ACA's new regulations because they'd get a lot of new customers; they surely told him of their trepidation about the loss of the individual mandate. And governors meeting in Washington just got a grim report from Avalere Health and McKinsey and Company, showing that the Republican plans could lead to drastic declines in the number of people with health coverage. It's all so confusing! Republican governors disagree about Medicaid repeal, and there are even differences within the White House: Vice President Mike Pence is gung-ho for repeal, while Trump advisers like Steven Miller and Stephen Bannon are reportedly more wary of a public backlash. So Trump can't even get the same answer from every Republican he talks to; forget about all those angry citizens pouring into town halls to demand that their representatives not repeal the law. The president's head is spinning with all this complexity. Why can't they just show him "something terrific" and then pass that so he can sign it? Alas, with no such magical unicorn in the offing, here's where Trump and the Republicans are left. Insurers don't want the ACA repealed, nor do doctors, nor do hospitals, nor does the AARP (possibly the most powerful lobby in Washington), nor does the public as a whole. Republican members of Congress want to repeal it, but they're terrified of the backlash that will almost inevitably result. Legislative gambits like "repeal and delay" (pass repeal now but with a countdown clock, to force themselves to come up with a replacement) keep getting floated and then discarded. So perhaps in the wee hours of the morning, as he settles in for a soothing hour or two spent with Fox & Friends, Trump may find himself haunted by a troubling thought: What if there's no good way out of this problem? Repeal the law outright and the base will be happy, but millions will suffer (and blame him for it). Don't repeal it and the base will be enraged. Pass a Republican replacement plan and the political blowback will be intense, as the fake media keeps showing tear-jerking stories of families left without care. It's a conundrum, alright. And it is definitely not terrific.This article is from the archive of our partner. This morning, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli announced that Wall Street banks paid out nearly $122,000 in bonuses per banker last year, an increase of 9 percent over 2011 — and some 142 percent of the last available median household income recorded in this country. Champagne corks popped throughout New York City's Financial District, but that's just the lunch crowd. On the whole, banks paid out 8 percent more than in 2011 for a total of $20 billion. This chart of bonuses paid by banks over time isn't adjusted for inflation, but it shows the banks' pretty good run for the past few decades. Data from the New York State Comptroller. The increase for individual bankers meant each took home an average of $121,900. Again, this is a bonus, on top of salary. As a reminder, annual household income in 2011 was just over $50,000. The last time bankers took home bonuses that were less than the median household income was 1991. Data from the New York State Comptroller, U.S. Census Bureau. The reason bankers' bonuses increased more than the pool of bonuses grew is that the sector saw a slight contraction last year. Fewer bankers sharing more money means more money per banker. Over time, the amount bonuses change year-over-year has been much more volatile than the number of bankers. In 1991, that first year that bankers made more in extras than an average American made over the course of the year, bonuses nearly doubled. Employment, however, dropped. In fact, there's a loose inverse correlation between banking employment and bonuses: generally when employment drops, bonuses go up. Data from the New York State Comptroller, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.I was having trouble following this game with all the satellite imagery and the rotating gifs, so I plotted everything on Google Maps. What the hell is going on here? As Danny said, the line of scrimmage (I think that just means the place where they line up to start the play), was in this small town of Gresham, specifically at the intersection of Pine and Maud. Instead of trying to break through the line, she retreated west, and the booked it south down Highway 69. She continues south until she passes Lincoln Creek, which prevents the defenders from the North from getting in front of her as she goes east, as long as she can beat them past the 462nd bridge. Upon crossing the creek, she cuts diagonally across the field. She could have just followed the road, but Pythagoras is a dick so it would have taken 1.34 times as long. Once she goes as far east as she can, follows the creek southeast until she hits McKelvie road. She crosses the creek again at the Seward bridge. She’s pretty safe there. As Danny said, it’s hard to catch a lone ball carrier in an urban area. Her next problem is all these bare plains and Iowa is setting up a long wall of defenders on 154th street. This is where we first tuned in on chapter 2. She runs into the twister, which flings her all the way to a field just northeast of Garland. This is pretty far, but not far enough to skip over the line of defenders, so she cuts northwest across the Oak Glen State Wildlife Management Area. After leaving the park going west, she moves north-northwest through all these lakes, and concludes her run for the day by rushing west to the small town of Bee. This was Nancy’s entire run for the date of July 2, 17776.This article is about the color. For other uses, see Red (disambiguation) Red is the color at the end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres.[1] It is a primary color in the RGB color model and the CMYK color model, and is the complementary color of cyan. Reds range from the brilliant yellow-tinged scarlet and vermillion to bluish-red crimson, and vary in shade from the pale red pink to the dark red burgundy.[2] The red sky at sunset results from Rayleigh scattering, while the red color of the Grand Canyon and other geological features is caused by hematite or red ochre, both forms of iron oxide. Iron oxide also gives the red color to the planet Mars. The red colour of blood comes from protein hemoglobin, while ripe strawberries, red apples and reddish autumn leaves are colored by anthocyanins.[3] Red pigment made from ochre was one of the first colors used in prehistoric art. The Ancient Egytians and Mayans colored their faces red in ceremonies; Roman generals had their bodies colored red to celebrate victories. It was also an important color in China, where it was used to colour early pottery and later the gates and walls of palaces.[4]:60-61 In the Renaissance, the brilliant red costumes for the nobility and wealthy were dyed with kermes and cochineal. The 19th century brought the introduction of the first synthetic red dyes, which replaced the traditional dyes. Red also became the color of revolution; Soviet Russia adopted a red flag following the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, later followed by China, Vietnam, and other communist countries. Since red is the color of blood, it has historically been associated with sacrifice, danger and courage. Modern surveys in Europe and the United States show red is also the color most commonly associated with heat, activity, passion, sexuality, anger, love and joy. In China, India and many other Asian countries it is the color of symbolizing happiness and good fortune.[5]:39-63 Shades and variations Scarlet is one quarter of the way between the colors red and orange. It is the colour worn by a cardinal of the Catholic Church. The cardinal takes its name from the colour worn by Catholic cardinals. Pink is a pale shade of red. Cherry blossoms in the Tsutsujigaoka Park, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. Vermilion is similar to scarlet, but slightly more orange. This is sindoor, a red cosmetic powder used in India; Some Hindu women put a stripe of sindoor in their hair to show they are married. Maple tree with red leaves in the morning mist Estonia Crimson is a strong, deep red containing a little blue. The emblem of Harvard University. Maroon is a dark brownish red. Its name comes from marron, the French word for chestnut. [6] [7] Ruby is the colour of a cut and polished ruby gemstone. Burgundy, claret, or Wine red, is a very dark red containing a little blue. In France this colour is known as Bordeaux. (Lists of shades of red and shades of pink are found at the end of this article.) In science and nature Seeing red Bulls, like dogs and many other animals, have dichromacy, which means they cannot distinguish the color red. They charge the matador's cape because of its motion, not its color. The human eye sees red when it looks at light with a wavelength between approximately 625 and 740 nanometers.[1] It is a primary color in the RGB color model and the light just past this range is called infrared, or below red, and cannot be seen by human eyes, although it can be sensed as heat.[8] In the language of optics, red is the color evoked by light that stimulates neither the S or the M (short and medium wavelength) cone cells of the retina, combined with a fading stimulation of the L (long-wavelength) cone cells.[9] Primates can distinguish the full range of the colors of the spectrum visible to humans, but many kinds of mammals, such as dogs and cattle, have dichromacy, which means they can see blues and yellows, but cannot distinguish red and green (both are seen as gray). Bulls, for instance, cannot see the red color of the cape of a bullfighter, but they are agitated by its movement.[10] (See color vision). One theory for why primates developed sensitivity to red is that it allowed ripe fruit to be distinguished from unripe fruit and inedible vegetation.[11] This may have driven further adaptations by species taking advantage of this new ability, such as the emergence of red faces.[12] Red light is used to help adapt night vision in low-light or night time, as the rod cells in the human eye are not sensitive to red.[13][14] Red illumination was (and sometimes still is) used as a safelight while working in a darkroom as it does not expose most photographic paper and some films.[15] Today modern darkrooms usually use an amber safelight. In color theory and on a computer screen On the color wheel long used by painters, and in traditional color theory, red is one of the three primary colors, along with blue and yellow. Painters in the Renaissance mixed red and blue to make violet: Cennino Cennini, in his 15th-century manual on painting, wrote, "If you want to make a lovely violet colour, take fine lac [red lake], ultramarine blue (the same amount of the one as of the other) with a binder" he noted that it could also be made by mixing blue indigo and red hematite.[16] In modern color theory, also known as the RGB color model, red, green and blue are additive primary colors. Red, green and blue light combined together makes white light, and these three colors, combined in different mixtures, can produce nearly any other color. This is the principle that is used to make all of the colors on your computer screen and your television. For example, magenta on a computer screen is made by a similar formula to that used by Cennino Cennini in the Renaissance to make violet, but using additive colors and light instead of pigment: it is created by combining red and blue light at equal intensity on a black screen. Violet is made on a computer screen in a similar way, but with a greater amount of blue light and less red light.[17] So that the maximum number of colors can be accurately reproduced on your computer screen, each color has been given a code number, or sRGB, which tells your computer the intensity of the red, green and blue components of that color. The intensity of each component is measured on a scale of zero to 255, which means the complete list includes 16,777,216 distinct colors and shades. The sRGB number of pure red, for example, is 255, 00, 00, which means the red component is at its maximum intensity, and there is no green or blue. The sRGB number for crimson is 220, 20, 60, which means that the red is slightly less intense and therefore darker, there is some green, which leans it toward orange; and there is a larger amount of blue, which makes it slightly blue-violet.[17] (See Web colors and RGB color model) In a traditional color wheel from 1708, red, yellow and blue are primary colors. Red and yellow make orange, red and blue make violet. In modern color theory, red, green and blue are the additive primary colors, and together they make white. A combination of red, green and blue light in varying proportions makes all the colors on your computer screen and television screen. Tiny Red, green and blue sub-pixels (enlarged on left side of image) create the colors you see on your computer screen and TV. Color of sunset Sunsets and sunrises are often red because of an optical effect called Rayleigh scattering As a ray of white sunlight travels through the atmosphere to the eye, some of the colors are scattered out of the beam by air molecules and airborne particles due to Rayleigh scattering, changing the final color of the beam that is seen. Colors with a shorter wavelength, such as blue and green, scatter more strongly, and are removed from the light that finally reaches the eye.[18] At sunrise and sunset, when the path of the sunlight through the atmosphere to the eye is longest, the blue and green components are removed almost completely, leaving the longer wavelength orange and red light. The remaining reddened sunlight can also be scattered by cloud droplets and other relatively large particles, which give the sky above the horizon its red glow.[19] Lasers Lasers emitting in the red region of the spectrum have been available since the invention of the ruby laser in 1960. In 1962 the red helium–neon laser was invented,[20] and these two types of lasers were widely used in many scientific applications including holography, and in education. Red helium–neon lasers were used commercially in LaserDisc players. The use of red laser diodes became widespread with the commercial success of modern DVD players, which use a 660 nm laser diode technology. Today, red and red-orange laser diodes are widely available to the public in the form of extremely inexpensive laser pointers. Portable, high-powered versions are also available for various applications.[21] More recently, 671 nm diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) lasers have been introduced to the market for all-DPSS laser display systems, particle image velocimetry, Raman spectroscopy, and holography.[22] Red's wavelength has been an important factor in laser technologies; red lasers, used in early compact disc technologies, are being replaced by blue lasers, as red's longer wavelength causes the laser's recordings to take up more space on the disc than would blue-laser recordings.[23] Astronomy Fire Fire is often shown as red in art, but flames are usually yellow, orange or blue. Some elements exhibit a red color when burned: calcium, for example, produces a brick-red when combusted.[27] Red is commonly associated with flames and fire, but flames are almost always yellow, orange or blue Pigments and dyes Red lac, red lake and crimson lake The Vendramin Family Venerating a Relic of the True Cross, completed 1550–60 (detail). Titian used glazes of red lake to create the vivid crimson of the robes in, completed 1550–60 (detail). Red lac, also called red lake, crimson lake or carmine lake, was an important red pigment in Renaissance and Baroque art. Since it was translucent, thin layers of red lac were built up or glazed over a more opaque dark color to create a particularly deep and vivid color. Unlike vermilion or red ochre, made from minerals, red lake pigments are made by mixing organic dyes, made from insects or plants, with white chalk or alum. Red lac was made from the gum lac, the dark red resinous substance secreted by various scale insects, particularly the Laccifer lacca from India.[28] Carmine lake was made from the cochineal insect from Central and South America, Kermes lake came from a different scale insect, kermes vermilio, which thrived on oak trees around the Mediterranean. Other red lakes were made from the rose madder plant and from the brazilwood tree. Red lake pigments were an important part of the palette of 16th-century Venetian painters, particularly Titian, but they were used in all periods.[29] Since the red lakes were made from organic dyes, they tended to be fugitive, becoming unstable and fading when exposed to sunlight. Food coloring The most common synthetic food coloring today is Allura Red AC is a red azo dye that goes by several names including: Allura Red, Food Red 17, C.I. 16035, FD&C Red 40,[30][31] It was originally manufactured from coal tar, but now is mostly made from petroleum. In Europe, Allura Red AC is not recommended for consumption by children. It is banned in Denmark, Belgium, France and Switzerland, and was also banned in Sweden until the country joined the European Union in 1994.[32] The European Union approves Allura Red AC as a food colorant, but EU countries' local laws banning food colorants are preserved.[33] In the United States, Allura Red AC is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in cosmetics, drugs, and food. It is used in some tattoo inks and is used in many products, such as soft drinks, children's medications, and cotton candy. On June 30, 2010, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) called for the FDA to ban Red 40.[34] Because of public concerns about possible health risks associated with synthetic dyes, many companies have switched to using natural pigments such as carmine, made from crushing the tiny female cochineal insect. This insect, originating in Mexico and Central American, was used to make the brilliant scarlet dyes of the European Renaissance. Autumn leaves The red of autumn leaves is produced by pigments called anthocyanins. They are not present in the leaf throughout the growing season, but are actively produced towards the end of summer.[3] They develop in late summer in the sap of the cells of the leaf, and this development is the result of complex interactions of many influences—both inside and outside the plant. Their formation depends on the breakdown of sugars in the presence of bright light as the level of phosphate in the leaf is reduced.[35] During the summer growing season, phosphate is at a high level. It has a vital role in the breakdown of the sugars manufactured by chlorophyll. But in the fall, phosphate, along with the other chemicals and nutrients, moves out of the leaf into the stem of the plant. When this happens, the sugar-breakdown process changes, leading to the production of anthocyanin pigments. The brighter the light during this period, the greater the production of anthocyanins and the more brilliant the resulting color display. When the days of autumn are bright and cool, and the nights are chilly but not freezing, the brightest colorations usually develop. Anthocyanins temporarily color the edges of some of the very young leaves as they unfold from the buds in early spring. They also give the familiar color to such common fruits as cranberries, red apples, blueberries, cherries, raspberries, and plums. Anthocyanins are present in about 10% of tree species in temperate regions, although in certain areas—a famous example being New England—up to 70% of tree species may produce the pigment.[3] In autumn forests they appear vivid in the maples, oaks, sourwood, sweetgums, dogwoods, tupelos, cherry trees and persimmons. These same pigments often combine with the carotenoids' colors to create the deeper orange, fiery reds, and bronzes typical of many hardwood species. (See Autumn leaf color). Blood and other reds in nature Oxygenated blood is red due to the presence of oxygenated hemoglobin that contains iron molecules, with the iron components reflecting red light.[36][37] Red meat gets its color from the iron found in the myoglobin and hemoglobin in the muscles and residual blood.[38] Plants like apples, strawberries, cherries, tomatoes, peppers, and pomegranates are often colored by forms of carotenoids, red pigments that also assist photosynthesis.[39] When used to describe natural animal coloration, "red" usually refers to a brownish, reddish-brown or ginger color. In this sense it is used to describe coat colors of reddish-brown cattle and dogs, and in the names of various animal species or breeds such as red fox, red squirrel, red deer, European robin, red grouse, red knot, redstart, redwing, red setter, Red Devon cattle, etc. This reddish-brown color is also meant when using the terms red ochre and red hair. The red herring dragged across a trail to destroy the scent gets its color from the heavy salting and slow smoking of the fish, which results in a warm, brown color. When used for flowers, red often refers to purplish (red deadnettle, red clover, red helleborine) or pink (red campion, red valerian) colors. Hair color Woman with red hair Red hair occurs naturally on approximately 1–2% of the human population.[40] It occurs more frequently (2–6%) in people of northern or western European ancestry, and less frequently in other populations. Red hair appears in people with two copies of a recessive gene on chromosome 16 which causes a mutation in the MC1R protein.[citation needed] Red hair varies from a deep burgundy through burnt orange to bright copper. It is characterized by high levels of the reddish pigment pheomelanin (which also accounts for the red color of the lips) and relatively low levels of the dark pigment eumelanin. The term redhead (originally redd hede)[citation needed] has been in use since at least 1510. Cultural reactions have varied from ridicule to admiration; many common stereotypes exist regarding redheads and they are often portrayed as fiery-tempered. (See red hair). In animal and human behavior Red is associated with dominance in a number of animal species.[41] For example, in mandrills, red coloration of the face is greatest in alpha males, increasingly less prominent in lower ranking subordinates, and directly correlated with levels of testosterone.[42] Red can also affect the perception of dominance by others, leading to significant differences in mortality, reproductive success and parental investment between individuals displaying red and those not.[43] In humans, wearing red has been linked with increased performance in competitions, including professional sport[44][45] and multiplayer video games.[46] Controlled tests have demonstrated that wearing red does not increase performance or levels of testosterone during exercise, so the effect is likely to be produced by perceived rather than actual performance.[47] Judges of tae kwon do have been shown to favor competitors wearing red protective gear over blue,[48] and, when asked, a significant majority of people say that red abstract shapes are more "dominant", "aggressive", and "likely to win a physical competition" than blue shapes
goals in 6-2 win CM: Marek Hamšik (Napoli) - 85 > 86 > 87 - 3 goals in 7-1 win CAM: Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Manchester United) - 85 > 86 > 87 - 1 goal 1 assist in 3-0 win ST: Dries Mertens (Napoli) - 83 > 85 > 87 > 88 - 3 goals and 1 assist in 7-1 win ST: Romelu Lukaku (Everton) - 84 > 86 > 87 > 88 - 4 goals in 6-3 win ST: Fernando Torres (Atletico) - 81 > 84 - 2 goals in 2-0 win Rest Promising FIFA 17 TOTW 21 Player List GK: Eldin Jakupovi ć (Hull) - 68 > 72 - 6 saves + MOTM in 0-0 draw then 5 saves in 2-0 win CM: Pedro Obiang (West Ham) - 76 > 81 - 1 goal and 1 assist in 3-1 win LM: Mohamed Elyounoussi (FC Basel) - 72 > 74 - 3 goals in 4-0 win ST: Moussa Dembélé (Celtic) - 71 > 74 - 3 goals in 5-2 win ST: Ádám Szalai (Hoffenheim) - 74 > 74 - 2 goals as sub in 4-0 win ST: Tiquinho Soares (Porto) - 71 > 74 - 2 goals in 2-1 win ST: Steve Mounié (Montpellier) - 68 > 72 - 2 goals in 2-1 win GK: Emiliano Viviano (Sampdoria) - 82 > 84 - 6 saves in 1-0 win CB: Kyriakos Papadopoulos (Hamburger SV) - 79 > 83 - 1 goal in 1-0 win CB: Sokratis (Dortmund) - 84 > 86 > 87 - great game in 1-0 win ST: Gabriel Fernando de Jesus (Manchester City) - 78 > 83 - 1 goal and 1 assist in 4-0 win, then 2 goals in 2-1 win ST: Jonas (SL Benfica) - 84 > 86 - 2 goal in 3-0 win Best Investment in FIFA 17 TOTW 21 Recommendations: Romelu Lukaku Romelu Lukaku rose to the top of the Premier League goal-scoring charts with the type of display that defenders dread, four goals and an assist for good measure as Everton steamrollered Bournemouth 6-3. Thanks for visiting our FIFA 17 TOTW 21 Predictions, and Fifaah will continue to update the FIFA 17 Team of the Week 21 predictions for you, check all FIFA 17 TOTW Predictions squad list. Cheap FIFA 17 Coins and FIFA Coins Account can help you make the FIFA 17 TOTW 21, keep eyes on Fifaah.com! 1. Coupon Code "FIFAAHFIB" - 5% OFF. 2. Using Free CASH Code to enjoy up to 50% discount and Free FIFA 17 Coins you can in FIFA 17 Packs Opening Simulator! Packing now!Researchers at the Masdar Institute have recently announced a breakthrough approach to producing carbon nanotube (CNT) sheets, known as ‘buckypaper,’ through a scalable, low-cost and simple technique. The novel fabrication method could help bring game-changing buckypaper applications a step closer towards cost-effective commercialization. “Being able to produce buckypaper in a scalable way like this has not been demonstrated before. This new technique could boost the development of market-ready applications, including high-power lithium-ion batteries and low-cost vanadium-redox-flow batteries,” said Dr. Rahmat Susantyoko, postdoctoral researcher from the Mechanical Engineering Department. Dr. Susantyoko was first author of a paper that describes the new technique, called Surface-Engineered Tape-Cast (SETC), which was published last month in the Journal of Materials Chemistry A. The paper’s co-authors include Class of 2014 MSc graduate Zainab Karam, undergraduate intern student Sara Alkhoori from Khalifa University, Class of 2014 PhD graduate Ibrahim Mustafa, Class of 2016 MSc graduate Chieh-Han Wu, and former Assistant Professor Dr. Saif Almheiri. CNTs are sheets of carbon that have been rolled into tubes, measuring 100,000 times smaller than the diameter of human hair. Their exceptional electrical, chemical, thermal and mechanical properties make them an ideal material for countless applications, including in energy storage, computer chips, and sensors. The revolutionary potential of CNTs in materials engineering is reflected by the projected growth of its market value, which is expected to reach US$8.7 billion by 2022, according to market analysts Markets and Markets. Buckypaper is a thin sheet made of aggregated carbon nanotubes. Despite the technical potential of buckypaper, a critical problem continues to hinder its development for CNT applications. The difficulty of converting CNTs from their original fine, dust-like powdery state, to a solid, thin film of grouped CNTs remains a key challenge. CNTs in buckypaper form are much easier for engineers to manipulate. In their macroscopic manifestation, CNTs can be processed and developed into useful materials for a broader range of applications. While many innovative buckypaper-based applications have been developed in recent years, they failed to achieve broad commercialization because they lacked a scalable and cost-effective buckypaper fabrication process. “Common buckypaper fabrication methods used today are membrane filtration and chemical vapor deposition. However both methods have severe limitations, with membrane filtration restricting the size of the produced buckypaper to the size of the membrane and apparatus used, and chemical vapor deposition being exceedingly expensive,” Dr. Susantyoko explained. Addressing the need for a low-cost, scalable fabrication method, Masdar Institute’s SETC technique offers a novel solution that leverages tape-casting – a method traditionally used to coat a CNT film over a substrate – that overcomes the current technological limitations that have prevented low-cost, scalable buckypaper fabrication till now. “Our technique utilizes tape-casting with a special type of substrate, which we engineered in the lab, that allows us to easily peel off the buckypaper from the supporting substrate, resulting in a free-standing buckypaper film,” Dr. Susantyoko said. Identifying the ideal substrate that would allow the buckypaper to easily peel off was the biggest challenge. Through investigation, the team discovered that buckypaper sticks to smooth and randomly-patterned rough surfaces, but separates from a special kind of surface that has a rough structure composed of micro-sized pyramids. “We realized that the surface morphology of substrate and dissimilarity in surface energy of CNT–substrate play important roles in affecting the ability to easily peel off the CNT film,” Dr. Susantyoko added. He explained that the unique morphology and high surface area created by the micro-pyramids enabled the easy separation of the CNT sheet. To demonstrate the effectiveness of their SETC buckypaper fabrication technique, the team used it to produce a buckypaper-based cathode for a high-power lithium-ion battery. Now, the team is enhancing their SETC method to produce an even higher-powered cathode, which is intended to be used for space applications. By providing materials scientists with a scalable, low-cost and simple method to fabricate CNT sheets, Masdar Institute researchers are helping to bring the game-changing CNT innovations being developed in labs across the world to the market. Erica Solomon News and Features Writer 27 September 2017Amazon's quasi-dystopian workplace culture is far from its only moral failure in a corporate world that increasingly expects big companies to do the right thing. Its environmental record is badly smudged. Unlike some of its biggest rivals, the e-commerce giant refuses to release information about energy consumption at its data centers. Only last November did it start using renewable energy to power some of these electricity-guzzling facilities. In addition, the company offers to recycle customers' old devices, but the program is far from comprehensive. "The biggest hurdle to Amazon becoming an environmental leader is that the company has refused to embrace some basic transparency," David Pomerantz, a senior climate and energy campaigner at Greenpeace, told The Huffington Post by phone. "It's very difficult for its customers to hold it accountable." Amazon's cloud-computing service, which hosts some of the biggest sites on the web, earns about $6 billion annually. Earlier this year, major clients including Yahoo, Netflix and HuffPost demanded access to their electricity usage data, to no avail. "Unfortunately we do not release this information to our customers," Amazon told HuffPost in May, after an engineer for the site requested such statistics. An Amazon spokeswoman, reached for comment on Wednesday, pointed HuffPost to a website outlining the cloud-computing unit's sustainability goals. "It's hard to know what is the right amount of disclosure for that kind of information," Jonathan Koomey, a research fellow at Stanford University, said of the energy usage at data centers. "But I don't think it's a proprietary issue at all to say we're using this percentage of renewable power." Other tech giants, by contrast, have offered more transparent reports on their data centers' energy consumption. Apple includes its facilities in its annual environmental responsibility report. Google maintains a page dedicated to the energy efficiency of its data centers. Facebook has posted video tours of one of its data centers, touting its energy efficiency since as far back as 2011. To boot, those three companies have made substantial investments in green energy outside their data centers. Apple last February committed $848 million to a solar farm meant to power its new headquarters. Google has made numerous substantial investments in renewables. Facebook has set ambitious goals to use clean energy to power half its operations by 2018. Amazon's shoddy record on recycling old electronics is put to shame when held up next to Best Buy, the struggling brick-and-mortar retailer whose lunch Amazon has grown plump eating. Despite its recent financial woes, from which it has begun to recover, Best Buy offers free recycling of customers' electronic waste, including TVs and computers, at its own expense. On its website, Amazon says it recognizes "the importance of recycling electronic equipment at the end of its useful life." Yet, as The Guardian's Marc Gunther found, Amazon's own take-back program is limited to its own products, such as the Kindle eReader or failed Fire phone, and it requires customers to mail the defunct device in. At least with Best Buy there is a physical location to which customers can drive. To its credit, Amazon announced plans last November to power three data centers with renewable energy. Since then, the company has laid plans for two wind farms -- in Indiana and North Carolina -- and a solar farm in Virginia. "Amazon has historically been one of the major tech companies that has been the slowest to embrace sustainability in its business practices," Pomerantz said. "Amazon really was an outlier until November last year." Amazon's recent green initiative hasn't stopped it from opening other facilities that may use fossil fuels. The company faced fresh criticism after the cloud-computer division announced in June plans to open a data center in Columbus, Ohio, a city that relies heavily on coal. It's unclear how Amazon plans to power that facility. Such moves could prevent Amazon from shrinking its carbon footprint. If the company opens new locations as quickly as it converts others to renewable energy, its green commitments amount to little more than public relations plays.When you think of Clayton Kershaw, you probably think of some of the best pitchers in baseball history. He’s certainly earned the right to be talked about among guys like Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, and Sandy Koufax, even if he still has a long way to go before he matches them in career value. At the very least, you probably think of the game’s other aces, like Jake Arrieta, Noah Syndergaard, Chris Sale, and David Price. You should also think of Kyle Hendricks. Kyle Hendricks?! I can hear you say through the internet’s system of tubes. Why would we think of Kyle Hendricks when we think of Clayton Kershaw? Well, they have something in common other than being major-league starting pitchers in the 2010s. Kershaw is having an amazing run due in large part to his otherworldly strikeout and walk numbers. Hendricks can’t compete with those marks, but he’s doing something else extremely Kershawian lately. He’s mixing a low fly-ball rate with a very high infield-fly rate. If you’re a pitcher, the best thing that can happen in a given plate appearance is a strikeout. If you let the batter put the ball in play, that might result in a hit. If you walk the batter, he’s getting on base for sure. Strikeouts are the best possible outcome. The next best outcome is an infield fly ball. While they drop for hits every once and a while, they’re basically just as good as punch outs. Big-league fielders almost never drop infield flies, so if you have to let batters make contact, you’d like them to hit pop ups. If they’re not hitting pop ups, you’d prefer they hit the ball on the ground. While ground balls fall for hits more often than fly balls, the overall damage is less severe because ground balls can’t fly over the fence. MLB Batted-Ball Hit Rates, 2015 Type 1B/BIP 2B/BIP 3B/BIP HR/BIP GB 21.8% 1.7% 0.1% 0.0% FB 3.2% 7.1% 1.2% 11.0% That’s a long way of saying that ideally you’d want batters to hit pop ups and ground balls more than line drives and fly balls. It turns out, however, that fly-ball rate and pop-up rate are correlated pretty strongly (~0.57 R^2 for the sample below) based on the kinds of pitches that induce both. In other words, it’s difficult to collect a lot of pop ups without allowing a bunch of regular fly balls. It’s not impossible, but it’s uncommon. Here’s a graph that covers the last two-plus MLB seasons for pitchers who have thrown 200 or more innings. This is fly-ball rate plotted against infield-fly rate. Here’s the same thing as pop-up rate versus non-pop-up fly-ball rate: The blue dot? That’s Clayton Kershaw. Roughly 29% of his batted balls are fly balls and 11.5% of those fly balls are infield flies. The yellow dot is Kyle Hendricks, who is running a 28 FB% and 11.2 IFFB% since 2014. He’s actually marginally better than Kershaw in this respect. Kershaw and Hendricks aren’t shocking outliers on this graph, but they are two of the best three pitchers in the league when it comes to limiting bad fly balls and generating good ones. No one gets more infield flies with fewer normal fly balls than Kershaw and Hendricks. You’re likely curious about the orange dot. It’s Dallas Keuchel. A regular reader of FanGraphs probably isn’t surprised that Hendricks is performing well. He’s exactly the kind of pitcher we often praise. Solid strikeout numbers, low walks, few homers, and a good ground-ball rate. If FanGraphs were a pitcher, it might be Hendricks. In fact, our model likes him even more than his FIP indicates because we treat infield fly balls as strikeouts when computing WAR. Hendricks has gotten some of his pop ups with high hard stuff and some with changeups in the lower half: His sinker generates the majority of his ground balls, but the changeup is useful in that respect as well. On top of that, his changeup is also his swing-and-miss pitch, generating a swinging strike about 22% of the time when he throws it. In fact, you’ll notice that when Hendricks throws his changeup low, he gets swings and misses, but when he throws it high, batters make contact. It’s not totally clear where the pop ups come into play. Hendricks gets batters to swing and miss when he buries the changeup and gets them to hit the ball on the ground when he throws the sinker. The pop ups, meanwhile, don’t necessarily fit with the overall body of work. It makes sense that Hendricks doesn’t allow a lot of normal fly balls, but it’s not entirely clear why he also has a pretty solid infield-fly rate for a pitcher who otherwise doesn’t induce air balls. Perhaps it has something to do with the way hitters get caught looking for the sinker versus the changeup and vice versa. Hendricks has recorded an average strikeout rate, low walk rate, and limits the damage on balls in play. While his high ground-ball rate suggests he might start allowing more hits, the fact that his fly balls skew toward pop ups protects him from too much regression in the BABIP department. Hendricks hardly ever throws a breaking ball and sits 89-90 with his fastball, but he’s been one of the more effective pitchers in the league over the last two-plus years, sitting 26th in WAR since this date in 2014. He doesn’t look like the kind of guy who scouts would peg as a #2/#3 starter, but he’s shown that’s exactly what he is over his first 54 major-league starts. In fact, if you’re interested in high pop-up, low fly-ball pitchers, there’s two names that come to mind: Kershaw and Hendricks.The Army is looking to type-classify the XM25 as the M25 and go into low-rate production late next year. The XM25 is a “smart” grenade launcher that fires a 25mm shell twice the range of the current man-fired 40mm grenade launchers fielded. It does this by coupling a ballistic computer, laser rangefinder and programmable round. The gunner “lazes” a target. The computer positions the reticle to achieve the correct elevation. The gunner selects a point, air or slightly delayed detonation and fires. An air or slightly delayed air detonation allows for the grenade to explode over the target, defeating frontal cover. The XM25 was withdrawn from testing in Afghanistan due to an overabundance of caution after a double feed caused a primer to detonate (the warhead did not detonate as the safeties were engaged). The weapon was damaged and the firer suffered superficial burns. This incident, along with sequestration fever and a general proclivity to cut military spending, was enough, though, for the Senate to withdraw all funding in late June, which cancelled any chance of a FY2014 purchase. The Army is not going along quietly. I’ve been following this system for years and got to talk to some PEO Soldier representatives last year, and they allowed me to use the training system when I visited Ft. Benning’s Maneuver Conference. The “Punisher,” as the troops nicknamed it, received glowing reports from its combat testing in Afghanistan. Across nine engagements and 55 rounds fired in anger, it consistently caused the Taliban to break contact and withdraw. As evidence of its popularity at the end of the testing period, units requested they keep the weapon until all rounds had been fired. On the other hand, it’s been reported that the 75th Ranger Regiment felt the weapon was too heavy and cumbersome to take on patrols, and the 25mm didn’t justify giving up an M4. Ft. Benning’s Maneuver Center of Excellence CSM James Carabello didn’t agree. Carabello, a veteran of the 75th Ranger Regiment, 82nd Airborne and 10th Mountain, referred to the XM25 as “a game-changer.” Carabello’s troops from the 3rd BCT, 10th Mountain, engaged insurgents several times with XM25s during a 2011 Afghanistan deployment. Describing Afghan terrain, insurgents tactics and XM25 employment he said, “They (dirt walls) are about three-to-four feet in height, usually separated by about five-to-six feet. The enemy did use that to their advantage, where they could hide and engage our soldiers. These walls were often two-to-four feet thick, so it made it difficult for M4s, M249 squad automatic weapons and M240 machine guns to penetrate them.” “Well, I’ll tell you that the XM25, when employed, was a game-changer. We absolutely defeated any enemy force that we deployed the XM25 against… It’s a devastating weapon system and it absolutely changes the face of battle when we were in direct-fire contact with enemy forces.” The XM25 weighs about 14lbs loaded with a six round magazine. In comparison, a SAW with 200round ammo box weighs 22lbs, and a loaded M203 weighs about 12lbs. The XM25 also has a thermal sight. With low rate production as opposed to current hand tooling, the cost should drop to about $35k each and $55 per round. Again, in comparison, one GPNVG-18 Quadeye (the night vision gear likely worn by the SEALs on the Bin Laden Raid) cost about $40k each. The XM25 has a range against point targets (e.g. a window) of 600m, and 700m for area targets. The M203 has a 150m/350m range for point/area targets. Maj. Shawn Murray, Soldier Weapons Assistant Product Manager at PEO Soldier said, “Our studies indicate that the XM-25 with HEAB (High Explosive Air Burst) is 300 percent more effective at incapacitating the enemy than current weapons at the squad level.” The M203 and M32A1 are squad level weapons. Check out this video for weapons effects, and notice the recoil of the weapon. The BOI (Basis of Issue) being discussed is one M25 per rifle squad. The system will be fielded to conventional Infantry and SOCOM units. From now until next year around this time the Army is improving the fire control system, magazine size, battery life and weight. If Congress funds it the M24 should go into low rate production late next year of about 1,100 systems and ammo. (Featured Image Courtesy: U.S. Army)On September 28, 2008, under nearly 1600 light projectors fans, drivers, and teams waited to see how the first Formula 1 race to be run at night would unfold: the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. Little did they know the drama they were about to see develop on the track was only the tip of the iceberg. The real drama that would result from this race would not be felt until August 2009 in a shocking turn of events that came to be known as “Crashgate”. Practice started the weekend off with a bang. The shift to an evening race had been pushed by the FIA to accommodate their European audiences, therefore drivers and teams had to switch the way their schedule normally ran for a race weekend. Instead of being at the track at the break of dawn, the teams came in mid-afternoon and worked until early the next morning. Therefore, practice was set in the steaming heat of the afternoon with watchful eyes often turned skyward against the rains of a late monsoon season. Lewis Hamilton was fastest in practice, with the Ferraris of Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen hot on his heels. Several drivers, including Mark Webber and Rubens Barrichello, had accidents and by the time the second practice rolled around, the attrition rate had risen. Fernando Alonso, in a Renault, had somehow managed to stay on track and had found himself on top of the leaderboard by the end of Practice 2. By the time the teams reached qualifying, drivers were more comfortable with the sprawling track and speeds were increasing. Both Kimi Raikkonon and Felipe Massa were fast, with Raikkonen topping the first of the qualifying sessions. Fernando Alonso, so quick in practice, had experienced a fuel feed problem which had prohibited him from setting a time. It was Raikkonen’s teammate Felipe Massa, however, who took the pole, with Lewis Hamilton starting second and Raikkonen third. By the evening of the race, the tension was ratcheted up and a vibration could be felt emanating from the crowd. The track was bathed in the glow of artificial light and everyone watching wondered how the race would evolve through the course of the evening. As the cars took to the track and began their warm up Nelson Piquet spun but recovered without incident and took his place on the grid for the start. As the race began, the leaders charged through the first set of corners without incident. Behind them, however, Nick Heidfeld and Fernando Alonso cut the corner (but received no penalty) and Robert Kubica tangled with Heikki Kovalainen, an accident which allowed Sebastian Vettel and Timo Glock to get through. Ten laps into the race, Felipe Massa was ahead by over three seconds, with Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen behind him. Fernando Alonso came in on lap 12 to switch from the super soft tyres to the soft compound. When Alonso rejoined the pack he was at the back of the field. On lap 14, Alonso’s teammate Nelson Piquet Jr. hit the wall hard at Turn 17. Piquet would later blame the hard compound tyres for his collision with the wall, something which would come back to haunt him. In the pits, it was chaos. Only the two Red Bull cars managed to squeeze in before the pits were closed. Nico Rosberg, Robert Kubica, and Rubens Barrichello, all running low on fuel came in despite the closed pits, adding confusion to the pit process. Once the pits were opened it was no better. Felipe Massa got the go ahead to leave before his team was actually ready and left with the fuel hose still attached to the car. Moreover, he was released in front of Adrian Sutil. The mechanics chased Massa all the way down the pit lane before he came to a complete stop and the fuel hose was removed. Massa had to join the field at the back. Massa, along with the drivers who had come into the pits when they were closed were dealt penalties and the decision as to when the penalties would be served became an important part of each team’s strategy. Alonso moved into the lead after Rosberg had to serve his penalty, giving up a fifteen second lead over Jarno Trulli. Alonso continued to lead and after lap 45 he led Timo Glock by over six seconds. Both Felipe Massa and Adrian Sutil spun on lap 46 at Turn 18, moments apart from each other. The safety car came out and the field bunched up. There were nine laps remaining in the race when the safety car moved from the track and Alonso stood on it, pulling away from Rosberg and Hamilton. He held onto the lead for the remainder of the race and took the win. Nico Rosberg came in second and Lewis Hamilton was third. Formula 1’s first night race was in the books and Fernando Alonso and Renault had taken it in style, or so it was thought. It was not until August 2009 that rumors began to circulate that the crash that Nelson Piquet, Jr. was involved in, on Lap 14, was not the accident it was claimed to be. The allegations were that Piquet, Jr. had crashed on purpose to give the advantage to teammate Fernando Alonso. In the investigation conducted by the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile), Piquet Jr. said that he had been ordered by Renault team principal Flavio Briatore and engineer Pat Symonds to stage the crash. Renault was consequently charged with conspiracy and with fixing the race and were due to face the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Paris in late September of 2009. Renault, Briatore, and Symonds reacted by claiming they could, and would, take legal action against Piquet Jr. for false allegations. That never came to pass, however, and Renault made a statement that they would not contest the charges. They were handed a penalty of being disqualified from Formula 1, a sentence which was suspended for two years pending no further rule challenges. In addition they lost their title sponsor IMG; the company did not want to be associated with a team caught cheating. Pat Symonds was banned from FIA Motorsport for five years and Flavio Briatore was banned from FIA Motorsport for life. Piquet Jr. was granted immunity for his testimony and was free to race in FIA Motorsport, including Formula 1, again. Finding a team that would hire him, however, was considerably easier said than done. The 2008 Singapore GP was a race which should have been a crowning achievement for Formula 1. It was the sport’s first night race, held in one of the most exotic locations in the world, and the whole world was indeed watching. What it turned into, however, was one of the most shocking events in the history of the sport, casting a shadow on the hard driven victory of Fernando Alonso, and of Formula 1 itself. Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @tfaby3. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld– and “liking” our Facebook page. Interested in writing for LWOS? We are looking for enthusiastic, talented writers to join our Formula 1 writing team. Visit our “Write for Us” page for very easy details in how you can get started today! For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at sports injury alert. Have you tuned into Last Word On Sports Radio? LWOS is pleased to bring you 24/7 sports radio to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. What are you waiting for? GO!A small town mayor is under fire for what he wrote about the President online. Mayor Russell Wiseman of Arlington called President Obama a Muslim on his Facebook page, attacked Obama's supporters, and said the president's primetime address on Tuesday about the U.S. military's strategy in Afghanistan was a deliberate effort to block the airing of the cartoon "A Charlie Brown Christmas." The Commercial Appeal reported Wiseman's comments, posted on his Facebook page, which included the claim that the president is Muslim. Mr. Obama is Christian. According to the newspaper, the mayor's first posting read, "Ok, so, this is total crap, we sit the kids down to watch 'The Charlie Brown Christmas Special' and our muslim president is there, what a load.....try to convince me that wasn't done on purpose. Ask the man if he believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and he will give you a 10 minute disertation (sic) about it....w...hen the answer should simply be 'yes'...." In another posting Wiseman attacked the President, his supporters and Muslims, by saying "...you obama people need to move to a muslim country...oh wait, that's America....pitiful." Area voter Jeff Shackelford told CBS Affiliate WREG that the President of the United States had "more important things to be thinking about instead of trying to block Charlie Brown on TV." Ryan Williams told WREG, "I just think it's ridiculous that people blow stuff like this way out of proportion. He's trying to lead a country, not change religious values here." Wiseman downplayed the posting when contacted by the newspaper Thursday. He did not immediately return media phone calls. (Facebook) was down, although competing Facebook groups were started by both supporters and critics. On the Facebook page, "Tell Russell Wiseman To Respect Charlie Brown And Our President," a retired Army major and Afghan veteran wrote, "I am astonished that an elected municipal leader would be so ill-informed as to not know that the president was scheduled to deliver a major policy speech on our efforts in Afghanistan. Second, I find the Mayor's allegations about the president's religious views repugnant." On the "Support Russell Wiseman" page, a Facebook user wrote, "Russel is human and needs to vent. That was his personal site and it is nobody elses business but his and his friends. He did not post on the City website, it is his right as an American!"The Orioles made the expected move this afternoon and extended a $15.3 million qualifying offer to outfielder Nelson Cruz. The deadline was 5 p.m. Cruz will turn it down, of course, and continue to seek a four- or five-year deal in free agency. The Orioles will continue to negotiate with his agent, Diego Bentz of Relativity Sports, but so can every other team. The Orioles will receive a compensatory draft pick at the end of the first round if Cruz signs with another club. The qualifying offer has risen from $13.3 million to $14.1 million to $15.3 million over the past three years. Cruz settled for a one-year, $8 million deal in spring training and led the majors with 40 home runs. He hit two more in the American League Division Series. Overall, Cruz batted.271/.333/.525 with 32 doubles, 40 homers and 108 RBIs in 159 games during the regular season. The Orioles have held discussions with Bentz, but the sides are far apart. Cruz, who turns 35 in July, is seeking a four- or five-year deal and the Orioles won’t venture into that territory. Right fielder Nick Markakis did not receive a qualifying offer. His agent remains in negotiations with the Orioles and the discussions have centered on a four-year deal. The Orioles also reinstated catcher Matt Wieters and third baseman Manny Machado from the 60-day disabled list today, giving them 33 players on the 40-man roster. Machado, 22, was transferred to the 60-day disabled list on Sept. 2 with a right knee sprain. He had surgery on Aug. 27 and batted.278/.324/.431 with 12 home runs and 32 RBIs in 82 games. Wieters, 28, was transferred to the 60-day disabled list on Aug. 13 and had ligament-reconstructive surgery on his right elbow on June 17. He batted.308/.339/.500 with five home runs and 18 RBIs in 26 games. Both players are expected to be full-go at the start of spring training, but the Orioles will have a better sense of their respective recoveries at the January minicamp in Sarasota.While solid-state hard drives are still only just beginning to catch on, if a group of researchers from Thorrn Micro Technologies have their way, there could soon be another solid-state laptop component headed your way. That component in question is a microchip-sized fan, which boasts no moving parts but is apparently capable of keeping a laptop or other electronic devices cool. To do that, the fan reportedly makes use of the same technology found in household air purifiers, which results in a flow rate three times greater than typical small mechanical fan, not to mention lower power consumption and completely silent operation. Of course, the fan is still in the early testing stages, but the researchers see virtually no end to its potential, with them boasting that it's "one of the most significant advancements in electronics cooling since heat pipes," and adding that it could "change the cooling paradigm for mobile electronics."They’re not gonna be intimidated by the Georgia Bulldogs, They’re not gonna be intimidated coming Between the Hedges. We’re gonna have to earn their respect… We want to be the toughest mentally and toughest physical team in college football, That’s how we have been trying to train since January. We’re probably the lightest team we’ve had since I’ve been at Georgia, which is a little bit of a concern when you play some of the bigger, heavier team that wanna hit you in the mouth but i think that we are in tremendous condition… When you’re in good shape you can play harder longer. We’re in pretty good shape, a couple guys with Hammys (hamstring injuries) we’re trying to be careful with trying to make sure they are really read. You don’t want another setback. If you pull a hamstring a second time, it takes a toll on the kid psychologically and it tends to last a little longer the second time. The guys coming off the knee surgeries, Jonathan Ledbetter and Tim Kimbrough. Reggie Carter’s shoulder is a little sore, I’m not sure if he’ll play this week or not. Right now though everybody seems to be extremely healthy. If I can’t get from here to the media and be able to announce it without somebody tweeting it out, G.A.T.A, G- A- after his T- A- Go Dawgs and God Bless! [su_spacer size=”20″] University of Georgia head coach Mark Richt addressed the Touchdown club about the state of the team and other various situations concerning the Bulldawgs. The overall tone of his message to the public was that his team is ready to get between the hedges and play Bulldog football.[su_spacer size=”20″]Mark Richt mentioned that although the team may need a few more practices to fine tune everything to completely be ready, they are still ready to play Saturday. Right started off by talking about the University of Louisiana at Monroe Warhawks football team and their experience against SEC schools in the past.[su_spacer size=”40″][su_spacer size=”40″] Mark Richt also highlighted that this team is not one of the bigger teams that he has coached during his tenure at UGA but although that could be a concern he thinks that this team has a lot of potential and that being more in shape could help the Dawgs finish the drill and play hard for four quarters.[su_spacer size=”40″][su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Richt went ahead and gave a brief injury update on a few of the players and how they plan on managing their injuries for the next game.[su_spacer size=”40″][su_spacer size=”40″] He also highlighted a few specific players who were trying to overcome some ailments and mentioned that first team Mike-linebacker Reggie Carter may be very limited for the next game.[su_spacer size=”40″][su_spacer size=”40″] Mark Richt reiterated that Lambert did not pull away from the other QB’s and that they will probably play more than one QB against ULM. Mark Richt did have a funny moment when talking about the announcement concerning who would be Georgia’s starting quarterback. He told the team after practice and
be great again.In Australia, the Q Society has emerged as the major ideological platform for anti-Muslim propaganda. The organisation states that it was ‘formed [in 2010] in response to growing concerns about the discrimination, violence and other anti-democratic practices linked to Islam’. The First International Symposium on Liberty and Islam in Australia (March 7—10) is a joint project of the Society, its merchandising arm SkipnGirl, and Stop Islamization of Nations (SION), a coalition of anti-Muslim groups in the UK, US and Europe founded in January 2012. The symposium’s list of speakers includes prominent anti-Muslim activists Pamela Geller, president of the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) and Stop Islamization of America (SIOA); Robert Spencer, director of Jihad Watch; Anders Gravers, chairman and founder of Stop the Islamisation of Denmark and leader of Stop Islamisation of Europe; and local talents Bernard Gaynor, Michael Burd, Bill Muehlenberg and society president Debbie Robinson. Despite such a stellar lineup, the symposium has received minimal media coverage. Insofar as there has been attention, it has been directed at the announcement, contained in a video greeting to attendees, that Dutch politician Geert Wilders will in 2015 launch a new political party in Australia, the Australian Liberty Alliance (ALA). The event itself got off to a rocky start on Friday night when a cocktail party at Young & Jackson’s welcoming its guest speakers was interrupted by protesters, who were described by one rightwing blogger as ‘Far Left Loons, Useful Idiots and Feral Rabble’. Robert Spencer says that the incident ‘vividly illustrated the nature of our struggle: it is truly, as Pamela Geller has so indelibly put it, a struggle of the civilized man vs. the savage.’ Protesters were also present at Geert Wilders’ address in February 2013, also organised by the Q Society, at La Mirage Reception in Somerton during the course of his first tour Down Under. Their ‘uncivilised’ protest was subjected to some minor harassment by ‘civilised’ men associated with the neo-Nazi group ‘Nationalist Alternative’. In February 2014, one of these counter-counter-protesters, Neil Luke Erikson, ‘avoided jail for abusing a Melbourne rabbi in a series of racially-motivated phone calls he tried to explain as a prank’. Obviously, Islamophobia makes for some strange bedfellows – political tensions between various tendencies on the far Right regarding the proper place of both ‘the Jew’ and ‘the Muslim’ in Western society are seldom far from the surface. The events of 9/11 loom large for the anti-Muslim Right. ‘Before 9/11, I was not political,’ Pamela Geller has said. The same appears to be true of many other individuals attracted to the milieu out of which the Q Society has emerged and which continues to sustain it: a milieu that is largely white, middle aged and middle class. While there’s some degree of overlap, it’s thus distinct from the sociodemographic that populates the ranks of groups such as the Australian Defence League. In the mid- to late-2000s at formal and informal meetings of various groups of concerned citizens in Melbourne’s nicer suburbs (Kew, Toorak, etc), concern over Islam melded with strong support for Zionism, equivocal attitudes to multiculturalism, and a fear of being portrayed as extreme: some meetings were held in NSW in order to avoid Victorian laws on racial vilification. Tracing the precise evolution of the Q Society from within this milieu is difficult, but there are some clues. For example, ‘Democracy Frontline’, a website established in late 2005 and animated by similar concerns, eventually merged into another, ‘Australian Islamist Monitor’ (AIM). This site ceased publication in July 2012 and upon doing so informed concerned readers that they should consult the Society for further information. Contributors to AIM included one ‘Skipping Girl’. In a contribution to the 2011 Inquiry into Multiculturalism in Australia published on the AIM site, Skipping Girl makes the claim that ‘the doctrine of Islam … is the cause of most of the problems experienced in Australia and throughout the world’. Interestingly, ‘SkipnGirl’ is the brand under which Q currently raises funds to support its activities. The company has one shareholder: Debbie Robinson, President of the Q Society. AIM’s agenda was spelled out online in various email groups and blogs several years prior to the establishment of the Q Society. A chief reference point was a US group called ‘anti-CAIR’, an Islamophobic organization that purports to be ‘defending America and the Constitution from the Council on American-Islamic Relations’. Online discussions canvassed the possibility of establishing a non-profit organisation to, inter alia, produce anti-Muslim propaganda, monitor Muslim political activity, organise seminars, lobby politicians to recognise Islam as a hostile ideology and to enact government policy on that basis (harshly restrict Muslim immigration, education, employment and political opportunities etc). It did not, however, seek to establish a political party, preferring to operate as a private lobby. On the party-political field, the emergence of the Wilders-backed ALA poses a distinct challenge to the far-Right micro-Party for Freedom (PF), established in late 2012 by the Sydney branch of the Australian Protectionist Party (APP) in imitation of Wilder’s own highly-successful Party for Freedom (Partij voor de Vrijheid). The split in APP that produced PF occurred after an internal party dispute over the advisability of the Sydney branch’s organisation of a June 2012 public rally demanding that the government ‘torpedo the boats’ of asylum seekers. Since then, PF Chairman, Nick Folkes, has further distinguished himself by declaring Africans ought to be sterilised. As a result of opposition from anti-racists, a public forum on ‘African crime’ that the party organised last month was forced to relocate venues twice before settling on the Newtown lounge-room of notorious anti-Muslim bigot Sergio Redegalli. As for the symposium, a debate that Muslim students had organised between Geller and Spencer and Mohamad Tabbaa (Executive Director, Islamic Council of Victoria) and Dr Yassir Morsi (Postdoctoral Researcher at the Centre for Muslim and non-Muslim Understanding, University of South Australia) on the subject of ‘Islam or Secular Liberalism: Which is the way forward?’ was cancelled after Geller and Spencer withdrew. Tabbaa argues that the society is ‘intent on presenting Islamophobia as a rational and sensible position, in opposition to the outwardly simplistic and unattractive rhetoric of populist Islamophobes such as the ADL’. He says it is keen to avoid the accusation of bigotry ‘by appealing to human rights rather than a crude nationalism’. That objective is a continuing struggle for the Q Society. Though its core message has won support from significant elements of the political establishment, the crude antics of fringe elements in the ADL, APP, PF and others arguably present a more honest reflection of its aims.EPA: There isn't a position on this any more than there's a position on the temperature at which water boils. Then last week, an actual piece of journalism, the lead story in Monday's New York Times, confirms that things are indeed pretty much as desperate as Sorkin depicted on his pretend newscast. As the latest UN summit on greenhouse gases convenes in Peru, climate scientists report that a 3.6 degree rise seems inevitable, which they believe is "the tipping point at which the world will be locked into a near-term future of drought, food and water shortages, melting ice sheets, shrinking glaciers, rising sea levels and widespread flooding." Flipping back to one last bit of patter from The Newsroom: The EPA administrator tells McAvoy, "The last time there was this much CO2 in the air the oceans were 80 feet higher than they are now. Two things you should know: Half the world's population lives within 120 miles of an ocean." "And the other?" "Humans can't breathe under water." I propose that it is time for us to accept as a premise in whatever environmental discussions we have -- or indeed, in any deliberations on anything taking place in the future -- the fact that the world is coming to an end. Well, not the world itself: The planet is actually pretty resilient, and will likely continue on its orbit unbothered by the warm spell; it's just people, along with most other life forms, that will disappear. Geologically, there's not so much to worry about; biologically, on the other hand, we have a situation. Over the past decade -- since Al Gore's documentary An Inconvenient Truth brought global warming into the mainstream consciousness -- the rhetoric has been dire, but at least minimally hopeful: If we start doing this and stop doing that now, we can perhaps just barely salvage what is left of our ecosystem. For a while it made sense, as Will McAvoy was trying to do on his newscast, to cling to a thread of hope in order to motivate reform and prevent people from descending into a paralyzing sense of helplessness. But now it's time to accept our impending demise. Those are profoundly difficult words to write, but they are necessary: Our times demand a new rhetorical honesty. It is deceitful and irrelevant to sustain the charade that things may improve. Instead, it's time to start talking about how we will die. (Maxine Kumin has a poem called "Our Ground Time Here Will Be Brief." It was.) As depressing as this is, it has at least the virtue of being true, unlike the kick-the-can-down-the-road policies that pretend the solution for global warming lies in producing (someday!) cars that get 150 mpg and cities powered by wind farms. And expecting Westerners (the 12 percent of the world's population who consume 60 percent of its resources) to use less stuff. If there's a silver lining, it is not a very satisfying one, but for what it's worth: I think it may prove refreshing, even exhilarating, to develop a new trope, a new truth, that lets go of the pretense that things will turn out ok. "The progress narrative" that has undergirded Western culture for millennia was nice while it lasted, but it's also responsible for getting us where we are today, as it stoked the fantasy that we were invincibly moving ever forward, and that our rampantly voracious overdevelopment (exploration, imperialism, conquest, growth, "civilizing" nature) had no costs, no limits, no consequences. As an English professor, I find it exciting to consider the possibilities for a new voice, a new style, a new writerly consciousness that may accompany and chronicle the winding down of our sound and fury. Other cultures at similar points in their trajectory -- past the zenith, clearly waning yet close enough to the glories of the past -- have often produced keenly insightful literature and art. Being on the cusp of decline provokes incisive self-reflection -- as the Greeks called it, anagnorisis: recognition. Cervantes achieved this in Don Quixote toward the end of Spain's Golden Age, as did T. S. Eliot in "The Waste Land," his report from the front lines of the cultural disintegration that accompanied the collapse of European imperialism and the War to End All Wars: "These fragments I have shored against my ruins." On a personal level, we have lately begun to do a better job of dying, and of accepting death -- writing "death plans," forsaking heroic measures of resuscitation. So too as a species we may learn to accept the inescapability of our impending ecological fate. We can celebrate the bright spots from our past human heritage, acknowledge our follies, and finally, deal with it: It is what it is. There will be a limited future audience for this brave new art, since we're hovering on the verge of extinction, but it will leave an interesting time capsule for whoever might come to recolonize the planet after we're gone. "Anthropocene," a recently coined term for our present epoch, reflects the unique phenomenon of human impact that has changed (disrupted, ruined) the earth. Complementing this scientific assessment, a parallel aesthetic movement must acknowledge, better late than never, that we have irreparably fouled our nest. We might demarcate our cultural expressions of this period as "epitaphal": our last words, as on a gravestone, inscribed with a solidity that will outlast our mortal frames and will announce for eternity (even in its conscribed scope) what kind of people we wanted to be and how we hoped we might be remembered. Randy Malamud is Regents' Professor of English and chair of the department at Georgia State University.Are you registered as an organ donor? Right now over 21,000 Californians wait for an organ transplant and more than 100,000 are waiting throughout the United States. One third of them will die while waiting on the list to receive a transplant. The wait can be a long and frustrating one, for both the potential recipient and their family. By registering as a donor, you have the ability to save up to 8 lives and enhance the lives of up to 50 more through tissue donation! If you’re not registered and want to register or you have questions about registering as a donor, please visit Donate Life California. Please also give this link out to everyone you know; via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and email so that you can help spread the word! The more people who register, the better the odds that lives will be saved! Even if you have a pink dot pre-printed on your license or ID, it’s a good idea to register with Donate Life California, to make sure your wishes are met. *Note to non-California residents: Registrations from out-of-state residents are accepted on the Donate Life California Registry and serve as an advance directive in accordance with California state law in the event one’s death occurs in this state. There is no national registry. All matters concerning organ and tissue donation are under the jurisdiction of each state’s respective laws. For information on how to become a donor in other states, go to www.donatelife.net and click on the state in question.Once upon a time, I was a daily gamer, logging an unreal number of hours across a few favorite games. Recently, I sat down to play my first video game in a year. My break away from gaming wasn’t exactly planned, it just happened naturally. Before I began my gender transition at 34, video games were my go-to distraction to deal with the effects of my gender dysphoria. For years, the only expression of my true self that I had was with female video game characters. I first knew I was really a girl at age eight, even though back then I didn’t know the term “transgender” or that transitioning was a thing that people could do. It was around then (1988) that my parents bought an NES for myself and my older brother. I remember we had the original Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt/Track and Field triple cartridge because the system had come with a power pad. I preferred Mario Bros while my brother, an avid hunter and fisherman, gravitated more towards Duck Hunt. It wasn’t until a few months later when we got Super Mario Bros. 2 that video games became a vital piece of survival equipment for me. Even at that young age, I was crying myself to sleep, praying to wake up as a girl, with no memory of being a boy. Outwardly, I was just your typical roughhousing little boy, I didn’t ask to play with Barbies, I didn’t insist on being called a girl, I didn’t demand girl’ clothes. Those things were much much too scary to ask for at the time. The only way someone would be able to tell something was amiss was if they paid close attention to the way I used to play Super Mario Bros. 2. I used Princess Peach obsessively. I still have muscle memory for her floaty jumps and the longer length of time to pull up turnips, even to this day. Peach was the very first female character that I ever got to play, and allowed me a total escape. Even though she was just a 2D image on a grainy television, when I was playing her, I was the one in the red dress; I was the one with the long blonde hair. It was me floating through the air over her enemies. The game was difficult (I never beat it), but I spent hours at it. Beating the game became secondary to expressing my secret identity. — My cousin recently reminded me that we used to play Street Fighter 2 Turbo all day long when we would see each other (which wasn’t often, living across the country). I loved spending time with him because we were the two biggest gamers in the family, and we developed a bond despite the distance. When he brought up Street Fighter, I joked “Now you know why I was so good with Chun-Li!” Her lightning kick was so easy to pull off and her costume and hair was just perfect. Chun-Li was a physically intimidating badass in a way that I knew I would never be. When I was Chun-Li, it wasn’t just opponents I was beating; my enemies became my bullies, the guys who called me “faggot” or taunted me by calling me a girl. A Chun-Li kick to the face was my way of letting them know that damn right I was a girl and I’d still kick their ass. In actuality, it was only in the virtual world that I was a tough chick. I rarely had the temerity to fully stand up to my bullies. It happened occasionally but I was always a gentle giant. Besides, when they were constantly calling me a girl and were actually right, who was I to argue? — “If I win this race, I’m going to get you a pink, frilly dress for your birthday!” my brother taunted me right as our Super Mario Kart race began. I was twelve years old and it was a month before my February birthday and I was playing as Yoshi. My brother was trying to psych me out by trying to humiliate me. “Would he really get me a dress?” I thought to myself as I careened around the course. I lost badly. The original Super Mario Kart was interesting in that the slight differences between characters were matched in pairs. Bowser and Donkey Kong had the slowest acceleration but the highest top speed, while Koopa and Toad had average speed and acceleration but great handling. Princess Peach and Yoshi were quick off the line and had better than average handling. Mario and Luigi were average at everything. This introduced, in essence, a second closet for me. I’d play Princess Peach obsessively in private, but when it came time to play with my brother, I’d hide by playing her analog Yoshi. I was becoming more aware of the stigma attached to little boys who were really secret girls. In the end, I didn’t get the dress. A few weeks after, we were playing Mario Kart again; when the race ended in my brother’s victory, I put my controller down suddenly. He looked at me, confused, as I spoke. “I… thought you said you were going to get me a dress for my birthday?” His eyes narrowed and then went wide as saucers and then narrowed again suspiciously. “You WANTED a dress, didn’t you?” he spat. I instantly regretted bringing it up. This is not how it was supposed to happen. I wanted the blue couch to turn into a blue dragon and swallow me whole. “You WANT a dress, don’t you?” He was standing now, looking down at me menacingly. I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore and I cried my denials, my humiliation complete. “You’re SICK, you know that? You need a psychiatrist! You’re mentally ILL! You’re sick!” Each word ripped a successively larger hole in my heart. My brother stormed off to his room, leaving me crying in his wake. — My gender situation became a whole lot more complicated once I entered my teenage years. Puberty hit and my new body revolted me, but I tried to make the best of it. When I was 14, a flooded basement destroyed all my games. I repressed my gender identity, and gaming wouldn’t be my outlet again for many, many years. Much later, as a thirty one-year-old, I was heavily back into gaming. I had glommed onto a clan of British gamers through Call of Duty 2, playing a tactical realism style that looked nothing like a stereotypical game of COD. As COD2 online play finally started to die out, we looked for new games to play; one of our favorites was a mod for Arma 2 called DayZ. I’d been struggling with my gender again since my thirtieth birthday. I had bought a set of women’s clothes for the first time in a decade in an effort to find relief. I didn’t know then that my journey would lead me to transitioning, but I knew that the dysphoric attacks that I was suffering from were getting more severe by the day. It seems like such a simple thing, the character select menu in DayZ. The first time I logged in with the group, I chose the girl character. My friends were confused. Using my nickname they’d ask me “Tabz, why are you always the girl, mate?” My response will sound familiar to any trans girl gamer: “I just want to stare at her ass while I play, lol!” (Side note: if a “guy” you play with says this to you, she’s probably trans. Just saying.) It was odd to me that the women in the game were treated slightly better than the male characters. Strangers would sometimes try to befriend me rather than resorting to straight-up murder. Even when it was understood that most of the female characters were being played by people presenting as male in real life, there were slightly coded gender roles within this pretend world. It was odd and yet also a relief. DayZ eventually died off, though people still play it in its standalone version, which I never liked as much as the mod. By the time the game reached its end, I was well on my way towards mentally preparing to transition in real life. Overwatch is the game that drew me back to gaming regularly. My boyfriend had been raving about it for weeks, so over Thanksgiving, he finally had me try it out. The character select menu was a dream come true, with so many male and female characters to choose. And yet, now that I present as the woman I truly am all the time, I don’t feel any particular attraction to coding myself as female in an online form. In fact, Hanzo is my main simply because he fits my play style. Coming from my tactical realism background in COD2, I was used to using cover and moving deliberately while preserving my own life. Hanzo fits that best, though Widowmaker works as well (and her Rose skin is absolutely to die for). Through the years, it was video games that saved me. After a hard day of dysphoria it was so relieving to just be able to melt into a virtual world and play as my true self. This is why representation in video gaming is so important, not just for trans people but for anybody. It’s important for people to be able to see themselves in the media they consume. They deserve to feel like an unattainable badass like Chun-Li, and they deserve to see themselves interacting with a virtual world in powerful and moving ways. Want more stories like this? Become a subscriber and support the site! Super Mario Kart image via Nintendo; Street Fighter image via Capcom; DayZ image via Bohemia Interactive Katelyn Burns is a trans woman, essayist, parent and feminist from Maine. Her other work has appeared in VICE, The Establishment, Sports Illustrated and SheKnows. She’s looking forward to a winter without shoveling snow now that she lives in a condo. You can follow her on Twitter @transscribe. —The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.— Follow The Mary Sue on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, & Google+.Jacksonville Jaguars general manager David Caldwell wouldn't take an overt stance like the team's owner, Shad Khan, did last week on their chances of drafting a quarterback. Brooks: Clowney's best fit? Jadeveon Clowney is one of the main figures in the 2014 draft. Which team would suit him best? Bucky Brooks has five in mind. Jadeveon Clowney is one of the main figures in the 2014 draft. Which team would suit him best?has five in mind. READ "We're going through the process now," Caldwell said Thursday at a Jaguars Fan Forum, per The Florida Times-Union. Caldwell did let on that his team tentatively has narrowed down whom it might target with the No. 3 overall pick. "There's a consensus here," he said, per the Jaguars' official website. "We have a good idea who our top-five guys might be, but that's going to differ from team to team. It's hard to get a consensus among your own building, and the whole league." Caldwell said the Jags also would consider trading down if the opportunity presented itself. 'ATL Podcast' The The Around The League team hits all the NFL's hottest topics in its award-winning podcast. Join the conversation. Listen "We would not discourage that at all," Caldwell said. "I think it's a possibility, but it's so early in the process. There are going to be guys who are going to be weeded out. Some may have injury issues. Some may have other issues. Everyone thinks they're going to be a top-10 pick and now they're not even going to be in the conversation. "Then there will be guys that rise, (players) who have a great week at the combine." The current three top-rated quarterbacks most likely to be linked to the Jaguars are Johnny Manziel, Teddy Bridgewater and Blake Bortles. Sitting at No. 3, the Jags will have a shot at one of those men, if Caldwell eventually decides quarterback is the way to go early in the draft. In the latest "Around The League Podcast," the guys ponder the future in both Seattle and Denver and break down the teams who intrigue them most this offseason.Later on Friday, Trump said, "I have great respect for the FBI for righting this wrong." Pence, the governor of Indiana, addressed Trump's about-face in an interview on Fox News Sunday. "I think what you see here is an example of real leadership," Pence told Fox. "That's because we thought the investigation never should have been closed.... It was just incomprehensible when the director of the FBI came out and literally indicted Hillary Clinton in the press and then said we're not recommending that she be indicted." In July, Comey recommended no charges be filed against Clinton, but he was highly critical of her use of a private email server while serving as secretary of state and of the potential risks it presented to possible classified material. On Sunday, Clinton's team tried to make its case on the national news shows, joining Democratic leaders who have said it was "unprecedented" for such FBI action so close to an election. Her campaign has called on Comey to release all the facts known so far, and campaign officials have criticized his letter because, they contend, it lacks crucial details. Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said Comey was in "an impossible spot" when he acknowledged the FBI was looking into the messages. "Had he sat on the information, one can argue that he also would be interfering in the election," by failing to disclose the review, Conway said. Clinton said in Florida on Saturday that it was "pretty strange to put something like that out with such little information right before an election" and accused Trump of using the issue to mislead voters in the final leg of the campaign.By Art Carden, Ph.D. Art Carden is Associate Professor of Economics at Samford University's Brock School of Business After last summer's debate about ride-sharing, I experimented with taking taxis to and from the airport and bus station when I'm traveling. I hate driving, a cab means I don't have to look for a parking spot or remember where I parked, and I can get a bit of work done in 10-15 minutes in the back of a cab. After a few months of #BhamTaxiProbs, the experiment is over: I'd rather drive. After my last ride to the airport (when I was picked up twenty minutes late even though I had reserved a taxi the day before) and my last ride home from the airport (in a taxi with a cracked windshield and trash in the backseat driven in such a way as to make me worry that I'd stumbled onto the set of a Mad Max reboot), I abandoned the experiment. I've been taken on unnecessarily circuitous routes. I had a driver stop for gas and spend most of my ride on the phone. I've had a driver texting at red lights. I've regularly had to give drivers directions. I've wasted time waiting for drivers to fumble with my credit cards and finicky card readers. My experience with Uber and Lyft in New York, Atlanta, Charleston, San Antonio, DC, and Phoenix couldn't be more different. They offer cleaner, more comfortable rides at much lower prices, with far greater transparency, and with more convenient payment and feedback mechanisms. I went to Charleston in March and where I normally would have rented a car and put up with the annoyances that come with navigating an unfamiliar city and finding and paying for parking, I was able to take Uber everywhere. Access to cheap and reliable ridesharing made it a much more pleasant experience and--importantly for municipal leaders, left me with a very positive impression of the city. With Uber and Lyft, I get a picture of my route, a picture of my driver, and an estimate of how much it's going to cost me. My credit card is charged automatically, and I can offer a nearly-instant rating and feedback pretty much as soon as the ride is over. Some drivers have even had bottled water and snacks for their passengers. With cabs that use Square as a payment-processor, I can leave feedback after I get a receipt in my email. With cabs that don't I imagine I would have to contact the company or the appropriate regulatory authorities in order to leave feedback--a process that just isn't worth the trouble. Resistance to innovation hurts the Birmingham brand. The city's refusal to accommodate ride-sharing innovators is sending prospective visitors and residents the message that they cannot expect the same amenities they take for granted in other cities. If the Slossfest Twitter explosion is any indication, we are at the point where people are surprised when they can't get Uber or Lyft in a major city. There are substitutes for ride-sharing. Get a designated driver. Get to know a cabbie you can trust. And so on. We're fortunate that this is so, but we wouldn't need to waste our creative energies on work-arounds if a cheaper, higher-quality, more convenient option hadn't been effectively taken off the table last summer. The world is changing, and if we want to keep up we need to embrace innovation and recognize others' freedom to choose how to get around. There are worse things than lousy taxis, but #BhamTaxiProbs are symptoms of a much deeper refusal to embrace innovation and trust people with liberty. Rules that encourage innovation and a culture that celebrates it turned ours from a world where life was solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short to one that is connected, rich, comfortable, refined, and long. If history has taught us anything, it is that these are not automatic. We can feed the goose that lays the golden eggs, or we can kill it--or at least gravely weaken it. That's what we do with regulations that restrict innovation. Art Carden is Associate Professor of Economics at Samford University's Brock School of Business and a Senior Research Fellow with the Institute for Faith, Work, and Economics, a Research Fellow with the Independent Institute, a Senior Fellow with the Beacon Center of Tennessee, and a member of the Adjunct Faculty of the Ludwig von Mises Institute.Molly Huddle’s smudge-less, next-big-thing in U.S. distance running status took a little hit on March 20, at the NYC Half Marathon. With $20,000 for first and $10,000 less for second on the line, Huddle’s left arm—maybe under the influence of the fight-or-flight, primitive sportsmanship-be-damned part of her brain—came up in front of Kenyan Joyce Chepkirui’s chest like a gate, and stayed there just long enough for Huddle to lean across the tape first. By.08 of a second. I think it was an obstruction—a very understandable obstruction, considering the two had covered 13 miles at a withering clip and ratcheted it up from there for the last 150 meters—but an obstruction, nonetheless. So, fine, in the words of investment people, my opinion of Huddle underwent a correction; it was rightsized. Then Huddle went and gave an incredibly indignant response to the mere suggestion that she could have, in the heat of battle, obstructed Chepkirui. Take a look at the video below, starting at 0:35 where the incident is shown from multiple angles: Huddle’s arm lingered in its not-today position through several strides rather than swinging in a normal non-obstructing, I’m-pumping-for-all-I’m-worth way. Advertisement When the commentator says, “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything like that,” I thought he was referring to Huddle’s strong arm, and maybe he was, but he caught himself quick. See, this is the US of A, and Molly Huddle is, as I’ve mentioned, a genuine world class talent, a born-and-raised American, thank you Jesus, free from any Alberto Salazar connection or other ethical shade, who can and has taken it to those win-everything Kenyans. And so the announcer caught himself and said, “That was great!” referring, hopefully, to the womano-a-womano battle rather than the arm check. It is true, neither Joyce Chepkirui nor any of her people filed a complaint about the finish. But that didn’t stop viewers and running fans from lighting up the Internets about what they saw. Here are some responses from the New York Road Runners’ photo finish tweet (notice Huddle’s arm on Chepkirui’s chest): Advertisement Advertisement The running forum Letsrun.com’s message board, a gauge of runners’ opinions about the mundane and the meaningful, lit up with similar treasonous stuff, suggesting that, yes, Huddle may have impeded Chepkirui and maybe should have been awarded second place instead of first. Most critics stopped short of saying she intentionally cheated or should have been DQ’d—it was a pretty tame internet mob, as internet mobs go. But still, that was too harsh for Molly Huddle. She unloaded to Christopher Chavez from Sports Illustrated: It was really just that I was focusing on the line, the lean and getting over the tape as was Joyce, who was running up into my backswing. It was an honest finish between two women competing really hard to win a prestigious race. I officially want to say there was no intent on my part to cheat or obstruct Joyce. I would never do that. I’m not a win-at-any-cost athlete and it’s been gnawing at me that that has been the story that has taken on a life of its own from the last few steps. I feel it’s been distracting me from things this week and it was kind of important to voice what happened rather than ignore it because it was a misunderstood incident. I know as a professional athlete I’m going to be subject to criticism, as it’s part of the package. But the nature of media in the Internet age has changed through social media and anonymous message boards into something uniquely relentless and can lead even a healthy person to some dark places. Fortunately for me, I have the resources to get over it eventually but it seems like an unhealthy and unnecessary phenomenon. Advertisement Questioning a finish like that isn’t unhealthy or unnecessary. Or a phenomenon. Quite the opposite. That’s one of the most important duties of the media, social or otherwise. One of the great things about the US of A is that we have a free press, so when we see something that doesn’t fit the given narrative, we can question it. Even when it concerns someone as talented and pure and red, white, and blue as Molly Huddle.Figure 4 Chronic adolescent administration of WIN attenuates cortical oscillations in vivo. (a) Representative time course of γ power in frontal ECoG before and after injection of 20 mg/kg ketamine. Mice were treated with 1 mg/kg WIN (grey trace) or vehicle (black trace) from P35 to P55 and ECoGs were recorded from adults (>P100). γ Power after ketamine injection was normalized to γ power after saline injection. (b) Box and whisker plots of ECoG γ power in adolescent vehicle (n=5) or WIN-treated (n=7) mice after injection of 10 mg/kg (light grey) or 20 mg/kg (dark grey) ketamine, normalized as above. B=minutes 0–10 of recording; 1=minutes 10–20 of recording; 2=minutes 20–30 of recording; 3=minutes 30–40 of recording; 4=minutes 40–50 of recording. Post-injection power was compared with baseline power with MWU tests (significant P<0.05). (c) Representative time course of α power in frontal ECoG before and after injection of 20 mg/kg in an adolescent vehicle (black trace) or WIN-treated (grey trace) adult mouse. Data are presented as in (a). (d) Box and whisker plots of ECoG α power in adolescent vehicle (n=5) or WIN-treated (n=7) mice after injection of 10 mg/kg (light grey) or 20 mg/kg (dark grey) ketamine, normalized to power before and after saline injection. Time segments are indicated and statistics were performed as in (b).Microsoft today launched a $12 million 'It's Time for Skype' campaign in the U.S. and the U.K. The basic idea is that text-based communication sucks, whether it's a text message or a social network, and that the only way to proper way to connect online is to use Skype. The campaign includes seven massive billboards ads, two of which make snide remarks about Facebook and Twitter. You can see those two on the right, courtesy of Business Insider. Here are all the billboard captions (they're in all-caps but I couldn't stand that): Upgrade From A Wall
name of true transparency towards our stakeholders in this blog post I will describe the series of events which lead to the release of four patches last week. It has been an intense week for the Lisk Core team and we’re very thankful for the delegates for responding rapidly. August 19th — 14:43 UTC Community Member vekexasia contacted the Lisk Team with a bug report regarding blocks receipt processing. This bug had the potential to rollback a significant amount of blocks, and possibly irreversible damage the blockchain on the targeted nodes. The Lisk team mobilized immediately to tackle the problem with the bug report in hand. August 20th — 01:00 UTC Patch release Lisk Core 0.9.4 patch release was successfully deployed to the network resolving the potential threat of malicious block rollbacks. Due to the severity of the threat, this release went straight to Mainnet without proper regression testing. We quickly realized the patch update had introduced a new regression into the ecosystem. August 20th — 07:12 UTC Delegates on Lisk.Chat reported various failures in block processing and chain splits occurring due to double forging. As previously, the Lisk team sprang into action to investigate the root cause of the problem. During the refactor, some of the logic for fork detection was no longer working as expected, causing inconsistency in which block is chosen by the network when a delegate double forges. August 20th — 09:13 UTC Root cause of the regression was identified and a fix was implemented. However, this fix was not working in all cases, and further research has to be performed on the nature of the issue. August 20th — 19:15 UTC With new tests in hand for the failing logic, and a fix for the logic, the Lisk team released Lisk Core 0.9.5 patch release to the network. Again, while it was less than ideal to release directly to mainnet, the benefit of restoring stability to block receipt was far greater than the potential issues (i.e we skipped public testing in order to mitigate potential. August 21st — 12:00 UTC While reviewing the code to the Lisk Core 1.0.0 branch, the core team identified a missing validation in the blocks verification. While the rest of the verification checks would account for this particular validation, it was deemed critical to reinstate the validation. As previous critical threats, this release needed to be implemented as quickly as possible in the event a malicious actor decided to use it. August 21st — 19:24 UTC The Lisk Core team completed the implementation of the validation and subsequent tests that ensured the behavior was performing as expected. This lead to the release of Lisk Core 0.9.6 which changed the minVersion parameter of the network to remove all peers on Lisk Core 0.9.5 or lower. This network cut cleaned up the old, vulnerable versions of Lisk. August 21st — 23:43 UTC A buried bug in multi signatures code was discovered by the Lisk Core 1.0.0 release refactor process. This bug had the potential to crash nodes malicious and was therefore deemed critical enough to mobilize to patch immediately. With the fix and tests in hand, the Lisk team released Lisk Core 0.9.7 to Mainnet patching this potential crash exploit in the code. Why Mainnet First? It was vital to protect the security of the network, delegates, exchanges and all end-users. We greatly dislike releasing directly to mainnet; but in the circumstances of a potential network outage or attack, these measures have to be taken. I personally want to thank all of the Delegates who stepped up through the issues and were available to update their nodes almost immediately. Its through their diligence and acceptance of our patches that we are able to move forward as an ecosystem.HAVING risen by 8% in the past year, British house prices are almost back to the double-digit pace that preceded the financial crisis. That parallel makes many anxious. Vince Cable, the business secretary, calls runaway house prices a “real, real, real worry”. Sir Jon Cunliffe, the central banker responsible for Britain’s financial stability, says housing is “too dangerous to ignore”. David Cameron, the prime minister, describes the rampant market as the biggest risk to Britain’s recovery. Get our daily newsletter Upgrade your inbox and get our Daily Dispatch and Editor's Picks. The housing headache is made worse because different parts of the country are on completely different tracks. Much of Britain is calm, even tepid. In Scotland and Northern Ireland, house prices are up by less than 1% in a year, meaning real prices are going backwards. But the south-east is red hot: London is the core, with prices up 17% in a year. It gives policymakers a conundrum: can they tamp down the south without snuffing out the recovery elsewhere? The big worry is not the house prices themselves: a house is an asset, after all. The problem is the debt that sits behind it. Britons are stretching to meet ever-rising prices by borrowing more. Average loan-to-income ratios have passed their 2007 peak. This threatens to throttle the economy. Interest-rate rises within a year are starting to look likely: with more pay devoted to mortgage repayments, consumption is bound to fall. That is bad news for firms, and, in turn, workers. A household-debt hangover also reduces the funds that could be channelled towards productive investment. This slows GDP now, and lowers potential too. The boom runs on two types of fuel. The first is a rush of cash. Mortgage rates are low, and banks are keen to make loans on property. Money has also flooded in from abroad, as fancy flats are snapped up by foreigners whose governments are less friendly than Britain’s. French money underpins Knightsbridge; Belgravia-fancying Russians keep prices rising there. The second problem is bigger: a long-standing mismatch between supply and demand. Since 2004 Britain’s working-age population has risen by nearly 4m, the number of homes by just 1.8m. New supply is stagnant despite high prices. Dream conditions for house-builders (debt is cheap, as are labourers) should be creating a building boom. Yet the puny 135,000 houses completed in 2012-13 was the lowest number since records began in 1969. In ten years the construction industry has shrunk by more than 12%. Pre-emptive hangover cures The Bank of England needs to toughen up. George Osborne, the chancellor of the exchequer, has cannily lobbed the hot potato that is Help to Buy, a mortgage-subsidy scheme, to Mark Carney, the bank’s governor. Mr Carney should call time on it. And he should deploy his new “macroprudential” powers: the plan to “stress test” banks against a 35% house-price crash and a jump in unemployment is a good one. Lenders that cannot withstand this hypothetical shock will need to raise more capital, making them less eager to extend riskier housing loans. Many British borrowers could do with a hard word from the governor, too. Mr Carney has new powers to stop Britons gorging on loans: debt blockers, such as loan-to-value or loan-to-income caps, would limit household leverage, and thus have most impact on over-borrowed London. Shifting the burden of tax from income to property would reduce the flood of foreign cash. The biggest let-down has been the government. It has talked a good game about freeing up land for building in the south-east: weak construction figures show how little it has achieved. Mr Cameron should demand a faster planning process. Selling off unused government land would help builders and bring in revenue. Taxing land rather than buildings would encourage speculative construction and would push those sitting on large stocks to build or sell up. Building more around London will not be popular with shrub-loving Conservative voters, but it is the best way to stop another mortgage binge.Like many leading liberal opinion makers, filmmaker Michael Moore is desperate to remain relevant as the Democratic party that they cling to like fleas on a dog crawls off in the direction of history’s ash heap. The Dems were bombed back to the Stone Age on November 8th and the denial-steeped hangover is going to spill over well into 2017 and beyond with the temper tantrums being as ugly as they are prolonged – many of them will be organized and funded by mysterious sources. The porcine gadfly Moore is now going beyond mere activism and dipping his toe into outright anarchy with his call for aggrieved snowflakes to march on Washington D.C. to “disrupt” the inauguration of President Donald Trump on January 20th. Fox News is reporting “Michael Moore calls for protesters to ‘disrupt’ Trump’s inauguration”: Michael Moore — who predicted Donald Trump would win the presidency months before his surprise victory — is now encouraging people to protest the President-elect’s upcoming inauguration. “Disrupt the Inauguration. The Majority have spoken – by nearly 2.7 million votes &counting! Silence is not an option,” Moore tweeted Wednesday. The liberal filmmaker shared a link to the website for DisruptJ20, a campaign for “a bold mobilization against the inauguration of Donald Trump on January 20, 2017.” The website states, “We call on all people of good conscience to join in disrupting the ceremonies. If Trump is to be inaugurated at all, let it happen behind closed doors, showing the true face of the security state Trump will preside over. It must be made clear to the whole world that the vast majority of people in the United States do not support his presidency or consent to his rule.” Disrupt the Inauguration. The Majority have spoken – by nearly 2.7 million votes &counting! Silence is not an option https://t.co/HSmP3pREvy — Michael Moore (@MMFlint) December 7, 2016 Moore’s call to action seems to be perilously close to encouraging violence (which leftist goons are prone to) and he should be investigated by federal authorities for crossing state lines to incite a riot. Just call him the biggest sore loser.Click to viewOur economic future could be even bleaker than you expect — and last year was the moment to unleash your inner survivalist. If the financial system suffers any more crises of confidence, credit gets even tighter, and the fed falls into a liquidity trap, we could be in for several hardscrabbling dystopian years. Forget maintaining your current shiny standard of living — how will you feed and clothe yourself, in the worst case scenario? We've compiled a few suggestions for things you can do now to brace yourself. Avoid debt at all costs. If anything, you'll want to save up as much money as you can, in case you have to live off your savings. Thanks to recent changes in bankruptcy law, it's much harder than before for an individual to declare bankruptcy. So if you're stuck in debt with little or no income, you'll still be working for the banks. And as this guy points out, the banks will be hurting, so the moment you miss a payment, they'll be quick to try and liquidate your collateral for whatever they can get. Advertisement Get out of your mortgage before the housing market collapses any further. As this site says, if you paid $300,000 for your house and it sells for $200,000, you could end up not owning your house and owing the bank $100,000. Buy some cheap land in a rural area. Build a house, or just get a used RV. Either way, make sure you own your home free and clear, so you can live rent-free and mortgage-free for as long as you need to. Go off the grid. Get your own power generator — or, better yet, some of those solar helium balloons. Or some wind turbines. Don't be dependent on the power company to keep all your necessities running. Advertisement Cultivate some skills that will always be in demand. Become a decent electrician, handy-person, carpenter or cook. There may not be much need for someone who understands content management systems during a total economic shutdown, but someone who can build a house will always have a place to crash. Offshore yourself. As the dollar gets weaker and weaker, U.S. white-collar service workers will be the cheap overseas employees for Europeans and Asians, predicts Robert Scoble in his roundup of how to recession-proof yourself. So as long as someone, somewhere, is still making use of those white-collar service skills (like programming, or customer support) you may be able to offer yourself to overseas companies as a cheaper alternative. Invest in the ultimate counter-cyclicals. Some industries will always be in growth mode — like any business that caters to the rapidly growing senior population. Also, "sin and comfort" industries, like cigarettes, gambling and booze, do well during downturns and will probably make bank this time around as well. (Too bad booze and cigs are generally part of huge diversified conglomerates these days.) Also, movie companies are quietly bragging that the movie industry had one of its biggest growth spurts ever in the 1930s, as people craved escapism. Advertisement Invest in some Euros, or some other currency that's not the dollar. Chances are the U.S. dollar will keep getting weaker, so you'll be better off holding a more stable currency. You could also try investing in gold or silver, but those commodities are already skyrocketing in value. Have some liquid funds on hand. MSN Money suggests reducing your contributions to your retirement plan or 401(k) (if you have one) so you can put more money into your savings instead. And remember, the banks are still FDIC insured, so your savings are probably safe — but other investments have no such guarantee. Advertisement Start a vegetable garden or take part in a community garden in your neighborhood. Try to position yourself so you can get as much of your diet as possible from food you've grown yourself, instead of being hooked on sushi. Learn to hunt. These fine people claim that hungry people are already hunting small animals in the parks of San Francisco, and during the 1930s deer and squirrels were hunted almost to extinction. Learn how to trap, kill, prepare and eat a squirrel now, so you'll be ahead of the curve. Stockpile medications. Your biggest problem, in an economic meltdown, could be getting health care. If you're dependent on prescription meds, try to get some extra pills now so you'll have some on hand later. Just make sure you're always taking the oldest meds you have, to minimize the risk of taking expired pills, these folks advise. Advertisement And hey, here's a meeting coming up in New York on how to "prepare and profit" from the next Depression. If any of our readers are in NYC, please please go to the meeting and tell us what they said, so we can learn how to turn abject economic misery into pure lovely gravy.A driver'suffering from acute schizophrenia' ploughed into a group of Chinese students leaving a college in the suburb of Blagnac, near Toulouse, on Friday. Three people were injured, two gravely, in the smash at the exit of Saint-Exupéry high school, in south-west France, before being taken to the nearby Purpan Hospital. The driver, 28, who deliberately committed the attack, is known to police but was not on a security watch list. While being arrested he admitted to hearing voices telling him to hurt someone. A driver'suffering from acute schizophrenia' ploughed into a group of Chinese students leaving a college in the suburb of Blagnac, near Toulouse, on Friday The three victims are Chinese students - a 22-year-old man and two 23-year-old women. This college campus comprises of several postgraduate courses including journalism, computer science, real estate and business. The unnamed driver has been arrested following the incident. Local media report the man is known to suffer from a psychiatric disorder. Three people were injured, two gravely, in the smash at the exit of Saint-Exupéry high school, in south-west France, before being taken to the nearby Purpan Hospital 'The car mounted the pavement soon after 4pm and caused immense panic as it targeted students leaving the college,' said a local police source. 'The man responsible was known to police but had no history of terrorism. He has severe psychological problems, and had been placed under supervision in the past 'I was in class and I heard sirens,' Paul, a communications student at the IGS campus told local media. 'We thought about an accident because when we got off the campus there were a lot of police cars on the ground. The school management did not explain what was going on. The driver, 28, who deliberately committed the attack, is known to police but was not on a security watch list. While being arrested he admitted to hearing voices telling him to hurt someoneThere once was a time when Games 80-82 carried little weight for the Detroit Red Wings. Sure, there’d be the odd contest in the late going where players were aiming for milestones, and there might be occasional jockeying for seeding, I suppose. But given the Red Wings, during their 24-season playoff streak, have posted up 17 100-point seasons, 14 division titles, and 6 President’s Trophy seasons, the last few games are really about fine tuning and rest. But this is the fourth straight season that here’s been some high drama to simply make the playoffs, and no more so than this year. The focus now to make the playoffs now has shifted away from about a month-long focus to be better than Philadelphia and make the postseason as the 2nd Wild-Card in the East, to now, given the slumping Bruins, finishing 3rd in the Atlantic. The prize for that also likely includes a 1st-round rematch with the Lightning, now without both Steven Stamkos and Anton Stralman, which will probably make them considerable underdogs, even with the home ice and regardless of whether they meet the Bruins or Red Wings. Detroit may need to win both the Philadelphia and Boston games, but they certainly cannot afford to lose them both. Strap in, Wednesday and Thursday will be tense nights, considerably more so than last week’s Wild & Maple Leaf victories. But could making or missing the postseason and hosting home games at Joe Louis Arena a couple of weeks from now make a tangible economic difference on what the Red Wings do (or don’t do) next season with their payroll? Well, it’s hard to think it has no impact. Yes, gone are the days when the Red Wings went on significant summer shopping sprees for free agents or had the economic power to acquire veteran talent and not move equitable money back out the door. They still are one of only eight NHL clubs above the $71 million threshold (this year’s cap, as a reminder, is 71.4M, but some money can be buried at the AHL level, or moved around based on players being on LTIR). It’s jarring to notice when researching prior payrolls that the 03-04 Red Wings team that crashed out to Calgary in the second round of the playoffs had a payroll of over $77 million. That year’s team signed Derian Hatcher to a monstrous free agent contract, and acquired the high-priced Robert Lang in a trade, and before the 04-05 lockout had quite expensive deals still with Brett Hull, Brendan Shanahan, and Matthieu Schneider. This was also the season they bizarrely asked Dominik Hasek to come back out of retirement and play goal when they were headed into only the second year of Curtis Joseph’s Wings contract which saw him making $24 million over three seasons. During much of the era from 1998 through 2004, the Red Wings’ payroll was so pumped up like a steroid-addled pro wrestler, that even to break even and make a little bit of money for the Ilitch family, the team needed to host SEVEN postseason games. Incredible, isn’t it? That’s despite the consistent full houses for 41 home games, merchandise sales, and corporate sponsorship. Remember, there weren’t nearly the lucrative TV deals for all the clubs the league now has with NBC and with Sportsnet. But there were some years I covered the Red Wings in the postseason for WDFN Radio in Detroit where it was obvious the organization was under tremendous pressure. Not just because, hey, you want to win the games and advance, but to not have a season that ended up as a financial loser. All this being said, you may ask why would the Red Wings and success (or lack of) this season play into next year’s projections and payroll. I can lay that out simple enough for you, even if you don’t have a college economics degree (uhh, I don’t either, nothing to be ashamed of). Truth be told, no one has ever meaningfully complained about Mike Ilitch “not spending enough” on the Red Wings, but that’s because when he has in the past, results have been delivered, and though not every season in every playoff run, enough times that his commitment isn’t questioned. If anything, in Detroit, his commitment to the Detroit Tigers has questioned far more harshly during the 12 consecutive under-.500 seasons his baseball team put up from the abandoned 1994 strike season, through the 2005 season, the most humiliating peak being a couple of years prior during the 43-119 2003 season (Alan Trammell’s managerial debut). The Tigers spent in the bottom 10 of Major League Baseball for payroll in a relatively new stadium, Comerica Park, while the Red Wings were either 1st or 2nd in all of those seasons (and several more before that). But, bottom line, what revenue gets brought in by the Red Wings for each playoff game? Let’s say the average ticket price for Red Wings’ playoff games is $85 US. Given that the cheapest upper bowl seat for last season’s Lightning series was between $50-55 while much of the lower bowl and suites are well over $85, I consider this to be a conservative guess. Assuming there’s a few freebies handed out by the club here and there, let’s say there are 19,500 tickets sold at an average of $85. That adds up to just under $1.7 million in ticket gate for one first-round game. Getting a read on the average amount spent on concessions per fan is tricky, but a couple of folks I trust who run NHL buildings put an estimate of between $22 and $25 forward. Let’s say it’s $23 then. 19,500 x 23 is another $448,500 coming in. Is it all pure profit? Of course not, but let’s say $330,000 gets cleared after buying food and drink and paying employees the little that NHL teams do. Our running total is now at a tidy $2 million dollars (per game). We’re hardly done — the Red Wings are one of the several clubs that have a fantastic parking deal in the nearby structures, and as anyone who knows Detroit is well aware, public transit is practically a non-entity. So let’s say 11,000 cars pay an average of $20 to park. We’re in for $220,000 extra (running total of $2.2 million). Merchandise. Yes, you’ll say — not me. Why do I want to be the dork with a grey t-shirt with the logos of both the Lightning and Red Wings for $26 US, to PROVE I attended an Eastern Conference first-round matchup? If it’s not you then, it’s someone else. The people I spoke to pegged the number there at $20. 19,500 x 20 = $390,000. We’re in the neighborhood of $2.6 million now. You’d have many unique fans for other games as well, the further you go, so let’s keep that figure per game. Remember, just buying one $180 Wings jersey or one of those terrible leather jackets for $450 skews the average dramatically. Obviously, there’s other money coming in and other money going out, but money that isn’t going out that’s significant are player salaries. The playoffs come, the beards get grown, the cliches are flying, and the player paychecks cease. No one else’s salary goes up unless bonus structures are written into the contracts of management members or coaches for team achievement and performance. Again, I think I’m being quite conservative with the figures, but, using the ones above, playing three first round playoff games puts approximately $7.5-$8M of profit right into the Ilitch vault. The unfortunate thing for the Red Wings is, and they’re far from the only club facing these circumstances, the expensive contracts they’d love to trade? Get serious, no one’s taking them on. That said, deals like Clarkson-for-Horton, Luongo-back-to-Florida, and even the Coyotes paying Chris Pronger not to play after the swap with Philadelphia, do tell you that there is no player “impossible” to move in the modern-day NHL. But if next season is (and I firmly believe it will be) Pavel Datsyuk’s last NHL season, and one of Henrik Zetterberg’s and Niklas Kronwall’s last productive NHL seasons, the impact of missing the playoffs this year may indeed be felt on next year’s roster for economic reasons alone. They’d better make it this year because there’s far less chance they will next season. The Ilitch family know that the page is about to turn with this franchise, and no playoff games cut their profit margins by between $6-8 million, but they also are quite aware new revenue streams will being flowing with relative riches in the 2017-18 season when the Red Wings move into their new arena. But you know when they’re not happening? NEXT season. A deeper look into the thought is a subject for another day, but history implies that teams in the last year at an older rink will cut money invested in improvements in maintenance, given the lack of a “next season.” Ken Holland already has an enormous amount of work to do this summer. Just signing his RFAs to proper contracts, will be difficult enough, let alone moving a contract like Jonathan Ericsson’s (4 years left at $4.25M), which I don’t think you can do unless you’re tossing in a far more desirable asset like a Nyquist or a Tatar. He clearly walks and doesn’t look back from both Brad Richards and Kyle Quincey, and notable raises are coming for Danny DeKeyser, Riley Sheahan, and, of course, Petr Mrazek. There won’t ever be an admission from the Red Wings that missing the playoffs impacts the team’s spending next season because the expectation is they’ll be a cap team as they always have been since 2005-06. But the complete lack of playoff revenue means the money to get the Wings to the cap in 16-17 has to come from somewhere else, and no owner enjoys the sound of that.Police in Delhi made an arrest Tuesday in connection with an alleged plot to kill Tarek Fatah, a Canadian writer and controversial critic of Islamism whose recent rise to fame in India has earned him both admirers and death threats. Delhi police suggested one of the top-ranking members of D-Company, a notorious organized crime outfit in India, ordered two men to kill “a writer and well-known TV personality.” Local media reported that the target was Fatah, a Toronto Sun columnist. (Postmedia owns both the Sun and the National Post.) Fatah has been back in Canada since the spring, after finishing production of the first season of his talk show in India, Fatah’s Fatwa, which reportedly became a runaway success for the Zee News channel earlier this year. “I’m relieved I’m in Canada,” Fatah told the Post on Wednesday. “I’d rather have (Justin Trudeau) wearing coloured socks than be in India in front of an assassin’s bullet.” Police said one of the two men accused in the assassination plan was already arrested in June. The second suspect was a 28-year-old identified as “Naseem,” also known by the alias Rizwan. Naseem was arrested Tuesday after investigators received a tip on his whereabouts and “laid down a trap,” according to a police news release. Police alleged that Naseem was “a desperate robber” and contract killer who took orders about “eliminating the writer” from Chhota Shakeeel, believed to one of the leaders of D-Company. On Facebook, Fatah posted a photo of himself in a witch’s hat, boasting that his Halloween had been cheerful as ever despite “a wannabe assassin in India.” On Wednesday, however, he admitted the reports had shaken him. “I feel I’m putting on an act by saying I’m not scared,” he said in an interview. “It’s a very strange feeling.” Fatah, a Muslim, was born in Pakistan and emigrated to Canada in 1987. As an author, columnist and radio host, he often uses his platform to criticize what he views as extremism in Muslim society that is “held hostage by hateful pretenders of piety.” In recent years, his views have courted controversy. A contributor to Rebel Media, Fatah has sided with Donald Trump’s proposed ban on immigration from several Muslim-majority countries and supported a debunked theory that a Muslim was involved in a deadly shooting at a Quebec City mosque in January. On his Fatah’s Fatwa show, discussions about Islamic issues with members of the Indian Muslim community regularly become heated, with one guest threatening to slit his throat. The show, he said, touched on incendiary topics — like polygamy — in India, where Islamic issues are rarely discussed publicly and tensions between the Hindu majority and Muslims are usually left unspoken. Fatah told the Post earlier this year that the popularity of his show had seen him mobbed in the street by fans and advised by police to keep a low profile. And this spring, authorities suggested he leave India and “comeback later on” due to an apparent risk to his safety, he said. Investigators were not available to answer questions on the motives behind the alleged assassination attempt. Fatah, though, said he believes the motive is clear. “They’re upset about what I said on my television shows.” With files from Tom Blackwell • Email: jedmiston@nationalpost.com | Twitter: jakeedmistonA far-right party in France has begun pushing for its own referendum on membership in the European Union following Britain's vote to leave the EU Thursday. Leaders of the National Front party reportedly announced support for a "Frexit" movement in the wake of the surprising results in Britain. One leader declared it was "our turn now" to reexamine the relationship between France and the EU. The National Front party controls only a handful of seats in the French government. But experts said Friday the push for an EU membership referendum in France could gain momentum given the precedent set by the U.K. British Prime Minister David Cameron announced his decision to step down in three months following the outcome of the Brexit vote. Pollsters had widely expected voters to opt for continued membership in the EU.An NYPD cop was charged with second-degree murder Monday in an off-duty road-rage shooting in Brooklyn that left another driver dead in the street — marking the first case brought under an executive order signed in the wake of the Eric Garner killing, sources said. Wayne Isaacs, 37, was indicted on the rap, along with first-degree manslaughter, by a Brooklyn grand jury following a probe by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who last year began serving as a special prosecutor for all police killings of civilians in New York, sources said. Isaacs is the first cop charged by the special prosecutor since Gov. Andrew Cuomo appointed Schneiderman to that role in August 2015, nearly a year to the day after Garner’s chokehold death during his arrest on Staten Island. At the time, Cuomo said he was addressing a “crisis of confidence in the criminal justice system” in a bid to prevent “anarchy.” Isaacs is accused of gunning down Delrawn Small, also 37, during a confrontation on Atlantic Avenue in East New York that unfolded early July 4 in front of the victim’s girlfriend and two kids. Surveillance video exclusively obtained by The Post shows Isaacs, who was in civilian clothing and driving home after finishing a shift at the 79th Precinct, waiting just 1 second before opening fire after Small charges over to his car. Small, an ex-con with a lengthy rap sheet, drove after Isaacs in a rage for about seven blocks because he believed the cop had cut him off, police sources have said. His girlfriend also told cops that Small had downed three drinks at a barbecue before the incident, and ignored her plea not to get out of his car. Small’s niece publicly threatened that she and her friends would be “hunting…down” Isaacs to “seek our justice” if he wasn’t charged. The deadly incident also sparked a protest by members of the Black Youth Project 100 outside the headquarters of the Police Benevolent Association, where at least 10 people were arrested on July 20. Small was black, as is Isaacs."Gordon Sumner" redirects here. For the Australian rules footballer, see Gordon Sumner (footballer) Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner CBE (born 2 October 1951), known as Sting, is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. He was the principal songwriter, lead singer, and bassist for the new wave rock band the Police from 1977 to 1984, and launched a solo career in 1985. He has included elements of rock, jazz, reggae, classical, new-age and worldbeat in his music.[1] As a solo musician and a member of the Police, he has received 17 Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year for ”Every Breath You Take”, three Brit Awards, including Best British Male in 1994 and Outstanding Contribution in 2002,[2] a Golden Globe, an Emmy and four nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. In 2002, he received the Ivor Novello Award for Lifetime Achievement from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Police in 2003. In 2000, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for recording. In 2003, Sting received a CBE from Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace for services to music. He was made a Kennedy Center Honoree at the White House in 2014, and was awarded the Polar Music Prize in 2017.[3] With the Police, Sting became one of the world's best-selling music artists. Solo and with the Police combined, he has sold over 100 million records.[4] In 2006, Paste ranked him 62nd of the 100 best living songwriters.[5] He was 63rd of VH1's 100 greatest artists of rock,[6] and 80th of Q magazine's 100 greatest musical stars of the 20th century.[7] He has collaborated with other musicians on songs such as "Money for Nothing" with Dire Straits, "Rise & Fall" with Craig David, "All for Love", with Bryan Adams and Rod Stewart, "You Will Be My Ain True Love" with Alison Krauss, and introduced the North African music genre raï to Western audiences through his international hit "Desert Rose" with Cheb Mami. In 2018, he released the album 44/876, a collaboration with Jamaican musician Shaggy, which won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 2019. Early life [ edit ] Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner was born on 2 October 1951, in Wallsend, Northumberland, England,[8][9] the eldest of four children of Audrey (née Cowell), a hairdresser, and Ernest Matthew Sumner, a milkman and engineer.[10] He grew up near Wallsend's shipyards, which made an impression on him. At eight[11] or ten[12] years old, he was inspired by the Queen Mother waving at him from a Rolls-Royce to divert from the shipyard prospect towards a more glamorous life.[13] He helped his father deliver milk and by ten was "obsessed" with an old Spanish guitar left by an emigrating friend of his father.[14] He attended St Cuthbert's Grammar School in Newcastle upon Tyne. He visited nightclubs such as Club A'Gogo to see Cream and Manfred Mann, who influenced his music. After being a bus conductor, building labourer and tax officer, he attended Northern Counties College of Education (now Northumbria University) from 1971 to 1974 and qualified as a teacher.[16] He taught at St Paul's First School in Cramlington for two years.[17] Sting performed jazz in the evening, weekends and during breaks from college and teaching. He played with the Phoenix Jazzmen, Newcastle Big Band, and Last Exit. He gained his nickname after his habit of wearing a black and yellow sweater with hooped stripes with the Phoenix Jazzmen. Bandleader Gordon Solomon thought he looked like a bee (or according to Sting himself, "they thought I looked like a wasp"), which prompted the name "Sting".[18][19] In the 1985 documentary Bring on the Night a journalist called him Gordon, to which he replied, "My children call me Sting, my mother calls me Sting, who is this Gordon character?"[20] In 2011, he told Time that "I was never called Gordon. You could shout 'Gordon' in the street and I would just move out of your way."[21] Musical career [ edit ] 1977–1986: The Police and early solo work [ edit ] In January 1977, Sting moved from Newcastle to London and joined Stewart Copeland and Henry Padovani (soon replaced by Andy Summers) to form the Police. From 1978 to 1983, they had five UK chart-topping albums, won six Grammy Awards, and won two Brit Awards (for Best British Group and for Outstanding Contribution to Music).[22][23] Their initial sound was punk-inspired, but they switched to reggae rock and minimalist pop. Their final album, Synchronicity, was nominated for five Grammy Awards including Album of the Year in 1983. It included their most successful song, "Every Breath You Take", written by Sting. "Even though logic would say, 'Are you out of your mind? You're in the biggest band in the world – just bite the bullet and make some money.' But there continued to be some instinct, against logic, against good advice, [that] told me I should quit." —Sting on quitting the band in 1986.[24] According
out of the Depression or wartime, when hardship could be read in the faces of stars like Humphrey Bogart’. A columnist for Variety describes present-day actors as ‘fey’, ‘goofy’ and ‘boy-men’, and Frank Miller (director of The Spirit: ‘Rookie cop returns from the beyond as The Spirit’) believes that ‘Hollywood is great at producing male actors but sucks at producing men.’ Kanfer backs his columnists up with the opinion of Harvey C. Mansfield, ‘a conservative professor of government at Harvard’, whose book Manliness claims that American society has adopted ‘a practice of equality between the sexes that has never been known before in all human history’, so putting ‘the entire social structure … up for grabs’, as Kanfer summarises. According to Mansfield, manliness ‘restores order at moments when routine is not enough, when the plan fails, when the whole idea of rational control by modern science develops leaks’. And that’s why we’ve got Johnny Depp prancing around wearing earrings. Mind you, even in the butch 1940s Mickey Rooney, Vincent Price, Clifton Webb and William Powell played nearer to the other end of the man’s men spectrum, to appreciative audiences. To say nothing of pretty-boys Cary Grant and Leslie Howard. Kanfer doesn’t by any means dismiss the argument, but he isn’t sure that loss of American virility due to an increase in women’s rights is a sufficient answer to the question of why there is no more Bogart. The full answer, he believes, requires a look at Hollywood’s post-television obsession with demographics. The economic power-shift to the young meant that movies began to be aimed at getting them into the cinemas. Older people stayed at home watching the telly, and a recent survey suggests that while 54 per cent of 14-17-year-olds have been to the movies in the past month, only 24 per cent of over-fifties have. A list of the top grossing movies of all time begins with Avatar (2009) and ends at number 20 with Finding Nemo (2003), by way of Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean and Shrek 2. And so our screens are filled with girlymen stars like Leonardo DiCaprio and Elijah Wood, and not a rugged, crusty old geezer in sight, if you don’t count Keith Richards in his Pirates of the Caribbean cameo or the cartoon ogre Shrek. It is, Kanfer admits, a chicken and egg situation. Adults don’t go to the movies because they can’t find ‘emotional and aesthetic satisfaction’. He regrets the ‘current vulgarity of American dialogue and conduct’ and says that in spite of his ‘rough-hewn persona and bar-room misbehaviour’ Bogart was ‘courteous to women and straightforward to men, and when he made a promise he kept it.’ In fact, Johnny Depp in his role as Captain Jack Sparrow and Shrek share these qualities, and I’ve no reason to suppose they don’t behave decently in their off-screen life. For vulgarity, you need to go to the much more crumpled and ‘adult’ Mel Gibson or Bruce Willis, both of whom still make movies. So aside from representing the all-male reluctant hero in the good movies he made, what was so special about Bogart? Even Kanfer doesn’t think he had much range as an actor. With the right director and co-star he was spectacular, but the great films are not so very many out of the 75 he made: The Maltese Falcon, High Sierra, The Big Sleep, To Have and Have Not, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, In a Lonely Place are the best. You can add Casablanca, The African Queen and one or two others if you want to include camp and nostalgia. There were a lot of duds and too many tries at repeating the old successes under different titles (Sahara, Dead Reckoning, The Desperate Hours, The Barefoot Contessa, The Harder They Fall). But is it Bogart’s acting that makes him of interest to us still, 50 years after he died? His life, which takes up much of the book, is not startling. The unhappy son of an unhappy but wealthy family gone to the dogs, he failed at school, went into the navy, and then, not so rebelliously, took various jobs in the theatre provided for him by the father of a friend. He married two difficult women who drank and enjoyed their public fights until he didn’t any more, and then the most interesting thing happened to him: at 44 he met the 19-year-old Lauren Bacall on the set of To Have and Have Not. On and off-screen love, like Taylor and Burton’s, is a PR winner. The film is all the better when one knows that they actually lived somewhat happily ever after. It was both Bogie and Bacall’s biggest and best part. It had taken a while for Bogart to come to terms with acting on camera. He began his career in the theatre, playing juveniles and finally, in his mid-thirties, made a success on Broadway in The Petrified Forest. It was made into a film in 1936 with Leslie Howard and Bogart reprising their roles as the drippy intellectual in search of meaning and the vicious gangster who values life just as little but with fewer words. It’s awful. Perhaps on stage Bogart’s rigid gait and staring eyes might have knocked them dead, but when ‘theatrical’ is applied to a movie it’s in big trouble. The problem is epitomised by Bogart’s arms, which he holds at all times stiffly bent at an improbable angle in front of him as if he were so used to going for his gun (or protecting his genitals) that they got stuck that way in permanent readiness, or more likely because someone forgot to oil his elbows. He is a marionette, a made-of-wood bad guy who curls his upper lip in close-ups as if sound still hadn’t been invented. It’s not his fault that the play requires him to die off camera after shooting Leslie Howard in order to complete a stupid sacrificial gesture towards a future in which neither of them has a part. Even then his career was uncertain. A lot of poor B-movies (The Amazing Dr Clitterhouse, anyone?) until 1941 when he played Roy ‘Mad Dog’ Earle in High Sierra. Bogart was a victim of the studio system, so he was used and sometimes punished with dross in between the gems. The result was that he suffered constantly from freelancer’s anxiety. Even when he was the highest paid actor in the world, he feared each film would be his last. So he churned them out in order to keep body and soul and yachts together, and because he needed to be doing something other than sitting at home and waiting for the good stuff to come along. In his personal life, in bars or on manly roustabouts with the likes of John Huston and the Rat Pack, Bogart was inclined to believe in ‘Bogart’ just as his fans did. ‘Bogart’s a hell of a nice guy until around 11.30 p.m. After that, he thinks he’s Bogart,’ a Beverly Hills restaurant owner once said. But there is something of the whiner in his Duke Mantee in The Petrified Forest, as there is in Rick Blaine’s self-pitying drunk scene in Casablanca. ‘Proof,’ says David Thomson of the latter in his Biographical Dictionary of Film, ‘of how far Bogart needed a great artist to help him rise above the level of maudlin resentment.’ Thomson suggests that self-regard prevented him from acting beyond the obvious. He is at his best when detached, or displaying what Kanfer terms ‘neutrality’ – to one side of the main action and drawn in against his better judgment. Having being seduced by his cinematic self, he was incapable of bringing himself to ‘portray loathsomeness with any imaginative honesty’, Thomson says of his performance in The Roaring Twenties. Narcissism is hardly a rare quality in movie stars, but Bogart was exceptionally wrapped up in his own cinematic image – the studio, the audience and he himself all contributed to it. It could have been Bogie not Belmondo who stared adoringly at the poster in A bout de souffle and whispered ‘Bogie’. This mixture of jobbing actor’s insecurity and confusion between himself and his characters’ idealism played out in the politics of the time and Bogart’s part in it. He joined a planeload of stars to tour the US and ended up in Washington in support of Hollywood’s Unfriendly Nineteen (‘unfriendly’, that is, to the House Un-American Activities Committee). These were dangerous times for unwitting (witless?) actors. Ginger Rogers’s mother assured the committee that her daughter had refused to say ‘Share and share alike – that’s democracy’ in Tender Comrade because of the line’s red tint. But Bogart stood shoulder to shoulder with Bacall, Danny Kaye, Paul Henreid and others, in defence of their fellow actors and scriptwriters. However, when the blacklists began, Sam Spade started to shade into the paranoid, whingeing Fred C. Dobbs of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and the deluded Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny. Kanfer quotes Alistair Cooke: ‘Bogart was aghast to discover [that many of the protestors] were down-the-line Communists coolly exploiting the protection of the First and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution. He had thought they were just freewheeling anarchists, like himself.’ Not so freewheeling, not so anarchistic; and surely Harry Morgan of To Have and Have Not wouldn’t have had an aghast moment in his life. Bogart signed an article entitled ‘I’m No Communist’ in Photoplay in which he (or a Warner Brothers publicist) explained that the trip to Washington was ‘ill-advised’ and that he was a dupe, a ‘foolish and impetuous American’. What is very strange is that Kanfer shrugs off one of the darkest and most disturbing episodes in American history. He cites Richard Brooks’s suggestion that ‘Bogie was never the same again’ after his renunciation of the First Amendment Committee, and says: ‘This smacks of the kind of romantic wish-dream that stayed with the Old Left for decades, crystallised in a film called The Front.’ (The Front, made in 1976, starred Woody Allen as a writer who makes a living lending his name for a fee to blacklisters’ TV scripts, and Zero Mostel, actually blacklisted by Hollywood for years, as a blacklisted comedian who kills himself – as several people did.) If the McCarthy era no longer carries the warning of what can happen to democracy when it is highjacked by ideological thugs, then the wish-dream is certainly over, and that may be a reason we no longer need the heroes Bogart represented. The quietism is dismaying: To be sure, if Humphrey and the other First Amendment Committee members, and the studio heads, and the principal Wall Street investors in those studios had stood together in opposition to the so-called Inquisition in Eden, there might have been a chance to save the industry from the predators. That coalition never developed, however, and it is folly to assume that Humphrey Bogart should have sacrificed his reputation, standing mutely and obediently by as the Nineteen manipulated him for their own purposes. A bizarre paragraph in a book that mourns the loss of those battlers for justice Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe, and aligns Bogart with their qualities. So what we have left is style. That lived on, however ironically. Bogart, the legendary smoker who died aged 58 of oesophagal cancer, had his last cultural gasp in 1969 on the soundtrack of Easy Rider. The Fraternity of Man sang the mournful doo-wop ‘Don’t Bogart that Joint’: a complaint about those who held onto their spliffs too long, it is said, or maybe a reference to the way Bogart curled his fingers possessively around his cigarette, before flicking it with thumb and forefinger into the gutter. I suppose new biographies of old movie stars have to keep appearing, so that each generation can get to hear about what the previous ones already know. Not every generation can be introduced to what they’ve missed by A bout de souffle. But I would hope for the new biographies to contain something original in the way of information or ideas. Otherwise the many well-researched biographies (on which much of Kanfer’s book is based) could simply be reprinted from time to time, and contemporary biographers be freed to think of new subjects. I can’t quite get past the question of whether a biography of a film star, or come to that a writer, ever has very much more to tell us than a close look at the films or the books. Imagine what it might be like not to have any interest in the private life, and only to take account of the work. Although possessed of the same voracious voyeurism as everyone else, and deeply curious about the way other people live their lives in private, I also, inconsistently, have an increasing hankering to know absolutely nothing about people who act in the films I see. A biography might be scholarly, fun or scurrilous, which is something, but if, like Kanfer’s pedestrian production, it is none of those, what can it be for? Even new light on Bogart’s private life seems much less interesting to me than the moment you catch Belmondo whispering ‘Bogie’, Woody Allen being trailed by Bogart’s Sam Spade, or Albert Finney’s Bogart idolatry in Gumshoe, and stop to wonder what that meant and why it meant what it did then. To say that he was the last of his kind because the world has grown effeminate and/or more youth-oriented, and that’s that, is more numbing than illuminating. Announcing the end of the great movie star is as pointless as announcing the end of history. The only thing I learned about the life of Bogart is that his wig-maker and hairdresser – the reliably named Verita Thompson – had a 13-year affair with him, which began during his second marriage to Mayo Methot, and didn’t finish when he divorced her and married Lauren Bacall. Mind you, Thompson’s own Bogie and Me – A Love Story was written in 1982, so it’s not the hottest gossip. If you hadn’t caught up, you might be startled to learn that the idyllic January-May marriage of Bogart and Bacall was not unlike many other Hollywood marriages – imperfect. Or perhaps you wouldn’t. Then again, it might shake your world more to learn that Bogie wore a wig.Introduction The government is carrying out a review of the EU’s competences, which the Foreign Secretary launched in July 2012. This is an audit of what the EU does and how it affects the UK. It is important that Britain has a clear sense of how our national interests interact with the EU’s roles, particularly at a time of great change for the EU. Government departments will consult Parliament and its committees, business, the devolved administrations, and civil society to look in depth at how the EU’s competences (the power to act in particular areas conferred on it by the EU Treaties) work in practice. Our European partners and the EU institutions will also contribute evidence to the review, and it will examine issues that are of interest across the EU, seeking to improve understanding and engagement. Government departments will then report on areas of competence and their findings will be published during the course of the review. This short guide and glossary to EU law explains some terms and concepts commonly used in reference to EU law. How will the review work? The review will be broken down into a number of individual reports covering specific areas of EU competence. Departments will prepare reports drawing on evidence submitted to them. They will do so over the course of 4 semesters: Autumn 2012 to Summer 2013 Spring 2013 to Winter 2013 Autumn 2013 to Summer 2014 Spring 2014 to Autumn 2014 At the start of each semester, the relevant departments will launch calls for evidence setting out the scope of their work and requesting input from a range of interested parties, including members of the public with relevant expertise or experience. At the end of each semester, the reports will be published online. The list and sequencing of reports in the table below is subject to revision if circumstances change. Read the Balance of competences FAQs (MS Word Document, 20.6KB) How to feed in to the review Once published, links to calls for evidence will be added to the table below. Each call will include a series of broad questions on which your evidence should be focused. Your evidence should ideally be objective, factual information about the impact or effect of EU competence in your area of expertise. If you wish to submit evidence once the call has issued, please follow the links below and respond in the format requested by the given deadline. We are looking for objective, factual information about the impact or effect of the competence in your area of expertise. We expect to publish all evidence we receive at the same time as reports are published in order to deepen public understanding and facilitate debate, unless there is compelling reason not to do so. We will publish the name of your organisation unless you ask us not to. If you are writing on behalf of an organisation or individually, we will not publish your own name unless you indicate you wish it included. If you ask us to keep your contribution confidential, we will try to meet that wish provided there is good reason for this. If we receive a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for information which you have asked us to keep confidential, we will seek to use the appropriate FOIA exemptions to withhold that information. But you should be aware that it is possible that we might be ordered to release it. In the meantime before the publication of evidence we will be likely to seek to use section 22 FOIA to exempt material from any FOIA requests in order to allow us to focus on collating and analysing evidence received. Welsh language translations are available on request. Semester 1 The reports in the first semester were published on 22 July 2013. You can read the reports, and the evidence submitted at the links below. Autumn 2012 to Summer 2013. Semester 2 The reports in the second semester were published on 13 February 2014. You can read the reports, and the evidence submitted at the links below. Spring 2013 to Winter 2013. Semester 3 Autumn 2013 to Summer 2014. Semester 4 Spring 2014 to Autumn 2014.A NEW crisis is engulfing the Australian Taxation Office, just weeks after police smashed an alleged $144m fraud and a big computer systems outage. ATO leaders have been forced to speak with a staff member after it emerged they has published a step-by-step guide to hack mobile phones online, revealing fraud investigation tactics. The post was published on LinkedIn, and revealed how to bypass passwords, and retrieve data — even when the phone is flat or without a SIM card installed, the ABC reported. The post was removed in under an hour after the Australian Taxation Office was alerted to it. It also included claims the staff member was involved in developing security capabilities it has previously not been thought to be involved in. An ATO spokeswoman told the ABC the staff member had been spoken to but not suspended or fired. News.com.au has contacted the ATO for comment. Phones were only accessed under a warrant under the Crimes Act, or with written consent from the owner, she said, but declined to say what “tools” the agency used as part of its work. “For operational reasons, we do not disclose information about when different tools are used as part of our operations,” she said. Michael Cranston resigned as deputy commissioner of the ATO after his son Adam and daughter Lauren were among nine people charged over an alleged $144 million tax-evasion scheme. There is no suggestion Michael Cranston, 57, was part of the scheme, but he has been charged with using information and exercising his influence as a public officer to benefit his son. Adam Cranston lived a lavish lifestyle until his arrest, with authorities seizing some of his assets under proceeds of crime laws. Last week it was revealed he spent $200,000 on two Italian racing cars just weeks before he was arrested. The ATO has defended its ability to deliver during the peak tax return period after a big systems outage. ATO portals, my Tax and other online services went down as staff attempted to resolve “some intermittent system issues”. The website has been dogged by system issues in recent months, with major outages in December, February and as recently as last week. The problems were not related to recent hardware issues and no data had been lost, it said, nor were the systems compromised or subject to a cyber attack. “We identified intermittent system issues early this afternoon affecting our mainframe and impacting on our services to the community,” the ATO said in a statement. “This was caused by applications running incorrectly.” —additional reporting: AAPTickets for the Troubles-set play, directed by Sam Mendes and starring Paddy Considine, sold out within a day at the Royal Court. Now a West End run has been announced A keenly awaited new play from Jez Butterworth, which became the fastest-selling production in the 60-year history of the Royal Court theatre, is to transfer to the West End. Even before audiences have seen The Ferryman, to be directed by Sam Mendes, producers announced a 16-week run at London’s Gielgud theatre from 20 June, shortly after it completes its time at the Royal Court. There is huge excitement around the play, which will feature Paddy Considine in a cast of 23. When tickets for the April and June Royal Court run went on sale they sold out within a day. The West End producer Sonia Friedman said the speed of that ticket sale gave the production team an obvious message. “ It became clear to us even then that there was a far larger demand to see the play than the Court run could ever accommodate.” she said. “We have therefore worked at speed to find the production another home as quickly as possible, which is no mean feat, and we are very grateful to the company for helping us make this happen. “It is thrilling to know that wider audiences will now have a chance to see this extraordinary new work from one of our most important writers. The scope, scale and ambition of Jez’s new play deserves this opportunity.” Butterworth’s plays include Mojo and Jerusalem – the latter of which was of the most popular of recent years and won its lead actor, Mark Rylance, an Olivier in London and a Tony in New York. When Jerusalem neared the end of its West End run in January 2012 there were people queuing for up to 24 hours in the bitter cold to get a ticket. General tickets for the West End run of The Ferryman go on sale at 10am on Friday. Producers said more than 20,000 tickets will be on sale at less than £25, with tickets at all performances available from £12. Friedman has previously admitted making a mistake when preview tickets for another big buzz play, Benedict Cumberbatch’s Hamlet, were sold at full price. Consequently all preview tickets for The Ferryman will be sold at reduced prices. The play is set in rural Northern Ireland in 1981, the height of the Troubles and the year of the hunger strike in which Bobby Sands and nine other republican prisoners starved themselves to death. Jez Butterworth: playwright 'without equal' turns his gaze on the Troubles Read more Further details are scarce, the official publicity says only: “Rural Derry, 1981. The Carney farmhouse is a hive of activity with preparations for the annual harvest. A day of hard work on the land and a traditional night of feasting and celebrations lie ahead. But this year they will be interrupted by a visitor.” Vicky Featherstone, the Royal Court’s artistic director, described the play as a “mighty family epic with generations of one family crammed into its dynamic world”. The play represents a return for Mendes to his subsidised theatre roots after directing two most recent James Bond films, Skyfall and Spectre. Mendes began his theatre career at the Chichester Festival theatre before founding the Donmar Warehouse in London where he spent a decade in charge. He enlisted Butterworth to help improve both the Bond scripts, a job uncredited in Skyfall. Aside from Considine, who last week confirmed via Twitter that he would make his Royal Court debut in the play, The Ferryman will feature a cast also including Laura Donnelly and Genevieve O’Reilly. The full company will comprise 38 performers with 18 main adults, 7 covers, 12 children on rota and one baby. It begins previews at the Royal Court on 24 April.Bernard and Sonia Greenberg don’t often take the bus outside their Glen Park Ave. apartment building, but this time they didn’t have much of a choice. Walking to synagogue along Marlee Ave. on Friday, Bernard, an energetic 80-year-old with a sharp sense of humour, began to feel faint. His feet became “like rubber.” Sonia and Bernard Greenberg were helped by the kindness of strangers: a TTC bus driver and a woman who gave them money for a cab. ( MICHAEL WOODS / TORONTO STAR ) “I can’t walk,” he told his wife. “My head feels like it’s exploding.” The couple stopped to rest at a bus stop. There was a clinic nearby, but “there was no way he could walk even a step at this point,” said Sonia, who didn’t have money or a phone with her. While a woman at the bus stop offered them money for a cab — Bernard wanted to go home —the northbound 109B bus rolled up and driver Claire Bilsborough stepped out, took Bernard by the arm and guided him onto the bus. Article Continued Below “I was a little bit in shock, but I didn’t have the strength to argue with her. I knew I had to go somewhere,” he said. Bilsborough planned to drive the couple to their building, which was along her route, before she saw how sick Bernard looked. “I said, ‘You can argue with your wife, but you’re not arguing with me. I’m taking you to the doctor’s,’ ” she said. She whisked him straight to the clinic and helped him inside. The bus’s 25-odd passengers waited while the driver stayed and spoke to a nurse to ensure Bernard was taken care of before continuing on her route. Bilsborough has been driving TTC buses for more than 14 years and drove school buses before that. “I treat all the people out there as my kids,” she said. TTC personnel are not required to physically assist passengers in medical emergencies, said spokesperson Jessica Martin. Article Continued Below “In this case, the operator did go above and beyond,” Martin said. “It’s quite extraordinary.” Sonia Greenberg, who called the TTC to commend Bilsborough, agreed. “She deserves a medal.” In the end, it could have been worse for Bernard. He took an ambulance to the hospital but was only experiencing a low heart rate and felt fine later that afternoon. “It just shows you some people are willing to go above and beyond what’s expected,” he said. The Greenbergs also had help from the woman at the bus stop, who followed them to the clinic and left them $77 just in case they needed a cab to the hospital. “This woman’s an angel. I’d never seen her before, and she must have emptied her purse,” Sonia said. The Greenbergs, who are celebrating their 60th anniversary in March, still have the $77 in an envelope to return to the woman. If they can’t find her, they said they will donate the money to charity.You’d be surprised by how normal most coach hirings are. It grabs the headlines when we hear about a deal going down in a smoky back room with boosters conspiring, and we love to play amateur sleuth online to triangulate an athletic director’s location. But usually, head men get hired similar to the way you or I would, in a relatively normal business transaction. One difference is that agents are always involved, so there’s another actor who has to work with an AD and a coach. As an agent, there are plenty of things to take into account, both your responsibility to your client and upholding your relationship with athletic department administrators you might have to work with in the future. It’s a balancing act, one vital to the whole machine of college athletics. SB Nation spoke with an agent who represents multiple college coaches. He asked not to be named, in order to comment candidly. These are his words, edited only for clarity. First, you have to make your guy their guy. It’s about really personalizing that interview and personalizing that kind of documentation you put in front of the school. Different programs need different things at different times. But he’s gotta be the right guy for that particular school. Teams often want a coach totally different from the guy they just fired. So, once your school hires a head coach and that doesn’t work out, sometimes they’ll go for the opposite the next time. For example, if they hired a black guy that was a defensive coach, this time they’re gonna hire a white offensive coach. Even if you’ve got the best defensive coordinator in the country, as an agent, you can’t really present that guy. You can, because you have an obligation to your client, but you know he’s not gonna get as much consideration had that experience at that school not happened before. I’ve got a minority coach, and part of the criteria is wining and dining alumni. This guy’s already got this preconceived notion that my guy, because he’s black or whatever the case may be, does or doesn’t know how to deal with these kinda people. Once you have the guy, it’s time to navigate the school’s power structure. Some places, it’s worthless to talk to the AD. They don’t have any juice. They facilitate; they can be a rubber stamp. I know at some places, talking to the athletic director is just like a mere formality. Some places, you know if the athletic director can’t do anything without consent of the president. At other places, the athletic director has autonomy. One of the most important things is to know the landscape of the decision makers. Part of it is instincts. Part of it is, I really pay attention to what they say. It just kinda depends from place to place. But the athletic director will always play their hand, because they either put blame on them or they’ll say, “Hey man, this ain’t my decision. I can’t do this.” At some point, when there’s complications, it’ll just kinda reveal itself. Sometimes you can tell immediately from their conversations whether it’s even their decision or not. There are some things, even with like contract renewals, where I’m just like, I don’t even wanna talk to the AD. I’ll just call your president up, ‘cause that’s who calls the shots. Like hey man, we’re wasting our time here. A couple times I’ve said something similar just to kind of let the AD know: you’re trying to strong arm me, but you know and I know that you don’t got the juice. Some ADs don’t like talking to agents, but that’s so stupid. You don’t want to have the best possible candidates because that guy works with someone who represents their interests? That’s fucking stupid. Schools have turned to hiring search firms more often in recent years. That’s yet another variable. I’m working with a search firm now. One of my clients is caught up in the middle of a season. So, whether that client goes and interviews and how quickly it all takes place, I’m able to communicate with the coach the things they need to do, based on what the search firm’s telling me about how quickly the search is going to go. Well, my client’s preparing for whatever team, right? Can we try and work this thing out? And I’ll tell my coach, hey, this is what the search firm wants; these are the kind of people they’ve hired before. So, we act as a conduit. In some roles with some search firms, I’m much more aggressive. Other ones, I’m just like hey, we just gotta chill out and let them kinda come to their own conclusions. There’s some search firms that I know that aren’t gonna be good with minority candidates because they don’t fucking understand them, because as athletic directors [search firms are sometimes led by former administrators], they didn’t hire minority coaches themselves. They’re such repeat players in this thing that as an agency, you want to have an element of credibility and legitimacy. And that means you have to be careful about aggressively overselling your clients. Every client thinks he’s [head coach material]. But sometimes, dude, you’re not ready yet. That’s me saying that, because you’re a position coach at X. You’re not ready for that job yet. You don’t have those kinda chops yet. You still need to learn a lot. I’m not gonna present them a guy that isn’t ready, because if I do, that hurts me down the line. They’re not gonna take my people seriously. When athletic directors are directly involved, for me, it’s very much more helpful because I think they become very honest. You don’t have to pull any punches. This past year, I had a head coach, and it was an athletic director[-led] hire. I sent him an email at 4:30. By 4:37, I knew my guy was a candidate because the guy got back to me. And that’s in the morning. I was like alright, shit, this guy’s not playing around. There are sticking points to be careful of during negotiations. Buyouts. Those are basically a restriction on trade. It’s a restriction on economic behaviors. You can’t really go out and get another job without having to pay these other people back. Which I get, but some of them tend to be a bit more onerous than the next. Do it in a way that encourages both sides to continue on with the relationship. If you fire a coach, you want that guy to keep coaching. I think another thing with breakdowns would be assistant coaches’ salaries. I think head coaches — especially better ones — will turn down jobs if they know that they can’t bring the staff they want. Another thing is, if you don’t have [incentives such as performance bonuses] for the possibility of you winning a conference or a national championship, if those aren’t in place, I think that’s what causes things to break down. I don’t think universities are as forthcoming with those kinds of things. Also, obviously the guaranteed money. I think a lot of schools try to hide what’s actually guaranteed and what isn’t. I can tell you, you can sign a contract with SB Nation for five years, but if you’re only guaranteed month-to-month checks, what good is that guarantee? You’re essentially at-will. A completed negotiation might feel like a one-time thing for a coach, but for an agent, it’s just Round 1. I guess the one thing that people forget in a lot of negotiations is that — especially if it’s a long-term relationship — that everybody has their opportunity to take an at-bat. Achieving total victory often comes at a political cost. Just because you get everything you want in a contract, that doesn’t necessarily bode well. What happens if you lose? What happens if you win too? The school that took their at-bat and gave you onerous contract terms? The coaches remember that. You didn’t take care of me. So, now that it’s my turn at bat, I want to kind of dominate this round of talks. It happens pretty quickly, especially with younger coaches. Schools will try to say we gave you an opportunity discount. And what happens is younger coaches become older coaches, and those older coaches remember that. When it comes time for their turn, then the university kinda gets a little desperate. Coaches and agents and ADs would all like to maintain control of the situation. That means plausible deniability is important. I think you’re always worried because you don’t know who’s involved in the process on the other end. And you don’t know who wants to leak it to Richard Johnson of SB Nation. I don’t get mad at it; it’s part of the process. I think it takes having good relationships with people in media, and I think it takes having good relationships with the athletic director. One of my coaches got hired this year. My head coach told me not to put it out there, I said, “Fine with me.” He wasn’t worried about the job. We just wanted to keep quiet so he could tell his wife. He gets on a plane. An hour later, that shit’s out there already. Someone leaked it. I’m sitting in a supermarket, my coach tells me he’s getting the job, and I’m screaming to the heavens I’m so happy. We’re not gonna say anything. We’re gonna let you tell your wife. Wife knew about it by the time the plane landed. But when reporters are following up with leads... If you ask me as a man, I gotta tell you, yeah. I’m not gonna try to throw you off the scent. I know other agents that will lie to people. I’m not gonna lie. I would get out in front of stuff, because if you were to call me and you say, “Hey man, is coach [X] a candidate at [School Y]?” I’ll be like: “Between us, yeah, you’ll be the first to know when it happens, but as of right now I can’t tell you this, because I’m sworn to secrecy. “So don’t fuck this deal up for me.”On Tuesday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions stated, “March was the lowest entrance of illegal immigrants in 17 years in this country, and that’s Donald Trump’s leadership.” And that while 40 states have MS-13 members in them, “if we stay at it, we can devastate this organization, and that’s going to be our goal.” Sessions said that previous immigration policies undoubtedly “had it an impact” on the rise of MS-13 “because so many” MS-13 members “are illegally here.” When asked how policies would change, Sessions answered, “Well, first, we’re going to secure the border. We’re going to build a wall. We’re going to add more agents on the border. The numbers have already dropped dramatically
