text:
I frequently get asked why I write so much about Glenn Greenwald. I've looked at myself in the mirror many times and asked the same question.
I think back to when I first read one of his posts at Salon during the end of the Bush administration. He was railing against Bush at that time and I was certainly sympathetic to that sentiment. But as I read his pieces, I noticed that he exaggerated an awful lot and took leaps with his conclusions and that didn't sit well with me. I was all for attacking Bush, but because I am a political junky and was pretty informed on things, I noticed the exaggerations and in some cases, blatant lies. I didn't join in with others in praising his "journalism".
It was many years later that I learned that Glenn Greenwald hadn't always railed against President Bush. In fact, he supported Bush and the many horrible things he did in the wake of 9/11 including the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq as well as supporting Bush during the time when the Patriot Act was passed. In light of what he is saying now, it should speak volumes about his integrity. Glenn has written about those of us who point this out and his attempt to dismiss his support for Bush is pretty lame. Ben Cohen from The Daily Banter wrote about this, go read it and have a laugh at Greenwald's expense. Ben gives Glenn way too much credit, in my opinion.
Like Ben, I'm happy that Glenn finally opened up his eyes and realized the error of his ways. A little context though, Glenn wasn't exactly a young, naive lad when he "had not abandoned my trust in the Bush administration", or "gave the administration the benefit of the doubt" or felt that President Bush was "entitled to have his national security judgment deferred to". No, Glenn was 36 years old in 2003, when the bombs started falling on innocent people in Iraq, a war that I marched against.
So Glenn's dishonesty and tendency to exaggerate and mislead his readers turned me off immediately. But that isn't the main reason I write about Glenn Greenwald so frequently.
Glenn Greenwald is a bully. I hate bullies!
If you want to read more about his journalistic brutality, go read this post, or this one, or this one. Or just go to Google and search, there are many examples out there besides the ones I've written about.
How Can Greenwald Be So Wrong, So Much Of The Time
Glenn Greenwald loves hyperbole. Decades from now when scholars write about The Age Of Hyperbole that we are currently living in, Glenn Greenwald's picture will surely be accompanying the journal articles.
A few of my favorites from the last year.
"The objective of this is to enable the NSA to monitor EVERY SINGLE CONVERSATION AND EVERY SINGLE FORM OF HUMAN BEHAVIOR!"
"The National Security Agency is currently devoted to the objective of creating a worldwide surveillance net that allows it to monitor what all human beings are doing and how they're behaving and interacting with one another."
I know there are a lot of paranoid people in this world who love that kind of talk, it feeds their paranoia and makes them feel like they are not alone. Any thinking, reasonable person who isn't consumed with hatred or paranoia can read those words and realize they are completely over the top and can not possibly be true.
How many NSA employees do you think it would take to "MONITOR every single conversation and every single form of human behavior"? You see, Glenn doesn't just think that the NSA is gathering meta data on who is calling who, after getting a warrant from a the FISA court (as dysfunctional as it is) because of intelligence on a suspected terrorist. No, Glenn thinks that there are people monitoring "every single conversation and every single form of human behavior".
Bob Cesca has been keeping track of Glenn's NSA "journalism" better than anyone and has coined the term "the 24 hour rule", which basically says we should wait for the other shoe to drop before believing what ole Glenn Greenwald says.


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Follow Friday will return next week; I am still recovering from the FGS Conference. Meanwhile, I direct you to Randy Seaver's "Best of the Genea-blogs" at Genea-Musings and John Newmark's "Weekly Picks" at TransylvanianDutch.
FGS Conference
Best: The people – both the people of Tennessee and the Genea-Bloggers I met. Also breakfasts at Pete's Coffee Shop, the Museum of Appalachia, and the East Tennessee Historical Center.
Worst: Probably the drive through the pouring rain in the way to Tennessee.
So-So: The bookstore situation in Knoxville, at least the part within walking distance of the Convention Center. The bookstore at the University of Tennessee was OK for a college bookstore, but there wasn't much else.
OK: Our hotel (the Holiday Inn). The staff were very pleasant. WiFi is unreliable there. The chain scrimps on certain things that would make life easier (like having enough luggage carts).
Outstanding: The majority of presentations at the conference. A couple were only OK or so-so, but considering the fact that a novice at doing a large convention like me was able to attend so many excellent lectures, still awfully good.
Very Good: The Exhibit Hall. Probably a good thing that it didn't have more wares and vendors, or I would have spent even more money.
My Research Week
I am printing out downloaded pages from indices of deed and probate file documents on the Greenville County website for use on my research trip. This will be followed by putting together all the other hard-copy information I have on the Moores such as binders, printouts of hard-copy reports from Reunion, and deed abstract books.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
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TQ2178 : Priory Avenue | Priory Gardens postbox (ref. W4 53)
taken 8 years ago, near to Chiswick, Hounslow, Great Britain
Bedford Park Garden Suburb :: TQ2179
Although not originally called a garden suburb, it can realistically claim to be the first such, predating Hampstead Garden Suburb.
The aim of the developer, John Carr, was to create a relatively green landscape, using the existing mature trees in the area, resulting in the relatively unstructured road layout of the initial development.
Development commenced in 1875, Carr joined up with leading architects of the period to create stylish houses in the current Aesthetic style, firstly Edwin William Godwin, with whom he fell out after just a few years, and later Robert Norman Shaw, who was nationally recognised.
With the community and social facilities included in the development, it became a fashionable place to live, with many artistic residents, remaining so for around 40 years.
By the middle of the 20th century it had however declined, with many properties having passed into multiple ownership. Demolition of a couple of properties around 1960 alerted people to the importance of the area, resulting in the formation of the Bedford Park Society. Owing to its efforts, 356 properties, effectively the whole of the initial 1875 to 1885 phase of development were listed by 1967, and the whole area became a conservation area under the auspices of the two London Boroughs, Ealing and Hounslow, in which Bedford Park lies.
The result has been a considerable reversion to single ownership, and virtually complete refurbishment of the houses.
TIP: Click the map for Large scale mapping
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- Grid Square
- TQ2178, 234 images (more nearby )
- Photographer
- Alan Murray-Rust (find more nearby)
- Date Taken
- Tuesday, 10 January, 2012 (more nearby)
- Submitted
- Tuesday, 17 January, 2012
- Geographical Context
- Place (from Tags)
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OSGB36: TQ 2127 7893 [10m precision]
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- South-southeast (about 157 degrees)
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Delegates in the Common Type System
The runtime supports reference types called delegates that serve a purpose similar to that of function pointers in C++. Unlike function pointers, delegates are secure, verifiable, and type safe. A delegate type can represent any method with a compatible signature. While function pointers can only represent static functions, a delegate can represent both static and instance methods. Delegates are used for event handlers and callback functions in the .NET Framework.
The common language runtime does not support serialization of global methods, so delegates cannot be used to execute global methods in other application domains.
All delegates inherit from MulticastDelegate, which inherits from Delegate. The C#, Visual Basic, and C++ languages do not allow inheritance from these types, instead providing keywords for declaring delegates.
In addition to inherited methods, the common language runtime provides two special methods for delegate types: BeginInvoke and EndInvoke. For more information on these methods, see Calling Synchronous Methods Asynchronously.
Because delegates inherit from MulticastDelegate, a delegate has an invocation list, which is a list of methods that the delegate represents and that are executed when the delegate is invoked. All methods in the list receive the arguments supplied when the delegate is invoked.
The return value is not defined for a delegate that has more than one method in its invocation list, even if the delegate has a return type.
Creating and Using Delegates
In many cases, such as callback methods, a delegate represents only one method, and the only actions you need to take are creating the delegate and invoking it.
For delegates that represent multiple methods, the .NET Framework provides methods of the Delegate and MulticastDelegate delegate classes to support operations such as adding a method to a delegate's invocation list (the Delegate.Combine method), removing a method (the Delegate.Remove method), and getting the invocation list (the Delegate.GetInvocationList method).
It is not necessary to use these methods for event-handler delegates in C#, C++, and Visual Basic, as these languages provide syntax for adding and removing event handlers.
Closed Static Delegates and Open Instance Delegates
Delegates can represent static (Shared in Visual Basic) or instance methods. Usually when a delegate represents an instance method, the instance is bound to the delegate along with the method. For example, an event-handler delegate might have three instance methods in its invocation list, each with a reference to the object the method belongs to.
In the .NET Framework version 2.0, it is also possible to create an open delegate for an instance method. An instance method has an implicit instance parameter (represented by this in C# or Me in Visual Basic), and it can be represented by a delegate type that exposes this hidden parameter. That is, the delegate type must have an extra parameter at the beginning of its formal parameter list, of the same type as the class the method belongs to. The converse of this scenario is also supported, so that it is possible to bind the first argument of a static method.
The creation of open instance and closed static delegates is not directly supported by Visual Basic, C++, or C# for delegate constructors. Instead, use one of the Delegate.CreateDelegate method overloads that specifies MethodInfo objects, such as Delegate.CreateDelegate(Type, Object, MethodInfo, Boolean).
