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It is a common idea that we are not our thoughts, and that each of us has a core personality that is the essence of who they are. I've always found that idea hard to believe. I feel like I am my thoughts. More specifically, I am my most frequently recurring thoughts. Many thoughts come and go like visitors. You can imagine them as figures entering and leaving the building of the mind. Some visit once, but then leave and never return. Others visit a few times, but aren't too insistent. And then there are those that visit frequently, seeming to take up permanent residence in the mind. These are the thoughts that I feel make up my personality. They stick around firmly amid the constantly moving crowd.
How Socially Accountable Are We?
Because we don't want to be hypocritical, we may cling to an idea we expressed in the heat of a certain emotion. This is unreasonable, but it's scary to admit to being inconsistent.
Sometimes, we don't have an opinion about something. There are conflicting emotions, and there is not enough information. But we don't want to show our indescisiveness. This is illogical, but it's scary to admit to being inconsistent.
Sometimes, we have an idea, but we are worried that others will wrongly perceive it as being stupid, so we don't say it. This is illogical, but it's scary to admit to being inconsistent.
The truth is, we are inconsistent. Our mindsets and opinions are mainly formed by passing emotions over logic – and we don't like to question our mindsets and opinions. This makes us too rigid.
People have different emotions at different times in their lives, so they form different mindsets and opinions to each other. This creates individuality. But it also creates disagreements between individuals. These disagreements turn into conflict when new emotions arise without logic to pacify them.
How can we limit conflict? One way is to accept inconsistency as a fact of life. You have to accept your own inconsistency, and you have to accept the inconsistency of others. Accepting your own inconsistency is coming to terms with the fact that your views have been heavily shaped by emotions, and not as heavily shaped by logic. So your opinions are not necessarily the objective truth. Accepting the inconsistency of others is coming to terms with the fact that they are not always being stupid for having views that differ from your own. You are both capable of being victims to your respective emotions.
When you have accepted your own inconsistency, you can work towards changing it. How? You can question your thoughts to make sure that your views are formed using both emotion AND logic. If you constantly question your thoughts, you become more reasonable. Your emotions stop ruling your decisions; they instead only contribute to them. You must learn to be compassionately critical to yourself. Then, when disagreements with other people threaten to become conflicts, you will be able to reason with yourself and with them.
When you have accepted the inconsistency of others, you can learn to cut them slack for having the opinions they have. You will become more patient. Of course, you will still get angry. You will still get frustrated. It is okay to express it. The difficult thing about conflict is is guessing how to do so without the situation escalating. You have to do your opinions and emotions justice without unnecessarily hurting the other person. You have to strike a balance. This is the trickiest thing to do. Most of us fail. But it is possible.
The problem arises when you are the only one that is cutting the other person slack. In this scenario, you understand that human beings have the tendency to be inconsistent, but the person that you are having a disagreement with, believes their opinion to be the objective truth. You don't want the situation to escalate, but they don't seem to care whether it does. Or maybe, the conflict is their intention in the first place. What do you do in this scenario? Well, of course, it depends on the individual you are having the disagreement with. You have to gauge how much empathy they are capable of dispensing. If it seems like there's a chance of resolving the conflict, try to do so. But if they aren't responding appropriately, by all means, tell them to go fuck themself. My point is that if they aren't ready to come to a compromise, or if the only (metaphorical) language they are capable of speaking is aggression, then you will have to speak that language to them in order for them to understand you.
The other option is walking away. I used to always walk away because I had principles that I didn't want to give up. The problem this caused was an emotional toll. Despite knowing logically that I had taken the moral high ground and not wasted my attention, I had something weighing on me. Inside, unexpressed anger and frustration festered. It's tempting to try to dismiss these things as illogical emotions, but when they are there because of unresolved conflict, and when they persist, they matter. So, at the time of conflict, you must weigh up whether it is better to A) walk away or B) respond to the aggression in kind.
Usually there isn't time to properly decide. And, of course, the emotions of the moment make it difficult. You won't feel you've made the 'right' choice a lot of the time. That's okay. It matters that you try, and that you are honest with yourself.
I feel that the reason many of us are scared to show compassion and empathy is that we are afraid it won't be reciprocated. But if all of us have that fear, we will drift further and further apart. Sometimes, you have to be the one to take the first steps. And yes, in a world where others are afraid to do so, and where some people act horribly, showing compassion has become an act of courage. It can feel unfair. That is why you have to use your judgement, and remember that your own emotions do matter as well.
When others judge you for being 'nice', they are the weaker ones. Cynicism is an overrated defense mechanism. When you break out of it, you are the stronger party. If you live in fear of others not understanding your decency, you are letting them determine your conduct. In reality, you have as much power as they do to determine the etiquette and the amount of warmth that goes into an interaction: you have to remember that you are socially accountable. Of course, when others overstep the mark, you're under no obligation to put up with abuse. But when that happens, it is a matter of them not understanding their place, rather than you not understanding yours.
When you realise that you are socially accountable, the question that arises is the extent to which it is your right (or responsibility) to help or correct others. If people aren't on the same wavelength as you, they won't be receptive. However, retrospect is a handy gift. There have been times when I've disagreed with people, only to realise later that they had a point. The reason I only realised later was because I had time to gradually mull the matter over and become less emotionally invested in my previous point of view. So sometimes it is worth giving someone a word or two of your opinion, even if they don't seem receptive at the time. This goes without saying: be nice about it.
What should you at times when you are finding it hard to empathize? Sometimes you are simply unable to imagine what it is like to be someone else. At those times, rather than abstractly trying to feel for them, it helps to use logic. You KNOW that they must be feeling something. Even if you can't engage emotionally, you can use your knowledge of what they're doing to intellectually get an idea of what their emotions might be.
Lastly, you're not always going to do the right thing. The best thing you can do is be honest with yourself and come to terms with it. It's easier to try to justify your mistakes, but it's more truthful to accept the fact you are capable of making mistakes. I actually think it's even more forgiving. Justifying something to yourself takes energy, stress and surpression. Accepting mistakes – and trying to do better – is easier.
Please continue the discussion down below. I am very keen to hear what others think about this topic. What are your tactics for becoming more empathetic? How do you deal with others when they aren't? Did you agree with what I said, or were there parts that confused you? I will also be happy to answer questions on this topic if you have them.
If you found this post interesting, please share it along with your thoughts on social media. Have a phenomenal day. xxx
2017 BFF Resolutions
Different Types of Humour
Humour is so underrated. It is, in a way, like poetry, and sometimes I think that it is even a type of poetry. What poetry does for us when we read it, is it calls to attention something that is beneath the surface of our minds, validating it in a beautiful or ironic light. Often our simple recognition of the subject matter creates 60% of the beauty already. (I picked 60% as a slightly random example. I really meant a large percentage, but I thought it would sound better if I made it seem more specific.)
Humour has a similar function. What makes a lot of humour humour is the fact that we can relate to it, like seeing someone in a TV series doing something stupid that we can imagine ourselves doing. Usually the funny thing is something that isn't called to attention a lot in our everyday lives. That's why we get that low-key eureka-esque feeling when we see it pointed out. It feels like a bit of a relief to see it.
Like poetry, humour validates us.
The difference is that humour usually does it without seriousness. Humour is happy. Happy and relatable. And, like poetry, it's intelligent. It's incisive. That's what makes it one of the greatest therapies. I think that if you're feeling lonely, hearing a joke can completely erase your loneliness for a few seconds – or a few minutes. Or, if you're really lucky, like an hour or something.
I think it's really interesting that everybody has a different sense of humour. I can picture each of my friends in turn and think of the kind of thing that would make that individual laugh. It's always very hard to pin-point. I know roughly what their sense of humour is, but I don't know what to call it.
I would say that personally, the jokes I find the funniest would fit into the category of, Goofy, Silly or Relatable. I also like slapstick comedy. While I do find Gallows Humour funny – maybe even funnier than most people find it -, I don't think I find it funny enough in proportion to other things I find funny to say that I have a Dark or Warped sense of humour. I think that Goofy is just so wide-ranging that it overlaps with Warped. Shut up; these are real terms.
Sarcasm has never come naturally to me (I actually think sarcasm is cynical and overused) and while I find "Witty" humour hilarious coming from other people, I'm not intelligent enough to come up with my own witty jokes. Maybe I can work on it.
Having a goofy sense of humour is why I love films and series like Wayne's World (and Wayne's World 2, which is even better), Brooklyn 99 and Yes Man.
I wonder why people have the sense of humour they have. Is your sense of humour the product of your experiences, or something you're born with? How much is it linked with your other personality traits? I'd love to say that sarcasm is linked to jaded cynicism and boringness, but I think that would just be me having a go at sarcastic people. You know, I don't actually hate sarcasm; I just think it's overused. And also, maybe I wish I could get away with being sarcastic more…
Because I think the question of how humour and personality intertwine is so intriguing, I've decided to use some of my friends as examples, and explore their respective types of humour and personalities.
But first of all, I'll look into my own.
LOL, I can see all scientists and researchers out there shaking their heads in their hands; this is seriously the most subjective attempt at research anyone has ever done.