Mary Ann Lombardi, one of the plaintiffs, says police threatened to arrest her after she refused to let them search her vehicle. Nearly two weeks later, The Denver Post published an editorial asking if this “dragnet” was necessary. “Police obviously have the right to abridge your privacy and curtail your freedom in certain clear emergencies. They can enter your house in hot pursuit of a dangerous criminal, for example, even without a warrant. But does mass detention at an intersection really qualify under that standard? We doubt it — and find the handcuffing of motorists particularly troubling,” the Post argued. Eugene Volokh, a law professor who blogs for The Volokh Conspiracy, reacted, “Protecting the public from armed bank robbers is certainly very important; but handcuffing dozens of innocent people — in a situation where it was certain that the great bulk of the people were indeed innocent — for over an hour as part of this sort of blanket seizure strikes me as much too high a price to pay for this sort of law enforcement.” In other words, the officers may have had a fair argument that what had happened was legal if all they had done was stop the vehicles in the intersection and question people to see if they were the suspect. However, when police chose to forcefully put people in handcuffs for an indefinite period of time, they were now clearly abusing their authority and violating individuals’ rights. Photos from complaint filed on behalf of plaintiffs in the lawsuit.As Leveson trundles on, we've reached a point where tabloids watch their backs with a dedication usually reserved for Kelly Brook's breasts. In this purgatory, tabloids hand showbiz PRs copy approval, and patch together sensationalism through court reports of grotesque intra-familial maulings or impending apocalypse – petrol, pasties, the wettest drought imagined. So when the the Sun's splash is "JESSIE GAY" next to a photo of Jessie J, we must be appalled that a paper would "out" a pop star, and we must insist that her sexuality is irrelevant. Nobody should care who she sleeps with, because she's a musician and it's about the music and her love life is none of our business. But I do care. People should not be outed before they are ready – coming out is a personal process. I know this too well, having spent part of my teens depressed. At a mixed secondary school, not only could I no longer be an active participant in games of kiss-chase, but no one told me that I was normal, and that lesbians existed. "Lesbo" was merely an insult. Teachers were distant, and I thought better than to broach the subject with my overworked single mum. Beyond the strangers in internet chatrooms, where I discussed the subtextual relationship between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and evil slayer Faith, no one said I was allowed to feel like this. You might think society has progressed. But teens are a tough crowd: Stonewall's latest schools' report found that more than half of lesbian and gay pupils don't feel able to be themselves at school. This could change if they spoke to someone about who they are, yet the same report found that 60% of young gay and lesbian people feel there is "no one at home or school they can talk to about their sexuality". As pathetic as it might seem, is it so bad to look to celebrities for affirmation? For young lesbians to need a role model? "Role model" is hazardous to define, but in this context, I'm not asking for much. Just one British lesbian in the public eye who's not Sue Perkins, Claire Balding, Mary Portas or Sandi Toksvig. As great as they are, they're invisible to young people. Even though the splash seemed like news, Jessie J is used to the being a non-heterosexual role model. Though her subsequent releases are hardly as Sapphic as her debut single Do It Like A Dude, she's never hidden her bisexuality. And she enjoys proselytising to her fans, spreading cloying mantras through her music, onstage banter, interviews and tweets, like a bobbed Deepak Chopra for the Twilight generation. She advises through Twitter: "Make today the day you do something for YOUR life. Go and make something happen for YOU", and her top 10 song Who You Are is practically an anthem for the downtrodden and pustular: "Sometimes it's hard/To follow your heart/Tears don't mean you're losing/Everybody's bruising/Just be true to who you are." There's no pressure for Jessie J to be a good role model – she already is, and it seems she wants to be. All I ask is that she be happy about her sexuality, in spite of an unauthorised biographer (one of the few sources from where tabloids can still borrow potentially litigious information) enabling the Sun to out her with all the horny indignity of a rejected ex-lover. It is wasteful to cast aspersions on Jessie J's desires and quantify her sexuality into a sort of swingometer. It is scandalous if Chloe Govan's claim, that Jessie "was advised not to come out … [but] being bi was trendy, exotic and a fashion statement", denied by Jessie on Twitter, is true for anyone in the entertainment industry. It is a shame that a young woman must tread carefully when discussing part of her identity, for fear of the press declaring open season on her private life. But her sexuality is valuable: for every young girl in Britain too scared to go to school for fear of being called a dyke, for those unsure of themselves because they're not drawn to men, for women who want to look to someone, anyone, to know that not all women are straight, and that this does happen and this is normal. • Follow Comment is free on Twitter @commentisfreeOn Saturday, November 14, the Sikh Coalition and the Los Angeles Clippers hosted nearly 400 members of the California sangat for the pair’s second annual Sikh Awareness and Appreciation game. The basketball game, which fittingly fell during November’s Sikh Awareness Month, featured live Sikh entertainment and education, and reached nearly 20,000 Americans this past weekend, according to the Sikh Coalition’s release. The collaborative event with the National Basketball Association (NBA) was just one of several recent initiatives spearheaded by the Sikh Coalition, a community-based advocacy group that aims to work towards the realization of civil and human rights for all. “The Sikh Coalition and the Sikh American community were thrilled to come out and support the L.A. Clippers,” Sikh Coalition Executive Director, Sapreet Kaur, said. “From our initial planning discussions to the special activities on game day, the Clippers organization was welcoming and excited to highlight the community during CA Sikh Awareness and Appreciation month. These are meaningful opportunities to showcase the rich diversity that makes our nation strong.” Raginder “Violinder” LA Clippers 2015Nearly 400 members of the California sangat joined the Sikh Coalition and the Los Angeles Clippers on November 14th as part of Sikh Awareness & Appreciation Month. Raginder “Violinder” Singh Momi (Raaginder “Violinder”) played the national anthem. Learn about Sikh Awareness and Appreciation Month here: www.sikhcoalition.org/casikhs #CASikhs Posted by The Sikh Coalition on Tuesday, November 17, 2015 Notable performances from the weekend’s game against the Detroit Pistons included a rendition of the national anthem by the popular violinist Raginder Singh Momi, also known as “Violinder;” Sikh color guard, featuring Sikh Boy Scouts and Sikh Girl Scouts; as well as Punjabi entertainment at halftime. Other highlights included a show of skills by the Sikh youth basketball players, who played on the Clippers’ home court at the famous Staples Center arena, and a Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) PSA video, which was played during the game. “The Los Angeles Clippers were thrilled to host and honor the Sikh American community,” Group Events Specialist Jeana Duran said in a release. “We understand how important the Sikh experience is to enriching California, and we’re grateful for the hard work and professionalism shown by the Sikh Coalition to make this happen for the second year in a row.” “The Sikh Coalition did a fantastic job co-hosting this event with the L.A. Clippers,” Los Angeles sangat member, Jagdeep Singh, said in a statement. “It was incredible to see so many Sikh children have the unique opportunity to participate, from playing on court, to standing with players during the national anthem and holding the American flag as a proud Sikh color guard. This is one of many important initiatives happening to educate and raise the profile of the community this month.” With two weeks left in November, the Sikh Coalition continues to work on a number of Sikh Awareness Appreciation events in California. On November 21, the group will be featured at the White House anti-bullying event in Los Angeles. Additionally, the Sikh Coalition is getting the word out with local awareness initiatives at libraries, schools, museums across multiple cities in California.This article is about the Galactic Republic. You may be looking for the Old Republic, which preceded the Galactic Republic and was called the Old Republic prior to the rise of the Galactic Empire, or the New Republic, which was formed by the Rebel Alliance. This article is about. You may be looking for "The Galactic Republic was the Republic of legend, greater than distance or time. Tales of its founding have been occluded by the haze of intervening millennia, and its rebirth a thousand years ago was regarded as the latest evolution in an unending cycle. Like the greatest of trees, however, the Republic's decline began from within, with a deep rot that was not apparent until it was too late." ―Janyor [src] The Galactic Republic, commonly known as the Republic and remembered as the Old Republic, was a federal parliamentary republic composed of thousands of worlds spread across the galaxy. Adhering to the Galactic Constitution, the Republic was governed by the Galactic Senate, a legislative body of two thousand senators appointed to represent the interests of their respective homeworlds on the galactic stage. The Supreme Chancellor was the leader of the Senate, chosen from among its ranks to arbitrate congressional sessions and represent the Republic as a whole. Coruscant, a planetary ecumenopolis located in the Core Worlds, was the capital world of the Republic and, therefore, the headquarters of the Senate and its chancellor. The Republic emerged centuries before the advent of the Clone Wars in 22 BBY. Aided by the Knights of the Jedi Order, the Republic was reborn following a decisive victory over the ancient Sith Lords. History had begun anew, societal memories and official calendars started fresh, and the time before this reset was forgotten as a dark age, lumped into a collective whole known as the "Old Republic." During the height of the modern Republic, art and commerce flourished under the patronage of the galactic government, allowing member worlds with rich cultures to broadcast their histories across the galaxy in order to generate lucrative tourism. Isolated conflicts remained few and far between, with the Jedi ultimately resolving hostile situations in their earnest pursuit of peace as the Senate's mediators. With ten thousand Jedi Knights serving as keepers of the peace, the Senate saw little need for a standing army of full-time soldiers, and sought to preserve the status quo of which the galactic populace had grown accustomed to. For years the government collaborated with wordsmiths and artists, using propaganda to cultivate a sense of civic duty, of manifest destiny, and of deep obligation to spread the Republic banner from Rim to Rim. As the Republic entered its twilight years, however, belief in its principles and the unity it generated began to wane. Core Worlders became evermore enamored by fleeting distractions of fame and fortune, and were generally uninspired by the Republic's messages of expansionism. In contrast, citizens of the Inner Rim answered the Republic's call to embrace life on the frontier, having been pushed out of opportunity in the Core, only to grow more disillusioned with a government that they saw as distant, dispassionate, and not worth the membership. It was at this time that the Sith, having survived and reformed under the Rule of Two, cultivated a secessionist crisis, causing numerous member worlds to secede en masse and form the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Under the firm leadership of Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, the Senate mobilized millions of clone troopers, forming the Grand Army of the Republic in response to the battle droids that composed the Separatist Droid Army. As a result, the Clone Wars began; the specter of wide-spread warfare, which had been long forgotten, became a reality once more. After three long years of conflict, Republic forces pushed the Separatists away from the Core and besieged the remaining military holdouts in the Outer Rim Territories. On the eve of the final victory, however, Chancellor Palpatine shocked the galaxy by accusing the Jedi Order of high treason. The Jedi had discovered that Palpatine was, in fact, Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith who orchestrated and manipulated the war as a means of accumulating dictatorial wartime powers. The clone troopers—secretly programmed to kill Jedi—betrayed and executed their Jedi Generals, complying with the chancellor's command to execute Order 66 without question. Following the initial Jedi Purge, Palpatine called an emergency session of the Senate and proclaimed himself Galactic Emperor. Hence, the Republic was dissolved—just shy of the millennial milestone that would have marked the thousand-year anniversary of its foundation—and the Galactic Empire was formed in 19 BBY. The New Order ruled the galaxy unchallenged for a generation until the Alliance to Restore the Republic defeated the Empire in the Galactic Civil War, resulting in an armistice between the Imperial remnants and the newly formed New Republic in 5 ABY, one year after Emperor Palpatine's death at the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY. Under the era of the New Republic, the Galactic Republic was remembered as a pillar of democracy and liberty. Historians hailed the near millennial age it presided over as "the last era of peace." Contents show] History Edit Rise of democracy Edit "There hasn't been a full-scale war since the formation of the Republic." ―Sio Bibble [src] Before the rise of the Galactic Republic, its predecessor, the Old Republic, gradually declined and ultimately fell[10] as a result of its conflict with the Sith.[11] The Sith—a malevolent order of dark side Force users,[14] founded by rogue Jedi during the Hundred-Year Darkness[15]—were able to establish their rule over the galaxy for a period of time.[2] After the fall of the ancient Sith,[6] a number of star systems united to form the democratic union known as the Galactic Republic.[1] Under the protection of the Jedi Order,[16] the Republic existed in a state of relative peace and stability[1] that lasted for a millennium until the advent of the Clone Wars in 22 BBY.[5] The Four Sages of Dwartii were notable in influencing some of its earliest laws.[17] As its governing body, the newly reorganized government established the Galactic Senate, the members of which were elected to represent their systems. The Republic's capital was installed on the planet of Coruscant, which had already existed for several thousands of years.[1] The Republic's head of state, the Supreme Chancellor, was elected by and from the senators, in which the first in a long line of Chancellors was a scion of the House Valorum.[6][8] Protecting the new democracy was the elite Senate Guard, who could be seen patrolling the Senate District and came to be seen as symbols of strength and unity, especially considering the fact that the military had been disbanded.[6][18] In time, the Jedi Order, a noble order of protectors who could tap into the power of the Force, came to serve the Republic as guardians of peace and justice.[16] With the lack of a standing army, the Republic came to rely on its peacekeeping Judicial Forces, led by the Judicial Department as the de facto law-enforcement branch of the government. The Judicial Forces, members of which were simply known as Judicials, trained at the Judicial Academy and came to serve in both ground and space forces, often led by Jedi Commanders to maintain peace throughout the galaxy.[6] Expansion and stagnation Edit "It's been my experience that senators are only focused on pleasing those who fund their campaigns—and they are more than willing to forget the niceties of democracy to get those funds." ―Obi-Wan Kenobi [src] For centuries, the Republic expanded not through force, but by quietly exerting a strong magnetic pull towards neighboring systems. The promise of trade with Core World markets held many systems in sway, inexorably luring non-member worlds into tighter cooperation with the state body. Despite this, the Republic remained slow to invite new systems into its fold, as the addition of new territories diminished the political power of existing senators. New member states invariably aligned themselves with local galactic power blocs, while most senators who gave the invitations represented systems in the Core. As a result, the Galactic Center represented the beating heart of the Republic that habitually drew wealth and power from the hinterlands, with most senators dismaying at the extension of services and protection to outlying worlds. Consequently, many useful star systems were left waiting—some for centuries—for the body politic to admit their world as a member of the Congress, even though it came at the cost of the body's overall power.[19] As time went by the Republic stood firm, becoming increasingly powerful. As a result, the galaxy remained free of any full-scale war for centuries. However, many of the bureaucrats and Senators that ran the government continued to work for their own profit rather than the common good. Greed, corruption and internal strife slowly began destroying the government from within.[1] The Core, revitalized from the destructive conflicts of the past and ravenous for new resources to exploit embarked on an aggressive colonization policy, exploring, mapping, and settling untouched planets within the Outer Systems; striking deals with or simply overrunning the indigenous populations that stood in their path. Adventurous pioneers found themselves granted permission by Coruscant to settle new territories and establish trading colonies to feed the Core with the goods and raw materials for its continual self-enrichment. Many new systems, finding themselves lacking the funds to mine, process, and ship their products to market were forced to secure high-interest loans from the InterGalactic Banking Clan, whereupon many; unable to repay their debts, found themselves as mere client worlds to the Muun bankers. As time progressed, the laborious task of astrogating by hyperwave beacons—which required numerous reversions to realspace—became simplified with the founding of new hyperlanes such as the Hydian Way. Many systems, eager to benefit from the opportunities offered by charting hyperlanes through their system, sought to influence the Republic Senate to put themselves on the galactic map.[6] Culturally, Coruscanti fashion, art, drama and literature saw receptive audiences across the galaxy. Seeking to impress visitors from the Core, many worlds sought to build lavish mansions that imitated the architectural style of the Inner Core. Despite this, many Coruscanti looked with disdain on what was in reality nothing more than a gaudy impersonation. To them, these lifeforms on the galaxy's fringes appeared barbaric, with most worlds still lacking weather control or struggling with geological disturbances and food shortages. Additionally, many outlying worlds, lacking the protection of a federal military found themselves continually harassed by numerous pirates and criminal organizations, further ingraining the long-held view that those from the galaxy's outlying settlements lacked cultural refinement and basic civility.[6] For centuries, a deep-rooted hatred and distrust grew between the galaxy's outer fringes and the cosmopolitan Core, with those in the hinterlands gradually coming to believe themselves the victims of social and economic injustices. As a result of the perceived inability of the Judicial Forces in protecting outlying territories, who were often withheld in intervening after many far-flung worlds refused to provide the Core Worlds with profitable deals, the Outer Rim world of Eriadu—one of the most politically, culturally and economically developed worlds—formed the Outland Regions Security Force for the protection of the Seswenna sector. Comprising an amalgam of ships, it was funded primarily by off-world loans and supplied with laser and ion cannons acquired from arms merchants who had for centuries been ignoring a Republic ban on the sale of weaponry to member worlds. While the Outland Regions Security Force at first lacked success, it soon came to be renowned for its efficiency at dealing with raiders, especially after Wilhuff Tarkin was accepted into Outland's anti-piracy task force, in which he was known for outsmarting and outmaneuvering his opponents.[6] Yet despite Outland's best efforts, the Outer Rim Territories continued to fall victim to increasing corporate interests from the Core, with the monolithic Trade Federation expanding its reach a year before the Invasion of Naboo in both the Outer Rim and the Galactic Senate by utilizing loopholes in existing free-trade legislation. Shortly before the Invasion of Naboo, a trade summit was held on the Outer Rim planet of Eriadu in which then Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum was turned away by Wilhuff Tarkin, who was hoping to reduce the influence of the Chancellor who was already rumored to lose the next election in order to support then Senator Palpatine, who had earlier helped Tarkin gain entrance into the Judicial Academy and supported his ascension as leader of his homeworld.[6] Invasion of Naboo Edit "It is clear to me now that the Republic no longer functions. I pray you will bring sanity and compassion back to the Senate." ―Queen Amidala, to Senator Palpatine [src] Despite the best efforts of the well-meaning Finis Valorum, the Trade Federation promptly invaded Naboo over disputes about plasma exports, in which a Judicial force carried Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, to the Saak'ak, a Trade Federation Lucrehulk-class LH-3210 cargo freighter to discuss a peaceful resolution to the conflict.[6][20] However, upon learning that Jedi had intervened, Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious swiftly ordered their execution, an order which Viceroy Nute Gunray fearfully carried out, only to have the attempt end in failure, resulting in the escape of the Jedi. On the planet below, the Jedi managed to rescue then Queen Padmé Amidala seeking to bring her back to Coruscant; however, a damaged T-14 hyperdrive generator resulted in them making an unplanned landing on the desert planet of Tatooine. While stranded in the city of Mos Espa, Qui-Gon Jinn discovered then slave Anakin Skywalker, who he believed was the Chosen One destined to bring balance to the Force. Though it was not long before one of Sidious's agents, Darth Maul, attempted to eliminate the Jedi on the desert world, only to have the Jedi escape once more in the nick of time, with the now freed boy Anakin. Upon their arrival at Coruscant, Padmé was coerced by Senator Palpatine, who was taking advantage of his homeworld's delicate situation to have Valorum removed from office through a vote of no confidence. The vote passed, increasing the chances of Palpatine becoming the next Supreme Chancellor.[8] Finding no sympathy in the Senate, Padmé Amidala returned to her world of Naboo and forged an alliance with Boss Nass of one of the Gungan underwater cities of Otoh Gunga, located underneath Lake Paonga. With the help of the Gungan Grand Army and freed members of the Royal Naboo Security Forces, along with a starfighter attack on the Saak'ak in orbit, the Trade Federation and its blockade were defeated, thanks largely to Anakin, who helped fire the shot that ultimately destroyed the control ship. However, the victory was not without its costs, with Qui-Gon's death at the hands of Darth Maul, and the Jedi's loss of knowledge of who was actually behind the attack. Nonetheless, with Naboo now freed from occupation, a grand parade was held in honor of their recent victory, while Palpatine himself arrived to announce his ascension to the position of Supreme Chancellor, also informing Anakin that he would watch his progress "with much interest."[8] Separatist Crisis Edit "I will not let this Republic that has stood for a thousand years be split in two. My negotiations will not fail." "If they do, you must realize that there aren't enough Jedi to protect the Republic. We're keepers of the peace, not soldiers." ―Supreme Chancellor Palpatine and Jedi Master Mace Windu [src] Following the Naboo Crisis, the Trade Federation monopoly on the Outer Rim was broken, all while Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum's political standing suffered from the crisis along with other scandals. In his wake, Sheev Palpatine was appointed to the position of Supreme Chancellor, eventually creating an image of himself as a mild-mannered servant of the common good, despite his true intentions. However, growing tensions between the Core and Outer Rim worlds gradually increased to the point where many believed that a war was imminent. Foreseeing this conflict years before the Invasion of Naboo, Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas advocated for the creation of a new Republic army, only to be rejected by the Jedi Council, who believed his ideas too extreme. Undeterred, Sifo-Dyas contacted the Kaminoans, known for their clone hatcheries, and secretly commissioned them to create a clone army, pretending to be at the behest of the Galactic Senate. Unbeknownst to Sifo-Dyas, Darth Sidious had earlier contacted Prime Minister Lama Su, and convinced him to implant a control chip into the clones during the third stage of their development to turn against the Jedi at a mere command.[6][21] The dashing swordsman and political idealist Jedi Master Count Dooku, taking an eight-year leave of absence from the Jedi Order and now secretly the apprentice of Darth Sidious and dubbed Darth Tyranus, paid the Pyke Syndicate to eliminate Sifo-Dyas over the planet of Oba Diah. With Sifo-Dyas originally heading to the planet in order to negotiate a dispute that could result in a full-scale gang war on Coruscant, Sifo-Dyas was suddenly re-assigned to Felucia when his shuttle was abruptly shot down over the planet. Bringing his body to Felucia where it was cremated by tribal inhabitants, Dooku managed to trick the Jedi Council into believing Sifo-Dyas had been killed by the Felucians, all while erasing the existence of Kamino from the Jedi Archives.[6][21][5] In the ten years after the Invasion of Naboo, the whereabouts of Count Dooku were scarcely known, with many believing he merely wished to form an offshoot of the Jedi Order. In reality, Dooku was busy manipulating galactic events to foment political turmoil on a variety of worlds including Kashyyyk, Sullust and Onderon. Seeking to create a southern Separatist sphere of influence by bringing Yag'Dhul and Sluis Van to his side, Dooku needed to persuade the now prosperous world of Eriadu to join the Separatists. However, Wilhuff Tarkin was pressured to declare his loyalties especially after Dooku commandeered a HoloNet station in the Raxus system and denounced the Galactic Republic, effectively setting the stage for the Separatist Crisis. Tarkin ultimately sided with the Galactic Republic in his stern belief that an inefficient yet unified galaxy was better than a fractured one.[6] With war now imminent, the Galactic Senate hastily passed the Military Creation Act, especially after Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi discovered the secret clone army on Kamino after tracing the origins of a previously unknown dart used in an assassination attempt against Senator Padmé Amidala, who opposed the military buildup. When Kenobi was captured by the Separatist Droid Army on Geonosis, the Senate gave Supreme Chancellor Palpatine emergency powers to raise the newly formed Grand Army of the Republic and Republic Navy to rescue Kenobi along with a team of two hundred Jedi led by Mace Windu. The ensuing battle saw the rescue of Kenobi along with the prodigal Jedi Anakin Skywalker and Senator Amidala, who was later used by Sidious in an attempt to ensure Anakin's eventual turn to the dark side of the Force.[5] The Clone Wars Edit "I have to admit that without the clones it would not have been a victory." "Victory? Victory, you say? Master Obi-Wan, not victory. The shroud of the dark side has fallen. Begun, the Clone War has."" ―Yoda to Obi-Wan Kenobi [src] With the first major battle in the Clone Wars being the deadly Battle of Geonosis, the encounter raged on as the plans for an Ultimate Weapon from Poggle the Lesser were transferred to Dooku, as well as a brief but vicious fight erupting between Dooku and Master Yoda. Simultaneously, the various members of the newly founded Confederacy of Independent Systems evacuated the planet as Republic clone troopers gradually forced the Separatist Droid Army back. With the battle ending in a victory for the Republic, Count Dooku traveled to an industrial sector on Coruscant to inform his master that the war has begun as planned, all while the Jedi Council pondered Dooku's warning that the Dark Lord of the Sith controlled the Senate. Nevertheless, with the Battle of Geonosis a clear victory for the Republic, the upcoming war to destroy the Separatist Alliance and its allies dragged the galaxy into further conflict over the next three years.[5] In the aftermath of Geonosis, the deadly three-year conflict that engulfed the galaxy into chaos officially began, forcing more and more worlds to choose sides between the Galactic Republic and its clone army or the ever-expanding Confederacy of Independent Systems and its Separatist Droid Army. With the war well under way, numerous diplomatic envoys engaged in several attempts to sway local worlds to join the Galactic Republic, with Jedi Master Yoda seeking to win the support of the Toydarian King Katuunko, while Sith apprentice Asajj Ventress sought to disrupt the meeting, and instead sought to win the support of the king to join the Confederacy.[22] The Republic also sent military aid and support to factions in need, such as Cham Syndulla's Twi'lek Resistance on Ryloth, or to the Dugs of Malastare, whose lucrative fuel reserves were a great boon to the Republic Navy.[23][24] Numerous worlds such as Mandalore also attempted to maintain their neutrality, although they often were forced to seek aid from third parties in times of need.[5][10] Throughout the Clone Wars, numerous attempts were made against Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's life, including an assassination attempt on Naboo masterminded by Count Dooku as well as the hostage taking of members of the Galactic Senate by notorious bounty hunter Cad Bane.[25][26] However, political intrigue fueled not only the conflict, but also advances in weaponry and the development of equipment to enhance existing armed forces. Attempts at biological weapons were launched by Separatist scientist Nuvo Vindi, who attempted to re-create the ancient Blue Shadow Virus capable of killing millions across the galaxy, while the Republic developed the experimental electro-proton bomb which could send out an electric pulse upon detonation capable of deactivating an entire droid army.[27] The Republic also attempted to create an impenetrable armor by unlocking the biological secrets of the Zillo Beast, an ancient creature from the Mid Rim, only to have the attempt end in failure, sending the beast on a rampage across Coruscant. After its death at the hands of a Jedi task force, the beast was secretly cloned by orders from the Supreme Chancellor himself.[28] In the meantime, the Republic developed a stealth ship capable of cloaking itself, as well as upgrading its standard Phase I clone trooper armor to the more sophisticated Phase II clone trooper armor prior to the Battle of Mon Cala.[29] Fall of the Republic Edit "So this is how liberty dies…with thunderous applause." ―Padmé Amidala, lamenting the death of the Republic Listen (file info) [src] While many heroic actions were taken by the Jedi and those who served under them, inspiring the public with stories of bravery, war weariness only continued to grow as the years went by,[19] with many coming to believe that the Jedi had abandoned their role as peacekeepers, staging massive protests outside of the Jedi Temple as a result. Utilized as military commanders, the Jedi led the Republic war effort but sustained many casualties in the process, resulting in the loss of their influence on the galaxy. Political actions were especially damaging to the Jedi Order, with officers like Wilhuff Tarkin calling for the Jedi's removal from the military as he believed that the Jedi Code prevented them from attaining the decisive victory in the Clone Wars. Jedi Padawan Barriss Offee also believed the Jedi were losing touch with their commitment to maintain the peace, and staged a bombing in the Jedi Temple as protest, all while framing Ahsoka Tano of committing the act before being captured herself.[30] The war also served as a means for Sheev Palpatine to amass more emergency powers, cementing his position as Supreme Chancellor far longer than it technically allowed, all while continuing to centralize political and military authority within the Office of the Chancellor, which included putting the InterGalactic Banking Clan under the Chancellor's oversight.[4] The Separatist Shadowfeed operation, an attempt by Count Dooku to spread information on Republic defeats, making it appear as though a Separatist victory was inevitable, fueled public anxiety and consequently accelerated the militarization of the Republic over the course of the war.[6] After nearly three years of constant warfare, the war reached it's climax during the Battle of Coruscant, where both factions engaged in a massive naval and ground battle over the Republic's capital world. The confrontation ultimately saw the Republic dealing a severe blow to the Confederacy with the loss of a portion of its fleet as well as its head of state, Count Dooku, at the hands of Anakin Skywalker. Shortly afterwards, General Grievous met his end at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi during the Battle of Utapau. Yet even as the Republic pressed on with the Outer Rim Sieges, determined to bring an end to the civil war, the Jedi High Council had grown increasingly wary of Chancellor Palpatine. Over the course of the Clone Wars, the Chancellor's wartime authority reached unprecedented levels at the expense of the Senate, some of whom also grew concerned for the future of the Republic. As such, members of the Council and the Senate began to consider their options for the preservation of democracy. Whereas the Delegation of 2,000 sought to petition the Chancellor to relinquish his emergency powers, the Council contemplated the possibility of removing him by force and taking over the Senate in order to secure a peaceful transition of power.[2] Ultimately, their suspicion of the Chancellor was vindicated when Skywalker uncovered the truth: Sheev Palpatine and Darth Sidious, the Sith mastermind behind the Clone Wars, were one and the same. Acting swiftly on this revelation, the Council attempted to arrest the Sith Lord before his plan could come to fruition, consequently leading to a lightsaber duel in which Sidious struck down Agen Kolar, Saesee Tiin, and Kit Fisto before Windu disarmed him. Given the Chancellor's control over the Senate and the courts, Windu deemed Sidious too dangerous to live. However, Skywalker argued that execution was contrary to the Jedi way, although his personal attachment to Amidala also influenced him at this critical point as he believed that Sidious could save her life. In a moment of desperation, Skywalker disarmed Windu which allowed Sidious to kill the Jedi Order's champion with a torrent of Force lightning. Having chosen the path of the dark side, the fallen Jedi Knight became Darth Vader and subsequently led the attack on the Jedi Temple while Sidious issued Order 66 to the Grand Army, causing the clone troopers to execute their Jedi leaders across the galaxy.[2] Following the initial purge of the Jedi Order, Darth Sidious declared himself Galactic Emperor and thereby cementing the transformation of the Galactic Republic into the newly-formed Galactic Empire. In addition to the extermination of the Jedi, Darth Vader executed the Separatist Council and deactivated their droid army, resulting in the end of the Clone Wars and the dawn of the Age of the Empire.[2] Legacy Edit Empire and rebirth Edit "This is Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen, with the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take their place. This message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi: trust in the Force. Do not return to the Temple. That time has passed, and our future is uncertain. Avoid Coruscant. Avoid detection. Be secret... but be strong. We will each be challenged: our trust, our faith, our friendships. But we must persevere and, in time, I believe a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you always." ―Obi-Wan Kenobi's warning in the recall signal [src] In the decades after the dissolution of the Galactic Republic, numerous individuals still clinged to the memory of the now Old Republic and its fabled Jedi warriors, while many individuals who knew the Jedi in person refused to believe the Emperor's account of a "Jedi Rebellion."[19][31] Nevertheless, a majority of galactic citizens eventually came to believe and actively support this view, believing the Republic to have grown weak and corrupt, necessitating Palpatine's rise to power. In order to destroy the memory of the previous government, any visible reminder of the Old Republic was quickly removed, with many organizational changes altering the names of various locales and institutions, while architecture was molded to a more severe and dark aesthetic. With the renowned Galactic Senate being renamed the Imperial Senate and the Senate Plaza renamed Imperial Plaza and a giant statue of the Emperor erected in it, one could almost forget the Republic even existed.[6] However, the memory of the Republic as a force of freedom and justice could never be fully destroyed as long as those who still believed in it lived, thus spurring numerous resistance movements throughout the Empire's reign such as the Free Ryloth movement[32] and Berch Teller's rebel cell.[6] These displays of resistance eventually coalesced into the Alliance to Restore the Republic shortly before the Battle of Yavin, resulting in the successful destruction of the first Death Star,[33] while subsequent battles including the destruction of the second Death Star and death of the Emperor and his apprentice, Darth Vader,[34] led to the formation of the New Republic as an ode to the Republic of old.[9] Posterity's judgement Edit "Before the outbreak of war, the twilight of the Republic was an era of distractions, with citizens from all walks of life following escapist
, the center examines policies related to transitions and alignment across stages of education. Results for the three other areas in the State-of-the-States rubric—the K-12 Achievement Index, the teaching profession, and standards, assessments, and accountability—were updated for the 2012 report. In addition to the evaluations of performance within those individual categories, readers will find overall, summative letter grades and scores for the nation and the states. Those grades incorporate the most recent information available across each of the six categories that make up the full Quality Counts report card. Each category carries equal weight when calculating the summative scores. Grading Summary B+ 1. Maryland 87.5 B 2. Massachusetts 84.1 3. New York 83.1 4. Virginia 82.9 B- 5. Arkansas 81.7 6. Florida 81.1 7. Georgia 81.0 8. New Jersey 80.8 9. West Virginia 80.8 10. Kentucky 80.1 11. Vermont 79.9 12. Ohio 79.6 C+ 13. Wisconsin 79.4 14. Texas 79.4 15. Louisiana 79.0 16. Connecticut 78.9 17. Rhode Island 78.7 18. Pennsylvania 78.2 19. Delaware 78.0 20. Indiana 77.8 21. North Carolina 77.7 22. Tennessee 77.6 23. Wyoming 77.5 24. Michigan 77.3 25. New Hampshire 77.1 26. South Carolina 76.9 U.S. Average 76.9 27. North Dakota 76.8 28. Illinois 76.7 29. Hawaii 76.7 30. Alabama 76.6 31. Oklahoma 76.5 C 32. Colorado 76.1 33. Maine 75.9 34. Iowa 75.9 35. New Mexico 75.9 36. California 75.5 37. Kansas 75.2 38. Utah 74.6 39. Minnesota 74.2 40. Washington 73.8 41. Missouri 72.8 42. Oregon 72.7 C- 43. Arizona 72.2 44. Montana 72.2 45. District of Columbia 71.5 46. Nebraska 71.2 47. Alaska 71.0 48. Mississippi 71.0 49. Idaho 70.9 50. Nevada 69.7 D+ 51. South Dakota 69.3 For the fifth year in a row, Maryland posts the nation's highest overall grade. Scoring 87.5 and earning a B-plus, Maryland finishes 3.4 points ahead of second-place Massachusetts, which is followed by New York and Virginia. For the first time, Kentucky (10th) joins the top-10 states, while Florida (sixth) regains its top-10 ranking after falling to 11th place in 2012. At the other end of the rankings, South Dakota was awarded a grade of D-plus. A majority of states fell near the middle of the grading curve, with 38 states earning grades between a C-minus and a C-plus. The United States as a whole gained a half-point from last year, bringing the national grade up to a C-plus, from a C. Chance for Success The Chance-for-Success Index provides a unique perspective on the link between education and beneficial outcomes at each stage of a person's life. The index combines information from 13 indicators that span childhood through adulthood to capture three broad life stages: the early-childhood years, participation and performance in formal education, and educational attainment and workforce outcomes during adulthood. The grading for this section follows a "best in class" approach, which evaluates each state's performance on a given criterion relative to the nation's top-ranked state on that same indicator. The leading state is awarded 100 points for the indicator; other states receive points in proportion to their performance as benchmarked against the national leader. Massachusetts remains at the top of the national rankings in Chance for Success for the sixth year running, with a grade of A-minus. Connecticut, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Vermont each receive a B-plus. Those states have collectively been the nation's top scorers since the index was introduced in 2007. By contrast, two states—Nevada and New Mexico—each receive grades of D, placing their results roughly on par with past performance. State Grading Data Download Chance for Success PDF Transitions and Alignment PDF School Finance PDF K-12 Achievement (2012) PDF Standards, Assessments, and Accountability (2012) PDF Teaching Profession (2012) PDF The nation as a whole earns a C-plus in the Chance-for-Success category, dropping by nearly a point from 2012. Sixteen states experienced a modest increase or decrease in their grades since last year's report. Vermont increased its score the most, by 2.3 points, while Alaska and Wyoming lost the most ground, seeing their scores fall by 2.2 and 2.4 points, respectively. Across the areas tracked by the Chance-for-Success Index, states perform best on indicators associated with opportunities to acquire a solid foundation for learning during the early years. However, the measures that capture participation and performance in formal schooling remain the driving force behind state rankings. Transitions and Alignment The category of transitions and alignment tracks state-policy efforts to better coordinate the connections between K-12 schooling and other segments of the education pipeline, with a particular focus on three critical stages: early-childhood education, college readiness, and career readiness. This section of the report monitors activity around a set of 14 individual policies, each of which factors equally into a state's grade. The state's final score reflects the number of policies a state has implemented. This year's average grade for transitions and alignment is a B-minus, marking an increase of nearly 3 points from two years ago, when the analysis was last updated. Since then, states have expanded their policymaking in each of the three areas the section examines, with activity slightly more pronounced in the college-readiness domain than in the early-childhood or economy-and-workforce domains. Twenty-five states have seen increases in their scores since 2011. For the first time, a state has earned a perfect score in this section. Georgia has enacted all 14 policies to receive the maximum 100 points. In addition to Georgia, seven other states—Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Tennessee, and Texas—also receive an A for their progress in this policymaking arena. Utah—which rose from a C-minus in 2011 to a B-plus in 2013—saw the largest gain over the two-year period and nearly doubled the number of enacted policies tracked across all three stages of the education pipeline. While seven states posted scores of D-plus or lower in 2011, only three states—Montana, Nebraska, and South Dakota—perform at that level in 2013, which corresponds to implementation of just three or four of the 14 policies tracked by the report. In linkages to early education, states made the biggest movement in the establishment of school-readiness definitions. In 2013, just over half the states (26) have such definitions, continuing an upward trajectory from 19 states in 2009 and 22 in 2011. But the most significant movement occurred further along the pipeline, as many states enacted college-readiness policies aimed at preparing high school graduates for the rigors of postsecondary education. Here, states made progress in four of the five indicators tracked. This year, we again see the influence of major national movements that promote college preparedness, including the Common Core State Standards Initiative and the federal Race to the Top program. Thirty-eight states have now defined college readiness, five more states than in 2011 and 18 more than in 2009. In addition, 16 states now require all high school students to take a college-preparatory curriculum to earn a diploma, an increase of six states since 2011. Twenty-one states have high school assessments aligned with their postsecondary systems, an increase of six states. Overall, state efforts to connect education and workforce preparation remain the most mature of the areas examined in this section of Quality Counts. This year, 28 states have implemented all four economy-and-workforce policies examined in the report. We see growth in the number of state K-12 education systems defining work readiness, with 38 states doing so in 2013, compared with 33 in 2011 and 28 in 2009. We see growth in the number of states offering students a pathway to a standard high school diploma that allows for career specialization, with 44 states doing so in 2013, compared with 38 states in 2011 and 37 in 2009. School Finance The final section of the State of the States examines a set of eight school-finance indicators. Half those measures encompass school spending patterns, while the other half focus on the distribution of resources within a state. When gauging education expenditures, the EPE Research Center evaluates that spending relative to some applicable criterion or benchmark, such as regional differences in costs, the national average for per-pupil expenditures, or the total size of a state's budget. We do not base our evaluations on raw dollars spent. Like the Chance-for-Success Index, school finance grades are calculated using a best-in-class rubric. The finance indicators in Quality Counts 2013 are based on data from 2010, the most recent year available. This year, the nation as a whole earns a C for school finance, holding steady across the past several editions of the report in spite of turbulent economic times. The grades in this category tend to be tightly clustered, with 24 states scoring in the C-minus to C-plus range. Wyoming, a longtime leader in this section, receives the only grade of A this year, increasing its score by almost 4 points from the 2012 report. West Virginia, which ranks second in the nation with an A-minus, saw its score climb by more than 11 points over its 2012 results. That jump can be primarily attributed to a large increase in per-pupil expenditures ($1,074) over the past year. As a result, the percent of students in districts spending at or above the U.S. average soared from 17 percent to more than 88 percent, while its Spending Index score rose by 5 points since last year's report. A large increase in West Virginia's K-12 education spending during this period has been widely reported. At the other end of the grading spectrum, four states—Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, and Utah—each receive grades of D, and Idaho receives a D-minus. The research center's equity analysis continues to find wide disparities in funding patterns across districts in many states. For example, the Restricted Range indicator, which reports the difference in per-pupil spending levels for districts at the 95th and 5th expenditure percentiles, finds a gap of $13,535 in Alaska, the largest in the nation. At the other end of the spectrum, about $1,850 separates high- and low-spending school systems in Utah. The 2013 Wealth Neutrality scores find that just five states—Alaska, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, and Wyoming—fund property-poor districts at equal or higher levels than their wealthier systems. On average, states score considerably better on the equity measures tracked in Quality Counts 2013 than they do on the spending metrics. However, few states rank at the top or bottom of the nation for both aspects of finance, and several post especially mixed performances. For example, nine of the states that earn an A or an A-minus on the equity measures tracked also earn an F on the set of spending indicators. To put that disconnect in terms of state ranks, Utah is second in the country on equity of school funding, but dead last on spending. Conversely, Alaska and Vermont rank near the bottom (49th and 47th, respectively) on equity, but near the top (sixth and second, respectively) on education spending. Vol. 32, Issue 16, Pages 42, 44 Published in Print: January 10, 2013, as States Show Spotty Progress Across Swath of Education Gauges Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Back to TopThe rumors on the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 have been rocking between microSD support and lack thereof in the past weeks. While obviously that's already been decided by Samsung, we have no way of knowing it yet and we're still relying on word of mouth at that point. So this latest report, coming from Taiwan, claims that the dual-SIM version of the upcoming high-end phablet will indeed support microSD storage expansion. The feature will be implemented in the now increasingly popular way where the microSD card shares a slot with the second SIM - not the best solution if you actually need to use both SIM cards, but single-SIM users will be able to get the coveted memory expansion. One possible caveat is that the dual-SIM versions of flagships have been reserved to certain markets and notoriously difficult to come by elsewhere, so you may need to resort to non-official channels to acquire one. It is a viable option though, if you absolutely must have that 128GB music collection on you at all times. Of course, good as it may sound, all this is nothing but a rumor. Had there been a photo of the card tray, we'd be more inclined to believe it, but as it stands now, the best option is to just wait out the 6 days until the official announcement on August 13. Source (in Chinese)A war is brewing- a battle of preparation. Which side are you on? Tension is mounting and the past 10 months have been filled with many ups and downs and twists and turns. With badges, hotels, and parking mostly down, we can concentrate on the battle plan going into San Diego. In just two months, we’ll be heading into the battlefield of SDCC- so let’s review this checklist to make sure you will be ready: 1. JARVIS, make a list… Too bad we each don’t have our personal JARVIS to take care of all the details leading up to the con. The best way to think of Comic-Con is like going camping. You wouldn’t want to be stuck camping without matches or batteries, so make sure not to forget anything essential. Start making a master list of all the things to order, buy, pack, or create. I know, this sounds kinda basic but it’s the fundamental of a great con experience. 2. The SDCC Accord This is probably the most important step in preparing for Comic-Con. Make sure that all your receipts and reservations are in order. First and foremost, make sure you have your SDCC badge confirmation with your correct name and info. If you have hotel reservations through OnPeak, you should have two nights charged to your credit card already. If not, something is wrong. Same thing with your Ace Parking reservation. Put all your key e-mails in a clearly labeled folder and take screen caps of them. I’ve heard of too many horror stories of fans losing their confirmation e-mails before the show. Also, make sure to print out copies for redundancy and put them in an obvious place. Badges are being mailed out this year a few weeks prior so thankfully no waiting in line- except if you are international, you will need to show an ID in order to pick up your badge. 3. Your Arc Reactor One of the most valuable commodities during Comic-Con is power. The days are long and electrical outlets or charging stations are far and few between. Overly congested networks cause phones and devices to spool for much longer periods of time. Sending up a simple tweet can take exponentially longer time causing your battery to drain much quicker (not to mention posting a photo). One of the most important purchases you can make is an external battery. Whether it’s an extended charging case or a battery dock, you will be surprised how quickly you will need it each day. There are tons to choose from out there so do your research. I used to use a Mophie but now I am team Joway. 4. Infinity Stones If you are new to San Diego Comic-Con or to con culture in general, one term you’ll be seeing more of is the word ‘Exclusives’. Typically only offered at larger cons, Exclusives are toys and collectibles that are first offered to the public at the show. Offered in limited amount, the Exclusives are the ‘brass ring’ for toy hobbiest and con enthusiasts. Exclusives will be announced sporadically over the next two months from various outlets- over a hundred to choose from. Check out my page highlighting my favorites being offered for 2016. 5. Suit up! If you plan on going to San Diego in costume, two months out is not too early to be working on your costume. In fact you should probably be well on your way to ordering materials and beginning construction. If you are going to commission an artist to help make a costume for you, then you should be well into that process by now. This is also the best time to order online any items that are essential and hard to make like shoes or boots. Some skilled cosplayers can put together an ensemble within a week but if you are new to this world, give yourself as much time as you can. Remember, cosplay doesn’t have to be big but a sincere, committed effort goes a long way. Check out my cosplay tips vid too. 6. The Parties Another aspect that makes Comic-Con so awesome are all the offsite events going on during and after hours. Over the next two months, you will start hearing about multiple fan meet ups, mini-cons, concerts, promotions, and special events. Some are paid, some are free, some are small, and some are huge. These extracurricular activities have become some of my favorite parts of the show over the past few years. From the Her Universe Fashion Show to The Star Trek Beyond Premiere to the Nerd HQ, there is plenty to see and do outside of the convention center. Make sure to check my list of Offsite Events and buy tickets early! 7. Avenging! Since this is the super bowl of nerdom, you gotta get your nerd swag on by carefully selecting your tees for the week. Everyone will be wearing every shirt you can possibly imagine and this is a great way to express your fandom. Because of the awesomeness of the internet, there are more options than ever to help assemble your wardrobe for San Diego. A few of my favorite shops that are little of the beaten path are GeekyU, Five Finger Tees, RedBubble, Jack of All Trades, and SnorgTees. 8. Budget Since none of us have Tony Stark money, creating a budget now for Comic-Con is key. You don’t have to spend a lot to have a great time but you do have a plan a bit. In an upcoming posts, I will be addressing this very thing- so hang tight. 9. Team up! Social media has probably been the best invention to impact Comic-Con in the past few years. Not only is it a great way to meet other like-minded fans but it’s the best way to get news, tips, and tricks from con veterans from all around the world. Even if you are not big into Twitter, it would be good to create a ‘list’ of a few accounts to help you prepare for the show. Some suggestions (but certainly not all): @HallHLine @EnglishmanSDCC @SDCCNerdsAttack @FriendsOfCCI. 10. Allies Even Avengers need help too! Comic-Con International’s very own Toucan Blog will have a lot of great tips and announcements so you will want to check that regularly. Leave your comments on how you are preparing two months out. Review my past Tip of the Day posts, subscribe to my podcast on iTunes, and stay tuned for more helpful content coming soon.Shares I’ve finally seen it. I’ve finally seen Andrew Wakefield and Del Bigtree’s “documentary” VAXXED : From Cover-up to Catastrophe, and I didn’t even have to pay to see it! Now, having watched Wakefield and Bigtree’s “masterpiece,” I can quite confidently say that it’s every bit as accurate and balanced a picture of vaccine benefits and risks as Eric Merola’s two movies about the quack Stanislaw Burzynski and his Second Opinion: Laetrile at Sloan-Kettering are about cancer and cancer research, The Beautiful Truth is about the Gerson protocol for cancer, Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days is about diet and diabetes, Expelled! No Intelligence Allowed is about evolution, and The Greater Good is about…vaccines! Of course, based on what I knew of the story, saw of the VAXXED trailer (which deceptively edited together statements by William Thompson), and have discussed about the efforts of Andrew Wakefield, Del Bigtree, and Polly Tommey to use VAXXED as a tool in a publicity campaign to try to spread fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) about vaccines using the “CDC whistleblower” conspiracy theory (about which a primer can be found here), I shouldn’t have been surprised, but I was actually surprised (slightly) at the manipulative depths to which this film sinks. On the plus side, its production values are better than those Eric Merola’s films (although I, with no experience, could probably make a film with better production values than Merola), but that just makes it somewhat more effective propaganda. In my review and discussion of the movie and its claims, I will discuss the claims made by Bigtree and Wakefield as well as the movie as a movie. Unfortunately, there is so much misinformation in this 91 minute documentary that I will only be able to hit the “high” points without going far, far beyond even a Gorski level of logorrhea in this post. Worse, there is a considerable amount of dishonest framing, in which actual facts and events are presented in a deceptive manner to tell a distorted narrative. Before that, though, let’s meet the key players. Dramatis personae There are a lot of people featured in VAXXED. Some, like Andrew Wakefield, Del Bigtree, Brian Hooker, Sheila Ealey, and Polly Tommey, are featured extensively, some only briefly. It’s a rag tag bunch of vaccine-autism pseudoscientists, parents who sincerely but mistakenly believe their children were rendered autistic by the MMR vaccine, and a couple of TV doctors. A more complete list can be found here, but the main players are: The star Andrew Wakefield: Andrew Wakefield is the director of VAXXED and, as regular readers know, a British gastroenterologist who in 1998 published a 12-patient case series in The Lancet that claimed to have found a correlation between the MMR vaccine, autism, and bowel disease. Given the amount of screen time he gets and how much the narrative keeps circling back to him, Wakefield is undeniably intended as the star and central character in VAXXED, even though the story is purportedly about Brian Hooker and William Thompson, the “CDC whistleblower”. It was Wakefield’s case series that launched the antivaccine fear mongering about the MMR vaccine that led to MMR uptake plummeting in the UK and the resurgence of measles in the UK and Europe. Ultimately, the General Medical Council in the UK stripped Wakefield of his medical license for research misconduct; his Lancet paper was retracted; and he has since been reduced to doing conspiracy ocean cruises along with crop circle mavens, other antivaccine luminaries, and New World Order conspiracy theorists. Clearly, directing a film in which the director is a major part of the story is rather a massive conflict of interest, and, not surprisingly, much of VAXXED regurgitates the lies and misinformation that Wakefield has been spouting for the last 18 years, while Wakefield’s critics are portrayed in the most unflattering way possible or only in passing. Basically, a major theme of VAXXED is how the CDC whistleblower’s revelations exonerate Andy Wakefield and his “finding” that the MMR causes autism. Also starring Del Bigtree: Del Bigtree is the producer of VAXXED and is also featured a great deal in the movie. (The producer and director, both showing up a lot on camera? Who’da thunk it?) It is unclear why a television producer and filmmaker with no relevant background in medicine or science is so heavily featured, although I do admit to having laughed out loud when he bragged about having been a producer of “the best medical talk show in the world” ( The Doctors ). Let’s just put it this way: The Doctors is only slightly less quacky than The Dr. Oz Show but even more vapid. (Just check out its segment on vaccines from a few years back if you don’t believe me.) The IMDB tells me that Bigtree produced 30 episodes of The Doctors between 2010 and 2015 and was a field producer for two. He also produced some segments for The Dr. Phil Show. These are hardly the qualifications I’d expect for someone to competently tackle a topic like this. Like Wakefield, Bigtree also makes the story about him by opining about how he had to make this movie because the mainstream press wasn’t covering the CDC whistleblower, and the two seem to have a mutual admiration society bordering on a bromance going on. Brian Hooker: Brian Hooker is a biochemical engineer who now fancies himself an epidemiologist. He is introduced as a scientist who’s published extensively. Unfortunately, the vast majority of those publications have nothing to do with vaccines or autism and the ones that do are terrible. The best example of this is his 2014 Translational Neurodegeneration paper containing his “reanalysis” of William Thompson’s data, which was ultimately retracted by the journal editor. (So Hooker and Wakefield share something in common!) He is portrayed as a “brave” scientist delving into secret CDC data (it’s not so secret) with the help of William Thompson to find what “they” didn’t want him to find. William Thompson: I’ve written so much about William Thompson over the last two years that I’m getting tired of it. However, he is a key player in that he was a co-author on the 2004 DeStefano et al paper that failed to find a link between the MMR vaccine and autism. Wakefield and Bigtree try to use Thompson’s words contrasted with the negative result published in DeStefano et al as slam-dunk evidence that the CDC “covered up” data showing that vaccines cause autism in African-American children. In a fit of payback to his colleagues, Thompson had multiple conversations with Brian Hooker alleging scientific misconduct at the CDC. Unfortunately for him, Thompson did not know that Hooker secretly recorded several of these conversations. The transcripts of Thompson’s conversations with Hooker (and why they don’t show what antivaccine activists claim they show) are discussed in detail here. Thompson also gave a large number of documents to Rep. Bill Posey (R-FL), a number that is sometimes claimed by antivaxers to be “100,000 documents” but in reality was far fewer. A detailed discussion of the documents Thompson gave to Rep. Bill Posey (R-FL) can be found here, here, and here. On the other hand, all my writings and delving into how Thompson became the “CDC whistleblower” were an enormous help to me in seeing through the utter BS that VAXXED lays down in so many of its scenes, because VAXXED is basically the story of the CDC whistleblower through the lens (if you’ll excuse the term) of Andrew Wakefield. Thompson is never seen on screen, other than by the occasional stock photo, which is understandable given that nothing has been heard from him since August 2014. However, inexplicably, I couldn’t help but notice, as others did, that whenever Thompson speaks, this graphic of an undulating computer-generated line over a document appears on screen, with occasional key words and phrases popping out. It’s very strange indeed: Co-starring: The parents The parents, contrary to what the filmmakers want you to think, really aren’t given top billing in VAXXED. They do, however, share co-starring roles: Polly and Jon Tommey: Polly Tommey is the editor of the magazine The Autism File, which peddles antivaccine pseudoscience and quack “autism biomed” treatments. Better known in England than the US, she has also worked closely with Wakefield on the Autism Media Channel (e.g., the deceptively told story of the murder of autistic boy Alex Spourdalakis). She and her husband have an autistic son whose autism they blame on the MMR, and that is what drove her into the antivaccine camp. No mention is made in the movie that she has been a longtime collaborator with Andrew Wakefield. In the movie, she is presented just as another parent who believes her son’s autism was caused by vaccines and now works for vaccine safety. In reality, she is as antivaccine as Wakefield. Some of the most exploitative footage of autistics used in VAXXED are of her son. Sheila Ealey: Sheila Ealey is an African-American woman who believes her son’s autism was caused by an inadvertent double-dose of MMR administered at 13 months. Her story has a lot of holes in it in that she claims his medical records were stolen from her evacuated apartment in New Orleans and that her lawsuit was thrown out because of Merck’s machinations. These days, she’s been appearing with Wakefield and Bigtree when they do appearances in communities that are predominantly African-American, like Compton. Her story emphasizes how her daughter, who did not get the MMR is an accomplished pianist and doing very well. Here is one segment featuring her: Vaxxed Clip: Sheila Ealey, African American mother of Temple, describes how her son reacted to the MMR vaccine from Cinema Libre Studio on Vimeo. Mark Blaxill: Mark Blaxill is an antivaccine activist associated with SafeMinds. His penchant for twisting science is well known. For inexplicable reasons he keeps showing up in the film, even though, he too has no scientific credentials to speak of. There are also several other parents whose children are briefly featured, including one whose child is shown seizing in an (intentionally) uncomfortably long shot taken from home video. Also appearing: The doctors and scientists Besides Brian Hooker, three other scientists and “autism experts” are featured: Doreen Granpeesheh: I had never heard of Doreen Granpeesheh before, but she shows up early in the movie as an autism expert. On her first go-around, she appears reasonable in discussing how autism is diagnosed, although she does repeat oft-debunked antivaccine tropes about an “autism epidemic.” Later in the movie, she starts to let her antivax quack flag fly, opining about how autistic children are autistic because their “detoxification” is defective. (Remember, a lot of quack “autism biomed” therapies and concepts of “vaccine injury” blame impaired “detoxification” for autism.) She is the founder of The Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD) but also worked at Thoughtful House back when Andrew Wakefield was the director. No mention is made of this prior connection. Luc Montagnier: Winner of a Nobel Prize in Medicine (which he is shown receiving in VAXXED ) for discovery of the virus that causes AIDS, Luc Montagnier has of late become the foremost example of what I like to call the “Nobel Disease“; namely, a tendency for scientists who win the Nobel Prize to descend into crankery and quackery. Of late, he’s been publishing studies that seem to endorse homeopathy, appearing in an HIV/AIDS denialist film saying that HIV can be cured with supplements and diet, and presenting his work at the yearly autism biomed quackfest known as Autism One. Clearly, Wakefield and Bigtree wanted him in VAXXED because his Nobel Prize adds scientific status to the antivaccine misinformation they present. Stephanie Seneff: Stephanie Seneff is on staff at MIT and an expert in computer science, but for some strange reason is often presented as an expert on biomedical science, even though her only training in biology is a bachelor’s degree from decades ago. She can’t seem to make up her mind whether it’s GMOs or vaccines that will ultimately make every child autistic, but that doesn’t stop Wakefield from showing her repeating her risibly stupid claim that 50% of all children and 80% of all boys born in the year 2032 will be autistic. This claim is based on extrapolating current incidence trends in an exponential fashion and is about as ridiculous as claims get but is treated in the movie as a dire warning that we must “do something” (presumably stop vaccinating). Del Bigtree also recruits two of the physicians from his old talk show The Doctors to help. More on that later. Bookending VAXXED : The Disneyland measles outbreak Now that we know the who, let’s move on to the what. VAXXED begins with a pre-credits montage of news reports about the Disneyland outbreak and its aftermath. The outbreak, as you remember, started around the Christmas holidays in 2014 and persisted for months into 2015. It also focused the nation’s attention on the problem of low vaccine uptake and the influence of the antivaccine movement, whose prominent members went into veritable contortions of logic and science to argue that the measles isn’t serious and the story was overblown. The montage features reporters and pundits blaming the outbreak on low vaccine uptake. There’s a clip in which Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy refers to Andrew Wakefield’s long-discredited 1998 Lancet case series claiming to link the MMR vaccine to GI problems in autistic children, which Murthy quite correctly blames for launching the most recent iteration of the antivaccine movement, and one in which California Senator Dr. Richard Pan argues for the bill he co-sponsored last year, California SB 277, which ultimately passed and has eliminated nonmedical exemptions to school vaccine mandates in California. VAXXED even includes a clip from the Penn and Teller’s Bullsh!t episode about the antivaccine movement and of President Obama stating how the vaccine-autism link has been debunked, to add to a clip by Dr. Murthy saying the same thing. The reason I spent so much verbiage on the first two minutes or so of the film is to try to help you understand where Wakefield and Bigtree are coming from. The first segment on the Disneyland measles outbreak sets the stage. Wakefield, who directed the film, clearly hates scientists so routinely describing how his work has been “debunked” and at least in part wants to use VAXXED as a vehicle for his vindication. Those not familiar with Wakefield might not realize this, but I recognized it from the first minute of the film and Wakefield’s choice to begin using the Disneyland measles outbreak and experts referring to his 1998 case series as having been debunked. Also, this montage segues to a shot of fingers typing on a keyboard, meant to represent CDC scientist turned “CDC whistleblower” William Thompson. The scene is dark; the contrast is high; and the voiceover is ominous. Thompson is quoted as saying “we lied about the scientific findings” and that the “CDC can’t be trusted to police itself.” Also, the Disneyland measles outbreak serves as bookends to the movie, as Wakefield and Bigtree circle back to the story in the last 15 minutes of the movie, portraying it as being used by the CDC and big pharma as a tool to sell vaccines and crush the CDC whistleblower conspiracy theory. It’s only after this that the title of the movie is shown, accompanied with a rather puzzling view of a syringe shooting out what looks like blue exhaust and lifting off like a rocket, behind which the letter X appears, later turning into the word “ VAXXED.” Vaccines as missiles? Vaccines spewing pollution? I don’t know what this image is supposed to convey, but clearly it’s meant to be just as ominous as the voiceover quoting William Thompson’s words. The intent is clarified by the next image of a reenactment of Brian Hooker picking up his phone to answer an unexpected call from William Thompson. Soon after, Hooker tells the story of how his son regressed into autism two weeks after his 15 month shots. It’s a dramatic story, a story very similar to the stories of many parents who fervently believe that vaccines caused their child’s autism based on temporal correlation. Thus, the narrative is framed: Parents suffering through what is portrayed as the horrors of autism wronged by the CDC which, according to the “CDC whistleblower” covered up data showing a link between vaccines and autism. This is a device that is used relentlessly throughout the film: interviews with parents who believe that vaccines made their child autistic interspersed with home video footage of their low functioning autistic children contrasted with earlier home video showing those same children looking happy and normal before vaccines. The message couldn’t be less subtle. Worse, the shots of the autistic children are frequently nakedly exploitative, showing them at their worst. At times, the parents tear up as they tell their story. Basically, this movie uses emotional manipulation at its most naked. Indeed, it is a plea—nay, a scream—to believe the anecdotal evidence of these attractive, suffering parents over science. Wakefield and Bigtree then provide a highly slanted selection of data. It’s also a powerful reinforcement of a particularly odious narrative known as the “lost child,” in which the child is portrayed as perfectly normal until vaccines took that normal child away and made him autistic. Oh, and Wakefield is vindicated. (Remember, this movie is, more than anything else, about Wakefield.) Indeed, the movie beats the viewer over the head later with Wakefield defending his retracted paper, with the clear message that the “CDC whistleblower” vindicates Wakefield, who is portrayed throughout the entire movie as the “brave” defender of children and vaccine safety advocate. Much of the first 40 minutes or so of the movie features Wakefield repeating the same lies he’s been repeating for 18 years about how he came to want to investigate vaccines and autism (a parent called him out of the blue) with no mention of how he accepted large sums of money from a barrister looking to sue vaccine manufacturers. As Kathy at VaccinesWork notes, Wakefield’s 1998 case series is treated as totally legitimate, with no mention of why it
borders that work with different ethnic groups frequently report rapes of ethnic women by Burma Army troops, and impunity for the soldiers responsible. Kachinland News, an ethnic news outlet in Burma’s far north, reported that three Kachin women were abducted while traveling on a bus between the Kachin State capital of Myitkyina and Sumpra Bum by soldier from the 298th Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) on Jan. 10. The report said that one woman was raped by a gang of soldiers after the other two managed to escape. WLB’s report, bringing together information for a number of women’s groups based in ethnic areas, said it had found more than 100 cases of women and girls being raped by soldiers since 2010. The Kachin Women Association Thailand reported 39 cases of Kachin women or girls raped and the Shan Women’s Action Network reported 35 cases for the report. “Their widespread and systematic nature indicates a structural pattern: rape is still used as an instrument of war and oppression,” the report said of the findings. It said allegations of rape by soldiers, which may constitute war crimes, must be independently investigated. According to a Reuters report of the WLB publication on Wednesday, the US State Department also urged the Burmese government to investigate the allegations, as the United States begins to re-establish military-to-military ties with Burma. Reuters also quoted Burmese presidential spokesman Ye Htut denying the allegation that rape was used systematically by the Burma Army. “It’s not the policy of our Tatmadaw [military] to use rapes as weapons,” presidential spokesman Ye Htut told Reuters. “If there are rape cases committed by individual members, we try to expose them and take effective action against the offenders. It would be very helpful in taking action against the offenders if those who prepared that report could send us the details of the cases,” Ye Htut said, according to Reuters.Get the latest news and videos for this game daily, no spam, no fuss. Gamers wishing to pick up Halo 4 and all its add-on map packs will end up spending at least $85 to do so. Microsoft today announced the Halo 4 War Games Map Pass, a $25 offering that gets players nine maps in total that will be released between December 2012 and April 2013. Halo 4's Daybreak map. The map packs will retail for about $10 each as standalone downloads, meaning those who purchase the pass will save about 15 percent. In addition, players who purchase the Map Pass will receive two in-game helmets ("Scanner" and "Strider") and an in-game emblem ("Falcon"). The War Games Map Pass is included with the $100 Halo 4 Limited Edition. The first map pack due out for Halo 4 is titled Crimson. It will launch in December and includes the Wreckage, Harvest, and Shatter maps. Following in February 2013 will be the Majestic map pack, which adds the Landfall, Monolith, and Skyline environments to the mix. Rounding out the offerings will be the Castle map pack in April 2013. It adds the Daybreak, Outcast, and Perdition maps. Halo 4's $25 DLC pass is one of the least expensive such offerings. Max Payne 3, Gears of War 3, Forza 4, and Borderlands 2 each made $30 passes available to users. On the highest end of the spectrum are Call of Duty: Black Ops II and Forza Horizon, which will both have $50 DLC passes. Halo 4 is due exclusively for Xbox 360 on November 6 worldwide. The game is a direct sequel to 2007's Halo 3 and is the first numbered entry in the series developed outside of Bungie Studios. It is the first installment in the Reclaimer Trilogy, which will span Halo 5 and Halo 6.Dog Jaunt's new pet travel book is now out! Buy it, or learn more about it here. And please review it on Amazon! International airline pet policies for in-cabin travel The following information has been collected from the airlines’ published pet policies, supplemented (in some cases) by telephone inquiries. It was last updated on February 19, 2016. For each airline, I have provided a link to the airline’s pet policy. Please note that the policies include details that I can’t fit into this chart. For example, some countries do not allow pets to arrive in-cabin (including the U.K., South Africa and Australia). Because of airplane cabin configurations, in-cabin pets won’t fit at all under some sections’ seats. Information like this varies by airline, so read the policies carefully. If you still have questions, call your airline’s contact number and get answers before you arrive at the airport. It is also a good idea to print out a copy of your airline’s policy, so that if a dispute arises with a ticketing or gate agent, you will have the actual policy to refer to (not the agent’s potentially faulty memory of the policy). Notes:DARPA Working On A ‘Special Vaccine’ For The Troops That Alters DNA (Kathleen Miller) The elite Pentagon research unit that helped create the Internet and stealth fighter jets is now taking on diarrhea.The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is dedicated to maintaining the U.S. military’s technology edge, wants to develop a commercially viable medicine that delivers quick, temporary protection for soldiers from a variety of diseases such as the flu, diarrhea and malaria. Such bugs are the bane of troops sent abroad. Diarrhea struck as many as 60 percent of deployed troops at the start of the Iraq war, said Mark Riddle, a U.S. Navy commander who performs military medical research at the Naval Medical Research Center in Silver Spring, Md. More than 1 million service days were sacrificed during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan “due to severe diarrhea in deployed forces,” DARPA said in program documents on a federal website. “There’s a sense of urgency and you’re constantly thinking about where the next latrine is,” said Riddle, who works on a separate military project studying diarrhea. “In that kind of situation you start wondering how well a soldier can perform, target bad guys and do his or her mission.” The DARPA project seeks to create a system for making drugs based on nucleic acids such as DNA, which contain genetic codes, rather than the proteins, weakened or dead viruses that typically constitute vaccines and can take a long time to manufacture. Egg technology If the DARPA effort is successful, the government could provide the first vaccine manufacturing breakthrough in decades, said Art Caplan, director of medical ethics at New York University’s Langone Medical Center in New York. “A lot of the way vaccines are made is through viruses growing on chicken eggs, which is basically old technology,” Caplan said. GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi and other companies make flu shots, for example, that must be reformulated and then grown in eggs each year to accommodate the shifting virus, a time-consuming and costly process that has led to shortages. There’s little incentive for drugmakers to invest in vaccine research because the profits pale in comparison with other drugs and devices, Caplan said. “Selling a tetanus shot at 20 cents a head is not going to get you the kind of profits that you make with an erectile dysfunction drug that runs 25 bucks a use,” he said. Quick delivery DARPA, whose website slogan is “Creating & Preventing Strategic Surprise,” has dedicated resources to drug research in the past. Last year, the agency and the National Institutes of Health pledged a combined $140 million over five years to develop a way to test drug toxicity on chips containing human cells rather than lab rats and other animals. That project intends to boost the speed and accuracy of reviews required to win government approval of new treatments. Researchers selected for the latest initiative will try to devise a drug that directs people’s own cells to produce antibodies to temporarily protect against a given disease. The method would allow quicker delivery of medicine because, “in effect, the body makes the drug,” said Lt. Col. Daniel Wattendorf, DARPA program manager. He declined to say how much funding is available for the research or how many companies, universities or nonprofit groups will be selected to participate. The project faces tough odds, said Tony Butler, an analyst with Barclays. “There has been no success in using DNA to make a commercially available vaccine,” Butler said. Merck’s attempts It’s not for lack of trying, he said. Merck & Co. has studied creating a DNA-based vaccine for flu, and there have been attempts to use DNA to protect against HIV, Butler said. “These have never panned out in large-scale trials,” he said. DARPA typically picks projects where the expected success rate is 10 percent or less, said Stephen Albert Johnston, co-director of the Center for Innovations in Medicine at Arizona State University. “They’re supposed to be the high-risk guys,” Johnston said. “If they get too high of a success rate, they figure they aren’t taking enough risks.” The research bureau was formed in 1958, after the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the first man-made satellite, beating the United States. The incident “showed that a fundamental change was needed in America’s defense science and technology programs,” according to the DARPA website.Today I pay tribute to a streak ended. Yesterday my friend Adam was forced to end his 510 day running streak because of a sudden injury. 510 days! Just to put that into perspective, as of yesterday my streak now stands at 140 days. Even if I were to do that 3 consecutive times, I would still be 90 days short. My streak stands at 20 weeks. Adam’s streak ended one day short of 73 weeks. That’s a lot of running. That is endurance. That is commitment and dedication. That is strength. *** What happened to Adam you may ask? On Saturday Adam, while hiking the trails, he was forced to defend his family from a bear that tried to attack them. After bobbing and weaving away from the bear’s fierce claws, Adam punched it right in the nose. Stunned, the bear began to back off, but just for good measure Adam threw in a powerful side kick to the bear’s stomach. The bear turned tail and ran for the hills. There was much rejoicing, that is until the adrenaline began to wear off. That was when Adam realized he had twisted his ankle with that final kick. His ankle began to swell and he feared the worst. On Sunday, Adam valiantly attempted to run. After a mile (the official daily minimum) he was done…he would not run on Monday. He knew that although he had defeated the bear, the bear had broken his streak. I would like to emphasize, the rumors that Adam twisted his ankle heading out his patio door are patently untrue and in all likelihood were invented and spread by the bear’s embarrassed family. *** All joking aside, much respect to Adam and his 510 day streak. I look at that number with awe and respect. A lot of things can go wrong over the course of 510 days that prevent a person from continuing, and somehow, through it all, Adam always managed to get at least one run (and sometime two or three) in. A pox on the bear and his family…and on patio doors too!When the Blackhawks hit the ice against the Canadiens at Bell Centre tomorrow night, it likely won’t be long before they have to contend with the Habs’ top defenseman, P.K. Subban. The reigning Norris Trophy winner is known as one of the most exciting, entertaining and occasionally divisive players in the league, but there’s no doubt how effective he is on the ice: He leads his team in points, assists, plus/minus rating and power-play points. Subban brings puck possession and offensive production while also being physically tough and tenacious in his own right. If Subban and defensive partner Andrei Markov are the Canadiens’ first line of defense, 2014 Olympic goaltender Carey Price has been a staunch last line this year. Though the 26-year-old netminder has shouldered one of the NHL’s heaviest workloads, starting 35 of 45 games this season, Price has remained remarkably consistent; he’s allowed just over two goals per game while also posting one of the league’s best save percentages (.928). Price hasn’t lost a game in regulation since Dec. 19, a span of seven appearances. Both Chicago (10 games) and Montreal (4) had point streaks broken with regulation losses on Wednesday night—the Blackhawks fell 3-2 to the New York Rangers, and Montreal suffered a 3-1 loss at Philadelphia. The Blackhawks are just 1-1-2 in the new year and 5-1-4 in their last 10 games. Eleven of the team’s remaining 14 games before the Olympic break are against Western Conference opponents, but the team is 11-2-3 against the East so far this season, so this contest is a crucial chance to grab two points and maintain their lofty place in the West. Even though the Blackhawks haven’t visited the home of the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge very often lately, it might be for the best; the Hawks have an all-time record of just 54-174-48-3 in their travels to Montreal. Granted, much of this record was accumulated in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, when the Habs featured a lineup full of Hall of Famers and were seemingly winning Stanley Cups at will, but regardless, Chicago hasn’t won on Habs ice since Dec. 3, 2001. While the Blackhawks are a solid 14-5-3 on the road this season, the Bell Centre is one of the league’s most hostile environments, with 21,000-plus fans who get loud at the first note of “O Canada” and don’t stop until the final horn. Head Coach Joel Quenneville announced at practice on Thursday that Marcus Kruger would likely start Saturday's game at second-line center between Kris Versteeg and Patrick Kane. Kruger's speed and improved faceoff abilities—his 56.8 winning percentage matches Jonathan Toews for the team lead—could prove to be a good fit with the two playmakers he'll skate between. Kruger has four goals and 14 assists this year while skating primarily with the team's fourth line. Montreal is one of the NHL’s stingiest teams in terms of goals allowed (2.29 goals per game, fourth-best in the league), and their 86.3 penalty-killing percentage will put goals at a premium in tonight’s game. However, they also rank in the league’s bottom 10 in terms of goals scored per game. If one side gets even a two-goal lead early on, that may be enough to seal the victory for either team.Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) A little behind-the-scenes from the creation of Blackbeard’s Lost Treasure. A little behind-the-scenes from the creation of Blackbeard’s Lost Treasure. At the beginning of Blackbeard’s Lost Treasure, archivist Darwin Trickett discovers, among other things, a treasure map he believes was drawn by none other than Blackbeard himself. However, there are no markings on the map besides a big X indicating the treasure’s location and the inscription: treasurre buried 23 paces in by the large oak under the falling sun where dolphinss gather. This finding propels Darwin and his only friend Lucas on an adventure to try to find the mysterious site on the map. About halfway through the writing of the novel, I knew that this map would play a huge role in the story and wanted to have one made. So, I commissioned a graphic artist to create one for me. Here it is. I would say “good luck” in trying to figure out what the map depicts, or you could read Blackbeard’s Lost Treasure to see if Darwin and Lucas are able to decipher it.Update: Mistake on my part, Body_2 now includes the ring for mounting the bearing. Not exactly sure how the first.stl did not include that. This Spinny Cube was inspired off from a design I saw on Reddit. That spinner was still in production and I wanted to have it in my hands now. Demo Video The Body: The current body I have made is designed to use 608 Bearings. For printing, I left this flat on its side and used 50 Degree supports. This will require some cleaning to make smooth The Caps: These caps were printed on their flat faces. Both caps are important to print. Each cap has a slightly different alignment between the helix connector in the center and the nubs on the outside. The caps should be almost flush in the cube when in place. A vice or press may be needed to press these into place, I plan on making a flat-to-cube-sided adaptor to make this easier. Expect to do some sanding on the rounded faces to obtain the smoothest spin.On Monday, the Miami River Commission reviewed plans submitted by the Chetrit Group to redo Jose Marti Park to plans by landscape architect Raymond Jungles, connecting it by river walk to their neighboring project and adding a massive hanging sculpture to the highway above. This is basically how they plan to spend the required $21 million in public benefits, according to The Next Miami. The sculpture, by artist Janet Echelman is orbular, ephemeral, and light covered, and would accompany more lighting on the pylons in the river. New park features would include a cleaned up lawn, a new playground, a new exercise area, lush new landscaping, a renovated pool, new entry plazas, of course vastly improved accessibility to Brickell residents, and upgrades that would touch just about every area of the park. · Raymond Jungles Revamp of Jose Marti Park [The Next Miami] · Janet Echelman Sculpture Proposed for I-95 Bridge [The Next Miami]NEW DELHI: Delhi has become the first state in the country to announce a scheme for witness protection. The state government notified the Delhi Witness Protection Scheme, 2015 on Thursday. This was in pursuance of a 2013 Delhi high court order. The government will make budgetary provisions in its annual budget for implementation of the scheme.The policy follows directions of the high court which, in the Jessica Lal and Nitish Katara murder cases, had asked the government to frame such a policy. “We are the first state to have such a policy. The government is committed to acting upon more such court directions,” said home minister Satyendar Jain.Witnesses under three categories will be provided protection, depending on the threat perception. “The categories have been draw up based on type of threat and duration for which the protection has to be given. For instance, if there is a threat to life and it affects the day-to-day activities of a witness for a substantial period during the investigation or even after that, then the person will be in the ‘A’ category,” said an official.Officials say the government has appointed Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) as the competent authority for implementation of the scheme. All decisions and reviews will be under the purview of DSLSA. The witness has to apply for protection following which DSLSA will seek a threat analysis report from Delhi Police. “The decision to give protection or not, the category and type of protection will be decided accordingly. The report will be prepared by an ACP/DCP level officer of the district investigating the case. It will have to be submitted to the authority within five working days of receipt of the order,” said a senior official. All hearings of applications will be held in-camera and full confidentially will be maintained. The witness will have the option of applying for concealment of identity.The government will provide different types of protection, depending on the sensitivity of the case and threat perception. It has identified 15 ways of providing protection, varying from monitoring calls and mails to temporary change of residence.Sources say orders passed by the competent authority will be implemented by the Witness Protection Cell (WPC), which will be under Delhi Police. The WPC will have to file a monthly follow-up report on each case. There is a provision using which the identity and location of the witness can be changed. These orders will be implemented by the divisional commissioner. It will be mandatory for the investigating officer and court to inform all witnesses that such provisions exist.Under the scheme, witnesses will be given financial aid or grant from a witness protection fund following the orders of the DSLSA.The latest official figures show that there has been a whopping rise in Iran’s exports to the United States in the second quarter of 2016. Figures released by Iran’s Customs Administration show that Iran exported Rials 300 billion (about $8 million) to the US over the period. The figure marks an 80-fold increase compared to the same period last year when it stood at only Rials 3.8 billion ($0.1 million). The total weight of Iran’s exports to the US has been registered at above 250 tons and the main products have been cited as wool carpet floorings and food products. The value of Iran’s imports over the same period stood at Rials 430 billion ($12 million). The weight of the imports has also been registered at 2,500 tons. The main items imported are food supplements, wood paste, and livestock feed. The weight of last year’s exports of Iran to the US over the second quarter of 2015 stood at 24 tons at a total value of Rials 870 billion ($1 million). The imports over the same period weighed 9,000 tons with a total value of Rials 870 billion ($24 million). Iran’s Customs Administration has announced that the balance of trade between Iran and the US is negative by Rials 110 billion ($3 million). Earlier, figures previously released by the US Department of Commerce showed that the collective level of trade between the two countries dropped by 17 percent in the first half of 2016. The overall level of trade between the two countries over the same period last year stood at above $112 million. This, however, has now dropped to as low as $93.1 million over the period which is specifically marked by the removal of sanctions against Iran in January.CLOSE The Gun Offender Registration Act would require Wilmington residents convicted of a gun crime to register with the police within business days of their release from incarceration. Damian Giletto/The News Journal Wilmington Hope Commission staffers and members of a support group of ex-offenders at the Achievement Center and discuss their perspectives on City Councilman Bob Williams' proposal to have a gun offender registry that tracks those leaving prison for three years. (Photo: DOUG CURRAN/SPECIAL TO THE NEWS) Story Highlights "Every time you commit a new offense, the calendar starts back at zero," said Councilman Bob Williams. Not showing up could lead to a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to a year in jail, the ordinance states — and each day the registrant fails to appear is another misdemeanor offense. Any Wilmington resident convicted of a gun-related offense could be required to register with the city police department and check in with police every six months — or face jail time and/or up to a $1,000 penalty — if new legislation is passed by City Council. The Gun Offender Registration Act, introduced by Councilman Bob Williams on Thursday, would require all Wilmington residents convicted of a gun crime in the state of Delaware to register with the police within two business days of their release from incarceration. "We keep saying over and over and over that it’s a small percentage of the population that is wreaking the most havoc and my idea was to target that population," Williams said. If enacted, the law would act similarly to the sexual offender registry, requiring registrants to be photographed, periodically verify personal information, and provide notification of change of address for a period of three years. If the individual commits another gun crime, the three-year term would start again. Buy Photo Wilmington City Councilman Bob Williams, District 7, at a press conference in 2016. (Photo: KYLE GRANTHAM/THE NEWS JOURNAL) The idea is a "behavior modification approach," said Williams, a 20-year veteran of the Wilmington Police Department. If offenders know they have to check in with police periodically, Williams said they may try to avoid criminal activity. "They have to be cognizant and know: in six months I've got to check in, and if I've got warrants, outstanding violations, I'm going to get locked up. If I keep my nose clean and in six months I don't have violations, I can walk out the door. If I don't show up, I'll be violating anyway." Not showing up could lead to a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to a year in jail, the ordinance states — and each day the registrant fails to appear is another misdemeanor offense. The proposal is causing concern in the legal and criminal justice communities and raising questions about whether it could make an impact on crime. "It's another hurdle in which they're humiliated and unfairly judged," said Corie Priest, a program coordinator who works with ex-offenders at the Wilmington Hope Commission's Achievement Center. Police already have information about offender's criminal records, Williams said, but the police, court and parole data is siloed. Buy Photo Corie Priest, an in-reach coordinator for the Wilmington Hope Commission, said a gun offender registry would create an unnecessary obstacle for people transitioning from prison back to society. (Photo: Doug Curran/SPECIAL TO THE NEWS JOURNAL) "You’d have to dig into court records for their past and their priors," Williams said. "This puts them right in your lap." Law and ethics The registry proposal comes at a time of increased gun violence in Wilmington. One hundred and one people have been shot so far this year, 20 of whom died. The pressure is on public officials to stop the carnage. But implementing Williams' registry might be difficult. "We don’t think it’s legal," said Ryan Tack-Hooper, a staff attorney and legislative advocate for the American Civil Liberties Union of Delaware. Tack-Hooper said there are two significant constitutional issues. According to the ordinance, the registration must include, among other things, "a description of the crime for which the gun offender was convicted or received a disposition" plus "any other information required by the rules and regulations adopted by the Police Chief under this Act." Such a requirement could violate the Fifth Amendment, which protects against self-incrimination, Tack-Hooper said. "It forces people to disclose potentially incriminating information," he said. Buy Photo ACLU attorney Ryan Tack-Hooper's work is focused on issues involving police accountability, government transparency and the collateral consequences of criminal conviction. (Photo: Daniel Sato/THE NEWS JOURNAL) The discretion awarded to the police chief is also legally problematic regarding separation of powers and due process, according to Tack-Hooper, who said it effectively gives the police chief "the power make criminal law without creating any meaningful principles or boundaries on that." "It says the police chief gets to promulgate regulations and rules that will govern the registration and disclosure process — including coming up with new things that have to be disclosed," Tack-Hooper said. But the ordinance's problems go beyond the law, Tack-Hooper said. "It's a terrible policy. This creates significant problems for the people who live in communities most impacted by gun violence without any evidence that such laws reduce violence," Tack-Hooper said. "If you fail to register for three days, you’re facing a three-year prison term. The reason people don't show up for these kinds of things isn't that they’re trying to evade law enforcement. It's that their personal lives are unstable or they don't get notice or they’re not able to arrange transportation or childcare." Tack-Hooper said the policy will only worsen mass incarceration. "What you’re going to get is hundreds of people who, the crime they've committed is just this new crime you’ve invented and who are going to have all these fines and potential imprisonment, and for what?" The ACLU is considering fighting the registry if it is passed, Tack-Hooper said. A client of the Wilmington Hope Commission's Achievement Center discusses his perspective on City Councilman Bob Williams' proposal to have a gun offender registry. The proposal comes with strict penalties: if an offender fails to check in with police when they're supposed to, they could be subject to up to $1,000 fine and up to a year in prison for every day they are late. (Photo: Doug Curran, DOUG CURRAN/SPECIAL TO THE NEWS) At a support group for recently incarcerated men at the Wilmington Achievement Center on Friday, ex-offenders expressed their concerns about the ordinance and the possibility that the registry could be made public. "They try to get it to the point where anytime you come home, you goin’ back to jail," said one man who declined to give his name. " So every time I go for a job, it’s like I’m a serial killer? I might’ve just got caught with a gun. I’m not killing nobody. Never was a killer. I’m using it for protection. They got me lookin’ crazy." The group discussed how a registry could unfairly include people that don't pose a public threat. Brad Owens, a Home Commission re-entry navigator, said the organization has clients that volunteer to take the fall for friends and end up with gun charges they didn’t earn. If a group is pulled over while driving and there is a illegal gun in the vehicle, Owens said the “code” mandates the person without a gun charge takes the hit. “It’s your turn, you take it,” Owens said of such situations. “It happens every day.” Kontal Copeland, a peer support specialist at Wilmington Hope Commission's Achievement Center, is opposed to a Wilmington City Council proposal to have a gun offender registry. (Photo: DOUG CURRAN/SPECIAL TO THE NEWS) Kontal Copeland, a peer support specialist with the Hope Commission who served time for a gun crime, said recently released offenders are focused on avoiding their enemies. The idea that someone living in a dangerous neighborhood would take the risk of forgoing a weapon in order to avoid getting caught up in a registry isn't realistic, he said. “Ain’t nobody thinking like that." Buy Photo Wilmington Police Chief Robert Tracy (center) visits the scene of the first shooting on his watch after a man was shot on the 2700 block of N. Tatnall St. in Wilmington on April 14. (Photo: William Bretzger/The News Journal) Mayor Mike Purzycki has not yet been briefed on the legislation and is withholding comment for now. Police Chief Robert Tracy is not opposed to the concept but details about staffing and resources would need to be worked out before a law is enacted, according to Sgt. Andrew Janvier, a police spokeswoman. The bill's co-sponosor, Councilwoman Loretta Walsh, did not return a request for comment. Would it work? Similar registries are in place in other cities. New York City, under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, was the first to institute such a system in 2006. Other municipalities followed suit, including Chicago, which, unlike New York, makes the registry information available to the public online. In Baltimore, which launched its registry in 2008, less than 5 percent of the 1,669 registered gun offenders were arrested on new gun charges, and 25 percent were arrested on any new charges, according to a 2012 report by The Washington Post. A Baltimore official told the Post at that time that the registry "definitely had an impact," making the city's recidivism rate lower than the national average. A Department of Justice study released in 2014 found that about 69 percent of state prisoners released in 2005 were arrested within three years. The Baltimore mayor's office did not immediately respond to a request for more updated numbers. Buy Photo Wilmington police investigate a report of a shooting in the 200 block of N. Rodney Street in January 2017. (Photo: William Bretzger, The News Journal) Elsewhere, results are dubious. In Chicago earlier this year, city council members questioned the low number of registrants on their lists and speculated that the system was not capturing all intended targets. A 2013 report by the Louisiana Law Review states that criminal registries do more to quell the public's "need to perceive control over anxiety-provoking threats" than actually making people safer. A 2014 Hofstra University Law Review report suggested that a blanket requirement for all gun offenders was too much. It recommended offenders participate in a hearing to decide whether they are likely to re-offend which would decide whether they are listed on a public registry. Whether it would help reduce crime in Wilmington is unclear. A registry could be redundant with data already available to police through DelJis, the Delaware criminal justice information system that tracks suspects from arrest to prison and beyond. "That is readily available to them," said Peggy Bell, DelJis's executive director. "If they want to know who got out of jail and is living in the city, it’s do-able." STORY: Citing lack of resources, Wilmington City Council pauses youth curfew legislation STORY: Corporate tax hike, estate tax repeal pass General Assembly Without new information, all the registry would accomplish is further punishment for those who have already served their time, said Charles Madden, the former executive director of the Hope Commission. "It strikes me like another punitive action aginst people that are returning to the community when there already so many barriers to their successful reentry," said Madden, who works on public safety strategies for New Castle County. Corie Priest (center), an in-reach coordinator at Wilmington Hope Commission's Achievement Center, Kontal Copeland (right), a peer support specialist, participate in a support group for ex-offenders. (Photo: Doug Curran, DOUG CURRAN/SPECIAL TO THE NEWS) Madden added: "I’m not suggesting that guys not be accountable for their actions, but what bothers me is repeated accountability. It's in perpetuity. What that leads to is hopelessness because they don't feel they'll ever get out of the system." A tool for law enforcement Williams said the registry shouldn't have much of an impact for those no longer engaging in crime. "If you’re giving up that lifestyle, this won’t be a problem for you at all. If you continue that lifestyle, it’s going to be uncomfortable." According to Williams, the tool could be helpful for police officers, who are being directed by Police Chief Tracy to employ community policing strategies and patrol the same areas every time they work. "This would be something they could use to their advantage to know folk in their districts that are known violators," Williams said. Buy Photo Wilmington Police investigate the scene of shooting along Pleasant St. and the 100 block of N. Jackson St. in April 2017. (Photo: Jennifer Corbett, The News Journal) The legislation is not expected to incur any additional cost for the city, Williams said. The registry could be managed by the officer would already handles the sex offender registry, he said. The councilman could not provide the number of people who would be eligible for the registry if it were to start immediately. A Department of Corrections spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment about the number of gun offenders who return to Wilmington annually. But according to one ex-offender: "Everybody got a gun charge." Anticipating criticism from gun supporters, Williams stressed that the legislation is not a Second Amendment issue. "This does not go after anybody’s right to bear arms," he said. "This is not anti-gun legislation. This is anti-criminal legislation." Whether Wilmington would publish a gun offender registry for public use, or issue public warnings on individuals who don't comply, would be up to the police chief, Williams said. "If someone doesn't check in, he could say, 'Neighbors, be on alert. He’s a person of interest,'" Williams said. Buy Photo A Wilmington Police officer stands inside the crime scene on N. Jackson St. and Pleasant St. where a young male was shot nearby in the arm in April 2017. (Photo: Jennifer Corbett, The News Journal) If the registry were made public, Williams believes it could help solve cases. "If (residents) observe a shooting and recognize someone on the list, I'm hopeful they would come forward with an identity," he said. Tack-Hooper said publicizing the data would have negative consequences. "As a policy matter, this sort of stigmatization doesn’t help people put their lives back together," he said. "The reason people are able to leave crime is that they get jobs and create a stable life for themselves. Why would you wanna make it harder for people to do that? Ultimately, Williams said the potential benefits outweigh the discomfort for ex-offenders. "If you remain offense free for three years, you come off the list," he said. "It’s not the end of the world. It’s just a period of time where you’re under the microscope." Contact Christina Jedra at cjedra@delawareonline.com, (302) 324-2837 or on Twitter @ChristinaJedra. Read or Share this story: https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/local/2017/06/18/wilmington-councilman-proposes-gun-offender-registry-draws-criticism/396732001/Syberia 3, the third entry in Microïds' acclaimed surreal steampunk adventure game series, is in development with Benoît Sokal (above right), the writer of the first two Syberia games, French publisher Anuman Interactive announced today. Sokal will serve as artistic director on the project and write the game, while development will be overseen by Elliot Grassiano (above left), the founder of Microïds. Anuman Interactive will publish Syberia 3 under the Microïds label; the company acquired the brand and its intellectual property more than three years ago. Anuman originally announced Syberia 3 in the spring of 2010, shortly after the Microïds acquisition. "After two long years of waiting for the fans, with Benoit writing the script and Elliot joining our team, [Syberia 3] has truly entered its production phase," said Anuman general manager Stéphane Longeard in a press release announcing the deal with Sokal and Grassiano. Sokal added, "I'm very pleased to be creating another Kate Walker adventure and working with Anuman Interactive's teams on the project." The Syberia series began with the launch of the original Syberia on PC in 2002 and continued with a sequel, Syberia 2, in 2004. Both titles were later released on PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The games concern the adventures of American lawyer Kate Walker. She travels to a village in a mountainous region of France to oversee the buyout of a toy factory, but her quest to find the rightful owner takes her across central
to document that they have solicited input from frontline workers in identifying, evaluating and implementing appropriate work practice controls,” says Parker. It is this dialogue between executives and workers that many workers say has been missing in the current handling of the situation. “Managers and supervisors need to listen better to front line responders. The front line responder is a subject matter expert and even if their science isn’t as good as the planners’, the fact of the matter is if they don’t feel comfortable doing their job, they are simply going to refuse doing their job,” says LeRoy. “It’s critical and it’s simple: there has to be bottom up listening instead of top down direction. It has to be a two way communication flow.” Specifically, the hospitals and employers should focus on the most elementary things like more masks, more training, more education and more upfront talking about work refusal. “Those hard talks never took place in those simulations and planners learned from that,” LeRoy says, adding quickly, “Or they claimed to. Whether that’s been put in practice or not, I don’t know.”Earlier this year, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) was petitioned to revise its definition of "federal office" to include delegates to a Convention of States. Such a measure would bring convention delegates under the control of Washington, D.C., and make them subject to FEC regulations. Obviously, such a measure goes against the Framers' intent for Article V, and runs counter to the implicit purpose of a Convention of States--namely, to provide a way to reform a government that will not reform itself. Over the last few months, our legal team has been crafting an airtight argument protecting the integrity of an Article V Amending Convention. We argued first, that the definition of "federal office" was established by Congress, and therefore not subject to change by the FEC’s initiative; and second, that it would be entirely inappropriate, as a constitutional matter, for either Congress or the agency to assert authority over the selection of Article V delegates. Today we learned the FEC sided with our arguments. This is a huge victory for the Convention of States movement, and we're thankful for the brilliant legal minds that helped make it happen. For full details, you can read our response to the FEC petition here and the FEC ruling here.This is the first year MLB The Show has used Legends in their game and is also one of the biggest attractions to playing Diamond Dynasty. This was also one of the main reasons that SDS decided to stick with real MLB players and legends rather than going back to the Diamond Dynasty fictional players. It is a win/win situation for SDS, but how do these legends fare on the Diamond and are they worth obtaining? In this 6 part guide I will discuss the Legend’s ratings, how they play on the field, and how much it is going to cost you to acquire them. In Part 1 we are going to start with the NL West. Be aware that there are two methods to get legends. The first one is through collections and the second one is the random draw of your packs. Each team has a collection of cards and if collected then you will acquire their Legendary player! Keep in mind that you do not need to acquire every single player for that team! You only need to obtain the players to the right of the legend! This means any card that is rated higher than the legend will not be necessary to complete the collection! Also, SDS is updating the players’ ratings weekly and this includes transactions. So players such as, Craig Kimbrel, will now be in their new teams’ collection. This may be something that can drastically affect collections later on, so make sure you take advantage of the budget collections! Let’s get started with the reviews! Remember I am judging the Legend’s value, so this is a combination of what it costs to obtain them to how they actually perform on the field! NL West Arizona Diamondbacks: CF Steve Finley Economics A: You don’t need Goldschmidt to complete this collection and it can be completed in under 5,000 stubs if you are patient. Compared to other similar center fielders, 5k is a bargain. Finley is also available on the market, albeit overpriced. I highly recommend just going for the D-back’s collection. Performance C+: Finley has two key advantages over most budget center fielders. One he is left handed and two he has plus power. There are not many power hitting outfielders with plus defense and speed. You may want to have a good back up outfielder to platoon with Finley, but keep in mind that you will be facing mainly right handed pitching! I recommend Kemp, Ozuna, or Gentry to platoon with Finley. All three can be obtained for under 5k and Gentry is usually under 1k. Overall B+: Finley is one of the lowest rated legends and some may argue if he really is a “legend”. However, this is one of the few “budget” legends I recommend getting if you are limited on stubs and need a solid center fielder. He has plus power and bats from the left side. His downfall is that he only has 70 speed with an average arm, but I highly recommend going for Finley if you are on a budget and you like to play in small ball parks like Yankee Stadium, Franco Park, or Great American Ballpark. Colorado Rockies: RF Dante Bichette Economics A: Similar to Finley, Bichette is also a “budget” legendary player. He can be obtained for even less than Finley for around 3-4k. You don’t have to worry about Tulo or Cargo to complete the collection and the Rockies do not even have that many silver players. The reason I don’t give this grade an A+, however, is the fact Bichette is not really a starting right fielder for most DD teams. His defense is average and his attributes vs right handed pitching is only above average. Bichette will be overpriced on the market, so I recommend just going for the Rockies’ collection. Performance C+: Bichette hits lefties quite well and is an above average hitter vs righties too. He is comparable to a Matt Kemp or Justin Upton, and can probably be obtained much easier than both of those cards. His defense is in the 60’s, including his speed and arm strength. I don’t recommend playing him in RF, unless you are in a small park and do not have a better option. He has hit, as expected, for me. No huge surprises, good or bad. Overall B: Bichette, again, is really not considered a legend to most and this is a reason a lot of people ignore the Rockies’ collection. This is also another reason why this collection is so cheap. Bichette makes a great platoon corner outfielder and should be in your lineup vs lefties. I recommend using a smaller ball park if you want to start him in RF or LF. Again, this is a collection I highly recommend if you are on a budget with your stubs! Los Angeles Dodgers: SP Orel Hershiser Economics D: This is going to be one of the most expensive collections out there. You don’t need Kershaw, but you need Puig, Jansen, Greinke, Ryu, Gonzalez, Rollins, and Kendrick. This collection will cost up to 40k in stubs and Hershiser cost about the same on the market. You may have better luck bidding on the market. Performance C+: Hershiser has 60-70 per nine attributes with 5 quality pitches. He does not have overpowering velocity or break, however. His lack of a slider is also a letdown, especially when facing righties. Overall C-: Unless you are just a huge Dodger’s fan then I don’t recommend this legend. He may be a novelty pitcher to have in your rotation, but I do not think he is worth the stubs. You can get Lester, Hamels, Lee, Greinke, Sale, Kluber, and Wainwright for all under 20k and they are just as effective. In fact, Hershiser is very similar to Greinke on this game and is much cheaper. San Francisco Giants: 1B Will Clark Economics B: Clark is one of many solid hitting first basemen in this game and is arguably one of the cheapest to obtain. You don’t need Posey or Bumgarner for this collection, but you will need Pence. Overall, this collection can be completed for 10-15k and it will also get you a solid right fielder plus a good bullpen. Clark costs on the market. I recommend just going for the collection to obtain him. Performance B+: Clark and McGriff are two of the legend first basemen that bat left handed and that is always one huge advantage. What separates Clark from most of the other first basemen is that he throws left handed (which is a huge advantage for turning double plays) and is an excellent defensive first basemen. He has great contact with good power vs righties, as well. Overall B: There are a lot of good hitting “budget” first basemen out there including: Lind, Morneau, Mauer, Duda, Adams, Belt, etc. Clark is just simply better than all of these left handed hitting first basemen, but he will cost you a bit more. However, he costs much less than the premier first basemen like Cabrera and Goldschmidt. He really is one the few “middle class” first basemen out there, along with McGriff. It really is a preference for who you want at first base, since there are so many options! Regardless if you choose to go with Clark or not, I recommend having a right handed bat on the bench that can start and play vs left handed pitching. San Diego Padres: RF Dave Winfield Economics B: You won’t need the newly acquired Kimbrel to complete the Padres collection, which would have been a huge disappointment since both Kimbrel and Winfield have the same overall rating. However, you will need Upton, Kemp, Cashner, and Shields. This collection will cost anywhere from 20-25k and Winfield is overpriced upwards to 50k on the market, so just go with the collection. Performance A: Winfield is your prototypical right handed right fielder. He has the strongest arm among all outfielders, 99 to be exact, with great defense and amazing hitting vs lefties. His one downfall can be his hitting vs right handed pitching, but his defense makes up for it. His hitting is not bad vs right handed pitching, but you may want to consider going an alternative route if you cannot hit well righty on righty. I’d compare him to a player like Puig, but he has more power and better overall defense. Overall A-: Winfield and Dawson are two very similar legends and I give Winfield the edge due to how much cheaper he is to obtain and the fact his defense is a bit better. Kaline and Kiner are a bit better, offensively, but cost much more to obtain via market and collections and again their defense is not up to par with Winfield’s defense. If you want to get one Right Fielder in Diamond Dynasty while not spending 50k+ stubs then go for Winfield. Obtaining a 95+ overall for 20k is a steal and you won’t be disappointed with Winfield’s overall play. This is one collection I recommend doing, regardless if you are on a budget or if you are willing to empty your wallet. We hope you enjoyed our review; if so please like, share and comment. Make sure you stay tuned in to Sports Gamers Online for our next MLB 15 The Show Diamond Dynasty Legends Review on the NL Central!Would you believe the Inspector General from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said it would violate the privacy of Americans for the IG office to tell us how many people in the United States had their privacy violated via the NSA warrantless wiretap powers which were granted under the FISA Amendment Act of 2008? The annual Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) report [PDF] showed that electronic surveillance increased yet again in 2011. Applications for what the government calls "business records," but also includes the production of tangible things, swelled from 96 in 2010 to 205 in 2011. The EFF said those business records are one in the same as the government using the notorious Section 215 of the Patriot Act. The FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (FAA) is up for a five-year extension, but Senator Ron Wyden said he'd block FAA renewal until Congress received an answer from the NSA about how many "people in the United States have their communications reviewed by the government" under FAA powers. As members of the Senate's Intelligence Oversight Committee, Senators Ron Wyden and Marc Udall had previously asked the NSA for an estimate of how many Americans have been spied upon under the FISA Amendment Act. Last year the Office of the Director of National Intelligence replied [PDF] that it was "not reasonably possible to identify the number of people located in the United States whose communications may have been reviewed under the authority of the FAA." This year, Senators Ron Wyden and Marc Udall wrote, "We are particularly concerned about a loophole in the law that could allow the government to effectively conduct warrantless searches for Americans' communications." Sen. Wyden explained, "Before Congress votes to renew these authorities it is important to understand how they are working in practice. In particular, it is important for Congress to better understand how many people inside the United States have had their communications collected or reviewed under the authorities granted by the FISA Amendments Act." Wyden added: I am concerned, of course, that no one has even estimated how many Americans have had their communications collected under the FISA Amendments Act. Then it is possible that this number could be quite large. Since all of the communications collected by the government under section 702 are collected without individual warrants, I believe that there should be clear rules prohibiting the government from searching through these communications in an effort to find the phone calls or emails of a particular American, unless the government has obtained a warrant or emergency authorization permitting surveillance of that American. In reply to Senators Wyden and Udall, the NSA Inspector General said [PDF] said we can't tell you because that would "violate the privacy of U.S. persons." The reply letter from Charles McCullough, the Inspector General of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, was acquired by Danger Room. McCullough wrote that the NSA inspector general "and NSA leadership agreed that an IG review of the sort suggested would further violate the privacy of U.S. persons." Furthermore, "obtaining such an estimate was beyond the capacity of his office and dedicating sufficient additional resources would likely impede the NSA's mission." Previously, the ACLU reported that a response to its Freedom of Information Act lawsuit about the FAA, "the government revealed that every six-month review of the act had identified 'compliance incidents,' suggesting either an inability or an unwillingness to properly safeguard Americans' privacy rights. The government has withheld the details of those 'compliance incidents,' however, including statistics relating to abuses of the act." The Supreme Court agreed to hear the ACLU's challenge to the constitutionality of the law, but the government claimed "the plaintiffs should not be able to sue without first showing that they have, in fact, been monitored under the program - information that the government refuses to provide." EPIC Director Marc Rotenberg testified before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on FAA, asking for "increased transparency and new public reporting of the government's surveillance activities." The ACLU also asked Congress to fix FISA, but at every turn the government continues to block checks and balances that could keep this surveillance on steroid behavior under control. And now even Senators Wyden and Udall received the bizarre statement about violating American's privacy to give an estimate on how many of us have our privacy invaded thanks to FAA. Today, the House Judiciary Committee is supposed to address the "FISA Amendments Act Reauthorization Act of 2012." If, or sadly more like when, FAA is reauthorized, it will extend the provision through 2017.Image caption Mr MacShane is MP for Rotherham and a former Europe minister A complaint about former Labour minister Denis MacShane's expenses claims has been referred to the Metropolitan Police. A parliamentary investigation into the complaint has been suspended "until the question of possible criminal proceedings has been resolved". Former Europe minister Mr MacShane has been suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Party in the meantime. He said he regretted the development but would co-operate with police. Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards John Lyon had been investigating a complaint made against Mr MacShane, MP for Rotherham, over a year ago. But on Thursday the Commons Standards and Privileges Committee, which oversees Mr Lyon's work, said it had agreed that he should report Mr MacShane's conduct to the Metropolitan Police and suspend his investigation in the meantime. Mr MacShane said the complaint had been filed against him in June 2009. He added: "While I obviously regret this development I will of course co-operate fully with the police as I have with the commissioner. I will make no further comment." A Scotland Yard spokesman said he could "confirm that the Metropolitan Police Service has received a referral from the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards relating to parliamentary expenses." It would be considered "along with a small number of other allegations" relating to MPs expenses, he said. The Labour Party confirmed it had "suspended Denis MacShane from the Parliamentary Labour Party and the whip pending the outcome of any investigation". Three former Labour MPs - Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Jim Devine - current MP Eric Illsley and former Conservative peers Lord Taylor and Lord Hanningfield have all been charged with offences related to their expenses claims. The expenses row dates back to the publication last year - following leaks to the Daily Telegraph - of thousands of claims by MPs, which came after a lengthy Freedom of Information battle.The 13 Discoveries that Changed our Understanding of Nature How I said before now the number is 13, but it could change! Everytime I remember some fundamental facts I would be glad to update the # of listed works. Also I want your suggestions. So please leave your advices in comments. #1 - The Solar System: From Ptolemaic to the Copernican system To understand the difference between the 2 systems any so called "Physicist" should read the Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems: Ptolemaic and Copernican. It is a classic reading that show how the foundations of the newtonian physics did were created. And the good thing is this is a suitable book for everyone from the layman to the PHD, easy to read, requires nothing more than basic mathematical concepts and imagination. #2 - Gravity Isaac Newton, mathematician and physicist, is considered the greatest scientist of all time. Among his many discoveries, the most important is probably his law of universal gravitation. In 1664, Newton figured out that gravity is the force that draws objects toward each other. It explained why things fall down and why the planets orbit around the Sun. It is famous the anecdote according to he saw an apple fall down from the tree and he got the inspiration. Newton's Principia: The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy (Illustrated) (English Edition). This is a Classical Book here in digital format and illustrated. This version is very cheap. A must read! #3 - Electricity Michael Faraday made two big discoveries that changed our lives. In 1821, he discovered that when a wire carrying an electric current is placed next to a single magnetic pole, the wire will rotate. This led to the development of the electric motor. Ten years later, he became the first person to produce an electric current by moving a wire through a magnetic field. Faraday's experiment created the first generator, the forerunner of the huge generators that produce electricity., mathematician and physicist, is considered the greatest scientist of all time. Among his many discoveries, the most important is probably his. In 1664, Newton figured out that gravity is the force that draws objects toward each other. It explained why things fall down and why the planets orbit around the Sun. It is famous the anecdote according to he saw an apple fall down from the tree and he got the inspiration.Now we cannot imagine our life without electricity. Electricity discovery and its utilization have really change the World.made two big discoveries that changed our lives. In 1821, he discovered that when a wire carrying an electric current is placed next to a single magnetic pole, the wire will rotate. This led to the development of the electric motor. Ten years later, he became. Faraday's experiment created the first generator, the forerunner of the huge generators that produce electricity. Talking of Electricity how to forget Maxwell J. C. His most notable achievement was to formulate the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, bringing together for the first time electricity, magnetism, and light as manifestations of the same phenomenon. Faraday, Maxwell, and the Electromagnetic Field: How Two Men Revolutionized Physics. This is the story of how these two men - separated in age by forty years - discovered the existence of the electromagnetic field and devised a radically new theory which overturned the strictly mechanical view of the world that had prevailed since Newton's time. #4 - Evolution On the origin of species. This is the anniversary edition of the Origin of Species and it is one of the best editions available and a highly recommended book, especially for students and newcomers in Darwin's world. A must read. If you do not know so much of Evolution here it is an enjoyable reading for non Scientists: The Theory of Evolution: What It Is, Where It Came From, and Why It Works by Cynthia Mills. The author shows here her ability to summarize so much information into an enjoyable read. It is a great book for an introductory course, as it is such a concise overview of theories leading up to Darwin's and continuing to new theories. The last quarter of the book is dedicated to the newer theories. The rich bibliography gives also new material to read. #5 - Bacteria Pasteur and Modern Science. This is Dubos's classic biography of Louis Pasteur, originally published in 1960 and for several years out of print is once again made available in this new and expanded hardcover edition. The original work has been enlarged by more than forty illustrations and tables, a new biographical sketch of Dubos, a glossary of technical terms and a chronological outline of Pasteur's career. The book's enduring appeal is a tribute both to its subject and to its author. #6 - The Theory of Relativity Albert Einstein’s theory of special relativity, which was published in 1905, explains the relationships between speed, time and distance. The theory states that the speed of light always remains the same—186,000 miles/second (300,000 km/second) regardless of how fast someone or something is moving toward or away from it. This theory became the foundation for much of modern sciences. ’s theory of, which was published in 1905, explains the relationships between speed, time and distance. The theory states that the speed of light always remains the same—186,000 miles/second (300,000 km/second) regardless of how fast someone or something is moving toward or away from it. This theory became the foundation for much of modern sciences. Who better than Einstein himself can explain Relativity? Even Special than General. Relativity: The Special and the General Theory. After completing the final version of his general theory of relativity in November 1915, Albert Einstein wrote a book about relativity for a popular audience. His intention was "to give an exact insight into the theory of relativity to those readers who, from a general scientific and philosophical point of view, are interested in the theory, but who are not conversant with the mathematical apparatus of theoretical physics." The book remains one of the most lucid explanations of the special and general theories ever written. In the early 1920s alone, it was translated into ten languages, and fifteen editions in the original German appeared over the course of Einstein's lifetime. This new edition of Einstein's celebrated book features an authoritative English translation of the text along with an introduction and a reading companion by Hanoch Gutfreund and Jurgen Renn that examines the evolution of Einstein's thinking and casts his ideas in a broader present-day context. #7 - The Big Bang Theory Georges Lemaître: Life, Science and Legacy: 395. The papers presented in this book examine in detail the historical, cosmological, philosophical and theological issues surrounding the development of the Big Bang theory from its beginnings in the pioneering work of Lemaître through to the modern day.This book offers the best account in English of Lemaître’s life and work. A Brief History Of Time: From Big Bang To Black Holes. This is a Classical informative book written by the famous Scientist Stephen Hawking. A must read! Most people know that Hawking is a brilliant physicist, but after reading this book, one develops a respect for his other talents as well. Most noticeable is Stephen Hawking's ability to make very complicated ideas seem quite clear through good explanations, clear comparisons to real life events, and a soft humor. #8 - Penicillin Alexander Fleming discovered the first antibiotic, penicillin, which he grew in his lab using mold and fungi. Without antibiotics, infections like strep throat could be deadly. A great advancement for Medicine! Antibiotics are powerful drugs that kill dangerous bacteria in our bodies that make us sick. In 1928,discovered the first antibiotic,, which he grew in his lab using mold and fungi. Without antibiotics, infections like strep throat could be deadly. A great advancement for Medicine! Penicillin Man: Alexander Fleming and the Antibiotic Revolution. This is an excellent history of the long road to the use of penicillin for treating infectious diseases. The book provides interesting background about Fleming, his family, his career, and his personality that impacted his discovery of penicillin and influenced his attempts to isolate the drug in sufficient quantities for animal and clinical testing. #9 - DNA Francis Crick and James Watson: And the Building Blocks of Life. The names of James Watson and Francis Crick are bound together forever because the scientific discovery they made was truly a joint enterprise. As Edward Edelson reveals in this intriguing biography, Watson and Crick were the first to describe the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, the molecule that carries our genes and determines everything from the color of our eyes to the shape of our fingernails. Even though Watson and Crick's collaboration lasted only a few years, their achievement was enough to tie their names together forever in the history of science and to establish a firm footing for what was then a radical new branch of science: molecular biology. In doing so, they paved the way for the early detection of genetic diseases such as sickle-cell anemia, and for new scientific leaps such as animal cloning. #10 - Periodic Table of The Elements Here I can just advice a visual exploration of the periodic table of the elements The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe. The Periodic Table is huge and intricate and seen to be a thing for only Scientists to worry about. This book allows all to have access to what the symbols and two-letter Scrabble words that everyone thinks must be cheating actually mean and also where we can encounter them in everyday life. From Batteries to Toothpaste, Einsteinium to toy cars, it's truly awe-inspiring to find out how many of these elements we really know in other forms. The Author allows us to see materials in their stunning raw form and then tells us their history, discovery and where they are used. This is the coffee table book of the Science world but also an amazing collection by a man that is passionate about how the materials featured make up the world around us and wanting to make this accessible to a wider audience. #11 - X-Rays The Mystery of a New Kind of Rays: The Story of Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen and His Discovery of X-Rays. A German scientist, Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen, is the main character in this book. His experimental expertise was the key element in his successful science career. When he saw something unusual as he pursued one of his experiments, he investigated to learn more. Long before Roentgen discovered x-rays many other scientists around the world had seen unusual effects, including fogging of film or electrical changes, effects that they never followed up and that later proved to have resulted from x-rays. So many scientists had the opportunity to discover x-rays. Roentgen was the only one who persisted. He learned much about these new rays, and, even though he had some misgivings about his conclusions about a new kind of rays, accepted the challenge to inform fellow scientists about his discovery. His discovery was the start of many new ideas that changed the world perception of science – and changed the lives of Roentgen and his wife Bertha. Roentgen’s story is inspiring and unusual, in that he had to overcome many obstacles on his long journey to become a recognized scientist and teacher. Even after he had earned his doctorate in physics his unusual education path to an advanced degree presented problems. He persisted; his story may inspire the reader not to give up in the pursuit of a goal. #12 - Quantum Theory Niels Bohr is considered one of the most important figures in modern physics. He won a 1922 Nobel Prize in Physics for his research on the structure of an atom and for his work in the development of the quantum theory. Although he help develop the atomic bomb, he frequently promoted the use of atomic power for peaceful purposes. Danish physicistis considered one of the most important figures in modern physics. He won a 1922 Nobel Prize in Physics for his research on the structure of an atom and for his work in the development of the quantum theory. Although he help develop the atomic bomb, he frequently promoted the use of atomic power for peaceful purposes. Quantum Physics For Dummies. Quantum Physics For Dummies helps make quantum physics understandable and accessible. From what quantum physics can do for the world to understanding hydrogen atoms, readers will get complete coverage of the subject, along with numerous examples to help them tackle the tough equations. Coverage includes: The Schrodinger Equation and its Applications - The Foundations of Quantum Physics - Vector Notation - Spin - Scattering Theory, Angular Momentum, and more #13 - The Man on The Moon This is not a discovery but a giant achievement for Mankind. I want to mention it to remember how far can lead the determination of Man up to achieve to sail alien and unknown worlds. The pics of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin represented for the first and unique time until today the entire Human species walking together and in peace toward a goal thought impossible but came true! A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts. The race to the moon was won spectacularly by Apollo 11 on 20 July 1969. When astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took their 'giant step' across a ghostly lunar landscape, they were watched by some 600 million people on Earth 250,000 miles away. 'A Man on the Moon' is the definitive account of the heroic Apollo programme: from the tragedy of the fire in Apollo 1 during a simulated launch, through the euphoria of the first moonwalk, to the discoveries made by the first scientist in space aboard Apollo 17. Drawing on hundreds of hours of in-depth interviews with the astronauts and team, this is the story of the twentieth century's greatest human achievement, minute-by-minute, in the words of those who were there. Conclusion Probably I forgot to cite some fundamental fact in science advancements, and you are encouraged to suggest. If you find any mistake please also tell me. Do not forget to click over the images to see them in fullscreen and lightbox. If you arrived at the conclusions you deserve my compliments since the post is various and extremely long. But if you liked it please consider to share it on your social channels. Do you know any fundamental milestone in science advancements? This page is intended to give you advices about some great. Starting from the fundamental up to more advanced subjects here are theof any advancement inand how those discoveries affected our life. I am a Theoretical Physicist so the list could be influenced by my tastes and from what I consider most important. You are adviced!Clearly it's impossible to cover all the subjects in one post so the list should be taken not as definitive but always in progress. Very much appreciated would be your suggestions.Any cited milestone would report the, if available somewhere, and some readings to study in deep the subject or someif the original paper is too technical.I apologize if I forget some fundamental facts or discoveries, but as I wrote before, it's a matter of tastes and the list is in progress, you can suggest!So let's start.In 1543, while on his deathbed, Polish astronomerpublished his theory that the Sun is a motionless body at the center of the solar system, with the planets revolving around it. Before the Copernicum system was introduced, astronomers believed the Earth was at the center of the universe according to Ptolemaic Theory.When, the British naturalist, came up within 1859, he changed our idea of how life on earth developed. Darwin argued that all organisms, but the right word is not evolve but, very slowly over time. These changes are adaptations that allow a species to survive in its environment. These adaptations happen by chance. If a species doesn't adapt, it may become extinct. He called this processthe survival of the fittest.Before French chemistbegan experimenting with bacteria in the 1860s, people did not know what caused disease. He not only, but he also realized that bacteria could be killed by heat and disinfectant. This idea caused doctors to wash their hands and sterilize their instruments, which has saved millions of lives.How did the Universe come into existence? Many Scientists believe that it happened about 13.7billion years ago with a massive explosion, called the. In 1927,proposed the Big Bang theory of the birth of the Universe. The theory says that all the matter in the Universe was originally compressed into a tiny dot. In a fraction of a second, the dot expanded, and all the matter instantly filled what is now our universe. The event marked the beginning of time. Scientific observations seem to confirm the theory. How the expansion of the Universe occurred is now under study and many theories have raised. The most accredited isbut it brings some Cosmological intrinsic paradoxes that are difficult to digest. Literature about Big Bang is boundless but here are some hints.On February 28, 1953,of the United States andof England made one of the greatest scientific discoveries in history. The two scientists found the double-helix structure of. It’s made up of two strands that twist around each other and have an almost endless variety of chemical patterns that create instructions for the human body to follow. Our genes are made of DNA and determine how things like what color hair and eyes we’ll have. In 1962, they were awarded the Nobel Prize for this work. The discovery has helped doctors understand diseases and may someday prevent some illnesses like heart disease and cancer.The Periodic Table is based on the 1869 Periodic Law proposed by Russian chemist. He had noticed that, when arranged by atomic weight, the chemical elements lined up to form groups with similar properties. He was able to use this to predict the existence of undiscovered elements and note errors in atomic weights. In 1913,of England confirmed that the table could be made more accurate by arranging the elements by atomic number, which is the number of protons in an atom of the element., a German physicist, discovered X-rays in 1895. X-rays go right through some substances, like flesh and wood, but are stopped by others, such as bones and lead. This allows them to be used to see broken bones or explosives inside suitcases, which makes them useful for doctors and security officers. For this discovery, Roentgen was awarded the first-ever Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901.DAPHNE WYSHAM, daphne at sustainable- economy.org, @daphnewysham In Portland, Oregon, Wysham is director of the Climate and Energy Program at the Center for Sustainable Economy. She said today: “The Pacific Northwest is facing the carbon equivalent of five Keystone XL pipelines in the form of coal, gas, and oil via rail and pipeline.” STEVE HORN, steve at desmogblog.com, @SteveAHorn Horn is a writer for Desmogblog, which seeks to “clear the PR pollution that clouds climate science.” He is also a freelance investigative journalist whose work has appeared in Al Jazeera America, Vice News, TruthOut, CounterPunch magazine, Truthdig, AlterNet and other publications. He said today: “While the Obama White House Keystone XL decision has been touted by most environmentalists and criticized by Big Oil and its front groups, the truth is much more complex and indeed, dirty. That’s because for years behind the scenes the Obama Administration has quietly been approving hundreds of miles-long pieces of pipeline owned by pipeline company goliath Enbridge, which I’ve called the ‘Keystone XL Clone‘ in my reporting. “That pipeline system does the very same thing the rest of TransCanada’s Keystone pipeline system also already does, even without the northern leg of Keystone XL rejected by Obama: brings dirty, carbon-intensive Alberta tar sands oil across the heartland of the U.S. and down to the U.S. Gulf coast. This probably explains why Enbridge was so confident as to announce it would be spending $5 billion to build holding facilities down in the Gulf, just two days before the White House’s Keystone XL decision. “We also cannot forget that Energy Transfer Partners is currently pushing forward a pipeline proposal called Dakota Access LLC that would do what Keystone XL’s northern leg sets out to do, but on steroids. That is, bring hundreds of thousands (as opposed to 100,000) barrels per day of oil obtained via hydraulic fracturing (‘fracking’) in North Dakota’s Bakken Shale basin through the heartland and eventually down to the Gulf coast. Continental Resources CEO Harold Hamm, who a year ago called Keystone XL North ‘irrelevant‘ and who was the one who originally lobbied for Keystone XL North to have a Bakken ‘on-ramp,’ for now, is laughing all the way to the bank.”January 11, 2012 Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, 32, is killed by a bomb placed on his car by a motorcyclist in Tehran. According to the semi-official Fars news agency, Roshan was a university professor and nuclear scientist who supervised a department at Natanz uranium enrichment facility in Isfahan province. Fars cites witnesses as saying a motorcyclist stuck a magnetic bomb on the side of the car which then exploded, killing one and wounding two people inside. An image grab taken from footage broadcast by Iran's state-run Arabic-language Al-Alam TV on January 11