Relaxed Rules for Delegate Binding
In the .NET Framework version 2.0, the parameter types and return type of a delegate must be compatible with the parameter types and return type of the method the delegate represents; the types do not have to match exactly.
In the .NET Framework versions 1.0 and 1.1, the types must match exactly.
A parameter of a delegate is compatible with the corresponding parameter of a method if the type of the delegate parameter is more restrictive than the type of the method parameter, because this guarantees that an argument passed to the delegate can be passed safely to the method.
Similarly, the return type of a delegate is compatible with the return type of a method if the return type of the method is more restrictive than the return type of the delegate, because this guarantees that the return value of the method can be cast safely to the return type of the delegate.
For example, a delegate with a parameter of type Hashtable and a return type of Object can represent a method with a parameter of type Object and a return value of type Hashtable.
For more information and example code, see Delegate.CreateDelegate(Type, Object, MethodInfo).
Delegates and Asynchronous Method Calls
Every delegate has a BeginInvoke method that allows you to call the delegate asynchronously, and an EndInvoke method that cleans up resources afterward. These methods are generated automatically for each delegate type. When a delegate is invoked by using the BeginInvoke method, the method the delegate represents is executed on a thread belonging to the ThreadPool.
For more information and example code, see Asynchronous Programming Using Delegates.


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Monday, 29 March 2010
Music and Politics in the Real World? Jerusalem Quartet - Mozart and Ravel, 29 March 2010
Mozart – String Quartet no.21 in D major, KV 575
Ravel – String Quartet in F major
Alexander Pavlovsky and Sergei Bresler (violins)
Amihai Grosz (viola)
Kyril Zlotnikov (violoncello)
I have never been to a musical performance like this, and hope that I shall never do so again. That could be the prelude to a savage attack; rest assured that it is not. It could be the prelude to a performance so unbearable in its intensity that, like Wagner's fears for a great performance of Tristan, it would be injurious to one's sanity. This, however, has nothing directly to do with the performance, excellent and – in the circumstances – almost incredible, but rather with events that unfolded in the concert hall. I do not wish to sensationalise; at the same time, I think it would be disingenuous not to deal with some at least of the issues that arose, not least since it would be a wholly inaccurate account of my experience, were I to put them to one side.
Arriving in the nick of time for the concert, I registered a couple of policeman outside the Wigmore Hall, along with someone who seemed to be handing out leaflets. Insofar as I gave the matter thought at all, I vaguely wondered whether this might be a Palestinian issue, but was in too much of a rush to consider matters further. The hall was packed: not always typical of a BBC lunchtime recital but, by the same token, not necessarily atypical either. Having greatly enjoyed the evening recital from these players (plus Lawrence Power) of Mozart and Debussy a couple of night before, I was very keen to hear the present programme. The Mozart D major quartet, KV 575, opened with many of the virtues heard in the previous programme's Mozart works, albeit with a recognition of the greater profundity of the present work vis-à-vis the early quartet on Saturday. (Then we had also heard the G minor quintet, quite a different matter.) This was a fully mature conversation, all the more so given the imperative handed to the composer to write a prominent cello part. The commissioner, the King in Prussia – not of Prussia, as is often mistakenly claimed – was himself a cellist and had also engaged the services of the celebrated Jean-Pierre Duport as director of chamber music (hence Mozart's Duport Variations). The consequence is, as Anthony Burton pointed out in his programme notes, that Mozart made 'everybody in turn a soloist,' heightening the contrapuntal interplay that was in any case characteristic of his late style. That was something clearly relished by all of the Jerusalem Quartet's players; it would be invidious to single out any of them, though I cannot resist putting a special mention the way of violist, Amihai Grosz. (Not for nothing was this Mozart's favoured instrument as a quartet player himself.) The tempo seemed just right, likewise phrasing and the timing and weighting of climaxes.
On to the Andante. The sweetness of first violinist Alexander Pavlovsky's tone struck me immediately, but almost as quickly did the players' perfect counterpoise between harmony and counterpoint: absolutely fundamental to Mozart, yet so abominably difficult to achieve. (And the pay off is that it sounds 'right', rather than impressive in the virtuoso sense.) This is not a movement I should expect to terrify, but then it did – or rather something quite horrifying occurred during the performance. A woman rose to her feet and made a noise. For a split second, I was unsure what it was; then I realised that she was singing – in a reasonably imitation of a trained voice. 'Jerusalem' was the first word, followed by 'is occupied'. She proceeded to shout out denunciations of Israel, 'an apartheid state', the attack on Gaza, the use of phosphorous, and so forth, seeming to implicate the quartet, though it was not clear how. I did not note down everything word for word, so should prefer not to guess or to misrepresent. Bewilderment turned into commotion and the players had to stop. Members of the Wigmore staff came to her row in the stalls and led her out of the hall. After a certain hiatus, the performance resumed where it had left off. Some bars later, a further interruption occurred from elsewhere in the hall: a man, I think, this time, though I am not entirely sure of my recollection. To say that it was unnerving was an understatement; I can hardly imagine what it must have been like for the players. And what else might be in store? Might there be something more than heckling? The players, this time having left the stage, eventually returned and resumed the movement, making their way to the end. By this time, of course, many in the audience, myself included, must have necessarily had other thoughts in their minds. What issues did this raise, especially in the allegedly most 'pure' of Classical forms, the string quartet? Although I shall talk a little about this later, I thought it better at least to mention it here, since this was perforce very much part of my experience as a member of the audience. By this stage, however, the disruption of the work's aura was complete; fear and anger were increasingly palpable.
The minuet was taken at a fastish tempo but without sounding hard-driven: again, a necessary but devilishly difficult task for Mozart performers. It was perhaps a little faster than I might have expected, given the general nature of the performance and my experience of the quartet's general approach; I wondered whether this might be an attempt to make up time, given what had happened in the previous movement. In the circumstances, the players' attentiveness to each other and general stylishness seemed little short of miraculous. The audience, one could sense, remained on edge; I certainly was. It was likewise remarkable how full of grace and genuine give-and-take the trio proved. But we made it to the finale, though no one knew whether the interruptions – I am trying to employ 'neutral' language, whatever the nature of my own feelings – had ceased. I should have noticed the fullness of sound in any case, I think, but given the circumstances, it resounded all the more, perfect to support that precarious balance or dialectic between harmony and counterpoint. The movement perhaps sounded a bit precipitate, but one could well understand why. I myself was willing the players to make it to the end before another intervention. It was not to be…
… This time proved, if anything, nastier. The music having stopped again, some members of the audience began to shout at the protestor: hardly unreasonable, though one man in particular seemed a little too eager for a fight, calling out personal abuse. One frustrated audience member, seated in front of the present protestor, turned and initiated some sort of physical contact, which was broken up when the protestor was led out. A man from a few rows behind shouted out, condemning the responding audience member's behaviour. It was unclear whether the man now calling out were another member of the organised – I realise I am making an assumption here, but it can hardly have been spontaneous – group, or whether he were sympathetic and simply venting his opposition to such behaviour. My suspicion, and it is only that, is that the latter was the case. Eventually, Amihai Grosz spoke, attempting to address accusations – apparently levelled in the leaflets being dispersed outside – that the quartet was somehow supported by the Israeli government. He said that it was not, which was good enough for me, and referred to the fact that every Israeli citizen must perform military service. (There are conscientious objectors, of course, but let us leave that on one side.) At any rate, they were only musicians. (I shall come back to that.) The players were clearly uncertain as to whether to carry on, or as to whether they would be permitted to do so. It was a relief to have the hall's front of house manager now walk to the front and ask whether we wished the quartet to resume. There was no equivocation in the response, so the players did as they were asked. I do not know whether the broadcast, which had presumably made this an attractive, high-profile proposition for protestors, had ceased by then. An announcement that the only remaining audience was in the hall might have helped. Music won through, though, as the performance proceeded to its end. Applause was warm, to put it mildly. Some, myself included, stood.
Then Ravel. The cool, calm, collected nature of the opening seemed all the more remarkable on this occasion. Beautifully stylish, the performance pulsated with life, especially in the inner parts. This, someone such as Daniel Barenboim would doubtless argue, is what music can do. I differ from Barenboim concerning his understandable divorce of music from politics, but enough of that for now. Those, though, were thoughts that I could not banish from my mind, however much I wished to concentrate on 'the music'. Something that sounded like anger – the relationship between music and the emotions, let alone their personification, is complex – understandably made itself sound, or at least I heard it, followed by a relative calm that could not quite be placid.
Interruption again… When the music resumed, Ravel's apparent serenity was anything but. On this occasion, the unanimity of pizzicato in the second movement's opening bars was all the more thrilling. Was that anger again one heard soon after? The Lent section was full of tension not necessarily in the music – or, again, this was how I heard it. Relief on completing the movement without extra-musical incident compensated somewhat. Shimmering background was the setting for a profound melancholy to the lyricism of the slow movement's opening. Climaxes were rapt: surprisingly Romantic, but not inappropriately. I admit, though, that I found it impossible properly to concentrate. Perhaps one had to have to, as the players did. Again, this movement proved free of disruption, but I cannot have been the only one to fear that something was being kept in reserve for the finale. The disciplined violence of its opening bars would have told anyway, but certainly did now, likewise its searing lyricism. The courageous – in my view – players of the Jerusalem Quartet made it to the end. Once again many of us stood to applaud them.
