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Our team is blessed to have Dr. Christian Reitwießner, Father of Solidity, as its Advisor. During the early development of the DAO Framework 1.1 and thanks to his guidance we were made aware of a generic vulnerability common to all Ethereum smart contracts. We promptly circumvented this so-called “recursive call vulnerability” or “race to empty” from the DAO Framework 1.1 as can be seen on line 580:
// we are setting this here before the CALL() value transfer to
// assure that in the case of a malicious recipient contract trying
// to call executeProposal() recursively money can’t be transferred
// multiple times out of the DAO
p.proposalPassed = true;
Three days ago this design vulnerability potential was raised in a blog post which subsequently led to the discovery of such an issue in an unrelated project, MakerDAO. This was highlighted in a reddit post, with MakerDAO being able to drain their own funds safely before the vulnerability could be exploited.
Around 12 hours ago user Eththrowa on the DAOHub Forum spotted that while we had identified the vulnerability in one aspect of the DAO Framework, the existing (and deployed) DAO reward account mechanism was affected. His message and our prompt confirmation can be found here.
We issued a fix immediately as part of the DAO Framework 1.1 milestone.
The important takeaway from this is: as there is no ether whatsoever in the DAO’s rewards account — this is NOT an issue that is putting any DAO funds at risk today.
This might however require a reconsideration of the Proposal Framework 1.0 taking place before the deployment of a DAO Framework 1.1. We are currently assessing the situation and will update you via further posts throughout our investigation as to what the potential next step(s) will be.
We extend our gratitude to the community and in particular Eththrowa who once again proved that an open development process leads to the rapid identification, isolation and resolution of potential vulnerabilities, and in this case, the overall improvement of design patterns as part of programming languages. | {
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by
It’s amazing to watch how shallow and self-censoring our corporate media can be. Take the remarkable interchange between President Donald Trump and Fox right-wing talkshow host Bill O’Reilly. In an interview that aired before the Super Bowl, Trump had responded to O’Reilly’s question about how he could respect Russian President Putin, whom O’Reilly called “a killer,” by saying, “There are a lot of killers. We’ve got a lot of killers. What do you think — our country’s so innocent? You think our country’s so innocent?”
Most news organizations reporting on this included the response of Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to Trump’s comment, in which the Senate Majority Leader said, “Putin’s a former KGB agent. He’s a thug. “
Left unsaid was the fact that this country also once had a former intelligence agency “thug” as its president: George H.W. Bush. Bush was named CIA director in 1976 by then President Gerald Ford, and during one-year tenure as head of the Agency, he reportedly worked assiduously to protect it from post-Watergate investigations and reforms of its past dirty behavior by shipping agency operatives abroad and out of reach of investigators. Furthermore, as investigative reporter Russ Baker, author of a book on Bush called Family of Secrets, reports, Bush’s connection to the CIA, kept secret for years, stretches way back to the days of its precursor agency, the OSS, and lasts at least through 1963 and the Kennedy assassination.
It was during Bush’s tenure as CIA director that agents of Chile’s intelligence service, the DINA, planted a bomb in the car of former Chilean foreign minister Orlando Letelier, then living and working in exile in Washington, DC. The bomb killed Letelier and an American assistant, Ronnie Moffet. DINA was very closely coordinated with the CIA, which had orchestrated the 1973 military coup that overthrew the elected Socialist government and murdered Chilean President Salvador Allende, for whom Letelier had worked, later becoming a chief critic of the subsequent military dictatorship. At a minimum, Bush’s CIA appears to have known about the plot to kill Letelier, and he subsequently worked to cover up any links to either DINA or the CIA. Bush’s CIA also helped coordinate a continent-side Murder Inc. project against leftists in Latin America called Operation Condor.
In any event one could even more properly refer to President Obama as a thug, courtesy not of any nefarious background as a former CIA operative, but in his role as murderer-in-chief with his Tuesday morning “kill list” sessions, where he would decide whom to target next for a drone attack. According to the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, during his eight years in office, President Obama ordered 563 strikes at specific alleged terrorist targets. While it is unclear how many of those actual targets were successfully killed (many are known to have escaped), the BIJ claims that by its count between 384 and 807 civilians, including children, were also killed in the attacks. Other sources say the number of those “collateral damage” killings is actually considerably higher.
The charge is often made that several dozen Russian journalists critical of Putin and the Kremlin have died under mysterious circumstances, some by outright execution-style murders, which Putin critics then assert could not have happened without Putin’s authorization. But there have been no clear links in any of these to Putin.
Meanwhile, there have also been a number of curious deaths of American journalists critical of the government and its leaders over the years. Take for example journalist George Polk, killed while covering the Greek civil war in 1948, in a case that many suspect was the work of the CIA, which suspiciously “lost” and “destroyed” its records relating to Polk.
More recently, of course, there is the bizarre death of Michael Hastings, a reporter for BuzzFeed andRolling Stone who was killed in a high-speed crash of his new Mercedes C250 coup, which had reportedly been observed driving an estimated 100 mph done a local Los Angeles street in the middle of the night in 2013 before veering off into a palm tree and exploding into flame. Hastings had reportedly been working on an article on the Democratic party, the NSA and the CIA at the time of his death, and had told associates he needed to “get off the radar for a bit” because federal agents were interviewing his associates. His death followed his publication in 2010 in Rolling Stone of a lengthy article on the top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. William McCrystal, whose on-the-record criticisms to him of President Obama led to the general’s resignation. McCrystal had earlier led the US military’s assassination program in Iraq, which like the CIA’s notorious Phoenix Program of assassinations of Viet Cong leaders had attempted to kill off the leaders of Iraq’s Sunni counterintersurgency. Around the time of Hasting’s death it became known that such new cars as his Mercedes were vulnerable to hacking which would allow someone with a computer to wrest full control of all functions of a car — the accelerator, the steering and the breaks — from the driver and to cause crashes like the one that killed Hastings. The secretive manner in which Hastings’ body was handled by the county coroner, and the way his car was removed by police under a white shrink wrap, has only deepened suspicions about the real cause of his death.
Consider too the strange murder of Seth Rich, the 27-year-old Democratic National Committee computer worker who Wikileaks has suggested was the source of leaked DNC emails late in last year’s election campaign — leaks which many believe contributed to Hillary Clinton’s defeat on Nov. 8 by Donald Trump. Rich was shot twice in the back while walking home at night in Washington, DC on July 10, 2016 in what local police quickly termed a “botched robbery,” though his killer reportedly made no attempt to take a watch, phone or wallet. Wikileaks, which released the emails, has offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Rich’s killer.
While, as in the case of Russian killings of journalists, links to leaders are purely speculative in cases of journalist killings in the US, the same kinds of inferences often made about Putin’s possible role are all too easy to make about leaders roles when it comes to the murder of journalists and their sources here in the US, too.
The US mainstream media just don’t make those inferences, except when it involves killings in Russia. | {
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It’s winter and Kemar Lawrence is running along the Jamaican beach, pushing the limits on his recovery from a medial collateral ligament tear. The fall in training during November where it all unraveled for Lawrence, for the 71-point New York Red Bulls, serves as ground zero for the Jamaican left back’s most painful and challenging injury comeback. In the horizon, he sees more than the powder blue sky. He envisions Atlanta United, a chance to re-create the ecstasy of a 2-0 win on Sept. 30 and right the wrongs of Nov. 25. That is what he is chasing after.
The sky was clear and the sun beamed down a golden glow on Red Bull Arena. The date: Sept. 30, 2018. It was hard to imagine beforehand how important the next 90 minutes would be; defining narratives, deciding a single-season points record. North vs. South, Big Apple vs. King Peach, two immovable objects at the top of the league table.
New York was without two pillars, Tyler Adams and Bradley Wright-Phillips, but the Red Bulls system is meant to be bigger than any one player. It proved bigger than beloved captain Dax McCarty and his successor Sacha Kljestan. On this day, with the budding Adams injured and wily Wright-Phillips suspended, the Red Bulls press was as rampant, energetic and effective as ever.
This is vintage high press #RBNY early on. Kemar Lawrence is between midfield and #ATLUTD's 18-yard-box when Brad Guzan cycles the ball around (seen below). Davis and Rzatkowski are also positioned high up. It's left #RBNY suspectible to counters, but there is energy and passion. pic.twitter.com/DNk4CFyotB — James Justice (@JamesJusticeIII) September 30, 2018
“That game was, that was fire,” Lawrence says with a laugh. “To be honest, going into that week, we already knew who we had and what was going on with those guys, Brad and Tyler. And since I’ve been here, with (Former Coach) Jesse [Marsch], (Head Coach) Chris [Armas], they always try to make the team an all-rounded team. So, when guys are out, somebody can step in and it looks the same.”
High-priced South Americans that had taken the league by storm, Atlanta midfielder Miguel Almiron and forward Josef Martinez, were nullified. An Atlanta team defined by its attractive passing was incapable of building from the back with the Red Bulls’ swarming press. Lawrence, nicknamed “Taxi” for his surreal stamina, pressured Atlanta high up the field and was still capable of racing back to thwart off counter-attacks. New York prevailed, 2-0.
The Red Bulls’ league-best backline was heaped with praise, their RalfBall system covered in further adulation. New York won its final three regular season matches, while Atlanta capitulated on the final day, handing the Red Bulls a third Supporters’ Shield. New York – for all its chronic ineffectiveness in the postseason throughout the years – became MLS Cup favorites.
Then, the re-match, in the Eastern Conference Final, but with a devastating twist. That week, Lawrence fell in training and ruptured his knee, tearing his MCL and spraining his PCL. Lawrence was a Best XI player, one of only three defenders in Major League Soccer to earn a spot on the 11-man team of the season. The Red Bulls had another, Aaron Long, who won Defender of the Year. Having defeated Atlanta without Adams and Wright-Phillips, they held out hope a playoff win was possible without Lawrence.
The last time New York flew south to Atlanta, for a match on May 20, 2018, Lawrence suffered a different kind of fall. Like a chain reaction, Lawrence lost his balance and – for a brief moment – all coordination. He slipped forward with the ball bouncing toward him and, in his haste, didn’t brace the fall with his arms. His chest pounded the Mercedes-Benz Stadium turf, causing his neck to violently snap back.
After remaining down for several minutes, Lawrence was stretchered off and rushed to the hospital. He stayed overnight in Atlanta while his team traveled back north with a 3-1 win. It was a seminal result, but an outcome that felt hollow without Lawrence, who, for a moment, saw his career flash before his eyes, like one of his lightning-quick runs down the wing.
“When you see an injury like that, you’re just, at that moment – you just have that feeling for that player,” Lawrence said. “For it to happen to me, while my family and everyone was watching, I just couldn’t imagine how they felt.
“When I actually called my wife and my friend, and everybody was just really sad, my wife was crying. So, you never want that to happen, especially if anybody’s in tears when it’s not tears of joy.”
Lawrence counts his blessings. After scoring his picturesque free kick against Mexico in the 2017 Gold Cup – a goal that improbably took the Reggae Boyz to the final – he dropped to the ground and said a prayer. At least he could run along the beach this past winter. There was a brief moment – before doctors told him that fall in Atlanta only resulted in minor whiplash – where that was not a certainty.
GOD ALONE CAN EXPLAIN THIS MOMENT pic.twitter.com/zeZtCKIpU4 — Kemar Lawrence#92/20 (@kemarkemar24) July 24, 2017
Even still, missing the Eastern Conference Final this November, in Atlanta, crushed him. It was the biggest club game of his life. He couldn’t bear to be there when it all unfolded.
“They asked me to come on the trip, and I told them no,” Lawrence says with a laugh. “I told them I actually wanted to stay home and watch it on my TV. I had a feeling that I was going to be very, very mad about something. I wasn’t sure what. I just had a feeling that I was going to be pissed off about a couple things and I wouldn’t be able to come back with the team on the plane.
“Because, being at a game that you done everything right up to that point to play in and you get injured and you’re not able to play, you get that emotion drop where, you know, you feel sad. And, my thing was, I don’t want my teammates to see me in that mood or I don’t want that energy, that bad energy or that negative vibes that I’m feeling deep inside, around the team.”
The Red Bulls unraveled, losing by three goals, a result that would require a 3-0 or four-goal win in the second leg at Red Bull Arena. New York was not the same threat without Lawrence. Despite the Red Bulls priding themselves on their roster flexibility, there may in fact be one indispensable part. No one in that playoff series could replicate what the Jamaican brings to the game: the ground he covers, the speed he operates with, the tunnel-vision focus he possesses.
“I’m not a guy that likes to take credit for anything, really,” Lawrence said. “It doesn’t matter what I put into it because it’s all a team effort at the end of the day. But, as I said before, when God has blessed you in a different way, you do different things.
“And, my team is able to count on me, my teammates are able to count on me, my coaches. They know, especially in big games, playoff time, they know I’m completely locked in. They don’t have to worry about me missing details or missing tackles, making fouls, I’m totally locked in.
For all his innate physical talents, his mentality is equally marvelous. Few athletes – or just people – can flip the switch like Lawrence does. He balances a cool, charismatic irie vibe with the aggression and tenaciousness of midtown Manhattan. Off the field, he is chill. On the field, he is relentless. Sometimes, in the locker room, both sides will blend together.
Never was that more evident than on May 19, the day Lawrence was chasing when he ran on that Jamaican beach. It was a Sunday matinee, a playoff re-match inside Red Bull Arena. Sun soaked the perfectly-manicured grass, and there was playoff energy within the 25,000-seat confines.
The two sides had changed from last year. Atlanta head coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino had taken over the Mexican national team and Almiron gone to England’s Newcastle United; meanwhile, Adams had departed for Germany’s RB Leipzig. But one of the biggest changes – overlooked in the grand scheme – was the player who stepped back in, desperate to prove a point.
“I think we all know that Kemar Lawrence is a special player and a special person,” Red Bulls head coach Chris Armas said. “He’s got personality, he’s got bite, he has passion, and it means a lot to him. And when he gets a run of games and gets fitness, he has something different. Like, you can see it, you can feel it, what he brings.”
Lawrence helped suffocate Atlanta in the first half, bombing up the left flank and getting back to defend, but his match wasn’t perfect. The same can be said for the Red Bulls, who went down to 10 men after Tim Parker’s 35th minute red card. Through a 65th minute moment of ingenuity, though, New York took a precious 1-0 lead.
65' GOAL, #RBNY! 1-0, NY.
The Red Bulls were running on fumes. One of the only fresh players, Sean Nealis, took it upon himself to chug forward, springing an attack where Danny Royer lifted a cross that Tom Barlow climbed up and headed down. Pandemonium. #RBNY #RBNYvATL pic.twitter.com/6JDKObRcx7 — James Justice (@JamesJusticeIII) May 19, 2019
Then, in second half stoppage time, the moment that poured gasoline on the hottest, most irresistible rivalry in MLS.
Atlanta’s enigmatic winger, Tito Villalba, prancing around with his shorts hiked up, clattered into Lawrence while going for a 50-50 ball. Lawrence sprung up, stood over Villalba and unleashed a furious roar. Villalba got up and teasingly mimicked a trophy raise, referencing Atlanta’s playoff triumph. Lawrence shot back with the motion of cradling a baby. The full-time whistled sounded and Villalba ran into Lawrence, setting off anarchy as both sets of players and technical areas converged on one another.
¡TRANQUILO, TITO! Kemar #Lawrence, del #NewYorkRedBulls, festejó en la cara de Villalba un cruce y el argentino explotó de la furia... pic.twitter.com/Lqq3MytsuL — ESPN Argentina (@ESPNArgentina) May 22, 2019
Afterward, wearing a black floral shirt with eye-catching pink flowers, Lawrence was markedly intense; a dichotomy between his easygoing off-the-field life and strict on-the-field demeanor. His emotions were raw, and the tension so thick in the humid locker room it could be cut with a knife. He didn’t need reporters’ questions. He could guess the themes, and he had all the answers already, written in his head over the six months leading up to that point.
“I told you what was going to happen, right? I told you that we were going to win,” Lawrence said. “I was going to win it for my team. We went out there and did that.”
The visceral ending became the major talking point, displaying the authentic dislike – hatred, even – between these two top sides. It is an animosity built not on geographic proximity or a league-wide campaign, instead forged over seven engrossing encounters, in which the Red Bulls have five wins, but Atlanta the most important one in the playoffs.
“Look, Atlanta’s great and they have what we want,” Red Bulls captain Luis Robles said. “They have MLS Cup. And we have a great regular season record against them, and yet they have what we want. So, we have to keep going. This isn’t a destination, it’s just part of the journey.”
Robles, a linchpin of the club since 2012, is not yet willing to concede Atlanta – who entered the league in 2017 – is the club’s chief rival. But, some may disagree. It’s worth noting, while fans stay and carry the lore and bad blood with them – and Robles is sympathetic to that tradition – athletes come and go. For players without firsthand background to call on, the dislike of longtime rivalries can seem disingenuous.
In New York-Atlanta, everyone shares the animosity, because everyone has tasted it, none more so than Lawrence. Almost a year to the day that he was stretchered out of Mercedes-Benz Stadium and almost six months after watching his team crumble without him in that same venue, Lawrence was out to prove a point.
“I can tell you, to be honest, they haven’t beaten us with me in the lineup, that I know for sure,” Lawrence said. “So, I don’t know what it is with them but, I just want to be in the lineup because, I have a feeling they won’t win.”
Lawrence is glistening with sweat as he speaks these words, nearly an hour after the match; his colorful floral shirt and shorts dampened, adrenaline still rushing through his veins. This is the feeling of pure happiness and contentment he had yearned for all off-season coming to fruition. His mind is an open book, and he pours out that toll of emotion. When asked about the rivalry, he already jumps to the next meeting: July 7, in Atlanta.
“I feel like when we go back to Atlanta, it’s not going to be nice,” he says with a laugh. “But I feel like this [rivalry] is at the top of the list. And, you know when we go there, because the way their fans respond to everything and try to raise the noise in the stadium, it’s a big rival.”
It is rare to see Lawrence tired, but when leaving the locker room, he looks physically and emotionally drained; the high of it all is beginning to wear off. As the tidal waves of emotion subside, the pain of a playoff loss – a stolen opportunity – begins to fade into the distance, like the horizon he gazed into during those runs along the beach this past winter. | {
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Friday evening Omaha Police arrested 27-year-old Larry Goynes as a suspect in the shooting of Sgt. Kyle LeFlore on January 6th.
Army Sgt. Kyle LeFlore survived overseas tours unscathed before Omaha gunfire took his life early Saturday morning during a brief visit home. Police are hunting for his killer while his family looks for answers.
Goynes was located by members of the Omaha Police Gang Unit and taken into custody without incident.
Omaha police say LeFlore, 27, died at the hospital after being shot outside a metro bar.
The gunfire broke out shortly after 1 a.m. at the Reign Bar, in the 8900 block of North 30th Street, just south of I-680.
Authorities arrived on the scene and found LeFlore unresponsive. The rescue team initiated CPR before he was taken to the hospital. He was pronounced dead on arrival.
As police try to identify the killer, Sgt. Leflore's family is trying to come to grips with how this happened.
Kyle's father, Kay LeFlore, spoke with 6 News about his son and told us, "He had an amazing personality that resonated with whoever he was involved with, uh, everybody liked him. No one - he didn't have any enemies. He didn't have an enemy in the world."
He said the love that surrounded his son was pervasive. "It just makes this day that much blacker that he's gone."
Kay LeFlore told us, “He could have lost his life in Afghanistan, two tours in Afghanistan. He could have lost his life on tour in Iraq. And yet someone here in this city thought they could kill him and go about their lives.”
In addition to being a soldier, LeFlore was a husband and father. The high school sweetheart who became his wife followed him into the Army. She has a 16 hour flight from Seoul to Omaha where she will break the news to their 5-year-old son.
Kay LeFlore said, “His little boy, he is amazing. Five-years-old. He’s going to grow up without a father, and why?"
Circumstances of the shooting remain under investigation.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the OPD Homicide Unit at 444-5656 or Crime Stoppers at 444-STOP. | {
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July 15 at midnight was the deadline for 2020 presidential candidates to upload their fundraising disclosures for the second quarter of 2019 to the Federal Election Commission.
Expand chart Data: FEC; Note: Receipts by Trump’s joint fundraising committees not included; Chart: Harry Stevens/Axios
Why it matters: These fundraising numbers are important for the Democratic candidates as they fight to secure their spots for the primary debates. All candidates have to submit their fundraising numbers to the Federal Elections Commission by July 15.
The big picture: President Trump and his committees raised $54 million, and the RNC raised another $51 million.
Go deeper: Factsheets on every candidate running in 2020 | {
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None MIT Wind Ensemble with Jamshied Sharifi MIT Music and Theater Arts Saturday, March 17, 2012 at 8:00 PM (EDT) Cambridge, United States Ticket Information Ticket Type Remaining Sales End Price Fee Quantity At the door 493 Tickets Ended Free $0.00 Free Advance Tickets ($5 at door) Free advance tickets for all. No ID required. $5 for ALL at the door. 541 Tickets Ended Free $0.00 Door 300 Tickets Ended $5.00 $1.24 Share MIT Wind Ensemble with Jamshied Sharifi Share Tweet Event Details Awakening: A world premiere by Jamshied Sharifi MIT Wind Ensemble Frederick Harris, Jr., Music Director; Kenneth Amis, assistant conductor. Jamshied Sharifi, MIT Visiting Artist and Composer-in-Residence March 17, 2012 8PM Kresge Auditorium, MIT Admission: Free in advance via eventbrite, $5 at the door. Tickets: http://mitwe-jamshied-sharifi.eventbrite.com or $5 at the door. Program: Bernard, Divertissement for Winds; Copland, Variations on a Shaker Melody; Schuman, When Jesus Wept; Bernstein, Profanation from Symphony no. 1; Sharifi, Awakening, world premiere. Mr. Sharifi was commissioned by the MIT Wind Ensemble to create an extended composition that recognizes the Arab Spring, a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab World that began in December 2010. The piece uses Arabic maqam as source material. Mr. Sharifi will be composer-in-residence at MIT March 12-17, 2012. Sponsored by the MIT Visiting Artist Program and Music and Theater Arts. Jamshied Sharifi is a New York-based composer, producer, and keyboardist. Born in Topeka, Kansas to an Iranian father and an American mother, Sharifi graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in humanities, and Summa Cum Laude from Berklee College of Music in Boston, with a degree in Jazz Composition and Arranging. At MIT and Berklee, he studied with the legendary Herb Pomeroy, who asked him at graduation to lead the MIT Festival Jazz Ensemble. While in Boston, Sharifi studied piano with Charlie Banacos, and West African drumming with Godwin Agbeli and Abubakari Lunna. Sharifi has composed the scores for the feature films Harriet The Spy, Down To Earth, Clockstoppers, The Thomas Crown Affair, Muppets From Space, Footsteps in Africa, 14 Women, and for many other films and television shows. As a producer, he has made records for Mamak Khadem, Yungchen Lhamo, Susan McKeown, and Mirabai Ceiba. As an arranger, he has written for Ray Charles, Paula Cole, Dream Theater, Cee Lo Green, Reba McEntire, Mis-teeq, Matthew Morrison, Sam Moore, Smokey Robinson, and Jordin Sparks. His world-inspired debut CD, A Prayer For The Soul Of Layla, was named ‘Best World Album’ by New Age Voice magazine, and ‘Best Album of the Year’ by critic and radio host John Diliberto. In 2009 he served as an arranger for the Inaugural Concert for President Obama at Lincoln Memorial. Sharifi recently completed the score for the third season of On The Road In America, an unscripted documentary about four young Arabs traveling in the United States. The show is currently airing in many Arab markets. Home page: http://www.jamshiedsharifi.com/Site/Home.html NPR’s Day to Day: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90657533 PRI’s The World: http://www.pri.org/theworld/?q=node/18516 Dr. Frederick Harris, Jr. is Director of Wind and Jazz Ensembles. He holds a M.M., New England Conservatory and Ph.D., University of Minnesota. He has served as acting music director of the MIT Symphony Orchestra, assistant conductor of the Boston University Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Wind Ensemble, music director of the Summer Music Festival at the South Shore Conservatory, conductor of the Concerto Grosso Orchestra at the University of Minnesota, and he has guest conducted the New Hampshire Philharmonic and the Chamber Music Society of Minnesota, among others. Dr. Harris’ first book, Conducting with Feeling, was published by Meredith Music in 2001. His new book, Seeking the Infinite: The Musical Life of Stanislaw Skrowaczewski,was published by CreateSpace in 2011. He is a strong advocate for the creation and performance of new music, having commissioned and/or premiered over 65 works for wind, jazz, and mixed ensembles. He recently organized an international consortium of nine orchestras and wind ensembles from the U.S., Germany, Austria, and Japan to commission Maestro Skrowaczewski to compose Music for Winds. He has lectured on music in Canada and at many New England universities, as well as for the Minnesota Orchestra and the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken. Recordings by the MIT Wind Ensemble include Waking Winds (2004), published by INNOVA Recordings of the American Composers, and Solo Eclipse (2008), published by Albany Records. Both CDs feature premiere recordings by composers such as Schuller, Child, Ziporyn, Klein, and Amis. Dr. Harris recently conducted Kenny Werner’s No Beginning, No End (2010), in New York City for Half Note Records. The work features Werner, Joe Lovano and Judi Silvano. Dr. Harris’ ensembles at MIT have worked with artists such as Gunther Schuller, John Harbison, Michael Colgrass, Frank Battisti, Herb Pomeroy, Joe Lovano, Kenny Werner, Don Byron, Ran Blake, Guillermo Klein, Kenneth Amis, Magali Souriau Steve Turre, and Evan Ziporyn. His conducting teachers included Stephen Massey, Frank Battisti, Gunther Schuller, Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, and Craig Kirchhoff. He studied percussion with Arthur Press, former principal percussionist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and jazz drums with Alan Dawson. He was awarded the 2010 Paul Smith Hall of Fame Award from the Massachusetts Instrumental and Choral Conductors Association. The award is presented annually “to a Massachusetts music conductor who is a musical and personal inspiration to students, the community, and other professional conductors.” http://www.seekingtheinfinite.com/ About the MIT Wind Ensemble Founded by Dr. Frederick Harris, Jr. in the fall of 1999, the MIT Wind Ensemble (course 21M.426) is comprised of outstanding MIT undergraduate & graduate students studying a wide variety of fields. The central mission of the MIT Wind Ensemble is the enhancement of the musical education and artistic sensitivity of its members through performance in large and small wind ensembles of music of diverse styles from the 16th century to the present day. A secondary mission is the creation and nurturing of new music for the wind ensemble medium. MITWE performs the finest traditional wind ensemble literature and the best of the new. Literature includes music for large wind ensemble, chamber winds, brass ensemble, percussion ensemble, and woodwind ensembles. Since 2001, the MIT Wind Ensemble has commissioned 20 original works for wind ensemble by MIT faculty, Boston, and internationally renowned composers. Gunther Schuller, John Harbison, and Michael Colgrass, all Pulitzer Prize-winning composers, among many others, have worked with MITWE. In 2004, MITWE released its first international professional recording, Waking Winds, on the American Composers Forum, Innova label. The CD is comprised of all world premiere recordings. Gramophone Magazine called the recording, “An exhilarating range of approaches to the modern wind band.” In 2008, MITWE released its second international professional recording, Solo Eclipse, on the prestigious classical music label, Albany Records. It represents the first time an MIT student ensemble has released a professional CD of all world premiere recordings of works commissioned expressly for them. Have questions about MIT Wind Ensemble with Jamshied Sharifi? When & Where
Kresge Auditorium
48 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, 02139
Saturday, March 17, 2012 at 8:00 PM (EDT)
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Outlook Calendar Google Calendar Yahoo! Calendar iCal Calendar Organizer MIT Music and Theater Arts The Music and Theater Arts section provides students at MIT the opportunity to experience the unique language and process of the arts. Faculty and teaching staff help students understand art’s demand for rigor and discipline and its non-quantitative standards of excellence and beauty. A strong, comprehensive program in both music and theater arts—encompassing history, theory, and performance—is taught by faculty and staff of the highest caliber. View organizer profile 2 upcoming events on Eventbrite 210 past events on Eventbrite | {
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A sinkhole opened up on the street in front of President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort on Monday, sparking an advisory from local officials.
Sinkhole in front of Mar-a-Lago: A 4' x 4' sinkhole has formed on Southern Boulevard directly in front of… https://t.co/5xOpmJ8Y2v — Town of Palm Beach (@townpalmbeach) May 22, 2017
The town of Palm Beach, Fla. reported the sinkhole on its website. The 4-foot-by-4-foot sinkhole formed on Southern Boulevard directly in front of Mar-a-Lago. The town says utility crews will likely do exploratory excavation on Monday to determine the cause of the sinkhole, which opened near a newly installed water main.
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Trump has spent numerous weekends at the resort since taking office, hosting world leaders such as China’s Xi Jinping and Japan’s Shinzo Abe and playing several rounds of golf there.
Twitter users quickly mocked the news of the sinkhole.
Can we get a time stamp on this and the sinkhole opening at Mar-a-lago? pic.twitter.com/n57zX2Ino7 — Schooley (@Rschooley) May 22, 2017
A sinkhole just opened in front of President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate https://t.co/vlSlzzwBCP THE ORB DEMANDS SACRIFICE — Oliver Willis (@owillis) May 22, 2017
@townpalmbeach @Fahrenthold But it is a beautiful sinkhole. The best sink hole in history. A model sinkhole for all future sinkholes. — John Maguire (@JohnMag99047565) May 22, 2017
Breaking: God sends really obvious sign https://t.co/rWFZtsJ2Ah — Chloe Angyal (@ChloeAngyal) May 22, 2017
From beneath you, it devours: https://t.co/mOhziT1pZz — ✨ Rachel Heine ✨ (@RachelHeine) May 22, 2017 | {
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GREEN BAY – The Packers have added a new inside linebacker to the mix after trading cornerback Lenzy Pipkins to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday for Antonio Morrison.
Morrison, 23, was selected by the Colts in the fourth round (125th overall) in the 2016 NFL Draft, six picks before the Packers took Stanford's Blake Martinez with the first of their two fourth-round compensatory sections.
Morrison brings added depth to a position that lost Jake Ryan to a season-ending knee injury early in camp. The team also is awaiting word on rookie third-round pick Oren Burks, who injured his shoulder in pregame warm-ups prior to Friday's preseason game in Oakland.
Here are five things to know about the Packers' new addition:
1. Morrison led the Colts in tackles last season
The 6-foot-1, 241-pound linebacker started all 15 games he played for Indianapolis in 2017, leading the defense with 109 tackles (64 solo).
Morrison, who played 812 snaps (75.4 percent) for the Colts, had a career-high 14 tackles in a 27-0 loss to Jacksonville on Oct. 22 before notching another 12 against Denver on Dec. 14. With Indianapolis transitioning to a 4-3 defense, Morrison had been running with the second-team defense in camp. He had three tackles in three preseason outings.
2. He found his way into the starting lineup as a rookie
After getting his first NFL start on Dec. 11, 2016, Morrison made an immediate impact during the Colts' final four regular-season games. He had more than half (32) of his total tackles (52) during that four-game stretch to solidify himself in the defense, including an 11-tackle performance against Oakland in Week 16.
3. Morrison was a four-year starter at Florida
Morrison totaled 294 tackles (21 for a loss) with 4½ sacks, three forced fumbles and one interception in 47 games (37 starts) for the Gators. He also became the first Florida player to register consecutive seasons with at least 100 tackles since Ed Robinson (1992-93).
He suffered a knee injury at the end of his junior year, but returned several months ahead of schedule to be ready in time for the 2015 season. Morrison didn't miss a start that year, recording 96 tackles and 2½ sacks, and was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week after registering 16 tackles against Ole Miss.
4. He's considered a leader in the locker room
NFL scouts praised Morrison's leadership qualities leading up to the 2016 NFL Draft and counted his on-field intensity among his greatest strengths. Voted a defensive captain at Florida his senior year, Morrison is regarded for his competitiveness and work ethic. He's also known for his hustle and playing to the whistle.
5. Morrison had a decorated high-school career in Illinois
A native of Bellwood, Ill., Morrison led Bolingbrook High School to a 13-1 record and the school's first-ever state title, though he missed the state championship game due to injury. | {
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На Украине в настоящее время действует каноническая Украинская православная церковь, которая является самоуправляемой церковью в составе Московского патриархата, а также непризнанные мировым православием церковные структуры – созданный в 1990-е годы Киевский патриархат и возникшая в 1917 году Украинская автокефальная православная церковь. Нынешние украинские власти настаивают на признании независимости Украинской церкви от Московского патриархата.