, for those readers that never realized it, Tyler does relate in detail how to take down America's Infrastructure in the beginning of Chapter 16. Some of these little prologues are quite frightening to say the least and the author's research or experiences in working in bioterrorism and as a policy analyst for the U.S. government I imagine his job and his expertise helped him when writing this book. Tyler meets a young girl in a coffee house named Molly and decides to try his hand at doing more than just flirting with her he actually practices, drafts and then sends her an email thinking she would never respond. Thinking she did not care, well not that much anyway, he created his own version of what she did when receiving the email and her entire day. He wanted to think he set a trap for her or anyone else to come to him. The end result after all of his fantasies and Molly doing the same trying to figure out what he said and how to respond, the email she sent on page 119. You figure it out! Chapter 17 will tell you the reader how to be a self-reliant revolutionary as his next lesson to help you in your quest to become a revolutionary. He even describes within that chapter being with Ann that does not sound very challenging, exciting or even meaningful. At times you might think he's just going through the motions of living. The next blog focuses on Hard Currency Shortage and I should add that beneath each lesson or heading he allows readers or prospective revolutionaries to know how many people he will need to complete the task, the danger level, arrest level and even the equipment needed to pull each event off. Car bombs, Ricin, the terrorist's best friend, going to Molly's apartment, their interaction, their odd conversations and Tyler worrying about Ann and thinking she might be wondering where he was, not relating anything to Molly about Ann, what will the final outcome be? We hear Tyler's innermost thoughts in paragraph three on page 159 where he is with Molly and wishing that Anne tried harder with him. Tyler at that moment felt trapped. The rest of the paragraph is quite enlightening. The discussion about terrorists completes the chapter as he and Molly get into many different discussions that he and Ann never would even telling her about his terrorist group: CHOAS. Things begin to fall apart in his mind and Tyler decides to go to Mexico thinking that people there would pay more attention to him, he could get meds to make him feel better. Tyler, in his own mind thinks that he is an expert on most things and that in Mexico meds are easy to get and prescriptions written for whatever you want. Pharmacies described, trying to work up the nerve to ask for Prozac the end result you have to read for yourself. When all of the interactions are completed and even Ann and Molly meet the author presents the viewpoints of each character. We get to know Jason first as he describes what happens on Sept. 11, 2001 at the Pentagon. Then, we learn about the Towers, the smoke, and the news his reaction to the collapse of both towers. Jason knew what happened but wanted to see it first hand. Lines were dead in DC. Taking a camera with him to the scene, lots of people on the streets and everyone on cell phones. What he describes will remain in everyone's mind forever. Next, we get to meet Ann and hear her story that never realized anything happened until the Internet went out. We hear her thoughts, her feelings and harsh realizations to what happened on Sept. 11th. Telling readers what she was supposed to do that day, trying to call Tyler from work, remembering she and Tyler were supposed to go to NY for the weekend. Molly's story is next followed by Tyler's as he realizes that things might not go so well if someone reads his blog, thinks he might have something to do with what happened that day and he plans to leave. Will they tie him to the plot? The reactions of the characters are quite different and Tyler's out of the box. Deciding to visit his childhood hometown, Tyler remembers his past and just might begin to understand what is important. Will he be able to reconstruct his life? He is just lost? Ann, Jason, Molly and many others care about Tyler but does he care about himself? Fleeing, panics, and thinking that no one in the terrorist organization would pay attention to him he decides to go home. How does this all end and what happens to Tyler? Find out when you read First World Problems in an Age of Terrorism and Ennui by Dominic Peloso. You won't be disappointed. Individually and vividly depicted characters each blending with Tyler in their own unique way this book present and brings up many issues when one young man is bored with life, disgruntled, unhappy, poor self-esteem and just wants to be noticed. What do you think of how he goes about it? Quite interesting!President Trump’s joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni Thursday included an awkward moment when Trump said there was no role for the U.S. in Libya – moments after Gentiloni outlined what that role would be, and called it “critical.” Both leaders were asked by an Italian reporter about what the U.S. role should be in Libya. Libya has been plagued by intermittent civil war and instability since the fall of dictator Muammar Qaddafi in 2011. A fragile U.N.-backed government is currently holding on to power in Tripoli, but faces a number of threats including an ISIS presence in the country. Gentiloni noted past U.S. missions to help drive ISIS from Sirte last year, and said that “now the commitment must be political” in broadening the basis of consensus for the unity government recognized by the international community to include countries like Egypt and Tunisia. “A divided country and in conflict would make stability worse, the United States’ role in this is very critical,” he said. But no sooner had Gentiloni answered, Trump immediately responded: “I do not see a role in Libya.” “I think the U.S. right now has enough role, we are in a role everywhere so I do not see that,” he said as Gentiloni stared ahead. Trump said that he does however, see a role in fighting ISIS, something in which he said the U.S. is being “very effective.” “We are effectively ridding the world of ISIS,” Trump said. “I see that as a primary role and that’s what we’re going to do whether it’s in Iraq or Libya or anywhere else, and that role will come to an end at a certain point and we will go back home and rebuild our country which is what I want to do.” .@POTUS: "I do not see a role in Libya. I think the United States has right now enough roles... I do see a role in getting rid of ISIS." pic.twitter.com/5hWEOP4hCM — Fox News (@FoxNews) April 20, 2017 During last year’s presidential campaign, Trump promised to scale back America’s commitments abroad in order to be able to focus on domestic policy. But he appeared to move away from that outlook when earlier this month he approved the bombing of an airfield in Syria in response to a chemical attack by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against rebels in northern Syria.‘Collateral Beauty’ and ‘Passengers’ Have Spoiled the Concept of Spoilers [Editor’s Note: The following editorial does not spoil Collateral Beauty or Passengers, but you may have been tricked into thinking that it does.] What do you do when it’s your job to sell audiences a movie with a premise so fundamentally flawed, so weird or so damned skeevy, that it seems like no one in their right mind would want to see it? I’m sympathetic to movie marketers, I really am. In this crowded marketplace filled with easily-distracted audiences, who seem far more eager to flock to familiar franchises than give something new and unusual a chance, it’s hard enough to promote a GOOD movie. And when a movie is bad I can only imagine that it feels damn near impossible. So I can appreciate that when a movie is bad from the outset, because the fundamental idea is “iffy” or outright terrible, they might be tempted to do something tricky. That’s certainly what the folks behind the marketing of the big holiday releases Collateral Beauty and Passengers have done. Not only have they hidden what their movies are actually about from the movie-going public, but they have also made it socially unacceptable to reveal those premises at all. They turned the premises for these movies into “spoilers,” and nobody likes spoilers, now do they? But here’s the thing, a “spoiler” is a piece of information that completely ruins the movie. It’s not supposed to refer to basic information about the film, the information that you deserve to know before you decide if you want to spend your hard-earned money on it. If I told you that Passengers starred Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence, would you really tell me to stop with all the spoilers? Exactly. That would be ridiculous. And having a basic, general understanding of what the movie is about shouldn’t be considered a spoiler either. We’re talking first act information here, the selling point of the movie, the reason it was made in the first place and the fundamental reason why the filmmakers thought people might be interested. Here’s an example: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is about the rebels who stole the Death Star plans. That’s not a spoiler, that’s the reason to see the film. Now imagine that you were sold on the idea that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was about the rebels who stole the Death Star plans. Sounds cool, right? You’d probably want to see that. So you pay an exorbitant amount of money on theatrical tickets to see rebels steal the Death Star plans, and you sit down in a theater, only to discover that that’s not what the movie is really about. It’s in there somewhere but it’s more of a subplot, and the majority of the film is focused on something else that you didn’t care about at all. You’d feel like you were screwed over, and you’d be right. But if you try to warn people, as many of us have tried to do with Collateral Beauty and Passengers, you’d be accused of spoiling the film. Even though the opposite is true: by failing to inform the audience of what they’re really getting, it’s the marketing that’s actually “spoiling” these movies more than anybody. Let’s take a look at what the trailers are selling, and how they differ from what audiences actually get, shall we? Collateral Beauty is being sold as a film about a grieving Will Smith, who has been writing letters to Death, Time and Love as an unusual form of therapy. But surprise! Death, Time and Love show up as helpful, personified deities to help him get over the death of his daughter. It looks maudlin, certainly, and definitely strange, but it also looks like just the kind of sappy, sentimental movie that some people love to watch at Christmastime. But that’s not what Collateral Beauty is about. Collateral Beauty is about three business partners played by Edward Norton, Kate Winslet and Michael Peña who hire actors to impersonate Death, Time and Love in order to trick their other business partner, played by Will Smith (who gets a LOT less screen time than you’d think), into appearing insane so they can take control of his company and sell it. Yeah. The movie doesn’t even treat that as a twist, either. That’s all established in the first act of the movie. It’s not a spoiler. If anything spoils the movie, it’s not knowing until it’s too late that you’ve paid good money to watch something misguided and creepy. Now, let’s take a look at Passengers. Passengers is being sold as a high-concept sci-fi romantic thriller, about two people played by Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence who wake up simultaneously in the middle of a century-long space voyage. They have the ship all to themselves, they fall in love, but then something goes haywire, they have to team up to survive, and eventually they discover the “real” reason why they woke up in the first place. But that’s not what Passengers is about either. Passengers is about a guy who wakes up in the middle of a space voyage and spends a year all by himself until he decides that one of the other passengers, who is still asleep in her cryogenic pod, is really hot. So he reads her social media profile and decides that they are totally soulmates, then he sabotages her pod so she’ll have to spend decades alone with him, in the hopes that she’ll fall in love with him too. That’s also not a twist. That is also established in the first act of the movie. So it’s also not a spoiler. It’s just what the movie is about, from beginning to end, and audiences have a right to know what they’re getting into before they spend good money to see the very different movie that’s being marketed instead, a movie that the filmmakers had absolutely no interest in actually giving them. Perhaps if Collateral Beauty and Passengers were better films this would be more forgivable, but if they really were better films there would be no need to trick audiences into thinking the set-up was more palatable. Collateral Beauty and Passengers play as though the filmmakers were thoroughly convinced that their plots weren’t creepy. Collateral Beauty aims at emotional catharsis and airballs it, and Passengers tries to make us believe in a love story between two people, even though one of them has been effectively kidnapped and – if you look at the big picture, at any rate – more-or-less murdered by the other. And sure, you’re even allowed to like or love these movies if you decide that that’s your bag, but didn’t you and everyone else in the theater have the right to decide for yourselves if they’re what you wanted to see in the first place? This goes beyond misleading advertising. We have to take a serious look at the media culture we’re creating for ourselves, in which revealing any damned thing about any damned movie or television show is considered a “spoiler.” Again, look at the word itself. A “spoiler” is supposed to refer to information that would “spoil” the movie or show. If I revealed the twist ending behind [insert movie with a famous twist ending here], that would spoil it. That would ruin a big reveal that the filmmakers wanted to keep from you. But if we start treating the basic premise of a movie as a spoiler, we’ve gone too far in the opposite direction. If anything is “spoiling” Collateral Beauty or Passengers, it’s knowing too little about them. Because what spoils a movie more: having a general idea of what happens in the first 20-30 minutes, or thinking the movie is something it’s not, getting to the theater and paying to see that other thing, only to find out that you’ve been manipulated into buying something you didn’t even want? Nobody likes spoilers, but when we warp the idea of “not ruining a movie” into a brand new way to ruin a movie, we’ve obviously spoiled them. Top Photos: Warner Bros. / Sony Pictures William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and Canceled Too Soon, and watch him on the weekly YouTube series Most Craved, Rapid Reviews and What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.Since it’s launch in 2009, Mike Carey and Peter Gross’ The Unwritten has followed Tom Taylor as he criss-crosses classic fiction worlds, but this May he’s getting graphic. Announced this morning via a teasing email by DC Comics’ PR department, issue #50 of The Unwritten will see the series crossover with stablemates Fables for a unique kind of event. Not much is known about it yet, but this amazing jam piece seen at right depicts The Unwritten’s lead Tom Taylor reaching out and being grabbed by Fables‘ Bigby Wolf, as a homage to The Unwritten‘s first issue cover by Yuko Shimizu. At last year’s New York Comic-Con, Fables writer Bill Willingham spoke briefly about this startling crossover, explaining that “one or more” of the Unwritten characters would wind up in the Fables world, and went on to say “it doesn’t turn out well for folks.” Willingham did make a point to say that although characters would be crossing over from one book to the other, all the crossover events will be shown exclusively in The Unwritten and not Fables. Which characters from The Unwritten do you think will venture into Fables, and who are you most excited about seeing them cross paths with?Location: San Francisco, California, USA This is August in his box at 12 weeks old. We still have the box, and he’ll still climb in it sometimes, but now, at seven months old, he doesn’t really fit! (He has grown into his ears a bit since this picture though!) August is my sweet little lover boy. He is the most affectionate, loving kitten I’ve ever met. His sister Lucy’s my feisty little spitfire. I would have loved to submit a pic of both my kittens, but Lucy doesn’t sit still long enough for a good picture. All the ones I have of her she’s either asleep or blurry. I met August & Lucy at an adoption fair in front of a supermarket a few months ago. I’d been planning to get milk & eggs at the store, not kittens, but I instantly and absolutely fell in love with August & Lucy that day, and knew I was theirs forever. I am a life-long cat lover who adopted her first stray at age four (and was so determined my parents couldn’t stop me), but when I met August & Lucy I’d been living without cats for four years, the longest I’ve ever been without furballs in my life. Now that I have little August & little Lucy, I can’t understand why I waited four years. Both of them pounce on me every morning when my alarm goes off, kneading and purring and knowing full well I am a sucker for kitten cuddles when I’m first waking up. How did I ever live without this?Ji Hoon Lee/Flickr On Monday, a suspect faced federal charges in a Dallas County court for allegedly sending a strobing GIF that triggered a seizure in Kurt Eichenwald, a Newsweek writer with epilepsy, late last year. Light-induced seizures have been fought with lawsuits and TV bans in the past. But like something out of Black Mirror, they've had their day in what's likely the first criminal trial over a seizure induced via the internet. The case has similarities with previous complaints over videos, often with bright flashing lights, that triggered seizures. For example, a scene from a 1997 episode of Pokémon, in which Pikachu launches a lightning attack, reportedly hospitalized some 685 children. Eichenwald, who has been vocal about his epilepsy in the past, allegedly suffered an eight-minute seizure in December after opening a tweet containing the flashing GIF and a message that read: "you deserve a seizure for your posts." Eichenwald's wife found him and called 911. The FBI later arrested one John Rivello, who has been charged with cyberstalking and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. "The implications I think are very simple, that several law enforcement authorities will not tolerate people attacking journalists even if they're using new technological tools like a Twitter message," Eichenwald's lawyer, Steven Lieberman, told Motherboard. Read more: So How Exactly Does a GIF Cause a Seizure? Cases like this have strong implications for the roughly 10,000 people with photosensitive epilepsy in the US. For this small percentage of the 2.7 million total Americans who suffer epilepsy, innocent-seeming everyday activities can pose a danger. "There are potential environmental threats everywhere: theaters, dance clubs, rock concerts, the Internet, the street and at home," warns the nonprofit Epilepsy Foundation. Certain light colors and speeds may be more harmful than others. Lawsuits have plagued video game creators since at least 1991, when Douglas L. Webster, a Michigan lawyer, sued Nintendo after a 15-year-old girl had a seizure. And in 2004, Nintendo was accused of knowing that its games caused seizures. Eichenwald's case has been met with some skepticism, given the journalist's track record of somewhat misleading reporting. Some have questioned why his wife would take the time to tweet as her husband was having a seizure. Part of the doubt may come from sheer surprise that just a GIF could put someone in danger. Though counterintuitive, studies have chronicled light's effect on this small portion of those with epilepsy. Eichenwald's case has less to do with expression and more to do with any physical harm he suffered. "This doesn't even get in the door of the First Amendment," Danielle Citron, a legal scholar at the University of Maryland, told the Washington Post. "It doesn't have expressive value… It doesn't express someone's autonomy of views and opinions." The video, to the prosecution, was far from accidental. "It's very clear that he knew he had epilepsy," Lieberman said. "Here they saw a special vulnerability and they exploited it." Videos like the one that Rivello allegedly sent Eichenwald are easy to find on the internet; Eichenwald claimed that he had been sent at least 40 last year. In 2008, the Epilepsy Foundation had to shut down a forum after trolls posted seizure-inducing imagery. RyAnne Fultz, who suffers from a type of epilepsy that is triggered by patterns, clicked the wrong link. Bright flashing colors filled the screen. "It was a spike of pain in my head," she told Wired at the time. "And the lockup, that only happens with really bad ones. I don't think I've had a seizure like that in about a year," she said. Some countries have made special protections. Eighteen people reported seizures from an animation of the 2012 London Olympics logo, prompting the United Kingdom to adopt television guidelines. Japan created similar guidelines following the Pokemon incident. On Monday, a grand jury referral increased Rivello's charges, accusing him of assault with "a deadly weapon, to wit: a tweet and a graphics interchange format (GIF) and an electronic device and hands during the commission of the assault." Editor's Note: Here is a tool to test your GIF for sensitivity.This month is is our privilege to host Aaron Lemke, founder of Unello Design and creator of Eden River HD, Nebulaland, and Lunadroid 237. He'll be talking about the opportunities and challenges of making a living as an indie VR developer, his experiences coding for the Vive at the Austin Room Scale VR Jam, and his recent work with VR in the medical industry. Also, Dr. Christie Taylor, head of the Pain Recovery Program at Memorial Hermann Prevention and Recovery Center, will discuss her department's leading edge therapeutic VR program, which just entered the pilot testing phase. Joowon Kim will share her team's Mobile VR Jam entry and talk about the experience of developing it. We're scheduled to have at least 4 Oculus Rift DK2 demo stations and at least 3 GearVR demo stations at this meeting. Also: the more, the merrier, so if you have equipment or apps you want to demo, feel free to bring it in!THE NUMBER OF people presenting to South Dublin County Council has shot up in the last nine months according to the latest figures. In January this year, there were 274 people registered as homeless with the council – that figure in October was 439, representing a 60% increase. Local Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin said he has seen steady numbers of families presenting as homeless since September 2014. “The difference now is that the length of time they spend in emergency accommodation is much longer. The figures now are 12 to 15 months in south Dublin and two years in Dublin city”. Ó Broin also said these numbers do not fully represent the problem in his area as they exclude certain groups of people, like those who are couch surfing or people living with their families on a temporary basis. “If it doesn’t work out for some reason and they are thrown out, they are turned away at the desk because they don’t have any supporting documentation from a professional,” he explained. Resources in the housing section of the council are under so much, he said some families have been told to “self accommodate”. “There was a couple with six kids, he was working and she had six jobs taking care of the kids. They lost their private rental accommodation, they were already on the council list, but when they went to the council there was no emergency accommodation. They were given a list of hotels and told to get a room and the council would pay for it. They couldn’t get one and on the day of their notice to quit, the council said they better overhold – stay there illegally essentially – which they did for six weeks. For six weeks they were running around phoning all the hotels themselves to get a space. Ó Broin said he believes the government should be allowing the council to purchase homes that are ready to move into, rather than cheaper derelict houses that need a lot of work done – and therefore time spent on them – to make them habitable. Some estates have former council houses up for sale for “good value” he said, and these could be bought up by the council. The TD said the government should also work on addressing rent certainty and legislation to ensure tenants have rights to remain in a property if it is sold or repossessed.Washington, D.C.,- Environmental advocates used their bodies to block the entrances of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Monday and called for an end of the so-called rubber stamp polices of the agency that regulates interstate natural gas pipelines and gas compression stations. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) dispatched dozens of uniformed officers to manage the crowd, but for over an hour were unable to remove the hundreds of protesters. There were 25 arrests and no reports of injuries. Protesters assembled into three groups, spreading themselves between several entrances at the agency. They set up a colorful mock cardboard village, erected 15 foot signs and locked and chained themselves in concrete buckets. One of the protest groups blocked the entrance of FERC’s driveway, tying up traffic. Later that afternoon, about fifty of the remaining protesters walked to the Democratic National Committee Headquarters where they spoke about political contributions from the fossil fuel lobby. Kevin Zeese, an organizer from Popular Resistance said, “The message we’re trying to make today is FERC is destroying families, and towns and that’s why we’re shutting them down.” The protests today were the first of many planned for this week as environmental advocates plan to highlight the urgent need to convert energy sources from carbon to renewable based. All 25 protesters arrested at the FERC protest were released with misdemeanor charges of obstruction, according to co-organizer Jimmy Betts. “Todays action was highly successful in causing a disruption with business as usual at FERC,” he said.In the spirit of the red square, different cities across Canada are having Casseroles nights in Canada to #Maplespread the growing movement in support of Quebec's striking students; to demand accessible education for all (and not just the 1 per cent); and show disapproval for Charest's Law 78 which restricts Canadian's civil liberties. Perhaps as thrilling as once sitting beside a radio or in front of a television watching Hockey Night in Canada, this new movement 'Casseroles Night in Canada' will become the 'be there and be a red square' event. The Red Square narrative remains mostly unwritten outside of Quebec regarding issues of accessible education as Quebec has issues unique to its province, but there are similarities regarding financial barriers to education. We will have to see if tuition fees is an transferable concern, though I should note here that Ontario has the highest tuitions fees of any province or territory in Canada. Also, nearly sixty per cent of Canadian students graduate with debt, on average at $27,000 for an undergraduate degree. Total student debt now stands at about $20 billion in Canada ($15 billion from Federal Government loans programs, and the rest from provincial and commercial bank loans). While student issues are important, the Red Square has come to represent something much more than just disgruntled student demonstrators against tuition hikes. It has become another symbol - think the tent and the term Occupy - of a growing awareness that continuing the ‘business as usual' model in Canada will not solve economic or social inequalities and we are, in fact, heading towards economic and social disaster. Francis Fox Piven, a political sociologist at the Graduate Centre, City University of New York, compared the underlying motivations around the student strike to Occupy. "The Occupy movement is closely linked with recent student protests because its underlying theme is the rise of extreme inequality, which protesters believe cannot coexist with democracy. ``Now it's the neglected notion of free education.'' In the June 5 call out for the next #Maplespread Toronto rally, organizers say, "As curriculums are standardized and specialized to fit the corporate agenda, class sizes continue to rise with debt. Our system is increasingly corporate-minded, placing profit ahead of education; ironically, however, most of us now graduate to a jobless future. This is not just the plight of students, but symptoms of a broken economic system. It is through well-funded higher education that our society grows and improves. Education is not a luxury, or an expense: it is an investment in the future. For the past few months, as Quebec students have been turning a simple issue of fees into a wider criticism of the neoliberal agenda, in Ontario we have seen our media rejoice at every opportunity to ridicule and discredit a generation saying they want a better world for tomorrow." These feelings are not isolated to Quebec. Yes, I know the simple refrain, "well, Quebec is not the rest of Canada" and while this is true on many levels, culturally, politically and there is that certain je ne sais quoi that ultimately runs through the blood and the rivers of Quebecers, but this alone cannot only predict whether the Red Square spirit will spread to the rest of Canada. When word began to get around that Toronto students and activists were eager to start something in Ontario, this notion was greeted with a sense of "thank god" from people in Ontario and "what took you so long" from Quebec. One reason was, as I have written about before, is the lack of public concern or momentum from the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) on the issue. While not every student in Canada is represented by this group, it is still by far the largest student federation and its lack of response created waves of frustration. You can view of video of students' frustrations towards the CFS here. This gap was filled in by individual students who approached Occupy Toronto to pitch the lack of affordable education as a 1 per cent issue no different than Occupy Toronto confronting a target like Barrick Gold. This student group held their first General Assembly after their first march on May 22, 2012, on the topic and decided to call themselves the Ontario Students' Mobilization Coalition. Occupy Toronto looked on like proud parents. Another motivating factor that increased awareness and solidarity with Quebec students and their allies was Charest's attempt to crack down on the nightly 8:00pm demonstrations through Law 78. Law 78 was enacted on May 18, 2012, but has done nothing to slow down the demonstrations. Civil liberty activists are concerned that the special law and new Montreal bylaws infringe on the right of Canadians to democratically assemble. In response to the law, 70 organizations are currently taking the government to court with the claim that Charest's special law infringes on Canadian charter rights such as expression, assembly and association. There are financial reasons behind the government crackdown. Obviously, Premier Charest and Montreal Mayor, Gérald Tremblay, must know that if the student strike continues with large noisy, confrontational marches, this could affect the very lucrative tourist season in Montreal - if tourists risk getting tear gas, kettled or arrested by accidentally getting caught up in the demonstrations, they are not likely to return or spread the bon mots about their experience. According to a report by QMI Media, Michel Leblanc, president of Montreal's Board of Trade, told the news organization, "that businesses in the downtown core like hotels, restaurants and retails stores have seen sales drop by 15 per cent, on average. 'But of course you get higher numbers,' he said. ‘There are stores that are reporting 60% less business.'" A new round of talks between student groups and the Charest government are set to begin Monday. This will be the fourth round of negotiations. In the meantime, the call out for Wednesday night to become the first Casseroles Night in Canada has spread cross Canada. The first night is May 30, 2012. --Vancouver: 8:00 pm at the Vancouver Art Gallery --Victoria: 7:30 pm at Centennial Square Please wear masks, too. --Kelowna: 8:00 pm at The Sails --Kamloops: 5:00 pm at location TBA --Cumberland, BC: 7:00 pm at Corre Alice Gallery (2781 Dunsmuir) --Calgary: 8:00 pm at Calgary's Red Square (8 Avenue at 1 Street SW) --Saskatoon: 7:00 pm at Rotary Park --Regina: 8:00 pm in front of Safeway on 13th Avenue --Winnipeg: 8:00 pm at Manitoba Legislature --Providence Bay, ON: 8:00 pm on the boardwalk --Niagara/St Catherines: 7:30 pm at 50 Church Street --Hamilton: 8:00 pm at Gore Park --Toronto: 8:00pm at Duffrin Grove Park (875 Duffrin Street) --Oshawa: 8:00 pm at King and Centre --*Ottawa: (one day earlier) 6:00 pm at Confederation Park --Moncton: 8:00 pm at Victoria Park --Halifax: TBA --Tatamagouche, NS: 8:00 pm n front of Fables, 259 Main Street --St John's, Newfoundland: 8:00 pm at Harbourside Park If your city is involved in planning something, please post below. ** Reject the austerity agenda, become a member of rabble.ca(UPDATED) In a meeting between agency representatives and congressmen, it becomes apparent that most executive offices are against classifying offenders as young as 9 as criminals Published 9:41 PM, January 25, 2017 MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Some congressmen are seeking a compromise on a new age of criminal responsibilty, after it became clear in a meeting on Wednesday, January 25, that most national agencies are against the proposal to lower the age from 15 to 9. Lawmakers want the executive agencies to consolidate their positions so the House sub-committee on correctional reforms can find a middle ground in the discussions. "The departments were requested to come up with a middle ground that is responsive to the bill. What they are looking at is to lower the age to 12 years old," Akbayan Representative Tom Villarin said in a phone interview with Rappler. Villarin, who attended the executive session on the measure on Wednesday, said most of the agencies are against the proposal to make child offenders as young as 9 be made criminally liable. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), for instance, earlier expressed its opposition to lowering the age of criminal responsibility, which is currently at 15 years old. The Department of Education (DepEd) has cited the increasing cases of bullying in schools where child offenders might be penalized under the bills. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has yet to state its position on the issue. Present in the closed-door meeting on Wednesday were representatives of the DSWD, DepEd, DOJ, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Commission on Human Rights, the National Youth Commission, and the Council for the Welfare of Children. (READ: Beyond juvenile delinquency: Why children break the law) Among those amenable to the compromise of lowering the age to 12 are Navotas Representative Toby Tiangco; Misamis Occidental Representative Henry Oaminal, head of the sub-committee; and Kabayan Representative Ron Salo, head of the newly-created technical working group (TWG), which will consolidate the two bills that seek to lower the age of criminal responsibility. Villarin clarfied he is not among those who seek for a middle ground. More crimes covered Republic Act 9344 or the Juvenile Justice Act of 2006 – which sets the minimum age of criminal responsibility at 15 years old – was already amended in 2013 to lower the age of criminal responsibility. That new law, RA 10630, allows children as young as 12 years old to be detained for serious crimes, such as rape, murder, and homicide, among others. It also requires local government units to manage their own Bahay Pag-Asa (Houses of Hope), or rehabilitation houses for young offenders. The compromise being proposed by congressmen now, if approved, could widen the scope of crimes for which children can be punished, to include non-serious offenses. Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and Majority Floor Leader Rodolfo Fariñas also attended the Wednesday meeting. Villarin said Alvarez reiterated the need to pass the measure because it is a priority bill of the President Rodrigo Duterte. He, however, did not set a deadline for passing the bill. Another lawmaker, who attended the session, said the sub-committee on correctional reforms created the TWG. This group will meet on February 1 with the representatives of the government agencies. The agencies, which are also part of the Juvenile Justice Welfare Council, will convene on Thursday to come up with their position on the issue. Their position will in turn be submitted to the House sub-committee before next week's meeting. House Bill 2, titled the Mimimum Age of Criminal Responsibility Act, was filed by Speaker Alvarez. Like the contentious death penalty bill, the measure has met wide opposition, especially from child's rights advocates. A similar measure, House Bill 3973, was filed by Nueva Ecija 1st District Representative Estrellita Suansing. While the measures have support in the House, no counterpart bill has been filed in the Senate. (READ: Children in conflict with the law: Cracks in Juvenile Justice Act) – with a report from Camille Elemia/Rappler.comSo, to recap… Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded is a 2013 remake of a 1991 game based on a 1987 game based on a text adventure from 1981 about a guy with his head in the 1970s. Yow. Ordinarily, that would lead to the question “Why?” This time though, the answer is simple: “14,081
leap over baby steps works for some players and not others. Arsenal's nurturing of then-teenage pair Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been successful, yet plenty have warned John Stones he is better off at Everton. Theo Walcott was 16 when he joined Arsenal, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was just a year older The reality is often this: players back themselves to reach the top quickly, a trait that makes them 'young talent' in the first place. According to Lippett, demands and ambition differ hugely depending on their success to date, and understandably so. "If a player is successful and very wealthy already, the personal side is paramount," he says. "If the player hasn't had a break financially, or hasn't been successful, the finance can be the most important thing. The ambition and logistics can be secondary. "Lots of players live in one city and travel hours to another city for training. A lot of footballers do lead quite solitary and lonely lives, you can find yourself moving overnight. That's the type of thing people don't really see." The clauses and confirmation Personal terms done, but there are still stumbling blocks. The release clause is now more a part of the footballing vocabulary than ever, but what is its purpose? Take Pedro's reported former release clause of £135m at Barcelona, now £22m, or Fabian Delph's £8m getaway upon signing a new contract at Aston Villa. They are in place to protect the player, club, or both. Beyond that, contract clauses can be weird and wonderful. Upon signing for Sunderland, Buzz Aldrin enthusiast and Swedish midfielder Stefan Schwarz was banned from going into space for safety reasons after one of his advisers got a place on a commercial flight to the outer atmosphere in 1999, while Harry Redknapp reportedly advised Crystal Palace to put a 'weight restriction clause' on Neil Ruddock in 2000. Pedro's release clause was reportedly over £100m, but is now just £22m Not straightforward, and neither is the medical. With more money comes a more rigorous process, but the aim is to identify a hidden injury or weakness that could turn a club's millions into a dormant squad player. But players can fail a medical and get their move. Dominic Matteo signed for Leeds from Liverpool in 2000 for nearly £5m despite failing a medical, while Stuart Pearce told Sky Sports about a refreshing case involving one of his former players. "We gave him a medical and the doctor said his ankles and knees were suspect, his groins weren't very good, blood tests not good, slight heart murmur. "I said: 'Is there anything good you can say?' The doctor said: 'He's got a lovely set of teeth.' "But he joined us and promised: 'If I'm not available, I won't get paid that week.' He backed himself and was rarely unfit. If all players did that, they'd be a lot fitter." With riches behind him, Manuel Pellegrini's recruitment success has been scrutinized Medical done, and all that is left is to send the paperwork relating to the transfer to the competitions and FA before deadlines. Press release, social media and club shirt at the ready, and the player is signed. Premier League clubs signed on average eight players during last summer's window. Repeating the above process eight times – the stalling, complications and rejections to boot – leaves little time for a mental recharge. The riches are plentiful, the pressures even more so, and the managers and clubs who get recruitment right more often than not deserve huge credit. Playing the transfer market is not a game of pin the tail on the donkey.Coming Soon PINOCCHIO Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro reinvents the classic tale of the wooden puppet who dreams of becoming a real boy. Jimmy Carr: The Best of Ultimate Gold Greatest Hits Nothing is off limits as Jimmy Carr serves up the most outrageous jokes from his stand-up career in a special that's not for the faint of heart. My Husband Won't Fit Kumiko and Kenichi meet in college and build a happy marriage together. But over time, an unusual problem threatens to destroy their relationship. In the Shadow of the Moon A Chicago detective leads the hunt for an elusive serial killer whose crimes are timed to the lunar cycle in this sleek sci-fi thriller. Raise the Bar In this animated series, a high school girl attempts to overcome the odds and become a champion weightlifter in the Olympics. THE DEVIL ALL THE TIME Desperate to save his dying wife, a man turns to prayer -- and more extreme measures. A gothic drama starring Tom Holland and Chris Evans. Huge In France Famous comedian Gad Elmaleh moves to LA to reconnect with his son and must learn to live without the celebrity perks he's accustomed to in France. Rudy Ray Moore When Hollywood shut him out in the 1970s, multi-talented Rudy Ray Moore created his own work, including the well-known blaxploitation film, "Dolemite."The ill-fated Fast and Furious operation that ended up putting thousands of loose guns onto both sides of the US-Mexico border has claimed a big fish. The acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives – who oversaw implementation of Fast and Furious out of ATF’s Phoenix office in 2009 – has stepped down and will be reassigned, the Justice Department announced Tuesday. Kenneth Melson, who was named ATF’s acting director in 2009, will move out of ATF to become a senior adviser on forensic science in the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy. Replacing him as ATF’s acting director will be B. Todd Jones, the US attorney for the District of Minnesota. The US attorney in Arizona, Dennis Burke, whose office was heavily involved in the Fast and Furious operation, is also stepping down, the Justice Department said. The ATF has not had a permanent director since 2006, a fact that offers one measure of the touchy nature of the bureau’s role in gun ownership and regulation. President Obama has nominated the head of ATF’s Chicago office, Andrew Traver, to take the job, but strong opposition from the National Rifle Association has stalled his confirmation. It was Fast and Furious that most recently put ATF in the headlines. The undercover operation was designed to nab gun smugglers taking US firearms into Mexico and to the country’s violent drug cartels. But instead, bureau agents lost track of as many as 2,500 high-powered firearms, some of which later turned up at crime scenes on both sides of the border. Two of the weapons were found at the scene of a US Border Patrol agent’s murder last year. The reshuffle in ATF personnel seems unlikely to end the controversy over Fast and Furious. US Rep. Darrell Issa (R) of California, who heads the House Oversight Committee that has been investigating the botched operation, said in his Twitter feed Tuesday, “We won’t let blame for reckless Fast and Furious be shifted onto these few.” Representative Issa contends that the Obama administration is blaming Mr. Melson and other ATF and Justice officials for a scandal that he says reaches much higher into the Obama team. Despite the black eye that Fast and Furious has given the ATF and anti-gun-trafficking efforts more generally, experts in US-Mexico border issues say that undercover operations and in-depth investigations will be necessary if gunrunning is to be brought under control. Mexican officials continue to loudly criticize the United States for not stanching the flow of weapons southward, but they also lambasted the US over the well-intentioned but poorly executed Fast and Furious operation. Just last week, Mexican President Felipe Calderón again blasted US gun dealers and lax firearms regulations for the part they play in arming Mexico’s drug gangs. Mr. Calderón said the gun connection and profits from US drug sales made the US partly to blame for the drug-gang firebombing of a casino in Monterrey Thursday, which left at least 52 people dead.This project is so incredibly hilarious and inspiring at the same time! In 2003, when Bob Carey and his wife moved to the East Coast, Carey started making The Tutu Project as a way of mixing his old life with his new life, with a little pink frill. Six months after their move, he and his wife, Linda, discovered that she had breast cancer. Since then, Linda has been fighting the disease and Carey has dedicated his photography towards raising money for breast cancer research. Their goal is to raise $75,000 through the sale of his prints and an upcoming book, Ballerina, to be published this fall 2012. The photographs will make viewers chuckle at this grown man wearing nothing but a pink tutu in absurd situations like frolicking in the snow, laying in the center of Times Square, or standing among rows of corn in the middle of a field. At the same time, we are reminded of the power and impact that this devastating disease can have on women everywhere, particularly in our own lives. Who knew a photograph of a man in a pink tutu could cause such an emotional rollercoaster! Some say laughter is the best medicine and this project is evidence that Bob and Linda have really embraced that motto. The artist says, “Oddly enough, [Linda’s] cancer has taught us that life is good, dealing with it can be hard, and sometimes the very best thing–no, the only thing–we can do to face another day is to laugh at ourselves, and share a laugh with others.” UPDATE: We’re happy to announce that Bob and Linda’s story is one of 25 photo stories featured in our new book For Love, published by Chronicle Books! The official release date is March 15, 2016, and the book is currently available to pre-order at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Indie Bound. The Tutu Project: Website via [Don’t Hate, Curate]Chennai: The Chennai police have registered a case against DMDK Chief Vijayakanth for spitting on journalists.Vijayakanth had allegedly behaved in an "uncivilised" manner with a group of scribes, when he was asked if the ruling AIADMK would capture power in next assembly elections, drawing flak from the journalist community here.In an interaction with reporters after participating in a blood donation camp held here by his party.When asked if the ruling AIADMK would capture power in next assembly elections, the actor-turned politician initially replied, "AIADMK will not capture power at all."Suddenly he flew into a rage and asked,"Can you pose this question to Jayalalithaa? You will not ask. You will be afraid! Are you journalists," he said with an apparent “thoo” to criticize the scribes.https://youtu.be/UV5fktE3GTwA scribe, however, calmly replied that reporters would ask questions if a press meet was convened by her.Chennai Press Club has condemned Vijayakanth for this alleged misbehaviour with journalists and has asked him to openly apologise for "continuously" behaving in an "uncivilised" manner with them.Press Club Joint Secretary Bharathi Tamizhan, in a statement said, it (club) wants Vijayakanth to reform himself by realising his "mistake".(l. to r.): Matt Rourke / AP; Larry Downing / Reuters (l. to r.): Former Senator John Edwards; Senator Barack Obama In the racing world it's called drafting — staying right behind the leader until she wears out and then vaulting past her right near the end. In the 2008 race for the Democratic presidential nomination, Hillary Clinton has two racers on her heels, and so far they have been working fairly well together. But as Clinton has begun to show signs of flagging, Barack Obama and John Edwards are now facing a difficult choice: continue to focus their attacks on the front-runner or go after each another to become what might be called the un-Hillary. That battle to be the viable alternative for anti-Hillary Democrats is gradually emerging as the key campaign drama in the stretch run to the Iowa caucus. It's true that Obama and Edwards have both shown signs of progress of late, attacking Clinton as a polarizing or corrupt agent of the status quo: some 70% of likely Iowa Democratic caucus-goers are either undecided or not supporting Clinton. But most observers say there isn't room for three top-tier candidates, which means the two won't be able to play nice with each other for much longer. "It is likely that the Democratic contest is going to come down to Hillary and the alternative to Hillary," said Peverill Squire, a political science professor at the University of Missouri. "Who becomes the alternative is the important question. In recent weeks Edwards and Obama have been focused on keeping Clinton from running off with the nomination. They may have succeeded in doing that, but neither of them has managed to become the Democrats' obvious other choice." Perhaps sensing that, Obama took the first shot last week, telling the Washington Post: "Let me put it this way, if John wants to make the comparison between the work I did as a community organizer — or as a civil rights attorney or as a state senator taking on special interests — to him working as a trial lawyer making millions of dollars, I'm happy to have that discussion." Edwards, when asked about the comment in a press conference the next day, shot back: "I've heard [Obama] talk about compromise and negotiation and bringing people together. I believe there's a fight in front of us. I don't believe that the defense contractors, the oil companies the pharmaceutical companies, et cetera, are going to give up their power willingly and I don't think we can sit around a table and be nice to them and they're going to relinquish the power that they have today. And that means you've got to have somebody who will fight. And I know that I will fight." Taking the gloves off, however, is still a sensitive issue. Joe Trippi, Edwards' senior adviser, was quick to point out that Edwards was merely responding to a reporter's question. At the same time, Trippi noted that Edwards' criticisms of Clinton's lobbyist ties and his call for all Democrats to renounce contributions is somewhere Obama is too timid to follow. "This is where Obama will not go; he will not do this," Trippi said. Edwards, however, may be under more pressure than Obama to go on the offensive. Even though Clinton may be faltering of late, Obama still commands an inordinate amount of media and voter attention, and Edwards' number three status may be starting to cost him backing. Jay Kleaveland signed up to chair Edwards' campaign in Clayton County, but Kleaveland recently withdrew his support, saying he wants to back someone he believes can win. Edwards "doesn't have the same effectiveness, that's the key word," Kleaveland said. "It like he's reading a legal brief; he doesn't have passion." A few other Edwards county chairs in Iowa, according to Politico.com, may also be defecting from his camp. Still, both campaigns know that attacking each other this early is a dangerous move, especially since there is evidence that their united front is starting to have some effect. A Marist College poll of New Hampshire Democrats released over the weekend has Clinton ahead of Obama among likely primary voters in the state, 36%-25%, a lead that has narrowed significantly from her 41% to Obama's 20% in October. At the same time, a Boston Globe/University of New Hampshire poll of likely New Hampshire primary voters found Clinton down eight percentage points from 43% in September to 35% in September; Obama gained one percentage point to 21% and Edwards gained three percentage points to 15%. Meanwhile the most recent Zogby poll of likely Iowa caucus-goers found Clinton with 28%, down two percentage points from August, and Obama at 25%, up six percentage points. "Both candidates are finding their voice now in opposition to the status quo," said Donna Brazile, who ran Al Gore's 2000 campaign and has not endorsed a candidate this cycle. "They are defining Clinton as'more of the same.' There's still time to catch up with Clinton, but they must do so without trying to cancel each other out. In that race, Clinton scores a knockout."Defendant Matthew Crippen, facing prison for modding Xbox 360 consoles, is walking free after the government abandoned its case. This has been an interesting week for Matthew Crippen, a 28-year-old resident of Southern California. Yesterday, we reported that Crippen could face ten years in prison for running a side business that modded Xbox 360 units to play pirated (and homebrewed) games. Earlier today, we reported that the judge in the case had torn the prosecution a new one regarding some aspects of their case - but the government had elected to proceed with its case nonetheless. That decision to proceed was abruptly reversed today, and Matthew Crippen is a free man. According to Wired, prosecutor Allen Chiu told the judge that the government had "decided to dismiss the indictment... based on fairness and justice" shortly before the jury was to be seated on the third day of trial. The Crippen trial was the first jury trial testing how the anti-circumvention provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act - which make it a crime to physically alter hardware to circumvent copyright protection - apply to videogame consoles. Unfortunately for pirates, modders, and anti-DMCA activists, it's unclear if the dismissal of the case will actually set any legal precedent against the DMCA. From what I understand, the prosecution's abrupt abandonment based on "fairness and justice" had nothing to do with any change of heart regarding the DMCA provisions, but because the case was shoddily built on questionable legal grounds. The prosecution's first witness, Tony Rosario, was an Entertainment Software Association agent who purchased Crippen's modding services, and videotaped him in the act. This was already a dubious matter - and one that the judge had previously chewed the prosecution out over - but in his testimony, Rosario said that Crippen tested that the modification worked by inserting a pirated game into the system. However, the pre-trial reports and sworn declarations earlier filed by Rosario included no mention of this at all. Presumably, Rosario's statement was an attempt to convince jurors that Crippen knew that what he was doing was against the law - a key question in order to establish guilt. It's certainly possible that Crippen did know that he was breaking the law and that he did in fact insert a pirated game, and that Rosario's pre-trial briefs simply neglected to mention this (whether it is likely, however, is another matter entirely). Either way, defense attorney Callie Steele objected to the matter, sending the whole case crashing to the ground. Chiu claimed that Rosario had only just recalled the matter on Sunday - too late for it to be included in pre-trial filings - and admitted that the prosecution should have forwarded it to the defense right away. However, given that the prosecution had made grievous errors in the handling of the case, the damage had been done, and the government dropped all charges. But how would the jury have ruled, anyway? Paul Dietz, a 27-year-old actor admits that - based on the single day of testimony that the jury had heard - he "probably would have acquitted." On the other hand Jerry Griffin, a 63-year-old trial attorney, said that Microsoft had the right to protect its proprietary information. This may not be a victory for DMCA activists - rest assured that the government will try to build a more legally sound case the next time this sort of thing goes to court. That said, it's certainly a victory for Matthew Crippen. "It still has not hit me yet," Crippen told press outside the court shortly after the dismissal. He plans on returning to Cal State Fullerton to get his liberal arts degree. (Wired)Greetings Adventurers, The next dream horse Diné will breeze its way into Kamasylvia Part 2, the Healing Light. Feast your eyes on Grána City, the glorious capital of Kamasylvia filled with new, aesthetic residences and bustling lifeforms. Venture out in the vast, open fields and dense forests like Polly Forest and Gyfin Rhasia Temple where facing off against mystical yet fierce foes will prove to be a challenge. Kamasylvia Part 2 will be filled with immersive quests, areas, and newly added challenging monsters to enhance your PvE experience to the fullest. Kamasylvian Alchemist 2 event will get you scavenging out vast steppes and forests again and also, please welcome back the familiar events like Black Spirit Adventure and Mount EXP bonus event. Go out there, explore the fairy tales, and have a shot at looting high-grade items like the Lemoria gears! [Event] The event Kamasylvian Alchemists 2 has been added. Period: November 15th (after maintenance) - December 13th (before maintenance) You can obtain [Event] Steppe Seal and [Event] Meadow Trail all over the world through monsters, fishing, and gathering. In addition, you can obtain event items for simply playing the game. From November 16th (00:00) - December 13th (before maintenance), Claim 3 [Event] Steppe Seals every hour by checking the Challenges tab (Y). Maximum of 18 can be received per day. From November 16th (00:00) - December 13th (before maintenance), Claim 1 [Event] Meadow Trail every hour by checking the Challenges tab (Y). Maximum of 1 can be received per day. Any leftover [Event] Steppe Seal and [Event] Meadow Trail items from Kamasylvian Alchemist 1 event have been deleted and cannot be reused in the Kamasylvian Alchemist 2 event. Click < Here > to check out this mystical event in detail. Black Spirit’s Adventure 1 has returned. Period: November 15th (after maintenance) - December 20th (before maintenance) Mount EXP Bonus has been added. Period: November 15th (after maintenance) - December 6th (before maintenance) During this period, enjoy Mount Exp +10%! [System] The option of choosing Hedgehog as a reward has been added to Gift Package. Give a gift of game pass to a friend and receive rewards. It is now possible to use Advice of Valks in the Enhancement screen. Fixed the issue where word filter did not work with Guild Advertising messages. Now you will need twice the training material if an Awakening skill of a Dream Horse reaches 100%. If you have a Lv. 50 or above character, creating a new character and skipping the tutorial once will block further tutorial from appearing. Battle Arena is now unavailable on Conquest/Node War servers. Connecting to Conquest/Node War servers from 15 minutes before the warfare will automatically move your character to the nearest town. Fixed the issue where it was possible to use Command to Gather (guild) or other similar commands even if the character had a trade item in inventory and/or mount’s inventory. Fixed the crashing issue when entering the game on a Windows 64-Bit 8-Core CPU. Only Artisan-level workers can be recruited from Old Wisdom Tree Work Supervisor Mathieu. He is in search of the finest. Now it is possible to use the Realization of Energy feature of Alustin all over the world. You can find Alustin in Alejandro Farm, Glish, Keplan, Port Epheria, and The Great Library of Calpheon New regions from Kamasylvia II have been added. Grána City Western Valtarra Mountains Tooth Fairy Forest Tooth Fairy Cabin Acher Northern Camp Weenie Cabin Loopy Tree Forest Polly's Forest White Tree Forest Lake Flondor Looney Cabin Southern Kamasylvia Gyfin Rhasia Temple Krogdalo Trace Ash Forest Okiara River Yianaros’s Field Main NPCs of Kamasylvia II have been added. <Grána City> <Acher Representative> Hazel Azealia <Queen of Kamasylvia> Brolina Ornette <Ranger Representative> Helene Sana <Grána Material Vendor> Kara <Grána General Goods Vendor> Panzy <Grána Mansion Manager> Talishia <Grána Blacksmith> Dikzipo <Grána Stable Keeper> Melabee <Grána Trade Manager> Okiara <Grána Guild House Manager> Daisy <Grána Stable Keeper> Hyacinth <Grána Cook> Heidi <Grána Spirit Linguist> Saphia Doucet <Musicians of the Forest and City> Bleu Arnatte <Grána Work Supervisor> Skabiosa <Grána Seed Vendor> Vilentia <Grána Innkeeper> Luansei <Grána Storage Keeper> Vipiko <Grána Imperial Delivery> Cyclamen <Grána Imperial Fishing Delivery> Falleve <Grána Imperial Crafting Delivery> Mizella <The Oldest Spirit in Kamasylvia> Merindora <Librarian at The Great Library of Grána> Momellies <Grána Trade Manager> Maina <Grána Marketplace Director> Grelius <Kamasylve Caretaker> Lanka <Acher Guard Post> <Acher Guard Post Captain> Lucielle Monet <Acher Guard Post Blacksmith> Jasmine <Acher Guard Post Trade Manager> Munanslyn <Acher Guard Post Stable Keeper> Samantrina <Acher Guard Post Material Vendor> Mokassa <Acher Guard Post General Goods Vendor> Feilrak <Tooth Fairy Forest> <Tooth Fairy Chief> Remitaronsom <Tooth Fairy Cabin Dweller> Tvisa <Tooth Fairy Cabin Dweller> Bronn <Lake Flondor> <Lake Flondor Keeper> Dalonine <Lake Flondor Fruit Vendor> Miloberry <Lake Flondor Fisher> Rolan <Node Managers and Others> <Spirit Living in Weenie Looney Cabin> Weenie <Spirit Living in Weenie Looney Cabin> Looney <White Wood Forest Node Manager> Bahdrond <Tooth Fairy Forest Node Manager> Hunnie <Okiara River Node Manager> Moyamo <Polly’s Forest Node Manager> Clueless Mushroom <Krogdalo Trace Node Manager> Krogdalo Trace <Gyfin Rhasia Temple Node Manager> Gyfin Rhasia Ruins <Southern Kamasylvia Node Manager> Lanette <Western Valtarra Mountains Node Manager> Aniki <Yianaros’s Field Node Manager> Yianaros <Ash Forest Node Manager> Ashlynn <Loopy Tree Forest> Khalid <Krogdalo Trace> Borgo <Kamasylvia Dwarf Archaeologist> Oliver Bedmountain <Tulid’s Cave> Tulid <Gyfin Rhasia Temple> Tulitua <Lemoria Beacon Mounds> Susan Jerrimo The Stock Quantity of trade items with no Trading Lv. requirements has been doubled. Due to changes in trading mechanics, the weight limit of certain trade items has also been adjusted in accordance with price and stock quantity increase for balancing purposes. Prices of some trade items from Valencia have been increased. Max. selling prices for Luxuries, Military Supply, and Medicine trade items have been adjusted to 140%. Min. buying prices of Food trade items have been adjusted to 60%, and Max. selling prices to 160%. The Price Guarantee period has been adjusted to 2 hours. Min. buying prices of Raw Material trade items have been adjusted to 60%, and Max. selling prices to 140%. Min. buying prices of Clothes trade items have been adjusted to 50%. High-Quality Four-wheeled Wagon Badge has been added. * This item can be exchanged with Shiny Golden Seal - [Imperial Delivery] x150. * This item can also be crafted with Pure Tin Crystal x5, Flax Fabric x10, and Black Stone Powder x100 from Wagon Part Workshop Lv. 3. High-Quality Merchant Wagon Cover can now be exchanged with Shiny Golden Seal - [Imperial Delivery] x100 (previously 250). Navigation to Valencian towns and Ancado Inner Harbor from other territories has been improved. Stock Quantity of some Valencian trade items with price increase has been adjusted. Advanced Altar of Training has been added to Monster Ranking. New titles related to Valtarra: Advanced Altar of Training have been added. Venomous What Goes Up Must Come Down Kill First, Ask Questions Later A Cultist Among Us Time Controller Valtarra Spirit’s Favorite New Workers for Kamasylvia have been added. Artisan Papu Worker (Grána) Artisan Fadus Worker (Grána) Professional Papu Worker (Grána) Professional Fadus Worker (Grána) Skilled Papu Worker (Grána) Skilled Fadus Worker (Grána) Papu Worker (Grána) Fadus Worker (Grána) Trading is now available in Kamasylvia. Imperial Delivery group items have been slightly modified, and Grána Imperial Delivery has been added. Now you can send and receive stuff to Old Wisdom Tree storage Work Supervisor NPC and workers have been added to Old Wisdom Tree. A new Dream Horse, Diné, has been added. Diné can use its magical horn to give temporary buffs to allies. If your Lv. 30, Tier 8 Courser has filled the training gauge up to 200%, you can try awakening your Courser with NPC Gula at Stonetail Horse Ranch using Krogdalo's Origin Stone. Your Courser will transform into Diné or Arduanatt if the awakening attempt succeeds. If it fails, the training gauge will be reset. (If you use Cron Stones, your Courser will lose only 50% of the entire training gauge.) Dream Horses such as Diné can learn different skills which normal horses cannot learn. (The below skills can be learned by all Dream Horses.) Courser's Spirit Automatically recovers some HP and Strength on idle mode Double Jump Jumps mid-air one time. (Available after learning High Jump/Jump Sequence) S: Charge Allows an extra dash after using Dash (Available after learning Dash) Dream Horse Diné is born with Courser’s Spirit, Double Jump, and Earth of Life. It may learn other skills while growing. The below skills are exclusive to Diné. Earth of Life Recovers your HP by 200 per 3 secs., for 30 secs. Recovers your MP/WP by 100 per 3 secs., for 30 secs. Recovers up to 10 Allies’ HP by 200 per 3 secs., for 30 secs. Recovers up to 10 Allies’ MP/WP by 100 per 3 secs., for 30 secs. (Cooldown: 5 minutes) Earth of Protection All DP +10 for self and allies (up to 10) for 30 sec. / All Evasion +10 Fixed the issue that sometimes killed Arduanatt upon landing using the skill Wings of Wind. Choose between Arduanatt or Diné! You can focus on three areas of Courser Training (Skill, Elegance, and Strength) to increase the chance of obtaining a Dream Horse of your choice. The chance of obtaining a certain type of Dream horse can be raised up to 90%. The three areas of training, Skill, Elegance, and Strength, can be trained up to 180% (previously 100%). (As with before, the sum of three training areas must reach 200% to attempt at an Awakening.) If you fail at Awakening using Cron Stone, the remaining Training Gauge’s decimal digits will be rounded down. Three training areas have different leanings towards different Dream Horses. Skill: Arduanatt Elegance: Diné Strength: Doom If you invest in Strength for Doom, which hasn’t been revealed yet, the Strength training point will be shared between Skill and Elegance. Peridot Forest Path Wagon has been added. You can craft related equipment in Grána 3, 2F, and the body at Grána 4 (housing). <All classes> Toggle key for Walking has been changed from CapsLock to ScrollLock. Fixed the issue where the ear cuff looked odd when equipping Teary Ear Cuff Invincible effect has been added against monsters while rolling in Kamasylven Sword stance. After firing Blasting Gust (Q+A/D), you can now press (Q+A/D + SHIFT) to activate Ultimate: Blasting Gust. Fixed the graphical glitch on [Sorceress] Clead Shoes. Fixed the issue where the Witch would keep still the same stance after using Lightning V. Fixed the issue where the Wizard would keep still the same stance after using Lightning V. Fixed the issue where Concealment was not working properly in certain situations. Concealment effect will now be applied even when the skill is used through Quick Slot with Sura Katana. Fixed the graphical glitch on [Kunoichi] Eunyoo Shoes. Fixed the issue where Concealment was not working properly in certain situations. Concealment effect will now be applied even when the skill is used through Quick Slot with Sah Chakram. Fixed the issue where the last hit of Ultimate Crush IV after Fallout would be reproduced repetitively. Fixed the abnormalities in simulation of some outfits of the Striker upon use of Traveler’s Map while mounted. The following items can now be used in polishing Alchemy Stone of Life. High-Quality Fortune Teller Mushroom High-Quality Arrow Mushroom High-Quality Dwarf Mushroom High-Quality Cloud Mushroom High-Quality Sky Mushroom High-Quality Tiger Mushroom High-Quality Emperor Mushroom High-Quality Ghost Mushroom High-Quality Fog Mushroom High-Quality Hump Mushroom High-Quality Bluffer Mushroom High-Quality Ancient Mushroom High-Quality Amanita Mushroom The following items can now be used in polishing Alchemy Stones of Protection. Moss Tree Plywood Sturdy Moss Tree Plywood Loopy Tree Plywood Sturdy Loopy Tree Plywood The following items can now be used in polishing Alchemy Stone of Destruction. Noc Ingot Pure Noc Crystal The descriptions of items that can be equipped on Farm Wagon, Trade Wagon, Merchant Wagon, and Noble Wagon will now individually name these wagons instead of saying it can be equipped on “Four-wheeled Wagon.” Altar of Training’s Seals (5 different kinds) have been updated: Item Name Dropped from Valtarra: Forest Seal Dim Tree Spirit Valtarra: Sky Seal King Griffon Valtarra: Earth Seal Moghulis Valtarra: Death Seal Hexe Marie Valtarra: Relic Seal Ancient Puturum The Seals can be combined into a Token. Seals will be expired to use after 3 days. Arrange the Sky Seal and Forest Seal in a horizontal shape of [-] to create a Token of Sky. Arrange the Earth Seal, Sky Seal and Forest Seal in a horizontal shape of [-] to create a Token of Earth. Arrange the Death Seal, Earth Seal, Sky Seal and Forest Seal in a horizontal shape of [-] to create a Token of Death. Arrange the Relic Seal, Death Seal, Earth Seal, Sky Seal and Forest Seal in a horizontal shape of [-] to create a Token of Relic. Each Token will grant you a special repeatable quest that you cannot perform 3 days after completion. Max 1 quest is available per Family per day. You have to choose one of the 4 quests you receive from the Tokens. Valtarra Eclipsed Belt has been added. Basic Ability: AP +5 AP +3, Max Hp +25 per Enhancement The Marketplace price of Valtarra Eclipsed Belt is the same as that of Ogre Ring. Valtarra Training Reward Bundles (4 different kinds) and Courser Awakening Material Box have been added. Valtarra's Scattered Aura has been added. New yellow grade accessories have been added. Tungrad Belt Forest Ronaros Ring New Kamasylvian recipes have been added, 6 for Cooking and 9 for Alchemy. Weenie Elixir Surging Weenie Elixir [Party] Weenie Elixir [Party] Surging Weenie Elixir Looney Elixir Reliable Looney Elixir [Party] Looney Elixir [Party] Reliable Looney Elixir Tears of Spirit Elixir Rainbow Button Mushroom Sandwich Sweet Rainbow Button Mushroom Sandwich Rainbow Button Mushroom Cheese Melt Mild Rainbow Button Mushroom Cheese Melt Kamasylvia Meal Special Kamasylvia Meal New blue-grade gears have been added. Lemoria Helmet Lemoria Armor Lemoria Gloves Lemoria Shoes New Quest Reward accessories have been added. Grána Guardian Necklace Grána Oath Earring. Grána Harmony Ring Blue-grade items for Peridot Forest Path Wagon have been added. These can be crafted at Grána 3-2, 2F, Wagon Part Workshop Lv. 4. Forest Path Wagon Wheel Forest Path Wagon Cover Forest Path Wagon Flag Forest Path Wagon Badge Manshaum Narc’s Stone has been added. Collect Manshaum Voodoo Dolls and put them together to obtain Manshaum Narc’s Stone and summon a Boss monster. This item is for solo-play only. (Cannot be used if you are in a party) Defeat the summoned boss to obtain Combat EXP, Skill EXP, and a reward bundle. There is a chance of obtaining Narc Ear Accessory from the bundle. If the monster disappears, you can summon Black Spirit and proceed with a different quest to obtain some of the rewards. Clump of Truffle Mushrooms has been added. Pearl Shop categories have been reworked so that the list of items will come out in consecutive order from Tagged items (i.e. New, Hot) to regular items to Sold Out items. Glowing effect for Coupon book in the Pearl Shop has been included. New Pearl Shop items have been released. Click < Here > to go to the Pearl Shop Update Announcement. New Monster Forest Ronaros has been added. Forest Ronaros can be found in the west of the Tooth Fairy Cabin, in the Loopy Tree Forest. New hunting ground “Gyfin Rhasia Temple” has been added. Gyfin Rhasia Temple is a Party grinding spot, and up to 5 Players can reap the rewards for each monster that is killed. You can use your hoe to Gather from the killed monsters in the Polly’s Forest. Fixed the issue where less than 7 monsters were aggravated sometimes. The AP
.250 -0.750 Falcons 14 8 11 9 7 10 9 7 9.375 -2.625 Redskins 11 9 9 12 14 15 11 13 11.750 1.125 Ravens 10 21 12 10 17 9 10 9 12.250 -3.000 Bengals 9 11 16 13 21 11 14 12 13.375 -2.625 Steelers 13 15 18 17 9 13 16 11 14.000 -2.500 Buccaneers 15 17 23 11 16 7 12 14 14.375 -0.875 Cowboys 18 16 13 14 15 19 13 17 15.625 2.750 Rams 19 13 10 16 12 23 17 16 15.750 1.625 Lions 12 12 26 19 24 12 18 21 18.000 0.125 Panthers 16 3 24 21 32 16 21 15 18.500 2.000 Saints 21 20 21 18 19 17 20 22 19.750 -2.375 Vikings 24 26 17 15 18 21 15 24 20.000 1.750 Jets 25 19 14 23 10 26 24 26 20.875 1.000 Dolphins 23 18 19 22 25 20 22 18 20.875 -0.625 Browns 20 23 20 24 27 18 23 19 21.750 2.375 Colts 26 25 8 25 13 25 26 27 21.875 0.125 Chargers 22 24 25 20 28 22 19 20 22.500 0.250 Bills 17 22 22 26 20 30 25 23 23.125 -0.500 Cardinals 28 31 29 27 23 27 27 25 27.125 -3.250 Eagles 27 28 28 28 26 24 28 29 27.250 0.625 Titans 29 27 27 29 22 28 29 28 27.375 -0.375 Raiders 30 29 32 30 29 31 31 30 30.250 0.375 Jaguars 31 32 30 31 30 29 30 31 30.500 -0.375 Chiefs 32 30 31 32 31 32 32 32 31.500 -0.375 Observations: I've seen calls for me to drop certain Objective sources because some people feel they throw a wrench into the rankings and really skew the results. But there's a reason I use more ranking systems: they all have different criteria. If there's not an agreement on a team's ranking, then it means they aren't doing things consistently well one way or another. If there is agreement, then they are a more consistent team. Also, you could point to each one of the objective rankings where they're the outlier in at least one instance. I can't get rid of all the objective sources. Kind of funny how the 49ers are the top-ranked team in Objective Rankings, even though not one site ranked them in first place. Interesting: the Titans, Jaguars and Chiefs all dropped 0.375 spots this week, while the Raiders rose the same amount. On the subjective side of things, the Colts rose over 1 full spot. On the objective side of things, they only rose 1/8th of one spot (0.125). Chargers only rose 0.250 this week despite a strong-looking showing against Pittsburgh. Steelers on the other hand dropped 2.5 spots. Objective Standard Deviation Objective Chiefs 32 30 31 32 31 32 32 32 0.707 0.107 49ers 4 2 4 2 2 3 2 2 0.857 -1.290 Jaguars 31 32 30 31 30 29 30 31 0.866 -0.300 Raiders 30 29 32 30 29 31 31 30 0.968 -0.250 Eagles 27 28 28 28 26 24 28 29 1.479 -0.725 Seahawks 2 4 6 6 3 6 3 3 1.536 -0.806 Saints 21 20 21 18 19 17 20 22 1.561 -0.557 Texans 8 5 3 4 5 2 7 4 1.854 -0.293 Redskins 11 9 9 12 14 15 11 13 2.046 -0.042 Giants 5 7 7 5 1 4 4 8 2.088 -0.307 Cowboys 18 16 13 14 15 19 13 17 2.118 -0.224 Titans 29 27 27 29 22 28 29 28 2.176 -0.060 Falcons 14 8 11 9 7 10 9 7 2.176 -0.896 Cardinals 28 31 29 27 23 27 27 25 2.260 -1.463 Patriots 1 6 1 1 6 1 1 5 2.278 -0.168 Dolphins 23 18 19 22 25 20 22 18 2.368 0.322 Broncos 3 1 2 3 8 8 5 1 2.666 0.324 Browns 20 23 20 24 27 18 23 19 2.817 0.790 Chargers 22 24 25 20 28 22 19 20 2.828 0.147 Steelers 13 15 18 17 9 13 16 11 2.872 -0.290 Packers 7 10 5 8 4 14 8 6 2.948 -0.029 Bengals 9 11 16 13 21 11 14 12 3.498 1.644 Bears 6 14 15 7 11 5 6 10 3.597 -0.111 Bills 17 22 22 26 20 30 25 23 3.689 -0.340 Rams 19 13 10 16 12 23 17 16 3.865 0.059 Vikings 24 26 17 15 18 21 15 24 4.062 1.114 Ravens 10 21 12 10 17 9 10 9 4.116 -0.699 Buccaneers 15 17 23 11 16 7 12 14 4.414 0.843 Lions 12 12 26 19 24 12 18 21 5.220 0.906 Jets 25 19 14 23 10 26 24 26 5.622 0.089 Colts 26 25 8 25 13 25 26 27 6.716 0.064 Panthers 16 3 24 21 32 16 21 15 7.826 -0.048 Observations: At least the Chiefs are consistent about being bad. Holy crap are the Panthers still all over the board. From 3rd to 32nd depending on the ranking site. If you took the two outliers out of there, the Colts actually are one of the most-consistently-ranked teams at ~25th. Overall Average Subj vs Obj Patriots 1.000 2.750 1.875 0.788 Broncos 2.455 3.875 3.165 0.598 49ers 4.000 2.625 3.313 1.175 Texans 2.909 4.750 3.830 -1.892 Giants 6.636 5.125 5.881 2.682 Seahawks 8.818 4.125 6.472 2.591 Packers 5.909 7.750 6.830 0.858 Falcons 5.182 9.375 7.278 -2.653 Ravens 8.546 12.250 10.398 -2.473 Bears 12.273 9.250 10.761 -1.911 Redskins 11.455 11.750 11.602 1.836 Steelers 13.546 14.000 13.773 -2.473 Bengals 14.727 13.375 14.051 -2.826 Cowboys 13.636 15.625 14.631 2.657 Colts 9.727 21.875 15.801 0.599 Buccaneers 17.636 14.375 16.006 -1.656 Rams 17.546 15.750 16.648 1.440 Vikings 15.273 20.000 17.636 2.139 Saints 19.636 19.750 19.693 -2.255 Jets 21.182 20.875 21.028 1.360 Lions 24.636 18.000 21.318 -1.155 Panthers 24.455 18.500 21.477 2.673 Dolphins 22.182 20.875 21.528 -1.153 Browns 21.818 21.750 21.784 2.279 Chargers 22.000 22.500 22.250 1.475 Bills 24.636 23.125 23.881 -1.818 Eagles 27.091 27.250 27.170 1.468 Titans 27.091 27.375 27.233 -1.183 Cardinals 29.455 27.125 28.290 -2.802 Raiders 30.636 30.250 30.443 0.370 Jaguars 31.091 30.500 30.795 -0.282 Chiefs 30.818 31.500 31.159 -0.446 Observations: 17 teams rose in positioning this week. 15 teams dropped in ranking. 7 NFC teams in the top-12, 5 AFC teams. Are the Steelers a top-12 team? Well, technically they're ranked outside the top-12, but they're the 12th-highest-ranked team on the board. If we're getting technical, there are only 11 teams ranked 12th or better. 7 NFC teams and 4 AFC teams. Wow, could the Lions and Panthers be any more analogous this week? 8 of the bottom 10 teams are in the AFC. Overall Standard Deviation Subj vs Obj Jaguars 31.091 30.500 0.812 -0.400 Chiefs 30.818 31.500 0.968 0.151 49ers 4.000 2.625 1.042 -0.564 Raiders 30.636 30.250 1.045 -0.168 Eagles 27.091 27.250 1.136 -0.684 Saints 19.636 19.750 1.379 -0.120 Redskins 11.455 11.750 1.664 0.127 Giants 6.636 5.125 1.686 -0.695 Texans 2.909 4.750 1.688 -0.020 Patriots 1.000 2.750 1.712 0.012 Titans 27.091 27.375 1.734 -0.634 Broncos 2.455 3.875 1.905 0.253 Cowboys 13.636 15.625 1.930 -0.049 Cardinals 29.455 27.125 1.983 -1.036 Steelers 13.546 14.000 2.073 -0.279 Dolphins 22.182 20.875 2.108 0.309 Chargers 22.000 22.500 2.117 -0.174 Packers 5.909 7.750 2.202 -0.184 Browns 21.818 21.750 2.483 0.643 Bengals 14.727 13.375 2.498 0.648 Falcons 5.182 9.375 2.605 -0.360 Seahawks 8.818 4.125 2.661 0.110 Rams 17.546 15.750 2.706 -0.408 Bills 24.636 23.125 2.828 -0.039 Bears 12.273 9.250 2.974 0.331 Ravens 8.546 12.250 3.275 -0.246 Buccaneers 17.636 14.375 3.338 0.751 Vikings 15.273 20.000 3.611 0.739 Jets 21.182 20.875 4.097 0.206 Lions 24.636 18.000 4.870 1.262 Panthers 24.455 18.500 6.065 -0.392 Colts 9.727 21.875 7.429 0.252 Observations: No real surprises here. Difference in Averages Subj vs Obj Colts 9.727 21.875 12.148 0.948 Vikings 15.273 20.000 4.727 0.777 Falcons 5.182 9.375 4.193 -0.057 Ravens 8.546 12.250 3.705 1.055 Cowboys 13.636 15.625 1.989 -0.186 Packers 5.909 7.750 1.841 -0.534 Texans 2.909 4.750 1.841 -0.034 Patriots 1.000 2.750 1.750 1.825 Broncos 2.455 3.875 1.421 1.696 Chiefs 30.818 31.500 0.682 -0.143 Chargers 22.000 22.500 0.500 2.450 Steelers 13.546 14.000 0.455 0.055 Redskins 11.455 11.750 0.296 1.421 Titans 27.091 27.375 0.284 -1.616 Eagles 27.091 27.250 0.159 1.684 Saints 19.636 19.750 0.114 0.239 Browns 21.818 21.750 -0.068 -0.193 Jets 21.182 20.875 -0.307 0.718 Raiders 30.636 30.250 -0.386 -0.011 Jaguars 31.091 30.500 -0.591 0.184 Dolphins 22.182 20.875 -1.307 -1.057 Bengals 14.727 13.375 -1.352 -0.402 49ers 4.000 2.625 -1.375 -0.150 Giants 6.636 5.125 -1.511 0.364 Bills 24.636 23.125 -1.511 -2.636 Rams 17.546 15.750 -1.796 -0.371 Cardinals 29.455 27.125 -2.330 0.895 Bears 12.273 9.250 -3.023 -2.323 Buccaneers 17.636 14.375 -3.261 -1.561 Seahawks 8.818 4.125 -4.693 -1.818 Panthers 24.455 18.500 -5.955 1.345 Lions 24.636 18.000 -6.636 -2.561 Observations: The Colts' disparity is growing each week. Now they're over-ranked by over 12 spots. That's almost a 40% over-ranking. The Vikings are the next over-ranked team and it's not even that close at 4.727. The last time a team was over-ranked nearly as much as the Colts are was when the 2010 Chiefs were over-ranked by about 10 spots late in the season. We all know what happened to them. Chargers have definitely settled in now. Their objective and subjective rankings are within 0.5 spots of each other. Carolina — the Chargers' next opponent — is one of the most under-ranked teams. 9 of the 10 most under-ranked teams are in the NFC. Surely you all have your own observations. Speak up in the comments about what you take away from these rankings. SourcesTwo city councillors are vowing to extinguish the fire department’s crackdown on false alarms as residents unplug their security systems for fear of hefty fines. Gloria Lindsay Luby said she’ll table a motion early in the New Year that would restore a previous rule allowing residents one false alarm per year without being fined. Homeowner David Wunker of Toronto points to a tiny resister that was installed in his security system that will now eliminate the fire alarm. Wunker was recently hit with a $1,050 fine from the city when his system set off a false alarm and the fire department was dispatched to his house. ( RICK EGLINTON / TORONTO STAR ) Councillors approved a zero-tolerance approach in February without being told by fire officials that single-family homes would be hit the same as highrises, or that the routine dispatch of three trucks would turn a $350-per-vehicle fine into a $1,050 bill, she said. “Homeowners are finding the fines so punitive they are cutting off the fire part of their alarm system, which is dangerous,” said Lindsay Luby (Ward 4, Etobicoke Centre). “It’s a danger to the homeowner and the surrounding properties.” Two constituents, David Wunker and Art Ludlum, contacted her to say they can’t afford to risk another malfunction. Article Continued Below “Every homeowner in Toronto should think seriously about disconnecting quickly,” wrote Ludlum, 86, after his first false alarm in 16 years of owning a system. Wunker said the fines are a “money-making exercise — a tax, not cost-recovery,” and he’ll quit his alarm contract if the company can’t assure him it won’t report any activation to the fire department. Councillor Peter Milczyn went to bat for homeowner Andrew Cole, but says he got only a “convoluted response” from the fire department. Cole pulled the plug. Milczyn (Ward 5, Etobicoke-Lakeshore) said: “I’m not sure what we’ll do with multi-unit residential, but at the first real council meeting you’ll see a notice,” to amend the bylaw to give homeowners a break. In an interview Wednesday, Fire Chief Bill Stewart defended the bylaw, saying too many fire crews are being tied up by thousands of annual “nuisance” and “malicious” false alarms. Fines are being waived for those who offer evidence that something other than malfunction caused the failure. “If council wants to make a change, that’s their right... We certainly don’t want this to be punitive,” Stewart said. Going back to letting property owners have one false alarm without penalty would, however, put a hole in the fire department budget. The department is projecting $6.5 million in annual revenue from false alarm fines — more than $900,000 of that from city-owned Toronto Community Housing Corp., which has many highrises. Article Continued Below The bylaw does allow property owners who get their alarm equipment upgraded within a year of a false alarm to get a partial refund of their fine. Ina Dorfman, who lives near Steeles Ave. and Leslie St., got repeated notices to pay for the fine from a false alarm in the spring, but is still waiting for a promised $289 rebate for replacing her alarm system about a month later. “They want your money but look how long it’s taking me to get my $300,” said Dorfman, adding her son called the city in August and was told to expect the cheque around December.How do new communication tools like emojis impact the development of language? Gia (Sarah Mitich) teaches Belter to Havelock (Jay Hernandez) How languages change is a very complicated question. There are a lot of factors that go into it, but there is one factor that the layman expects to play a much bigger role than it actually does, and that’s orthography, or how the language is written. Advances in communication technology (from the written word itself, to paper, the printing press, telegraph, radio, TV, internet, etc.) certainly do allow languages to spread more widely and quickly, and have allowed for more registers (both formal and informal) to emerge, but these are issues of quantity, not quality; though I must admit that widespread languages have a greater effect on other languages. As for emoji, they are a non-linguistic signal, like one’s tone of voice in English, or body language. Of course, there are languages which use these things as linguistic features (tones in Chinese, gesture in sign language), but at this point, they change drastically in production, becoming much more systematic and consistent, and at the processing level in the brain. I suppose this means that one day a real emoji language could emerge, but I can’t imagine what context would produce that.Stay in top shape with fitness equipment and sporting goods from Kmart Getting into top shape is very important to you. Whether you play in a softball league or workout on a treadmill, there are lots of ways you can break a sweat. Kmart carries a wide variety of sporting goods and fitness equipment so you can stay active. Outfit any personal gym with weight sets, ellipticals or other exercise machines suited for your workout. If you enjoy different activities outside, you'll also find all kinds of sporting goods for anything from hunting to team sports gear. When you're deciding on what fitness equipment belongs in your home gym, consider what you're trying to achieve. Stationary cycles and steppers are great for cardio routines while weight sets and machines can help you gain strength and tone muscle. Training in a gym isn't for everyone. Fortunately, Kmart has a large selection of bikes and running shoes so you can do aerobics or other workouts outdoors. Team sports like basketball, soccer and baseball are great ways to stay active. From recreational leagues to pick-up games, hit the court or field with the proper sporting goods. If you or your little one is gearing up for the baseball season, make sure you have the correct pads and helmets to stay protected during game time or practice. Whether you're starting a new workout routine or heading out on a major camping and fishing trip, having the proper equipment is essential. Kmart has the fitness equipment and sporting goods to get you started.New U.S. Green Chamber of Commerce Gives the Old One a Run for the Money February 23rd, 2011 by Tina Casey Lobbying for Green Jobs The new Green Chamber might not find a very receptive audience in Congress these days (at least, not on one side of the aisle), but it’s a safe bet that the Obama administration will be all ears. A good deal of the Recovery Act has been geared toward creating green jobs, and the Administration has been fostering a number of other strategies that help grow green businesses, from reclaiming polluted land for clean energy, to a manure-to-biogas program for livestock operations. Public Subsidies for Private Business Public programs that support private businesses are nothing new. After all, the public has been giving hefty subsidies to the fossil fuel industry for generations – though in a case of biting the hand that feeds you, the fossil fuel industry has not been very kind to the public. Just in recent memory there’s the Tennessee coal ash spill, the Massey coal mine disaster and mountaintop coal mining, the Gulf oil spill, natural gas explosions and pollution from fracking, and ongoing public health impacts. If it practically seems like America is at war with its own fossil fuels then I guess it wouldn’t be stretching a point to include an actual war in that list (according to former President Bush, that is). Two U.S. Chambers are Better than One It’s fair to ask why green businesses need their own chamber of commerce. After all, one of the most powerful lobbying organizations in Washington is the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, so you’d think that would pretty much serve their interests. However, lately that particular chamber has been focusing a lot of time and energy on throwing obstacles in the path of the emerging green economy, to the extent that a growing number of major U.S. companies – Nike, Microsoft and Apple, to name just a few – have either formally distanced themselves from the Chamber’s policies on climate change or have quite their membership outright. A Run on Green Jobs The Chamber is also losing support from its own local chapters due to its stance on climate change and health care reform, too, but I digress. The bottom line is, green businesses are proving they can put people to work at jobs that not only pay the rent but also help to help foster a safer, healthier, and more enjoyable environment. Beats me why anybody wouldn’t want to lobby for that. Um…yeah, why not? Image: Money (altered) by yomanimos on flickr.com.Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption James Reynolds watched surviving migrants arrive in Sicily About 400 migrants are feared drowned after their boat capsized off Libya, survivors have told Save the Children. The Italian coast guard rescued 144 people from the boat on Monday and launched an air and sea search operation in hopes of saving others. Hundreds more migrants rescued from boats in the Mediterranean are due to arrive in Sicily during the day. More than 8,000 migrants have been picked up since Friday, and more boats are heading for the Italian coast. Italy's interior ministry has instructed officials throughout the country to be prepared to house the new arrivals, many of whom are children. 'Migration season' UN officials say well over 500 people have died since the start of the year, 30 times more than in the same period last year. Survivors say that the latest tragedy happened after the boat, carrying about 550 migrants in total, overturned a day after leaving Libya. Nine bodies have already been recovered, but no more survivors have been found since then. Save the Children said that many of the survivors were "young men, probably minors". Image copyright AP Image caption Babies were among those rescued Save the Children Italy was still trying to find out how many young people were on the boat, spokesman Michele Prosperi told the BBC. "A few minors" were among the survivors, he said. The migration season had just started, and "when the weather improves... we may have many more arrivals", he added. Last year, 170,000 migrants crossed the Mediterranean to Italy and as many as 3,500 died while making the journey, officials say. The Italian government's maritime rescue operation was scaled back, amid concerns that it was encouraging migrant crossings, and a more limited EU border security operation took over. However, the latest numbers show that the EU's policy of deterring people is not working, the BBC's James Reynolds in Sicily reports. UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokesman Laurens Jolles told the BBC the capacity to rescue was not as strong as it had to be and a far greater response was needed. Shots fired Meanwhile the EU's Frontex border agency said that people smugglers had fired shots into the air to warn away another coast guard vessel rescuing migrants. The incident on Monday happened about 60 nautical miles off Libya after an Italian vessel and an Icelandic coast guard ship came to the rescue of 250 migrants on a tugboat. Image copyright AFP / GUARDIA COSTIERA Image caption More than 8,000 migrants have been rescued from the Mediterranean since Friday After most of the migrants were rescued, traffickers in a speedboat drove towards the rescuers, firing shots before retrieving the now-empty migrant boat. The coast guard vessel was already carrying 342 migrants from a previous rescue. Frontex says the incident shows that traffickers are running out of boats. EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos told the European Parliament: "The unprecedented influx of migrants at our borders, and in particular refugees, is unfortunately the new norm and we will need to adjust our responses accordingly." Over 280,000 people entered the EU illegally last year, many fleeing conflict in Syria and repression in Eritrea. Since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has been without a stable government allowing trafficking networks to thrive. On Friday, humanitarian organisation Medecins Sans Frontieres announced it would operate a search and rescue mission in the Mediterranean between May and October. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Quentin Sommerville looks around a crowded migrant detention centre in Misrata Are you in the area? Are you affected by the issues in this story? You can share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk Please leave a contact number if you are willing to speak with a BBC journalist.Blockchain API provider Gem has closed a $7.1m Series A funding round, the company has announced. The round was led by Pelion Venture Partners, with KEC Ventures, Blockchain Capital, Digital Currency Group, RRE Ventures, Tamarisk Global, Drummond Road Capital, Tekton Ventures, Amplify.LA, Danmar Capital and angel investor James Joaquin participating. The investment brings the total for the Californian startup to $10.4m, with previous rounds raising $3.3m over the last two years. As part of the deal, Ben Dahl, partner at Pelion Venture Partners, will now sit on Gem’s board of directors. Since launching a multi-signature API for bitcoin developers, Gem says it is now expanding its API to develop a modular platform for blockchain applications that can be applied across multiple industries. “We believe blockchain technology will transform how people and companies interact,” says Micah Winkelspecht, Gem’s CEO and founder. “It will underpin entire industries and one day produce a blockchain economy that will form the underlying architecture of our daily lives.” As part of today’s announcement, Gem said Scott Kriz, CEO of Bitium, has also been appointed to the board of directors. Money image via ShutterstockJust for Laughs: Marc Maron is just peachy “I don’t have great judgment, but I’m great at judging” – Marc Maron In what’s a possibly-slash-hopefully new tradition, Marc Maron closed his 2012 Just For Laughs stint with a live taping of his WTF podcast and a full stand-up show on Saturday night. At this point I know Maron more from his podcast than anything else, and haven’t seen a lengthy solo set from him in a few years. And while I’m sure he’ll take this the wrong way if he’s reading: there were no surprises. What I mean is, Maron is the ultimate what-you-see-is-what-you-get guy, on his podcast, in his standup, and just in conversation. There are no strict lines drawn between Marc/Marc/Marc, and his standup doesn’t smack of a “show” by someone who is “on”. He gives the illusion that he’s just talking, which is what drew us to him in the first place. Stories from his seemingly bullet-pointed WTF intros made cameos, molded ever-so-slightly into true material. Fans are well-versed in Maron’s go-to format: recounting his internal dialogue during a particular situation, and attempting to sort through his own logic and intention. He recounted how at last year’s Just For Laughs, he silently judged a man for wearing ugly shorts, but decided let him get away with it when he saw a large scar across his head. While we can all relate to having truly bizarre thoughts at times, most of us would just feel fleeting shame and continue on with our days. Maron examines exactly what the hell his brain was aiming for in those moments (and examines, and examines), finding the deepest flaws in his thought process. Frankly, if we all did the same, we’d probably scare the shit out of ourselves. Better him than us. While I feel the most engaged with the bits that focus on the most specific anecdotes, I’m glad he breaks the set up by examining his philosophical quirks on a slightly more general level, like in his fear of Hasidic Jews and disdain for vegans. He closed the show with an ultimately endearing story about a screaming match with his long-term girlfriend, who was in attendance. A bold move, which may have already birthed a whole new closer. Off the top, a theme was set in motion for the duration of the two-hour recording (which is expected to be edited down slightly). Maron read out an email from a listener named Heather, whose assurance that she was going to bake him a peach pie was accompanied by an in-depth psychological analysis of those who do such things: “feeders” who take pleasure in Maron’s own self-loathing and eating issues, and who deep down are worried that if he loses those hang-ups, he won’t be funny anymore. On cue, Heather approached the stage with as much confidence as one can muster infront of that many people, and presented said peach pie. Maron couldn’t resist. He dug into it, as did almost every guest who took the stage: Mike Wilmot, Sean Cullen, Nikki Glaser, Godfrey, and Chris D’Elia (the only hold out was the gluten-free Glenn Wool). It was an often-ridiculous couple of hours, as the best live WTFs are. First guest Wilmot had Maron laughing so hard he could barely breathe, but it was Cullen who made things truly silly with his observations on Montreal’s festival culture (“if I threw this spoon on the floor, a festival would happen around it”) and describing his bizarre series of children’s books he wrote. It was obvious that not everyone in attendance was convinced of the books’ authenticity, given the twisted Cullen-like improvisational nature of the plot lines. But they are for real, and you can even buy them on Amazon: Hamish X and the Hollow Mountain, Hamish X and the Cheese Pirates, and Hamish X Goes to Providence Rhode Island. Glenn Wool was the only comic to match Cullen’s lunacy, at one point leading the audience in a rousing rendition of Alouette (prompted by an explanation of Canadian football), and is likely the first guest to ever tackle Maron, pin him to the ground, and fake beating him up. Yes, that happened. As an audience, we were spent. Partly from laughing so much, and partly because the sudden lack of air conditioning had brought us to a slow boil. Post-show, Maron hypothesized that either the show went well beyond an automatic shut-off time for the Place des Arts complex, or the staff just really wanted him to wrap it up. And as for the remainder of the peach pie? It made the rounds at the festival afterparty. If I may play food critic for a moment: it was delicious. Live photos by Dan Dion, courtesy of Just For Laughs. May not be used without permission of Just For Laughs.Have you ever won a marathon? No, we’re not talking about one of the 26.2 mile sort. That’s beginner stuff. We’re talking about sitting on your butt, watching episode after episode after episode after episode after episode of The Simpsons until you’re seeing double Disco Stus. Two California residents, Jeremiah Franco, 22, and Carin Shreve, 33, broke the Guinness World Record for longest continuous television viewing by absorbing 86 hours and 37 minutes of Homer’s exploits at an Ultimate Fan Marathon hosted by Fox from Feb. 8-12 in L.A. (The animated comedy presents its 500th episode on Sunday.) We caught up with the winning eye-hard fans, who were among 100 contestants and now are both $10,500 richer. ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Let’s start with this question: How are you feeling? CARIN SHREVE: You know, I actually slept the entire time until just now. JEREMIAH FRANCO: I’m feeling good. Just waiting for the check now. Are you both hardcore Simpsons fans? What’s the craziest Simpsons-related thing you’d done prior to this? CS: I would definitely say I’m a hardcore Simpsons fan. I’ve been watching it since they were on The Tracey Ullman Show, because I used to actually watch that show back in the day. The other competition I did was when the movie came out over where I live, we had a competition where you had to draw yourself as a Simpsons character and the winner would get 40 passes to the preview of the movie and I actually won. It’s pretty cool. JF: I’m definitely a big Simpsons fan. I’m pretty much the exact age of The Simpsons — the actual show premiered three months after I was born. I’ve been watching it my entire life. In terms of crazy stuff, this is the first competition I’ve done. What was your first indication that this wasn’t going to be easy? JF: The second night, about 45 hours in—that’s when it really kicked in. That’s when I started to use the 5-Hour Energy drinks. That’s when it hit me that this was going to be harder than I thought. It was my body trying to put me into an unconscious state and me fighting that. CS: I kept on waiting to hit that wall and I never hit it. And it was really kind of tripping me out. One guy came up to me about two and a half days in and said, “I gotta ask you, are you an android? You haven’t moved for two and a half days!” And I just kept on going and kept on going, and at about I think hour 80, I was sitting there, like, “Oh, waiting a minute!
by a specific set of brain structures, at the heart of which lie the basal ganglia, a set of interconnected areas at the base of the forebrain.[47] The basal ganglia are the central site at which decisions are made: the basal ganglia exert a sustained inhibitory control over most of the motor systems in the brain; when this inhibition is released, a motor system is permitted to execute the action it is programmed to carry out. Rewards and punishments function by altering the relationship between the inputs that the basal ganglia receive and the decision-signals that are emitted. The reward mechanism is better understood than the punishment mechanism, because its role in drug abuse has caused it to be studied very intensively. Research has shown that the neurotransmitter dopamine plays a central role: addictive drugs such as cocaine, amphetamine, and nicotine either cause dopamine levels to rise or cause the effects of dopamine inside the brain to be enhanced.[98] Learning and memory Almost all animals are capable of modifying their behavior as a result of experience—even the most primitive types of worms. Because behavior is driven by brain activity, changes in behavior must somehow correspond to changes inside the brain. Already in the late 19th century theorists like Santiago Ramón y Cajal argued that the most plausible explanation is that learning and memory are expressed as changes in the synaptic connections between neurons.[99] Until 1970, however, experimental evidence to support the synaptic plasticity hypothesis was lacking. In 1971 Tim Bliss and Terje Lømo published a paper on a phenomenon now called long-term potentiation: the paper showed clear evidence of activity-induced synaptic changes that lasted for at least several days.[100] Since then technical advances have made these sorts of experiments much easier to carry out, and thousands of studies have been made that have clarified the mechanism of synaptic change, and uncovered other types of activity-driven synaptic change in a variety of brain areas, including the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, basal ganglia, and cerebellum.[101] Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and physical activity appear to play a beneficial role in the process.[102] Neuroscientists currently distinguish several types of learning and memory that are implemented by the brain in distinct ways: Working memory is the ability of the brain to maintain a temporary representation of information about the task that an animal is currently engaged in. This sort of dynamic memory is thought to be mediated by the formation of cell assemblies—groups of activated neurons that maintain their activity by constantly stimulating one another. [103] is the ability of the brain to maintain a temporary representation of information about the task that an animal is currently engaged in. This sort of dynamic memory is thought to be mediated by the formation of cell assemblies—groups of activated neurons that maintain their activity by constantly stimulating one another. Episodic memory is the ability to remember the details of specific events. This sort of memory can last for a lifetime. Much evidence implicates the hippocampus in playing a crucial role: people with severe damage to the hippocampus sometimes show amnesia, that is, inability to form new long-lasting episodic memories. [104] is the ability to remember the details of specific events. This sort of memory can last for a lifetime. Much evidence implicates the hippocampus in playing a crucial role: people with severe damage to the hippocampus sometimes show amnesia, that is, inability to form new long-lasting episodic memories. Semantic memory is the ability to learn facts and relationships. This sort of memory is probably stored largely in the cerebral cortex, mediated by changes in connections between cells that represent specific types of information. [105] is the ability to learn facts and relationships. This sort of memory is probably stored largely in the cerebral cortex, mediated by changes in connections between cells that represent specific types of information. Instrumental learning is the ability for rewards and punishments to modify behavior. It is implemented by a network of brain areas centered on the basal ganglia. [106] is the ability for rewards and punishments to modify behavior. It is implemented by a network of brain areas centered on the basal ganglia. Motor learning is the ability to refine patterns of body movement by practicing, or more generally by repetition. A number of brain areas are involved, including the premotor cortex, basal ganglia, and especially the cerebellum, which functions as a large memory bank for microadjustments of the parameters of movement.[107] Research The Human Brain Project is a large scientific research project, starting in 2013, which aims to simulate the complete human brain. The field of neuroscience encompasses all approaches that seek to understand the brain and the rest of the nervous system.[8] Psychology seeks to understand mind and behavior, and neurology is the medical discipline that diagnoses and treats diseases of the nervous system. The brain is also the most important organ studied in psychiatry, the branch of medicine that works to study, prevent, and treat mental disorders.[108] Cognitive science seeks to unify neuroscience and psychology with other fields that concern themselves with the brain, such as computer science (artificial intelligence and similar fields) and philosophy.[109] The oldest method of studying the brain is anatomical, and until the middle of the 20th century, much of the progress in neuroscience came from the development of better cell stains and better microscopes. Neuroanatomists study the large-scale structure of the brain as well as the microscopic structure of neurons and their components, especially synapses. Among other tools, they employ a plethora of stains that reveal neural structure, chemistry, and connectivity. In recent years, the development of immunostaining techniques has allowed investigation of neurons that express specific sets of genes. Also, functional neuroanatomy uses medical imaging techniques to correlate variations in human brain structure with differences in cognition or behavior.[110] Neurophysiologists study the chemical, pharmacological, and electrical properties of the brain: their primary tools are drugs and recording devices. Thousands of experimentally developed drugs affect the nervous system, some in highly specific ways. Recordings of brain activity can be made using electrodes, either glued to the scalp as in EEG studies, or implanted inside the brains of animals for extracellular recordings, which can detect action potentials generated by individual neurons.[111] Because the brain does not contain pain receptors, it is possible using these techniques to record brain activity from animals that are awake and behaving without causing distress. The same techniques have occasionally been used to study brain activity in human patients suffering from intractable epilepsy, in cases where there was a medical necessity to implant electrodes to localize the brain area responsible for epileptic seizures.[112] Functional imaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging are also used to study brain activity; these techniques have mainly been used with human subjects, because they require a conscious subject to remain motionless for long periods of time, but they have the great advantage of being noninvasive.[113] [114] Design of an experiment in which brain activity from a monkey was used to control a robotic arm. Another approach to brain function is to examine the consequences of damage to specific brain areas. Even though it is protected by the skull and meninges, surrounded by cerebrospinal fluid, and isolated from the bloodstream by the blood–brain barrier, the delicate nature of the brain makes it vulnerable to numerous diseases and several types of damage. In humans, the effects of strokes and other types of brain damage have been a key source of information about brain function. Because there is no ability to experimentally control the nature of the damage, however, this information is often difficult to interpret. In animal studies, most commonly involving rats, it is possible to use electrodes or locally injected chemicals to produce precise patterns of damage and then examine the consequences for behavior.[115] Computational neuroscience encompasses two approaches: first, the use of computers to study the brain; second, the study of how brains perform computation. On one hand, it is possible to write a computer program to simulate the operation of a group of neurons by making use of systems of equations that describe their electrochemical activity; such simulations are known as biologically realistic neural networks. On the other hand, it is possible to study algorithms for neural computation by simulating, or mathematically analyzing, the operations of simplified "units" that have some of the properties of neurons but abstract out much of their biological complexity. The computational functions of the brain are studied both by computer scientists and neuroscientists.[116] Computational neurogenetic modeling is concerned with the study and development of dynamic neuronal models for modeling brain functions with respect to genes and dynamic interactions between genes. Recent years have seen increasing applications of genetic and genomic techniques to the study of the brain [117] and a focus on the roles of neurotrophic factors and physical activity in neuroplasticity.[102] The most common subjects are mice, because of the availability of technical tools. It is now possible with relative ease to "knock out" or mutate a wide variety of genes, and then examine the effects on brain function. More sophisticated approaches are also being used: for example, using Cre-Lox recombination it is possible to activate or deactivate genes in specific parts of the brain, at specific times.[117] History Illustration by René Descartes of how the brain implements a reflex response. The oldest brain to have been discovered was in Armenia in the Areni-1 cave complex. The brain, estimated to be over 5,000 years old, was found in the skull of a 12 to 14-year-old girl. Although the brains were shriveled, they were well preserved due to the climate found inside the cave.[118] Early philosophers were divided as to whether the seat of the soul lies in the brain or heart. Aristotle favored the heart, and thought that the function of the brain was merely to cool the blood. Democritus, the inventor of the atomic theory of matter, argued for a three-part soul, with intellect in the head, emotion in the heart, and lust near the liver.[119] The unknown author of On the Sacred Disease, a medical treatise in the Hippocratic Corpus, came down unequivocally in favor of the brain, writing: Men ought to know that from nothing else but the brain come joys, delights, laughter and sports, and sorrows, griefs, despondency, and lamentations.... And by the same organ we become mad and delirious, and fears and terrors assail us, some by night, and some by day, and dreams and untimely wanderings, and cares that are not suitable, and ignorance of present circumstances, desuetude, and unskillfulness. All these things we endure from the brain, when it is not healthy... On the Sacred Disease, attributed to Hippocrates[120] The Roman physician Galen also argued for the importance of the brain, and theorized in some depth about how it might work. Galen traced out the anatomical relationships among brain, nerves, and muscles, demonstrating that all muscles in the body are connected to the brain through a branching network of nerves. He postulated that nerves activate muscles mechanically by carrying a mysterious substance he called pneumata psychikon, usually translated as "animal spirits".[119] Galen's ideas were widely known during the Middle Ages, but not much further progress came until the Renaissance, when detailed anatomical study resumed, combined with the theoretical speculations of René Descartes and those who followed him. Descartes, like Galen, thought of the nervous system in hydraulic terms. He believed that the highest cognitive functions are carried out by a non-physical res cogitans, but that the majority of behaviors of humans, and all behaviors of animals, could be explained mechanistically.[121] The first real progress toward a modern understanding of nervous function, though, came from the investigations of Luigi Galvani (1737–1798), who discovered that a shock of static electricity applied to an exposed nerve of a dead frog could cause its leg to contract. Since that time, each major advance in understanding has followed more or less directly from the development of a new technique of investigation. Until the early years of the 20th century, the most important advances were derived from new methods for staining cells.[122] Particularly critical was the invention of the Golgi stain, which (when correctly used) stains only a small fraction of neurons, but stains them in their entirety, including cell body, dendrites, and axon. Without such a stain, brain tissue under a microscope appears as an impenetrable tangle of protoplasmic fibers, in which it is impossible to determine any structure. In the hands of Camillo Golgi, and especially of the Spanish neuroanatomist Santiago Ramón y Cajal, the new stain revealed hundreds of distinct types of neurons, each with its own unique dendritic structure and pattern of connectivity.[123] In the first half of the 20th century, advances in electronics enabled investigation of the electrical properties of nerve cells, culminating in work by Alan Hodgkin, Andrew Huxley, and others on the biophysics of the action potential, and the work of Bernard Katz and others on the electrochemistry of the synapse.[124] These studies complemented the anatomical picture with a conception of the brain as a dynamic entity. Reflecting the new understanding, in 1942 Charles Sherrington visualized the workings of the brain waking from sleep: The great topmost sheet of the mass, that where hardly a light had twinkled or moved, becomes now a sparkling field of rhythmic flashing points with trains of traveling sparks hurrying hither and thither. The brain is waking and with it the mind is returning. It is as if the Milky Way entered upon some cosmic dance. Swiftly the head mass becomes an enchanted loom where millions of flashing shuttles weave a dissolving pattern, always a meaningful pattern though never an abiding one; a shifting harmony of subpatterns. —Sherrington, 1942, Man on his Nature[125] The invention of electronic computers in the 1940s, along with the development of mathematical information theory, led to a realization that brains can potentially be understood as information processing systems. This concept formed the basis of the field of cybernetics, and eventually gave rise to the field now known as computational neuroscience.[126] The earliest attempts at cybernetics were somewhat crude in that they treated the brain as essentially a digital computer in disguise, as for example in John von Neumann's 1958 book, The Computer and the Brain.[127] Over the years, though, accumulating information about the electrical responses of brain cells recorded from behaving animals has steadily moved theoretical concepts in the direction of increasing realism.[126] One of the most influential early contributions was a 1959 paper titled What the frog's eye tells the frog's brain: the paper examined the visual responses of neurons in the retina and optic tectum of frogs, and came to the conclusion that some neurons in the tectum of the frog are wired to combine elementary responses in a way that makes them function as "bug perceivers".[128] A few years later David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel discovered cells in the primary visual cortex of monkeys that become active when sharp edges move across specific points in the field of view—a discovery for which they won a Nobel Prize.[129] Follow-up studies in higher-order visual areas found cells that detect binocular disparity, color, movement, and aspects of shape, with areas located at increasing distances from the primary visual cortex showing increasingly complex responses.[130] Other investigations of brain areas unrelated to vision have revealed cells with a wide variety of response correlates, some related to memory, some to abstract types of cognition such as space.[131] Theorists have worked to understand these response patterns by constructing mathematical models of neurons and neural networks, which can be simulated using computers.[126] Some useful models are abstract, focusing on the conceptual structure of neural algorithms rather than the details of how they are implemented in the brain; other models attempt to incorporate data about the biophysical properties of real neurons.[132] No model on any level is yet considered to be a fully valid description of brain function, though. The essential difficulty is that sophisticated computation by neural networks requires distributed processing in which hundreds or thousands of neurons work cooperatively—current methods of brain activity recording are only capable of isolating action potentials from a few dozen neurons at a time.[133] Furthermore, even single neurons appear to be complex and capable of performing computations.[134] So, brain models that don't reflect this are too abstract to be representative of brain operation; models that do try to capture this are very computationally expensive and arguably intractable with present computational resources. However, the Human Brain Project is trying to build a realistic, detailed computational model of the entire human brain. The wisdom of this approach has been publicly contested, with high-profile scientists on both sides of the argument. In the second half of the 20th century, developments in chemistry, electron microscopy, genetics, computer science, functional brain imaging, and other fields progressively opened new windows into brain structure and function. In the United States, the 1990s were officially designated as the "Decade of the Brain" to commemorate advances made in brain research, and to promote funding for such research.[135] In the 21st century, these trends have continued, and several new approaches have come into prominence, including multielectrode recording, which allows the activity of many brain cells to be recorded all at the same time;[136] genetic engineering, which allows molecular components of the brain to be altered experimentally;[117] genomics, which allows variations in brain structure to be correlated with variations in DNA properties[137] and neuroimaging. Other uses As food Gulai otak, cattle's brain curry from Indonesia, cattle's brain curry from Indonesia Animal brains are used as food in numerous cuisines. In rituals Some archaeological evidence suggests that the mourning rituals of European Neanderthals also involved the consumption of the brain.[138] The Fore people of Papua New Guinea are known to eat human brains. In funerary rituals, those close to the dead would eat the brain of the deceased to create a sense of immortality. A prion disease called kuru has been traced to this.[139] For tanning The brain can be useful to hunters: most animals have enough brain matter for use in the tanning of their own hides.[140][141][142] See also ReferencesOn a sleepy, urban hilltop in Seattle stands a monument to Confederate soldiers. It's been there for more than 90 years. In a cemetery that’s best known as the final resting place for martial artist Bruce Lee and his son Brandon, as well as Seattle’s founders (think Denny and Dexter), lies a 10-ton slab of Georgia granite, inscribed as a monument to the Confederacy. During a time in our country when similar markers and statues are being torn down or removed from public lands, even sparking violent confrontations, like on Saturday in Charlottesville, Virginia, Seattle’s own monument to the rebel South can be found in a sleepy Capitol Hill cemetery — if you look hard enough. The doorway-like structure, made of two stone columns and topped by a pediment, was erected in 1926 in what is now known as Lake View Cemetery, located just north of Volunteer Park and just to the south of the Grand Army of the Republic Cemetery, where Civil War veterans are buried. The monument says: “In Memory of The United Confederate Veterans erected by Robert E. Lee Chapter Number 885 United Daughters of the Confederacy 1926″ The words sit above a pair of crossed muskets and an oval, metal relief of Gen. Lee’s profile. Kevin Healy, who has cared for the cemetery grounds for 40 years, was initially hesitant to talk about the monument on Tuesday. It’s been defaced twice. “We try to keep it low profile,” he said. Healy thinks it’s much more interesting to talk about Bruce Lee, the legendary martial-arts figure and movie star, and his son Brandon, who are “by far” the cemetery’s most popular draws. Or all the famous city founders buried here with names you might recognize from street signs: Denny, Blaine, Phinney, Horton, Dexter and Colman. [Mayor Murray expresses concern about Confederate monument in Seattle cemetery] He’d even rather talk about his job. “I say, ‘I work in a park with animals, trees, plants, Mother Nature, and I happen to bury the dead,’ ” Healy said, adding that he’s buried people of all ages and races and religions who died in all sorts of ways. Looking for a final resting spot? Healy said there’s still plenty of room for bodies in the urban cemetery, though prices for hilltop sites are more expensive than those at the bottom near the fence. “But that’s just life,” he said. Healy said he understands why someone might be tolerant of the Confederate monument, which was intended to honor the veterans who fought in the war. “As with anything else, it was always the little guys, the grunts, who did the work,” he said. “During the Civil War, it wasn’t usually the wealthy who fought, it was the hungry, who were told, ‘Fight for us and we’ll give you a week’s worth of food.’ “ Besides that, he said, “I’m not justifying it, but it’s just a monument … We are a long way from the South, and you’re not doing yourself any favors if you forget about either side in a war that needed to be fought.”Millions of years in the making, underground caves sustain delicate ecosystems that are rich in biodiversity. In this short film by Drew Perlmutter, explorers of the vast cave networks in the southern United States explain the importance of preserving these subterranean worlds.Instagram: @drewperlmutter The Short Film Showcase spotlights exceptional short videos created by filmmakers from around the web and selected by National Geographic editors. We look for work that affirms National Geographic's belief in the power of science, exploration, and storytelling to change the world. The filmmakers created the content presented, and the opinions expressed are their own, not those of National Geographic Partners.Know of a great short film that should be part of our Showcase? Email sfs@natgeo.com to submit a video for consideration. See more from National Geographic's Short Film Showcase at documentary.com #shortfilmshowcase @natgeo4 p.m.: Everyone’s going to be busy for the next six or seven hours, but perhaps no team’s basketball operations staff will be busier than Danny Ainge and the Celtics. League sources say Portland trying hard to get into first round. Celtics (aka the https://t.co/DcH2s5OS60 of draft picks) open for business. — Steve Bulpett (@SteveBHoop) June 23, 2016 There’s also this. The Oklahoma City Thunder might be looking to move Serge Ibaka, who could be a huge get for any team looking to improve its frontcourt. The Thunder is shopping big man Serge Ibaka on this draft day, a source said. https://t.co/obBwkWDf6F — Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) June 23, 2016 2:08 p.m.: Well, it’s not a blockbuster, but it is a trade. The Nets reportedly dealt Thaddeus Young after all. Brooklyn has traded forward Thad Young to the Indiana Pacers for the 20th pick and a future 2nd rounder, league sources tell @TheVertical. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 23, 2016 1:05 p.m.: The Nets reportedly told forward Thaddeus Young he’s on the trading block. Brooklyn is looking for a first-round pick, as the Celtics own theirs in this year’s draft. Thaddeus Young has been informed the Brooklyn Nets are shopping him around the league in search of a 1st round pick, according to a source. — Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) June 23, 2016 And speaking of that Celtics pick, it’s looking like a lot of teams want it. The Sixers, Timberwolves and Pelicans are all enamored with Kris Dunn, per sources. If Boston picks him at No. 3, expect a trade to follow. — Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) June 23, 2016 12:30 p.m.: It sure sounds like the Boston Celtics are starting to get busy, and there’s no shortage of interest in that third pick, at least according to a report from ESPN’s Jeff Goodman. Celtics fielding calls for the No. 3 pick — and the majority of the teams interested to take Kris Dunn, sources told ESPN. — Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) June 23, 2016 It probably goes without saying, but it’s worth questioning each and every report like this. Not because there’s reason to question these reporters — just about all of them have proven track records — but because there’s something to be said for getting your message out there in order to build leverage. With that said, here’s the latest from The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Kris Dunn has significant traction in Boston as No. 3 pick, sources tell @TheVertical. No final decision — and trades remain on table. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 23, 2016 All of sudden, there’s plenty of interest in a draft pick that the Celtics, according Wojnarowski’s tweet, sound like they’re willing to make. Hmmm … 12:05 p.m.: Another big move might be in the works, and it involves the Boston Celtics. League sources tell @chadfordinsider and me: Philadelphia is ramping up its efforts to acquire tonight's No. 3 overall pick from Boston. — Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 23, 2016 Numerous rivals describe Philly as the most active team in circulation … with a trade involving Nerlens Noel looking more and more likely — Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 23, 2016 If Philly is successful prying the No. 3 pick from Boston, it'll enable the Sixers to choose between Buddy Hield, Kris Dunn or Jamal Murray — Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 23, 2016 10:59 a.m.: It looks as though the Phoenix Suns are trying to make some big moves, per ESPN’s Marc Stein. Sources say Phoenix, in its failed trade pitch to convince Utah to surrender Gordon Hayward, tried to pair Eric Bledsoe with a lottery pick — Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 23, 2016 The growing sense in league circles is that the Suns are determined to move either Bledsoe or Brandon Knight before the start of next season — Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 23, 2016 The Suns have the Nos. 4, 13 and 28 picks to use as trade bait. 9:53 a.m.: Well, here’s a very curious rumor about Thon Maker from Sports Illustrated’s Jake Fischer. The 19-year-old from Sudan already was an interesting pick after taking a fifth year of high school to skirt the NBA’s age rule and enter the draft. But apparently some teams don’t think he’s actually 19. Several teams have entirely ruled Thon Maker out of the first round due to his age. Multiple sources believe Maker to be 21-23, not 19. — Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) June 23, 2016 Fischer also had some news about the Celtics, who reportedly are actively shopping the No. 3 pick. Spoke to an exec picking top 8 last night. "Boston has changed their 'guy' every 12 hours." Teams think C's just trying to raise value of 3. — Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) June 23, 2016 9:15 a.m.: The day finally is here. The 2016 NBA Draft begins at 7 p.m. ET at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Thursday, but the rumor mill will be turning all day. And expect plenty, because beyond the Nos. 1 and 2 picks — the Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers are expected to take LSU’s Ben Simmons and Duke’s Brandon Ingram, respectively — there are quite a few mysteries. No one seems to know, for example, whether the Boston Celtics will make their No. 3 pick or trade it to the highest bidder. And given that a blockbuster trade already happened Wednesday with the Chicago Bulls sending Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks, there should be plenty more where that came from. We’ll be filling you in on all the goings-on around the NBA on Thursday, so keep it right here for more updates. In fact, here are a couple of teams that reportedly already are looking to make moves before the draft. Sources: Several Western teams aggressive on Thad Young, whom Brooklyn's working to move to highest bidder. This gets Nets into first-round. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 23, 2016 Sources: Charlotte's offering No. 22 – if team will take contract of Spencer Hawes or Jeremy Lamb. Hornets need space to re-sign free agents — Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 23, 2016 Thumbnail photo via John Geliebter/USA TODAY Sports Images Thumbnail photo via Mar 20, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) moves toward the net during the third quarter of the game against thePhiladelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. The Celtics won the game 120-105. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY SportsGet the biggest daily news 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 Police officers are launching a legal case against their employers - alleging their privacy was breached when bodycams recorded footage of them using the toilet. Body cameras became standard issue in the force last September with the intention of filming incidents including traffic stops and dealings with the public. But now some police in the village of Round Lake Park, Illinois, have claimed that, instead of being switched on to record these moments alone, the cameras were actually rolling constantly. According to court papers, 10 officers are claiming the cameras gathered "highly offensive and voyeuristic intrusions", reports the Chicago Tribune. Among the "private and personal acts" they allege were captured are using the bathroom and changing clothes, when their genitals may even have been filmed. In response, Police Chief George Filenko has expressed surprise that the recordings had been made. He added: "The police officers who filed the lawsuit against the village made a quick rush to judgment, without considering all of the facts." He says an investigation into the appropriateness of the footage is ongoing. Mr Filenko and Deputy Chief Daniel Burch are alleged to be the only two who had access to all footage, with the suit naming them as defendants in the case. One officer, Dominick Izzo, says he realised the extra film was being taken in May as he looked over his footage, and as such is one of the officers said to be "humiliated, embarrassed and greatly upset." Police officer's bodycam captures moment elderly couple rescued from fire: Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now The 10 plaintiffs are seeking damages of more than £747,000, with the lawsuit carrying one officer's claim that he saw Mr Burch delete unauthorised footage when it was discovered. If true, this would be in direct contravention of a state law to retain such film for 90 days. The branded technology, made by Enforcement Video, LLC, of Allen, Texas, doing business as WatchGuard Video, is always recording until it is disabled, the company states, with video typically being recorded over in two days unless it becomes evidence.The proportion of Metro Vancouver homes left vacant or not used as a primary residence has almost doubled since 2001, a time when the region's residential real estate sector increasingly became a magnet for both local and foreign investors, according to a new study based on 30 years of census data. Numbers crunched from the past seven published censuses show the percentage of these homes in and around Vancouver hovered around 3 or 4 per cent until 2006, when that jumped to just over 6 per cent and remained at that level until the last published census in 2011, said Andy Yan, director of Simon Fraser University's City Program. "When [empty homes] really entered the popular lexicon in the mid-2000s, that's exactly when you see a spike," Mr. Yan said. "It was always there, but it wasn't to the level in 2006 and 2011." Story continues below advertisement Related: Gregor Robertson wants higher vacancy tax for Vancouver homes Related: Vancouver's housing boom sets off human-rights alarm at UN Read more: Vancouver renters with pets face an added barrier — and often, a difficult choice A breakdown of the 2011 data showed that 50,810 homes in the region were vacant and another 7,415 units were being lived in temporarily by people from other parts of Canada or other countries. Ottawa's definitions and measures have changed over time, so no other census has been broken down like this, Mr. Yan said. The City of Vancouver had the most of these units by far (22,169), but Surrey has seen its number almost quadruple over the past decade and a half to 11,139 units. Richmond and Burnaby, the other two cities Mr. Yan studied over the 30-year period, also had the number of units left vacant or used as non-primary residences double. He also examined smaller census tracts and found pockets of these units in communities such as Bowen Island, where he suspects many are vacation homes, and Langley, where they may be used by seasonal farm workers. "A really important point is to show that this isn't just a City of Vancouver phenomenon and that it does occur in other parts of the region," he said. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement His estimates of empty and underutilized units in Vancouver are double the 10,800 found by a city-commissioned study, which was published this year before council proposed its own vacancy tax. That analysis examined BC Hydro electricity data for the city's 225,000 homes over a decade and found that by 2014 just under 5 per cent were empty for a year or more. The two studies use very different methodologies, "vastly different data sets and vastly different standards" as to what constitutes an empty home, Mr. Yan said. He added that he is very interested to see what the 2016 census shows next spring. Mayor Gregor Robertson, who has criticized some of Mr. Yan's tracking of foreign home ownership in his city, said this latest study reinforces his government's commitment to penalizing those who leave properties vacant. "Seeing data that demonstrates there may be even more underutilized homes than BC Hydro suggests gives us more reason to aggressively move on the empty homes tax," Mr. Robertson told The Globe and Mail Tuesday. "We certainly hear, anecdotally, concerns about empty homes in various neighbourhoods, and now the body of evidence is building, so that helps." Story continues below advertisement The B.C. government passed legislation in the summer allowing Vancouver to impose a tax on empty homes, which the city argues are taking up housing that could be rented out. The province has said it will consider similar requests from other cities. West Vancouver staff are in the process of preparing a report into the phenomenon, and its city council hopes to consult the public this year on proposing a higher rate of property tax on anyone who does not claim their home as their principal residence, according to Councillor Craig Cameron. Mr. Cameron welcomed Mr. Yan's study, noting that tracking vacant units seems difficult and that few governments have shown much interest "in filling this informational void. "Naturally, if we have conclusive proof there is an issue, there will be significant pressure to do something about it," he said. A changing global economy, low interest rates and an influx of investors into the market likely contributed to the trend, but more research is needed into why there was an uptick in these units, Mr. Yan said. Story continues below advertisement "My agenda is not controversy, but an attempt to understand how cities work in a 21st-century global economy and how that can inform policy," he said. "Are we trying to house people or are we trying to house money?"US-led NATO aggression on Libya raped and destroyed its sovereign independence – one of history’s great crimes. Africa’s developed nation was transformed into a cauldron of failed state, terrorist-infested violence, chaos, deep poverty, mass unemployment, and devastating human misery. Libya was Obama’s war, launched in 2011, orchestrated by Hillary Clinton. Her remark after hearing of Muammar Gaddafi’s death, saying “(w)e came, we saw, he died” alone will long define her pure evil. Claiming Washington’s aim was humanitarian intervention to establish democratic governance was pure subterfuge, the usual imperial Big Lie justifying naked aggression. Libya was terror-bombed to destroy its sovereignty, plunder its oil wealth, privatize the world’s largest aquifer system, dollarize the country, exploit its people, and establish pro-Western puppet rule. Gaddafi supported pan-Africanism, a United States of Africa free from imperial dominance, Libyans sharing in the country’s oil wealth, a notion anathema to America and other Western powers. Under his 1999 Decision No. 111, all Libyans got free healthcare, education, electricity, water, training, rehabilitation, housing assistance, disability and old-age benefits, interest-free state loans, as well as generous subsidies to study abroad, buy a new car, help couples when they marry, practically free gasoline, and more. Literacy under his rule rose from 20 – 80%. Libya’s hospitals and private clinics were some of the region’s best. Now they’re in shambles. Vital public services he provided no longer exist. Pre-war, Libyans had African’s highest standard of living. Homelessness was nonexistent. Gaddafi believed all Libyans had a right to a home or rent-free apartment, notions unheard of in the West. He rejected Western-style money-controlled undemocratic democracy, deplored crony capitalism and neoliberal harshness. During his tenure, women had the right to vote, participate politically, as well as own and sell property independently of their husbands. They were constitutionally granted equal status with men. Libya’s central bank was state-owned, the interest-free Libyan dinar used for productive economic growth, not speculation, profits and bonuses for predatory bankers. Gaddafi advocated a new gold standard, replacing dollars with gold dinars, a plan to provide real monetary wealth and value, free from predatory Western lending agencies. Responsible policies led to his demise. Washington wants control over all other nations – dollar hegemony as the world’s reserve currency the way its dominance is maintained. Economist Michael Hudson calls this system a “sinister dynamic (because) the US payment deficit pumps dollars into foreign economies.” They have “little
Raphael Wilson -- told the Vetters that should they choose to have another child, and should that child also have SCIDS, the newborn could be placed in an almost completely sterile isolator that would protect him from disease until a cure was found -- which, the doctors thought, was only a matter of time. The project would be financed with federal research grants. The Vetters were predisposed to the doctors' plan: They were anxious to have another child, especially a son to carry on the family name. As Catholics, they may have been especially swayed by Dr. Wilson, a scientist who studied germ-free environments and was also a brother in the Order of the Holy Cross. In Europe, Wilson had been involved in a similar project: Two retarded twins had been successfully treated in sterile isolation. Remarkably, the twins' immune systems developed to the point that they could be removed from their isolators before they turned three. There was little discussion -- and certainly no public discussion -- of what would happen if no cure for SCIDS appeared soon, or of how long a child could or should be kept in such isolation. The medical technology existed. The ethical questions would come later. As was later reported in People magazine, the Vetters' second David Joseph -- the one who would become famous -- was delivered by a cesarean section on September 21, 1971. The room at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital had been cleaned five times in an attempt to make it as germ-free as possible. No more than ten seconds after David was removed from Carol Ann's womb, he was placed inside the sterile plastic isolator that would be his home. Prior to the delivery, the Vetters had arranged for a priest to be on hand to baptize their son after he'd been placed inside the bubble. Like almost everything else David would touch during the next 12 years, the holy water was sterilized. David was transferred to a room at Texas Children's Hospital, which was then a part of St. Luke's. His bubble, made of transparent polyvinyl chloride film, sat on a plain wooden table next to a window. Attached to the "crib bubble" was a small "supply bubble," which contained items such as diapers, clothes, vitamins, food, washcloths, medicine and water. Sterilizing such supplies was no simple task. First, labels and glue were removed from bottles and jars containing pre-sterilized food. Then those and other necessities were loaded into perforated cylinders, which were placed in chambers filled with ethylene oxide gas, at a temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit, for four hours. Afterward, the containers had to be aerated for one to seven days before they could enter the bubble. The walls of the bubble were fitted with heavy-duty rubber gloves so that his parents and medical personnel could handle David. Using those gloves, they diapered and fed the baby, and hugged him as best they could. Mary Murphy's office was only two doors away from David's room. She was working as a psychological associate at Baylor College of Medicine's Center for Developmental Pediatrics, and she watched as a constant parade of visitors -- princes and royalty, even Beverly Sills -- trooped past her door, intent on seeing David; he served as a kind of tourist attraction for VIPs. It was said that Hermann Hospital had a helicopter, and Texas Children's had the Bubble Boy. Murphy passed by David's room many times each day, but she never looked in. The project appalled her, and she wanted nothing to do with it. Murphy had come to psychology late in life. As a college student during World War II, she'd studied to be a mechanical engineer. But instead of pursuing that career, she married and moved to Texas. After her husband left her, she and her infant son found themselves alone in Houston. "I had a baby, a penny and a potato," laughs Murphy, a matronly but attractive woman with short white hair. To support her son and herself, she went to work as a waitress. Murphy remarried, and in the late 1950s, she enrolled part-time at the University of Houston. She graduated in 1967, and earned her master's degree two years later. While an instructor at Baylor, she began her doctoral work. In her office at Texas Children's, she struggled to complete her dissertation, examining the stresses that beset families of children with birth defects. By the fall of 1974, David was no longer a constant presence outside Murphy's door. A plastic bubble had been set up in the Vetters' home in Conroe, and the child could spend two to three weeks at a time there. Ironically, Murphy met David not at the hospital, but in his home. Her mentor, Dr. Barry Molish, was working on an article about David's psychosocial development, and asked Murphy to assist him by giving the child psychological and intelligence tests. She agreed reluctantly, and on the day after David's third birthday, she and Molish drove to Conroe in the pouring rain. To Murphy's surprise, she was smitten with David, a handsome, dark-complected boy with a thick mop of black hair and dark, wide-spaced eyes. She wondered how the boy could survive in such a confined space. The isolator bubbles were periodically replaced with larger models as David grew, but even the largest was tiny: six feet by two feet by four and a half feet. (Later, a sterile "playroom" would be attached.) Murphy could barely hear the boy speak over the roar of the bubble's blower motors, and she asked to turn them off. David laughed. "He said I was dumb," she remembers, "and didn't I know that the bubble would deflate if the motors were turned off?" In spite of the noise, Murphy administered tests. Asked to define a tree, David responded that it was a brown rectangle with a green oval on top. She was stunned, amazed that a three-year-old would know so much about geometry but so little about the stuff of daily life. No, she told David, the green part was made of leaves. He replied that she was totally wrong. To prove her point, she fetched her umbrella and went outside. As David watched through a window, she broke a small limb off a tree and brought it inside for him to examine through the plastic. "You never saw so much astonishment in your life," she remembered. She left the Vetter home that night feeling that there was much she could teach David -- but she had no intention of doing so. A few days later, Murphy's boss informed her that David was back at Texas Children's, and that his mother and the hospital staff were having trouble with him. Specifically, a photographer from United Press International was standing by to snap the first pictures of David as he entered his newly constructed playroom. Roughly 11 feet long, six and a half feet wide and eight feet tall, the sterile space marked a huge addition to David's world. But to the embarrassment of the medical team, he refused to crawl through the stainless steel tubing that connected his bubble to its new addition. Since Murphy and David had gotten along so well, David's mother suggested that Murphy might help coax David into the play area. Murphy agreed to try -- but only after she finished her other duties for that afternoon. Around 4:30, she walked the short distance from her offie to David's quarters, confident that she could remedy the situation in no time flat. David seemed glad to see Murphy, whom he remembered as "the lady with the leaf." Even so, he rebuffed her attempts to get him into the playroom. After a couple of hours, she gave up for the day. As she left, David looked in her eyes. "Lady," he said, "you will be back." He was right. By the following day, Murphy had decided that trying to talk David into the playroom was useless. Instead, she borrowed a bowl of goldfish from the desk of a third-floor secretary, and placed the bowl on the far side of the playroom. David was excited by the fish, and tried to convince Murphy to bring them next to his crib. She refused. The strategy worked. Anxious to examine the fish more closely, David crawled through the tube, down the three-stepped ladder and into the playroom. UPI got its photographs, the medical team got its good publicity and Murphy was invited to help in David's day-to-day care. Privately, nurses complained to her that the playroom incident was minor compared to other problems they were beginning to have with the child. "They wanted him to behave and be compliant," said Murphy. Eventually, she became known as "the fire extinguisher": the person to call when David was in emotional crisis. Three and a half years after David's birth, Texas Children's Hospital finally discussed the ethics of keeping a child isolated indefinitely. Now many hospitals have ethics committees that routinely consider complicated decisions. But in the '70s, such groups were rare. On February 26, 1975, about 30 doctors, theologians and other concerned parties -- including Mary Murphy -- gathered in the hospital's conference room. All the chairs were filled, and people stood in the back of the room. Dr. Wilson, the project's scientific director, gave a synopsis of David's history, then opened the session for questions. The most pointed of those questions came from Dr. Robert Main, another chaplain. "You're in the honeymoon stage of treating him now," said Main, who had examined David. "One day he will take a look at himself and decide he doesn't want to be in there till he gets to be 15 years of age." Nonetheless, Dr. Montgomery, another of David's original doctors, brought the meeting to an upbeat close. Under similar circumstances, he said, he would start this project again with another child. "How many more?" someone asked. "Until I determined that there was no more information to be gained by such a thing," Montgomery replied, "or if the outcome was certain." The Reverend Raymond J. Lawrence, the chaplain of Texas Children's, had convened the meeting, but he was disappointed by its results. The real ethical issues, he says, were never discussed. "The great scandal of the Bubble Boy was that he was conceived for the bubble," says Lawrence, now director of the department of pastoral care at the Presbyterian Hospital in New York City. "The team that did this didn't think through this very well. They didn't consider what would happen if they didn't find an immediate cure. They operated on the assumption that you could live to be 80 years old in a bubble, and that would be unfortunate but okay." In the years since, Lawrence's outrage has not abated. He continues to maintain that the three original doctors convinced David's parents to conceive him because they wanted a test subject for their studies of immunology. The doctors flatly deny the charge. No other ethical conferences on the subject were ever convened. And when contacted recently, Dr. Montgomery stood firmly by the decision to place David in the bubble. "At the time, we were encouraged by everything we knew," he says. "If people didn't take chances, none of us would be here. Columbus would have stayed in Spain and would have been selling tortillas, because he was warned he would sail off the edge of the earth." Mary Murphy didn't have a lot of free time to spend with David. During the day, her job required her to evaluate other kids at the hospital's developmental center; at night, she needed to work on her doctoral thesis. She says David offered a bargain: If she would work on her dissertation in his room at the hospital every other evening, including Saturdays, he would promise not to talk. As Murphy worked on her dissertation, David spent his time watching television and, later, doing his homework. (He had tutors, and attended an elementary school class in Conroe by telephone hookup.) He showed a flair for math, but rarely read for pleasure, a fact that disappointed Murphy. She'd hoped that books would provide him an escape from the bubble. Instead, over the years, his sense of hopelessness increased. "Even though David was only five," wrote Murphy, "he recognized his difference and dreaded what the future held -- limited choices, feelings of alienation and an increased need to be polite and compliant so as not to reveal his anger." Most of the time, David lived deep within himself. "He was always used to being very polite," she remembered. It took her a long time to tell when he was saying what he meant, and when he was saying what she wanted him to say. "That is, I guess, one of the things that kept me uncomfortable," she admitted. "I sensed he was being excruciatingly polite sometimes when he didn't really want to be. Most kids that age don't have that kind of façade. They don't bother." Sometimes, though, David revealed his inner turmoil -- though at great cost to himself and the people who cared for him. Given the news that Dr. Wilson had a heart attack and was in intensive care, he smeared excrement all over the inside of the bubble; hospital workers spent three days cleaning the mess. Murphy theorized that David's reaction betrayed his deep fear of abandonment: Wilson's heart attack was one more piece of evidence that people would leave him, and that he was powerless to follow. Other fears manifested themselves in recurring dreams. In one, David was attacked by thousands of spiders. In another -- which disturbed him even more -- the King of Germs dispatched thousands of his wives to invade the bubble. David was able to kill the wives, but the king simply married more to send after him. "I don't know if it's a bad dream or if they're really pouncing on me," he told Murphy. "Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe I'm losing my mind." Murphy tried to turn the dreams into games and think of ways he could kill his dream world enemies. Though he learned to cope with the nightmares, she says the fear of insanity plagued him from then on. In 1977, NASA developed for David what was known as the Mobile Biologistical Isolation System. Basically, it was a $50,000 space suit that would allow David to venture outside the bubble. That July, Murphy joined the crowd in David's room: David's parents, NASA engineers and hospital staff, all gathered to see his first adventure in the suit. A camera crew was on hand to record the event. To get into the suit, David had to crawl through an eight-foot tunnel that connected the suit to the bubble. Every movement was scheduled, but as the countdown began, Murphy says David asked her to hold him with the gloves that extended into the bubble. He wanted to be as far from the space suit as possible. "I don't believe this," he said. "Mary, can you believe this? Look at that thing at the end of the tunnel. Now that's what I'm afraid of. Germs could be in there." When the time came for David to crawl into the tunnel, he balked, and said he needed a few more minutes. After those minutes passed, he repeated his request -- and after those minutes, asked yet again for a few more. Finally, after the camera crew left the room, David entered the tunnel, pathetic and trembling. At one point, he got his head stuck in the suit and let out a bloodcurdling scream. But once in the suit, he discovered it wasn't so bad. He held his gloved hands in front of his faceplate, grinned from ear to ear and said, "I like it." Never before had he taken more than six steps in any direction. But with his mobile support system, he was able that day to travel about 30 feet down the hallway, where he got a cup of ice and handed it to a nurse. It was the first time he'd ever given something to another person. Though David seemed excited by the excursion, he voiced reservations about the suit before each of his six subsequent outings. When he outgrew the suit, it was replaced -- but he never wore the replacement. Years later, when David saw a videotape of the made-for-TV movie loosely based on his life, he was most amused by the movie's treatment of the space suit. In The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, John Travolta played a 17-year-old boy who'd lived his entire life in sterile isolation. David laughed at the idea that his character could simply wear the space suit back into the isolator without contaminating the bubble. In the grand tradition of made-for-TV movies, The Boy in the Plastic Bubble ended on an upbeat note: Travolta, without consulting anyone, simply decided to walk out of the bubble, join his buxom girlfriend on horseback and ride off into the sunset -- presumably to a good time and a certain death. Certainly, the movie was a long way from realism. But unlike the press, Hollywood at least recognized that David's situation could not and should not go on indefinitely. Newspapers and TV revealed no such shreds of grimness. In September 1977, the Houston Post reported cheerfully that "a sixth birthday is extra special for most boys and David's will be no exception." The article maintained that David "continues to thrive and develop at above-average rates." To the outside world, David was just a happy, healthy child, miraculously unscathed by the sterility of his life. Reality was less pleasant. "The summer before David's eighth birthday marked the beginning of the end," Murphy wrote. "Painfully aware of being different and not belonging to a peer group, he inevitably concluded, 'Let's face it -- what do I have in common with kids my own age? Nothing.' " His explosive rages grew more frequent. After exhausting himself, he'd be aghast at his behavior, afraid that people would leave him and not return. Murphy was disturbed by David's preoccupation with death and fascination with fire. He drew giant flames to burn down the hospital or his home. He'd then pretend to extinguish the flames by urinating on his drawing. He developed facial tics, and would nervously rub the bridge of his nose until it was raw. He was frightened of change. And as he began to enter puberty, Murphy says, he'd occasionally engage in open masturbation, embarrassing his nurses and teachers. By then, she was seeing less of David, who lived almost full-time with his family in Conroe. She occasionally visited him there, but most times, they talked by phone. Though David grew to enjoy being at home in Conroe, he was at first reluctant to leave the hospital for an extended period of time. "How can I tell my mother that I don't want to live at home?" he asked Murphy a few months before his tenth birthday. "I love my parents very much, but I can't tolerate the thought of six months." As if to prove he meant what he said, he paced, threw himself on the floor of his bubble, pounded his fists and screamed and cursed -- all so violently that Murphy was frightened for him. She tried to comfort him. "You should be with your parents and your school friends," she told him. "A hospital is no place for a boy to grow up." Still, David was inconsolable. "Why didn't they do something to me before I was old enough to care?" he asked. "When I was three, I wouldn't have cared. When all this mess started, didn't they ever think about or realize that they were dealing with my life? They made decisions without ever thinking about anything except what they wanted to do, not about all this crap that I'm in. "I am a mouse surrounded by ten cats, and there are no dogs to chase the cats away.... Where do you suppose I could get some legal advice?" Over the years, the composition of David's medical team changed. One by one, the three original doctors moved to new jobs in different cities; eventually Baylor's Dr. Ralph Feigin and Dr. William Shearer headed the team. (Both declined to be interviewed by the Press.) It was Feigin, Murphy said, who encouraged her to take the meticulous notes from which she constructed her book. By the time David was nine -- three years into Feigin's stay at Baylor -- Feigin pushed to resolve the boy's situation, which he described as "intolerable for everyone." Since David's birth, his doctors had hoped that his immune deficiency could be corrected with a bone marrow transplant. But an exhaustive search failed to turn up a perfectly matched donor, and research had not progressed to the point that a less-than-perfect match might work. Murphy recounted a meeting in June 1980, when Feigin conceded that a cure for David was still years away. Nevertheless, the doctor was concerned about "a deterioration in the boy's mental status," as well as the possibility that federal funding for the project would eventually dry up. (Conservatively estimated, the cost of keeping David alive eventually came to somewhere around $1.3 million.) According to Murphy, Feigin and Shearer attempted to convince the Vetters to remove David from the bubble and place him on a regime of gamma globulin and antibiotics. Basically, the doctors were hoping that David's body -- like those of the twins in Europe -- had miraculously begun to develop an immune system. Murphy believed the plan was a way to bring David out of the bubble and let him die. Despite her affection for the boy, she thought it was the right thing to do. The Vetters, though, rejected the idea after consulting with the original trio of doctors. Four years later, even those doctors agreed that something had to be done. Researchers in Boston had made advances in transplanting unmatched bone marrow. Montgomery and the other two original doctors convinced the Vetters that an unmatched bone marrow transplant was a risk worth taking. The transplant was set for October 21, 1983, precisely a month after David's 12th birthday. The boy told Murphy that he didn't believe the transplant would work, and he seemed ambivalent about his prospects. But he seemed less frightened of death than of the alternative: life outside the bubble. "He was actually afraid that it might work," said Murphy, "and that he wouldn't be able to adjust when he came out." Against David's wishes, Baylor hired a camera crew to record the procedure. David wanted Murphy to be at his side, and even advised her on what to wear to the transplant, so that she'd look good in the newspaper. His first choice was turquoise, but he settled for a red blouse, a red velvet vest and a red print skirt. David's older sister, Katherine, donated the marrow, which was treated by doctors in Boston and flown to Houston to be introduced into David's system. In the wee hours of that Friday morning, Texas Children's Hospital was informed that the plane had arrived at the airport. Less than an hour later, Dr. Shearer walked into David's room with a white Styrofoam ice chest. Murphy thought that the precious fluid sloshing inside a plastic bag looked like pink lemonade. The procedure was more like a blood transfusion than an operation. Through the intravenous lines that ran into the bubble, Katherine's bone marrow slowly dripped into David's system. The transplant seemed to go well, and for a few months, doctors dared to hope that David might leave the bubble. But by December, it was clear that something was very wrong. In early February, David was plagued with diarrhea, fever and vomiting so severe that he had to be removed from the bubble to be given intensive treatment. He died 15 days later, on February 22. It turned out that the screens of Katherine's bone marrow had missed the presence of Epstein-Barr, the virus that produces mononucleosis. An autopsy revealed that David's body was riddled with tumors; he died of Burkitt's lymphoma. According to Dr. Shearer, the information gleaned from David's autopsy led to the discovery that viruses can cause cancer. Besides specific medical advances, David's case also changed the way that doctors approach genetic problems. "What David's story best illustrates is medicine's hopelessness in dealing with symptoms of disease," says Terry Sharrer, the curator of health sciences at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. David's space suit and one of his isolators are now part of the Smithsonian's collection. According to Sharrer, the Bubble Boy's life coincided with the birth of molecular medicine, which is aimed at fixing a genetic fault rather than combating its results. "David's case," he says, "ended a line of medical thinking that went back a thousand years." During the last 15 days of David's life -- his first days outside a sterile field -- he spent many of his conscious hours watching TV. He was amazed by the inaccuracies in the saturation coverage of his life and imminent death. And he was especially irritated by a reporter who said his space suit had given him mobility. "Mobility?" David asked Murphy rhetorically. "What mobility?" One last time, he made her promise that she'd write a factual account of his life and death. She began the book about eight months later. She wrote in her spare time, snatched from the moments when she wasn't at work or caring for her ailing mother. Along the way, she obtained the written permission of both the Vetters and officials at Texas Children's Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine. In 1995, Mary Murphy's book seemed on the verge of publication. In its spring catalog, WRS Publishing called it a "captivating inside story" and "provocative question-raiser." But as it turned out, some people close to David would rather not see the questions raised. In February, Dr. Feigin wrote WRS that he'd been told that portions of the book were drawn from conversations between hospital employees and David or his parents. He warned that such usage might violate Texas laws providing for patients' privacy, and suggested that the publisher review the manuscript carefully. Roughly a month later, WRS received another letter, this one from David's parents, who had divorced. His father, David Vetter Jr., is now the mayor of Splendora. His mother, Carol Ann Demaret, is married to Kent Demaret, who as a reporter covered the Bubble Boy story for People magazine. After reading a draft of Murphy's book, Demaret drafted a letter blasting it. Over the course of 28 pages, he complained that the work was "not defensible on any grounds" and amounted "to an assault on a dead child." The letter suggests that Murphy manipulated David and that he would never have asked her to write such a book. It also complains that the words she attributes to David are much different from his way of speaking. "The supposed 'quotes' are not in the true 'voice' or spirit of David," the letter states. "They do, however, sound exactly like Murphy." It is true that much of what Murphy says and writes about in her book cannot be corroborated, since the people who could confirm or refute her claims refuse to be interviewed. But many of the letter's objections simply do not pass muster. For instance, the family ridicules as a "hallucination" Murphy's contention that David was manipulative -- an observation previously published in a 1977 academic paper in Pediatric Research. Additionally, during his short life it was often reported that David had both an above-average intellect and vocabulary. David's parents declined to be interviewed for this story. Contacted by phone, David Vetter Jr. said, "I don't have time to talk to you. I don't want to talk with you. Thank you for calling." Carol Ann Demaret's phone was answered by her husband, who said in a friendly fashion that he doubted that she'd be interviewed. By mail, he later confirmed that. During his phone conversation with the Press, Demaret described the book as "bad news." Asked about the relationship between Mary Murphy and David, he replied, "She visited him occasionally." Of all the charges leveled against Murphy, the most unlikely one is that she exaggerated her relationship with the boy. Even Team David members who disagree with her conclusions confirm that she and David were close. "In order for David's life to be most meaningful, his parents and we all tried to be upbeat about it even though we knew that things were wrong," said Mary Ann South, one of the original three doctors. "As I recall, [Murphy] picked up on a lot of developmental things about him that nobody wanted to face." Facing unpleasant truths -- especially about well-meaning people -- is never easy. University of Houston history professor James H. Jones is the author of Bad Blood: The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, which documents a 40-year study in which more than 400 black men with syphilis were deliberately left untreated. In the foreword to Murphy's book, Jones stated that she shows how "good people err for the best of reasons." "If David's life proved anything," wrote Jones, "it was that love, kindness and good intentions do not necessarily translate into sound decisions or produce the desired results." Last fall, Mary Murphy began having nightmares. In the recurring dreams, she somehow disappointed her mother and could never reach a desired destination. She awoke with an overwhelming sense of sadness. Her psychiatrist told her the dreams were related to the book. "I made a promise," Murphy explained, "and I need to keep it." Now 70, she is reshaping the manuscript and hopes to find another publisher. But she won't water down her thesis; she promised to tell David's story, no matter how sad. In February 1984, she visited David the day he'd been removed from his bubble. He was conscious and calm, and seemed to realize he was dying. Wearing surgical gloves, she touched him for the first time outside the bubble, helping him to sit up and adjust his surgical mask. They held hands. From his hospital bed, he asked that the miniblinds be raised; he wanted to see the view from his new room. But instead of the expected sunset, the window revealed only a brick wall. Murphy began to cry. For once, their roles were reversed: David tried to comfort Murphy, reminding her of the wall in a children's book she used to read him. David had spent his whole life with barriers. This last one was hardly the worst. According to the article his mother and Demaret wrote for People, Mary also held David's hand the night that he died. The story described Mary as David's "close friend." "When she was leaving," Carol Ann recalled, "David said, 'Remember, I love you, Mary. Good-bye.' He had never said good-bye to Mary. It was always, 'I'll see you later.'Advertisement The news from Japan is still pretty grim. Four days after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake shook the country, engineers are trying to prevent further explosions at a damaged nuclear power plant, and Japan’s largest electric utility has introduced rolling blackouts. But here's a piece of good news for one of the most wired societies on the planet: For the most part, the Internet is working. The fiber optic network of undersea cables that connect Japan to the rest of the world was damaged when the earthquake struck beneath the Pacific seafloor, about 200 kilometers from Japan's northeast coast. The Wall Street Journal reports that many telecom operators have battled service disruptions, and anecdotal reports from Japan residents (including IEEE Spectrum commenters) suggest that some people have experienced slow Internet speeds, especially when accessing international sites. But the situation could have been far worse. TeleGeography, a company that keeps tabs on Internet traffic around the world, told IEEE Spectrum that the undersea cable network experienced "limited" damage due to the earthquake. While more than a dozen undersea cable networks land in Japan, most of the landing stations are in areas that weren't too damaged by the quake. Companies whose cables were impacted have mostly been able to reroute traffic through intact cable lines to avoid major service problems. From TeleGeography: Most of Japan's cable landing stations are well to the South of Tokyo, or on the other side of the sheltered inlet that becomes Tokyo Bay. We're not aware of disruptions to any of the many cables that land here. All of the cable systems that have reported outages also operate cables that land to the South of Tokyo, so no system appears to have suffered a complete outage.... All of the outages appear to be on cable segments that land in the Ajigaura or Kitaibaraki landing stations, approximately halfway between Tokyo and Sendai. Some of the damage reports are already in. According to TeleGeography: * The Hong Kong-based cable-network operator PacNet has reported damage to two segments of its East Asia Crossing undersea cable, which connects Japan to other parts of Asia. * Japan's NTT Communications Corporation has reported damage to some segments of its PC-1 submarine cable system, which connects Japan and the United States. * Korea Telecom has also reported that a segment of the Japan-US Cable Network is damaged. * Chunghwa of Taiwan has reported damage to segments of the Asia Pacific Cable Network 2. UPDATE: The monitoring company Keynote Systems has more info on how telecoms have coped with the cable problems. Over the weekend, Keynote told us that they'd detected few large-scale problems with internet service. Now the company has provided more details of the types of glitches that have occurred since the earthquake, and the steps telecoms have taken to deal with them. From a Keynote statement: We captured some peering issues (delays for traffic transiting from one major carrier to another) on Saturday night, 9 pm Pacific. In the graphic below we can see that traffic from Sprint to NTT had 50% packet loss and latency of almost half a second: The bottom chart shows a 4-hour span today. The lack of troublesome red numbers suggests that telecoms have found short-term fixes to their problems. Keynote also passed along messages from Japan's NTT Communications Corporation, the country's primary Internet backbone provider. NTT announced today that it will send out submarine cable repair ships within the next 24 to 48 hours to work on busted cables just offshore from the landing station. NTT also warned of the potential for more problems: It is possible that we may experience an increase in latency and packet loss during periods of peak utilization, specifically 12:00 to 15:00 UTC. Our engineers and operations staff continue to work towards restoring additional capacity on our cable systems and return them to full functionality. Images: TeleGeography; Keynote SystemsIndianapolis’ convention infrastructure will get a supreme test in early August as the annual Gen Con convention invades the city. With the number of Gen Con exhibitors growing 26 percent this year—to a record 518—the massive gaming confab will for the first time overflow into Lucas Oil Stadium, which sits a half block and across South Street from the Indiana Convention Center. It’s the biggest and arguably highest-profile convention to use the stadium and convention center since the latter’s 2011 expansion—and others are watching to see how it works. Locklear Locklear “When a convention of that size does something, people in the event business take notice,” said Debbie Locklear, president of Meeting Services Unlimited Inc., an Indianapolis-based meeting and convention planning firm. Gen Con is the first city-wide convention to use the stadium primarily for its exhibit and meeting space, not for its high ceilings and large seating capacity. That’s an important distinction for event organizers looking to merely grow their exhibit and meeting footprint. Until now, several meeting planners told IBJ, it’s not been proven that the stadium can function in that capacity, primarily because visitors need to cross the street or use an underground corridor to reach it. Gen Con officials said they’ll use about 60,000 square feet of the stadium, which represents a more than 10 percent expansion for the fast-growing event, held Aug. 4-7 this year. If the Gen Con expansion is a success, Visit Indy officials think that could help them bring in more conventions currently limited by the size of the 566,600-square-foot convention center, which is in the top 25 nationally but considerably smaller than those in Orlando, Las Vegas and Chicago. Gahl Gahl “The addition of Lucas Oil Stadium no doubt gives us an edge,” said Visit Indy Vice President Chris Gahl. “We think Gen Con’s activation of the stadium gives us another example to spark interest among convention and meeting planners.” Gen Con will hold its popular True Dungeon large-scale role-playing game in the stadium’s exhibit halls. “Gen Con 2016 also will feature our Anime and Animation program at Lucas Oil Stadium,” said Jake Theis, Gen Con LLC senior marketing manager. “This includes screenings of movies, panels, seminars and cosplay events.” Theis Theis What Gen Con does in the connector to the stadium is just as important as what it does in the stadium itself, meeting planners said. “You need to activate that corridor space, have something in there that draws people in,” said Blue Janis, a Cleveland-based meeting planner. “Otherwise, exhibitors, especially smaller ones, will be hesitant to locate there.” Visit Indy and Gen Con have talked about a stadium expansion for more than two years, and Gen Con officials are still finalizing plans for the connector. But those plans will include 25-cent, classic arcade games lining the pedestrian walkway, Theis said. The Indiana Convention Center is one of only three nationwide attached to a stadium. The other two are in Atlanta and St. Louis. Lucas Oil Stadium is considerably farther from the convention center exhibit space than was its predecessor, the RCA Dome. But the dome was demolished to make way for the convention center’s latest expansion directly south. Gahl pointed out that it’s no farther from the JW Marriott to the convention center’s exhibit halls than it is from those same exhibit halls to the stadium, and the additional 182,510 square feet in the stadium could help Indy better battle for more and bigger conventions and trade shows. Using the stadium A small handful of other conventions have used both the convention center and stadium, including one of Locklear’s clients, Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association, and the Fire Department Instructors Conference and National Rifle Association show. But Gen Con is using the stadium only for its exhibit halls and meeting space. In contrast, the FDIC show used the stadium floor for large equipment and ladder truck extensions and the NRA used it for large gatherings and concerts. “When you’re talking about using a stadium as an adjunct to your convention center, it’s not ideal,” said Heywood Sanders, a University of Texas at San Antonio professor whose book “Convention Center Follies” takes a critical look at the boom in convention center construction. “It can be seen as remote and difficult to find for attendees. Exhibitors don’t like to be in that space for that reason.” And while it’s good that the convention center is as close to the stadium as the JW Marriott, Sanders said, the problem is “combining the distances.” “That makes it a long trek for someone going from [the JW] to the stadium [who] may also want to visit the convention center exhibit halls,” Sanders said. A national meeting planner who has organized a large convention in Indianapolis in the last five years said his group and others have been reluctant to move into the stadium. “We didn’t think it would work. It was just too remote,” he said. “