I do not believe in art for art's sake, in principle or phenomenologically. To attempt to remove art from the political sphere, or politics from art, goes against everything I hold dear. What, then, should one think about what happened? There is probably no one thing one should think – which may be the most important thing to remember. The protestors would doubtless claim that the disruption caused was as nothing compared to the events in Gaza. It is difficult to disagree. But is that the point? And were they on sure ground with respect to these musicians? So far as I could discern afterwards, the protestors' grievance seemed initially to have been derived from a dubious website. Barenboim's personal heroism is of course quite something, but should one expect such heroism from everyone, especially, dare I suggest, from musicians who do not have the luxury of being Daniel Barenboim? And what should one think if, for instance, one knew that performers supported something one found abhorrent? Is it not a good idea to rejoice in music's capacity to heal? Or is that an illusory æstheticism? Again, there are probably no singular answers – and a lack of plurality is again a major part of the problem. My thoughts led me to that enigmatic shout of 'Deutschland über alles, Herr Schuricht!' at the 1939 performance of Das Lied von der Erde in Amsterdam under Carl Schuricht. Was that woman protesting? Was she a supporter or was she voicing sarcasm? How can one fail to feel horrified, whatever the response? The reader may discover for himself; the performance was recorded. These are all difficult questions, which is not to say that one should not attempt to answer them. However, one should guard against definitive answers, not out of some misguided desire for 'moderation', but because there is nothing more totalitarian than a simplistic response. The Jerusalem Quartet players acquitted themselves magnificently. I admired them before as musicians; I admire them now as men.
33 comments:
I am too shocked and overwhelmed to react to such a barbaric act...
- 29 March, 2010 19:44
Many thanks for your account (not sure review is the right word here) of what happened during this concert, not least for your reluctance to draw easy conclusions. Your detailed arguments are thought provoking as usual. As I read your comments I felt many doubts and questions some of which you address in the final paragraph.
From a purely musical standpoint it is surprising that the Jerusalem Quartet were able to complete their performance since the fear and apprehension of more interruptions would have destabilised many performers.
- 29 March, 2010 21:09
I too attended this concert and was shocked by the violent, angry interruptions to the music. The hall staff acquitted themselves well in the circumstances, and immense credit is due to the musicians for carrying on, when most normal people might have run a mile. Incidentally, I was sitting next to the woman, who was the third protester to stand and shout, (though of course unaware that she was going to do this when I took my seat). A man in front of me grabbed her by the hair and dragged her across my knees in an equally violent display of anger at her intrusion on the concert.
It is so sad that politics and protest should intrude on beautiful music.
- 29 March, 2010 23:35
I totally disagree with your comments about Barenboim's heroism. As an Israeli and a musician, I consider him a traitor to his own people, trying to lick up to the Germans (especially...) while behaving worse than the bitterest antisemite. I also disagree about the necessity of a link between music and politics. These poor guys were there to play music. Can't this just be left out of all the endless arguments ?? No side is totally right, and yes, while I must be biased against the Palestinians, I wish to comment here, that I haven't yet heared of anyone disturbing a performance of araq music at the London Royal Festival Hall, demonstrating against the dayly shelling of thousends or rockets on Israeli towns and Innocent civillians during 4 years prior to the Gaza event which only lasted 10 days... Is that less of a crime than using phosphorous ? Perhaps the Brits have forgotten how they bombed civillian populations throught Nazi Germani during WWII ? Even if were in rataliation to the bombing of London, Leicester and other towns or cities, Was THIS right ?? I strongly suggest the writer of this article gets his information evened out and the he takes time to learn the facts in a much less one-sided way before passing verdict. Finally, I would like to make a comments about the very method of this demonstration. Goebels (yes, thats right, the Nazi guy) once gave a speach about propaganda, in which he remarked that in HIS eyes, there are no limits as to how truthfull or accurate the information used is, so long as the message gets accross... It seems the writer of this account has allowed himself to fall into the trap of these BAD manipulators of public opinion like a ripe cherry.
- 30 March, 2010 00:17
- Henry Holland said...
I strongly suggest the writer of this article gets his information evened out and the he takes time to learn the facts in a much less one-sided way before passing verdict
What on earth are talking about? I've read Mark's piece twice and I can't discern his position (if he even has one) on the situation in Israel/Gaza at all. He, like most of us would, seemed unhappy that the music got interrupted repeatedly and that scenes inside the Wigmore Hall were akin to what you'd find at a third division football match (Millwall anyone?).
And what should one think if, for instance, one knew that performers supported something one found abhorrent?
Don't care, never have, never will. There are plenty of composers/performers (and rock and pop musicians) who were/are less than stellar human beings (Wagner, Delius, Britten for a start) but I don't give a damn, the only thing I care about is whether they wrote good music/perform it well or not. If I judged art on the content of its creator's/performer's personality and lives, there'd be precious little that would be "acceptable" to listen to/watch/read.
- 30 March, 2010 03:51
- thomas said...
The Jerusalem quartet represent the Apartheid state of Israel who deserve what they got yesterday. Bravo to the hecklers!
- 30 March, 2010 10:03
The violist stated that the Quartet does not represent Israel... what more do you want?
- 30 March, 2010 14:25
- thomas said...
Of course it does. It is called The Jerusalem Quartet which is what the current Government calls the undivided capital of Israel. They are also funded by the Israeli state and very much a flagship organisation. Music is politics.
- 30 March, 2010 22:28
- stolarzo said...
That is beside the point. The fact that in your view (referring to Anonymous), as your comment implies, the performers should deny representation of their home country in order to have the right to give a concert to a respectful audience, without being brutally interrupted with violent, pseudo-liberal, vile political slander, shows that these demonstrators have successfully diverted the ball to their court, convincing you that such behavior, under any circumstances, may be even remotely legitimate. These tactics of violence-inciting defamation couldn't possibly be considered fair-play in the U.K insofar as citizens of any other country are concerned, except for Israel. Israel is constantly singled out and condemned with appauling manners by pro-Palestinian activists, because they feel that they are allowed to do so; they feel they have a right to villify the only home for the Jewish people in this world on any and every public stage, and you seem to inadmittedly agree with their premise, as long as the victims of this character assassination show any sense of natioal pride or any sense of belonging to their homeland. These performers were indeed brave playing on and giving a good concert to their audience despite the interruptions, but they were not brave trying to appologize for being Israeli, in front of the barbarians who seem to think they should indeed do so. I have respect for the author of this post for trying to depict the incident without taking sides, but I strongly believe, with regards to the words of the previous commentator, that allowing this type of behavior, even by indirect consent and even by inconspicuous silence, is antecedent to allowing outright physical violence against political opponents of any kind, and possibly against an entire ethnic group or nation, and is therefore utterly despicable.
- 30 March, 2010 22:44
- thomas said...
what about the "physical" violence used on a daily basis against the Palestinians. Remember the 1400 killed in Gaza etc. Every Israeli flagship organisation visiting this country should be reminded who and more importantly what they represent. Israel must and will change.
- 30 March, 2010 23:10
- Mark Berry said...
I really do not want to intervene heavy-handedly in discussions, but, without taking sides, I am worried about the turn this is taking. The issues are not clear-cut, I know; as many of us have been arguing, music and politics cannot be separated. But I do not want this to become a forum for a discussion of Palestinian/Israeli issues in themselves, and may therefore have to decline posts. I am certainly not saying that this is an issue not to be discussed, but it is not in itself the issue of this piece or this blog.
Many thanks,
- 30 March, 2010 23:41
- stolarzo said...
The subject of this thread, briefly, is whether or not political protest is appropriate during a concert. I stated herebefore that in my view it is definitely not. I have no interest to address your make-believe political chatter and romantic loudspeaker slogans, since they are obviously irrelevant, apart from being juvenile and predictable.
- 30 March, 2010 23:47
- stolarzo said...
That is, of course, with regards to thomas and not to Mark. Thank you.
- 31 March, 2010 00:08
Thank you Mark for your fine review. The interruptions to the concert by the Jerusalem Quartet, that you report, are indeed shocking. I wonder that you are unable to decide whether to separate music from politics. The name of the Quartet represents the capital of the three monotheistic religions. What in the program represents the state of Israel? Mozart and Ravel? The players themselves have reached the highest levels of their profession and by your account proved themselves to be musicians of the highest calibre with astounding abilities of concentration. Surely this behooves respect. We continue to listen to recordings by Furtwangler though he cooperated with the Nazis, and to Wagner's music though he was an anti-semite. Music is transcendental and universal, and serves to unite people everywhere. This is what Barenboim is trying to achieve. I think you should have been outraged at the protesters' behaviour. No one is asking as to whether you should agree or not with their politics. Politics should be kept out of the concert hall. When people begin to attack cultural events, the memory of past totalitarianisms starts to arise.