My sense of humour: Goofy, Silly, Slapstick
My personality: Serious; Always analysing things; Often feeling overlooked
Obviously those are just three traits of my personality. I picked them because I feel like they play the biggest part in my day-to-day self-image. Wow, Jamila; you're not even going pretend to get a third party to pick them?
I can't claim to see an immediate relationship between the contents of the first and second category. In fact, they seem to contain opposite traits. The most obvious conclusion to draw from them is that perhaps the reason I like goofy humour is because I am serious in my everyday life, but that just seems a bit glib. More importantly, I don't know enough people for whom the same is true to validate that conclusion. Lastly, many people will say I'm the worst person to pick my own traits, let alone to try to analyse them. Ooh, I've thought of another one (I know I said lastly; shut up): your three defining characteristics aren't necessarily going to be the ones that bear correlation to your sense of humour. Okay, I'm done.
If I think about it off the top of my head, I suppose I find goofy humour funny because it's a relief to know that other people have thoughts that are as silly or improbable as my own. I find slapstick humour funny because of the "thank-god-that-wasn't-me" factor – and the fact that I automatically spend a lot of my day trying not to fall over, so seeing someone else actually fall over (or do something more ridiculous) is a relief.
Now, how can I link that to the three traits I listed about my personality? To be honest, the main connection I see is that thinking a lot means that I have some pretty improbable thoughts, so seeing those kinds of thoughts in others, which happens in Goofy humour, is a relief.
I'm going to assign my friends code names so I don't risk offending them if they see this blog post.
I think that my friend Snafflecakes has a similar sense of humour to me. Snafflecakes' type of humour: Goofy, Silly, British
(On second thoughts, code names might be worse.)
Snafflecakes' personality: Serious; Interested; Kind; Open-minded
A lot of British humour is funny because of how far it takes things, and because of the mock-seriousness it deals with. I think British people like British humour because of that stereotypical "stiff upper lip" and because of the irony it contains. I can't see any correlation between Snafflecakes' British sense of humour and their personality. All I can think of is that Snafflecakes has been raised by people who like that sense of humour, so Snafflecakes has been exposed to it from an early age, and may possess genes that predispose them to it (though that seems improbable). Snafflecakes probably likes Goofy humour for the same reason I do.
My other friend, Grendygome, has a more meme-ish sense of humour that I don't get most of the time. Grendygome's type of humour: Memes; Randomness; Tropes in a certain genre of music; Running jokes in a certain genre of music
Grendygome's personality: passion for certain genre of music; confidence; eagerness
I think Grendygome finds jokes about their favourite genre of music funny because such jokes have a feeling of solidarity. Each subculture has its own stereotypes, tropes and running jokes. These develop naturally out of being outside of the mainstream. They help to cement the subculture.
My friend Zummygoo's sense of humour: Witty, Observational, Nice
Zummygoo's personality: Extremely intelligent; Honest; Kind
Zummygoo jokes the most frequently out of all my friends. I think it's difficult for them not to be witty. Because they're intelligent, they see a lot of patterns in things, and I think pointing out these patterns has become a habit. When I say Zummygoo can have a 'nice' sense of humour, I mean that they seem to be able to jokingly elevate other people's egos in a totally non-weird (nice) way. It's difficult to do, and even more difficult to explain. They also have the ability to joke about a shared situation, which makes the situation feel even more shared.
Kobbymob's personality: Understanding, Loving, Obsessive, Opinionated
Kobbymob's sense of humour: Hard to say; Theoretically possible scenarios that exaggerate the status of current situations; Randomness
Kobbymob's jokes have mainly been about Kobbymob and myself in improbable situations. They have elements of truth based on my own attitudes and Kobbymob's, but they take those attitudes further, to a ridiculous extent. They may be seen as slightly mocking, but in the best of ways. To be honest, I can't see a way to link Kobbymob's sense of humour to Kobbymob's personality. Actually, now that I think about it, Kobbymob is a very affectionate person, and that affection comes across in their slightly teasing sense of humour.
I am not going to bore you by going through ALL my friends (because I have so many, hahaha) and their personalities. From what I've explored, I feel like there is some correlation between sense of humour and other personality traits, but not enough to create any rules. Perhaps, though, if I go through more of my friends, I will find more reliable patterns, so it's hard to say at this stage. If you would like me to, I can do another post going into this in more detail. Haha, you're thinking, 'Noooo, Jamila; spare me!' Seriously, if you want me to, say below, and I will.
Someone I knew once posited a theory that what we find funny developed out of what we weren't allowed to talk about as children. I personally wasn't allowed to talk about sex or drugs, and I wasn't allowed to swear. Talking about sex and drugs can be funny to me now, as can swearing. So far the theory holds up. But there's no proof of causation. I'm sure if I tried, I could think of other things I wasn't allowed to talk about that I don't find funny. I reckon the theory could have some merit, but it isn't an absolute rule.
One thing I've observed is that a key factor in humour seems to be relief.
Relief, to me, is one of the main components of gallows humour. Death and such matters are taboo because they scare us. And because they're taboo, those times we do actually want to make a joke about them, we feel like we can't. Seeing someone else make a joke about them is a relief. It also makes death and such seem less intimidating.
But there's something else that humour – in general – makes less intimidating. Life. That is why humour important. I think meeting funny people is a blessing, beccause they give us many of those eureka-esque moments. But don't leave all of it up to other people 😉 Remember that you have the power in yourself to be funny any time you wish.
The Best Friend Tag
Hey guys, you probably don't know me (and if you do it probably means that you've come over here from my blog so if you have then thank you so much!), my name is Inspired Teen and I have come from my blog – lifeofaninspiredteen.wordpress.com. It is such a privilege to be writing this amazing guest post/collaboration on my best friend's blog. This is my first ever collaboration and I am so excited to be doing it here.
My best friend is partially responsible for my blog so I have a lot to be grateful for. She encouraged me to get my own blog – not verbally even but just by having her own blog she inspired me to start mine and I am so glad that I did! I know mine will never be half as good as hers but I love it just the way it is.
Also, I would just like to shout out to sprinklesandsparklesx.wordpress.com who's Best Friend Tag inspired me to write this post for your guys today and to have my best friend doing the same over on my blog.
Anyway… let's get into the post!
When and where did you and your best friend meet?
We met at a week-long camp for home-educated people back in July 2013. I was running a dance workshop there and so had managed to get in for free as the cost was quite high and she came to my workshop every single day for five days. She was the one person who I could always guarantee would turn up and it was very motivating – especially given that the week we were camping was very hot and so I wasn't sleeping well and was a bit tired and grumpy and it was hard to get the energy up to actually run the workshop but I'm glad that I did. Funnily enough we didn't start our friendship whilst at the camp all that much; we exchanged e-mail addresses kind of as an after thought and then became best friend's that way. To be honest, I never would have thought we would have become as close as we now are and if you had told me on the first day of camp three years ago that she would now be my best friend and I would be doing the best friend tag on her blog and her on mine, I never would have believed you.
Why are they your best friend?
Jamila is my best friend because she was always interested in me and what I had to say, she always wanted to write me e-mails twice as long as the e-mails I'd written to her in response to what I had said in mine, she never discarded all of my comments and tried to make her e-mails as short as possible (unlike some annoying people in society where you send them three massive long paragraphs in a text and they reply with 'k'), she remained on good terms with me even early on in our friendship when I would be so lazy that I wouldn't reply to her e-mails for weeks and weeks. She's my best friend because I never have to explain anything to her in further detail than I already have, she just understands me in a way no one else does. She doesn't judge me for my interests or my tastes in music or TV etc. and she is always willing to listen to me obsess over things without making a fuss or telling me to "shut up" like other people I know. She's my best friend because we can sit on the sofa not talking, staring at our phones and it doesn't seem awkward or anti-social it's a nice comfortable silence where we feel we can do our own thing without worrying about what the other is doing.
Is there anything you would change about your best friend?
Her music taste. Just because I want to be able to go to concerts with her and I'm pretty sure that she wouldn't really fit in with the boyband crowd of screaming twelve-year-olds and I wouldn't really fit into the crowd of dread-locked-heavy-eyelinered-metal fans. Whilst I'm sure we will go to a concert together one day it will probably take a lot of negotiation and compromise, so I look forward to it!
What is the one thing you admire most about your best friend?
There are so many things that I admire, but I think the thing I admire most is her ability to make anything sound interesting, and she always thinks about things in such an interesting way. She never has thoughts that she doesn't really consider, she always knows why she has those thoughts and she can always explain why she thinks things. There are many occasions when we will be talking on the phone and she will talk in a continuous stream for about 10-20 minutes and eventually she'll stop and apologise for talking for so long and make a comment about how I was probably really bored and if I ever get bored to tell her that I'm bored and to 'shut up' but in actual fact, even when the thing she's talking about isn't something I'm normally interested in, just the way she says it or how passionate she clearly is makes me interested and that's a very admirable thing. For example, she did an absolutely amazing and engaging post called A Band That's Actually A Gang about a band called 'The World Inferno Friendship Society' and whilst I know that she likes them and we've talked about them, I was particularly impressed with this post because not only did it take her about two weeks to write because she wanted to perfect it, but it was also just so engaging and interesting to read even though I don't generally have an interest in the band.
What is one thing that only you and your best friend understand?
How would you describe your best friend's ideal partner?