Говоря о церковном разделении на Украине, предстоятель РПЦ отметил, что "грех раскола исцеляется не насилием и лукавством, но покаянием и любовью во Христе".
"От болезненной язвы украинского раскола страдает все тело церковное, и боль от нее ощущается не только на Украине, но и в диаспоре, и на канонических территориях других поместных церквей. Опасность разделения в Церкви понятна каждому из нас", — сказал патриарх.
Именно поэтому, добавил он, "анафематствование Русской церковью бывшего монаха Филарета Денисенко (глава УПЦ КП – ред.) было поддержано всеми поместными православными церквами".
"Хотел бы выразить сердечную благодарность тем предстоятелям и представителям поместных церквей, которые открыто выступают в поддержку канонического православия на Украине", — заключил первоиерарх РПЦ. | {
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BEIRUT // Lebanon’s economy has long depended on the Arab Gulf states.
Hundreds of thousands of Lebanese work there, sending their savings home to relatives. It is the main destination for exports — both human capital and produced goods — as well as the leading supplier of investment.
There is often a feeling that without the Gulf’s role, Lebanon’s beleaguered economy could not survive. But this relationship could be in trouble.
With global oil prices falling since 2014, the economic diversification plans touted by Gulf states are finally being put to the test. For the many Lebanese working in the Gulf, their livelihoods and billions of dollars in annual remittances, depend on the continued strength of these economies.
More immediate is the growing divide between GCC countries and the Lebanese government over the role of Hizbollah, with Saudi Arabia leading the charge against the group and economists fearing major economic ramifications on Lebanon.
Lifeblood of Lebanon
With low oil prices, the remittances received by Lebanon from workers in the Gulf are the biggest worry for many Lebanese.
“Remittances have basically been very important in sustaining the economy in the sense that we’ve always had a current account deficit … we import much more than we export. So those remittances have been able to sustain the economy,” said Simon Neaime, an economics professor at the American University of Beirut.
Since 2011, remittances received by Lebanon have averaged more than $7 billion (Dh25.7bn) annually, representing more than 15 per cent of the country’s total GDP. Most of the money was sent from the Gulf, where experts say between 300,000 to more than 500,000 Lebanese are currently working.
“Since we have nothing important to export ... it’s easy to export our children since we are not able to create sufficient jobs,” said Kamal Hamdan, an economist who heads Beirut’s Consultation and Research Institute. “There are many pushing factors in Lebanon that do not ensure good work conditions, not only in wage levels, but especially in terms of social benefits.”
Sending workers abroad has become a valuable source of income in recent years as Gulf states drew down their investments in Lebanon and Gulf tourists stopped visiting Beirut due to Syria’s war. But with low oil prices and Gulf countries facing their own potential economic problems, Lebanese working in the Gulf could now feel the pinch.
Weathering the storm
With remittances still growing last year, economists say that for now, falling oil prices have not had a real impact on Lebanon’s economy.
Ali Termos, an economics professor at the American University of Beirut who has conducted studies on the relationship between oil prices and remittances from the GCC, said that while there is a positive correlation between the two, it is not a strong one.
“We expect that when oil prices go down, there will be a drop in remittances, but this drop is not very significant,” he said. “Remittances are affected, they are slowing down.”
But low oil prices could hurt remittances further down the line partly due to the multiyear contracts signed by Gulf states currently building mega projects, Mr Termos warned. Such contracts will hold despite the oil-price drop and workers will continue to get paid until their contracts expire.
Already some Saudi companies that rely on foreign labour are struggling.
Major Saudi construction firms Saudi Binladin Group and Saudi Oger — the latter owned by the family of former Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri — have had cash flow problems this year, and had to withhold salaries and lay off many workers.
Another reason the oil crunch has yet to be felt is that Lebanese work in almost every sector in the Gulf, including those outside the oil or construction industries. While oil remains the major moneymaker in the Gulf, its economies are developing beyond the oil industry.
Even if low oil prices further damage Gulf economies, Lebanese might still be able to weather it.
Nassib Ghobril, head of economic research at Lebanon’s Byblos Bank, said Lebanese in the Gulf weathered the recession in the late 2000s and may once again adapt to other changing economic realities.
“Even if some Lebanese lose their jobs, I don’t see them returning here necessarily. They could find jobs elsewhere,” said Mr Ghobril. “There are still [hundreds of thousands of] Lebanese working in the Gulf, not all of them are going to lose their jobs.”
Cashing in on cheap oil
For now, low oil prices may actually benefit Lebanon.
“There are more positive things from the drop in oil prices than negatives,” said Mr Ghobril.
Lebanon depends on imported oil for nearly all its electricity generation. Before the oil price crunch, oil represented about 24 per cent of its import bill and the country’s treasury was spending about $2bn a year on oil for power plants.
“When hydrocarbon prices drop, automatically the transfers of the treasury to EDL [the state-run electricity company] decline. Last year they declined by 46 or 47 per cent,” said Mr Ghobril.
He added that lower costs at the petrol station should also boost disposable incomes of Lebanese families.
Some workers may lose their jobs and remittances may drop eventually, but economists say Lebanon’s overall economy is better off saving money on oil.
“What we lose in terms of remittances, we compensate for in terms of trade and budget deficit,” said Sami Nader, an economist who directs Beirut’s Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs.
Elephant in the room
While low oil prices have not yet had a significant effect on Lebanon, the recent deterioration of diplomatic relations between GCC countries and the Lebanese government over Hizbollah could.
In February, Saudi Arabia cut $4bn in security aid to Lebanon, blaming Hizbollah for hijacking the country. GCC states — including the UAE — followed by imposing travel restrictions to Lebanon and downgrading diplomatic ties. Saudi Arabia has also levied sanctions on companies it says are tied to Hizbollah and threatened to deepen its actions against the group.
In December last year, president Barack Obama signed legislation that would impose sanctions on banks that knowingly do business with Hizbollah.
“US sanctions on Lebanese banks would definitely affect remittances and would also lead to capital flights out of Lebanon,” said Mr Neaime, the American University of Beirut professor. “Any sanctions, if they are applied, will have devastating consequences on the whole economy.”
So far, Lebanese banks appear to be complying with the US law. In June, a bank in Beirut was bombed, with some accusing Hizbollah of trying to intimidate the banks to keep their accounts open. But immediate fears over a deeper conflict over Hizbollah’s access to banks has calmed a bit since then as there has been no subsequent violence. After Riyadh pledged to punish anyone connected to Hizbollah, including sympathisers, many in Lebanon feared that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states could begin mass deportations of Lebanese, particularly Shiites. So far, those fears have been unfounded. Still, Lebanon is waiting to see just how far Riyadh will go with its anti-Hizbollah measures.
Damage control
The cumulative effects of the schism between Lebanon’s government and the GCC, the actions against Hizbollah and concerns about Lebanon’s stability are enough to have an economic impact.
“The more you talk about something negatively, the more you shake the trust and the confidence in the sector,” said Mr Nader of the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs. “This is the last thing Lebanon needs right now.”
Little progress has been made on repairing ties with the Gulf. The country’s foreign minister, whose party is allied with Hizbollah, has repeatedly refused to capitulate to Saudi demands and formally declare the group a terrorist organisation. Hizbollah’s leader continues to attack GCC states, while the GCC and the US continue to target Hizbollah and its finances.
Experts say more needs to be done to mend ties.
“Relations between Lebanon and the GCC — whether they are political, economic or financial or commercial — are essential for Lebanon and we need to maintain those relations and work on strengthening them to the benefit of both sides,” said Mr Ghobril.
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For more on how falling oil prices are also affecting Pakistan, click here
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A father and a son say they saw a group of bipeds in Whatcom County.
The eyewitnesses were reportedly driving in the area at 9 p.m. last September when they noticed the creatures.
“My father and I went for a drive up the mountain to stop at this clear cut, like we’ve done many times before,” the man said on a BFRO report.
“We were scanning the clear cut with our flashlights when we saw the eye shine in the distance, at about 200 yards.”
The man goes on to say that they detected three pairs of eyes leveled at different heights. At first, he adds, they thought they were looking at a mother bear and her cubs.
“But after shining the flashlights in their direction, the larger creature charged up the hill, grunting. Then it stopped and waited for the other two.”
The eyewitness explains that they were able to focus their flashlights on that creature, making them able to observe it better.
“It was brown, the eyeshine was orangish… then it started charging towards us, breaking branches on its way. Then it stopped and everything went silent.”
The other two, he explains, were sitting there watching the men.
“Sometimes they’d stand up and walk a bit, but every time we made noise they’d stop and watch us. This went on for three hours.”
It was at around midnight when the bigger creature reportedly decided to start walking down the hill.
“It was on two legs, arms swinging below the hips, at about 700 pounds. The other two followed it. There are not brown bears in this area.”
The man said it was difficult to estimate a height at the given distance.
“You could see the head bob just like when a person is walking down hill,” he said.
In 2015, a motorist said he saw a similar creature crossing a busy road just outside of Spokane, Washington.
In 1996, a 911 dispatcher responded to a call made by a frightened caller out of the Kitsap Peninsula, Washington. The call prompted immediate action from the authorities, who after investigating the area weren’t able to find any evidence of the animal. | {
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When people get inspired, and they have the power of open source behind them, anything is possible. I was intrigued when I read about Jonathan Kuniholm, a veteran wounded in Iraq, working on prosthetic designs with other users and designers in the field.
I started reading about the Open Prosthetics Project whose goal is to produce useful innovations in the field of prosthetics. The project team freely shares the designs they come up with to make progress in prosthetics. The old way of creating prosthetics wasn't working. Patenting the designs and waiting for lackluster insurance coverage or government-funded research to make advancements haven't worked in the past. Using an open source approach changes the game. Sharing the design with more users and other designers is creating momentum.
This is a story about helping people. And open source is a better a way to get there. It's not an exercise in developing prosthetics that look like arms and legs. It's about giving functionality back. Using the open source way to rapidly prototype and solicit feedback is improving each new design. This approach can create a better end product at a more affordable price. Companies that decide to manufacture the end products won't have to pay stifling research and development fees. The designs are open. Free. And better developed because of the collaboration of many individuals.
I don't know about you, but I'd love to hear more from the experts in this field on how using an open source approach is creating better artificial limbs.
Sources: | {
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Two years ago, we released an experiment to the fledging Steam VR community. Nano-one, our earliest iteration of a molecular design sandbox, quickly found a community of over 1300 users and unanimously positive reviews. For decades, innovators have experimented with new ways to visualize the invisible world, using everything from physical models to early VR tools, like the CAVE. nano-one, however, was the first of its kind: a molecular lab for modern VR systems.
Visualizing molecules in the CAVE, an early VR system.
As the waves at Nanome started rolling, we put nano-one development on hiatus to focus on enterprise, professional, and research tools. But throughout the creation and release of Nano Pro, Calcflow, and Matryx, nano-one and its subsequent learnings stayed on our radar. Nano-one was an experiment, a wildly successful one at that, and a foundational stride towards fulfillment of the Nanome vision.
We chose the name nano-one to suggest a tool that was simple, atomic and functional. (NANO1 is also the name of the entry nanoengineering course at UCSD). But much like our internal team, the nano-one community speculated endless potential. We received reviews and inquiries with thoughtful, specific feature and expansion requests. These suggestions were an accurate forecast of those we would receive from professional and enterprise customers months and years down the road.
We are grateful to nano-one early-adopters for engaging our experiment and proving our wild hypothesis: immersive STEM interfaces are badly needed. nano-one is the first immersive molecular visualization tool to grow into a community. And that means a lot to us at Nanome.
Today, we’d like to nod our heads to the nano-one community and let them know that good things come to those who wait. This summer, we’re releasing Nanome, for free. Its a robust, bottom-up construction of the ultra-modern workspace nano-one users dreamed about. We’ve implemented and iterated upon many of the oft-requested features nano-one users requested. And we’ve returned from the big pharma battlefront with UX insights, nuanced features, and adaptive-workflow. | {
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After acknowledging that Santa Barbara's high-density housing program has failed in many areas, the city is turning from Milpas Street to downtown as a place to build rental apartments.
Santa Barbara's Planning Commission met for more than nine hours over two separate meetings to look at ways to overhaul the "average unit-sized density" (AUD) incentive program, which has sparked widespread controversy because of its impacts on neighborhoods.
The City Council approved the program in 2013 with the goal of encouraging developers to build rental apartments in certain parts of the city. One of those areas was Santa Barbara's Eastside and Milpas Street area.
Now, the city is looking to end the high-density program on the Eastside and move it to downtown Santa Barbara, where there there would be fewer impacts.
Planning Commissioner and former mayor Sheila Lodge said Milpas should no longer be a target of the program.
"It’s an area where property values have been lower," Lodge said at last Thursday's Planning Commission meeting. "It’s an older part of the community with its own character, and I don’t think it should be changed."
The commission plans to meet with the City Council in a special joint meeting on Nov. 14, when the two panels will continue the discussion about the proposed changes. The City Council will eventually vote on whether amend the program.
City staff has proposed several other changes, including allowing developers to pay an in-lieu fee of $10,000 instead of providing an off-street parking space in the central business district.
Other proposals include allowing the developer to separate a parking fee from the rent, so people without cars could pay less; placing limits on the sizes of the units, instead of the total number, which would allow developers to build more smaller units; allowing individual apartments to be as high as 10-feet in some zones; and increasing the maximum building height from 45 to 48 feet.
The City Council also will decide whether to extend the overall program, which as of now is scheduled to sunset when 250 units are built or by 2021. There have been 222 units built so far.
However, allowing the higher density downtown would mark a dramatic change in philosophy for the city, and signal a full embrace of a new philosophy of building housing downtown above commercial buildings.
Such a move would possibly attract young professionals who enjoy the living near shopping, drinking and restaurant opportunities, while also creating a built-in customer base for the struggling merchants in the area.
Moving the housing downtown could also mean possibly closing portions of State Street to vehicular traffic.
"The narrative of our community right now is really focused on State Street," said Rob Dayton, parking and transportation manager. "State street is not needed for traffic movement. There’s other reasons why cars are on the streets. It actually could be closed to pedestrians, and the transportation system would work just fine."
Building housing on top of commercial areas on Milpas street could present safety hazards and create congestion, Dayton said. Earlier this year, the city approved a 76-unit apartment project at 711 Milpas St.
"On Milpas, we could never close that street," Dayton said. "That street is an artery. It is an arterial for this city, and it doesn’t just serve Milpas, it serves multiple neighborhoods. It serves the Riviera. Yes, we want housing in the city of Santa Barbara, that is truly a goal, but another goal that we should always be thinking about is we don’t want traffic congestion."
Dayton said there is "friction" in many parts of the city over the AUD program, but "the least amount of friction is in the downtown."
Planning Commissioner John Campanella said the city should maintain the AUD program on the Eastside because of statewide pressures to build up to 3,000 more units. All of the new housing cannot be build in the central business district, he said.
"It’s going to be based on site-specific ability to build, parcel by parcel," Campanella said. "Once you say no on Milpas Street, no one will submit an application."
He's also worried developers would just build condos on the Eastside if there is no incentive to build rental apartments.
"If we are afraid of gentrifying, right now there’s an attraction to rentals" Campanella said. "If you take off the overlay, there could be more of an attraction to do condominiums."
Commissioner Addison Thompson was supportive of maintaining the AUD program on Milpas Street, but said they should not charge developers an in-lieu fee if they can't provide an off-street parking space.
"$10,000 is small compared to the cost to build parking, but it is still disincentive," Thompson said. "If the city is serious about trying to invigorate downtown and do some adaptive re-use of some of the existing buildings downtown, this works against that."
— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) . Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook. | {
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Unsettling may be the kindest way of describing the presidential debate on Sunday night that often seemed like an extended "Saturday Night Live" skit filled with cringe-worthy moments.
Nolan Finley, head of The Detroit News' conservative editorial page, thought Donald Trump failed to do what he needed to reverse his fortunes following the release of a video in which Trump tells former "Access Hollywood" personality Billy Bush how stardom lets him take advantage of women.
Finley writes:
Destroyed. Dead. Done. That’s the status of Donald Trump’s campaign following the worst weekend for a presidential candidate ever. He walked onto the stage of Washington University in St. Louis Sunday night needing to erase his words captured on an 11-year-old videotape, strategically released to coincide with the debate, that served as a primer of sorts for molesting women. He didn’t deliver.
The second question of the evening, from moderator Anderson Cooper of CNN, went directly to the tape, asking Trump if he did the things he spoke of in the recording. Instead of a sincere apology and a plausible explanation, he dismissed it as locker room talk and quickly pivoted to a ramble about defeating ISIS and keeping America safe. The moment called for contrition and a convincing assurance that he was a changed man. Trump lost the night right there. He didn’t make the issue go away, and he also failed at his second mission — looking presidential.
The News has endorsed Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.
Also read Stephen Henderson, editorial page editor at the Detroit Free Press: On Trump's divisive policies, Michigan GOP fails to lead: | {
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After a decade-long pause, the two Koreas are holding a top-level summit this week. Seoul may score some domestic political points, but it’s in no real position to negotiate essential changes with Pyongyang.
This Friday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in will meet face to face, marking the first such summit in over a decade. The previous intra-Korean event of this level happened in 2007, when Kim's father, Kim Il-sung, met South Korea’s then leader, Roh Moo-hyun. A year later, the South had a new conservative government, ending a decade of détente with the North and heralding a new era of confrontation.
Coming to power against the backdrop of the impeachment of his conservative predecessor, the disgraced Park Geun-hye, Moon promised voters he would renew attempts at reengaging Pyongyang. North Korea in the past 10 years has made strides in nuclear and rocket technologies, creating what many observers believe to be a credible threat to the South's patron, the United States. With Donald Trump sending hostile signals from the White House, last year the region seemed to be at risk of a real large-scale war. However, the tension has since eased somewhat, as Kim and Moon took a number of symbolic steps to signal willingness to negotiate.
Symbolic gestures
The upcoming summit is likely to proceed along the same symbolic lines. There will likely be exchanges of gifts alluding to Korea's rich common history and personal tastes. Kim's father brought with him a stockpile of rare mushrooms as a gift – then reportedly worth up to $2.6 million – and was given a collection of South Korean movies in return. There will probably be declarations of friendship and mutual hope for the eventual reunification of the two Koreas. The delegations may bring members of families torn apart by the Korean War, whose ability to keep in contact has always been held hostage by the perils of politics. Seoul and Pyongyang may sign a document declaring an intention for a formal peace treaty sometime in the future – a gesture that would not require either side to change its claim to be the sole lawful government of the entire Korean Peninsula.
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There may also be small practical steps – small because there is very little that Moon can offer that Kim would want without crossing certain lines. Renewal of tourist tours could work. Restarting business at the Kaesong Industrial Region, a project where the South's technology and the North's labor used to work to benefit both sides and build trust, is probably too much. After all, the US insists that Pyongyang should receive no economic relief before surrendering at least part of its nuclear arsenal. But the two parties may agree to withdraw some troops from the demilitarized zone as part of a de-escalation effort.
The fact is, however, that Moon is not the person Kim should be talking to about the core issues of the standoff. He cannot give safety guarantees that would convince the North Koreans that they don't need nuclear weapons anymore. He cannot have a resolution lifting the sanctions passed through the UN Security Council. Those things will presumably be negotiated with Trump sometime in May or June.
Image facelift
At the same time, the importance of symbolic gestures should not be underestimated. North Korea's problem has long been its image. Pyongyang has done some fairly bizarre things in the past, such as kidnapping Japanese citizens presumably for training spies or a prominent film director from the South to give a boost to its movie industry. Its human rights record – abysmal in itself – and isolationism spawned a host of activists who would tell horror stories to tabloids, which were never challenged even if their stories sounded ridiculous to the impartial observer. Incidents like the nerve agent assassination of Kim Jong-un's elder brother, Kim Jong-nam, don't exactly instill confidence either. Many hawks on North Korea say Pyongyang cannot be negotiated with.
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Much of the North Korean Olympic charm offensive, which helped pave the way for the upcoming summit, was aimed at disproving such attitudes. Whatever backchannel agreements Kim and Moon had about not spoiling the games, the North Korean leader seems to have delivered on them. For his part, the South's president managed to address some of Pyongyang's concerns, agreeing with the US some changes to the recent joint military exercise that made them less aggressive towards the North.
When viewed as preparation work for a Kim-Trump meeting, the summit will help quell the voices calling for renewed hostilities, and make it somewhat harder to justify a no-compromise position for both sides. If everything goes smoothly, Moon would rightfully score extra points for his policies – something which would be handy for the June elections for local offices and for the seven recently vacated seats in the national parliament. The other players don't have much at stake in this week's meeting. Japan may complain about the summit dessert menu hurting the nationalist feelings in Tokyo, but it is Moon's show to run.
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Coronavirus has exposed the vulnerabilities of companies whose competitive advantage is based on the ownership of unique physical assets — such as airlines and cruise lines but also manufacturing and traditional retail. There are a dozen or so companies — from Amazon to Alibaba — who create a strategic advantage by leveraging partnerships, investments, and alliances to continuously adapt their offering to a changing customer base. These companies, which have what authors call an “ecosystem advantage,” are growing during the crisis. They show how Ping An, which is comprised of a number of autonomous business ventures, has pivoted to meet consumer needs.
Hiroshi Watanabe/Getty Images
Leer en español In these difficult times, we’ve made a number of our coronavirus articles free for all readers. To get all of HBR’s content delivered to your inbox, sign up for the Daily Alert newsletter.
Most companies cannot quickly change their business model to open up new revenue streams. Different firm activities are interlocked with one another via standard procedures. There’s a high cost to switching internal operations. The result is like a pyramid: sturdy and impressive, but rigid and brittle.
Coronavirus has exposed the vulnerabilities of companies whose competitive advantage is based on the ownership of unique physical assets — such as airlines and cruise lines, but also manufacturing and traditional retail. While some manufacturers have been able to quickly shift to the production of medical supplies, such as surgical masks, hand sanitizer, and ventilators, these are (very) temporary advantages.
There is, however, a category of companies who can move more quickly. A dozen or so companies are competing in a boundaryless world. Take, for instance, Alibaba Group, which owns the largest online retail businesses in China, but also the world’s highest-valued Fintech (Ant Financial), a global logistics network (Cainiao), a massive digital health care platform (Alibaba Health), a cloud computing service (Aliyun) and companies in many other industries. Or Japan’s Recruit Holdings, which started in HR recruitment and grew to include companies in areas as diverse as tourism, dining, education, used-car sales, and payment systems.
Companies like Alibaba Group or Recruit Holdings create advantages by leveraging partnerships, investments, and alliances to continuously adapt their offering to a changing customer base. We call this an “ecosystem advantage.” We have seen these kinds of companies, which also include Amazon in the U.S. and JD.com in China, rapidly recruit new employees in the last month to fuel their growth.
While digital platforms have a natural advantage, there is hope for incumbents, too. Ping An, the world’s second largest insurance company, has spent a decade transforming its business into an ecosystem focused in five areas: finance, property, automotive, health care, and “smart city” services. While its life insurance business has been hit significantly due to the coronavirus, B2B customers, including more than 30 banks, have turned to Ping An’s digital services, which are akin to Amazon Web Services but specialized for the financial sector. In February 2020, Ping An announced plans to expand its investment in technology amidst the crisis. “This fight against the outbreak highlights the importance of technology in the transformation of the country and its industries,” said Peter Ma Mingzhe, the founding chairman and chief executive of Ping An Group.
What makes Ping An’s ecosystem particularly powerful is the “full stack” of interdependent businesses that run autonomously in sectors adjacent to Ping An’s core financial offerings. These businesses represent a wide variety of revenue streams and business models, and they fulfill a number of customer needs, with opportunities to cross sell and attract new clients from one business to another. Ping An’s ecosystem is orchestrating some of China’s largest platforms in health care, second-hand cars, and real estate, as well as smart city solutions and wealth management. Therefore, when customer needs substantially change in times of crisis, Ping An is still likely to find that some of the offerings inside its ecosystem meet those emerging needs.
For instance, consider Ping An Good Doctor, an online health service provider. Before the crisis, it was a small part of the business and it recorded losses since its inception. Today, it might actually start to turn a profit. “Throughout the coronavirus outbreak, it has been demonstrated that online medical consultation is an efficient, convenient method that allows patients to avoid catching infectious diseases,” said Wang Tao, chairman and chief executive of Ping An Good Doctor.
They are not business units inside a corporate bureaucracy — instead, they are run as autonomous business ventures. As a system, Ping An can afford to lose in one bet, but then win in another. In other words, an ecosystem advantage enables dynamic revenue diversification.
Two crucial steps have helped Ping An to realize its enormous ecosystem advantage. First, it productizes proprietary technologies. Ping An has routinely repackaged solutions into new products to sell in the marketplace — but only after they have proven successful for Ping An itself. For example, it was one of the first companies to transfer all its work online in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, completing the process by Feb. 3, 2020. All the work was done by its 1.4 million employees and agents. But once the solution proved feasible, Ping An quickly turned it into a new offering for other financial service firms.
The second advantage goes back to Ping An’s organization of autonomous business units. Having good technologies is one thing — lots of companies have wonderful technologies — but finding new clients is often a larger hurdle. Ping An’s autonomy allows its business units to spread their influence to a wide variety of markets without the constant need to ask for approval at the corporate level. A single business unit can span its offerings from finance to healthcare and smart city solutions, thereby providing the holistic solutions across these markets. The company, for instance, had long been offering smart city solutions in Shenzhen. And now, during the crisis, Ping An Smart City is able to extend its offerings with the AI smart-image reading system for doctors, which was developed and sold within their Ping An Good Doctor healthcare business , within its “Love Shenzhen” application, a program that had been developed by the smart city subsidiary. Because Ping An orchestrates both the healthcare business, Ping An Good Doctor, and the smart city business, the ecosystem advantage — along with all the positive reinforcement — comes into sharp focus.
Though building a full-scale business ecosystem like Ping An’s requires consistent investment over the long run, here are a few steps companies can take to crisis-proof their business in the short term.
Reconnect with partners. Rather than turning all attention inwards, now is the time to reach out to your partner network. Let them know you are open to business — and new business in particular. Maximize learning system-wide. Open up your digital work tools to your business partners. Digital tools can help lower communication costs between you and your partners. Make sure transactions are done via an API rather than on a manual basis over emails. Build a technology shelf for your partners. Take inventory of your technology and resources that might be useful for partners. You might not be aware that you are sitting on new opportunities. Explore your market capabilities. Real-time market intelligence is gold. Your partners and customers are the best market opportunities out there. Don’t wait for the next quarterly report. Rethink the customer problem. Think differently. Your customer AC (after Covid) is going to behave differently than BC (before Covid). So rethink what customer problems you will need to solve and start preparing today. Kill the not-invented-here syndrome. Stop relying on do-it-yourself. It’s now high time to mobilize whatever resources you can from inside and outside your organization. Partner up to provide solutions to the new marketplace.
Hedging your bets was always important in an emerging market where opportunities and threats come and go. Organizing a business as an ecosystem enables companies to hedge and thrive. This is now also true for companies all around the world and especially true during the coronavirus crisis, in order to compete in the turbulent time. | {
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Uncomfortable Situation Seal
knock on neighbor's door to borrow eggs
she opens the door wearing nothing but slippers | {
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This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.
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CHICAGO -- Pokémon GO, the virtual mobile game that swept the country, turned one on Saturday. To honor the milestone, those still playing the game traveled from near and far for the first ever Pokémon GO Fest in Chicago. But what was supposed to be the largest ever meet up of Pokémon GO Fans, soon turned into a meltdown of technological proportions.
Organizers of the fest said they were giving attendees refunds due to the game not working at the event.
Tens of thousands gathered in Grant Park on Saturday to play in the virtual world of Pokémon GO.
Kamury Nava came all the way from Phoenix to catch a Pokémon called "Kingdra."
“When I first heard about this I was online trying to get my tickets real quick and my buddy came with me too," Nava said.
Twenty-thousand tickets sold out in 30 minutes.
“The Pokémon popping up everywhere, it’s like a dream come true,” Nava said.
But the dreams fans waited in long lines for quickly turned sour.
“The servers are down. We can’t catch anything, so we can’t play," Lulu Rodriguez said.
Issues with cell reception and game servers left thousands blind in a virtual world where time was of the essence.
"It just says, 'Fail to log in,'" Eloy Corral said.
One of the players said they were disappointed.
"That’s what we’re here for is to play and if we can’t play what’s the point of being here? We’ve been in line since 9, we were wrapped around and we just got in here and we can’t play," Rodriguez said.
“There’s been some latency for us as well. And we’re on it and we have the whole Niantic team making sure this will be a good experience for the fans today," Mike Quigley, Niantic, said.
Not long after, there was some better luck. But it was still going slow for most.
Others like 15-year-old Nicholas Lindblad didn’t seem as bothered by what was going on. He’s a fan of the game but the technical issues didn’t seem to faze him. Not after the long road just to get here.
“He was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome which means the left half of his heart never developed,” Cathy Lindblad, Nicholas' mom said.
His mom and dad were also in Chicago and shared the story of their son's 77 days waiting for a donor heart two years ago.
“While waiting for the heart, they did an evaluation of him and they found a tumor on his spine, which was on the T5 and they thought everything was going to be fine and eventually it moved on him and he lost the use of his legs from the waist down. They thought he’d be paralyzed for the rest of his life,” Dan Lindblad, Nicholas' dad said.
“Right around that time, this app called Pokémon GO came out and it got him out of the house and it got him walking to build his strength up," Nicholas' mom said.
That’s why in a virtual world of technical blunders, the 15-year-old’s real life journey has given him perspective and appreciation for the game itself.
“It got me out and walking because of the game. And my legs just got stronger because of going out and playing the game and walking,” Nicholas said.
41.872172 -87.61875 | {
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No one will be criminally charged for Prince's drug overdose, prosecutors say The doctor still denies any liability in the singer's death.
No criminal charges will be brought in the accidental drug overdose death of Prince, federal prosecutors said today.
Prosecutors also announced that Michael T. Schulenberg, the Minnesota doctor who prescribed an opioid painkiller for Prince a week before the musician’s 2016 death, has agreed to pay $30,000 to settle civil charges that he wrote an illegal prescription.
Prince died of an accidental fentanyl overdose in his Paisley Park estate April 21, 2016.
Carver County Attorney Mark Metz told reporters today that Prince thought he was taking Vicodin to manage pain but unknowingly took counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl.
"Prince had no idea he was taking a counterfeit pill that could kill him," Metz said.
Metz said law enforcement was unable to determine who provided the counterfeit Vicodin laced with fentanyl that killed Prince despite "intensive investigation."
Schulenberg, who denies any liability, violated the Controlled Substances Act when he had illegally written a prescription for Prince in someone else’s name, federal prosecutors said today in official settlement documents obtained by ABC News.
“Dr. Schulenberg prescribed Schedule 2 controlled substances in the name of an individual knowing that the controlled substances were intended to be used by another individual,” U.S. Attorney Greg Brooker said. “As licensed professionals, doctors are held to a high level of accountability in their prescribing practices, especially when it comes to highly addictive painkillers.”
Schulenberg agreed to settle the civil charges by paying $30,000 and submitting to monitoring by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
“As Minnesota and the nation struggle in the throes of an opioid crisis, the Drug Enforcement Administration will always strive to ensure that those responsible will be held accountable, no matter what their position may be,” DEA Minneapolis-St. Paul Division Assistant Special Agent in Charge Kenneth Solek said.
The settlement “is neither an admission of facts nor liability by Dr. Schulenberg,” court records said. Prosecutors also affirmed in a separate letter to Schulenberg’s attorneys that the doctor is not a target of a federal criminal investigation.
“Dr. Schulenberg decided to settle with the United States regarding alleged civil claims in order to avoid the expense, delay, and unknown outcome of litigation. He made no admission of facts nor liability and denies any such liability. The United States Attorneys’ Office for the District of Minnesota has confirmed that he is not a target in any criminal inquiry and there have been no allegations made by the government that Dr. Schulenberg had any role in Prince’s death,” Schulenberg’s attorney, Amy Conners, said in a statement to ABC News. “After he learned of Prince’s addiction, he immediately worked to refer Prince to a treatment facility and to transfer care to a chemical dependency specialist.”