In addition, as an Israeli and a musician, I would comment that many in Israel do what they may in a democracy to oppose the occupation. Yet many here find it hard to understand the one-sided vilification to which we are subjected especially by the "unbiased" British. Food for thought.
- 31 March, 2010 07:23
- thomas said...
Anonymous in Israel. as long as the occupation expect to receive many more protests. You have no right to have a single settler on the west bank, and I think judging by your intelligent comments you know that.
- 31 March, 2010 09:46
I also attended Sunday's lunchtime concert - with mixed emotions admittedly as I am appalled by the Israeli Government's treatment of the Palestinians and expansionist policy in East Jerusalem. However, I was prepared to give the young musicians the benefit of the doubt, especially as I heard that one or two of them had played in the East Western Divan Orchestra (the "child" of the late Edward Said, an outstanding man in all respects, and Daniel Barenboin, a man who combines his amazing musicality with a full humanity and morality _ if he is a traitor, then heaven help us with the patriots!)
What disturbed me most about the concert (and yes, there was intense anger in the playing of the Ravel which given the context I found almost unbearable)was the attempts of the Violist to deny any culpability as their service in the army was spent entertaining the troops, and posing with a rifle as well as instruments is no big deal.
It is SO important to explain that the militarism of Israel IS a very big deal for the Palestinians (including the 1,400 who died in Gaza last year) but also for the Israelis who seem to be destroying all that is good in Jewish values. I do not know how we can get this across to the young – and old Israelis for whom militarism is ingrained in their lives. No wonder many of the protestors were Jewish. Whatever you think about a protest taking place during a concert, you have to understand the sincerity of the protestors in their desperation to improve the appalling situation for the Palestinians
- 31 March, 2010 11:55
The hecklers are sheer swine, sorry for the rude expression. It's very comfortable to imagine a one sided version of the conflict, to come to the concert, to scream righteous jingles and then return to the daily routine. How many of them really care, how many spend their vacation time as volunteers in Palestine, or at least contribute money for the Palestinian cause? In this particular cause the "protest" is especially phony, since the Quartet members are peace activists and participate in Barenboim's East Western Divan project. As the Quartet cellist Kirill Zlotnikov told in an interview, the pro-Palestinian activists never disturb them in small cities, but only at major venues, because there is a chance for a press coverage - and even the intervention Edward Said's widow never stopped them. http://www.jpost.com/Home/Article.aspx?id=152930
Granted, there's nothing good about the current situation, but it is far more complicated, then one tends to imagine.
Maxim Reider
- 31 March, 2010 12:47
Just a quotation:
...Being an Israeli musician, especially as a member of a quartet whose name is so closely associated with the State of Israel, is not always simple, says Zlotnikov. "Various self-proclaimed pro-Palestinian support groups call for boycotting our concerts, especially in England. Characteristically enough, they do not bother to disturb us when we appear in small towns with almost no chance of press coverage, but they threaten to disrupt our performances at major venues, such as the BBC Proms festival. "On one such occasion, the widow of the late Edward Said, Barenboim's close friend and partner in peace activism, tried to intervene, explaining that two of the Quartet members participate in the East-Western Divan project - but it didn't stop them. I am not afraid for myself, but the very thought that these people are able to throw something onstage and ruin the instruments is really scary."(Jerusalem Post 26/08/2009) - no need to read the entire article.
- 31 March, 2010 12:54
There was something in this article which disturbed me more than the ugly and revolting pre-organized disturbance of the Palestinians. I quote:
"Eventually, Amihai Grosz spoke, attempting to address accusations – apparently levelled in the leaflets being dispersed outside – that the quartet was somehow supported by the Israeli government. He said that it was not, which was good enough for me, and referred to the fact that every Israeli citizen must perform military service. (There are conscientious objectors, of course, but let us leave that on one side.)
Why did Mr. Grosz feel that he needed to apologize? Why did he have to try to "clear" himself by stating that his quartet is not supported by the State of Israel? Why did he feel the need to explain that every Israeli citizen must perform military service?
Is he not aware of the fact that without the Israeli Defense Forces there would be no string quartets in Israel, there would be no Israel at all?
Does Mr. Berry think the UK would exist without the British Armed Forces, the MI5 and the MI6? Maybe it would, but as the United Emirate of Great Britain!
- 31 March, 2010 13:17
- Maxim Reider said...
Right, the fact that Amihai Grosz - the only Israeli born musician among the four - almost apologized for being Israeli is quite sad.
- 31 March, 2010 13:53
- Mark Berry said...
So far as I am aware - I could not hear everything he said - Amihai Grosz came nowhere close to apologising for being Israeli. He simply offered a few words of explanation, not apology. It is not clear to me why the anonyomous writer from 13.17 should object to explanation, which can do no harm in any context about anything. I am sure that many would have preferred an apology or something close thereto, whilst clearly some people, such as Maxim, already object from the other side. As such - and I am offering no personal view here, which is not to say that I do not have one - Grosz could not possibly win, which to me makes his decision to speak all the more admirable. It is very easy for people to offer opinions from behind their computer screens or even from the stalls; for me, the players' conduct on stage and in the heat of the moment was dignified and impressive. This may or may not be fair, but, whilst I am willing to take myself a certain degree not just of criticism but even abuse, I am not willing to allow the members of the Jerusalem Quartet to suffer further insults, as opposed to criticism, on here. Just a warning, should anyone feel so inclined...
- 31 March, 2010 14:38
- Maxim Reider said...
Are you sure it was Amihai who spoke, Mark? After writing my comment I heard a (rather poor) recording of the broadcast and from what I understood the musician speaks about the cello, saying that it would have been difficult to use a rifle having also such an awkward instrument as a cello - so my suggestion is it was Zlotnikov, known for his brilliant sense of humour (and not only for musicianship). He said that everybody serves his country in his own way and they served as musicians. May be this was the best way to solve it - I'm the last to judge them.
What I do not like is that they need to explain that the army is compulsory, etc. Almost every country needs an army, especially in this part of the world. People watch CNN and BBC and believe that they know and understand everything. But the reality is far more complicated and there are two narratives regarding what has happened here during the last century. As an Israeli I have no problem taking sides. But this is not the time and the place to discuss politics.
- 31 March, 2010 17:31
- Mark Berry said...
Yes, it was definitely Amihai. He nodded to Kyril Zlotnikov when he made the reference about the size of the cello. For what it is worth, I am not sure I agree about the lack of need to explain: it is so long since the days of compulsory military service in this country (the United Kingdom) that it perhaps does no harm for an audience here to be reminded of the distinction between conscripts and those who have chosen to serve militarily. But anyway, that is a minor point really.
- 31 March, 2010 17:38
- Henry Holland said...
I don't think this has been mentioned, maybe it's been implied, but some of the protesters were Jewish:
- 01 April, 2010 03:02
I believe that music, at the moment it is being played, should be about music, not those who are delivering it.
But when I read the announcement for the concert on Radio 3's website, I did feel that at this time, in light of the events taking place, the name "The Jerusalem String Quartet" was implying a political statement Israel wanted to make clear to the world.
- 01 April, 2010 08:37
This Quartet is not sponsored by the state of Israel. They have not been members of the army for over a decade. They were only members because of conscription. They had no choice in the matter and served as musicians and not in combat. They do not even live in Israel. They play alongside their Arab brothers in the Divan orchstra set up by Barenboim and Said. Any decent human being would give them a break! They are musicians not politicians. By the way, the overweight "soprano" (with the wobble as wide as herself) who kicked off the protests with her own version of "The Holy City" is a failed Guildhall opera singer, according to Wigmore Hall regulars, who said that her 15 second atonal yelping is the closest she will ever get to performing there for real! How sad that she is so desperate for attention for her faulty instrument. She could do with boycotting ALL food for herself for a while, not just Israeli food. It would do her the world of good.
- 01 April, 2010 13:37
Thanks for a great review.
The protesters included Deborah Fink, Tony Greenstein and Yael Kahn. You can see a previous escapade of Fink here:
Israel has every right to defend itself. The JQ has every right to play at the Wigmore Hall. Paying patrons have every right to hear them perform without interruption.
That's all one needs to know.
I hope they are arrested for breach of the peace even though they are great recruiting serjeants for those of us who fight the demonisation of Israel. Look how this audience was swayed in favour of the JQ.
Jonathan Hoffman
- 03 April, 2010 14:42
Mark, just two comments:
- There is no reason why the Quartet should have to dissociate itself from the Israeli government. Not only has the Israeli government behaved entirely reasonably in defense of its own citizens, it is hypocritical to demand such dissociation when the same is not demanded of cultural bodies outrightly subsidised by the repressive governments of Russia, China, etc.
- The miscreants should remember that they can be treated to a taste of their own medicine. In fact, virulent hatred of the Jewish state seems to be a growing infection within British society. Accordingly, if this trend is not stopped and the miscreants dealt with severely, American Jewish organisations might well consider planning similar disruptions of the next dozen British cultural events in the USA.
Goose, gander, and all that.
- 04 April, 2010 02:29
As an Israeli and a musician I have great pleasure in stating that I am proud of being both.