bundles for German (thanks to Moritz Heidkamp) and Italian (thanks to Derrell Piper); timed-resource version 1.0.1 improves error signalling. Our new contributor Alan Post has created another two eggs to further develop the foundations of Lojbanistan: jbogenturfa'i, a parser for the Lojban language based on his recently contributed genturfa'i packrat parser as well as kiksispe'i, an implementation of the game "Where Are Your Keys?" for Lojban. Both eggs are yet to be implemented though. Felix Winkelmann tagged version 1.2 of pstk which merely removes the dependency on posix. He also ported yet another extension from Scheme Now!, namely showdigest. Moritz Heidkamp released version 0.0.4 of the zmq egg in which a few critical problems which could lead to memory leaks and race conditions were fixed. Based on that, he contributed a new egg named remote-mailbox-threads which adds the ability to send messages to mailbox-threads via ZeroMQ sockets (e.g. TCP, named pipes etc.). 2. Yolklore As you may have read on our mailing lists, a small team of chicken enthusiasts has been present at T-DOSE, a small and nice convention of open source activists in Eindhoven, NL. Peter Bex, Felix, Christian Kellermann, Moritz and Jim Ursetto made it to Eindhoven. Our special thanks goes to Jim and his family for hopping over the Atlantic Ocean to be with us! We spent the weekend there answering questions about Chicken Scheme, Scheme, Lisp And Lisp-like languages in general. There we covered the full range from novice to detailed technical questions. All in all it was a great opportunity to tell the Chicken Story. Some evidence has been put in the gallery. During the preparations of the event Mario Goulart, Felix and Peter set up a demonstration directory containig small programs which made it easy for us to show running Chicken code. In addition to that Peter and Christian created a small leaflet providing an overview of Chicken Scheme. You are invited to reuse this for your local user groups! We would like to thank Conrad Barski for the kind permission to use his drawings for that. 3. Chicken Talk Mario pointed out on chicken-hackers that umask support is missing in the chicken posix unit. This is the first time to test our proposed "change request" procedure. As Hugo Arregui found out locales other than "C" might cause problems with srfi-19. This resulted in an ongoing effort to update srfi-19 localisations. Thanks for that! Matthew Welland asked for people interested in writing an extension to the clutter gui library. As Ivan Raikov and Felix Winkelmann point out adding a different backend to fps would be another interesting way to scratch this often felt itch. 4. Omelette Recipes Today we would like to present to you the handy autocompile egg. It pretty much does what the name indicates: Compile your programs automatically. This is useful for helper programs and little scripts since you don't have to bother calling csc yourself or even create a Makefile but still get the improved performance of a compiled program (except for the first run) and, as a bonus, you can use the FFI. On top of that, it's super easy to use: The egg installs a program named chicken-scheme which you use instead of csi. For example: ( ( foreign-lambda int printf c-string ) ( string-append ( car ( command-line-args ) ) " " ) ) Now run it like this: chicken-scheme printf.scm hello And it will print hello. What happened now is that chicken-scheme compiles the program to a file in a cache directory inside your $HOME by default (run chicken-scheme -cache to get the actual path that is used). The file's name will be a checksum of the program source which is calculated before every run, so subsequent runs will re-use the existing binary in the cache directory. If the source has changed, it will just re-compile it. Note that it doesn't remove old cached versions so be sure to have an eye on that directory. To clean the cache run chicken-scheme -purge. There are a few environment variables which influence chicken-scheme's behavior. See the egg documentation for details. So go ahead, install autocompile right away and start using it in your shebang lines! 5. About the Chicken Gazette The Gazette is produced weekly by a volunteer from the Chicken community. The latest issue can be found at http://gazette.call-cc.org or you can follow it in your feed reader at http://gazette.call-cc.org/feed.atom. If you'd like to write an issue, check out the instructions and come and find us in #chicken on Freenode!The Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery on Tuesday night removed a piece of video art, A Fire in My Belly by the late artist David Wojnarowicz, which contains a crucifix with ants crawling on it and intermingles LGBT themes with Christianity, after complaints from Catholic groups and conservative politicians. Representative John Boehner, Speaker of the House as of January 3, and Representative Eric Cantor, who will be the second-ranking member of House GOP leadership, encouraged the removal of the video, and the two are now encouraging the Smithsonian to remove the entire exhibit. The Catholic website CNSNews first brought the exhibit to Boehner and Cantor’s attention. Some things the politicians could have done: (a) Not commented. (b) Said it isn’t necessarily within their jurisdiction as lawmakers to do anything about it. (c) Said they wouldn’t personally hang the images in their own homes, but this is someone else’s work, and it’s art, so to each their own. (d) Said they have an economy to fix, a WikiLeak to plug, and a Korean crisis on their hands, so maybe they’ll deal with the LGBT-themed Jesus statue later. But why would Boehner do any of that when he could issue this statement? Cantor’s rep said: Some conservative politicians are now considering investigating the Smithsonian’s funding and artwork choices: TBD reported: National Portrait Gallery director Martin Sullivan said: A spokeswoman for the Smithsonian noted that federal funding is not used to specifically pay for exhibits, only infrastructure, curating, and staff. This has, of course, all happened before with provocative use of religious imagery, with the Andres Serrano work Piss Christ in 1987, and the Brooklyn Museum’s “Sensation” exhibit, which drew fire from then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani for a piece that combined the Virgin Mary and elephant dung. But Boehner is pushing for the removal of the entire “Hide/Seek” exhibit, which the National Portrait Gallery describes as “the first major museum exhibition to focus on sexual difference in the making of modern American portraiture.” Think Progress notes: “It appears that a celebration of anything LGBT-related cannot exist without inciting right-wing backlash.” So, the new congressional session should be fun. Just hide your Hockneys and Warhols. They’re apparently dangerous. [This post has been updated for clarity and to include additional information.] Smithsonian Museum Removes An LGBT Art Exhibit After GOP Threatens To Defund It [Think Progress] Boehner and Cantor to Smithsonian: Pull Exhibit Featuring Ant-Covered Jesus or Else [CNSNews via Gawker] Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery removes artwork in response to conservative anger over GLBT exhibition [TBD] Smithsonian Removes Video After Group Complains [ABC News]Yours for a mere £2,899 (Picture: eBay) Parents desperate to please their Disney-loving offspring are paying lots of cold hard cash for Frozen merchandise online. A shortage of official dolls and other items has driven up demand on eBay, where one limited edition set of dolls is listed for a massive £2,899, almost six times the Harrods retail price of £500. Other must-have items, such as tiaras and even supermarket back-to-school sets are regularly selling for double the retail price. Mumsnet users have even taking to swapping tips and information in an attempt to get their hands on the goods, clearly not taking the films advice to Let it Gooooooooo. At that price, we would hope the P&P is free (Picture: eBay) In America Disney has been forced to impose quotas, only allowing shoppers to add one Frozen item to their online shopping basket. Mike Stagg, general manager of Disney’s UK retail division, said: “The popularity of Frozen has been phenomenal. Stock is being replenished at at stores on a regular basis but demand continuous to be incredibly high.” Frozen is the highest grossing animated film ever and the tenth highest grossing film of all time, taking almost £650m at the box office.Statutes of William The Conqueror (Stubbs' "Charters," p. 83-85.) Here is shown what William the king of the English, together With his princes, has established since the Conquest of England. 1. Firstly that, above all things, he wishes one God to lie venerated throughout his whole kingdom, one faith of Christ always to be kept inviolate, peace and security to be observed between the English and the Normans. 2. We decree also that every free man shall affirm by compact and an oath that, within and without England, he desires to be faithful to king William, to preserve with him his lands and his honour with all fidelity, and first to defend him against his enemies. 3. I will, moreover, that all the men whom I have brought with me, or who have come after me, shall be in my peace and quiet. And if one of them shall be slain, the lord of his murderer shall seize him within five days, if he can; but if not, he shall begin to pay to me forty six marks of silver as long as his possessions shall hold out. But when the possessions of the lord of that man are at an end the whole hundred in which the slaying took place shall pay in common what remains. 4. And every Frenchman who, in the time of my relative king Edward, was a sharer in England of the customs of the English, shall pay according to the law of the English what they themselves call "onhlote" and "anscote." This decree has been confirmed in the city of Gloucester. 5. We forbid also that any live cattle be sold or bought for money except within the cities, and this before three faithful witnesses; nor even anything old without a surety and warrant. But if he do otherwise he shall pay, and shall afterwards pay a fine. 6. It was also decreed there that if a Frenchman summon an Englishman for perjury or murder, theft, homicide, or " ran"-as the English call evident rape which can not be denied-the Englishman shall defend himself as he prefers, either through the ordeal of iron, or through wager of battle. But if the Englishman be infirm he shall find another who will do it for him. If one of them shall be vanquished he shall pay a fine of forty shillings to the king. If an Englishman summon a Frenchman, and be unwilling to prove his charge by judgment or by wager of battle, I will, nevertheless, that the Frenchman purge himself by an informal oath. 7. This also I command and will, that all shall hold and keep the law of Edward the king with regard to their lands, and with regard to all their possessions, those provisions being added which I have made for the utility of the English people. 8. Every man who wishes to be considered a freeman shall have a surety, that his surety may hold him and hand him over to justice if he offend in any way. And if any such one escape, his sureties shall see to it that, without making difficulties, they pay what is charged against him, and that they clear themselves of having known of any fraud in the matter of his escape. The hundred and county shall be made to answer as our predecessors decreed. And those that ought of right to come, and are unwilling to appear, shall be summoned once; and if a second time they are unwilling to appear, one ox shall be taken from them and they shall be summoned a third time. And if they do not come the third time, another ox shall be taken: but if they do not come the fourth time there shall be forfeited from the goods of that man who was unwilling to come, the extent of the charge against him,-" ceapgeld" as it is called,-and besides this a fine to the king. 9. I forbid any one to sell a man beyond the limits of the country, under penalty of a fine in full to me. 10. I forbid that any one be killed or hung for any fault but his eyes shall be torn out or his testicles cut off. And this command shall not be violated under penalty of a fine in full to me. Henderson's Note The laws of William the Conqueror, is probably the sum and substance of all the enactments made by that sovereign. Especially interesting are the reference in ยง 6 to the wager of battle-the first mention of that institution in English law-and the law against capital punishment in ยง 10.You ran in to them in solo match making, you played them, and you were pwned by them. Now get to know them – your fellow players from our BLC community. Learn some useful advice and some fun facts about the ppl you bump into in game. Tell us about yourself! – I come from Sweden and I started playing BLC back in 2011. I like to play BLC most of the time What’s your favorite bloodline? – My favorite Bloodline is Stalker Describe your trickiest Stalker combo. – M2>Space>EX1>Meteor>M1>Frostshard>M1 What advice would you give to players just starting out? – Just be patient and learn from your mistakes. You are the one taking yourself to the top tier and no one else (if that’s your goal) Any final comments before we kill you finish up? – I want to give a shout out to Gazhag! Where are you from? When did you start playing BLC? – I’m from Sweden (or India, according to most others) from a very pretty city called Karlstad. I started playing BLC during closed beta, like Spring 2010, (thanks to) a friend having a beta invite…! I used to play at least 3-4 hours a day, now one hour+ depending on if it’s Sunday or not. Tell us about yourself! – My name is Carl Carlton Carlsson, or so I wish – one of the three is correct. I’ll turn 17 on September 9th. I’ll bait you and outsmart you. Used to play a bunch of Pokemon when I was younger (Pokemon Ruby with like 400 hrs play time), used to cable-link with my cousin and Poke-rape him. I quickly realised that pokemon is a game that requires too little skill, so I moved onto mashing buttons in Super Smash Bros and played through Ocarina of time like 21 times when I was eight (also played through World of Warcraft and Dota). Fast forward 9 years and poof, I’m radiating an aura of swag. What’s your favorite Bloodline? – Metal Warden, I guess. Describe your trickiest bloodline combo. – Couldn’t find words to describe it, so I drew it instead. Quickly draw a picture of your coolest moment in BLC. What advice would you give to players just starting out? – Don’t give up until you have at least 50 wins – preferably not at that point either. The game becomes more fun when you learn the basics. I’d say it takes about 250-300 games before you actually understand the depth of the game. Don’t play what others want you to play, just make your own stay as fun as possible :] Any final comments before we have you deported finish up? – I wanna give a shout out to my dog Winston. Lothars is a BLC vet who’s allergic to chicken and finds curry disgusting. Check out his stream at http://twitch.tv/lothars1.A real-life Kermit the Frog was discovered in Costa Rica >> http://t.co/qO2f4ZTKUY pic.twitter.com/twPZMmqhCo — Discovery (@Discovery) April 21, 2015 A new glass frog species that bears an uncanny resemblance to Kermit the Frog was discovered by scientists in Costa Rica, the Costa Rican Amphibian Research Center announced earlier this week. While glass frogs are typically green, this species is unique in that it is uniformly lime green and has a distinctive DNA structure and tinny high-pitched mating call. Researcher Brian Kubicki, along with Stanley Salazar and Robert Puschendorf, found six specimens of the amphibians in three separate locations in the Talamanca Mountain Range on the Costa Rica-Panama border. They named the new species Hyalinobatrachium dianae (Diane’s Bare-hearted glass frog), in honor of Kubicki’s mother, Janet Diane, and wrote about the discovery in the February issue of Zootaxa. The semitransparent glass frog, whose internal organs are easily seen, is common to the rainforests of Central and South America. This is the first time since 1973 that a new species has been discovered in Costa Rica, according to National Geographic. As a result of the latest discovery, there are now 14 types of glass frogs in Costa Rica and 149 worldwide. As the internet reacted to the Kermit look-alike, Disney released an official Q&A with the Muppet, in which Kermit responded to a range of questions about his amphibious doppelganger: Is it true that you may be related? Yes, we’re cousins. In fact, I’m related to every single frog in the world, and I’m close to most toads, too. The reason this new frog looks so much like me is that her mother and my mother are sisters. It’s a family resemblance. Googly eyes run in our family. Read more from the Kermit Q&A here.The 30-minute promise for telephone orders had been in effect since 1984, serving as the backbone of Domino's rapid growth into the largest pizza-delivery company in the country. Until 1986, a late-arriving pizza was left at no cost to the customer. Since then, customers have been given $3 off their orders. While the pizza deliverers have been the source of the company's legal problems, Domino's executives said the key to meeting the 30-minute promise was how quickly the orders were taken, pizzas were made and orders were completed. No Penalty for Lateness As the anchor leg of the relay team, the delivery person was never charged by the company for late deliveries, said Tim McIntyre, a spokesman for the company, which is based in Ann Arbor, Mich. In fact, any pizza that had not left the store within 25 minutes of the placement of the order was automatically marked "late," he said, and delivered with the appropriate price adjustment. In the latest of a series of lawsuits against the privately owned company, Jean Kinder, a 49-year-old St. Louis woman, suffered head and spinal injuries when a Domino's delivery driver ran a red light and struck her car. The Missouri circuit court jury on Friday ordered the company and the local franchise operator involved to pay her $750,000 in actual damages, and $78 million in punitive damages. The change in policy by Domino's could have a profound impact on the way the company does business, and ultimately on its sales. Unlike Pizza Hut, a subsidiary of Pepsico Inc. that operates 4,443 carry-out units among its 7,800 United States restaurants, Domino's depends largely on delivery services. The company said it expected to report about $2.3 billion in sales this year. Rivals Could Benefit Newsletter Sign Up Continue reading the main story Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up You will receive emails containing news content, updates and promotions from The New York Times. You may opt-out at any time. You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. Thank you for subscribing. An error has occurred. Please try again later. View all New York Times newsletters. While it periodically altered or expanded its menu, Domino's biggest selling point was speed of delivery, aided in recent years by computer listings of customers by phone numbers, to track their names, addresses and preferences for regular pizza or thin-crusted, green olives or black, diet cola or regular. The difference between ringing the doorbell within 30 minutes instead of, perhaps, within 35 may sound small. Marketing experts contend, however, that canceling the guarantee may send consumers to other pizza delivery companies, like Little Caesars, or to neighborhood Chinese restaurants. "It's one of those things that is difficult to define," George Thompson, a restaurant chain analyst with Prudential Securities, said of the potential impact on Domino's sales. "But the point is, it's not great. With a major competitor like Pizza Hut, where the quality is very good, service becomes an important factor. With Domino's, the fact they built their business by delivering in a timely fashion is also important. Now they will not be able to deliver so timely. Advertisement Continue reading the main story "In general," Mr. Thompson added, "that could be a negative perception." A negative perception might also be building as a result of the lawsuits against Domino's for accidents involving delivery people, all of whom use their personal means of conveyance for the job. Suits and Settlements In May, the company agreed to a settlement of $2.8 million with the family of Susan Wauchop, a 41-year-old woman from Calumet City, Ill., who was struck and killed in her van three years earlier by a Domino's delivery driver. The plaintiffs charged that the driver was negligent in trying to arrive within the promised time. In August, Matthew D. Jacks, a 19-year-old man from Lewiston, Me., sued Domino's, contending he was struck by a driver in March, causing injuries to his pelvis, knee and thumb. Other cases, including one six months ago in West Virginia, ended in Domino's favor when the plaintiffs' claims against the company were rejected. Despite the scores of lawsuits against the company since the 1980's, Mr. Monaghan, the sole owner of Domino's, took issue with the notion that the accidents might reflect the possibility that the company had relaxed its emphasis on safety. "Domino's has always been committed to safety," he said in a statement issued by the company. "But there continues to be a perception -- a perception I believe is not supported by the facts -- that the guarantee is unsafe. We got that message loud and clear. So, we are eliminating the element that creates that negative perception."The RNC reported a flurry of grassroots donations last month. | REUTERS DNC edges RNC in Sept. fundraising The Democratic National Committee has narrowly edged its Republican rival in fundraising for the first time all year. In a Sunday release, the Republican National Committee reported raising $7.1 million in September. Democrats on Friday reported a cash haul of nearly $7.4 million in September, while finishing the month with more than $5 million on hand. Story Continued Below The close of the September fundraising period for both parties coincided with the run-up to the October shutdown — a time where candidates and party committees on both sides used the looming fight over spending to tap their grassroots base. ( Also on POLITICO: House tea partiers snub GOP in 2014) RNC chairman Reince Priebus said the September cash haul ensures that the party will remain competitive across the country. “It’s because of the strong support of our donors that we are able to build a permanent ground operation and ensure a year-round presence in communities all across America,” Priebus said in a statement. The RNC reported a flurry of grassroots donations last month — with 99 percent of its cash haul coming in donations less than $200. The average contribution to the RNC in September was $56. ( PHOTOS: Senators up for election in 2014) Though the DNC edged out the RNC last month, the GOP’s presidential arm has posted consistently strong fundraising numbers all year while the DNC has lagged behind. The DNC still has $17.5 million in debt left over from the 2012 cycle — while the RNC is entirely debt-free. That debt is down slightly from the $21 million the DNC had at the end of 2012. On the year, the RNC has raised about $60.9 million — against the $47 million posted by the Democratic Party. ( PHOTOS: Governors’ offices up for grabs in 2014) Though fundraising in a non-election year typically lags, the Democrats have been in their worst off-year fundraising drought since major changes to campaign finance law went into effect. According to a POLITICO analysis in August, the party’s fundraising is well off pace for even a typical off-election year. Follow @politicoDirector Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz, which first debuted in theaters way back in 1939, is one of the next films slated for 3D conversion, according to Cinema Blend. In order to celebrate 90 years of motion picture bliss, the masterminds at Warner Bros. have put together a number of money-making packages designed to take advantage of the anniversary. For those who love classic movies and 3D technology, your day just got significantly brighter. While Dorothy and her colorful companions in The Wizard of Oz are currently on-deck to receive some 3D love at the studio, a release date has not been set as of this writing. In addition to yet another version of the film on home video, the classic tale of a young girl’s adventure through a strange and magical world will also receive a limited theatrical run prior to its retail re-release. Expect the title to arrive sometime in 2013. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Wizard of Oz 3D conversion isn’t the only special edition Warner Bros. is preparing to unleash on Blu-ray. The company is also plotting to release a Clint Eastwood-oriented 40-film retrospective, a set the studio refers to as “the largest film collection devoted to an actor and director in the history of the business.” Although the Clint Eastwood and Wizard of Oz special edition Blu-ray packages are sure to be a hit with movie buffs around the globe, the Warner Bros. 90th anniversary celebration doesn’t stop there. In addition to a handful of DVDs sets centered around various genres and award-winners, the studio also plans to release several Blu-ray gangster collections, a James Dean box set, and a handful of packages devoted to animation. For hardcore movie buffs, Warner Bros. is also coughing up 100-film DVD sets and a few 50-film Blu-ray collections. If you need to fill several holes in your personal collection, here’s a fantastic albeit pricey way to accomplish your mission. Are you excited about The Wizard Oz’s impending 3D conversion?Good news for Oracle Database Developers! Oracle Database examples have now been consolidated into a single GitHub repository: github.com/oracle/oracle-db-examples. Regardless whether you develop in JavaScript, Python, Java,.NET, or whether you want to learn how to unleash the power of SQL, regardless whether you are a beginner or advanced database developer, this repository will have something for each of you. In a true open source collaboration effort, this repository is going to be maintained and grown by Oracle’s subject matter expertsand driver developers, who are also here for you to help. Feel free to fork the repo, ask questions or highlight issues on GitHub and, of course give us a star! Several of the SQL examples you will find in this repository are also available for you to run in LiveSQL.oracle.com, a pure web-based scratch pad for you to run SQL and PL/SQL, and to learn what Oracle Database can offer. Or, if you rather prefer an environment of your own, you can head over to cloud.oracle.com/tryit and sign up for an account with $300 free credit and run your own Oracle Database in the Oracle Cloud.Gainesville resident Barbara J. Phillips had a score to settle with Rev. Ronald Kuykendall of St. Andrews Church. The 40-year-old homeless woman accused Kuykendall of attacking her mind “via the spirit realm,” reports Gainesville.com. She retaliated by smearing excrement on the front door and door handles of the church building. She also turned the power off and left fingernails at the scene. She also reportedly wrote used a permanent marker to write about the “patriarchy,” “misogyny and sexism” and “bad spirit towards me” on the pillars outside. RELATED: When police were notified of a shoplifting incident at Walmart, it was Batman who answered the call Two people who arrived at the church just after Phillips’ vandalism said that they saw her gray Prius drive away from the area just as they arrived. Phillips’ vandalism was linked to the vandalism of an officer’s patrol car and house, which was said to have been attacked in a similar manner. The passenger mirror on the officer’s car was broken, the tires deflated and fingernails were left at the scene. A report also said that someone threw his welcome post into the street and broke his air-conditioning unit. An officer wrote in the report that Phillips was “fully aware of what right and wrong is, but she also appears to be suffering from some mental health problems.” Phillips was charged with “stalking, criminal mischief and damaging church property.”Baahubali 2: Why Bollywood can't make a film like Rajamouli's magnum opus No one from Bollywood made quite as much noise as Ram Gopal Verma before the release of Bahubali 2. RGV might be a pale imitation of past glory and razor sharp wit, but his comment on Bahubali 2 was telling. “Like world was divided into BC and AD (before death of Christ and after) Indian cinema is going to be BB and AB (before Bahubali and after),” was his post on Twitter and that said it all. Like world was divided into BC and AD (before death of Christ nd after ) Indian cinema is going to be BB and AB(before Bahubali and after) — Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 28, 2017 A tsunami of box office business was expected with the sequel’s release. It hit right on time and created an avalanche. Both in domestic and international movie theatres, Bahubali 2 devoured records set by Khans and Akshay Kumar over time. The combined might of Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Sathyaraj and SS Rajamouli ensured that Tom Hanks’s latest The Circle was trumped at the box office. (Source: IMDB, Bahubali 2 -$10.1 M, The Circle –$ 9.3 M). And the irony of it all is that the Hindi dub of Bahubali 2 has amassed Rs 100 crore in the opening weekend. In more ways than one, the Mahishmati mythical saga has put in question accepted facts and standards of Hindi cinema’s power brokers. Steadily and silently, a produce of regional cinema, often considered limiting in appeal, tore down myths of Bollywood’s business, also dismissing the holy grail of festival release dates and star flicks. So what is it about Bahubali that sets it apart from Bollywood? Is it scale, size, magnificence? How has this Non-Hindi film smashed all records made and held sacred by Hindi cinema? The answer lies beyond the wizardry and VFX. It rests in terms we all learnt at school. The key to success — single-minded dedication and love for cinema Rana Daggubati aka Bhallaldeva had mentioned during the film’s Hindi trailer launch that he was once told by a renowned Bollywood producer that the dedication and focus Prabhas and he gave to SS Rajamouli’s project for five years is something that’s unimaginable in Bollywood. Not for once did the actors associated with the film think about their career if this film failed at the box office. Nor did they measure the revenues lost or years spent telling just one story. Rajamouli dreamt of this mega film in 2011 and gave it six years of his life. One is yet to come across such an instance in Bollywood. The makers of Baahubali deserve nothing less than a salute for peeping into the future and pumping in 430 cr into this colossal project. The pre-production work, which took more than a year, witnessed the making of a whole new language (reminiscent of Avatar by James Cameron), original weapon design and a powerful central role for women smartly in sync with contemporary times. Any such act by a Bollywood producer would be unthinkable. In 2015, Karan Johar who presents the film in Hindi prophesied before the film’s release, “Bahubali is something that Hindi cinema has not witnessed before.” Perhaps that’s why he bet his money on this film and Hindi cinema audiences lapped it up. For four years, Prabhas, who plays the title role of Baahubali, lived and travelled like Bahubali, was restricted from cutting his hair and followed a regimen that included dozens of eggs everyday with rigorous training sessions punctuated with broken bones and a surgery. Daggubati let Prabhas play the god like good guy, even as he bulked up to look menacing and mean; staying that way for years. Egos made way for teamwork, and boy, has that paid off Now, picture this — Ranveer Singh and Ranbir Kapoor, the two reigning stars of this generation — cast together in one mega flick. Imagine them assigning three years to one film. I can't. With endorsements, dates for ad shoots, magazine covers and the occasional paid (or unpaid) performances, three years for one film would be viewed as loss of revenue. If not actors themselves, retinues surrounding them would definitely prioritise the economics of stardom over art. The witty and subtly powerful Karan Johar might have united Ranbir and Ranveer on the couch, but even he will be hard pressed to cast them together in a Bahubali like mega project in Hindi. In the current crop, competition is stiff, public image is key and making hay while the sun shines is gospel. So sharing screen space is not a favorable option. Singh and Kapoor are still actors who push the envelope with their cinema (Bajirao Mastani and Barfi! stand testimony to that). It’s more common to plan a film signing around potential future endorsements and revenue making opportunities for this generation’s stars. That a film, in its magnificence, can be reward enough, is not a predominant thought. Which is why, more often than not, younger movie stars are NOT part of films that you remember. Their highly visible faces might be popping out at you everywhere, but they aren’t in celluloid stories that you care to recall once you leave a theatre. Sholay and Lagaan as examples It’s been more than forty years and Sholay, the 1975 release, remains iconic. That Sholay still remains an iconic film is not because of the fact that Ramesh Sippy brought all the stars of that era under one roof or Salim-Javed penned a never-written-before script. One should not forget the fact that the entire cast made Ramnagar, on the outskirts of Bangalore, as their base for the entire schedule. It was single-minded focus to give their all and shun everything that came their way. A pregnant Jaya Bachchan shuffled to and fro between Mumbai (then Bombay) and Bengaluru (then Bangalore) airport. Not being the first choice for the film played on Amjad Khan’s mind and he was ready to give it all. Another instance that one can recall is Lagaan. Aamir Khan, with single-minded approach, said yes to a film that was rejected by Shah Rukh Khan. He then gathered his team, made Bhuj as his base and in the relentless weather, shot a film that took him to the Academy awards. He didn’t let logic and economics interfere with his vision and commitment to Lagaan. The dates factor Another key factor that dilutes the pursuit of excellence in Hindi cinema is the film industry’s obsession with dates. A suitable release date, one that will potentially maximise revenue, rules filmmaking decisions in Hindi cinema. Similarly, a movie star also maximises his/her revenue earning time by breaking up their workdays across different commitments. For instance, Shah Rukh Khan, whose brilliant acting skills have come back to the fore, squeezed in the indie like Dear Zindagi while shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s next. The superstar is also known to juggle commercial shoots and similar commitments amidst his film shoots. Dedicating bulk amounts of time to just one film is unheard of in Hindi cinema. Add to that, the pressure to ensure a film releases on a certain release date, and the entire machinery works on rushing towards it, making ‘adjustments’ that might not be conducive to the pursuit of excellence in filmmaking. Akshay Kumar, steamroller of a superstar, allotted about 35 days to make Jolly LLB 2; his entire life is planned around his date calendar. Imagine how much time must he be spending actually reading or prepping for a role. Contrast this, with Robot 2.0. Shankar has postponed its release from Diwali this year to ensure that the film’s visual effects do justice and compete with prevalent global standards. A Hindi film producer or studio might prefer to sacrifice quality in storytelling than give up a lucrative Diwali release date. But Rajnikanth and Shankar prefer not be burdened by the economics to this extent. Perhaps the only exception to segregated date calendars amongst Hindi cinema stars is Aamir Khan, but a release date is of significant importance to him too. Is the camaraderie real? It’s about making a big buck, making it quick and hitting the big league. Which is why, camaraderie too, is limited to suitable photo ops like award shows and parties. When two stars do work together in a film they tend to walk on eggshells around each other, with high levels of competitive anxiety. Look at the huge coverage around Padmavati - seems like Ranveer and Shahid Kapoor are on everybody’s mind not for what they deliver onscreen, but on how much screen time each one gets. There was once a time when camaraderie amidst superstars delivered the goods for producers. Vinod Khanna, Shashi Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor have worked together successfully and become friends while filming. Such friendliness and focus on
After raising more than $ 150 million in its chip generation event, Bancor ICO released its first major update on its platform and its usefulness. The announcement includes substantial information regarding the adoption of the Bancor Blockchain protocol, as well as statistics on the number of tokens exchangeable via the Bancor system. To date, nine different tokens have been activated in the Bancor system and are available through Metamask, Mist and Parity. Tokens include GNO, ENJ and ETH, as well as the BNT token and others. More than 50 partners have also adopted the platform. This adoption generated more than $ 500 million in BNT token trades within the platform. Another apparent success of Tezos is particularly notable after the implosion of the Tezos platform, another major OIC. Tezos is currently involved in at least two class actions, and others could be. Bancor's announcement indicates a substantial adoption and a clearly growing business platform from which to build Bancor has already activated its token, launched its web application, integrated token review, and has now deployed its portable widget to allow users to buy and sell anywhere on the Internet. This feature alone protects users and allows them to convert tokens remotely. According to co-founder Galia Benartzi:The Republican National Committee unveiled its 'Rising Stars' program today, shining the spotlight on the next generation of Republican leaders. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus created the program in an effort to attract a wider range of voters by promoting new Republican individuals and talent within the party. Security Threat!? College Republicans Denied Entry to Obama Speech Tonight, two of those rising stars, Oklahoma Speaker of the House T.W. Shannon and Network of Enlightened Women founder Karin Agness, joined Hannity to discuss their platforms. Both agreed that ObamaCare needs to be defunded and that border security is priority in immigration reform. Shannon believes there’s a lack of leadership in Washington D.C. “If we’re going to turn things around in this country, we’re going to have to look to the state level.” He added, “If you listen to the liberal media, they will tell you and have you believe there aren’t people that look like me that hold conservative values. […] I didn’t learn [my conservative values] from some talking head, I learned them from my predominantly African American church.” Duck Dynasty's Willie Robertson Talks About His Political Future on The Five! Flag Controversy: Veterans Upset Over NJ SculptureFor many, the Amiga 500 remains one of the best gaming machines of all time. It has a staggering arraay of games that cover all sorts of different genres, some cracking arcade conversions and a number of exclusive, groundbreaking games. It’s certainly been tough coming up with 10 games that define the machine, but we think we’ve done a pretty good job with the following. Don’t agree with us? Let us know in the comments section. Worms Released: 1995 You’d have thought that by 1995, ten years after the Amiga 1000’s launch, it had seen every one of its defining games already. Well, Andy Davidson and Yorkshire-based Team 17 obviously thought there was room for one more and the world agreed with them. Worms was an absolute sensation and went on to sell millions of copies across countless formats, sequels and spin-offs. It’s important to remember that the multiplayer strategy game began life on the Amiga, however, and was mostly a five year labour of love of just one man and a copy of Blitz Basic. And that was what was really great about the Amiga: it turned bedroom programmers into millionaires and created memorable franchises that endure for a lifetime. Can the same be said of the Xbox? We think not. Jimmy White’s Whirlwind Snooker Released: 1991 It may have been written by Retro Gamer’s ex-columnist, Archer Maclean, but there’s no favouritism here. Jimmy White’s Whirlwind Snooker deserves to be in the Perfect Ten because it was the first game to really make snooker work on a home computer and remains a damn good sports title to this day. The 3D graphics and accurate real-time physics on each of the balls made Whirlwind Snooker a landmark game that pushed the hardware further than most gamers thought possible. It’s arguable that the game has never been bettered, if not in its gameplay and graphics then definitely in its humour. Who can forget the cheeky faces the balls would pull if you didn’t take a shot? Another World Released: 1991 Defender Of The Crown and Shadow Of The Beast may be the two games that wowed consumers enough to buy an Amiga but they were both severely lacking in the gameplay department. Another World, on the other hand, had both incredible graphics and utterly gripping gameplay to match. Essentially an evolution of the Prince Of Persia style of game, Another World swapped sword fighting for laser guns and added a bunch of fiendishly tricky action puzzles. The game looked stunning too; the use of vector graphics was a stroke of genius that ensured that Another World looked light years ahead of any other game of the time. Erik recently returned to the limelight in 2011 when he released the God sim From Dust. Lemmings Released: 1991 What can be said about Lemmings that hasn’t been said before? It’s appeared on nearly every format known to man and is surely as much a household name as Tetris and Space Invaders. Sequels and updates continue to appear to this day and the little suicidal rodents show no sign of losing their popularity. Back in 1991, however, the release of Lemmings was a complete surprise. The concept was totally original and made for an instant hit. Its biggest achievement: the simple presentation and easy-to-use control system meant that anyone could pick up the game and play it. Lemmings had the whole family playing games together 15 years before the Nintendo Wii had even launched. It’s recently been seen on the Vita in the form of a rather poor touchscreen-based game. Speedball 2 Released: 1990 The recent news that a next-gen remake of Speedball 2 is in the works has had the Retro Gamer staff drooling uncontrollably into their coffee cups every morning since the game’s announcement. Why, you may ask? Because the original Amiga game was sheer digital perfection, the likes of which had never been seen before, or since. Oozing style from the Bitmaps’ trademark metallic visuals to the cries of “Ice Cream!, Ice Cream!”, Speedball 2’s greatest triumph was its imaginative rule set and peerless two-player gameplay. Many Amiga owners must remember whiling away the hours with a friend and probably do so to this day. A finer sports game it is impossible to find, in the past or present. It’s so good, in fact, that we wish it was a real sport. We’d be too scared to play it mind… The Secret Of Monkey Island Released: 1991 The Amiga’s incredible graphical capabilities and standard mouse controller made it a perfect machine for point-and-click adventures and there were plenty of them made over the years. Picking out a favourite is an incredibly difficult task but as The Secret Of Monkey Island will have been the first adventure that many of us actually played on the Amiga, we have to go for that. Using an enhanced version of the SCUMM engine from Maniac Mansion, The Secret of Monkey Island looked great and featured plenty of brilliant puzzles. But it was the insane humour that really set it apart from the competition. The world would be a much duller place without Insult Sword fighting now wouldn’t it? LucasArts thought so to, releasing a cool special edition version before it finally closed its doors. Alien Breed Released: 1991 With only one previous title, the beat-em-up, Full Contact, to its name, few expected much from ex-PD codeshop Team 17 with its second title. That is until Alien Breed made its stunning debut and sent jaws hurtling towards the floor, up and down the country. One of the first Amiga games to use a full 1MB of RAM, Alien Breed looked incredible back in the day and played even better. Basically a sci-fi version of Gauntlet with a great two-player mode, tons of cool weapons and even sampled speech, Alien Breed set Team 17’s standard for creating top-quality arcade-style titles on the Amiga. Later sequels were technically better but none quite had the shocking impact of the original. No wonder its Special Edition spent a whopping 33 weeks in the budget charts. A trilogy was released on last gen systems, but sadly didn’t have the same impact. Sensible Soccer Released: 1992 Football games have been around for as long as games machines themselves and, over the years, have become much more realistic simulations of the sport as technology has improved. There’s one football game that managed to be extremely playable without being a simulation, however, and that game was the mighty Sensible Soccer. With the emphasis placed well and truly on the fun factor, Sensible Soccer was, for many gamers, the greatest football game of the Nineties and remains the superior choice to this day (although just as many prefer Sensible World of Soccer). There are still hundreds of people out there who kept hold of their Amigas just to play Sensible Soccer. Everyone else can play the superb Xbox Live Arcade version to see what all the fuss is about. Theme Park Released: 1994 Back in the early Nineties, resource management games were defined by one title alone: Will Wright’s highly influential Sim City. A truly brilliant game, Sim City’s only problem was that constant town planning wasn’t actually that much fun. The average sugar-fuelled kid needed something with a little more colour, something with fast-moving vehicles and something where little cartoon people throw up on screen. Those needs were answered by British coding legend Peter Molyneux and his ground breaking Theme Park. Designing stomach-churning rollercoasters was endless fun for the child in all of us, whilst adding extra salt to food in order to improve drinks sales appealed to the unscrupulous capitalist inside. The recent DS remake is well worth a look as well. Wings Released: 1990 You couldn’t ask for a more varied game than Cinemaware’s Wings. Not only did the World War I game feature isometric shooting sections and two-dimensional bombing runs but it also had a tasty three-dimensional dog-fighting mode that was way ahead of its time. It’s hard to believe that the game was made in 1990 as the 3D sections looked absolutely incredible and far in advance of anything that had appeared on consoles, PC or even the arcades at the time. Not just a graphical treat, Wings also had emotional impact and fully immersed you in its world. In between each level it would show pages of a diary, which told of the main character’s eerily realistic wartime experiences, provoking an emotional response in the player that is all too rare in retro and modern gaming alike. An update is due in the coming months, so keep an eye out for it. You can read the original article in issue 39. Buy it now from GreatDigitalMags.com Retro Gamer magazine and bookazines are available in print from ImagineShopX-Wing™ fans, get to your stations! Fantasy Flight Games is excited to announce that the first phase of the Coruscant™ Invitational voting has begun! The System Open Series is well underway and we hope that you will be able to join us at one of these major events and win some fantastic, exclusive prizes! We do understand that not everyone can make it and we want you to be able to join in on the fun! Over the next couple of months, you will be able to submit your mini-squads to us and help shape the Coruscant Invitational. The Last Piece of the Puzzle The Coruscant Invitational is the culmination of the System Open Series, created to celebrate the game of X-Wing and the amazing community that surrounds the game. The winners from each System Open will play in a tournament, using squads from each of the game’s three factions. These players will be competing for eternal glory and the chance to inspire a card that will be released in X-Wing’s future, but how they win will be determined by you! For the Coruscant Invitational, each competitor will bring a 77-point squadron of each faction. When they arrive, they will draft a mini-squad from each faction and add it to their squadron (for more information on this process, read our article on the Coruscant Invitational). Each faction will have eight mini-squads to choose from, each with only generic pilots and upgrades. One mini-squad for each faction will be designed and selected by you—our wonderful X-Wing community! Each mini-squad is built around a different ship, to showcase and include the variety that X-Wing is known for. We want you to create a 23 to 28 point mini-squad for each faction: the Rebels will equip the B-Wing, Imperials will be outfitting a TIE Advanced, and Scum will be rigging together the stalwart Y-Wing. Each of these ships carries options for a wide array of upgrades, which we hope will lead to some very interesting and creative mini-squads! Over the next week, you can submit your design for a mini-squad through Twitter, by following the instructions below. After a week of review, we will select four of our favorite mini-squads for each faction and place them into voting brackets. As we get closer to the Coruscant Invitational, the community will vote on their favorite mini-squads from our selections, until only one ship for each faction remains. These ships will be entered into the drafting pool for the competitors in the Coruscant Invitational and will see play from some of the most skilled X-Wing players from around the world! Submission Instructions In order to participate, you simply have to tweet what you would include in a mini-squad featuring the Rebel B-Wing, Imperial TIE Advanced or Scum Y-Wing, following these simple guidelines: Include #XWingVote2017 and @FFGOP in your tweet, so the community can easily find it. Don’t forget to follow @FFGOP! and @FFGOP in your tweet, so the community can easily find it. Don’t forget to follow @FFGOP! The pilot and upgrade cards you chose. Abbreviations are acceptable if necessary and understandable. Remember: In order to ensure squad legality for players, no unique pilots or upgrades can be used, and total points must be between 23 and 28. Attach a photo of your mini-squad’s ship, pilot card, and upgrade cards. We want to see some creative staging: use some tokens or other components to communicate visually how you see this mini-squad contributing to its player’s victory! Submit your idea for one of these three mini-squads now! After a week of submissions and a week of review, we will announce our favorites based on the components and photos. Then we will contact our chosen creators and place their mini-squads into a voting bracket, which the community will use to determine the winners over the coming months! The twelve creators of our selected mini-squads will receive an alternate back damage deck and an alternate art Darth Vader crew card from the 2017 System Open Series prizes! The mini-squad that comes out on top of each faction’s voting will earn another coveted prize for its creator: one of the Coruscant Invitational exclusive playmats given to the invitees! Submissions will be accepted through February 23, 2017 until 11:59 PM CST. Please make sure to follow the guidelines above. We will be retweeting some submissions with great photos, so we can’t wait to see what you come up with! Stay Tuned In Keep your comms open for updates from us on the System Open Voting! Over the course of the coming months, we will narrow down our favorite choices, give out some more prizes via Twitter, and show you what our esteemed panel members will be including in their mini-squads!The Oddworld staff have announced that Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty, the Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee remake, will be a cross-buy and cross-save game for PlayStation platforms. Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee was released in 1997 on PlayStation and Windows PC. The New ‘n’ Tasty remake will be available on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita for $29.99. According to developer Just Add Water, news regarding other platforms is still to come. The game won’t be out before E3 2014, but the developer plans to announce the release date before the convention starts on the 9th of June. “In the last few weeks we’ve evolved the way the creatures of New ‘n’ Tasty behave and interact – it’s now an altogether smarter, more exciting experience,” the post on Oddworld Inhabitants reads, in part. “We’ve tweaked and refined the level design to make the whole game flow better than it ever has and we’ve been pushing the cut-scenes to ensure that our rich storytelling remains very much at the forefront of it all.” “We know you, our biggest fans, are eager to play the game, and we’re doubly eager to share it with you — but we just need a few more weeks to get it exactly where we want it to be.” (via Polygon)Introduction If you’re to believe the Green Party of the United States‘ latest campaign finance disclosure, the party is mired in financial crisis, carrying nearly $36,000 in debt and a negative cash balance of more than $58,000. Not exactly a solid foundation for establishing yourself as a legit alternative to Republicans and Democrats. But wait, the Green Party says: its financial situation isn’t quite so bleak. Errors in the party’s previous reports to the Federal Election Commission are to blame, and in actuality, it’s in the black by about $10,000, party official Brian Bittner tells the Center for Public Integrity. “We are preparing to file several amendments over the next few weeks to correct those errors,” Bittner said. “We do have to continue filing timely reports even while we are working to amend them.” To be sure, the Green Party has never been cash rich. At the end of 2004, the Green Party reported nearly $46,000 cash on hand, while at the end of 2008, it reported more than $33,000 in debt and deficits. Green Party activists’ tepid financial support for their own party committee doesn’t mean they’re turning to other political vehicles, such as super PACs, to boost their electoral prospects, either. David Cobb, who was the Green Party’s presidential nominee in 2004, told the Center for Public Integrity last year that super PACs were being used to “drown out” the voices of ordinary citizens, and Jill Stein, the party’s 2012 presidential nominee, pushed for publicly financed elections — a system that she, unlike President Barack Obama or Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, participated in last year. Stein placed fourth in the election with about 470,000 votes nationwide, well behind Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson, who captured nearly 1.3 million votes. In contrast, Obama won nearly 66 million popular votes. Why is 2013 an important year for campaign finance? Dave Levinthal and Michael Beckel will answer that, and many other questions about the money-in-politics world in a live chat on Monday, Feb. 4, at 1 p.m. ET.Federal guidelines mandating that food assistance recipients find a job or lose their benefits kicked in last month for residents of 21 states, leaving as many as one million at risk of food insecurity—a result that owes no small debt to the welfare reform efforts of former President Bill Clinton's administration and Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) in the '90s. Federal guidelines mandating that food assistance recipients find a job or lose their benefits kicked in last month for residents of 21 states, leaving as many as one million at risk of food insecurity—a result that owes no small debt to the welfare reform efforts of former President Bill Clinton's administration and Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) in the '90s. NBC News / YouTube Federal guidelines mandating that food assistance recipients find a job or lose their benefits kicked in last month for residents of 21 states, leaving as many as one million at risk of food insecurity—a result that owes no small debt to the welfare reform efforts of former President Bill Clinton’s administration and Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) in the ’90s. Work requirements have been part of welfare programs for nearly two decades, but the high unemployment rates of the Great Recession led dozens of states to qualify for and accept a federal waiver from the mandates because there simply were not enough jobs available. Today, the economy has been improving, albeit slowly: In many states, able-bodied food stamp recipients without dependents will once again face work requirements to access food assistance as those waivers expire, or states choose not to accept them in part or whole. As Ben Mathis-Lilley pointed out at Slate, Bill Clinton and John Kasich worked together in the 1990s to lead the charge on the very welfare reform measure that stands to boot so many off of food stamps 20 years later. Bill Clinton ran for president in the early ’90s touting a welfare reform platform that aimed to “put an end to welfare as we know it” in the United States by mandating a work requirement for public assistance programs. “We’ll give them all the help they need for up to two years. But after that, if they’re able to work, they’ll have to take a job in the private sector, or start earning their way through community service,” Clinton promised. Get the facts, direct to your inbox. Subscribe to our daily or weekly digest. SUBSCRIBE In 1996, then-President Clinton followed through on that declaration, signing into law the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA)—a bill originally introduced by then-Ohio Congressman and current Republican presidential candidate Gov. Kasich. As Bill Clinton had promised, PRWORA established strict work requirements for those seeking to use welfare programs, such as food assistance. Under the new law, able-bodied adults without dependents could only use three months of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in three years, unless recipients worked, volunteered, or participated in education or career training programs for at least 80 hours per month. States with high unemployment were allowed to apply for a federal waiver of those rules. The measure was controversial enough that three senior officials resigned from the administration in protest of the law. “I have devoted the last 30-plus years to doing whatever I could to help in reducing poverty in America. I believe the recently enacted welfare bill goes in the opposite direction,” Peter B. Edelman, assistant secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, said of his resignation at the time. Analyses conducted by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) in 2001 on the impact of PRWORA confirmed what Edelman and other critics had suspected: that Clinton’s welfare reform measure had failed on many fronts. EPI’s analysis suggested that poverty had “not been reduced among the kinds of families most affected by welfare reform” and that although many former welfare recipients were working, they remained unable to move up the job ladder to improve their economic well-being. Nevertheless, on the campaign trail, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who helped lead the original push behind PRWORA in the ’90s, has pointed to his work to reform welfare as one of his “great accomplishments.” “This is one of those successes that when we get old and we’re all in our rocking chairs, we’re going to look back and say, ‘Thank God we were able to make America a little bit better,’” Kasich said of the law when it was passed. More recently, Kasich has again pointed to his work on the issue as a critical component of what qualifies him to be president. “What I tell people is yeah, I’ve been a reformer. I’ve been involved in more fights than you can imagine but with great accomplishments—whether it’s jobs, whether it’s welfare reform, fixing my own state—so I just tell them that these problems we have, they can be fixed, and people seem to be very positive and hopeful when they leave,” Kasich said during a Tuesday rally in New Hampshire, according to Politico. During his tenure as governor, Kasich has pushed to reinstate work requirements in much of Ohio, even as the state’s economy has been doing so poorly that it qualified for relief from the mandate in 2015. This comes as little surprise, given that while speaking on the House floor in 1996 in defense of his bill, Kasich claimed that requiring welfare users to work was only fair. The legislation “says, look, you have got to go to work; you have got to get trained. You cannot be on welfare forever,” he asserted. Kasich has faced much pushback for using the waivers inserted into PRWORA for states experiencing high unemployment rates unequally by only obtaining them for some regions of the state, a pattern critics say disproportionately harmed people of color. According to Mother Jones, despite having qualified for a full waiver in 2014, the Kasich administration only accepted a partial one: In 2014, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) had the option to waive time limits on food stamps for the entire state. Due to a struggling economy and high unemployment, Ohio had qualified for and accepted this statewide waiver from the US Department of Agriculture every year since 2007, including during most of Kasich’s first term as governor. But this time, Kasich rejected the waiver for the next two years in most of the state’s 88 counties. His administration did accept them for 16 counties in 2014 and for 17 counties in 2015. Most of these were rural counties with small and predominantly white populations. Urban counties and cities, most of which had high minority populations, did not get waivers. Kasich’s favored working requirements returned to the rest of the state, leaving many without the benefits they needed to be food secure. More than 10,000 Ohio residents lost food assistance in early 2014 after the work requirements were reinstated, according to the Columbus Dispatch. The decision led to stark disparity in who received food stamps in Ohio. In the 16 counties selected by Kasich, 95 percent of food stamp users were white, but before the policy, reports Mother Jones, the state’s overall percentage of white users was much lower, at 65 percent: “[S]ix months into the new system, the six counties with the highest rate of terminating food stamps for able-bodied, childless adults were all counties populated mostly by minorities.” Ohio’s lagging assistance policies may have contributed to its poor performance in ensuring its residents have proper access to food. Between 2012 and 2014, the state had a food insecurity rate of roughly 17 percent, higher than the national average of 14 percent, according to a September 2015 analysis conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Kasich’s presidential campaign website claims the “historic reforms to federal welfare programs” he helped accomplish are part of his platform for “lifting up the most vulnerable Americans.” Meanwhile, current Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton was a proponent of PRWORA during her husband’s administration, during her time as a senator, and as late as her 2008 presidential run. In 1999, Clinton lauded the welfare reform measure for helping push recipients to work. “It’s important to recognize, though, that simply passing a law requiring welfare recipients to find work would have failed to fulfill the President’s promise,” Clinton wrote of the law, according to BuzzFeed. “Too many of those on welfare had known nothing but dependency all their lives, and many would have found it difficult to make the transition to work on their own.” As a U.S. senator in 2002, Clinton again touted the role PRWORA had in pushing welfare recipients to work, claiming it was an effort to “substitute dignity for dependence” and that those who got jobs were “no longer deadbeats.” In her 2003 memoir Living History, Clinton again offered a defense of her husband’s welfare reform decision, noting that although it was “far from perfect” she had agreed that it should be passed and worked to make that happen after the president vetoed the first two proposed reform bills. “I agreed that he should sign it and worked hard to round up votes for its passage—though he and the legislation were roundly criticized by some liberals, advocacy groups for immigrants and most people who worked with the welfare system,” Clinton wrote. “I felt, on balance, that this was a historic opportunity to change a system oriented toward dependence to one that encouraged independence.” In 2008 while on the campaign trail, Clinton again fell back on familiar rhetoric. “Welfare should have been a temporary way station for people who needed immediate assistance,” Hillary Clinton said during an interview with the New York Times in which she discussed her husband’s welfare reform measure. “It should not be considered an anti-poverty program.” Research shows welfare programs like food assistance do help pull people out of poverty. Since then, Clinton hasn’t been as vocal on the issue, but in late 2013 she did bring up problems with food stamps during an interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters, seemingly referencing a federal budget battle that stood to cut food assistance benefits. “I think we should be looking at the work that we have today,” Clinton said at the time, explaining that focus should be on the issues that matter to voters, not on whether she would run for president. “Our unemployment rate is too high. We have people getting kicked off food stamps who are in terrible economic straits. Small business is not getting credit, I could go on and on, so I think we ought to pay attention to what’s happening right now.” In June 2015, Clinton again brought up food stamps. “No one who works an honest job in America should have to live in poverty,” the presidential candidate told a convention of fast-food workers in Detroit. “No man or woman who works hard to feed America’s families should have to be on food stamps to feed your own families.” Despite numerous think pieces and calls for Clinton to address her husband’s welfare reforms specifically, it does not appear that she has directly addressed the topic on the campaign trail during the 2016 race. When asked directly by Bloomberg in May 2015 about whether she would distance herself from her husband’s welfare overhaul, a spokesperson from Clinton’s campaign provided a statement claiming the candidate would address the issue “in the coming months”: Hillary Clinton has a long record fighting for everyday Americans and their families, and she is running to make sure all families are not only able to get ahead, but stay ahead. In the coming months she will discuss more details on her approach to addressing children and families living in poverty, including how best to support those families who rely on the safety net of welfare to temporarily keep their families afloat during the hardest of times, as well as other ideas to further strengthen families and help them move forward. Hillary Clinton’s campaign website does include a promise to “preserve, protect, and strengthen” Medicaid and Social Security, two other social safety-net programs, but does not reference the Clinton administration’s PRWORA reforms. Her economic platform instead names “raising incomes for hardworking Americans” as the “defining economic challenge of our time,” noting that “too many families are working harder and harder, but still not getting ahead.” She proposes doing so by providing tax relief for families, raising the minimum wage, and supporting equal pay policies, among other things. Clinton’s Democratic rival Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), has criticized Hillary Clinton’s past support of welfare reform policies, as well as the reforms themselves, but has also faced criticism for not adequately taking on the issue. Anti-poverty experts, however, suggest that the Clinton administration’s welfare reform measures are an issue Hillary Clinton needs to take on. “Welfare reform needs to be revisited,’’ Stephen Schneck, director of the Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies at Catholic University told Bloomberg. “I think Hillary needs to stand up and say, ‘My husband and the Republicans in the 90s really thought they’d put together a package that was going to fix welfare and poverty but didn’t fix either one.’ She needs to call America to the barricades in the struggle against deep poverty.’’Friends: Today we end nine years and tomorrow begin our tenth year of daily publication. I’ve been reading the very kind notes you’ve been sending along with your donations and am deeply grateful to all of you for your loyalty and encouragement over the years. As you know, we’re in a immense struggle, both in our society and in our Church – a struggle even worse than when we began in 2008. (By the way, I’ll be on EWTN again this evening at 8 PM ET – there are rebroadcasts and YouTube if you can’t tune in tonight – to talk with Raymond Arroyo and Fr. Gerald Murray about several recent developments in the Church.) Yet there are also hopeful signs and I write about one of the most hopeful in this column. Good and evil will be at war until the Second Coming. In the meantime, we all have to do our part. Mine is to call on you at this special moment to do yours, to make a financial contribution so that our special Thing may be even more present, more energetic, more effective in bringing Catholic truth to a world that is in turmoil for lack of it. – Robert Royal Last week, when the leader of the free world was (depending on which sources you paid attention to) either destroying America’s carefully constructed system of international alliances or shaking up the policy establishment at home and abroad to deal with the new world environment, something equally consequential – and more fundamental – took place, almost unnoticed, in Hungary. I’ve mentioned in passing several times in recent days that I spoke at the Eleventh World Congress for Families that has just finished in Budapest. But it’s difficult to convey what an inspiring and hopeful – and unexpected – event it was. We almost never hear about it, mired as we are in our political obsessions, but there are thousands of family and marriage activists and organizations at work around the world. Most of them were present in Budapest last week. And most important of all, outside of Western Europe, North America, and their offshoots in places like Australia and New Zealand, countries are not at all following the absurd and suicidal trends on marriage and children that we (falsely) believe have gripped the whole world. Hungary is a leading example in Europe itself. Prime Minister and former anti-Soviet dissident Viktor Orban has succeeded in starting to reverse the disastrous trends in marriage and births that Hungary, like Western Europe, had been showing for years. This has been the result partly of social commitment, partly of specific policies. The 2011 Hungarian Constitution, the first one adopted since it regained freedom after the fall of the Soviet Union, states this: Article L (1) Hungary shall protect the institution of marriage as the union of a man and a woman established by voluntary decision, and the family as the basis of the survival of the nation. Family ties shall be based on marriage and/or the relationship between parents and children. (2) Hungary shall encourage the commitment to have children. That may seem an empty gesture given the dominant culture of our international elites, but ten years ago, Hungary had a marriage rate of around 3.6 per thousand, the same as Southern European countries like Italy, Spain, and Portugal. Now it’s nearly 4.75, and steadily climbing. Similarly, the fertility rate in Hungary has gone from the same as Western Europe’s steep decline-and-fall up to around 1.45 – and appears to be heading towards the magic 2.1 needed for population stability. Such changes take time and the Hungarian government admits it won’t get to population stability until 2030. Meanwhile, a whole series of family friendly advantages have been built into the Hungarian system to encourage not only marriage, and then children, but families with three or more kids. Recovering healthy attitudes towards marriage and family is not impossible if a society recognizes that both are important to human well being and social stability – and the national government doesn’t go on an ideological crusade to destroy them. In fact, Hungary has pushed back against European Union efforts to expand gay “marriage,” by citing the EU Constitution: “The right to marry and the right to found a family shall be guaranteed in accordance with the national laws governing the exercise of these rights.” [Emphasis added.] Legal relations are always complex, of course, but the European Constitution, like the U.S. Constitution, gives the central government no jurisdiction over marriage and family. And it’s not only Hungary. The Slovak Republic amended its constitution in 2014 and defined marriage as Hungary has. And that was under a socialist government. In Poland, Article 18 of the Constitution reads: “Marriage, being a union of a man and a woman, as well as the family, motherhood and parenthood, shall be placed under the protection and care of the Republic of Poland.” Romania seems poised to do the same. Now, these are not the great powers in Europe. Germany, France, the UK – and especially distant America – largely set the agenda for the international community. At least that’s what the sexual radicals want you to think about the powers of the United Nations and other bodies like the World Health Organization. But look at this: The dark blue areas are the places where gay “marriage” is legal. But the red countries are places where it is illegal – marriage being defined as between one man and one woman. The light blue areas are in-between, in both a geographical and legal sense: they permit some kind of recognition of “non-traditional” couplings, but do not equate them to marriage. In a way, there’s a division even in Europe between blue states and red states. For all the claims that marriage, family, sexual morality, etc. have been taken over by “progressives,” which is to say reckless radicals who know not what they’re tampering with, even in decadent, declining, demographically collapsing Europe, there’s significant resistance. It’s probably no accident that it’s the European peripheries, the parts that were not so long ago under Communist domination, where the resistance is strongest. They still remember the old totalitarians and are not much intimidated by the new ones. Furthermore, they have the advantage of seeing – in America and Western Europe – where the new totalitarian ethos is leading: to a loss of social fiber and a literal loss of what makes up a society – parents with children. Of course, for their sane steps to meet the crisis and refusal to use Muslim refugees to replace their missing population they’ve been accused of trampling on gay rights and of encouraging a dangerous nationalism with hints of Fascism. Viktor Orban has five children. Many of his cabinet ministers and sub-ministers are young people with already large families. And in the rest of Central and South Eastern Europe the top political figures have children
ham said Psyonix plans to announce the scheme closer to the RLCS Live Finals, but shared a few details early after loot crates assets were discovered by the community. Here’s the skinny:Oil pulling is an age-old remedy rooted in Ayurvedic medicine that uses natural substances to clean and detoxify teeth and gums. It can also help whiten teeth naturally and evidence even shows that it may be beneficial for gum health. Using certain oils may help fight harmful bacteria in the mouth! What is Oil Pulling? Short answer: Oil pulling is the act of swishing oil (usually Sesame, Sunflower or Coconut) in the mouth for up to 20 minutes to improve oral health. The basic idea is that oil is swished in the mouth for a short time each day and that this action helps improve oral health. Just as with Oil Cleansing for the skin, the principle of “like dissolves like” applies, as oil is able to cut through plaque and remove toxins without disturbing the teeth or gums. The practice of oil pulling (also called gundusha) started in India thousands of years ago, and from my research, was first introduced to the United States in the early 1990s by a medical doctor named Dr. F. Karach, who used it with success in his medical practice. Benefits of Oil Pulling Oil pulling seems to be a practice with a plethora of anecdotal support but a lack of extensive scientific studies (though there are some… see below). Most sources do agree that oil pulling is safe, but debate how effective it is. Though more research is needed to determine any scientific backing to oil pulling, I’ve noticed the benefits personally and dozens of readers swear by its effectiveness as well. In fact, in my original research, I found hundreds of testimonials online from people who experienced benefits from oil pulling, including help with skin conditions, arthritis, asthma, headaches, hormone imbalances, infections, liver problems and more. Though I’ve done this for a few years, my only personal experience is with increased oral health (no plaque) and less sensitive (and whiter!) teeth. I’ve heard several experts explain how bacteria and infection can enter the blood through the mouth, it does make sense that addressing these infections could have an impact in other parts of the body, I just haven’t had personal experience with this. At the very least, I think that oil pulling can be very beneficial and has no downside as long as a quality oil (that is high enough quality to eat) is used and it is done correctly. Oil pulling is a very inexpensive therapy that could potentially have great benefit on oral health, so I see no downside to trying it and I have used it myself for several years. How to Oil Pull The concept is incredibly simple. Basically, a person swishes a couple teaspoons of a vegetable based oil (coconut, sesame or olive) in the mouth for 20 minutes and then spits it out and rinses well. Oil pulling is best done in the morning, before eating or drinking anything, though Dr. Bruce Fife suggests that it can be done before each meal if needed for more severe infections or dental problems. Oil Pulling Instructions Put 1-2 teaspoons of oil into the mouth. The oil traditionally used in oil pulling is organic sesame oil, and this is also the oil that has been the most studied for use in oil pulling. It is also possible to do oil pulling with organic coconut oil or pre-made coconut oil chews. Whichever oil you choose, place 1-2 teaspoons in the mouth. I also pour a few drops of Brushing Blend (naturally antibacterial) into the mix. Swish for 20 minutes. Apparently the timing is key, according to Dr. Bruce Fife, author of Oil Pulling Therapy, as this is long enough to break through plaque and bacteria but not long enough that the body starts re-absorbing the toxins and bacteria. The oil will get thicker and milky as it mixed with saliva during this time and it should be creamy-white when spit out. It will also double in volume during this time due to saliva. At first, it can be difficult to make it the full 20 minutes, and I didn’t stress if I could only swish for 5-10 minutes when I first started. Spit oil into the trash can. Especially if you have a septic system like I do… don’t spit into the sink! The oil may thicken and clog pipes. Do not swallow the oil as it is hopefully full of bacteria, toxins and pus that are now not in the mouth! Rinse well with warm water. Warm water seems to clean the mouth better (my opinion). I swish a few times with warm water to get any remaining oil out of my mouth. Some sources recommend swishing with warm salt water. Brush well. I prefer to brush with Brushing Blend to make sure any remaining bacteria is killed. This can also be done with coconut oil, which is naturally antibacterial and has a milder taste that other oils. Anyone with a sensitivity to coconut oil or coconut products should avoid using coconut oil in this way. Sesame oil was traditionally used in the Ayurvedic tradition and is another great option, just make sure to use an organic sesame oil. Is Oil Pulling Safe? Thankfully, this is one point that all sources seem to agree on! Some sources claim that oil pulling doesn’t have the benefits often attributed to it or that it doesn’t actually detoxify the mouth, but all of them agree that it shouldn’t hurt anything. All of the oils that are often used are completely edible and considered to be healthy when eaten, so they aren’t problematic when swished in the mouth. The only potential danger I’ve seen is if the oil is swallowed after it has absorbed any bacteria or toxins from the mouth. When I asked my own dentist about oil pulling, I was told that while the research is lacking, it could be considered an effective and safe alternative to mouthwash and that there shouldn’t be any harm to trying it. What Oil Should Be Used for Pulling? It depends. If the goal is whitening the teeth, I’ve found coconut oil to be most effective (especially when combined with this unusual remedy). Coconut oil is also slightly more effective at removing certain bacteria from the mouth, including the Streptococcus mutans bacteria that is known for causing dental caries (source). Sesame oil is recommended by most sources (though this is partially because it was one of the more widely available oils when the practice first started years ago) and it is also the most well studied and considered safe for those who are not allergic to sesame seeds. Olive oil is sometimes used, though some sources claim that it is too harsh for the teeth. The main thing is to avoid using any high Omega-6 or chemically created oils like vegetable oil, canola oil, soybean oil, corn oil, etc. Who Can Do Oil Pulling? Children: Several practitioners I’ve asked about this said that oil pulling is safe for kids once they are old enough not to swallow the oil. Pregnancy: I’ve done oil pulling during pregnancy but I was also doing it regularly before I got pregnant. I asked a midwife and she said that it is generally considered safe for pregnant women, especially after the first trimester. Oral health is especially important during pregnancy so I’ve always been glad to have an extra way to keep my teeth and gums healthy while pregnant and just consider it like brushing or using mouthwash. (Purely anecdotal- I haven’t had a cavity, even while pregnant, since I started oil pulling and my oral health routine). As with anything, check with a doctor or midwife before doing oil pulling, especially if pregnant. Nursing: Generally considered safe but check with a dentist or doctor to be safe. Dental Issues: I got the ok to do this from my dentist and doctor with several (non-amalgam) fillings in my mouth but I’d check with a doctor or dentist to be sure, especially if you have any metal fillings, crowns, or dental problems. Note: Some people supposedly notice a detox reaction for the first few days of using oil pulling that usually includes mild congestion, headache, mucous drainage or other effects. I personally didn’t notice any of these effects, but have read cases of others who did. Does Oil Pulling Work? My only personal experience is with the oral health benefits, and I continue doing it for this reason, but there is evidence that it might help with other conditions as well. The most comprehensive resource I’ve seen on the topic is the book “Oil Pulling Therapy” by Dr. Bruce Fife. Though the research is limited, there are some scientific studies that support the benefits of oil pulling, including those showing its benefit on different types or oral bacteria, on dental caries, on plaque/gingivitis and on oral micro-organisms: Studies About Oil Pulling S Asokan, J Rathan, MS Muthu, PV Rathna, P Emmadi, Raghuraman, Chamundeswari. Effect of oil pulling on Streptococcus mutans count in plaque and saliva using Dentocult SM Strip mutans test: a randomized, controlled, triple-blind study. Journal of the Indian Society of Pedodontics & Preventive Dentistry. 26(1):12-7, 2008 Mar TD Anand, C Pothiraj, RM Gopinath, et al. Effect of oil-pulling on dental caries causing bacteria (PDF). African Journal of Microbiology Research, Vol 2:3 pp 63-66, MAR 2008. (PDF Link) HV Amith, Anil V Ankola, L Nagesh. Effect of Oil Pulling on Plaque and Gingivitis. Journal of Oral Health & Community Dentistry: 2007; 1(1):Pages 12-18 S Thaweboon, J Nakaparksin, B Thaweboon. Effect of Oil-Pulling on Oral Microorganisms in Biofilm Models. Asia Journal of Public Health: 2011 May-Aug. (PDF) This article was medically reviewed by Dr. Scott Soerries, MD, Family Physician and Medical Director of SteadyMD. As always, this is not personal medical advice and we recommend that you talk with your doctor. FAQs There are several questions that are repeatedly asked in the comments, so I’ve compiled them here, along with the most common answers and any research I could find: Does Oil Pulling Help Remineralize Teeth? It may, but more research is needed. I talked about my personal experience with remineralizing my teeth here, and I did use oil pulling as part of this protocol, but I suspect that the benefit may be from the ability of certain oils to combat the bacteria that causes tooth decay, rather than actual mineral support for the tooth. Coconut and sesame oils are not excellent sources of the minerals that teeth need, so using them in the mouth wouldn’t be a very effective way to provide minerals for the teeth. Since the mouth is constantly protecting and replenishing the minerals in teeth and enamel through saliva, it seems much more important to make sure the body is getting enough minerals internally so that they are available in saliva. Can People With Fillings Try Oil Pulling? I couldn’t find any research related to the safety of oil pulling with fillings. Check with a dentist to see if this would be appropriate for your particular dental situation. Can I Swallow the Oil? Or Where Should I Spit? Please do not swallow the oil after oil pulling. It may contain bacteria, dead skin or other residue from the mouth and the whole purpose of oil pulling is to remove these things from the body. Especially with coconut oil, it is also important not to spit this in the sink, shower or toilet as it may solidify and clog the drain. Personally, I keep an old supplement container and spit the oil in that each morning and throw away when it is full. Do I Have to Swish for 20 Minutes? I found it difficult to swish for the full 20 minutes when I first started oil pulling. Though this is recommended, it isn’t a hard and fast rule. Neither is the recommendation to use a tablespoon of oil. If you can only use a teaspoon and swish for 5 minutes, start with that and don’t stress about it. Some people also find that adding a drop of essential oil helps the taste and makes oil pulling easier. Just make sure that any oil you use is safe to use internally. I also find that the best time to oil pull is in the shower, since this is the only time I’m not talking to my husband or kids or doing something else. I don’t usually shower for 20 minutes, but this at least gets me part of the way through the time. Does Oil Pulling Help Bad Breath? This is one benefit of oil pulling that all sources seem to agree on. Likely because of its ability to help wipe out harmful bacteria in the mouth, oil pulling is known for its ability to help improve breathe and reduce plaque in the mouth. Have you ever tried Oil Pulling? What was your experience? Share below!Jackie Falzon and her son, Frankie. She remembers gasping for breath and sobbing in terror. Credit:Wayne Taylor Smialy returns. He hasn't been able to get through to ESTA, the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority that manages 000 calls. The radio traffic is nuts. Something must be happening, he says. In the bedroom, he tries the radio again. Finally, he's through. A voice tells him: "There are no MICA units available and there will be no MICA units available." The two young paramedics have never before attended such a critical asthma patient. Neither of them has ever administered adrenaline, the big gun in dire cases like this. They exchange a look: they're on their own. Load her up and go, that's what they've got to do. Drysdale shoots a dart of intramuscular adrenaline into Falzon's left arm. The adrenaline should quickly relax her narrow lower airways, where muscles are contracting and in spasm and mucous membranes are swelling. Now, the young men ask Falzon to lean on them while they manoeuvre her into the wheelchair. But the adrenaline hasn't done what they'd hoped it might. Jackie Falzon, 21, the mother of a four-month-old boy, slumps, barely conscious and dangerously ill. Paramedic team Scott Drysdale (at left) and Sebastian Smialy. Credit:Stefan Postles Later, doctors in the emergency department (ED) of Sunshine Hospital, about 20 kilometres west of Melbourne's CBD, will say that Jackie Falzon was an early-warning sign of what lay ahead that night. Sunshine, along with Footscray Hospital, the other major facility in the city's Western Health network, will be in the eye of an unprecedented catastrophe that will leave nine people dead, throw an apocalyptic cast on chaotic hospital EDs across the city, become the subject of three official inquiries, and propel an obscure and little-studied medical condition – thunderstorm asthma – into headlines around the world. They were the first Melbourne hospitals to feel the brunt of a line of storm cells that swept in from western pasture lands carrying a load of allergenic ryegrass pollen, and took about one third of the 30 patients across the two cities admitted to intensive care with life-threatening respiratory reactions to the pollen. Across the board, the numbers are staggering: through Monday night and into Tuesday, nearly 10,000 people with respiratory distress, many of whom had never before suffered asthma, attended EDs and community health facilities in Melbourne and Geelong; 575 people were admitted. Between 6.30pm and midnight, 132 ambulances arrived at Footscray Hospital (normally it sees 40 ambulances in a 24-hour period). Over the two-day period of the asthma crisis, Western Health EDs saw more than 1200 patients – about three times more than normal. Just before 7pm, Ambulance Victoria's executive director of emergency operations, Mick Stephenson, took a call from his Metropolitan West director to say there were no vehicles left to dispatch in the west, even for the most critical of cases. By 8pm, across the city, there were 150 jobs, 100 of them Code 1, pending. Of the nine people who lost their lives in the epidemic, it is believed that at least two died while waiting for an ambulance, including 20-year-old Hope Carnevali, who died on the front lawn of her home in Hoppers Crossing, about 30 kilometres south-west of Melbourne's CBD. Experts believe that, until November 21, 2016, the world's only known thunderstorm-associated asthma death was in the UK in 2002. Several Australian thunderstorm asthma events have been recorded over the years, always in spring when the pollen load is at its greatest, but newspaper archive searches reveal only a few small reports: 154 cases of asthma presenting at Melbourne hospitals in 1987, the first time the term "thunderstorm asthma" seems to have been used; two people requiring intubation and artificial ventilation in Wagga Wagga in 1997; more than 300 respiratory cases requiring ambulances after a thunderstorm in Melbourne in November, 2010. Ahead of spring 2011, three Melbourne respiratory specialists co-signed a letter to the Medical Journal of Australia warning of the thunderstorm asthma season's approach, but it passed without incident and the letter into archives. In the aftermath of last November's event, some health professionals confessed they'd never even heard of the phenomenon, an almost supernatural conflation of sciences: meteorology, physics, botany, medicine and demography. Thunderstorm asthma remains an interdisciplinary detective story. First, though, it's a health emergency. He said, 'I feel as though I'm going to die... I've never felt anything like this in my life before.' Elisabeth Paterson Through winter and spring, the rain fell. In Victoria, September 2016 was the second wettest September on record. November started with rain on Melbourne Cup Day. Meanwhile, the grass was growing. As it did, so, too, did the source of hayfever sufferers' torment: pollen drifting in the air. On Monday, November 21, summer arrived early. At 8.39am, it was 27°C in the city and commuters took to Twitter to complain about stinking-hot train carriages. The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) predicted the temperature would hit 38°C later in the day. Warnings were issued about extreme levels of pollen. By 4pm, it was 34.4°C and a strong north-north-westerly wind was blowing. Through the afternoon in Sunshine West, Jackie Falzon, a livewire brunette, her fiancé, Matthew Sposato, and their son, Frankie, were sheltering from the heat and watching the animated children's show Paw Patrol. "I made sure I stayed in so that my son wouldn't get burnt," she recalls. Around 4pm, she took him into her bedroom in the house she shares with Sposato and his parents and they both fell asleep. She'd heard a storm was forecast but yeah, she thought, a storm, whatever. Meteorologists can see days ahead that the conditions required for the formation of storm cells will be present, but it's not until a storm starts to build and is seen on a radar that it can be studied and warnings can be issued if it has the potential to do damage or cause injury. At 5.13pm on November 21, the BOM issued a severe storm warning for damaging winds, heavy rainfall and large hail. At Footscray Hospital, senior nurse Chantelle D'Souza was in a staffroom on her tea break and noticed the ominous clouds through the window. Dr John Loy, acting director of the hospital's ED, who was at home in Melbourne's east, heard a news update about the storm, felt the wind pick up and told his two young children playing on the deck to come inside for dinner and close the door. In Keilor East, about 17 kilometres north-west of Melbourne's CBD, Elisabeth Paterson's 24-year-old son, Dale, was in their backyard firing up the barbecue. He hadn't told his mother but he was having trouble breathing. The sky was grey and, at one point, tree branches thrashed in a whirling dervish of a wind. But the family is Scottish. "We would call that 'barbecue weather'," says Paterson, a psychiatric nurse who works on the Footscray Hospital campus.Around 5.30pm, Jackie Falzon was woken from her nap by her crying baby. Quickly she realised she had asthma. She got up and used her Ventolin puffer. It didn't help. She used it two more times. As Falzon held onto the kitchen bench and hunched her shoulders over in what doctors call the "tripod position" and which asthmatics adopt to try to get in more air, she heard the rain. "It pelted down like for five seconds. It came and went." Still, she couldn't breathe. She returned to her bedroom to try her nebuliser, a machine that turns medication into a vapour that can be inhaled. "Our bedroom's like a hot box; I think it sort of made it worse." By 6pm, she was panicking. Sposato dialled 000. Falzon remembers paramedics Scott Drysdale and Sebastian Smialy coming into her room. She recalls gasping for breath and sobbing in terror and Drysdale looking into her eyes and telling her to breathe. Footscray Hospital senior nurse Chantelle D'Souza. D'Souza, an asthmatic, needed treatment herself as she organised extra emergency staff. Credit:Daniel Pockett A few days later, a senior paramedic would tell Drysdale that it was unlikely he would ever again in his career manage a sicker patient without back-up from at least one MICA paramedic. Normally, a patient would be stabilised before the ambulance started to move – with more than one paramedic in the back. And normally, the driver would drive steadily to minimise movement. Drysdale and Smialy knew that, in Falzon's case, there was no time for normal procedures. At 6.22pm, about 10 minutes after arriving at the house, Drysdale told his partner: "I just want you to drive, and drive quick." He also wanted Smialy to keep talking: it's procedure for paramedics to talk through their guidelines, to verbalise what they're doing and what must be done next. Smialy could hear in his partner's voice that he was anxious. Drysdale had put defibrillation pads on the unconscious Falzon's chest – just to be prepared. He'd given her a second, then a third shot of adrenaline, but her oxygen saturation levels were now precipitously low at 85 per cent. Soon after pulling away from the kerb, Falzon stopped breathing. Using a "bag valve mask" – a manual resuscitator, Drysdale took over her breathing, squeezing a balloon-like bag, attached to a mask on her face and an oxygen-delivery device, to force air into her lungs. "You're doing well," Smialy told him from the driver's seat. "You're doing well." At 6.31pm, in the back of an ambulance on the Western Ring Road, Jackie Falzon's pulse dropped out. Just after 6pm, in his backyard in the inner-northern suburb of Brunswick, Dr Philip Taylor stood beneath the thunderstorm's outflow. There was something of the mad scientist in his demeanour; moments before at his computer, he had watched a red bar move across the BOM's Doppler radar loop – "a stunning movie" of the storm's relative wind speed, humidity and temperature. Now, intoxicated with his science, he wanted to feel the numbers he'd seen on his screen, feel the physics of the storm. "The wind was going in every possible direction, it was totally unstable around me," says Taylor, an environmental allergist and research fellow at Deakin University's Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology who, in 2012, helped to establish the world's only thunderstorm-associated asthma warning system, the volunteer-run Deakin AIRwatch. The day before, after pollen samples were taken at stations in Geelong and at the university's Burwood campus in Melbourne's east, AIRwatch issued a thunderstorm asthma risk forecast of "extreme" for the Monday. The spring rain had guaranteed that the conditions needed for an incident were all there. But like the phenomenon itself, the AIRwatch website is little-known; only 19 people visited it on the Sunday and Monday. All evidence suggests that thunderstorm asthma starts with perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne, an introduced species that supplanted indigenous grasses in the earliest days of the colonies. (It is a different species from that which produces the rye grain for rye flour.) Between October and December, it is the dominant flowering grass through Melbourne's suburbs – on nature strips, sports fields and in backyards – and in farmland from the city's outskirts to the Western Districts. Now the ryegrass was lusher than it had been in years. The characteristic that makes Lolium perenne such a fine pasture grass and hay – it is naturally vigorous – is perhaps why it is the very devil for hayfever sufferers. Compared to other grasses, ryegrass produces huge volumes of pollen and, within each pollen grain, there is a massive loading of allergenic proteins. (Research conducted by Taylor and his Deakin colleague, associate professor Cenk Suphioglu, found that 95 per cent of people who suffered respiratory distress in the 1987 thunderstorm asthma incident were allergic to ryegrass pollen.) Environmental allergist Dr Philip Taylor, with a pollen counter on a building at Deakin University’s Burwood campus. Credit:Penny Stephens On Monday, November 21, the ryegrass pollen load was extreme – in excess of 100 pollen grains per cubic metre of air. At about 30 micrometres in diameter (30 times smaller than a millimetre), ryegrass pollen grains can embed themselves in an eye or a nostril and wreck a hayfever sufferer's day. But they are too large to get into a person's lower airways, the bronchi and bronchioles. Given certain conditions though, they can shatter into particles small enough to be inhaled deeply. In meteorological terms, the north-south band of towering cumulonimbus clouds that swept in from the west across Geelong and the city formed a garden-variety spring thunderstorm, albeit a severe one. "All absolutely normal for the Melbourne climate," says Tarini Casinader, the BOM's Victorian regional director. It was what happened inside the clouds that was exceptional and which largely remains a scientific mystery. Experts hypothesise that masses of intact pollen grains from western pastures were sucked up into the warm updraft of air forming the storm cells. In the humid base of the swirling clouds, the pollen grains exploded. The ruptured pollen returned to earth in the storm's cool downdraft, then was spat out across the ground in the storm's outflow area, or gust front, which was moving just ahead of the storm at 60 kilometres an hour. Philip Taylor's research has led him to think that there might be singularities within a storm cell that can intensify a pollen explosion, including humidity levels and the nature of the electric field, and which may have been responsible for the unprecedented mass nature of the event. Casinader adds another thought: "The most important thing may be timing; if the thunderstorm outflow is at its strongest exactly when it's passing over a population centre." What seems to be likely is that the outflow, the crazy wind that was the storm's grim herald, carried a fine, invisible and lethal mist. When Jackie Falzon leant on the kitchen bench at her Sunshine West home and heard the rain come down, the ryegrass pollen particles had already swept through the suburb and settled into her airways. At 6.38pm, half an hour after Taylor exalted in a spring storm, Sebastian Smialy swung his ambulance, lights flashing, sirens screaming, into the ED driveway at Sunshine Hospital. In the back, Scott Drysdale, sweat-drenched, was still "bagging" the unconscious Falzon. Within minutes, she had been raced on a stretcher into an ED resuscitation bay, its curtains yanked to a close, and a team of six doctors and nurses surrounded her. About the same time, Ambulance Victoria staff in ESTA's Burwood East communications centre were looking at the rapidly spreading number of green dots on their screens indicating cases requiring attention and wondering whether their equipment was malfunctioning. "it's okay, you're here now." A nurse in the Sunshine Hospital ED clearly read something in Drysdale's face. He and his partner, Sebastian Smialy, had just handed Jackie Falzon into the care of doctors. Drysdale remembers the nurse reassuring him and the feeling of his heart beating. When Falzon's pulse had stopped in the ambulance, Drysdale had cursed, then followed paramedic protocols: he removed the mask and allowed for a minute of apnoea – the cessation of breathing – which can get the blood pumping around the heart again. The hospital was still seven minutes away, a lifetime in a case such as this. If Falzon needed CPR, Smialy would have to pull over to the side of the road so one of the paramedics could work on her heart while the other continued ventilating her. In that minute of apnoea, Falzon's pulse returned, although for the remainder of the drive, Drysdale would keep hand-ventilating her. In the resuscitation bay now, Falzon was in the hands of Dr Barry Gunn, the emergency physician at Sunshine ED that night. It was clear she needed to be immediately intubated – a procedure in which a tube is inserted into a patient's trachea to open the airways and allow for controlled artificial ventilation, optimising oxygen concentration and the flow of air in and out of the lungs. "She was extremely, dangerously ill," says Gunn. Sunshine Hospital emergency physician Dr Barry Gunn, who treated Jackie Falzon. “She was extremely, dangerously ill,” he says. Credit:Daniel Pockett All asthma is thought to have an allergic basis, with different sufferers responding to different triggers, including pollen, dust mites, mould spores and pet dander. But doctors believe that thunderstorm-induced asthma resembles anaphylaxis, the most severe form of allergic reaction, particularly in the way it strikes so suddenly and affects people who previously might only have suffered hayfever. "Some people get sick so quickly that even if they had asthma medication to hand, it might not matter," says associate professor Craig French, the director of Intensive Care across Western Health. For someone in the throes of an asthma attack, breathing out, not in, is the biggest challenge. The swollen airways are unable to empty of gas and the bloodstream is flooded with poisonous carbon dioxide, which causes unconsciousness. Intubating any unstable patient in an emergency situation is fraught with risk; in the case of an asthma patient who might have stopped breathing, the tube might slide down their throat but there is always the possibility that the lower airways will be too tight for the procedure to work and, as time rushes on, the risk of cardiac arrest increases. As Gunn's team rushed to insert an IV cannula into Falzon's arm through which she would receive drugs including an anaesthetic-type sedative, adrenaline and other muscle relaxants, and to attach her to an array of equipment to monitor her blood pressure, oxygen saturation, breathing and heart rate, there was something else on his mind. Even if they could successfully ventilate her, it might turn out that she had already suffered a brain injury from lack of oxygen. In an ED corridor, Drysdale bumped into Falzon's fiancé, Matthew Sposato, who had driven separately to the hospital. "Is she going to live?" Sposato asked. The paramedic told the emotional young man that the situation was extremely serious. All around them, doctors and nurses were scrambling to manage the influx of people in respiratory distress. In a "resusc" bay just near where Gunn was intubating Falzon, another team's focus was on a critically ill 12-year-old girl who was quickly transferred to the Royal Children's Hospital. In the waiting room, which was filling with people, a woman collapsed. A nurse whom Drysdale knew was battling to triage an increasing line of patients and was close to tears. "I don't know what's happening; I've called, but no one's come," she told him. Around the same time at Footscray Hospital, doctors were attempting to intubate two dangerously ill patients. One was a "walk-in", a taxi driver in his 60s who had driven to the hospital and got himself into the ED waiting room, before quickly deteriorating. Dr Karen Winter, Footscray's emergency specialist in charge for the night, remembers his face. "He was obviously very scared and distressed." Associate nurse unit manager Chantelle D'Souza was in the "fishbowl" – the ED's open office area opposite the department's three resuscitation bays – as Winter started to intubate the driver. Normally, Winter would have had a team of up to six clinicians assisting with the process, but the department was so stretched that only one nurse was with her. "Suddenly he was just profusely sweaty, really combative, probably [from] anxiety and probably lack of oxygen. He was fighting; he was quite a solid man," D'Souza recalls. "I managed to get security to just help and hold him down." But Winter was still up against it: medication to settle the spasms in the man's airways hadn't yet kicked in. "He was really unwell, even once I got the tube in. We had to hand-ventilate him until we got him up to intensive care, where we could use their ventilators." D'Souza, a longtime asthmatic herself, was gasping for breath and had been using her Ventolin puffer: "I just didn't want to let it get the better of me because I had a job to do." In the fishbowl, she leaned against a high desk, hunched in the tripod position, and worked the phone. She needed night staff who were due in at 11pm to come in as soon as they could. "Get yourself treated," a senior colleague told her. At about the same time that D'Souza was setting herself up in a back room with a portable oxygen cylinder, mask and Ventolin nebuliser, call-takers at ESTA in Burwood East were repeating themselves: "Go ahead caller, where do you need the ambulance?" Between 7 and 7.15pm, as the crisis escalated, emergency calls were landing at a rate of one every 4.5 seconds. About 8pm at their home in Keilor East, Elisabeth Paterson's son, Dale, put his face into the freezer. It was something the asthmatic had done for years: the cold air seemed to help clear his airways. After the storm had passed and the family had finished their barbecue, the soccer-loving student's chest had grown even tighter. "I think he was using the Ventolin a wee bit more excessively than normal," recalls Paterson. But she didn't take much notice: he was 24 and managed his asthma himself. As Dale was working to slow his breathing, 10 kilometres away the Footscray ED was in a frenzy. Between 8 and 9pm, 37 ambulances pulled into a facility with designated bays for only three vehicles. Paramedics wheeled critically ill patients on stretchers through the carpark and past queues waiting outside the door to the ED waiting room, while gawkers took photographs. Associate nurse unit manager Nerina Fiamengo was one of the off-duty nurses called in to help. She arrived at Footscray at 8pm and headed into the waiting room, which was full of people in the tripod position and anxious, hovering family members. With training in disaster management, Fiamengo worked to implement a triage production line to take patient details and determine how urgent their case was. "It was just chaos, there were people everywhere." At one point, a shirtless and evidently drug-affected young man wandered into the waiting room. "Hey guys, youse are doing an amazing job, I love your work," he said. Fiamengo recalls him leaving, then returning with another positive message. "It made everyone giggle for a time." She told him she was grateful for his words but it probably wasn't the best time to keep coming in. Emergency specialist Karen Winter had called her boss, acting ED director John Loy, and, at 9pm, he returned to find the department steamy, shrouded with the mist of nebulisers and noisy with beeping ventilators. He took stock: across the department, patients were receiving the three-pronged treatment approach to serious asthma: oxygen, plus steroids to dampen the immune system and reduce inflammation, and Ventolin to relax airways. In the blue, sub-acute area in cubicles designed for one, half a dozen masked patients sat sharing a wan and wheezy camaraderie. In the red, acute area, each cubicle was full and three patients were on non-invasive ventilation machines, receiving oxygen and medication behind tight-fitting face masks. In each of the three resuscitation bays, there was a dangerously ill asthma victim. "There were 12 critical, touch-and-go asthmas that needed a lot of senior review," says Loy. "You're on the phone all the time – 'What's happening? Has that person gone to intensive care yet? Is that bed available? How's number 9? They're trending okay. How's number 7? Do you want to come look at 6? I've got another three ambulances waiting to come in, where are we going to put them?' " And amid it all, others needing assistance: a man who'd fallen off a ladder, another with a broken leg, an elderly woman who'd had a stroke. At midnight, there were still 100 patients at Footscray ED. Elisabeth Paterson's son was soon to become another one. Just before 10pm, Paterson had driven to a nearby pharmacy to see what she could buy to assist Dale's breathing. She returned home with a spacer, a device used with a puffer to improve its efficacy. A little while later, she checked in on him. He told her he didn't feel worse. "He was still able to converse with me," she says. "I thought, 'Well, let's see how this works.' "CENTEREACH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — A shotgun wielding would-be robber got more than he bargained for after barging into a Suffolk County thrift store and
tea leaves for me came out of Athens with Deborah Gonzalez and Jonathan Wallace winning unexpected victories in special elections,” he said. “Let me be clear: I didn’t talk to anyone prior to those special elections who thought Gonzalez and Wallace would win. Pure grassroots enthusiasm.” Gonzalez raised $55,000 for her campaign for Georgia’s State House, District 117; her GOP opponent failed to best her even after raising around $200,000. In 2016, the district was considered so noncompetitive that a Democratic candidate didn’t even run. Long told The Intercept that the Gonzalez campaign’s polling had her down by 6 heading into Election Day. The other race he mentioned, where Wallace, a Democrat, succeeded, was in the state’s House District 119. In this district, too, the Democrats were so buried in the past that no one even challenged the Republican incumbent in 2016. “I think we saw a plus-8 shift for Dems that led to those victories,” Long, who is familiar with the polling and demographics of both districts, told The Intercept. There was also a state Senate seat Democrats in Georgia picked up in a special election this year: Senate District 6. District 6 had been held by the GOP for years. Incumbent Hunter Hill won the 2014 election by more than 20 points and then bested the Democrats by almost 4 points in 2016. In the special election, a phalanx of Democrats and Republicans competed for the spot, and two Democrats received the most votes — meaning the Republican was shut out of the runoff election altogether. The win was such a shock to Republican lawmakers that one GOP senator even suggested changing how Georgia does special elections altogether to require parties to send one nominee to the ballot instead. This comes on the heels of a GOP mid-cycle redistricting aimed at two districts held by GOP lawmakers where Democrats were becoming increasingly competitive. The National Redistricting Foundation has filed suit, claiming that race was the predominant factor in the decision to redraw the districts. Redistricting is usually done after a census, which is why the 2018 election is so coveted by Georgia’s Democrats. But the attempt to rush it for a few seats is a signal of how much ground Republicans feel themselves losing. Referring to the statehouse victories, Long explained the odds that Democrats could win the governor’s mansion and other statewide spots next year and compared that to Democratic performance in other southern states like Virginia and Alabama. “Statewide, Dems need a plus-4 boost. We’ve seen that in Virginia, Georgia and now Alabama,” he explained The case of Virginia is instructive. Although most national attention was paid to the governor’s race, it was no surprise to see Democrats hold that seat as the state has been electing Democrats statewide for some time now, largely on the strength of a growing population of liberals living outside Washington, D.C. The legislature, however, was a different story. For instance, Democrat Danica Roem’s defeat of Republican Delegate Bob Marshall made headlines all over the world. Marshall was defeated by an almost 8-point margin this year, but easily bested his Democratic opponent in 2015, winning by around 12 points. In the legislature, Virginia Democrats came close to taking control of the House of Delegates, a result the local media called “shocking.” “This is a tidal wave,” Dave Wasserman of Cook Political Report tweeted about the results in the legislature. In all three states, one of the items on the Democrats’ agenda is expanding Medicaid. The Affordable Care Act gave states extra money to expand the program, but a bloc of GOP-led states in the Deep South have never done so. In Georgia, 600,000 people are being denied access to the program because the GOP governor refused to expand it. In order to expand the program, it will take more than changing who resides in the governor’s mansion. Georgia’s legislature voted in 2014 to require the governor to get the approval of the legislature before expanding Medicaid. That means that either the Republicans blocking the Medicaid expansion have to be kicked out of power, or enough of them have to feel threatened electorally to vote in favor of expansion. (Virginia, where the Republicans now barely hold onto control of the legislature and have refused to expand Medicaid, is a similar example.) When Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards took power in Louisiana in 2016, he made expanding Medicaid his top priority. On his second day in office, he signed an executive order that opened the program to over 400,000 more people. “This will not only afford them peace of mind, but also help them from slipping further into poverty and give them a fighting chance for a better life,” he said, making Louisiana the first state in the Deep South to embrace the Medicaid expansion. A state report released the following year found that the uninsured rate is now at 12.5 percent, down from 21.7 percent in 2013; more than 100,000 patients received preventative care, and 154 patients were diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time because they could afford screenings. Not all the energy has come only in the wake of Trump. In 2016, North Carolina voters cast their presidential votes for Trump but elected a Democratic governor. In a special election in South Carolina in June to replace Rep. Mick Mulvaney, who resigned to become Trump’s budget director, Democrat Archie Parnell was badly outspent, but still won 48 percent of the vote. Less than a year earlier, Mulvaney had won the seat by 21 points. In Florida as well, a Democrat bested a Republican in a special election for a state Senate seat that took place earlier this year. Previously, the district was a plus-10 Republican seat. Florida’s voters, too, will face a gubernatorial election next year. Even in Texas, Democrats are playing to win, with Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s long-shot bid to unseat Republican Sen. Ted Cruz catching fire and raising millions in small dollars. Both Trump and Cruz are underwater in Texas. The clear advantage still belongs to Cruz, but O’Rourke, running not as a Blue Dog but as a strong progressive, is making it a real race. It’s an open question whether 2018 will yield the electoral environment Democrats are hoping for, but if Alabama and the other recent Southern elections are any indication, the region’s Republican Party may be losing its previously invincible position.The overwhelming majority of people will never drive this car. But to Renovo, that's just fine. The word "supercar" came up several times during my conversations with Renovo CEO Chris Heiser and CTO Jason Stinson, which doesn't normally appear in the same sentence as "electric vehicle." The Renovo Coupe changes that, running an unapologetic half-million dollars in exchange for a Shelby Daytona-bodied monster with 1,000 ft-lbs. of torque. 0-60 comes in a promised 3.4 seconds. And there's not a single cubic inch of gasoline power to be found. The Coupe is as beautiful in person as it looks in the pictures that have cropped up since it debuted at Pebble Beach last August. The prototype model, on display at Nvidia's CES booth this year, had been repainted to match Nvidia's color scheme with streaks of bright green playing against a metallic silver background. It looks great. Then again, there isn't a color scheme that would make this car look bad. It's at Nvidia's booth because Renovo is using the company's new X1 platform to do some pretty outrageous things with the Coupe's dashboard. The instrument cluster and center stack are both dominated by large displays, rendering beautiful 3D elements without a hint of stutter or lag — it's still very rough around the edges, but Renovo doesn't plan to deliver its first customer car until the end of the year, so there's plenty of time to iron out the kinks. A rebodied classic isn't everyone's idea of a perfect supercar, but Renovo teases that this won't be its only model — they refer to the systems underpinning the Coupe as a "platform." I'll take an electric Countach, please.Behrouz Boochani is a journalist and an Iranian refugee held on Manus Island since August 2014. He writes regularly for the Guardian, including a diary on the closure of the Australian-run detention camp. On Thursday he was arrested. I woke up as a thunderous sound echoed through my head. It was the sound of many terrified refugees rushing through Corridor M inside Fox camp. The sound came from out of nowhere and it reverberated right throughout the camp. “They’re attacking!” “Run, they’re attacking!” Behrouz Boochani exposed Australia's evil on Manus. The shame will outlive us all | Richard Flanagan Read more These warnings are well-known to the refugees in Manus prison. The cries of caution have rung out repeatedly for nearly five years. I immediately pulled out my phone from under my pillow and went towards the fences facing the jungle. The entire prison space was full of refugees running away and dozens of police officers moving in like a swarm of bees. With rage, the police chief announced repeatedly over a loudspeaker: “Move! Move!” He repeated over and over again that we only had one hour to move out. I diverted my course and went towards Delta camp. Our plan was that if they attacked we would all go over to Delta camp. The situation there was tense. A group of prisoners had gone on to the roof, and hundreds of individuals gathered in the corner of Fox camp and linked arms together. On the dirt road outside the prison stood dozens of police officers and other officers wearing uniforms I did not recognise. There were also a number of vehicles waiting to transport us to the new camp. The police chief and the representative from immigration continued their threats over the loudspeaker. The other officers just kept yelling at the refugees. I had to find the best possible location: the toilets. From inside the toilets, the entire scene was visible and I could witness what was developing around me. A few people were crying. Worry was spread over the faces of the refugees; their reactions spelt anxiety and terror. But they all shared one thing in common: determination. They were determined to pursue their collective resistance, they were determined to pursue their peaceful resistance. The immigration officers eventually sprung into action and destroyed the belongings kept inside the accommodation. They threw everything out of the rooms. They even tore apart the sweaty beds with their knives. A group of them smashed the empty water tanks. In the space of half an hour, the area between the corridors looked like a town hit by an earthquake or a flood. It resembled nothing less than a natural disaster – they wreaked havoc throughout the place. Decay, despair, defiance: inside the Manus Island refugee camp | Ben Doherty Read more The refugees simply looked on. A feeling of absurdity gripped everyone along with a feeling of being forgotten. It was an uncanny feeling that comes with experiencing explicit violence. The feeling that you have no one, that you have no solace, that you have no sanctuary. In one instant, the equilibrium of the community had been completely unsettled. I was put in jail, they sat me down on a chair. In the distance I could hear only moaning and yelling Two refugees began having seizures. Dozens of frightened individuals caught them from all sides. Everyone wanted to help. The sick men just moaned, they clearly had no control over the sounds they were emitting. At the same time the officers continued prowling around the corners of the rooms, they continued with their search and destroy mission. Also, the police chief was surrounded by dozens of his furious looking officers and continued shouting: “Move! Move!” The other officers were also swearing, they were looking for a way to escalate the violence. Abdul Aziz Adam (@Aziz58825713) They are looking for me and Behrouz they found him but they are not going to find me. These are police are taking Behrouz. pic.twitter.com/G01bA46ETC I had to return to Fox. On the way, two police officers pointed me out and came towards me. I ran away. I knew I would be arrested. But I tried to defer the arrest for as long as possible and remain there. I hid in one of the rooms. The officers entered the corridor. From there I could see the refugees who were monitoring the situation. The officers opened the doors to the rooms with aggression and anger – they told everyone to get out. For a moment there I wanted to hide behind a bed, but I felt a sense of shame. I remembered my time in Iran, I remembered my mother, I remembered how she was always frightened that the government officers would kill me. They eventually found me. Immediately seven or eight officers grabbed me by the arms and carried me outside in plain view of all the refugees. Like a scene where a dangerous criminal is taken away. Along the way one officer behaved just like a juvenile and pulled my hair. Deep down inside I was laughing. They shoved me aggressively. They struck me over the back, they hit me on the back of the neck, it was not damaging, but they still beat me. Each and every one of them beat me. One of them totally smashed and crushed my sunglasses under his boot. The breath of death on Manus Island: starvation and sickness | Behrouz Boochani Read more Everyone was furious and they kept shouting at me: “You’re responsible, you’re guilty, you’ve damaged our reputation, you’re guilty!” The police chief was pointing to me, making accusations: “You’ve always been antagonistic towards us, you’ve damaged our reputation!” I wanted to respond, but he shouted me into silence: “Shut up!” They tied my hands behind me with rope. I remember how two years ago Australian guards tied some refugees – they tied them up so tight that for one whole week blood had clotted around the rope marks leaving serious bruising. But I know the Manusians well. Even when their anger reaches its peak, they still cannot hide their kindness. This time he tied me up in a way that was tight but did not hurt me. I was put in jail, they sat me down on a chair. In the distance I could hear only moaning and yelling. They brought a camera and recorded me. They repeated the same accusations, they shouted down at me: “You’re guilty, you’ve damaged our reputation!” And one extra accusation: “You’ve forced people to stay inside the camp, you’re responsible!” From there I could see the gate to Mike camp. Moments later they forcibly transferred a group of refugees to the buses. In front of the gate they laid one more kick into them. We were like a small country that had been invaded. I could still hear the sound of moaning and yelling. That place was really a war zone. What was going on over there? Once again, I remembered Iran. The shouting continued: “Move! Move!” Translated by Omid Tofighian— by Shauna Aura Knight If activism is about standing up, then I’m pulling out my soap box and standing on it. Sometimes activism is holding boundaries and saying no. If you offer me cakes and ale in a plastic, Styrofoam, or otherwise disposable cup, I will not take it. No. I will not add to the huge load our Earth is already groaning under. I will not stand and silently support the hypocrisy of supposedly Earth-centered folks who toss out ecological sustainability when it’s inconvenient. Recently I attended PantheaCon in San Jose, where there was a panel discussion about privilege in the Pagan community. The panel was held in a small room and I was unable to attend the first part, but the subsequent discussions got me thinking. (You can read more about the panel, read T. Thorn Coyle’s thoughts on privilege, listen to a podcast about it, or listen to the original panel discussion here.) Privilege is not about race, sexuality, or money–though, that is a core part of it. Privilege is the blinders that we have on to our own impact; it’s the things we have access to that others don’t. It’s when we take things for granted. Environmentalism is a lot about privilege. Others have pointed out that those who have access to resources like food, water, and health care, have privileges that others do not. Taking that further, those of us who use resources–and who misuse those resources–are coming from a place of privilege. Our actions have negative consequences for those who have less privilege. They have negative consequences for our ecosystems. And they have negative consequences for the next generations. What happens to those Styrofoam cups after we use them in that Pagan Pride ritual for 10 minutes? They get tossed; you can’t recycle Styrofoam And what went into making those cups? Styrofoam and plastic, which are made from oil, create pollution in their production. Guess who gets environmentally exposed to those toxins? We do, but especially the poor who can’t afford to live further away from the factory. Usually that also more adversely affects minorities. And guess what happens when you drink out of plastic and Styrofoam? You’re drinking minute quantities of those toxins. Where do the cups go? Styrofoam doesn’t break down, and though some plastics can be recycled, the recycling process also has environmental impact. Paper cups are at least biodegrade, but you’re also contributing to clear cutting of forests, which is essentially hacking away at the lungs of our planet. We’re causing the pollution, the carbon overload, the climate change, that will haunt our future. We who call ourselves Pagan and Earth-centered should know better. We should know better. Here’s what I’d like to see in the Pagan community. I’d like to see Pagans across the world standing up to choose the sometimes harder road. I’m asking you, all of you, to stop using disposable cups in your rituals, and to stop supporting rituals that do so by not accepting those cups. If you want to stop using environmentally unfriendly materials, what might you do instead? Necessity is the mother of invention. Perhaps we could step entirely out of the box and instead of offering wine or ale, which many can’t drink, or even a fruit juice which probably has High Fructose Corn Syrup or Aspartame in it…and instead of offering cakes, which are usually either cookies, crackers, or pieces of bread, and thus inedible to gluten, dairy, and sugar intolerant people as well as Vegans…what about something else? Perhaps a platter of several fruit and vegetable offerings. Apples and celery sticks. Maybe even fruits and vegetables that are not GMO (Genetically Modified) and perhaps that come from a local farmer, close to the actual land where you are hosting your ritual. Or maybe even from your own garden. Perhaps water can simply be poured over the hands vs. offered in a cup. If the sharing of water, juice, or an alcoholic beverage is crucial, consider investing in a thrift store excursion and buying enough small glasses for all to use. If you’re working with a regular group, I’ve heard of many groups encouraging the group to bring their own (glass/ceramic/metal) cups, plates, and cutlery. This doesn’t work as well for a large public gathering, though it is possible. If you offer me plastic or Styrofoam or paper cups, I will refuse them. No, I’m not going to shout or throw fit right there and disrupt your ritual. But I will silently, politely refuse your offering. I will take a breath into love and healing for the Earth. And if there’s time and space to politely do so, I will probably have a conversation with you and ask you to consider more ecologically-friendly alternatives. I strongly feel that hosting a ritual with plastic cups and processed foods is inexcusable. I will risk you getting offended by my feedback, because it matters. Can you hear that I’m not angry with you, I’m angry with your choice? Instead of getting offended or telling me it’s too hard to use something other than plastic cups…will you stand with me? Will you work to change our culture together? Will you too take a stand to support Earth-centered, ecologically-conscious spiritual work not just in what we preach in our rituals, but how we live our values? I would love to see the national Pagan Pride project–and every single Pagan festival–ban the use of disposables like this whenever possible. I greatly respect these folks who make these events happen. Pagan Pride, Pagan festivals, and conferences, are important to our community. Things that happen at Pagan events set the tone for our communities in many ways. Consider sending a polite email to Pagan Pride national, or to your local Pagan Pride coordinator. Consider sending a polite note to the organizers of a Pagan conference or festival that you attend asking them to explore more environmentally sustainable options. Consider volunteering to help make that happen. Is this a tall order, to remove disposable items from our rituals (and hopefully, from our events)? Certainly. But our planet’s fragile biosphere will not survive our continued rape with our chemicals and our dumping. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say, our children will not survive it. The poor will suffer first, unable to afford clean water, clean air. And here’s where we come back to privilege. Ecological sustainability is also a social justice issue. Imagine in 50 years, when we’re paying more for clean water, when we’re paying for clean air. When our food is poisoned with the toxins permeating the soil from all the products we’ve consumed that we discover, only too late, cause exotic forms of cancer. Those with less privilege will suffer first. I once volunteered at a Pagan Pride on the south side of Chicago where I’d offered to host a Green Dish Station; I had brought enough dishes, and tubs for wash water, for people to wash their own dishes instead of using plastic ones. During the day, I heard people complain bitterly about having to wash their dishes. I was so disgusted with the Pagans in my community, so disheartened, by all the bitching and moaning. People told me that they’d rather use a disposable plastic cup than wash dishes and save resources. I find this attitude within the Pagan community absolutely intolerable. Reprehensible. This kind of privilege–this kind of waste–this kind of hubris–makes me ashamed to call myself Pagan. Just as I’ve seen Pagans who would rather spend $50 on trinkets than donate towards community initiatives, I see Pagans who tell me that it’s too hard to do something other than plastic cups in rituals. Or come up with ecologically sustainable options for events that don’t include plastic plates or bottled water. Who will stand up for our Earth? Will you? Will you stand for social justice for those who are yet to be born and yet who are already disadvantaged in life? Will you risk raising your voice to transform our Pagan communities and culture into living our values? If you honor Earth as a sacred element in ritual, if you define yourself as Earth-centered, how can you not? ————————————————————————————————— Shauna Aura Knight is an author, artist, ritualist, community builder, activist, and spiritual seeker. She travels nationally offering intensive education in the transformative arts of ritual, community leadership, and spiritual growth. She’s the published author of books and articles on leadership, ritual facilitation, and personal transformation, as well as an author of fantasy fiction. Her mythic artwork is used for magazines, book covers, and personal shrines. Check out her blog on Pagan leadership and community building or her web site for more information on upcoming classes, rituals, books, and articles.Men's Hockey | 3/14/2016 2:55:00 PM School Rank Category Stat Record School Record Holder First Lowest Goals Against Average in Career 2.39 2.39 Jason Kasdorf First Lowest Goals Against Average in Season 1.62 in 2012-13 1.62 Jason Kasdorf Second Highest Save Percentage in Career.920.926 Joel Laing Second Highest Save Percentage in Season.935 in 2012-13.947 Joel Laing in 1999-00 Third (T) Highest Save Percentage in Season.931 in 2015-16.947 J oel Laing in 1999-00 Third (T) Most Ties in Career 9 17 Mathias Lange Fourth Most Shutouts in Career 7 13 Joel Laing Fourth Most Ties in Season 5 in 2015-16 6 Three tied Fifth Most Games in Career 88 115 Nathan Marsters Fifth (T) Games in Season 33 in 2014-15 36 Scott Diebold in 2013-14 in 2013-14 Fifth (T) Games Started in Season 33 in 2014-15 35 Nathan Marsters in 2003-04 Fifth Saves in Season 916 in 2015-16 1064 Don Cutts in 1973-74 Fifth Games Started in Career 87 107 Nathan Marsters Fifth Most Minutes in Career 5026:16 6637:48 Nathan Marsters Sixth Most Saves in Career 2290 3118 Nathan Marsters Seventh Most Wins in Career 38 58 Neil Little BUFFALO, N.Y. - Record-setting goaltender, who just completed his senior season with the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's hockey team, has signed a National Hockey League contract with the Buffalo Sabres. Kasdorf, who was originally drafted by the Winnipeg Jets and then had his contract rights traded to Buffalo, had a year of eligibility remaining due to a medical hardship. He signed an entry-level contract with the NHL club."I am extremely grateful for the opportunity that RPI has given me over these past four years," Kasdorf said. "Without Coach Appert, the coaching staff and my teammates, I wouldn't be the goalie or the person I am today. I am extremely fortunate to have been surrounded with amazing people at RPI and the community of Troy. There is no other place I would have rather spent my last four years and I want to thank our fans and everyone who supports RPI Hockey, because without them the program wouldn't be what it is today."I am very excited to take this next step with Buffalo. It is a great organization and I am thrilled to be a part of it.""We are thrilled to see Jason earn his opportunity at the NHL with the Sabres," said Rensselaer head coach. "He has been a great daily example in our program of what work ethic, competitiveness and love of being an RPI Engineer looks like. Our program is grateful for what Jason gave and the manner in which he gave it and we wish him the very best with Buffalo."Kasdorf, who is on track to complete his degree in business and management in May, departs Rensselaer with the lowest single season (1.62 in 2012-13) and career (2.39) goals against average in school history. He is second (.935 in 2012-13) and third (.931 in 2015-16) in single season save percentage, as well as second in career save percentage (.920). He is in the top five in 10 other categories, including fourth in career shutouts (7) and fifth in season saves (916 in 2015-16)."I am delighted that Jason has decided to take his skills and talents to the NHL," said RPI Director of Athletics. "He has been a model student-athlete during his tenure at RPI, who excelled in academics, athletics, and leadership. I wish Jason and his family the best as they take the next steps in their journey."This season, which concluded on Saturday in the ECAC Hockey Quarterfinals, Kasdorf played 30 games, going 12-12-5 with a 2.30 goals against average and the.931 save percentage, which is ninth in the nation. His 916 saves came on 984 shots in 1777:19 minutes with two shutouts. Eighteen games were league games, in which he was 6-6-5 with a 1.99 GAA and.939 save percentage. Both of his shutouts were in conference contests, including a 43-save performance in a 0-0 tie against No. 8 Harvard University on December 5 and a 44-save effort in a 1-0 win over No. 8 Cornell University on January 15. He registered a career-high 49 saves in a 2-1 win over the No. 9 Crimson on February 12.As a junior, Kasdorf started 33 games, going 11-19-2 with a 2.97 goals against average and a.902 save percentage a season after missing all but two games the previous year due to injury.In his freshman season, the Winnipeg, Man., native had a 14-5-2 overall record, a 1.62 goals against average and a.935 save percentage. He played each of the last 16 games after returning from an injury, and ranked among the leaders in the nation in goals against average, save percentage, winning percentage (.714) and shutouts. In 17 league contests, he was 12-2-2 with a 1.39 average, a.945 percentage and three shutouts. Among the honors he collected were Hockey Commissioners Association national Rookie of the Month, ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year, All-League Second Team and ECAC Hockey All-Rookie Team.Kasdorf was drafted by Winnipeg in the sixth round, 157th overall, in 2011. His rights were traded to the Sabres in February 2015.After quite a bit of experimenting with different alternatives, Meandre is moving into Scala. Scala is a general purpose programming language designed to express common programming patterns in a concise, elegant, and type-safe way. This is not a radical process, but a gradual one while I am starting to revisit the infrastructure for the next major release. Scala also generates code for the JVM making mix and match trivial. I started fuzzing around with Scala back when I started the development of Meandre during the summer of 2007, however I did fall back to Java since that was what most of the people in the group was comfortable with. I was fascinated with Scala fusion of object oriented programming and functional programming. Time went by and the codebase has grown to a point that I cannot stand anymore cutting through the weeds of Java when I have to extend the infrastructure or do bug fixing—not to mention its verbosity even for writing trivial code. This summer I decided to go on a quest to get me out of the woods. I do not mind relying on the JVM and the large collection of libraries available, but I would also like to get my sanity back. Yes, I tested some of the usual suspects for the JVM (Jython, JRuby, Clojure, and Groovy) but not quite what I wanted. For instance, I wrote most of the Meandre infrastructure services using Jython (much more concise than Java), but still not quite happy to jump on that boat. Clojure is also interesting (functional programming) but it would be hard to justify for the group to move into it since not everybody may feel comfortable with a pure functional language. I also toyed with some not-so-usual ones like Erlang and Haskell, but again, I ended up with no real argument that could justify such a decision. So, as I started doing back in 2007, I went back to my original idea of using Scala and its mixed object-oriented- and functional-programming- paradigm. To test it seriously, I started developing the distributed execution engine for Meandre in Scala using its Earlang-inspired actors. And, boom, suddenly I found myself spending more time thinking that writing/debugging threaded/networking code :D. Yes, I regret my 2007 decision instead of running with my original intuition, but better late than never. With a working seed of the distributed engine working and tested (did I mention that scalacheck and specs are really powerful tools for behavior driven development?), I finally decided to start gravitating the Meandre infrastructure development effort from Java to Scala—did I mention that Scala is Martin Odersky’s child? Yes, such a decision has some impact on my colleagues, but I envision that the benefits will eventually weight out the initial resistance and step learning curve. At least, the last two group meetings nobody jumped off the window while presenting the key elements of Scala, and demonstrating how concise and elegant it made the first working seed of the distributed execution engine :D. We even got in discussions about the benefits of using Scala if it delivered everything I showed. I am lucky to work with such smart guys. If you want to take a peek at the distributed execution engine (a.k.a. Snowfield) at SEASR’s Fisheye.Billionaire Oprah Winfrey may not have raised any children of her own, but she’s certainly made a difference in the lives of countless kids thanks to her generous philanthropy. Still, Winfrey (who suffered sexual abuse as a child and, at age 14, gave birth to a baby who died a few days later) has been in a relationship with businessman Stedman Graham since 1986 and did consider adopting children during her multiple visits to Africa over the years. Ultimately, she decided she couldn’t dedicate the time to both caring for children and running a media empire. "I could not... have had this life and lived it with the level of intensity that is required to do this show the way it's done," Winfrey, 58, told Barbara Walters in December 2010. "I'd be one of those people that the kid's coming and saying, 'Mom, you've neglected me.'... So I have no regrets about that. I have none... not one regret about not having children because I believe that... it is the way it's supposed to be."Coffee is the second-most consumed beverage in the world, after water. Detailed examinations of coffee's bioactive ingredients require a more accurate accounting of test subjects' consumption habits than is feasible using food diaries. Silke Heinzmann, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany, and colleagues identified 2-furoylglycine (pictured) as a coffee-specific biomarker compound, which distinguishes it from other biomarkers reported to date. They found this marker using 1H NMR to analyze the urine of subjects participating in a dietary study. The study was small, involving eight volunteers who ate standardized meals and donated urine samples throughout the day over the course of one week. They drank coffee as desired between the hours of 8:00 AM and noon every day, except for the first day. One subject drank chicory coffee, and one drank Earl Grey tea. To confirm the discovered correlation of 2-furoylglycine with coffee consumption, excretion profiles were monitored for five volunteers. Each volunteer drank one espresso at the start of the study. They donated urine specimens over the course of two days, during which they ate whatever foods they wanted. The researchers note that 2-furoylglycine is produced by the coffee bean roasting procedure, and it is not present in other beverages. Also of interest Article Views: 3535Ajit Pai, who is on the fast track to becoming this season’s Martin Shkreli, has gotten major press the past few days as the FCC Chairman blamed for “murdering net neutrality.” In most of the press photos, Pai is pictured drinking from a ridiculous novelty mug, as large as his head, emblazoned with the Reese’s candy logo. Ajit Pai, who is on the fast track to becoming this season’s Martin Shkreli, has gotten major press the past few days as the FCC Chairman blamed for “murdering net neutrality.” In most of the press photos, Pai is pictured drinking from a ridiculous novelty mug, as large as his head, emblazoned with the Reese’s candy logo. Pai recently drew Internet ire all over again by releasing what This mug is so absurdly stupid that John Oliver made fun of it last May in a “Last Week Tonight” segment in which he asked viewers to flood the FCC with calls and comments to urge the agency to retain net neutrality. Oliver drank from a bucket-sized replica of the Reese’s mug. Pai’s response was to film a segment drinking from an even larger mug than Oliver, garbage-can sized.Pai recently drew Internet ire all over again by releasing what AV Club called “ a dumb new video ” which openly mocks net neutrality supporters, culminating in a collective public head-explosion when the Federal Communications Commission voted on Thursday to ultimately dismantle rules regulating Internet service providers, effectively “murdering net neutrality” in the public’s view. From our partners at ViceMatthew Warnes was arrested when officers arrived at his home in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, in the early hours of July 4 and discovered more plants and an unsophisticated growing operation. The 29-year-old had spent £250 of his Christmas money on growing equipment from internet auction site eBay as he was finding it too expensive to buy the class B drug off the street. Prosecuting at Rotherham Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, Mark Hughes said: "He called the police to say that three of his cannabis plants had been stolen. "When they arrived they found a further three intact cannabis plants from 18 to 42 centimetres in height and a small growing set up. "They also found bags containing cuttings of dried cannabis suggesting this was a continuing operation." Mitigating, Louisa Giblin said the operation was not sophisticated and called on the district judge not to impose a custodial sentence. Sentencing Warnes to 26 weeks in custody suspended for 12 months and ordering him to complete 150 hours of unpaid work, District Judge Jane Goodwin said: "The fact that you yourself phoned the police to report this is not a mitigating factor." Warnes was also ordered to pay £85 costs. He refused to speak after the case.Two years ago, the greatest acts in pop music were dropping amazing projects and it seemed like a new act made a major breakthrough every week. While we had a brief lull in 2014, the pendulum has swung back. This year has once again brought on big ticket releases from the likes of Sufjan, Kendrick, Björk, and Father John Misty of Fleet Foxes. With over 400 albums released already this year, it’s hard to believe the average person could listen to all the great music being released. So if you want to discover more than just Sufjan and Kendrick, stop sleeping on some of this year's best records and start here! Leather Corduroys — Season Season — a Joey and Kami (a.k.a. Leather Corduroys) project – is one of my favorite recent releases across all genres. It’s, in a word, daring. As an album it might seem to lack cohesion – but I like every track and love “Badmon”, “In Da Club”, “Remember Me”, “Developers”, “Chicken Talk”, “Mexican Coke”, and “Lucile” – which you may