Also on Thursday, Carver County Attorney Mark Metz held a press conference to inform the media that Prince thought he was taking Vicodin to manage pain but unknowingly took counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl.
"Prince had no idea he was taking a counterfeit pill that could kill him," Metz said.
Metz says Prince never actually had a prescription for Vicodin, he obtained those counterfeit pills and took them thinking they were Vicodin.
Despite “intensive” investigation,” Metz said law enforcement was unable to determine who provided the counterfeit Vicodin laced with fentanyl that killed Prince. No one will be criminally charged. | {
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One day I woke up with a strong feeling that it was time to set off into the unknown. I packed my stuff and together with M. we headed to an unearthly land - Iceland.
It turned out that we stayed there not one week, not even two, but exactly 18... months. We traversed lava fields, ate shark meat, fought with hurricane winds, escaped volcano eruption, and we've taken great delight in everything Icelandic.
During all this time I've been registering all these vast open spaces, otherworldly landscapes, in-between moments, trying to capture the essence of Iceland.
It's not the end of our adventure. Bite into Iceland with us!
More info: biteoficeland.com | Instagram | {
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Fox News forwarded the notion that it might be appropriate for school children to be forced to work in exchange for free school meals, after a Republican lawmaker in West Virginia proposed such a requirement for a new law curbing child hunger.
On Fox & Friends First, on-screen text asked viewers whether students should have to “work for their school meals” :
As The Washington Post blog “She The People” explained, the idea that students could be forced into labor in exchange for food comes from a Republican member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, who suggested the requirement be added to a bill intended to ensure no child goes hungry: | {
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Donald Trump has long touted his supposedly astronomical IQ. His secretary of state reportedly called him a moron. Mensa has now offered to solve this not-quite-a-mystery once and for all.
Donald Trump is "like, a smart person," according to Trump.
But apparently, not smart enough to realize the risk incurred to his pompous claims of brilliance by challenging everyone around him to an IQ test.
After it was reported that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called Trump a "moron" — or an "effing moron," according to MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle — Trump told Forbes magazine that the report was likely "fake news," but couldn't let the story drop there.
"If he did that, I guess we’ll have to compare IQ tests," Trump declared.
That sound you just heard was the folks at Mensa sharpening their No. 2 pencils.
"American Mensa would be happy to hold a testing session for President Trump and Secretary Tillerson," Mensa's communications director, Charles Brown, said.
Trump ought to be eager to take up the challenge, considering how often he has touted the idea of IQ tests for anyone he deems deficient intellectually — including his former primary opponent and now Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, back in 2015.
As Philip Bump notes at the Washington Post, "Bragging about his IQ has been a consistent theme over [Trump's] time in politics, as has his casually challenging others to an IQ-off." Bump cites over a dozen times when Trump had either crowed about his own IQ, sneered about the low IQ of others, or challenged them to a brain duel.
Of course, the reliability and validity of IQ tests has long been in question, but it's not as though Trump puts any stock into nerdy things like science, especially if it might get in the way of his ceaseless self-serving puffery.
As more and more people speak openly of their concerns over Trump's stability and fitness for office — including some in his own party and even the White House — it becomes clear that this IQ silliness is yet another way for him to attempt to distract the public from the utter mess and real danger his administration poses to the world.
You don't need to be a Mensa member to see it, either. | {
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The City of Toronto’s spring cleanup campaign is turning its tidy sights on abandoned bicycles, and wants your help.
City staff will, over the next few weeks, remove such bikes from rings and other locations across Toronto.
“The City is asking residents to assist in the effort by calling 311 to report any bicycle that appears abandoned,” a news release states.
“Residents can help staff identify the abandoned bikes correctly by providing as much information as possible, including the colour of the bike frame, the type of bike and the exact location.”
Obviously abandoned bikes will be removed immediately. When there is some question, a notification will be placed on the bike. If the bike has not been moved within seven days, staff will remove it.
Public works chair Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong said getting rid of the junkers makes room for active cyclists to lock up.
“Removing abandoned bicycles is an easy and effective way to ensure that the city continues to provide adequate bike parking for cyclists,” Minnan-Wong (Ward 34 Don Valley East) said in the statement.
The cleanup is part of the month-long “Clean Toronto Together” program that includes graffiti removal, school and workplace cleanup days and Mayor Rob Ford’s April 20 community cleanup day.
Read more about: | {
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Student Jobs
Working on campus is convenient and easy with UH Dining! Positions are available at all locations, including Moody Towers and Cougar Woods Dining Commons, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Market, Catering and more!
Students enjoy flexible schedules, on-campus job locations and you'll even get a free meal if you work at least 5 hours each shift!
All job postings are available through the Compass Group Careers website. Click the link below to go to your local listings and select the position to which you want to apply. Complete the application in its entirety. If you have any questions or need assistance, contact UH Dining Human Resources at (713) 743-6675. | {
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Heather's turn By nitrofirenitrofire Watch
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"Oh and I'm sure this whole time you've been away at college you have not gained a pound either." Amanda joked on the other end of the line.
"Not true! Here let me take a picture for you to prove it... I mean yeah it's not much but at least a pound haha" Heather laughed sending the picture.
Silence while Amanda waited for the picture, once it came, "Wow... fuck you, still skinny as ever while I'm over here inflating, hell I probably gained a pound just talking to you." she joked and put another chocolate into her mouth. "Better me than you I suppose, you'd never be able to handle filling out miss cheerleader".
"Hey now, that's EXCheerleader, I gave that up once I came here and I'm sure I'd be able to handle it just fine. I'd complain about it less than you do that's for sure." Heather smiled at the joke but for a second imagined what it would be like if she did let herself go a bit. Disgusted at the thought she shook her head and listened again, her hand against her chest still standing in front of the mirror.
"hmmm, I have an idea." Amanda said, her voice pregnant with thought, "you wouldn't last a day in these extra large panties honey, I'm so sure of it I'd bet you money even." she hit a few buttons on her phone, then put the call on speaker so she could watch the screen.
"Your on, I'd make a better fatty than you any day! It's too bad we'll never find out for sure since I don't plan on turning into a blimp like you anytime..." Heather pulled her phone away from her ear to see what the notification was. She was presented with a live video feed from Amanda, her chubby face and full body filling the screen. "What, miss me?" Heather asked her confused by this weird app.
"Last chance, do you really believe what you just said, that you'd be a better plumper than me?" another candy popped into her mouth, she was getting excited at the thought of what might happen to her friend. Her friend that has been skinny for her whole life.
"I am not sure what you mean by last chance" she was a little nervous for some reason, "but yes I think I..." before she could finish a flash came from her screen and a prompt popped up that said "CONSENT VERIFIED-LBS TRANSFER BEGUN" with a little progress bar starting from zero and ending at 50lbs. "WHAT JUST HAPPENED?" she just about yelled.
"OH MY GOD! I cannot believe this is happening. HA, honey you are about to join the thicc club and those butterflies in your stomach are about to have some company." Amanda shifted and swung her legs over the side of the bed to enjoy the show. Already her face was looking slimmer.
"I'm not thicc, what do you mean?" as if to answer her question she could feel her top growing tighter as she grew. "What's happening to me... oh no are you making me chubby?" she ran a hand over her once slim waist as it filled out more. Before her eyes she watched as the progress bar filled along with her panties. When the bar hit the end she her a muffle SNAP and could feel a release in her stomach. Looking down she realized that her cute thong had snapped and was now sliding down her blubbery thigh.
IMAGE DETAILS Image size 720x636px 1.05 MB Show More | {
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Clive Goodman, Royal family reporter Arrested again on July 8, he was chief reporter covering the royal family. He served four months in jail after pleading guilty in January 2007 to hacking the phone messages of aides to the royal family. A letter he wrote in 2007, challenging his dismissal because his actions “were carried out with the full knowledge and support” of other senior journalists, was made public on Aug. 16 and contradicted editors’ and executive’s claims that they were unaware of of the phone hacking.
Glenn Mulcaire, Private investigator Served six months in jail for his role in the hacking scandal of 2006. He was hired by Clive Goodman. Revelations from his private notes, seized by police for the initial investigation, are at the center of many of the new allegations. In response to public “vilification,” he made a statement of public apology in The Guardian on July 5.
Neville Thurlbeck, Chief reporter Arrested on April 5 as part of the investigation into phone hacking. His first name was found in Glenn Mulcaire’s notes, an indication that executives of News International had access to information suggesting that multiple reporters were engaged in phone hacking.
Ian Edmondson, Senior editor Arrested on April 5 as part of the investigation into phone hacking. He was fired in January after a forensic computer specialist found three e-mail messages sent to Mr. Edmundson with PIN codes for accessing voice mail. His first name was also found Glenn Mulcaire’s notes. When The News of the World moved offices in 2010, the computer Mr. Edmondson used was destroyed in what the company described as a standard procedure.
James Weatherup, Assistant editor Arrested on April 14. He was hired by Andy Coulson in 2004 and was said to have worked closely with Ian Edmundson.
Greg Miskiw, Former assistant editor Arrested on Aug. 10 as part of the phone hacking investigation. Was assistant editor under Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson. His name appears on a contract with private investigator Glenn Mulcaire that has been of great interest to the parliamentary committee investigating the phone hacking. On July 21 he surfaced in Florida, saying he was talking to the British police about the investigation and preparing to return to Britain.
Stuart Kuttner, Former managing editor Arrested on Aug. 2 as part of the investigation into phone hacking and police bribery. As managing editor of The News of the World for 22 years until 2009, he was responsible for the paper's finances during the period in question. In testimony to Parliament, Rebekah Brooks said all payments to private investigators would have gone through his office. James and Rupert Murdoch said they did not know whether his departure, immediately before new reports of phone hacking surfaced, was related to those accusations.
James Desborough, Reporter Arrested Aug. 18 for the investigation into phone hacking. An award-winning Hollywood reporter, he started working at The News of the World in 2005 and was promoted to be a Los Angeles-based editor for the paper in 2009.
Dan Evans, Former reporter Sky News reported he was arrested Aug. 19 in connection with the phone hacking investigation. He was suspended from his job as a reporter for The News of the World in 2010 when his name emerged in a phone-hacking civil suit against the paper.
News Corporation
Metropolitan Police
British Government
News International
News of the World
Dow Jones | {
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Go 1.5 Release Notes
Introduction to Go 1.5
The latest Go release, version 1.5, is a significant release, including major architectural changes to the implementation. Despite that, we expect almost all Go programs to continue to compile and run as before, because the release still maintains the Go 1 promise of compatibility.
The biggest developments in the implementation are:
The compiler and runtime are now written entirely in Go (with a little assembler). C is no longer involved in the implementation, and so the C compiler that was once necessary for building the distribution is gone.
The garbage collector is now concurrent and provides dramatically lower pause times by running, when possible, in parallel with other goroutines.
By default, Go programs run with GOMAXPROCS set to the number of cores available; in prior releases it defaulted to 1.
set to the number of cores available; in prior releases it defaulted to 1. Support for internal packages is now provided for all repositories, not just the Go core.
The go command now provides experimental support for "vendoring" external dependencies.
command now provides experimental support for "vendoring" external dependencies. A new go tool trace command supports fine-grained tracing of program execution.
command supports fine-grained tracing of program execution. A new go doc command (distinct from godoc ) is customized for command-line use.
These and a number of other changes to the implementation and tools are discussed below.
The release also contains one small language change involving map literals.
Finally, the timing of the release strays from the usual six-month interval, both to provide more time to prepare this major release and to shift the schedule thereafter to time the release dates more conveniently.
Changes to the language
Map literals
Due to an oversight, the rule that allowed the element type to be elided from slice literals was not applied to map keys. This has been corrected in Go 1.5. An example will make this clear. As of Go 1.5, this map literal,
m := map[Point]string{ Point{29.935523, 52.891566}: "Persepolis", Point{-25.352594, 131.034361}: "Uluru", Point{37.422455, -122.084306}: "Googleplex", }
may be written as follows, without the Point type listed explicitly:
m := map[Point]string{ {29.935523, 52.891566}: "Persepolis", {-25.352594, 131.034361}: "Uluru", {37.422455, -122.084306}: "Googleplex", }
The Implementation
No more C
The compiler and runtime are now implemented in Go and assembler, without C. The only C source left in the tree is related to testing or to cgo . There was a C compiler in the tree in 1.4 and earlier. It was used to build the runtime; a custom compiler was necessary in part to guarantee the C code would work with the stack management of goroutines. Since the runtime is in Go now, there is no need for this C compiler and it is gone. Details of the process to eliminate C are discussed elsewhere.
The conversion from C was done with the help of custom tools created for the job. Most important, the compiler was actually moved by automatic translation of the C code into Go. It is in effect the same program in a different language. It is not a new implementation of the compiler so we expect the process will not have introduced new compiler bugs. An overview of this process is available in the slides for this presentation.
Independent of but encouraged by the move to Go, the names of the tools have changed. The old names 6g , 8g and so on are gone; instead there is just one binary, accessible as go tool compile , that compiles Go source into binaries suitable for the architecture and operating system specified by $GOARCH and $GOOS . Similarly, there is now one linker ( go tool link ) and one assembler ( go tool asm ). The linker was translated automatically from the old C implementation, but the assembler is a new native Go implementation discussed in more detail below.
Similar to the drop of the names 6g , 8g , and so on, the output of the compiler and assembler are now given a plain .o suffix rather than .8 , .6 , etc.
Garbage collector
The garbage collector has been re-engineered for 1.5 as part of the development outlined in the design document. Expected latencies are much lower than with the collector in prior releases, through a combination of advanced algorithms, better scheduling of the collector, and running more of the collection in parallel with the user program. The "stop the world" phase of the collector will almost always be under 10 milliseconds and usually much less.
For systems that benefit from low latency, such as user-responsive web sites, the drop in expected latency with the new collector may be important.
Details of the new collector were presented in a talk at GopherCon 2015.
Runtime
In Go 1.5, the order in which goroutines are scheduled has been changed. The properties of the scheduler were never defined by the language, but programs that depend on the scheduling order may be broken by this change. We have seen a few (erroneous) programs affected by this change. If you have programs that implicitly depend on the scheduling order, you will need to update them.
Another potentially breaking change is that the runtime now sets the default number of threads to run simultaneously, defined by GOMAXPROCS , to the number of cores available on the CPU. In prior releases the default was 1. Programs that do not expect to run with multiple cores may break inadvertently. They can be updated by removing the restriction or by setting GOMAXPROCS explicitly. For a more detailed discussion of this change, see the design document.
Build
Now that the Go compiler and runtime are implemented in Go, a Go compiler must be available to compile the distribution from source. Thus, to build the Go core, a working Go distribution must already be in place. (Go programmers who do not work on the core are unaffected by this change.) Any Go 1.4 or later distribution (including gccgo ) will serve. For details, see the design document.
Ports
Due mostly to the industry's move away from the 32-bit x86 architecture, the set of binary downloads provided is reduced in 1.5. A distribution for the OS X operating system is provided only for the amd64 architecture, not 386 . Similarly, the ports for Snow Leopard (Apple OS X 10.6) still work but are no longer released as a download or maintained since Apple no longer maintains that version of the operating system. Also, the dragonfly/386 port is no longer supported at all because DragonflyBSD itself no longer supports the 32-bit 386 architecture.
There are however several new ports available to be built from source. These include darwin/arm and darwin/arm64 . The new port linux/arm64 is mostly in place, but cgo is only supported using external linking.
Also available as experiments are ppc64 and ppc64le (64-bit PowerPC, big- and little-endian). Both these ports support cgo but only with internal linking.
On FreeBSD, Go 1.5 requires FreeBSD 8-STABLE+ because of its new use of the SYSCALL instruction.
On NaCl, Go 1.5 requires SDK version pepper-41. Later pepper versions are not compatible due to the removal of the sRPC subsystem from the NaCl runtime.
On Darwin, the use of the system X.509 certificate interface can be disabled with the ios build tag.
The Solaris port now has full support for cgo and the packages net and crypto/x509 , as well as a number of other fixes and improvements.
Translating
As part of the process to eliminate C from the tree, the compiler and linker were translated from C to Go. It was a genuine (machine assisted) translation, so the new programs are essentially the old programs translated rather than new ones with new bugs. We are confident the translation process has introduced few if any new bugs, and in fact uncovered a number of previously unknown bugs, now fixed.
The assembler is a new program, however; it is described below.
Renaming
The suites of programs that were the compilers ( 6g , 8g , etc.), the assemblers ( 6a , 8a , etc.), and the linkers ( 6l , 8l , etc.) have each been consolidated into a single tool that is configured by the environment variables GOOS and GOARCH . The old names are gone; the new tools are available through the go tool mechanism as go tool compile , go tool asm , and go tool link . Also, the file suffixes .6 , .8 , etc. for the intermediate object files are also gone; now they are just plain .o files.
For example, to build and link a program on amd64 for Darwin using the tools directly, rather than through go build , one would run:
$ export GOOS=darwin GOARCH=amd64 $ go tool compile program.go $ go tool link program.o
Moving
Because the go/types package has now moved into the main repository (see below), the vet and cover tools have also been moved. They are no longer maintained in the external golang.org/x/tools repository, although (deprecated) source still resides there for compatibility with old releases.
Compiler
As described above, the compiler in Go 1.5 is a single Go program, translated from the old C source, that replaces 6g , 8g , and so on. Its target is configured by the environment variables GOOS and GOARCH .
The 1.5 compiler is mostly equivalent to the old, but some internal details have changed. One significant change is that evaluation of constants now uses the math/big package rather than a custom (and less well tested) implementation of high precision arithmetic. We do not expect this to affect the results.
For the amd64 architecture only, the compiler has a new option, -dynlink , that assists dynamic linking by supporting references to Go symbols defined in external shared libraries.
Assembler
Like the compiler and linker, the assembler in Go 1.5 is a single program that replaces the suite of assemblers ( 6a , 8a , etc.) and the environment variables GOARCH and GOOS configure the architecture and operating system. Unlike the other programs, the assembler is a wholly new program written in Go.
The new assembler is very nearly compatible with the previous ones, but there are a few changes that may affect some assembler source files. See the updated assembler guide for more specific information about these changes. In summary:
First, the expression evaluation used for constants is a little different. It now uses unsigned 64-bit arithmetic and the precedence of operators ( + , - , << , etc.) comes from Go, not C. We expect these changes to affect very few programs but manual verification may be required.
Perhaps more important is that on machines where SP or PC is only an alias for a numbered register, such as R13 for the stack pointer and R15 for the hardware program counter on ARM, a reference to such a register that does not include a symbol is now illegal. For example, SP and 4(SP) are illegal but sym+4(SP) is fine. On such machines, to refer to the hardware register use its true R name.
One minor change is that some of the old assemblers permitted the notation
constant=value
to define a named constant. Since this is always possible to do with the traditional C-like #define notation, which is still supported (the assembler includes an implementation of a simplified C preprocessor), the feature was removed.
Linker
The linker in Go 1.5 is now one Go program, that replaces 6l , 8l , etc. Its operating system and instruction set are specified by the environment variables GOOS and GOARCH .
There are several other changes. The most significant is the addition of a -buildmode option that expands the style of linking; it now supports situations such as building shared libraries and allowing other languages to call into Go libraries. Some of these were outlined in a design document. For a list of the available build modes and their use, run
$ go help buildmode
Another minor change is that the linker no longer records build time stamps in the header of Windows executables. Also, although this may be fixed, Windows cgo executables are missing some DWARF information.
Finally, the -X flag, which takes two arguments, as in
-X importpath.name value
now also accepts a more common Go flag style with a single argument that is itself a name=value pair:
-X importpath.name=value
Although the old syntax still works, it is recommended that uses of this flag in scripts and the like be updated to the new form.
Go command
The go command's basic operation is unchanged, but there are a number of changes worth noting.
The previous release introduced the idea of a directory internal to a package being unimportable through the go command. In 1.4, it was tested with the introduction of some internal elements in the core repository. As suggested in the design document, that change is now being made available to all repositories. The rules are explained in the design document, but in summary any package in or under a directory named internal may be imported by packages rooted in the same subtree. Existing packages with directory elements named internal may be inadvertently broken by this change, which was why it was advertised in the last release.
Another change in how packages are handled is the experimental addition of support for "vendoring". For details, see the documentation for the go command and the design document.
There have also been several minor changes. Read the documentation for full details.
SWIG support has been updated such that .swig and .swigcxx now require SWIG 3.0.6 or later.
and now require SWIG 3.0.6 or later. The install subcommand now removes the binary created by the build subcommand in the source directory, if present, to avoid problems having two binaries present in the tree.
subcommand now removes the binary created by the subcommand in the source directory, if present, to avoid problems having two binaries present in the tree. The std (standard library) wildcard package name now excludes commands. A new cmd wildcard covers the commands.
(standard library) wildcard package name now excludes commands. A new wildcard covers the commands. A new -asmflags build option sets flags to pass to the assembler. However, the -ccflags build option has been dropped; it was specific to the old, now deleted C compiler .
build option sets flags to pass to the assembler. However, the build option has been dropped; it was specific to the old, now deleted C compiler . A new -buildmode build option sets the build mode, described above.
build option sets the build mode, described above. A new -pkgdir build option sets the location of installed package archives, to help isolate custom builds.
build option sets the location of installed package archives, to help isolate custom builds. A new -toolexec build option allows substitution of a different command to invoke the compiler and so on. This acts as a custom replacement for go tool .
build option allows substitution of a different command to invoke the compiler and so on. This acts as a custom replacement for . The test subcommand now has a -count flag to specify how many times to run each test and benchmark. The testing package does the work here, through the -test.count flag.
subcommand now has a flag to specify how many times to run each test and benchmark. The package does the work here, through the flag. The generate subcommand has a couple of new features. The -run option specifies a regular expression to select which directives to execute; this was proposed but never implemented in 1.4. The executing pattern now has access to two new environment variables: $GOLINE returns the source line number of the directive and $DOLLAR expands to a dollar sign.
subcommand has a couple of new features. The option specifies a regular expression to select which directives to execute; this was proposed but never implemented in 1.4. The executing pattern now has access to two new environment variables: returns the source line number of the directive and expands to a dollar sign. The get subcommand now has a -insecure flag that must be enabled if fetching from an insecure repository, one that does not encrypt the connection.
Go vet command
The go tool vet command now does more thorough validation of struct tags.
Trace command
A new tool is available for dynamic execution tracing of Go programs. The usage is analogous to how the test coverage tool works. Generation of traces is integrated into go test , and then a separate execution of the tracing tool itself analyzes the results:
$ go test -trace=trace.out path/to/package $ go tool trace [flags] pkg.test trace.out
The flags enable the output to be displayed in a browser window. For details, run go tool trace -help . There is also a description of the tracing facility in this talk from GopherCon 2015.
Go doc command
A few releases back, the go doc command was deleted as being unnecessary. One could always run " godoc . " instead. The 1.5 release introduces a new go doc command with a more convenient command-line interface than godoc 's. It is designed for command-line usage specifically, and provides a more compact and focused presentation of the documentation for a package or its elements, according to the invocation. It also provides case-insensitive matching and support for showing the documentation for unexported symbols. For details run " go help doc ".
Cgo
When parsing #cgo lines, the invocation ${SRCDIR} is now expanded into the path to the source directory. This allows options to be passed to the compiler and linker that involve file paths relative to the source code directory. Without the expansion the paths would be invalid when the current working directory changes.
Solaris now has full cgo support.
On Windows, cgo now uses external linking by default.
When a C struct ends with a zero-sized field, but the struct itself is not zero-sized, Go code can no longer refer to the zero-sized field. Any such references will have to be rewritten.
Performance
As always, the changes are so general and varied that precise statements about performance are difficult to make. The changes are even broader ranging than usual in this release, which includes a new garbage collector and a conversion of the runtime to Go. Some programs may run faster, some slower. On average the programs in the Go 1 benchmark suite run a few percent faster in Go 1.5 than they did in Go 1.4, while as mentioned above the garbage collector's pauses are dramatically shorter, and almost always under 10 milliseconds.
Builds in Go 1.5 will be slower by a factor of about two. The automatic translation of the compiler and linker from C to Go resulted in unidiomatic Go code that performs poorly compared to well-written Go. Analysis tools and refactoring helped to improve the code, but much remains to be done. Further profiling and optimization will continue in Go 1.6 and future releases. For more details, see these slides and associated video.
Core library
Flag
The flag package's PrintDefaults function, and method on FlagSet , have been modified to create nicer usage messages. The format has been changed to be more human-friendly and in the usage messages a word quoted with `backquotes` is taken to be the name of the flag's operand to display in the usage message. For instance, a flag created with the invocation,
cpuFlag = flag.Int("cpu", 1, "run `N` processes in parallel")
will show the help message,
-cpu N run N processes in parallel (default 1)
Also, the default is now listed only when it is not the zero value for the type.
Floats in math/big
The math/big package has a new, fundamental data type, Float , which implements arbitrary-precision floating-point numbers. A Float value is represented by a boolean sign, a variable-length mantissa, and a 32-bit fixed-size signed exponent. The precision of a Float (the mantissa size in bits) can be specified explicitly or is otherwise determined by the first operation that creates the value. Once created, the size of a Float 's mantissa may be modified with the SetPrec method. Floats support the concept of infinities, such as are created by overflow, but values that would lead to the equivalent of IEEE 754 NaNs trigger a panic. Float operations support all IEEE-754 rounding modes. When the precision is set to 24 (53) bits, operations that stay within the range of normalized float32 ( float64 ) values produce the same results as the corresponding IEEE-754 arithmetic on those values.
Go types
The go/types package up to now has been maintained in the golang.org/x repository; as of Go 1.5 it has been relocated to the main repository. The code at the old location is now deprecated. There is also a modest API change in the package, discussed below.
Associated with this move, the go/constant package also moved to the main repository; it was golang.org/x/tools/exact before. The go/importer package also moved to the main repository, as well as some tools described above.
Net
The DNS resolver in the net package has almost always used cgo to access the system interface. A change in Go 1.5 means that on most Unix systems DNS resolution will no longer require cgo , which simplifies execution on those platforms. Now, if the system's networking configuration permits, the native Go resolver will suffice. The important effect of this change is that each DNS resolution occupies a goroutine rather than a thread, so a program with multiple outstanding DNS requests will consume fewer operating system resources.
The decision of how to run the resolver applies at run time, not build time. The netgo build tag that has been used to enforce the use of the Go resolver is no longer necessary, although it still works. A new netcgo build tag forces the use of the cgo resolver at build time. To force cgo resolution at run time set GODEBUG=netdns=cgo in the environment. More debug options are documented here.
This change applies to Unix systems only. Windows, Mac OS X, and Plan 9 systems behave as before.
Reflect
The reflect package has two new functions: ArrayOf and FuncOf . These functions, analogous to the extant SliceOf function, create new types at runtime to describe arrays and functions.
Hardening
Several dozen bugs were found in the standard library through randomized testing with the go-fuzz tool. Bugs were fixed in the archive/tar , archive/zip , compress/flate , encoding/gob , fmt , html/template , image/gif , image/jpeg , image/png , and text/template , packages. The fixes harden the implementation against incorrect and malicious inputs.
Minor changes to the library | {
"pile_set_name": "OpenWebText2"
} |
A former pastor and father of seven no longer faces a felony charge for distributing pamphlets on jury nullification outside a Michigan courthouse.
Keith Wood, who currently works as an insurance broker, was arrested two days before Thanksgiving and charged with jury tampering, a misdemeanor, and obstruction of justice, a felony.
Wood's attorney, David Kallman, says the dismissal of the felony this week paves the way for a trial on the misdemeanor later this year. Kallman says if Wood is found not guilty, he will be filing a federal lawsuit seeking compensation for Wood and a declaration that what he did was legal.
Mecosta County Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Booher found Wednesday the felony could not be charged under state court rules, which forbid charging of a common law crime when a specific statute exists for the alleged offense, in this case jury tampering.
Wood and Kallman say no jury was sitting on the day he was arrested, but Booher did not dismiss the misdemeanor charge and found the definition of a juror could include people summoned to jury duty, Kallman says.
Wood's bail initially was set at $150,000, an amount Kallman calls an outrageous attempt to punish his client. Wood was able to post a $15,000 bond using his credit card, and with the dismissal of the felony charge will be refunded the full amount.
Jury nullification is a practice in which jurors refuse to find a defendant guilty, even if the elements of a crime are proven beyond a reasonable doubt, because they disagree with a law or its application. Prosecutors and judges generally frown upon the practice, and the right to nullification seldom is spoken of in court.
Ironically, Kallman says, he plans to present jurors at trial with the pamphlet Wood distributed to passers-by before his arrest. He says he can see no way for prosecutors to exclude it.
"We feel pretty good that we'll get this kicked," Kallman says. "This is such a clear violation of the First Amendment."
Kallman has made no secret of plans for the federal lawsuit against "anyone involved in this charade" and the county government, alleging malicious prosecution and false imprisonment. He previously said he suspected that's why prosecutors had not dropped the case.
"They know they are exposed and they have liability and they don't have immunity for what they did," he said in December. "[But] if they bring the case and somehow manage to win conviction for something, they cut our knees off."
The promised federal lawsuit could become a test case that would clarify the rights of jury nullification advocates, who periodically are arrested for distributing information – including the same pamphlet from the Fully Informed Jury Association that Wood was distributing.
A hindrance to creating a national precedent upholding their rights, jury nullification advocates say, is that they often win at the lowest court.
But there is some legal debate about whether handing out fliers outside a courthouse is protected by the First Amendment.
"If I had to bet – on this very scanty description of the facts, and the facts really do matter – I bet courts will let the government control this speech," Don Herzog, a law professor at the University of Michigan, told U.S. News after the charges were filed, reasoning the government can forbid discussion of jury nullification during court proceedings and that the law is "hyperdeferential" to speech restrictions "when the government has a job to do."
Other legal experts believe courts would conclude advocacy of jury nullification on a sidewalk is constitutionally protected. They note the Supreme Court in Brandenburg v. Ohio found general advocacy of illegal conduct is protected by the First Amendment, making general advocacy of legal conduct even more clearly protected.
"If he was handing out these leaflets on a public street where other political speech is permitted, the government can't punish him for engaging in speech promoting jury nullification," Ilya Somin, a law professor at George Mason University, said in reaction to the initial charges.
"Jury nullification in and of itself isn't even illegal," Somin said, and even if it were, the Brandenburg ruling protects advocacy of breaking laws unless it's likely to cause imminent criminal conduct.
A member of Mecosta County prosecutor Brian Thiede's staff said he was unable to comment on pending cases.
Kallman says he views a federal lawsuit as necessary, particularly given the firm position of the prosecution. | {
"pile_set_name": "OpenWebText2"
} |
Check-in & Check-out Policies
Standard Check-in: 2:00 PM
Standard Check-out: 12:00 PM
Early Check-in: Guests must request an early check-in at least 24 hours in advance of their scheduled check-in time.
If no such request is made, guests may only check-in early if a room is available.
Late Check-out: Guests must request a late check-out at least 24 hours in advance of their scheduled check-out time.
If no such request is made, any late check-out is a full days charge. A late check-out between 2:00 PM and 6:00 PM will incur a ½ night charge if an apartment is available.
Payment Policies
All guests must pay all room dues prior to check-in.
The preferred method of payment for all guests is through a Credit Card, but LR does accept payments in various other forms.
LR does not accept cash as payment for room dues unless approval is granted prior to check-in.
Reservations & Deposit Policy
A guaranteed reservation assures you of a room even if you check-in after 6:00 PM.
If a room is not available, we will arrange another accommodation at our expense.
All reservations made through any website must be guaranteed by a major Credit Card.
Certain reservations may require a deposit or hold to be placed on a guest's credit card.
Please note that children above 5 years of age will be considered as full occupants.
Cancellation and Prepayment Policies
Cancellation policies may vary depending on the rate or dates of your reservation.
For reservations of less than 30 days, LR has a standard 72-hours cancellation policy.
Guests must cancel a confirmed reservation prior to 72-hours before their scheduled check-in time to avoid being charged for that night's stay.
Find Out More About the Most Suitable Service Apartments in Mumbai – Lalco Residency
Mumbai is a beautiful and interesting city that offers just about anything – a handful of wonderful attractions, a fine mix of culture, a great deal of astonishing food selection, amazing people, and countless opportunities for travel and personal growth. Staying in Mumbai for leisure, business or for a variety of purposes requires a decent and comfortable place to stay that guests can consider as their “home”. Lalco Residency’s Service Apartments in Mumbai offers an ideal solution for an inspiring and wondrous stay in this fascinating and colourful city.