For thousands of years it has been fashionable to use Israelites as scapegoats. Nothing changed today.
Hate, nourished by numerous interests of the Arab and Muslim worlds- who often live in a most brutal and cruel interrelation- finds the appropriate echo in thousands years old antisemitism.
The fact that some of the protesters are themselves Jewish proves again that no one is immune from self-hate.
As for the Jerusalem Quartet,they are entitled to make beautiful music to the utmost of their abilities though they aren't required to display any political view of any sort during ANY musical performance (The same goes for the "heroic" Barenboim).
- 04 April, 2010 22:33
Dear Mark
I´m afraid to say that your report is not totally accurate. I´ve been attending concerts at the Wigmore for years and can tell that all people involved -at least that I saw of- in the business of taking the protesters out of the auditorium were not police officers, but Hall's staff.
The one that stood up and interrupted Mihai to ask the audience was no other than the Hall's director: a clever gesture as the whole thing was derailing into a political debate!
Other than that, everyone is free to express their opinions and regardless of mine with respect of the whole situation in the Middle East, still believe that a concert is just not the arena for that.
- 08 April, 2010 01:52
- Sonja said...
Reading the replies here, following court case, to me it is obvious that the hasbara team is panicking.
- 09 April, 2010 09:14
- Mark Berry said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- 11 April, 2010 11:00
This is a most interesting discussion. I think we need to protest Israel's policies wherever and whenever possible; in this case I think the protests should have been in front of the concert hall and not during the music. But, maybe that's the only way the protesters can get any attention. Their cause needs attention. The West's (and particularly the United States) backing of this apartheid regime and its genocidal behavior toward Palestinians is unconscionable. There was a concert in Boston entitled Peace in Jerusalem (or something to that effect), that I would not go to, because it is an insulting oxymoron. That is the way I think we can protest what's going on in Jerusalem--instead of disrupting concerts, just don't attend them. Music is not above politics...in fact I generally refuse to sing the Star Spangled Banner, because I detest the patriotism is engenders...patriotism that has given rise to two unjust wars in the Middle East in the last ten years, killing thousands upon thousands of innocent people. I don't believe the U.S. would have been in those wars except for its support of Israel.
- 17 April, 2010 18:36


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The Bible gives a two-sided portrayal of wealth: It is good, but it can seduce us into sin. The solution, according to New Testament scholar Craig L. Blomberg, is to freely share it. In Christians in an Age of Wealth: A Biblical Theology of Stewardship (Zondervan), Blomberg, who teaches at Denver Seminary, argues that sacrificial giving is an essential part of good stewardship. He spoke with CT editor at large Rob Moll about our spending patterns and whether Christians are required to tithe.
If, as you argue, Christians are no longer bound by the Old Testament principle of tithing, what's so bad about low rates of giving?
Over the past 40 years, self-identified evangelicals have given between 2 and 3 percent of their incomes to churches and Christian organizations. Stewardship is a crucial part of the Christian life, and according to these figures, it is sadly lacking.
Now, on any topic, we have to filter the Old Testament through the grid of Jesus' and the apostles' teaching. In Matthew 23:23, Jesus tells the Jewish leaders that they neglect the weightier things of the law, though they did tithe. This is often cited to claim that Jesus still promoted tithing. Yes, he did—for Jews still under the Mosaic Law.
This is in no way a command addressed to his followers to tithe. But the teachings in Acts, the Epistles, and Revelation offer a consistent call for generosity and sacrifice. When you look at American Christian spending patterns, it is sometimes difficult to see much sacrifice.
Why should we be ruthless about getting rid of surplus wealth? Doesn't the notion of "redistribution" clash with much thinking on stewardship and economics?
I argue that it should be done voluntarily. The Old Testament Jubilee laws dictated a ...1


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An intimate setting for one of the South's most outstanding ceramics collection of English, continental and oriental pottery, porcelain and tiles from 1250 to the present day.
Regular special exhibitions of art, crafts, photography, local and natural history, local artists and the delightful watercolours and oil paintings of W H Allen. There is the comfortable coffee lounge, and charming walled garden provides a peaceful retreat in the middle of Alton.


text:
Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the US. According to the American Lung Association, more than 438,000 people will die from tobacco-caused disease and 8.6 million people have at least one serious illness caused by smoking . There are several products and policies in place to help people quit smoking, but smoking cessation continues to be a difficult change for many.
A recent study in BMJ (British Medical Journal) , reported promising results when using "lung age" as an incentive to quit smoking. The lung age was determined using a simple device called a spirometer, to measure the ability of the lungs to move air. The spirometer is most often used to determine the extent of damage in people with lung disease. In this case, the spirometer results were adjusted to calculate a lung age. Researchers found that participants who were given their lung age were more likely to quit smoking.
About the Study
All participants in this study were smokers over age 35. They had a lung function test called forced expiratory volume at one second (FEV1) that was done with a spirometer. Researchers studied the way results were given to determine what may motivate people to stop smoking.
Researchers randomly assigned 561 patients to one of two groups. Both had the same test, then:
- Group 1—received lung test results verbally in terms of "lung age" immediately after taking the test
- Group 2—received the test results as a numerical result sent in the mail.
Lung age was determined by a mathematical formula. It compares to the average age of a healthy non-smoking person who would have the same lung test. For example, a 50 year old smoker may be told she has the "lung age" of a 75 year old person.
The results are very interesting. Participants who received their results in terms of "lung age" quit smoking more than those who received numerical results in the mail. The rate of smoking cessation was 13.6% in the "lung age" group compared to only 6.4% in the mailed numerical result group. Also by the end of the trial average daily cigarette consumption was less in the lung age group.
Overall about 16% of the participants were diagnosed with obstructive lung disease during the trial.
How Does This Affect You?
Quitting smoking is a challenge. There are many methods to help you quit, but it is difficult to know which one is best for you. If you've tried to quit, try again, perhaps with another method. Talk to a health professional about your options. You can also ask your doctor to give you a simple spirometry test to get your lung age. It may be your motivating factor.
- Reviewer: Larissa J. Lucas, MD
- Review Date: 04/2008 -


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The candidate-qualifying period for November's municipal elections ended at 4:30 p.m. today, Aug. 30. Three of the six towns — Braselton, Carl and Statham — had only one candidate qualify in each race and will not have elections. But challengers did emerge in Auburn, Bethlehem and Winder.
To keep their seats, Auburn incumbents Bob Vogel and Donna Scouten will have to get more votes than challengers William B. Acworth, former mayor Harold Money, and Jay Riemenschneider. In Bethlehem, Joe Price and C.L. Wood will compete for Post 3. Incumbents Tommy Parten and Tommy Buchanan will face no opposition. And in Winder, at-large councilman Bob Dixon will face two female challengers — Nicole Tobias and former Barrow Journal columnist Lorin Sinn-Clark. Sinn-Clark qualified on Friday. Councilmen Sonny Morris and Ridley Parrish have no opposition.
Qualifying ends with contests in three cities
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FULLERTON, Calif. -- Cal State Fullerton junior Janali West scored a natural hat trick in the second half and sophomore Rebecca Wilson added a goal and an assist Sunday afternoon, lifting the Titans to their first Big West Conference title since 2007 with a, 4-1, victory over host Pacific to close out the 2012 regular season.
Top-seeded Fullerton (10-8 overall, 7-2 in the Big West) will meet fourth-seeded tournament host UC Irvine in the second semifinal on Thursday (Nov. 1) night at approximately 7:30 p.m., at Anteater Stadium in Irvine. Second-seeded Cal State Northridge and third-seeded Cal Poly will meet in the first match at 5 p.m.
The Tigers completed their season 3-14-1 overall and 0-8-1 in their final Big West Conference campaign before moving to the West Coast Conference in 2013-14.
"This is a great accomplishment for our program," Head Coach Demian Brown said following the victory. "I am especially proud of our seniors, whose hard work and dedication over their career has brought us to this moment."
West, who finished with two goals and an assist as a sophomore in 2011, scored consecutively in the 53rd, 59th, and 77th minutes for her first goals of the year, and her first career hat trick, after the Titans and Tigers played to a scoreless first half. The first came off a rebound off a shot by Ann Marie Tangorra that was saved off the line by the Pacific defense and flicked in while the second and third scores came off passes by JeAnne Mazeau and Wilson for the 3-0 lead.
She became the first Titan with a hat trick since Tangorra scored three times in a win over North Texas on Sept. 18, 2011.
"Janali was unbelieveable today," Brown said. "Today was a great example of her ability to finish off goals."
Brittni Beeman broke up the shutout in the 81st minute with her fourth of the year, chipped in from the top of the box off a pass from Maricela Padilla, but Wilson got the goal back for the Titans seven minutes later, putting home a loose ball to an empty net for the final, 4-1, score.
Cal State Fullerton outshot Pacific, 17-10, for the match led by West's match-high five shots (all on frame), while the Titans finished with the only two corner kicks of the afternoon.
Junior goalkeeper Lindsey Maricic made four saves without allowing a goal in 78 minutes in net before giving way to junior Katie Pulliam, who played the final 12-plus minutes.