other androids to blur the lines between humanity and machine; between what is alive and what is just a facsimile that appears to be alive. As such, the original source material often plays around with our conceptions of the soul, consciousness, or “ghost”—which this film does not. At the very least, the new Ghost in the Shell could have made the central conflict in the series a little more morally gray. For example, if Batou had to be fully encased into a cyborg body to save his life after the explosion instead of just eye implants, this would have shown how the technology had measurably advanced because of the unethical research experiments. As it is, there really is no redeeming factor to the main villain in the movie. Even if it isn’t the same as the human/technology blurring themes, there needed to be a larger ethical conflict in the movie. Third, many scenes are almost directly lifted from different points in the original movies and anime series, just to be jumbled together into something resembling a plot. This often leads to many questions and plot points that are never really explored. For example... What was the human network that Kuze was building? What was its purpose? Was it really just to be able to not be tracked? Was it going to be part of his plan to upload himself to the net? Why does he have so many henchmen willing to die for him or be a part of this net? Are they all hacked? But if brain cyberization is not a concept in the film’s world, how exactly did the garbage truck drivers get hacked? Aside from the multitude of plot holes, the real tragedy is that Kuze’s character is reduced to almost nothing more than just a revenge-filled husk. All the nuance within the character that made him captivating and charismatic is lost. Additionally, the film never explores this concept of a human interconnected network or the implications of what Kuze meant by uploading himself to the net. With the original series, these concepts were the focus of the story, not just throw-away lines that were not explored. When watching the final fight scene of the film, it is very reminiscent of the ending of the 1995 movie. You have a spider tank that meets its demise from the Major ripping off a hatch to her own detriment. Kuze gets his head sniped very similarly to the puppet master. What stands out as different is the choice that Scarlett Johannson’s character makes at the end. Her rendition of the character makes an opposing choice to the Major in the original 1995 film; she decides to not join Kuze to be uploaded to the network. This is very important because it highlights the writers’ fundamental misunderstandings of the original material. The Major in the animated movies had made the decision to be reborn and merge with this other AI entity. This actually led to a hugely anti-climatic ending. Sure, it isn’t the safe choice when it comes to writing a plot, but the infatuation with and exploration of these concepts is what made the anime such a cult classic. Scarlett Johannson’s Major takes the safe option. Conclusion: The 2017 Ghost in the Shell movie is a decent film, but as expected it falls short of the heights the source material has reached. The internet still seems to be primarily focusing on the casting controversy of the movie, but that is not what damns it to the halls of mediocrity. The source material had asked questions about technology, the future, and the soul; it didn’t force answers that it didn’t have. The audience was left wondering and guessing themselves. This is partly why the series has garnered so much acclaim. This is also why the adaptation fails: it doesn’t ask any meaningful or interesting questions; it instead forces upon the viewer explanations and justifications that don’t quite hold up from the evidence that it provides. We don’t leave the movie theater wondering about the future or the implications of technology. However, I still did leave the movie theater generally satisfied, knowing at least that the 2017 Ghost in the Shell was not as horrid as most live-action anime adaptations. Hopefully in the future Hollywood can spend more time making adaptations in the spirit of the originals, rather than either copy-pasting or ironing out all the interest by making such safe choices.If you were to build a city from scratch, using current technology, what would it cost to live there? I think it would be nearly free if you did it right. This is a big deal because people aren’t saving enough for retirement, and many folks are underemployed. If the economy can’t generate enough money for everyone to pay for a quality lifestyle today, perhaps we can approach it from the other direction and lower the cost of living. Consider energy costs. We already know how to build homes that use zero net energy. So that budget line goes to zero if you build a city from scratch. Every roof will be intelligently oriented to the sun, and every energy trick will be used in the construction of the homes. (I will talk about the capital outlay for solar panels and whatnot later.) I can imagine a city built around communal farming in which all the food is essentially free. Imagine every home with a greenhouse. All you grow is one crop in your home, all year, and the Internet provides an easy sharing system as well as a way to divide up the crops in a logical way. I share my cucumbers and in return get whatever I need from the other neighbors’ crops via an organized ongoing sharing arrangement. My guess is that using the waste water (treated) and excess heat from the home you could grow food economically in greenhouses. If you grow more than you eat, the excess is sold in neighboring towns, and that provides enough money for you to buy condiments, sauces, and stuff you can’t grow at home. Medical costs will never go to zero, but recent advances in medical testing technology (which I have seen up close in start-up pitches) will drive the costs of routine medical services down by 80% over time. That’s my guess, based on the several pitches I have seen. Now add Big Data to the mix and the ability to catch problems early (when they are inexpensive to treat) is suddenly tremendous. Now add IBM’s Watson technology (artificial intelligence) to the medical system and you will be able to describe your symptoms to your phone and get better-than-human-doctor diagnoses right away. (Way better. Won’t even be close.) So doctor visits will become largely unnecessary except for emergency room visits, major surgeries, and end-of-life stuff. Speaking of end-of-life, assume doctor-assisted-suicide is legal by the time this city is built. I plan to make sure that happens in California on the next vote. Other states will follow. In this imagined future you can remove much of the unnecessary costs of the cruel final days of life that are the bulk of medical expenses. Now assume the city of the future has exercise facilities nearby for everyone, and the city is designed to promote healthy living. Everyone would be walking, swimming, biking, and working out. That should reduce healthcare costs. Now imagine that because everyone is growing healthy food in their own greenhouses, the diet of this new city is spectacular. You’d have to make sure every home had a smoothie-maker for protein shakes. And let’s say you can buy meat from the outside if you want it, so no one is deprived. But the meat-free options will improve from the sawdust and tofu tastes you imagine now to something much more enjoyable over time. Healthy eaters who associate with other healthy eaters share tricks for making healthy food taste amazing. Now assume the homes are organized such that they share a common center “grassy” area that is actually artificial turf so you don’t need water and mowing. Every home opens up to the common center, which has security cameras, WiFi, shady areas, dog bathroom areas, and more. This central lawn creates a natural “family” of folks drawn to the common area each evening for fun and recreation. This arrangement exists in some communities and folks rave about the lifestyle, as dogs and kids roam freely from home to home encircling the common open area. That sort of home configuration takes care of your childcare needs, your pet care needs, and lots of other things that a large “family” handles easily. The neighborhood would be Internet-connected so it would be easy to find someone to watch your kid or dog if needed, for free. My neighborhood is already connected by an email group, so if someone sees a suspicious activity, for example, the entire neighborhood is alerted in minutes. I assume that someday online education will be far superior to the go-to-school model. Online education improves every year while the classroom experience has started to plateau. Someday every home will have what I call an immersion room, which is a small room with video walls so you can immerse yourself in history, or other studies, and also visit other places without leaving home. (Great for senior citizens especially.) So the cost of education will drop to zero as physical schools become less necessary. When anyone can learn any skill at home, and any job opening is easy to find online, the unemployment rate should be low. And given the low cost of daily living, folks can afford to take a year off to retool and learn new skills. The repair and maintenance costs of homes can drop to nearly zero if you design homes from the start to accomplish that goal. You start by using common windows, doors, fixtures, and mechanical systems from a fixed set of choices. That means you always have the right replacement part nearby. Everyone has the same AC units, same Internet routers, and so on. If something breaks, a service guy swaps it out in an hour. Or do it yourself. If you start from scratch to make your homes maintenance-free, you can get close. You would have homes that never need paint, with floors and roofs that last hundreds of years, and so on. Today it costs a lot to build a home, but most of that cost is in the inefficiency of the process. In the future, homes will be designed to the last detail using CAD, and factory-cut materials of the right size will appear on the job site as a snap-together kit with instructions printed on each part. I could write a book on this topic, but the bottom line is that home construction is about 80% higher than it needs to be even with current technology. The new city would be built on cheap land, by design, so land costs would be minimal. Construction costs for a better-than-today condo-sized home would probably be below $75,000 apiece. Amortized over 15 years the payments are tiny. And after the 15th year there is no mortgage at all. (The mortgage expense includes the solar panels, greenhouses, etc.) Transportation would be cheap in this new city. Individually-owned automobiles would be banned. Public transportation would be on-demand and summoned by app (like Uber). And the self-driving cars would be cheap to build. Once human drivers are out of the picture you can remove all of the safety features because accidents won’t happen. And you only summon a self-driving car that is the size you need. There is no reason to drag an empty back seat and empty trunk everywhere you go. And if you imagine underground roads, the cars don’t need to be weather-proof. And your sound system is your phone, so the car just needs speakers and BlueTooth. Considering all of that, self-driving cars might someday cost $5,000 apiece, and that expense would be shared across several users on average. And imagine the cars are electric, and the city produces its own electricity. Your transportation budget for the entire family might be $200 per month within the city limits. The cost of garbage service could drop to nearly zero if homes are designed with that goal in mind. Your food garbage would go back to the greenhouse as mulch. You wouldn’t have much processed food in this city, so no cans and bottles to discard. And let’s say you ban the postal service from this new city because all they do is deliver garbage anyway. (All bills will be online.) And let’s say if you do accumulate a bag of garbage you can just summon a garbage vehicle to meet you at the curb using the same app you use for other vehicles. By the time you walk to the curb, the vehicle pulls up, and you toss the bag in. I think a properly-designed city could eliminate 80% of daily living expenses while providing a quality of life far beyond what we experience today. And I think this future will have to happen because the only other alternative is an aggressive transfer of wealth from the rich to the poor by force of law. I don’t see that happening. Scott Adams @ScottAdamsSays (my dangerous tweets) Dilbert on Facebook My book on success: “The best book on self-help ever.” – Frank (5-star Amazon review)After about a one month drought of European games, Real Madrid will host Olympique Lyon tomorrow evening at the Santiago Bernabéu. The historical French powerhouse is facing a rebuilding phase since they transfered Miralem Pjanic and Jeremy Toulalan this summer. Toulalan was the key man in Lyon's midfield while Pjanic could join the game if the French team needed a good passer. With Lisandro López injured, the responsibility to score will fall on Gomis. The Drogba-like striker knows how to score on Casillas already: during last year's leg against Real Madrid, Gomis scored OL's only goal in the Stade Gerland. Lyon is currently third in France's Ligue 1's standings. José Mourinho will be able to command his team from the bench. Our coach has missed three European games due to the press-conference after the Madrid-Barça game last year. It's good that we see him back in what is possibly the most difficult game in this Group Stage. Lass Diarra, Nuri Sahin, Raúl Albiol and Ricardo Carvalho are off of the list due to nagging injuries. Luckily for us, we will recover Marcelo after his red card in Zagreb's game. I would bet on Sami Khedira getting the starting role tomorrow. I don't know why, but Mourinho hasn't been using him as much as he was last season. The defense should be the same one we saw in the game against Betis: I think that is probably the best defense we can put on the pitch today. Carvalho is out of shape even if he weren't injured, and Sergio Ramos is just that good in the CB position. Arbeloa has started the season pretty well so I am confident about our defense. Maybe when Carvalho leaves the team we can sign a full-guarantee RB so Arbeloa is able to return to his 12th man role, which I find more appropiate for him. Don't get me wrong, I trust Arbeloa a lot, but I don't know whether he is starter-caliber for a team like Real Madrid. I feel like Mourinho might rest Kaká or Özil to give Di Maria some run. Özil does not seem comfortable playing on the wing, so my choice is to rest Kaká tomorrow so he can be ready for our next La Liga game. I think it would be smarter for Mourinho to play one of them: if Kaká is as fit as he looks, Di Maria should get the spot instead of Özil, since the Argentinian contributes more than the German on the right wing. The other doubt that remains to be seen is whether we will see Benzema or Higuaín tomorrow. Mourinho has refused to say who has the starting position in Real Madrid and I tend to agree with him. With these two strikers, it would be better for us to give each of them a chance until one clearly proves that has the edge over the other one. "It's possible to play with both Higuain and Benzema or only with one of them. Both players are playing well and the competition between the two improves the collective performance of the team. My objective is to unite and not divide. What's in the press is different; it's a debate about who is good and who is poor. My point of view is different, we win and lose as a team. We have different objectives". Higuaín has showed recently that he has recovered from the slump he had after his surgery, and Benzema completed a nice preseason and start of the campaign. I would start Benzema tomorrow just because he knows the style of the French league, so he probably can give his teammates some hints about how to attack Lyon's defenders and goalkeeper. This is about all about our team tomorrow, if you want to know something more about Olympique Lyonnais, head over to Managing Madrid's preview of the French team. That's an in-depth analysis that will give you more knowledge about Lyon's players and situation. Let's hope we get to see a good game, but don't forget the win!BRETT QUINZON did two tours in Iraq before leaving active duty in May. Originally from Minnesota, Mr Quinzon now lives in Thomaston, a small town around 65 miles south of Atlanta. A grey December morning found him filling out forms in Atlanta's large veterans' hospital, seeking treatment for depression. Since returning from Iraq, he says he has “more anger issues”, and finds himself “more watchful and on-guard in public situations” than he was before he deployed. That is not unusual: many soldiers return from the battlefield with psychological scars. Between January and May, as he prepared to leave active duty, Mr Quinzon applied for hundreds of jobs. The search proved difficult: like many veterans, he enlisted right after high-school, and lacks a college degree. But persistence paid off. He is now an apprentice at a heating and air-conditioning company, and is being trained as a heavy-equipment operator. Not all recent veterans are so lucky. Around 800,000 veterans are jobless, 1.4m live below the poverty line, and one in every three homeless adult men in America is a veteran. Though the overall unemployment rate among America's 21m veterans in November (7.4%) was lower than the national rate (8.6%), for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan it was 11.1%. And for veterans between the ages of 18 and 24, it was a staggering 37.9%, up from 30.4% just a month earlier. Get our daily newsletter Upgrade your inbox and get our Daily Dispatch and Editor's Picks. If demography is indeed destiny, perhaps this figure should not be surprising. More soldiers are male than female, and the male jobless rate exceeds women's. Since so many soldiers lack a college degree, the fact that the recession has been particularly hard on the less educated hits veterans disproportionately. Large numbers of young veterans work—or worked—in stricken industries such as manufacturing and construction. Whatever the cause, this bleak trend is occurring as the last American troops leave Iraq at the end of this year, and as more than 1m new veterans are expected to join the civilian labour force over the next four years. And of course it is also occurring in fiscally straitened times, though it looks as though this will affect veterans' services less than other parts of the federal government. Though there have been some small fee increases for veterans covered by Tricare, the military health-insurance programme, significant cuts to veterans' benefits are unlikely, and for good reason. Military pay is far from generous, and the benefits are comprehensive but hardly gold-plated or easy to navigate. Not for nothing is a popular online forum for veterans wending their way through the bureaucracy of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) called HadIt.com. Still, even if services are not cut, they are unlikely to improve as steeply as they did in the last decade, when between 2003 and 2010 the VA's budget more than doubled. Jeff Miller, who chairs the House Veterans Affairs Committee, says he and veterans' organisations are “in a position of defence” against any potential cuts, and says he worries about the effects of the big and supposedly mandatory defence cuts occasioned by the supercommittee's failure last month to reach agreement on the deficit. For the next year at least benefits are safe: the VA is funded two years in advance, and after a slight dip from 2010 to 2011, in 2012 its budget will increase. But its costs are also rising. Despite the influx of young returning soldiers, America's veteran population, like the general populace, is ageing and living longer: the number of veterans aged 85 or older is forecast to grow by 20% in the next decade. Improvements in military medicine have thankfully reduced mortality rates for soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan as compared with battlefield injuries in previous wars, but those soldiers often require specialised, long-term mental and physical care. The VA has done a lot to make access to its services easier, as of course it should, but this has resulted in rising numbers of claims. And then there is the problem of joblessness, which keeps unemployed veterans on VA health care rather than getting it from a private insurance programme offered by an employer, as most Americans do. A wide array of government programmes have failed to get veterans back to work. The Post-9/11 GI Bill, signed into law by George Bush junior in 2008, has at least helped veterans go back to school: it pays for education and training for all veterans who served more than 90 days in the armed forces after September 11th 2001. Barack Obama created a Council on Veterans Employment in 2009, and the federal government hired over 70,000 veterans in both 2009 and 2010. On November 21st Mr Obama signed a bill offering tax credits to employers who hire unemployed or disabled veterans. Michelle Obama and Jill Biden, the vice-president's wife and the stepmother of a soldier, have launched a campaign on behalf of veterans and military families. The Department of Labour offers an online employment service, as well as counselling for veterans at its 3,000 career centres dotted around the country. Still, commissions, initiatives and incentives can only go so far. The transition from a regimented military life to the unstructured vastness of civilian life is difficult. Susan Hampton, who helps returning veterans at one such centre in Corbin, Kentucky, says that soldiers often have trouble translating their military skills into marketable civilian ones. Besides which, says Glenn Campbell, a Marine veteran who now helps match returning soldiers with employers and job openings in eastern Kentucky, “résumés scare a lot of people”—particularly soldiers, accustomed to being told where to go and what to do, and suddenly having to figure out, rather than being told, what employers want. Over 2m soldiers served in Iraq and Afghanistan. That may sound like a lot, but it accounts for less than 1% of Americans. Many soldiers return to find themselves the only people in their towns or communities who served. Jon Soltz, who spent the last year serving in Iraq as a major advising the Iraqi army and before that headed a left-leaning veterans-advocacy group called Votevets, went to the bank a couple of days after he returned home. He told the teller he no longer lived at the address on file, and had spent the last year in Iraq. “She asked me if I was there on vacation…People aren't going to understand. People aren't living it. It was a chosen war, and the country was never really engaged in it.” Perhaps. But as unpopular as the war became, at least its opponents have not vented their anger at returning soldiers, as many did after Vietnam. As Mr Campbell notes, “veterans get more honour and respect than anybody” in his part of the world. And that is largely true elsewhere too: returning veterans do have a distracted nation's gratitude. But gratitude alone never paid a bill.Photo via Luke Bonner I didn't know it at the time, but I could have done something. I didn't. But, in hindsight, I could have. When I was an active college basketball player, it took me a while to figure out that something was off. After all, I was lucky enough to have an athletic scholarship at a prestigious university, I thought. Plus, my older brother Matt and sister Becky also received athletic scholarships at prestigious universities for hoops. A blessing, right? After all, all universities are prestigious. And that should be enough for any athlete, especially the ones who otherwise wouldn't have a chance in hell at setting foot on campus. We take this as good fortune, and we wield. So, when the NCAA didn't believe that one person could eat as much as my brother did at an Outback Steakhouse during one of his official visits—one of the five expenses-paid visits high school seniors are permitted under NCAA rules—my parents didn't contest the claim. They paid the school back for the meal. Who were we to challenge the system that was about to bless my brother with the privilege of playing basketball on national television in front of sold-out arenas? Read More: Occupy College Football: Les Miles, Clay Helton, And The Power Of Public Opinion And, when an NCAA compliance officer threatened my brother could be suspended for part of the season, my family didn't dare dispute it. We were scared, suddenly panicked about Matt's promising future being ruined by a misunderstanding. As the valedictorian of his high school class, my brother had the audacity to accept a scholarship from a local community organization, a scholarship dedicated every year to the school's valedictorian. Matt used the money to help pay for summer courses prior to starting the fall semester of his freshman year; that is, he used the scholarship he earned in the way in which it was intended to be used. As it happens, the NCAA has since adjusted their policy on this, and allows this first summer session to be covered by athletic scholarships; it is now commonplace for recruits to start courses a few days after their high school graduation. This was not yet the rule, though, and so according to compliance my brother benefitted from his status as a college basketball player. This is totally unacceptable for anyone to do, except for the NCAA and its sponsors. Disputing the claim didn't even enter our minds. My parents feared Matt could be vilified if it wasn't taken care of immediately. We imagined a press conference at which he would have to publicly apologize to his teammates, the coaches, the university, and the fans for letting them down. Who knows how the whole affair could have affected his draft stock? So, my dad picked up extra refereeing gigs in addition to his day job as a letter carrier for the United States Postal Service; my mom, an elementary school teacher, signed up to teach summer school. They paid it back, and kept all frustrations about the absurdity of the situation within the family. The absurdity of it was plain to us all even then, but there wasn't much to do about it. Anyway, again: we were all privileged to be in such a situation. And it's not a smart move to cross the NCAA, especially when you have two younger children gearing up to enter into that same system. Don't rock the college sports boat, and maybe someday you'll be paid $1.8 million a year for defending the status quo and sucking up the surplus cash, just like this guy. -Photo by Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports It's safe to say that my skepticism of the NCAA started long before I signed a National Letter of Intent to play Big East basketball. But, like pretty much every other college player, I swore I'd make it to the NBA. I was a skilled seven-footer who stayed out of trouble. If I could secure enough playing time to average close to 10 points and more than 5 rebounds per game, I figured I'd at least get a look. Surely, I'd have a shot at being the 15th man on the worst team in the NBA. Or at least help a top-level team overseas. That would still be a damn good payday, and money I'd earn by playing basketball instead of grinding it out in a cubicle or factory. If any of this were to happen, though, I knew what I'd have to do, or more specifically not do. I couldn't risk challenging the status quo and inviting the label of being a troublemaker. A little rationalization smoothed this out nicely: I mean, I signed up for this at my own free will. Squint enough, dream hard enough, and it suddenly seemed only right that my parents' insurance covered the root canal and crown I needed after getting my front tooth knocked out during a war rebounding drill in practice. Likewise it wasn't the school's fault that the seven-foot, 270-pound ogre on the other team dove into my legs during a nationally televised game my senior year. So, why should the school be required to pay for my MRIs when my parents had insurance and still claimed me as a dependent? Sure, I always assumed the school was required to cover all medical expenses for athletic-related injuries, but I guess it was my own fault for never asking about that during the recruiting process. And yeah, being out of network with an HMO family insurance policy made things tricky and expensive at times—the coaching staff decides which doctors you see, and these happened to be out of network for me—but at least my parents had insurance in the first place, unlike some of my teammates. And if I spoke out, how would it reflect on coach? Surely people would spin it into something about my coach's treatment of his players, even though it was not that simple. When the NBA goes through a collective bargaining process, player demands never reflect upon the coaches. They stick to the basic economic realities of the situation. I was coming to know a very different set of economic realities, and very well. Certainly, I knew them well enough to know not to talk about them. If I did, coach could well bury me at the end of the bench for being selfish. If he did, could I really blame him? After all, I'd be responsible for bringing all of this negative attention to our program. This distraction could topple the delicate habitat of our locker room and affect our team's performance on the court. And, if we didn't perform, coach might never have been able to leave after my junior year to accept that nearly $3 million-per-year contract to coach at a different university. Oh, and he secured access to a private jet, a nearly $10 million buyout on his new contract, the whole nine. Good for him. He earned it. I probably would have done the same if I were in his position. Anyway, I'm glad he's doing well, and it was exciting to spend my last year of college eligibility getting to know a new coaching staff. TFW you can access a free market for your services and do very well for yourself, unlike the players you coach. -Photo by Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports And what were we earning for all of our hard work? My teammates and I were putting in 40-plus hours a week towards basketball-related activities on top of our academic schedules. But, that's what was needed to be able to do our jobs on the court; it helped teach us time management skills. And, waking up at 5:00 a.m. to run sprints until total exhaustion and/or vomiting was teaching me a valuable lesson about the real world. Like our coaches said, we didn't have it that bad. They were always helping us keep perspective, reminding us that we could have been digging a ditch somewhere or dodging bullets in Iraq. So in the scheme of things, between the sprints, weight lifting, individual instruction, practice, film sessions, treatment, study hall and class, we had it made. Sure, it all drove me to hate the game I loved my whole life. Sure, laying in bed at night feeling unrelenting aches and pain, I fantasized about quitting the team or at least sleeping through the next day's beating. But, that was never an option. Couldn't risk anyone thinking I was soft. Anyway, what could I have done about it? I was just a role player on a mediocre college team; my scholarship was contingent on me doing my job on the basketball court. Which also meant working through holidays, submitting to regular drug testing, sacrificing the right to my own name/image/likeness, participating in mandatory marketing initiatives. I could rationalize this, too: subjecting myself to restrictions on self expression came with the territory, and if some of these rules were draconian and weird—restrictions on what you're allowed to post on social media, not being allowed to grow your hair past your eyes unless you make the dean's list, a prohibition of wearing du-rags in public—then I could live with them. I didn't wear du-rags anyway. And what about the rest of the university administration and alumni network? Would it really have been worth burning those bridges by being so unappreciative for all they have done for me, and all they could do to take care of me when my playing days were long done? Sure, it sucked when my car got towed from the gym all those times our 6 a.m. practices ran longer than expected, and it sucked that the bus didn't run that early in the morning, and there were no permits available to students for the lot by the gym. But I got it. If I was allowed to park there just because I played basketball, that would have been an impermissible extra benefit, and presumably a gateway to a whole mess of things. It was tough to scrape up the money to get my car out of the pound, but on the other hand I didn't have to pay for books. Revenue sport college athletes get such a great deal, why would they ever want to unionize or agitate for silly things like basic rights? -Photo by Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports And it could always be worse. I know guys in much higher profile programs than mine used food stamps during winter break when the dining halls shut down. I wasn't subjected to anything like that at either of my schools. I'm just lucky that NCAA rules required me to redshirt during my transfer year. Without that rule, I never would have been able to finish off a master's degree at one of the top Sport Management programs in the country; I also never would have been exposed to courses on college athletics and sports labor law. I probably never would have taken a deeper dive into the system in the first place. I learned a lot, but even then I still reasoned that there was nothing I could do about it. I was just a college kid, and even if what college athletes—disorganized, pampered, selfish—would be asking for was pretty basic, we'd be taking on the NCAA and its lobbyists, lawyers, consultants and PR team. No chance. The NCAA rakes in billions every year off its Cinderella stories. Ours could be the greatest of all time, but I knew enough to know that Cinderella stories were more of an on-the-court thing. *** It's none of my business, now. I could pen the most persuasive essay in the history of the written word, or represent college athletes at Congressional hearings in Washington, D.C. where political advisors are brought to tears. It won't change a goddamn thing, because my time has passed. Yes, the NCAA has reluctantly made some improvements recently, almost all of them the result of a series of lawsuits and as a reaction to the Northwestern football team stepping up in an attempt to unionize. In general, throughout the association's history, intense legal pressure has proven the only legitimate way to get the NCAA to move an inch. That's why the actions of the Northwestern football players were so impressive, they found the courage to take a stand for college athletes everywhere. So I'm older, and it's not my business, only I'll say this anyway: it's about time college athletes understood how much power they actually have. I'm not one of you, not anymore, but I encourage you to stand up for yourselves. You are the key individuals driving this multibillion-dollar industry, its labor and its product. You deserve a say, a real say, in the policies that stand to affect your lives the most. You deserve to have your best interests represented. You deserve rights, legal standing and representation, just like athletes in every other major sports league in our country. Just like every other citizen in our country, come to think of it. Change can happen the moment you decide that change must happen. So, do something while you still can. Why wouldn't you? Oh, yeah. Probably for the same reasons I never did.Posted 03 August 2011 - 09:43 PM is the process in which caves are formed, and you are the person who explores them. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The world above ground is the one that everyone knows, with the blue skies and the bright shining sun. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ To you, another world beckons. The one down below. Fearlessly, you enter it's mouth. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ A world that most would strive to avoid, is all yours to discover. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Features: Silky smooth animation (all of 60 fps or higher) A Diverse World Consisting of: Overworld HUB Area 1 - Coast - Damp Cave Area 2 - Fall - Vertical Cliffs Area 3 - Crank - Heavy Machinery Area 4 - Melt - Boiling Lava Flow Area 5 - Release - Exciting Chase Bonus Area 6 - Chill - Frozen Peak 15 Minerals to Discover (3 complete) 5 Animals to Capture (2 complete) 10 Tools of the Trade to explore further (1 complete) A Complete Soundtrack Controls: Arrow Keys Left and Right or A and D - Move Arrow Key Up or W- Jump Arrow Key Down or S- Crouch (Pick up Traps) Z - Interact X - Drop Trap (if you have any) 1, 2, 3 - Change HUD tab Escape - Exit_ _ _ _ Download: Dropbox Link _ _ _ _ To Do: More Minerals More Animals More Areas More Tools _ _ _ _ And there you have it. Enjoy, and please let me know of any bugs, ideas, suggestions, or comments you have regarding the game. Thanks for stopping by, Chris Edited by chrscool8, 20 January 2012 - 02:53 PM.Will Pangman of AirBitz talks about the new buy and sell feature on the AirBitz wallet, as well as some other new features coming soon. Then we talk we talk with John Casseretto of Blackcert.com, a John McAfee company at Future Tense Central, a great place to find lots of privacy applications. Blackcert is an SSL certificate service with lots of great features and competitive prices. Original air date: December 6, 2015, on the Logos Radio Network. We're once again moving things around. This time we've added the off-air talk at the end as a bonus track, so to speak. Let us know what think of this method. We're trying to find the best combination to keep everyone interested. If you're following us on Twitter, we will tweet the names
one of agents on board sacrificed himself and destroyed their..." "You killed my parents!" Elsa bellowed. She reached her hands forward, itching to close them around her spymaster's throat. Her entire body shook with rage. Not since Anna's rescue from Lucrania had she felt such hate. And all this time...all this time she had trusted the woman in front of her. The mastermind behind the deaths of her parents. Evangeline nodded. "All that was left to bring you here, the exact spot where you had been betrayed. We knew we had to be careful; one mistake could set us back decades, and we had thrived by being discreet. Eventually, we found two willing traitors in the Royal Guard. Once we had you, we would have brought you here. But someone got in the way." "Anna," Elsa hissed. The spymaster scowled. "For months she's been both a thorn in our side and our greatest asset. She kept you alive, but also prevented us from helping you realize your destiny. We tried to kill her during her journey, though Drell's group did send the first group of men. The assassination plot during the Solstice was them as well. But we organized the conflict between Albion and Lucrania, simply to buy time and keep you distracted. Jocasta was one of our agents." These people better hope that she never got free. Elsa couldn't think of a punishment worthy of those who killed her parents and tortured her beloved, but she would gladly spend the rest of her life trying to find one. "To assure you of my loyalty, Jocasta was 'captured' by my agents. I was the one who had her killed, of course. She was loyal to our cause, and understood that her failure to obtain information from Anna warranted such a punishment. The entire time, however, I was trying to protect you from Drell's group. We knew why they wanted to kill you, but not who they were. After the uprising they organized, I was forced to work with Anna in bringing them down." Elsa remembered how Anna had described Jocasta's hatred of her...almost as if it was personal. "If she was protecting me, why the fuck did you try to kill her?" the monarch demanded. "Especially since she was better at it than you ever were! She has powerful magic; by your standards, isn't she someone who would be honored?!" "Anna was always a threat. We knew that when once made our move, she would use all of her abilities to stop it. Why do we hate her?" Evangeline asked icily. "Her magic, Your Worship, doesn't come from your healing abilities. It exists because of the romantic attachment between the two of you; a phenomenon weaved into the fabric of the world by the King of the Gods at the behest of his most pathetic followers. The very nature of her powers is a perversion. And we all know that you...the real you, would never have even deigned to look at her. She defiles you with her touch." On any other day, this would have been a major revelation, but at the moment Elsa really couldn't care less. "I helped her stop Drell, yes. I'm not stupid; it was a golden opportunity. But after he was defeated, I sent my men to go find her. Not to save her, but to finish her off. I knew there was a chance she might survive, and it turns out that I was correct. Still, it doesn't matter. We were not certain how to get you to Eldora, especially with Anna protecting you. Then, Daniel Frye won Eldora's Grand Tournament." Frye. That was the man who had challenged Anna. "So?" Elsa demanded. "He is one of the Ungifted within the Faithful, but he knows his duty is to serve those with magic, and, above all, serve his Goddess. His victory and previous loyalty allowed him entry into Eldora's Royal Guards. From there, he used his access to slowly poison the King over a space of several months. It's a rare concoction, but one some of the Faithful are practiced in creating. It causes gradual heart problems, simulating natural illness, all while slowly killing the victim with gradual doses. Once he was dead, we knew you would be invited here. All that was left was to distract Anna, which Frye is currently doing, and then lead you to this room. A rather anti-climatic end to thousands of years of preparation, I suppose," Evangeline noted. "But it will be well worth it. So, these people had killed Marisol's father. Was there a death they hadn't caused? "It's ironic, isn't it?" Evangeline asked. "After all her efforts, Anna has accomplished nothing. All she did was delay your rise for several months. And now, all her victories and struggles are going to be rewarded by the betrayal of the one person she loves." Elsa's hands trembled with rage. "No matter what I remember, I will never hurt Anna." "The real you will despise her. She is weak, foolish, and about as intelligent as a rock. The only reason she's had any value to you is because of her stolen magic. I look forward to seeing how you punish her. Killing her or forcing her back out into the cold...I wonder which you will decide is more fitting?" All around her, the white smoke was closing in. "Evangeline," Elsa snarled. "You should just kill me now. Because if I get free, the rest of your life is going to be spent in perpetual agony. I won't care if you're defenseless...if you're crying for mercy. You'll be begging for death, but death will be too merciful for you. If you had wanted to awaken the wrath of the Goddess, then you have succeeded," she hissed. The spymaster simply smiled. "If you ever deem me worthy of punishment, Your Worship, once your memories have returned, I will gladly submit to your will. Your power gives you that right. But I do not think you will be angry with me for much longer. Honestly, I would not be surprised if you rewarded me for my efforts. All my life, I have looked forward to being your humble servant." All of the room was covered in white haze now, and all of it seemed to slowly be converging on Elsa. The chanters, their faces barely illuminated by the dim glow of torches, were looking on with fanatic eagerness. "I'd never agree with your actions...your worldview. If I'm the reincarnation of someone so evil, how could I be so completely different from my past self?" Elsa questioned. "Are you? Are you really? You murdered King David in cold blood. You kill those who oppose you without a second thought. You were even willing to use your power to bully two countries into obeying your authority. Your true nature has been tempered, yes, but it still shines through when it needs to. The upbringing you received from your pathetic parents is no doubt responsible for subduing your true personality. But once your memories return..." They were so certain that she would convert to their side. Lead their side. What exactly was this spell doing? Would it allow her previous personality to possess and take over her body? Or was it merely going to return her memories of a previous life? If so, and as disturbing as that would be, it would not alter Elsa's entire personality and convince her that might made right. At least, she hoped so. If Elsa became what they wanted her to be, the consequences were unthinkable. The entire world would be unable to stand against her. If she became evil, what would happen to Arendelle? Her heart lurched. What would happen to Anna? Would she be able to stop me? "What then?" Elsa scoffed. "You'restore' my mind, then what? We take over the world together?" The Queen wasn't sure how this information would be useful, but if she somehow got out of this, anything was possible. "No. You will assume your rightful place as Empress of the Earth. The Faithful will resume our roles as your lieutenants and servants. Magic users will again stand above the Ungifted masses. And every country on earth will learn how meaningless the concept of freedom truly is. The world, of course, will have to be punished for rejecting your rule, though that punishment will be left up to your discretion, of course," Evangeline explained. It was such a sickening worldview. How could Evangeline had pretended to be normal for so long? How had Elsa's own past self ever believed such nonsense...such malevolence? This couldn't be allowed to happen! Despite herself, Elsa found her eyes staring at the door, hoping Anna would burst in and save her once again. Even if the Knight couldn't overpower the entire cult by herself, all she would have to do was slash through Elsa's magical binds. Then the Queen could do the rest herself. But Anna didn't appear. "First, of course, we must awaken your true power. This ritual will only be enough to revitalize your mind, not your strength. The prophecy is clear; when your domain covers the entire earth, your godly power will be restored in full. Drell's prophecy mentioned the same thing, but with one key difference." Elsa stared at her, fists still shaking with rage. "The version we gave to the rebels said that if your domain covers the entire earth, your powers would be restored. As spoken by the Seer, however, the line was: when her domain covers the entire earth. Seers are never wrong, Elsa. Not once in history have their prophecies been wrong about anything. So take heart, the future is inevitable. We will succeed. You will manage to bring the entire earth under control, and your godly power will awaken," Evangeline promised. The Queen said nothing. "The future, Your Worship, has already been written. And it is going to be your future." A/N: This is a twist I've been looking forward to for a long time. Jocasta's comments about how Elsa's real nature and that soon she would reveal her true self? Foreshadowing. Evangeline's emotions rising when she sees the letter from Eldora (letting her know their plan to kill the King succeeded)? Foreshadowing. Anna's musing that someone with Elsa's powers but evil would be a disaster in Chapter 33? Foreshadowing. Anna's dream of the prophecy in Chapter 50 containing words that Drell's version never had (wiped…returned…betrayal)? A hint that his version was missing something. Evangeline 'hurrying through the darkness' to get behind Drell? Her actually using shadow teleportation. Kayla starting to address Elsa as 'G…' during the uprising? A hint that Kayla knew about her divinity (she was going to say 'goddess' in her moment of panic before catching herself.) Elsa musing that 'there's more to Evangeline than a dutiful servant if one looked hard enough'? Foreshadowing. And, of course, the fact that the first group of kidnappers could not kill Elsa implied that there was more than one conspiracy. The sun setting behind Anna and Elsa as they left Arendelle… I'm sure there's some more there, but I enjoyed putting in little hints so much that I might have lost track. If you guys find anymore, I'd really appreciate it if you could remind me. Anyway, I really hope it all came together nicely. Responses: Guest 1: Thank you! DimmensionalLover: A lot, as it turns out. Awesomenessunleashed: Nope! HeavanGliders7765: Who is supposed to be dead? Evangeline? She never died. Shtoops: Did you know this? LittleGia: Actually, this is a different order. They're even worse. RR: Case of crossfire. 3Gs: Break might be a good word… WinterWolfDragon: Are you sure about that? Strab: Excited? Arekanderu: It gets worse! Lionhart: This still would have happened. They'd be married, but it wouldn't have prevented Elsa getting into this situation. Frost108: Yay! BreeBear98: Still mad? : Foe, although she would disagree. Guest 2: You may have guessed that, but I don't know if you guessed what they were up to. CoolNickNack: Yes?! TaniaHylian: Far from over. Technicalitiesshiznfallacies: Oh, I can do worse. SummerStormWar: If she learns of this. Syrathia: Still unsurprised? Banana-Viking: Thank you very much! I love your stories as well. Shadowfax321: Drell's rebels weren't necessarily evil. These ones are. ClaireCooper: Good to see you're getting better! But if your recovery depends on emotional stability, take a break from reading this. MCLMM: Sort of… Kyoko-nyaa: Anna was upstairs, being distracted. Guest 3: Never! Here it is! Tithi: Doing my best! ObsessiveImaginings: I enjoyed that! Chas3 MaHat: Thanks! Not giving any details on the ending! Mahmed: Sort of, not quite. Evangeline was behind that attack, but she's certainly not a good character.Perhaps the biggest shortcoming of solar and wind power is their intermittency. In locations like Hawaii, where I live, wind and solar power are already competitive on price. My fossil-fuel supplied electricity typically costs above 40 cents a kilowatt-hour, and wind and solar power can compete with that. But since they can’t supply power that is available on demand (firm power) they must be backed up by power sources that can provide power when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing. This scenario could change dramatically if cost-effective energy storage solutions were developed. I consider this to be the most important unresolved problem in the energy business. A company that develops a way to efficiently and economically store intermittent energy for on-demand use will be a game-changer. The ideal power storage solution would be able to store energy densely, at a reasonable capital cost, and would be able to return that power at high efficiency. For instance, if we put 1 unit of power into the storage system and we actually got 1 unit back out when we needed it, the system would be 100% efficient. Real-life efficiencies will be less than 100%, but the higher the efficiency, the more desirable the storage option. A new report on energy storage from Navigant Research predicts that the market for energy storage for the electric grid could surpass $30 billion annually by 2022. Some of the potential options include batteries, pumped hydropower, compressed air energy storage (CAES), flywheels, hydrogen, and fuel cells. And of course nature also has a built-in storage mechanism for solar power (albeit an inefficient one) called biomass. The following figure highlights the biggest problem with most energy storage options — the energy density is simply too low. Energy density measures the amount of energy stored per unit of volume or weight. What this means is that for a given volume or a given weight, the storage options can store only a tiny fraction of energy relative to liquid fuels. The most energy dense options possible would be those at the top and to the right of the graphic. Were Uranium-235 included, it would have appeared at the top right corner, but far beyond the scale of this graphic. The least energy-dense options would be those at the bottom left of the graphic, which is where we find batteries, flywheels, and compressed air. At this scale, the energy density of these storage options appears to be near zero. Relatively speaking, gasoline contains more than 50 times the energy of the same volume of a nickel-metal hydride battery. Pumped hydropower storage (PHS) is a storage option that is already commercially used in some conventional power plants. The concept is that off-peak power is used to pump water up to a reservoir at a higher elevation, and then returned through turbines to produce electricity. A March 2012 report by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) indicated that PHS accounts for 99 percent of utility-scale storage capacity worldwide. PHS has a reported round-trip efficiency of about 75 percent, considerably higher than that of many other storage options. There are around 50 PHS systems of at least 1 gigawatt (GW) installed around the world, with another 15 or so facilities of this size under construction. Operating facilities exist in the US, China, Japan, South Africa, Russia, Australia, South Korea and in a number of European countries. The largest facility in the world is a 3 GW system in Bath County, Virginia. The primary advantage of PHS is that very large amounts of power can be stored for long periods of time, but accessed quickly. The major disadvantages are that initial capital costs are high and the technology is limited by geography to locations that can host a large reservoir at a significantly higher elevation than the power station. Compressed air energy storage (CAES) is the second largest category of utility-scale energy storage. In a CAES system, off-peak power is used to compress air into a storage reservoir, which is later released through a turbine to produce electricity as needed. This reservoir is typically an underground cavern, but some work is being done to develop these systems under water, in enclosed bags that expand against the outside water pressure. The first utility-scale CAES facility was built in Germany in 1978, utilizing a salt dome as the reservoir. The first system in the US was built in 1991 in Alabama. A salt cavern is also used in this system, which can compress air up to 1100 pounds per square inch (psi). Other projects are under development, with the US Department of Energy providing funding in some cases. As with PHS, CAES is limited by geography. Further, the cycle efficiency of the systems currently operating is reportedly 40 percent or less — much lower than with PHS. Hydrogen is one of the more energy-dense storage options by weight. One kilogram (kg) of hydrogen compressed to a pressure of 150 bar (2,175 psi) actually stores a lot more energy than one kg of gasoline (the horizontal axis is energy density by weight). As shown in the graphic, compressed hydrogen contains more than three times the energy of gasoline per kg (142 megajoules for hydrogen versus 46 megajoules for gasoline). However, hydrogen falls short when it comes to volumetric storage (the vertical axis). One liter of gasoline contains over 20 times the energy of one liter of 150 bar hydrogen. Thus, one of the limitations of hydrogen as a fuel is that the range of a vehicle running on hydrogen will fall far short of that vehicle utilizing a similar-sized gasoline tank. Nevertheless, the German utility E.ON (OTC: EONGY, Frankfurt: EOAA) is investing in a hydrogen-based storage system. In 2012 E.ON contracted with Canada’s Hydrogenics (NASDAQ:HYGS) to install a power-to-gas system in Falkenhagen, Germany. The idea in this case is that off-peak power is used to make hydrogen from water by electrolysis, and then the hydrogen is injected into a natural gas pipeline. The hydrogen-natural gas mixture can then be used as needed for power production, or for heating. Of course energy is lost when water is broken down into hydrogen and oxygen. The efficiency of electrolysis of water into hydrogen can be as high as 85 percent. Hydrogenics reports that the efficiency of its hydrogen fuel cells “is greater than 55 percent” in converting hydrogen into electricity. So we could expect the cycle of converting off-peak power into hydrogen and then back to electricity during peak demand would be (0.85) * (0.55) = 47 percent efficient. In other words, a little more than half of the power sent to storage is wasted. This also implies that the value of peak power would need to be more than twice the value of off-peak power to make such storage profitable. For example, if off-peak power is worth a nickel, and peak power is worth a dime, then a nickel’s worth of power sent to storage is only worth 4.7 cents (47% of a dime) at peak demand. On the other hand, if peak power is worth 15 cents in this scenario, a nickel’s worth of off-peak power can be turned into 7 cents of peak power (47% of 15 cents). Batteries comprise an enormous global market, and are often used in personal solar systems to provide power at night. But batteries are seldom used to back up power plants because they have low energy density, are expensive, and have a limited lifespan. However, a great deal of research is being devoted to the development of advanced batteries, which are projected to reach gigawatt levels of utility-scale storage over the next 10 years. Governments are investing heavily in the development of utility-scale storage, and a number of utility-scale storage possibilities are still in development. This is an area that promises to grow rapidly in the coming years given the number of countries implementing aggressive renewable electricity standards. See also: The Most Important Problem in Renewable Energy — R-Squared Energy TV Ep. 22 Link to Original Article: The Key to Running the World on Solar and Wind Power By Robert Rapier. You can find me on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Facebook.How to fight temptation Last week a reader wrote asking what verses to use to fight temptation. I thought I’d post his note (with his permission) — share what verses help me — and then invite you to share what verses help you. This way we can learn from each other. His question about fighting temptation Hi Steve Fuller, In a blog post you wrote this: [God] wants us to start by considering the greatness of the reward — the joy of seeing Jesus Christ face to face — knowing Him, fellowshiping with Him, worshiping Him. I was just wondering, do you have a scripture [to help with] this? I think this point is really good but I struggle to “consider the greatness of the reward,” especially when I sin automatically or reflexively, without thinking. I have found that sometimes there is no temptation period for me; I just respond with impatience or entertain lustful thoughts or become anxious in a second, with no time to stop & realize I am sinning or to consider the rewards of future grace. Does anyone else know what I am talking about? I was wondering if maybe anyone had some scripture that they used (by meditating on it & reciting it to themselves and trusting it throughout the day) to consider the greatness of His rewards, & thus, find empowerment by the Spirit to destroy sin. Anyone have any thoughts about this? In Christ, A Reader Here’s my response — Dear Reader, Thank you for your helpful question. I, too, experience sin rising up before I even have a chance to think. And I agree — meditation on Scripture ahead of time can keep this from happening. I find that when my heart is already full of joy and peace in believing God’s promises (Rom 15:13) — sin does not rise up so quickly. But when my heart is in neutral, or empty, sin can give me a sucker punch before I can get my gloves on. So here are — Verses that help me avoid temptation Let’s start with verses I use to pursue joy and peace in believing — Gen 15:6 — by faith alone I am counted completely righteous in Christ. Jer 29:11 — God has unstoppable plans to bring me heart-satisfying and never-ending joy in Him forever. Gen 50:20 — No one can do anything to disrupt God’s plans for me. 2Cor 9:8 — God will give me all the grace I need to do whatever He calls me to do. Isa 41:10 — I have nothing to fear, because my Sovereign, Loving Father is with me. James 1:5 — God will give me all the wisdom I need for every decision I face. When I abide in those promises, my heart is filled with the Spirit, and temptations can’t get a foothold. But I don’t always abide in God’s promises. Too often my heart becomes empty — and temptations gain entrance into my heart and need to be fought. So here are — Verses that help me fight temptation Even though temptations come in different shapes and sizes — they all have one thing in common. They all promise that something else will satisfy me more than Jesus Christ. So the battle is to see and feel once again that Jesus Christ is infinitely more satisfying than anything else. This happens as we pray for the Spirit’s help, and think deeply about Scriptures. So here’s Scriptures I pray over to fight temptation — Psa 16:11 — in Your presence is fulness of joy, at your right hand are pleasures forever. Isa 55:2 — why do you spend your money for what is not bread, and your labor for what does not satisfy? Jer 2:12-13 — my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, to hew for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water. Mat 5:8 — blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Mat 13:44 — the parable of the man who discovers the treasure in the field, and sells everything so he can buy the field. Phil 3:8 — I count everything to be loss for the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Col 1:16 — all things were created through Jesus and for Jesus. Heb 1:3-4 — Jesus is the radiance of God’s glory. Rev 1:5 — Jesus loves us and freed us from our sins by His blood. Rev 5:12 — Jesus is worthy to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. When I cry out to Jesus for help, and pray over Scriptures like these, in time the Spirit gives me a taste of Jesus’ glory. And when I taste Jesus’ glory — temptations shrivel up and die. I hope that helps you with your question. In Christ, Steve Fuller So what verses help YOU fight temptation? Share them in the comments section below. Thanks. And here’s some related posts you might find helpful — (Picture is from everystockphoto by US Army Africa.)If you haven’t had a chance to watch ‘Trash’, Tyler Glenn’s new solo single debut, take a minute and watch/listen….I’ll wait…. Okay, you’re back…first impressions? Frustration, betrayal, defiance, this is one angry song. I have not been able to stop thinking about it. First, a little background info. Tyler is the lead singer for the Neon Trees and he was raised in a faithful Mormon family, and he also happens to be gay. He served a mission for the church, (two years for young men, paid by their family) to further spread the gospel. There are better articles that explain all the intricacies of this video. I just wanted to applaud Tyler Glenn for writing such a personal song about his struggle with the religion of his birth. I was born a Latter-Day Saint, or what is commonly called, Mormon. And after years of struggle, I left the Mormon church. It was the most painful discovery of my life to realize that it was all a lie and I had been banging my head on a brick wall that wasn’t even there. To give you some perspective, think of Jim Carrey in ‘The Truman Show’. You may laugh, but that is honestly what it is like. If you have any doubts at all and express them freely, EVERYONE, everyone you know, tells you you are wrong. All the people you trust, the people closest to you; your parents, youth leaders, grandparents, your bishop. It’s like searching for fruit in a vegetable factory (a ‘fruitless search’, get it?). I can’t even imagine how much worse it must be for the LDS young men and women who find themselves searching for their sexual identity and being told that there is no place in heaven, or Sunday School, for them. As a teenager, very confused and defiant, I had a conversation in a car once that lasted for hours. I implored, ‘How can the Hindus and the Muslims and the Catholics and the Methodists all believe different things and the Mormons are the only ones who are right?’ The woman I was speaking with, who happened to be a professor at BYU, wouldn’t let me leave the car until I saw things her way, the Mormon way. This happened over and over and over again as I continued to search for answers. But when you are surrounded completely, taught from birth that the world is in a gray fog of confusion and that the LDS church has the only true gospel, you are in a hamster wheel and you don’t even know it. There were many ‘aha!’ moments along the way, but a major pivot point for me was during a voice lesson in college. My teacher casually remarked I was ‘too smart to be a Mormon’. I was insulted at the time, but her statement helped me explore what was already unraveling. I didn’t ever get to thank her for saying that. She died before I got the chance. More than a decade later, I officially resigned from the Mormon church. And I still have waves of anger that hit outta nowhere. All the years wasted on religious questions, the sexism that forged my decision to start a family and forego a career, the continued bigotry toward the LGBT community… Tyler Glenn has his own journey of discovery to go through. He may or may not come to the conclusions I did about the Mormon church. But he had the guts to document the most painful chapter so far in this song. Trash, the thing you get rid of because you have no place for it. That is really…well that just says it all doesn’t it? I wish I could thank him in person for releasing this song. He didn’t filtering anything. AdvertisementsDamien Duff turned down the opportunity to be presented with an Ashley Cole style “golden cap” on the pitch at Wembley last week, he has revealed, with the Fulham star observing good naturedly that he is happy with the one he got from John Delaney in a Heathrow bar six months ago. “Roy Hodgson rang me two weeks ago,” he revealed while in Dublin yesterday for the presentation of 35 Coagu-Chek machines by the charity Heart Children Ireland to the Mater Hospital’s Maurice Neligan Congenital Heart Clinic, “and he offered me to get my 100th cap presented to me on the pitch at Wembley against Ireland last week but I was like ‘gaffer’ - I still call him gaffer – ‘no chance, you must know me by now. It’s not going to happen.’ As much as it would be something to look back on, it wasn’t for me.” Different way Anyway, he added, “I got it in a different way. I bumped into John Delaney in a pub in Heathrow Airport and he said: ‘Fucking hell Duffer, funny I should bump into you’. He had the cap on him, he was supposed to meet me in London but he never tracked me down. So I had a pint of shandy looking at my 100th cap... some way to bow out.” Duff’s involvement with Heart Children Ireland stems from his eldest child Woody having been born with a partial AVSD, essentially a hole in his heart, a problem that was addressed by surgery from which the now two-year-old has made a complete recovery. The timing of the Dublin trip, he admitted, had nothing really to do with last night’s game against the Faroes although Duff, who played 100 times for his country, was hoping to get both of his kids down in time to watch it on TV, possibly, he joked, with the help of some Calpol. Duff, who, still says he will move home and finish his career in the League of Ireland over the next few years, suggested it was “hard to say” whether he misses the international scene although he admits he has only been to one game since; the one against Oman at Craven Cottage last year. Struggle And he doesn’t see too many of them on TV either. “I struggle when I am back in England as I don’t have Sky, there’s a recession on.” That much will, of course, be less of an issue in relation to Ireland matches when he moves back to Dublin although he is no hurry. “I have a year left at Fulham, and I love it there, I would love to stay on playing there for a few years; it has been a special place to me. “After that in England? I don’t know (but) obviously I am going to move back here. My wife (Elaine) is Irish and my two kids are Irish and they are going to go to school here. And, as I have said before, if there is anybody who will take me... ” Somebody mentions Shamrock Rovers, who would be in what would have been his general neck of the woods, and he laughs. “I dunno, I played against them before and they gave me a bit of stick. We have a few issues, me and the fans! “Anyway, that’s the plan and I definitely want to come back and do it. We’ll see what happens.”• Defender returned from 15-month lay-off in 1-0 defeat of Milan • Woodgate has scan on left leg and injury is being assessed Jonathan Woodgate's injury jinx has struck again hours after he celebrated returning from a 15-month lay-off to play a crucial part in Tottenham Hotspur's 1-0 defeat of Milan in the Champions League. The central defender came off the bench to make a 35-minute appearance in Spurs' Champions League victory in San Siro and the 31-year-old had said he was looking forward to getting back to his best. But Spurs said yesterday evening that Woodgate had undergone a scan after sustaining a strain of the left adductor muscle. He will be assessed over the next few days, the club said. Woodgate has been dogged by back and leg injuries since his days at Newcastle United and injury prevented him from making his debut for Real Madrid for the whole of the first season after he signed for the Spanish club. He has made fewer than 50 appearances for Spurs since moving to White Hart Lane in January 2008 and he had been out of action since picking up a groin problem in a 9-1 win over Wigan in November 2009. Woodgate was delighted after returning against Milan and said after Tuesday's game: "It was a great feeling to get back.There is nothing worse than when you can't play football. Watching games is painful when you're injured... A lot of people doubted whether I'd be able to get back but you have to show determination to not let the bad times get you down and you have to just keep going." Harry Redknapp said he had taken a chance replacing Vedran Corluka, who was injured in a two-footed challenge by Milan's Mathieu Flamini, with Woodgate. "He hasn't kicked a ball, he has had just one full game against a not very good QPR side," said the Tottenham manager. "I just felt his experience would help us. It was a case of having someone in the right place at the right time and I thought he was good at that."Crises tend to generate apocalyptic dreams and nightmares. Through a reappraisal of 20th century anti-capitalist thought, Benjamin Noys urges us to critically re-think how such an apocalyptic tone operates within radical analyses of the current crisis In a time of crisis apocalyptic desires and fantasies become pressing and real.[1] Norman Cohn’s In Pursuit of the Millennium (1957) offers a secret history of the periodic emergence of a ‘revolutionary eschatology’ in the Middle Ages in response to a collapsing social order, immiseration, disease and war. Responding to crisis these dreamers dared to imagine an apocalypse that would turn the world upside down, and create a new heaven on earth in which princes would bow to peasants. Of course the apocalypse that became real was often the apocalypse of repression. The repression in the wake of the Peasants’ War in Germany (1524-26) led to the deaths of over 100,000 peasants, and the eventual execution of its leader Thomas Müntzer who, under torture, proclaimed ‘Omnia sunt communia’ (All things are to be held in common). Cohn, an anti-communist liberal, regarded these millenarians as dangerous forerunners of the ‘totalitarian’ movements of the 20th century and, in the 1970 edition, extended this to condemn ’60s counter culture by linking these medieval proto-anarchists to Charles Manson’s death cult. Of course, the Situationists would deliberately re-purpose Cohn, reclaiming these rebels from ‘the condescension of posterity’, to use E. P. Thompson’s famous phrase.[2] Apocalyptic desires are ambiguous, at once consolatory fantasies, deferred hopes and, potentially, spurs to radical re-orderings. We are living in a time of crisis and potential apocalypse, with the overlapping of the financial crisis, ecological crisis and the crisis of movements of resistance. The apocalyptic imagination feeds on this to produce dreams or nightmares of a world ‘cleansed’ of humanity, from 2012 to the History Channel’s Life After People. These fundamentally reactionary fantasies can only imagine redemption of our fallen world on the condition that humanity ceases to exist, or is reduced to the ‘right’ number of the ‘saved’. What concerns me here is thinking more closely the relation between radical and revolutionary thought and an ‘apocalyptic tone’ in our current context. The usual model of such a tone was proposed by Kant, when he argued that it was the result of the illegitimate extension of reason beyond its limits towards a transcendent ‘exalted vision’ (schwärmerische Vision).[3] Failing to recognise the limits of reality the apocalyptic dreamer was a fanatic (schwärmerei) trying to impose an abstract vision on reality.[4] I am more interested in another version of this apocalyptic tone, one which is generated by a claimed immanence of thought to reality. All images: " " [sic] TIM GOLDIE In this case apocalypse is not generated by some external superior transcendent vision but by the immanent tendencies of the present. This is a tone which remains within, if often heretically, the ambit of Marxism. Marx famously riposted to Proudhon that history advances by the ‘bad side’,
revenue per gigabyte of data than in any other country, according to a new report. Telecom research firm, tefficient, released its 14th analysis of data usage across 32 countries, including Canada. It found that Canadian carriers charge the most for data, while consumers make limited use of it. "The most expensive mobile data countries are Canada, Belgium, Germany, Czech Republic and the Netherlands and — as a consequence — mobile users in these countries are using very little mobile data," the company said in its report. In countries where unlimited or very generous mobile data plans are available, the company found that usage is higher. In Finland, where half of users have unlimited data at some of the least expensive prices, average usage is the highest, the report said. A Finnish operator, DNA, has the highest average usage in the world, at 9.9 gigabytes per month. The industry group that represents wireless providers in Canada, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, argues that prices for data in this country are competitive. It points to a recent report by the CRTC that shows the cost of a package that includes between 2 GB and 5 GB per month is $46.47. That's less than the United states at $50.68 and Japan at $51.81. However, the same coverage in Italy is available for about a third of the Canadian price ($14.35), and similarly in France ($14.98), Australia ($15.57), and the U.K. ($17.61). The CWTA also pointed to the quality of wireless service in Canada — saying things like 4G/LTE networks increases usage and value for consumers. "What we find when looking at the available data is that usage is more directly correlated to network quality," said Marc Choma, vice-president of communications for the CWTA. Data caps discourage usage Advocacy group OpenMedia says tefficient's findings line up with their own. "When people pay more for data, they use less of it because they're worried they're going go over their data cap and incur these crazy, huge overage fees," said Katy Anderson with Open Media, who has helped campaign to end data caps. "Once you lift those data caps we see that people use the internet in such creative and neat ways, and they're not self-censoring themselves," said Anderson. Anderson suggests more competition between providers in Canada would help bring down prices and ease data limits.Wanted: Habitable Moons Moffett Field CA (SPX) Jan 06, 2012 According to the Planetary Habitability Laboratory's recently released periodic table of exoplanets, warm Neptunes and 96 warm Jovians lay within their star's habitable zone. If they managed to capture rocky Earth-sized moons on their journey inward, such moons would be able to hold liquid water, and be potential wells of life. Credit: PHL. For a larger version of this image please go here As the Kepler space telescope continues to search for potentially habitable planets, it also may reveal moons that could host life. Three new simulations will help astronomers identify rocky satellites that could hold water on their surface, if the parent planet circles close enough to its sun. When the Kepler science team announced the discovery of 1235 planetary candidates in February 2010, the candidates included 37 Neptune-sized planets and 10 Jupiter-sized planets within their star's habitable zones: the region of space where water can exist as a liquid on a rocky planet. Though gas giants would not boast liquid water on their surface, their moons might. According to David Kipping, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, a well-sized rocky moon "ticks all the boxes for our wish list of habitable conditions." Kipping, one of the members of the Hunt for Exomoons with Kepler team, authored and utilized one of three simulations designed to help astronomers pick such a moon out of the data. Telescopes such as Kepler search for planets as they transit, or cross in front of, their star. Each of the simulations takes those transits and searches for variations that would reveal the presence of a moon orbiting a planet. "When a moon passes in front of a star, it causes the star to appear dimmer for a short amount of time," Kipping explained. As the planet crosses in front of the star, it makes a sizable footprint. The moon, revolving around its planet, also makes a small dip in the light. As the moon slips behind its planet, the brightness of the star increases very slightly. Kipping's model, which was published in the journal the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS) in May 2010, calculated what the signal of a single moon would look like as it slipped between its star and Earth. This signal can even help astronomers find moons whose orbits don't stick to the same plane as their planet. "If you look at Triton, around Neptune, it has an inclined orbit," Kipping said. Triton orbits Neptune at 157 degrees from the plane of the planet's equator. "Something like that, we would be able to detect." Another simulation, created by Luis Tusnski, of the National Institute for Space Research in Brazil, and Adriana Valio, of Mackenzie Presbyterian University (also in Brazil), searches for moons orbiting within the same plane as their planet, though it can be easily adapted to look for moons with inclined orbits. "The physical justification for this assumption (of non-inclined orbits) is that the planet and the moon were formed together," Valio explained. However, it also identifies planets with Saturn-like rings, which create a unique data signal. The Brazilian team's model, which was published in the December 2010 Astrophysical Journal, takes into account the presence of spots on the stellar surface as well. Like sunspots, these dark patches rotate across the skin of the star, reducing the amount of light produced. If a patch lined up with a planet, the dimming could appear to be a moon. "A starspot could look very similar," Kipping said. Astronomers using Kipping's simulation would need to search for a wobble in the starlight in order to distinguish between a moon and a starspot; a moon would tug at the stellar body ever so slightly. While both of these simulations are limited to a single moon, a third study by Andras Pal, of Konkoly Observatory in Hungary, is capable of analyzing planetary systems with multiple transits. "Andras' model is mathematically quite beautiful, as it can handle any number of moons or planets," Kipping said. At the same time, it is limited to circular orbits, rather than the more varied orbits permitted by Tusnski's. Pal's research will be published in an upcoming edition of the MNRAS. "Everyone is finding their own approach to solving the problem, and I think they're really very complimentary," Kipping said. In search of a satellite According to Tusnski, the French space mission Convection Rotation and Planetary Transits (CoRoT) should be able to detect a moon with a radius 1.3 times as large as Earth, while Kepler would be able to spot a moon a third the size of our planet. "Once the moon is clearly detected, its basic properties, such as its size, can be determined as precisely as the standalone planets with similar sizes," Pal said. But in order to calculate the properties, such a moon must first be found. "The real question is if they exist," said Kipping. Jupiter's moon Ganymede, the largest moon in the solar system, is two-fifths the radius of Earth, but only 2 percent as massive. In order to be habitable, however, such a moon would need to be at least a third as massive as Earth. "Any smaller, and it would be like Mars," unable to hold onto a thick atmosphere, Kipping explained. The gas giants in our solar system have moons with the potential to develop life - but only because they are so far from the sun. Ganymede's icy shell would melt if the moon were closer to Earth, and the water would likely boil off into space. If Saturn's moon Titan were relocated to the Sun's habitable zone, it would lose the thick methane atmosphere that makes it a potential candidate for the development of life. Still, just because a habitable moon doesn't appear to be in our solar system doesn't mean they don't exist elsewhere. The fact that so many gas giants have been discovered close to their suns makes habitable moons more rather than less likely. Kipping pointed to recent research by Simon Porter of Lowell Observatory in Arizona that indicates approximately half the Jupiter-sized planets migrating inward toward their stars may capture a terrestrial planet as a new moon. He states this the most likely method for a gas giant to obtain such a large satellite. "You wouldn't really expect a moon that big to form in situ around a planet," he said. But if the planet travels all the way through the star's habitable zone, temperatures there would be too high for water to remain on the moon's surface. "It's really a question as to, are there many solar systems where the planet stops before it gets too close [to the star]?"New Jersey Devils co-owner Joshua Harris was straightforward when discussing the decision to hire Ray Shero to replace Lou Lamoriello as general manager. "We bought the team [in August 2013] with the intention of winning, and obviously, the last two seasons have been disappointing to us," Harris said in early May. "We want to build an elite organization, and what that means is we're consistently in the mix and deep in the playoffs for a Stanley Cup. "We're going to really put in place plans that allow us to do that. Every decision will be made around that philosophy." Harris couldn't have envisioned that Lamoriello, who resigned as Devils president July 23 to become general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, wouldn't be around to help put those plans in place. Before Lamoriello took the Toronto job after nearly three decades with New Jersey, it was clear Shero was calling the shots. He hired John Hynes as coach June 2. Hynes coached the Pittsburgh Penguins' American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton when Shero was Penguins GM. On July 9, Shero announced David Conte would not return as Devils scouting director. Conte was a scout for New Jersey for 31 years. Shero is hopeful the moves have created optimism about the future of the Devils. Here are four others: Hynes will demand more accountability: The coach has said he will not stand for lackadaisical play; he expects the Devils to be aggressive and attacking. He wants his veterans to help accomplish that. "We want to be an extremely competitive team every night, and we want to have a very good regular season," Hynes said. "If you do that, you give yourself the best opportunity to advance to the playoffs. We want to be able to come together as a team and be difficult to play against, and if we play a certain way, we feel we'll give ourselves the best chance." Hynes was AHL coach of the year in 2010-11, when Wilkes-Barre/Scranton finished a league-best 58-21-1. He was 231-126-10-17 in five AHL seasons. A fast, attacking style will generate more offense: The focus at training camp will be finding ways to increase offensive production to give goaltender Cory Schneider some breathing room. The Devils will try to improve their puck-possession game and have all five players involved in the offense. Hynes will stress good defensive structure and a commitment from his players to being ultra-competitive on the puck, something his AHL players did with great success. An improving defense in front of an elite goaltender: New Jersey's defense is led by veteran Andy Greene, who's done a fine job working with young defensemen Adam Larsson, Eric Gelinas, Jon Merrill, Damon Severson and Seth Helgeson. The Devils were fifth in the NHL in shot attempts against (SATA) and sixth in SATA/60 in 2014-15. The free agent signing of John Moore adds depth and experience. Though Schneider was 26-31-9 last season and under pressure to be perfect most nights, he finished with a 2.26 goals-against average, a.925 save percentage, and five shutouts. Among NHL goalies who played at least 100 games the past three seasons, Schneider has a League-low 2.14 GAA and is third behind the Boston Bruins' Tuukka Rask and the Montreal Canadiens' Carey Price with a.924 save percentage. Kyle Palmieri should boost the offense: Shero acquired Palmieri, who was born in Smithtown, N.Y., and raised in Montvale, N.J., from the Anaheim Ducks for two picks at the 2015 NHL Draft, six years after the Ducks selected him in the first round (No. 26). Palmieri should fill a need on right wing in a top-six role. The 24-year-old has 43 goals and 89 points in 198 NHL games. He's fast, aggressive, likes to take pucks to the net and throws the body. ---Switching jobs more frequently has become more accepted, but is it good for your career in the long term? Job hopping has benefits, especially in the short term, but the long term consequences could go either way. How Often Do You Hop? According to Krsitina Cowan at AOL News, whereas a generation ago, the average person changed jobs seven times over a lifetime, today it’s more likely to be 10 jobs. And in five different careers. Job hopping is becoming so commonplace among workers in their 20s and 30s that managers are starting to expect people to leave after two or three years. If you stick around longer that’s icing on the cake. When to Hop Hop For Money You will almost always see a pay increase when you switch from one job to another. This is sort of a chicken and egg thing, though because more money is a huge reason people want to change jobs in the first place. Don’t we all know someone who left one company for a big raise and a promotion at another, only to return to the first company for at an even higher rate of pay and responsibility a few years later? Hop for Networking The more people you know the easier it will be successful, or perhaps even get that next position – once you’re ready to hop again. Hop for Professional Development A lot of people are simple maxed out in their current position or company. A new employer can teach workers new skills and build on those they already have, maximizing potential. One Oklahoma City recruiter thinks job hopping will become less of an issue as the Baby Boomers begin to retire. This will create a large need in the marketplace where skills and experience will outweigh company loyalty and dedication. This is also coupled with the fact that those in these new positions of power who will be making these hiring decisions are also those who come from the generation where job hopping is commonplace and more accepted. When Not to Hop Employees should never leave a job solely to get out of a situation they are unhappy with. Instead, as Your HR Guy suggests, they should bide their time while preparing for another, better career path. The solution isn’t to job hop and hurt yourself. That is dumb. People hate biding time so instead of doing this, they switch jobs (into another crappy job where they’ll want to move on) and perpetuate the cycle. It sucks, I’ve seen people fall into it. You also want to make sure you’ve exhausted all opportunities within a job and a company before setting your sights elsewhere. It may just be that you can hop to another role while sticking with the same firm a bit longer. The truth is that others’ perceptions of you are going to have an effect on the potential of any new position. If you’re perceived as someone who won’t be around in 6 months or a year, what kind of opportunities do you think will come your way? When were the best and worst times you hopped? Image CreditJon Soohoo/WireImage.com Rickey Henderson, stolen-base champion Sometimes after the game, they have these big meals for us. I might pick at it a little bit, but when I go home, I have a bowl of ice cream. Every night before I go to bed, to tell you the truth. People say, How can you eat ice cream so late at night and not gain weight? It's the portions. When you eat, you should only eat to kill the hunger pain. You're not eating food to try to stuff yourself. I think a lot of people stuff themselves. We always feel that we have to clean the plate. We don't. I'd rather eat five, six times a day. Just put a little something in your stomach and then stop. So my freezer always has a few gallons of ice cream. Always vanilla. And nothing on top -- no sauce, no sprinkles.Photo by Zach Bauman In these boom times of downtown Kansas City — streetcars clanging, cranes in the sky — it is a particular pleasure to hear frontier tales about the gnarly old days when artists were unwittingly laying the groundwork for all the breweries, banks and questionably profitable tech companies that now occupy the Crossroads Arts District. “Eighty percent of the buildings were vacant,” Suzie Aron, a real estate agent who’s been around the area for more than 20 years, told me recently. “There was prostitution, drugs, day-labor programs where 200 people would stand outside a building — a building with no bathroom — every morning and wait for somebody from the city to come along and pick them up for a job.” “It was a wasteland,” Stretch Rumaner said of the area surrounding his restaurant and music venue, Grinders. “The buildings over here on the east side of the Crossroads were much more dilapidated and boarded-up than on the western side of the Crossroads. All my cars were broken into. Every building was broken into. It happened daily. The police wouldn’t do anything about it.” Rumaner paused, as though debating how strongly to lean into his urban-pioneer story. He leaned. “I mean, we had virtually no help from the city. On my block [18th Street, between Oak and Locust], myself and three other artists all bought buildings around the same time and converted them, lived in them, worked in them, occupied them. We did it all by hand. We didn’t have crews. Even people like Suzie and Butch [Rigby, a developer] were swinging hammers and throwing up drywall.” Nowadays, considerably less of the renovation taking place in the Crossroads is the DIY handiwork of idealistic artists. Developers run the game. And in Rumaner’s neighborhood — an increasingly busy area that marketers and real-estate agents have taken to calling the East Crossroads, bounded by Grand Boulevard, 71 Highway, 20th Street and Truman Road — no developer has more skin in the game than Matt Abbott. His firm now owns more than 30 properties in the East Crossroads. It would not be difficult to make the argument that the future of the area will be determined largely by his vision. So, what does Abbott think the East Crossroads should be? Abbott Properties’ base of operations is at 1837 Grand, in a building not long ago occupied by a business called Cowtown T-Shirts. The space has been renovated — horizontal wood, glass-paned offices, concrete floor — to accommodate Abbott’s employees: construction workers, leasing agents, the management team. Guys in Carhartts come and go clutching Jimmy John’s cups; a sign inside near the door warns, “If you are dirty, don’t sit on the couch.” Abbott is 44, with blue eyes that rarely blink and a surfer’s lilt to his voice that partly belies the fact that he has been a millionaire since he was 27 years old. In many ways, Abbott embodies the current aspirations of the city. He cites articles on the internet that call Kansas City a city “on the move,” a place to keep “on your radar,” a spot that is fast becoming “on the map.” He is fond of Richard Florida–style buzzwords. “We are working to create an entrepreneurial and creative heartbeat for the city,” Abbott says, gazing out his conference-room windows onto 19th Street. “I see the East Crossroads as a boutique area where entrepreneurs flock in Kansas City.” On a summer break from Mizzou in the mid-1990s, Abbott and his brother Luke bought a duplex in their hometown of Quincy, Illinois, learned how to rehab and, within a year, purchased five more properties. He arrived in Kansas City in 2001 looking to invest in downtown real estate. But Abbott’s early projects here didn’t go so hot. His mixed-use plan for the Law Building, at 12th Street and Grand, fell through after he missed a renovation deadline. (The structure was on the city’s dangerous-buildings list; it has since been torn down and is now a parking lot for the Sprint Center.) And Abbott’s firm was fined $100,000 in 2007 after he pleaded guilty to violating federal asbestos-removal standards while converting a high-rise at Eighth Street and Charlotte — now called the Manhattan Lofts — into condos. Throughout the aughts, Abbott was also pursuing real-estate deals in other parts of the country. He undertook projects in other Midwestern cities (St. Louis, Indianapolis) and in the Southeast (Pensacola, Huntsville), specializing in buying and rehabbing distressed apartment complexes. In 2010, Abbott moved to California; his son was ill, and the family moved there to be near a specific treatment facility. They returned to KC in 2012 and saw the city in a new light. “I’ve lived all over Kansas City since 2001 — Soho South lofts, the Manhattan, Leawood, now North Kansas City — but I’ve spent a lot of time out of town,” Abbott says. “When we got back from California, my wife and I were driving around the Crossroads one day, and it just had this great energy, this authenticity, this creativity.” It occurred to Abbott that there was nowhere for development in the area to go but east, because north, south and west of the Crossroads were all either already developed or running into highways. There was already some natural redevelopment happening in the area at the time, of course. Several art galleries and venue spaces had come and gone (RIP, the Studded Bird); Grinders and the Brick had been serving food for about a decade; the Living Room Theatre started staging plays on McGee in 2010; and the Guild, an events space, opened in 2012. But farther east, dozens of buildings sat vacant along grim, industrial, mostly deserted streets. “I sat down with a buddy not long after taking that drive with my wife and said, ‘What if I buy up a bunch of the buildings on the eastern end of the Crossroads and develop them?’ ” Abbott says. At that time, Abbott’s KC plans centered on a Holiday Inn Express he was trying to develop at 13th Street and Locust. When a buyer came along who wanted to take it off his hands, Abbott sold it, freeing both his time and cash. The timing coincided with banks loosening up their lending standards for the kinds of projects Abbott wanted to do. Three years earlier, in the midst of the recession, a loan to redevelop a vacant East Crossroads building would have been tough to come by. But now the market was recovering, and he could finance such a project. Within a few weeks of selling the hotel project, Abbott had eight properties in the East Crossroads under contract. Some were bought as foreclosures, some from families who had inherited the properties and were uninterested in maintaining them. He kept hunting and found that many buildings in the area were nearly a century old and increasingly inefficient for the industrial businesses that inhabited them. “They needed bigger loading docks, higher ceilings and other, more modern amenities,” Abbott says. “Their buildings weren’t working for them as well as they once were.” He negotiated with the owners and snapped up properties along the 1600 and 1700 blocks of Cherry and Locust. Abbott also purchased several buildings from Suzie Aron. “He came in at a very fast clip and acquired basically many blocks at one time,” Aron says. “It feels like a second phase for the neighborhood to me. We grew it piecemeal over 15 years, one building at a time. He’s come in over the last few years and is doing so many all at once that you can really see and feel the changes.” Photo by Zach Bauman What you see a lot of these days in the East Crossroads are places making and peddling alcohol. In July, the International Tap House (iTap) opened at the southeast corner of 18th and Oak, a property Abbott bought in 2014 after a car crashed into the building, causing much of it to cave in. Lifted Spirits is distilling liquor in an Abbott-owned property on Locust. Elsewhere, local beermakers such as Brewery Emperial, Torn Label, Double Shift and Border are all crafting and selling beer in non-Abbott-owned properties in the neighborhood. This month, a new music venue called the Truman will open in an Abbott property at 601 Truman Road, between Cherry and Holmes. The venue is owned and operated by a partnership out of Nashville, which is true of several Abbott properties; iTap and the adjacent Mission Taco Joint are regional chains based in St. Louis, and Josey Records comes from Austin, Texas. The Hotel Indigo that Abbott’s firm is building at 2020 Grand promotes its “distinct local personality” but is nevertheless a member of a global hospitality chain. Abbott’s vision for the East Crossroads isn’t the Power & Light District, exactly — local businesses such as Bread and Butter Concepts, Pathfinder and Opal & Orchid Hair Studio call Abbott properties home — but it isn’t strictly local, either. “Matt and I talk a lot — his properties basically surround me at this point — and I think it’s great that he’s not just sitting on buildings he buys over here,” Rumaner says. “But the difference between Matt and most of the rest of us around here is that he’s not an artist; he’s a developer. And developers tend to bring in people from out of town.” “We don’t see ourselves as limited to KC [tenants],” Abbott says. “We’re looking to find buildings where we can make the numbers work and where we can transform the neighborhood and create community.” Getting the numbers to work has necessitated Abbott’s formulation of the East Crossroads Urban Renewal Plan, a tool designed to solicit tax breaks in exchange for revitalizing property in the area. It was approved by the City Council in 2015. Abbott’s firm regularly avails itself of such abatements. “If you look at downtown Kansas City today versus when I came here in 2001, and how we’re on the map, one of the coolest cities in America — that would never have happened without those [tax incentive] programs,” Abbott says. “You need those incentives to make these spaces affordable to entrepreneurs and creatives.” But are Abbott’s spaces affordable to the average small-business owner? “I think that’s a legit question,” Abbott says. “It’s definitely not the cheapest rent in the city. But on the other hand, we’re building an area that attracts creative minds, and I think that fosters success. Creative businesses want to be located in an area where their team wants to live and work. That’s the thing about entrepreneurial tenants: They’re always growing. So we work to build adaptable spaces to allow for that and keep them here.” Because of the East Crossroads’ proximity to the 18th and Vine Jazz District — it’s only about 12 blocks down 18th Street from Grinders to the Negro Leagues Museum, with a corridor of warehouses and manufacturing structures, several of them unused, in between — there’s been much chatter about how the city might engineer a more coherent connection between the long-suffering, historically black cultural area and the newer, whiter, gentrifying East Crossroads. It’s an idea that goes back a long time; Rumaner says he conceived of his early arts space as one that would “connect our jazz history to the visual arts that were happening in the early days of the Crossroads.” Mark O’Renick’s digital-marketing agency — formerly Salvy O’Renick, now Will & Grail — has called the East Crossroads home since 2005, and O’Renick is part of East Bridge KC, a group that’s brainstorming possibilities. He has had discussions with property owners, the city, the Economic Development Corporation, bankers, business owners and real-estate agents about how to, in his words, “connect with transportation that provides year round connectivity between the streetcar and Paseo... use the gap area to manufacture and ship... train young folks at Metro Tech High School to work in fabrics, wood, metal, food. To learn trades along with technology and digital economy skills.” Big, exciting ideas, but Abbott says he isn’t too interested in drawing outside the lines of the East Crossroads. “We don’t necessarily want to spread very far outside this area,” he says. “We’d like to make an impact right here, and if we spread ourselves too thin in too many different places, we don’t get as much out of it.” Aron says that, regardless of where Abbott draws the line, “Matt is creating a lot of value.” She adds, “His properties have a specific architectural style and personality, but the spirit of the neighborhood is still there. It’s always been makers [in the East Crossroads], whether it’s industrial businesses or artists. His people [the tenants of his properties] seem to be more entertainment-oriented — restaurants and bars — but it’s still a neighborhood of creative-minded makers. Instead of art, now it’s beer. You know — things change over time.” This story appears in the August issue of The Pitch. Story tip? Email david.hudnall@pitch.comOver 75% of Americans want open debates. However, the Commission on Presidential Debates, run by former Republican and Democratic party officials, has chosen to exclude Jill Stein from the first presidential debate at Hofstra University on 9/26. This will not stop the Stein/Baraka campaign from speaking the solutions that Americans want to hear. Jill and Ajamu will be on-site at Hofstra University on Monday. Amongst the demonstrations, Jill will participate in a livestreamed "People's Debate" at 5:30pm EST. Later at 9pm EST, in partnership with Twitter & the Guardian, Jill will livestream her responses to the debate questions in real time. Following the conclusion of the debate around 10:30pm EST, Jill will answer some of your questions via Twitter in an online town hall. Nationwide, people are hosting watch parties in their homes or at local community centers or bar/restaurants--viewing together with other supporters and participating online by posting and tweeting. Check out jill2016.com/watchparty to see how you can host one! See jill2016.com/grassroots to post your event or find events in your area. The 5:30pm & 9pm EST livestreams will be posted on Jill's Twitter & Facebook pages. Simply watch on your computer, or hook your computer to your television! Jill's 9pm Eastern livestream will include visual/audio of the corporate Clinton/Trump debate, so that you can watch all in one place. The 10:30pm EST Twitter town hall will be exclusively on Twitter. Follow Jill's Twitter page to see her reply to a couple of tweeted questions! Facebook: facebook.com/drjillstein Twitter: twitter.com/drjillstein We also encourage watch parties to participate in the "1 Million Calls for Jill & Ajamu" campaign by phonebanking together between the 5:30pm and 9pm EST livestreams. More info at jill2016.com/phonebankingNew mums will be able to claim maternity leave from their employers as well as the government scheme if Labor is elected on July 2. A year ago on Mother's Day former Liberal treasurer Joe Hockey said claiming both schemes was `double dipping' and the government put forward legislation to limit maternity leave to just one source of income - but that has yet to become law. But last week's budget confirmed the government's commitment to a crackdown on paid parental leave `double-dipping'. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told the Seven Network, just hours before Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is expected to visit the governor-general seeking a July 2 double-dissolution election, that Labor will make sure that working mums aren't penalised. Labor says under its policy families with new babies will be as much as $11,800 better off than they would be under the Liberals. A preliminary estimate by the independent Parliamentary Budget Office says it will cost $1.4 billion over the four-year budget estimates. "Labor will put people first. We will protect paid parental leave for young families," Labor said in statement.During five years of austerity, Britain has not experienced the wave of protest seen in other countries. That could change – this is a pivotal year in the race to reshape the nature of the state George Osborne says the coverage of looming new spending cuts has been “hyperbolic”, but away from Downing Street there is a strong consensus that the cumulative effect of five years of austerity will make the next wave of cuts, in 2015, very painful. Four more years of austerity is “a price that works for our country”, Osborne said as he outlined his strategy. The Institute for Fiscal Studies responded by warning that “colossal” cuts to the state would take total government spending to its lowest level as a proportion of national income since before the second world war. By the end of the process, “the role and shape of the state will have changed beyond recognition”, the think tank said. So far, £35bn has been cut; the plan is to cut a further £55bn by 2019. If the chancellor remains in post after the general election, Britain will find itself halfway through a nine-year stretch of spending cuts, with the Conservatives determined to shrink and redefine the role of the state. The Liberal Democrats say the Conservative policy is aimed at creating “a smaller state, with many more cuts to come”, giving Britain “austerity for ever”; 2015 will be a pivotal year in the race to reshape the nature of the state. Even if they lose, difficult spending cuts look inevitable. Labour is also committed to ending the deficit, in 2017-18, provided the state of the economy allows it. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Protesters demonstrate against the bedroom tax. Photograph: Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images For many publicly funded services and organisations, 2015 will be the year when their chances of survival become clear. There is an enormous range in the size and the function of services under threat, which makes tracking the scale of the cuts challenging. Here are just four examples – from the large scale to the tiny, of services that are set to go this year. In June, the Independent Living Fund, which provides funding for around 18,000 disabled people to work and live in the community, will be wound down. In Liverpool, there will be a decision in early 2015 over whether the council will close a possible 23 out of the city’s 26 Sure Start centres. On a smaller scale, organisations including the Islington Centre for Refugees and Migrants, in north London, which supports around 150 refugees and asylum seekers, providing English classes, faces closure because of cuts to education budgets. “These are people who come to us on a daily basis who desperately need some kind of support,” project manager Andy Ruiz Palma says. “I would lose my job, but I am more worried about the clients. There is nowhere else for them to go.” In Ealing, west London, parents are campaigning to save the lollipop crossing role, done for the past 20 years by Eileen Rowles, and now at risk of being discontinued because of council spending cuts. The Office for Budget Responsibility said in December that the chancellor’s plans would mean one million further government job losses by 2020 (a total fall from early 2011 of 1.3 million), representing a 20% fall in headcount. Over the past five years, there has been surprise and relief from politicians that public anger about spending cuts has been relatively muted. Aside from a few annual anti-cuts marches in big cities, Britain has not experienced the waves of protest seen in countries such as Spain. Given that those most affected by the cuts are the most vulnerable and disempowered people in society, it’s perhaps not surprising that the response has been muted. But that could change in 2015. The next stage of cutbacks is likely to be harder to ignore. The easy decisions have already been made; once the low-hanging fruit has been removed, finding new things to cut gets harder, which means the second half of the austerity era is likely to be much tougher than the first. By next May, government funding for councils will be 40% lower than it was in 2010; and a further 13% will need to be cut in 2015. “It is individuals who have paid the price of funding reductions, whether it is through seeing their local library close, roads deteriorate or support for young people or families scaled back. Further reductions without radical reform will have a detrimental impact on people’s quality of life,” the Local Government Association chair, David Sparks, says. Facebook Twitter Pinterest The 2011 campaign to save a London library from closure. Photograph: Sean Smith for the Guardian The National Audit Office has warned that more than half of councils currently risk falling into serious financial crisis before the end of the decade. Some may struggle to provide services that they are legally obliged to offer, and this may become apparent in 2015 with more legal action by service users. Nicola Smith, head of economic affairs at the TUC, says: “The scale of the spending cuts that the chancellor set out in his autumn statement briefing is truly severe. The public sector has already experienced five years of austerity. The consequences for key services that people rely on are severe.” Osborne has said that if the Conservatives win the election he will want to cut a further £12bn a year from the welfare bill – on top of the £20m-£25m that has already been cut. He proposes freezing working-age benefits for two years, reducing the overall benefit cap from £26,000 to £23,000, and limiting access to housing benefit for people under 21. Professor John Hills, director of the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion at the London School of Economics, says that the impact of further cuts in this area would be very painful. “Both the political and public belief is that spending on out-of-work benefits is a large share of overall public spending; it is not. Trying to make large savings from
reading the main story Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up You will receive emails containing news content, updates and promotions from The New York Times. You may opt-out at any time. You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. Thank you for subscribing. An error has occurred. Please try again later. View all New York Times newsletters. Egypt is recognizing Hamas, he said, for the same reason the Egyptian prime minister recently had breakfast with his family at a public restaurant without heavily armed body guards: any official who wants to stay in government is thinking about elections. “This is a new thing in Egyptian history,” Mr. Gad said. Mahmoud Shokry, a former Egyptian ambassador to Syria under Mr. Mubarak, said: “Mubarak was always taking sides with the U.S., but the new way of thinking is entirely different. We would like to make a model of democracy for the region, and we are ensuring that Egypt has its own influence.” In the case of Iran, a competing regional power, Ms. Bakhoum noted that although Egypt broke off relations with the Islamist government after its 1979 revolution, the countries reopened limited relations in 1991 on the level of a chargé d’affaires, so normalizing relations was more of an elevation than a reopening. The deal between the Palestinian factions capitalized on the forces unleashed around the region by Egypt’s revolution. In its aftermath, Hamas found its main sponsor, the Assad government of Syria, shaken by its own popular protest movement, while the Fatah government in the West Bank faced throngs of young people adapting the chants of the Egyptian uprising to the cause of Palestinian unity. Egypt had laid out a proposal virtually identical to the current deal for both sides as early as 2009, several participants from all sides said. But the turning point came in late March, about six weeks after the revolution. For the first time in years of talks the Hamas leaders were invited to the headquarters of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs instead of merely meeting at a hotel or the intelligence agency — a signal that Egypt was now prepared to treat Hamas as a diplomatic partner rather than a security risk. They also met with Egypt’s interim head of state, Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawi, the leader of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces and Mr. Mubarak’s longtime defense minister. “When I was invited to the meeting in the Foreign Ministry, that was something different, and this is what the agreement grew out of,” said Taher Nounou of Hamas. “We definitely felt that there was more openness from the new Egyptian leadership.” Foreign Minister Nabil el-Araby told the Palestinians that “he doesn’t want to talk about the ‘peace process’ any more, he wants to talk about the peace,” Ambassador Bakhoum said. She said the Egyptian government was still studying how to open the border with Gaza, to help the civilians who lived there, and to determine which goods might be permitted. But she said the government had decided to move ahead with the idea.“Babu Ji maal khatm hai” informed a small time shop owner on the outskirts of Shimla when asked about the availability of Marijuana (Charas), when I chanced to be around. There was a sense of distress on face of the seeker who appeared to be desperately banking on the last available option. For me it was quite unnerving to learn about an effortless accessibility of banned Marijuana in the capital city. Not being able to find the much needed joint to get a dope fix, the desperate seek started boasting about his contacts with Marijuana dealers in the state and his access to Malana cream famously known as “Champagne of Hashish” or “Instant Nirvana” just on a dial of phone number. Though, Kullu is already known to an “Abode of Cannabis Lovers” but Marijuana, of late, is finding its way into the blood of entire Himachal Pradesh. “What do you think why Americans, Israeli’s, Briton’s, and God knows who else visit Himachal. It is all for Malana cream” clued us up one of the dealers who had arrived on the spot within ten minutes of calling him on phone —- much faster than a pizza boy. Although, Parbati Valley, the decipherable “Gateway to Heaven” is still considered to be at the forefront of illegal Marijuana cultivation but Marijuana farms are said to be mushrooming (in hiding) almost everywhere in the state. Its production is mainly carried out in Kullu, Mandi, Chamba, Kangra, Shimla and Sirmour districts. Until 1985, cultivation of opium didn’t find any legal impediments and the trade flourished unchecked in almost all parts of the state especially in Kullu valley. However, once the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) law was enacted and came into force, the entire dynamics changed. At present, cultivation, possession or retailing without a license are termed unlawful and entails imprisonment. Due to state’s challenging topography very little employment opportunities are present for the locals and status quo is maintained even after more than 40 years of achieving statehood. Residents in far flung villages are forced to farm and trade Marijuana for their livelihood. Despite seizures of contrabands and arrests of people including foreigners, the prohibited trade is not ready to die down any time soon. Malana cream, in particular is regarded as one of the most expensive products worldwide for its high oil content. On an average, 10 grams (premium variety) that is sold for around (Rs 800 – Rs 1000) in Malana commands Rs 2300 – Rs 2500 in Delhi and almost 20 times in Amsterdam. Himachal finds itself incongruously placed. The state knows well that the dilution of the Section 20 of the serving NDPS law of 1985 will surely suit its tourism based economy but fear brickbats from the so called civilized society. Marijuana holds an imminent place in our ancient culture. Associted to with Lord Shiva, it finds liberal use especially during festivals such as Shivaratri and Holi clearly under the nose of administration. Although, many prominent politicians namely Kullu MP Maheshwar Singh have openly voiced their opinion in favor of legalizing Marijuana in the past but to no avail. Even the current Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh is of the similar view and in one of his interviews in a documentary by Amlan Dutta —– BOM alias One day ahead of Democracy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXQpatqjBk8 advocated the cause. Those who argue that legalization of Marijuana can be en route for huge health loss to the youth must realize that many years of Marijuana ban hasn’t led to very good results either. In fact, a parallel black economy has only flourished. By keeping Marijuana prohibited we have only allowed bunch of criminals to make a lot of money of late. It is almost unfeasible to implement legislation without taking into account the existing socio-economic and cultural realities. Marijuana definitely has the potential in adding to the state’s exchequer (as tax money) and substitute apple as the major cash crop. Legalization of Marijuana would make the state and the country more progressive, reduce spends of the narcotic agencies and create livelihood for unemployed “Paharis” in the state.In referring to the reasons for the September 11 hijackings, Republican U.S. Representative Ron Paul (R-Texas) stated in a 2007 South Carolina Republican presidential debate "They attack us because we've been over there." He was referring to the nation's interventionist foreign policy in the Middle East. Paul later pointed out that by meddling in the Middle East, the nation had effectuated enmity in the region. Osama bin laden referred to such grievances as U.S. troops on Saudi soil, the U.S. supporting sanctions leveled against Iraq -- which likely contributed to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, U.S. aid to Israel, and support for secular nationalist autocratic regimes. While establishment Republicans roundly booed Paul, he became a folk hero to the party's Libertarian bloodline, as well as to Independents, Democrats and the previously politically dispossessed. While most Democrats had come to oppose U.S. war in Iraq, they opposed it on the grounds that it was simply the wrong war. They did not question the foundations of U.S. foreign policy. For example, U.S. Senator John Kerry (D-MA), the Democratic party's 2004 Presidential nominee, simply proclaimed "It was the wrong war at the wrong place at the wrong time." The party's eventual 2008 nominee Barack Obama called Iraq "the Wrong War" while calling the War in Afghanistan: "The Right War." In fact, he called for sending three more brigades to Afghanistan. In addition, Paul supported the federal government abdicating its role in interdicting illegal drugs, and letting the states decide their own drug policy. Paul was sympathetic to legalizing drugs, and suggested that the citizens do not need government to regulate them. He said at a Republican presidential debate: "How many people here would use heroin if it were legal? I bet nobody would." Paul's call for a complete retrenchment of commitments abroad, coupled with his calls to end the Drug War, and his opposition to NSA spying, along with his support for home schooling and opposition to gun control provided a motley coalition of supporters in his second run for President in 2012. Paul was perhaps the only candidate in American History who could attract supporters from Oz Fest attendees, ACLU members and Wickens on the left, as well as NRA members, fundamentalist Christians, and military personnel on the right. His son, Rand Paul, was elected to an open U.S. Senate in Kentucky in 2010, largely through the help of the same coalition that so enthusiastically supported his father. However, in trying to propitiate enough establishment Republicans to secure the GOP Presidential nomination in 2016, Rand Paul is displaying some independence from his father. Unlike the non-interventionist policies of Ron Paul, whose ideological antecedents included Presidents Grover Cleveland and Warren G. Harding, Rand Paul is more of a realist, skeptical toward making commitments overseas, but still recognizing a vital role for the U.S. in the international arena. His "realist" ideological antecedents are Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Gerald R. Ford. Paul also voted to tighten economic sanctions on Iran. Furthermore, he does not favor liquidating all U.S. military bases outside of the U.S. and he says he would support "some drones." After Russia invaded Crimea, Paul called for Russian President Vladimir Putin to be punished, and averred: "It is our role as a global leader to be the strongest nation in opposing Russia's aggression." While Paul is buttressing his bone fides with the Republican establishment for his prospective 2016 Presidential run, he may have competition from many supporters of his father including the charismatic former Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer. Many states, including New Hampshire, which hosts the omni-critical, first-in-the-nation primary, hold open primaries, meaning that voter's can choose a ballot from any established party in their state. Schweitzer mirrors many of Ron Paul's views on the fundamental foundation of American policy. Like Ron Paul, Schweitzer's excoriates the influence of "The Military Industrial Complex." He is a harsh critic of the U.S. war in Iraq, which he calls an "oil-well war to protect profits for multinational oil companies and petro-dictators." In addition, like Ron Paul, Schweitzer shows no trepidation in warning of the effects of "blowback" on Americans as the result of its interventionist foreign policy. He points out that the tension between the U.S. and Iran began "because of what we did in 1953, replacing an elected official [Prime Minster Mohammed Mossadegh] with a dictator [Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi]." Schweitzer also points out that the U.S. government supplied chemical weapons to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in the 1980's, which were subsequently used against Iranians. Rand Paul rarely mentions the concept of blowback. With a war-weary electorate, it is kosher in the Republican Party to call for what George W. Bush in 2000 called "a more humble foreign policy." However, once a Republican suggests that U.S. policies are a contributing factor to the enmity effectuated toward the U.S., he/she takes a step too far from the party establishment, which will invariably brand such a candidate as "a Blame America First Isolationist." Furthermore, Schweitzer, like Ron Paul, is a populist critic of the high command of his own party, calling Barack Obama a "corporatist." Ron Paul was an incessant critic of George W. Bush. Like Paul, Schweitzer can appeal to Liberals and Libertarians with his criticisms of Barack Obama, particularly on Civil Liberties issues. Schweitzer calls revelations unearthed about the scope of the NSA Surveillance program "un-effen-believable."Like Ron Paul, Schweitzer declares the War on Drugs lost, saying that Colorado, which recently legalized marijuana, "might have it more right than the rest of us." Not all Ron Paul supporters in 2008 and 2012 were Libertarians or Conservatives. In fact, many Progressive Independents and Democrats supported Paul. Political commentator Robin Koerner coined them "Blue Republicans." Paul drew support from across the political spectrum with voters and previous non-voters who believe the political system is corrupt. They supported Paul's populist insurrectionist campaign. Accordingly, the fact that Schweitzer, unlike Paul, supports a munificent social safety net, the establishment of a single-payer Health Care System might draw Paul's more liberal supporters to Schweitzer. In Schweitzer these "Blue Republicans" have a candidate who is more ideologically in tune with them than Ron Paul. As Rand Paul assiduously cultivates support from within the Republican establishment, he becomes less desirable to the anti-establishment Libertarian, Independent, and Liberal voters who supported Ron Paul in 2008 and 2012. As Rand Paul becomes more of a traditional Republican, an aperture will form for a candidate more like Ron Paul was in 2008 and 2012. Schweitzer is positioning himself as the anti-corporate political establishment candidate for 2016. His message can strike a resonant chord with the same voters who marked ballots for Ron Paul in 2012, particularly in Open Primary states. Many members of the motley Ron Paul coalition could support Schweitzer rather than Rand Paul. In states with a closed primary, some of these voters might become Democrats to vote for Schweitzer. Schweitzer would appeal to many disaffected voters with his characterization of the nation's capital as "A giant cesspool filled with special interests."The head of the Air Traffic Organization at the Federal Aviation Administration resigned Thursday morning amid recent reports of several controllers sleeping on the job. Hank Krakowski submitted his resignation Thursday morning to FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt, who said he accepted it, federal officials said. Krawkoski joined the FAA in 2007. Prior to that he spent about 30 years at United Air Lines in senior management positions, including as vice president of flight operations. “Hank is a dedicated aviation professional and I thank him for his service,” Babbitt said in a statement. “Starting today, I have asked David Grizzle, FAA's chief counsel, to assume the role of acting ATO chief operating officer while we conduct a nationwide search to permanently fill the position.” Babbitt said recent reports of “unprofessional conduct on the part of a few individuals have rightly caused the traveling public to question our ability to ensure their safety.” On Wednesday federal officials ended the practice of leaving one controller on duty in airport towers during overnight shifts. The FAA also revealed that a Nevada air traffic controller allegedly fell asleep Wednesday morning as a medical flight carrying a patient tried to land.The plane landed safely at Reno-Tahoe International Airport with the help of a radar controller based in California, the FAA said. The controller was suspended and the incident is under investigation. However, the incident Wednesday was the fifth time this year that a controller apparently slept while on duty, including at Reagan National Airport, where a controller supervisor was suspended last month after he admitted to napping in the tower. The FAA plans to conduct a “top to bottom review” of the nation’s air traffic control system, Babbitt said. Babbitt announced last month that he was revamping air traffic control guidelines. He ordered radar controllers who guide planes as they descend from cruising altitude to confirm that controllers in airport towers are prepared to handle incoming flights before handing them off. Babbitt also said he would instruct controllers to offer the pilots an option to land elsewhere if a control tower is unresponsive for any reason. “We are all responsible and accountable for safety–from senior FAA leadership to the controller in the tower,” he said. “Employees at the FAA work diligently every day to run the safest air transportation system in the world. But I will continue to make whatever changes are necessary to ensure we concentrate on keeping the traveling public safe.” U.S. Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.), who chairs the Senate transportation committee, said he contacted Babbitt on Wednesday about the emerging problem. “Yesterday I told Administrator Babbitt he needed to do whatever it takes to keep our aviation system safe,” Rockefeller said in a statement. “ I’m pleased he’s taken this message seriously. Accountability starts at the top – and a change in leadership offers an opportunity to change the way business is done. We simply can’t have an aviation system where some of the people responsible for safety are literally asleep at the switch.” The NTSB is investigating the incident at National Airport and says fatigue is one of the issues under review. The recent events involving controllers sleeping on the job and a near-collision in January involving an American Airlines jumbo jet carrying 259 people and a pair of 200-ton military cargo jets over New York have increased concern about air safety. Recorded errors by air traffic controllers increased last year by 51 percent nationwide. [This story has been updated] From the archives: FAA ends single-controller overnight shifts At National Airport, aborted landings are not uncommon FAA to revise U.S. air traffic control rules after National Airport incident Reagan National controller drug tested, suspended after sleeping on the job FAA moves to fire Knoxville controller it says was nappingOne of the side effects of Operation Protective Edge has been a dramatic narrowing of the political conversation in Israel. The author aggregates all the major incidents during the Gaza War in which freedom of speech in Israel was curtailed, often violently. By Orli Santo An entire spectrum of formerly acceptable left-leaning opinions and sentiments – from defending Palestinians’ human rights to merely empathizing with their suffering – has become taboo. In the past two months people who publicly expressed such opinions were beaten on the streets, derogated in the media, threatened, boycotted, and fired from their jobs. Lawmakers who sided with the Palestinian cause were removed from the podium or suspended from the plenum, while the laws defending their democratic right to do so are now being redrawn to prevent and punish such actions in the future. Below is a list of the significant violations ­– committed by populist movements, by employees, by government entities and by the Israeli parliament itself – against left-leaning individuals’ and organizations’ freedom of speech. Grouping theses incidents shows the alarming scope of this phenomenon. While it is impossible to gauge the lasting effects it will have on Israel’s integrity as a democracy, it’s safe to presume that it will be felt in the future. Anti-war protesters Violence in Tel Aviv On July 12, four days into Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, Israeli anti-war demonstrators in Tel Aviv were beaten by violent nationalist counter-demonstrators. +972 reported that a large peace rally in Tel Aviv was countered by a smaller pro-war protest, shouting “Death to Arabs” and “Death to Leftists.” Police forces initially separated the two groups, but a missile siren caused most policemen to desert the scene, leaving the pacifists to fend for themselves. “One man had a chair broken over his head and was evacuated to the hospital, along with a man who was punched in the head and another punched in the eye. One had his video camera taken. Dozens were beaten, shoved to the ground or pelted with eggs. Some testified that they were sprayed with tear gas,” wrote +972’s Haggai Matar, who narrowly escaped the attack himself. Violence in Haifa On July 17, anti-war protestors in the ethnically mixed city of Haifa were beaten by nationalist counter-demonstrators who burned a Palestinian flag and shouted “Death to Arabs.” Among the dozens of leftists injured that day were the Arab deputy mayor of Haifa, Dr. Suhail Assad, and his son, who was reportedly attacked for looking like an Arab. While trying to shield his son, the deputy mayor was struck on his head, and fell to the ground. They were saved by the intervention of two Israeli women, and taken to the hospital for medical attention. “Luckily he [the son] didn’t fall down; otherwise they would have finished him off,” Assad told Haaretz. The following day in Haifa violent clashes erupted between hundreds of Palestinian citizens of Israel and the police; thirty protestors were arrested. MK Haneen Zoabi of the Balad party was briefly handcuffed. According to the police, she attacked an officer. At the same time, Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem clashed with the police, causing further violent escalation. In the wake of these events, Minister of Internal Security Yitzhak Aharonovich told Army Radio that he intended to seek legal measures to prohibit any further protests against the war. “There is no left and right here – we need to unite as a country and support the IDF soldiers who are fighting,” he declared. Violence in Tel Aviv, again A particularly large Israeli anti-war protest took place in Tel Aviv on the evening of July 26, where 4,000-5,000 left-leaning demonstrators gathered in Kikar Rabin and were met by several hundred right-wing demonstrators. Police forces kept the two groups apart for the duration of the event. Afterwards, though, while leaving the square, several demonstrators were chased down and attacked. Right-wingers used metal batons, rods and pepper spray to attack anti-war demonstrators. At least eight people were beaten and needed medical attention, while eight nationalist protesters were detained by the police. “I don’t blame the police alone,” one of injured protestors, who was hit on the head with a metal rod, told Sicha Mekomit. “The political system here takes it in stride that there are thousands of people in the streets, shouting ‘Death to Arabs’ and ‘Death to the Leftists’… Things that were not legitimate in the past have now become legitimate.” Public figures Threatened for showing empathy On July 9, day 2 of Operation Protective Edge, Gila Almagor, one of Israel’s most widely revered movie and theater actresses, received a death threat. Almagor was profiled earlier that week in a Yedioth Ahronoth article disastrously titled ”I am Ashamed to be an Israeli.” “I never said that I was ashamed to be an Israeli,” she later told Israeli Channel 2 news, explaining that the paper misquoted her comment regarding the murder of Palestinian teen Mohammed Abu Khdeir. “But once the article was published, an ambush started on my phone,” she explained. The following day Habima theater received a message warning that if Almagor performed that night, she would be murdered as she came off stage. She stayed at home. That same week, in an interview with Israeli Channel 10, comedian-actress Orna Banai said she felt bad about the already-high death toll of the war. “Bibi should hold it,” she said. “We all are suffering from this situation. Us and the Palestinians. On their side women and children were killed today, and it makes me feel terrible.” The interview ended with her talking about her dog: “I’m this trippy lefty, who likes dogs and Arabs,” she joked. Her comments evoked such public outrage that Banai was fired from her position as the spokesperson for cruise ship operator Mano Maritime. To deal with the threats and insults pouring in, she had to close down her social media accounts. Threatened for being a Leftist Yonit Levi, an anchor for Channel 2 news, received numerous death threats on social media for her perceived leftist stance. She did not speak against the operation. Amnon Abramovitch, a Channel 2 news commentator, had to be rescued after at least 100 right-wing rioters wrapped in Israeli flags surrounded the Channel 2 studio and shouted at him “Traitor,” “Terrorist,” and “It’s a shame you didn’t die in the war.” Abramovitch, a decorated war hero who was severely maimed in the Yom Kippur War while operating a burning tank, had to be escorted from the studios by a police force. Ironically, Abramovitch had spoken in support of the operation. Threatened for no reason Beram Kayal, a Palestinian-Israeli soccer player on Israel’s national team, posted a picture of himself on Instagram. It was a picture from Israel’s game against Scotland, and behind Kayal, in the blurred background, one could make out members of the crowd waiving Palestinian flags. The fact that the flags had nothing to do with him did little to assuage public outrage. “Many [fans] expressed outrage over his connection to Israel’s team, and called to disqualify him from representing the state,” an Israeli sports channel reported [Hebrew]. A few days later singer Rona Kenan canceled her scheduled performance in Haifa after receiving a series of death threats. Her antagonists alleged that back in 2012 she had asked for a moment of silence in the memory of Palestinian terrorists. Kenan says no such thing happened. “I find myself exposed to harsh verbal attacks and threats on my life, just because of false accusations,” she told Haaretz. Threatened for speaking their minds Public figures who actually did speak out against the war fared much worse. Haaretz columnist Gideon Levy published an op-ed criticizing Israeli combat pilots for killing innocents, and praising soldiers who refused such orders. In the following days, the mainstream media denounced him as a traitor, legal organizations called to sue him for incitement, and he received so many death threats that Haaretz had to hire a bodyguard for him. MK Yariv Levin, chairman of the governing coalition, called to try Levy for treason. “When someone who lives among you turns himself into an enemy mouthpiece, while spreading lies, out of the hope that this will undermine your ability to wage war – this is called, in simple Hebrew, ‘treason,’” the chairman explained on Channel 2 news. “The reason I no longer write in the papers is that I’m afraid that someone will grab me on the street and beat me,” Natan Zach, one of Israel’s best-known poets, told the Hebrew website Walla in an interview. Social media Punishing employees for Facebook posts Operation Protective Edge reportedly heralded a new phenomenon on social media: Facebook groups that track down outspoken leftists and “out” them to their employers. Members of these groups then flood an employer with angry calls and emails, demanding the culprit’s dismissal. From the start of the operation dozens of Palestinian citizens of Israel were fired or suspended from their jobs over statements they made on Facebook. An Arab municipal worker in the city of Lod was fired for writing on her Facebook wall “13 [IDF soldiers] dead, may they be more, Amen.” An Arab employee of the Safed municipality was suspended for posting that “Zionism is the enemy of humanity… We are all Palestine.” A doctor and a nurse, from two different hospitals, were suspended for denouncing the IDF as “murderers of children.” An Arab physiotherapist of the Bnei Yehuda soccer team was fired for relatively mild denunciations, such as “some people in this country are becoming worse than monsters.” The list goes on. A franchisee of the Tiv Ta’am food company and an employee of the metalworking company Iscar were fired for expressing joy over the death of IDF soldiers. A Bank Hapoalim employee was fired for wishing for another holocaust. Two employees of the supermarket chain Supersal are facing pre-termination disciplinary hearings for making anti-Israel statements. For condemning Israel’s actions on Facebook, a Hadassah College student in Jerusalem was removed from the valedictorian list, and her scholarship was revoked. “A saying by an employee, even if it’s extreme and defiant, can’t in itself become an automatic reason for his firing,” Steve Adler, former judge of Israel’s national labor court, told the The Marker. “If the employee was speaking only in his own name, with no relation to the company that employs him – say on his Facebook page – the conclusion is clear: Even if he said words of enmity that are hard to hear, he is allowed to say them… There is no legal basis to fire him.” An Arab nurse suspended from the state-owned Sheba Medical Center for a Facebook post calling IDF soldiers war criminals, appealed to the Tel Aviv labor court. One day before the court hearing the hospital reinstated him, on condition that he remove the offensive post and apologize to the hospital’s administration. An Arab accountant at Ernst & Young was also threatened with dismissal for calling Israeli broadcasters who interrupted an Arab interviewee “stupid Nazis.” She, too, was allowed to return to work once she removed the post and publicly apologized for it. Unlike private companies, state bodies do have the right to fire employees for their public statement if they incite racial or nationalistic violence. While state bodies used this right liberally on Arab employees lashing out at Israel, no similar application was made for nationalistic, anti-Palestinian statements. Mynet reported that a postal employee wrote on her Facebook page, “All lefties to the gas chambers now.” A complaint against her was answered with: “Israel is a democratic country, where every citizen is allowed to express his opinion.” Complaints against a Carmiel municipal employee who wrote “Only a thousand… we should have killed them all, death to all Arabs,” were also shrugged off. “We have no control over what people say in the arena of Facebook, and we don’t follow employees’ private Facebook pages… [but] we will talk to him,” the municipality promised. An Israeli professor at Bar-Ilan University sent his students an email rescheduling a test, and took the opportunity to express sympathy and concern for all victims of the fighting. He made no reference to the victims’ nationality, implicitly reminding the students that the majority of the victims were Gazans. After receiving vociferous complaints about the professor’s message, the university issued an apology for the email and the professor was reprimanded. Israeli parliament Seeking new legal limitations Last month right-leaning parliamentarians proposed an amendment to the Knesset rules that would narrow elected representatives’ freedom of speech. The new law would allow impeaching those MK’s whose expressions are deemed out of line. The current law allows the Knesset’s Central Election Committee to prevent certain parties from participating in elections if it is able to prove that a party supported the armed struggle against Israel. The new amendment to this law proposes to also enforce it on representatives already elected, so that acting members of parliament who “published words of support of the armed struggle of an enemy state or a terrorist organization against Israel” may be voted out of the Knesset. The law implicitly targets Arab MKs, since those who determine exactly what constitutes “support of the armed struggle” would be no other than the rival MKs themselves. Calling for boycotts On July 21, Foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman called on his supporters to boycott Arab businesses that went on strike in solidarity with residents of the Gaza Strip. He also demanded that the Al Jazeera in Israel be shut down. “Al Jazeera has become an integral part of the terrorist organizations’ information campaign,” he said in a press conference. Minister of Communications Gilad Erdan joined his call, asking the committee of cable and satellite broadcasts to stop broadcasting “the network’s incitement against Israel.” Since the minister brought no examples of actual false or inaccurate reports by Al Jazeera, the cable committee dismissed the request. “The facts presented to the committee supply no reason to remove the channel,” was the response given. Crushing dissent MK Haneen Zoabi, an outspoken and controversial member of the Arab Balad party, was suspended from the Knesset for six months over comments that were deemed “incitement against the state.” Over the past weeks, Zoabi has drawn public outrage for her controversial actions and expressions in defense of Palestinian. Before it was known that the three kidnapped Israeli teens had been murdered, Zoabi defended their kidnappers on Radio Tel Aviv. “They are not terrorists,” she explained, “they are people who see no way to change their reality, and are forced to use these means until Israel sobers up a little… sobers up and feels the suffering of the other.” She added that she did not approve of their actions. For this and other remarks made by Zoabi, Speaker of the Knesset Yuli Edelstein filed a complaint with the Knesset’s Ethics Committee, accusing Zoabi of “comments that border incitement, encourage violence and support terror organizations.” At the beginning of August the Ethics Committee voted to suspend Zoabi, removing her for six months from the plenum and the committees on which she serves, though still allowing her to vote (silently). The committee reasoned that Zoabi’s remarks were inconsistent with the good of the country. “The Israeli public, like in any other state, expects that members of parliament, who have sworn allegiance to the state, would not encourage those who rise against it, and those who seek to kill its citizens and its soldiers,” the decision read. “The committee, instead of protecting my freedom of speech… is vigorously acting to punish me for my positions, and punish the entire public that I represent,” Zoabi said in reply. She added that she would appeal the decision in the Supreme Court. Ami Ayalon, former head of the Shin Bet and a former Labor MK, berated the Ethics Committee’s decision. “In the sea of inappropriate expressions [in the Knesset], some of which are racist and some of which are outright criminal, there’s a grave injustice in the persecution of Haneen Zoabi,” he wrote in a recent op-ed. “The committee’s decision damages freedom of speech, which is the heart and soul of democracy.” Later on it was decided to also strip Zoabi of parliamentary immunity and open a criminal investigation against her, on the suspicion that she incited violence and insulted a police officer. The police recommended putting her on trial for incitement. Even right-leaning MK’s expressed dismay over this. “The police investigation against MK Zoabi is a grave issue, one that all MK’s should be revolting against,” Moshe Feiglin, a veteran MK of the Likud party, wrote on his Facebook page. “Zoabi is representing her voters… Today she is being investigated over activities and comments that are part of her political duties and agenda. Today the police are investing her, tomorrow it will be Miri Regev [Likud].” Orli Santo is a correspondent for the New York-based weeklies Yediot America and the Jewish Week. Her writing has also been published by the Times of Israel, Ynet, the JTA and other publications. Related: What was different about this war? Not just escalation: A frightening new era of Jewish-Arab relations in Israel Why Palestinian citizens of Israel are no longer safeLandslides from the Kaikoura Earthquake part 2: the Hapuku landslide The longest runout slide triggered by the Kaikoura Earthquake was the Hapuku landslide, which occurred high up in the catchmnet of the Hapuku River. This landslide is at -42.237, 173.664 if you want to take a look on Google Earth. This landslide is a long (2.7 km) rock avalanche with a volume of about 10-14 million cubic metres. The elevation change from the crown (which is at the ridge top) to the toe is about 1,900 metres. To get a full appreciation of this landslide the Google Earth imagery is helpful:- . As the image shows, the landslide crown is at the ridge line (which is common for earthquake triggered landslides), whilst the debris at the toe has blocked the valley. This is a helicopter image of the upper portion of the landslide: . This suggests that the failure event in the upper portion of the landslide was complex, and that there is still some debris on the slope. The image below shows the track of the landslide to the toe:- . Note the small remaining lake caused by the blockage of the channel (the breach is also visible). The landslide has left a large amount of bare rock. This image shows the landslide debris:- . The landslide dam has breached – this image shows the breach channel clearly: As with many other locations, this landslide has seen some secondary failures in periods of heavy rainfall since the Kaikoura earthquake: . As with the Seaward landslide, one of the fault ruptures runs through the scar of the this landslide. It is therefore unsurprising that there are many other landslides triggered by the Kaikoura earthquake in this area:LAFAYETTE (CBS SF) — An overwhelming urge to stop what you’re doing and look at the eclipse Monday extended to drivers on at least one Bay Area freeways, creating some unsafe conditions, according to the California Highway Patrol. The CHP Contra Costa Facebook page posted an image showing dozens upon dozens of cars stopped both on the shoulder and the center median of state Highway 24 in Lafayette, with drivers outside their vehicles trying to catch a glimpse of the eclipse. CHP spokesman Officer Brandon Correia told CBS San Francisco a CHP officer came up upon a car that had stopped along eastbound 24 just before the Interstate 680 junction because a car had pulled over. It was about 10:30 a.m. during the partial eclipse over the Bay Area. As soon as he pulled over to offer assistance, the officer saw to his astonishment dozens of other cars also pull over and stop on the freeway, Correia said. But handing out tickets was not an option with the surprising crush of stopped cars. “It was completely unexpected,” said Correia. “There were so many vehicles stopped, the officer was unable to take any real enforcement action.” Instead, the officer took a photo and tried to make light of the situation, while urging people to move on stay safe. “He gave umpteenth warnings against knucklehead maneuvers,” said Correia. “I mean, c’mon man. That’s just ridiculous.” There were no collisions reported because of drivers-turned-eclipse gawkers, and no one was injured, Correia
suspected members of his crew, according to the reports. Monday was the third time he avoided arrest. Setola is allegedly the head of a killing team run by the powerful Casalesi clan which belongs to the Neapolitan mafia known as Camorra. He got out of jail last spring after a doctor ruled that he was legally blind. Prosecutors have opened an investigation into that ruling. Corriere published a photo of Setola wearing sunglasses with his left eye bandaged. Don't Miss Corriere del Mezzogiorno The Casalesi clan is featured in the best-selling book "Gomorrah" -- a play on the word "Camorra" -- written by Roberto Saviano who now lives under constant police protection. Saviano recently said he may have to leave Italy to escape constant death threats from the mafia and its supporters. Police began cracking down on Setola and his colleagues after the murder of six West African immigrants in the nearby town of Castel Volturno in September. After those killings, the Italian government activated the army to help bolster efforts against the Casalesi clan, which is believed to have killed more than 20 people since May. The two suspected members of his squad have given police information about his movements. In November, police arrested an Italian police officer suspected of informing Setola about police operations.How many ferry passengers does it take to open a door? More than usual, it seems, if you've recently boarded BC Ferries' gleaming new Salish vessels to the Southern Gulf Islands. Its automatic doors — scattered throughout the vehicle and passenger decks — have befuddled, amused and even frightened ferry passengers, 20 of whom have submitted complaints to BC Ferries since the three vessels debuted this summer. "This door is an experience in life," Mike Pidleseki said Sunday aboard the Salish Eagle vessel. "It's something I've never seen before. I truly just enjoy opening and closing a door when you need to get out of somewhere." Waiting up to a minute When exiting from the interior, passengers encounter a set of doors with silver knobs in the middle. Should you push the knobs or swing the doors open? Both methods appear to work. Next comes a small antechamber, which is blocked by a second set of doors. Look for the round green button, which you hold down until it lights up. An orange light suddenly flashes overhead as the door begins to beep and slowly creak open. Getting outside on <a href="https://twitter.com/BCFerries">@BCFerries</a> new Salish vessels can require patience thx to automated doors <a href="https://twitter.com/CBCEarlyEdition">@CBCEarlyEdition</a> <a href="https://t.co/kWEXNrz7Gn">pic.twitter.com/kWEXNrz7Gn</a> —@CBCMargaretG As the signs stipulate, passengers must wait until the door is completely open. That can take from 30 seconds to a minute — depending on where the door is in the cycle — which means people inevitably try to sneak through. "It took me a minute to learn," said Louise Hanovan, who was waiting outside the door with her kids. "I've never encountered a door where you have to have so many steps." Doors a 'European design' BC Ferries spokesperson Deborah Marshall says the vessels — which were built in Gdansk, Poland — are a European design. The manufacturer has helped make adjustments since BC Ferries introduced the fleet, she said. "What we're doing is bringing it to more North American doors, where people are more inclined to push the doors rather than wait for the automated doors to fully open." Tweaks to the sensors mean that pushing the door as it opens will no longer stop the cycle. The doors will also remain open when the ship is in port, which is when passengers tend to crowd. They'll then seal shut when the ship leaves the port. The Salish vessels replaced the aging Queen of Nanaimo and Queen of Burnaby, which were built in 1965 and 1964 respectively. The new ferries now service the Comox-Powell and Tsawwassen-Southern Gulf Islands routes. "Often when you do bring a brand new vessel into service, you do have some challenges," Marshall said. "Our crews are working very hard to work through any issues that we're having with the new ship." Listen to the full story below. With files from Margaret Gallagher and CBC's The Early EditionA 'gent' can expect to pay twice as much as a'man' and 'authentic' products fetch up to 50 per cent more than 'genuine' ones on eBay, according to linguistic experts. Researchers analysed the language used by people selling items on the online auction site to reveal winning words that netted them the most money. Trawling 68,000 items listed on the site, comprising 15 million words, they revealed patterns in language which significantly changed the price buyers could expect to pay for similar goods. Researchers analysed the language used by people selling items on the online auction site to reveal winning words that netted them the most money. eBay's logo is shown Among the results it was shown that'men's' watches sold for an average of £30 ($44) while 'gents' went for £70 ($102), showing a carefully chosen word could net sellers a larger profit. Fragrances labelled 'genuine' fetched £21 ($30) but 'authentic' ones sold for £34 ($50), perhaps suggesting customers looking for a bargain should try searching for the first term. Similarly, users paid nearly three times as much for 'on-ear' headphones as 'in-ear' headphones (£25 to £71/$36 to $104) while a watch with'resistance' can expect to attract nearly 50 per cent more than a'resistant' watch (£59 to £89/$86 to $130). Grammatical errors such as missing apostrophes and internet speak were found to have a negative impact on the price products sold for, according to Andrew Kehoe and Matt Gee from Birmingham City University's School of English. Trawling 68,000 items listed on the site comprising 15 million words, experts revealed patterns in language which changed the price buyers could expect to pay for similar goods. An example for cars is shown Among the results it was shown that'men's' watches sold for an average of £30 ($44) while 'gents' went for £70 ($102), showing a carefully chosen word could net sellers a larger profit. The best and worst terms for sellers of mobile phones are shown above, with some low value terms indicative of undesirable handsets ARE EBAY BUYERS SEXIST? If you want to be a successful seller on eBay you should pick a male-sounding username. Buyers on eBay are willing to bid more often, and end up shelling out more money, for items sold by men rather than women. The researchers said the study may be the first to show something that has long been known - 'inequality and discrimination put women at a consistent disadvantage.' Dr Tamar Kricheli-Katz and a team from Tel Aviv University, Israel, looked at data from over a million transactions between 2009 and 2012, examining the most popular products on eBay. They focused on identical products and demonstrated that women sellers receive fewer bids for their products, and in general ended up with lower prices. A woman selling a new product on eBay received on average about 80 cents for every one dollar a man received for selling the same new product. They said this was because people viewed the products sold by women to be of less value than those sold by men. 'People often think of eBay as a way of getting rid of household junk and unwanted gifts but it actually contains a wide range of products in 35 different categories,' Mr Kehoe said. 'The variation between those categories is really interesting from a linguistic perspective.' This is because sellers on eBay write their own descriptions of product, unlike on most other online stores. The experts analysed words used by in product listings using WebCorp software, which has been used in research and teaching for over 15 years. They also found antique sellers were the most likely to use a personal connection to sell products with words like 'I','me' and'my', appearing more frequently than in any other category. In fact, they made up 20 per cent of the most popular words used. Elsewhere, used-car sellers were found to shy away from the term'second-hand,' with only nine instances of the phrase found among nearly 1,000 sold. Instead traditional car sales speak was found, with phrases like 'honest','reliable', 'clean' and'reluctant' all among the top terms. Mr Kehoe added: 'The term "second-hand" seems to have a stigma attached when it comes to cars, but people will happily use it to sell smaller items like books or DVDs. 'We've found that the language used in eBay descriptions really does have an impact on whether items sell and for how much.' Unsurprisingly Apple scores highly among desirable selling terms, while Android tablets seem to be less in demand. It would appear buyers are prepared to pay for detail about a tablet's working orderFishing boat sank after collision with South Korean chemical tanker in Bungo Channel off Saiki, Japan. The cargo ship was proceeding in northern direction through the channel, but due to watch change, morning fog and moderate visibility, collided with no marked fishing boat on several nautical miles off the coast. The fishing boat capsized and sank, throwing into the water all the crew. The people were rescued several minutes after the accident from the nearby fishermen, but was understood that boat skipper had some injuries. He was transported to the local hospital for medical treatment and examination. The chemical tanker did not suffered damages and after reporting the accident resumed voyage to Nagoya, where will be inspected. The local authorities started investigation for the root cause of the accident. Considering from the hour of accident (0815 h) it happened shortly after watch change and during the morning fog, typical for this region. According to preliminary information from the authorities, the small fishing boat was not well marked and was on the route of the cargo ship without signalization. Initially was reported that the chemical tanker was Pretty Hana, but after further investigation was estimated that vessel is not the earlier mentioned. We send our apologize for the inconvenience caused to the shipowner and operator.One Alabama mother has a warning for other parents: Photos of your children posted online may be appropriated by malevolent individuals. According to Jenny Smith of Ranburne, Alabama, a photo of her terminally ill 3-year-old son was turned into a callous Internet meme after someone lifted a photo from Facebook. "My husband and I are trying to use it as a positive example," Smith told ABC News. "No. 1, to let other families know that it can happen to them and, No. 2, try to educate people of children with special needs and that terminally ill children are not to be used for a gag or a laugh. This is someone's child and personal photo and not to be made into a joke." Mom Thanks Chick-fil-A Employees Who Played With Son When Others Refused Mom Defends Son Against Offensive Internet Meme Smith, a mom of four, said her son Grayson was born with 22 birth anomalies. He has suffered from epilepsy, cerebral palsy and a terminal condition in which his brain matter protrudes outside his skull. On Sept. 13 he underwent his 24th brain and head surgery to improve his quality of life. Despite his severe health problems, Smith said he is "full of life." "He is funny and sarcastic, very bossy," she said. "He does not act like he has a disability at all. Physically, he's not able to walk or crawl, but he's smart. He goes to pre-K. He's very involved in his class, especially with the girls. He's very loving. He'll tell me, 'I love you,' and give me a bear hug, and he's very attached to his daddy." To gain support from others, Jenny Smith and her husband, Kendyl Smith, shared Grayson's journey on his YouCaring and Facebook pages. But last month one of Grayson's more than 15,000 Facebook followers contacted Jenny Smith to alert her of a meme with one of his photos that has been circulating on the internet. "I was speechless and, honestly, didn't know what to think or feel at that moment," Smith said. "We were kind of horrified someone could be so cruel." She said the Facebook user recognized Grayson in a picture taken from his first field trip, to a pumpkin patch in October 2015. The mean-spirited meme pokes fun at his unique appearance, Smith said. After Googling the image, Smith learned it has been shared across several websites. She believes the photo was lifted from her Facebook page, titled Grayson's Story. She reached out to the sites, asking them to remove the meme. Some took it down, and some did not, but she'll never stop trying to have the meme deleted, she said. "You have to stand up and fight for yourself and have love and care and respect for others, but I still want them to take it down, because it's not right," Smith said. "One by one, it might take me a long time, but Grayson's a fighter, so his father and I have to exemplify what he does for us." She added, "There's always that chance that we could wake up one morning that he could not be there, so... we enjoy every day with him."Share On copy Share On copy Share On link Share On link Share On tumblr Share On tumblr Share On more Share On more Share On whatsapp Share On whatsapp Share On sms Share On sms Share On email Share On email Share On twitter Share On twitter Share On lineapp Share On lineapp Share On pinterest Share On pinterest Share On pinterest Share On pinterest Share On vk Share On vk Share On facebook Share On facebook Justine Zwiebel/ BuzzFeed 1. That Umbro made the coolest shorts around — mainly because they came in every color and pattern imaginable. blogger.com And, when wearing them, the terrible risk you took of sitting down the wrong way and exposing yourself. 2. How JanSport was the ONLY backpack — which you, of course, one-strapped and customized with a Sharpie. etsy.com No Eastpak for you! 3. And of course, Five-Star was the only notebook worthy of your JanSport. Tap to play GIF Tap to play GIF 4. The importance of nailing the perfect middle part. ztams.com jest.com starcasm.net 5. You lived by one fashion rule: The baggier the jeans, the better! Paramount Pictures 6. The importance of picking out the right boxer — because you sagged your pants. ebay.com claycord.com 8. How Pamela Anderson was the most perfect woman... Via whosdatedwho.com ...and the ONLY reason you watched Baywatch. Tap to play GIF Tap to play GIF wordpress.com Of course, it wasn't for the acting. 9. The little joy you got from pumping these bad boys up — even if they really didn't do anything to improve your game. Via wordpress.com And the sense of self-satisfaction you got if you were the only person among your friends to own a pair. 10. How super-cool and stylish you felt wearing one-strapped overalls — even if it made you look like one of the Little Rascals. NBC / Via way2enjoy.com 11. The never-ending quest to scam Columbia House and BMG Music out of free CDs. IT WAS 12 CDs FOR A PENNY! 12. Totally thinking you could pull off Cross Colours. youworkit.co.uk thesymmetricswan.com 14. When it came to sunglasses, it was ALL about Oakleys — nothing else came close. Via mungo.com.au 15. How your Starter jacket was a wardrobe essential. Via childrenofthenineties.blogspot.com And you probably had a Dallas Cowboys one, even if you lived nowhere near the Dallas metropolitan area or Texas. 16. That Lil' Penny could sell you anything. Via gq.com 17. Decorating your bedroom walls with the pages of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. 18. How there was no cooler denim brand than Levi's Silvertab — in medium stonewash, of course. Via ebay.co.uk 19. These were your TV crushes: NBC NBC NBc From left: Hilary Banks (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), Kelly Kapowski (Saved by the Bell), and Winnie Cooper (The Wonder Years). 20. And these were your MTV crushes: Time & Life Pictures / Getty Images Dave Allocca/ Time & Life Pictures / Getty Images Getty Images/ Hulton Archive From left: Karen "Duff" Duffy, Kennedy, and Daisy Fuentes. 21. How you thought you could pull off a Caesar cut, like George Clooney. NBC / Via ketv.com It was usually an epic FAIL. 22. Dousing yourself in one of these: parfumurionline.com blog.theperfumespot.com marionnaud.ch 23. This was the craziest thing you'd ever seen: 24. The horrible amount of pilling you got on your acrylic ski sweaters after wearing them just once! ebay.com ebay.com ebay.com 25. Watching these classic films over and over again and then quoting them per verbatim... ...especially the Adam Sandler films. "Why don't you just go HOME?! That's your HOME! Are you too good for your HOME?!" 26. The deliciousness that was Cheetos Paws. Via crackerjack23.blogspot.com 27. How rocking a Stussy T-shirt made you feel instantly cool. fucknfilthy.com fourthgradenothing.com 28. Putting in the code to unlock the super-violent version of Mortal Kombat. Tap to play GIF Tap to play GIF tumblr.com 29. The lingering sweet scent of girls who wore Gap Heaven — or Sunflowers. amazon.com amazon.com 30. You know this was Levi's GREATEST ad campaign: Via bim.shopstyle.com 31. These were seminal albums in your life: 32. How Sam Goody, Journeys, Merry-Go-Round, and Structure were your first stops on trips to the mall. midwesternsplendor.com midwesternsplendor.com And of course, Chess King and Foot Locker as well. 33. That there was no greater delicacy than Bagel Bites. Tap to play GIF Tap to play GIF Via fuckyeah1990s.tumblr.com "Pizza in the morning. Pizza in the evening. Pizza at suppertime. When pizza's on a bagel, you can eat pizza anytime!" 34. How the Dog Brothers from Sex in the '90s were MTV's original guidos. MTV 35. Having your pager clipped to your pants. Via smokingsection.uproxx.com 36. The importance of the wallet chain. Via billyrebs.com Keeping that Velcro wallet secure! 37. That there was no better decade for sketch comedy shows. Ivory Way Productions CBC Television MTV From left: In Living Color, The Kids in the Hall, and The State. 38. The disappointment you felt after washing your Hypercolor shirt for the first time. Why couldn't it last more than just one wash?! 39. The art — but also the struggle — of making a perfect mixtape. Especially if it was for someone you liked! Tap to play GIF Tap to play GIF Via pandawhale.com 40. The whoosh-whoosh sound you made while you walked whenever you wore wale cord. Via etsy.com 41. How, somehow, it was totally cool to wear hip-hop Looney Tunes T-shirts. Bugs, you're such a badass! 42. The happiness that getting the perfect fade brought you. Via sidibeauty.blogspot.com But the upkeep was a bitch. 43. How hemp necklaces went with everything. Via etsy.com 44. That Michael Jordan was the greatest athlete ever... Getty Images / Getty Images Sport 45. Speaking of Jordan, his shoes were BALLER status. Let's be honest, they were probably the most expensive thing you owned. 46. How this was the bible for witty insults. Via ebay.com "Yo mama so fat, she sat on a rainbow and made Skittles." 47. How Surge really was the nectar of the gods. Via en.wikipedia.org 48. Having an allegiance to either Airwalk or Simple. skately.com 49. Knowing that Burger King was the place to get your grub on because Whoppers only cost 99 cents. Tap to play GIF Tap to play GIF 50. How totally cool you looked wearing Adidas sandals with white socks. cdnb.lystit.com IT WAS THE LOOK! 51. Of course this was the ultimate accessory. Via fuckyeah1990s.tumblr.comTemp0 Profile Blog Joined April 2011 United States 164 Posts Last Edited: 2011-05-25 01:07:32 #1 UPDATED WITH LYRICS AND DOWNLOAD LINK :D Since I plan on releasing some type of compilation of a bunch of SC2 songs I do for free eventually, here's another song I put together lol. It is a remix to Lupe Fiasco's "Kick, Push". Hope you enjoy it, haha. Download Link [url blocked] LYRICS + Show Spoiler + First got it and he was Toss, he was like “Oh my gosh!” Matter fact, first time he tried to ladder he lost Landed up in bronze with ladder points gone For a month he struggled keepin his calm..like “MOOM!” Now we can end the story right here But Noobie didn’t quit, there was something in the air, yeah He said there was something he was reading Couldn’t find the meaning Something astounding Oh wait I think he found it Figured where his hands went Spammed it, after his first push, expanded Uh, posted on TL, they banned him c-click-c-click c-click, the mods couldn’t stand him so, he would ladder so much started up at dawn, wouldn’t stop till after dusk, yeah Then he said it’s getting’ late in here So I better put some more warp gates in here so I can A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE and win So come and play with me, another noobie in this world with no place to be So come and A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE and win And the way it goes, just a deathball looking for a place to roll So Imma A….and Move…..and Win. My man made it into Plat, though. Got some better macro (Yeah) No micro, Templar were stormin themselves And they all were dead See his performance was..well… He just needed more practice with his mouse And no I ain’t talkin bout the one that’s in your house Cheese, is wh-wh-what was happenin to him now Wow, He said I’d Bad Manner you Cuz I’m enraged by these cannons that you planted And I don’t think this game will be long enough for carriers He said, Lame! it’s been 120 games Shame, Now lwet me make one thing clear I don’t need to “GG” I’ll just leave right here So he picked another map, and scouted out his Nat Someday he dreamedof making it out of Plat And every person he would face in there Said you need to put a couple more gates in there. So you can A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE and win So come and play with me, another noobie in this world with no place to be So come and A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE and win And the way it goes, just a deathball looking for a place to roll Before he knew, he had a team that taught him somethin’ With their Team Liquid shirts, and GG buttons And they would play, until they couldn’t play no more All the Xel Naga towers weren’t safe no more There was never any cannons in his base no more Team games, they were better than solo they said Their attack route, was perfectly mapped out When the things got crazy he needed to blink out They headed, to the Master’s league And their Win-Loss record was disaster-free (Yeah) And his 4 gates would take him there But for late-game, he needed more gates in there so he could A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE and win So come and play with me, another noobie in this world with no place to be So come and A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE, A-MOVE and win And the way it goes, just a deathball looking for a place to roll So Imma A….and Move…..and Win. Since I plan on releasing some type of compilation of a bunch of SC2 songs I do for free eventually, here's another song I put together lol. It is a remix to Lupe Fiasco's "Kick, Push". Hope you enjoy it, haha.Download Link[url blocked]LYRICS SC2 and Video Game Songs! - http://youtube.com/tempostarcraftHow loud was it during the crowd-noise-enhanced popup drills at Ed Smith Stadium on Friday? The stadium speakers blasting the recorded reaction to Delmon Young’s dramatic base-loaded double in last year’s American League Division Series at Camden Yards were so loud the Orioles got a noise complaint from someone living in the apartment complex on the far side of the facility. “Wait until we do it at night,’’ quipped manager Buck Showalter, who stole a page from the NFL practice manual to simulate game conditions while infielders and outfielders tried to communicate as they tracked shallow fly balls. The neighbors are going to have to put up with it a few more times over the course of spring training. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do,’’ Showalter said. “We try to simulate as many realistic things. We can do so many things on a back field and you can hear me say ‘I got it, right here’ and the reality is, it doesn’t happen in the season. You can’t hear most of the time, and the crowd noise increases as the ball is coming down and two guys are converging on it.” The new wrinkle in the Orioles’ spring training regimen was well-received by the players, who appreciate anything that adds some novelty to the mundane fundamental drills that dominate the first couple weeks of spring training. “I think it’s a great drill,’’ veteran shortstop J.J. Hardy said. “I think it was louder than any stadium I’ve ever been in. I think it was louder than the playoffs. I know it’s from the playoffs, but I think they turned the speakers up here a little bit louder. During the playoffs, it was loud but you could hear the outfielder calling it. You couldn’t hear anything out there. It was a little extreme, but it was a great drill.” Look through pictures of the Orioles at spring training in Sarasota, Fla. Showalter said the main point of the ear-splitting exercise was to simulate real game conditions, and Hardy endorsed that even while pointing out that a pop up behind the infield probably isn’t going to generate that kind of decibel level — even in the playoffs. “Whenever you do that pop-up priority, it’s so not realistic that it’s almost like a waste of time,’’ Hardy said. “It just looks like a waste of time. Today, there was actually something to it. The outfielders have got to yell at the top of their lungs in order for us to hear it.” New right fielder Travis Snider said he had never experienced anything like the super-loud spring workout during his time with the Toronto Blue Jays and Pittsburgh Pirates, but he never misses a chance to throw in a plug for his favorite NFL team. “I think we have the [Seattle] Seahawks to thank for that,’’ he said. “I think the crowd noise there perpetuated some organizations to utilize the noise in practice to give you the end-game feel.... there were some balls out there today with the noise that were a lot harder than the typical spring training drill. “So, I think any way you can take a drill and make it harder, especially as routine as pop-up priority, it’s a good opportunity to go out there and get some game-like experience.” Around the horn Top prospect Kevin Gausman has been announced as the starter in the second game of the Grapefruit League exhibition season. He’ll pitch two innings in the Orioles’ Ed Smith Stadium opener. … Showalter spent the day wearing microphones for several purposes and, during his afternoon news briefing, he was wearing three of them.MOSUL, Iraq — Iraqi forces seized most of Mosul’s airport on Thursday, an important milestone in the broader offensive to retake the western half of the country’s second-largest city from the Islamic State, Iraqi and allied officials said. The push to take the airport, which has been led by the Iraqi federal police, is a promising start to what is expected to be a difficult and bloody fight to completely evict the Islamic State from the city. “They are most of the way through the airfield,” Brig. Gen. Matthew C. Isler, a senior United States Air Force officer in the American-led headquarters in Baghdad, said late Thursday afternoon. It took Iraqi forces 100 days to seize the eastern half of the city, an operation that led to significant Iraqi casualties. Gen. Joseph L. Votel, the head of the United States Central Command, who arrived in Baghdad on Thursday, said about 500 Iraqi military personnel had been killed and about 3,000 had been wounded in that operation.ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Representatives of the Syrian government and the Kurdish People’s Protections Units (YPG) held a meeting at the Qamishli airport in an effort to end the dispute between the two parties, Rudaw has learned.The governor of Hasakah, Muhamad Ali, represented the Syrian government in the meeting Friday morning with YPG commander Sipan Hamo.During the three-hour meeting, they discussed the military situation, services in the region, and humanitarian issues. It is expected they will hold a second meeting within three days.Dr. Farid Saadun, a political analyst and university professor, told Rudaw from Qamishli that there will be a meeting between both sides after the Eid holiday.After clashes in Hasakah between the Syrian government and the YPG, the majority of the governmental offices and the university came under Kurdish control. The Syrian government, as a result, cut deliveries of medical supplies and other needs to the city. It has also threatened to close down the university or change its location should the government not regain control over it.UPDATE: Nov. 1 -- A spokesman for Americans for Tax Reform told BuzzFeed Tuesday night that the image is actually of a September mailer and is now being taken out of context. “[T]he photo you have is of a photocopy of a piece of mail we sent out in September," he said. "Someone is either trying to be cute or deliberately trying to mislead.” ATR spokesman John Kartch confirmed to HuffPost and the Houston Chronicle that the flyer was sent out in September, long before the storm. “I think someone is trying to mislead you," Kartch said. "We’re circulating no such flyer. ATR sent out a mail piece opposing President Obama’s policies using a storm analogy way back in September. Sounds like someone is being dishonest.” The headline to this story has been changed to reflect this information. * * * * * An anti-Obama flier invoking Hurricane Sandy was reportedly distributed by conservative activist Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform, the Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday. The advertisement, which appeared on northern Virginia doorsteps starting Tuesday, features a photo of President Obama superimposed over a storm image. "We've seen storms in Virginia, but none like this..." reads the flier. "Barack Obama's policies have added $4 billion in debt each day he's been in office. Americans can't afford this debt." An image of the flier posted on BuzzFeed clearly shows the logo for Americans For Tax Reform, Norquist's group. Norquist is a vocal critic of the president. Virginia was largely spared from Hurricane Sandy's destructive path Monday. However, tens of thousands of Virginians remained without power Tuesday after the storm passed through the mid-Atlantic, and some of the state saw at least a foot of snow. The storm was responsible for at least 48 deaths along the East Coast. With just a week left until the presidential election, Virginia remains a critical swing state. HuffPost Pollster's latest poll averages show Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney locked in a dead heat.Federal Jury Convicts 'John Doe' Of Identity Fraud A federal jury has convicted a man. They just don't know who... and neither do prosecutors. "John Doe," as listed in court records, was convicted of passport fraud, Social Security fraud, aggravated identity theft and two counts of voter fraud in federal court in Baltimore, prosecutors said. Prosecutors presented evidence that the defendant lived under the assumed identity of a citizen born in the U.S. Virgin Islands, going by the name Cheyenne Moody Davis or aliases like Chris or Richie. Beginning in the summer of 1997, the defendant used the victim's personally identifiable information to get a number of driver's licenses and identification cards, including a Maryland state ID and numerous Maryland driver's licenses. He used these documents as the basis for a passport, a Social Security card and voter registration. He voted in 2016, prosecutors said. He faces up to 27 years when he's sentenced on Feb. 23, and remains in the custody of U.S. marshals. Anyone with information on the defendant's true identity is asked to email the State Department at DS_WFO_TIPS@state.gov. He's 41 to 44 years old and five feet eight inches tall, with light brown eyes. The Diplomatic Security Service believes he may be from Antigua, Barbuda, the Dominican Republic, Haiti or Jamaica. Evidence prosecutors say was presented at trial showed he has a Jamaican accent. The State Department says he would have been 20 to 25 years old when he left his native country around June of 1997. More information is available on the State Department's website.After a lengthy delay, President Barack Obama has collected Florida's 29 electoral votes. NBC's Kerry Sanders reports. President Barack Obama beat Mitt Romney in Florida, NBC news reported Saturday, ending a four-day count with a thin margin of the popular vote, though substantial enough to avoid an automatic recount. As a result, Obama garners the state's 29 electoral votes, for a national total of 332 votes to Romney's 206. Regardless of the outcome, Obama had already clinched re-election. The Florida Secretary of State's Office said that with almost 100 percent of the vote counted, Obama led Romney 50 percent to 49.1 percent, a difference of about 74,000 votes. That was over the half-percent margin where a computer recount would have been automatically ordered unless Romney had waived it. There is a Nov. 16 deadline for overseas and military ballots, but under Florida law, recounts are based on Saturday's results. Only a handful of overseas and military ballots are believed to remain outstanding. It's normal for election supervisors in Florida and other states to spend days after any election counting absentee, provisional, military and overseas ballots. Usually, though, the election has already been called on election night or soon after because the winner's margin is beyond reach. But on election night this year, it was difficult for officials —and the media — to call the presidential race here, in part because the margin was so close and the voting stretched into the evening. If there had been a recount, it would not be as difficult as the lengthy one in 2000. The state no longer uses punch-card ballots, which became known for their hanging chads. All 67 counties now use optical scan ballots where voters mark their selections manually. Republican George W. Bush won the 2000 contest after the Supreme Court declared him the winner over Democrat Al Gore by a scant 537 votes. The win gave Obama victories in eight of the nine swing states, losing only North Carolina. In addition to Florida, he won Ohio, Iowa, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Virginia, Colorado and Nevada. The Associated Press contributed to this report.Oxford school officials still have to hire 11 people to fill all vacant positions before the beginning of the school year. That's what interim schools Superintendent James Connelly discussed with the Board of Education during a special meeting Thursday night at Oxford High School. Connelly, who just began two weeks ago following the resignation of former Superintendent Edward Malvey, said his goal is to hire for all the vacant positions by Thursday, which is orientation day for new hires. School begins on Aug. 31. "We shouldn't be in this position (less than two) weeks before school starts," Connelly said. He said he plans to do everything in his power to make sure everyone is hired on time, and that the board has received several applications for most positions. He said he has a meeting with three candidates today and has appointments lined up next week. He compared the hiring process to "a little bit of an assembly line" and said he doesn't like to work that way, but said "it is what is at this point." The school board on Thursday hired Ginger Horvath-Stiehle as interim director of special services. The board also hired an English teacher. Connelly said the board has hired one other person but also received an unexpected retirement of a teacher on Thursday, so that position must be replaced. This is not the first time the school district has been playing catch-up to fill vacant positions right before the beginning of the school year. "Last year, we had teachers who were literally walking in with the kids on the first day of school," he said. Board member Michael Macchio questioned whether some of the vacant positions could be filled with substitutes for a while; Connelly said he hoped to avoid that, but also noted that some of the vacant positions are not for classroom teachers. He said he and school board Chairwoman Rose McKinnon will spend significant time reviewing resumes in the coming week. The positions that are still vacant include a special education teacher, an English language tutor, a physical education teacher, a math teacher, a school psychologist, a behavioral consultant, a middle school teacher, two library media specialists and another English teacher. (Editor's Note: This may have changed; we will try to get more information and the story.)The Winnipeg Police Service hopes other city departments will help cover the tab for building