Lalco Residency’s Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, Service Apartments offer comfort, a homey atmosphere, and suitable amenities for guests who require more than just a place to sleep in. Lalco Residency acknowledges the need of guests to experience only the best, at all times.
How to Spot a “Home-Away-From-Home” in Mumbai.
Looking for warm and pleasant Mumbai Accommodations can be quite challenging because of the numerous choices and a wide variety of options. Some of the factors that need to be considered are accessibility to local and public transport, safety and security, location, proximity to areas of interest, facilities, services, and the overall atmosphere that the apartment provides. These are all important elements for people who are looking for an accommodation that will serve as their home while in Mumbai. LR’s Service Apartments Mumbai are perfectly located to provide a combination of convenience and superior comfort.
Different people have different needs. What are your needs?
Some people require kitchens to cook, others are looking for living rooms or suites for more space, while still others are just looking for cable television and fast internet speeds as top requirements. For some, a cosy place to sleep in, night time security, and a ready-made breakfast every day are more than enough. For meticulous guests who have high standards, all these amenities and facilities are required. Lalco Residency offers all of these services, amenities, comforts, and much more, making it the perfect solution for people who want more when it comes to booking hotels or serviced apartments in Bombay (Mumbai).
Want to Stay Close to the Airport?
If this is a top priority for you, Lalco Residency is definitely the place to stay. Just search (or Google)“ service apartments in Mumbai near airport”, and you’ll see we have one of the highest ratings of any Serviced Apartment (or Specialty Lodging as TripAdvisor categorizes us) on Google, TripAdvisor and almost every other Travel Advisory/Booking sites. While conventional hotels are the usual choices for many, service apartments can actually be more practical and economical. Such accommodations can also provide the amenities of a hotel plus added features that are highly beneficial to make the stay even more enjoyable and worthwhile.
LR offers the best accommodations, whether you’re looking for hotel rooms or service apartments near Mumbai Airport. We even offer reasonably priced transportation services to help you get to and from the airport or any other place (unlike most overpriced hotels).
Why Choose Apartments in Mumbai for Short Stays?
Service apartments can actually provide more in terms of living space by providing fully equipped kitchen facilities, appliances (like a washer/dryer), multiple bathrooms (for guests of guests), and areas to relax outside of a bedroom. Groups and families can benefit from such type of accommodations because service apartments are generally more flexible when it comes to the number of occupants. For these reasons, service apartments can be considered as more practical and economical choices for family vacations, business trips, and short stays.
1. Short Stay Apartments in Mumbai enhance the whole Mumbai experience because it is always a wonderful treat to come home to a comfortable and welcoming place at the end of each day. Lalco Residency, for instance, offers service apartments that can provide the luxury of a hotel and convenience of a home. Short stays are guaranteed to be more relaxing when you don’t have to spend every minute of your relaxation time in a bedroom. At LR you have your own living room, dining room and kitchen to make your stay more enjoyable.
2. LR offers the best of both worlds. It offers the services and amenities of a hotel while offering the space and privacy of an apartment. LR offers what we like to call, hotel apartments in Mumbai, rather than just an apartment or a hotel. Like a hotel, if you want Room Service or Laundry Services, we offer them, but at a much lower cost than your standard hotel. Like an apartment, if you want to cook for yourself or do your own laundry, we provide you with the facilities and appliances to do so. If you’re looking for a Swimming Pool, we’ve got two, something many hotels have, but we also have a Squash Court and a Badminton Court, two facilities only the best apartments offer (and almost no hotels can afford to offer). Our facilities and amenities ensure that guests can have more than just a place to sleep and rest.
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4. Most hotel apartments in Mumbai can offer specialized assistance and travel information to guests such as local and public transport, the best places to “wine and dine”, must-see places, and recommended activities to try while exploring the city. Transportation services can likewise be provided for more comfortable and convenient access to numerous places of interests.
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6. Service Apartments in Mumbai offer great deals for groups and individuals looking for a nice, relaxing and affordable place to stay. We offer apartments from one to six bedrooms that can fit between two and ten people. The larger the apartment and the more people, the more affordable the stay becomes on a per person and per room basis. Our affordable prices and award-winning services make LR the perfect place for family occasions, wedding functions and group gatherings. For families with small children, outdoor play areas and well-equipped playgrounds are also accessible. For families with large children, our Club House offers a wide variety of activities from Badminton and Squash to Table Tennis (known as TT in India) and Pool.
7. Executive homes serviced apartments such as the beautiful Lalco Residency can open doors to almost everything good that Mumbai has to offer. Mumbai is a wondrous city that promises an interesting mix of authentic Indian heritage, diverse civilization, and modern culture. Lalco Residency can open multiple avenues for guests and visitors to explore great landmarks such as the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, the Kanheri Caves, Gateway of India, Kora Kendra, Bandra Fort, Essel World and the Water Kingdom, and the Juhu Chowpatty among many others.
8. Premium service apartments such as Lalco Residency also offer great home-style cuisine that can make guests feel closer to home. Home-cooked food is easily accessible to make the stay even more delightful and memorable in a lot of ways. With a wide range of food varieties for almost everyone, cooked by expert chefs, mealtime is always something to look forward to. With sumptuous food and customized menu, living in service apartments in Mumbai for 1 month can be a homey, delightful, and truly memorable experience.
9. It is easy and convenient to book a reservation or inquire about short-term apartments in Mumbai. Lalco Residency has a highly efficient sales team that can properly address guests’ queries and various concerns about the accommodations. Questions about short-term and long-term stays are addressed professionally. This team of accommodation experts can also provide the most affordable rates and great deals that will suit different budget requirements.
Why Choose Lalco Residency Over a Hotel?
Service Apartments In Mumbai For Rent
are a favourable and practical solution whatever the purpose of your trip (pleasure, business, work-related, cultural visit, short-term or long-term stay), there is always an apartment perfectly designed to meet all of your requirements and wishes. More than that, there is a highly-specialized and professional sales team that offers affordable deals to ensure that every guest gets absolute value for money.
Families and groups travelling together can also benefit from staying in service apartments in Mumbai.The amenities and facilities are carefully designed to provide optimum comfort and convenience to make sure that guests will have an ultimate one-of-a-kind Mumbai experience. Aside from comfort, great food selection, and countless activities; Lalco Residency takes pride in the cleanliness and overall feel of their service apartments. The units are well-maintained and the highest standards are practised to ensure a homey and tidy atmosphere at all times.
Lalco Residency also offers 24-hour assistance and security services to its guests and occupants. With top safety measures, guests can have a peaceful and hassle-free stay.
Mumbai is a highly progressive and modern city that is frequently visited by businessmen and corporate people from all over the world. Business trips in Mumbai are more convenient and productive when staying in a serviced apartment such as the Lalco Residency. It has the right amenities to accommodate conferences and business meetings such as function halls, conference rooms that can accommodate as much as 50 persons, formal and informal meeting rooms, and audio-visual devices. It also offers facilities that can conveniently mix pleasure with business such as a billiard hall, a tennis court, a squash court, and a swimming pool.
Visit Mumbai in style and comfort. Make new discoveries and immerse into the colourful and delightful Indian culture. Experience great cuisine and authentic Indian hospitality, and make Lalco Residency your top choice of accommodation in your wondrous journey. | {
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Wages for low-income workers collapsed under Obama
By Andre Damon
4 September 2015
With the approach of the 2016 elections, the Democratic Party and its trade union allies are once again ramping up their efforts to fraudulently posture as advocates of working people. Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have called for raising the federal minimum wage, while the Obama administration has made much ado about a set of trivial changes to miscellaneous work rules that it claims will significantly benefit low-income workers.
But these attempts to palm off the Democrats as defenders of the working class, and in particular of low-income workers, stand in stark contrast to the actual record of the Obama administration, which has waged a systematic and determined campaign to slash the wages of workers in order to further enrich the banks, hedge funds and major corporations.
This reality was made clear in a report published Wednesday by the National Employment Law Project (NELP), which showed that, despite the reduction in the nominal unemployment rate and continued increases in productivity, workers’ wages fell sharply under the Obama presidency.
Overall, workers’ wages declined by four percent, after adjusting for inflation, between 2009 and 2014. But the lowest-paid workers saw the sharpest decline: those in the lowest-earning quintile had their wages fall by 5.7 percent, compared with a 2.6 percent decline for the top-earning quintile.
“Stagnant wages have become a fact of life for nearly all of America’s workers, but workers in lower-paying occupations are finding it especially tough to keep up with the rising cost of living,” said Christine Owens, executive director of the NELP, in a statement. “Not only are their paychecks not growing, but their purchasing power has shrunk considerably, and to a far greater extent than that of higher-wage earners.”
For workers in low-paying industries, including food preparation workers, janitors and cleaners, personal care aides, home health aides, maids and housekeeping cleaners, the drop was even sharper. The report notes, “Food preparation workers and cooks saw wage declines of 7.7 percent and 8.9 percent, respectively (amounting to roughly $1,622 and $2,185 less in income in 2014 than in 2009).”
Retail sales workers had their real median wages fall by 5 percent, personal care aides had their wages fall by 6.6 percent and janitors had their wages fall by the same amount.
To the extent that there has been a growth in the number of jobs in the US labor market, it has been overwhelmingly in low-wage sectors. A 2014 report by the NELP found that while US businesses had added 1.85 million low-wage jobs over the previous six years, they had eliminated 1.83 million medium-wage and high-wage jobs during the same time.
This trend is only set to continue in the coming period. The new report notes, “Five of the ten occupations that the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects will add the greatest number of jobs between 2012 and 2022 were at the bottom of the occupational distribution in 2014, with real median wages between $8.84 and $10.97.”
It added, “In addition, six of the 10 highest-growth occupations experienced real wage declines of 5.0 percent or more between 2009 and 2014, as compared to a 4.0 percent average decline across all occupations.”
The report notes, “The declines in real wages since the Great Recession continue a decades-long trend of wage stagnation for workers in the United States.” But Irene Tung, a senior policy researcher at the NELP told the New York Times that “the imbalance in the economy has become more pronounced since the recession.”
The same day as the NELP published its findings, the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) published a report showing that while labor productivity has continued to grow since 2008, wages have fallen dramatically, with the entire benefit of the growth in productivity going to corporate shareholders and executives.
The EPI reported, “Net productivity grew 72.2 percent between 1973 and 2014. Yet inflation-adjusted hourly compensation of the median worker rose just 8.7 percent, or 0.20 percent annually, over this same period, with essentially all of the growth occurring between 1995 and 2002.”
The report added, “If the hourly pay of typical American workers had kept pace with productivity growth since the 1970s, then there would have been no rise in income inequality during that period.”
These figures express the consequences of the decades-long assault on workers’ wages and benefits that has been dramatically accelerated under the Obama administration.
Beginning in the 1970s, the US ruling class responded to the decline in the world position of American capitalism with a ruthless policy of deindustrialization and class warfare. With the full complicity of the trade unions, US corporations slashed millions of manufacturing jobs and used the resulting rise of mass unemployment to slash workers’ wages and benefits.
The US government responded to the 2008 financial meltdown by seeking to impose the entire burden of the crisis onto the working class. Even after the Obama administration funneled trillions of dollars into Wall Street banks, it made the expansion of low-wage manufacturing a precondition for providing funds to the automakers in the 2009 restructuring of GM and Chrysler. This set a precedent for slashing wages throughout the economy.
Now, seven years after the 2008 crisis, the US and world economy appear headed toward another financial crisis and slump. Under these conditions, the ruling class will only accelerate and deepen its offensive against workers, seeking once again to impose the burden of the capitalist crisis onto the working class.
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På Langeskov Skole på Fyn oplever lærerne ofte vold og trusler fra børnene, skriver Fyens Stiftstidende.
På afdelingen Pilen, der huser skolens SFO og årgangene 0. til 3. klasse samt specialklasser for hele kommunen, bliver lærerne mødt af kommentarer som »du skal dø«, »jeg henter en kniv derhjemme og tager med«, »fede pikslikker« og luder«. Det fremgår af en rapport fra Arbejdstilsynet.
Rapporten beskriver, hvordan lærere ofte bliver udsat for fysisk vold i form af spark, bid, slag, spyt, skulderskub og kasten med sten. En lærer har fået brækket sine fingre bagover, mens elever har brugt nåle som knojern.
Der er ifølge rapporten registreret 15 eksempler på vold i skoleåret 2016-17. Det er i alle tilfælde vold, der har ført til synlige resultater i form af blå mærker, sår, hul på bukser og på hud og en brækket tommelfinger.
Skolen er derfor blevet mærket med en rød smiley af Arbejdstilsynet.
Berlingske kunne tidligere på måneden fortælle, at der er sket en signifikant stigning i andelen af lærere, der udsættes for vold i helt almindelige folkeskoler. Ifølge tal fra Det Nationale Forskningscenter for Arbejdsmiljø angav 19,3 procent af de adspurgte lærere i 2016, at de havde været udsat for vold på arbejdspladsen inden for det seneste år, mens den tilsvarende andel i 2012 var 13 procent.
Det er langt fra altid, at lærerne registrerer voldstilfældene officielt. Det skyldes blandt andet tvivl om, hvad der egentlig skal registreret, samt tidspres, da forældre skal kontaktes, hver gang der laves en registrering.
Folkeskolen på Fyn har ikke kun problemer med vold fra eleverne. Der er i alt givet fire påbud på baggrund af Arbejdstilsynets besøg i sommer. Påbuddene drejer sig om temperaturer og akustikforhold i lokalerne, at der skal være styr på den psykiske førstehjælp, og at skolen skal forebygge og håndtere vold.
Arbejdstilsynet har krævet, at både forebyggelse og håndtering af vold og psykisk førstehjælp på Pilen skal være på plads senest den 1. marts 2018. | {
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It is powerful, emotional and true to the characters, but it also confirms how dangerous Sybok is. He may have used his Vulcan telepathy to see McCoy’s pain, but all he did was show it to McCoy. Notice the language used by Sybok. “But that’s not all.” “Tell me what else.” It’s classic cold reading language. Sybok guides McCoy to reach his own closure. A counsellor, perhaps, but with evil motives. The false messiah. McCoy is certainly radicalized at this point, not because of the release but because of the sheer mental exhaustion of his ordeal. Perhaps even a touch of Stockholm Syndrome.
The undoing of Sybok is not with his methods, but with his targets. His next attempt is with Spock, who he believes hides the pain of his dual heritage. In fact, he is utterly wrong – Spock carries the old pain but has long since dealt with it. Sybok’s superficial savior undone by his brother, who sees through the illusion.
Kirk too sees through it, but in a different way. He may not have come to terms with his pain (implied, but not stated, to be the death of his son, or perhaps the death of his brother, which he alludes to later), but he understands its purpose and how it drives him to be better. He needs his pain, as do we all. Radicalization preys on the weak, whether that means intellectually, socio-economically, or emotionally.
In Kirk and Spock we see the failure, whether it be due to strength, wisdom or simply one brother knowing another. In McCoy we see weakness, but an understandable one. That he is not utterly converted is because his ties to Kirk and Spock are stronger. He is not in control of his actions after his ordeal with Sybok, as none are after being preyed on by radicals, but having a support network was a greater anchor than the cool new leader with the easy answers. I’ve been to anti-radicalization training (twice, actually), and this is exactly the strategy that works.
Finally, the encounter. We learn that Sybok’s plan was to steal a starship and take it to God. He has constructed a narrative whereby he is God’s messenger and will deliver all to paradise, literally. The location of God is a problem, however. Firstly, it is beyond The Great Barrier, secondly, it is at the center of the galaxy. The first one evokes the second pilot to the series, “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” and the barrier around the edge of the galaxy that caused Gary Mitchell to develop godlike powers and try to kill everyone. There’s got to be a fan theory in there somewhere (and there are several non-canon novels). The second problem is more difficult to overcome. The novelization mentions Sybok using knowledge from God to modify the Enterprise’s engines, but nothing like that exists in the film (there’s that “first draft” problem again). | {
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Foreign minister hits back at US president’s comments on suicide bombing claimed by Islamic State that killed 17 on Wednesday
This article is more than 3 years old
This article is more than 3 years old
Iran has denounced Donald Trump’s reaction to Wednesday’s deadly attacks in Tehran as “repugnant”, after the US president warned that the nation was reaping what it sows.
The death toll in the attacks on Tehran’s parliament complex and the shrine of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini – the first to be claimed by Islamic State in Iran - rose to 17 on Thursday.
Trump said the US would “grieve and pray” for the victims, but added: “We underscore that states that sponsor terrorism risk falling victim to the evil they promote.”
That was condemned by the Iranian foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, who tweeted: “Repugnant WH (White House) statement … as Iranians counter terror backed by US clients.”
What is the significance of Isis claiming the Tehran attack? Isis adheres to a puritanical Sunni strain of Islam and considers Shias apostates. While it has carried out many attacks in Iraq, it has been unable to strike inside Iran itself, a Shia state. Extremist Sunni militants have often stated their intention to attack Iran, portraying it as an imperialistic power that is oppressing Sunnis around the region, however they have very rarely been able to carry out major operations inside the country. The attack comes at a time of great regional tension, with Iran and its regional arch-rival Saudi Arabia trading accusations of sponsoring terrorism. The coordinated assault will further stoke those tensions.
Iran’s intelligence ministry said the five men who carried out the attacks were Iranians who joined Isis in Iraq and Syria before returning last summer.
The men were part of a network that entered Iran in July-August 2016 under the leadership of “high-ranking Daesh commander” Abu Aisha and that “intended to carry out terrorist operations in religious cities,” a statement said.
Abu Aisha was killed and the network forced to flee the country, the statement added. It was not clear when the five men returned to Iran.
The statement indicates only five people carried out the attacks, rather than six as originally reported. The attackers were armed with rifles and pistols and at least two blew themselves up with suicide vests.
Police said five people were arrested around Khomeini’s shrine on suspicion of involvement, while the intelligence ministry said a third team had been stopped before the attacks started.
Isis has threatened to step up recruitment within Iran, releasing its first Persian-language video in March in which it threatened to “conquer Iran and restore it to the Sunni Muslim nation as it was before”.
The Sunni jihadis of Isis consider Shia Iran to be apostates, and Tehran is deeply involved in fighting the group in both Syria and Iraq.
Iran has a sizable Sunni population along its restive borders with Iraq and Pakistan from which Isis is hoping to recruit.
The US president has long accused Iran of backing terrorism and has threatened to tear up a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers.
Even as Washington expressed its condolences on Wednesday, the US Senate advanced legislation that would impose new sanctions on Iran, partly for what the bill described as the Iranian regime’s “support for acts of international terrorism”.
Iranian security officials counter that it is their regional rival Saudi Arabia – a close US ally – that is responsible for funding and spreading the extremism that underpins Isis.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards accused Riyadh and Washington of being “involved” in Wednesday’s attacks, drawing a link to Trump’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia.
Consequences of attacks in Tehran will be felt around the world | Simon Tisdall Read more
“For these two actions to happen … after this meeting means that the US and Saudi regimes had ordered their stooges to do this,” said Mohammad Hossein Nejat, deputy head of the Revolutionary Guards intelligence branch, according to the Fars news agency.
Other Iranian leaders sought to play down the attacks, with supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei saying: “These firecrackers that happened today will not have the slightest effect on the will of the people.”
Parliament was in session as the violence unfolded and members were keen to show they were undeterred, continuing with regular business.
President Hassan Rouhani said “terrorism is a global problem, and unity to fight extremism, violence and terrorism with regional and international cooperation is the most important need of today’s world”. | {
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Where would we be these days without the World Wide Web? And where would we be without the most popular way to search for and find information on the Web, Google. The search engine and advertising platform powerhouse is the Web for many people. It is such an integral part of daily life that Google the noun has become a verb.
But there is a dark side to Google for those who suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. It’s not that Google itself is bad; the problem would be evident no matter the search engine used. It’s just that Google is ‘the’ search engine for the Web and therefore the problem goes hand and hand with it.
What is the problem? The act of Googling, of searching for information, is a compulsion for many, many people who suffer from OCD. It is an extremely common compulsion that is performed by sufferers of virtually every OCD theme there is.
Sufferers are subjected to intrusive thoughts that cause distress and lead to compulsions. For many sufferers, the intrusive thoughts cause overwhelming doubt and pose questions that the sufferers feel must be answered in order for their distress to diminish. The easiest way to answer almost question is to Google it and search through web pages.
A man suffers from intrusive thoughts that he could be a pedophile. This distresses him greatly. He decides to try and find some peace he needs to Google his thoughts and feelings to see if he could be a pedophile.
A teenager has been plagued by thoughts he could be gay. He has become convinced he must be gay. In an effort to confirm his worst fears, he Googles many keywords associated to homosexuality.
A woman sees a spot of brown on her living room wall. Instantly she gets upsetting thoughts that the spot could be blood. Worse, it could be HIV infected blood. She had workmen in the house the previous week, maybe it came from them? To see if she is in danger, she goes to Google to find out how long HIV infected blood could survive on a wall.
Having unrelenting thoughts that she doesn’t love her boyfriend, a young woman Googles to find Web communities where she can talk to others about her thoughts to see if she could be falling out of love.
Searching Google for an answer to an OCD-posed question is a trap, however. The very nature of OCD dictates that doubt remains, regardless the answer arrived at. Even if a perfectly logical answer is discovered through the process of Googling and that makes the anxiety felt subside, soon enough more intrusive thoughts will pop up, doubt will return and the sufferer will feel like he/she has to Google for more answers. It’s a trap in that the answer is never final and the process simply repeats.
Like with any compulsion, Googling as a compulsion must be curtailed and stopped in order for recovery to proceed. This involves some brute force stopping but it also involves some cognitive work. Sufferers need to realize that their incessant Googling is a compulsion. They need to learn that all the researching they do just leads to more researching and brings no permanent relief. In other words, they need to become educated about the problem. They then need to realize that the questions posed by OCD intrusive thoughts simply do not need to be answered.
There is an incredible urge to answer OCD questions. How can a person go on with their life when the question of whether they are a pedophile or not is hanging over their head? But trying to answer the question is a trap. It leads nowhere, except to more questions, more answers, more doubt. That simple process is the best indicator that OCD is indeed at play. Sufferers need to learn that they can ignore the questions and refuse to get into mind debates over them and refuse to try and answer the questions. Doing so, and eliminating other joint compulsions such as ruminating, leads the sufferer to peace and freedom from mental turmoil.
If you’re Googling a lot, ask yourself why. Are you looking up innocuous, everyday things or are you trying to answer complex questions that began with intrusive thoughts? Be honest with yourself and if you are using Google as a compulsion, start the journey to curb and stop it. | {
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Now that Donald Trump is president, our “fact checkers” have gone into overdrive. Every day, they crank out news stories purporting to correct Trump’s errors. More often than not, the “fact checkers” are merely relating the other side–the Democratic Party’s side–of the story.
This story by Politifact is typical: “Fact-checking President Donald Trump’s Florida rally.” Politifact claims to correct five things that Trump said:
Trump takes Jefferson out of context Trump used the words of President Thomas Jefferson to make the case that the media, and newspapers, are illegitimate.
Wrong. Trump made the case that the news media are biased and frequently lie about him. Which is true.
“Nothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper,” Trump quoted Jefferson as saying on June 14, 1807. That quote checks out.
It checks out, and it is not “out of context.” Trump actually quoted a little more of the letter, and you can read the whole thing here. The context merely elaborates on the theme, e.g., Jefferson also wrote:
I will add, that the man who never looks into a newspaper is better informed than he who reads them; inasmuch as he who knows nothing is nearer to truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods & errors. He who reads nothing will still learn the great facts, and the details are all false.
So Politifact should have simply scored Trump’s quotation of Jefferson “true.” What justifies saying it was “out of context”? Twenty years earlier, Jefferson had said something different about newspapers:
But it’s not the whole story on Jefferson. In 1787, Jefferson wrote to Edward Carrington and presented a seemingly different opinion. “The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right,” Jefferson wrote. “And were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter. But I should mean that every man should receive those papers and be capable of reading them.”
Those statements, while certainly more pro-newspaper, are not a “different opinion” from Jefferson’s judgment twenty years later that “Nothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper.” And, in any event, Jefferson’s saying something different on another occasion does not render Trump’s quotation “out of context,” misleading, or in any way inappropriate. Score: 1-0, Trump.
Trump misleads on saving the F-35 contract Trump told the thousands at his rally that he turned around a troubled contract for the F-35 that had been “seven years late, hundreds of billions of dollars over budget.” Trump said he negotiated for the defense contractor Lockheed Martin to shave “hundreds of millions of dollars off the price.” That’s a line he’s used before. It’s Mostly False.
Really? This is what Lockheed Martin said about Trump’s role:
We’re pleased to have reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense for the next 90 F-35 aircraft. The agreement represents $728 million in savings and a nearly 8 percent reduction in price over our last contract for the air vehicle delivered by Lockheed Martin and our industry partners. The increase in the number of aircraft in this agreement enables us to reduce costs by taking advantage of economies of scale and production efficiencies. President Trump’s personal involvement in the F-35 program accelerated the negotiations and sharpened our focus on driving down the price. The agreement was reached in a matter of weeks and represents significant savings over previous contracts.
So Lockheed Martin agrees with Trump. Politifact argues that the savings were already in the pipeline, and that per-aircraft costs would be expected to decline as production ramps up, which may be part of what is going on here. So they argue that Trump shouldn’t really get all the credit. Fine. That is the Democratic Party’s perspective. But to say Trump is “mostly false” when he precisely echoes Lockheed Martin’s account is ridiculous. Score: 2-0, Trump.
Trump wrong on vetting refugees Defending his stalled immigration ban, Trump said “there was no way to vet those people. There was no documentation. There was nothing.” Trump has said this before. It’s False. A refugee vetting system does exist and has existed since 1980.
That is true. If Trump had said vetting was inadequate, he would have been correct. But to say there was “no documentation. There was nothing” is an exaggeration. Score: 2-1, Trump.
Trump spins polls on optimism Trump bashed polls that showed he would lose the 2016 election, but he celebrated polls showing an increase in optimism. “Look at what’s happening to every poll when it comes to optimism in our country,” Trump said. “It’s sweeping across the country.”
Yes, that is correct. In fact, Politifact admits that Trump is right:
Backing up Trump’s case is Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index, which shows Americans more confident about the country’s economic outlook. Take a look:
Much more polling data could be cited to the same effect, e.g., many more Americans say the country is on the right track following Trump’s inauguration. So what’s the problem?
There is support for Trump’s point, but it ignores other polling that highlights a more pessimistic view.
***
Conversely, 57 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of the country’s standing in the world. That’s the highest that number has been in a decade, according to Gallup. And Trump’s approval rating, of 41 percent, is lower at this point than any other president Gallup has tracked since Dwight Eisenhower.
So what? Those polls don’t contradict Trump’s statement about optimism. Again, Policifact simply presents the Democratic Party’s contrary perspective–one could say, the Democrats’ alternative facts–to conclude that Trump is “spinning.” Here, Trump told the truth, and Politifact spun. Score: 3-1, Trump.
Trump spins immigration ban ties to Obama Trump defended his immigration ban by maintaining that his ban applies to “countries picked by Obama.”
As Politifact goes on to acknowledge, Trump was right. The seven countries covered by his travel order were the ones identified by the Obama administration as “countries of concern.” But Politifact isn’t content to acknowledge that Trump was correct. Instead, it counters with its own spin:
But that misses context about the actions of the Obama administration. … Trump’s action goes much further and includes banning people who have a valid visa to enter the United States.
But no one said that Trump’s order was the same as one already promulgated by Obama. That would really be a scoop! Of course Trump’s order went farther; that was the point. All Trump said was that the seven countries covered by his order were “picked by Obama” as “countries of concern.” Which is true. Score: 4-1, Trump.
We could go through this exercise multiple times every day. Correcting the Democratic Party “fact checkers” would be a full-time job that I don’t plan to undertake. Suffice it to say that Trump is more often right than are the press’s purported fact checkers who pretend to correct him. | {
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A glowing review from a big wrestling fan.
As A Wrestling Fan™, the news of any film or TV show even tangentially related to pro wrestling is always received with trepidation.
It’s so easy to misunderstand wrestling; to paint it as somehow tragic or embarrassing, something that only poor morons enjoy because they somehow don’t understand that it’s “not real”. Using wrestling as a plot tool often becomes shorthand for unspoken classism, not to mention just plain old bad writing.
When it goes well (Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler; ‘Uncle Slam vs Osama Bin Rotten’ on The Simpsons), on the other hand, stories set in the world of pro wrestling tap into everything that true wrestling fans hold dear about the world of sports entertainment: the pathos, the campness, the genuine and heartfelt storylines, and of course the chokeslams.
So, when Netflix announced GLOW, a series based on the mid-‘80s all-female wrestling show of the same name, I held my breath. Forget sensitive portrayals of pro wrestling on-screen: how could any series ever hope to capture one of the most deliriously weird wrestling promotions ever to hit screens? Would it be more ‘that dude in your office snorting “you know it’s fake, right”’, or Randy The Ram?
It turns out GLOW creators Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch have done the impossible, magicking up a series that is both a charming and heartfelt dramedy, as well as a show that inherently understands the magic of pro wrestling.
Gorgeous Ladies and Great Characters
A loosely fictionalised account of the creation of Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, the series zeroes in on Ruth Wilder (Alison Brie), a hapless actress doing the rounds of disappointing screen tests in Los Angeles. When she gets word of an open call for “unconventional women”, it turns out to be GLOW: a new promotion masterminded by Z-movie schlockmeister Sam Silvia (Marc Maron) under the enthusiastically watchful eye of rich kid producer Sebastian “Bash” Howard (Chris Lowell).
Eventually, 14 women remain. Some of them are enthusiastic amateurs, others aspiring actresses, but only one is a real star: Debbie Eagan (Betty Gilpin), a former soapie actress struggling to adjust to life as a stay-at-home mom. With Ruth and Debbie reeling from a falling out, their backstage drama sets the stage for in-ring conflict.
As the episodes unfold (six were provided for review out of a season of 10), we learn more about the other women — from Melrose (Jackie Tohn) the party girl to Carmen (Britney Young) the daughter of a wrestling superstar. Sam encourages them to embrace sexist and racist archetypes in what he sees (optimistically, perhaps) as a subversive, Z-movie way to “wrestle with stereotypes” in-ring.
To explain much more about the plot is almost beside the point. The first season of GLOW (and hopefully there’ll be more) is effectively a “putting the band together” tale as Sam and the girls try to get their GLOW pilot off the ground.
Viewers familiar with the real GLOW will notice some parallels in the Netflix series’ characters (Carmen/Machu Picchu is clearly this show’s Mt Fiji, the kind-hearted gentle giant of the Gorgeous Ladies; duo Dawn and Stacey could be tag team The Housewives) but GLOW soars without assuming prior knowledge on the part of the viewer.
(The excellent documentary, GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, is also available on Netflix for those who would like a bittersweet insight into the real thing.)
As the caustic, unlikeable Sam, Maron gets many of the show’s best throwaway asides (“According to my ex-wife’s cognitive behavioural therapist…”), but GLOW’s true strength — like any wrestling promotion — is in the sum of its parts.
Each of the characters is fully rounded, even when we only spend moments with them here and there. We only need to see goth weirdo Sheila (the incredible Gayle Rankin) reading blockbuster historical novel Clan Of The Cave Bear to glean everything we need to know about her. UK singer Kate Nash is a scream as Rhonda, the dingbat English babe who decides her gimmick will be Britannica, “the smartest woman in the world […] like the encyclopedia”. Sunita Mani delights as medical student Arthie, whose grandma is the biggest wrestling fan of all.
Brie and Gilpin are exceptional too. Gilpin is a knurled fist of rage and The Feminine Mystique resentment, while Brie tracks Ruth’s journey from average-but-enthusiastic actress obsessed with “sides” and method workshops to someone with the makings of a genuine star. (Brie also takes a snap suplex like an absolute champ; the actresses were trained by six-time WCW/WWE Cruiserweight Champion, Chavo Guerrero Jr.)
The Glow Of Pro Wrestling
Further pointing to Netflix’s usurping of HBO as the king of TV’s golden age, GLOW’s craft is as strong as its cast. The show exists in a lived-in 1985 that, well, glows with the low-lit, wood-panelled interiors of memory.