Long hair (but not too long), wears eyeliner, wears band t-shirts, likes the same music as Jamila, understands and is interested in her, no facial hair, tall, has good facial structure (and no crinkles under the eyes when they smile).
Does your best friend like loud music or music that is at a reasonable level?
I mean let's be fair, Jamila is a heavy metal/post punk/gothic rock fan, her music is going to be pretty loud at all times. Sometimes it's so bad that when I'm talking to her on the phone all I can hear is her music and I kind of have to strain to hear her even though her mouth is directly next to the phone and her music is not. I never know whether to tell her to turn it down… eventually she realises and turns it down and it clearly hasn't affected our relationship so who really cares?
What does your best friend think about the most?
To be honest, because Jamila is such an interesting person I don't know what she thinks about the most. I know things she thinks about a lot but not necessarily the most. I think she tends to think about many different things at the same time and it's all kind of rotating round her head 24/7. She quite often mentions having a fear of talking disjointedly in a way that doesn't make sense and I think that this just further proves my point that she is never thinking about only one thing. As I said above, she always talks about things in a really interesting way so I guess she's always kind of thinking about all of these things in a really intelligent way.
Describe your best friend in one word?
What are three things your best friend doesn't know about you?
- That I dry my hair with my head upside down
- That I used to take my posters off my wall whilst getting dressed because I felt it was too awkward having them "watch me get dressed" even though they were pieces of paper.
- That the Kurt Cobain 'montage of heck' documentary is in my Netflix 'To-Watch'list.
Oh wow, that went way too quickly, however it really is a lot of words so I hope you're still here! I really hope you've enjoyed this post and have learnt something from the insight into Jamila's life and her personality (and of course read a post by her amazing best friend! ;)) I've really enjoyed writing this post for you guys and I'm sure we will do another collaboration for you as soon as we can!
If you did enjoy this post please give it a like – if you've come from my blog please stick around and check out Jamila's posts and give her a follow (she would love it if you did!). Once you've done all of that you can of course go and check out my blog if you haven't already – https://lifeofaninspiredteen.wordpress.com/ and make sure to give me a follow too – especially so you can read Jamila's post on me!
I would like to get in contact with me for any reason please feel free to get in touch using my e-mail – email@example.com
That's all for now!
Inspired Teen 🙂
A Band That's Actually A Gang
In the Spring of 2015 I first listened to the World/Inferno Friendship Society. I was fourteen years old and I did not realise how big an impact their music would have on me.
The song I heard was "Tattoos Fade." It was sentimental and unusual. I did not know what the lyrics meant but I have a feeling I was more preoccupied with trying to figure out why the band had such a long name.
I now know that the World/Inferno Friendship Society is not a band but a gang. Gang meaning a lively network of musicians, united by a shared philosophy, rather than a knife-wielding posse of hooded youths. I believe that knife crime has never been on their agenda, as they have always been preoccupied with setting fire to things. Which I believe to be a more satisfying hobby. Knife-crime can get messy. They consist of a rotating membership of over 40 individuals, and they are based in Brooklyn, New York. If you are wondering, I still do not know why they have such a long name. I am guessing it has something to with signifying the magnitude of the collective.
I grew fascinated with them, and not long after I discovering them, I found out that they would be performing in Camden, UK. It is not difficult for me to get to Camden; the prospect of seeing them live filled me with a giddy excitement. I had never been to a concert. In fact, attending a concert had been one of the biggest items on my bucket list for what felt like a long time. It was something I fantasized about multiple times a day. Naturally, the idea of seeing a THE WORLD/INFERNO FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY seemed like the grandest way to fulfill that item on my bucket list.
I proceeded to listen to World Inferno nonstop – even before I asked my parents whether I could see them. I also proceeded to call them World Inferno for short. It just made things easier.
(If I added up all the time I had saved by referring to the group as World Inferno rather than the World/Inferno Friendship Society, I might find that I had reserved 53 minutes of spare time, which could either be spent staring into space daydreaming about joining World Inferno or doing something useful like playing my drum kit and guitar.)
Nobody seems to be able to agree what genre World Inferno is. Answers include mixtures of Swing, Ska, Klezmer, Polka, Cabaret, Gospel, Showtunes and Punk. One fan said in an interview, "They are a punk band, but not in the music sense, in just the sense of the word 'Punk' – about not letting yourself be told what to do." If I had discovered World Inferno with no context of genre whatsoever, I do not think I would immediately have noticed the Punk in their music – but I certainly would have noticed it in their attitude. You could say they are Punk because they do not adhere to the typical musical formula of Punk. One of the great things about the group is that they increase my appreciation of different genres. I did not listen to any Jazz or Klezmer music before World Inferno, but now when I hear those or similar genres playing I can enjoy them because I have had exposure to them through the group. You would miss out on a lot as a band if you stuck strictly to one type of music. Human beings are not made up of one identity. We change the way we think of ourselves on a day-to-day basis, and our identity changes in relation to who we are with and what we have had exposure to of late. I believe that any one time we have several latent identities hiding behind the one we are embodying. Most bands can be viewed in such a way as well. I feel like World Inferno embraces all its identities concurrently and therefore isn't limited by the usual restraints of genre-definition.
My first real favourite song by World Inferno was American Mercurial. American Mercurial begins with an excitedly sorrowful pulsing synth-y sequence, which weaves into a twisting, tension-building saxophone line, rolling out a carpet for the doleful, mischievous lyrics characteristic of World Inferno. I honestly couldn't make out the words of the chorus, even after I had listened to it about twenty times. I find it hilarious that I didn't realise that the main line of the song was "Little meteorite who wanted to be a star." I heard it as something like "leeta mejearator a wan tabi a a shock." Still, I enjoyed the parts I could make out: "You won't get used to it, but you will live through it." There was something oddly reassuring about that line. Along with the other lyrics, it spun a beautifully mournful, yet comforting, smashing, and grand sound unlike anything I had ever heard.
*Attention: You have now reached the average internet-user's attention span cut-off point. Keep reading to find out my take on the point of life, and learn what a Temporary Autonomous Zone is.*
That brings me to why I love World Inferno.
World Inferno's music makes me feel like I have the license to attempt anything. Everything will turn out fine because I'm doing what I want to do, and if things don't go quite to plan then that's okay because that has to happen sometimes: things will always work out in the end if you acknowledge your situation and keep doing what you want to do.
Things will work out.
Bad decisions may lead to awful situations, but as long as you stick to your view of the world, things will always, always work out. Never stop having fun or doing things the way you feel is right. Be reckless. It's okay to feel the way you do. It's okay to be the person you are.
Things will work out.
As the lead singer, Jack Terricloth puts it, "Everything is gonna be okay even though everything is terrible." He also says, "Life is good. The future is unwritten. Live it up while you can."
And as one Infernite (which is the name for a hardcore fan of World Inferno) puts it, "The lyrics have this sense of 'We're going to break everything and it's going to be okay.' And there's this joy in destruction. And it's a freedom because there's joy in destruction because you can break everything and you don't have to put too much hope of faith or trust in anything because there will always be something else."
I agree with that. Sometimes when you embrace a situation you cannot change you realise that there is more freedom in it than you thought there was. You do not have to fear destruction any longer – instead, you willfully take part in it – and in taking part in it, you let go of your fear of it. It is through this release that you discover a new perspective.
When I say destruction I refer not only physical destruction but the destruction of limiting ideas and false barriers. You may very well find that the act of physical destruction also leads to the mental release of limitations.
I also absolutely understand what Jack Terricloth means when he describes the music of World Inferno as,"The music of the joy of your heart breaking. With a riot going on outside." World Inferno acknowledges pain and panic, and in acknowledging it, turns it into joy and excitement. There will always be a riot going on outside.
In my opinion, the most important aspect of World Inferno is the absolute rejection of boringness. They create a space where reality and fiction meld, and real people have a chance to express the side of themselves that is as interesting as the fictional characters we read about – the side that is muted by the mundane society we are surrounded by in everyday life. World Inferno tells us that real life can indeed be filled with intriguing escapades. It will, if we just dive into it.
As somebody who frequently feels frustrated by other people's lack of enthusiasm and ambition, I cannot say how much it means to me to discover a group of musicians who sum up what I believe to be the point of life.
What do I think is the point of life?
I think living, in its most basic form has the potential to be… excruciatingly uneventful to the ego. YOU have to make it interesting. Otherwise there is no point. Let us imagine for a moment that everybody in the world shared the view that it was up to them to make their life interesting. In this completely hypothetical scenario, we would all wake up one day with the realisation that it was possible to live as eventfully as our favourite heroines and heroes. We would understand that adventure is preferable to office jobs, and can be seeked out. We would be bursting with joy! Every day would be a new mission with exceedingly entertaining challenges and frolicsome occurrences. We would sing and dance and run around, unable to contain our elation. How would we regard our existence but the manifestation of a divine gift?
Strangely, nobody around me appears to feel this way. When I say "nobody appears to feel this way" I am not pointing to occurrences of war or terrorism and suchlike, as those are things so beyond my comprehension that I cannot attempt to complain about them. I am speaking about the more common seeming monotony of people's everyday lives. Yes, I speak very subjectively; it is likely that it is only to me that other people's lives appear monotonous. But I am still in awe at how they seem content doing things that I would find boring. Let me make this clear: I think office jobs sound boring. I think just staying indoors all day can be boring. I think going to the supermarket is boring. I think signing forms is boring. I think when your only source of fun is seeing your friends at the weekend or watching movies, then you are wasting time you could be spending in a more adventurous way. I guess that is what it is: the lives of most people I meet seem to lack adventure.