NOTES: Fullerton's Big West regular season title is its sixth in the history of the program (1996, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2012) and it's fourth solo title after sharing the crown in 2004 and 2007... the Titans have won three Big West Tournament titles, all coming in back-to-back-to-back years in 2005-07... Fullerton is 5-3-1 all-time in the Big West Tournament, going 3-3 in the semifinals and an unbeaten 2-0-1 in the finals... the Titans are 1-0 against UC Irvine in the Big West Tournament, posting a 2-1 double-overtime win in 2007... Fullerton has never met Cal State Northridge in the tournament... the Titans are 1-3-1 against Cal Poly in the conference tournament... Cal State Fullerton's 10 wins are the most since 2007 (12-8-2 overall) while its seven conference victories are the most since the Titans finished 7-1-1 in 2004.


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For 2 years, the priest aided Christians through a Syrian siege. He didn't see the end.
And then there were 23.
Just 23 Christians, most of them elderly, left alive in the besieged Old City of Homs when a masked gunman killed the beloved Dutch priest who'd consoled them during nearly two years of government bombardment and rebel-imposed isolation, when food supplies disappeared, when the lone doctor fell ill with cancer. Throughout it all, he counseled hope.
"I drank scotch with him almost daily. He'd have just one glass," recalled George Ibrahim, 75, who'd rescued a stash of Johnnie Walker Black Label from his shop. "Near the end, I was talking to Father Frans and he was telling me to be patient. This is going to stop. It's like he knew there would be an end to many things."
That end came in early May when the government and rebels agreed to a truce and the rebels pulled out. But the Rev. Frans van der Lugt was not there to mark the transition. He'd been gunned down 31 days earlier, April 7, in the Jesuit monastery that he refused to abandon, even when boiled grass and leaves were all that was left to eat. Now as life returns to the ruined heart of what's been dubbed the "capital of the revolution" against President Bashar Assad, the priest's presence runs like a bright current through the tales of privation from those who survived.
"Father Frans was neutral. He didn't back any side," said George Ghandour, 45, who helped bury van der Lugt's body only steps from the spot in the shaded courtyard where he died. "He aided everyone, Christian and Muslim, young and old. When the crisis began, five Muslim families moved into the monastery and he took care of them."
The reason for van der Lugt's slaying is unknown. The esteem in which he was held by Homs' majority Sunni Muslims makes the murder all the more perplexing to six Christian survivors of the siege interviewed by McClatchy during a two-day visit to their neighborhood of Hamadiya.
A fluent Arabic speaker from an Amsterdam banking family who'd lived in Syria since 1966, van der Lugt cared for the disabled and brought Muslims and Christians together for dialogues at a community center and farm he founded outside Homs. He helped support the monastery, Ibrahim said, with sales of arak — a traditional alcoholic beverage distilled from grape leaves and aniseed — produced at a small plant that the priest set up in the nearby city of Qusayr.
"He used to say he was a father to Christians and Muslims," Ibrahim said. "Many times the rebels took him to the Shariah court to discuss his beliefs with him, but he refused. He'd say, 'I will not discuss politics or religion. We are all humans. I will only talk about humanity.' "
When fighting began in Homs in May 2011, there were 60,000 Christians living in the Old City. As the fighting raged, and the rebels lost ground in other districts, they were pushed into the Old City. Most of the Christian population fled. By June 2012, when rebels closed the exits to prevent more people from leaving, only 102 Christians remained.
The rebels and the local population lived uneasily together. Then, late last year, as the insurgents became increasingly desperate as their food stocks dwindled, things changed. Christians began facing beatings, threats and thefts of their own meager supplies.
"Until January this year, the rebels didn't disturb us at all. From January until the end, they broke into our house 38 times," recalled Zaynat al Akhras, 65, whose tiny, sunken frame attests to the 55 pounds she lost during the siege. "At first, they collected all the food we had left. Little by little, they took everything else. They took money and a lot of gold jewelry."
"Some people were beaten," added her brother, Ayman, 57, a chemist who ran the family's small clothing store. "Two people were taken as hostages. One was the brother of a retired army general. He was beaten very badly."
Sectarian hatreds heated up. "Destroy the kafirs (infidels) called Christians," says graffiti sprayed outside the Church of the Girdle of Our Lady, a Syrian Orthodox church on a street where posters from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, the radical anti-Assad group whose brutality has been denounced even by al Qaida, also were pasted.
The only witness to van der Lugt's murder — who declined to be interviewed — told others that the lone gunman fired a single AK-47 shot into the priest's head after ordering him to sit in a plastic chair in the monastery courtyard. The killer then left without a word.
The gunman "insisted on seeing him but he was told that Father Frans doesn't come out before 10 a.m. Father Frans heard the voices, came out and asked what's going on," said Nazam Kanawati, 50, a civil engineer who arrived minutes after the slaying. "The gunman said, 'You should come with me.' Father Frans replied, 'I'm not going with you, especially when I can't see your face.'"
"The gunman said, 'Oh, you're not coming? Then sit down.' He arrived with the gun already cocked. He just shot him," Kanawati said.
Like other survivors, Kanawati said he believes the killer was a local man because virtually all of the rebels came from Homs. The Rev. Ziyad Hilal, a Jesuit colleague of van der Lugt, agreed that the 1,200 rebels who were evacuated from the Old City during the May 7-9 truce — he rode on the buses that evacuated them —were Syrians.
"They all spoke very good Homsi dialect," he said. "There weren't any foreigners with them."
Van der Lugt was the Christians' interface with the rebels, survivors said. He'd persuade the rebels to share some of the food they brought in with ammunition through their tunnels. He'd also arrange evacuations of the sick and injured and the smuggling of medical supplies.
"He was a man of peace and because he wasn't Syrian, those people (rebels) liked to talk to him," said Hilal. "He had this power to listen to others. Nobody had a problem with him before or during this situation."
Akhras recalled how van der Lugt arranged for the evacuation of her brother, Anas, the only doctor who remained in the Old City, when the cancer from which he suffered made staying on impossible.
Van der Lugt convened a meeting between rebel commanders and army officers at which he won their agreement to evacuate Anas Akhras, she recounted.
"At 2:30 a.m., Father Frans came here and told us to have Anas ready at 8:15, but not to tell anyone," she said. "We don't know exactly how he got him out. They took him straight to al Assad University Hospital in Damascus, and he survived just 19 days."
It was just one tale of the horrors that reigned here as the siege tightened. Of the 102 Christians who were in the neighborhood after rebels closed the exits, 27 had died by the time most of the rest straggled out in a U.N.-brokered evacuation over six days in February, leaving just van der Lugt and 23 others.
Some of those who remained were too ill or too old to crawl to the evacuation area through a network of tunnels dug by the rebels, said Ghandour. Others, like Ghandour, stayed to care for elderly parents or simply refused to abandon their homes.
Akhras recalls the precise date the rebels sealed the neighborhood — June 8, 2012.
"People had been going in and out," she recalled, sitting amid piles of dusty books and other belongings in the apartment she said she left only four times after that date. "We had food and everything. But after that, no food was coming in. The rebels wouldn't allow anyone out."
Those inside Hamadiya relied on stores of rice, lentils and the home-pickled vegetables that many Syrians traditionally stock. Rebel-run generators provided four hours of electricity in the evening. Cellphones and televisions were crucial links to the outside world. Water was hauled from old wells.
But the food and fuel steadily ran out.
As the rebels' own food ran low, survivors said, the rebels began pressuring Frans to make a video appeal to Pope Francis that could be posted on the Internet.
"The rebels thought Father Frans had the power to ask the pope to send food and the food would be here the next day," said Kanawati. "But he refused. He did not want to use the Christian community or his power to get food for them. He didn't want the Christians used."
Eventually, however, van der Lugt agreed to make the video, but he "asked for food for everyone. He wasn't speaking as a Christian priest," recalled Kanawati, who lost 77 pounds caring for his elderly parents.
"We don't want to die," he said in the video.
Van der Lugt's grave, in a garden in the courtyard where he died, has become a shrine for Christians returning to the devastated neighborhood. It is covered by flagstones scavenged by Kanawati from destroyed buildings and flanked by a statue of St. George and by photographs of the priest and marbled epitaphs.
The plastic chair in which van der Lugt died stands nearby, adorned with a small bunch of plastic flowers.
"He is still here. He is with us," said Hilal. "Now this place has become a place of pilgrimage."


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Hello from New York, CSWRS supporters!
I've missed this reading series since I moved to upstate New York to begin my PhD. It's been a crazy, busy, productive year out east, and many times I've found my imagination back in Colorado. I'm sad to know this is a goodbye note from the reading series we all enjoyed so much in the Colorado Springs community. I want to take a moment to thank you all for the contributions you made as writers and citizens.
A shot from the first reading, April 16, 2010.