Director of photography Christian Sprenger (Atlanta) conjures up hazy urban dreamscapes that recall Allen Daviau’s work with Steven Spielberg in the early-’80s. In this way, the show is a great companion piece — albeit tonally poles apart — with Stranger Things.
After a number of disastrously chintzy movies and TV shows set in similar worlds (looking at you, Rock Of Ages), it’s also a delight to find the show is no parade of brand-new Reeboks and scrunchy socks. Costume designer Beth Morgan and production designer Todd Fjelsted have worked miracles on that front, from Bash’s pushed-up trench coat sleeves to Beth’s worn-out leotards, and from Debbie’s suffocating Pasadena home to the moth-eaten Van Nuys motel the ladies are shacked up in during training.
“GLOW represents pro wrestling’s scrappy, carnie spirit and life-altering power.”
The score, by Craig Wedren and Pink Ape, sensitively and playfully recalls the depths and heights of mid-‘80s soundtrack, from swooning teen movie motifs to fist-pumping inspirational cues, while the soundtrack features wittily chosen period-appropriate songs, including a pitch-perfect use of The Scorpions’ ‘Rock You Like A Hurricane’ that repositions it as an empowerment anthem.
It’s also a dream to see so many women behind the camera, with directors including Kate Dennis, Sian Heder, Melanie Mayron, Claire Scanlon, Lynn Shelton and Wendey Stanzler, and episodes written by Flahive and Mensch, Sascha Rothchild, Rachel Shukert and executive producer (and Orange Is The New Black creator) Jenji Kohan.
Most crucially, however, GLOW hums with the multifaceted glories of professional wrestling. In episode five, for instance, Carmen takes Debbie to see “a real wrestling show” in an attempt to shake the soapie queen free of her misconceptions.
Going to my first wrestling event was, simply put, a life-altering experience, so to see Debbie undergo the same transformation brought tears of joy to my eyes. When she has a ringside epiphany, realising that the wrestling storyline playing out before her is the same as the soap opera plots she knows so well, it’s as exciting as any code-breaking moment of blockbuster cinema.
With WWE seemingly determined to undermine its “Women’s Evolution” at every turn, who knew the biggest boost to women in wrestling (and women in TV) would come from a small-screen adaptation of a long-forgotten promotion dismissed by many as a joke? If The Wrestler explored the heartbreak and regret of wrestling, GLOW represents its scrappy, carnie spirit and life-altering power — and should convert plenty of first-timers, just like Debbie.
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GLOW is on Netflix now.
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Clem Bastow is an award-winning writer and critic with a focus on popular culture, gender politics, mental health, and weird internet humour. She’s on Twitter at @clembastow.
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Love film and TV? We’re holding our inaugural Video Junkee festival in July, a new annual event for lovers and creators of online video. Video Junkee is on July 28 & 29 at Carriageworks in Sydney, featuring keynotes, masterclasses, screenings, interviews and more. Tickets are on sale now. | {
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“It’s quicker and far more accurate,” Mr. Biddiscombe said. But the system is valuable not only for speeding checkout times and for keeping track of different varieties of bulk vegetables and fruits sold. It also prevents another checkout problem: cashiers mistaking organic vegetables for less expensive, conventionally grown ones, and ringing them up for the lower price.
“The price difference between organic and field tomatoes may be 40 cents a pound or more,” he said. “When they aren’t rung up as organic, that bites into our profit margins.”
Kelly Kirschner, senior marketing manager at Sinclair International, a company in Fresno, Calif., that makes labeling for produce, said DataBars were gradually becoming popular because of limitations of the standard bar code. The standard code, she said, “takes up too much space to be used on loose produce, plus it is for fixed-weight items” for example, 12-ounce boxes of cereal. The DataBar, by contrast, allows stores to scan for variable weight information.
The labels help stores keep better records, she said. If retailers are receiving Red Delicious apples from three separate suppliers at prices of $8 to $10 a carton, and all the apples are dumped into a single bin, retailers can still tell how many they sold of each lot, as each DataBar is tied to a purchase record.
The next use of DataBars at the supermarket will probably be for goods bought at the delicatessen counter, and for fresh meats and poultry, said Stephen Arens, director, industry development, at GS1 US in Lawrenceville, N.J. GS1 US is the trade organization working to move the DataBar standard forward in the United States. A poultry DataBar, for example, might contain not only the price and product category, but also a sell-by date. If a consumer chose an outdated package, the label would alert the cashier at checkout. | {
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Side Note
Listen to vintage episodes of the greatest hip-hop radio show of all time
The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito show lives on in the Internet Archive.
For a good chunk of the 1990s, Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Garcia were the unlikely epicenter New York’s underground hip-hop scene. Their late-night radio show on Columbia’s WKCR, appropriately titled The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show, featured Bobbito cracking wise as Armstrong spun some of the best and most forward-thinking rap records the genre had seen. Often, the pair would play host to hottest rising talent in hip-hop, ceding the mic to then-unknowns such as the Fugees, Souls of Mischief, and, during one particularly legendary session, Big L and Jay Z.
The infamous Big L/Jay Z freestyle
Just as DJ Screw’s legendary Screw Tapes came to represent a very specific time and place in Houston rap history, Stretch and Bobbito were 90’s New York hip-hop. Though they eventually ported their show over to local hip-hop powerhouse Hot 97, they never really deviated from what made them great — a pair of good-natured rap nerds spinning records and making goofy jokes, chatting it up with rappers itching to showcase their ability to demolish a mic. The pair went their separate ways in 1999 before coming together in 2015 to make the documentary Stretch and Bobbito: Radio that Changed Lives, which looked back upon their legacy and just so happens to be one of the best hip-hop films of the past two decades.
If you dig through the digital crates of the Internet Archive, you can find some wonderful old Stretch and Bobbito episodes waiting to be streamed. They’re not all in one place, so I took the liberty of assembling some of them for you below. Given part of the show’s appeal lay in its warm, murky audio quality, the fact that these recordings have decayed a bit through digital replication only adds to their grainy charm.
The first, from a 1994 show, finds Stretch and Bobbito debuting unreleased music by A Tribe Called Quest.
Here’s an episode from 1995 featuring a freestyle from Natural Elements, one of the New York underground’s criminally forgotten crews (Stretch and Bobbito start talking to them around the 2:20:00 mark, and the freestyles come shortly thereafter).
For a taste of Stretch and Bobbito’s Hot 97 days, check out this episode from Stretch’s birthday. | {
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There's good and bad news from a sweeping new report on the world's water scarcity out today from McKinsey & Co., commissioned by such water-dependent companies as Coca-Cola, Nestle, SAB Miller and Syngenta, along with the World Bank/International Finance Corp.
The bad: Global demand for water already exceeds supply -- about 1.1 billion people don't have access to clean water -- and the so-called water gap is increasing at an accelerating rate.
The good: Cost-effective, sustainable solutions are available to close the gap, particularly if governments and business focus on reducing demand rather than trying to generate additional supply.
The challenge: Getting beyond the nostrum that water is a "human right" so that water, which is obviously a scarce resource, can be priced in a way that drives conservation.
One more thing to know: Water issues are at least as complex as energy, and all water problems are local, so generalizing about water, while inevitable, is invariably misleading.
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As Martin Stuchtey of McKinsey put it: "We are not saying there is one way to close the water gap, and we fully acknowledge the complexity of the water arena."
The 185-page report, published by the 2030 Water Resources Group, was released this morning at a sparsely-attended news conference at The World Bank. While water isn't a headline-grabbing topic, it's emerging as a real business risk. Recently the Carbon Disclosure Project, a coalition of institutional investors that asks global companies to measure their greenhouse gas emissions, said it would undertake a similar effort for water usage. And press releases from NGOs the India Resource Center, which is targeting Coca-Cola, arrive regularly in my email, posing pesky reputational issues for global brands.
Water shortages will also create business opportunities, which explains the presence of Michael Mack, the CEO of Syngenta, at today's event. A Swiss-based agribusiness firm, Syngenta is developing genetically engineered, drought-resitant strains of wheat and corn.
"They are literally two years away," Mack said. Biotech crops, he said, will help not only in poor countries but in water-rich regions of Canada and Russia which will be able to grow more wheat per acre, then sell the output to countries that water-constrained. "Getting more productive agriculture on the existing farmland is the highest priority," Mack said. This is known in the trade as more crop per drop.
Because agriculture accounts for about 70 percent of global water use, biotech crops could have a big impact on the water gap. But they will only scale up if governments and environmental groups, particularly in Europe, can be persuaded that genetic engineering will generate more good than harm -- no easy matter.
Mack and Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, the chairman of Nestle, who joined in the news conference by phone, both questioned whether the idea of water as a "human right" is useful way to frame the conversation. (Nestle, it must be noted, is the leading U.S. seller of bottled water through such local brands as Deer Park and Arrowhead, and as such it has come under considerable fire.)
Brabeck-Letmathe said people have a right to water for their basic needs -- perhaps 25 liters a day. But he argued that adequate pricing of water will be needed to curb waste. "It's not a human right to wash your car, to fill up your swimming pool, to water your golf course," he said.
Some countries are smart about pricing. tool. In South Africa, according to Brabeck-Letmathe, residential users are given a monthly allocation of "free" or subsidized water -- presumably enough for drinking, cooking, bathing and sanitation -- and then charged a premium for usage beyond that.
By contrast, the McKinsey executives and others said that free or subsidized electricity in rural India contributes to water shortages there because farmers have no reason not to pump as much water as they can out of the ground.
Even normally-cautious development executives said that markets have a role to play in allocating a scarce commodity like water. "Demand is outstripping supply, especially in developing countries," said Lars Thunell, CEO of the IFC.
Pricing alone, though, won't solve the water crisis, as McKinsey executives explained to me after the event. We talked about drip irrigation -- basically pipes with holes -- which is both a more effective and more efficient way to deliver water and fertilizer to crops. The payback on investment in drip irrigation is quick, sometimes as little as one year.
The trouble is, subsistence farmers in poor countries India don't have the capital to invest in a drip irrigation system, so charging them more for water won't do any good. They may need access to financing, or the ability to share the costs of an irrigation system with neighbors, or government or NGO subsidies for the pipes, which would provide a more sustainable solution that subsidizing electricity or water.
There's much, much more in the McKinsey report, which focuses on four countries with big but differing water issues -- China, India, South Africa and Brazil. Collectively, they will account for 40 percent of the world's population, 30 percent of global GDP and 42 percent of projected water demand in 2030.
That doesn't mean that water isn't an issue for those of us fortunate enough to have access to cheap, clean water. If you haven't noticed, California is suffering from several years of drought, which will eventually drive up the costs of groceries for anyone who wants to consume fresh fruits and vegetables year round.
By the way, do you have any idea how much you pay for water? I certainly don't. Before too long, I bet we all will.
Photo CC-licensed by Flickr user Azrainman. | {
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ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- It's mission accomplished for little green army men.
The molded plastic must-haves for generations of pretend soldiers were inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame on Thursday, along with the 1980s stumper Rubik's Cube, and bubbles.
The trio of toys takes its place alongside other classics including Barbie, G.I. Joe, Scrabble and the hula hoop after beating out nine other finalists including Fisher-Price Little People, American Girl dolls and My Little Pony.
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The tiny monochromatic heroes have been around since 1938, with ups and downs along the way. Their popularity waned during the Vietnam War but they became big-screen stars with the 1995 Pixar movie "Toy Story" and several manufacturers continue to produce millions of them every year.
The army men were finalists two other years before making the cut this time around, offering hope to this year's also-rans, which also included Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Slip 'N Slide, the skill game Operation, paper airplanes, pots and pans, and the toy trucks sold annually since 1964 by the Hess gas station chain.
The brain-teasing Rubik's Cube was invented by Hungarian architect Erno Rubik in the 1970s, but took off in the United States in 1980 after being imported by Ideal Toy Corp. More than 100 million of the six-color cubes were sold between 1980 and 1982, dividing an obsessively twisting populace between those who could solve it and those who could not.
The cubes, with nine colored squares on each side, can be arranged 43 quintillion ways, according to the Toy Hall of Fame, and have inspired organized competitions in more than 50 countries, along with contests to solve it blindfolded, one-handed and under water. Mats Valk of the Netherlands holds the speed record for re-aligning the colors in 5.55 seconds.
Children have played with soap bubbles since at least the 17th century, according to the toy hall, when paintings depicting the play appeared in what is now modern-day Belgium. More than 200 million bottles of bubble liquid are sold annually.
Bubbles got the nod as a toy of the imagination, spokesman Shane Rhinewald said, listing it alongside similar previous inductees including the stick and blanket.
A national selection committee made up of 24 experts, including toy collectors, designers and psychologists vote the winners in to the hall each year. Anyone can nominate a toy, but to make it through the preliminary selection process and become a finalist a toy must have achieved icon status, survived through generations, foster learning, creativity or discovery and have profoundly changed play or toy design.
The toy hall is located inside The Strong museum in Rochester.
The inductees into the National Toy Hall of Fame:
2014: Rubik's Cube, bubbles, little green army men
2013: Rubber duck, Chess
2012: Dominoes, Star Wars action figures
2011: Blanket, Dollhouse, Hot Wheels
2010: Playing cards, The Game of Life
2009: Ball, Big Wheel, Nintendo Game Boy
2008: Baby doll, Skateboard, Stick
2007: Atari 2600 game system, Kite, Raggedy Andy
2006: Easy-Bake Oven, Lionel trains
2005: Candy Land, Cardboard box, Jack-in-the-box
2004: G.I. Joe, Rocking horse, Scrabble
2003: Alphabet blocks, Checkers
2002: Jigsaw puzzle, Raggedy Ann
2001: Silly Putty, Tonka trucks
2000: Bicycle, Jacks, Jump rope, Mr. Potato Head, Slinky
1999: Duncan yo-yo, Hula Hoop, Lincoln Logs, Radio Flyer wagon, Roller skates, View-Master
1998: Barbie, Crayola crayons, Erector set, Etch A Sketch, Frisbee, LEGO, Marbles, Monopoly, Play-Doh, Teddy bear, Tinkertoy | {
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I’ve been professionally writing about the game, film, and tech industries for six years. With a degree in 3D graphics for game art and design, I have seen, studied, and experienced every aspect of the 2D and 3D video game industry, and am currently working on my first Droid and iPhone game. After hunting down every forgotten chapter of gaming’s past and researching over a thousand famously influential games from every entertainment era, I gathered feedback from dozens of experts before deciding on the final hundred that made the cut. Games were judged on how influential they were on designers of their time, how they directed the industry’s future, and how they changed the gamer community and human culture itself.
Even a top 100 list wasn’t long enough to fit in all of the highly influential titles that I wanted to include, so keep an eye out for some of your favorite games earning honorable mentions along the way! Try to not get too caught up with my rankings, and instead appreciate all of them as a family that’s helped shape who we are as gamers today. I hope you enjoy this journey through the history of the game industry!
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100. Phoenix (1980). Did you ever play that awesome Phoenix game on your TI-83 calculator in school? That’s actually a recreation of this classic arcade and Atari space shoot ‘em up. Phoenix was heavily influenced by Space Invaders (1978) – which will show up much later in this list – but Phoenix helped popularize one of the core mechanics of the game industry: a last boss battle. The first game to do this was arguably the PLATO game dnd back in 1975, but Phoenix cemented this concept into the minds of the masses and it feels fitting to start the list with a last boss!
99. OXO (1952). You know how we joke that computers used to take up entire rooms? Well the EDSAC (Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator) was one of them, and in 1952 it was used to create this Tic-Tac-Toe computer game. Being that the EDSAC was located only in Cambridge, it wasn’t as immensely influential as many other games deeper in this list, but it was one of the earliest computer games in existence. Fun Fact: In the UK they call Tic-Tac-Toe by a different name: Noughts and Crosses!
98. Oregon Trail (1971). The version most of us played was the 1992 release, and it’s one of the most influential educational games of all time. Because it was placed on the computers in most schools for millions of young children, it was automatically a huge influence on an entire generation. It proved to be the perfect balance of education and entertainment, and while it may not have been as educational as Number Munchers, it was far deeper and more memorable. Sure, id Software is responsible for the success of the FPS (First Person Shooter) genre, but for many of us we picked up the FPS bug from shooting 20 more buffalo than we could eat before drowning, starving, and dying of dysentery. SkiFree, Rodent’s Revenge, and Minesweeper also deserve shout-outs for the mass exposure that Windows computers brought them. If Wii Sports is the “bestselling” video game of all time after cheating and being bundled in with most Wii consoles for free, then Minesweeper might be one of the “bestselling” computer games of all time.
97. Burger King’s Sneak King (2006). With the birth of the next gen gaming consoles, suddenly “would you like fries with that?” was replaced with “would you like a video game with that?” It marked an interesting twist in the game industry where restaurant video game sales were rivaling Gears of Wars sales. Burger King realized that if Nintendo can milk(shake) its mascots then so can they, and with the added bonus of having millions of potential gaming customers every day. Big Bumpin’ and PocketBike Racer were the other two Xbox 360 games featuring the King character from Burger King, and I’m convinced we’ll see plenty more nongaming franchises dip into game industry in the future.
96. Metroid (1986). It was exciting to see Metroid and Castlevania (1986) made by two separate companies at the same time and released a month apart, with each game hoping to enhance the play styles of the 2D sidescroller genre immensely. Time has spoken, and the Metroid series’ influence over the Castlevania series has led to some gamers referring to Konami’s vampire sequels as “Metroidvania” games. Metroid also made the successful Samus leap to 3D while Castlevania games have only seen major success in its 2D sequels. Metroid was also influential in its time for having one of the most shocking game endings of all time: Samus was a woman!
95. Enter the Matrix (2003). You won’t find the infamous Atari E.T. (1982) game on this list; it was an awful game in an era when most games were awful baby steps and forgotten by time for good reasons. Enter the Matrix, however, had no excuses and still showed the industry everything that could go wrong when a franchise hopped to a different storytelling medium. Despite Matrix being one of the most successful and loved movies of all time, and despite the film creators being gamers themselves, the result was legendarily atrocious, and that’s not even including the game bugs that made it unplayable for many people who purchased it. Those of you who used to read EGM every month back in the day might even remember them saying “In more than 20 years of playing games, I have never seen a console game as obviously unfinished and rushed to market as Enter the Matrix.” Usually you hear about the gaming industry taking flak for bad game-to-film adaptations, but believe us when we say that we’ve also had a fair amount of painful pixels on our side from movie-to-game adaptations. With over 3 million copies sold, Enter the Matrix spread its terrible influence far and wide, and the lessons we learned from it won’t soon be forgotten even with fictional pills.
94. Sid Meier’s Pirates! (1987). The original Zelda (1986) revolutionized the video game industry by changing what games could accomplish, and also what gamers should expect from game designers in quality and quantity. A year later, Sid Meier made a name for himself by basically making an unofficial Wind Waker NES sequel to Zelda. Not only did it take the open world exploration out to the high seas, but it also had several aspects of the main characters and storyline randomized so that players could get a new experience every single time they played the game. It’s truly heartbreaking that the vast majority of gamers still don’t know this game even exists.
93. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2009). This sequel is the game that ensured the world that this series was here to stay, and that the industry was about to change in a big way. Cinema quality and cinema length in the industry shot through the roof exponentially with this series (the first game had two hours of cinematics, with the sequels each having three hours), and suddenly game experiences in our living rooms became much different. While Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (2007) did everything the sequel did, Among Thieves did everything bigger and better, further proving that the film industry’s sequel stigma is far from the truth in the game industry, and its merging of the two industries on a console was expanded on by Heavy Rain in 2010.
92. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (2002). The Elder Scrolls is a series that most gamers didn’t even know about until this game fought Halo for the Xbox throne. Skyrim (2011), the fifth game in the series, dominated the gaming industry last year, and the fourth game, Oblivion (2006), was such a graphical advancement that many gamers bought new PCs just to prepare for its release. It’s all because of the success of the massive Morrowind RPG (Role Playing Game) and its unconventional races and worlds that followed their own tune instead of compromising with hot new gameplay trends. It’s also influential for being one of the first series to contract out some of its 3D objects to artists across the entire industry to help them bring their horizons to life.
91. Lego Star Wars: The Video Game (2005). The LEGO video game series is recreating the wonder of gaming for the next generation of gamers, and just as we talk about favorite games from our youth, you can count on your little cousins to reminisce about these games for many years to come. The big difference is that these games have also helped spread classic American film stories to today’s children, while simultaneously stimulating and challenging them with the interactivity element that only games can offer. Seven short years later, your cousins (or kids!) are starting to grow up and the series is just about to introduce a massive PG version of Grand Theft Auto III (2001) with their upcoming Lego City Undercover sandbox game. People of all ages agree that it was one of the best looking games at this year’s E3. | {
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Lindsey Ecks
L E A V E S of O A K
5 October 2018
Beto v. Kavanaugh
Beto Faces the Voters; Brett Faces the Senate
Theres a new meme on social media: If Beto ORourkes DWI can be forgiven as a youthful indiscretion, why cant we forgive Brett Kavanaughs alleged attempted rape of a 15-year-old when he was 17?
For a change, a facile talking point (likely bot-driven) is more than an inflammatory text to blazon across viral GIFs. Its a question worth considering.
Betos campaign against incumbent GOP Texas senator Ted Cruz and Kavanaughs hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, evaluating his fitness for the Supreme Court, are not exactly analogous.
In an election to the U.S. Senate, we, the voters, collectively make the decision who should represent us. In a confirmation hearing, the decision making is one step removed.
Betos drunken car wreck is a blot on an otherwise impressive résumé, even if it shocked him into becoming the responsible entrepreneur who made it to the House of Representatives. If you think, say, that his history might make him likely, as a legislator, to go easy on drunk drivers, you get to vote against him for that reason.
Should ORourke make it to the Senate, he will serve Texans knowing that, if he wants to keep his job, hell have to stand for reelection in a GOP-stronghold state. He will be held accountable in the pressand (assuming he runs) in the next electionfor every vote he casts or misses. Kavanaugh, if confirmed, will no longer answer to anyone, likely ruling on cases involving relative power and gender equitythat is, issues on which a prospective justice accused of a pattern of intoxicating and sexually abusing women might have an unacceptable bias.
Given the choice of a Beto ORouke as he is, with a DWI on his record, and an alternate-universe Beto who differs only in not having that DWI, wed choose the second Beto. But, as voters in a binary political system, we dont get that choice. We only have the actual Beto, with his strengths and weaknesses (including youthful drinking) versus the actual Ted Cruz, with his strengths and (well known) weaknesses. Those of us who find Betos character more appealing than Cruzs arent excusing his drunk driving; the calculus is between both mens virtues and faults.
And, of course, most votes wont be based primarily on the character of the candidates. Thats where the viral GIF verges on propaganda. Its meant to inflame anger against Beto among people who would excuse the exact same behavior if he were Republican. We know that because of how George W. Bushs alcohol problems played out in his first presidential election.
Those equating Betos youthful mistake with Kavanaughs to discredit the former dont realize it cuts both ways: If you think Betos DWI is disqualifying, isnt Kavanaughs alleged rape attempt even more disqualifying? One starts to suspect sexual assault isnt considered such a big deal if among former prep-school jocks.
No, most people wont be voting for Beto the man or Ted the man, but the Democratic or Republican nominee, based on things like economic interests, ethnic identity, and religious affiliation. But a Supreme Court justice is supposed to be a neutral arbiter. Kavanaughs angry tirade in front of the Judiciary Committee denouncing the Democrats and displaying personal animus against the Clintons should in itself disqualify him for the position.
We dont get to vote for someone just like Beto but without the DWI, at least not now, after the primaries. But President Trump could easily replace Kavanaugh with another nominee, indistinguishable from Kavanaugh when it comes to partisan hackery, who hasnt been accused of a drunken rape attempt (and other similar behavior). There are women on Trumps shortlist. Maybe Im stereotyping, but Ill bet a female nominee wont have someone from her past coming forward to accuse her of sexual assault.
It isnt clear why the GOP doesnt just keelhaul Kavanaugh and come up with a new nominee. George W. Bush did it with Harriet Miers and the result was Alito. Not a bad outcome, if youre a Republican. But Trumps instinct is to double down when challenged, never to show weakness. It may be that what makes Kavanaugh unique, and what keeps Trump from withdrawing his nomination, is his views on presidential impunity. But the larger conservative narrative, all over their favored media such as AM radio, is one of male privilege under attack from progressives, especially female, viewed as enemies.
The polls are already showing female alienation from the GOP, increasing the chances of an electoral disaster for the billionaire boys club and their Bible-thumping enablers. The longer and harder the Republican-dominated Senate pushes for Kavanaugh, the more women are going to defect, or just stay home in November.
Further, if a Senate election is foremost about party affiliation and ideology and secondarily about character, our tradition (sadly and quickly eroding) has been for nominees to abjure party affiliation and ideology, to be neutral referees of the law under the constitution, leaving political questions to Congress and the president, thus ultimately to the voters. Kavanaughs angry opening statement at last weeks hearing confirmed what we already knew from his abetting Ken Starrs attacks on Clinton: Hes a partisan hack with a temperament unsuitable for the Supreme Court or, really, for any court.
A confirmation hearing is not a trial. Evaluating a nominee for a lifetime appointment to the top legal job in the nation doesnt require proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Apart from the ugly picture of how Kavanaugh behaved when he was young and a heavy drinker, there are plenty of other reasons the Senate ought to reject him, especially his anti-constitutional stance against limits on presidential power. Kavanaugh has become toxic among a large swath of the electorate, and even the most extreme right-wingers in Congress must have some inkling bros before hos in the Senate wont play well with women voters back home.
Beyond the Democrats wildest hopes, Kavanaugh has become irredemably damaged; the GOP, for its own good, should force him to withdraw and select another candidate. As for Beto and Ted, well find out in November.
Leaves of Oak © MMXVIII Lindsey D. Eck. All rights reserved.
Articles may not be republished in any medium, including reuploading to the Web, without permission. | {
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by
Holders of student loans –most of whom are no longer students–carry a combined debt burden that stands at a record high of $1.5 trillion, more than 8 percent of GDP and more than the $1.3 trillion in direct costs of waging war against Iraq.
The Desirability of Cancelling Student Debts
The burden weighing like a nightmare, to coin a phrase, on 44 million indebted current and former students will haunt these people for a good portion of their lives. The average student debtor graduates owing close to $34,000 and is projected to spend 21 years paying it off. At present, the average monthly payment for those between 30 and 40 years old is $351.00. It is not uncommon for repayment obligations to be borne by underwriters of these loans, typically the primary borrower’s parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Taking these co-signers into consideration, we have about 100 million people adversely affected, directly or indirectly, by the difficulty very many have repaying these loans.
Because it is hard to have loans dismissed or renegotiated on the grounds of undue hardship, cases like the following are numerous: a 2008 graduate entered the job market with $50,000 in student debt. After the September meltdown he was laid off from his $29,000 a year job and had no choice but to default. His mother, a laid-off factory worker, had underwritten his loan, and so $120.00 of her $300.00 unemployment check was garnished in order to service her son’s federal loan. Her plea that this arrangement imposed undue hardship fell on deaf ears.
Renegotiating the terms of a subprime mortgage, no mean feat, is easier than having the terms of a student loan readjusted. After her home was foreclosed and she managed to have her mortgage renegotiated due to bankruptcy, Sallie Mae refused to rewrite a woman’s student loan. She was allowed, however, to defer payment. Extensions and postponements went on for 14 years, the original loan of $28,000 had increased to more than $90,000 and monthly payments had jumped from $230.00 to $816.00.
Default charges, relentlessly compounding interest rates and collection-agency fees make up a hefty portion of current student-loan debts. A medical student graduated owing about $250,000. Residency and an unexpected serious illness forced her to defer payments after a number of inevitable default charges. When her loan was turned over to a collection agency a $53,870 fee was added. By this time her debt stood at $555,000.
In these times when the typical new job represents an “alternative work arrangement,” i.e. part-time, low-pay work (1) and an increasing percentage of employed workers are stuck in this type of job, trying to keep up with loan repayments is taking a punishing toll on debtors. Reuters reports that at least 1 in 4 is either sacrificing health care, vacations, new home buying and other elements of a decent standard of living, or is in default. A good number of student debts are in fact debts that simply cannot be repaid.
Two recent studies throw light on what it would look like, in specific and workable terms, if steps were taken to cancel a student debt burden that for many is literally unbearable, and what it threatens to look like if nothing is done. The Levy Economics Institute has released The Macroeconomic Effects of Student Debt Cancellation (2) and the American Civil Liberties Union has produced the truly scary A Pound of Flesh The Criminalization of Private Debt. (3)
The Levy study is more than mildly wonkish; the co-authors produce data series, tables and lay out balance sheet mechanics for a range of scenarios under which student debt can be actually cancelled within the framework of the existing financial system. In this article I will merely sketch their main claims and state their basic conclusions. I conclude with a description of what looks a lot like the rebirth of debtors’ prisons as a response to the superfluity of Americans bearing unbearable debt burdens.
The Mechanics of Cancelling Student Debts
Most writing on student debt details the magnitude of the burden and the inhuman consequences visited upon debtors who struggle to make payments or who just can’t pay. Until the Levy study we have seen nothing spelling out the mechanics of how to actually go about cancelling student debt, (4) or demonstrating the positive effects on the economy of making it possible for income currently shackled to debt repayment to be spent for other purposes. (5)
Student debt can be cancelled as a political project either by government or by the Federal Reserve. Government can finance the cancellation of student debt in a number of ways including: cancelling whole hog the Department of Education’s (DE) loans, whereby all the loans disappear simultaneously; cancelling DE’s loans serially, as payments come due; effectively cancelling loans issued by private lenders by assuming payment of these loans; effectively cancelling loans issued by private lenders by simultaneously purchasing and cancelling these loans, or by purchasing these private loans and then cancelling principal as payments come due.
For those whose ideological predilections favor private solutions to social problems, the Federal Reserve can carry out student debt cancellation by: purchasing DE’s loans and cancelling them all at once; cancelling the payments for the DE loans; taking over debt service payments to private lenders; purchasing private loans and cancelling payments; simultaneously purchasing and cancelling loans owned by private lenders; purchasing loans issued by private lenders and cancelling principal as payments come due.
Any of these steps would free students, former students and co-signers from making any future payments on current outstanding student loan debt. Most importantly, the U.S. financial system as such, i.e. apart from political limitations of choice imposed by discretionary legislation, consists of no structural features entailing the impossibility or undesirability of legislating any of the above measures. Recall that the multi-trillion dollar bailout of the banks was effected without a dime of taxpayer money, as then-Fed-chairman Ben Bernanke averred on 60 Minutes. The Fed simply plucked what was “needed” out of thin air, the way all government money is created. And the redirection of interest payments to consumption spending would not trigger inflation, because (official false assertions of full employment aside) discouraged workers out of the labor force, and workers who want but cannot find full-time employment -and all these number very many- would use the money to put the 20-25 percent of America’s now idle productive capacity to use. An economy with this much slack will not generate unmanageable inflation when idle capacity, human and non-human, is put to work.
With respect to the Fed–a private institution remember, whose seven Board members are bankers–it is perceived need that typically determines the strategies that the Fed is willing to pursue. Needs are class-relative. Bankers needed to be rescued from insolvency, hence the bailout. Working-class homeowners are not among the Fed’s governors, nor are their needs the same as bankers’. Virtually nothing was done to benefit those with foreclosed homes. The owners of the Fed have no interest in addressing the needs of desperate debtors. On the contrary, the Fed’s constituency loves the unending flow of interest payments. What is required to make the possible actual is a national movement, led perhaps by groups like Strike the Debt, marching, disrupting and striking in the name of debt cancellation.
The Benefits of Cancelling Student Debt
Such a movement would educate the population about the current state and social costs of student loan debt. The Levy study, essential for activists, provides the relevant details. It also reminds us that the interest payments on this debt represent not only a significant reduction of debtors’ financial resources, but a substantial sum that has been diverted from alternative, productive uses. The interest payments currently extracted from households are unproductive, increase the insecurity of the working class and go straight to the very wealthy. The effect of wholesale debt cancellation would be to redirect funds now bound to debt service to productive, rather than extractive, uses. The immediate effect would be to boost consumption demand, which would in turn spill over into other forms of spending like increasing production and hiring workers. The study finds that, over a ten-year forecast, cancellation could raise GDP $86-108 billion a year, reduce the average unemployment rate by 0.22-0.36 percentage points, and add from 1.2 to 1.5 million new jobs per year. And by ending the debt-payment drain on household resources, working people’s vulnerability during business cycle downturns would be reduced.