Bright Horizons, among others. What are the biggest problems? Carbon Disulfide At high levels, this industrial solvent and insecticide can damage the central nervous system. Methyl Ethyl Ketone It smells like butterscotch, but it can scorch your nostrils and eyes. Polychlorinated Biphenyls Also known as “PCBs,” these chemicals, ubiquitous in the state’s sites, have been linked to birth defects. Thorium This naturally occurring radioactive element may be everywhere, but heavy exposure can lead to lung and pancreatic cancer. Vinyl Chloride Used to make plastics and vinyl siding, this chemical is a confirmed carcinogen. More burning questions, answered—by the numbers, of course: How many Superfund sites could contaminate my groundwater? How many Superfund sites risk exposing people to contaminants? How many Superfund sites were added when these presidents were in office? Source: United States Environmental Protection AgencyThousands of Swiss declare their main residence in France as a secondary one, while using an address in Switzerland (letterbox or otherwise) in order to maintain access to Swiss health and unemployment insurance and to maintain deductions to reduce their tax bills. Among the other incentives for such people to declare Swiss residency is not having to change car licence plates. As a result, the French regions of Ain and Haute-Savoie miss out on the tax revenue transferred by Geneva authorities to French ones from “frontaliers”, people who work and are taxed on their income in Switzerland but live outside the country. Geneva has agreed to “work with French partners to process the data on people who are falsely declared as secondary residents in France,” François Longchamp, the head of the cantonal government, told Le Temps newspaper. Longchamp said Geneva would respect secrecy with regard to tax information of individuals but the canton agreed to receive information from French authorities about the residence of people, provided it was informed how this information was obtained. The cantonal office of population and migration would then compare this information with its own register of residents, he indicated. This marks the first time that Geneva will furnish information on Swiss citizens suspected of being false French residents, Le Temps reported over the weekend. Christoph Monteil, head of the Haute-Savoie government said an average frontalier brings 2,000 euros annually to the municipality where he or she lives. This is a portion of the revenue collected by Swiss tax authorities from frontaliers and then transferred to French regions The loss for French communities is considerable because 10,000 to 20,000 Swiss frontiers are not accounted for, Monteil told Le Temps. At the same time the falsely declared Swiss with families benefit from local services, such as schools, where they register their children. In 2014, French regions bordering Geneva are expected to receive 233 million euros (280 million francs) in tax revenues from frontaliers. If the extra revenue can be tracked down it can be used to finance projects that help cross-border transportation, such as park’n’ride facilities, Monteil said.In mixed decisions with important implications for government spying on US citizens, the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has ruled that telecommunications companies have the constitutional right to legal immunity for helping the government eavesdrop on e-mail and telephone communications. But in a separate opinion, the three-judge panel also ruled Thursday that telecom customers can sue the federal government for eavesdropping on private telephone and e-mail communications. Ruling in Jewel v. National Security Agency (a case brought by Carolyn Jewel of Petaluma, Calif.), the Ninth Circuit judges wrote: “In light of detailed allegations and claims of harm linking Jewel to the intercepted telephone, Internet and electronic communications, we conclude that Jewel's claims are not abstract, generalized grievances and instead meet the constitutional standing requirement of concrete injury.” The case was brought on Ms. Jewel’s behalf by the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco, a nonprofit digital-rights advocacy and legal organization founded in 1990. "Since the dragnet spying program first came to light, we have been fighting for the chance to have a court determine whether it is legal," EFF legal director Cindy Cohn said in a statement. "The Ninth Circuit has given us that chance, and we look forward to proving the program is an unconstitutional and illegal violation of the rights of millions of ordinary Americans." Under the Bush administration’s Terrorist Surveillance Program, federal officials bypassed the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which required the executive branch to obtain a court-authorized warrant from a special high-security court before engaging in surveillance that might include individuals in the United States. In January, US District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco dismissed a lawsuit seeking to hold the government accountable for secret, warrantless electronic surveillance conducted in the US for four years after the 9/11 attacks. Plaintiffs failed to offer proof that they had been targeted by the wiretap program, Judge Walker ruled. This week, the Ninth Circuit panel reversed that ruling. Although the Justice Department has not commented on this week’s ruling, the federal government can be expected to appeal to the US Supreme Court in this case. Given the makeup and history of the current high court regarding national security issues, it is unlikely that the decision relative to telecom companies’ immunity will be reversed or even taken up. In 2008, Congress granted telecommunications companies – including AT&T, Sprint Nextel, Verizon Communications Inc., and BellSouth Corp. – immunity for cooperating with the government’s intelligence-gathering activities. Lawmakers amended FISA to allow government spying on foreign terrorism suspects without first obtaining a court warrant. At the time, then-Sen. Barack Obama voted for the granting of immunity to telecom companies, and the Obama administration continues to agree with the Bush administration that state secrets related to the war on terrorism are at stake. In 2006, USA Today reported that “The National Security Agency has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon, and BellSouth.” Citing “people with direct knowledge of the arrangement,” the newspaper reported, “The NSA program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by amassing information about the calls of ordinary Americans – most of whom aren't suspected of any crime.” “This program does not involve the NSA listening to or recording conversations,” the report continued. “But the spy agency is using the data to analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity, sources said in separate interviews.” Privacy advocates expressed disappointment at the Ninth Circuit’s ruling regarding immunity for telecom companies. "By passing the retroactive immunity for the telecoms' complicity in the warrantless wiretapping program, Congress abdicated its duty to the American people," EFF senior staff attorney Kurt Opsahl said in a statement. "It is disappointing that today's decision endorsed the rights of telecommunications companies over those of their customers."In today’s post, we will discuss the design and implementation of a small headers only library, whose aim is to complete the STL random header with combinators to generate arbitrary random data. Throughout this post, we will first describe the motivations behind this library, and the its high level goals. These goals will imply design choices that we will discuss as well. We will then go deep into the implementation of the main features, before concluding and discussing potential improvements. The second goal of this post is to show how thinking in terms of concepts such as Functors and Applicative can help us find powerful design constructs to base ourselves upon when building an API. Motivation The STL random header provides us with random number engines and random distributions. The random engines produce randomness, and the distributions consume this randomness to create random data: instances of booleans, integers and floating point number, all following some probabilistic properties. The decoupled design of the STL random header offers a strong basis to build upon, for real applications requiring us to generate instances of more complex data types. Indeed, in general, we have the need to generate random arbitrary sets of data, from the simplest tuples to more complex data types. For instance: Random element inside a collection of possible values Random tuples (like a 3D coordinate) Random strings, or other STL containers Random custom data types (like RGB colours) Random sum types, such as optional or variant The goal of the tiny_rand library we will build today is to satisfy these needs. We will build upon the STL and complete it with the ability to randomly generate any kind of data we might want. High level goals Before discussing the design of tiny_rand library, it is useful to state and describe its high level goals. And these are: To build on top of the STL, making sure the integration is easy To be as light as possible in terms of dependencies (headers only) Te be complete, making sure we can generate any kind of data we want To be concise and small, with a small set of functions covering our needs These high level goals will influence our high level design choices. This is the subject of our next section. High level design choices This section will describe the design choices we will follow to implement the tiny_rand library. These main lines behind choices are connected to our high level goals, although there are other possible variations on it. Mersenne Twister In this talk rand() Considered Harmful, Stephan T. Lavavej encourages to use the std::mt19937 as our default pseudo random generator. To keep our API simple, we will select this random engine specifically, and build on top of it. We could choose to enlarge the API to support the other pseudo random generators. This can always be done later: we will keep it simple for now. Essence of generators With the std::mt19937 as our source of randomness, our goal is build more distribution-like generators. These generators will extend the concept of distribution and allow us to generate instance of arbitrarily complex type. Looking at the std:: uniform_int_distribution, we see that it defines an operator() that takes a random engine as parameter. Simplifying things a little, we can see it as a function from a source of randomness (like std::mt19937) to a value of type int. We can see there the essence of a random generator in the design of the STL: a callable object from a source of randomness to a type T the generator will generate instances of. We will follow this design of generators as modelled by functions. Composition, no inheritance OOP often drives us toward the use of objects, and quite easily toward using complex design patterns. There might be several design patterns that might seduce us here, like the Template Method. Here is an example of usage of Template Method to handle the generation of random generators. It delegates to the generate_element the responsibility to generate the values inside the vector. *-------------------* | IGenerator[T] | *-------------------* (Interface for generators) | + operator(): T | *-------------------* ^ | | *----------------------------* | VectorGenerator[T] | ( TEMPLATE METHOD ) *----------------------------* (Abstract implementation) | + operator(): vector[T] | (and generate_element as) | - generate_element(): T | (the customisation point) *----------------------------* But this design has an important flaw: it is not composable. We cannot easily handle vector of vector of list of integers. Each layer would bring new generate_element sub-functions, and it becomes a real mess. Because of this, we will stay away from the Template Method and rely instead on direct injection (*). The vector generator will take as parameter a generator to create its values. Our design will rely on defining higher order generators, combinators, to combine other generators, and return new generators. This approach automatically composes and will allow us to generate any data we want, with only a few combinators. (*) In general, I would recommend to stay away from the Template Method design pattern. Because it relies on inheritance, it couples things much more than composing Strategy. Overall, I think this is more often an anti-pattern than a pattern to follow. Headers only, no dependencies In order to make the library as light as possible, tiny_rand will be built as a headers only library. To avoid participating to the dependency hell syndrome, it will not be allowed to depend on any third parties library, including Boost. Primitives The STL offers generators for booleans, integers and double, but it does not offer ways to generate characters. As we will see, satisfying this need will be a bit more tricky that just adding one distribution. Character generator It seems the STL forgot about char generation. We will start by correcting this grave injustice with our char_gen generator: This generator will generate characters that cannot be properly printed on the screen. It points to the need to generate string with a restricted set of characters. Reduced character set We could reduce the range of allowed character by specifying a range, and deal with it the same way the STL distribution do it for integers. But characters are not integers: there are much fewer, and they have a different semantic. We will instead introduce a more general way to pick an element in a finite (and small) set of values, the choice generator: From this choice_gen generator, we can build generators for alpha-numeric characters, or any other kind of reduce character set we want. We use it below to generate letters: This generator is however much more general: you can also use it to generate values inside an enumeration which is a useful primitive to handle as well. Playful character generation We can be more imaginative than just generating letters. We could for instance write a generator that creates valid identifiers for C++ functions or classes: This code makes use of the string_gen, which allows to generate strings with a maximum length, and is parameterised by a character generator. We will see how to implement it later in this post. This cpp_identifier_gen will produce perfectly valid C++ identifiers. Feel free to use it, if ever you lack inspiration in finding good-hard-to-decipher function names… Functors and Applicatives This is not going to be a lecture on Category Theory. We will however use the Math concepts of Functor and Applicative to get a first shot at a good design. One thing that Haskell practitioners quickly discover is that Functors and Applicative concepts are very general. They occur quite often and quite naturally. They compose well with other pieces of software. They almost always lead to good design. In this section, we will apply these concepts very practically. We will see how they connect to our random generators, and how they will help our design. I see a functor in your randomness Functions are functors. A function from R (for random) to A can be transformed into a function from R to B, if we have a function from A to B. We only need to compose these functions together. This is the definition of a Functor. Since we design our random generators as callable from std::mt19937 to a value of type T (a kind of function), we can apply this useful mathematical construct here. We call it transform_gen and implement it as function composition: This powerful construct allows us to create new random generators by taking existing generators and composing them with a transformation function. Using it, we can for instance generate random square numbers between 0 and 100: Please note we are not limited to such scalar-to-scalar mappings. We could for instance generate a range [0, N) from a random generator N the same way. The road to Applicative When we discover a Functor in our code, a great habit is to immediately look for the next more powerful pattern: Applicative Functors. One way to see Applicative is as a generalisation of Functors on multiple arguments. Our Functor was able to transform a single generator into one generator. Our Applicative Functor will be able to combine several generators into one generator. It might look obscure if you never tried Haskell (you should, it is glorious), but it is very easy to implement. We call this function apply_gen: The N generators are combined into one single generator are combined into one single generator The resulting generator triggers the N generators and feed finaliser The finalizer is a function that takes the output of the N generators Applicative, the key to custom types Because of its ability to compose N generators and feed them to an arbitrary function, our Applicative Functor allows to create generators for custom data structure, by using a constructor or factory function as finalizer. We can demonstrate this with a simple example. The following piece of code shows out to build a generator for rgb_color, in just 3 lines of code: We used to_object as a helper function (also provided in tiny_rand) to create a function that calls the constructor of a struct, with a variadic number of arguments provided as parameters: We can give it a try to convince ourselves that it works: Tuples: special case of Applicative One specific use case of Applicative Functors is the generation of tuples of arbitrary types. We could do it by using std::make_tuple as finalizer of apply_gen. Because these specific generators are likely to used frequently, we can write them some specialized implementation to help our client: From this, we can create a generator of 3D coordinates, each coordinate component between -10 and 10, in just a couple lines of code: Containers random generators In the last section, we implemented the first building blocks of our library. The two functions we implemented already lead us pretty far. The power of Functors and Applicative allows us to create custom data structures from other generators. In the previous examples, we started to notice the need for random generators of containers. For instance, we used string_gen to generate random valid C++ identifiers. In this section, we will implement these generators. Pulling the Strings We start with the random generation of std::string. To remain flexible regarding the set of characters that can appear in the string, our string_gen combinator takes as input a random generator of character. We want the size of the string to be random as well. To do so, we define two overloads that strike a balance between flexibility and ease of use. The first overload gives us full flexibility: we take a SizeGenerator as input to generate the length of the generated string. This allows to choose any distribution from the STL and not necessarily stick to the uniform one. But in the most general case, the user will only want to specify a maximum length for the generated string. So we offer an overload for this case as well. This function makes use of the repeat_n_gen helper functions, that allows to fill a container with repetitive calls to a random generator: Vector, List, Deque… All sequential containers can be implemented almost the same way we did for the string random generator. Here is the implementation for the std::vector: The main difference between the containers is the use of the reserve that is not available for all containers. Associative containers Associative containers such as map or set are a bit more tricky to design. In particular, the size of the container is a bit problematic. Should we ask for a size and try to insert more keys until we reach that size? This might be problematic if the required size is bigger than the number of possible inhabitants for the keys. Doing so might create an infinite loop. For this reason, these generators will not ask for a given length but for a given number of rolls of the random generator for keys. Here is the implementation for the std::unordered_map: Note that reserve that cannot be used for std::map. This is again the main difference between the associative containers. Enjoying container generators Using these combinators, we can create a generator of unordered map from strings (like player names) to 3D coordinates (the location of these players on a game map) in only 4 lines of code: We can generate a sample map for fun, and try to iterate it to convince ourselves that it works fine. Here is a possible output: Sum types, our last combinator The previous sections described a set of random generator combinators that allow to generate custom data types and containers. There is however still one missing piece: the support for sum types. Sum types Sum types are very useful constructs in software development and arise in C++ through different forms. The most commonly known form is through polymorphism (*): if B and C inherits from A, then ideally, we should be able to combine random generators of B and C to create a random generator of A. Variants are the second form of sum types known from C++ programmers. For instance, we can define A as a boost::variant of B and C. Again, we should ideally be able to combine random generators of B and C to create a random generator of A. (*) This is not exactly true. Polymorphism is not the same thing as a sum type. But it can be used (and was used commonly before boost::variant) to implement it, in combination with the Visitor design pattern Implementation We want to support different forms of sum types. We also had for goal to avoid introducing dependencies to Boost. So we have to find a way to generate a variant without having to depend on it. The solution is to abstract these concerns away under the notion of a finalizer function, as we did for the Applicative. This function will be called on the production of one of the generator passed as input of our one_of_gen random generator combinator. The implementation makes use of type erasure through the use of std::function (there are probably ways around this) to store all the generators inside a vector. It then randomly selects one to generate a value and gives it to the finalizer: Demo time! Using the finalizer appropriately, we now have the support for the random generator of sum types by combining generators of each of its parts. But the pattern is more general: the finalizer can be used to create an std::optional, a boost::variant, or anything else. For instance, weird_gen is a weird way to implement a generator of integer values between -10 and 10: The integer generator will produce values from -10 to 0 The string generator will produces string with maximum length 10 The finalizer maps each of the string to their length For sure, nobody sane would implement such a thing, but that should gives you a taste of what it is possible to with one_of_gen. For instance, we could generate random events and send it to an event handler. Enjoying our hard work We are done. The resulting library is available as tiny_rand on my GitHub. The samples directory shows some more examples of use cases. We will conclude this post with one such more elaborate example. Let us imagine we have a game object, that contains an integer for the current round number, and a map from player names to their respective 3D position: Here is how we can generate a random instance of Game, using the combinators we presented throughout this post: Conclusion, and what’s next Throughout this post, we built a small random generator library to complete the STL random header with additional features to generate any kind of data. This library is available on my GitHub. Any feedback (suggestions or criticisms) are welcome. Small core, Big reach We built the API based on a small set of core ideas, which proved pretty powerful and sufficient to go all the way: A random generator is a function from std::mt19937 to a value to a value Choosing to combine generators by direct injection to compose them Embracing the power of Functor, Applicative and Sum types It demonstrates that surprisingly basic constructs can take us a long way, and that Haskell has some pretty useful design techniques ready for us to use. Further improvements There are some improvements that could be done on the library and its implementation, and on which I plan to work, among which stands: Complete the choice_gen with weighted_choice_gen to add weights with to add weights Improve random char generation: it only works for small character sets The use of std::function, which could be replaced by a less overhead construct An overall work on performance and in particular the number of copies The generators created cannot easily be inspected (at compile time) Further further improvements After having read the great post An Introduction to Reflection in C++, I think it would be worth to find a way to automatically create generators from introspection. Especially for enumerations, where we end up saying things twice: In some cases, creating the generators by introspection would not be desirable: as shown through the examples of this post, we often need additional parameters to tune the random generation. But it would probably cover quite a lot of use cases nevertheless and could be implemented as a different library. Closing words Any feedback regarding the features, the design choices or the implementation are welcome. Feel free to reach me on Twitter.5 arrested during rowdy anti-Trump protests in Houston UH senior Kaylin Richard shouts during a Houston protest on Thursday against the election of Donald Trump. UH senior Kaylin Richard shouts during a Houston protest on Thursday against the election of Donald Trump. Photo: Elizabeth Conley, Houston Chronicle Photo: Elizabeth Conley, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 20 Caption Close 5 arrested during rowdy anti-Trump protests in Houston 1 / 20 Back to Gallery Five anti-Trump demonstrators in downtown Houston were arrested Thursday as a raucous mass of more than 100 wound through the streets around City Hall and squared off with mounted police. Jittery horses came dangerously close to trampling unruly protesters who surged out into the street at the corner of Travis and Preston early on in the more than two hour drum-banging, sign-waving march. Angry chants echoed down McKinney Street as the protesters gathered outside City Hall at 7 p.m., shouting, "F–- Trump," and, "Hey Trump, you liar, we're here to say you're fired." Speakers revved up the crowd before heading out for a rowdy march. NATIONWIDE UNREST: Anti-Trump protests continue for a second night "You know what won on November 8th? Not Donald Trump. White supremacy won," said Black Lives Matter leader Ashton Woods, 31. Bryan Sweeney, another speaker, launched into a bilingual speech slamming Trump's immigration policies. "It will be a cold day in hell before Donald Trump removes one Latino from Harris County," he said. Some activists recounted stories they say show an uptick in racist outbursts just since Tuesday's election. "My 13-year-old daughter was told by white boy to go back to Africa. She is biracial. She is innocent in all of this and throughout the nation I am seeing a flood of information of people being targeted," activist Sheree Dore told the Chronicle. As the crowd grew, protesters began marching through the city, followed closely by a throng of mounted police and officers on foot. As they reached Travis and Preston, some marchers advocated disobeying the officers' orders and spilling out into the street. TRUMP BACK ON TWITTER: President-elect responds to protesters Mounted police pushed against the crowd, nearly stepping on some protesters who didn't keep to the curb. Over the course of the evening, five protesters were arrested but the charges were not immediately clear. After a few minutes of chaos and shouting in the intersection, the marchers moved on. "F--- that Cheeto," chanted one angry protester, as they marched down the street. Some bystanders clapped and high-fived the crowd, while one decidedly nervous-looking woman shouted at the marchers, "Just accept it!" Eventually, the protest settled outside of Houston police headquarters, where speakers addressed the crowd, denouncing everything from racism to student debt to police brutality. As the evening wound down, the scent of smoke wafted into the air when an indigenous woman made her way through the crowd, smudging as she walked.Members of a Brampton, Ont., family have launched a $12.5-million lawsuit after a 20-year-old man was found dead in the bathroom of the hospital where he was supposed to be on suicide watch. Prashant Tiwari committed suicide last June at Brampton Civic Hospital while under treatment, the lawsuit alleges, adding he had been admitted to the psychiatric ward after he had started cutting himself. Rakesh Tiwari alleges his son was left unattended in a hospital bathroom for three hours. During that time, the 20-year-old used his hospital gown and a chair to hang himself, his father said. "He volunteered himself to the hospital. He knew he had some problem, and he was fighting and he needed help," said Rakesh Tiwari. "He was not to die." Tiwari believes staff were supposed to check on his son every 15 minutes. "My son should not have been unattended," he said. Court filing details time in hospital A lengthy statement of claim — filed at Brampton's Superior Court of Justice on Wednesday — names the hospital and numerous employees as defendants, and lays out a timeline of what happened to Prashant Tiwari in the hospital. According to the statement, Rakesh Tiwari brought his son to Brampton Civic Hospital on June 16, 2014, with self-inflicted cuts to his neck and chest that required stitches to close. Rakesh Tiwari, left, the father of Prashant Tiwari, who killed himself while under suicide watch at Brampton Civic Hospital, addresses reporters as Gautam Tiwari, Prashant's brother, looks on. (CBC) In hospital, the document says, Prashant Tiwari pleaded with hospital staff "to help him take his own life." In the coming days, the document states, Tiwari continued to report having suicidal thoughts and was put on several drugs, including Risperdal, an anti-psychotic, as well as several other medications. At one point, hospital staff was also forced to restrain Tiwari after he was found striking his head repeatedly against a wall. On the day before his death, Tiwari had appeared to be improving and was set to be transferred to a non-secure psychiatric unit in the hospital, the report says. But around 2 p.m. ET on June 26, while still in the intensive psychiatric unit, he asked for shower supplies and entered the shower area. The document says the registered nurse responsible for checking on his well-being took a break, and another hospital worker didn’t inform her that Tiwari had gone into the shower. The document claims Tiwari was left unattended for two hours and 40 minutes until his body was found. After his death, the statement of claim alleges, 12 people accessed Prashant’s medical records without proper authorization for unknown reasons. None of the allegations has been proven in court. Hospital expresses condolences Rakesh Tiwari also said that during the 10 days his son was in hospital, staff didn’t tell him the type of medications Prashant was on, or his diagnosis. William Osler Health System, the organization that runs the hospital, issued a written statement that said: "While we do not comment on an individual patient case, we have and continue to express our sincere condolences for the family's loss." The Tiwari family say it hopes the lawsuit will prompt all hospitals to review their procedures around potentially suicidal patients. The family was set to hold a news conference in Toronto on Wednesday to continue the call for better treatment for high-risk patients.Thailand has threatened legal action against Facebook after bizarre footage has circulated allegedly showing the King of Thailand, Maha Vajiralongkorn, covered in fake tattoos and wearing a crop top THAILAND could lose all access to Facebook today after footage of its heavily-tattooed king strolling around in a crop top went viral. The bizarre clip of King Maha Vajiralongkorn waltzing around a shopping centre alongside a woman has gone viral, The Sun reports. Furious top brass in the South East Asian nation reportedly want the clip taken offline and the Bangkok Post is reporting the entire country could lose its access to Facebook as early as Tuesday morning (local time) if this isn’t removed. The Thai Internet Service Provider Association told the Post that it could disconnect Facebook’s server if it fails to meet a deadline of 10am Tuesday (1pm AEDT) to remove the posts and links. Thai residents can be jailed for 15 years for insulting the country’s monarch. Takorn Tantasith, head of Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, said: “If even a single illicit page remains, we will immediately discuss what legal steps to take against Facebook Thailand.” Internet chiefs in the country reportedly emailed Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg personally asking him to remove the clip. And despite attempts to block Thais viewing the video, more than 300 versions are believed to be floating around social media. It is not the first time the monarch has been spotted in such attire. In October he was snapped at a Munich airport wearing a rolled-up tank top, sagging jeans and fake tattoos with a poodle in tow. King Vajiralongkorn was crowned in December at the age of 64. He succeeded his father King Bhumibol Adulyadej who died last year at the age of 88 after spending 70 years on the throne.Looking for news you can trust? Subscribe to our free newsletters. Chris Cillizza on the post-Paris push among Republicans to keep Syrian refugees out of the country: Over the past 24 hours, almost half of the nation’s governors — all but one of them Republicans — have said they plan to refuse to allow Syrian immigrants into their states in the wake of the Paris attacks carried out by the Islamic State….That stance has been greeted with widespread ridicule and disgust by Democrats who insist that keeping people out of the U.S. is anathema to the founding principles of the country. ….Think what you will, but one thing is clear: The political upside for Republican politicians pushing an immigration ban on Syrians and/or Muslims as a broader response to the threat posed by the Islamic State sure looks like a political winner. Cillizza has some poll numbers to back this up, but he’s right in more ways than just that. Here’s the thing: to the average person, it seems perfectly reasonable to be suspicious of admitting Syrian refugees to the country. We know that ISIS would like to attack the US. We know that ISIS probably has the wherewithal to infiltrate a few of its people into the flood of refugees. And most voters have no idea how easy it is to get past US screening. They probably figure it’s pretty easy. So to them it doesn’t seem xenophobic or crazy to call for an end to accepting Syrian refugees. It seems like simple common sense. After all, things changed after Paris. Mocking Republicans over this—as liberals spent much of yesterday doing on my Twitter stream—seems absurdly out of touch to a lot of people. Not just wingnut tea partiers, either, but plenty of ordinary centrists too. It makes them wonder if Democrats seriously see no problem here. Do they care at all about national security? Are they really that detached from reality? The liberal response to this should be far more measured. We should support tight screening. Never mind that screening is already pretty tight. We should highlight the fact that we’re accepting a pretty modest number of refugees. In general, we should act like this is a legitimate thing to be concerned about and then work from there. Mocking it is the worst thing we could do. It validates all the worst stereotypes about liberals that we put political correctness ahead of national security. It doesn’t matter if that’s right or wrong. Ordinary people see the refugees as a common sense thing to be concerned about. We shouldn’t respond by essentially calling them idiots. That way lies electoral disaster.The game is available to download on itch.io and you can also download it as a snap, an Universal Linux Package. In this post I give you the necessary instructions. This is my first postmortem. I know this is only a small game that I made in one month. Nevertheless, I think it’s a good idea to make a retrospective of the development to see what was learned. But let’s start with some context: THE CONTEXT: Last year (2016) was a completely different year for me. In 2015 I was studying Electronic Engineering. I was already an Electronic Technician and I had the opportunity to continue my studies, so I took that opportunity. After a year and some months of having, well, pretty good grades, I started to get stuck. I was beginning to lose interest and feeling I wasn’t studying engineering because I really loved it, but because it was the safest option. And it’s not that I didn’t like what I was doing; I was experiencing life in a new town, being more independent, and getting new, interesting friends. But the classes seemed to me every day more and more tedious, and I was losing focus. That idea of “You are only here because it is the easier choice.” was every day more and more present in my mind. I knew I was postponing what I really wanted to do. And you know what that is. Don’t you? I suppose this is kind of cliché. One day I decided, after failing some tests because my head was completely saturated with those ideas, that I needed a break. After a bus back home and a couple of days of thinking I decided to take some months to make a small game. My family was very supportive. They helped me, but were worried about my future. Luckily, I already had a peace of paper that said I was a Technician and If anything went wrong, I could get a job in that area, so they weren’t too worried. After five or six months, I finished Rita, a small adventure game. I am proud of this game, regardless of the fact that I know it’s not perfect. I wrote the dialogs, designed the puzzles, made the graphics, and tested it with some friends. My friends liked it and laughed at the jokes! While testing this game I discovered that playing adventure games with good company can be very fun. The big problem with Rita is that it’s only in Spanish, so I could only get it to be known in circles that spoke that language. Also, I was quite naive and unexperienced in game promotion. I still am, but to a lesser extent, I hope. Maybe some day I will translate it. I charged $1.50 for the game, and… The analytics for that game on itch.io, to this day, are: Yes, I wanted to make a little bit of money with Rita, just to prove to myself that I could in fact live by doing this. I thought that If my first game made just, maybe $50, $100, my second game would be even more commercially successful, because people would already know me and follow my work. I wanted to put my family at ease, showing them “Hey, I made some money with this, and this is only the beginning!”. It was the result of my own inexperience. Not enough people knew about Rita, and even just asking $1.50 put a barrier to anyone who wanted to play the game and didn’t have a credit card, so nobody downloaded until I made it free. So, first advise: Make sure your game is long and good enough, and is known by different communities before putting a price to it, or nobody will download it. And I’m not saying that it’s impossible to make money with your first game, but you will need to make it really impressive and advertise it well. Maybe the best idea for your first game is to keep it small and simple, to learn. After some
ing the whole Middle East and thereby unleashing the forces of “constructive chaos.” This “constructive chaos” –which generates conditions of violence and warfare throughout the region– would in turn be used so that the United States, Britain, and Israel could redraw the map of the Middle East in accordance with their geo-strategic needs and objectives. New Middle East Map Secretary Condoleezza Rice stated during a press conference that “[w]hat we’re seeing here [in regards to the destruction of Lebanon and the Israeli attacks on Lebanon], in a sense, is the growing—the ‘birth pangs’—of a ‘New Middle East’ and whatever we do we [meaning the United States] have to be certain that we’re pushing forward to the New Middle East [and] not going back to the old one.”1 Secretary Rice was immediately criticized for her statements both within Lebanon and internationally for expressing indifference to the suffering of an entire nation, which was being bombed indiscriminately by the Israeli Air Force. The Anglo-American Military Roadmap in the Middle East and Central Asia U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s speech on the “New Middle East” had set the stage. The Israeli attacks on Lebanon –which had been fully endorsed by Washington and London– have further compromised and validated the existence of the geo-strategic objectives of the United States, Britain, and Israel. According to Professor Mark Levine the “neo-liberal globalizers and neo-conservatives, and ultimately the Bush Administration, would latch on to creative destruction as a way of describing the process by which they hoped to create their new world orders,” and that “creative destruction [in] the United States was, in the words of neo-conservative philosopher and Bush adviser Michael Ledeen, ‘an awesome revolutionary force’ for (…) creative destruction…”2 Anglo-American occupied Iraq, particularly Iraqi Kurdistan, seems to be the preparatory ground for the balkanization (division) and finlandization (pacification) of the Middle East. Already the legislative framework, under the Iraqi Parliament and the name of Iraqi federalization, for the partition of Iraq into three portions is being drawn out. (See map below) Moreover, the Anglo-American military roadmap appears to be vying an entry into Central Asia via the Middle East. The Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan are stepping stones for extending U.S. influence into the former Soviet Union and the ex-Soviet Republics of Central Asia. The Middle East is to some extent the southern tier of Central Asia. Central Asia in turn is also termed as “Russia’s Southern Tier” or the Russian “Near Abroad.” Many Russian and Central Asian scholars, military planners, strategists, security advisors, economists, and politicians consider Central Asia (“Russia’s Southern Tier”) to be the vulnerable and “soft under-belly” of the Russian Federation.3 It should be noted that in his book, The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geo-strategic Imperatives, Zbigniew Brzezinski, a former U.S. National Security Advisor, alluded to the modern Middle East as a control lever of an area he, Brzezinski, calls the Eurasian Balkans. The Eurasian Balkans consists of the Caucasus (Georgia, the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Armenia) and Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan) and to some extent both Iran and Turkey. Iran and Turkey both form the northernmost tiers of the Middle East (excluding the Caucasus4) that edge into Europe and the former Soviet Union. The Map of the “New Middle East” A relatively unknown map of the Middle East, NATO-garrisoned Afghanistan, and Pakistan has been circulating around strategic, governmental, NATO, policy and military circles since mid-2006. It has been causally allowed to surface in public, maybe in an attempt to build consensus and to slowly prepare the general public for possible, maybe even cataclysmic, changes in the Middle East. This is a map of a redrawn and restructured Middle East identified as the “New Middle East.” MAP OF THE NEW MIDDLE EAST Note: The following map was prepared by Lieutenant-Colonel Ralph Peters. It was published in the Armed Forces Journal in June 2006, Peters is a retired colonel of the U.S. National War Academy. (Map Copyright Lieutenant-Colonel Ralph Peters 2006). Although the map does not officially reflect Pentagon doctrine, it has been used in a training program at NATO’s Defense College for senior military officers. This map, as well as other similar maps, has most probably been used at the National War Academy as well as in military planning circles. This map of the “New Middle East” seems to be based on several other maps, including older maps of potential boundaries in the Middle East extending back to the era of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and World War I. This map is showcased and presented as the brainchild of retired Lieutenant-Colonel (U.S. Army) Ralph Peters, who believes the redesigned borders contained in the map will fundamentally solve the problems of the contemporary Middle East. The map of the “New Middle East” was a key element in the retired Lieutenant-Colonel’s book, Never Quit the Fight, which was released to the public on July 10, 2006. This map of a redrawn Middle East was also published, under the title of Blood Borders: How a better Middle East would look, in the U.S. military’s Armed Forces Journal with commentary from Ralph Peters.5 It should be noted that Lieutenant-Colonel Peters was last posted to the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, within the U.S. Defence Department, and has been one of the Pentagon’s foremost authors with numerous essays on strategy for military journals and U.S. foreign policy. It has been written that Ralph Peters’ “four previous books on strategy have been highly influential in government and military circles,” but one can be pardoned for asking if in fact quite the opposite could be taking place. Could it be Lieutenant-Colonel Peters is revealing and putting forward what Washington D.C. and its strategic planners have anticipated for the Middle East? The concept of a redrawn Middle East has been presented as a “humanitarian” and “righteous” arrangement that would benefit the people(s) of the Middle East and its peripheral regions. According to Ralph Peter’s: International borders are never completely just. But the degree of injustice they inflict upon those whom frontiers force together or separate makes an enormous difference — often the difference between freedom and oppression, tolerance and atrocity, the rule of law and terrorism, or even peace and war. The most arbitrary and distorted borders in the world are in Africa and the Middle East. Drawn by self-interested Europeans (who have had sufficient trouble defining their own frontiers), Africa’s borders continue to provoke the deaths of millions of local inhabitants. But the unjust borders in the Middle East — to borrow from Churchill — generate more trouble than can be consumed locally. While the Middle East has far more problems than dysfunctional borders alone — from cultural stagnation through scandalous inequality to deadly religious extremism — the greatest taboo in striving to understand the region’s comprehensive failure isn’t Islam, but the awful-but-sacrosanct international boundaries worshipped by our own diplomats. Of course, no adjustment of borders, however draconian, could make every minority in the Middle East happy. In some instances, ethnic and religious groups live intermingled and have intermarried. Elsewhere, reunions based on blood or belief might not prove quite as joyous as their current proponents expect. The boundaries projected in the maps accompanying this article redress the wrongs suffered by the most significant “cheated” population groups, such as the Kurds, Baluch and Arab Shia [Muslims], but still fail to account adequately for Middle Eastern Christians, Bahais, Ismailis, Naqshbandis and many another numerically lesser minorities. And one haunting wrong can never be redressed with a reward of territory: the genocide perpetrated against the Armenians by the dying Ottoman Empire. Yet, for all the injustices the borders re-imagined here leave unaddressed, without such major boundary revisions, we shall never see a more peaceful Middle East. Even those who abhor the topic of altering borders would be well-served to engage in an exercise that attempts to conceive a fairer, if still imperfect, amendment of national boundaries between the Bosphorus and the Indus. Accepting that international statecraft has never developed effective tools — short of war — for readjusting faulty borders, a mental effort to grasp the Middle East’s “organic” frontiers nonetheless helps us understand the extent of the difficulties we face and will continue to face. We are dealing with colossal, man-made deformities that will not stop generating hatred and violence until they are corrected. 6 (emphasis added) “Necessary Pain” Besides believing that there is “cultural stagnation” in the Middle East, it must be noted that Ralph Peters admits that his propositions are “draconian” in nature, but he insists that they are necessary pains for the people of the Middle East. This view of necessary pain and suffering is in startling parallel to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s belief that the devastation of Lebanon by the Israeli military was a necessary pain or “birth pang” in order to create the “New Middle East” that Washington, London, and Tel Aviv envision. Moreover, it is worth noting that the subject of the Armenian Genocide is being politicized and stimulated in Europe to offend Turkey.7 The overhaul, dismantlement, and reassembly of the nation-states of the Middle East have been packaged as a solution to the hostilities in the Middle East, but this is categorically misleading, false, and fictitious. The advocates of a “New Middle East” and redrawn boundaries in the region avoid and fail to candidly depict the roots of the problems and conflicts in the contemporary Middle East. What the media does not acknowledge is the fact that almost all major conflicts afflicting the Middle East are the consequence of overlapping Anglo-American-Israeli agendas. Many of the problems affecting the contemporary Middle East are the result of the deliberate aggravation of pre-existing regional tensions. Sectarian division, ethnic tension and internal violence have been traditionally exploited by the United States and Britain in various parts of the globe including Africa, Latin America, the Balkans, and the Middle East. Iraq is just one of many examples of the Anglo-American strategy of “divide and conquer.” Other examples are Rwanda, Yugoslavia, the Caucasus, and Afghanistan. Amongst the problems in the contemporary Middle East is the lack of genuine democracy which U.S. and British foreign policy has actually been deliberately obstructing. Western-style “Democracy” has been a requirement only for those Middle Eastern states which do not conform to Washington’s political demands. Invariably, it constitutes a pretext for confrontation. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan are examples of undemocratic states that the United States has no problems with because they are firmly alligned within the Anglo-American orbit or sphere. Additionally, the United States has deliberately blocked or displaced genuine democratic movements in the Middle East from Iran in 1953 (where a U.S./U.K. sponsored coup was staged against the democratic government of Prime Minister Mossadegh) to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, the Arab Sheikdoms, and Jordan where the Anglo-American alliance supports military control, absolutists, and dictators in one form or another. The latest example of this is Palestine. The Turkish Protest at NATO’s Military College in Rome Lieutenant-Colonel Ralph Peters’ map of the “New Middle East” has sparked angry reactions in Turkey. According to Turkish press releases on September 15, 2006 the map of the “New Middle East” was displayed in NATO’s Military College in Rome, Italy. It was additionally reported that Turkish officers were immediately outraged by the presentation of a portioned and segmented Turkey.8 The map received some form of approval from the U.S. National War Academy before it was unveiled in front of NATO officers in Rome. The Turkish Chief of Staff, General Buyukanit, contacted the U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, and protested the event and the exhibition of the redrawn map of the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.9 Furthermore the Pentagon has gone out of its way to assure Turkey that the map does not reflect official U.S. policy and objectives in the region, but this seems to be conflicting with Anglo-American actions in the Middle East and NATO-garrisoned Afghanistan. Is there a Connection between Zbigniew Brzezinski’s “Eurasian Balkans” and the “New Middle East” Project? The following are important excerpts and passages from former U.S. National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski’s book, The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geo-strategic Imperatives. Brzezinski also states that both Turkey and Iran, the two most powerful states of the “Eurasian Balkans,” located on its southern tier, are “potentially vulnerable to internal ethnic conflicts [balkanization],” and that, “If either or both of them were to be destabilized, the internal problems of the region would become unmanageable.”10 It seems that a divided and balkanized Iraq would be the best means of accomplishing this. Taking what we know from the White House’s own admissions; there is a belief that “creative destruction and chaos” in the Middle East are beneficial assets to reshaping the Middle East, creating the “New Middle East,” and furthering the Anglo-American roadmap in the Middle East and Central Asia: In Europe, the Word “Balkans” conjures up images of ethnic conflicts and great-power regional rivalries. Eurasia, too, has its “Balkans,” but the Eurasian Balkans are much larger, more populated, even more religiously and ethnically heterogenous. They are located within that large geographic oblong that demarcates the central zone of global instability (…) that embraces portions of southeastern Europe, Central Asia and parts of South Asia [Pakistan, Kashmir, Western India], the Persian Gulf area, and the Middle East. The Eurasian Balkans form the inner core of that large oblong (…) they differ from its outer zone in one particularly significant way: they are a power vacuum. Although most of the states located in the Persian Gulf and the Middle East are also unstable, American power is that region’s [meaning the Middle East’s] ultimate arbiter. The unstable region in the outer zone is thus an area of single power hegemony and is tempered by that hegemony. In contrast, the Eurasian Balkans are truly reminiscent of the older, more familiar Balkans of southeastern Europe: not only are its political entities unstable but they tempt and invite the intrusion of more powerful neighbors, each of whom is determined to oppose the region’s domination by another. It is this familiar combination of a power vacuum and power suction that justifies the appellation “Eurasian Balkans.” The traditional Balkans represented a potential geopolitical prize in the struggle for European supremacy. The Eurasian Balkans, astride the inevitably emerging transportation network meant to link more directly Eurasia’s richest and most industrious western and eastern extremities, are also geopolitically significant. Moreover, they are of importance from the standpoint of security and historical ambitions to at least three of their most immediate and more powerful neighbors, namely, Russia, Turkey, and Iran, with China also signaling an increasing political interest in the region. But the Eurasian Balkans are infinitely more important as a potential economic prize: an enormous concentration of natural gas and oil reserves is located in the region, in addition to important minerals, including gold. The world’s energy consumption is bound to vastly increase over the next two or three decades. Estimates by the U.S. Department of Energy anticipate that world demand will rise by more than 50 percent between 1993 and 2015, with the most significant increase in consumption occurring in the Far East. The momentum of Asia’s economic development is already generating massive pressures for the exploration and exploitation of new sources of energy, and the Central Asian region and the Caspian Sea basin are known to contain reserves of natural gas and oil that dwarf those of Kuwait, the Gulf of Mexico, or the North Sea. Access to that resource and sharing in its potential wealth represent objectives that stir national ambitions, motivate corporate interests, rekindle historical claims, revive imperial aspirations, and fuel international rivalries. The situation is made all the more volatile by the fact that the region is not only a power vacuum but is also internally unstable. (…) The Eurasian Balkans include nine countries that one way or another fit the foregoing description, with two others as potential candidates. The nine are Kazakstan [alternative and official spelling of Kazakhstan], Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia—all of them formerly part of the defunct Soviet Union—as well as Afghanistan. The potential additions to the list are Turkey and Iran, both of them much more politically and economically viable, both active contestants for regional influence within the Eurasian Balkans, and thus both significant geo-strategic players in the region. At the same time, both are potentially vulnerable to internal ethnic conflicts. If either or both of them were to be destabilized, the internal problems of the region would become unmanageable, while efforts to restrain regional domination by Russia could even become futile. 11 (emphasis added) Redrawing the Middle East The Middle East, in some regards, is a striking parallel to the Balkans and Central-Eastern Europe during the years leading up the First World War. In the wake of the the First World War the borders of the Balkans and Central-Eastern Europe were redrawn. This region experienced a period of upheaval, violence and conflict, before and after World War I, which was the direct result of foreign economic interests and interference. The reasons behind the First World War are more sinister than the standard school-book explanation, the assassination of the heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian (Habsburg) Empire, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, in Sarajevo. Economic factors were the real motivation for the large-scale war in 1914. Norman Dodd, a former Wall Street banker and investigator for the U.S. Congress, who examined U.S. tax-exempt foundations, confirmed in a 1982 interview that those powerful individuals who from behind the scenes controlled the finances, policies, and government of the United States had in fact also planned U.S. involvement in a war, which would contribute to entrenching their grip on power. The following testimonial is from the transcript of Norman Dodd’s interview with G. Edward Griffin; We are now at the year 1908, which was the year that the Carnegie Foundation began operations. And, in that year, the trustees meeting, for the first time, raised a specific question, which they discussed throughout the balance of the year, in a very learned fashion. And the question is this: Is there any means known more effective than war, assuming you wish to alter the life of an entire people? And they conclude that, no more effective means to that end is known to humanity, than war. So then, in 1909, they raise the second question, and discuss it, namely, how do we involve the United States in a war? Well, I doubt, at that time, if there was any subject more removed from the thinking of most of the people of this country [the United States], than its involvement in a war. There were intermittent shows [wars] in the Balkans, but I doubt very much if many people even knew where the Balkans were. And finally, they answer that question as follows: we must control the State Department. And then, that very naturally raises the question of how do we do that? They answer it by saying, we must take over and control the diplomatic machinery of this country and, finally, they resolve to aim at that as an objective. Then, time passes, and we are eventually in a war, which would be World War I. At that time, they record on their minutes a shocking report in which they dispatch to President Wilson a telegram cautioning him to see that the war does not end too quickly. And finally, of course, the war is over. At that time, their interest shifts over to preventing what they call a reversion of life in the United States to what it was prior to 1914, when World War I broke out. (emphasis added) The redrawing and partition of the Middle East from the Eastern Mediterranean shores of Lebanon and Syria to Anatolia (Asia Minor), Arabia, the Persian Gulf, and the Iranian Plateau responds to broad economic, strategic and military objectives, which are part of a longstanding Anglo-American and Israeli agenda in the region. The Middle East has been conditioned by outside forces into a powder keg that is ready to explode with the right trigger, possibly the launching of Anglo-American and/or Israeli air raids against Iran and Syria. A wider war in the Middle East could result in redrawn borders that are strategically advantageous to Anglo-American interests and Israel. NATO-garrisoned Afghanistan has been successfully divided, all but in name. Animosity has been inseminated in the Levant, where a Palestinian civil war is being nurtured and divisions in Lebanon agitated. The Eastern Mediterranean has been successfully militarized by NATO. Syria and Iran continue to be demonized by the Western media, with a view to justifying a military agenda. In turn, the Western media has fed, on a daily basis, incorrect and biased notions that the populations of Iraq cannot co-exist and that the conflict is not a war of occupation but a “civil war” characterised by domestic strife between Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds. Attempts at intentionally creating animosity between the different ethno-cultural and religious groups of the Middle East have been systematic. In fact, they are part of a carefully designed covert intelligence agenda. Even more ominous, many Middle Eastern governments, such as that of Saudi Arabia, are assisting Washington in fomenting divisions between Middle Eastern populations. The ultimate objective is to weaken the resistance movement against foreign occupation through a “divide and conquer strategy” which serves Anglo-American and Israeli interests in the broader region. Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya specializes in Middle Eastern and Central Asian affairs. He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG). Notes 1 Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Special Briefing on the Travel to the Middle East and Europe of Secretary Condoleezza Rice (Press Conference, U.S. State Department, Washington, D.C., July 21, 2006). http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2006/69331.htm 2 Mark LeVine, “The New Creative Destruction,” Asia Times, August 22, 2006. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/HH22Ak01.html 3 Andrej Kreutz, “The Geopolitics of post-Soviet Russia and the Middle East,” Arab Studies Quarterly (ASQ) (Washington, D.C.: Association of Arab-American University Graduates, January 2002). http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2501/is_1_24/ai_93458168/pg_1 4 The Caucasus or Caucasia can be considered as part of the Middle East or as a separate region 5 Ralph Peters, “Blood borders: How a better Middle East would look,” Armed Forces Journal (AFJ), June 2006. http://www.armedforcesjournal.com/2006/06/1833899 6 Ibid. 7 Crispian Balmer, “French MPs back Armenia genocide bill, Turkey angry, Reuters, October 12, 2006; James McConalogue, “French against Turks: Talking about Armenian Genocide,” The Brussels Journal, October 10, 2006. http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/1585 8 Suleyman Kurt, “Carved-up Map of Turkey at NATO Prompts U.S. Apology,” Zaman (Turkey), September 29, 2006. http://www.zaman.com/?bl=international&alt=&hn=36919 9 Ibid. 10 Zbigniew Brzezinski, The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geo-strategic Imperatives (New York City: Basic Books, 1997). 11 Ibid. Related Global Research articles on the March to War in the Middle East US naval war games off the Iranian coastline: A provocation which could lead to War? 2006-10-24 “Cold War Shivers:” War Preparations in the Middle East and Central Asia 2006-10-06 The March to War: Naval build-up in the Persian Gulf and the Eastern Mediterranean 2006-10-01 The March to War: Iran Preparing for US Air Attacks 2006-09-21 The Next Phase of the Middle East War 2006-09-04 Baluchistan and the Coming Iran War 2006-09-01 British Troops Mobilizing on the Iranian Border 2006-08-30 Russia and Central Asian Allies Conduct War Games in Response to US Threats 2006-08-24 Beating the Drums of War: US Troop Build-up: Army & Marines authorize “Involuntary Conscription” 2006-08-23 Iranian War Games: Exercises, Tests, and Drills or Preparation and Mobilization for War? 2006-08-21 Triple Alliance:” The US, Turkey, Israel and the War on Lebanon 2006-08-06 The War on Lebanon and the Battle for Oil 2006-07-26 Is the Bush Administration Planning a Nuclear Holocaust? 2006-02-22 The Dangers of a Middle East Nuclear War 2006-02-17 Nuclear War against Iran 2006-01-03 Israeli Bombings could lead to Escalation of Middle East War 2006-07-15 Iran: Next Target of US Military Aggression 2005-05-01 Planned US-Israeli Attack on Iran 2005-05-01When Sprint retires an aging network early next month, it will effectively be shutting off affordable internet access for thousands of Americans, a lawsuit filed yesterday alleges. The suit revolves around WiMAX, a 4G candidate in competition with LTE. Last year, Sprint announced it would be shuttering its WiMAX network in favor of the LTE standard. But tied to WiMAX are nonprofits behind two projects, Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen. The nonprofits provide affordable broadband access to low-income areas and educational institutions across the country, and they say Sprint has made it impossible to switch to LTE. The lawsuit claims problems started when Sprint took over The nonprofits suing the company have spectrum — airwaves, essentially — that were granted to them by the FCC for educational uses. In 2006, the nonprofits cut a deal with the telecom Clearwire, which provided service through WiMAX. The nonprofits leased part of their spectrum to Clearwire so the company could build out its coverage. In exchange, the nonprofits received cash payments, access to a network, and equipment — usually mobile hotspots — that could be resold to schools, libraries, low-income social programs, and other nonprofit institutions at a discounted rate. But Sprint fully acquired Clearwire in 2013, and according to the lawsuit, problems came soon after. Sprint has allegedly put up technical roadblocks that have made the switch to LTE unfeasible, potentially blocking low-income institutions from migrating to the new standard and depriving the poor of their only means of internet access. Sprint announced last year that it would shut down its WiMAX network on November 6th of this year. When it made the announcement, the company allegedly sought new contract terms to switch the nonprofits over to LTE ahead of the planned shutoff date. The nonprofits have maintained that Sprint is straying from the terms of the deal it inherited from Clearwire, and which it's bound to uphold. The dispute wore on toward the deadline, and in March, a temporary "bridge" agreement was made that would migrate 30 percent of the nonprofits' accounts to the new network. But Mobile Citizen and Mobile Beacon say the switch was a disaster for the programs that participated. Sprint, they say, began to unfairly throttle internet traffic for users, capping schools' data, for example, at 6 GB, far below what they need to operate. After users met that threshold, Sprint allegedly slowed speeds to 256 Kbps, or about half of what the FCC recommends for basic web browsing. According to Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen, Sprint doesn't offer such low-quality service to any of its customers — and, they say, it's bound by contract to offer them the best available service. The nonprofits also allege that Sprint said equipment was "out of stock" when organizations needed it, and that it hasn't adequately provided the technical support necessary for the affordable access programs to work. Some customers who made the switch were left with such a headache that they had to search for service elsewhere, or end their low-cost internet programs entirely, says Katherine Messier, managing director of Mobile Beacon. The nonprofits say the shutdown will affect 300,000 Americans Messier points to examples like libraries, which provide hotspots through an affordable access program that may be in danger. Other programs that made the switch have canceled their service entirely. "It's really a crisis for them," she says. Ed Garcia, library director at Rhode Island's Cranston Public Library, says the library partnered with Mobile Beacon to buy affordable hotspots, and uses them for events, like digital literacy classes and remote library card sign-ups. But the library couldn't make the migration to LTE, he says, because Sprint didn't have available hotspots. Now, the library is waiting to see if their network access is shut off entirely. "I just think that it's another instance of a corporation just looking at their bottom line and not thinking about the people that can't afford access to the internet," he says. When the WiMAX network goes dark after November 6th, it will affect what the projects calculate are 300,000 people across the country. Yesterday, the nonprofits sued for an injunction to keep the WiMAX network running, and are seeking an order to force Sprint to put them on the LTE network under the terms they say they're entitled to. A spokesperson for Sprint confirmed there was a dispute over contract terms, but denies that it's caused problems for Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen. The spokesperson told The Verge that some 75 percent of those on the WiMAX network have completed the transition to LTE ahead of the deadline, and says that the company engages in throttling of data-only devices for network management, but that it has tried to negotiate data usage terms with the nonprofits. "We have no illusions that a big legal battle with Sprint is going to be fun." Messier doesn't dispute that Sprint needs to manage its network, but says the nonprofits aren't being treated at the same level of other customers, as the contract stipulates. "We're not asking for special treatment, but we're asking that they get the same treatment and that they're not getting a lower class of service and put into the slow lane in another fashion." She says discussions with Sprint are continuing, but that pursuing legal action was necessary as the deadline approaches. Sprint declined to discuss details of the contract on the record, citing confidentiality. But the plaintiffs in the suit did not have the same qualms. John Schwartz, the president of Voqal, which runs the nonprofit organizations behind Mobile Citizen, says the 2006 contract was meant to be binding for 30 years, pending some benchmarks. Sprint, he argues, has attempted to retroactively force a new, unfair plan on the nonprofits. If the WiMAX network goes dark now, the organizations behind Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen will be "destroyed," he says, with many customers losing their one available means of internet access in the process. "We have no illusions that a big legal battle with Sprint is going to be fun." As for the plan if the injunction fails and the network is shut down: "That is going to be a real mess," Schwartz says.The Sinn Féin and SDLP political pathologists have some interesting data to dissect as a matter of urgency to try to determine why the nationalist vote was significantly down. Normally, Northern Ireland election post mortems focus on why apathetic unionists failed to turn out and why nationalists were so keen to get to the polling stations. But not this time. The DUP won 29.2 per cent of the vote compared to 24 per cent for Sinn Féin. Where DUP leader Arlene Foster will be happier is that she held her 38 seats, and her party just dropped its vote by 0.8 per cent, whereas Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness saw Sinn Féin lose a seat and its vote drop by 2.9 per cent. The UUP took 12.6 per cent of the vote, the SDLP 12 per cent and Alliance 7 per cent. The UUP vote was down 0.7 per cent, the SDLP down 2.2 per cent and Alliance down 0.7 per cent. Overall, the Sinn Féin and SDLP vote was down by 5.1 per cent. In this election, 703,744 people voted in the 18 six-seater constituencies. The turnout was 54.91 per cent, which was down slightly down on the 2011 Assembly turnout of 55.64 per cent when 674,103 people voted. Some of the drop can be explained by the 8,299 first preferences People Before Profit candidate, now MLA, Gerry Carroll won in West Belfast – much of which would have come from the former Sinn Féin share of the West Belfast republican vote and a smaller portion from the SDLP share. But that’s only a minor part of the explanation. The electorate in 2011 was 1,210,009. This time it increased to 1,281,595. This time, with a higher electorate, Sinn Féin won 166,785 compared to the 178,224 in took in 2011. This time, the SDLP won 83,364, whereas five years ago it took 94,286 votes. And, in 2011, Sinn Féin and the SDLP won 272,510 votes between them, while this time they won 250,149 – a drop of 22,361 votes. Compare this with the fact that the DUP increased its total from 198,436 votes in 2011 to 202,567 votes in this election. Part of the reason for the strong DUP showing was the fact that unionists warmed to the personality of Arlene Foster and also that many seemed to have been persuaded by the argument that a failure to vote for the DUP could result in Mr McGuinness, rather than her, as First Minister. It is more difficult to explain why more nationalists stayed away this time. Part of it may be to do with a perception among some nationalists that Sinn Féin, in endorsing the Fresh Start Agreement, signed up to British government welfare cuts. It could also have to do with a more general disenchantment with the stop-start-stalled Stormont politics of recent years. It could be younger people of a Catholic background not being so caught up with Orange-Green politics. Whatever the reason, Sinn Féin and SDLP strategists must turn their minds to this issue or possibly face further decline. The calibre of candidates also may be a factor. For instance, consider West Tyrone, where the SDLP should have been under great pressure due to a rift within the party. Two SDLP councillors – Dr Josephine Deehan and Patsy Kelly – split from the party to run against the chosen candidate Daniel McCrossan. Dr Deehan and Mr Kelly polled a respectable 2,139 votes between them, yet Mr McCrossan was easily elected with 4,287 first preferences. His success was down to the fact that 27-year Mr McCrossan, an honours law graduate from Liverpool John Moores University, was an able and articulate candidate who impressed the voters of West Tyrone.Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market was a chain of grocery stores in the western United States, headquartered in El Segundo, California.[1] It was a subsidiary of Tesco, the world's third largest retailer, based in the United Kingdom,[2] until November 2013 when it was purchased by Yucaipa Companies.[3] It had plans for rapid growth – the first stores opened in November 2007 and, after a pause in the second quarter of 2008, the opening program recommenced. While there were over 200 stores in Arizona, California, and Nevada by December 2012, Tesco confirmed in April 2013 that it was pulling out of the US market, at a reported cost of £1.2 billion.[4] On September 10, 2013, Tesco announced they were transferring ownership and operations of more than 150 stores to supermarket-owner Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Companies group.[5] At the beginning of October 2013, Fresh & Easy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. bankruptcy court.[6] The sale cost Tesco £150m, taking the total cost of its failed US venture to nearly £2bn. On October 23, 2015, Yucaipa announced that it would close all Fresh & Easy stores.[7] On October 30, 2015, Fresh & Easy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time in two years.[8] History [ edit ] On February 9, 2006, Tesco announced that it planned to move into the United States by opening a chain of small format grocery stores in three Western states (Arizona, California and Nevada) in 2007 named Fresh & Easy.[9] The initial planned capital expenditure was up to £250m ($436m) per year. After Tesco CEO Terry Leahy announced serious resources had been committed to developing a format that would be popular with American consumers, investors responded with some skepticism with a small drop in the company's share price.[10] The markets were expected to be around 1,400 square metres (15,000 sq ft)—good-sized supermarkets in many countries, but about one-third the size of an average supermarket within the U.S.[11] By January 2007, Tesco opened its U.S. headquarters in El Segundo, California,[12] near Los Angeles International Airport. The company initially expanded into Southern California, Phoenix, Arizona, and Las Vegas, Nevada.[13] On April 21, 2009 Tesco reported a trading loss of £142m from Fresh & Easy.[14] On October 4, 2010 Fresh & Easy announced that it was temporarily closing 13 stores because of shrinking populations, high percentage of housing foreclosures and high unemployment rates. The stores were being mothballed, with hope of reopening them when the economy improves. Six of the stores were in the Las Vegas area, six in the Phoenix area and one in Moreno Valley, California. Most of the closures were "C-level stores," or those doing less than $50,000
-firms. Close involvement in the effective altruism community (this is important for all roles, but it’s especially important for product management since it requires a detailed understanding of the needs of the community). Web development & web design For web development, 2+ years of experience (straight out of bootcamp is usually too junior). Ideally experience using the technologies the organisation uses. For web design, a degree in graphic design or a related field, 2+ years of experience. Operations Experience in law, accounting, HR or project management helps. Work experience or volunteering that demonstrates excellent organisational skills, attention to detail, and ability to communicate clearly and professionally. For more senior roles: 3+ years of experience in operations, including leading teams. Administrators & assistants Work experience or volunteering that demonstrates excellent organisational skills, attention to detail and ability to communicate clearly and professionally. For more senior roles: 2+ years of experience in operations, including leading teams. Management 2+ years of management experience, with impressive track record of leading teams and executing projects. Strong affiliation with the effective altruism community. For academic project manager roles: formal or informal experience of project management, understanding of the relevant academic fields, often through a Master’s or PhD. What’s the work like day-to-day? The work varies depending on your role but some common features are: You usually have flexibility about the hours you work, autonomy about how you schedule your work day-by-day, and you can often work from home. Roles tend to be broad, so you have to prioritise and keep track of many competing demands and projects. Often there aren’t existing processes and guidelines for the tasks that you’re doing, so you have to develop your own processes. You often have input into the strategy of the organisation. You’ll be discussing effective altruism nearly every day. Learn more: What are the predictors of success? Based on our experience, the people most likely to excel at EA organisations tend to have the following traits: They really care about effective altruism, and are happy to talk about it all day. This is one of the main things the organisations look for, and it can be hard if you don’t share the same level of enthusiasm about effective altruism as other staff. They’re excited and enthusiastic about the mission of the specific organisation they work for. You get a lot of responsibility in these roles, and it can be hard to sustain the intensity and effort required to succeed without being excited by the mission and strategy of the organisation. They’re self-directed, able to manage their time well, they can create efficient and productive plans, and keep track of complex projects. What skills are the organisations most short of? In August 2016, we surveyed 16 organisations in the effective altruism community and asked them “What types of talent does your organisation need?” Here are the options provided on the survey, along with the number of organisations which stated that they were looking to hire people for these roles: Role Number of organisations Percentage of organisations Generalist researchers 10 63% Web developers 7 44% Management 7 44% Operations 6 38% Marketing & outreach 5 31% Administrators/ assistants 5 31% Which specific jobs to apply to? Choosing which organisation to work at The main factors to consider are: How effective the organisation is. This can be assessed in terms of the problem area(s) it works on, the strategy it has for working on the problem area(s), and the quality of the team and how well it is run. How talent constrained the organisation is. The career capital potential of the specific role. Your personal fit and comparative advantage for the specific role. A very rough rule of thumb for working out your comparative advantage is to ask the people in charge of hiring at each organisation how good you’d be compared to other candidates they are considering. Your comparative advantage will often be the option in which you’d add the most value relative to other people considering working at that organisation. Recommended organisations See our current list of recommended organisations in the problem profile or on our job board. It features organisations that: (i) are hiring, (ii) are more talent constrained than funding constrained, and (iii) have a track record of success. What are the best jobs right now? We keep an updated list here: Go to job board However note that many positions aren’t openly advertised and positions get created for people who are a good fit for organisations. How can you get these jobs? Many of the organisations only want to hire people who really care about the ideas, so they are unlikely to hire people who aren’t already involved in the community. There are also many unadvertised jobs, and others get created for specific people. So, the key is to participate in the community. Here are the best steps for getting involved: Once you’re involved the community, you need to demonstrate your ability to do the work well. The organisations usually hire people who have a track record of working in the community or have referrals from other community members. If you already have relevant experience, and have referrals from people in the community, this might be enough. Otherwise, the best way to prove your skills is to do a project. Doing this will also be a great help in testing out your degree of personal fit. Here are some ideas: Help to run a local EA group. It gives you experience in talking about effective altruism and you can easily get a couple of people to take the Giving What We can pledge. Read here for more details. Volunteer at an EA Global or EAGx conference. Give feedback on work in progress by people in EA organisations. You can do fact checking, give feedback on which parts are hard to understand, which other sources the authors may have missed, etc. This facebook group is one place where people post things they’d like feedback on. If you know people at EA organisations you can also get in touch with them directly and ask them to send you things they could use feedback on. Write up literature reviews or reports on things relevant to EA organisations and send them to the organisations, or publish them on the EA forum. Here are some examples on the EA forum. For more ideas, see this list of potential projects, and this guide to getting more involved with effective altruism. Some interviews with people currently working at effective altruist organisations Want to work at an effective altruist organisation? We want to help. We’re happy to help people one-on-one who want to get a job at one of these organisations. If you want to work in this area: Get in touch Notes and referencesA steep decline in large predators is threatening endangered species and disrupting ecosystems from the tropic to the arctic, scientists warn. Over 75 percent of the 31 large carnivore species—including lions, dingoes, wolves, otters, and bears—face shrinking numbers, according to a Friday report in the journal Science. Of these, 17 species now live in less than half of the ranges they previously occupied. Human extermination, as well as a reduction in habitat and prey, are creating "hotspots" of decline, found the scientists—who reviewed studies and singled out the ecological effects of 7 large predators facing steep decline. While southeast Asia, southern and eastern Africa and the Amazon face dwindling numbers, much of western Europe and the eastern United States have already exterminated the huge bulk of their large predators. “Globally, we are losing our large carnivores,” said William Ripple, lead author of the paper and a professor in the Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society at Oregon State University. “Many of them are endangered,” he said. “Their ranges are collapsing. Many of these animals are at risk of extinction, either locally or globally. And, ironically, they are vanishing just as we are learning about their important ecological effects.” This decline is throwing off the balance of ecosystems across the globe, say the scientists. SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT Help Keep Common Dreams Alive Our progressive news model only survives if those informed and inspired by this work support our efforts The decrease of cougars and wolves in national parks in North America, including Yellowstone, leads "to an increase in browsing animals such as deer and elk. More browsing disrupts vegetation, shifts birds and small mammals and changes other parts of the ecosystem in a widespread cascade of impacts," according to a summary of the findings. In some areas of Africa, a plummet in lion and leopard populations has led to an increase in olive baboons, which take a toll on human crops and livestock, the scientists find. The scientists—who hail from Australia, Italy, Sweden, and the United States—document similar effects across the globe. “Human tolerance of these species is a major issue for conservation,” Ripple said. “We say these animals have an intrinsic right to exist, but they are also providing economic and ecological services that people value.” “Nature is highly interconnected." _____________________While currently having a presence in both the American Le Mans Series’ GT and GTC classes, Alex Job Racing is set to consolidate efforts into the new GT Daytona category for next year’s Tudor United SportsCar Championship. In speaking with Sportscar365, team owner Alex Job confirmed intentions of fielding up to two full-season entries in 2014, including an already confirmed program for Cooper MacNeil that will see the defending ALMS GTC champion return to the wheel of a WeatherTech-sponsored entry. “Pretty much that program is set,” Job said. “We now need to get the second car in place. Ideally, I’d like to have a two-car GTD program. It’s time to go back to a single brand. “Politically, it’s the best thing to do for sure. In my mind, you never get the full blessing of either brand, even though you’re now directly competing against each other in the same class.” For the past two seasons, AJR has fielded Porsches in the GTC class, while simultaneously campaigning a Lotus Evora GTE in 2012, and most recently, a Ferrari F458 Italia under the West Racing/AJR banner. Job said they’re likely to go with Porsche’s new 911 GT America, but has yet to make a final decision or announcement. The veteran team owner, however, doesn’t expect the West program to continue into next year, especially as a Pro-Am driver pairing would not be competitive in the works-backed GT Le Mans category. One solution would have been to create a GT-Am class, he said, which had allegedly been under consideration for 2014. The category would have run to the same ACO GTE technical regulations seen in GT LM but enforce Pro-Am driver lineups. A similar concept was proposed in the ALMS last year but was mothballed due to the merger. “Since it’s unlikely there’s going to be a GT-Am category, only a GT Pro, then for customers, the only option is GTD,” Job said. “GTD makes a lot of sense. It’s going to be the biggest class in the series and it’s going to be really competitive. I’m not scared of competition, I love the competition.” Job expects to announce the driver lineup for the team’s first GTD entry later this month. While MacNeil will return, his 2013 co-driver Jeroen Bleekemolen has already signed with Riley Technologies for its customer SRT Viper GT3-R program.Gary Lawless TSN Senior Correspondent Follow|Archive Chris Jones appears to have it all. Let’s see how he does. According to TSN's Ryan Rishaug, the Saskatchewan Roughriders have put their future in the hands of the hottest commodity in the CFL by giving him the reins to the franchise as head coach and general manager. There’s no question Jones can coach football. Now we find out if he can build a team as well. Riders’ president Craig Reynolds has proven to be a man of decisiveness and opportunism. He had the stones to fire the Grey Cup winning tandem of GM Brendan Taman and coach Corey Chamblin midseason, when his team’s record slipped into the tank and the men in charge were unable to provide answers or suggest a path to recovery. He followed that move up with a heist. Slipping behind the walls of the Edmonton Eskimos fortress and seducing Jones. Fresh off a Grey Cup win for the Green and Yellow, Jones was tempted with power and money to convert to the Green and White. twitter embed Jones, who compiled a 26-10 record for a.722 winning percentage during two seasons as the Eskimos head coach, leaves behind a contender in Edmonton but gains complete control in Regina as GM/head coach. It took Jones just two seasons to win a Grey Cup in Edmonton and he’s proven to be an effective head coach and talent recruiter. Players want to play for him and veteran Eskimos rush end Odell Willis tweeted on Sunday: “Dear Santa all I want for Christmas is my Coach Chris Jones back #Thanks.” Reynolds was more than comfortable with interim GM Jeremy O’Day and, according to some Riders insiders, was prepared to make him the full-time man until Jones fell in their lap. The Riders president began to put together a candidates list as the CFL season came to a close. There were a few longshots, like Calgary Stampeders’ GM John Hufnagel and Jones. Hufnagel turned the opportunity down outright before the courting process could begin, but Jones did not and the search process took on an entirely different look. The Riders went from considering untested but impressive candidates such as O’Day, Stampeders’ assistant GM John Murphy and Ottawa RedBlacks assistant GM Brock Sunderland, to wondering if they could land one of the CFL’s most coveted coaches. Reynolds asked the Eskimos for permission to speak with Jones in the hours following the Grey Cup and the process sped up from there. Jones and Reynolds, along with a few other key Riders execs, met in Calgary last Friday. The meeting closed with the Riders telling Jones they would make a decision over the weekend. The parties spent most of Sunday hammering out a contract and news of the deal broke late that night. Jones will be announced to the Riders-mad province of Saskatchewan on Monday in Regina. Several details remain unknown, such as the future of Jones coaching staff in Edmonton and if he’ll attempt to bring a number of his assistants to the Riders. The Eskimos now find themselves in need of a head coach and Ottawa RedBlacks offensive coordinator Jason Maas is expected to be a top candidate. Hamilton Tiger-Cats defensive coordinator Orlondo Steinauer was expected to be a top target on the market, however he and the Ticats have come to an agreement that will keep him in Hamilton. twitter embed The Riders went 3-15 last season and have 32 pending free agents. Jones will have a major rebuild on his hands.One of the first Chromebooks to come blessed with Intel's Haswell processor is the new Acer Chromebook, and we had a chance to get a closer look at it today. If not for the "new" moniker that Acer has so kindly bestowed on it, at first glance you'd be hard-pressed to find much different in comparison to its C7 predecessor. Get closer however, and you'll notice it's lighter and slimmer, measuring around 0.75 inch thin and weighing in at about 2.76 pounds. The new Acer Chromebook also has much better battery life, boasting up to 8.5 hours of continuous use from a non-removable cell this time around. It also sports an HDMI port, two USB ports (one 3.0), a standard headphone jack and an SD card slot on the sides. The 11.6-inch 1366 x 768 resolution display is a little on the small side, but still looks crisp and colorful enough to our eyes. The raised chiclet keyboard feels tactile and comfortable to use, and Acer wisely chose to adhere to the standard Chromebook keyboard layout instead of recycling a PC layout like on the C7. While we don't know its price just yet, we do know that you'll get 100GB of Google Drive storage free for two years with every purchase. Sadly, we don't have much more information about the new Acer Chromebook to share with you, but we'll be sure to update this post once we do. In the meantime, have a peek at the hands-on gallery and video after the break.One day we’re saving the banks; the next day we’re saving the auto industry; the next day we’re trying to see whether we can have some impact on the housing market. – President Barack Obama Yesterday’s New York Times devoted 6,000 words and a main feature to nothing short of an all-out defense of Obama’s economic legacy. In the process, they went full Keynesian. From the opening paragraph that detailed Obama’s singlehanded efforts to rebuild the U.S. economy following the 2008 financial crisis, it was clear that author Andrew Ross Sorkin is more than simply a member of the lapdog media. Like a true believer, Sorkin bowed down at the altar of Obama’s government. To hell with the real story behind the data. To hell with any logical thought processes. To hell with the notion that free markets, not governments, produce opportunity and prosperity. As Sorkin tells it, the U.S. is now quite peachy. Because Obama. Because Obama swooped in and saved Detroit’s bankrupt auto companies. Because Obama implemented the failed Cash for Clunkers program, which destroyed thousands of used – but still working – cars, pushing up the price of existing cars on the used market. Meaning that the very people he pretends to care about the most – America’s working class and poor – are the ones who suffered the most from this policy. Because Obama is a renowned healthcare economist who saved the U.S. system from those greedy insurance companies. Even though the companies’ lobbyists helped write the bill and we found out just how much corporatism was at play after the bill was passed. Here’s to you, Nancy. Because associates in Congress like Nancy Pelosi and Obama’s cabinet are do-good fairies. And because of Obama’s magic, he and the fairies can find the gold at the end of the rainbow to fund their programs. Or in other words, the rich, who must be taxed more. And if only it weren’t for those pesky Republicans and their pushback on accumulating debt, according to Sorkin, maybe Obama could have accomplished more with the stimulus: Many argue today that Obama’s $800 billion plan, the one that eventually became law, was not enough. With a bigger boost, the economy would have recovered much more quickly and years of needless suffering could have been allayed. For those of us who understand that savings and ensuing capital investment is the way to grow an economy, here’s what Sorkin’s fallacious Keynesian mind really meant: Imagine if there were more government agents pointing more guns at productive people and then redistributing their money to companies like now-defunct government darling Solyndra. Everything would be great – we’d have $30 trillion in GDP and 0% unemployment! Not that some of the Republicans held a sound economic philosophy throughout Obama’s term: Critics of Obama, including the new House speaker, Paul Ryan, credit Ben Bernanke, the former Federal Reserve chairman, and Janet Yellen, the current chairwoman, for whatever recovery we’ve had since the crisis, contending it happened in spite of the president. “I think the Federal Reserve has done more,” Ryan said at a January news conference. Bernanke and Yellen should join Obama as the last ones in line to receive congratulations for the economic recovery. Between these two Fed chairs, they have further inflated housing and stock market bubbles, put the printing presses in overdrive to fund expanded government, and destroyed the return on savings with zero or near zero interest rates. Sorkin’s article on Obama’s legacy is not only inaccurate. It’s also incomplete. There’s much more to the 44th President’s economic legacy. As told through Frederic Bastiat’s broken window fallacy, economics is about the unseen just as much as the seen. The unseen, while never realized, is still no less real. And Obama’s team has done plenty to ensure that businesses’ ideas will never become realized. On a daily basis, the Federal Register – the synopsis of bureaucratic rule-making – amounts to 300 or more pages. Yes, each and every day. Take that number multiplied by the number of days that Obama has been in office, excluding weekends and holidays, and the results are staggering. Conservatively, Obama’s executive branch has cranked out over 500,000 pages of regulations. Unfortunately, despite the promises from the 2016 campaign trail, if one believes that anything can be done about the atrocious state of regulations in the U.S., that would place them squarely in the land of pixies and fairy dust alongside Barack and Nancy. Other economic indicators from Obama’s land of make-believe are the overall growth of the economy and health of the U.S. middle and working classes. It was just reported that U.S. 2016 Q1 GDP grew at an abysmal 0.5%. And, like the discrepancy between Obama’s rhetoric and reality in economic growth, the growth and opportunities of the middle class are fading. Lacking the rich’s cash-flowing assets, many have been left behind in this so-called recovery – and this is before a growing inflation rate eats away at purchasing power. Conclusion: There’s more to Obama’s economic legacy than is reported by The New York Times. Mounting regulations, a doubling of official national debt, and the stifling of the middle class are more indicative of the damage done under this president.Sunderland midfielder David Meyler is determined to make the most of his Republic of Ireland call-up for Friday's opening World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan. Meyler was drafted in by Giovanni Trapattoni after Darron Gibson's refusal to travel to Astana. Corkman Meyler has played three games for Sunderland this season after two injury-plagued years. "I don't want to be called up and never get the call again," said Meyler, 23. With Keith Andrews suspended and Paul Green injured, Meyler could be in line to get some action in Friday's game in Kazakhstan with Tuesday's friendly against Oman in London also coming up. After joining the Black Cats from Cork City as an 18-year-old, Meyler became a regular in Steve Bruce's side in the 2009-10 season before his progress was halted by a cruciate ligament injury. David Meyler factfile Born 29 May 1989 His father John won an All-Ireland Hurler medal with Cork in 1986 Moved to Sunderland in 2008 after only six appearances for Cork City Made first Sunderland appearance in December 2009 Sustained cruciate ligament in May 2010 which put him out for over six months Suffered recurrence of injury in January 2011 but started playing again in April 2011 Nine Sunderland appearances last season The following season, Meyler suffered the same injury again three weeks into a comeback which put him out for another 10 weeks but the midfielder is now on the brink of a breakthrough at international level. "With suffering two serious injuries in the last two years obviously it's vital I make an impression to ensure that he (Trapattoni) keeps me in the squad," added Meyler. "I obviously want to stay here so I have to take every training session like it's my last and if I get the opportunity to play in either of the two games I have to make an impression." During his periods of injury, Meyler put in 10-hour shifts at Sunderland's training ground to make sure he would make a full recovery. "I learned to appreciate my life a lot more during that time. I was coming in at 8am and finishing at 6pm every day. "On Saturday I would start training at 7am and then jump in the car and drive to Manchester or to London to watch Sunderland play. "I'd sit with the away fans. Then you do start to appreciate it a bit more." The Republic's World Cup group includes Germany, Sweden and Austria but Meyler insists that he would relish such big contests. "As a kid I wished to play for Ireland every day of my life. "I remember watching them at the World Cup in 1994 when I was five-years-old."Like the Miami Heat’s Justise Winslow, Washington Wizards forward Otto Porter also struggled with his shot early in his career. I’m often asked what I think Justise Winslow’s ceiling is or might be, and it’s easy to fall back on the common draft-day comparisons to Kawhi Leonard, or Miami Heat president Pat Riley’s comparison to Draymond Green. If you squint, you can see the similarities between Winslow and those two All-Stars, but the comparison is born out of hope. Because I’m asked so much about what I think Winslow’s ceiling is or might be, I decided to actually think about it. And I think Winslow’s ceiling is or could be Washington Wizards forward Otto Porter. Porter had equally high (if not higher) expectations thrust upon him since being drafted third overall by the Washington Wizards in 2013. Two years after, Winslow was taken 10th overall by the Heat. Porter is long at 6-foot-8. Longer than Winslow, and leaner too at 198 pounds, but his skills mirror those of Winslow’s, and so do his faults. Porter from the moment he touched down on an NBA court was a pro-level defender. His length bothers opponents, and he puts real effort in at the end. As a rookie, Winslow was able to carve out playing time on a veteran Heat team by playing tough-nosed defense. More: Don’t overlook Rodney McGruder for a starting role Like Winslow, Porter struggled with his perimeter jumper early in his career. Winslow made just 27.6 percent of his 3-pointers as a rookie and was shooting 20 percent before his sophomore effort was cut short by shoulder surgery. Only last season did he finally turn it around. Porter went from shooting 19 percent from 3-point range to 43.4 percent in his fourth season. The Heat and Winslow may be hoping for a similar leap. Things were made easier for Porter by the presence of John Wall, who is among the best facilitators in the NBA. Washington’s drive-and-kick offense presents open perimeter shots for Porter. The Heat found something similar last season in Goran Dragic and Dion Waiters, but Erik Spoelstra didn’t deploy that offense until well after Winslow was sidelined for the season. Winslow will be healthy for the 2017-18 season and should reap the benefits of Dragic and Waiters running the show. It is not a perfect comparison. Winslow is a more versatile defender, and perhaps a better ball handler and athlete. Porter is probably a more natural scorer. But it is a better comparison to make than expecting Winslow to develop into Leonard or Green–two of the best 10 or 15 players in the league. Following the expiration of his rookie deal, Porter signed a max contract this summer. He made his leap just in time to cash in. For Winslow, that should be encouraging. With two more years left on his rookie deal, there’s time. Comparisons to Leonard and Green will most likely lead to disappointment. Reaching Porter’s level is far more in reach.Aloidendron barberae, formerly Aloe barberae, also known as the tree aloe, is a species of succulent plant in the genus Aloidendron. It is native to South Africa northwards to Mozambique. In its native climes this slow-growing tree can reach up to 18 m (54 ft) high and 0.9 m (3 ft) in stem diameter. Aloidendron barberae is Africa's largest aloe-like plant. The tree aloe is often used as an ornamental plant. Its tubular flowers are rose pink (green-tipped); it flowers in winter and in its natural environment is pollinated by sunbirds.[2] Taxonomy [ edit ] Aloidendron barberae was first collected and submitted for classification by Mary Elizabeth Barber, who was a plant collector in the former Transkei. She sent specimens of the plant and its flowers to the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, where in 1874 it was named by William Turner Thiselton-Dyer (1843–1928) in her honor. Subsequently, it was also found in KwaZulu-Natal by the well known traveller, explorer and painter Thomas Baines in 1873. He also sent a specimen to Kew, where it was named Aloe bainesii. Although known as A. bainseii for many years, Aloe barberae was the name first given to this plant, and takes precedence according to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature,[2] and so is the epithet used in the combination Aloidendron barberae. Distribution [ edit ] The tree aloe's habitat is subtropical coastal forests, kloofs (ravines) and dry valleys in the eastern regions of southern Africa. Aloidendron barberae is widely distributed from the Eastern Cape through the former Transkei, KwaZulu-Natal, Swaziland and Mpumalanga; and northwards to Mozambique and East Africa.[2] Cultivation [ edit ] Aloidendron barberae forms a striking focal point in the garden, being an enormous sculptural tree with a neat crown. It is easily propagated, especially by cuttings (truncheons) which should be left to dry for a week or two before planting. It prefers well-drained soil, especially on a slope, and can tolerate some shade when small. It should not be planted in between buildings or in spots where its roots will be constrained, as its trunk and roots need to expand and spread. Hybrids and cultivars [ edit ] Several hybrid varieties have been created between this species and its relative Aloidendron dichotomum (the quiver tree) and, more rarely, with Aloe species. These all tend to be more short and compact than pure A. barberae. Some of the more popular hybrids include: 'Hercules' ( A. barberae × dichotoma ), the most common hybrid, with golden-grey trunk, and compact grey leaves. × ), the most common hybrid, with golden-grey trunk, and compact grey leaves. 'Rex' ( A. barberae × dichotoma ), a fast-growing cultivar developed in Swellendam, which has a grey trunk, and more slender grey-green leaves with pink teeth. Seed parent is dichotoma. × ), a fast-growing cultivar developed in Swellendam, which has a grey trunk, and more slender grey-green leaves with pink teeth. Seed parent is dichotoma. 'Goliath' ( A. barberae × Aloe vaombe ), a very fast-growing top-heavy hybrid, with a slender trunk and an enormous head of massive rubbery dark-green leaves. × ), a very fast-growing top-heavy hybrid, with a slender trunk and an enormous head of massive rubbery dark-green leaves. 'Nick Deinhart' ( A. barberae × Aloe speciosa ), a new hybrid using A. barberae pollen, with glaucous blue foliage. × ), a new hybrid using pollen, with glaucous blue foliage. 'Medusa', this is often considered a cultivar, but is in fact the natural Mozambican form of A. barberae. Pictures [ edit ] References [ edit ]Lawmakers seek to keep freeways toll-free Sen. Donna Campbell is behind a more detailed SB 1029. Sen. Donna Campbell is behind a more detailed SB 1029. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Lawmakers seek to keep freeways toll-free 1 / 1 Back to Gallery Texas' boom of toll roads has made the “free” part of freeway mean something different lately. As toll lanes become the preferred choice for adding capacity to Texas roads, a growing number of state lawmakers and toll critics are looking for assurances that state-built freeways will stay open to everyone. Coming up with a precise set of rules, however, is proving trickier than expected. “I believe free roads should remain free,” Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, told the Senate Transportation Committee last week. Campbell is working with Texas Department of Transportation officials to craft a more detailed version of SB 1029, her bill to prohibit existing state roads from conversion to toll lanes. A similar bill by Rep. George Lavender, R-Texarkana, is scheduled for a hearing Tuesday before the House Transportation Committee. Last week, TxDOT officials expressed concern that Campbell's bill could have unintended consequences and curtail upcoming toll lane construction. The bill, if it includes a prohibition on the use of existing state rights of way, could impact projects across the state, notably in Houston and San Antonio, TxDOT and local toll agency officials said. Toll lanes long planned along Texas 249 between Tomball and Navasota will run in the center of the freeway, said James Hernandez, a private Houston lawyer who represents the Harris County Toll Road Authority. HCTRA and Montgomery County partnered with TxDOT on the project. Bexar County and San Antonio transportation planning officials have agreed to expand U.S. 281 between Loop 1604 and Stone Oak Parkway with a mix of free and toll lanes. On the outside would be two free lanes in either direction. Sandwiched between the free lanes would be managed lanes, free for public transit and car poolers; all other drivers would pay a toll. The proposal to widen the highway using some toll lanes has drawn criticism from toll road opponents. Without an outright ban, critics worry TxDOT will take roads away from motorists, said Terri Hall, founder of San Antonio-based Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom, an anti-tax and anti-toll group. She called efforts to toll U.S. 281 north of the metro area “truly highway robbery.” TxDOT officials stressed that none of their plans include converting free lanes to tolls. Major projects TxDOT has tackled in the past five years mostly were funded by borrowing, state officials said. Using the paths already carved by freeways makes sense, toll proponents said, especially in places already suffering from heavy congestion. “The most effective means of addressing that congestion is to add capacity within those corridors,” said C. Brian Cassidy, a lawyer with Locke Lord LLP in Austin, who focuses on transportation and infrastructure law. “Tolls are not taxes,” Cassidy said. “Tolls present a choice and, more importantly, they present an option to fund and deliver projects.” Besides Campbell, other lawmakers have filed toll-related legislation aimed at ensuring fairness between free and pay lanes. Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, filed a bill to prohibit TxDOT from taking actions, without engineering justification, that encourage use of a toll road rather than a free road. The issue was prompted by concerns by Lockhart-area drivers south of Austin when officials dropped the speed limit on a segment of U.S. 183 that became the frontage road for Texas 130, a toll road. dug.begley@chron.com twitter.com/DugBegleyMillions of families face soaring gas and electricity bills this winter as energy giants prepare to boost profits Rising bills: Households could find themselves paying more for heating their homes over the winter months Households across the UK could see their gas and electricity bills soar this winter as energy companies prepare to boost profits from households, it has been reported. Firms are set to increase profits from households from £45 to £65 - a jump of almost 50 per cent, according to the Daily Telegraph. Britain's second largest energy company SSE has already confirmed that the price of a typical dual fuel bill will rise by nine per cent from mid-October, up from £1,172 to £1,274 a year. The increase will affect as many as five million households. British Gas - one of the 'big six' energy companies - has told 10 million households that their bills could go up by as much as £100 next year. Earlier this month Scottish Power and First Utility also pulled their cheapest fixed rate deals. The removal of these tariffs has left consumers with a dwindling range of options that offer both the peace of mind of a fixed price coupled with no exit penalties. Experts have warned the average annual energy bill could rise by £118 to a record £1,428 next year, the Daily Telegraph reports. Mark Todd, a director at Energyhelpline.com told the paper: 'From what we are hearing in the industry, price rises are already being worked out. The Bank of England dashed hopes that bills would fall earlier this month, predicting instead that gas and electricity bills could rise by an average of 2.5 per cent ‘around the turn of the year’. Tom Lyon, energy expert at uSwitch.com, warned as the cheapest rates started to disappear: ‘Consumers who want to fix their energy prices cannot afford to hang around – these deals are flying off the shelves and could be pulled at any time. Warning: Other energy giants, including British Gas, could follow any rivals' price increases with its own hike Pledge: Labour leader Ed Miliband ‘People have quickly grasped that paying a low price today, coupled with a price guarantee and no exit penalties makes fixing your prices a real "no brainer". ‘It gives absolute peace of mind coupled with flexibility, vital for consumers as we head into what could well be a winter of price hikes.’ Labour leader Ed Miliband will pledge today to crackdown on profiteering energy companies. They will be forced to pass on wholesale price cuts to customers by an incoming Labour government, Mr Miliband will tell a gathering of voters in Manchester. He intends to axe the regulator Ofgem and introduce a new watchdog to order energy giants to reduce their prices. He is quoted in the Daily Telegraph: 'The current system of regulation is not working. We'll rip it up to stop you getting ripped off. 'We will make sure that when the big companies pay less for the power they buy, you pay less for the energy you buy.' Mr Miliband will tell voters: 'You know what it’s like when the envelope hits the doormat with the gas bill or the electricity bill. 'The companies know you can’t choose not to pay it. They are making us pay more than we should.'BUSAN – Fears over the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome had a significant impact on the South Korean box office. But the chart was nevertheless topped by a disaster movie, “San Andreas.” According to the KOBIS box office tracking service, ticket sales at 1.55 million between Friday and Sunday were the lowest in seven weeks. The figure also represented a 21% drop on last week and a nearly 50% drop compared with the holiday weekend last year. Post-apocalyptic “San Andreas” marked a strong debut, earning $7.18 million from between Wednesday and Sunday. The Warner Bros. release is Dwayne Johnson’s best ever opening in Korea. “Mad Max: Fury Road” dropped 54% and slipped to second. It earned $2.07 million between Friday and Sunday. The Warner release
drug scripts - doctors need to respond appropriately, she says. "Clearly, if a person has been doctor shopping it may be that their pain is not well managed or that they have developed a dependence on the drug and they actually need professional assistance with that," Dr Shand told AAP. There were also concerns that if patients dependent on prescription opioids could no longer access those drugs, they would simply switch to other illicit or prescription substances, Dr Shand said. "We want to see prescription opioids available to people who need them," she said. "We just want to make sure that they are used in a way that doesn't harm people and... this system can really help with that." In an article in the Medical Journal of Australia on Monday, Dr Shand and co-authors said the system would need to be closely monitored for unintended consequences. There was little research available on real-time monitoring systems around the world but a review of a system in Ohio found doctors changed opioid prescriptions in 41 per cent of cases. Of those, 61 per cent received no opioids or less than previously while 39 per cent got higher doses. Dr Shand said this suggested that in more than a third of cases, the information available to doctors increased their confidence in prescribing opioids after reviewing the patient's history. The federal government committed $5 million last February to establish a real-time prescription reporting system for schedule eight drugs. The move came after evidence, including from coronial inquests, that patients were overdosing on prescription drugs after doctor shopping. Tasmania is the only state with a real-time prescription monitoring program. A Victorian coroner recommended the state government implement its own system if the federal program was delayed or proved inadequate, following a spate of prescription drug-related deaths in Victoria. Originally published as Drug tracking system needs checks: expertsSubash Reddy is one of the few experts in Hyderabad striving to build site-specific and economical rainwater harvesting structures. Subash is working towards making Hyderabad self-sustainable by harvesting rainwater in households, institutions, and open spaces Being a metro city, Hyderabad has been facing a severe water crisis in the last few years for various reasons; with a peak in construction activities, the number of borewells drilled as deep as 1000-2000 ft, is on the rise. With decreasing open spaces, there are fewer avenues for water retention. Even a meagre rainfall of 2-3 cm results in the flooding of the roads. A rainfall of 7-9 cm, as was the case last September, can result in an unimaginable waste of rainwater. Subash, a 46-year-old from Hyderabad is working towards finding a solution to these problems. He is working towards making Hyderabad self-sustainable by harvesting rainwater in households, institutions, and open spaces. Subash set up Smaran in 1997 with a mission to promote natural resource-based livelihoods for poor and rural communities and to protect and manage the environment and natural resources with major emphasis on the conservation of water. Smaran Subash, a humanitarian, nature lover, and a social worker, has committed his life majorly to the cause of water resource conservation. He holds a diploma in electronics and was working with BSNL before setting up Smaran. I started working on water in Hyderabad city since 2003. Before that, I worked in rural areas such as Ibrahimpatnam mandal with farmers on land development, water sheds, water bodies’ renovation from 1998-2000. When I started reading the news about the severity of water crisis in Hyderabad city, I started concentrating here. Although his education was not related to this field of work, he took an interest in the subject and educated himself. He met various experts in the field, learnt from them, and looked for solutions and methods suitable for the Hyderabad terrain. The need of the hour The city of Hyderabad has changed considerably in the past 20 years. The available space has decreased and rainfall patterns have changed. Naturally, the method of rainwater harvesting should be adaptive to yield maximum result whether rainfall is scanty or in plenty–even during flash floods. The water usage has increased due to change in lifestyles; the city’s continuous infrastructural growth, vanishing open spaces and increased paved surfaces have all in turn contributed towards a decrease in the water table of the city. At this moment, the proposed rainwater harvesting (RWH) methods or measures should suit and consider all the above parameters, opines Subash. “It’s not about how many normal RWH pits we construct. The model and design of each pit or the structure matters as each area has different terrain. Moreover, site conditions and the availability of space also vary and one has to design site-specific pits. Sites with potential rainwater need to be designed and augmented to the maximum,” says Subash. Inverse Borewell method capturing 12 lakh litres of rooftop rain water. Any system constructed to harvest rainwater needs to have the potential for maximum water retention. But as Subhash reveals, people usually settle for structures that save merely 10 to 30 percent of the harvested water and lose the remaining water, because of lack of knowledge and experts to turn to. Inverse borewell (IBW) method of rainwater harvesting (RWH) is strongly advocated by Smaran for reasons Subhash explains, In our city, we find thousands of borewells abandoned with depths ranging from 120 ft to 1000 ft which have gone dry because of over extraction in the area or low ground water levels. Smaran considers those abandoned or dry bore holes as an asset and the IBW method of RWH will use those existing deep, dry and abandoned bore holes for artificial recharge. In this method, huge volumes of rooftop area rainwater (at least 60 thousand liters/100 sqm rooftop area per annum) collected from the buildings and also from selective surface areas is channelised through the rainwater outlets to the proposed site. Along with building site-specific structures, Subhash considers a sound understanding of the relation between water and soil indispensable. “Preventing soil erosion, soil run off, retaining soil moisture are major aspects of any rainwater harvesting project,” he explains. Providing other solutions Along with the implementation of activities like improving underground water quantity and quality, and sustainable underground water management, Subash also takes a keen interest in implementing economical rainwater harvesting solutions and educating people about it, protecting and renovating potential tanks and self-sustained safe community drinking water schemes. Presently operational in the areas of Ranga Reddy, Medak, Nalgonda and Hyderabad, Smaran till date has undertaken micro-watershed development, nursery raising, rainwater harvesting in urban areas, free health camps in urban slums and rural areas, informal education projects besides training the farmers in natural pest management, compost making, conducting save grain campaign and promoting rural women livelihood activities like tailoring and household enterprises. Related read: Monitor, access, rejuvenate: IoT-based startups resolve to solve India’s water problem The urban rainwater harvesting structure initiatives were implemented as local projects with organisations such aM/s Deloitte, NEAC, GHMC, HMWSSB, and EPTRI in Hyderabad and surrounding areas. Smaran also extends its rainwater harvesting technical support to residents of other states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu through online communication via WhatsApp and other other personalised social media platforms. Subash interacting with students of St Theresa School. Subash says that there’s increasing awareness on rainwater harvesting in the city but people need to know effective methods in order to augment rainwater to the potential available. “The problem is that people wait till May and June to call us, which doesn’t give us enough time to build the structures before the rain starts. The best time to construct the structures is from the end of the rainy season until the beginning of the rainy season next year. We have eight solid months to plan and execute which is generally ignored by everyone,” he says. Currently, Smaran is running a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds for constructing site-specific suitable rainwater harvesting structures on the premises of Central Jail Cherlapally in Hyderabad.Since Oct. 1, Monsanto and the rest of the Biotech and Big Food gang have been pounding the California airwaves with nearly $36 million worth of boldface lies and twisted truths. Their goal? Misinform and confuse California voters into believing they'd be better off not knowing what pesticide-makers are hiding in their foods, than they would be if food manufacturers had to label genetically modified foods. The ads are having an impact. After enjoying a 26-point lead for the past six months, the YES on 37 campaign has dropped 19 points in the polls. But the YES team is fighting back, calling out the lies. And the liars. They've already forced the opposition to pull its first TV ad and re-shoot it after exposing the ad's dubious spokesperson, Henry Miller, for misrepresenting himself and Stanford University. Miller, a long-time front man for Big Tobacco and Big Oil, doesn't have an ounce of credibility. Neither do the folks working behind him. No sooner had the Stanford University kerfuffle simmered down, than the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics accused the campaign of misleading voters by falsely stating, in the Official Voter Information Guide, that the Academy opposes Prop 37. In fact, the Academy has not taken an official position on the initiative. The American Medical Association and the World Health Organization/United Nations also called out the NO campaign for misrepresenting their statements and positions on Prop 37. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. It's a campaign full of bunk. Lies perpetrated by liars. Yet some voters will continue to buy it unless we de-bunk it for them. Here are a few of the most confusing, most dishonest, and most widely circulated misstatements and outright lies hitting California's airwaves, newspapers, and blogs. BUNK: Prop 37 is full of "arbitrary" exemptions that don't make sense. Here's what doesn't make sense. Trotting out the likes of Henry Miller - a guy who still thinks DDT is a good idea - to convince voters that GMO labeling is a bad idea. Miller does a masterful job of twisting the truth and confusing voters about why, under Prop 37, some products will require labels and others won't. But if you take away the smoke and mirrors and look at the facts - as carefully explained by the YES on 37 campaign - every single exemption in Prop 37 is guided by common sense. For example: -- Meat, cheese, milk and eggs from animals. If an animal is genetically engineered, the meat from that animal would be labeled under Prop 37. (So far, genetically engineered salmon is the only imminent possibility here). But meat, cheese, dairy, and eggs from animals that have been fed genetically engineered food? No labels. After all, a steak from a cow that ate GE corn is no more a genetically engineered cow, than you're a genetically engineered human because you ate an ear of GE corn. Soy milk labeled? Yes, if it contains GE soy. Milk from a cow? No GE ingredients, no label. This exemption is common all around the world. Would the NO on 37 campaign have preferred a stricter law in California than the international standard for GMO labeling? -- Food from restaurants and bake sales. When's the last time you saw a label listing the ingredients in the seafood pasta you ate at a restaurant or the pizza you took out from the local pizza joint? Never. Because while we have strict labeling laws for food purchased at grocery stores, we don't have similar laws for foods we order in restaurants. Why would GMO labeling laws be any different? -- Alcohol. Alcohol labeling is regulated under different laws than food at both the federal and state levels. Because of the single-subject law in California that requires initiatives to apply to only one subject, Prop 37 doesn't include alcohol. (This is also true for medical food, which is exempted from Prop 37.) Check out the YES on 37 website for more on Prop 37 exemptions and why they make perfect sense. BUNK: Prop 37 means higher prices at the checkout counter What better way to scare consumers than to threaten higher prices at the checkout? Legitimate studies - and more compellingly, evidence from countries that have already passed GMO laws - are clear: Requiring GMO foods to be labeled doesn't mean you'll pay more for your food. In 1997, opponents of GMO labeling laws in Europe used the same scare tactics, threatening double-digit increases in food prices if government required mandatory labeling. But food prices didn't go up, according to David Byrne, then-European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection of the European Parliament. And they won't go up in California either, says an independent economic assessment of Prop 37, conducted by Joanna Shepherd Bailey, Ph.D., a professor at Emory University School of Law. Among Bailey's findings - backed by empirical literature and historical precedents - is that companies would rather absorb the "trivial" costs associated with labeling, than risk passing them on to consumers. What's the basis for the NO campaign's fear mongering? Their own bought-and-paid-for, flawed and highly biased economic analysis of Prop37. It was conducted by Northbridge Environmental Management Consultants, a consulting firm with no economic expertise and best known for opposing recycling laws for the soda pop industry. For more on GMO labeling and food costs, read this statement by the Yes on 37 campaign. BUNK: Gmos have been proven safe for your health. Who are you going to believe when it comes to whether or not GMOs are bad for your health? Henry Miller, the pro-tobacco guy who once claimed that nicotine is "not particularly bad for you in the amounts delivered by cigarettes or smokeless products"? Or real doctors and real scientists - not the ones that are on biotech company payrolls - who with each passing day are calling for mandatory pre-market safety testing and more health studies? Thanks to a decision made 20 years ago and credited to Michael Taylor, the former Monsanto lobbyist-turned- Deputy Commissioner for Policy for the FDA (1991 to 1994), the FDA declared GMOs "not substantially different" from non-GMOs. That fateful decision cleared the way for Big Biotech and Big Food to serve up GMO-tainted foods without any pre-market safety testing whatsoever. Is it mere coincidence that over the past 15 years - since GMOs have become almost ubiquitous in processed foods - allergies, auto-immune diseases, obesity, liver disease, infertility, and cancer have been on the rise? The American Public Health Association, American Medical Students Association, American Academy of Environmental Medicine, Physicians for Social Responsibility, California chapters, the California Nurses Association, and other public health groups that have endorsed Prop 37 don't think so. Neither do scientists in France who recently released results of the first-ever long-term study of the health consequences for rats fed a lifetime diet of GMO corn. Nor does Michael Hansen, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Consumer Reports, who points out that if GE ingredients aren't labeled it's awfully difficult to even identify an unexpected health effect resulting from a GE food. There's plenty of scientific evidence linking GMOs to a wide spectrum of health issues. And yet according to a recent report, Americans eat their weight in GMO foods every year. If the FDA won't require mandatory safety testing to guarantee the safety of GMO foods, then labeling them - so we can avoid them - is our only defense against eating foods that could damage our health. BUNK: Prop 37 will provoke an avalanche of lawsuits. Not true. And beyond ironic, coming from a campaign whose largest donor ($7.2 million) has a long history of ruthlessly suing farmers for growing their own seeds. The NO on 37 campaign depicts Prop 37 as a "measure for trial lawyers written by trial lawyers." But in fact, the initiative was written by a group of food industry, farm, science, consumer protection, and public health groups. The original instigator of California's historic GMO labeling law? Pamm Larry, a mom and grandmother, and former midwife and farmer. In 2011, Pamm started organizing mothers and volunteers across the state toward a 2012 ballot drive with only one goal in mind - to let California consumers know if the food they are eating is genetically engineered. Lawyers and lawsuits couldn't have been further from her mind. Prop 37 was intentionally written to provide no economic incentives for lawyers to sue. So who's most likely to sue? Consumers. But consumers can't file a class action suit without first giving notice. Once notified, all the defendant has to do is fix the label to avoid the class action suit. Any penalties resulting from labeling violations will go to the state - none to plaintiffs (consumers) or lawyers. The argument that retailers and farmers will be subject to lawsuits? More bunk. Under Prop 37, legal liability for labeling processed foods lies with the person responsible for putting the label on the product. That's the manufacturer. Not the farmer, not the retailer. And just to make certain retailers aren't targeted by lawyers or consumers, prop 37 goes even further by shielding them from lawsuits or penalties in the event they unintentionally, or accidentally, violate the law. Since retailers have no reason to know what's inside the packages of food on their shelves, they aren't liable. Period. Read this YES campaign article for more on Prop 37 and false claims about lawsuits. BUNK: Prop 37 will create "reams of paperwork" for grocers and retailers. The only items grocers would have to label are raw agricultural commodities - such as sweet corn, papaya, squash - that are genetically engineered. They can either stick a simple label on the bin or if they'd rather, they can ask their supplier for a sworn statement that the crop is not genetically engineered. Reams of paperwork? Nightmare scenario? Really? Remember: It's the food manufacturer who bears the responsibility for labeling genetically engineered ingredients. And food manufacturers already label food ingredients - as they're required to do by law. It's just one more ingredient. No big deal. BUNK: Prop 37 favors special interest groups over consumers This one takes the GMO-free cake. Who is better served by being able to put genetically modified ingredients in 80% - 85% of all processed foods - without your knowledge - than companies like Monsanto and PepsiCo? Let's not forget who started the campaign in California to label GMO foods: Pamm Larry, Mom and Grandma. What did she - what do any of us - have to gain other than the right to know what's in our food - and the ability to avoid gene-altered ingredients that haven't been tested, and may be harmful to our health? According to recent national polls, more than 90% of consumers want GMOs labeled. Who doesn't want them labeled? A host of "special interests" who have been manipulating the government, consumers, and our food - and denying us the right to know - for the past 20 years. Now is the time to stop them. Passing Prop 37, California's historic citizens GMO labeling ballot initiative, is our best hope.Photography Stef Mitchell Name: Ethan Elliott Age: 20 What are you wearing? Schott Perfecto jacket with custom spikes, Supreme x Pettibon, vintage Army coat, APC, Vans x Tuff What are you here to get? Accessories, crusher, and a board What inspires you? Punk, skate Why do you love Supreme? Clean, minimal What's the best thing about being young today? Fucking up Name: Jelisa Tannis Age: 22 What are you wearing? Hand me down jean jacket, sweater, 6-year-old Levis, Nikes What's the longest you've ever waited in line? It's my first time! What inspires you? Love What's the best thing about being young today? Doing whatever the hell you want Name: Ian DaRin Age: 22 What are you wearing? Huf classic lo, Adidas chinos, Supreme windbreaker What are you here to get? Supreme shop jacket What inspires you? Art deco, my childhood, the 90s Why do you love Supreme? Simple, quality pieces What's the best thing about being young today? I still have a lot of time to figure it all out Name: Antonio Griffith Age: 22 What are you wearing? American Apparel varsity, American Apparel track jacket, American Apparel jeans, Supreme Playboy print Vans What's your best Supreme piece? Sk8 Hi Playboy Vans in green What inspires you? Fashion, life struggles What's the best thing about being young today? I have less responsibility Name: Christian Aubry Age: 18 What are you wearing? Supreme, vintage windbreaker, Ksubi jeans, Vans What are you here to get? Yankees leather jacket What's your best Supreme piece? North Face leopard jacket What inspires you? Skating and music What's the best thing about being young today? That you can do almost anything you want and make it Name: Zoe Qiu Age: 24 What are you wearing from head to toe? Supreme and AJ What's the longest you've ever waited in line? 22 hours What was your first Supreme piece? Tee from spring/summer 12 What inspires you? That red box logo What's the best thing about being young today? Freedom Name: Dimitri Williot Age: 17 What are you wearing? Preme, Bape, DMSB What are you here to get? Errrything What's the longest you've ever waited in line? 21 hours What inspires you? Money What's the best thing about being young today? The experience of life Name: Racks Hogan Age: 28 What are you wearing from head to toe? Preme, Bape, Patta x Carhartt What are you here to get? Everything What time did you get here? Last night What's the best thing about being young today? I do what I want. Name: Maxx Leong Age: 17 What are you wearing? Supreme, APC, Represent What are you here to get? Yankees hoodie. What time did you get here? 3pm Wednesday What was your first Supreme piece? How to Get Arrested hooded shirt What's the best thing about being young today? Being able to express myself and meet people Name: Ryuei Oi Age: 27 What are you wearing? Supreme fur coat, Steven Allen pants, Doc Martens What are you here to get? New Era cap What inspires you? Art Why do you love Supreme? They've created a cool culture What's the best thing about being young today? Keeping vibes positive Name: Travis Hicks Age: 17 What are you wearing? S camp, bling box logo, Levis, and Sk8 Hi's What are you listening to on repeat right now? Soft shit What inspires you? Skating What's the best thing about being young today? Freedom Name: Aaron May Age: 19 What are you wearing? North Face hat, Champ hoodie, jean jacket, Adidas pants, Nike sneakers What time did you get here? 3:20 pm What are you listening to on repeat right now? Drake - 10 Bands What's the best thing about being young today? College Name: Anastasios Georgakopolous Age: 22 What are you wearing? Supreme Illegal Business hoodie, Supreme dog and duck button up, Supreme zebra 5 panel, DKNY jeans, AJI x SB mountain What time did you get here? 3 pm yesterday What's the longest you've ever waited in line? 1 week; I was first in line at Supreme SBS What inspires you? Being different Why do you love Supreme? It's the only brand that pushes the envelope in design. Name: Christian Garcia Age: 18 What are you wearing? Supreme S logo hat, Supreme box logo, Supreme x The North Face maps jacket What's the longest you've ever waited in line? 22 hours two weeks ago What inspires you? My mom What's the best thing about being young today? You can be yourself and the possibilities are endless. Name: Ellen Age: 24 What are you wearing? Supreme and Y3 What time did you get here? Wednesday at 6 pm What was your first Supreme piece? Dot shirt from FW 13 Why do you love Supreme? No reason, just love Name: Jonathan Cruz Age: 22 What are you wearing? Supreme and Nike What are you here to get? New York Yankees collab What time did you get here? 4 pm Wednesday Credits Photography Stef MitchellDanny Kent will return to full-time Moto2 action next season after signing a two-year deal with the Speed Up team. The 2015 Moto3 world champion has been making wild-card and replacement appearances in both Moto3 and Moto2 since splitting from Kiefer Racing earlier this year. The latest of those is at this weekend's Austrian round, where he is riding for the Dynavolt Intact (Suter) team. Kent might also be seen in some WSS events later this year, before starting a new chapter in his career with Speed Up. “I’m really excited about this new opportunity with Speed Up and I can’t wait to get on the bike," Kent said. "I’d like to thank Luca and all the team for their belief in me, I’m working hard towards the end of season tests and already excited for 2018! This weekend I’m replacing Marcel Schrotter which will be good to get some time back on the Moto2 bike. I’d also like to thank Alpinestars and Nolan for their support. 2017 has been tough but it had made me even more determined for the future.” Speed Up will be Kent's fourth Moto2 manufacturer, after previous races for Tech 3 (2013), Kalex (2016-2017) and Suter (2017).My Pain Diary -- an iPhone app that empowers patients of chronic pain and illness to document, track, report, and manage their condition. Weather data can be plotted on the graph and compared against pain and symptoms. My Pain Diary: Chronic Pain Management (MPD) is used by thousands of patients and e-Patients around the world to track and manage a variety of chronic conditions such as: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, Lupus, Menopause and Depression. The latest update brings a refreshed “Doctor’s Report”. Patients can now add a custom graph to the report which plots up to three pain metrics against one weather metric over time. These graphs make consuming the information in the report much quicker for the doctor, and the visual nature of reports makes identifying patterns and triggers much more efficient. With this new tool, chronic pain patients and their doctors can improve their communication and work together to attain better pain management. For cases that would benefit from more than one graph, users can now create a PDF of any graph from the Graphs tab. Also in this update of My Pain Diary: The improved Doctor’s Report has been restructured to make it easier to read more scalable in preparation for upcoming features. A new premium feature, “Passcode Lock” allows the patient to lock the diary. Not only does this provide an added layer of privacy, it also can help prevent accidental edits to diary entries. About My Pain Diary: ‘My Pain Diary: Chronic Pain Management’ (MPD) is a patient-targeted iOS app created to help sufferers of chronic pain track their pain and communicate with their doctors. MPD is developed and actively maintained by Damon Lynn. About Damon Lynn: Damon is a chronic pain patient with over a decade of interactive design and development experience. Before falling for the iPhone, Damon built a successful career in web design & development, Flash development, multimedia production and entrepreneurial innovationism. When Damon is not hard at work improving My Pain Diary, he is spending time with his family, developing casual games, and making up words like “innovationism”.Boys, look who it is! It’s a Hearthstone league with big cash monies up for grabs! Fame, fortune, and MONEY await those who know how to play magical cards real good, and by play real good, I mean have the luck of the Irish on their side. I’m talking rubbish – not about the tournament, but about the luck factor in Blizzard’s card game. According to some friends of mine, Hearthstone is a game of skill, not chance. If only they were around to witness my shiny 8-10 mana creature turn into a sheep for the millionth time because my opponent just happened to have that card in their hand – my rage is a spectacle to behold! How is it not luck? Some professionals, unlike me though, do seem to have some sort of godly control over their deck and do not rely on fate. 16 such players will play in a league hosted by PVP Live, a league that has a prize pool of $60 000 (thanks Gosu Gamers): PVP Live is proud to announce the launch of Hearthstone Pro League (HPL). HPL is the premiere professional Hearthstone league, featuring 16 top pros from Archon, Cloud 9, Dignitas, Fnatic, Complexity, Liquid, Root, and Hearthlytics competing for $60,000 in cash prizes. HPL offers the purest competitive experience in Hearthstone. No deck locks, no bans, no restrictions – if you can build it, you can play it! The 16 players will battle each other in an all-play-all bracket for the season, with the Top 8 ranked players advancing to the HPL Championships live in Frisco, TX. The Hearthstone Pro League Champion will walk away with $20,000 and the Inaugural Hearthstone Pro League trophy. Even though I’m an absolute Hearthstone scrub, I know there is something special in there being no deck lock, bans, or restrictions. What kind of crazy combos are these players going to put together? I don’t even want to know… I’ve been beaten enough by amateurs with their own crazy concoctions thank you very much! The tournament will kick off on June the 8th, streaming every Monday to Thursday at 17:00 CST (midnight South African time), and go on until August the 14th. The top 8 will then go on to play in the LAN finals over the weekend of August 27-30. If you’re interested in following the proceedings, you can catch all the action over on PVP Live’s Twitch channel. One thing I can say for Hearthstone is that I enjoy watching it now and then. I have no idea what’s happening half the time, but seeing how quickly the tables can turn is definitely enjoyable. What about you? Will you be following this league? Like esports? Check out esports central Last Updated:On the Civil Aviation Day celebrated on September 19, the Chisinau International Airport stages an extraordinary air show with aerobatics, exhibitions of aeronautic equipment and parachutists from abroad. The event will culminate with a nocturnal show involving world champions in this field. The air show was organized on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Civil Aviation of Moldova. Those who are fond of planes can admire different pyrotechnic projections and maneuvers performed by professional pilots from Moldova, Romania, Lithuania and other states. Those who want to find out more about aviation can get onto a plane and enter the cockpit. Several companies have mounted a fair to sell plane mock-ups, aviation literature, elements of aircrew clothing and aviation souvenirs. Within the event, Moldovan artists will give a concert. The orchestra of the Border Police Department will also have a recital. The band Deepcentral is the special guest of the event. The event organizers provide free transport from the City’s Gates up to the old airport. The units of transport travel at an interval of 30 minutes from each other, from 9:30am until 4pm.Associated Press Soldiers loaded relief material for Uttarakhand flood victims, Dehradun, June 23. Anshu Gupta is the founder and director of Goonj, a Delhi-based nonprofit that provides clothing and basic provisions in emergency situations. In a telephone interview from the mountainous state of Uttarakhand where hundreds died and thousands are still missing after flash floods in June, Mr. Gupta explained the most urgent needs in the area, how the effort to reach those still stranded is being hampered and when the help being offered can itself turn into a problem. Edited excerpts: The Wall Street Journal: What’s the biggest problem you’re finding in bringing aid to the victims of the floods in northern India? Anshu Gupta: Maybe the biggest problem right now is that we as a country, as a nation, are not prepared for this kind of disaster. The first couple of weeks are the emotional phase: Lots of stories, pictures, sorrow. Then there is the negative phase when people and media start looking for the gaps. That’s what we are entering now and there has been a lot of focus on relief trucks stuck in Rishikesh [a town near the disaster zone]. People are asking why these trucks were there when the distribution network was not in place. It’s a genuine concern, but can we understand why this has happened? Why did agencies and parties send them despite knowing that the roads are totally damaged and that big trucks can’t even enter? Why was there no thought or mechanism to create a hub somewhere such as Dehradun [the state's capital] or Rishikesh to unload them and then distribute it in a systematic manner with the help of much smaller vehicles? People were emotional and sent all this stuff in a hurry. The negative impact is that people get demotivated and the demand remains. You win a war with strategy and dealing with a disaster is no less than a war. WSJ: Is there a wrong kind of help? Mr. Gupta: It’s been a remarkable response so far and at Goonj we have got all kinds of material based on specific appeals. But people need to understand that when they buy or donate relief material, those needing it are like them, they have dignity. Clothing often becomes a nuisance as people give what they have, not what people need for the weather, geography and culture. As well as trucks of good quality material, we have received hundreds of dirty undergarments. What makes people think that a person who possibly has a house in the hills, a dream house, will wear a dirty undergarment just because he’s the victim of a disaster? People have been very supportive from all across the world. They have sent all kinds of things but they need to be very careful that it is not substandard; they need to put in some effort and look for the right things. When people make a donation, there is a tendency to say to a supplier, ‘Get 100 sacks of rice.’ But if they are not careful, the supplier in many cases will supply poor quality. As a lot of people use disasters as an opportunity to make quick money, we all need to be careful. We have been getting expired food and medicines and the worst quality blankets in many cases where people in good faith asked establishments to deliver directly to us without checking. Greed happens -- you can’t suddenly expect a whole lot of discipline and honesty in a disaster situation. The biggest problem is unwanted material, like cooked food. People are sending puris (fried bread), cooked rice, curry. They make it with such care but it’s a miscalculation. By the time it gets here it is rotten. WSJ: What should people send? Mr. Gupta: This is not a disaster where you can give rice and dal and bread and think that the relief is over. We are looking for packing sacks that are not made out of plastic because there is going to be a lot of plastic waste in the river and in the hills after the disaster relief work and we want to reduce that. Apart from money, there are a lot of gaps. You have rice but no cooking pan, which makes the rice redundant. You have water purifying tablets but no bucket to hold the water. So we are asking for buckets and cooking pans. We are also making sanitary pads for women, especially as sanitation is so important. WSJ: How is aid reaching those in need? Mr. Gupta: A lot of people have come from across the country with loaded trucks and reached Rishikesh, but they don’t know the geography or the culture. They were emotionally driven, they are wonderful people and they have made lots of efforts to raise money. But the moment you come to Rishikesh, you understand the realities. There is no control room situation, which can direct people. WSJ: What is your organization doing to reach those stranded? Mr. Gupta: It is very difficult because we were thinking that we would use human chains or mules but thousands of mules were killed because of the floods. We have opened up channels through the adventure sports and rafting groups in the region. They take their jeeps loaded with relief. They are accustomed to the area and are emotionally tied to it, which helps. We are working with local organizations. We have invited travelers and adventure people from across the country who can join the trucks. We are interviewing people before they come to make sure they have the experience necessary. WSJ: There are conflicting reports about the number of people killed in the floods. What are your estimates? Mr. Gupta: Unfortunately everything is an estimate. The government tells us that only 800 people have died, based on the number of bodies recovered. But how can you count dead bodies in this kind of disaster, when the water is so fierce and many bodies are lost or stranded on the rocks? At Kedarnath, [which took the brunt of the flash floods] it is said that the town had a capacity of 15,000, and that there were a lot of people on the roads. People on the pilgrimage route used to spend the night next to the river. What people, including Uttarakhand government officials, are estimating is much more realistic. Logically it will be around 10,000 dead, given the scenario. WSJ: How long do you think the relief effort will last? Mr. Gupta: We are geared up for at least a year. People need to have patience, to remember the disaster when it is not there in the media, and when the politicians aren’t there. That’s a much bigger phase of the disaster. Follow Joanna and India Real Time on Twitter @jhsugden and @indiarealtime.Kicking off 2012, Xbox 360 continues to lead the console market, turning in another month as the best-selling console in the U.S. NPD highlights from January include: · Xbox 360 sold more than 270,000 units in January, maintaining the number-one console spot in the U.S. This marks the thirteenth straight month Xbox 360 was the top-selling console in the U.S. · Holding a 49 percent share of current-generation console sales, total retail spend on the Xbox 360 platform in January (hardware, software and accessories) reached $301 million, the most for any console in the U.S. This marks