This series began in 2010. Because my husband's career in the army meant we relocated every 6-18 months, I arrived in Colorado already familiar with feeling as if I were the one person within city limits who didn't have that hometown feeling, of knowing where I was and who was there with me. This reading series was my hometown while I lived in Colorado. It couldn't have been done without the support of many fellow writers and lovers of local art and artists: Jana Rush, the then-event-coordinator at the BAC who did everything she could to keep CSWRS at the BAC affordably and comfortably; her husband and fish-whisperer Ed Engle, who purchased the rent for our first three months at the BAC as a donation; Natalie Johnson, owner of the once Black Cat Books and current BAC director; Mandy Solomon, colleague at PPCC who continued the series when I left Colorado; Patti Mirehouse, once-composition-student turned trusted friend, who hand-modeled books for sale like no one else; my husband, Tom Angstadt, who helped whenever he was stateside and supported me over the phone when he wasn't; all the open mic contributors, some of whose work became a staple we cherished and some who visited and shared their work only once or twice; every student who participated in any reading; and, to be honest, the staff at Amanda's Fonda, who fed me after almost every reading, even though I typically got there ten minutes before closing.
From 2010 through 2012, I left every CSWRS event feeling thrilled by the happiness created by a community of people who cared for each other. There were stories I grew to love like relatives and voices I didn't want to move away from. The writers who traveled to Colorado from as far away as New York and as close as Old Colorado City shocked and comforted me with their enthusiasm and passion.
And it wasn't just people who made such an impression on me during my time with the CSWRS. Black Cat Books changed shape while we were there, then relocated, and recently closed its doors; the BAC endured vandalism (followed by an incredible outpouring of community support for repairs). The entire town shook in the hot shadow of a terrifying wildfire in the summer of 2012, and has recently stood up to powerful flooding. This community is one of resilience, strong enough to rewrite itself through obstacles.
Plus, and especially, I am grateful for every single guest author, who offered their readings as a donation to the series and the community. Please stay in touch and know how much we all enjoyed your work:
Deidre Schoolcraft
Laura Feldman
Janele Johnson
Iver Arnegard
Michael Ferguson
M.R. Hyde
Contributors to Rearrange
Ye Olde Book Table
Thank you, all of you, from the bottom of my heart, which is always searching for home. I appreciate you, I am glad for you. By participating in CSWRS, you showed your commitment to local writers, to their voices, to the art of literature and the strength of compassion in a community. Please continue to do this in every city you live in. Support one another, write for each other. Keep in touch, submit your work, keep up the good fight! Spread the word about ways to get your voices heard in Colorado Springs and around the world. (The literary journal I work for now, Harpur Palate, is open for submissions, for example, and we'd love to read your work.)
Take good care,
Abby E. Murray
Former CSWRS Coordinator


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A new year evokes so many emotions in us. For some a wonder of potential opportunities. Others, the hope of change. Still others, the fear of uncertainty. In each case there lies a moment of suspense. A pause. And yet our resolutions are spoken, written and relayed far before the time has been taken to contemplate what we feel and how we feel.
This year my challenge is to start with the place of inaction and pause to consider what we in fact feel. To each of us we have to slow down after the Christmas season high of purchasing, giving, praying, lighting candles, waiting in Advent, and hoping for the Christ Child to know what kind of year we will encounter.
Resolve to be irresolute until the time of knowing appears.
Resolve to sit silent and listen.
Resolve to move slower until weary legs are refreshed.
Resolve to know loved ones as they are right now.
Resolve to build, to grow, to transform those parts that 2012 has damaged or left broken.
My public resolution is "Undo 2012." Last year was an intensely dark night of spiritual decay and longing for my life's end. I privately prayed for the Mayan calendar's prediction to be accurate. Selfishly I wanted the world to end for the sake of my pain. I was terribly wrong and so were the doomsayers.
It took twelve long hard months of daily wrestling to come to terms with my mental health. And right when I felt all hope was lost I realized something profoundly dark and yet suggesting a candle flicker of light in my personal cave of despair. I sat in therapy for the last two weeks of the year and realized my brokenness and trauma from over 10 years ago was not yet resolved. For over a decade, I made New Year's resolutions year by year without taking the slightest moment to pause on what lie buried in my soul. I rushed through the holidays, but each season became more dark and difficult. I didn't know why.
I love to write, and I found the words lacking in 2012. "My mythical Muse departed," I told my close writing friends. I lost the will and the faculties to stroke the keys and to produce fruitful content. Once I thought this was the end, Advent came and I began waiting for the Christ Child. I explored this on Sojourners, and I found something terrific happening in seed form deep within my spirit. I saw more light each week the candles were lit.
In a session with my therapist, I let go of over ten years of tears from so many failed resolutions that were planned in haste. Unbeknownst to me a personal tragedy I suffered lie deep in my psyche and paralyzed my mind with depression and negativity. I wept and convulsed. I had no clue that this wellspring sat buried, waiting to burst forth from my tear ducts. And as the tears subsided, I felt a weight lifting. Not entirely gone, but an unfamiliar airiness settled upon my heart.
So learn from this weary sojourner whose legs have little strength to carry on another day. Sit. Wait. Contemplate. Reflect. Take in all that 2012 was so you can know how to live in 2013. I pray you do not repeat my erroneous ways and rush through another season without taking spiritual inventory.
I am still in therapy and will be for quite some time. This trauma is a newly opened wound and I do not know what else lies buried deep within. Wound upon wound. Layer upon layer.
But 2013 will be a year of healing and of leveling with the reality that I am broken. I have been broken and will be broken. And that's okay. My 2013 resolution is to continue the unraveling of 2012, 2011, 2010 ... so that I can know what kind of year 2013 will become.
Michael D. Bobo has written as Christian Literature Examiner for Examiner.com and has contributed to Burnside Writers Collective, Emergent Village Voice and theOOZE.com. He is delighted to serve as curator of Daily Burnsider and Poetry Editor for Burnside Writers.
Photo: Aleshyn_Andrei / Shutterstock
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Although progress in battery capacity is snail-like compared to the progress in energy consumption of the devices powered by batteries, rechargeable batteries have come a long way the past decade or two. All current Apple laptops, iPods, and the iPhone use lithium ion or lithium polymer rechargeable batteries. Apart from spontaneous combustion (which is rare), the main problem with rechargeable batteries is that they lose their capacity over time. This is especially worrisome with devices like the iPod and the iPhone where the battery isn't easily replaceable. So what can we do to keep our lithium batteries in good health until old age?
Apple has a battery page that has some general information about the way lithium batteries are charged and discharged. They stress that you should charge your batteries early and often, rather than let them drain (almost) completely. For the purpose of battery wear, several partial charge cycles count as one full charge cycle. A battery should still have 80 percent capacity after the equivalent of 500 full charge cycles.
Apple also has pages that go into detail about battery issues for notebooks (they carefully avoid calling them "laptops"), the iPod family, and the iPhone. One recommendation is that you "keep the electrons flowing" by working on the battery from time to time—at least once a month. And you need to run on the battery until the device sleeps once every 30 cycles or so to make sure that the charge indicator stays in sync with the actual battery capacity.
For each type of devices, there is an optimum temperature range that the batteries like, which is 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit (0 to 35 Celsius) for the iPhone and the iPods, and 50 to 95 F (10 to 35 C) for laptops. I can personally attest to the fact that when it's freezing outside, an iPod's battery charge will seem to disappear into the cold, thin air. Although the batteries will work fine under more tropical conditions, the problem with that is that they age prematurely. According to BatteryUniversity.com, it's a public secret that lithium batteries start losing their capacity as soon as they're manufactured, but this process is greatly accelerated by two factors: a high temperature and a full charge. This is probably the reason why laptop batteries can be completely worn out after a few years: the battery is completely charged most of the time, and the insides of a computer generate a lot of heat.
When I got a PowerBook almost four years ago, I wanted to keep the battery in as good a shape as possible, so I tried to avoid going through too many charge cycles. I averaged less than three a month. But I still only have 1600 milli-amp-hours left, which is less than half the original capacity. But the second battery that I got 2.5 years ago, which has seen about two charge cycles a month, is still at 4200 mAh, 95% or its original capacity. Apple's laptop batteries have a voltage rating of 10.8 V, so multiply the mAh capacity by 10.8 and divide by 1000 to get rid of the milli, and you'll have the capacity in Watt hours.
This difference probably has something to do with advances in battery manufacturing, but I'm attributing most of it to the fact that I keep this battery in the refrigerator with about half a charge when it's not in use, while the original battery occupies the battery slot in the PowerBook. Moral of the story: the toasty underside of your laptop will prematurely age the battery anyway, so trying to avoid charge cycles is probably not worth the effort. If you have a second battery, store it in the fridge (not the freezer) at 40 percent charged when you're not using it. But most of all: keep your electronics out of the sun and especially out of parked cars.


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Some writing tips that might help you write better!
Dying Wish
People say cancer makes you depressed, makes you want to give up, there's nothing that can make you feel stronger or alive. Maybe that's true, maybe its not. For me its not true. Sometimes you have that one special thing that helps you. That you get excited to see, to watch, to listen. Sometimes its just a tv show maybe a toy or your phone. One Direction is what has helped keep me alive. I have cancer. Its called Melanoma and its a skin cancer that can be cured unless it spreads to much. Every patient is part of The Wish Foundation we get a wish. All I can think about is that one girl that got to meet Kim Kardashian, if she could meet her then maybe I have a small chance of meeting One Direction.