Cancellation of all student-loan debt, then, is both feasible and desirable. Let’s get on with it.
The Criminalization of Private Debt
Elites are well aware that what is in store for the majority of the working population is a future of declining living standards, contingent, low-paying work, debt peonage and declining social services – in a word, secular austerity. High levels of imprisonment, burgeoning surveillance, the suppression by Google and Facebook of access to alternative, independent sources of critical social, political and economic commentary and the militarization of an increasingly brutal police force are repressive measures enacted in ruling-class anticipation of the widespread social dislocation that must attend long-term austerity.
Debtors have been targeted for severe punishment lest they try “to get something for nothing,” i.e. fail to service debts they are unable to pay. The ACLU study provides a wealth of information for educators and organizers. The number of debtors in serious trouble is startling. One in three Americans has a debt that has been turned over to a private collection agency. One in five Americans has unpaid medical bills that have gone into collection.
Student-loan debtors have been in the court system’s bullseye. A Texas man was arrested by seven or eight U.S. Marshals for failure to appear in court. The original $2,500 federal student loan he obtained in 1983 to pay for trucking school had ballooned to $12,000 with interest and fees. The man was not merely unwilling, he was unable to appear in court: he had just undergone open-heart surgery. Had he been able to appear, it would still have been unable to pay. He was retired and subsisting on Social Security and disability. In most cases like this, the court has not cared.
Failure to appear in court for the “judgment debtor exam” is grounds for creditors to have the judge issue a civil warrant for the debtor’s arrest. Failure to appear in court is the major grounds for the issuance of a warrant and/or arrest. Among common reasons for failing to appear include work obligations, child care responsibilities, lack of transportation, physical disability, illness or dementia. These legitimate excuses rarely carry weight with the courts. ACLU found cases in which warrants were issued to terminally ill debtors who died shortly after the warrants were issued. But most often debtors failed to appear because they were not notified of the court date, or, more scandalously, they were not even notified of the existence of the lawsuit. The ineptitude of the courts’ procedures stands in sharp contrast to the relentlessness with which the courts, in collusion with debt collectors, hound the indebted. In Maryland a man, 83 and his wife, 78, were jailed because they did not appear at a show cause hearing in a district court. (Ineptitude and inattention abounds: the server described the man as 41 years old and his wife as his 28 year old roommate.) The issue was $2,342.76 owed to a homeowners’ association, plus $450 in attorney’s fees. Not atypically, the couple had never been served notice of the hearing; they were out of the country when the process server claimed to have performed service. Adding insult to injury, the show cause hearing had been scheduled for the couple’s failure to appear at a post-judgement proceeding, for which they had also never been served.
In this case, like many others, the couple was arrested and a cash-only bond was set in the amount of $2,900, more than the default judgement against them. Of course if the default payment was unaffordable, so was the bond payment. An increasing percentage of locked-up debtors remain incarcerated simply because they cannot afford bail.
Turning State and Local Courts Into Collectors’ Courts
More than 6,000 debt collection firms collect billions of dollars a year for the creditors who hire them. Millions of collection lawsuits are filed each year in state and local courts. These are the majority of cases on many state court dockets, and in many state courts debt purchasers file more suits than any other type of plaintiff. Frequently the courts require no evidence that the alleged debt is actually owed. In theory, this should work in the defendant’s favor, but the vast majority of these defendants are not represented by a lawyer. The sheer numbers of this type of case lead the courts to barrel through collection suits with great speed and virtually no scrutiny. The debtor is doomed from the outset. Over 95 percent of debt collection suits end in favor of the collector.
The implications of this entire setup are more far reaching than the harm described above done to debtors. The damage includes lost wages, lost jobs and psychological distress. And the debtor need not be jailed in order for these damages to take their toll. An arrest warrant by itself can wreak long-lasting havoc on the debtors’ lives: warrants are entered into background check databases, which can jeopardize future employment, educational opportunities, housing applications and access to security clearances.
The ACLU study, from which much of the above has been drawn, documents the pervasiveness of this wholesale and mounting assault on the indebted and the poor. This is but one of the strategies employed in the elite attempt to re-make America into a society that has discarded the protections of the New Deal/Great Society heritage. And of the Constitution. Here we have yet another instance of the effort to return America to the settlement of the 1920s. The deliberate attempt to addict households to debt even as debtors are subject to unremitting prosecution-persecution is but one of the abominations of the march of neoliberalism.
Because the serving of warrants and jailing of debtors has begun picking up steam in recent years, and the financial situation of these potential prisoners has been gradually deteriorating, we have reason to expect that student-loan debtors could come to make up a significant portion of the growing ranks of those threatened with debt prison. Arrest warrants have been issued in California, Florida, Minnesota, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts and Texas. Arrests have been heaviest in California, Texas and Minnesota. In many cases there was no announcement of court orders or that the debtor was being sued. U.S. marshals in Minnesota conducted “Operation Anaconda Squeeze” to arrest student-loan debtors who had failed to appear in court for a “debtor’s examination.” Whether they had received prior notice was often thought by the court to be beside the point. As with the cases described earlier, often defendants are ordered to pay much more than the amount of the original loan. A Texas man, who received no prior notice about the debt or the court case brought by a private collection agency on behalf of Uncle Sam, was arrested by seven armed U.S. marshals for an unpaid $1,500 student loan he had borrowed 29 years earlier. He was ordered to pay, after interest and court fees, more than twice the amount of the original loan. $1,258.60 was added to reimburse the marshals for his arrest.
Note that these actions, often conducted by armed marshals, display the ongoing militarization of society that we must expect as creeping austerity becomes the new normal.
Private and Public Debt in the History of American Capitalism
The respective impacts on the economy of private and public debt are thoroughly misconstrued in official propaganda. Political and economic elites make no fuss over the accumulation of massive private debt. It is public debt that unsettles the plutocrats. Mounting public debt and deficits are held to portend State bankruptcy. Private and public debt have produced consistent respective results over the course of U.S. capitalist development, and they are the opposite of what the Party Line puts forward. It is private debt that generates crisis, and federal deficits that ward off depression. Here are the relevant facts.
Of all the developed capitalist countries since the end of the Second World War, America has offered its workers the most niggardly social democratic benefits. The so-called social safety net has been either non-existent or insufficient to provide working-class households with a modicum of material security. Low private-sector wages and a paltry welfare State have made debt -unsustainable debt at that–a necessary supplement to the reward for work. This is clearly illustrated in the only two periods in American history when there appeared to be a thriving middle class, namely the 1920s and the Golden Age of 1949-1973.
During the 1920s, when wages were stagnant, the proportion of total retail sales financed by credit increased from 10 percent in 1910 to 15 percent in 1927 to 50 percent in 1929. Because 71 percent of households stood on or below the poverty line during that decade, the ratio of household debt to household income rose steadily through the 1920s. In 1923, 1924, 1924, 1927 and 1928, the ratios stood at, respectively, 13, 18, 22, 25 and 31 percent. That most working-class households were in penury during these years was disguised by the supplementing of poverty-level wages with mounting debt. When debt rises faster than income the debt must be unsustainable. When the limits of household debt were reached around 1926, the especially rapid rise in the production and consumption of durable goods that propelled the decade’s growth rates could not be maintained. By 1929 there was a troubling decline in investment and in the demand for types of durable goods most responsible for the post-1921 growth surge. The stage was set for the Great Depression.
A similar scenario characterized the Golden Age. In 1946 the ratio of household debt to disposable income stood at about 24 percent. By 1950 it had risen to 38 percent, by 1955 to 53 percent, by 1960 to 62 percent, and by 1965 to 72 percent. The ratio fluctuated from 1966 to 1978, but the stagnation of real wages which began in 1974 pressured households further to increase their debt burden in order to maintain living standards, just as they had done during the 1920s, pushing the ratio of debt to disposable income to 77 percent by 1979. By the mid-1980s, with neoliberalism in full swing and wages continuing to stagnate, the ratio began a steady ascent, from 80 percent in 1985 to 88 percent in 1990 to 95 percent in 1995 to over 100 percent in 2000 to 138 percent in 2007. When the housing bubble first showed signs of leakage in 2006, the percentage of total household debt consisting of mortgage debt rose from 68 to 76 percent. As debt rose relative to workers’ income, households’ margin of security against insolvency began to erode. The ratio of personal saving to disposable income under neoliberalism began a steady decline, falling from 11 percent in 1983 to 2.3 percent in 1999. There followed the burst of the housing bubble and a dramatic decline in working-class living standards in the Great Recession.
While in America household debt accumulation has been necessary to provide the appearance of prosperity, it has never been sufficient. So deep-seated is American capitalism’s tendency to stagnation that federal deficits have been necessary to avert economic crisis. For almost all of its history the U.S. has run deficits; they have been and remain the norm. There have been only seven historical U.S. attempts to balance the budget and reduce the national debt. Each has resulted in depression or Great Recession. The first six attempts (1817-21, 1823-36, 1852-57, 1867-73, 1880-93 and 1920-30) were quickly followed by depressions. The seventh, Clinton’s 1998-99 surplus, was followed by a crash eight years later. The delay was effected by a historic boost to demand provided by the unprecedented household credit explosion of the late 1990s up to the crash of September 2008.
An exhaustive study released by the National Bureau of Economic Research analyzed 138 years of economic history in 14 advanced capitalist economies. It concludes that a major cause of severe economic downturns is high levels of private debt. (6) Michael Hudson has made a powerful case for the re-emergence of debt peonage as the chronic condition of the working class absent profound structural political-economic change. In my forthcoming (June) book Overripe Economy American Capitalism and the Crisis of Democracy, I discuss the features of the historical evolution of U.S. capitalism that have led to the current settlement, the major transformations now under way, and what a genuinely democratic political economy must look like.
Notes.
(1) Lawrence F. Katz and Alan B. Krueger (2016). “The Rise and Nature of Alternative Work Arrangements in the United States, 1995–2015,” Princeton University and NBER. March 29. (2) Scott Fullwiler, Stephanie Kelton, Catherine Ruetschlin and Marshall Steinbaum, “The Macroeconomic Effects of Student Debt Cancellation,” February, 2018 Levy Economics Institute of Bard College
(3) “A Pound of Flesh The Criminalization of Private Debt” 2018 American Civil Liberties Union
(4) “The Macroeconomic Effects…,” pp. 18-35
(5) “The Macroeconomic Effects…,” pp. 46-49
(6) Alan Taylor, “The Great Leveraging,” Working Paper 18290 National Bureau of Economic Research | {
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Talk about a ballsy campaign.
Taking a page out of the playbook of ALS fundraisers, two brothers have started a social media campaign called "Crotch Grab Challenge." It's like the "Ice Bucket Challenge," but with no ice and more, well, crotch grabbing.
The brothers, Simon and Andrew Salter, are trying to raise awareness of testicular cancer by asking men to post their own ball-in-hand photos and then nominate friends to follow suit. Naturally, the official campaign hashtag is #feelingnuts.
So who is grabbing their crotches in the name of science? So far, Ricky Gervais is grabbing his crotch.
As is William Shatner.
And Hugh Jackman is definitely grabbing his crotch.
Testicular cancer treatments are very effective if caught early, according to the American Cancer Society.
The social media campaign makes sense, too: Half of all men who develop the disease are on the younger side, between 20 and 34. | {
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Home » Resources How Fast Does A Hoverboard Go? Resources How Fast Does A Hoverboard Go?
Hoverboards are self-balancing scooters that promote people’s mobility, especially in an urban context. Whichever model you choose, you’ll always want to know the maximum possible speed.
How fast does a hoverboard go? Normally, these mobility vehicles have varying speeds from 6 mph to 15 mph. While it might not sound like the speed that gives an adrenaline rush, it’s very fast when you’re just a few inches off the ground. In this article, we’ll have a deeper insight into speed variations and the factors it depends on. Let’s start.
Can A Hoverboard Go Faster Than A Bicycle or A Scooter?
With technology moving at breakneck speed, most manufacturers are producing devices that drive the techie minds insane. Though the average speed is 6-8 miles per second, imagine how fast the device can go at 15 mph. This phenomenal speed is what has made scooters more efficient and trendy.
Because hoverboards are completely legal and safe to ride, they could easily overrule bicycles-for good reasons. While some hoverboards can easily give a speed above 15 mph, imagine how you’d get drenched in sweat when you try to achieve this speed on a bicycle. The only downside is that some boards cannot go through rough terrain. It might get challenging to go through grass and gravel. If you’re an outdoor enthusiast and you’re craving for the fastest hoverboard, be sure to invest in a quality model.
Factors That Determine The Speed Of A Hoverboard
Although a hoverboard may have a state-of-the-art Bluetooth speaker, rubber guards, durable shells, and LED’s, it’s useless if it fails in the performance department. That being said, there are several factors that mark the speed of these self-balancing scooters. Some of the key parameters include;
Wheel size
Did you know the wheel diameter affects the speed of the scooter both indoors and outdoors? But, how does the wheel size matter? You may have noted that other features of your scooter could be the same but the size of the wheel will make the difference. Ideally, the market offers different wheel sizes including 6.5-inch, 8-inch, 8.5-inch, and 10 inches. Holding other factors constant, the wheel radius determines the speed.
Hoverboards with 4.5-inch wheels are designed for kids between ages 5-10 years. This is because they can attain a moderate speed which is good for their safety. On the other hand, scooters with 6.5 inches are designed for beginners and come with a maximum speed of 6 to 8 miles per hour. With small wheels, it becomes hard to ride on carpets. What’s more, small wheels translate to small ground clearance so your scooter cannot attain a maximum speed in uneven and grassy surfaces.
The 8.5-inch wheels are for both novice and advanced riders. Hoverboards with such wheels have higher ground clearance and give better foot base for individuals. The best part is; the device can attain a speed of more than 10 mph. It can also accommodate heavy people and still manage to meet the top speed. Lastly, scooters with 10-inch wheels can move over obstacles and rough surfaces at a top speed of 13-15 mph. And when you increase the speed to more than the defined limit, the LED’s will start to glow.
Every wheel has a speed sensor that allows you to adjust the speed to suit your needs and requirements. Just imagine you’re cruising around the street and then a dog stops in the middle of the road. The way you shift your body will make the magic happen.
Weight factor
You’re probably asking yourself whether you’re too heavy to use a scooter. Before you buy a new hoverboard, you should consider your weight and that of the board. A heavy board requires more power to attain the maximum speed. Standard scooters can carry between 200 lbs. and 250 lbs. If you weigh more than that, you may want to invest in a unit that carries more weight.
The way you hold or shift your weight will determine whether you’ll attain higher speed targets. Frankly speaking, most high-end models are designed to support more weight while maintaining the maximum speed.
Power of electric motor and battery life
There are several things that come into play if you want to achieve the maximum speed of your hoverboard. Because it’s electronically charged, you should give great emphasis on battery life. A poor battery can mess the possible maximum speed. Your goal should be to have a device that allows you to enjoy a ride for 2-3 hours before running out of juice. This is usually the average battery life after charging. It’s unfortunate that most people ignore this feature. How fast or far your board will go will depend on battery life.
The electric motors of hoverboards are located in the wheels. Irrespective of the brand you choose, make sure it has dual motors because they have a significant effect on speed. Note- every hoverboard owner wants to have a device that attains the maximum speed.
Which Brands Should I Buy When Looking For A Fast Hoverboard?
Let’s be honest: there have been numerous reports that some models of hoverboards have a nasty tendency of exploding. It’s advisable you invest in a model that has been around for many years. A good model will range between $250 and $500. Be wary of those manufacturers that charge inflated amounts. Besides top speed, pay special attention to construction.
Wrap up
How fast does a hoverboard go? Depending on the model you choose, you should expect speeds of 6 to 15 miles an hour. Now that we’ve talked about the factors that affect speed, you may want to look for products that have earned an indelible name in the industry.
Speed comes into play when you want to have fun and an exciting ride. Apart from that, it gives you an opportunity to reach your destination on time. It’s worth mentioning that newer models have come with advanced features and speed ranges. If you’re riding in beginners or standard mode, the speed will be average. The controls also play a key role in determining the maximum speed.
To be on the safe side, make sure you read the reviews of the different products and identify the one that has won the hearts of riders. | {
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As the hot weather and winds that fanned severe bushfires in southern Queensland ease, residents and businesses owners are seeing the full extent from the fires that have raged statewide since last week.
Key points: About 70 fires are still burning in Queensland
About 70 fires are still burning in Queensland Crews have taken control of the large Peregian blaze and residents are returning home
Crews have taken control of the large Peregian blaze and residents are returning home Weather conditions have eased, but are expected to intensify again on Friday
The emergency declaration for Peregian Springs and Peregian Beach on the Sunshine Coast has been revoked and all residents were allowed to return home on Wednesday, including those from Weyba, Weyba Downs and Peregian Breeze.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Service (QFES) Inspector Chris White said crews were able to gain the upper hand on the large Peregian bushfire.
"We have some predicted wind speeds that may be a problem [on Friday and Saturday], but technically with the support we're hitting this fire with at the moment everything should be blackened out in that Peregian area," he said.
For more information about Queensland's bushfire situation, listen live to ABC Local Radio in your area: ABC Gold Coast
ABC Gold Coast ABC Southern Queensland
ABC Southern Queensland ABC Sunshine Coast
Only one home was completely destroyed, while one was severely damaged in the blaze.
Access is blocked at a fire-damaged house at Peregian Beach. ( ABC News: Allyson Horn )
Peregian beach resident Sunny Marx found his house spared from the fires.
"We're just worrying more about the neighbours and seeing how we can help," he said.
"It was pretty scary, it was raining down embers. I jumped up on the roof to have a look and see how bad it was.
"It was this huge wall of red and smoke coming towards us and this really loud roaring noise.
"Thank you to all the firefighting crews that came and helped us, they did a terrific job."
Businesses remain closed but owners were all in good spirits with minimal damage.
Business in Peregian embraces the bushfires by holding a "slightly smoked sale". ( ABC News: Allyson Horn )
Teens charged over alleged deliberately lit fire
Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said on Wednesday the cause of 10 fires being investigated by the newly-established Taskforce Overcross had been solved, with 11 people, some juveniles, dealt with by detectives.
"In some cases it's just kids lighting fire for fun [and] that fire has gotten away and impacted very badly," she said.
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 32 seconds 32 s Ember attack during bushfire on the Sunshine Coast
"[While] other kids got together and purposely lit fires, and in other cases there have been recidivous offenders around arson and police have dealt with them appropriately."
Police said in a statement later on Wednesday afternoon that two teenagers had been charged over an alleged deliberately lit fire that destroyed bushland and forced residents to evacuate their homes in the Peregian area on Monday.
A 14-year-old boy from Peregian Springs and a 15-year-old girl from Coolum Beach girl were charged with endangering particular property by fire.
Meanwhile, Southern Region Assistant Commissioner Mike Condon said there was evidence to suggest the fire near Stanthorpe on the Granite Belt, that destroyed at least five homes over the weekend, may have been accidentally lit.
Firefighters praised for their efforts
Emergency crews have been commended for their efforts across the state.
One Ballandean rural firefighter, Aaron Cox, was praised on social media by his wife Bindi, who took an emotional photo of the man right after fighting to save his own home from the fires.
"This is a man who has fought hard for his community since Friday and has just finished the epic fight to save his own house when he had nothing left in the tank to begin with," Ms Cox wrote on Facebook.
"I know you think this photo makes you look vulnerable but in that moment we both felt this.
"No-one understands what a bushfire does to you until you have to fight."
Ballandean rural firefighter Aaron Cox broke down after saving his own home from the fires. ( Facebook: Bindi Cox )
QFES Acting Deputy Commissioner John Bolger said exhausted firefighters still at work would be relieved by crews from Victoria and South Australia.
"It's been a wonderful national effort," he said.
"I'll be honest, the only way we can fully extinguish all those fires is when we get some rain, we can build containment lines, we can hold them in place but in the difficult terrain to extinguish them [would be hard].
"We are relying on rain and unfortunately there's none on the radar."
Help is coming from interstate to support local firefighters. ( Supplied: Queensland Fire and Emergency Service )
Currently, there are about 70 fires burning across the state.
Since the crisis began last week, 17 houses have been destroyed, including one in Peregian Springs, 11 in the Scenic Rim, four at Applethorpe and Stanthorpe and one at Biboohra in Far North Queensland.
Five businesses were gutted at the weekend in Binna Burra, in the Gold Coast hinterland.
Gold Coast hinterland residents start returning
Better conditions in the Gold Coast hinterland and Scenic Rim have meant residents have started returning home.
Lisa Groom lives on a street near Binna Burra Lodge that was completely devastated by the fire.
"In my street we've lost 11 houses, I think, and some of those people are not going to be able to come back for a while, or maybe never," she said through tears.
"The childhood house I grew up in is literally right to the left of the whole lodge and we haven't been able to get up to see that yet.
The Binna Burra lodge, before and after being destroyed by fire. ( Supplied: Binna Burra Lodge )
"This is a rainforest. This is supposed to be a wet environment — a moist and nurturing environment — and it's dying, it's dying."
Three schools in the area remain closed, including Beechmont and Numinbah Valley state schools and the Numinbah Valley Environmental Education Centre.
QFES chief superintendent Kevin Walsh said there was potential for fires to flare again later this week, so people needed to remain alert.
Higher temperatures and stronger winds are forecast from Friday in the state's south-east, increasing the fire danger.
The Canungra-Sarabah blaze has been brought under control after raging earlier this week. ( Supplied: Queensland Fire and Emergency Service )
Nursery owner David Higgins was evacuated on Monday afternoon and has been staying at the community centre since.
He said although the fire did not reach his property, his plants had suffered.
Nursery owner David Higgins said his plants have suffered from heat and wind. ( ABC News: Leonie Mellor )
"Heat and wind are the worst things for us. We haven't had rain since March — that's the biggest thing," he said.
"If you look around the forest that we're surrounded by, mature trees are dying and falling over and creating more of a fire hazard."
'I am not happy at all'
Fire crews were aerial water bombing near a Far North Queensland Indigenous community today, where a blaze is burning in inaccessible land.
The fire near Lockhart River on Cape York started several days ago in woodland but has spread to nearby Iron Range rainforest.
The fire now impacting the Iron Range rainforest started several days ago. ( Supplied: Gabrielle Davidson )
Lockhart River Mayor Wayne Butcher said he was not happy with the response to the blaze and said more should have been done earlier.
"I am not happy at all," he said.
"Straight after [Cyclone Trevor] we knew a lot of rainforest would be damaged and it was always going to be a race to try and put measures in to prevent the rainforest from burning — now it's burning."
Queensland Parks and Wildlife said it was not clear how much of a rainforest had been destroyed by the bushfire.
Ranger Marty McLaughlin said extensive damage from a cyclone earlier this year had made managing the blaze more difficult.
"The issue is just the amount of debris on ground and because of the access difficulty on ground between cyclone debris," he said.
"It means that the aerial attack is potentially the only way you can deal with fire in some of those locations." | {
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Sam Nazarian is accustomed to success and fame. He operates some of Los Angeles' most popular nightspots, including such paparazzi-besieged watering holes as Area, MI-6 and Hyde Lounge. He has played himself on the cable-TV show "Entourage" and lives next door to actor Leonardo DiCaprio in Hollywood Hills.
But a foray into high-end hotels has turned into a costly slog for the 34-year-old impresario amid the worst hotel market in decades.
During... | {
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The Laurel County Sheriff hopes someone in the public can help him track down a missing woman.
The Sheriff says 41-year-old Kimberly L. Collett was last seen on Feb. 27 in Manchester.
Anyone who knows the whereabouts of Collett is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at (606) 864-6600, or (606) 878-7000. | {
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O’Neill refused all comment when contacted by the Citizen. “This is a very personal situation,” said Patricia Lynch, a spokeswoman for the museum of history. “He doesn’t want to speak publicly about his relationship with his employer.”
However, it appears that O’Neill is prepared to fight. A source outside the museum said the 52-year-old O’Neill has retained wrongful dismissal lawyer Janice Payne, who has represented many high-profile clients, including Mike Duffy.
Lynch wouldn’t confirm or deny that Monday, reiterating that O’Neill “will not be discussing his relationship with his employer publicly.”
John Swettenham, a spokesman for the museum of nature, confirmed that Beckel responded to LeBlanc’s letter on Friday, the deadline imposed by the government.
“However, she does not want to talk about the content of what she’s sending,” Swettenham said, echoing Lynch’s comments about O’Neill. “She really sees this as a private matter. It’s between her and her employer.”
Olivier Duchesneau, a spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, said the PMO “will not be talking about next steps and confirming details until we have the chance to review carefully all the responses” from the 33 cabinet appointees.
“We promised Canadians that we would adopt an open, merit-based appointment process,” Duchesneau said in an email, adding that the government hopes the 33 appointees “will agree to withdraw and to submit their application under this open process. We are confident that this is the right thing to do to restore public trust in our institutions.” | {
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The Exploding Starry TARDIS | Vincent Van Gogh meets @doctorwho
(Zoom in to see the Gallifreyan)
BOTTOM RIGHT: “It seems to me; there’s so much more to the world than the average eye is allowed to see.”
TOP LEFT: “I believe; if you look hard; there are more wonders in this universe, than you could ever have dreamed of.”
For more information go to: https://splooshdesign.com/product-tag/van-gogh/?ref=618 | {
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Fair Allocation of Independent Resources (F.A.I.R)
FAIR is a fix to "unfair" map generators, providing a statistical analysis of the ratio of resources discovered, and "flipping" newly generated resources to less fairly distributed resources. This should prevent maps with hard to find resources, like stone or coal.
EvoGUI
If you're an EvoGUI fan, there is a FAIR addon to provide sensors that show how fairly each resource has been generated so far!
How It Works
FAIR counts each resource that is spawning after map generation. It waits until map generation is finished for each chunk generated, so any map generator (whether it is vanilla or RSO or something else) should be compatible. FAIR counts up resources, and tries to maintain the balance of resources based on a pre-set config, which is below:
So in a game with all resources set to "normal", the total resource number is 4 + 6 + 8 + 4. FAIR will try to ensure that 4/22 resources spawned is coal ore, 6/22 resources is iron-ore, and so on.
Note: FAIR does not begin altering resource map generation until over 500,000 tiles have been explored, or approximately a 500 x 1000 area. (Really not that big. Explore a tiny bit!)
FAIR provides a remote API so that mods that create more resources can easily register them. For example:
remote.call("FAIR", "set_resource_fair_ratio", "my-custom-ore", {["very-low"] = 1, low = 2, normal = 4, high = 6, ["very-high"] = 8})
Changelog | {
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Il conduttore radiofonico salito sul palco del Congresso non ha nascosto le sue convinzioni ma ha rivendicato la libertà di ognuno ad esprimersi. "Mi sento uno di voi perché oggi molti vorrebbero spegnere il microfono da cui sto parlando". | AGTW - CorriereTv
Il conduttore radiofonico salito sul palco del Congresso non ha nascosto le sue convinzioni ma ha rivendicato la libertà di ognuno ad esprimersi. "Mi sento uno di voi perché oggi molti vorrebbero spegnere il microfono da cui sto parlando". | {
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Happy New Year, everybody! How many weeks will go by until you stop writing 2018 after every date?
One of the very few downsides to Bike Life is, when it's raining, you are going to get wet. For your consideration, the following are a few simple ways I ride at least somewhat happily in the rain.
Embrace the Suck (ETS)©. As a former U.S. Marine, I am, of course, amphibious. For me, being wet is sometimes preferable to the tediousness (and, some say, folly) of trying to stay dry, so I dive right in. On suit-and-tie days this method can get a bit dodgy, but as most of my businesswear is made from (ahem) modern fabrics, I dry out relatively quickly and wrinkle-free. If you have young passengers to transport, ETS is of course out of the question.
Wear waterproof shells over your clothing. Gore-tex and other types of waterproof outwear may keep the rain from hitting your clothes, but if you are of northern European persuasion and therefore sweat profusely, you will likely arrive at your destination soaked from the inside-out. If I am going to be drenched, I would rather be drenched by rain water than stewed in my own juices.
Ride with an umbrella. On rainy days that are not also windy days, I sometimes ride with an open umbrella. Feet and legs still get wet, but face, arms, and torso are relatively protected. If the rain stops during the ride, I stash the umbrella quickly and easily. The sweat factor is minimal. An important consideration: "Certain skills" are required. People for whom this option is inappropriate know who they are . . .
Use a windscreen or canopy. The transparent wonder pictured below is a component of several models made by the official supplier to the French postal service. For background, my first encounter with this type of rain protection was during one of many trips to France, when I spotted a French postman on bicycle, making his rounds in heavy rain. He had stopped to smoke a Gitane, warm and dry under an odd-looking, handlebar-mounted canopy. I was intrigued and approached him for a chat. This was my introduction to French company Veltop.
Veltop's philosophy as regards rain protection is to keep it from hitting you and your young passengers in the first place. In brief, I have tested most of the Veltop models and they all do what they purport to do, and do it exceptionally well. The Veltop model (the "Urban") pictured below includes two struts that support a lightweight overhead canopy (both not shown here), but I find that the windscreen, at full extension, is more than adequate rain protection. As long as I keep moving, I stay dry, but the canopy portion is a must in the city. Visibility is excellent.
There are two potential downsides to windscreens or canopies, though both are easily "overcomeable": 1) Canopies are attention-getters, and 2) unless you take certain steps, your bike will be on its side when you return to it.
As regards the first downside, I view conspicuousness of Veltop products as a plus, except when I am in a rush, as they have absolutely proven to be conversation-starters. As for the second, I either ensure that my bike is locked snugly enough to keep the bike upright while parked, or use a bungee cord along with the lock to secure it to something solid. Either solution is simple, is quick, and it works.
My wish for you is that you find more occasions to use your bike in 2019. I hope the above makes your Bike Life at least a little bit better.
How do YOU handle riding in the rain? Please leave a comment. See you on the road! | {
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A multi-million dollar project meant to digitise files of East Germany's secret police, has been abandoned.
Millions of documents amassed by the Stasi were shredded soon after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Historians are restoring some of them by putting millions of bits of torn papers together.
But the scanning hardware being used to digitise the old documents is not sophisticated enough.
Al Jazeera's David Chater reports from Eastern Berlin, Germany. | {
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It more or less became a normal thing that the announcement of a new PS4 firmware implies a new Vita update to be release as well. So, here it is: Vita Update 3.60!!
I’ll be honest with you guys, I’m not quite sure what I should write about right now as there ‘of course’ are no new official features and only shortly after taking a quick look on what has changed I can say.. less than nothing much. They still haven’t bothered patching Qwikrazor’s PBOOT bubbles so you can still enjoy the unrestricted VHBL, custom themes and the whitelist patch ver 1 & 2 on your PSTV. (if installed on an older firmware of course)
So for everyone on 3.57 who wants to play online can update without any concerns. (Never thought I would say this ever)
The only thing that big killjoy-Sony (of course) did was patching the Metal Gear Exploit that enabled VHBL for those of you who were not able to install any bubbles on earlier firmwares! So if this is your only way of running anything on your Vita you surely shouldn’t update then!
These are the new entries in the ePSP blacklist for 3.60 for everyone interested:
ULES01003 – Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops + [EU] ULJM05261 – Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus [JP] ULES00645 – Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops [EU] ULJM05193 – Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops [JP]
Oh well, the Support uri flaw is still there 😛 pic.twitter.com/mktFLl0o4A — 天使のかなで (@KanadeEngel) April 6, 2016
And all thats left to say on a side(sad) note is that they really don’t care about the vita anymore and that the PS4 firmware update number will soon overtake the vita’s :/
Yup, thats it..
We also provide a service to help you get VHBL on 3.60FW here, you also have to be a member to see the post. | {
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New UK centrist group aims to become a political party A group of British lawmakers who quit the Conservative and Labour parties to form a centrist independent bloc in Parliament say they have begun the progress of forming a new political party
LONDON -- A group of British lawmakers who quit the Conservative and Labour parties to form a centrist independent bloc in Parliament said Tuesday they have begun the progress of forming a new political party.
Spokesman Chuka Umunna said he and other members of the Independent Group were holding talks with elections regulator the Electoral Commission.
"We think people want an alternative," he said.
"We aren't a political party but quite clearly there is an appetite for a new one, so we are here to discuss with them what that involves."