. This is the same African Union which stood by and watched French forces bomb and invade the Ivory Coast in 2010, Libya in 2011, Mali in 2012, and the Central African Republic in 2013. If the African Union is to gain a modicum of respect, it must stand up for the sovereignty of African nations and threaten to lead a coalition of military forces to defend any country attacked by US/European imperialism. In the case of Burundi, the African Union should have denounced the diabolical terrorist and media disinformation campaign against a young democratic country which has just emerged from a civil war. The fact that they did not shows that they have sided with the enemies of Africa. It is hardly surprising that truly independent, post-colonial countries such as Eritrea will have nothing to do with the sham called the African Union. If the Burundian authorities do not succeed in crushing the violent insurgency, the country could be facing more years of civil war and permanent foreign occupation by UN ‘peace-keepers’ after a ‘humanitarian intervention’ to ‘stop the massacres’. The script has been tried and tested in Haiti, the Ivory Coast, Libya, Mali and the Central African Republic. So, the key question now is this: Can Burundi defy the Empire and protect its people from carpet bombing called ‘humanitarian intervention’, a terrorist invasion called ‘liberation’, a military coup called ‘transitional government’ and a possible genocide where once again the victims will be blamed? Notes: [Gearóid Ó Colmáin is an independent political analyst from Cork, Ireland based in Paris.]https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/qbl-int-usw2/QUEST+Northern+California/Radio/Cloud+Seeding/Cloud_seeding_Jan_6_2014.mp3 California’s snowpack is just 20 percent of normal for this time of year, according to snow survey results released on Friday. That’s not surprising after 2013 ended as the driest year ever recorded in many parts of the state, but it’s fueling concerns about California’s water supply. With rationing looking likely, water managers are hoping to squeeze every last drop out of Mother Nature with cloud seeding. The decades-old technology is designed to wring extra moisture out of storm systems, though the storms have to appear in the first place. “There’s only so much we can do,” says Jeff Tilley, who runs the cloud seeding program at the Desert Research Institute in Reno, Nevada. “If we could make the clouds appear out of the thin air, we would, but we can’t do that yet.” This time of year, Tilley and his team are scouring weather imagery, waiting for the right conditions to turn on five ground-based cloud seeding towers. One sits at the summit of the Alpine Meadows Ski Resort, north of Lake Tahoe, right where the chairlift drops off. The large metal bunker with a chimney on top goes mostly unnoticed by skiers zipping by. It’s not a snow-making machine, like those the ski areas are relying on this winter. The chimney releases tiny particles of silver iodide – the seeds that rise thousands of feet into the clouds. “Water needs some sort of substance to condense upon,” says Tilley. Clouds are made of millions of tiny water droplets, but the droplets don’t automatically fall as rain or snow. They stick to tiny particles like dust. I think for the entire Intermountain West, it’s becoming more important If a cloud doesn’t have enough dust, “you have these very static, dead clouds that don’t precipitate, don’t produce any water and just keep moving right through,” he says. That’s where the silver iodide comes in. Tilley says it’s the right size and shape to help snowflakes form. Cloud seeding only works in certain conditions: cold temperatures with the right wind direction and cloud types. But over a season, Tilley says it can make a difference. “What we find is a range of anywhere between eight and 15 percent increase in water,” he says. The silver iodide eventually ends up in the local environment, where some worry it’s a contaminant, though Tilley says tests show it’s only a trace amount. Cloud seeding has been used for six decades in California. In the early days, it was closer to “magical thinking,” an idea Tilley says has stuck around. “We get voodoo,” he says. “We get Dr. Frankenstein. We get all sorts of things. But we’ve been able to refine the technology.” No Silver Bullet “For a long time there’s been hope that we could somehow figure out of a way to squeeze more water out of nature,” says Peter Gleick, president of The Pacific Institute, a water policy think tank. Gleick says the problem with cloud seeding is that it’s tough to measure or verify how much water it produces and if it’s worth the investment. A review by the National Academy of Sciences in 2003 found that more research needs to be done to prove its effectiveness. “But even more importantly, it’s limited no matter what,” says Gleick. “We get a certain number of clouds with moisture in them. If we can wring a little more out of those clouds, that’s sort of the idea behind cloud seeding. But we’re not going to wring a lot more out of those clouds. “So it’s not a silver bullet,” he says. “There is no silver bullet for California’s water problems.” Nine other western states also use cloud seeding, where it’s commonly done with airplanes. The Desert Research Institute is also looking into using drones, potentially cutting the cost of flights. Across California, water agencies and utilities spend $3-to-5 million a year on seeding, which is estimated to boost runoff by around four percent. That might not sound like much, but these days when every drop counts, Jeff Tilley says cloud seeding getting a second wind. “I think for the entire Intermountain West, it’s becoming more important,” he says. “It’s not going to be the whole answer but it can be one tool in the toolkit and it’s a cost-effective one.” Snowstorms from Dust Storms Improving cloud seeding may depend on scientists unraveling something that’s still mysterious: what exactly makes it rain? “It’s incredibly complicated,” says Kim Prather, who studies atmospheric chemistry at the University of California-San Diego. Prather wanted to know why some clouds produce snow in the Sierra Nevada and others don’t. So, she and her team flew an airplane through the clouds, testing them to see what kinds of tiny particles were forming snowflakes. What she found was a big surprise. On snowy days, the clouds contained dust from a faraway source. “Dust had made its way across the Pacific, clear from Asia and even Africa, the Middle East where there are these big dust storms,” she says. “Takes about 7-to-10 days to get here, but it makes it. It’s not a lot of dust. It’s just the right amount of dust that seeds the very top of the clouds.” Prather says that type of dust can boost snowfall, but other kinds of particles seem to have the opposite effect. Air pollution, from California sources and all the way from Asia, could be adding too many tiny cloud seeds. “There’s only so much water available and in order to get rain, you have to have big enough droplets for them to fall. The more seeds you have, you have many more tiny droplets. If you have too many seeds, you’re not going to get precipitation out of that cloud.” “Potentially it’s us affecting our own water supply,” she says. “Potentially it’s stuff coming from much farther away and to be able to sort that out, we’re just at the tip of the iceberg.” Prather says understanding that process could improve cloud-seeding techniques or show when it may not be effective, something that could be key as California relies more than ever on every last raindrop.AUSTIN — Two of Texas’ most powerful business leaders have mounted a late-hour push to derail an anti-illegal-immigration bill in the Legislature’s special session. Houston homebuilder Bob Perry and HEB/Central Market grocery chieftain Charles Butt applied pressure Thursday to members of a House panel to block the “sanctuary cities” measure that would let police officers ask anyone they stop about their residency status. The Senate-passed bill faces a crucial hearing Monday before the House State Affairs Committee. The special session must end by Wednesday night. On Thursday, Austin superlobbyist Neal “Buddy” Jones Jr. of HillCo Partners, which represents Perry Homes and HEB, urged committee members not to pass the bill. “Just want to tell you that Charles Butt and Bob Perry have asked me to call every member of State Affairs and ask them not to pass the sanctuary city bill,” Jones wrote in an email to Rep. Pete Gallego, D-Alpine. House Democrats released the email to The Dallas Morning News. “They think it is very bad for Texas,” Jones said, encouraging Gallego, an opponent of the bill, to inform his committee colleagues “that these two giants of Texas business are concerned that this is taking Texas in the wrong direction.” Asked to elaborate on Perry’s and Butt’s concerns about the bill, Jones declined. House bill sponsor Rep. Burt Solomons of Carrollton said grassroots Republicans favor the measure, which he said merely would outlaw official interference with immigration law enforcement. “You shouldn’t get to pick and choose which federal laws you abide by,” he said. “These big businessmen all of a sudden think we shouldn’t have any type of sanctuary city legislation. Well, where were they for six months?” Gov. Rick Perry added the bill to the special session’s agenda, and Bob Perry — no relation — has been his biggest political contributor for many years. Bob Perry, owner of Perry Homes, and Butt, chairman and chief executive of HEB Grocery Co. LP, were ranked by Texans for Public Justice as No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, among givers to legislative candidates in the 2008 cycle. Perry forked over nearly $5.1 million, while Butt gave nearly $2.2 million. The bill, which Democrats say could lead to racial profiling, would prevent cities or counties from having a policy to prevent police from questioning people they detain or arrest about their immigration status. If a locality tried to limit such questioning, any citizen could file a complaint with the attorney general, which could lead to a cutoff of state funding. The bill also would require those obtaining driver’s licenses to provide proof of citizenship or a legal visa.Todd Lawson's Pet Sweep comes with four dust boots that will fit most paws. Just slip them on their paws and the micro fiber strands will pick up dust, insects and hair (most likely their own) wherever they walk! They’re the boxes for screamingly funny, hilariously awful, but scarily plausible products that don’t really exist. The photography, typography and layout of these boxes are perfect. I mean, they look exactly like the cheesiest products you’d buy from TV infomercials. Anyway, the point is that you put people’s real presents inside the empty Prank Pack boxes. Then, when they unwrap their gifts, you get that delicious moment of watching their faces as they struggle to be tactful. They think you’ve just given them the all-time turkey of presents. Once they figure out that it’s just a satirical prank, there’s even more laughter — and then gratitude for the much more thoughtful present you’ve stashed inside. Measures 11.25" wide x 9" tall x 3.25" deep (about the size of a giant phone book). Made in the USA! Brought to you by Prank-OWedding gowns are special and become a part of all the memories that a bride weaves on her wedding day. There are a variety of gowns present in the market, which may range from mermaid-skirts to lace-like details. But, there are many who pick up the unusual ones just to look different and make sure their wedding attire has a little edge. Some of them prove to be a real disaster and put the bride in bad light. Below is a list of eight disastrous wedding dresses that you will hate to wear. 1. LED lights Wedding Gown LED lights are a great way to brighten up homes in an eco-friendly way and definitely not meant to be used as an ornamentation option for a wedding dress. 300 lights have been randomly placed on this Illuminated Bridal Gown, which make the wedding gown look all the more hideous. But, if you live in an area where electricity supply is questionable then this dress will definitely serve as a backup to illuminate the wedding venue. We agree that a bride should shine on her wedding day, but definitely not like this. 2. Long Train Wedding Dress The train of a wedding gown lends elegance, but the same can’t be said for a gown that has a train running for a few kilometers. The wedding dress sure looks funny as it looks the whole guest list is busy making sure that the train walks down the aisle with the bride. 3. Sultry Wedding Dress This wedding gown leaves no imagination for human mind. It looks as if strips of cloth have been placed just to hide what is necessary. In this case, wardrobe malfunction chances are quite high. The wedding gown is quite bold and will make the bride look very cheesy. 4. Toilet Paper Wedding Dress Bringing toilet papers out of the bathroom and directly inside a wedding venue is Cheap Chic Weddings. They host the Annual Toilet Paper Wedding Dress Competition, which sees a lot of creative entries. These gowns look like any other wedding dress at first, but are definitely delicate. But, what happens if it is an outdoor wedding and the bride dons a toilet paper dress while it starts pouring? Oops! I guess then it will be best to flush it down the drain. 5. White Balloon Wedding Gown If you thought that balloons were only meant for children and decorating different venues, then have a look at the Balloon Wedding Gowns. The dresses are made using balloons of various sizes and all in the color white. The bride will have to make sure that she keeps away from pointy things or else the gown will go pop-pop in no time. I wonder what happens if these balloons are filled with helium gas? 6. Swimsuit Wedding Dress How ugly can a wedding dress get? Well, here is a perfect example, which will definitely make a bride the center of attracting but for all the wrong reasons. The plunging neckline and shortness will leave guests stunned and the bride has to be bold enough to wear something like this. 7. Cake Wedding Gown Here is a great way to cut down expenses on your wedding. Why not wear a wedding dress that is actually a cake? This will definitely kill two birds with one stone. The idea sure sounds palatable, but is quite sticky. Who would like to see his bride getting eaten up by guests as they run to get a slice of the wedding cake? 8. Condom Wedding Gown Here is a unique gown made with 12,500 condoms. The condoms were stitched together after individually coloring them. It will be a perfect pick if someone plans to get married on World AIDS Day and pass the message, but honestly it is weirdest of the lot.A New Democrat MP who is president and co-owner of a renewable energy business has been using his parliamentary privilege to have the federal government document all of its spending on green energy since 2006. Northwest Territories NDP member of Parliament Dennis Bevington just received back from the government a response to his written request for all federal departments to identify their spending on “the development and use of renewable energy for each year between 2006 and 2014,” broken down by provinces and territories, and by program. The Conservatives say the optics are poor and that Bevington could be in a potential conflict. Bevington argues there’s no conflict. The government’s response to Bevington’s question cost potentially tens of thousands of dollars, producing a 181-page document (in English and French) from dozens of federal departments and agencies. It spelled out tens of millions of dollars in spending on renewable energy projects in provinces and territories. Conflict with getting historical records of the investment in renewable energy by the government of Canada? How would you make that leap, even if I had a business doing a lot of work in that field, but I’m not The response was general, explaining spending on dozens of programs such as the “Biofuels Opportunities For Producers Initiative,” the “EcoENERGY Innovation Initiative” and the “Renewable Fuels Strategy.” Bevington is the president of Stand Alone Energy Systems Ltd., a renewable energy business, and also holds a 50% interest in the company, according to his disclosure filing with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. He is also the NDP critic for the Arctic Council and Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency; sits on the House of Commons environment and sustainable development committee; and has been a longtime advocate for renewable energy. Bevington said he asked for the government’s spending on renewable energy because it is critical for the Northwest Territories’ future and hopes of addressing high energy prices. He said he was looking to identify trends in federal spending on the file. For example, he said he has already used the information to question Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz over why his department’s spending on renewable energy “cratered” in 2013-14. “Conflict with getting historical records of the investment in renewable energy by the government of Canada? How would you make that leap, even if I had a business doing a lot of work in that field, but I’m not,” Bevington said in an interview. “I know what the rules are.” He said he also has an ongoing interest in renewable energy, having been a former special adviser on energy to the premier of the Northwest Territories from 2001 to 2003, and now a member of the Commons environment committee. Bevington said there’s little activity in his company, which he said currently conducts about $20,000 of business yearly (including selling solar panels). He said he has no active role in the business while a sitting MP, and doesn’t collect any money from it. He said his business partner currently oversees the company and noted it has not received any federal funding since he was elected MP in 2006. He may have well had honourable intentions for his own riding, for his own purposes, but we have a pretty clear obligation to make those intentions very transparent for the benefit of the taxpayer The New Democrat MP didn’t vet his request for federal department information on renewables with Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson and doesn’t feel he needed to. Dawson’s office said it will “always follow up with the Member if we are concerned that a conflict of interest may exist” but, due to confidentiality rules, won’t comment on individual situations. Yukon Conservative MP Ryan Leef said every member of Parliament likely has some interest in renewable energy initiatives in their ridings, and he doesn’t want to impugn Bevington’s motives in asking for the information. However, MPs must identify any possible real or perceived conflict and vet their actions with the ethics commissioner, Leef said. “These are just good examples where all parliamentarians could look at this kind of thing and think about how it looks from the outside looking in first,” Leef said. “He may have well had honourable intentions for his own riding, for his own purposes, but we have a pretty clear obligation to make those intentions very transparent for the benefit of the taxpayer,” Leef added. “When you’re asking questions around renewable energy and you have 50% interest in a renewable energy consulting firm, that I think is a no brainer. I think you’d just want to clear that right away with the ethics commissioner.”Obeid v The Queen [No 2] [2016] HCA 10 (4 April 2016) Last Updated: 4 April 2016 HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA GAGELER J EDWARD MOSES OBEID APPLICANT AND THE QUEEN RESPONDENT Obeid v The Queen [No 2] [2016] HCA 10 Date of Order: 20 January 2016 Date of Publication of Reasons: 4 April 2016 S265/2015 ORDER Pursuant to s 77RE(1)(a) of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth), it being necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice, until 11 March 2016, there be no publication of information tending to reveal the identity of the applicant in relation to: (a) the application for special leave to appeal; (b) the application to stay the trial proceedings; and (c) the application for non-publication orders. On or before 11 March 2016, either party or any person listed in s 77RG(2) of the Judiciary Act have liberty to apply by summons and supporting affidavit for an order varying order 1. Representation G O'L Reynolds SC with D P Hume for the applicant (instructed by Breene and Breene Solicitors) W J Abraham QC with S F Beckett for the respondent (instructed by Solicitor for Public Prosecutions (NSW)) Notice: This copy of the Court's Reasons for Judgment is subject to formal revision prior to publication in the Commonwealth Law Reports. CATCHWORDS Obeid v The Queen [No 2] Practice and procedure – High Court of Australia – Non-publication order – Application for non-publication order under s 77RE of Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth) – Application for special leave to appeal from orders of Court of Criminal Appeal of Supreme Court of New South Wales dismissing appeal from refusal of single judge to quash indictment or permanently stay criminal proceeding – Application in High Court for stay of criminal proceeding pending determination of special leave application – Respondent applies for non-publication order concerning information tending to reveal identity of applicant – Whether non-publication order should be made. Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth), ss 77RE, 77RG. GAGELER J. On 20 January 2016, I heard and determined an application for a non-publication order under s 77RE of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth) in respect of information in connection with an application filed on 15 December 2015 for special leave to appeal. These are the reasons for the orders then made. The underlying application for special leave to appeal was from an order of the Court of Criminal Appeal of New South Wales, which dismissed an appeal from an order of a single judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. That single judge refused either to quash an indictment on which the applicant, a former Member of the Legislative Council of New South Wales, faced trial on the charge of wilfully misconducting himself in public office, or to stay permanently the criminal proceeding against him. The application for a non-publication order was made by summons and supporting affidavit filed by the respondent prosecutor on 19 January 2016, just shortly before the time scheduled for the hearing by me of the applicant's application for a stay of the criminal proceeding against him pending the determination of his application for special leave to appeal. My reasons for refusing the stay given on that day have been separately published. The precise orders sought in the prosecutor's summons were: first, that "there be no publication of information tending to reveal the identity of the applicant in relation to the application to stay the trial proceedings; the application for special leave; and the application for non-publication orders" on the ground that such an order is "necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice"; and secondly, that such order remain "in force until the determination of the trial, or the matter is disposed of in this Court, whichever is the sooner". On 19 January 2016, I made an interim non-publication order under s 77RH(1) to allow for the giving of notice of the application. The orders I then made were in the following terms: Until noon tomorrow, there be no publication of information tending to reveal the identity of the applicant in relation to the application to stay the trial proceedings; the application for special leave; and the application for non-publication orders. The respondent's summons dated 19 January 2016 be listed for hearing at 11am on 20 January 2016. Counsel for the applicant indicated on 19 January that the applicant did not wish to be heard as to the non-publication order and maintained that position at the resumed hearing on 20 January. The trial was at that time scheduled to commence on 10 February 2016, and I was informed that it was expected to be concluded within either two or four weeks, depending on whether agreement could be reached on some questions of fact. Before dealing specifically with the application in the present case, it is appropriate to say something generally about the practice of this Court in relation to non-publication orders in respect of information in connection with applications for special leave to appeal. Ordinarily, an application for such a non-publication order should be made to the court from whose judgment the application for special leave to appeal is brought, and should be made to that court promptly after the application for special leave to appeal is filed. That court will ordinarily be better placed than this Court efficiently to consider the merits of the application and to tailor any order that may be appropriate. Any order made by that court would generally be expected to extend to the time of the determination of the application for special leave to appeal by this Court. Where an application for a non-publication order is made to this Court, it is to be made by summons and supporting affidavit, and should always be made as promptly as circumstances permit. That is so whether or not other parties to the proceeding in this Court consent to the making of the order. In most instances, such an application will be heard and determined in open court. That will, again, be so whether or not other parties to the proceeding consent to the making of the order. The Court's listing procedures will ordinarily ensure that the court list for that hearing, as routinely posted on the Court's website and notified to media officers the day before the hearing, indicates the nature of the application that is to be made as one for a non-publication order. Those listing procedures will ordinarily be sufficient to ensure that adequate notice is given to permit effective exercise by a person listed in s 77RG(2) of the entitlement conferred by that provision to appear and be heard on the application. A person who chooses to exercise that entitlement need not file a summons or notice of appearance but should notify the Registry of this Court of an intention to appear. The hearing of the application made on 19 January by summons and supporting affidavit having been adjourned until 20 January, the court list for 20 January indicated the nature of the application to be made as one for a non-publication order. No person appeared at the resumed hearing in opposition to the orders sought. The question on the resumed hearing of the application was whether, on the material then before the Court, in terms of s 77RF(1)(a), the non-publication order sought, or some version of it, was "necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice". The judgment of the Court of Criminal Appeal from which special leave to appeal was sought was the subject of an order made by that Court under s 8(1)(a) of the Court Suppression and Non-publication Orders Act 2010 (NSW) to the effect that "it being necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice, [that] judgment not be published pending the determination of the trial" [1] The evidence indicated that between May and December 2015, non-publication orders were made or continued on at least 12 occasions in relation to various interlocutory aspects of the criminal proceeding against the applicant that is pending in the Supreme Court. The first non-publication orders were made in May and July 2015 in anticipation of, and then following, the hearing of an application by the applicant for a trial by judge alone pursuant to s 132 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW). The applicant sought a trial by judge alone on the basis that there existed a large volume of adverse pre-trial publicity concerning the applicant over a number of years which would prejudice a jury [2] The initial application for non-publication orders was made by the applicant, not opposed by the prosecution, and granted by a single judge of the Supreme Court on the basis that the interests of justice were served by reducing the "material in the public arena of a controversial type concerning the [applicant], which itself will bear upon the question of a jury trial". The orders only extended to publication of the fact that the applicant had made an application for trial by judge alone and the hearing of that application for non-publication orders. More comprehensive non-publication orders were made the day after the application for a trial by judge alone was refused. The bases upon which the application was refused and the non-publication orders were granted were linked. The judge-alone application was refused on the primary basis that there had been a "falling off" in relation to the volume of adverse publicity concerning the applicant since 2013, which the judge hearing the application referred to as the "fade factor" [3] [4] The same judge proceeded to make those more extensive non-publication orders which continued the earlier non-publication orders regarding the application for a judge-alone trial, and further stipulated that there be no publication of the judgment refusing that application, the evidence and submissions on that application and the listing of the applicant's trial. The final stipulation was sought by the prosecution and unopposed by the applicant and was made on the basis that "there is... a risk that any publicity concerning the [applicant] between now and the trial, which refers to the trial date, will create a link which will in itself increase the prospect of publicity about him which... would tend to undermine the operation of the 'fade factor'". The orders were expressed to remain in force until such time as a different order is made by the trial judge. The rationale for similar non-publication orders made by single judges of the Supreme Court and by the Court of Criminal Appeal over the next four months harkened back to that expressed by the judge who refused the application for a trial by judge alone. The orders made by single judges varied as to their duration, in some cases being expressed to take effect until further order of the Supreme Court and in some cases being made without express temporal qualification. The order made by the Court of Criminal Appeal, as already noted, was expressed to apply pending the determination of the trial. In light of the procedural history, I was satisfied that a non-publication order was necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice. I reached that state of satisfaction on a different basis from the Supreme Court. This Court's jurisdiction was not invoked to supervise the course of the prosecution of the indictable offence for which the applicant was to be tried [5] For this Court to publish, or permit the publication of, information which would tend to undermine the efficacy of those existing non-publication orders would have had the potential to prejudice the proper course of the administration of justice in accordance with the procedure which had been adopted by the Supreme Court and which had not been challenged in this Court. It was on that basis that I considered that the making of an appropriately tailored order by this Court was necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice. It nevertheless remained to ensure that the precise order to be made was reasonably certain in its operation and did not overreach in its scope and duration. The practical effect of non-publication might have been achieved at an earlier stage by orders simply requiring the applicant to be referred to by a pseudonym in court documents and restricting access to the whole or part of the court file. The difficulty was that the listing of the applicant's application for a stay of the criminal proceeding against him without those measures having been put in place, combined with the conduct of the hearing of that application in open court, meant that the time had passed when orders of that less restrictive nature could confidently be expected to have had the practical effect of preventing publication of the applicant's identity. An order which in terms prohibited publication was necessary. The order made by the Court of Criminal Appeal having been expressed to prohibit publication until the determination of the trial, I considered that it was appropriate that the order of this Court have a similar scope and duration. That was so notwithstanding my own inclination to think that the reasons underlying that and the other non-publication orders which had been made in the Supreme Court would be likely to abate once the jury was empanelled so as to become subject to the direction of the trial judge [6] In those circumstances, I considered it appropriate to make a non-publication order substantially in the form sought by the prosecutor but to limit the duration of the order to a fixed date shortly after the trial was expected to be concluded. Given the potential for that date to be different, or for there to be some material variation, in the interim, of the non-publication orders that had been made in the Supreme Court, it was appropriate to reserve liberty to apply. The orders were therefore as follows: Pursuant to s 77RE(1)(a) of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth), it being necessary to prevent prejudice to the proper administration of justice, until 11 March 2016, there be no publication of information tending to reveal the identity of the applicant in relation to: (a) the application for special leave to appeal; (b) the application to stay the trial proceedings; and (c) the application for non-publication orders. On or before 11 March 2016, either party or any person listed in s 77RG(2) of the Judiciary Act have liberty to apply by summons and supporting affidavit for an order varying order 1. [1] Obeid v The Queen [2015] NSWCCA 309 at [153]. [2] R v Obeid [2015] NSWSC 897 at [34], [40]. [3] R v Obeid [2015] NSWSC 897 at [65]. [4] R v Obeid [2015] NSWSC 897 at [74]- [76]. [5] Cf Beljajev v Director of Public Prosecutions [1991] HCA 16; (1991) 173 CLR 28 at 32; [1991] HCA 16. [6] Cf Dupas v The Queen [2010] HCA 20; (2010) 241 CLR 237 at 246-247 [21]- [22], 250-251 [35]-[39]; [2010] HCA 20.Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. July 17, 2016, 8:20 AM GMT / Updated July 17, 2016, 8:42 AM GMT By Alastair Jamieson An American doctor treating the horrific injuries suffered by Syrian civilians has warned that the closure of a vital highway has put 300,000 people at risk of death and starvation. Dr. Samer Attar, a Chicago-based orthopedic surgeon who volunteered to help local medics in the embattled city of Aleppo, said last weekend's severing of the Castello Road has already caused shortages of food and medicine. “People are running out of fresh fruit and meat. Hospitals and their staff are exhausted,” he told NBC News from southeastern Turkey, where he returned after a two-week stint in a makeshift underground hospital. Syrians line up to buy bread in Aleppo on Tuesday. KARAM AL-MASRI / AFP - Getty Images The entire city "is going to be bombed and starved to death … unless the international community acts,” he said. PHOTOS: Aleppo Left Hungry and Damaged After Series of Airstrikes The bomb-cratered and wreck-strewn two-lane highway was the last humanitarian supply line into eastern Aleppo. It was cut off last Sunday. The northern city — Syria’s largest, and the country’s commercial hub until the start of the war — is a major battleground in the conflict. Its capture would be a strategic prize for President Bashar al-Assad. Fighting there has escalated after U.N.-brokered peace talks and a cease-fire unraveled earlier this year. “The situation now is much worse,” Attar said. “The Castello Road was permanently cut due to heavy Syrian government aerial bombardment and ground sniper fire. Before, it had been risky, but now it is impassable... a death sentence.” He said government forces “shot and bombed anything that moved on the road,” describing Aleppo as "besieged." Attar said: "No one allowed in or out — no fuel, no medicines, no food.” Doctors in Aleppo, Syria, are battling to save lives in makeshift underground hospitals. Samer Attar / SAMS Attar, an assistant professor at Northwestern University's School of Medicine, was working in an underground hospital run by local doctors but supported by the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS). “On a daily basis, sometimes twice daily, I witnessed civilians horrifically and brutally injured from rockets, barrel bombs, and cluster bombs,” Attar said. “Homes, schools, and markets were hit. You would hear about dozens killed, scores more injured. It's devastating and overwhelming to witness.” Related: Three Syrian Hospitals Bombed in Just Three Hours He added: "In spite of these conditions, Syrian doctors and nurses have been living this way for years and refuse to abandon their posts out of a sense of duty and obligation to help the local population. It is a highly remarkable group of people, to say the least.” Earlier this week, Assad likened himself to a doctor in an exclusive interview with NBC News. The Syrian president denied accusations he was a brutal dictator despite the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians in his fight to cling to power. "If a doctor cuts off a limb to save a life, you don't say he's a brutal doctor. He's doing his job," Assad said. Attar has made multiple visits to Syria, and recently gave a heartbreaking account of what he described as “the hell of Syria’s field hospitals” to the New England Journal of Medicine. He told NBC News that the international community needed to act to prevent a worsening crisis in Aleppo. “There are innocent people dying on all sides of the front lines in Syria but allowing the Syrian government to systematically bombard and starve hundreds of thousands of people is not the answer,” Attar said.BUSINESS The Korean economy is facing pressure from all sides that will make it harder to sustain growth amid high youth unemployment, rapidly changing demographics and slow manufacturing growth.With cash-strapped companies in conventional industries expected to go through restructuring soon, more people of all ages will be out of jobs and face difficulties in finding work in a slow market.This will increase Korea’s unemployment rate, while growing costs for restructuring and welfare will add burden to fiscal spending as the country will have to finance them with debts to maintain its socioeconomic well-being.With a double-digit growth for the past three straight months, Korea’s youth unemployment rate hit a record
at MLSsoccer.com, the 11th player was determined through the EA SPORTS™ “More Than a Vote” Challenge. In a closely contested tournament, Giovinco, the 2015 Landon Donovan MLS MVP, took the top prize as fans scored more than 1.1 million goals for the Toronto FC star in EA SPORTS FIFA 17. Matchday Starting XI MLS All-Star head coach, Veljko Paunovic of the host Chicago Fire, will select the gameday roster (24 total) from the pool of eligible players determined by the media, along with the 2017 MLS All-Star Game Fan XI presented by Target and MLS Commissioner Don Garber’s two selections. 2017 MLS All-Star Game Fan XI presented by TargetARLINGTON, Texas -- After going through a workout more than two hours before kickoff, Dallas Cowboys right tackle La'el Collins started Thursday night against the Washington Redskins. Collins was questionable entering the game after not being able to practice during the week because of a back injury. Had Collins not been able to play, then Byron Bell would have started at right tackle. Because of Collins' injury, as well as Tyron Smith working through a groin strain and back tightness, the Cowboys are expected to dress eight offensive linemen for the second straight game. Right guard Zack Martin, who left the Thanksgiving loss to the Los Angeles Chargers in the second quarter because a concussion, will also start. He has gone through his normal pregame preparation without any issue. Collins has started every game at right tackle this season after spending his first two years at left guard. The Cowboys will be without linebackers Sean Lee (hamstring) and Justin Durant (concussion) against Washington. This will be the third straight game Lee has missed -- and fifth this season -- but there is hope he can play Dec. 10 against the New York Giants. For the first time this season the roof and doors at AT&T Stadium will be open. Since the opening of the stadium, the Cowboys are 6-7 with a fully open stadium. The only other time the roof has been open this season came in the 37-9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Nov. 19.Method 1: Unbridled Competence Step 1: Play really, really, really good basketball for 48 minutes. This step is pretty crucial. Step 2: Hope the Warriors play like hot garbage. This step is also pretty crucial. Pro tip: encourage Andrew Bogut and Anderson Varejao to play. Step 3: Beat the Warriors! Congratulations, you’re now in the illustrious company of the Lakers, Bucks, Nuggets, and Pistons. There’s no joke here. Step 4: Resume your traditional programming of mediocrity. “Expectation is the root of all heartache,” William Shakespeare once said, before going on to say how the 1995-96 Bulls would’ve annihilated any team in the modern, no-hand-checking era. Point is, the people of Detroit are hopeless, but the last thing they need is the hope brought on by plus-.500 basketball. Method 2: Bees Step 1: Acquire a surplus of bees. While Steph Curry has torched a lot of defenses this year, he has yet to play a game while riddled with bee stings. Based on a recent Gallup poll, 96 percent of Americans have a beekeeper friend who they actively ignore. You should reach out to this beekeeper–he, unlike his Facebook posts, can be useful here. Step 2: Unleash these bees in the Warriors locker room. It makes a modest amount of sense if you’re a Charlotte Hornets staffer, although be prepared to explain why you’re in possession of bees instead of hornets. Regardless, this step is likely a felony, but it’s no worse than the crimes the Warriors have committed against the modern NBA. Step 3: Crap, you left the honey by Marreese Speights’ locker, didn’t you? He really likes honey. Method 3: NBA2K17 Step 1: Purchase NBA2K17. Go to your local GameStop or Wal–you’ve already ordered it on Amazon, haven’t you? Do you have Prime shipping? Oh, hell yeah! Step 2: Wait 2 days. Do you have other hobbies? No? Well, have you considered beekeeping? Step 3: Start playing NBA2K17. Wow, these graphics are pretty realistic–you can even see the frustration lines steadily forming on Jahlil Okafor’s forehead, not to mention the general apathy creeping into the stands in Washington! Step 4: Get Good At NBA2K17. For some reason, a 3-2 zone works really well against the Warriors. It seems like an obvious flaw in the game’s setup, but what do I know? If you get good at reading the passing lanes, you can generate a lot of easy buckets in transition, what with your active hands on the steal and active feet on the fast break (Clark Kellogg™). Step 5: Play some eight-year old online, who probably loves Steph Curry, but doesn’t understand the nuances of an NBA game. He relies too much on iso ball and totally screws up end-of-quarter two-for-one opportunities. Basically, you’re back to playing the Mark Jackson-coached Warriors, and you can now win easily. Method 4: Move the Goalposts Step 1: Have a successful (if slightly disappointing) career as an NBA player. This sentence describes most former players, except for Lawrence Funderburke. He was not successful. Step 2: Complain about the modern NBA and “kids these days.” What with their long shots, small muscles, and aesthetically pleasing brand of basketball. IT’S A SIGN OF WEAKNESS! WHY DON’T PEOPLE RECOGNIZE THIS? Step 3: Dominate the news cycle. More coverage of you means less coverage of Steph Curry. Less coverage of Steph Curry means less coverage of Riley Curry. Less coverage of Riley Curry means we all lose, including the Warriors. Tips: In general, ignorance is your ally. Try to beat the Warriors this season, prior to their potential acquisition of Kevin Durant in the offseason. No matter how angry the Warriors make you as you struggle to beat them, don’t punch an equipment manager and break your hand. ** Did This Article Help You? YES / NO / WE’RE THE KINGS SO NOTHING HELPS Header image credit: Vo Hoang – CC/2.0 *** Lucas Hubbard is a humorist who totally wants to re-watch Ulee’s Gold after writing that bee section. You should follow him on Twitter. Share this: TweetThe West End MARTA station will get its first pop-up farmstand next Friday to showcase produce from urban farms in Southwest Atlanta. The stand, which will operate every Friday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. until early October, is a pilot program that MARTA hopes to duplicate across its other 37 stations in Atlanta. The market will also double the value of SNAP EBT dollars for shoppers with food stamps. “There’s a need for fresh and healthy food, and transport plays a big role in that,” says Cicely Garrett, the food systems innovation manager at the Atlanta Community Food Bank (ACFB). “This program allows us to test out some alternative models of how to combine transport and food that can set the stage for things to come and provide people with the opportunity to interact with local growers and outside of traditional store.” In addition to the ACFB, partners include Community Farmers Markets and South West Atlanta Growers Cooperative (SWAG). The setup will include approximately five booths, two of which will be an aggregation of produce from SWAG farmers, including Jamila Norman of Patchwork City Farms in West End. The remaining three booths will be informational and feature cooking demonstrations to illustrate the benefits and ease of choosing (and preparing) healthy foods. The farmstand will include photos and stories about the farmers, as well as opportunities for shoppers to meet with the growers.… as long as it is “aged with tender loving care.” I am often approached by beginner runners with questions on how to get faster, how to run longer, what to wear during runs or races, what to eat, etc. The main questions are usually on the topics of how to run faster and how to run for longer distances. The answer is, there are no tricks or shortcuts. It takes time to develop speed and endurance. To improve speed one does have to fine tune speed work sessions into the mix, and with endurance one does have to consistently incorporate long runs into a running regime. But all this requires time, consistency and patience. It won’t happen over night. Not even close, in most cases. In the Beginning I started running after I graduated from Purdue University in May 2000. I can’t recall exactly why, but I think it was out of boredom. I had always been very active, but never a runner. So one day, in early summer 2000, I thought I’d start running. I ran for about two minutes, and walked for about five minutes or so. I’m not sure because I didn’t buy a running watch for another six years. So I kept up this attempt at running for longer periods of time. I remember, vividly, how difficult at first the breathing was for me. I realized very quickly that I had to build up my lung capacity to sustain this ‘running thing’ for longer periods of time. I kept at it. Racing Here and There I ran a few 5ks, and actually finished my first one in just under 25 minutes. I kept running. Still no running watch, and I can’t even remember what shoes I had or how often I changed them, or how many miles I ran at a time or at what pace. I just kept running. In October 2004 I registered for my first half marathon. I didn’t know anything about half marathons and the farthest distance I had ever run was somewhere between 7-9 miles, I guessed. I joined two other girls who were training for the New York City Marathon on one of their long runs. It was a few weeks before the Asheville Half Marathon, the half that I registered for, and I ran 16 miles with the two girls. It was hard, very hard, but I felt good. I ran my first half marathon, an extremely hilly Asheville Half Marathon, in 1:53:55. The race organizers didn’t give out finishers medals then, but I didn’t even think about that fact until years later. And, really, it didn’t matter. I waited almost a year before I ran my next race (not for any particular reason, I just did), which was the Fireball Moonlite Classic 5k on July 3, 2005, which I finished in 22:10. After that I ran a few races here and there, but mostly I just ran. And ran. And ran. Oh, and I finally bought a running watch in 2006. Kickin’ It Into High Gear After giving birth to my son in March 2008, I was itching to get back in shape. As soon as I got the much-anticipated ‘OK’ from my doctor, I started running again. My first run 6 weeks after delivery lasted only 15 minutes, the next was around 28 minutes, and so on. I ran the Providence Heart and Sole 5 Miler about two months after I gave birth, then the Lexington Medical Center Governor’s Cup 8k a few months later. In March 2009, nine years after I started running and 5 years after my first half marathon, I ran my second half marathon, the Knoxville Half. I started running more races, but it wasn’t until January 2010 that I started logging my weekly mileage. I bought a Garmin in March, ran four more half marathons and started training for my first full marathon … this all occurred 10 years after I first started running. Moral Of The Story Be patient, but keep it up! As a friend and running mentor once told me: “Don’t force running. Let the running come to you.” It may not happen how and when you want it to, but be patient and stick to it. Believe me, you will be pleasantly surprised and rewarded for your patience and hard work! Comments commentsThey say age is beauty but new research reveals the fight against aging is starting younger and younger with one in five young women stressing about wrinkles before they’ve even reached their mid-twenties. A new study examined the way women from different generations approach their skincare and the age they first used certain products. Results found 30 percent of women under 35 regularly use anti-wrinkle products — and this includes one in five women under the age of 24. The poll of 2,000 women across the country, conducted by Dermstore, found that the young women of today have started using products to fend off the signs of aging much sooner than their elders, with the average millennial user starting at 26 as opposed to the average over 55-year-old who started around age 47. Over a quarter (28 percent) of women under 25 even admit that they “regularly” worry about their signs of aging, and this number increases to 42 percent for those aged 25-34 and then 54 percent for those aged 35 to 44. Mercifully, however, it looks like this regular worry begins to decrease after the age of 55. Younger women are even more likely than older women (20 percent vs 11 percent) to say they would consider getting plastic surgery to fight off signs of aging. Cathy Beaupain, President of Dermstore said: “The findings are on point with what Dermstore has been seeing in our current audience base, which shows a shift in our core shoppers’ ages — now younger than previous years — and also a growth in newer skin care and beauty categories that are more favored by younger shoppers, such as Natural.” When it comes to skincare in general, it looks like women are making use of the products out there at younger and younger ages. For example, under-25s are over three times more likely than over-55s to regularly use facemasks and nearly twice as likely to regularly exfoliate their skin. Most people over the age of 35 believe that anti-wrinkle creams work, with nearly 60 percent of those over 45 using them regularly. Yet when it comes to sunscreen, a necessity in the fight against signs of aging, younger women are more likely to make sure they are always covered and reapply as directed than their elders. According to the data, women under the age of 35 are more than twice as likely as those over 55 to have picked up a beauty or skincare product simply because it was recommended by someone famous. Over 60 percent of under-25s have picked up beauty tips from an online article or video tutorial, as opposed to just one in 10 of those over 55. The age at which women start wearing makeup is only getting younger it seems, as over 55s said they didn’t start until 15, while those between 35 and 44 started at 14 and women between 18 and 24 say they started at just 13 years old. For foundation, over 55s say they didn’t start till they were nearly 18, while 18-24 years olds claim they started just after age 14. Under 25s also started wearing eye shadow or eyeliner before 14 years old, which over 55s didn’t dabble until aged nearly 17. With all this in mind, it’s not surprising that attitudes of what the appropriate age to start wearing makeup differ as well, with over-55s saying it’s 15, and under 25s saying it’s just under 14. For younger women, 15 is old enough for foundation, 14 for eye shadow, and just 12 for lip gloss. As for those over 55, it’s 17 for foundation, 16 for eye shadow, and 15 for lip gloss. Younger women have established their regular beauty routine by the time they were 16, while older women report that it took them until their 20s before they had nailed down their usual look. But whether they established it sooner or later, it appears that getting a beauty routine down has always been an expensive process, with the average American woman saying they have wasted $460 on beauty and skincare products that just didn’t make the grade. Cathy Beaupain added: “We understand that investing in skin care can be a huge expense, and can be frustrating if products do not meet a consumer’s expectations.” “This is why we launched glow.com, a skin care recommendation system offering personalized solutions by diving deeper into a woman’s individual skin care needs and giving her dermatologist-approved product suggestions.” “Beyond glow, we will continue to curate our product offerings to ensure that we represent the best assortment that is ‘good for you.’ We believe the latest innovations in anti-aging technology can be found in both breakthrough skin care ingredients and new devices.”Photo “Get Low,” the first feature directed by Aaron Schneider, is based on one of those true stories that seem indistinguishable from legend. In the late 1930s a man from East Tennessee named Felix Breazeale decided to give himself a funeral before he was even dead. It was, by all accounts, a lively affair, with musical entertainment and a raffle to attract the public, and it left behind a vapor trail of mystery. Who was this character? What was he thinking? The film’s answer to the second question is a bit unsatisfying, which is forgivable since its answer to the first question is Robert Duvall. This means that though the story sometimes wanders into hazy, corny sentiment, its protagonist (called Felix Bush, which was apparently a nickname or alias of Breazeale’s) is vivid, enigmatic and unpredictable. Mr. Duvall, now 79, has recently specialized in small, indelible character parts: the police department patriarch in “We Own the Night”; the blind survivor speaking in apocalyptic riddles in “The Road”; the sobered-up bar owner helping Jeff Bridges’s Bad Blake through “Crazy Heart.” These contained, welcome appearances are reminders that this actor has gone nearly 50 years in movies virtually without a false note. And “Get Low,” giving him time and room to explore the crevices of a wily, wounded soul, proves that Mr. Duvall is still able to carry a movie easily and gracefully. It is a lesser movie than “The Apostle” (1997), which he wrote and directed and which remains on of the most astute screen treatments of American religion and the American South. But Felix Bush shows an unmistakable kinship with the Apostle E. F., the wayward holy man he played in that earlier film. Mr. Duvall is too rough, too strange, too capable of surprising himself and everyone around him to be any kind of type. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Unlike E. F, a man of fleshly appetites and spiritual convictions, Felix is cussedly secular and stubbornly monastic. He lives alone in a house in the woods on the edge of town, keeping his neighbors at a distance and the whole county on edge. For company he has a mule, a shotgun, a few dozen jars of home-brewed herbal medicine and a faded photograph of a woman he once loved and lost.What started as a relaxing day on the water for the Maisonneuve family turned into a life-or-death rescue drama that unfolded before their eyes. The Val-des-Monts family were out cruising the calm waters of the Ottawa River Saturday afternoon — near the Cumberland/Masson ferry crossing — when around 12:30 matriarch Lorraine Maisonneuve spotted a small, low-flying plane buzzing over their heads. “I started taking some pictures just to show my grandson… but by the second picture I thought, ‘My God it’s going down.’” The plane, a small float plane piloted by a 71-year-old flight instructor with a 27-year-old student passenger, crisscrossed the width of the river, coming from the Ontario side, and took a sudden dip as it made a turn, according to eyewitnesses. The plane was sideways when it hit the water, some 50 metres from the Maisonneuve’s small motor boat. “I called 9-1-1 right away,” said Lorraine Maisonneuve, “and my son Daniel just jumped right in the water and swam to the plane.” His partner Edith Cousineau piloted the boat, with kids Mederik and Melodie on board, and once he reached the aircraft, Daniel found the 27-year-old passenger, who appeared to be in shock. “He just kept asking over and over, ‘Where am I? What happened?’,” Daniel recalled. He propped the man up on the one wing that was still above water, and Lorraine and husband Marcel managed to lift the man over the hull and into their boat. The 71-year-old pilot was still trapped inside, fading in and out of consciousness as the water rushed into the cockpit. Daniel made it to the pilot and was able to free the man from his restraints and get him on board. Without that swift intervention, Daniel figures the man would have survived “about as long as you can hold your breath underwater while you’re unconscious.” His father, Marcel, had other concerns. “I thought he was going to drag Daniel down with him, and then I looked in the water and there was so much gasoline all over the place, all over both of them, I was afraid it was all going to catch fire.” Meanwhile, emergency dispatchers traced the cell phone call and were able to pinpoint the family’s location, with crews arriving on both Ontario and Quebec shores. Gatineau paramedics and firefighters camped on Chemin du Fer a Cheval — near the ferry terminal — intercepted the injured airmen and rushed them to hospital in serious condition. According to witnesses, the 27-year-old suffered a leg injury, and the 71-year-old suffered a head injury in the crash. There was no update on their condition Saturday evening, and police had not released their names. aedan.helmer@sunmedia.ca Twitter: @OttSunHelmerThe season of glossy, dark autumnal treats is upon us. Conkers. Hot toddies. Meaty stews. And proper dramas on TV. The BBC has gathered up its money and its writerly and actorly talent and poured it all into London Spy (BBC2), an unutterably delicious, satisfying dish served up over the next five weeks in portions you will wish to savour. Ben Whishaw plays Danny, a lonely hedonist who bumps into a handsome jogger the morning after another disaffected night before and experiences something of a coup de foudre. The series is billed as an espionage thriller, but most of this first episode is about the unfolding, in heartbreakingly slow and tender fashion, of their love story. Ben Whishaw and Jim Broadbent on London Spy: ‘It’s not a gay story. It’s about guys who happen to be gay’ Read more The great dramatic problem of our age is how to keep people apart. How to infuse such stories with tension. There are so few credible barriers to togetherness any more. You want to have sex? Have sex. You want to leave your wife/husband/children/job/life? You can, and people do, with nary a thought for the poor dramatist who is suddenly bereft of conflicts, frustration, anticipation, yearning and all the other things we long for in our hearts and our stories. London Spy solves this brilliantly and believably by having Alex (the jogger, played by Edward Holcroft) be an investment banker, a genius with numbers and child prodigy who went to university at 15 and has all his life been slightly out of step with everyone else. Danny is his first sexual partner, his first boyfriend, his first everything. “How do you admit you’ve never been in a relationship?” he replies when Danny wonders how he reached this point. “And when you do, who wants to stay?” Danny does, and for a while the two are blissfully happy. It becomes clear-ish that Alex is not an investment banker and that he gives away little of himself, apart from the fact that his parents are dead, but Danny is not the kind to worry about details. Scottie (Jim Broadbent, in fully teddy-bear-carrying-a-switchblade mode), who works in Whitehall and stands in loco parentis to and in unrequited love with Danny, harangues him brutally but Alex does not flinch. However much love he is capable of, it has found its home in Danny. Alex suddenly disappears. Danny blames himself for telling Alex about his darkest time, from which Scottie saved him, but when someone mysteriously furnishes him with the keys to Alex’s flat Danny finds in the loft an array of S&M equipment, a laptop and a trunk, the last of which contains a dead body which may or may not be Alex. He smuggles a key hidden in the laptop out after calling the police – who discover that Alex is not Alex but a man called Alistair whose parents are definitely not dead and who is definitely not an investment banker. Scottie’s Whitehall-honed instincts say that he is very definitely a spy. The thriller has begun and no doubt will be as rich and rewarding in its own way as the love story, courtesy of a script from Tom Rob Smith that I’m sure will remain as handsome and elliptical as Alex and as tender and compelling as Whishaw, who remains the most powerful actor ever made out of thistledown and magic. But the love story was beautiful and I hope it returns. *** The Rise of Female Violence (BBC3) presented by Alys Harte was a strange mixture. The first three quarters were spent on a couple of case studies – one of the woman whose multiple convictions for things done when drunk include abusing feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez online, two of violent teenagers who had become so after violent experiences in the home and elsewhere. There was no evidence proffered of an actual rise in female violence (nor, beyond a few gestures, of the possible causes of current levels) until the final 15 minutes when we were assured that “there is a slow upward trend in girl crime … women are being arrested for a greater proportion of violent crimes” and heard the testimony of two current girl gang members about their activities, which was shocking for sure, but not insightful or probative in any meaningful sense. Still, I suppose if we haven’t yet worked out why men have been committing the vast proportion of violent crime since time began, we’re not going to explain women’s fractional contribution just yet either. Discuss, animatedly, over a pint. Then don’t go out and stab someone, whatever genital configuration you sport, there’s a love.Regarding announcement of EMS shipping cost change by Japan Post Japan Post has announced that they will be making changes to their EMS shipping cost as of June 1st 2016, Japan time (GMT+9). Due to this change in cost of EMS shipments, any EMS orders that fall under the following conditions will be charged for the updated price. - Any order that had began processing after 1st June. At Hobby Search, we generally process your order after the following working day onwards from the ordered date. This means any EMS orders received after 8:30AM of 31st May will be charged with the updated shipping rate, as well as any other EMS orders which are processed after the 1st of June due to the items being backordered etc. requiring time to obtain. This is regardless of the shipping cost outlined on your order confirmation mail, and your understanding of this matter will be greatly appreciated. - Any EMS pre-orders that had been stocked after 1st June *This includes orders that had release delays causing the order to be stocked after 1st June. **Even if the order had been stocked before 1st June, the updated cost will be applied to orders that are processed after 1st June due to combined shipment, requests for order detail changes, or requiring confirmation from customers etc. - There may be cases that fall outside the above conditions where the updated EMS cost is applied, caused by timing of product being stocked or timing our staff process your order etc.Now, we understand that this change of shipping cost for EMS could be problematic for some customers, so we will be introducing SAL Parcel shipment, to provide alternative shipping method.Hulk Hogan's $100 million civil trial against Gawker Media will invariably veer into risque territory. And for some potential jurors, that might be asking too much. Roughly seven hours of questioning failed to produce a jury on Thursday, the third day of the proceedings at the Pinellas County Judicial Building in St. Petersburg, Florida. Jury selection will resume Friday, with the trial still scheduled to begin Monday. Hogan's attorney Kenneth Turkel asked a series of questions related to the case, to which the 91 jurors in the courtroom would respond by a show of hands. Some of Turkel's questions were explicitly about the central facts of the case, namely Hogan's sex tape. Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, is suing Gawker for publishing a portion of one of his sex tapes in 2012, alleging defamation and invasion of privacy. The tape showed Hogan having sex with Heather Clem, then the wife of radio host Bubba "the Love Sponge" Clem. Bubba Clem, once a close friend of Hogan's, gave the former professional wrestler permission to have sex with his wife in 2006. Related: Hulk's jury pool questioned about his use of racial epithet When Turkel asked the jurors if these facts -- and the sex tape itself -- would hinder their ability to be fair and impartial, several individuals raised their hands. "It goes against my personal beliefs, and my relationship with Jesus Christ," a female juror told Turkel. One man said that he could make an effort to be a fair juror, but indicated that the case made him squeamish. "I think the whole subject matter of the case gives me serious problems," he said. Related: Hulk Hogan taunts Gawker on Twitter at start of trial Another woman who raised her hand waded through the moral dilemma of watching the graphic footage. The sex tape will be shown to the jury, but not to the media or anyone else attending the trial. The woman said her religious beliefs and her marriage of 35 years gave her misgivings about watching it, but her civic duty takes precedence. "Do I want to look at it? No," she said. "Am I willing to, as a citizen? Yes." The jurors may not have many preconceived moral hangups about Gawker, however. Only a handful of the jurors were familiar with the New York City-based news and gossip site. Turkel, a gregarious figure and native of nearby Tampa, was a hit among the jurors, joking and bantering with them. When he finished shortly before 4 p.m., some of the jurors applauded as if a standup comic had finished a set. Related: Coming to Gawker: Layoffs and politics Gawker attorney Michael Sullivan agreed to only an hour of questioning before picking up on Friday. But the limited time frame provided a window into the defense's case. In a statement released on Thursday morning, Gawker said it is "defending the First Amendment against Hulk Hogan's effort to create a world where celebrities can promote themselves around any topic, in this case sex, and then veto how the media covers their lives." Sullivan alluded to the First Amendment defense, asking jurors if they would prefer to live in a society that bars individuals from accessing certain types of news coverage. He also highlighted the breadth of Gawker Media by asking jurors about their familiarity with the company's other sites, such as Deadspin and Jezebel. Some of the jurors said they had read those sites. The day concluded with Judge Pamela Campbell excusing 36 jurors from the pool.Learn Latin Learn Latin phrases by selecting the phrases that you want to learn from the subjects below. These cover a wide variety of Latin topics, including eclesiatical Latin, legal Latin, general phrases and proverbs and maxims. The Latin phrases have audio. Latin phrases still used today Current phrases. 1, Current phrases. 2, Current phrases. 3, Current phrases. 4, Current phrases. 5, Current phrases. 6 Vocabulary from the current phrases. Vocabulary from the phrases. 1, Vocabulary from the phrases. 2, Vocabulary from the phrases. 3, Vocabulary from the phrases. 4, Vocabulary from the phrases. 5, Vocabulary from the phrases. 6, Vocabulary from the phrases. 7, Vocabulary from the phrases. 8, Vocabulary from the phrases. 9, Vocabulary from the phrases. 10, Vocabulary from the phrases. 11, Vocabulary from the phrases. 12, Vocabulary from the phrases. 13, Vocabulary from the phrases. 14, Vocabulary from the phrases. 15, Vocabulary from the phrases. 16, Vocabulary from the phrases. 17, Vocabulary from the phrases. 18, Vocabulary from the phrases. 19, Vocabulary from the phrases. 20, Vocabulary from the phrases. 21, Vocabulary from the phrases. 22, Vocabulary from the phrases. 23, Vocabulary from the phrases. 24, Vocabulary from the phrases. 25, Vocabulary from the phrases. 26, Vocabulary from the phrases. 27, Vocabulary from the phrases. 28 Latin proverbs and maxims Proverbs and maxims. 1, Proverbs and maxims. 2, Proverbs and maxims. 3, Proverbs and maxims. 4 Legal Latin phrases Legal Latin. 1, Legal Latin. 2, Legal Latin. 3, Legal Latin. 4 Latin abbreviations Latin abbreviations. 1, Latin abbreviations. 2 Eclesiatical Latin Eclesiatical. Latin. 1, Eclesiatical. Latin. 2 Days of the week, general and numbers Days of the week, Numbers. 1 to 10, Numbers. 11 to 20, General phrases. 1, General phrases. 2, General phrases. 3, General phrases. 4, General phrases. 5, General phrases. 6 Latin is generally considered to be a dead language - although this is open to dispute while sites like Nuntii Latini are in existence, and long may this continue. And so, while there are some speakers of Latin, the normal reasons for learning the language do not normally include for the purposes of communication. The usual reasons given for learning Latin include two main themes: First, all the European languages incorporate a Latin component to a greater or lesser extent. This is particularly true of the Romance languages but it is also true of English, which despite its Germanic origins, has directly assimilated a huge fund of Latin words, especially through legal, ecclesiastical and scientific sources. A further enormous stock of Latin-based words has come indirectly from the Romance languages, especially French. A feeling for Latin therefore deepens our understanding of the origins and correct application of our own language. Second, because Latin is an old language, it retains a well-defined grammatical structure with genders, noun-inflections and verb forms which have largely disappeared from English. This provides an excellent preparatory grounding for English-speakers who can otherwise be disadvantaged when they approach other European languages, many of which have retained more of these older grammatical features. There is a third reason, which is that Latin is making something of a come-back. Whatever the reasons for this, there is a steady and apparently growing interest in learning Latin as can be seen from the website publishing news and announcements in Latin. Whether it could ever recover its status as the lingua franca of the educated classes is debatable, though, given the cost and wastage involved in translating the many official languages of the European Union, Latin in some form would be an interesting contender for the role of a single official language. Latin Pronunciation This depends on the context. Latin in current use tends to reflect the speech patterns of the speaker, so, for instance, the vowels of 'English' Latin will usually be different from those of 'French' or 'German' Latin, as will some consonants such as 'c', and the semi-consonants 'u' and 'i'. Church Latin, Roman Catholic in particular, approximates to 'Italian' Latin; scientific terminology is perhaps more continental in style. A great deal is known about how the Romans themselves would have pronounce classical Latin but attempts to approximate to this when pronouncing Latin in a contemporary setting are misguided. This is strictly for the specialist. 'English' Latin has its own conventions and straying beyond these is for the pedant. This is particularly true for the pronunciation of 'v' which represented a 'w' sound to the ancient Romans but took on its present sound after the end of the classical period. Several generations of English schoolchildren were taught to read 'v' as 'w' but the effect was never pleasing to the English ear. The speaker should feel free to follow his or her own inclinations in this matter. Latin Language Latin is an inflected language, with three genders, seven cases, four verb conjugations, six tenses... It is for this reason that ithas traditionally been considered helpful in learning other languages, as to master Latin, a good knowledge of grammar, grammatical terms and syntax is required. Some of these ideas can be shown with a simple sentence: Nauta bellam puellam amat. 'The sailor loves the beautiful girl'. This sentence shows adjectival agreement, the fact that nouns decline, verbs are conjugated, and indicates that Latin word order is different from the English. There are three genders in Latin. Puella 'girl' is feminine. In this sentence, puella is the object of the verb, and so must be put into the accusative case. The ending changes giving puellam. The adjective beautiful must agree with the noun 'girl' in gender, number and case and changes from bellum in the nominative masculine to bellam in the feminine accusative singular. The verb amare 'to love' conjugates as do all Latin verbs. amo 'I love', amas 'you love', amat 'he loves' and so on. The meaning in this sentence is 'he loves' and so amat is used. Increase your Latin Vocabulary with crosswords Use the Latin Crossword, Word Maker and Word Search games to expand your Latin vocabulary. Related languages Catalan, French, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Spanish. Resources yle.fi/radio1/tiede/nuntii_latini News in Latin - Finland. www.radiobremen.de/nachrichten/latein News in Latin - Germany. Reading in Latin How to start reading in Latin.
. CAT rate 76. Northwestel submitted that, since satellite technology is used to serve over 40 percent of its communities, the long distance network is essentially an extension of the local network. Northwestel further submitted that the current CAT rate of $0.0415 per minute per end is based on the average cost to provide all customers across the North with comparable rates for long distance services. Northwestel submitted that this leads to a degree of cross-subsidy since its two centres in Whitehorse and Yellowknife do not incur toll-connect costs but are charged the same CAT rate.[15] Northwestel further submitted that, with the current evolution of Internet Protocol technologies, the reliance on such internal cross-subsidy is no longer sustainable. 77. Northwestel proposed a CAT rate of $0.029 per minute per end, which excluded residential satellite toll-connect link costs. Northwestel proposed to recover the impact of the reduction to its CAT rate with subsidy of $2.8 million from the NCF. 78. TCC and the three territorial governments supported Northwestel’s proposal to exclude the residential satellite toll-connect link costs from the CAT rate and to recover these costs from the NCF.[16] 79. PIAC/CAC and the UCG opposed Northwestel’s proposal. PIAC/CAC indicated that the recovery of toll-connect link costs from the NCF was denied in Telecom Decision 2007-5 since toll-connect facilities are not required for the provisioning of local services. Commission’s analysis and determinations 80. The Commission notes that, in the proceeding that led to Telecom Decision 2007-5, it denied a similar proposal from Northwestel stating that toll-connect link costs were to be recovered from toll service providers, consistent with previous determinations on this issue. 81. The Commission continues to be of the view that toll-connect link costs should be recovered from toll service providers. The Commission therefore denies Northwestel’s proposal to exclude residential satellite toll-connect link costs from its CAT rate and recover these costs from the NCF. 82. During the proceeding, Northwestel indicated that the CAT rate would be $0.038 per minute per end if the residential satellite toll-connect link costs were included.[17] 83. The Commission considers that a CAT rate of $0.038 per minute per end is reasonable for Northwestel, and approves this CAT rate effective 1 January 2012. SIPs 84. During the proceeding, Northwestel proposed two SIPs: 1) the provision of enhanced calling features, and 2) the replacement of a subscriber radio access network (SR500 system). Northwestel also proposed that, since these two SIPs were not economically viable, they should be funded from the NCF. 85. Northwestel proposed a two-year SIP to provide enhanced calling features to the 29 communities which do not currently have these services. The plan would require an initial total capital investment of $2.6 million to replace three switches and upgrade the remaining switches, and an annual subsidy of $421,000 from the NCF. 86. Northwestel submitted that privacy call features are of particular importance to citizens in remote communities, and that over the years the company has received numerous letters from community leaders requesting access to call display, largely due to issues within the community related to abusive calling.[18] 87. Northwestel also proposed a SIP to replace the SR500 system, which provides service in the Halfway River Valley and other rural areas in Northern British Columbia. Northwestel submitted that the replacement of the SR500 system would require an estimated $3.9 million in capital investment and an annual subsidy of $581,000 from the NCF. 88. Northwestel submitted that the current radio system does not comply with Industry Canada’s Spectrum Utilization Policy as some of the radio frequencies used by this network are in a spectrum block that has been reallocated by Industry Canada. Northwestel stated that it could be forced to abandon these frequencies at any time, with limited notice. Northwestel further submitted that the equipment is manufacturer discontinued and unsupported. 89. The GNWT, YG, the UCG, and several small northern communities generally supported Northwestel’s proposed SIPs. The GNWT and YG submitted that the availability of enhanced calling features is essential to meeting the basic telecommunications requirements of northerners and Northwestel should be directed to undertake the proposed expansion regardless of whether a further subsidy is provided. 90. GNWT submitted that, consistent with previous Commission decisions, it would be appropriate that these SIPs receive subsidy funding. However, YG submitted that the enhanced calling features proposal fell short of providing customers with access to comparable services in the South, since not all customers would have access to voice mail and because the calling features would only be available locally. YG also submitted that there is nothing in Northwestel’s evidence to indicate why provisions were not made, through network planning, to replace the SR500 system facilities at the end of their scheduled life. 91. PIAC/CAC submitted that any cost estimates in relation to new SIPs should be carefully assessed to ensure that there are no costs included that are properly funded through Northwestel’s normal capital expenditure plan for replacing existing equipment. TCC submitted that the proposed SIPs should be denied on the basis that the initiatives should be completed and funded as part of Northwestel’s capital plan and should not be funded by the NCF. Commission’s analysis and determinations 92. The Commission acknowledges that the proposed SIPs are important initiatives to maintain a minimum level of service for customers and to provide beneficial services, especially regarding privacy features. 93. However, the Commission considers that Northwestel currently receives adequate compensation through service rates and subsidy for the switches serving the 29 communities. The Commission further considers that, given that the SR500 system had become obsolete and the system no longer complies with Industry Canada’s Spectrum Utilization Policy, the company should have had a plan in place several years ago for the appropriate capital investments to replace this system. The Commission is of the view that Northwestel has the flexibility to manage its modernization/replacement programs to appropriately prioritize these expenditures. 94. Accordingly, the Commission finds that the proposed SIPs should be part of Northwestel's regular capital plan and should not be funded by other telecommunications service providers via the NCF. 95. In light of the foregoing, the Commission denies Northwestel's request for supplemental funding from the NCF for the proposed SIPs regarding (a) the 29 communities that do not have enhanced calling features, and (b) the SR500 system. 96. The Commission notes that, during the proceeding, six of the 29 communities had filed comments requesting that enhanced calling features, such as call display, be provided to address privacy and safety concerns.[19] Notwithstanding the denial of SIP funding from the NCF, the Commission expects that Northwestel will make the enhanced calling features available to these six communities within six months of the date of this decision. The company is required to include details of these projects, as well as the provision of enhanced calling features to the remaining 23 communities, and the replacement of the SR500 system in its modernization plan discussed earlier in this decision. Residential PES subsidy in Band H1 97. In Telecom Decision 2007-5, the Commission approved a two-band structure for Northwestel. Its wire centres in Whitehorse and Yellowknife were grouped into one band consisting of wire centres having total NAS greater than 8,000 and designated as Band D, a non-HCSA band. All of its other wire centres were grouped together into one band and designated as Band H1, an HCSA band. 98. The Commission further determined that Northwestel’s subsidy would be calculated on a subsidy per residential NAS basis. The basic components of Northwestel’s calculation are (a) the cost of providing service in Band H1 plus a 15 percent markup to cover fixed and common costs less (b) the residential local rate charged to customers plus a fixed implicit contribution target amount of $4 per NAS per month from other local services. Band H1 residential PES costs 99. Currently, the subsidy for providing residential service in Band H1 is calculated using an approved cost of $65.35 per NAS per month.[20] 100. In Northwestel’s initial submission, the company filed proposed residential Phase II PES costs for Band H1 of $72.26 per NAS per month.[21] Northwestel subsequently amended its proposal, which resulted in a Band H1 residential PES cost of $68.30 per NAS per month. 101. The Commission notes that Northwestel’s proposed monthly maintenance expenses per residential customer are significantly higher than those currently approved. The Commission also notes that Northwestel’s proposed maintenance expenses include additional preventative maintenance activities, which are not reflected in the current Band H1 residential PES costs. 102. The Commission notes that Northwestel’s proposed capital costs per residential customer for Band H1 have not significantly changed from the approved costs. The Commission considers that changes to maintenance expenses generally correspond to changes to capital costs. The Commission also considers that Northwestel has not adequately supported the proposed increase to its maintenance expenses. 103. The Commission has reviewed Northwestel’s proposed preventative maintenance expenses and finds them to be reasonable. The Commission further considers that for the remaining maintenance expenses, it would be appropriate to base these costs on the average of the amount in Northwestel’s amended proposal and the amount approved in Telecom Decision 2007-127. 104. Therefore, the Commission determines that the subsidy for providing residential service in Band H1 is to be calculated using a cost of $66.71 per NAS per month. Annual adjustment to Band H1 residential PES costs 105. Northwestel submitted that, similar to the large southern ILECs, its Band H1 residential PES costs should be adjusted annually for inflation and that no productivity offset factor should be applied.[22] 106. While PIAC/CAC submitted that, based upon the information provided, there can be no conclusion that a productivity offset is not appropriate, YG submitted that it would be appropriate to exclude the productivity factor. 107. The Commission considers that it would be appropriate to treat Northwestel’s Band H1 residential PES costs in a manner similar to the other ILECs’ HCSAs for subsidy purposes. 108. Accordingly, the Commission determines that, effective 1 January 2012, Northwestel’s Band H1 residential PES costs will be adjusted annually for inflation. Implicit contribution 109. Northwestel submitted that the $4 per NAS per month implicit contribution amount should remain unchanged. 110. TCC submitted that the implicit contribution amount should be increased if the enhanced calling feature SIP is rolled out. 111. Given that many optional features are not currently available to all communities, the Commission considers that Northwestel’s implicit contribution amount should remain at $4 per NAS per month at this time. Band H1 PES 2011 subsidy 112. Based on the determinations in this decision, the Commission approves on a final basis a subsidy of $10.4 million[23] for Northwestel’s Band H1 residential PES for the year 2011. NCF funding for 2011 113. Based on the Commission's determinations in this decision, Northwestel is entitled to $20.5 million[24] in funding from the NCF for the year 2011. 114. The Commission directs the Central Fund Administrator (CFA) to adjust the distribution of monthly funding to Northwestel to an amount equivalent to 1/12th of $20.5 million, on a final basis, effective 1 January 2011. NCF funding for 2012 and 2013 115. In order to streamline the reporting requirements for Northwestel during the next two years, the Commission considers that the company should receive an annual fixed subsidy amount for 2012 and 2013 using the preceding year’s 31 December Band H1 residential NAS count. 116. Therefore, the Commission directs Northwestel to file a Band H1 subsidy calculation by 31 March of each year based upon the previous year’s 31 December Band H1 residential NAS counts. 117. Accordingly, the Commission directs the CFA to remit a monthly amount equivalent to 1/12th of $20.5 million to Northwestel, on an interim basis, effective 1 January 2012. The Commission notes that the 2012 funding amount will be finalized in the annual revenue-percent decision. Policy Direction[25] 118. The Commission considers that the determinations in this decision are consistent with the Policy Direction and the policy objectives set out in section 7 of the Act. 119. Consistent with subparagraph 1(a)(i) of the Policy Direction, in all cases where the Commission has maintained regulatory requirements, whether in existing or modified form, it has done so because market forces alone cannot be relied upon to achieve the policy objectives set out in section 7 of the Act. Consistent with subparagraph 1(a)(ii) of the Policy Direction, the Commission considers that the regulatory measures approved in this decision are efficient and proportionate to their purpose, and minimally interfere with market forces. 120. The Commission considers that the policy objectives set out in paragraphs 7(a), (b), (c), (f), (g), (h), and (i) of the Act are advanced by the regulatory measures established in this decision.[26] For example, the requirement for Northwestel to file a network modernization plan is consistent with the objective that Canadians in both urban and rural areas have access to reliable and affordable telecommunications services of high quality. As well, the determinations to introduce facilities-based local competition in Northwestel’s operating territory and to extend the current regulatory framework with minor modifications for the next two years will enhance the efficiency and competitiveness of telecommunications and foster increased reliance on market forces for the provision of telecommunications services and will ensure that regulation, where required, is efficient and effective. Secretary General Related documents Review of price cap regulatory framework for Northwestel Inc. and related matters, Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2011-302, 6 May 2011, as amended by Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2011-302-1, 22 June 2011 Obligation to serve and other matters, Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2011-291, 3 May 2011, as amended by Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2011-291-1, 12 May 2011 Northwestel Inc. - Residential primary exchange service costs for Band H1, Telecom Decision CRTC 2007-127, 10 December 2007 Price cap regulation for Northwestel Inc., Telecom Decision CRTC 2007-5, 2 February 2007 Appendix 1 Northwestel’s regulatory framework established in Telecom Decision 2007-5 As explained below, the framework, which includes six baskets, allowed for annual adjustments based on the inflation factor[27] and/or the exogenous factor,[28] as applicable: Residential Services which includes all residential access services. Rates for services in this basket were frozen for the duration of the price cap period. An annual rate element constraint of five percent would apply in circumstances where an exogenous adjustment was permitted on the basket; Business Services which includes all business access services. An overall constraint of inflation was applied to the basket on an annual basis, with a rate element constraint limiting increases for individual services to 10 percent per year; Services with Frozen Rate Treatment which includes services that address social issues such as privacy, emergency, and special needs. The rates for these services were frozen for the duration of the price cap period; Other Capped Services which includes retail services such as optional features, digital private line, analogue private line, and non-recurring installation and construction charges. The company would have the flexibility to restructure rates for individual services in the basket on a revenue-neutral basis.[29] A rate element constraint of 10 percent per year would apply for exogenous events; Competitor Services which includes all competitor type services. Proposals for rate changes for these services would be considered on a case-by-case basis; and Uncapped Services which includes all remaining rate regulated retail services. This basket generally includes services which are competitive or have identifiable service substitutes such as toll-free service, Centrex, and special assembly services. Footnotes: [1] Rate of return regulation involved the setting of rates to recover the cost of providing service plus a reasonable return on investment. Financial forecasts provided by the company were reviewed and approved by the Commission. [2] Northwestel proposed to offset most of these business rate increases with reductions to its teleconferencing service rates. [3] Northwestel is required to file quarterly reports with the Commission which provide monthly results for four quality of service indicators (e.g. out-of-service trouble reports, installation/repair appointments met) for each of the 96 communities in its territory. Each indicator has a service standard that the company is required to meet. [4] Northwestel failed to meet the required monthly standards across all indicators 29 times during the period 2007-2010. The trend for missed indicators persisted during the first six months of 2011. [5] The cited policy objectives of the Act are 7(b) to render reliable and affordable telecommunications services of high quality accessible to Canadians in both urban and rural areas in all regions of Canada; 7(g) to stimulate research and development in Canada in the field of telecommunications and to encourage innovation in the provision of telecommunications services; 7(h) to respond to the economic and social requirements of users of telecommunications services; and 7(i) to contribute to the protection of the privacy of persons. [6] Filed in response to an undertaking at the public hearing. [7] When Northwestel’s method of regulation was changed from rate of return to price cap, its rates at the start of the price cap period, 1 January 2007, were expected to generate $300,000 less revenue annually than the amount approved by the Commission. In order to recover this amount, the Commission permitted the company to increase certain rates effective 1 July 2007. Since these rate increases were implemented six months after the start of the price cap regime, a $150,000 shortfall had accumulated. This shortfall was amortized over three years ($50,000 per year) starting 1 January 2008, and offset with corresponding increases to business services. This amortization expired at the end of the price cap regime (i.e. time-limited exogenous adjustment). [8] CCS7 is the digital signalling system used by the telephone companies to route telephone calls and to provide other services. [9] The complete list of CLEC obligations is available at http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/comm/telecom/eslcclec.htm. [10] A subsidy that is portable would allow for payments from the NCF to be made to the local exchange carrier, whether ILEC or CLEC, which provides residential local service in an HCSA. [11] See paragraphs 53 to 62 with respect to the implementation of number portability. [12] Trunk-side connections are used by carriers to interconnect their respective voice networks usually with high-capacity lines that use CCS7. Line-side connections are generally used to connect a customer’s equipment to the serving end-office switch in the telephone network, but can also be used by competitors to connect their network to the telephone company’s network. While line-side connections do not support the same functionality (e.g. CCS7) as trunk-side connections, they can usually be provisioned in a shorter time frame depending on the availability of facilities. [13] Dial-up Internet, transport, switching, and long distance. [14] The CAT consists of Commission-approved rates, terms, and conditions for interconnection services provided to competitors. Northwestel’s CAT rate is a per minute per end charge for toll (i.e. long distance) interconnection services in Northwestel’s territory (i.e. charged to long distance service providers). The costs include the toll-connect trunks, switching, and equal access. Northwestel has one CAT rate for its territory. [15] These two centres have Class 4/5 switches for which toll-connect trunks are not required and, therefore, do not incur these costs. [16] TCC supported further reductions to the CAT rate. TCC proposed that business satellite toll-connect link costs and terrestrial toll-connect link costs should be recovered through a single revenue-neutral adjustment to the Business Services and Other Capped Services baskets over a transition period. [17] See the response to interrogatory NWTel(CRTC)07Jul11-1602. [18] During this proceeding, six communities (Burwash Landing, Enterprise, Gjoa Haven, Tsiigehtchic, Wekweeti, and Whati) filed comments requesting that enhanced calling features be provided in their communities. [19] See footnote 18. [20] Approved in Telecom Decision 2007-127. [21] This amount excludes Northwestel’s proposal to include the residential satellite toll-connect link costs as part of the Band H1 PES costs. This amount does include proposed changes to certain cost components. [22] See Telecom Regulatory Policy 2011-291. [23] This amount is based on a per NAS per month Band H1 residential PES cost of $66.71 (plus a 15 percent markup for fixed and common costs), the cost recovery of the revenue-percent charge, a residential rate of $31.33, and an implicit contribution amount of $4. [24] Includes $10.4 million subsidy for Band H1 residential PES and $10.1 million to fund the ongoing requirements associated with the non-access portion of Northwestel’s previously approved SIP. [25] Order Issuing a Direction to the CRTC on Implementing the Canadian Telecommunications Policy Objectives, P.C. 2006-1534, 14 December 2006 [26] The additional cited policy objectives of the Act are 7 (a) to facilitate the orderly development throughout Canada of a telecommunications system that serves to safeguard, enrich and strengthen the social and economic fabric of Canada and its regions; 7 (c) to enhance the efficiency and competitiveness, at the national and international levels, of Canadian telecommunications; and 7 (f) to foster increased reliance on market forces for the provision of telecommunications services and to ensure that regulation, where required, is efficient and effective. [27] The inflation factor is the gross domestic product – price index (GDP-PI), which is a measure of the national output price change published by Statistics Canada. [28] Exogenous events or initiatives satisfy the following criteria: (a) they are legislative, judicial, or administrative actions which are beyond the control of the company; (b) they are addressed specifically to the telecommunications industry; and (c) they have a material impact on the company. Adjustments to the price cap for such events are represented by the exogenous factor. [29] Specifically, the weighted-average price of all the services in the Other Capped Services basket cannot increase on an annual basis. Northwestel is permitted to increase rates for services in this basket to match the rate for the same service provided by another ILEC. For rate increases beyond this level, or for rate decreases, a cost study is required in order to justify the proposed rates.Lethbridge Police have charged a convicted sex offender in an attack on a 15 year old Lethbridge girl. Police believe the 59 year old man entered a north side home through a basement door Monday morning sometime between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. and found the victim asleep. Investigators say the man took steps to prevent her from screaming and waking up the other members of her family and then proceeded to sexually assault her. Police say multiple officers responded to the home around 5:00 a.m. after receiving a 9-1-1 call. They cordoned off the area and just before 5:30 a.m. they found a man matching the description and arrested him without incident. Darral Gerard Courtoreille faces several charges including sexual assault and sexual interference. Courtoreille has a violent past and CTV News has confirmed he is the same man who has faced sex assault charges over 10 years ago. Back in January of 2004, Courtoreille was released from prison after serving two years for sexual interference involving a minor. He pleaded guilty in May 2004 to sexual interference of a minor and in December of that year was sentenced to 18 months behind bars. In December 2005, Lethbridge police warned about his release from the Calgary Correction Centre where he was designated a high risk offender after he refused to complete a rehabilitation program for sex offenders. In June of 2006, Lethbridge police warned Courtoreille was moving to another address in that city. Courtoreille is currently in custody and awaiting a Judicial Interim Release hearing. We’ll have more on this story Tuesday morning when Staff Sgt. Scott Woods, with the Lethbridge Police Service’s Criminal Investigation Section, speaks with the media.Caravan Joe's O-X Quiz ANNOUNCE Caravan Joe is back and he's bringing the Quiz Game along for the ride! We've got a new set of questions about the world of Mabinogi, and the world outside as well, to go along with a brand new set of prizes for the bright players who know all the answers! You only have two weeks to grab all the prizes you can, so check out all the details below! Caravan Joe's O-X Quiz Event Dates: Wednesday, May 4 – Tuesday, May 17 Event Details: Upon logging in, find the Orange Wing of the Goddess item in your inventory that will transport you to the Quiz grounds item in your inventory that will transport you to the Quiz grounds Enter the Quiz Area before the start of each hour in order to participate in that round of questions. At the start of each hour, the Quiz area will be blocked off and the challenge commences! All participants will be given a statement that is either True or False, and given a short time to select their answer. If you think the statement is True, then run into the blue O box. If you believe it to be False, get into the red X box! , then run into the blue box. If you believe it to be, get into the red box! If your answer is correct, you'll receive between 1-5x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons, based on the number of Caravan Joe's in the area for the correct area, and you'll stick around for another question. , based on the number of Caravan Joe's in the area for the correct area, and you'll stick around for another question. If your answer is wrong, you receive no coupons and will be removed from the Quiz area. Stop the numerous Caravan Joes from making his way into the zone for the correct answer with melee attacks. The fewer there are in the correct answer's zone, the more Coupons you'll receive! Trade your Coupons into the OX Quiz Helper for a variety of prizes. Notes: The Event Details in the initial post were incorrect. We have updated them with the correct information, and we apologize for the error. Players in the wrong zone are erroneously told that they received Coupons. Event Rewards: OX Quiz Helper Coupon Rewards Trade Coupons earned from Caravan Joe's O-X Quiz here for the following prizes: 10x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons : Normal OX Quiz Box : Normal OX Quiz Box 20x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons : Special OX Quiz Box : Special OX Quiz Box 150x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons : Caravan Joe Kotatsu : Caravan Joe Kotatsu 150x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons : Caravan Joe Tea Table : Caravan Joe Tea Table 200x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons : I <3 Caravan Joe Tee : I <3 Caravan Joe Tee 450x Chaotic OX Quiz Coupons: Dark Cloud Whistle Normal OX Quiz Box Randomly rewards one of the following items: Caravan Joe Kotatsu Caravan Joe Tea Table Dark Cloud Whistle I <3 Caravan Joe Tee Blue Upgrade Stone Caravan Joe's Training Seal (25) Casual Suit - Blue Casual Suit - White Cheap Fabric (x2) Cheap Leather (x2) Cheap Leather Strap (x2) Cheap Silk (x2) Common Fabric (x2) Common Leather (x2) Common Leather Strap (x2) Eggplant Seed Fine Fabric (x2) Fine Leather (x2) Fine Leather Strap (x2) Fine Silk (x2) Finest Fabric (x2) Finest Leather (x2) Finest Leather Strap Finest Silk (x2) Homestead Cabbage Seed Homestead Pumpkin Seed Homestead Strawberry Seed HP & MP 100 Potion (x5) HP & MP 30 Potion (x5) HP & MP 300 Potion (x5) HP & Stamina 100 Potion (x5) HP & Stamina 30 Potion (x5) HP & Stamina 300 Potion (x5) HP & Stamina 50 Potion (x5) HP 100 Potions (5x) HP 300 Potion SE (x5) HP 300 Potions (5x) HP 50 Potions (5x) Kindergarten Hat Kindergarten Uniform (F) Kindergarten Uniform (M) Large Nails (x5) MP 100 Potion (x5) MP 300 Potion (x5) MP 300 Potion SE (x5) MP 50 Potion (x5) Normal Silk (x2) Police Officer Hat (F) Police Officer Hat (M) Police Officer Shoes (F) Police Officer Shoes (M) Police Officer Uniform (F) Police Officer Uniform (M) Red Upgrade Stone Stamina 100 Potion (x5) Stamina 300 Potion (x5) Stamina 300 Potion SE (x5) Stamina 50 Potion (x5) Tomato Seed Wood Board (x3) Wound Remedy 300 Potion SE (x5) Special OX Quiz Box Randomly rewards one of the following items:Response to comment by Red Bull's reigning world champion that Mercedes drivers looked like "two buses going for a cruise" at the Monaco Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton has snapped back at Sebastian Vettel following the reigning champion's criticism of Mercedes after the Monaco Grand Prix. Vettel described race-winner Nico Rosberg and teammate Hamilton as like "two buses going for a cruise" over the first few laps as they preserved their tyres in the opening stages, backing up the pack. After starting from the front row, but given their tyre woes during grands prix this season, it was a tactic that worked for Mercedes. In response to Vettel's dig, Hamilton said: "He has had the fastest car for the last four years, so it's easy for him to say that. He's got it easy. "We are making our way up, we are learning, growing, improving with a car that has great potential, so I don't agree with him." Hamilton has also apologised to Mercedes for his Monaco mistake he is now eager to atone for. The team were on course for a one-two finish following their qualifying lock-out of the front row. For the opening 29 laps all was going to plan as Rosberg led Hamilton until an accident involving Felipe Massa brought out the safety car for the first time this season. It prompted a flurry of pit stops, with the Mercedes duo the last to change tyres and with Hamilton the loser as he dropped from second to fourth behind Red Bull duo Vettel and Mark Webber. In order to avoid double stacking directly behind Rosberg, the 28 year old slowed and tried to maintain a gap he believed would help, only for it to backfire. "I wasn't great under the safety car. The double pit stop didn't help and the safety car didn't help," said Hamilton. "It wasn't the team's fault, it was my mistake. I was told to have a six-second gap and perhaps I had a bit more than six seconds, so I lost out massively. "I slowed down far too much. When I came round into the pit lane Nico had already done his stop and was gone, so that was really my fault. "I apologise to the team if I lost them any points because without the safety car I think we could have had a one-two, so [I was] a little unfortunate. "The win was obviously good for the team. I hope I can contribute points-wise and give them a one-two at some stage. "I just have to keep working harder because the whole weekend was a missed opportunity." Lurking in the background, however, is the threat of heavy sanctions from the World Motor Sport Council should the FIA decide to pursue a case against Mercedes for conducting a secret tyre test with Pirelli. With in-season testing banned, Mercedes face the possibility of being fined, points deducted, banned for a race, or even excluded from the championship. Addressing the issue, Hamilton said: "We were required to do some work, we did some work, it was good fun. "Right now I'm not concerned about it, that's for the team to worry about. "I just have to focus on myself and try and get my act together." Ferrari say suspension the issue in Felipe Massa's crash at Monaco Ferrari says a suspension failure caused Felipe Massa’s crash at Monaco on Sunday Ferrari said an examination of Massa’s car confirmed speculation that the crash was caused by an “element of the front-left suspension breaking.” Ferrari said Massa’s participation at the next race, the Canadian Grand Prix, “has never been in doubt”. sports@thenational.ae Follow us @SprtNationalUAEHow far does $100 go? Today's map, which comes from the Tax Foundation and uses data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, answers that question state by state. In Mississippi, your $100 could buy $115.74 worth of stuff relative to the national average. On the other end of the spectrum is Hawaii, where you'd only get $85.32 worth. Washington, D.C. is even lower, at $84.60. The Tax Foundation offers a little perspective on how to read the map: Tennessee is a low-price state, where $100 will buy what would cost $110.25 in another state that is closer to the national average. You can think of this as meaning that Tennesseans are about ten percent richer than their nominal incomes suggest. The Afternoon Map is a semi-regular feature in which we post maps and infographics. In the afternoon. Semi-regularly. Thanks to Niraj Chokshi of The Washington Post for featuring this one.“To me, they’re an escape,” Fischer says. “It was never a conscious effort, they just kind of accumulated.” His love for the books started at birth. “When I was born, I was given a set of encyclopedias, and I couldn’t reach them. I had to grow to get them," Fischer says. While Jim would read anything, including the side of a cereal box, there are two types of books that peak his interest—books about World War II ("the stuff I learned was amazing," he says) and science fiction. “Hop on the comet, poof, another planet, another world.” But now Jim’s life work, his book collection, is going “poof.” “It’s just going to be different; kind of like saying goodbye to old friends. That’s the best way to put it,” he says. Box by box, Jim’s entire book collection was piled into a pickup truck and delivered to the Campbell Library in East Grand Forks, one of the largest donations they have ever received. “If one person benefits, I think I won. I don’t know any other way to put it. I don’t want them to end up in the garbage,” he says. “When we get donations from a person who has actually read most of the materials, it means a lot more to the library, because they were chosen because they were actually good books to read,” says Charlotte Helgeson, Campbell Library librarian. You see, Fischer no longer needs the books. After 46 years of smoking, Jim is dying of lung cancer—he’s just 65 years old. “That was a nice way of saying, ‘You’re going to die,’” Fischer says. “I have no one to blame but myself. I knew the effects of smoking. I thought, ‘That’s everybody else, not me.'" Fischer thought he would spend hours reading during retirement. Instead, that time is spent undergoing hours of chemotherapy, often too drained to pick up a book. “The feel, the smell—holding a book is an experience. And when they’re brand new, oh wow, they just smell so cool,” he says. So, as the book on Jim Fischer’s life nears the final chapter, he closes his eyes and tries to imagine who will enjoy the books as much as he did. “I’d like to see it be like that train, where one person picks up a book and a couple years later, 30 people are infected with reading. I think that would be the coolest thing I could ever wish for. I won’t see it, but I will hope for it anyway," Fischer says. After giving the books a final pat, he was ready to leave the boxes at the library. “Gives me a nice feeling. They’re safe, and they’ll be appreciated. Right guys?”Go looking for Maine monuments to the Civil War, and you will find roughly 170 permanent memorials to Union soldiers that dot the state’s town squares and cemeteries. But an enshrinement to a Confederate, deep in Joshua Chamberlain territory? Those are harder to find, and their days could be numbered. A plaque commemorating a visit to Portland by Jefferson Davis is seen Friday at the First Parish Church. Staff photo by Joel Page Related Headlines Bowdoin relocates Confederate plaque N.Y. church removes plaques honoring Lee; governor wants Confederate streets renamed Nailed to a pew inside the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church on Congress Street in Portland is a rectangle of brass honoring Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy, possibly the only memorial in Maine dedicated to a leader of the soldiers in gray. But a week after deadly violence erupted at a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, and in the midst of impassioned discussion over the removal of statues dedicated to Confederate leaders, First Parish is considering whether to remove the plaque, which has been, until now, mostly an oddity to church leaders, who have puzzled for years over how it got there. A second plaque at Bowdoin College honors 19 alumni who fought for the Confederacy in the Civil War, including Davis, who received an honorary degree from Bowdoin. Bowdoin President Clayton Rose announced Saturday that artifacts “directly tied to the leadership of a horrible ideology are not meant for a place designed to honor courage, principle, and freedom,” and that the plaque would be moved into the college’s archives. While Maine has not seen the same level of anger or anguish over how to treat – or remove – statues of significant historical figures, it has had to grapple with its own racial history when honoring figures that are significant to the state. A statue of Portland’s founder, George Cleeve, was caught in controversy about 15 years ago when city officials refused to accept the statue because Cleeve was rumored to have owned a “colored servant
was the very real danger of a military conflict that drove the Barack Obama administration to become so dedicated to find a diplomatic solution to this crisis. In January 2012, then-Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta stated publicly that Iran’s breakout - the time it would take from making the decision to build the bomb to having the material for a bomb - was twelve months. In spite of massive sanctions on Iran aimed at both retarding the nuclear program and convincing the Iranians that the nuclear program was too costly to continue, the Iranians aggressively expanded their nuclear activities. By January 2013, exactly a year later, a new sense of urgency dawned on the White House. Iran’s breakout time had shrunk from twelve months to a mere 8-12 weeks. If Iran decided to dash for a bomb, the United States might not have enough time to stop Tehran militarily. According to former CIA deputy director Michael Morell, Iran’s shrinking breakout time caused the U.S. to be “closer to war with the Islamic Republic than at any time since 1979.” Other countries realized the danger as well. “The actual threat of military action was almost felt as electricity in the air before a thunderstorm,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told me. If nothing changed, President Obama concluded, the U.S. would soon face a binary option: Either go to war with Iran (due to pressure from Israel, Saudi Arabia and some elements inside the US) to stop its nuclear program or acquiesce to Iran’s nuclear fait accompli. The only way out of this lose-lose situation was a diplomatic solution. Three months later, the US and Iran held a pivotal secret meeting in Oman where the Obama administration managed to secure a diplomatic breakthrough that paved the way for the JCPOA. The deal prevented war. Killing the deal prevents the peace. If Trump collapses the deal and the Iranians restart their program, the US will soon find itself facing the same dilemma that Obama did in 2013. The difference is that the President is now Donald Trump, a man who doesn’t even know how to spell diplomacy, let alone conduct it. 2. Trump is planning to take on the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps Decertification is only half the story. Trump also plans to significantly escalate tensions with Iran in the region, including taking a measure that both the Bush and Obama administrations rejected: Designate the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization. Make no mistake, the IRGC is far from an army of saints. It is responsible for much of the repression against the population inside of Iran and it fought the U.S. military indirectly in Iraq through Shia militias. But it has also been one of the most critical fighting forces against ISIS. In real terms, the designation does not add much to the pressure the U.S. already is or can impose on the IRGC. But it ratchets things up in a very dangerous way without any clear benefits to the United States. The drawbacks, however, are crystal clear. IRGC commander Mohammad Ali Jafari issued a stern warning last week: “If the news is correct about the stupidity of the American government in considering the Revolutionary Guards a terrorist group, then the Revolutionary Guards will consider the American army to be like Islamic State [ISIS] all around the world.” If the IRGC acts on its warning and targets U.S. troops - and there are 10,000 such targets in Iraq - we will only be a few steps away from war. 3. Trump is escalating without having any exit ramps Escalation is under all circumstances a dangerous game. But it is particularly dangerous when you do not have diplomatic channels that ensure that the other side reads your signals correctly and that provides mechanisms for de-escalation. Not having such exit-ramps is like driving a car without a brake. You can accelerate, you can crash, but you can’t brake. Military commanders understand this. That’s what former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen warned about prior to the Obama administration investing in diplomacy. “We’ve not had a direct link of communication with Iran since 1979,” Mullen said. “And I think that has planted many seeds for miscalculation. When you miscalculate, you can escalate and misunderstand… We are not talking to Iran, so we don’t understand each other. If something happens, it’s virtually assured that we won’t get it right — that there will be miscalculation which would be extremely dangerous in that part of the world.” Mullen issued this warning when Obama was president, a man often criticized for being too restrained and too unwilling to use military power. Imagine how nervous and worried Mullen must be today with Trump calling the shots in the situation room. 4. Some US allies want the US to fight their war with Iran There is no secret that Israel, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been pushing the US for years to go to war with Iran. Israel in particular was not only making threats of preemptive military action itself, its ultimate aim was to convince the United States to conduct the attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities for Israel. “The intention,” former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak admitted to the Israeli paper Ynet in July of this year, “was both to make the Americans increase sanctions and to carry out the operation.” While the Israeli security establishment today opposes killing the nuclear deal (Barak himself said as much in an interview with the New York Times this week), there are no indications that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has changed his mind on this matter. He has called on Trump to “fix or nix” the deal, though his criteria for how to fix the deal is so unrealistic it virtually ensures the deal will collapse - which in turn would put the US on a path to war with Iran. The only person who arguably has a worse sense of judgement than Trump is Netanyahu. After all, this is what he told US lawmakers in 2002 as he lobbied them to invade Iraq: ”If you take out Saddam, Saddam’s regime, I guarantee you that it will have enormous positive reverberations on the region.” 5. Trump’s donors are obsessed with starting war with Iran Some have suggested that Trump is pursuing the decertification of the Iran deal ― in spite of the near consensus advice of his top advisors to not go down this path - as a result of pressure from his base. But there is no evidence that his base cares much about this issue. Rather, as Eli Clifton meticulously had documented, the most dedicated force behind Trump’s obsession with killing the Iran deal is not his base, but a tiny group of top Republican donors. “A small number of his biggest campaign and legal defense donors have made extreme comments about Iran and, in at least one case, advocated for the use of a nuclear weapon against the Islamic Republic,” Clifton wrote last month. The billionaire Home Depot founder Bernard Marcus, for instance, has given Trump $101,700 to help pay Trump and Donald Trump Jr.’s legal fees following the probe into Russian election interference. Hedge-fund billionaire Paul Singer is another major donor to pro-war groups in Washington who Trump has relied upon for financial support. The most famous billionaire donor, of course, is Sheldon Adelson who has contributed $35 million to pro-Trump Super PAC Future 45. All of these donors have pushed for war with Iran, though only Adelson has gone as far as to suggest the US should strike Iran with nuclear weapons as a negotiating tactic.THE domestic life of drag queens is being explored in a new show for children aged 7-13 that hopes to celebrate difference and promote tolerance in pre-teens before the rot of homophobic and transphobic ideas take root. “People might say that children are too young to be exposed to this kind of talk,” says writer Sian Ní Mhuirí, “but the truth is that they are taught gender roles since before primary school – through the media, ‘boys’ and ‘girls’ toys, and through Panto Dames, who we are told are figures of fun, something to laugh at. They don’t know about sexuality, but they do already know about gay and it being a bad word. “Homophobic bullying starts young. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) characters are nearly completely absent from children’s media, so depicting the home life and experiences of families with LGBT members is a rare and valuable thing. How can we expect our children to grow up without discomfort towards them when we hide their stories from view?” Starring one of the original troika of drag queens who changed Irish society in the early ’90s, Veda Beaux Reeves, Aunty Ben is a sweet traditional play about over coming adversity, where a young girl, Tracy, brings her school friends home to meet her “Aunty Ben”, not realising that having an uncle who wears dresses and imitates celebrities for a living is not what Irish society would consider the norm. “It’s not just about trying to dissuade kids from being homophobic, it’s about celebrating change,” says Sian. “And there is some beautiful parallels with a child’s own life. Their job is about play and dress up. They’re comedians, they’re artists and they are extremely creative, even if not everybody likes it. Their very being is strength. They’ve been through adversity but are still positive characters.” “I was horrifically bullied when I was a child,” says Veda, who is so committed to the project she is returning home from her honeymoon in Rio early to star in it. “So when Sian contacted me I knew I would do anything I could to help her. I can see the benefit of addressing these things with children, in a non-confrontational way that has nothing to do with sex or sexuality.” Exposing kids to drag is nothing new. “It’s a very common working man’s club art form. A lot of that was aimed at families and children and spread out to places like Blackpool or Butlins. And thousands of kids have gay relatives, if not gay parents. This show is a great way to start a conversation with kids about that.” While Aunty Ben is heading off on a national and international tour next month, the company have also been bringing it into schools across the country, to facilitate workshops to help young people see and understand how systems of oppression operate by exposing what norms are, how they work, and why they are unstable. “We ask, ‘if people are being mean to Aunty Ben, do you think that’s alright? How does his life relate to their families and friends? If you have something individual about yourself, how do you deal with that?’ These are the questions that the whole show revolves around but there’s nothing confrontational in it. It does not promote any particular belief and lifestyle choice other than acceptance, tolerance and empathy for those that are different than us. This spirit of empathy is not contrary to any religious doctrine – it is intrinsic to all of them.” The show has already had runs at theatre festivals in Dublin and Brighton. One mother I spoke to took her son, Lewis, who Sian describes as a beautiful, feminine little boy, who likes to play with Barbies and creates killer designs for them with his granny on her sewing machine. “I was incredibly moved by it as it made me feel how isolated my son must feel, being bullied at school for being different. It gave me hope that as a mum of a non-gender specific child, he will not be alone in this world. “Schools can and should do more, but they are still brushing social issues under the carpet. They forget that once children grow up and leave school we all live together in society.” Another mother took her son to see the show so he could be exposed to more messages of diversity and tolerance and has already seen the positive effect. “I found him in gentle defence of Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst around that time when his little friend was saying that she was gross/weird, where maybe before he would have let that slide, which I thought was nice.” “We train our kids to be homophobic if we don’t talk about it,” says Sian. “Approaching LGBT issues earlier brings the conversation back into the control of the parents and the teacher, who don’t have to give out to kids for being homophobic because they have developed anxieties about an issue they are aware of but don’t understand. Aunty Ben is a way for framing the conversation about gender and identity early.” www.superpaua.org Nov 16, Belfast Outburst Arts Festival Nov 23, London 2, Chelsea Theatre Nov 8, Dublin, Smock Alley TheatreDCS World Easter Sale Today at 1500 GMT marks the start of our Easter Weekend 2017 sale! This 40% off sale includes most of our and third party released products! If you’ve been holding out for a sale on a particular module, now is your chance! This sale will last until 24 April 2017 at 0900 GMT. Please visit our DCS World E-Shop for more information. New DCS: Normandy 1944 Map Videos Although the Normandy map was built to support our growing line of World War II products, there is no reason it cannot also be used for the modern aircraft of DCS World. These two videos show one such example: an Su-25 attack mission. These are un-edited looks at the Normandy map that we believe shows off the outstanding level of detail and the new lighting system. Pre-purchase the Normandy map and save 20%. DCS: World War II Assets Pack Update Over the past few weeks we’ve released images and videos of several allied and axis tanks coming to the World War II Assets Pack. Today, we’d like to share some work-in-progress images of some of the new anti-aircraft units that are also coming to the Assets Pack.Former Liverpool player and football predictor extraordinaire Mark Lawrenson says that Philippe Coutinho is becoming a problem for Liverpool. In his column for the Liverpool Echo, Lawro claims that Coutinho is far off the level required for reported Barcelona interest to come to fruition, criticising the Brazilian’s performances and attitudes. That seems more than a little harsh, given the responsibilities piled on Coutinho towards the end of Brendan Rodgers’ tenure. ‘Klopp has probably looked at Coutinho’s performances over the last few months and thought ‘”I keep reading about what a player you are, but I’m not really seeing it,”‘ Lawrenson wrote. ‘That inability to grab a game by the scruff of the neck has been a problem all season. I don’t think Coutinho is giving the team enough. ‘As for this talk of a possible move away from Anfield, Coutinho needs a bit of a reality check. He ain’t going to Barcelona or Real Madrid any time soon. ‘He’s in danger of becoming something of a one-trick pony. Stepover from the left, cut inside and have a shot. Stepover from the left, cut inside and have a shot. And so on. Lawrenson even suggested that Coutinho could be dropped soon, which would be a pretty bold move from Klopp: ‘Liverpool are overly-blessed with potential number 10s – Adam Lallana, Roberto Firmino and even James Milner would fancy a run in the position – so Klopp could be left with a decision to make if Coutinho doesn’t get his finger out soon.’Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman: More of a moneymaking than a literary event? By Sandy English 3 August 2015 Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee, New York: HarperCollins, 2015, 278 pp. Harper Lee’s novel, Go Set a Watchman, has sold over a million copies in the United States since its release two weeks ago. It is currently at the top of the New York Times bestseller list. The book, or what readers imagine or hope it to be, has clearly struck a chord. Lee, now 89, is the author of one other novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, published in 1960. That book is set in 1930s Alabama during the Jim Crow segregation era. The novel tells the story of Atticus Finch, a white, small-town lawyer, who defends a black man against the charge of raping a white woman. His daughter, Jean Louise, narrates a compelling tale about the life of the Finches and the inhabitants of the small town of Maycomb. What runs through Atticus, Jean Louise (known by her nickname, Scout) and her elder brother Jem is a feeling for equality and fair play and a generally democratic sensibility. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird Scout (who is eight when the books opens) and Jem learn from their father and their own experiences to treat people with a sense of empathy and justice. This includes the poor and illiterate, the mentally disabled and nonconformists, but especially the deeply oppressed African Americans in the town. The novel was published at the height of the Civil Rights movement, and became an immediate bestseller. It won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1961. More significantly, the book was identified in the public’s mind with the struggle by millions of African Americans for justice against segregation and racism in the South. Producer Alan Pakula and Harper Lee on set of To Kill a Mockingbird in 1962 The fictional Atticus Finch demonstrated to a whole generation what it meant to be willing to endure, in defense of decency and fairness, threats to one’s reputation, life and even the well-being of one’s family. Furthermore, To Kill A Mockingbird came as something of a moral release or revival to a society battered by the McCarthyite anticommunist witch-hunts and years of blacklisting, “naming names” and frame-ups such as that of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg in 1953. The informer and the capitulator had become American social types that were all too familiar. Egalitarian sentiment had awakened with the mass struggle against Jim Crow in the South. Millions were ready by 1960 to read about those who stood up to prejudice and racism. At the same time, Lee’s novel, although no doubt written with complete sincerity, only went so far, or perhaps only could go so far. The political climate in America presumably had something to do with the fact that the hero of To Kill a Mockingbird was a middle class, or by the standards of the South at the time, an upper middle class lawyer. Nevertheless, Lee’s work expresses the genuine opposition to inequality that is a part of American life, including in the South. It is a deeply satisfying work that argues, through the eyes and experience of children, for more compassionate and humane behavior and attitudes. It still resonates as a simple, powerful novel that speaks in well-constructed images and appeals to the senses. Over the last five and a half decades, the work has sold over 40 million copies. It has become part of many American middle-school and high-school curriculums and inspires countless youth to see the defense of equality as a moral principle and a human virtue. The story of Atticus Finch has even inspired many young people over the years to become lawyers and to fight for justice to prevail. For years many parents have named their sons after him. The 1962 film adaptation of Lee’s novel with Gregory Peck (for which he won an Academy Award), directed by Robert Mulligan, produced by Alan Pakula and with a screenplay by Horton Foote, is almost as popular as the novel and an honest work of art in its own right. Harper Lee never published another novel after To Kill a Mockingbird, until now, and generally avoided the limelight. She stopped doing interviews in 1964, complaining that journalists asked the same questions over and over again. She also refused to write an introduction to the novel, observing, “Mockingbird still says what it has to say; it has managed to survive the years without preamble.” It is easy to see why a new novel about Atticus and his family was so eagerly anticipated. It brings back to the stage, or so readers hoped, the figure of the principled lawyer. And 2015, as a great many people would undoubtedly agree, is a time when such a figure is needed in both literature and life. Fifty-five years after Lee’s first book was published American society is riven by a much deeper social inequality than was the case in 1960. While a layer of upper middle class African Americans has prospered and made its mark in politics, conditions for every section of the working class have deteriorated sharply. The gap between the super-rich and the mass of the population has never been greater. Where is the literary or film character who will address that question? Unease and anger about social inequality are ubiquitous in every part of the United States, but find no recognition in official media or political life. In many ways, the political or moral climate is worse today than at the height of the McCarthy period. Academics and “intellectuals” line up to serve the Pentagon, the CIA and other murderous government agencies. Revelations of massive NSA spying, an essential ingredient of a police state, fail to disturb the sleep of the ex-liberal middle class, scandalously wealthy and desirous of protecting every penny. Fighters for justice and equality are maligned, imprisoned and hounded by the political establishment. However, the widespread popularity of figures such as Edward Snowden, Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning is an indication that millions of people are revolted by this climate. Atticus Finch could not return too soon. The circumstances around the discovery of Go Set a Watchman are murky. Harper Lee is suffering from the after-effects of a stroke and is partially blind and deaf. She is wheelchair-bound and confined to an assisted living facility in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama (on which Maycomb was modeled) and has limited access to her friends, much less journalists. The writer’s life-long business agent, her older sister, Alice, died last year. It was soon after that the manuscript of Go Set a Watchman surfaced. HarperCollins, owned by Rupert Murdoch, has spared no effort to publicize the book, with a massive public relations campaign, including a pre-release of the first chapter. While nothing definitive can be said about the origins of the new book’s manuscript, it seems clear that the prospect of making a good deal of money had something to do with the sudden appearance of the novel. HarperCollins has released almost no information on its provenance. When Harper Lee submitted an early draft of To Kill Mockingbird in 1957 to the publishing house of J.B. Lippincott, it was considered unpublishable. Lee reworked the manuscript over the next three years with Tay Hohoff, an editor at the firm, apparently producing a number of drafts. “After a couple of false starts, the story-line, interplay of characters, and fall of emphasis grew clearer, and with each revision—there were many minor changes as the story grew in strength and in her own vision of it—the true stature of the novel became evident,” wrote Hohoff, who died in 1974. What other changes Lee made in the complex process of writing and rewriting are unknown. The “new” novel—or early draft of an old novel—takes place when an adult Jean Louise returns to Maycomb from New York City. She must deal with a young man who wants her to marry him and settle down in Maycomb. Her brother is dead and we meet characters familiar from To Kill a Mockingbird. In fact, some critics have noted that the new work seems to imply a familiarly with the first book. She encounters a town in the throes of the Civil Rights struggle, and discovers that her fiancée and her father, Atticus, have lined up with the Citizens Council (a respectable version of the Ku Klux Klan). She is physically ill when she discovers all this. The climax of the novel takes place in a confrontation between father and daughter. Atticus defends his presence at a meeting of the Maycomb County Citizens’ Council as a way of gathering information, but, we learn, he holds racist views about blacks. “Do you want Negros by the carload in our schools and churches and theaters? Do you want them in our world?” Phrases like this, and racial slurs, have caused consternation and disappointment among some readers and critics. Atticus Finch turns out to be a bigot after all. But Finch is a fictional character. Lee created him one way in this first draft, and thought better of it later on. The book is not genuinely a sequel, about the same Finch growing older and more reactionary; it is a distinct work, with a different, perhaps less mature approach and set of problems. For her own artistic and ideological reasons, Lee shifted her own indignation at racism and injustice from the adult Jean Louise in Go Set a Watchman (whose response to the remark of Atticus above is, “They’re people, aren’t they? We were quite willing to import them when they made money for us”) to the middle-aged Atticus, and through him, to his children, in To Kill a Mockingbird. And her decision seems to have been the proper and more convincing one. Lee’s Go Set A Watchman is a much less compelling work than To Kill a Mockingbird. Jean Louise offers her defense of black people’s rights in long, expository remarks and speeches. The book lacks spontaneity for the most part, and gets bogged down in the not so intriguing issue of her relationship with her boyfriend. Flashbacks to childhood have some of the original impact of To Kill a Mockingbird, but on the whole, the book is not a finished work of art. While literary researchers, critics and biographers will no doubt benefit, the novel has been marketed by a publishing conglomerate under false and opportunist pretenses and adds little to our understanding of the period, the place … or the individual who stands on principle. Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.CAIRO (Reuters) - Search teams retrieved the cockpit voice recorder from EgyptAir flight MS804 on Thursday in a breakthrough for investigators seeking to explain what caused the plane to plunge into the sea, killing all 66 people on board. The Airbus A320 crashed into the Mediterranean early on May 19 on its way from Paris to Cairo. Since then, search teams have worked against the clock to locate the wreckage and recover the two black box recorders crucial to explaining what went wrong, before they stop emitting signals in about a week. Egypt’s investigation committee said in a statement that a specialist vessel owned by Mauritius-based Deep Ocean Search was forced to salvage the device in stages because it was extensively damaged, but was able to retrieve the memory unit. “The vessel’s equipment was able to salvage the part that contains the memory unit, which is considered the most important part of the recording device,” the statement said. Egypt’s public prosecutor ordered that the recovered device be handed over to Egyptian air accident investigators for analysis. Two specialist vessels, John Lethbridge and Laplace, are continuing to search for the second black box, which contains the flight data recorder. They have yet to detect signals from that device but have identified the location of the main parts of the wreckage. The black boxes are usually located in the tail, so finding the wreckage and one of the devices narrows the search. The investigation committee said on Monday the black boxes were expected to stop emitting signals around June 24. That would make the second device harder to find because the plane crashed in some of the deepest waters of the Mediterranean, about 3,000 metres (10,000 feet) below the surface. With only limited amounts of wreckage and human remains found before Thursday’s breakthrough, Egypt’s investigators have had little to go on. They said on Monday that radar imagery obtained from the Egyptian military had confirmed previous reports based on Greek and British radar data indicating that the plane had swerved sharply to the left, then spun 360 degrees to the right before disappearing from radar. That conclusion is important, one aviation source has said, because it goes some way to excluding the possibility that the plane was brought down by a mid-air explosion. No group has claimed responsibility for bringing down the plane, but investigation sources have said that it was too early to rule out any explanations, including terrorism. MOWING THE LAWN Having found the wreckage, salvage teams will begin a process known as “mowing the lawn,” covering the area in parallel tracks using a deep-sea robot fitted with a camera and grabbing arm, marine salvage experts said. If intact, the cockpit recorder should reveal pilot conversations and any cockpit alarms, as well as other clues such as engine noise. But crash experts say it may provide only limited insight into what caused the crash, especially if the crew was confused or unable to diagnose any faults. For that, investigators probably need access to the second black box containing data from the aircraft systems. Finding that will be the main priority, experts said. Besides the black boxes, key components to be sought include the aircraft’s flight computers which sent out error messages alongside others indicating smoke alarms before the plane crashed. The crash is the third blow since October to Egypt’s travel industry, which is still reeling from the 2011 uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year rule. A Russian plane crashed in the Sinai Peninsula last October, killing all 224 people on board in an attack claimed by Islamic State. In March, an EgyptAir plane was hijacked by a man wearing a fake suicide belt. No one was hurt. The Egyptian-led investigation team, already assisted by investigators from France’s BEA air accident investigation agency, will now be joined by two representatives of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). FILE PHOTO - A passenger reads a newspaper at a departure hall of London's Heathrow terminal as an EgyptAir plane taxis on the tarmac of the airport May 20, 2016. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis/File Photo “The NTSB investigators and their technical advisors will be providing assistance with download of the recorders,” an NTSB spokesman said on Thursday in an emailed statement. Egypt said on Monday it had accepted a request by the NTSB to have representatives join the investigation team. The plane’s engines were built by a consortium led by the U.S. firm Pratt & Whitney (UTX.N). The country where the engines were built is often invited to take part in an air crash investigation, although it is not compulsory.German parliament backs extension of military operations in Iraq and Syria By Justus Leicht 14 November 2016 With the votes of the governing coalition of the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and Social Democratic Party (SPD), the German parliament last week approved an extension of the country’s military missions in Iraq and Syria. This involves the continuing participation of the Bundeswehr (Armed Forces) in combat missions as part of the so-called Anti-IS Coalition with other Western countries and regional governments in the Middle East. The motion introduced by the government permits the dispatch of up to 1,200 soldiers, reconnaissance Tornados, tanker aircraft and a naval vessel until December 31, 2017. The “mission-related additional costs” alone for the German military forces will amount to about €133.6 million. The list of tasks is long: it includes “logistics support through aerial refuelling”; “escort and security of the naval force”; “sea and air surveillance”; “the exchange and comparison of situational information with other actors in the international anti-IS coalition”; “the carrying out of liaison, advisory and support tasks for the HQs of the multinational partners” and “ensuring the management, linking, protection and support tasks for implementing the deployment of German forces”. German soldiers will be deployed on NATO AWACS reconnaissance missions, which fly from Turkey into international airspace over the Mediterranean to gather intelligence on the situation in the region. The planes start out from the Konya base in south Turkey. The Bundeswehr is providing about one-third of the AWACS personnel for NATO. In total, there are currently about 500 German soldiers deployed in the anti-IS operations. Most of them are stationed at the Incirlik base in Turkey, from where they launch Tornado fighter aircraft on reconnaissance flights over Syria and Iraq, providing target data for the bombing missions carried out by the coalition. In addition, a German air tanker is used to supply Bundeswehr and allied planes. German soldiers serving aboard the frigate Augsburg are tasked with accompanying and protecting the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the Mediterranean. The size of the mission area is worth noting. “The deployment of German armed forces takes place primarily in and over the area of operations of the terrorist organization IS in Syria, on the territorial area of neighbouring countries, whose respective governments have granted permission, as well as in the Eastern Mediterranean, Persian Gulf, Red Sea and adjacent sea areas”, according to the draft parliamentary motion. In other words, German troops are involved in a comprehensive combat and war mission in the Middle East, which is escalating the attacks on the metropolis of Mosul in Iraq and the so-called “IS-capital” Raqqa in Syria. The forces deployed have been expressly granted the right to “use military force”. Civilians have been repeatedly killed since the beginning of the German mission. This week, the US Army admitted that at least 64 civilians had been killed in 24 coalition airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, between November 2015 and September 2016. The real number is far higher. At the end of October, Amnesty International published a report on 11 different attacks by the US-led coalition, in which a total of about 300 civilians were killed. Other observer groups calculate that well over a thousand deaths are due to Western bombing in Syria. Last Thursday, Amnesty International accused the Iraqi security forces of having abused and killed civilians during their offensive in Mosul. According to information from the human rights group, the incidents occurred south of Mosul. Several residents of the liberated area were tied up or beaten with cables and rifle butts before some were shot. Some bodies were found mutilated or blindfolded. The Bundeswehr is playing an important role in the battle for Mosul. In close proximity to the front, up to 150 German soldiers are training and arming Kurdish Peshmerga units, which are advancing from the north of the city. Germany has admitted to delivering more than 2,200 tonnes of arms, ammunition and other military equipment to the Iraqi Kurds since 2014. As early as last April, Amnesty International accused the Kurdish militias of having “looted, set on fire, blown up or destroyed by bulldozers … thousands of homes”. Niels Annen, foreign policy spokesman of the SPD parliamentary group, who campaigned for the mandate on behalf of the government in parliament, nevertheless had the chutzpah to call the German war effort a “humanitarian contribution”. He knew “no other European country, which had acted in such a way over the recent weeks and months so that the support for the already visible consequences of this offensive... succeeded”, he added cynically. “Even in the preparation of this operation”, Germany had “helped, [so] that refugee facilities were built and that the means were there so that liberated areas had water, that there were health care provisions and that the infrastructure was restored”. In reality, the Bundeswehr is not building up the “infrastructure” let alone “health care provisions”, but is spreading terror and chaos. This can be seen most clearly in Afghanistan, where the Bundeswehr has been active for 15 years. On Friday, a bomb was detonated in front of the German Consulate General in Mazar-i-Sharif, killing at least six people and injuring more than a hundred. The Taliban described the attack as retaliation for an airstrike by the Western occupation forces on November 3 in Kunduz, which cost the lives of at least 30 civilians, including many women and children. The German forces are responding with brutal counter-violence. After the attack, the Quick Reaction Force was deployed, the NATO Response Force from the Resolute Support mission, which is run from the German field camp at Marmal outside the consulate. Shortly afterwards, German soldiers shot two Afghan motorcyclists who had approached the scene of the attack and who had allegedly not stopped when warned. Instead of pausing and halting the madness of its missions abroad, Berlin is now using the election of the new American President Donald Trump as an excuse to push forward German militarism. In his speech to parliament, Annen appealed, “I hope that the Bundestag will make it clear that our country, the Federal Republic of Germany, with the soldiers that we have sent, and with the skills that we want to provide [...] is regarded as part of the coalition, that we take responsibility and—particularly in view of the election in the United States and the uncertainty that this election result has caused—that we want to be seen as a reliable partner. This is more important than ever”. For tactical reasons, the Greens and Left Party voted against the motion, but agree with the call for a more independent German foreign and military policy. For example, on election night, the Left Party representative in the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, Stefan Liebich, cheered the prospect of a more aggressive German great power politics. Germany and Europe must “act more strongly, more independently, more self-assuredly in future foreign policy”, said Liebich. The times in which we oriented ourselves to the US were now over. “The task now is to strengthen European foreign and security policy.... We will in future say a louder and clearer No to what Washington wants. It’s now time to end the pussyfooting”. This does not prevent the Left Party, when necessary, from working closely with the United States to enforce the economic and geo-strategic interests of Germany in the Middle East. On Friday, the pro-Left Party newspaper Neues Deutschland published a propaganda interview with the Peshmerga Brigadier General Hazhar Omar Ismail, “the first US-trained Kurdish military cadre”. In 2013, he “graduated from the Pennsylvania Military College”, notes the paper. Now he is closely coordinating the offensive against Mosul with the Western powers. Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.James Ryan Ho, better known as Malay, is an American record producer, songwriter and engineer.[2] He is a Grammy Award winner.[3] Early life and career [ edit ] James Ho was born to a Malaysian father and Caucasian mother.[4] Malay has produced for a number of artists. He was producer for John Legend in the album Evolver (2008) and Frank Ocean in channel ORANGE (2012); the latter won a number of accolades, including the Grammy Award for Best Urban Contemporary Album, as well as 2013 Grammy nominations for Album of the Year, Best New Artist, and Record of the Year for "Thinkin Bout You".[5] He has also produced for Zayn's debut album Icarus Falls (2018), as well as Stacy Barthe, Fantasia, Linus Young, and Yelawolf. Malay also went on to co-found his own record label in 2016, named Britannia Row Recordings, in partnership with BMG. In 2018, the label announced its first signing, The Parlor Mob. Discography [ edit ]In the 1980’s, the Republican Party became the party of National Review. It was a blend of the Old Right and the New Right,
laugh, "You see what I have to put up with." I laughed and said that I didn't think it looked too onerous. Mike started talking about some of the women who were around racing. He said that when he started racing he couldn't believe all the girls who were throwing themselves at him and as he said he wasn't one to let the opportunities go to waste. Mike said that he knew that I probably thought he used them. "But", he said, "it was mutual - they didn't give a damn about me whether I was hurt, tired, worried or cold. They just wanted to go back to their mates and brag that they had been with Mike Hailwood. They weren't really with me." I had never thought of it that way before. Mike was famous for his practical jokes. On the day of the practice Mike wanted to play a trick on Giacomo. I am short - 5'3" and today I have waist length blonde hair. It wasn't quite that long then. I was wearing black pants, sweater and ski jacket that day which he thought would look like leathers from a distance. He had the idea that I should ride the 500-4 which he affectionately called the Beast because it was like riding an unruly camel. Knowing what we now know about its handling that was an outrageous idea. But, I trusted him. His idea was that it would completely unnerve Ago to see a petite blonde riding this awesome bike - never mind that it would also completely unnerve the petite blonde! I sat on it and immediately there was a problem. My feet didn't touch the ground - not even my toes. The Beast weighed over 330 lbs. I could only slide to one side and put one foot on the ground. He asked me if I had ever ridden a motorcycle. I said that one summer I rode a Honda 50 that was more like a scooter. In a masterpiece of understatement he said, "It's the same thing." Advertisement Mike continued, "It's really simple. There are five speeds. You shift out of first at 55 and I don't want you going out of second." I was thinking to myself - shift into second at 55! "How fast will this thing go?" I asked. "Nobody knows for sure, but as light as you are - probably 200 on the back straight", was his nonchalant reply. (The 500-4 actually had a six-speed transmission. But Mike was always rather vague on technical matters.) The mechanics were worried, especially Teddy. I don't know if they were more concerned about having to explain to Mr. Honda how one of his bikes was smashed or explaining to my mother how her daughter met a spectacular end! Mike relented. What actually happened was that he took it back out for a couple of record smashing laps and then quickly jumped off. I jumped on, putting his goggles around my neck and his helmet on my head and his gloves on my hands. I pointed to the front wheel pretending to convey something of importance to the two mechanics who were surreptitiously helping me hold up the bike. I wonder what Ago thought when he walked by. Mike was in the back of the pits nearly doubled over with laughter. Advertisement It was a strange time for Mike. This was the first Canadian Grand Prix and was so discounted by the racing press that the usual crowd of reporters and others didn't bother to attend. That was another reason we were able to have so much time to be alone together. I teased him about the fact that in spite of his reputation as a Don Juan we hadn't gone much beyond kissing and lying together fully clothed on his bed just talking. He replied that he was trying to prove that he wasn't a womanizer and "besides, you're not a race track dolly. I'm going to marry you." Mike wanted me to go back to London with him. He liked to tease me by reminding me that I had said that I wouldn't walk across the room to meet him. Once I said, "You're never going to let me forget that, are you?" He said, "No, I am going to tell our grandchildren your grandmother once said she wouldn't walk across the room to meet me." I really believe that Mike was the most profoundly lonely person I have ever met. He hid it under a carefully maintained veneer of joviality. But, there was a real sadness there. We talked about music a lot. Mike told me that he often traveled with a clarinet because it was easy to fit into a bag. I asked him if he would play for me. Mike said that he had been in such a funk when he left London that he had forgotten it. But, he promised that he would play for me one day. This becomes important later on. Advertisement Mike teased me about my earlier desire to be an engineer and jokingly said that I should try to fix the awful handling of the Honda 500-4. He had little interest in the technical side of racing and joked that now he could stop worrying about it because he had his personal engineer. My car accident had left me with very poor depth perception so I didn't drive. I asked him if he minded that I couldn't drive and he said that he drove enough for both of us. We talked about his experiences in car racing. Mike talked about his fear of being trapped in a burning car. He had survived numerous spills on bikes, sometimes being able to pick up the bike and continue racing. He also felt that he wasn't accepted in F1 racing because of his bike racing. Some of his friends were racing cars or going into racing them. They wanted him to have another go, but he had strong reservations about it. Mike's previous experience racing cars had been frustrating and discourgaging. I felt that car racing was such a demanding sport that it didn't make any sense to undertake it if it wasn't fulfilling. The only thing that had really been fulfilling in his life, the only place where he felt at home was in bike racing. He loved its relaxed informality, casual atmosphere and the genuineness of the people. One day we were daydreaming about the future as lovers do. We talked about where we might live and he suggested the Isle of Man, at least for part of the year. His blue eyes sparkled whenever he spoke about the Island. He loved the place, not just the racing, but also the warm-hearted people, the villages and the terrain of the Island. He described it in such detail that he made me see it in my mind's eye. He even told me about the wee folk, their legends and how important it was to always honour them. Mike went into great detail about leaving gifts of cakes and ale in certain places. He had a passion for the Isle of Man that was contagious. It was the one place in the world that his heart told him was home. Since I have a keen interest in the history of ancient Britain I knew of the Island in that sense. But, he made it come alive as an enchanted place in which to live. He planned to show me his beloved Island the following spring before he raced in the TT. That was not to be. Honda withdrew from racing at the end of the 1967 season. Mike signed a contract with them not to race for anyone else. He wouldn't race in the Isle of Man TT for another 11 years, but no one could have guessed that on a September evening in 1967. Race day was cold and wet - about 40 and drizzling. Mike and I were sitting alone in a big rental sedan. We talked about the missed communications of the night before. I told him that it was probably just as well, because if we had spent the night together I wouldn't have let him go back to London alone. I said, "I guess I'm old-fashioned, but that's the way I feel." I remember his reply. Advertisement With a laugh he said, "Now you bloody tell me! Here I thought I was winning points by being such a gentleman. Now you tell me, when I've checked out of the hotel and the helicopter's been ordered to take us to the airport right after the race. What am I going to do with you?" Then he hugged me for a few moments without saying anything. The pit area was bustling with activity and we were quickly losing our privacy. This was the coldest day of the week. The clouds cast the whole scene in shades of gray. Ralph Bryans brought us some hot tea, which was most welcome. Mike left for a few minutes. While he was gone Ralph told me that Mike had a ritual of polishing his goggles endlessly to concentrate his mind before a race. He said that Mike didn't talk at that time and Ralph didn't want me to be hurt by Mike's silence. Ralph was extremely considerate. Advertisement Mike came back and handed me something. "Here, I got you a tower pass - that's where all the wives and girlfriends go." I said, with a laugh - "but I'm not your girlfriend and certainly not your wife." He just shook his head and laughed too. He said, "You can be so stubborn." "So", he asked, "Where are you going to watch the race?" I said, "I'll stand behind the pits with the mechanics." He wanted to know why. I said, "I want them to know that I appreciate what they do for you." Advertisement Then he said, "But you'll get cold and damp." I said something like I think we all will - and then we'll be equal. He kissed me and then he took out his goggles and started polishing. I just sat quietly in the passenger seat laughing to myself at the accuracy of Ralph's kind warning. After a while he said, "You're not saying anything." I said with a laugh, "Sure I am - I'm just not saying it out loud." "What are you saying then?" he asked. I said, "I just told you I loved you about a hundred times." He kissed me and said, "I'm off." As he walked away the reality of the danger suddenly hit me. I waited for a couple of minutes so that he could walk to the pits alone. Then I walked to the pits and stood behind the wall and watched. Advertisement Mike won, of course. But he was nearly frozen to death. Imagine 40 degrees and drizzling. Then factor in the wind chill of over 160mph winds from the weather plus the speeds of the bikes. The temperature felt well below zero to the racers. Mike's teeth were chattering and his hands were stiff and blue. I bundled him up in his Dunlop parka and he drank some hot tea. Mike could barely hold the cup. The next race was to start in a little over 30 minutes. I said, "I know what we can do." I put the lock button down on the doors. I said, "If you slide over to the passenger side and put your legs up on the seat I'll sit between your legs." He made some naughty remarks. He wasn't that cold! He won the next race too, but because of the number of points Ago had, Mike still wouldn't win the 500cc world championship. I don't remember the details but he was a little down about that. By this time he was developing a fever and a poor colour. I was afraid that he was getting sick. He said he was feeling worse and didn't think he could go the awards presentation and might not even race at Brands Hatch. After much discussion with the team manager Mike agreed to get in the helicopter and return to England. Mike had someone call BOAC (as British Airways was called in those days) and there was room on the plane for me. He wanted me to go home and get my passport and a few things and meet him at the airport. I wish with all of my heart that I had. Instead, I said that I had things to take care of, but would be there as soon as I could. Mike wanted me to join him in London in a few days. Later I told him that maybe we had been saved from ourselves and this was the way it was meant to be. Besides my work commitments my mother had a recurrence of cancer and I had 3 younger brothers — 14, 11 and 9 — who needed me. Mike said that he needed me. Everything had seemed possible when we were together. But, once we each returned to our very different worlds — Mike to London and his friends who wanted him to try racing cars again and me to the path that my near-death experience laid out for me — it seemed that our chance to be together was slipping away. Advertisement We stayed in touch for several years. I even went to Nassau to meet his father, Stan. When Mike spoke about leaving racing he said that "the old man wouldn't wear it" and wanted me to go to Nassau to meet Stan to sound him out on the idea of Mike living a different kind of life. His father was probably the most powerful force in Mike's life. Mike introduced us on the telephone. When Mike began racing Stan financed his first bike and a used van to transport it. He insisted that Mike pay him back from his winnings and then become self-financing. At least that's the story Stan told me. I suspect that those terms were not always strictly adhered to and more loans might have been advanced to buy a faster bike, but I am sure those loans were paid back. That agreement showed Stan's desire to keep Mike from being pampered or worse — a snob. A fascinating thing happened to that shy, skinny, insecure teenager. Mike, who had felt so out of place in an elite school, felt that he had really found his home in bike racing. Mike's unassuming, fun-loving personality won him numerous friends and fans. He delighted in playing elaborate practical jokes. He loved the camaraderie and down to earth atmosphere of bike racing. Mike had no patience for snobs or people who took themselves seriously. Advertisement Stan had introduced me to a number of his friends as Mike's girlfriend and then as his future daughter-in-law. I tried to correct him gently. He even brought up the subject of grandchildren. He thought that Mike and I were going to be married when Mike arrived. I had to explain to him that it wasn't going to happen. Stan was confused by that. He said something like, "I know you two love each other. Mike has been talking about changing his life and now you are here. Why did you come if not to marry him?" I felt I had no choice but to tell Stan the whole story of my near-death experience and what I felt I had to do with my life. I couldn't tell him about the prediction of Mike's death. That was Mike's secret to tell or not to tell. Stan wanted my mother to fly down to join us. In the end I lost my courage. I knew that I didn't have the willpower to say no to Mike a second time. It had taken all my strength not to go back to London with him before.I knew that if I looked into his eyes once more or felt his arms around me again my resolve would melt. I told Mike on the phone that my mother was ill and that I had to cut short my vacation. Advertisement We never saw each other again. We talked on the phone a few times a year. I could tell that he was caught up in car racing. By this time he seemed to have made his decision to stay in his old lifestyle and was racing with John Surtees. He felt that John, as a motorcycle champion himself was the best partner he could hope for to make the transition to cars. It was an opportunity that was too good to pass by. He said that if it didn't go well he would give up racing as a career - maybe just doing occasional club racing - but turning his life in a different direction. Mike won the European F2 championship with Surtees and it seemed that his choice was made. Unfortunately Mike never achieved the level of success on four wheels that he had on two wheels. Bike racing always pulled him back to his first love. From what he told me I would say that it was always the warmth and camaraderie that drew him back to bikes. He had a few friends in car racing, but nothing like the extended family that he had in bike racing. Mike felt that he was an outsider in F1. While racing for Surtees Mike rescued Clay Regazzoni who was unconscious and trapped in his blazing car during the South African Grand Prix. For that rescue Mike was awarded the George Medal which is Britain's highest award for civilian valour. You would think that would have made him more accepted in the F1 fraternity. A couple of years ago a friend gave me a copy of the documentary, The Quick and The Dead which was filmed in 1974 and 75. In it Mike says that he is lonely in F1. He says that the drivers don't even sit at the same table in their hotel. Mike says that he has more in common with the mechanics, but that they don't understand why a driver would want to spend time with them. So he remained very much the outsider. Advertisement Mike was famously un-technical. His attitude was to trust his mechanics to do their job. It was his job to ride. But, in car racing the drivers are expected to give technical feedback to the mechanics and engineers. This was very frustrating for Mike. It required learning a different language and a technical one at that. This was compounded by problems with the cars that led to numerous breakdowns. Mike began carrying paperback books to read while he waited to be towed back to the pits. Mike left Surtees and moved on to McLaren which was where he finally felt that he fitted in. He hit his stride and was beginning to have some success. After his crash at Nurburgring his close friendships with McLaren racing manager, Phil Kerr and fellow driver, Denis Hulme were among the reasons that he decided to move to New Zealand. I realize that my story may havft the impression that I was somehow opposed to Mike's racing — far from it. I would have supported him fully in anything that he found fulfilling. I have a very old-fashioned attitude towards marriage in that I couldn't imagine staying in a career that was as demanding as mine if I was married. That was the crux of the problem because after my near-death experience (NDE) I felt that I had to stay in my career until I had done the things that I was shown. My sense was that it would take 10 years - or 8 more years from the time when Mike and I met. To be the kind of wife that I wanted to be I would have had to leave my job and devote myself completely to my life with Mike. I was torn because I could not imagine a better life that being married to Mike but I also felt committed to the course I had just embarked on. If I hadn't had the NDE I would have been with Mike without a moment's hesitation - but then without the experience of dying and coming back I wouldn't have been the person he loved. Those are the eternal mysteries of life, love and destiny. I probably made the biggest mistake of my life by not going back to London with Mike. Our last conversation was in 1975. He was teasing me saying something like "Are you still trying to save the world?" I joked back with something like "I am disappointed that you haven't noticed how lovely everything is since I've been on the job." We both laughed. Then he said something about saving a broken down racing driver. I said I didn't know any broken down ones. Then he said, "Oh, yes, you do. I mashed my foot last year in Germany and that put paid to my racing." Advertisement I asked him if it was at Nürburgring and he said it was. I said, "I've never liked that place." Then he said"But you've never been there." I told him that you don't have to go somewhere to feel the energy of the place, full of Black Forest trolls and such. (Of course Nürburgring is a great circuit, but I always had a bad feeling about it. Perhaps it was a premonition that something would happen there to someone I loved.) Late 1980 and early 1981 was a very dark time. My mother's cancer had returned. I went back to Toronto for several months. Being back home I felt more connected to my old life and looked up a lot of old friends. More and more my thoughts turned to memories of Mike. He was always in my heart. I even got his telephone number and put it by my phone. I started to call him several times but never did. Sometime around the middle of March I sent him a birthday card. I had lost track of which birthday this would be. In the card I wrote a note saying that I was thinking of coming to London for a trip that I should have made years ago. I was sure that he would understand what I meant. I said that I would call him on his birthday. (I had no idea that he had married and had two children.) Advertisement About 2 weeks later a friend of mine told me that she had found a fascinating place — a spiritualist church. She said they had regular services and then at the end the minister or someone else gives messages, predictions, etc.. I was always curious about such things so we went that night. At the end of the service the minister who was a Scottish woman began giving messages to people in the congregation. Then she came to me and said, "There is a man standing behind you who wants to be recognized. Do you know anyone who has recently passed to spirit?" "No", I answered. She said, "He is disappointed that you do not remember him. He is nice looking and I think he is probably English — does that help you?" "No", I replied. Advertisement "He is holding a little girl in his arms who looks just like you — now do you know who he is?" "No, I am sorry I don't", I answered. Then she said, "He says he has three things he wants to tell you." The first is, "It was so fast he didn't feel a thing." The second is, "It was one of those damn lorries." (Hearing that tears flooded my eyes.) Advertisement The third thing is, "He loves you and will never leave you." "Now do you know who he is?" "Yes, now I know." I was fighting back tears. "He says he doesn't want you to cry and he wanted to tell you himself. He didn't want you to read about it. There was one more message that is too personal to repeat." Advertisement And then he was gone. The next day it was in the Toronto papers. His little girl had died at the scene. Mike had died two days later in the hospital. But, I believe that his soul was not in his body during those two days and so he didn't suffer. When I was able to collect myself I called the man at Castrol to whom I had mailed all the cards and letters. I asked him to return the last card to me rather than give it to Pauline, Mike's widow. He told me that Mike had picked it up two days before he was killed. He told me, "I don't know what you wrote but, whatever it was, Mike lit up like a Roman candle." Advertisement If I had to choose one word sum up Mike, both on and off the track, it would be "grace," in all of its meanings and permutations, from graceful to gracious. As to the predictions: It was "one of those damn lorries." He didn't live past the age of 40. He died 10 days before his 41st birthday. I don't know if he was the last of the group to die. But the fact that the first 2 aspects of the prediction proved correct was enough for me. Advertisement I have tried to write an ending to our story. But there is no ending. Since Mike's death 20 years ago I have been blessed with some amazing evidence of his presence. The first one happened shortly after he died. I was moving from one city to another. I left my house one morning to visit my mother in the hospital. She took a sudden turn for the worse. I stayed with her for 6 weeks - well past my moving day. I had to rely on the moving company to do it all. A month later I got a phone call from the property agent. She asked me if I had felt that the house was haunted. I told her I hadn't and asked why she was asking me. She said that the new people heard music in the house and felt a very sad presence. She said they were thinking of calling in a psychic. I asked her to let me know what happened if they did. Advertisement A couple of weeks later she called to say that the spirit of a man named Mike was in the house. He said that I had left one morning and didn't come back. Mike was playing his clarinet while he waited for me to come back home. He said that in life he used to play music to calm his nerves. I regret that I have never heard Mike's music. But other people have heard it in every house I have lived in since then. Other things have also happened that have convinced me that Mike has kept his promises about staying with me and playing his clarinet for me. I only wish that I could hear Mike's music — just once. 8W, part of Forix.Autosport.com, is a motorsport history portal. The site covers the "drivers, cars, circuits, eras and technology that shaped the face, sounds and smells of motor racing." This story originally appeared on 8W in slightly longer form on January 23, 2004. Advertisement Photo Credits: Don Morley/Getty Images, Staff/Getty Images, Frank Melling/MotorcycleUSA.Oscar-winning Director Steve McQueen has only made three feature films. However, he has brought his incredible artistry to some 20 shorts, now including an intriguing ad for Burberry. McQueen shot "Mr. Burberry" on 70mm film—the same kind of film you'd expect for an historical epic like Ben-Hur—which adds a strange sense of grandeur to the 3-minute commercial. It bears many of the trademarks you'd expect to see in a film by McQueen, like scenes flooded with cold blues and greens and brutally sexual subject matter. Here are a couple of behind-the-scenes videos: Big name Hollywood directors dipping their toes into commercial fare isn't anything new. Everyone from Martin Scorsese to Sofia Coppola to Baz Luhrmann have done so; Wes Anderson lent his talent to Prada for their 2013 campaign for Candy L’Eau, directing two "filmercials" staring Jason Schwartzman and Blue is the Warmest Color's Léa Seydoux. The release of this project by McQueen, as well as others like the nine-minute music video for Kanye West's "All Day," surely will make the director's fans eager to see another one of his feature film projects come to life, especially since he hasn't directed one since the Oscar-winning 12 Years a Slave back in 2014. Lucky for them, it was just announced today that McQueen will start production in September on Widows, a thriller based on a British series of the same name, which he co-wrote with Gillian Flynn of Gone Girl fame.The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was a wartime intelligence agency of the United States during World War II, and a predecessor to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)[3] to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines for all branches of the United States Armed Forces. Other OSS functions included the use of propaganda, subversion, and post-war planning. On December 14, 2016, the organization was collectively honored with a Congressional Gold Medal.[4] Origin [ edit ] Prior to the formation of the OSS, the various departments of the executive branch, including the State, Treasury, Navy, and War Departments conducted American intelligence activities on an ad hoc basis, with no overall direction, coordination, or control. The US Army and US Navy had separate code-breaking departments: Signal Intelligence Service and OP-20-G. (A previous code-breaking operation of the State Department, the MI-8, run by Herbert Yardley, had been shut down in 1929 by Secretary of State Henry Stimson, deeming it an inappropriate function for the diplomatic arm, because "gentlemen don't read each other's mail."[5]) The FBI was responsible for domestic security and anti-espionage operations. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was concerned about American intelligence deficiencies. On the suggestion of William Stephenson, the senior British intelligence officer in the western hemisphere, Roosevelt requested that William J. Donovan draft a plan for an intelligence service based on the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and Special Operations Executive (SOE). After submitting his work, "Memorandum of Establishment of Service of Strategic Information", Colonel Donovan was appointed "coordinator of information" on July 11, 1941, heading the new organization known as the office of the Coordinator of Information (COI). William J. Donovan Thereafter the organization was developed with British assistance; Donovan had responsibilities but no actual powers and the existing US agencies were skeptical if not hostile. Until some months after Pearl Harbor, the bulk of OSS intelligence came from the UK. British Security Co-ordination (BSC) trained the first OSS agents in Canada, until training stations were set up in the US with guidance from BSC instructors, who also provided information on how the SOE was arranged and managed. The British immediately made available their short-wave broadcasting capabilities to Europe, Africa, and the Far East and provided equipment for agents until American production was established.[6] The Office of Strategic Services was established by a Presidential military order issued by President Roosevelt on June 13, 1942, to collect and analyze strategic information required by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and to conduct special operations not assigned to other agencies. During the war, the OSS supplied policymakers with facts and estimates, but the OSS never had jurisdiction over all foreign intelligence activities. The FBI was left responsible for intelligence work in Latin America, and the Army and Navy continued to develop and rely on their own sources of intelligence. Activities [ edit ] OSS proved especially useful in providing a worldwide overview of the German war effort, its strengths and weaknesses. In direct operations it was successful in supporting Operation Torch in French North Africa in 1942, where it identified pro-Allied potential supporters and located landing sites. OSS operations in neutral countries, especially Stockholm, Sweden, provided in-depth information on German advanced technology. The Madrid station set up agent networks in France that supported the Allied invasion of southern France in 1944. Most famous were the operations in Switzerland run by Allen Dulles that provided extensive information on German strength, air defenses, submarine production, and the V-1 and V-2 weapons. It revealed some of the secret German efforts in chemical and biological warfare. Switzerland's station also supported resistance fighters in France and Italy, and helped with the surrender of German forces in Italy in 1945.[7] For the duration of World War II, the Office of Strategic Services was conducting multiple activities and missions, including collecting intelligence by spying, performing acts of sabotage, waging propaganda war, organizing and coordinating anti-Nazi resistance groups in Europe, and providing military training for anti-Japanese guerrilla movements in Asia, among other things.[8] At the height of its influence during World War II, the OSS employed almost 24,000 people.[9] From 1943–1945, the OSS played a major role in training Kuomintang troops in China and Burma, and recruited Kachin and other indigenous irregular forces for sabotage as well as guides for Allied forces in Burma fighting the Japanese Army. Among other activities, the OSS helped arm, train, and supply resistance movements in areas occupied by the Axis powers during World War II, including Mao Zedong's Red Army in China (known as the Dixie Mission) and the Viet Minh in French Indochina. OSS officer Archimedes Patti played a central role in OSS operations in French Indochina and met frequently with Ho Chi Minh in 1945.[10] One of the greatest accomplishments of the OSS during World War II was its penetration of Nazi Germany by OSS operatives. The OSS was responsible for training German and Austrian individuals for missions inside Germany. Some of these agents included exiled communists and Socialist party members, labor activists, anti-Nazi prisoners-of-war, and German and Jewish refugees. The OSS also recruited and ran one of the war's most important spies, the German diplomat Fritz Kolbe. In 1943, the Office of Strategic Services set up operations in Istanbul.[11] Turkey, as a neutral country during the Second World War, was a place where both the Axis and Allied powers had spy networks. The railroads connecting central Asia with Europe, as well as Turkey's close proximity to the Balkan states, placed it at a crossroads of intelligence gathering. The goal of the OSS Istanbul operation called Project Net-1 was to infiltrate and extenuate subversive action in the old Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empires.[11] The head of operations at OSS Istanbul was a banker from Chicago named Lanning "Packy" Macfarland, who maintained a cover story as a banker for the American lend-lease program.[12] Macfarland hired Alfred Schwarz, a Czechoslovakian engineer and businessman who came to be known as "Dogwood" and ended up establishing the Dogwood information chain.[13] Dogwood in turn hired a personal assistant named Walter Arndt and established himself as an employee of the Istanbul Western Electrik Kompani.[13] Through Schwartz and Arndt the OSS was able to infiltrate anti-fascist groups in Austria, Hungary, and Germany. Schwartz was able to convince Romanian, Bulgarian, Hungarian, and Swiss diplomatic couriers to smuggle American intelligence information into these territories and establish contact with elements antagonistic to the Nazis and their collaborators.[14] Couriers and agents memorized information and produced analytical reports; when they were not able to memorize effectively they recorded information on microfilm and hid it in their shoes or hollowed pencils.[15] Through this process information about the Nazi regime made its way to Macfarland and the OSS in Istanbul and eventually to Washington. While the OSS "Dogwood-chain" produced a lot of information, its reliability was increasingly questioned by British intelligence. By May 1944, through collaboration between the OSS, British intelligence, Cairo, and Washington, the entire Dogwood-chain was found to be unreliable and dangerous.[15] Planting phony information into the OSS was intended to misdirect the resources of the Allies. Schwartz's Dogwood-chain, which was the largest American intelligence gathering tool in occupied territory, was shortly thereafter shut down.[16] The OSS purchased Soviet code and cipher material (or Finnish information on them) from émigré Finnish army officers in late 1944. Secretary of State Edward Stettinius, Jr., protested that this violated an agreement President Roosevelt made with the Soviet Union not to interfere with Soviet cipher traffic from the United States. General Donovan might have copied the papers before returning them the following January, but there is no record of Arlington Hall receiving them, and CIA and NSA archives have no surviving copies. This codebook was in fact used as part of the Venona decryption effort, which helped uncover large-scale Soviet espionage in North America.[17] Weapons and gadgets [ edit ] The OSS espionage and sabotage operations produced a steady demand for highly specialized equipment.[8] General Donovan invited experts, organized workshops, and funded labs that later formed the core of the Research & Development Branch. Boston chemist Stanley P. Lovell became its first head, and Donovan humorously called him his "Professor Moriarty".[18]:101 Throughout the war years, the OSS Research & Development successfully adapted Allied weapons and espionage equipment, and produced its own line of novel spy tools and gadgets, including silenced pistols, lightweight sub-machine guns, "Beano" grenades that exploded upon impact, explosives disguised as lumps of coal ("Black Joe") or bags of Chinese flour ("Aunt Jemima"), acetone time delay fuses for limpet mines, compasses hidden in uniform buttons, playing cards that concealed maps, a 16mm Kodak camera in the shape of a matchbox, tasteless poison tablets ("K" and "L" pills), and cigarettes laced with tetrahydrocannabinol acetate (an extract of Indian hemp) to induce uncontrollable chattiness.[18][19][20] The OSS also developed innovative communication equipment such as wiretap gadgets, electronic beacons for locating agents, and the "Joan-Eleanor" portable radio system that made it possible for operatives on the ground to establish secure contact with a plane that was preparing to land or drop cargo. The OSS Research & Development also printed fake German and Japanese-issued identification cards, and various passes, ration cards, and counterfeit money.[21] On August 28, 1943, Stanley Lovell was asked to make a presentation in front of a not very friendly audience of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, since the U.S. top brass were largely skeptical of all OSS plans beyond collecting military intelligence and were ready to split the OSS between the Army and the Navy.[22]:5–7 While explaining the purpose and mission of his department and introducing various gadgets and tools, he reportedly casually dropped into a waste basket a Hedy, a panic-inducing explosive device in the shape of a firecracker, which shortly produced a loud shrieking sound followed by a deafening boom. The presentation was interrupted and did not resume since everyone in the room fled. In reality, the Hedy, jokingly named after Hollywood movie star Hedy Lamarr for her ability to distract men, later saved the lives of some trapped OSS operatives.[23]:184–185 Not all projects worked. Some ideas were odd, such as a failed attempt to use insects to spread anthrax in Spain.[24]:150–151 Stanley Lovell was later quoted saying, "It was my policy to consider any method whatever that might aid the war, however unorthodox or untried".[25] In 1939, a young physician named Christian J. Lambertsen developed an oxygen rebreather set (the Lambertsen Amphibious Respiratory Unit) and demonstrated it to the OSS—after already being rejected by the U.S. Navy—in a pool at a hotel in Washington D.C., in 1942.[26][27] The OSS not only bought into the concept, they hired Lambertsen to lead the program and build up the dive element for the organization.[27] His responsibilities included training and developing methods of combining self-contained diving and swimmer delivery including the Lambertsen Amphibious Respiratory Unit for the OSS "Operational Swimmer Group".[26][28] Growing involvement of the OSS with coastal infiltration and water-based sabotage eventually led to creation of the OSS Maritime Unit. Facilities [ edit ] At Camp X, near Whitby, Ontario, an "assassination and elimination" training program was operated by the British Special Operations Executive, assigning exceptional masters in the art of knife-wielding combat