The reason why I say "other people's lives" without including my own life is because I am 15 and have not yet had an opportunity to create my own life. It is not a judgement of people, but a bewilderment at how exactly they think.
I believe that the point of life is to acquire as much knowledge as possible and have as much fun as possible. I don't see the point of us wasting time, when every minute is an opportunity, a blank space to fill with meaning! I have said this already in another post, but I will go into more detail here. I believe in making up your own challenges and following whims, as these will lead you to discover something outside of your everyday life. Ideally, you would not have an everyday life because life simply has too much potential for you to do the same thing every day.
To me, World Inferno sums up this reckless readiness. The World/Inferno Friendship Society are idealistic, and they acknowledge the frustration of living in a world frequented by people who do not share their enthusiasm, and the times when enthusiasm is not enough – the times when compromises must be made.
As one of the members puts it,"World Inferno is about the world the way you with it was – sort of capturing that moment and preserving it."
World Inferno describe their performances as Temporary Autonomous Zones. For the uninitiated a Temporary Autonomous Zone is a concept written about by the anarchist writer Hakim Bey, that describes a space that eludes social norms and formal structures of control.
*You have now reached the attention span of the average reading enthusiast. If you're really hardcore, stay to find out why I had a brain freeze and hear about what it's like to see someone you weren't sure was real.*
For a while I have had this dread of growing up and being expected to experience, what I call, a boring existence: That whole 9-5 groceries and paperwork no-fun thing. To fit in with people I do not understand. I have tried to hold tight to my own idea of what I believe living to be about, but there has always been an insecurity surrounding how possible that ideal is. World Inferno has massively reinforced my belief that I can indeed live the way I want to. They have made me a happier person and changed my life with their music.
Now, let me return to almost a year ago when I asked my parents whether I could see World Inferno. I still remember sitting at the table in the living room and dropping my request as unassumingly as possible. Remember, this would be my first concert.
To my surprise, my mother did not seem reluctant at all.
She said she'd consider it.
It was quite a few days later that we booked our tickets, after a lot of reminding on my part. As soon as our booking went through, I felt a rush of anticipation. I was actually going to attend a concert. Me, A CONCERT. I was actually going to see World Inferno. Me, WORLD INFERNO. I was actually going to see Jack Terricloth and Sandra Malak.
I did my "homework." I read the history of the band – sorry, gang, on their tumblr. I watched interviews with them and started reading The Temporary Autonomous Zone, which I hadn't heard of before reading their history. I read their Wikipedia article and watched "M," a film starring an actor called Peter Lorre (whom they have written a whole album about owing to Jack Terricloth's fascination with the man.) I watched their music videos and looked up the names of the past members. I listened bands that they mentioned in interviews and made sure that I was able to match as many names to faces in the group as I could. I sung along to their songs in practice for doing so at their performance. I read Sandra's tumblr. I was determined not to miss any references the musicians or audience would make.
I would tell you about more of the members, but that would result in you not remembering who was who, so I will give you a very quick profile on two of the members that are at the forefront of my mind: Sandra Malak and Mora Precarious.
Sandra Malak is the bassist, and she sings as well. Here is her tumblr: smalakinferno. She is also an artist/painter. Oh, and she has cool hair.
Mora Precarious is the drummer. I love how she plays the opening to "Tattoos Fade." Mora is recognisable by the pigtails and the hat she often sports (ooh, and that waistcoat.)
Remember that. Sandra: Bassist, artist. Mora: Drummer, waistcoat.
World Inferno dress classy, in suits – and often ties as well – which looks very fun. (By the way, owning a suit actually happens to be on my mental bucket list. I should add it to the bucket list I have on this blog.) When dressing for performances they keep in mind that every show is a special occasion.
Anyway, the day of the concert drew nearer.
I lowkey fretted about what to wear to it. It had to be something smart that would be comfortable and withstand any moshing that might take place ("Go in a mosh pit" was another item on my bucket list =D)
I messaged a friend for advice and revised the rules of a mosh pit.
I thought about World Inferno so much that I literally had a detailed dream about seeing them live, in which there were multiple supporting acts; I had a wardrobe mishap that stopped me from moshing and there was an intermission that I arrived back late from. What a relief to wake up and know that I had plenty of time to prepare for seeing the WIFS. Oh yes, now I have progressed to the stage of calling them the WIFS. (I wonder how much extra time I've acquired to practice music by that.)
It is worth mentioning now, in case you have not gathered, that Jack Terricloth, the frontman, is an incredibly captivating character. Half make-believe and absolutely sincere, he speaks engagingly in interviews and always manages to respond interestingly. He is a bit like an imaginary friend that is always there for you even when you can't see him. What is even more agreeable about him is that he is a really nice person. Despite his mythical-seeming character, there is something immediately present and relatable about Jack. Maybe it is because of his mythical-seeming character. One thing I can tell you is that he is more likeable than any musician in the any of the other groups I listen to. For starters, he doesn't have that stand-offishness typical of musicians in interviews. He never shows impatience at being asked the same questions; he just finds new ways of answering them. He always seems like he wants to be there. Any arrogance manifests itself as witty, youthful jauntiness. He does not seem like he thinks he is better than his fans. In short, there is something genuinely friendly about Jack Terricloth – something more welcoming than what I see in any other musician I know.
The day of the concert finally came. My mother and I arrived an hour early -just in case (because not only was it my first concert, but it was hers as well!), and were told to come back later. So we walked around Camden for fifteen minutes, bought iced drinks, and then arrived 45 minutes early. There was a lot of waiting around. Not many people were there. I was very cold. This was partly from the fact that I had just slurped up my iced drink so fast that I had a brain freeze, because the bouncer would not allow us into the venue with our drinks, and partly because they had some seriously hardcore air conditioning.
Once inside the venue I could not stop looking around at the other fans. There appeared to be very few of them so far (We WERE 45 minutes early, remember), and they appeared to be milling around rather than partaking in whatever mysterious pre-concert ritual I had imagined concert-goers to partake in. And then I saw someone who looked familiar. Any guesses who?
JACK TERRICLOTH. Well, it certainly looked like him… But was it? I looked again. I was sure… 99 percent.
I cannot tell you how bizarre it was for me to see him in real life. In real life. After seeing pixellated images of him on the internet. It should not be a surprise to see somebody at their own concert but to me, seeing Terricloth managed to be a shock; I'd expected him to remain backstage till the show started, and not to talk to people like it was normal. Despite what I said about him showing no signs of elitism whatsoever, I still can never comprehend the fact that musicians are capable of doing normal things. No, it was more than bizarre – don't get me started, don't get me wrong, but it just seemed completely and utterly totally bloody weird. It was just the fact that he was real, really.
I shan't pretend that the fact that he was real did not make me slightly uncomfortable. The singer was NOT just a google image made out of the pixels of light on my computer screen. Nor was he a spark of the material of my mind. This was the person whose voice I'd been listening to whenever I clicked play on a song by World Inferno. I'd read Wikipedia articles that mentioned him. He even had one of those mini profiles that pop up on the side when you search for him.
Each time I looked away I had to look back to see if he was still there, and still real. All the while, this Jack guy, of course, was just going about his regular everyday life, having no idea what impact seeing him was having on me. He was just talking to the bartenders, walking around the venue, checking on the merch table and things like that. All the while I was thinking, "Is it him?… Yes it's him… He's real… What if it's not him?" over and over again. No-one else seemed as excited to see him. I didn't notice anyone paying him as much attention as I was. "Maybe it's a faux pas to bother a musician when they're hanging around before their own concert," I thought. But then I saw a fan starting to talk to him. And he was replying. In his distinctive Jack Terricloth voice! Just like I'd heard him talking in interviews. He was so bloody real that even his voice was real! Of course, I was "reaching my hearing out," (which is the surreptitious equivalent of craning my neck) to listen to what he was saying. In the same way that I'd been grinning whenever Jack Terricloth (yes, Jack Terricloth! Jack Terricloth) walked past. I must have looked like an idiot.
I sound like an idiot.
After a while I walked over to the merch table to see what was on offer there. And guess who happened to be standing by the merch table? Jack Terricloth! I stepped forward to see the T-shirts and records. He looked in my direction, making eye contact and said, "Hey, how are you?"
"I'm good, thanks" I replied with a smile, but quietly. I would have spoken louder with more detail and included an "and you?" at the end, but I didn't because there was a tiny possibility that he hadn't been talking to me. Now that would have been SO embarrassing, if he hadn't been talking to me, wouldn't it?! So Jack Terricloth, if you're reading this, I didn't mean to be rude; I really was feeling wonderful (very excited to be attending my first concert) and I did want to inquire after your well-being, only I was worried that you might not have been talking to me.
He remarked to me and the people standing around me on the items of merchandise that were for sale, which made them 100 times more interesting. I asked him what time the music would start and he told me it would begin at seven. I spoke with Jack Terricloth! He went to have a drink. I went back to my mum. The place started to fill out.