Eight members of Parliament including Umunna quit the opposition Labour Party and three left the governing Conservatives last month, partly in opposition to the government's conduct of Britain's departure from the European Union.
The defections mark the biggest shake-up in years for Britain's political parties. There have long been signs that voters' 2016 decision to leave the EU could spark a major overhaul of British politics, because Brexit has split both the Conservatives and Labour down the middle into feuding pro-Brexit and pro-EU wings.
The breakaway lawmakers want to hold a new referendum on Brexit that could keep Britain in the 28-nation bloc. | {
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The team had said ahead of the Italian Grand Prix that it would decide after the race whether or not it made sense for Valtteri Bottas to be moved into a support role to help Lewis Hamilton.
But with Hamilton opening up his world championship advantage with victory at Monza, on a day when Bottas was able to help his teammate without wrecking his own race, Mercedes is happy to keep things as they are.
Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff said: “I don’t really like team orders, they are not cool and not good for the sport, and they are not good for either driver.
“Lewis doesn’t want to have anything gifted and Valtteri doesn’t want to give anything up. We are looking at it from race to race.
“We discussed it [on race morning], various scenarios and there was no necessity and we will see what happens in Singapore. I want to push that moment back as far as possible.”
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes AMG F1 W09, leadsKimi Raikkonen, Ferrari SF71H, and Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1 W09, as he locks up Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images
Hamilton’s victory at Monza owed much to Bottas disturbing Kimi Raikkonen’s run at the start of the second stint.
Bottas is realistic about his chances for this season, and says that he is already open to helping Hamilton when it makes sense – like it did at Monza.
“It wasn’t really like I was sacrificing my race, as long as I was keeping Kimi behind,” he said. “If he overtook me then for sure I would lose time.
“But knowing the fact that just a little bit earlier maybe would have been ideal for me to stop, I was happy to do it, because I knew I would still get a chance to attack [Max] Verstappen, so I don’t think we really compromised my result. That’s all good.
“Honestly, the points difference between me and Lewis is now very big, so I’m willing to cooperate when it makes sense. We are here as a team and we need to be realistic. The team wants to win both titles, so that’s how it is.”
Hamilton is now 30 points clear of Sebastian Vettel in the championship, with Raikkonen and Bottas 92 and 97 points off Hamilton respectively.
Vettel had been racing Raikkonen, who had beaten him to pole, for the lead on the first lap when he made contact with Hamilton and spun.
Asked if Ferrari had discussed how to handle the start, Vettel replied: "No, I think we are old enough and we don't need to go through the start.
"I'm doing my job and I'm prepared to race everybody.
“I was trying to use my chances in the first corner, a little bit in the second chicane, but it didn't work. Then it was a bit unfortunate with how things turned out.
"Everybody's free to have whatever approach they want. For us it's pretty clear and straightforward."
Pushed further on whether he felt he was at a disadvantage because he had to fight his teammate and Hamilton did not, Vettel retorted: "I don't know. Obviously I can see the points of the questions coming up.
"But for me it's pretty clear: I'm happy to fight three cars, I'm happy to actually fight 19 cars.
"I think I've never been in a different position to that. That's fine. I don't expect anything else." | {
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I own more than one desktop PC | {
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Booksmart is a raw and hilarious coming-of-age comedy that stars Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, and Jessica Williams, and was directed by Olivia Wilde. Following in the tradition of John Hughes, Superbad, and Juno, the film is one of those that the critics can’t help but heap praise upon, but it’s the target audience that made it a true hit. The soundtrack includes a variety of pop hits from throughout the ages, but what we have here is the score, composed by Dan “The Automator” Nakamura. Renowned for his work with the Gorillaz and his membership in Handsome Boy Modeling School and Deltron 3030, This is his first full domestic score, having contributed some bits and bobs to Scott Pilgrim vs. The World in addition to scoring a couple of Chinese films. The collaboration between Wilde and Nakamura was a natural one, in her words: “Dan is a creative genius who added multiple dimensions to our film through his complex, emotional, and beautiful compositions.” Hip-hop and sampling culture informs much of the production here, but in softer ways - drums lingering at levels barely above heartbeat volume with gentle washes of synth and string. The music is interspersed with lightly chopped-and-screwed dialogue from the film, but it’s integrated well into the music itself, not just dropped randomly between tracks. This record is pressed on limited edition blue marble vinyl.
blue marble colored vinyl
limited edition
music label: Lakeshore Records 2019
reviewed by THE GUY FROM SUPERBAD. NO, NOT MCLOVIN', THE BLONDE ONE 08/2019 | {
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The word “patriot” holds a special place in the heart of America, and the attachment to that word, in particular, runs deep into the roots of the United States’ history to its founding. While the word has taken on a meaning of national pride and attachment to one’s homeland, the American usage of the term brings with it a certain kind of pride that goes back to the American revolution. For it was the Patriots who ultimately loved their homeland, who stood for local and (in most cases) limited self-government, and grew to hate the established and increasingly obnoxious and interventionist Imperial British regime.
In contrast, modern “conservatives” and right wingers also lay a claim to the word “patriot,” and on the surface, it seems like the shoe fits. After all, it is the loud and proud American right that stands up for such time-honored American traditions like standing for the national anthem, keeping “under god” in the pledge of allegiance, proudly displaying their “thin blue line” bumper stickers (sometimes ironically and paradoxically next to the Gadsden flag), and honoring the veterans of America’s wars abroad. It’s nearly easier to start a “USA! The USA!” chant at a sporting event than a wave. After all, since July 4th is a revered holiday, surely there couldn’t possibly be a contradiction in rhetoric and reality?
Myths, Misunderstandings and Outright lies about owning Gold. Are you at risk?
Yet upon closer examination, it seems the rank-and-file right-wing is rather picky and choosy about exactly what American patriotism means. They proudly give lip-service and reverence to the founding of the country, to the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, but their actions speak otherwise. Modern conservatism seems to have severed its relation to the Patriotism of America’s birth and instead has embraced a nationalist, collectivist strain of statist pride dating back to the Progressive Era and bolstered by two “victories” in the World Wars. Today, the right wing with their almost religious and spiritual devotion to support for military servicemen, will proclaim their devotion to swift justice and an active foreign policy to fight for “freedom” abroad, to topple dictators, and to defend our vital allies and friends around the world from boogeymen that never seem to go away. Against the State: An ... Rockwell Jr., Llewelly... Best Price: $5.02 Buy New $5.52 (as of 11:35 EST - Details)
The parallels are eerily similar to the glory days of the British Empire, where British dominance on the field of battle or in the sporting arena was a testament to its greatness, as if the random Midwestern American conservative had any hand at all in Michael Phelp’s amazing Olympic achievements. Enemies of America’s foreign policy today are dehumanized right-winging news outlets, Assad and Gaddafi were brutal dictators committing human rights violations, and Palestinians are bloodthirsty monsters who launch rockets unprovoked into poor, defenseless Israel. The evangelical conservative (who has far more in common with Puritan Progressives than the Patriotic Classical Liberals of Jefferson’s era) faithfully does not question the American-Israeli alliance. They’re all alone in the region, after all, and if there’s anything apple-pie Americans love, it’s an underdog story. Unfortunately, the backing of the awesome military might conservatives love to flaunt about (ex: the idea of singlehandedly saving Europe during WWII) of the United States hardly makes Israel an underdog in any sense of the word, much less from the right’s own perspective. Nevertheless! Any good American supports the noble colonies (correction: allies) around the globe.
The military industrial complex easily harvests the military devotion of the right. It openly boasts in their television recruitment ads of the number of ships they have deployed globally, and luring America’s youth into the servitude of the political class by offering numerous “opportunities” anywhere in the world. The expansive and intimidating reach of the American empire exerts far more influence today than the British ever did. To the new recruits and their families, they are performing an honorable service defending American freedom, which somehow waddled its way halfway around the world, and now must be retrieved by refueling Saudi jets that coldly and often bomb Anatomy of the State Rothbard, Murray Best Price: $3.60 Buy New $66.99 (as of 11:45 EST - Details) civilians in Yemen in their own local crusades. Conservatives are proud of spreading the American doctrine and making the world safe for democracy in a way that would put a smile on accomplished Democrat Woodrow Wilson’s face. It doesn’t matter to them that now their boys and girls in uniform have been used to train the same bin-Ladenite jihadis that shot at (and in some regions, are still shooting at) their brothers a decade previously. What matters is “getting the bad guys,” and defending America’s colonies from whichever dictator or radical guerilla organization is a foe today, and forgotten ally yesterday. What matters is a return to World War dominance, victory for victory’s sake, and civilizing a barbaric foreign foe. Not even pretending to abide by “conservative” principles of fiscal responsibility is enough to reign in the leviathan and gluttonous size of the supposedly “dismantled” Pentagon (that still seems to procure massive budgets despite its misplacement of $6.5 trillion).
Combined with the right’s reverence for the international might of the American state is a desire to “civilize” his or her own neighbors. Whether it be a prohibition of drugs (mother knows best, after all), or a desire to teach the conservative’s backwards and ignorant countrymen that the rule of law must be followed, and that our police must always be respected, we must all move into a civilized age of practices approved by their own code of ethics. After all, the police are just trying to protect and serve the living daylights out of you, because smoking pot might be a gateway drug. The statutory law, the collectivist will divinely inspired as “one nation under God,” has become the new ten commandments. Conservatives no longer wish to conserve such long-dead traditions of individual liberty and federalism, they wish to uphold the tradition of an all-powerful state to actively assert itself on the side of “good.” The propaganda of the lurking and seemingly imminent threat of religious terrorism is enough for conservatives to give up their fourth amendment rights to a warrant and thank the omnipotent NSA for keeping them The Law Frederic Bastiat Best Price: $0.99 Buy New $5.80 (as of 06:15 EST - Details) safe through their civilian surveillance program that has stopped a whopping zero terrorist attacks. The Patriot Act, as it was so Orwellian named, has become the new Quartering Act with the Central Government able to enter anyone’s home on a whim of presumed guilt by association. After all, if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear, correct?
Modern conservatives have shown not a love for country, a love and respect for the liberties and freedoms of their neighbors and people who live alongside them, but they have shown a love for the state and the American empire. They’ve shown a love for activist government, for taxation above and beyond what their supposed heroes dumped tea into a harbor for. They’ve welcomed the red-coats into their homes through warrantless searches, and they worship the red, white, and blue calf that the Bible warned them against. Through their action, they’ve shown time and again that rather than freedom and liberty, they love empire, the divine right of ‘Murica, and a heavily armed police state with a nanny complex. They have their own form of PC, and one must not dare question friendship with Israel or point out the futility and moral atrocity of America’s own military interventions. Yet how ridiculous it would have been for Benjamin Franklin to lecture Patrick Henry to keep to himself his disdain for the British troops- after all, some of them died fighting during the French-Indian war, and criticism is disrespectful. It’s time for the American right to dump the word “patriot.” Freedom, liberty, and a love for their fellow countrymen now plays second fiddle, if in the orchestra at all. They’ve shown time and again that they’re nothing less than invasive government-loving, expensive (in terms of lives and money) empire building, collectivist Tories.
The Best of Christian Newman | {
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It was basically an aside — an odd and interesting nugget in an interview with Barbra Streisand that otherwise dealt with heavy topics like sexism and politics.
Indeed, most of the 2,800-word article about Streisand in Variety is devoted to detailing the actress's decades-long efforts to break up Hollywood's boys' club, as the 90th Academy Awards ceremony approaches with the #MeToo movement as the backdrop.
But it was that one nugget — a brief comment about her dogs — that drew the most attention Tuesday night.
In her interview with Variety, Streisand revealed that two of her three Coton de Tulear dogs were clones. Specifically, the magazine reported that the dogs ? Miss Violet and Miss Scarlett — had been cloned from cells taken from the mouth and stomach of Streisand's late dog Samantha, who was 14 when she died last year.
Miss Violet and Miss Scarlett "have different personalities," Streisand told Variety. "I'm waiting for them to get older so I can see if they have her brown eyes and her seriousness."
Streisand's third dog, Miss Fanny, is a distant cousin of Samantha's, the magazine said. (Miss Fanny's mother, the story noted, had been named Funny Girl.)
If the possibility of cloning your dog intrigues you, there is good news: You do not have to be an incredibly famous and highly acclaimed actor, director, producer and writer to have it done.
You do, however, need at least $50,000. But first, a little context.
We can clone dogs? Since when?
Even if you are not a close follower of clones, you may recall Dolly the Sheep, who was born in 1996. Since then, researchers have cloned about two dozen other mammal species, including cattle, deer, horses, rabbits, cats, rats ? and yes, dogs.
South Korean researchers announced that they had cloned a dog for the first time in 2005, after almost three years of work and more than 1,000 eggs. With help from a yellow Labrador retriever who served as the surrogate mother, a cloned male Afghan hound named Snuppy was born. (Snuppy, of course, stood for "Seoul National University puppy.")
By 2008, a California company had partnered with a South Korean laboratory and made plans to auction off chances to clone five dogs. Later that year, the New York Times reported that the first three puppies from the group had been born in South Korea.
Two 2015 reports — from Business Insider and NPR — detail the work of Sooam Biotech, a lab in South Korea, and said the lab, on its own, had cloned more than 600 dogs.
How much does it cost?
Both articles say Sooam Biotech charged about $100,000 to attempt the process. ViaGen Pets, a company based in Texas, says it charges $50,000 for the cloning or $1,600 to merely preserve your pet's genes.
Reports and information on ViaGen's website suggest that the cloning process ? specifically a dog's pregnancy ? usually takes about 60 days.
It was not clear which company Streisand used to create her clones. A publicist for Streisand did not immediately respond to an email or phone message on Tuesday night.
But will the cloned dog actually be similar?
That depends.
Sooam told Business Insider that it can clone any dog, regardless of age, size or breed. NPR, though, reported that cloned animals aren't exact replicas of original dogs.
Researchers at the South Korean lab told the station that the dogs it had cloned have been healthy ? and had almost always looked and acted like the dogs they were cloned from.
"Cats and dogs delivered by cloning have the same genes as their donor pets and will be the closest match possible to the donor," ViaGen said on its website. "This is best described as identical twins born at a later date."
"The environment does interact with genetics to impact many traits such as personality and behavior," the company continued.
Is it safe?
That also depends — mostly on how you define "safe."
In essence, the process involves getting a genetic sample from your dog, sending the sample to the lab, and letting the scientists put the sample through a process that fuses it with an egg. Eventually, the egg develops into an embryo; and that embryo is then transferred to the surrogate, who surgeons hope will give birth.
At the Korean lab, the process requires operating on the egg donor and the surrogate mother ? two dogs rented from a lab-animal provider. And, at least in the case of Sooam Biotech, it's not clear what happens after those dogs are no longer needed.
The company also told the media outlets that the cloning process works only about 33 to 40 percent of the time, which means there is strong potential for miscarriages.
Far from the medical labs, Streisand told Variety that she loves sharing her Malibu home with Miss Violet and Miss Scarlett. At least from that vantage point, the process seemed to work out just fine. Because, really, whatever your genes, who wouldn't want to live in a place with an ocean view? | {
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10800 Zombies: Blast hordes after hordes of zombies that stand in your way in this survival horror shooter. | {
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Here is the finished pinup. Over all I am happy with how this came out.
if anyone is interested in buying a print send me an email at [email protected] or come find us at the Calgary comic Expo this year.
Cheers
Jazz. | {
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The year was 1966, and General Motors was working on the future. From January to October, some 200 people worked in three shifts on the Electrovan, the first electric vehicle powered by a hydrogen fuel cell. It had room for two, weighed 7,100 pounds, and could hit 60 mph in a not-quite-compelling 30 seconds.
But it was the first of its kind, a new way of doing things. Hydrogen-powered cars can be refueled in just a few minutes, are just as capable as their gas-loving counterparts, and emit nothing but water as a byproduct.
Today, GM heralded the Electrovan's 50th birthday, noting it has since spent $2.5 billion developing fuel cell technology.
Rad, right? Yup, until you realize that for all that time and money, the automaker has made effectively zero progress getting humanity to ditch fossil fuels for hydrogen.
Plenty of folks are still pursuing this dream. Honda's offering the Clarity Fuel Cell sedan in Japan. Toyota's Mirai is available in the US, starting at nearly $60,000. Chevy just made a hydrogen-powered pickup for the US Army.
But no one's solved the fundamental problems with hydrogen power: There's no real infrastructure to get the fuel around the country and into cars. And while hydrogen's the most abundant element in the universe, making it into a useable fuel often involves natural gas—hardly a zero-emissions process.
So yeah, GM marking 50 years of working on the stuff is like a a PhD celebrating his tenth year working on that thesis—and insisting he'll be done real soon. | {
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The latest issue of Dengeki PlayStation has first details on Nights of Azure 2: Bride of the New Moon, Gust’s newly announced sequel for PlayStation 4 and PS Vita. The game tells a new story that intricately connects the emotions of three girls.
The game is produced by Keisuke Kikuchi and directed by Samurai Warriors Chronicle‘s Hiroshi Kataoka. Fatal Frame and Kagero series director Makoto Shibata is doing the scenario, and Production I.G.’s Junichi Fujisaku is supervising. Character design is by Yoshiku. This game will offer enhanced action, and introduces new systems that exceed the Servans system of the previous game.
While Dengeki Online’s preview article doesn’t mention a release date, a previous leak from the magazine confirms Nights of Azure 2: Bride of the New Moon will launch for PlayStation 4 and PS Vita in Japan on December 22. It will launch in a standard edition for 7,884 yen, Premium Box for 11,124 yen, and Special Collection Box for 17,604 yen.
Nights of Azure 2 is the second project part of Gust’s three-game “Beautiful Girls Festival.” The first project is Atelier Firis: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Journey, and the third project is Blue Reflection.
Thanks, Dengeki Online.
Update 7:20 a.m.: Famitsu has gone up with its own online preview.
Update 8:05 a.m.: New details have come out.
Characters Alushe Anatoria – A straightforward girl who prefers action over words. She becomes a half-demon, obtains the power to fight demon, and fights to save Liliana.
– A straightforward girl who prefers action over words. She becomes a half-demon, obtains the power to fight demon, and fights to save Liliana. Liliana Selphin – A girl chosen as the “Bride of Time.” She is kind and doesn’t discriminate against anyone she meets, but is also strong at her core.
– A girl chosen as the “Bride of Time.” She is kind and doesn’t discriminate against anyone she meets, but is also strong at her core. Ruhenheid Ariarod – Alushe and Lilianna’s childhood friend, and Holy Knight of an organization opposing the Curia. She is hot-blooded and somewhat arrogant, but serious at her core. Prologue Alushe is a knight of the Curia and guard to Liliana, a Saint and her childhood friend. After finally reaching the Curia, the two girls learn that Lilianna would have to give up her life in sacrifice to the goddess of the moon. In their surprise and sadness, Alushe dies in a battle against a powerful demon. However, she is resurrected as a half-demon by the hands of the Curia… Gameplay You’ll fight enemy demons together with your partner “Lily.” You can freely select your Lily, and your bonds will deepen as you fight together. As you develop your relationship and awaken new abilities, intimate events will occur. Both Liliana and Ruhenheid can be chosen as a Lily. As for the game’s connection with its predecessor, it carries over gameplay systems like Servans, as well as the affectionate, apocalyptic, dark fantasy taste of the original, but the gameplay will have a considerably different feeling.
Thanks, Hachima Kikou. | {
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Slovenska beseda v živo 1a
Slovenska beseda v živo 1a is the first set of course materials in the series Slovenska beseda v živo for learning Slovene as a second and foreign language. It is designed for adult students participating in beginner’s courses. This set comprises a textbook and workbook with an answer key, as well as two audio CDs for listening activities. It is meant for use in a classroom with approximately 120 to 140 hours of class time, although with a suitable selection of content it could also be used for shorter courses.
Slovenska beseda v živo 1a aims at achieving the level A1 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Using a communicative approach it provides basic words and phrases for everyday communication. Once completed, students can continue their study with Slovenska beseda v živo 1b (A2), and then Slovenska beseda v živo 2 (B1).
See also:
Teachers’ books: | {
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WASHINGTON (CN) – Prosecutors want to review emails that Paul Manafort exchanged with one his attorneys, a motion unsealed Wednesday with heavy redactions shows.
Though attorney-client privilege would ordinarily protect such communications, Chief U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell ruled last year that privilege doesn’t apply to the communications where Manafort “likely violated federal law by making, or conspiring to make materially false statements and misleading omissions in FARA submissions.”
FARA is short for the Foreign Agent Registration Act, a law that Special Counsel Robert Mueller has accused Manafort of violating by secretly lobbying U.S. officials on behalf of a pro-Russia political party in the Ukraine.
The lobbying occurred from 2007 to 2015, before Manafort signed on to chair the 2016 presidential campaign of Donald Trump, whose election Russia sought to secure.
Reiterating Judge Howell’s ruling from October 2017, prosecutors noted in a motion that has been under seal since its filing on Aug. 15 that Manafort waived privilege to his communications by soliciting an attorney’s assistance in committing a crime.
Mueller’s team also said that privilege should be waived since the communications were not confidential but rather government filings that would have some level of public disclosure.
“In such cases, both the information that the client expected the lawyer to reveal and ‘the details underlying’ it are subject to disclosure,” the motion says.
Mueller’s team wants to review four documents, all of which were among materials seized from Rackspace Inc. during the execution of a search warrant in the Southern District of New York associated with one of Manafort’s email addresses.
Prior to turning the material over to Mueller’s team, a group of attorneys known as a taint team screened for privileged communications.
The communications at issue were apparently given to Manafort and separated from the rest of the material now in the hands of investigators.
It’s unclear what the communications say since that part of the motion is redacted.
According to the motion, Manafort did not respond to an inquiry from the taint team about whether he would assert privilege over the communications but later asserted privilege over all of his communications with the witness.
The attorney is not named in the motion but Akin Gump attorney Melissa Laurenza is identified in an April 3 letter attached as an exhibit to a government motion filed Monday in support of allowing prosecutors to view the communications.
Laurenza is among the witnesses whom prosecutors say they might call during Manafort’s upcoming criminal trial in Washington, D.C.
Laurenza reportedly helped Manafort and his longtime associate Rick Gates submit foreign lobbying paperwork to the Justice Department that prosecutors say was misleading.
According to that motion, Manafort objects to prosecutors getting a hold of the communications on the basis that he did not participate in the hearing before Howell. Manafort also says he can’t determine whether Howell correctly ruled that the communications aren’t privileged.
But an Aug. 27 reply signed by prosecutor Elizabeth Aloi says Manafort received a transcript of the hearing with limited redactions, and declined an invitation to participate in the proceedings.
The exhibit that names Laurenza is apparently intended to show that Manafort received the transcript.
Manafort’s defense team also sought grand jury testimony from Laurenza but the letter indicates that as of its writing, she had not testified before the grand jury. She has, however, twice been interviewed by Mueller’s team.
According to the Aug. 15 motion, the special counsel’s office could seek testimony from the witness about Manafort’s foreign agent filings, “including what the Witness was told about ‘the specific factual representations alleged to be false or misleading in Mr. Manafort’s November 23, 2016 and February 10, 2017 FARA Submissions.'”
Howell ruled last year that prosecutors could compel testimony from the witness about those submissions.
Prosecutors have charged Manafort and Gates with making false statements to the Justice Department in those filings and with failing to register as foreign agents for lobbying work they did on behalf of the pro-Kremlin Party of Regions and former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.
Though Gates has since pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of lying to federal agents and is now a cooperating witness in Mueller’s investigation, Manafort is set to go to trial again next month after having been convicted of related financial crimes in Virginia last week.
Both the special counsel’s office and Manafort’s spokesman Jason Maloni declined to comment.
Laurenza has not returned a request for comment. | {
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How did I just find out about this! The Federal Highway Administration (part of the US Department of Transportation) has an interactive website called America’s Byways. It highlights the Scenic Byways of America and, no kidding, it is well done. Now we have a new tool to help us plan our motorcycle rides.
The website describes itself this way; “The National Scenic Byways Program is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. The program is a grass-roots collaborative effort established to help recognize, preserve and enhance selected roads throughout the United States. The U.S. Secretary of Transportation recognizes certain roads as All-American Roads or National Scenic Byways based on one or more archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational and scenic qualities.”
America’s Byways is an interactive, map based, website that will provide you a listing of each of the 150 different roads. Those roads are comprised of the National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads. You can select the road from a national or state map to see basic information on the road (length, average time to travel the road and historical background) as well as route maps, directions and photos. | {
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The world’s population will grow from almost 7 billion now to over 9 billion in 2050. John Parker asks if there will be enough food to go round
THE 1.6-hectare (4-acre) Broadbalk field lies in the centre of Rothamsted farm, about 40km (25 miles) north of London. In 1847 the farm's founder, Sir John Lawes, described its soil as a heavy loam resting on chalk and capable of producing good wheat when well manured. The 2010 harvest did not seem to vindicate his judgment. In the centre of the field the wheat is abundant, yielding 10 tonnes a hectare, one of the highest rates in the world for a commercial crop. But at the western end, near the manor house, it produces only 4 or 5 tonnes a hectare; other, spindlier, plants yield just 1 or 2 tonnes.
Broadbalk is no ordinary field. The first experimental crop of winter wheat was sown there in the autumn of 1843, and for the past 166 years the field, part of the Rothamsted Research station, has been the site of the longest-running continuous agricultural experiment in the world. Now different parts of the field are sown using different practices, making Broadbalk a microcosm of the state of world farming.
The wheat yielding a tonne a hectare is like an African field, and for the same reason: this crop has had no fertiliser, pesticide or anything else applied to it. African farmers are sometimes thought to be somehow responsible for their low yields, but the blame lies with the technology at their disposal. Given the same technology, European and American farmers get the same results.
The wheat bearing 4 or 5 tonnes a hectare is, roughly, like that of the Green Revolution, the transformation of agriculture that swept the world in the 1970s. It has been treated with herbicides and some fertilisers, but not up to the standard of the most recent agronomic practices, nor is it the highest-yielding semi-dwarf wheat variety. This is the crop of the Indian subcontinent and of Argentina.
The extraordinary results in the centre of the field are achieved by using the best plants, fertilisers, fungicides and husbandry. The yield is higher than the national average in Britain, and is as good as it gets.
Seeds of doubt
But the Broadbalk field shows something else. Chart 1 tracks its yields from the start, showing how the three different kinds of wheat farming—African, Green Revolution and modern—have diverged, sometimes quite suddenly: in the 1960s with the introduction of new herbicides for Green Revolution wheat, and in the 1980s with new fungicides and semi-dwarf varieties. Worryingly, though, in the past 15 years the yields of the most productive varieties of wheat in Broadbalk have begun to level out or even fall. The fear is that Broadbalk may prove a microcosm in this respect, too.
At the start of 2011 the food industry is in crisis. World food prices have risen above the peak they reached in early 2008 (see chart 2). That was a time when hundreds of millions of people fell into poverty, food riots were shaking governments in dozens of developing countries, exporters were banning grain sales abroad and “land grabs” carried out by rich grain-importing nations in poor agricultural ones were raising awkward questions about how best to help the poor.
This time, too, there have been export bans, food riots, panic buying and emergency price controls, just as in 2007-08. Fears that drought might ruin the current wheat crop in China, the world's largest, are sending shock waves through world markets. Discontent over rising bread prices has played a part in the popular uprisings throughout the Middle East. There are differences between the periods, but the fact that agriculture has experienced two big price spikes in under four years suggests that something serious is rattling the world's food chain.
The food industry has been attracting extra attention of other kinds. For years some of the most popular television programmes in English-speaking countries have been cooking shows. That may point to a healthy interest in food, but then again it may not. The historian Livy thought the Roman empire started to decay when cooks acquired celebrity status.
At a meeting of the Group of Eight (G8) industrial countries in 2009 the assembled leaders put food alongside the global financial crisis on their list of top priorities, promising to find $20 billion for agriculture over three years. This year the current president of the Group of 20 (G20), France's Nicolas Sarkozy, wants to make food the top priority. The Gates Foundation, the world's richest charity, which had previously focused on health and development generally, started to concentrate more on feeding the world. At last month's World Economic Forum, a gathering of businesspeople and policymakers in Davos, 17 global companies launched what they described as “a new vision for agriculture”, promising to do more to promote markets for smallholders—a sign of rising alarm in the private sector.
Anything for dinner?
Some of this public and political attention has been sporadic, but it is justified. An era of cheap food has come to an end. A combination of factors—rising demand in India and China, a dietary shift away from cereals towards meat and vegetables, the increasing use of maize as a fuel, and developments outside agriculture, such as the fall in the dollar—have brought to a close a period starting in the early 1970s in which the real price of staple crops (rice, wheat and maize) fell year after year.
This has come as a shock. By the 1990s most agricultural problems seemed to have been solved. Yields were rising, pests appeared under control and fertilisers were replenishing tired soil. The exciting areas of research in life sciences were no longer plants but things like HIV/AIDS.
The end of the era of cheap food has coincided with growing concern about the prospects of feeding the world. Around the turn of 2011-12 the global population is forecast to rise to 7 billion, stirring Malthusian fears. The price rises have once again plunged into poverty millions of people who spend more than half their income on food. The numbers of those below the poverty level of $1.25 a day, which had been falling consistently in the 1990s, rose sharply in 2007-08. That seems to suggest that the world cannot even feed its current population, let alone the 9 billion expected by 2050. Adding further to the concerns is climate change, of which agriculture is both cause and victim. So how will the world cope in the next four decades?
That question forms the backbone of this special report. The answer to it cannot be a straightforward technical or biological one because food is basic to life. In the Maya creation myth, the first humans were made of maize dough. In the slang of Marathi, a language of west central India, the man on the street is known as “fried bread”—after the workers' favourite snack.
Because food is so important, agriculture—more than any other form of economic activity—is expected to achieve a series of competing and overlapping goals that change over time and from place to place. The world looks to farmers to do more than just produce food. Agriculture is also central to reducing hunger (which is not quite the same thing) and provides many people's main route out of poverty. Food is probably the biggest single influence on people's health, though in radically different ways in poor countries and in rich ones, where the big problem now is obesity. Food is also one of the few pleasures available to the poorest. In the favelas (slums) of São Paulo, the largest city in South America, takeaway pizza parlours are proliferating because many families, who often do not have proper kitchens, now order a pizza at home to celebrate special occasions.
Given these conflicting aims, it is not surprising that the food crisis has produced contradictory accounts of the main problem and radically different proposals for solving it. One group is concerned mainly about feeding the world's growing population. It argues that high and volatile prices will make the job harder and that more needs to be done to boost supplies through the spread of modern farming, plant research and food processing in poor countries. For those in this group—food companies, plant breeders and international development agencies—the Green Revolution was a stunning success and needs to be followed by a second one now.
The alternative view is sceptical of, or even downright hostile to, the modern food business. This group, influential among non-governmental organisations and some consumers, concentrates more on the food problems of richer countries, such as concerns about animal welfare and obesity. It argues that modern agriculture produces food that is tasteless, nutritionally inadequate and environmentally disastrous. It thinks the Green Revolution has been a failure, or at least that it has done more environmental damage and brought fewer benefits than anyone expected. An influential book espousing this view, Michael Pollan's “The Omnivore's Dilemma”, starts by asking: “What should we have for dinner?” By contrast, those worried about food supplies wonder: “Will there be anything for dinner?”
This special report concentrates on the problems of feeding the 9 billion. It therefore gives greater weight to the first group. It argues that many of their claims are justified: feeding the world in 2050 will be hard, and business as usual will not do it. The report looks at ways to boost yields of the main crops, considers the constraints of land and water and the use of fertiliser and pesticide, assesses biofuel policies, explains why technology matters so much and examines the impact of recent price rises. It points out that although the concerns of the critics of modern agriculture may be understandable, the reaction against intensive farming is a luxury of the rich. Traditional and organic farming could feed Europeans and Americans well. It cannot feed the world.
Listen to an interview with the author of this special report | {
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AUSTIN, Texas — With sweat stains on their backs and the soft glow of the setting Texas sun over their smiling faces, the cast of Friday Night Lights took to Panther field (appropriately) Friday night for a reunion that likely won't be seen again for a long time.
The FNL tailgate party has been a signature event of the ATX Television Festival since its start five years ago, but all good things must come to an end. Or, as the festival's co-creator Emily Gipson joked, they couldn't keep asking the cast to come every year.