However: Trying to enforce your belief on someone – especially someone you have significant privilege over! – IS abusive/oppressive. And that can include telling them they don’t exist or aren’t what/who they say they are or similar things. If everyone tells you this, this is abuse and oppression! So: Respect people’s beliefs about themselves and everything else, even if you don’t believe the same thing. (Talking about belief as worldviews, not religion here, although the same thing applies.) “But having a black headmate is cultural appropriation!” Remember that we do not chose our inner bodies and can’t just change them. So it is not appropriation for a system to have a member who is of a marginalized/oppressed/exploited race/culture/ethnicity/faith/etc. other than that of their body/core/host/main fronter (if they have any of the latter). That is literally saying that someone is appropriating their own race/culture/ethnicity/faith/etc! But they can still contribute to cultural appropriation or problematic and oppressive things, because when interacting with the outer world they do get almost all of the privileges of their body and have to be responsible with those. This means putting dreadlocks on a white head, among other things, is not OK just because one of the headmates is black. ………………….. We hope this helps some people (singlets as well as multiples) to understand AND ACCEPT multiplicity better and can help people explain it to others. We would also like to engage in (respectful) discussions about this! – MeeresbandeFollowing the release of Fox’s X-Men: Apocalypse, new concept images of the film's unfinished costume designs for a couple of the film’s famous characters have hit the Internet. Uploaded to Facebook by Costume Designer Joshua James Shaw, fans can see alternate costumes for Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystique and Tye Sheridan’s Cyclops. Fans so far have reacted positively to the pictures, going so far to saying they wish the concepts had made it further into development to ultimately feature in the film. The costumes pay homage to X-Men’s beloved animated series and comics as Cyclops is seen styled in the team’s classic blue and yellow colors. Mystique, on the other hand, can be seen sporting a skin-tight bodysuit which features black and white paneling with matching gloves. Mystique’s concept costume seems to be a nod to the outfit she wore during her tenure with X-Factor. While the outfit does look battle-ready based on the picture, the concept does differ from Mystique’s actual outfit in the film. Foregoing the more steam-line look, Mystique dons a tactical ensemble in X-Men: Apocalypse which pays homage to Dave Cockrum’s designs.There’s one silver lining to Europe’s worsening migrant crisis: it ensures that the human toll from Syria’s protracted civil war doesn’t get lost in the fog of Russian battlefield glory. Regardless of your stance on whether the EU should be receptive to the millions of asylum seekers fleeing the war-torn Mid-East, the simple fact is that if you remain in Syria, you are risking your life on a daily basis, caught in the crossfire between a bewildering array of state actors, rebel groups, and proxy armies, all with competing agendas. Now that Russia and Iran have taken control of the situation (and that’s not an effort to parrot some pro-Kremlin propaganda line, it’s just a realistic assessment of the facts), it’s tempting to focus squarely on the near daily videos of Moscow’s warplanes decimating targets and on the various social media depictions of Iranian generals rallying Shiite fighters ahead of what’s been billed as the “promised” battle for Aleppo. In other words, one could be forgiven for being swept up in the glory of the battle while forgetting that the entire debacle (which the US and its regional allies facilitated) has cost the country both its population and its cultural heritage as both have been destroyed by nearly five years of war. With that in mind, we bring you two haunting videos produced by frontline journalists from Rossiya 24 news channel. They are at once breathtaking and tragic (they’re set to music, but you can always mute that) and serve to underscore just how devastating this conflict has ultimately been. In the same vein, we close with a few searing images from Aleppo ca. 2012:The openSUSE Project is awesome. We’re doing facinating stuff that is treading new ground in the world of Free and Open Source Software. If you’re interested in how and why we’re doing this stuff, if you’d like to get involved, then this blog post is for you. After reading you should have an idea of how we work and how to get started working with us. How does the Project work? The Project is a self-organised, self-governed, community working on the openSUSE Distributions (Tumbleweed & Leap) as well as various other Free and Open Source Software, including OBS, openQA, OSEM, Portus, Machinery, and more. We have no Product Managers, Project Managers, or Community Managers. We have no Technical Committees or Steering Groups. For those who have read “The Cathedral and the Bazaar”, openSUSE is very much a “Bazaar” and hardly anything like a “Cathedral”. Whatever Teams we do have are self-organised by the members of those teams, with different ways of working together to accomplish whatever particular goals within the project they are working on. The Project does have the openSUSE Board, who’s role is to ‘lead’ the Project by acting as a central point of contact and conflict resolution. In other words, they help keep everyone in the loop with what everyone else is doing, help resolve any conflicts that arise, and act as the ‘decision makers of last resort ’ in situations where decisions need to be made and there is no one else available or willing to do so. The Board is a little like the ‘A-Team’ - If you have a problem, if no one else can help, then the Board is there for you, either to help out, or help you find better help elsewhere. The Board is elected by the openSUSE Members, those contributors who have demonstrated sustained and substantial contributions to the Project. SUSE are the primary sponsor of the openSUSE Project. All SUSE employees are encouraged to contribute to the openSUSE Project. These contributions are carried out as ‘peers’; No special treatment is granted to SUSE employees, in fact the employer of a contributor should be irrelevant within the openSUSE Project. In areas of particular interest or importance to SUSE, they may hire folk to work in particular roles within the openSUSE Project. With one exception (the role of Chairman of the Board), none of these roles should be considered exclusive to SUSE. There is scope for anyone to contribute to the openSUSE project at any level, assuming they are willing and capable to do the work. Who decides what happens? You Do. We are driven by our contributions. If something is not being done, it’s because no one has decided to do it. We do our best to make openSUSE very accessible in order to make us the natural choice to be the Project through which you give your time & effort. The openSUSE Project is structured the way it is to empower our contributors to really shape the direction of the Project. Also a significant amount of the tools we have as a Project exist in order to make those contributions easier. OBS and OSEM are obvious examples, but this is true in all aspects of the project, from the technical parts to the diverse range of other activities, marketing, advocacy, outreach, community, wiki, documentation, and more. You don’t need to ask permission to get started, you just need to know what you want to do. What do you need me to do? You Decide. Please don’t be terrified by this! To quote The Cathedral and the Bazaar: “Every good work […] starts by scratching a […] personal itch.” – “The Cathedral and the Bazaar”, Eric S. Raymond Find things inside openSUSE, our Project, our distributions, our tools, our wiki, that you do not like, that affect you, that get in your way, and decide to change them. While it may sound selfish, there is no better motivation than solving the issues which affect you first and foremost, the benefit of doing that as part of a community means your work ends up helping others, and others will in turn help you when they share that same itch that needs scratching. Don’t expect someone else to do it. Don’t think it is someone else’s job to fix. It is your responsibility to help make openSUSE succeed in the areas that matter to you. And don’t expect anyone else to tell you what to do or what needs doing - volunteers are rarely motivated when given orders from others, so that just isn’t typically the openSUSE way. That said, I do believe we could do with having some indications of particular areas where we need help; The new openSUSE Mentoring website is a perfect example of something the Project now has to solve that problem. In the highly unlikely event that you think everything is wonderful and there is nothing that annoys you, but you still want to give something back to the openSUSE project, then dig a little deeper, try something new, either technically in our products, or get involved in a new aspect of the Project that interests you. I guarantee you’ll find something somewhere which could do with your help. How to get started? So, you’ve picked something to work on, how to get started. Here is my advice. Do your homework Make sure you understand the topic you are tackling. Dig through the problem to make sure you haven’t missed something. Read our wiki pages on the topic. Use Google. Look at how other FOSS Projects deal with the problem. Is their solution better or worse than what you are thinking? Talk to people who might know stuff about the topic, and bounce your ideas off them. Our IRC channels are a good place for such discussions, as are events like our openSUSE Conferences. Plan your solution You’ve decided what you want to do, now you need to decide how you intend to do it. You don’t need to have all the details worked out, but you should have a clear understanding of the direction you want to go in, and how things should look when you are done Do you need help? Is this going to impact other people in a noticeable way? Do you want a second opinion? If the answers to any of these questions are yes, continue to “Share with the Project”. If no, skip to “Do It”. Share with the Project Take everything you have learned, and what you plan, and put it all together in a clear, succinct email for the mailinglists. Avoid writing open ended questions. Despite everyone’s best intentions, coming to the Project with a question like “What do you think we should do about X?” will lead to either silence, or an almost infinite number of responses, many of which will disagree with you, often without proposing alternatives. Write the email from the perspective of “This is what I think we need to do, and this is what I intend to do about it”. Describe your findings from “Do your homework”, explain your plan. Include proof of concepts if you have them. Post this mail to an appropriate mailinglist. If you cannot identify an appropriate list, or you think the topic is deserving of a project-wide audience, then use either opensuse-factory@opensuse.org for technical changes, and opensuse-project@opensuse.org for everything else. Once you are happy the email makes it possible for everyone else to understand the problem, and that this is your problem and you are going to solve it, fire away!. Now it is the responsibility of everyone else in the Project to convince you that you need to do things differently. Listen The openSUSE Project is full of very clever people. Listen to their feedback, consider it. As your proposal included your reasoning, their feedback should be equally reasoned and informative, and so even a ‘failure’ of a proposal at this point is a learning experience. And that is a good thing, sometimes better than accomplishing the thing you set out to do in the first place. Respond Fast feedback drives innovation. If people are giving you feedback, discuss back with them, tell them when you agree with what they’re saying, tell them when you disagree and why. This is how you will find other people to work with you on this thing. Decide You do not need to accept all, or any, of the feedback. If nothing comes up that convinces you to deviate from your plan, then carry on as you planned. If something gets in the way, then work together to find a solution, either one that includes a compromise that everyone is equally unhappy with, or one where ‘both’ options are possible. This is an aspect of the openSUSE community that we often overlook - when we have two sets of contributors wanting to pull in two different directions, our collective natural instinct is to often find a way of accomplishing both. How else do you think we ended up with KDE, GNOME, XFCE, LXDE, Enlightenment, etc? This is a good thing, makes our project reflect everything which our contributions want to work on, and something which really sets us apart from many other Projects out there. Do it You’re all set! Get to work. Start your engines! Time to inconvinience some electrons with your code! and don’t forget, Have Fun! Talk about it! Our statistics show that the openSUSE Project is on the up and up, and we are in many ways ahead of a great many similar projects who are often perceived as being more successful than us. A big part of that is because we excel at doing stuff, and are lousy about talking about it. So this is a call to action to ask that everyone reading this post keeps in mind the cool stuff that they’re working on as part of openSUSE, and talk about it. Social media, conferences, meetups, whenever you get a chance, tell the world about what you’re doing. It is not just a case of being ‘Green and Proud’, but talking about recent successes often leads to conversations that reveal what the next challenge is, and so the cycle continues, but at least it’s a lot of fun ;) You can start with this post. Please share it on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Reddit, Hacker News and anywhere and everywhere else people might be interested in contributing to openSUSE. openSUSE is amazing, it can be even more incredible, and we want YOU to help us shape it and make it into something even more special.Photo Phys Ed Gretchen Reynolds on the science of fitness. It’s possible that some of us are born not to run. According to an eye-opening new genetics study of lab rats, published in The Journal of Physiology, the motivation to exercise — or not — may be at least partly inherited. For years, scientists have been bedeviled by the question of why so few people regularly exercise when we know that we should. There are obvious reasons, including poor health and jammed schedules. But researchers have begun to speculate that genetics might also play a role, as some recent experiments suggest. In one, published last year, sets of fraternal and identical adult twins wore activity monitors to track their movements. The results indicated that the twins were more alike in their exercise habits than a shared upbringing alone would explain. Their willingness to work out or sit all day depended to a large extent on genetics, the researchers concluded. But which genes might be involved and how any differences in the activity of those genes might play out inside the body were mysteries. So scientists at the University of Missouri recently decided to delve into those issues by creating their own avid- or anti-exercising animals. They accomplished this task by inter-breeding normal rats that had voluntarily run on wheels in the lab. The male rats that had run the most were bred with the female rats that also had run the most; those that had run the least were likewise mated. This scheme continued through many generations, until the scientists had two distinct groups of rats, some of which would willingly spend hours on running wheels, while the others would skitter on them only briefly, if at all. In their first experiments with these rats, the researchers found some intriguing differences in the activity of certain genes in their brains. In normal circumstances, these genes create proteins that tell young cells to grow up and join the working world. But if the genes don’t function normally, the cells don’t receive the necessary chemical messages and remain in a prolonged, feckless cellular adolescence. Such immature cells cannot join the neural network and don’t contribute to healthy brain function. In general, these genes worked normally in the brains of the rats bred to run. But their expression was quite different in the non-runners’ brains, particularly in a portion of the brain called the nucleus accumbens, which is involved in reward processing. In humans and many animals, the nucleus accumbens lights up when we engage in activities that we enjoy and seek out. Presumably as a result, when the scientists closely examined the brains of the two types of rats, they found that by young adulthood the animals bred to run had more mature neurons in the nucleus accumbus than did the non-runners, even if neither group had actually done much running. In practical terms, that finding would seem to indicate that the brains of pups born to the running line are innately primed to find running rewarding; all those mature neurons in the reward center of the brain could be expected to fire robustly in response to exercise. Conversely, the rats from the reluctant-running line, with their skimpier complement of mature neurons, would presumably have a weaker innate motivation to move. Those results would be disheartening, except that in the final portion of the experiment the scientists had reluctant runners exercise by setting them on running wheels, while also providing some born-to-run animals with wheels. After six days, the unwilling runners had accumulated far less mileage, about 3.5 kilometers (two miles) per rat, compared to almost 34 kilometers each by the enthusiasts. But the halfhearted runners’ brains were changing. Compared to others in their family line that had remained sedentary, they now showed more mature neurons in their nucleus accumbens. That part of their brain remained less well developed than among the naturally avid rat runners, but they were responding to exercise in ways that would seem likely to make it more rewarding. What, if anything, these findings mean for people is “impossible to know at this point,” said Frank Booth, a professor of biomedical sciences at the University of Missouri who oversaw the study. Rat brains are not human brains, and rat motivations are at best opaque. Even so, Dr. Booth said, his group’s data would seem to suggest “that humans may have genes for motivation to exercise and other genes for motivation to sit on the couch,” and over generations, one set of these genes could begin to predominate within a family. But predispositions are never dictatorial. “People can decide to exercise,” whatever their inheritance, Dr. Booth said, and, as his study’s final experiment suggests, they could rewire their brains so that moving becomes a pleasure.Latest Documents Confirm Government Scheme to Snag GSE Profits - February 16, 2017 Here we go again. More documents and more evidence that government officials were saying one thing and thinking another with regard to the Net Worth Sweep. Newly released documents demonstrate that just prior to implementing the so-called Net Worth Sweep to the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac conservatorship in the summer of 2012, Treasury officials fully expected the companies to start generating substantial income. There was no “death spiral” as government lawyers subsequently asserted in court. There was just a tempting pot of money to use for whatever the Administration wanted. So, can shareholders substantiate their claim that the Net Worth Sweep resulted in a “taking” of property without compensation, in violation of the 5th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution? With each new document released, the answer is unquestionably “yes!” Among the latest documents, there is a July 20, 2012 email from Treasury Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Mary Miller to several senior Treasury officials and Brian Deese in the White House, which explained an attached document was, “…our collective thoughts on how to signal a plan to amend the PSPAs (preferred stock purchase agreements).” She noted Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner asked to see this as well. Among the thoughts on how to “signal” the change were the following: – Under the Net Worth Sweep “the taxpayer will benefit from all future earnings of the GSEs. Under the current framework we are limited to the 10% dividend.” – “We believe the taxpayers will be in a better position to benefit from any GSE profits as they are wound down.” – “Is the taxpayer in a worse off position?” – “No – they are in a better position. Under the current arrangement Treasury’s upside was capped at the 10% dividend, now the taxpayer will be the beneficiary of any future earnings produced by the GSEs.” Since enacting the Net Worth Sweep, the government has consistently claimed that its actions benefitted the U.S. taxpayer. But these documents demonstrate something else: There was no death spiral that the taxpayer needed to be protected from. The government knew that Fannie and Freddie were on the verge of becoming hugely profitable, and the officials who perpetrated the Sweep wanted that money. In perpetuating the sweep and draining the companies of their capital, the government actually placed the taxpayer at more risk. The government’s Orweillian claims about protecting the taxpayer are wearing thin, and we wonder how much longer they can credibly make this argument. Further underscoring this point, in yet another document, Anne Eberhardt, of the outside audit firm Grant Thornton, emailed a document to government officials on June 29, 2012, that focuses, in part, on the “deferred tax assets” of Fannie and Freddie. This accounting sleight of hand has long been the focus of efforts to clarify how government officials assessed the financial condition of Fannie and Freddie. With an expected windfall as the companies returned to profitability, Treasury officials enacted the Sweep to get their hands on the cash instead of allowing Fannie and Freddie to use the assets to rebuild their net worth. Ironically, Geithner wrote recently in Foreign Affairs that the country is safer for now from a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis, partially because banks are required to have larger capital cushions. The Eberhardt email is important because the government has consistently relied on financial information from Grant Thornton to argue its case in Court. Now unsealed material by Grant Thornton employees is helping to rebut the government’s arguments: Recall that among seven documents released last spring was a deposition from former Treasury official Mario Ugoletti regarding the deferred tax assets that, at best, raised serious questions about how transparent government officials were regarding their knowledge of the companies’ financial situation. Ugoletti may have committed perjury, but a more important question for the Justice Department is who else at Treasury has been misrepresenting the facts to Courts? The Trump Administration inherited a conservatorship that has been dragged out and mismanaged and a legacy of embarrassing defeats in court. No doubt, incoming Treasury Secretary Mnuchin and other officials in the new Administration will be increasingly eager to come clean about the facts and distance themselves from the legal and financial mess the Obama Administration left behind.There is no target group, we must think that most people of the world like it, DuckDuckGo itself must follow the same guideline, thats why you all like it so much :-). We must think about contribution, the design can't be an artwork which needs a specific competence to get advanced. We have so many people who will give additional features to the portal, via apps or direct contributions, that those people cant be blocked by complex layout specifications. It needs to be simple, it needs to be clean, and it needs to be prepared for a "full packed" future. I don't suggest switching the design ever _IF_ it feels perfect for the most people, a change of design is just too much impact for the complete project. It should be also a first direction for a mobile application, so that we don't need to rethink the complete design when we make mobile version. Hello Community,First thanks to all of us for the many requests that you wanted to help with the community platform. Sadly we can't use everybody, especially at the start, its important to concentrate on a very good and stable base, so that it stays solid from start on. So far the only help I needed was a other Perl people, greetings here to brabo, our master contributor ;), and a bit HTML, thanks here to crazedpsyc, who gave us a little base HTML so that people actually can "see" it.Now, where we are near to start the portal official so that people can start translating duckduckgo, we are still a bit unhappy about the design, and want you, the community to help us here, to bring us to a decent design concept which would fit the quality of duckduckgo, but also fits for the future, with the things the community portal heads to.What we are searching for here to be very specific is something to define a "visual experience" of the DuckDuckGo Community Platform. This includes for example defining color scheme, giving a design for the boxes (rounded? not rounded? colors? elements?), for the specific areas, for making the form fields, the dropdowns, the checkboxes, making it a compelling visual design. We also of course later will need probably a bit help for the HTML/CSS but for this theme, please contact us on open@duckduckgo.com or directly me on getty@duckduckgo.com, its not part of this thread :-). So best is you make a screenshot of an empty browser screen and paint it in! :DWhat is important here, is to thinking about the scope what the design has to achieve.So, after setting the scope, I now go more into the details what we have. So far actually have only 2 kind of pages, the homepage, and standard pages. The homepage is using boxes for teasing in the headline area and splits the content area into 2 columns. Standard pages have just a title text in the headline and contain one or several content boxes in the content area. Here the mockups:You can actually already see this layout right now on http://view.dukgo.com/ and get a bit more feeling of what this layout looks like in real. You should also login/register there and then go to: https://view.dukgo.com/translate/test for having an example of a standard page with "more widgets". Also I want to point out that the green line simulate a centering, those standard pages should have a fixed width for the content, so we can be a bit more safe with the design. In addition i want to head a bit to the feature, how the "mainscreen" of the user will be like, when we get to the deeper community features. This page is normally called "timeline", so here the mockup for this:So the "layout" structure is fixed, I think its important that we dont drift away from the ways that have succeeded on the net, most modern pages have this layout concept, but what we now do out of it is of course very open. I want to see what the people through in here, i DONT want distribution via email, just drop your ideas in here, and we all talk about it, then we will try to concentrate the results into something people can vote about, or we directly find something that is so attractive that we dont want to vote something else :-). We dont know, we just know, we dont wanna wait to launch, and we would LOVE to get now a genius idea soon! :DIn my imagination I always think that of course there could be pages where we just don't have a headline, and only use the content area to stack content boxes. Also I think it would look awesome beauty if we use a nice background photograph on the headline to underline the area the user is in right now. Please checkout pages like:A nice collection of many many different designs you can get here: http://www.problogdesign.com/resources/35-awesome-user-interface-design-tutorials/ If you don't have a genius idea, but a very very simple concept for boxes and the colors, thats also fine, its NOT about "bang", its about something people will use often over the day, it shouldn't be too much distracting.Beside the overall design, we also could need help on the teaser boxes, if people like to make "catching teaser" for features of the community system, then please, contact me directly, best on IRC, Getty on irc.freenode.net #duckduckgo, or jabber or email getty@duckduckgo.com Thanks and good night, this was 3 feet high and rising :-)It’s almost too much to hope for, so we’ll tell you to start with the salt and go from there on this rumor. Apparently, sources are saying Canon is finally going to get serious about mirrorless cameras this upcoming year by releasing an all-new mirrorless camera that will sport a full-frame sensor. *insert high pitch noises here* Okay, sorry about that, back to business. The news comes from our friends at Canon Watch, who heard nearly identical information from two separate sources saying that there is a new mirrorless cam in the works that is NOT a standard followup to the EOS-M system that Canon seems to have given up on in the US. One of those sources said that this camera will sport a full-frame sensor (hence the high pitch noises), the other that it would be a rangefinder. Either sounds, if nothing else, intriguing. Canon Watch also quotes a source as saying that this is a camera consumers “will really like, and that’s what we were all waiting for.” For now, the above info is all we know. Rumors of a new mirrorless camera from Canon have been swirling for some time, so there’s a good chance more info will leak before 2014 is out. You know where we’re going with this, but we’ll say it anyway: stay tuned and we’ll keep you up to date. In the meantime, let us know what’s on your Canon MILC wish list by dropping specs, hopes, and dreams in the comments down below. Image credits: Canon EOS-M vs Canon EOS 600D and Canon EOS-M by Kārlis Dambrāns.SAN FRANCISCO — A government policy that forbade the export of products with strong encryption in the 1990s has years later left users of devices like Android and Apple phones vulnerable to hackers when they visit one-third of all websites, including whitehouse.gov and nsa.gov. Researchers last month discovered millions of devices and websites were using an outdated encryption key to secure their communications. The weak key resulted from a Clinton administration mandate that software and hardware makers use weak cryptography in products exported outside the United States. Once those restrictions were relaxed in the late 1990s, many technology makers abandoned the weak cryptography. But researchers said this week that the old keys were included in the code that is still being used in a variety of modern devices and websites. The discovery of the old vulnerability comes as officials in the United States and Britain press the technology industry to create so-called back doors for law enforcement agencies into the new and hard-to-crack encryption used by its products. Those back doors, industry officials argue, can just as well be used by hackers to intercept communications and pose an unnecessary risk to customers.(IraqiNews.com) On Wednesday, MP for the State Coalition, Mowafaq Rubaie revealed that the number of ISIS elements in the city of Mosul ranges between 30,000 to 50,000, indicating that the majority of them are Iraqis. Rubaie said in a statement received by IraqiNews.com “The number of ISIS terrorists did not exceed 3000 – 5000 when the organization first controlled the city of Mosul last June,” noting that, “Now, the number ranges between 30,000 to 50,000 elements.” Rubaie added,”The majority of those gangs fighters are Iraqis,” adding that, “Medium and senior leaders in these terrorist gangs are of foreign nationals.” “The reason for the increasing number of fighters is due to the ability of foreign leaders to reach civilians to recruit them after being brainwashed,” he continued.The 2013 MLS Supporters’ Shield-winning New York Red Bulls announced today that they have signed defender Armando (full name: Armando Lozano Sanchez). Armando will be added to New York’s roster after he passes a physical and the club receives receipt of his P-1 Visa and International Transfer Certificate. “Armando provides us with another experienced option at centerback and we are delighted to have agreed to terms with him,” said Red Bulls Sporting Director Andy Roxburgh. “He has played at a good level for many years, serving as the captain for Barcelona’s B team in the past, and we are excited to bring his leadership and technical qualities to our club.” Armando was most recently playing for Spanish second division side, Cordoba, in December 2012 following a short stint at Mexico’s Veracruz. In 2009, the 29-year-old joined FC Barcelona’s B team, where he amassed a total of 51 appearances over three seasons and captained the side during parts of his tenure. Armando started his career at Motril in 2002 before moving onto Malaga’s B team, playing there from 2003-2006. In 2006, Armando joined Malaga’s first team, making 25 appearances that season. The 6-1, 175 pound defender moved onto Levante in 2007, before joining FC Cartagena, helping that club win promotion. The Red Bulls begin their 2014 regular season schedule at BC Place, hitting the road to take on Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday, March 8 at 7:30 PM. Tickets to the Red Bulls’ first regular season game at Red Bull Arena on March 15 against the Colorado Rapids at 4:00 PM are on sale now by calling 1.877.RBSOCCER or logging onto www.newyorkredbulls.com. Armando Position: Defender Height: 6-1 Weight: 175 pounds Day of Birth: December 16, 1984 in Motril, Spain Hometown: Motril, Spain Previous Club: Cordoba (Spain) How Acquired: Signed on January 23, 2014At first glance, the long-awaited USS Zumwalt looks more like brutalist Soviet architecture than a destroyer in the United States Navy. But despite appearances, this trapezoidal hunk of gray steel was built at Bath Iron Works in Maine, not plucked from a Bulgarian mountaintop. The Zumwalt completed its first at-sea tests this week, and its captain, who really is named James Kirk, couldn't be happier. “For the crew and all those involved in designing, building, and readying this fantastic ship, this is a huge milestone," he says. Bath Iron Works employee Kelley Campana, with tears in her eyes, told the The Telegraph, "It looks like the future.” Maybe so. But the Zumwalt, named for Navy Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, may already be a relic. The Zumwalt-class destroyer program started in the early 1990s and has been a problem child ever since. At first, the Navy planned to purchase 32 of the stealth vessels. Then it said it would buy seven. Then three. Now, it may buy just two. After decades and billions of dollars spent, the DoD may instead choose an updated version of the Arleigh-Burke DDG-51 destroyer, a model that entered service in 1991. Norfolk, July 31, 2012 - The guided-missile destroyer USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) returns home from deployment. Getty Images What drew the Navy to a design it may well scrap? The *Zumwalt'*s got a lot going for it. It's made for cruising coastal waters and firing on hostile land targets, filling a role the Navy lost when it retired the Iowa-class battleships in the early 1990s. It's bigger, stronger, and angrier than the stalwart DDG-51, which is primarily a defense vessel. According to National Defense magazine, the Zumwalt's "advanced gun system" can hit targets 72 miles away. They can continue firing as more ammunition is brought aboard, a feature the Navy calls an "infinite magazine.” That’s right. Infinite magazine. The Zumwalt requires a smaller crew compared to other destroyers, which makes it cheaper to run. The most powerful destroyer in the Navy’s history, it produces 78 megawatts of energy, enough to power about 10,000 homes. Some of that power goes to weapons like the electromagnetic railgun, which uses electricity to launch projectiles at 4,500 mph. So why not build a few dozen of these monsters? Two big reasons. The first, not surprisingly, is cost. Zumwalt-class destroyers cost about $3 billion a pop—compared to $2 billion for a DDG-51. The second is more alarming: There are serious doubts about the ships' seaworthiness. “On the DDG-1000 [Zumwalt-class], with the waves coming at you from behind, when a ship pitches down, it can lose transverse stability as the stern comes out of the water—and basically roll over,” Ken Brower, a civilian architect with decades of naval experience, said in 2007. That concern stems from the shape of the ship, which looks more like Minsk's Belarusian State Polytechnic Institute than a warship. It features what’s called a tumblehome hull, with flat, inward sloping sides that narrow above the waterline. The more traditional flared hull is broad at the bottom, narrower in the middle, then wider again at the top. The tumblehome's bow slices through waves and minimizes the wake. More importantly, the hull's sharp angles confuse radar systems into thinking they're looking at a much smaller boat. That stealth may come at the cost of safety, though: Eight current and former Navy officers have publicly doubted the ship's stability, according to Defense News. And a 2007 report, "Dynamic Stability of Flared and Tumblehome Hull Forms in Waves", presented at the 9th International Ship Stability Workshop in Germany, concluded that “Increasing wave heights... lead to drastic reductions in the stability of the tumblehome topside hull form." Meanwhile, "even in steep waves, with large initial heel angles and roll rates, the flared topside had very few instance of capsize.” The Navy has always defended the Zumwault-class design, noting that any new technology is subject to intense scrutiny, especially by an old institution like the US military. It's promised all sorts of stability tests. And despite the military's reputation for overspending on unnecessary gear, spending that kind of money on what may well be flawed design is something even conspiracy theorists couldn
Viso and Patrick dropped out of the respective races. : Triskaidekaphobia - fear of the use of the Number 13 - has prevailed at Indianapolis dating back to the first 500 in 1911. In that year, the car assigned 13 did not make the race. Only one driver carried #13 on their car for the remainder of the 20th century. In 1914, George Mason started 13th and finished 23rd. From 1926 to 2002, the use of #13 was officially disallowed by the rules. Most drivers avoided the use of number 13, however after changes in the rules, Greg Ray used the number in 2003. It was only the second time the number 13 had been used over the first 87 editions of the race. Subsequently only two other drivers have used #13: E. J. Viso (2009) and Danica Patrick (2018). Both Viso and Patrick dropped out of the respective races. Green cars : A long-time superstition at Indianapolis has been against painting cars the color green. [50] Many drivers and team prefer not to allow the color green on their cars, even if just on small decals or pinstriping. Apropos to that, there have been two green winning cars (1920 and 1965). : A long-time superstition at Indianapolis has been against painting cars the color green. Many drivers and team prefer not to allow the color green on their cars, even if just on small decals or pinstriping. Apropos to that, there have been two green winning cars (1920 and 1965). Peanuts : Peanuts are considered bad luck (see Food above). An ambiguous, long-standing superstition against eating peanuts at the race track has dominated Indianapolis dating back to at least the 1940s. [50] : Peanuts are considered bad luck (see Food above). An ambiguous, long-standing superstition against eating peanuts at the race track has dominated Indianapolis dating back to at least the 1940s. Miscellany: Numerous other and sometimes ambiguous superstitions have been promulgated by a myriad of drivers. However, many have lost much if not all of their following. Some included not allowing women and children near the cars, entering and exiting the cockpit on a particular side, not allowing photographs prior to going out on the track, and carrying good luck charms. Curse of the Smiths [ edit ] Among the over 766 drivers who have participated in the Indy 500, none have had the last name Smith, the most common surname in the United States. Several Smiths have attempted to make the race, the last being Mark Smith who failed to qualify in 1993 and 1994,[52] despite finishing 5th at the Michigan Superspeedway in a 1994 CART race. By contrast there have been eight different drivers with the last name Jones, and four with the last name Johnson. Only two drivers with the surname Smith have ever competed in professional races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, albeit in different events. Regan Smith drove in the Brickyard 400 from 2008 to 2013 (with a best finish of 3rd in 2011). He also has competed in the Lilly Diabetes 250. Motorcyclist Bradley Smith competed in the Red Bull Indianapolis GP, with best finish of second in 2009. A German language translation of Smith has participated, with Sam Schmidt making three starts. Rabbits [ edit ] A longstanding legend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway involves bunny rabbits.[53] From 1911-1993, there was only one race held annually at the Speedway. Activity outside the month of May was limited to semioccasional tire testing. Thus for eleven months out of the year, the grounds were noticeably quiet, green and lush, particularly after nine holes of a golf course were built in the spacious infield in 1929. The well-manicured grounds naturally became a home for fauna, particularly rabbits and other small vermin. As the race participants would arrive in the spring, they would often be greeted by numerous rabbits roaming the grounds, oftentimes running out on the track. The rabbits were thought to be welcome and some considered them symbols of good luck. However, they were sometimes a nuisance, causing yellows for running out on the track and evading capture. Al Unser, Sr. famously ran over a rabbit during the 1988 race.[54] The well-known presence of rabbits at the Speedway even began a tradition that a rabbit would appear somewhere in the race program each year. Pre-race ceremonies [ edit ] Purdue University Band "World's Largest Drum" at the 2011 Indianapolis 500. 500 Festival Queen and Princesses caravan at the 2011 Indianapolis 500. Johnny Rutherford during the former winners parade at the 2016 Indianapolis 500. Military Appreciation Lap at the 2015 Indianapolis 500. The pre-race ceremonies usually go in the following order: Grand marshal [ edit ] In some years, a grand marshal has been named for the race. The duties of the grand marshal may include greeting drivers and dignitaries during pre-race ceremonies, delivering the "drivers to your cars" message, and riding in the pace car. This person may or may not be the same grand marshal as the 500 Festival Parade. Unlike other races, the grand marshal will not give the starting command. National anthem [ edit ] The Star-Spangled Banner has been performed before the start of the Indy 500 in most years. Up through the 1970s and early 1980s, the song was typically played by the Purdue All-American Marching Band without a vocalist. However, in some rare occasions, a vocalist was used. In 1976, Tom Sullivan and Up with People were invited to sing, as a gesture to the U.S. Bicentennial. By the mid-1980s, the Speedway began inviting notable artists to perform the national anthem. In nearly all cases, they would be backed by the Purdue Band. In 1983, James A. Hubert flubbed the lyrics.[57] He omitted the line "O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?" and instead repeated the second line "What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming", stumbling on the word "twilight" the second time around. After the national anthem is performed, the public address announcer or the grand marshal gives the command "Drivers, to your cars!" In 2001, Steven Tyler of Aerosmith caused a controversy[58] after he changed the lyrics of the song. Recent performers include: Other songs [ edit ] In most years since 1991, the songs "America the Beautiful" and/or "God Bless America" have been performed. Florence Henderson, a native Hoosier, was a friend of the Hulman-George family that owns the Speedway. Henderson performed one of the two songs numerous times, book-ending years when she performed the national anthem instead. Her performances were usually not televised. The performance of "America the Beautiful" was introduced for the race's 75th anniversary running in 1991, in part due to Operation Desert Storm. Henderson switched to the national anthem for 1993–1997, then resumed "America the Beautiful" in 1999. In 2003, her performance was switched to "God Bless America," which became more popular in the post-9/11 era. She continued through 2015, then served as grand marshal for her final race in 2016. Henderson died six months after the 2016 race. Henderson routinely sang the entire song, including the prologue, and in some years sang the chorus a second time. By 2009, "America the Beautiful" was re-added to the ceremonies, with a different artist each year. In 1999, Lee Greenwood did a special performance of "God Bless the USA", and in 2003, Darryl Worley performed "Have You Forgotten?". In 2005, 3 Doors Down did a special performance of "Kryptonite" from the Pagoda, as part of the driver introductions. "America the Beautiful" [ edit ] "God Bless America" [ edit ] Invocation [ edit ] Starting in 1974, the Indy 500 was moved to the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend. As a gesture, the Speedway added an invocation to the pre-race ceremonies. In most years since 1980, the Speedway has invited a representative of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis. In selected years, others have been invited including nationally famous clergymen Oral Roberts[70] and Billy Graham.[71] The Most Reverend Archbishop Edward T. O'Meara participated several times until his death in early 1992. Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein then took over as the traditional clergy starting in 1993. Buechlein customarily ended his invocation with the word "Godspeed" in the languages of all of the participating drivers. Buechlein's final year at the race was 2009, and he died in 2018 after a lengthy illness. Taps [ edit ] In remembrance of Memorial Day, "Taps" is played, and a U.S. military aircraft does a fly-by. In some years, multiple aircraft participate, executing the missing man formation. Traditionally, a member of the public address announcing team recited a preamble honoring those who have died in combat, and those who have perished in automobile racing. The preamble dated back to at least 1965. Jim Philippe recited the preamble until he died in 2003. Dave Calabro said it in 2006, and Jerry Baker reprised it in 2012. Since 2000, a notable military or government official has also offered a tribute or remarks. The traditional preamble goes as follows: "On this Memorial Day weekend, we pause in a moment of silence, to pay homage to those individuals who have given their lives—unselfishly, and unafraid—so that we may witness as free men and women, the world's greatest sporting event. We also pay homage to those individuals, who have given their lives—unselfishly, and without fear—to make racing, the world's most spectacular spectator sport." In the 1960s and 1970s, "Taps" was typically performed by a combined U.S. Armed Forces color guard. Then from the about 1980 through 2005, it was usually played by the full Purdue Band. In 1986 and 1997, due to rain delays, the Purdue Band was unable to stay for the pre-race ceremonies. In those years, a substitute performer(s) was used. Since 2006, "Taps" has been rendered as a trumpet solo. In 2016, the trumpeter moved from the trackside victory podium near the pits to the starter's stand outside the main stretch. Rendering of "Taps" Remarks "Back Home Again in Indiana" [ edit ] The most traditional performance is the singing of "Back Home Again in Indiana".[76] This tradition has accompanied the race since 1946. Jim Nabors, accompanied by the Purdue Marching Band, notably performed the song in most years from 1972 to 2014. The song has long been the last event in the order of the day, immediately preceding the command to start engines. During the song, thousands of multicolored balloons are released from an infield tent. The balloon release also dates back to 1946, but initially it did not coincide with the song. The song, which was first published in 1917, is reported to have been first played at the race in 1919. A track side brass band played the song as Indiana-born Howdy Wilcox was finishing the final laps to victory.[77] In 1997, the race was rained out on Sunday, and the start was rescheduled for Monday. Nabors (as well as the Purdue band), had left the grounds by Monday morning. Rather than find a last-minute replacement, Nabors suggested that the Speedway utilize a recording of one of his previous performances. The Speedway replayed his 1993 rendition, and it was well-received by the fans. Two days before the 2007 race, Nabors canceled his appearance due to an illness. On race morning, Nabors recorded a special video greeting to the fans from his Hawaii home, which was streamed over the Internet. Fans were invited to sing along with the Purdue band,[5] and a "get well soon" message was displayed for Nabors. In 2008, Nabors made a well-received return, and received a standing ovation at the public driver meeting. Nabors again missed the race in 2012 due to an illness. This time, the Speedway sent a television crew to his home in Maui, and recorded a performance that was played on the video boards on race morning. In March 2014, Nabors announced that the 2014 race would be his final performance.[78] In 2017, Jim Cornelison was invited to sing, and his performance was critically praised. He was invited to return in 2018.[79] Starting command [ edit ] The call for the engines to start has been traditionally made by stating "Gentlemen, start your engines!" When female drivers have competed, the call has been amended to "Lady and gentlemen..." or "Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines." Beginning in 2017, the command has been recited as "Drivers, start your engines." The starting command is customarily recited by a ranking member of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway board of directors, who also is a member of the Hulman-George family. The exact origin of the phrase is unclear, and there have been several conflicting accounts of who was the first to recite it, and what the exact wording of it was.[82] Prior to World War II, it was commonplace for an aerial bomb to signal the start of the engines.[82] Seth Kline was the official starter of the "500" in 1925–1926 & 1934–1953. Kline is thought to have made an informal "Gentlemen, start your motors!" command as early as 1948 to accompany the bomb.[82] The first documented case was in 1950, and that was recited by prolific public address announcer John Francis "Irish" Horan.[82][83] Kline was again reported as saying it in 1951,[84] (though some report it was Horan[83]) Either Kline[82] or Horan said it again in 1952.[83] It was around that time the command was changed from "...motors!" to "...engines!" The participants and officials alike, preferred the more technical term "engines" to describe their machines. Sid Collins stated that chief steward Harlan Fengler explained to him "there are no motors in the race, just engines."[84] Wilbur Shaw, president of the Speedway in 1946–1954, was once believed to be the person who coined the phrase, and it was erroneously claimed in his autobiography that he recited it in all the post-World War II years until his death.[85] Speedway historian Donald Davidson, however, believes Shaw only recited it twice, in 1953 and 1954. After Shaw's death, Tony Hulman started reciting the command, and made it popular and famous. The normally soft-spoken and shy Hulman had a proud and vociferous version of the command annually. Hulman would rehearse the line, perfecting it for show, and was even known to work with radio broadcaster Luke Walton to draft cue cards to know when to stress certain words and syllables. After Hulman's death in 1977, his widow Mary F. Hulman took over the honor, followed by their daughter Mari George. In 1977, Janet Guthrie became the first female driver to qualify for the Indy 500. Controversy surrounded the command, because the Speedway management did not want to alter the traditional phrase.[86] During the week before the race, the management announced that they would not change the wording of the command. Looking for an excuse, they insisted that the cars were actually started by male crew members with an electric hand-held starter from behind the car. Guthrie and her crew were quite displeased by the stubbornness of the Speedway management, considering her unprecedented accomplishment. The crew reacted by assigning Kay Bignotti[86] (wife of George Bignotti) as the crew member to operate the inertial starter at the back of Guthrie's car. The Speedway's argument fell apart, and they decided upon a special amended command for that year. They did not announce beforehand what the special command would be,[86] and Hulman's highly anticipated phrase was the following: “ In company with the first lady ever to qualify at Indianapolis, gentlemen, start your engines. ” In 1978–1979, when Guthrie again qualified for the race, the command was simply amended to "Lady and gentlemen, start your engines." In 1992, Lyn St. James became the second female to qualify for the race. She publicly requested, albeit not contentiously, that the command be changed to "Drivers, start your engines."[87] The request was dismissed, and the command used was the now customary "Lady and gentlemen..." variation. That variation, along with "Ladies and gentlemen..." were used many times over the next two decades. In 2017, Pippa Mann was the lone female driver in the field, and Tony George gave the command as "Drivers, start your engines." This was the first time that this variation of the command was used for the race. For many years, the traditional location for giving the command was at the pace car in the front of the starting grid. Public address announcer Jim Philippe normally introduced the command, describing it as the "traditional command" or the "famous four words." Phillippe's final 500 was 2003. Likewise, for many years through 1989, Luke Walton traditionally introduced the command on the radio network broadcast. Since 2004, current public address announcer Dave Calabro introduces the command normally by calling it the "most famous words in motorsports." In most cases, Tony Hulman would give the command, then ride in the pace car during the pace laps. Mary F. Hulman would give the command near the pace car, but rarely rode in the pace car due to her age and declining health. Eventually, the location was moved to near the start/finish line, and in 2001, it was moved to the new Victory Podium stage adjacent to the Pagoda. In 2011 only, Mari George moved back to the front of the starting grid to give the command, and then she rode in the pace car with A. J. Foyt. In 2014, as a special gesture to Jim Nabors's final performance at Indy, the starting command was given in unison by both Mari George and Nabors, marking the first time a non-member of the Hulman-George family had given the command for the 500 since 1954. In 2016 for the 100th Indianapolis 500, now-matriarch Mari was joined by three subsequent generations of the Hulman-George family, who gave the command together. Due to her advanced age, the 2016 race would be Mari's final turn giving the command. Later that same year, Tony George gave the starting command for the Brickyard 400, his first time giving a command since a restart command in 1986. For the 2017 Indianapolis 500, the duty was permanently assigned to Tony George. In that year, Tony George began using the phrase "Drivers, start your engines" instead of the more familiar "Lady and gentlemen..." variation. On occasions when an accident or rain has halted the race, a second command has typically been given. Years include: 1967, 1973, 1982, 1986, 1997, 2004, 2007. The amended command, "gentlemen, re-start your engines," has usually been used. In 1986, this restart command was given by Tony George. In 1997, it was given by Mari Hulman George. In 1982 and 2004 the command was given by public address announcer Tom Carnegie. In 1981, Mary F. Hulman was unable to recite the starting command due to an illness. In that year, Mari George recited, her first time performing the honor.[89] Over the years, the starting command has been adopted to start all sorts of auto racing in the United States, including but not limited to NASCAR. However, in many venues outside of Indy, the phrase "Drivers, start your engines" appears to be the preferred version. Honorary starter [ edit ] A recently-added tradition is the use of an honorary starter. A special guest has been invited in recent years to wave the green flag to start the race. Starting in 2013, the tradition was expanded where another celebrity or special guest(s) arrives on race morning by helicopter to ceremoniously deliver the green flag or the checkered flag. The official starter (or "flagman"), however, is a trained race official, and handles the remainder of the flagging duties during the race. In 2010, due to two early caution periods, honorary starter Jack Nicholson elected to stay in the starter's perch for an additional few minutes, and was able to drop the green for the two subsequent restarts as well. Celebrity guests [ edit ] Since the early years of the race, celebrities from all walks of fame have been invited to the race, some have returned for many years or even decades. Television and movie stars, recording artists, sports figures, politicians, and military, are among the many dignitaries invited.[96] During the pre-race, a parade of stars is conducted around the track, usually in convertibles. In numerous years, celebrities have been invited to drive the pace car at the start of the race. Linda Vaughn at the 1997 Indianapolis 500 Clark Gable is seen in a famous photograph of the 1947 race. Among the many celebrities who attended or have attended multiple Indy 500s include Jim Nabors, James Garner (who drove the pace car in 1975, 1977 and 1985), David Letterman, Tim Allen, Florence Henderson, Linda Vaughn, and many others. Paul Newman, who starred in the Indy-related film Winning, attended the race many times, and in 1983–1995, and then again in 2008, was at the race as co-owner of Newman/Haas Racing. Joyce DeWitt, who grew up in the Town of Speedway, and graduated from Speedway Senior High School, once worked at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway ticket office.[97] At least three former U.S. Presidents (and one future President) has attended the Indianapolis 500. Gerald Ford attended the 1979 race, serving also as the grand marshal of the 500 Festival Parade.[98] Both George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton attended the 2003 race, the first time in Indy history that two former presidents were at the same race.[99] It was the elder Bush's second visit to the Speedway; he previously presided over the opening ceremonies of the 1987 Pan American Games, which was held at the track. Future President Donald Trump attended the race in 2002.[100] Trump was selected to drive the pace car for the 2011 race, but withdrew the duty after drawing controversy from fans. In 1971, tentative plans were made for sitting president Richard Nixon to attend the race, as part of the NATO Conference on Urban Affairs that was being held in the city. Nixon was even rumored to be giving the starting command.[101] Nixon would have been the first, and only to-date, sitting president to attend the race. However, the visit was later cancelled. At least two presidential candidates have visited the Speedway during their respective election campaigns, owning much to the fact that the Indiana primary is usually held May. Ronald Reagan visited the track during the month of May 1976, while he was in town campaigning for the 1976 Indiana Republican primary.[102][103] Likewise, Hillary Clinton visited the track while campaigning for the 2008 Indiana primary and met with driver Sarah Fisher. At least three former vice presidents have attended the race. The aforementioned Gerald Ford, George H. W. Bush, and Indiana native Dan Quayle. Qualye has attended the race numerous times, including three times as sitting Vice President (1989–1991). Current Vice President Mike Pence has reportedly attended the race over 30 times, most recently in 2016, while he was the sitting Governor of Indiana and again in 2017 while he was sitting Vice President. In 2018, Pence visited the track during practice, but not on race day.[104] David Letterman worked as a reporter for ABC Sports during the 1971 race, and attended the race many times as a spectator. Since 2002, he has attended the race as co-owner of Rahal Letterman Racing. The team won the race in 2004 with driver Buddy Rice. At the 2015 race, Letterman was honored on the famous scoring pylon during the pre-race; just four days after he retired from the Late Show. During the 1960s and early 1970s, several NASA astronauts from the Mercury and Apollo programs were among invited guests. Race [ edit ] Indianapolis 500, 1994 For the entire history of the 500 mile race, the official winner of the race has been defined as the driver who completes the 500 mile distance first, sans penalties. A winner is declared with a finishing time in hours, minutes, and seconds. Finishers behind the winner were given additional time – upwards of an hour in early years – to complete the 500 mile distance. In very early years, completing the full 500 miles was a requirement to receive prize money. Later, it was because completing the 500 mile distance at an average speed of over 100 mph earned a driver a spot in the prestigious Champion Spark Plug 100 mph Club. In 1964 as live television arrived, this "extra time" was reduced to about five minutes, and after 1974, when raucous fans ran out on the track at the checkered flag, extra time was eliminated. 1975 was the first year in which the lap the winner finishes the race is the final lap for all competitors. [105] In 1966, Gordon Johncock was said to have completed the 500 miles in lesser elapsed time than winner Graham Hill, second place Jim Clark, and even third place Jim McElreath. However, Johncock had suffered minor damage during the first lap accident, and restarted the race in the pit lane due to the crew changing the nose cone. USAC officials did not score his first lap out of the pit lane, and he effectively ran all day carrying a one lap penalty to the field. [106] competitors. In 1966, Gordon Johncock was said to have completed the 500 miles in lesser elapsed time than winner Graham Hill, second place Jim Clark, and even third place Jim McElreath. However, Johncock had suffered minor damage during the first lap accident, and restarted the race in the pit lane due to the crew changing the nose cone. USAC officials did not score his first lap out of the pit lane, and he effectively ran all day carrying a one lap penalty to the field. The cars begin the race in a rolling start, traditionally in eleven rows of three, for a field of 33 total cars. Most other automobile races have two cars per row. The 33-car field derives from a 1919 AAA mandate of one car for every 400 feet (120 m) of track. Early races, however, saw varying numbers of starters, from as low as 21, to as high as 42. The number of cars in each row also varied, with as many as five abreast. Since 1933 there have only been the following exceptions to having a field of 33 racers: In 1941, 33 cars initially qualified for the field during time trials. Sam Hanks was injured in a practice crash the day before the race and withdrew. Then on the morning of the race, George Barringer's car was destroyed in a fire that swept through the garage area, thus only 31 cars lined up to start the race. In 1947, only 30 cars qualified. A boycott over the purse led to the smaller field. In 1979, after a rules dispute over turbocharger inlets, and after controversy regarding the refusal of some entries from members of the CART series, a special fifth day of qualifying was added. However, only two cars ran sufficient speeds to be added to the field, and 35 cars lined up to start the race. Heavy attrition early on saw one car fail to complete a lap, and 7 cars out by lap 22. In 1997, which used an "all exempt tour" concept similar to the PGA Tour since 1983, the top 25 teams headed in Indy Racing League team entry points standings earned exemptions into the field, with the top nine non-exempt cars making the race on speed. Some exempt teams bumped out other non-exempt cars that had actually qualified with faster speeds, but their teams were not in the top 25 of League points. Two bumped cars were restored to the field to ensure that the "33 fastest entries" were part of the field, for a total of 35 starters. Ironically on the pace lap, three cars crashed out together, while two suffered mechanical problems, and only 30 cars took the green flag. (A similar rule was used at the Crown Royal presents the Your Hero's Name Here 400 from 2005 to 2012 and the Lilly Diabetes 250 from 2012 to 2014. Both were NASCAR races which guaranteed a position for the top 35 drivers in the owners standings in the Sprint Cup Series and top 30 drivers for the Xfinity Series.) [107] "I always get a happy moment if I see the sunshine on race day, you know I think that's the happiest kind of a moment I ever have. Then I think when it's overcast I'm not quite so happy. Then when it rains, why I would just assume crawl under the bed and stay there." Tony Hulman, discussing his preferences for weather on race day. Tom Carnegie announced on June 9, 2006 that the previous month's race, would be his last as official chief track announcer. Having called the race since 1946 on the public address system, he is best known for his lines, "He's/She's on it!" (signaling the start of a qualifying attempt), "It's a new track record!" (when a driver surpasses either a one- or four-lap track record in qualifications), and "He's slowing down on the backstretch!" or "Andretti is slowing down!" (The latter for the Andretti family's historical misfortune at Indianapolis.). [108] Carnegie was also known for opening each day in May when the track was open to the public with the words, "Good morning, race fans!" After Carnegie's retirement, Dave Calabro, sports director of Indianapolis' NBC affiliate WTHR, became the second chief PA announcer in the Hulman-George era for the 2007 race and ever since. Carnegie was also known for opening each day in May when the track was open to the public with the words, "Good morning, race fans!" After Carnegie's retirement,, sports director of Indianapolis' NBC affiliate WTHR, became the second chief PA announcer in the Hulman-George era for the 2007 race and ever since. With the race scheduled for the month of May, the on-track activities are often at the mercy of midwestern springtime rain showers. Numerous practice days, qualifying days, and race days, over the years have been halted, delayed or washed out due to inclement weather. Since the cars can not race on a wet or damp course, rainy weather (and even rainy forecasts) are often despised by fans and competitors. Track owner Tony Hulman was said to have loathed rainy weather at the track, quipping that if he woke up on race day to rainy weather he "would just assume crawl under the bed and stay there". Days at the track that feature plentiful sunshine, warm, pleasant temperatures, and no precipitation, are said to be experiencing "Tony Hulman weather". Victory Lane [ edit ] Victory Lane at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Victory lane platform used from 1986-1993. Immediately after taking the checkered flag, the race winner drives to Victory Lane. The celebration to honor the winner begins with the car being wheeled onto a black and white checkered periphery. The driver is presented with the Borg-Warner Trophy, which is situated behind the car in a prominent location. A floral wreath is placed around the winners neck, and the winner is presented with the traditional bottle of milk for refreshment. Interviews are taken for television, radio, and over the public address system. The driver's crew and team owner(s) also are invited to celebrate in victory lane, and are joined by numerous dignitaries, including the 500 Festival Queen and Princesses court, track and series personalities, celebrities, and various sponsor representatives. The Indianapolis 500 notably does not utilize a podium for the top-three finishers as is customary in other forms of racing, as well as at most other IndyCar events. Only the winning driver and team participate in victory lane celebrations, believed to be an homage to horse racing's Winner's Circle. In the early years, victory lane was located at the far south end of the pit area, near the entrance to Turn One. For many years, it was identified by a large black and white checkered carpet. This location was used through 1970. In 1971, victory lane was moved to the horseshoe area located in front of the Master Control Tower. The car would be rolled up two checkered ramps, to a raised platform a few feet above the ground. In 1986, a new victory lane was constructed, which was a hydraulic lift in the pit lane. In 1994, after the pit lane was reconstructed, victory lane was moved back to the horseshoe area, this time on a large cylindrical platform. The current victory lane is located beneath the Victory Podium stage, adjacent to the Pagoda. The podium, which was originally built for the U.S. Grand Prix to serve as a 1st-2nd-3rd podium for that event, is not used as a podium for the Indy 500 or for the Brickyard 400. Instead it is utilized as a stage for pre-race ceremonies. Bottle of milk [ edit ] A long-standing tradition of the Indianapolis 500 is for the winner to drink a bottle of milk immediately after the race. This tradition dates back to 1936 after victor Louis Meyer asked for a glass of buttermilk, something his mother had encouraged him to drink on hot days. Meyer also reportedly drank milk after his victory in 1933, as did a few others in the immediate years afterward. The young tradition quickly went away, and for a time after World War II, was replaced by "Water From Wilbur" – a silver jug (resembling an ice bucket) filled with icy-cold water, presented by then-Speedway president, and three-time former winner Wilbur Shaw. By 1956, the milk returned as a ritual as milk companies became sponsors of the race purse and handed a bottle of milk to the winner to promote their product.[5] A sponsorship of currently $10,000 now paid out by the American Dairy Association if the winner sips the milk in victory lane. In 1993, Emerson Fittipaldi drank orange juice instead of milk after his victory. The snub drew considerable ire from fans. Later he took a sip of milk, at the urging of his car owner Roger Penske. Fittipaldi owned citrus farms in Brazil, and wished to promote his industry. As a result, he was booed in driver's introductions the following week by the crowd in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the heart of "America's Dairyland." In 1981, Bobby Unser also did not drink the milk in victory lane.[109] After Unser was tentatively stripped of his victory, Mario Andretti sipped from a bottle of milk the next morning during the traditional photo shoot. Borg-Warner Trophy [ edit ] A bas-relief sculpture of the winner's face, along with his name, average speed, and date of victory is added to the Borg-Warner Trophy. The trophy has been in use since 1936.[5] A smaller replica of this trophy has been officially presented to the winner after the race since 1988 and team principal since 1997, usually in a press conference either at the Speedway or in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show at the BorgWarner exhibit, except for the 2011 race because of extenuating circumstances (the winning driver had died in a crash at an aborted INDYCAR race; the winning team principal and the driver's widow were presented with the respective trophies in the ensuing January). Prior to that, winners received a replica mounted on a chestnut plaque. Other celebrations [ edit ] The Gordon Pipers bagpipes marching band has performed traditionally at the Indianapolis 500 since 1962. The band marches and performs during the 500 Festival Parade, during pre-race ceremonies, and plays while the winner is being wheeled into victory lane. [110] Celebratory burnouts or "donuts," while not specifically prohibited by the rules, are generally discouraged and frowned upon at the Indianapolis 500. Burnouts in IndyCar racing in general are often prohibited by the teams themselves, as they potentially inflict damage on the engines, which are subject to strict mileage usage and rebuild intervals. Impromptu celebrations at locations other than the formal victory lane area are also discouraged, and sometimes considered a breach of tradition. The lone exception in the past many years has been Hélio Castroneves, who made a signature of climbing the catchfence after his victories. In 2016, Alexander Rossi ran out of fuel on his cool down lap, and his car coasted to a halt out on the track. He then sprung from his car to wave to fans in turn four. He was quickly towed to victory lane, and the formal celebrations began as normal. At some point after the victory lane celebration, the winner is whisked away and rides for a lap around the track in the pace car to salute the fans. The tradition of the winning driver and crew kissing the yard of bricks that mark the start/finish, started by Dale Jarrett at the 1996 Brickyard 400, appears to have carried over to the Indy 500, starting with Gil de Ferran in 2003.[111] Selected awards [ edit ] Official standings [ edit ] For many years, the
to keep them from dinging each other up. The box included a packing slip: But I have no idea what it’s for. I think they must have slipped it in there by mistake… Unwrapping my first PCB, I was a little worried. The board had a major scratch on the front surface that actually exposed the copper ground plane: As well as some kind of sticky residue along one edge: The residue didn’t look like it would be a huge deal to clean, but I certainly couldn’t ship a clock with such an awful gouge in it, and this representative sample was spelling bad news for my clocks. I’m sure Myro would lend an ear if a large portion of the clocks had electrical problems, but I’m sure they’re not too concerned with a scratch here or there considering PCBs are designed to be locked inside enclosures. Frantic, I started opening more clocks to see how they fared. The second PCB didn’t have any scratches, but it did have some more of the residue. The next two or three didn’t have any visible problems, but I soon realized that I had nowhere safe to put all the clocks I was unwrapping. Stacking the up would likely scratch them even more. I decided to stop and place an order for the adhesive backed rubber feet that would allow me to inspect and stack the clocks. I ordered a few extra clocks in anticipation of some issues, but I wasn’t ready to start dealing with a 50% yield. I think the guys at Myro must have been playing some kind of mean trick on me, because it turns out that those two clocks were the only two out of the whole order with any kind of cosmetic issue. The rest of the boards look fantastic. I’ve run electrical tests on a handful to make sure that they were working, but considering how perfectly clean the solder joints look, I don’t anticipate having any issues. Turns out there were a ton of invisible issues. Details here. Conclusion From order to delivery took 29 days. Had I been willing to shell out another $100-200, I could have gotten that trimmed down, but again, considering I was waiting on the LEDs anyway, it was a great deal. I have to say that ordering these PCBs was one of the most stressful things I’ve done in recent history. PCBs are pricey, and it isn’t easy to give $2k to someone in China and hope that they don’t mess anything up. But considering it saved me…I dunno…about 85 hours of work, I’d have to say that it’s definitely worth it! Stay tuned for more updates on the QR clock’s production.The Los Angeles Rams are arguably the most surprising story of the first quarter of the NFL's season, jumping out to a 3-1 record and looking like an entirely different franchise from the lethargic team we saw in 2016. On Sunday, they went on the road and beat the Cowboys in Dallas, serving notice for their candidacy to surprise in the NFC this season. Now they just need the fans of Los Angeles to show up to the games. Running back Todd Gurley, who is a viable MVP candidate through the first four weeks of the season, appeared on the "Rich Eisen Show" and literally begged the people of Los Angeles who are Rams fans to attend this weekend when they play the Seahawks. "Please come to our games! Please come to our games!," Gurley said. "Obviously I guess the Seahawks have had lots of success over the past few years so there's a lot of Seahawks fans. So there will probably be a lot of Seahawks fans at the game. But that doesn't matter. We're just happy to have everybody come. And obviously if you start winning, the fans will start coming. Hopefully we can take this one this weekend and they'll keep coming." It's a pretty massive game for the Rams: they have a 3-1 lead in the NFC West with the 2-2 Seahawks coming to town. The Seahawks won handily against the Colts, but the game was much closer than the score indicated. This is a game the Rams can win, but it is also a game that will be a fantastic test of second-year quarterback Jared Goff, who has really emerged as a dangerous passer under new head coach Sean McVay. Goff looks night and day different than he did last year, which is a large result of the offensive style, Gurley believes. "Obviously since we've been able to do some fast-paced stuff. That's [closer] to what he was doing at Cal," Gurley explained to Eisen. "It's their world, I'm just living in it. Whatever makes them comfortable, I'll do that. He's been stepping up his game, man, not turning the ball over, giving me touchdowns to score on [receptions]. He's definitely the first one in and the last one to leave." Gurley also said that Goff isn't a different quarterback in the huddle at this point: he's basically the "same guy," but you could tell that Gurley clearly believes the change in offense and shift in approach has made a huge difference. He wouldn't be wrong for believing that; the Rams were terrible last year, especially on the offensive side of the ball. The offense was designed to flow around Gurley in a run-heavy scheme, but it was basically a middle-school offense according to the former Georgia standout. Now they're winging the ball all over the place to different weapons and featuring Gurley heavily in the passing game. The fans aren't all over this team as a successful squad yet, but continued victories will go a long way. If you win it, they will come. Even in Los Angeles.Marijuana legalization is a current — and hot — topic. Some people are against legalization for all purposes. Others favor marijuana legalization for medicinal purposes, but are opposed to legalization for recreational use. Still others believe marijuana should be legal for all uses. Where you stand on this issue will color your beliefs about investing in “marijuana stocks.” Even if you would never consider investing in a marijuana stock, this article should increase your knowledge about this current topic. Marijuana Legalization Colorado and Washington passed initiatives last month legalizing marijuana for recreational use, making them the first states in the U.S. to do so. And Massachusetts joined 18 states and Washington, D.C., in legalizing marijuana use by people suffering from chronic illnesses. The Colorado Amendment allows adults (those 21 and older) to purchase up to one ounce of marijuana at regulated retail stores, and permits adults to grow up to six marijuana plants at home. The Washington Amendment likewise specifies “adults.” The passing of these initiatives greatly expands the market size for legal marijuana. This market was estimated to be worth about $1.7 billion in 2011. It seems likely that marijuana for medicinal purposes will soon be legal in the entire U.S. This would further increase the market size. It’s hard to guess what will happen with the legalization for recreational use. I’d guess it will be a state by state issue for quite a while. Marijuana Stocks There are a handful of marijuana stocks, none of which trade on any of the three major U.S. stock exchanges (NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ), to my knowledge — most trade over-the-counter (OTC). This isn’t unusual for very small companies, though it can pose increased risks for investors, as listing requirements are not as stringent as they are on the major exchanges. Unless you are an experienced investor who has a high risk tolerance, I do not recommend you invest in stocks not listed on major U.S. stock exchanges, most especially smaller start-ups. We’ll look at three companies involved in different aspects of this industry, starting with a company that has been called the “The Walmart of Weed.” Terra Tech Corp. (OTC: TRTC) Operations Terra Tech, based in Irvine, CA, was in the urban agricultural business. It expanded into the medical marijuana equipment manufacturing business when it merged with GrowOp Technologies in early 2012. Terra Tech was already an OTC publicly traded company, so GrowOp, founded in 2010, became listed due to the merger. The GrowOp subsidiary manufactures and sells specialty hydroponic equipment that can be used to grow various products, but appears heavily focused on equipment for growing medical marijuana. Stock Stats The company has a market cap of $35.8 million. Revenue for the one-year period through the third-quarter was $587,290, with a net loss of $4.09 million. Negative earnings (or net income) is common for small start-ups. That said, liquidity is a major issue — meaning the company has very little cash compared to its debt load and the cash it’s burning through. Per Yahoo! Finance, it had $60,000 in cash, $471,000 in debt, and a one-year operating cash flow of almost -$338,000 at the end of last quarter. The stock price is down over 60% since the company began trading. Here’s the chart: Pass on this stock — the financials and stock stats are poor. If the finances improve over the next few quarters, experienced risk-tolerant investors comfortable with investing in OTC stocks can always reconsider. Medbox (OTC: MDBX) Operations Related Articles 6 Lessons I Learned From my Best and Worst Stock Picks Hotels Are Getting Cheaper in These 5 Tourist Hot Spots How to Calculate Estimated Taxes, based in Hollywood, CA, sells patented automated dispensing machines to licensed medical marijuana dispensaries. The machines dispense set doses of marijuana, after using fingerprint technology to verify patients’ identities. The interesting factor here is the potential to develop similar machines that dispense prescription drugs other than marijuana. Potential investors would need to explore the regulatory aspects. Stock Stats Let’s start with the stock price here, given the extremely wild ride. The stock price began trading on Aug. 3 of this year at $2.50 per share. It hit a low of $.03 on Sept. 4, then surged to a high of $215 on Nov. 15, and is currently trading at $95 (Dec. 13 close). The rocketing price was surely due to the passing of the legalization initiatives. Here’s the chart: There are scant stock stats available on Yahoo! Finance, given the company just went public this August. Pass on this one for now — it is simply too new. However, experienced risk-tolerant investors comfortable with investing in OTC stocks may want to put it on a “watch list.” GW Pharmaceuticals (GWPRF) This one is not listed OTC — it’s listed on a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange. Operations Salisbury, U.K.-based GW Pharmaceuticals develops and sells cannabinoid prescription pharmaceutical products to treat various medical conditions. Its primary product is Sativex, which is reportedly the first marijuana-based medicine. The drug is sold as a mouth spray for alleviating symptoms of multiple sclerosis. It’s sold in several countries, including Canada, the U.K., Germany, Spain and Denmark. The company is currently seeking FDA approval to sell the drug in the U.S. as a pain reliever in late-stage cancer patients. It’s also in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of cancer pain and Phase II/III trials for the treatment of neuropathic pain, bladder dysfunction and rheumatoid arthritis. The company is also in the early stages of developing other cannabinoids to treat conditions such as diabetes, inflammation, psychiatric conditions and epilepsy. It’s been in business since 1998, so it’s not a start-up like most in the legal marijuana industry. Stock Stats This company is the only one discussed here that makes a profit. It also generates considerably more revenue than most in the industry. This $120.4 million market cap company generated revenue of $53.2 million and net income of $3.97 million for the one-year period through the third-quarter. Profit margin is 12.5% and Return-on-Equity is 12.8% — both a far cry from stats for larger more established drug companies, but not bad for a smaller less-established one. Quarterly revenue increased 68% over the same quarter last year. The P/E is 31. The stock price is at an all-time low, a concern. The stock began trading in June 2010 at $1.78 per share. It’s currently trading at $0.91. Here’s the chart: Pass on this one for now. Experienced, risk-tolerant investors comfortable with investing on stocks not listed on U.S. exchanges may want to put on a “watch list.” Two main things to watch for — earnings progressions and a stock price move off the all-time low. Of course, an FDA approval has the potential to ignite this stock.Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt has been caught repeatedly misleading Congress about his use of different email accounts during his six years as Oklahoma’s attorney general. He said he used just one email, when he actually had two. He sent official correspondence from a personal address, and appeared to deliberately delay public-records requests to cover his tracks before facing a Senate confirmation hearing. Now, a senator involved in that confirmation process is backing an effort that could get Pruitt disbarred in his home state, Oklahoma, for violating ethics rules. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) plans to submit a lengthy statement and 60 pages of evidence to the Oklahoma Bar Association on Tuesday for its investigation into Pruitt, whom he accuses of lying to him during and after the hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. The bar association began probing Pruitt in March in response to an ethics complaint filed by an environmental group and a University of Oklahoma law professor. Whitehouse, in a letter provided to HuffPost before he submitted it to the bar association, says Pruitt’s “misleading answers, evasiveness, and stonewalling” prevented lawmakers from fully vetting the candidate before advancing his nomination for a Senate confirmation vote. “I have had a front-row seat for Mr. Pruitt’s misleading testimony and his ongoing failure to respond completely and truthfully to Committee requests for him to set the record straight,” Whitehouse wrote in the letter, addressed to bar association general counsel Gina Hendryx. “This conduct is unbecoming of an attorney who is also a public official and who, under law, is required to testify truthfully to Congress.” Aaron Bernstein / Reuters Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt testifies before a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 27. Pruitt’s deep ties to fossil fuel industries whose pollution he’s now charged with policing became a lightning rod during his confirmation process. Correspondence published by The New York Times in 2014 as part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning series showed Pruitt allowing lawyers from Devon Energy, an oil and gas company, to write a complaint to the EPA under his official letterhead. Since taking office, Pruitt has spent an unusual amount of time courting fossil fuel executives amid aggressive rollbacks of regulations and programs to address climate change. His failure to provide accurate testimony on his email use fuels concerns that he misled lawmakers to obscure his push to boost oil and gas profits ahead of public health. If he is found guilty of violating rules, the bar association could choose to sanction Pruitt, suspend his license or, in the most severe scenario, disbar him for at least five years. It’s unclear how disbarment would affect his job as EPA administrator. “He misstated the facts over and over again,” Whitehouse told HuffPost in a phone interview on Monday. “This was a case of repeat prevarications, not just an inadvertent slip.” During his first appearance before Congress in January, Pruitt claimed he never used his personal email address for official business. He told Whitehouse that there were “no other email addresses.” After the hearing, he confirmed the statement, telling Whitehouse: “I have used two email addresses since becoming attorney general of Oklahoma. I use a personal email address for personal email, and an official email address for official business. The domain of my personal email address is me.com and the domain for my official email address is oag.ok.gov.” On Feb. 21, four days after he the Senate narrowly confirmed his nomination, the Oklahoma attorney general’s office released 7,564 pages of Pruitt’s emails under court order following a lawsuit from the nonprofit Center for Media and Democracy. The correspondence showed Pruitt using his personal email for official purposes, contradicting his testimony. He misstated the facts over and over again. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.)Welcome back to the Digilent Blog! In the not too distant past, we made a couple of posts on Pmods that can help drive motors as well as a post on stepper motors. Today, we’re going to check out running multiple servo motors on a chipKIT board. Why would we want to do this? Well, aside from the nice feeling that comes from successfully doing some extreme multitasking, we’d also be able to run some super cool mechatronics projects, such as a robot arm! The short answer to our question of being able to running five or more servos of chipKIT uC32 is a definite yes… if we follow some guidelines. Classic servo motors work by by receiving a PWM signal from the host board. Within the servo motor itself, there is a small potentiometer that receives this voltage signal and adjusts its angle (as well as the servo arm) based on how long the voltage pulse that it receives is. Normally, you might think that if something requires a PWM signal we would need to use a PWM capable pin on our system board in order to send out that signal; I know I certainly did. Luckily, servo motors do not have such intensive pin requirements. The motors themselves are actually expecting a pulse width that is (usually) somewhere between 1 and 2 milliseconds, which every GPIO pin on a chipKIT board can easily achieve. This becomes even easier with the chipKIT servo library, where you can simply tell a motor to rotate to a certain angle and not even have to worry about the pulse width. You may be thinking to yourself, “If basically every pin on a chipKIT board is able to run a servo motor, then what’s the issue with running multiple servos?” This is a valid question. If you are operating the servo motors one at a time, then there is no issue with having a bunch of them. However, when you start running multiple motors at the same time, you start running into power issues. Servo motors are known to draw quite a bit of current (upwards of 100 mA) so when you get five or more servos running at the same time, you’ll likely end up drawing more power than you can supply through a computer’s USB port. What can we do about this? The answer to this is what you might expect –use a larger power supply. What I recommend using is a 5V 2.5A power supply while bypassing the 5V regulator. This will allow the 3.3V regulator that operates the PIC32 microcontroller to work correctly and easily power multiple servo motors on the 5V power supply line without any fear of over-drawing current…unless you plan on running 20+ servo motors at the same time. Then you should give us a comment to find out what you should do next. You can check out a uC32 in action with five servo motors in the YouTube video below!LOS ANGELES (KTLA) — A new bill proposes extending alcohol service until 4 a.m. in California — two hours later than is currently allowed by law. State Sen. Mark Leno has proposed a bill that would give local communities the option of letting restaurants, bars and nightclubs serve alcohol into the wee hours. The bill does not apply to liquor stores. The goal is to let California cities compete with the likes of New York, Chicago and Las Vegas, where closing time extends into the early morning. Under the plan, cities could submit a plan to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. According to Leno, later drinking hours would be beneficial for job creation, tourism and local tax revenue. But residents and bar owners have some mixed reviews on the bill. And law enforcement might not be on board with the change either, becasue later bar hours could mean more late night headaches. The beverage service hours legislation is set to go before a policy committee this month.Chances are you’ve seen a lot of street fights if you ever hung around the good ole Interwebs for more than 10 minutes. Those virtually always feature the same stuff: messy action, cheap shots, ugly ‘technique’. Not this one, though. The following footage shows two teenage girls engaging in a wild street fight. The difference with most street fights here is that one of them possesses amazing skills… The two girls start engaging on the feet. The one wearing a grey hoodie grabs her foe’s hair (welp, yeah, this isn’t the UFC!), drags her to the ground, and hits a very nice sweep that almost makes her land in top position. The girl with the black shorts lands in dominant position, but not for long. The girl in the grey hoodie seems to go for a triangle choke, but uses it as leverage to perform a beautiful sweep that lands her in the mount position. She’s starting to throw heavy leather. The other girl tries to turn away, but in vain. Back to mount. The girl on the bottom, forced to protect her face, gives one of her arm to the girl on top who immediately goes for a textbook armbar! It seems to be locked (look at the girl’s elbow being torqued in a painful way) but somehow the girl on the bottom manages to pull out. The other girl throws big punches again and lands in side control. She continues dominating the other girl and now is going for a rear naked choke! It is soon locked up this time. The girl in the black shorts try to defend the submission by grabbing her foe’s hair (hey, sometimes you gotta do what you can to escape!) but it’s too late. The choke is very tight, and the other girl ends up totally unconscious. This fight is a real gem if you’re a grappling freak like myself. Neat throws, beautiful sweeps, tight submissions, it had it all. Next: The 5 hottest female MMA instagramsAs the dust settles after another momentous rugby championship, and now having become the sole side in the game’s history to go an entire calendar year without tasting defeat, the question has to be asked…….is this current New Zealand side the greatest international rugby union team to grace the game? This New Zealand side seems to have moved on to another level from performances that gave them only their second world title in 2011. A huge factor in this progression has been the transition of head coach, with Steve Hansen (who was forwards coach during RWC11) replacing Graham Henry. Hansen is a tough driven individual and demands the same from this group. Hansen’s mantra seems to be that “every opponent must be respected but none feared”. He has the All-Blacks working harder than ever before. This New Zealand side contains some of the greatest players to have ever played the game, Dan Carter, Richie McCaw and Conrad Smith have seen and done it all. Their experience is vital in the pivotal positions of out-half and centre, and in McCaw they possess a man who not only leads the 15 on the field, but is a symbol for New Zealand as a nation. What should really scare opposing teams is that this conveyer belt of talent shows no sign of stopping. Kieran Read is the best no 8 in the world and in my opinion, pound for pound the best rugby player on the planet. A nation that is famous for its clinical wingers, think Christian Cullen, Joe Rocokoco, John Kirwan, Dougie Howlett to name but a few, have two new fresh devastating wingers in Julian Savea and Ben Smith. Aaron Smith has been a revelation at scrum half and comfortably out-played the supposed best no 9 Will Genia, in every encounter this year. The pack has the perfect blend of youth and experience. Brodie Retallick and Sam Whitelock at second row are only 25 and 22 years of age, but are bossing and dominating packs with far more caps on paper. New Zealand’s hard edge comes in the shape of their vicious veterans in the front row, Andrew Hore, the Franks brothers, Kevin Mealamu and Tony Woodcock are exactly what a side needs when a game needs to be won in the trenches. Looking past their excellent coach and phenomenal playing staff, perhaps what makes this side the greatest ever is their mental strength and will to win. In the second last round of the rugby championship they had to travel to Ellis Park in South Africa to take on a pumped up and emotional Springbok side. The entire completion rested on the result of this clash between the worlds top two sides. With everything to play for the All Blacks put on a master class of knockout rugby and ran out convincing winners. This All-Black side does not get intimidated by any challenge. If you want a brawl they can fight, if you want to run the ball they can play, if you want to play a kicking game they possess some of the best open field kickers in Israel Dagg and Dan Carter. Irish fans will look at this article with a sense of bitterness and disgust following our epic clash with the boys from the long white cloud which ended in an agonising two point defeat, with the All-Blacks grabbing the winning try in added time. However, even the most die-hard Irish supporter would have to admit that there is no other side in world rugby who would be capable of scoring that try with the pressure that was on. New Zealand showed patience, courage and ultimately belief in one another to push the ferocious Irish defence back and work their way to the corner where Richard Kahui broke Irish hearts. This side does not know when they are beaten and combine all the vital facets of the beautiful game that is rugby to achieve success. People will argue and point to the New Zealand side of 1982, or the English side of 2003 as superior teams, but in terms of all round ability and desire to win, I feel no side has ever matched the current ABs. Pundit Arena, Michael Sweeney.Advertisement Sacramento Pet Expo canceled days before event Some vendors lose thousands of dollars Share Shares Copy Link Copy Some Northern California animal enthusiasts received disappointing news Friday about Sacramento's first Pet Expo at Cal Expo.Watch report: Sacramento Pet Expo canceled days before eventThe event was scheduled for Dec. 6, but organizers said the volatile situation in Ferguson was behind the cancellation.Now some vendors, like Eden Halbert, are out thousands of dollars."So, when I heard the cancellation, to me that was like waking up on Christmas morning with coal in the stocking," Halbert said Monday.After almost six months of planning for the event, Halbert is left with a kitchen full of boxes filled with banners, signs and marketing material.Halbert is the owner of a dog boarding and photography business in Placerville."If I had any more notice -- any more, even a few days, I would not be left with a pile of boxes of products I can't use," she said.In total, she said, she's out $5,000. About $900 went into reserving two corner booths.And 120 vendors paid for tables at Saturday's event, only to receive a cancellation email three days ago from the Amazing Pet Expo's CEO, Sheila Rilenge.The St. Louis-based company cites the ongoing tension in nearby Ferguson for its decision, plus limited staffing to put on two California expos scheduled for the same day.The other event is still being held in Pomona.Here's an excerpt from the email that went out to participants: "…We do not have ample staff available who feel comfortable leaving their home, young children, elderly parents and/or pets in order to travel across the country to produce both events."Organizers said refunds will be given out, but Halbert said it's more than just the money."It's less about these costs, and more about the lack of opportunity to get in front of possible great customers," she said.Eden has corresponded with Rilenge, but said she's still left with a lot of questions.Rilenge did note in her email that someone on the team would be making phone calls Monday to the people affected.Any further questions can be directed to 800-977-3609 ext. 100.The state department seems convinced by photographs collected by Ukraine's government that analyse the weapons, dress – and beards – of 'green men' appearing with paramilitaries in eastern cities The US state department has claimed Russian special forces are engaged in covert actions in the Ukraine, citing as evidence controversial photographs that purportedly identify known personnel and show bullet-proof jackets and “Russian-designed weapons like AK-47s”. At first glance, the US appears to be opening itself up to ridicule by referring to the AK-47, a ubiquitous rifle used for decades in conflicts from the Middle East to Africa and Latin America due to its ease of use. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Armed pro-Russian forces guard a barricade in front of Slovyansk's city hall. The US says weapons used by some forces are Russian-made AK-74s. Photograph: Sergei Grits/AP But the state department’s assertion is not as dubious at it seems, according to Igor Sutyagin, a Russian affairs specialist at the London-based Royal United Services Institute. “They are a new generation of Kalashnikovs, not the kind it is possible to buy in the shops,” he said. “They are used by the Russian army and extensively used during the takeover in the Crimea.” The dispute over the provenance of the AK-47 is just one piece of the row over whether the “green men” that have emerged in eastern Ukraine are merely pro-Russian supporters or are being bolstered by Russian special forces and intelligence agencies. The controversy has been stoked by the US, which has backed pictures circulated by the Ukrainian government purportedly identifying Russian special forces that were part of Russia’s invasion of Georgia in 2008. What is in these pictures? The Ukrainian government sent pictures of pro-Russian separatists to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the pan-continental body whose aims include conflict prevention. According to Ukraine, the pictures offered evidence that Russian special forces and intelligence are engaged. A collage of pictures shows a figure with a long beard that the Ukrainian government claims is “a soldier of the Russian special forces, who took part in combat operations in Georgia in 2008”, identified in Kramatorsk in Ukraine during the assault on a local police station by amed pro-Russian activists. The US says the bearded 'green man', to the left of the Ukrainian police officer being arrested in Slavyansk last week, is the same man pictured in Georgia in 2008, below. Photograph: Kommersant/Getty Other pictures show groups of men apparently in Russian military uniforms with identifying tags removed. Few would have paid much attention to the pictures until the US state department joined in. “There has been broad unity in the international community about the connection between Russia and some of the armed militants in eastern Ukraine, and the photos presented by the Ukrainians last week only further confirm this, which is why US officials have continued to make that case,” the state department spokesman Jen Psaki told CNN on Monday. Do the pictures prove that Russian special forces are engaged in Ukraine? Any US government should be wary of presenting photographs as proof little more than a decade after Colin Powell displayed at the United Nations photographs incorrectly showing Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction. The Ukrainian pictures do not provide unequivocal proof. The man with the grey beard cited as being in the Ukraine does resemble the one in Georgia in 2008, but only loosely. Close inspection shows the moustache is combed up in one and down in the other, the beards are different lengths, the hair much whiter and there a difference in weight. That could be explained away by the seven-year gap, but it is far from conclusive. Does this mean Russian special forces are not engaged in eastern Ukraine? Facebook Twitter Pinterest Viacheslav Ponomariov, commander of the pro-Russian forces in east Ukraine, speaks with his troops in Slavyansk. Photograph: Pierre Le Crom/Le Journal/Rex Russia initially denied that similar tactics were used in Crimea, where Russian soldiers removed their badges and pretended to be Crimean paramilitaries. The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, last week admitted that they had been Russian soldiers, but denied special forces and intelligence agents were engaged in the same tactics in eastern Ukraine. Brigadier Ben Barry, who specialises in land warfare at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, which has offices in London and Washington, offers a cautious assessment that hints at the involvement of people with military training. “Some of the photos and video footage I’ve seen shows armed men acting much more professionally and better-equipped than the vast majority of activists," he said. "But they seem to me to be in a minority. This may be because there are few of them, or they are deliberately staying in the background, or both.” “My judgment is that there is strong evidence that there are a small number of better-equipped and trained personnel involved with the pro-Russian activists. Are they Russian Spetsnaz [special forces]? Possibly, but I’ve not yet seen a smoking gun,” Barry added. What other ‘evidence’ is there that Russian special forces and intelligence agents are involved? The US says many of the pro-Russian militants engaged in seizing government offices in six cities in eastern Ukraine were “outfitted in bullet-proof vests, camouflage uniforms with insignia removed … These armed units, some wearing black and orange St George’s ribbons associated with Russian victory day celebrations … These operations are strikingly similar to those used against Ukrainian facilities during Russia’s illegal military intervention in Crimea in late February and its subsequent occupation.” But the bullet-proof jackets, the St George’s ribbons and the other paraphernalia mentioned are easily available. Other evidence? The Ukrainian intelligence services released a recording of what it claimed was an intercepted communication between Russian agents in eastern Ukraine and Russia, basically suggesting that special forces should stay in the background and leave interviews to locals. Sutyagin says this is among possible pointers to the involvement of Russian special forces. He acknowledged that many Ukrainians involved are genuinely dissatisfied and see a better future with Russia, but he believes they are being backed by special forces. “I do not think the special forces make up less than 10% of those involved,” he said, predicting “a long period of instability ahead”.Jenny Hyun, the co-songwriter behind Girls’ Generation‘s “How Great is Your Love” and Chocolat‘s “One More Day” recently sparked controversy with a slew of racist tweets. On February 16, the former singer posted over a dozen derogatory comments on her Twitter against African-Americans. The fuel for her outrage? A dismissive tweet by boxer Floyd Mayweather about NBA star Jeremy Lin:”Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he’s Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don’t get the same praise.” Hyun responded that Floyd was a “subhuman, ungrateful APE,” and then started spreading vitriol about the black community in general. She insinuated that Whitney Houston‘s recent passing wasn’t such a loss because of “all that baggage” she came with, and referred to African-Americans as “disgusting, violent, arrogant, and stupid.” Then, in an even more frightening twist, she repeatedly called for the eradication of the entire black race: “Eradication of one toxic family is exactly what this world needs.” “Think about all the money we would save not having to give their never ending charities, replacing a black worker with any other race.” “We don’t know what it’s like with them not here. But imagine a world with NO BLACK PEOPLE. All the tension in every aspect of life would be drastically improved without them around. And ONLY them.” K-Pop fans started to tweet her to tell her to stop. Following the angry tweets she received, Hyun protected her Twitter account and then posted an apology of sorts on her blog. The sincerity of her apology left something to be desired, as she prefaced it with an explanation that people were saying they knew where she lived, and followed it up with a statement that she did not regret what she said. She also posted a blog entry with a meme that read “I regret nothing,” as well as another meme that compared a modest hut in Africa to a picture of the Roman Empire 2000 years ago, ostensibly in order to draw a contrast between the quality of the two civilizations. Later that day, she also tweeted, “I Love KFC #YaHeard” and “This is not Black America, THIS IS ASIA AMERICA.” As of now, the “apology” has been removed from her site, while the memes remain. UPDATE: Check out our new article which gives more information as to what happens next here.Last year, The Pride Network hosted a day-long event, Students Promoting Equality Action and Knowledge, SPEAK Summit, where a few hundred students gathered to sharpen their leadership skills as LGBTQ young people. Throughout the day, these young people had the opportunity to select from a variety of workshops ranging from "Starting an LGBT Student Group at Your School" to "Being Out in the Workplace". As expected, most of the workshops were attended by a fair mix of races, genders, and orientations with the exception of the offerings specific to unique experiences. "Being Queer and a Person of Color" and "Navigating College as Trans" attracted those who share similar identities. These audience specific workshops offered spaces that were not only safe but, for many, unique opportunities to experience a real sense of belonging that validated how they move through the world. What I didn't expect, however, was how the mix of participants broke down within certain workshops. For example, "Identifying an LGBT-Friendly College" was full of LGB students, while "Know Your Rights" was full of Trans students. "LGBT in Politics" and "Sharing Experiences through Writing" were full of LGB students, while "Homelessness in the LGBT Community" was mostly attended by Trans students. What was it about these workshops that divided LGB and T? The day went on, and the self-selecting process became more and more obvious. It dawned on me. Privilege. This unconscious division revealed the far too often overlooked factor of LGB privilege within the LGBT community. LGB folk often experience more privilege in their lifetime than Trans people. Trans people face higher rates of unemployment, violence, police brutality, workplace discrimination, and health care discrimination than LGB people. What is clear, however, is not always obvious. I would like to think most LGB people understand this. The real issue, then, comes down to prioritizing values. Most LGB people have yet to establish a sense of solidarity for people other than those who look and identify similarly to themselves. Trans people have always embraced and celebrated intersectionality, supported LGB people's causes and political battles, and participated conscientiously in our community. But where is our conscience? At the same time, we barely even acknowledge our Trans brothers' and sisters' existence and shamefully ignore important roles they have played in our history and recent milestones. We, as LGB people, are so
explained that the closet was chosen because of its 'close proximity' to the room where Mr Biden was speaking, and that it had a table and chair where the reporter could work, as well as open space. But she clarified: 'A hotel room, however, should not be a storage room'. Some guests were shocked by the Vice President’s staff. One emailed the paper saying: ‘I was in attendance at the Fundraiser and enjoyed a nice lunch. ‘If I had known there was a reporter stuffed in the closet, I would have been compelled to stand up and demand answers. ‘I would also like to know if this is actually legal to treat people like caged animals. I’m disgusted by these actions.’ Florida state law says kidnapping entails ‘forcibly, secretly or by threat confining, abducting or imprisoning another person against her or his will and without lawful authority.’ Alan Ginsburg's home was awash with 150 guests - non of whom seemed to know Scott Power was being held guard in the closet Powers said of his treatment: ‘It was frustrating and annoying that I was not given a chance to do my job fully and properly. ‘This was an extreme, and extremely inappropriate way of handling the press… it was essentially a rude and uncomfortable way to treat a reporter.’ He attempted to play down his treatment calling it ‘hardly unusual or shocking’ and confirmed that he received an apology from Ginsburg. But he said the Vice President’s staff emailed him an apology which ‘I found far less satisfying than Ginsburg’s.’ The incident is especially embarrassing for the administration because it comes at a time when the White House has been condemning the treatment of journalists trying to report in Libya. Just ten days ago, President Obama’s spokesman Jay Carney told reporters: ‘journalists should be protected and allowed to do their work.’ The Vice President’s office did not respond to requests for comment.yungxphilo: eurotrottest: insecure-white-girl: If he’s not dead or missing in 2 weeks I’d be surprised Oh lord what’s his name A University Don, Professor Maduike Ezeibe of the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike, Abia State, has claimed his recent therapy for the dreaded Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome is real and effective. According to Ezeibe, he discovered the therapy when he decided to join the medical world to search for a solution to HIV/AIDS. His research into the therapy known as ‘Antivirt’ (Anti-Viral Therapy) started in 1994, but he was able to discover the therapy in 2013 when his research was published in the British Journal of Medicine & Medical Research, Ezeibe explained. Mr Ezeibe says two essential minerals, aluminum silicate and magnesium silicate, used in producing the therapy, are mostly found in Umuahia and parts of Abia State which then gives him an upper hand. It will also make the therapy which he claims would take an average of two or three months to cure cheaper and affordable. - See more at: http://naijamod.com/meet-the-university-don-who-says-he-has-cure-for-aids/#sthash.d58ZGBbX.dpufForward Matt Halischuk scored at 3:36 of overtime to lift Canada to a 3-2 win over Sweden in the gold-medal game at the world junior hockey championship on Saturday. Brad Marchand and Claude Giroux added first-period goals in Pardubice, Czech Republic, to help the Canadians win their fourth consecutive gold and 14th overall. "Our kids just grabbed the rope and said 'You know what? We'll find a way to get this thing done,'" Canadian coach Craig Hartsburg said. On the winning goal, Halischuk jammed a loose puck in the crease by Sweden goalie Jhonas Enroth after Canadian forward Shawn Matthias drove to the net from the corner. "Shawn Matthias did a great job of taking the puck to the net," said Halischuk, who plays for the Ontario Hockey League's Kitchener Rangers. "I just tried to go to the net and it was just sitting there so I whacked it home and saw the ref pointing, so it was pretty special." Jonathan Carlsson and Tomas Larsson, the latter with 38 seconds left in regulation, scored for the Swedes, who posted a come-from-behind 4-3 victory over the Canadians in the preliminary round. With Canada smelling victory Saturday and Enroth on the bench for an extra attacker in the dying seconds of the third period, Larsson gave the Swedes some life. His initial rebound attempt was stopped by defenceman Drew Doughty on the goal line, but he made no mistake on his second shot as Canadian netminder Steve Mason was caught out of position. "The Swedes turned their game up a notch and it was real hard for us to stay with them speed-wise," Hartsburg said. Mason, coming off a 33-save performance in Friday's semifinal win over the United States, was named the most valuable player and top goalie of this year's tournament and also voted by the media to the all-star team. The biggest of his 26 stops came in OT when he denied Swedish forward Tony Lagerstrom, who stood alone in front of the Canadian net. The only negative for Canada was the loss of forward Stefan Legein to a separated right shoulder in the first period. He played one shift and didn't return. Trailing 2-0, Sweden got on the board at 5:13 of the third period on a Carlsson power-play goal. Johan Alcen set up the goal, skating behind Canada's net and slipping a back-hander to an open Carlsson, who beat Mason to the short side. Marchand beat Enroth 87 seconds after the opening faceoff for his third goal in as many games against Sweden over the last two years. He was on the spot when a shot from the faceoff circle by Giroux bounced above Enroth's head. The puck appeared to either go off a part of Marchand's anatomy or a Swedish defender, but it rolled off Enroth and over the goal line. Later in the frame, Marchand notched his sixth point in the last six games when he set up Giroux. For the Swedes, who entered the game with a 5-0-0 record, it was their first medal at the world juniors in 12 years. They hadn't medalled since losing to Canada in the final at the 1996 tournament in Boston, but are 0-5 all-time against the Canadians in the medal round. Sweden's lone title in this tournament came in 1981 in Germany. Canada's road to the final required a 4-2 quarter-final win over Finland before beating the U.S. 4-1 in a semifinal. It felt like a home game for the Canadian players, who enjoyed vocal support from about 2,000 fans among the announced crowd of 7,480 — by far the loudest contingent at Pardubice Arena. Ten Canadian players, including Kyle Turris, Steve Stamkos and John Tavares, are eligible for next year's tourney in Ottawa. Canada will also host in 2010 and 2012 and the U.S. gets it in 2011. Earlier Saturday, Russia defeated the Americans 4-2 in the bronze-medal game. Nikita Filatov and Alexei Cherepanov led the attack with three points each. Tournament all-star team:The Portland Fruit Beer Festival is the first of it’s kind and also the largest, to accommodate this years fest will have an even larger selection of specialty made exotic fruit beer offerings from Oregon and beyond. As usual nearly every beer and a few ciders have been brewed specifically for the Fruit Beer Festival and use a wide range of fruits from Passion Fruit, Peaches and Cherries to Rhubarb, Pears and Blueberries, we have all the bases covered! Some of the participating breweries include: Deschutes, Hopworks, 10 Barrel Brewing, Stone Brewing, Breakside Brewery, The Commons, Laurelwood, Upright, Elysian, Reverend Nat’s, 2 Towns Cider and Flat Tail Brewing with many more TBA. As in previous years the Portland Fruit Beer Festival is an All-Ages event and features local food carts and vendors as well as a full pub menu inside Burnside Brewing Co. This years festival is expanding by adding another day a Friday June 6th evening session to be held in Burnside Brewing’s parking lot and limited to only 300 advanced tickets. Attendees to this new VIP session get an early preview of the beers including some special rare beer tappings while beating the larger crowds on Saturday & Sunday. VIP session tickets are now on sale for $30.“Who here knows what edamame is?” Will Lourcey asks a rapt audience of schoolchildren. Confronted with mostly blank looks, the young Texan, just 13 years old himself, becomes teacher for a moment and explains some of the vegetable’s virtues. It’s popular in Asia, he tells them, and it’s a good source of protein. “Who wants to try some?” Will implores. “Not me,” replies one reluctant audience member. From another corner, though, emerges a murmur of acquiescence. To which Will adds: “I think everyone should try some. It’s delicious!” Will’s presence among the kids of Cavile Place, an economically deprived area in the eastern reaches of Fort Worth, Texas, has become a regular feature. He does so with a purpose: Since the tender age of 7, Will has been focused on feeding the hungry. It all started when he saw a man on a street corner begging for food, and he decided he wanted to do something about it. With the help of his parents – Julie, a teacher, and Bill, a financial adviser – he established the charity Friends Reaching Our Goals, or FROGs. He named the organization himself, Ms. Lourcey says, and designed FROGs with a dual purpose: to inspire youths to carry out service work in their communities and to feed those at risk of going hungry. That was October 2010. Since then, he has helped provide more than 500,000 meals to those in need. He raises funds, he plans, he ropes in friends, and more. Tonight he is serving Asian-themed dishes as part of the monthly FROGs Dinner Club, a central event. Each time, Will and his fellow volunteers aim to serve a free, fresh meal with the twist that the recipients be introduced to new foods and healthier options. This go-round, honey-seared chicken is dished up with brown or white rice alongside Vietnamese chicken salad rolls. And edamame. None of them have tried it before, Ms. Lourcey muses, and they seem to like it. “When I was 7, I was riding home from a Little League baseball game when I saw a man on a street corner who held a sign that said, ‘Need Meal,’ ” Will elaborates. “And it made me sad to realize that there are people in my community who didn’t have enough food to eat. So I started FROGs. Our motto is to have fun while helping others.” The Dinner Club, he says, is about 2 years old and is one of the organization’s latest activities. “We do it at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Fort Worth,” he notes. Not only does FROGs serve a healthy meal to the kids there, but it also “involve[s] them in a service project because we believe we all have the ability to help others.” Will, who would one day like to join the US Foreign Service, says he always tries to make time for his charity work amid a crammed schedule of school and extracurricular activities like sports. With an assist from his mom, he is running only slightly behind schedule tonight, having rushed straight from school for the 5:30 p.m. start time. “People often tell us we’ve done a good job with Will,” Lourcey says. “We wish we could take credit for Will’s heart to help others but can’t. Will has actually done a good job with us. It’s he who has inspired us to serve in the community and make a positive impact.” As Will finishes his exposition on edamame, he turns to the service activity associated with this night’s meal: The children are asked to decorate gift bags with drawings showing their interpretations of happiness, peace, and hope. At a later date, the bags are to be filled with shelf-stable food that, Will explains, will be distributed to homeless people in San Francisco. He was to travel there as part of his work with the Jefferson Awards Foundation, which this year honored him for his efforts to fight hunger and poverty. Get the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Through the foundation’s Score on Hunger national campaign, Will’s efforts have helped amass $852,000 worth of food items for hunger-fighting charities, according to the foundation website. “Will’s determination to provide meals for those in need is nothing short of remarkable,” says Hillary Schafer, executive director of the Jefferson Awards Foundation, in an email. “To date, his LEAD360 project Score on Hunger has aggregated over 250,000 meals and inspired young people across the country to engage their own communities. His passion for service and ability to deliver results is exactly what the Jefferson Awards Foundation trains young people to achieve.”In mid-December, with Donald Trump’s ascension to the presidency looming, former Republican congressman Jack Kingston flew to Moscow. Kingston, a senior Trump surrogate, was dispatched to liaise with American firms working in Russia. The topic on everyone’s minds was the U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia in response to its 2014 annexation of Crimea and support for a pro-Russian insurgency in eastern Ukraine. For the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), a nonprofit organization that acts as a lobbying firm for U.S. business interests in Russia, Kingston’s visit was an opportunity to be heard by the incoming administration. The Chamber’s position was as straightforward as it was predictable: sanctions have harmed U.S. business efforts in Russia and, in any case, have been ineffective. “There is a change in priorities...of the strategic objectives under the Trump administration,” says Alexis Rodzianko, President and CEO of AmCham. “Business just moved up a few notches, while politics has moved down. We think — we hope — there will now be a more sympathetic ear to U.S. business in Russia.” Changing Tack Historically a vocal lobbying group, AmCham has been relatively mute over the past three years as Moscow and Washington clashed over Ukraine. While the change in business environment in 2014 in large part determined AmCham’s embrace of a more subtle, muted tack, the approach is also characteristic of Rodzianko, who took over from chief Andrew Somers in 2013. One long-time AmCham member, speaking on a condition of anonymity, says that Rodzianko avoids the political: “He plays things quiet, and down the middle.” Rodzianko, the soft-spoken American-born son of Soviet refugees, is used to playing the role of faithful intermediary. He got his start in U.S.-Russia affairs working as an interpreter for President Jimmy Carter’s negotiating team during the second Strategic Arms Limitation Talks in Geneva. He later moved on to investment banking in Moscow during the 1990s and 2000s. As the head of AmCham, Rodzianko is charged with representing the collective interests of the American business community. In this capacity, his three years with the organization have not been easy. “Sanctions have been a real wet blanket,” Rodzianko told the Moscow Times. Complaining to the Obama administration would have been counterproductive because Washington would just pass it off as evidence sanctions were working, Rodzianko says. Trump on the other hand has given the Russian-American business community an unexpected opportunity. Several times during his presidential campaign Trump signaled he was open to the idea of lifting sanctions against Moscow in a bid to restore relations with the Kremlin. While it remains unclear if Trump will pursue sanctions relief, AmCham is ready to make their case. “We have some thoughts on paper and have requested an early meeting with the new administration to argue our case,” Rodzianko says. “We are not going to lobby to lift sanctions. We are going to lobby for improved U.S.-Russia relations and [ask] that if you argue with Russia, you don’t use business as a weapon.” The Cost of Sanctions The Chamber represents hundreds of American firms working in Russia. Its board of directors is a who’s who of American international corporations — Boeing, Microsoft, Apple, Intel, and ExxonMobil. Almost half of AmCham’s member companies have been in Russia for 21 to 30 years and view the Russian market as strategically important. Half of its members are in the energy and natural resources business — an industry heavily disrupted by sanctions. While investment in Russia rebounded to $1 billion in 2015, import volumes dropped by 50% compared to 2014. The Chamber does not yet have data compiled for 2016. AmCham has been critical of the excesses of the U.S. sanctions regime, which Rodzianko says have had unintended consequences for firms operating in Russia. And much of the organization’s work has focused on helping its members understand and lobby against aspects of the sanctions. The most recent example came on Dec. 29, when Obama signed his final sanctions order against Russia. The sanctions, which placed a moratorium on working with the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), were drawn up in response to Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 Presidential Election. According to Rodzianko, the sanctions — which were modified on Feb. 2 — were drawn up hastily and without thought. “Naming the FSB means literally if you are US citizen, then crossing the border is against sanctions, because you are receiving a service from the FSB — border guards are a department of the FSB,” Rodzianko says. “The FSB also issues licenses for electronics, so if you have a new chip, a new phone, a new piece of software, it has to be approved by the FSB: so theoretically, we are done — Microsoft, Intel, and Apple are all in trouble.” On Feb. 2, the U.S. Treasury Department announced that it was amending the sanctions against the FSB to allow American electronics companies to again import electronics to Russia — something AmCham was explicitly lobbying OFAC to address. Since 2014, AmCham has seen its remit drastically change. From a broad lobbying organisation, focused on business reforms in Russia, it has become a liaison body between American firms and the U.S. Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), which administers sanctions. It writes letters to the OFAC on behalf of American firms in order to resolve issues that unnecessarily hinder their work. AmCham also works with the Russian government to ensure that Russian counter-sanctions and counter-actions, such as the ban on foreign ownership of mass media outlets, do not impact the operations of international companies. This has come to dominate the Chamber’s work over the years, Rodzianko says. One long-time member of the foreign business community says the Kremlin also uses AmCham as its direct line to foreign corporations, and vice-versa. In this way, the organization is an effective insurance mechanism for international corporations operating in the sometimes opaque Russian business environment.Backers say they have the perfect place for a men’s shelter with scores of transitional housing units. But some neighbors worry because the plan would allow men who have criminal records or problems with addiction. After a homeless man died of exposure near a Bellevue freeway ramp in 2007, city leaders asked the faith-based nonprofit Congregations for the Homeless to run a winter shelter from November through March. The emergency shelter, which has housed as many as 100 men, has had to move four times since 2008 as its various sites were sold or redeveloped. But a proposal to build a permanent men’s shelter with a day center and 40 to 60 units of supportive housing near Interstate 90 in Eastgate is meeting with opposition from neighbors. About 1,700 residents have signed a petition opposing the location and raising concerns about crime, an influx of homeless people from Seattle, and the impacts to the surrounding community, including nearby Bellevue College, where students as young as 15 attend Running Start classes. “A facility of that size and magnitude, it will attract people, hundreds of people,” said Tzachi Litov, who lives about a mile south of the site. “It feels like King County wants to move their problems to Eastgate.” City and county leaders say it’s critical for cities outside of Seattle to step up and address the homelessness crisis that led to the declaration of a regional emergency a year ago. They say that Congregations for the Homeless has an excellent record of moving people into permanent housing from its smaller men’s shelter that has rotated among a dozen Eastside churches since 1993. Advocates praise the location of the proposed shelter, adjacent to a Metro park-and-ride lot and on the same 4.3-acre property as a clinic for Public Health — Seattle & King County County. A wooded hillside behind the site rises to Bellevue College. “The bus service is fabulous. Public Health is next door. The college, with its job training and WorkSource center, is just up the hill. It’s not just a good site, it’s the best site I’ve ever seen,” said Steve Roberts, managing director of Congregations for the Homeless. The Bellevue City Council will hold a study session on the permanent shelter and supportive housing plan Nov. 28 at City Hall. A final decision could be made in early 2017. If approved, the new shelter facility could open in 2019. Few question that homelessness is a serious problem, even in Bellevue. The One Night Count in January found 245 people sleeping outside on the Eastside, up from 134 in 2015. Bellevue Police earlier this year found people living in 50 vehicles within the city. And the Bellevue School District reported 245 homeless children last school year. County statistics show homeless shelters are concentrated in Seattle. Currently, just 140 of almost 1,600 county-funded, year-round shelter beds are located on the Eastside, and just 35 of those are available to single men. In 2012, Bellevue, Kirkland and Redmond agreed to begin addressing homelessness by adding permanent shelters, with Bellevue taking on a men’s shelter, and Kirkland a 100-bed shelter for women and families. A 20-bed youth shelter was already operating in Redmond. “Just housing men in winter on a temporary basis, off by themselves without services, was not doing the job,” said Bellevue Mayor John Stokes. “We decided we really needed a permanent shelter.” The estimated $23 million project would be built by Congregations for the Homeless and the Kirkland nonprofit Imagine Housing. The shelter and day center are estimated to cost about $5 million and the supportive housing about $18 million. County, state and federal tax credits, low-income housing grants and private donations would help cover construction costs. But the decision by the Bellevue City Council on Aug. 2 to work with King County to pursue the Public Health site and develop funding and program strategies caught many residents by surprise. One of neighbors’ biggest concerns is the proposed shelter’s low-barrier entry criteria, which won’t exclude men if they’re experiencing addiction or mental-health problems or have criminal records. Congregations for the Homeless said no drugs, alcohol or weapons are allowed in their shelter and anyone with disruptive behavior is asked to leave. The staff will notify police if any men are sex offenders, said Managing Director Roberts. Tom Perea, another Eastgate neighbor, is worried the shelter could become a magnet for criminals. “No one is opposed to helping these men, but if someone in the shelter is using drugs, he’s not asked to stop. If I’m a drug dealer, where am I going to go to sell my drugs?” Perea called on the City Council to stop the site-selection process, convene stakeholders from throughout Bellevue and determine the appropriate size, place and restrictions for a men’s shelter. Roberts said the current winter shelter is also a low-barrier shelter, meaning these men are already in the community. He said plans for the permanent shelter envision a co-located day center with case managers and resources for drug and alcohol treatment, mental illness, employment, housing, legal problems, medical and dental treatment and other support services. “This is the same shelter, the same size, the same staff and the same entry criteria we’ve had for the past three years and which will be in place for the next three years while a new shelter is built,” said Roberts. The organization will open its winter shelter Tuesday in a vacant, city-owned building on Auto Row, just east of Interstate 405 on 116th Avenue Northeast. City leaders say they are committed to identifying all the community concerns and developing a detailed mitigation plan. The Bellevue Police Department is analyzing crime data around the previous winter shelter to see if there were any problems over the past three years. Police and city leaders also plan to visit two similarly sized shelters in Tacoma and Portland to research the challenges and the lessons learned, said Major Carl Kleinknecht. Bellevue College administrators say they are working with the city on plans for the proposed homeless shelter and don’t oppose the location. “We’re the community’s college so we’re always looking for ways to help the community,” said Nicole Beattie, communications director. Some neighbors support the proposed location. Colin Jenkel lives in the Eastgate neighborhood, works in downtown Bellevue and attends Bellevue College. He said he sees the homeless on downtown streets and living in vehicles in his neighborhood and in the parking lot of a local grocery store. He said that on the social- media site Nextdoor.com, shelter opponents have been “heaping vitriol” on the shelter proposal, with some residents saying they paid a premium for homes in Bellevue to avoid Seattle problems such as homelessness. “I worked hard to buy into Bellevue, too, but that doesn’t entitle me to close the doors on those in need,” Jenkel said. Cynthia Flash, who lives in the Somerset neighborhood south of Eastgate, said her temple, B’nai Torah, has hosted a homeless tent encampment four times in the past decade and she has prepared meals and sat through her own discomfort to get to know some of the homeless residents. “There are homeless people in Bellevue now. They’re in tents in the woods. We see them on the street corners, the same people for years. We need to serve this population or the situation will only get worse,” she said. Correction: The original version of this story incorrectly described the housing units as transitional. The proposal includes plans for 40 to 60 units of permanent, supportive housing.Three men with severe nerve damage have voluntarily had their hands amputated and replaced with prothetic versions that they're able to control with their minds. The procedure—performed by Oskar Aszmann at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, and now published in The Lancet—has been called "bionic reconstruction." Each of the patients involved has suffered damage to the brachial plexus, a bundle of nerves between the spine and hand. They had all undergone surgery to try and repair the damage—in each there are still some nerves remaining, just not many—but their hands had remained paralyzed. Advertisement Instead, they volunteered to try Aszmann's alternative. Prior to any surgery, their bodies and brains were 'trained,' reports New Scientist. A section of leg muscle was transplanted into their arms, intended to amplify the small signal sent through the few existing nerves. That was left for three months for the nerves to grow into the muscle, and then the patients began to practice controlling the muscle—first using an armband to detect activity, then using the signal to control a virtual arm. Then came the big moment: Aszmann amputated their hands and replaced them with a prosthesis. The new bionic hand is independently powered, so it only require small nervous input signals from the grafted muscle to control it, unlike a real hand. And it's worked, as you can see inn the video above: each patient can now pick up a ball, pour from a jug and do up clothes fasteners. That's more than each was able to do before the operation. Their general limb control improved, too. There are other approaches to bionic control of hands and arms—some of which use direct brain activity to control them. But this particular case is special because of the fact that the patients chose to have their hands amputated. While that was no doubt a big decision for those involved, it also makes it easier for the doctors: unlike a patient who long since lost their hand, it allows them to plan exactly where and how cuts should be made, providing the best possible fit and control for the device. Advertisement Still, there are features that the prosthetic hand can't yet deliver—in particular a sense of touch. Delivering signals to sensory fibres is a rather more complex problem—though not impossible to solve—with the vast majority of of nerves in the hand being related to touch not motion. But it's one that, unsurprisingly, Aszmann and his team is working on. [The Lancet]October 1, 2015 NorCal’s Karen Garcia Wins U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship Make it three USGA titles for Northern California in 2015. On Thursday, Karen Garcia of Cool, which is located near Sacramento, won the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship, defeating Pamela Kuong of Massachusetts, 1-up, in the finals at Hillwood Country Club in Tennessee. The 53-year-old Garcia, who was making her championship debut, is the first Northern California player to win the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur since Lois Hodge of Los Altos won in 1988. Loma Smith of Pebble Beach also won the title, repeating as champion in 1964 and 1965. It was the first time that Garcia, who had her husband Ruben on the bag all week as caddie, had ever advanced to match play in a USGA championship. “I’m in shock,” said the champion. “To win a USGA event, to think of all the people before me that have their name on this trophy; I’ve played in five Mid-Ams and a State Team and never even come close.” The Auburn Valley GC member came up with some late fireworks. Trailing Kuong by one through the 16th hole, Garcia won both the 17th and 18th holes with pars to take the title. Garcia’s advantage in length would help on the 460-yard par-5 17th. “I knew that I had an advantage length-wise,” Garcia told the USGA. “So I felt like I still had a chance. I told my husband, let’s win the next two holes and we’ll be fine.” When Kuong won the 16th, it ended a streak of 44 consecutive holes where Garcia had either led or was all-sqaure. In the morning semifinals, Garcia never trailed in defeating No. 27 Sue Cohn of Florida, 1-up. She also defeated Cohn with a par on the 18th. Garcia continued her run early against Kuong, birdieing the second hole to take a 1-up lead. A win on No. 3 and another birdie on No. 9 gave her a 3-up lead as the two made the turn. Kuong cut into the lead with a birdie of her own on the 11th and later added back-to-back birdies on the 14th and 15th holes to bring the match back to all-square. Kuong won the 16th when Garcia made double-bogey. Garcia barely made it through the opening Round of 64. She trailed No. 10 seed and 2014 quarterfinalist Kim Eaton by three through seven before rallying back for a 1-up win. In the Round of 32, Garcia trailed by one through 10 before claiming a 1-up victory. This summer, Clovis resident Bryson DeChambeau (U.S. Amateur) and Olympic Club member Hannah O’Sullivan (U.S. Women’s Amateur) also won USGA titles. –Jerry StewartUpon seeing the word neurotransmitter, most of us would conjure up some brain centric image or think about its deficiency in some psychological condition. However, it has been estimated that 90% of the serotonin produced within the human body is derived from the digestive tract. Furthermore, aberrant levels of peripheral serotonin have been linked to diseases such as osteoporosis and irritable bowel syndrome. Now, new research from scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) shows the importance of gut bacteria in the production of peripheral serotonin. “More and more studies are showing that mice or other model organisms with changes in their gut microbes exhibit altered behaviors,” explained Elaine Hsiao, Ph.D., research assistant professor of biology and biological engineering at Caltech and senior author on the study. “We are interested in how microbes communicate with the nervous system. To start, we explored the idea that normal gut microbes could influence levels of neurotransmitters in their hosts.” The results from this study were published recently in Cell through an article entitled “Indigenous Bacteria from the Gut Microbiota Regulate Host Serotonin Biosynthesis.” In addition to neurons and a certain set immune cells, serotonin is produced within the digestive tract by enterochromaffin cells (EC). Dr. Hsiao and her team wanted to determine if the gut microbiota had an effect on serotonin production along the digestive tract. In order to measure serotonin levels, the researchers observed the molecule’s production in mice with normal populations of gut bacteria and compared them to germ-free mice lacking resident microbes. Interestingly, Dr. Hsiao’s team found that EC cells from germ-free mice produced approximately 60% less serotonin than their microbe laden counterparts. Additionally, the investigators found that they could rescue the normal phenotype by recolonizing the germ-free mice with normal gut bacteria. “EC cells are rich sources of serotonin in the gut. What we saw in this experiment is that they appear to depend on microbes to make serotonin—or at least a large portion of it,” said Jessica Yano, research technician in Dr. Hsiao's lab and first author on the paper. Excited by their initial findings, the Caltech team wanted to see if they could determine the specific species of bacteria that may be effecting the EC cells serotonin production. What they found, after testing an array of different gut microbes, was about 20 species of spore forming bacteria that were responsible for elevating serotonin levels when added to germ-free mice. “While the connections between the microbiome and the immune and metabolic systems are well appreciated, research into the role gut microbes play in shaping the nervous system is an exciting frontier in the biological sciences,” said Sarkis K. Mazmanian, Ph.D., professor of microbiology at Caltech and a coauthor on the study. Dr. Hsiao team also found several key metabolites produced by the spore forming bacteria that they observed elevating serotonin production within EC cells in vitro. Moreover, the researchers found that the metabolites, when added to germ-free mice, also increased their peripheral serotonin levels. “Serotonin is an important neurotransmitter and hormone that is involved in a variety of biological processes. The finding that gut microbes modulate serotonin levels raises the interesting prospect of using them to drive changes in biology,” concluded Dr. Hsiao.Although they played decidedly different styles of music, Frank Zappa and Sun Ra were two gifted composers/musicians who shared similar musical vision, influences and approach. By drawing on the past, these two musicians were also responsible for molding the music of the future. The two musicians were extremely eclectic in their approach to music. Even though Sun Ra primarily remained within the jazz genre, he sampled with swing, bop, hard-bop, Latin, African and eventually mastered avant garde. On the other hand, Frank Zappa left no style unturned as he sampled with classical, jazz, doo-wop, hard rock and country. The two composers were never mired in one musical approach and their love of music was reflected by their desire to experiment. There are two approaches to discover the music and personalities of Frank Zappa and Sun Ra. One is to collect their music, which is rather formidable task after discovering the size of their discographies. There is a selected discography at the end of this article to serve as an aid. The other approach is to read about their lives. There are three informative books in circulation that cover the amazing lives of these two performers. The first is Ben Watson’s Negative Dialectic of Poodle Play (St. Martin’s Griffin) which took a very detailed and scholarly approach to the music of Frank Zappa. Second, there is Space Is The Place: The Life And Times of Sun Ra (De Capo Press) which was Yale University’s American Studies/Anthropology professor, John Szwed’s chronicle of Sun Ra’s interesting and eccentric life. Finally, there was Frank Zappa’s autobiography - The Real Frank Zappa Book (Poseidon Press). The three books not only provided interesting glances into the musician’s lives but more importantly, their roots, their techniques and their impact on modern music. The one common point that all three books touch on was the influences of Zappa and Sun Ra. The musical bonding agent that brought the two together was Karleheinz Stockhausen. Stockhauusen was a post-war German composer whose innovations with electronics revolutionized the face of music. In 1960, Stockhausen composed Kontakte, which was the first composition that featured the combination of live instruments and pre-recorded electronic music. Subsequent works featured Stockhausen using random sounds as a way to create music. Stockhausen’s work was greatly influenced by John Cage who also pursued the concept of ‘noise music’. In 1940, John Cage composed Living Room Music which was an entire composition based on sounds created by every day domestic items such as furniture, window parts and walls. From avant-garde jazz to modern techno music, both Cage and Stockhausen’s experimentation with synthesizers introduced "non-musical" sounds into mainstream music. It wasn’t total mainstream though, Watson quips "despite the prestige of Stockhausen, his music still emptied parties." The music of Sun Ra closely mirrored the experimentation of Stockhausen. During his earlier years, Sun Ra’s music was influenced by the big band music of Fletcher Henderson, but he soon developed his own brand of avant-garde space jazz. Like Fletcher Henderson, Sun Ra maintained the concept of the big band, as he would have up to 20 musicians, dancers