I will leave you with this:
I sung along at the top of my voice. I danced which is something I seldom do, I danced amid a group of people I didn't know and I knew nobody there really cared about the fact that I looked stupid. I went in a circle pit. Yes, I, Jamila Smith went in a circle pit; I ran around as fast as I could with a load of Inferno-loving strangers all running around as fast as they could, to music we all listened to as much as we could, to lyrics that told us that we could do anything we wanted. And I did feel like I could do anything, because I was at a World Inferno concert.
I went to bed. I kept waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of ringing in my ears, and whenever this happened I'd recount the events of the evening to myself because I was terrified that my tiredness would make me forget them.
A Day in The Life of an Unschooler
I am sitting on my bed in front of my computer, which is resting on a chest of drawers that doubles as my bedside table. My mother told me yesterday that sitting less than twenty centimeters away from your computer is bad. It can make you especially susceptible to cancer, she said. Something to do with radiation. I will have to look that up. My back is slouched. That is also bad. It is slightly uncomfortable and, apparently, can prevent your spine from setting straight if done excessively in your formative years. I keep telling myself to straighten up, but this takes effort and is also slightly uncomfortable, so I opt for the easier option: slouching. I will sit up straight later on at dinner.
Speaking of which, I am hungry now. I can hear the clashing of pots and pans in the kitchen. I believe that is a signal that dinner is being made. From the sound of it, my father is cooking. I know it's him because firstly, he slams things and works with a speed and urgency I believe is unnecessary; the dishes sound as if they are being bashed against the counter and the chopping of carrots resounds throughout the house like a series of distant executions. Secondly, my mother's voice is closer to here than it is to the kitchen, so I know that she cannot be in there cooking. I have a feeling I should be offering to help. I will go to help.
I offered to help and was told to put away my clothes instead.
I put away my clothes. I had some mild and some not-so-mild digs made at me. I had dinner, which was rice noodles fried with vegetables. (I think I forgot to sit up straight!) I re-watched a film with my family called A Long Way Down. It is about four strangers who become acquainted with one another on New Year's Eve at the top a building they plan to jump off.
This morning I went for a run. It was not a satisfying run because it mostly consisted of short self-conscious stretches of running interspersed with long self-conscious stretches of walking. However, it was a start to an attempt at fitness. It gave me a vague feeling of achievement.
The next thing of relevance that I did was copywork. Now, copywork, for those unacquainted, is a writing exercise where you copy passages from good books to improve your writing. The idea is that the grammar, punctuation and sentence structure get embedded into your brain, and you naturally widen your vocabulary. It is something I actually find quite fun. This is why: I only copy from things that interest me.
After that, I had a phone conversation with my friend. We discussed birthdays, reading and the POSSIBILITY of an upcoming trip to Paris. We both have our birthdays in the next few months. She says, "If you can't do something exciting on your birthday, then do something vaguely exciting."


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Seba Camp
Set against the backdrop of ancient riverine forest in the stunning Okavango Delta, Seba Camp is a wonderful family friendly property that affords incredible wildlife sightings and dedicated service. The camp overlooks a perennial lagoon, often frequented by hippo and home to an array of birdlife, allowing guests to relax and enjoy casual game viewing from their rooms. The camp takes the name Seba from an elephant that was released back into the wild from nearby Abu Camp. With numerous elephants since released into the wild, guests can join the researchers currently studying their interactions with wild herds and get up close to the largest land animal on earth.
There are 8 tented rooms in total, raised off the ground and featuring canvas walls and wooden floors. Guests have a choice of 6 standard tents and 2 tents specifically designed for families. Standard tents feature twin beds, are well furnished and are quiet spacious. Both family rooms feature a plunge pool and children's games, although one is larger with 3 bedrooms and the other 2.
Providing excellent views, the main area of the camp consists of a lounge, bar and dining area, with the delicious meals served al fresco when possible. There is also a swimming pool on offer, ideal for relaxing between game drives.
How to get to Seba Camp
Seba Camp is a 30 minute flight from Maun and 1 hr 30 flight to Kasane. The camp is a short drive from the airstrip.
Activities at Seba Camp
Moroko rides (traditional African canoe), seasonal fishing, elephant observation with researchers and day and night game drives.
Selected Itineraries
Our favorite itineraries that visit Seba Camp
Okavango Delta Linyanti and Kalahari Family Adventure Safari
- Days
- 11
- Cost Per Person
- Cost Per Person: from $22,160 (Includes international flights from JFK)
- Countries
- Botswana
- Locations
- Linyanti, Central Kalahari, Okavango Delta


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Why I've been MIA. I have had a few people ask me why I haven't posted anything new to my blog. My answer is that I haven't been active on here because I currently have a love/hate relationship with social media. No, really, I hate it. A couple of them have argued that this blog… Continue reading
DIY Proposal Box
Recently I decided to take matters into my own hands and make what I guess is called a proposal box. There are a million reasons why doing it yourself is the way to go, but when you're planning a wedding the number one reason is and always will be; money. It is so much cheaper… Continue reading DIY Proposal Box
Nitty Gritty
Pandora's Box has decided to explode in my face, and I have been telling myself that I will be the bigger person and I definitely won't post anything on my blog. Then I realized there's two sides to every story, and mine has never been heard so you know what, fuck it. For those of… Continue reading Nitty Gritty
Two months later
I feel as though the title says it all. It has been exactly two months since my last post on here. It is actually kind of funny because I thought about posting on here with updates a lot but every time I told myself I would get to it later and I obviously never did.… Continue reading Two months later
Save my freaking soul
So I've had a pretty rough week, hence the lack of posts. I really need to get back into daily jogs and meditation, my anxiety and stress levels are out of this world. I might as well just face plant into my candy dish when I get home from work, because both my fiancé and… Continue reading Save my freaking soul
No post on Sundays, or is there?
I think Sunday's are going to end up being the day where I post to this contraption. Coincidental I know, as we all know the best thing about Sunday is that there is no post! But when you're planning a wedding every day is Monday which means that every day sucks. I say that in… Continue reading No post on Sundays, or is there?
First post (Disclaimer)
If you previously read the about me section then you already know that I'm planning my wedding. If you haven't then now you know I'm planning my wedding and can skip that section so there ya go. ANYWAYS My boyfriend of 3 years and I recently got engaged. So naturally I have been looking into… Continue reading First post (Disclaimer)


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What I Wish I'd Known Before I Got Married
Keepin' It Real
Oct 13, 2001 | 212 Pages
- Amazon
- Barnes & Noble
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- Books A Million
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Jan 21, 2009 | 224 Pages
About What I Wish I'd Known Before I Got Married
Building a marriage is a lifelong endeavor for both men and women. Most marriage books cover the three C's--communication, compromise, and consideration -- but fail to address many issues critical to a healthy relationship. Family advocate Kay James calls these the "things I wish I had known before I got married": advice on finances, sex, children, and dealing with the extended family. Noting that the apostle Paul exhorted older women not to inspire or counsel younger women, but to teach them how to be wives to their husbands, Kay offers a lifetime's wealth of wisdom for creating an unbreakable marriage relationship.
About Kay Coles JamesKay Coles James has been an ardent advocate for the family for over twenty years and was recently appointed by President Bush to serve in his administration. She was previously a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a leading educational institute based in Washington, D.C. Mrs. James also served on the board of directors at Focus on the Family ministries and speaks to groups across the nation. She is married to Charles Sr., and they have three children.
Product Details
212 pages | Published by Multnomah
On Sale Date: Oct 13, 2001
Trim Size: 5-3/16 x 8-1/4
Carton Quantity: 1


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The Climate and People of Hatfield
Located in Polk County right near the Ouachita National Forest and the border with Oklahoma, the Arkansas town of Hatfield is a place that may be very small but has a comfortable climate while also being home to some of the finest people in the state. These include many people who strongly hold onto their religious values. There's even one rather noteworthy organization based out of the town that is all about faith in a unique manner.
A Look At the climate
The climate in Hatfield is known for being rather hot at times. The summer seasons are filled with plenty of hot and humid days. It is not unusual for temperatures to reach triple digits during the summer. Also, while it can rain on occasion, it is typically dry for at least two-thirds of a typical month during the summer. In other words, it can be hard to find relief from the heat during the summer in Hatfield.
Fortunately, the winters are not as hard as they are in other places. It can get to be below freezing during the winter evenings in Hatfield but it almost never snows in the town. In addition, temperatures typically stick to the lower or middle twenties during the evening hours and can get into the fifties during the daytime.
The air is still relatively humid during the winter months in Hatfield. Humidity levels can get to at least 80 percent in some cases.
What About the People?
There aren't many people in Hatfield; specifically, there are only about 400 people living in the town. The demographics for Hatfield, according to the 2000 census, state that the demographics aren't too varied. About 95 percent of the population in Hatfield is white, for instance. A little more than half of the people here are married while close to 30 percent of the households have children eighteen years of age or younger. About a quarter of the people living in Hatfield are also below the poverty line.
However, the people in Arkansas are calm and kind people who are very supportive of one another. Much of this is thanks to how they are religious people. Many of them can be found at one of the many churches in the town like the First Baptist Church or the Assembly of God Church.