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Veterans Job Fair at Augusta Armory
A job fair, geared mainly toward Veterans will be held at the Augusta Armory this week. Organizers say, although the focus is on veterans, everyone is welcome to attend!
The job fair will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday and will include 40 employers and career resource tables. The Maine Bureau of Human Resources, Maine Department of Labor, Maine Military and Community Network, and Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve are hosting the event.
Organizers say it will give Veterans and their families a chance to learn about government job opportunities in security, law enforcement, engineering, transportation, and other fields. But everyone is welcome to attend, not just Veterans.
First Lady Ann LePage is scheduled to speak at the event at the Armory on Western Avenue in Augusta.


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TUSCALOOSA Looks like Tuscaloosa is rapidly becoming the city of dynasties.The Shelton State Community College cheerleaders earned their sixth consecutive national championship, using confidence and consistency as their motivation, coach Christa Grizzle said.
TUSCALOOSA Looks like Tuscaloosa is rapidly becoming the city of dynasties.
While the University of Alabama's football and gymnastics teams have earned back-to-back national titles, there's another squad that's building a reputation for championship performances.
The Shelton State Community College cheerleaders earned their sixth consecutive national championship, using confidence and consistency as their motivation, coach Christa Grizzle said.
The team competed in the College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship on Jan. 18-20 in Orlando, Fla.
The event was sponsored by the Universal Cheerleading Association and Universal Dance Association.
Shelton State faced opponents from across the nation and competed in the Open NCAA Divisions, which included Division II, NAIA, junior colleges and other schools.
The other teams kept pressure on the Buccaneer cheerleaders, who lead cheers and provide halftime entertainment at Shelton State men's and women's basketball games, Grizzle said.
"The other teams were competing for the same trophy we were," she said. "We wanted to win the 2013 championship, and so did they."
Grizzle credits intense and focused training as the key to the squad's six-year reign.
One of the team members said that the squad will ease up for a little while to celebrate the victory.
"We won't practice as much after the championship," said Elijah Groshell, a Shelton State sophomore from Tacoma, Wash.
He said less practice is usually how the team celebrates their victories.
"Winning the championship is one of the most rewarding things ever," he said.
Even after six straight titles, winning is still thrilling, Grizzle said.
"Each championship is different, and you have something to shoot for. Our motto this year was 'Six-cess.' "
That's a combination of the two goals the team wanted to accomplish — the sixth national championship and success, she said.
"Coach Christa is one of the best coaches I've ever had," said Groshell, who added he wants to try out for UA's cheerleading squad.
Grizzle said eight former Shelton cheerleaders have made UA's cheerleading team, and her current team is a "hardworking bunch."
Other members of the 2012-13 Shelton State cheerleading squad are Betheney Holt, a sophomore from Trussville; Brie Day, a freshman from Centre; Laken Elliott, a sophomore from Red Bay; Misti Murphy, a freshman from Childersburg; Mary Catherine Luckie, a sophomore from Prattville; Kelsey Davis, a sophomore from Northport; Zurrender Hapton, a freshman from Cullman; Jessica Knight, a sophomore from Dacula, Ga.; Abby Snyder, a freshman from Grayson; Taylor Bethune, a sophomore from Albertville; Andre Walker, Jarrod Jeffries, a sophomore from Locust Fork; Tyler Whitworth, J.J. Anderson, a freshman from Prattville; Trey Vaughn, a freshman from Orlando, Fla.; Kevin Zelaya, a freshman from Los Angeles; Mike McAbee, a freshman from Steilacoom, Wash.; Christian Vias, Caleb Shulman, a freshman from Buford, Ga.; and Blake Sims, a freshman from Wicksburg.


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I watched the GOP presidential candidates' debate in Jacksonville. The debate was broadcast on CNN — CNN has posted the full transcript of the debate — and moderated by Wolf Blitzer, who proved to be a formidable antagonist for Newt. When Newt came at Blitzer on a question that put Newt on the defensive, Blitzer held his ground and shot back. It may have been the defining moment of the debate. I thought Newt lost last night from the git-go, but finished himself on that exchange. Jonathan Tobin summarized it this way in his live blog of the debate:
Gingrich tries to deflect Blitzer question about his attacks on Romney by blaming moderator. Blitzer doesn't let him get away with it this time. Romney then says it would be nice if people wouldn't make attacks they won't defend at a debate. Romney then demolishes the attack again. Another great moment for Romney. Newt's not looking like the Lincoln-Douglas guy tonight.
The Lincoln-Douglas guy last night was Santorum, who took the question on the role of faith to recapitulate the founding principles of the United States. Santorum had a great night. As long as we're recycling non-Romneys, it would be nice if his number came around again to contest Mitt.
Romney got off to a good start, but I thought he only fitfully impersonated a human being during the debate. He has many strengths as a candidate, including his business background. In the debates I am especially impressed by his appearance and demeanor. Like Warren Burger as Chief Justice of the United States, he looks the part.
What he lacks, in my opinion, is the political art of connecting the audience's passions and interests to his cause. Speaking of Lincoln, consider his advice:
It is an old and a true maxim, that a "drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall." So with men. If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend. Therein is a drop of honey that catches his heart, which, say what he will, is the great high road to his reason, and which, when once gained, you will find but little trouble in convincing his judgment of the justice of your cause, if indeed that cause really be a just one.
Romney's repeated defense of Romneycare reminds us of his weaknesses as a candidate. Last night was a rerun in that respect, with a twist. His admonition to Santorum not to get so bent out of shape about it — "First of all, it's not worth getting angry about" — was a sort of Star Trek moment. I was most struck by Romney's deficiencies in his response to the predictable question about the space program. Here was the exchange:
QUESTION: Good evening. My name is Matthew Bathel [ph]. My question is, what would your plan be for the future of manned space flight and the future of NASA?
BLITZER: All right, let me go to Governor Romney on this one. An important issue, especially here in Florida where a lot of people have lost their jobs as a result of the decline of the space program. Yesterday Speaker Gingrich outlined a — a pretty long plan on what to do about it and he said that by the end of his second term, if he were elected president, there would be a permanent base on the moon. Good idea?
ROMNEY: That's an enormous expense. And right now I want to be spending money here. Of course the space coast has been badly hurt and I believe in a very vibrant and strong space program. To define the mission for our space program, I'd like to bring in the — the top professors that relate to space areas and physics, the top people from industry. Because I want to make sure what we're doing in space translates into commercial products. I want to bring in our top military experts on space needs.
And — and finally of course, the — the people from — the administration if I had an administration. I'd like to come together and talk about different options and the cost. I'd like corporate America as well as the defense network and others that could come together in a — in a part — in, if you will, a partnership basis to create a plan that will keep our space program thriving and growing. I — I believe in a manned space program. I'd like to see whether they believe in the same thing.
I'm not — I'm not looking for a — a colony on the moon. I think the cost of that would be in the hundreds of billions, if not trillions. I'd rather be rebuilding housing here in the U.S.
How to say it? "Right now I want to be spending money here" and "I'd rather be rebuilding housing here in the U.S." are statements that are out of joint with the times if you are a conservative or if you are trying to appeal to conservative voters ("the home crowd," as Romney referred to us in a recent interview).
"I'd rather be rebuilding housing here in the U.S." is not just out of joint with the times, it's vintage liberalism — Vintage 1965.
For the record, here was Santorum's answer to the question about how his faith influences his politics:
SANTORUM: Faith is a very, very important part of my life, but it's a very, very important part of this country. The foundational documents of our country — everybody talks about the Constitution, very, very important. But the Constitution is the "how" of America. It's the operator's manual.
The "why" of America, who we are as a people, is in the Declaration of Independence, "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights."
The Constitution is there to do one thing: protect God-given rights. That's what makes America different than every other country in the world. No other country in the world has its rights — rights based in God-given rights, not government-given rights.
And so when you say, well, faith has nothing to do with it, faith has everything to do with it. If rights come…
If our president believes that rights come to us from the state, everything government gives you, it can take away. The role of the government is to protect rights that cannot be taken away.
And so the answer to that question is, I believe in faith and reason and approaching the problems of this country but understand where those rights come from, who we are as Americans and the foundational principles by which we have changed the world
In my opinion, Romney beat Gingrich last night, but Romney wasn't impressive last night. Santorum was.
UPDATE: After writing this, I went to Jay Nordlinger's observations on the debate — great, as usual. They supplement and modify my own. At the Weekly Standard, Jeffrey Anderson reviews the Romney-Santorum exchange on Romneycare, while Michael Barone takes a more comprehensive look at the debate.


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Auditing and Assurance Services
Timothy J. Louwers
McGraw-Hill, 2005 - Auditing. - 764 pages
This text provides up-to-date information on all issues inherent in accounting and auditing practice, particularly in public accounting firms including coverage of the creation of the Public Companies Accounting Oversight Board, the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and more.
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