In fact, Hatfield is even home to one of the more unique Christian organizations in the world. It is the headquarters for the Christian Motorcyclists Association. This organization, which features about 125,000 members around the world, was formed as a means of providing God's word and the message of the church to motorcyclists. This ministry travels to various different motorcycle rallies around the world and encourages people to consider letting God into their lives. The organization has expanded to reach many different types off riders; there's even an off-road chapter of the organization that targets quad sports enthusiasts.
The people of Hatfield are truly fascinating as they are caring even though there isn't much diversity out here. The climate in the town is also relatively nice although it can get to be very hot during the summer season.
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Greatest Puzzle Games of All Timeloganruckmanman This is for pure puzzle games, so the Legend of Zelda series doesn't count.
The Top Ten
Out of all the Tetris games, my favourite is Tetris DS. But still, it's not my favourite puzzle game. - FernandoLemon
What a classic, nothing beats Tetris - ethany
No contest Tertis is the best puzzle game of all time. - egnomac
I LOVE THIS GAME BY MY HEART! THIS IS ONE OF THOSE RARE GAMES THAT ARE THE MOST DEFINITELY DEEPLY ATTACHED TO MY HEART AND EVERYONE ELSE, THIS GAME MADE ME LAUGH, EMOTIONAL and cry, SUSPICIOUS, MY MIND SHARPER AND SHARPER, EVERY FEELING A PERSON CAN HAVE AND IT IS THE BEST PUZZLE GAME EVER MADE, I CAN SAY THAT WITHOUT ANY DOUBT, PORTAL IS EVERYTHING, ACTION, ADVENTURE, PUZZLE, SHOOTING (because you do shoot portals) seriously a masterpiece, the best game valve has ever made, this game is a multiple game full of so many damn features, I just love this game, you can play co-op multiplayer, such a damn long singleplayer mode - play through awesome main story chapters, make your own maps, edit any maps, download more and more extra and bonus different maps, a larger community so awesome and it deserves THE FIRST PLACE.
If you haven't played Portal 2, you need to go out and play it... right now. Seriously, the story is just too awesome and the experience is way too sweet to miss.
Portal is the best game ever!
How is this not number 1? - toptenzenV 2 Comments
The Contenders
The ultimate game, with a bit of everything. Truly a masterpiece.
A great series at least deserves a great picture... - Entranced98
Recommended Lists
Related ListsBest Video Games of All Time Top 10 Greatest Mario Games of All Time Best First Person Shooter (FPS) Games of All Time Top 10 Nintendo Games of All Time Best Fighting Games of All-time
List Stats
52 listings
7 years, 290 days old
Top Remixes
2. Magical Drop III
3. Columns
2. Pokemon Puzzle League
3. Dr Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine


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Fragile states: working to build resilience
Fragile states are home to nearly 30 per cent of the world's poor people. Though measures of fragility vary, such countries typically lack some of the basic tools of nation-building: good governance, strong policies, skilled personnel, functional infrastructure and services, educated citizens, an active civil society and a competitive private sector. Civil and border conflict is an all-too frequent reality. Poor people living in rural areas of fragile states are particularly vulnerable as they have very limited means to cope with the situation created by fragility.
Countries may be fragile in some respects and not others, and they may also move in and out of that condition. In this precarious environment, communities and families lack resilience, leaving them highly exposed to natural and human-caused disasters. The challenges of reducing poverty and achieving the Millennium Development Goals are particularly daunting. The need to expand support and ensure that aid is effective in fragile states was highlighted in the Accra Agenda for Action.
- Young people in post-conflict countries
- Corporate-level evaluation on IFAD's engagement in fragile and conflict-affected states and situations (issue #36 - 2015)
- IFAD's Engagement in Fragile and Conflict-affected States and Situations
- The Sudan: Civil unrest and drought corrode resilience
- Haiti: Fragility compounded by crises


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Ulinzi Stars' 2-1 win over Nakumatt FC on Saturday July 15, 2017 was enough to move them to the top of the Premier League table.
With a fair share of possession, Nakumatt looked the stronger team in the first ten minutes before Ulinzi started getting slowly into the match. Waruru tried his luck with two chances with one from a header but could not trouble the goalkeeper.
Daniel Waweru almost took the Soldiers ahead in the 31st minute after beating keeper Sammy Okinda but his effort was cleared at the goal line by Eugene Ambulwa. Ulinzi however broke the deadlock two minutes into the second half, Samuel Onyango having an easy time to put the ball into the net following Ambulwa's blunder in defense.
Nakumatt however leveled matters through substitute Joshua Oyoo in the 59th minute to take the game rolling once again. It is the Soldiers who had the last laugh, Omar Mbongi's thunderous header in the 87th minute sealing the win for Nyangweso's charges to go top of the league table.


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Environmental and political editorial cartoons for a variety of publications and organizations. Former creator of Hank D and the Bee. Future creator of Broster.
Every year the Union of Concerned Scientists has a cartoon contest featuring "editorial cartoons that poke fun at the not-so-humorous challenges to the complex relationship between science and democracy." A few weeks back they chose their twelve favorite cartoons as finalists. Each finalist receives $500 and a spot in their 2013 calendar. The finalists are then presented to the public to vote on to see who wins the GRAND PRIZE. The grand prize winning cartoon graces the front cover of the calendar and wins another $500.
My cartoon, "Coal Mine" (below) became a finalist. You can vote for "Coal Mine" (#9) or the other 11 finalists here. I'm a big fan of #4 from Andrew M. Young.
For the relevant links that offer a bit more info on the topic of my "Coal Mine" cartoon please view the original post.
Hahaha :p lol


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Good pals...
We'll caption this one: "Tide goes in, tide goes out. Never a miscommunication."
Front Page » Archives » April 2013 »" Articles in Category: News Corp. "
  w/ Brad & Desi
Just 10 cases of in-person impersonation in all 50 states since 2000...
VIDEO: 'Rise of the Tea Bags'
Brad interviews American patriots...
'Democracy's Gold Standard'
Hand-marked, hand-counted ballots...
GOP Voter Registration Fraud Scandal 2012...
The Secret Koch Brothers Tapes...
Good pals...
We'll caption this one: "Tide goes in, tide goes out. Never a miscommunication."
First read this short story please. Then this one.
Thank you.
IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Ernie Moniz, Obama's nominee for Energy Secretary, heads to easy confirmation in Senate; Former NRC chair says US nukes should be replaced; Fukushima is drowning in a sea of radioactive water; Exxon gets a medal for safety?!? PLUS: Conservative icon Margaret Thatcher believed in SCIENCE, and ACTION on climate change... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.
IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Frackers Losing $1.5b Yearly to Leaks; Australia's Coal Industry Headed For Failure; Judge denies BP's attempt to reduce oil spill payouts; Worst wildlife disease in N. America just got worse; Toxic chemicals in Great Lakes plastic pollution; Cost of air pollution scourge underestimated; Billionaire Koch Brother's bizarre self-delusion on climate science; When You Account For The Oceans, Global Warming Continues Apace... PLUS: How Far Can Climate Change Go? ... and much, MUCH more! ...
The eagle-eyed Jeff Poor, who describes himself as a "Christian, media reporter" for Tucker Carlson's pretend (and long-ago and repeatedly discredited) Rightwing "news" site, The Daily Caller, notices that our twitter feed is doing its part to help promote the Fox "News" Special Report with Bret Baier...
Chronic Fox News basher @thebradblog featured in FNC "Special Report" TV promo, sort of... twitpic.com/cgiqp5
— Jeff Poor (@jeff_poor) April 2, 2013
Of course, describing us as a "chronic Fox basher" isn't completely fair. After all, we're always more than happy to appear in person on Fox, and even on Special Report, for that matter. It's just that they don't call very frequently, for some reason.
Either way, thanks, Jeff! And you're welcome, Fox "News"! Hope it helps!
In 2004, in one of our earliest posts on this site (our 15th, in fact) we declared "gay marriage" to be a "done deal".
Six years later, in late 2010, after a number of good court decisions in the week or two prior, largely in regard the military's now-defunct discriminatory "Don't Ask Don't Tell" (DADT) policy, we wrote:
Well before the end of this decade (and likely far sooner than that, perhaps even before the end of Obama's first term in office), marriage equality for gays and lesbians will be recognized in every state in the union, and homosexuals will be as welcome in our nation's military as African-Americans.
It's over. The good guys have won. In these quiet victories of rights over wrongs, we can all take some quiet comfort, even in these maddening, ugly days.
The bad guys may not have come to terms with it yet, they may not have even noticed yet, but they have lost.
Well, as of this week, it looks like "the bad guys" finally have noticed and are in the process of coming to terms with it...
IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: L.A. to be 100% coal-free; TN conservatives slam mountaintop removal coal mining - by China; NV coal company faked air pollution reports; Green jobs are the fastest growing job sector in the nation; PLUS: Leave it to beavers - 'hero' beaver dam halts oil spill ... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.
IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): State Dept. hid ties to Keystone XL pipeline company; Toyota Unveils New I-Road; NOAA: 'Robust' independent evidence confirms thermometer measurements; Climate Science Denier Leads House Science Subcommittee; Pope Francis calls for defending environment; Report: Security risks of climate change; Enviro groups criticize Obama's DOE nominee energy industry ties; Polar bear habitat shrinks even more... PLUS: How to cut U.S. gasoline use in half by 2030 ... and much, MUCH more! ...
Appearing on MSNBC's The Ed Show on Friday night, Eugene Iredale, the attorney for former San Diego ACORN worker Juan Carlos Vera, made short work of the chiseling claim made by federal criminal and professional liar James O'Keefe, that he had agreed to pay Vera $100,000 simply to bring to a close a "ridiculous lawsuit."
"If he wants to get out of the settlement and wants to fight us in court," Iredale told host Ed Schultz in response to O'Keefe's fundraising bluster, "we're ready any time. We can go right now!"
O'Keefe agreed last week to settle the lawsuit filed by Vera in July of 2010 against him and his partner Hannah Giles. Vera had been fired by ACORN after deceptively edited video tapes of him, secretly recorded by O'Keefe and his partner Hannah Giles, were published by Andrew Breitbart in 2009. While the edited tapes made it appear as though Vera, whose English is poor, was interested in cooperating in a scheme to smuggle underage prostitutes across the Mexican border, in reality, Vera had played along with the pair in order to gain information, including taking their photos, and then immediately notified law enforcement about the ridiculous scheme O'Keefe and Giles were proposing.
After word of the settlement with Vera leaked to Wonkette's Matthew Phelan and Liz Farkas last week, O'Keefe took to Twitter to play the victim, describing his payout to Vera as the necessary result of a "nuisance lawsuit".
"Sadly, this is the cost of exposing the truth," he explained to his gullible fundraising base in a statement posted to his ironically named Project Veritas website late last week. "That's why so few people do it. There are liability issues inherent in undercover journalism."
Many of those paying attention to this long shameful saga would be right in responding in turn: "Um, what 'journalism'"?!
O'Keefe continued his post-settlement Twitter tantrum to describe media coverage of his settlement agreement as "lies and lies and more lies from journafascists," taunting them to "have the guts" to allow him to respond on TV.
The BRAD BLOG's Brad Friedman responded to O'Keefe in turn with an invitation to appear live with him on his KPFK/Pacfica Radio show this coming Wednesday, at which time he could, among other things, explain how deceptively edited videotapes deserve to be labeled "journalism" or why he describes Vera's complaint as "meritless accusations". O'Keefe has yet to respond to the invitation...
Former San Diego ACORN worker, Juan Carlos Vera will receive $100,000 in a settlement from federal criminal and professional liar James O'Keefe, after being secretly video-taped in violation of California law by the Rightwing propagandist. The tape was just one in a series of similar videos, all deceptively edited as part of his 2009 ACORN "pimp" hoax series.
The story of the settlement to Vera's July 2010 civil lawsuit was originally broken by Wonkette, which published the 3-page settlement document [PDF], yesterday.
Several different official investigations, including those by the former MA Attorney General [PDF], by the Kings County, NY District Attorney, and by the CA Attorney General all determined that there were no violations of law performed by any ACORN worker seen in the several surreptitiously taped videos. The officials found the tapes were "highly" and "deceptively" edited.
The ACORN "pimp" hoax videos were published originally by the late Republican con-man Andrew Breitbart who, before he died of heart failure just over one year ago, was likely to have been pulled in to the civil case as well, after O'Keefe disclosed in his deposition that Breitbart had advance knowledge of the scheme to secretly video tape workers in violation of CA's Invasion of Privacy Act.
After Breitbart's publication, the edited tapes were widely covered, without fact-checking, in both the Rightwing media such as Fox "News" and non-Rightwing media such as the New York Times. The Times was eventually forced to issue partial-corrections for their inaccurate reporting after a six month effort by The BRAD BLOG to point out how they'd been duped by O'Keefe, who had lied about appearing as a 70s era blaxploitation "pimp" in the offices of ACORN.
A 2010 investigation by the CA Attorney General determined there was "no criminality" by ACORN workers seen in any of the raw video tapes. O'Keefe and his partner Hannah Giles agreed to turn over the unedited tapes in exchange for immunity from criminal prosecution in the state. "The evidence illustrates that things are not always as partisan zealots portray them through highly selective editing of reality," California's then AG Jerry Brown said in a statement accompanying the release of his office's investigation which "involved attorneys from all three legal divisions – Criminal Law, Public Rights, and Civil Law – as well as Special Agents from the Department's Bureau of Investigation and Intelligence."
"Sometimes a fuller truth is found on the cutting room floor," he added.
While the deal left the AG's office unable to prosecute the duo, the criminal investigation found that O'Keefe and Giles likely violated the civil provisions of CA's Privacy Act and could be sued under those provisions "for recording a confidential conversation without consent." Vera, who, after his odd meeting with O'Keefe and Giles had the wherewithal to contact the police, sued both of them in July of 2010 for violations of the act...
Wow. You likely won't see this covered on the actual Fox "News" Channel --- at least not in these words --- but somehow it made it onto their website yesterday [emphasis added]...
"Hey, they say carbon dioxide is a pollutant in the first paragraph!," snarks the sharp-eyed and occasional BRAD BLOG contributor, D.R. Tucker. "Who let that one go through?!"
Who indeed?! After years of deriding the fact that carbon dioxide is a pollutant --- "Hey, look! I just breathed out! I'm a polluter!" --- Fox just admitted to what actual scientists and people who know stuff have been saying for years, even though the Bush Administration, way back when, spent years purposely not opening an email from their own EPA because they knew it contained the finding that, as FoxNews.com just admitted, carbon dioxide is a pollutant!
As Peter Sinclair has mocked the denialists, while debunking their silly notion that CO2, even too much of it, is merely "plant food": "Plants use CO2. Therefore, more CO2 is good. It's one of the hardy perennials of climate denialism."
The rest of the Fox article goes on to describe the developing technology for "clean coal-powered cars." We can't speak to the feasibility of the technology, but, if it's accurately described by Fox (how could it not be?!) it sounds quite interesting. Reportedly, it combines pulverized coal with iron-oxide pellets to create an "oxidation" process that produces heat "in a small chamber from which pollutants cannot escape."
"The only waste product would be water and solid coal ash --- no greenhouse gases," the article by Gene J. Koprowski claims, adding that the same technology could possibly be used "as a replacement for old-fashioned coal power plants, which spew greenhouse gases."
Oh, my! They just did it again!
IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Climate change already hitting Rocky Mtn ski resorts; House Dems slam Republicans for obstruction of climate action; Shell Oil calls it quits in the Arctic --- for now; Fox 'News' makes a stunning admission; Drought in the West, Flooding in Europe PLUS: Finally, some good news for kids in Detroit ... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.
IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Sequestration would be bad news for clean energy and a clean environment; You may be eating toxic chemicals, even if you eat organic, avoid plastic; High court throws out $1B fraud verdict in Exxon leak case; US nuclear dump is leaking toxic waste; USDA warns farmers of accelerating climate change; Loss of wild bees serious threat to crop yields; Weather extremes provoked by trapping of giant waves in atmosphere ... PLUS: The New Abolitionists: Global Warming Is The Great Moral Crisis Of Our Time ... and much, MUCH more! ...
IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: All hands on deck (if not the corporate media!) for the largest climate rally in U.S. history... but is President Obama all talk and no action?; Secret memo reveals tar sands are poisoning Alberta, Canada; PLUS: Mayor Bloomberg's big plans to greenify NYC ... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at email@example.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.
IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Secret funding helped build vast network of climate denial thinktanks; BP challenges 'excessive' spill claims; GAO: Climate change poses big financial risk to US government; NASA: 'Alarming' water loss in Middle East; Study: Global warming will bring more blizzards, less overall snow; Air pollution causes heart attacks; Canadian enviro-activists 'threat to national security'; Tesla v. NYT, round 3; OH accused of dumping fracking wastewater; Did PA lie about fracking water contamination? ... PLUS: GMOs: Nearly half of all US farms now have superweeds ... and much, MUCH more! ...
IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Special Coverage: Climate change takes center stage at the State of the Union address (though not in the corporate media) while activists and Senate Democrats turn up the heat ... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at email@example.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.
IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Fukushima: 3 youth diagnosed with thyroid cancer; GAO warns weather is changing; Superstorm Sandy 2nd costliest; $188b cost for weather disasters in two years; NY to ban Styrofoam cups?; NJ officials charged with poisoning drinking water; Tesla v. NYTimes; Solar 'glass' breakthrough; Fox News 'stands in way of energy security progress'; Refinery fire: Chevron refinery pipes 80% corroded; Industry ousts scientist from EPA panel ... PLUS: Global climate treaties work: Antarctic ozone hole smallest in 10 yrs ... and much, MUCH more! ...
On today's KPFK/Pacifica Radio BradCast we covered the State of the Union Address last night, with extended focus on the President's call for election form and his new "Presidential Commission on Election Administration" [PDF], to be questionably co-chaired by Swift Boat GOP attorney Ben Ginsberg. As we noted yesterday, color us dubious about all of that.
My guest in the first half-hour was Marcia Johnson-Blanco, Co-Director of the Voting Rights Project at the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and we also discussed their recent report on "Our Broken Voting Systems And How to Repair It", as well as the upcoming February 27th U.S. Supreme Court hearing in Shelby County v. Holder, challenging the Constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act's Section 5 protection of jurisdictions with a history of discrimination at the voting booth.
Suffice to say, she was more optimistic about all of the above than I was.
In most of the second half of the show, we focused on the many environmental issues raised in Obama's State of the Union with the Green News Report's Desi Doyen. I'm not sure who was more (or less) optimistic in that half of the show.
Download MP3 or listen online below [appx 58 mins]...
IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: 'Too pooped to pope': Pope Benedict's green legacy; Did global warming find Nemo?; State of the Union - Obama's next act on climate change; Wind power now cheaper than coal in some countries; PLUS: Fox 'News' surrenders to Germany (in the clean energy race) ... All that and more in today's Green News Report!
Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.
IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Koch-backed 'Tea Party' started in 2002 with Big Tobacco; Meet your newest national park; Shell's damaged Arctic drilling rigs go to Asia; Map of cities to avoid as sea levels rise; Keystone XL pipeline: Just Say No; National Journal covers rising costs of inaction on climate change; Bloomberg's clean energy investor factbook; Flame retardants linked to ADHD; Why the US drilling boom lowered gas prices ... PLUS: Energy Subsidies and the 'Free Market' Lie ... and much, MUCH more! ...
This is a map of annual sunlight in the U.S. and in Germany (on lower right), according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory...
Yet, this is how Fox Business Network "reporter" Shibani Joshi explained, on Fox "News" today, why it is that Germany leads the world in solar energy production, while "the hopes for solar in the U.S. have dimmed":
Sigh. See Media Matters for the full Fox video and actual facts and stuff, including the actual reason why solar energy is so successful in Germany, where, last year it powered about a third of the country's energies need on a single Friday in May, and a full 50% of its energy needs the next day on Saturday. (On average last year, solar accounted for some 4% of the country's energy needs, with other renewables there accounting for about 20% total. That, as the country, in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, moves away from nuclear entirely and attempts to replace all of that power with clear renewables. See our "UPDATE & CORRECTION" below for more details.)
And, while taking in all of the misinformation from Fox above, keep in mind that yesterday PPP released the results of its 4th Annual TV News Trust Poll which finds, among other things, 70% of Republicans still actually trust Fox "News". Even more incredibly, some 67% of Republicans trust Fox more than any other source.
Can't imagine why Republicans are so obscenely misinformed these days.
[Hat-tip @alutz3 on the Twitters.]
UPDATE & CORRECTION 2/9/2013: Fox' Joshi has now filed a correction, of sorts, buried on the Fox "News" website (as opposed to front and center on one of their highest watched programs, Fox and Friends, where she originally misinformed millions of Fox viewers. See below for that update and a correction of our own...
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text:
GraphicRiver Team Sport Horizontal Banners Set 11925982
Category: Stock Vector | Comment: ( 0 )
GraphicRiver Team Sport Horizontal Banners Set 11925982
Stock Vector \ Conceptual \ Sports \ Activity
Outdoor \ Pictogram \ Network \ Mobile \ Keeper \ Marketing \ Poster \ Professional
Stock Vector - Team Sport Horizontal Banners Set 11925982 by macrovector @ GraphicRiver
Stock Vector \ Conceptual \ Sports \ Activity
Layered: No; Graphics Files Included: JPG Image, Vector EPS; Minimum Adobe CS Version: CS.
American football basketball and soccer professional team sport matches flat horizontal banners set abstract isolated vector illustration. Editable EPS and Render in JPG format
Bank Security Horizontal Banners Set; Logistics Flat Horizontal Banners Set; Amusement Park Banner; Investment Banner Set; Patent Idea Protection Banner Set; Human Resources Banners Set; Web Design Banners.
Keywords: album, american, arbiter, ball, banner, basketball, composition, computer, design, equipment, field, flyer, football, game, goalkeeper, icons, keeper, marketing, mobile, network, outdoor, pictogram, poster, professional, scoreboard, scrapbook, soccer, sport, team, umpire.


text:
Program Details:
Click on Links Below to Download our App!
When you sign up for our rewards club app every dollar you spend on food and beverage purchases at MarketPlace will go toward your rewards. We'll even send you something special on your birthday! You'll also be at the top of the list to receive emails about our promotions and specials.
To join our program, download the brand new Marketplace Grill Rewards app for your phone in the Apple or Android store. We strongly recommend that you sign up with Facebook so that you can earn referral points when your friends sign up! The app will allow you to keep up with your club earnings easily and it will no longer be necessary to worry about keeping track of a card. At the end of your meal simply scan the bar code at the bottom of your receipt and you will be awarded with points instantly. Now, your MarketPlace Rewards can go wherever you go and you can check your points at any time. When you want to redeem rewards dollars simply press the redeem button in the app and give the code to our staff for redemption. (Please remember that some rewards may expire and rewards cannot be combined with other special offers, promotions or discounts.)
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Mark Zuckerberg confirms Ireland data centre building work has begun
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has revealed that building work has begun on the company's new data centre in Ireland. The facility - reportedly costing €200m (£152m) - is being built in Clonee, just outside Dublin. It is Facebook's sixth data centre and only the second in Europe, after Lulea in Sweden.
"Data centres deliver all of Facebook's services to you. They're some of the most complex machines ever created," Mr Zuckerberg (right) said in an online post.
All the racks, servers and other components have been designed and built from scratch as part of the Open Compute Project, an industry-wide coalition of companies dedicated to creating energy and cost-efficient infrastructure solutions and sharing them as open source.
The 31,000 sq m Clonee data centre will be run on 100% renewable energy and it will be naturally cooled by air from outside - with a special filtration system used to remove salt from the air due to its proximity to the Irish Sea.
"We're glad to be investing in Ireland, to become a part of the Clonee community, and to continue building the massive infrastructure that connects our global community," Mr Zuckerberg said.
About 2,000 people will be employed during the different construction phases and dozens of people will be employed at the facility on a permanent basis when it opens in 2018.
The Clonee site is being opened due to the company's rapid global expansion: it doubled its number of daily users from just 500m in 2011 to more than a billion by the end of 2015.
Niall McEntegart, a Louth native, currently heads up Facebook's data centre in Sweden, and said Clonee was chosen for a variety of reasons, with its proximity to Dublin, where the tech giant has its European headquarters, being perhaps the most obvious one.
"It created a level of synergy that we don't have anywhere else on the planet in Facebook," he said. "There is good access to power and fibre. The climate is really good and the country is stable politically, seismically even, in terms of earthquakes it is good. Availability in relation to labour as well was huge, there is a huge skills pool in Ireland in relation to data centres."
Meath County Council chief executive Jackie Maguire hopes Facebook's presence will help attract similar companies to the region. "For every one job you create, there is a spin-off of at least three or four additional jobs, whether it is in hotels, catering facilities or services like that," she said.
Belfast Telegraph


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How to Select an SEO Reseller Account
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Supporting reference: Why People Think Services Are A Acceptable Idea


text:
GraphicRiver Young Man and Woman Isolated 7517025
Category: Stock Vector | Comment: ( 0 )
GraphicRiver Young Man and Woman Isolated 7517025
Stock Vector \ Characters \ People
Pretty \ Relationship \ Meeting \ Lady \ Love \ Rendezvous \ Romance \ Women \ Young
Stock Vector - Young Man and Woman Isolated 7517025 by Julia_Tim @ GraphicRiver
Stock Vector \ Characters \ People
Graphics Files Included: JPG Image, Vector EPS; Layered: Yes; Minimum Adobe CS Version: CS.
Young man and woman isolated. Contains EPS10 and high-resolution JPEG
Young Woman Holds a Tablet PC; Young Woman Wearing Fashion Dress; Young Woman Dual Composition; Young Woman Wearing a Little Black Dress; Guy Close-Up; Young Man and Woman Playing with Tablet PC; Young Woman Flirts with Boyfriend.
Keywords: attractive, beautiful, blissful, boyfriend, characters, cheerful, contract, conversation, dating, flirting, friends, friendship, girl, girlfriend, happiness, heterosexual, lady, love, meeting, men, pretty, relationship, rendezvous, romance, smiling, standing, student, togetherness, women, young.


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Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton wants to bring more than a few souvenirs back from a trip to China. He'd like to bring back business.
Stanton told CNBC that Phoenix is building an economy with a strong technology component that should be of interest to an emerging market such as China.
"It's how we're going to build that long-term, more diverse, sustainable economy," he said.
Stanton attended the World Economic Forum's annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dailan.
He said the Valley's technology field offers a "quality workforce."
"That's the kind of investment we're trying to attract, and we're headed in the right direction," he said.
The forum, which opened Sept. 11, closes Friday.


text:
Meet the Team
HelioPower has engineered solar and clean energy systems since 2001 for clients in the United States and abroad.
Our energy experts bring together extensive expertise representing all aspects of the energy equation. From solar and renewable energy generation, demand side management, the creation of clean energy assets, and green marketing to solar and clean energy finance, we are passionate about excellence in all phases of a project.
We work to deliver on the financial, environmental and community promise of energy efficiency and clean energy generation for our clients here and worldwide.
Management Team
Mike Murray
President, Helio Energy Solutions
Director of Commercial Operations, HelioPower