SEE ALSO: 50 TV shows you can binge for the rest of time
So they aimed to make this year bigger than ever, with almost two dozen returning cast members, including Connie Britton, who was nominated for an Emmy for her role on the show, and executive producer Jason Katims. They also staged the big screening and bash right on Panther Field, which sits just about 10 miles southeast of downtown Austin.
Friday Night Lights at #atxfestival A photo posted by @xxtriplestarxx on Jun 10, 2016 at 8:17pm PDT
The only problem? Since the show finished about five years ago, the field was, according to Gipson, "completely overgrown" and had "not been touched in five years."
Clear eyes and full hearts, however, willed their wish to come true. On Friday, a crowd of hundreds stretched across nearly the entire field's length by the start of the special screening. Kirsten Dunst, who co-starred with Jesse Plemons in Fargo, was even spotted among the crowd.
Friday Night Lights at #atxfestival A photo posted by @xxtriplestarxx on Jun 10, 2016 at 8:15pm PDT
"Thank you for coming tonight. This is amazing," Britton said.
Katims, meanwhile, thanked the festival for staging the event on the field that holds so much meaning to the cast.
Tami Taylor (@conniebritton) has arrived! #FNLTailgate #TexasForever #ATXTVs5 by @jackieleeyoung A photo posted by Texas Monthly (@texasmonthly) on Jun 10, 2016 at 7:16pm PDT
This is the first time we've been here since doing the show. In fact, the last time that we were here was when we had a wrap party for the show. After the wrap party, some of us came out here and played a little football and had our last moment with each other," he said. "So for some of us our very last moment doing the show was here. So thank you so much for doing it here, for coming here and being a part of this. This is really a thrill for us."
Friday Night Lights ran for five seasons from 2006 to 11 and celebrates its 10th anniversary in October.
#cleareyesfullhearts #ATX A video posted by Sandra Gonzalez (@sandrafanclub) on Jun 10, 2016 at 7:20pm PDT
Volume up y'all! You know the drill! #FNLTailgate #TelevisionForever #TexasForever #ATXTVs5 A video posted by atxfestival (@atxfestival) on Jun 10, 2016 at 6:21pm PDT
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments. | {
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Hacking, Leaking, and Investigative Journalism — C-SPAN Video
C-SPAN recently aired a panel discussion I participated in about hacking, leaking, and investigative journalism. The discussion is increasingly urgent, as Edward Snowden seeks asylum for his whistleblowing on NSA surveillance.
I spoke about “ag-gag” laws and other corporate attempts to keep the public in the dark.
It was a pleasure to speak with Gabriella Coleman, Gráinne O’Neill, and Abi Hassen. I hope you’ll check it out. Here’s more: | {
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Job Search Candidate Centre Sign Up Online Job Application
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There are some artists whose style is predictable and comfortable enough that you can predict what they're going to do next. Jamie Stewart isn't one of those artists.
The creative force behind Xiu Xiu, Stewart has been confounding and exceeding audiences' expectations since dropping Knife Play in 2002. He's one of modern music's most distinctive vocalists, switching effortlessly from tremulous croons to blood-chilling shrieks. His voice is both a sob and an open wound; few singers can sound as vulnerable and threatening as Stewart can.
The music he makes reflects those Jekyll-and-Hyde vocals. Xiu Xiu albums can be hauntingly beautiful or eardrum-puncturing. And sometimes they're both at the same time. A decoder ring to understanding Xiu Xiu's sound can be found in the band's 2016 cover album of Twin Peaks songs. No band is better suited to reinterpreting Angelo Badalamenti's compositions, because like Twin Peaks creator David Lynch, Xiu Xiu understand how to create transcendent work by mixing beauty and horror.
After releasing their 10th studio album, FORGET, in 2017, Xiu Xiu are hitting the road. Stewart will be playing a solo set at AJJ's Desert Trash show on Saturday, February 3. Phoenix New Times talked with the artist about Twin Peaks, his unorthodox live shows, and what it's like to make music with his heroes.
New Times: I’m really curious to hear what you thought of the new season of Twin Peaks.
Jamie Stewart: I love it! I think it’s my favorite season. I thoroughly appreciate that David Lynch, instead of trying to make something that happened 25 years ago — though he does make some nods to the original two seasons — began the piece with where he was at this present moment in his artistic journey rather than pretending to be someone he was 25 years ago. I mean, no one is who they were 25 years ago.
It has very much more of a David Lynch movie feeling than having the same tone as the original series. But I loved how challenging and peculiar it was. I loved how he basically just said to things like durations, “Fuck it, I’m not going to do anything you’d normally see on a television show.” I was profoundly and deeply inspired by it. I made myself a promise to wait one year before I watch it again, but I’m kinda biting my nails waiting for that year to be up.
One of the aspects that I really dug about the new Twin Peaks was how anti-nostalgic it was. And that’s something I’ve admired about your live performances, with how you usually focus on new material. And when you do reach back to play older songs, it’s from stuff that’s way back in your catalog and not just the songs people know from your recent work. Is it hard to emotionally get back into the frame of mind needed to play those older songs?
It really depends on the song. There are certain songs that still feel like they have some resonance in the present, or because time has passed, the feelings about that song have changed but it still feels very real. And there are some songs that are only about the moment they were written in and it would feel false to play those again. That changes, too. There’s some songs that I felt 10 years ago I’d never play again, but over time, after reflecting on them and circumstances changing, they could be expressed in a genuine way.
The point is to only play things that feel like there’s some real emotional devotion and truth put into doing them. There are some songs — there’s no way of saying this without sounding like some kind of douchebag — that are somewhat popular that we can’t play because … I mean, it would be a disservice to anyone coming to the show to hear that old song because the heart that song would require couldn’t be put into it in any honest way.
Another component of your live shows that I find fascinating is how often they can be radically different than what you do on record. Both times I’ve seen you play in Phoenix, you’ve done shows that sounded like nothing like you were doing on record at the time, like on the Fabulous Muscles tour, where you played Modified with just a pair of these towering Jules Verne-looking instruments. Is playing with people’s expectations with what they expect you to do live something that you strive to do when you plan your live shows?
I agree with you that that does happen, but it’s not as if we’re saying "the record’s done, now we must completely deconstruct it and disregard it." It really just has to do with the circumstances at the time. Largely, it’s an issue of practicality: Who’s available to play on tour? It’s two entirely different experiences. When you’re playing live, it’s 50 minutes of your life, while making a record can take two years. And also, from a creative standpoint, it’s just satisfying to work on new arrangements. But there’s no rules behind it. It’s just based on practicality and if there’s any part of the muse telling us to blow this up.
Touching back on that show at Modified: I have to ask because it’s been bothering me for years. What were those things you were playing? They were tall and wooden and ornate and you were pumping them ...
Those were harmoniums. They’re post-colonial Indian instruments. They’re actually pretty simple. They’re based on a similar principle to the accordion, but instead of squeezing it you pump it and play it flat. But they’re all kind of handmade and tend not to be super-precisely made, so if you play two of them together they can be slightly out of tune and create super-intense crazy modulations. They’re sort of a pain in the ass to tour with, so we don’t do it so much anymore ... They were unbelievably difficult to get on and off a plane.
In other interviews you did about the making of FORGET, you talked about how you brought in collaborators like Charlemagne Palestine and Vaginal Davis, who were artistic heroes of yours. What was that like? Was it strange working that intimately with people whose work you held in such regard — being the ringleader of your own circus and having to tell them what to do?
When you work with people who are fantastic musicians, you don’t have to be the ringleader. You just say “please do what you do,” and because they’re geniuses, what they do is amazing. The point of having someone who’s a brilliant legend to play on your record is not to tell them what to do; the point is to have them be who they are.
Are you working on any new material right now, or you just focusing on touring FORGET?
I’m actually at this very moment sitting in front of Pro Tools. We’re maybe halfway done with the new thing right now.
Will you be playing any of the new songs on this tour?
I think I’m going to try one new song, but it’s not particularly indicative of the new album. The new record is pretty noisy and intense and amelodic. But one or two songs on the record are sweet little brokenhearted ballads. If I’m feeling brave enough, I might try one of those new ones.
Xiu Xiu is playing on Saturday, February 3, as part of AJJ Presents Desert Trash at The Van Buren in downtown Phoenix. Tickets are $20 via The Van Buren's website.
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As if being on Bernie Sanders’ campaign isn’t already inspirational enough, check out what one of his campaign’s New Hampshire offices apparently has on its wall:
.@aoc is on the wall here at the Bernie campaign office near Nashua pic.twitter.com/Y08Q9bhMoM — Hunter Walker (@hunterw) February 10, 2020
Anyone who looks to AOC for hope deserves to lose. Hard. | {
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A Kennesaw State University business lecturer is under investigation by Georgia authorities for yelling racist epithets and assaulting a local Uber driver.
Chiddi Stober, who teaches history in Rockdale County, told WSB-TV that he was working at his part-time job as an Uber driver earlier this month when a passenger refused to get out of the car.
“It was just getting from bad to worse and that is just when I needed to call 911,” Stober explained.
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In audio of the 911 call obtained by WSB-TV, the passenger can be heard repeatedly calling Stober the n-word.
“The customer just assaulted me,” the driver tells the 911 dispatcher.
“Go back to slavery, man,” the passenger says.
“The customer just damaged my vehicle!” Stober exclaims. “The customer is assaulting me, the customer is assaulting me… He just punched me in the face.”
Stober explained to WSB-TV that the suspect “reached forward, he was sitting right behind me, that’s the point where he hit me right then.”
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“I couldn’t understand why a person who doesn’t even know me could be using such kind of language,” he added.
Dunwoody police were reportedly investigating the incident, but no charges had been filed.
Stober said that the man worked as a lecturer at Kennesaw State University, where he taught students about business. WSB-TV declined to identify the suspect because he had not been charged.
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The suspect’s attorney, Jill Polster, said in a statement that her client was embarrassed about the incident.
“The recording speaks for itself. When made aware off the statements made by him as heard on the recorder, (her client) was mortified,” the statement said. “He is deeply ashamed and sorry for the derogatory language he used towards Mr. Stober during the episode.”
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Watch the video below from WSB-TV, broadcast March 25, 2015. | {
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Taco Bell serves tacos so delicious some people want to live in them — literally.
The company recently announced that they'd making that strange dream a reality for a few of their lucky customers. For one night only, an Ontario Taco Bell location will be transformed into an Airbnb. A total of four guests will be able to take a 24-hour "SteakCation" at the franchise.
The company's announcement is timed with the release of the Steak Doubledilla, which features twice the marinated steak than a normal quesadilla, as well as a spicy cream sauce and a cheese tortilla.
On Oct. 17, one super fan and their three best friends will be treated to the full Taco Bell Airbnb experience, which includes video games, two sets of bunk beds, couches and one lucky/poor Taco Bell Butler.
Image: air bnb
House rules are, however, very strict and include:
"If sharing salsa, no double dipping your chips.
Eating Steak Doubledillas in bed is not only allowed, but encouraged.
Making that squeaking sound with your straw and cup lid is annoying. Quit it."
Taco Bell is currently accepting entries for the contest, and will announce a winner on Oct. 11.
Live más! (Or menos, depending on how many Doubledillas you plan to eat).
BONUS: Watch these corgi butts in slow motion
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Chelsea’s first home match of the Barclays Under-21 Premier League season ended in disappointment as they were defeated 3-1 by Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Friday night.
In a performance blighted by inconsistency and no little amount of bad luck, the Blues found themselves two goals behind midway through the first half as Saints winger Sam McQueen grabbed a quick-fire double. Chances came and went and Jay Dasilva struck the woodwork but Jake Hesketh put the result beyond doubt in the latter stages of the second half, rendering Tammy Abraham’s latest goal little more than a consolation.
Make sure you check out Dan Davies’ excellent match gallery by clicking HERE.
Having begun the campaign with a fine 1-0 win at Liverpool last weekend, spirits were high in Adi Viveash’s camp and a talented, if young, starting eleven was named for the latest showpiece fixture at the club’s home. Brad Collins recovered from a recent injury to take his place behind a back four featuring Dasilva and captain Fankaty Dabo at left and right-back respectively, with Dion Conroy alongside Fikayo Tomori in the middle.
Jake Clarke-Salter was utilised in a defensive midfield role for the first time since his junior days, and he was joined by John Swift and Charly Musonda, who each provided a more attacking threat. Alex Kiwomya and Reece Mitchell once again flanked Abraham in attack, meaning Kasey Palmer dropped down to the substitutes’ bench.
Six of Southampton’s starting eleven came into the match with at least one Premier League appearance to their name and, perhaps more importantly, intent on avenging something of a mauling in SW6 back in March. Then, Chelsea roared out of the blocks to take a 5-0 first-half lead before claiming a 5-3 win, and manager Martin Hunter will doubtless have been at pains to ensure his players fared much better on their latest visit to West London.
That they did, giving as good as they got in a relatively equal opening fifteen minutes. Mitchell’s clever movement saw him ghost between centre-backs Will Wood and Ollie Cook to latch onto Swift’s through ball but his finish was tamely struck at Harry Isted in the Saints goal, whilst both Conroy and Tomori had to be alert to danger at the other end to prevent Hesketh and Marcus Barnes from getting away an effort at Collins.
Perhaps just shading things ever so slightly, the visitors opened the scoring midway through the first half. Lloyd Isgrove fashioned space for a cross from the left and delivered the ball into a dangerous area in between Collins and Dasilva, allowing McQueen to muscle his way through and guide the ball into the back of the net.
The Chelsea response was both quick and impressive. Swift planted a free kick a few yards off target before Kiwomya got the better of Josh Debayo down the right-hand side and picked out Abraham, who somehow failed to guide his close-range header towards the target. The play continued to develop and eventually came back to Kiwomya, who saw his controlled half-volley float wide.
Such profligacy would continue to frustrate the hosts on the night, particularly as they found themselves 2-0 behind not long after. A flowing Southampton move from back to front saw Armani Little break free of his midfield shackles and bear down on goal, and although his effort came back off the post, McQueen was the sharpest to react in converting the rebound to double his own tally as well as his team’s.
Abraham went close twice more before the break, contriving to sky well over the bar after good work by Musonda and then drawing a smart low save from Isted with a free kick. Musonda, though, was guilty of the worst miss of the lot as he found himself clear on goal only to screw his shot wide of the target.
Shortly before the break, Viveash made an adjustment to his defence, bringing Dasilva into midfield and sending Clarke-Salter back into defence. Ahead of the second half Kevin Wright came on for Conroy to fill the void at left-back, with Palmer replacing Swift in a bid to add greater attacking potency to the team as they sought a way back into the contest.
And, were it not for the width of a crossbar, they would have been. A short corner routine saw Dasilva collect the ball on the edge of the box, where he settled and curled a wondrous effort that left Isted rooted to his spot only for the woodwork to intervene; the heavy rain cascading down from the frame of the goal as it bounced to safety.
Chelsea pressed and pressed, and introduced 16 year-old forward Iké Ugbo with twenty-five minutes left, but Southampton defended resolutely and limited their opponents to speculative efforts and moves cut short before they could develop into something more tangible. When they had the opportunity break away themselves they did so with speed and threat, and with a quarter of an hour remaining they sealed an opportunistic victory when Clarke-Salter allowed a wet ball to slip under his foot and into the path of Hesketh, who did the rest in style by crashing high over the despairing Collins.
Abraham got the goal he deserved late on when he collected a throw from the always-impressive captain Dabo before swivelling and finding the bottom corner – extending a streak of scoring in every match since reporting back for pre-season – but it came too late in the day to affect the outcome. Chelsea will now turn their attentions to a trip to Carrow Road on August 28th, when they will hope to pick themselves up and get back to winning ways.
Chelsea: Collins, Dabo (c), Tomori, Conroy (Wright 45), Dasilva, Clarke-Salter, Kiwomya, Swift (Palmer 45), Abraham, Musonda, Mitchell (Ugbo 65)
Subs not Used: Baxter, Suljic
Goal: Abraham ‘86
Booked: Wright
Southampton: Isted, McCarthy, Debayo, Gape, Cook, Wood, McQueen, Little, Barnes, Hesketh, Isgrove
Subs not Used: Slattery, Hallett, Bakary, Sims, Olomola
Goals: McQueen ‘22, ‘29, Hesketh ’74
Booked: McCarthy, Hesketh | {
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SALT LAKE CITY - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is under national scrutiny again, this time from Businessweek, whose cover story this week investigates "How the Mormons Make Money."
The article suggests that the LDS church doesn't contribute many resources to charity and that they leverage volunteer hours for profit. Images that accompany the article are causing as much controversy, if not more, as the article's words.
[READ: How the Mormons Make Money on Businessweek.com]
The periodical's cover has an image of John the Baptist with hands on LDS founder Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdry with a voice bubble saying, "...And thou shalt build a shopping mall, own stock in Burger King, and open a Polynesian theme park in Hawaii that shall be largely exempt from the frustrations of tax..."
The LDS church responded to the cover story, saying, "The Bloomberg Businessweek cover is in such poor taste it is difficult to even find the words to comment on it."
The story describes the church's $2 billion investment in the recently-opened City Creek Center. Jason Mathis with the Downtown Alliance says that the investment didn't come from tithes of the LDS faithful.
"City Creek Center was built without tithing dollars and really provided thousands of jobs for construction workers at a time when construction was really hit hard," said Mathis.
Utah Valley University religious studies professor Ken White says business and industry are a focus of the LDS church.
"It's a basic tenet you should be busy, you should be actively engaged in what you're doing and be the best you can be in what you're doing," said White. "You can see they use a lot of resources for good things, things that we would justify from a religious standpoint."
FOX 13 couldn't find an example of another mainstream religion that is as invested in business as the LDS church. Thrivent Financial, a faith-based organization for Lutherans, operates as an investment organization and is listed as one of the Fortune 500 biggest corporations in the country. | {
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Adam Eteki snatched victory with a stunning around-the-outside overtake on the final lap of a wet second French Formula 4 race on the streets of Pau.
Eteki arrived in Pau as joint championship leader after his win at the opening round at Nogaro, but he finished only ninth in Saturday?s first race on the street circuit.
That did give him a place on the front row of the reversed grid for race two, but initially he had to be content in the spray of pole-sitter Reshad de Gerus following a safety-car start.
Eteki piled on the pressure however, and on the penultimate lap he got a good run on the leader up the hill out of the Gare corner.
He tried to go around the outside of de Gerus around the Pont Oscar left-hander, but lacked traction on the exit to put himself in a position to take the lead into the Lycee hairpin.
One lap later he managed to get himself slightly further alongside de Gerus as they rounded Pont Oscar, and that was enough for him to get to Lycee first and secure the lead, and with it victory.
“For all the race I followed Reshad,”?Eteki told Formula Scout, “and in the last three laps I put the pressure on him, see where I can pass him.
“I saw the last-lap board, tried for the race and I won. It’s beautiful!”
Uysse de Pauw started and finished in third place, holding off Theo Pourchaire.
Stuart White took fifth, while Ugo de Wilde was sixth after getting ahead of Pierre-Louis Chovet.
After their fight for race one victory, Caio Collet and Arthur Leclerc both had muted races from the fifth row of the grid, although Collet managed to get ahead for eighth place on the penultimate lap.
Race results | {
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Adam Silver has a parade of laudable business partners that he inherited from his morally ambiguous predecessor, David Stern.
The new NBA commissioner has a business partner in Washington who doesn’t know the difference between a tax code and "class warfare," who bribes bloggers, slugs fans, bulldozes the neighboring Chinatown population into Virginia so he can help put up more Hooters, and asserts that we should all be grateful for the privilege of subsidizing his team.
He has a business partner in Orlando who is so righteous he has poured millions into anti-gay marriage initiatives, because gays "keep asking for favors" and "special treatment," and marriage is "not vital to them, in my opinion."
He has a business partner in Cleveland that made billions in the mortgage business, many of them by passing subprime loans along to the ultimate thieves, Countrywide, which greased the derivative machine that helped destroy the global economy.
He has a business partner in Oklahoma City who made his billions through fracking, which has been linked to everything from toxic drinking water to earthquakes to climate change, and then screwed landowners out of their royalties when business went bad.
He has a business partner in Brooklyn who is an oligarch, that special kind of patriot who uses political connections to grab billions in state-owned assets for micropennies on the dollar, leaving much of the population to starve in the feudal cesspool left behind.
And yes, he has a business partner in Los Angeles who is a slumlord that refused to rent to minorities because they are "not desirable tenants," and because "black tenants smell and attract vermin," and "Mexicans sit around and drink all day," leading to a humongous settlement of a federal housing lawsuit; and who has some scary attitudes toward women, which has led to harassment suits and yet more settlements.
We’re not here to put Donald Sterling’s racism on a scale with other social sins practiced by Silver’s business partners, which stretch from here to Seattle.
We can only remind you that everyone already knew that Sterling was a despicable human being. If you didn't know it, you simply weren't paying attention, or – like Stern and Silver and everyone else in the NBA – you chose not to care.
Racism is an indelible part of what he is. If he issues a thousand mea-culpas today, nothing changes that. He has stood courtside with a what-me-worry visage for decades, because he is part of a lunatic fraternity that always embraced him as a bit eccentric, but always One of Ours.
So we find this latest example of Sterling spewing his usual vile nonsense not even remotely interesting, or as anything but redundant. This is Donald Sterling we’re talking about. What TMZ captured on tape is not a smoking gun. It is a longstanding business practice.
Yet his remarks have received a ton of attention, because the people who do business with him suddenly cannot overlook the fact that he is a public embarrassment and a risk to their virtuous enterprise.
(Pause here for eye roll.)
Only two things should vex these Men of Basketball.
One: They never denounced Sterling a decade ago, when his odious viewpoints were already a part of the public record — yet the players took his money, his partners shared in his largesse, and the fans subsidized his business.
Two: They don’t seem to care that all this evidence of bigotry was obtained via an egregious invasion of Donald the Clown’s privacy, which is a candor test that absolutely none of these Men of Basketball would be able to pass.
So, better late than never, we go to the torches and pitchforks. Donald has everyone fired up just by being the despicable human being that he is, so expect Silver to punish him for, essentially, free speech. He has the authority to do that within the framework of the NBA constitution — because, you know, Sterling’s latest behavior isn’t in the best interests of the league.
Just let the record show that until Saturday morning, it was just fine.
The public response was outrage, and, sure, mostly proportionate. As for the punishment, most of us scratch our heads like LeBron James, the league’s commercial colossus, who says, "There is no room for Donald Sterling in our league."
Try to keep up, young fella. Clearly, there’s abundant room for all types in your league.
The other primary cash cow, Michael Jordan, was one of the first owners who had the guts to speak up in the first 24 hours. But MJ, not exactly the world’s foremost expert on perspective, concluded his statement with, "In a league where the majority of players are African-American, we cannot and must not tolerate discrimination at any level."
It wouldn’t matter if there was one black player, or two. Discrimination is intolerable, period. Unless one of your business partners is Donald Sterling. | {
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The beta for Oculus Link doesn’t support AMD graphics cards or some older NVIDIA cards that normally do support the Rift software.
The graphics cards that officially are supported are:
NVIDIA Titan X
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (and all variants)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (and all variants)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 16-series
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 20-series
UPDATE: Facebook has added the Desktop GTX 1060 to their list of supported cards.
No AMD cards are currently supported, and the following NVIDIA cards are specifically listed as currently unsupported:
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060M
Facebook told us that it plans to add support for some of the currently unsupported cards by the time Link exits beta. The company told us it is currently “working directly with AMD” to add support for “as many cards as possible“.
But Why?
Facebook didn’t provide an official reason for why one card is currently supported over another, which may initially seem confusing given these cards work great with the Rift. However, based on how the company’s engineers describe Link as working, we can speculate as to the cause — at least for NVIDIA cards.
Link is able to send the video output to the Oculus Quest over USB 3.0, despite having much less bandwidth than DisplayPort, because the system compresses each frame before sending it over. Most modern graphics cards have a special dedicated video encoding chip for image compression which take this load off the CPU. NVIDIA calls theirs NVENC.
On NVIDIA’s NVENC Support Matrix page, the cards with the NVENC are listed. The supported cards are all listed as featuring the chip, whereas the GTX 1060M (a currently unsupported card) is not listed.
The GTX 1660 series and RX 20-series use a newer generation encoder, which may mean Link runs better or at a higher quality. This newer encoder was also how Facebook improved the quality of Rift’s ASW and Passthrough+ on these cards.
Other Requirements For Link
Keep in mind that you’ll also need to have Windows 10, 8GB+ RAM, and a decently fast CPU suitable for gaming. Facebook specifically recommends an Intel i5-4590 / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X or greater.
You’ll also need a free (and working) USB 3.0 (or above) port on your PC. This can either be Type-A or Type-C, as long as it’s up to speed.
Not all USB cables will work with Link, but Facebook officially recommends this $13 cable. Facebook is also planning to sell a high performance cable of its own later this year in limited quantities and released the cable’s specifications so buyers can find alternatives. You can follow these instructions to run Oculus Rift games on Quest over Oculus Link. | {
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Today marks the 10th anniversary of the passing of one of the most iniquituous, divisive and unnecessary pieces of legislation in recent parliamentary history: the 2004 Hunting Act, which effectively made hunting with hounds illegal in Britain. Here are ten reasons why the ban should be repealed now.
1. It’s unworkable. Foxhunting (and staghunting) are as popular as ever, with at least 45,000 people a year either riding to hounds or following by car or on foot. To comply with the law, hunts now have to go through the rigmarole of following a trail created by a rag soaked in fox urine. But sometimes – whoops – the hounds have a terrible accident and follow a fox, opening the hunt up to the risk of prosecution. Every week and especially every weekend inordinate amounts of police (over)time are wasted pursuing country folk who just want to be left alone to enjoy a sport that has been part of rural life for centuries. The state has no business preventing them from doing so now: this is the Tyranny of the Majority of which John Adams first warned.
2. It’s character-building. Hunting is one of the world’s most dangerous, exciting sports and encourages: courage, endurance, horsemanship, good manners, personal responsibility, quick reactions, an ability to read the landscape, a love of and kinship with nature. Never mind banning it: it should be made compulsory for every teenager in the land. Not only would this enable us to win every war going (the Duke of Wellington insisted that his officers should be foxhunting men) but it would also create the sense of national pride and cultural cohesion that Britain sorely lacks.
3. Women just look really hot in hunting kit. Even the hairnets are sexy, somehow.
4. Apart from darts, hunting is the only sport where your performance is actually improved by alcohol consumption. Drinking cherry brandy followed by sloe gin followed by kummel followed by port at 11am isn’t normally recommended. But on a bitter day in November in a frozen saddle surrounded by like-minded convivial folk it makes total sense.
5. No one loves and respects Charlie (that’s the fox, btw, not the stuff townies hoover up their noses) more than hunting folk. It’s just that, being country people rather than ignorant, sentimental townies they recognise that it is perfectly possible to be a magnificent, splendid fellow with a bushy tale while simultaneously being a terrible, chicken-eating pest. Most foxes get away: respect and fair play. Some (usually the unhealthier ones) don’t: and that is nature, red in tooth and claw.
6. Hunts bind rural communities; enable farmers to dispose of deadstock; repair fences; create rural jobs (kennelmen; huntsmen; vets; farriers; stableyards, etc); provide entertainment in places where entertainment is often sorely lacking.
7. It’s thanks, in part, to hunting – and similar country sports – that the British landscape looks as beautiful as it does. It’s why we have stone walls and hedges, for example, rather than wire fences; covert for foxes and game birds.
8. The “animal rights” argument against hunting presumes that wild animals are sentient beings like humans. But they are not. Foxes do not have sleepless nights worrying about the imminence of death. They live in the moment. When chased they are responding to atavistic stimuli, nothing more. It is absurd, mawkish and dishonest to grant a pest – whose numbers must perforce be controlled in one way or another – should be granted the same rights as humans.
9. Foxhunting is the greatest sport ever devised. It takes place on a wildly uneven pitch perhaps 100 miles square, in often fiendish weather conditions, involves extraordinary team work and cameraderie between man and beast, with, instead of a football or a rugger ball, a living, intelligent quarry often more than capable of outwitting its pursuers. If you haven’t hunted, you really haven’t lived.
10. The best advert for hunting are the people who are against it: joyless vegans; vindictive class warriors; the noisome RSPCA; dreadlocked inner city crusties with dogs on ropes; mimsy unmarriageables with a dozen cats; Nick Clegg; Ed Miliband; the Green party; everyone who works at the Centre for Alternative Technology in Machynlleth, Wales; townie tossers. | {
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Beware recording intimate encounters because anything put online can go viral, an internet safety expert says after a video of three Blenheim women was posted on Facebook.
Two of the women in the intimate recording said in posts on their Facebook pages that they were taking legal action and getting psychiatric help after the video spread.
Marlborough area commander Inspector Simon Feltham said two of the women had contacted police because they were concerned about the attention they were getting in relation to the video.
The video of the women, believed to be aged in their late teens and early 20s, was circulated on Facebook last week.
The video, lasting about 90 minutes, is understood to have been shot with a webcam in a bedroom.
A Blenheim man said he heard about the recording on Thursday after friends posted a link to a website that contained the video.
"All of a sudden, it was everywhere," he said.
The video was removed from the website within 30 minutes, but it had been downloaded and re-posted to new websites, the man said.
Within a few hours, he had seen at least 50 Facebook posts that mentioned the video, including posts by friends in Australia.
"It just went viral," he said.
"Everyone was talking about it."
Netsafe operations manager Lee Chisholm said people needed to be aware that anything they put online could be copied and redistributed.
She said people performing sexual acts for money on webcams was not unheard of and a documentary called Webcam Girls was aired on TV3 last week.
Anyone who performed on a webcam should be aware they could be recorded, she said, though there had been no reports in New Zealand of webcam recordings of sexual acts being used illegally.
"Anything you post, send or write can be copied and redistributed anywhere online," she said.
"It's something to be very aware of."
Feltham said police were looking at people's behaviour after the video was released to try and establish whether an offence had been committed, such as harassment or intimidation.
Police were not investigating the circumstances in which the video was made, he said. The women were unhappy the video was out there.
"They want the attention on them to stop, but there's nothing we can do about that," Feltham said.
Police could not act unless an offence had been committed.
The women could not be reached for comment.
The Department of Internal Affairs deals with censorship issues relating to people using the internet to share objectionable material.
A spokeswoman said objectionable material had to be proven to be "injurious to the public good" and pornography did not usually fall under that definition unless it was extreme. | {
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Touring the country with bandmates on the strength of major record label releases can sound glamorous.
Guitarist Mike Kennerty of The All-American Rejects said 15 years of incessant touring put a serious ding in that excitment for the Oklahoma-born pop-rock quartet. So much so, the band went on a hiatus after touring in support of their 2012 album "Kids in the Street" to take stock of everything.
AAR did catch their breath - enough to rethink how to move forward as a band. Eventually four new singles were written and recorded ... none targeted for an album.
“And at the end of the day we were like, ‘This is cool, let’s just release singles and play a few shows here and there.’ That’s kind of what we’ve been doing for our own mental health to avoid the grind of a normal album cycle,” said Kennerty.
It also kept them engaged with fans, letting them know AAR is still in the game and more is on the way.
“It’s a weird thing where if you don’t put out an album, the general machinery of press kind of considers you not doing something. But even if we did do an album, they’d concentrate on singles anyway,” Kennerty laughed.
“It’s annoying that we’re putting something (singles) out there but it doesn’t get the attention as if we did an album. But we still enjoy it and we’re still really good friends and love playing together. We should probably be smart like a lot of bands and say we broke up so we can eventually get back together,” he laughed again.
Three of the singles ended up on the 2019 EP “Send Her to Heaven,” released on Epitaph Records, the Southern California-based label known for its punk and pop-punk acts, including Bad Religion, The Offspring, Rancid, and Pennywise among many others.
“I met Brett (Gurewitz) many years ago. He runs Epitaph and we all grew up listening to bands on that label. That was a cool opportunity to work with someone else and see what happens,” said Kennerty of what was intended as a one-off relationship.
Nearly 20 years after releasing their self-titled debut album, Kennerty was taking stock of the changing landscape of music, and how the AAR themselves moved from sound to sound with each succeeding record.
“We’ve never tried to stay in one certain pocket. If you go through our catalogue each record has its own personality and we’ve burned a lot of fans with each record. But we’ve also gained a lot of new fans. And at this point we try to do the same thing. We just go in and write whatever’s in our heads at that moment and whatever style or instruments we use, that’s what comes out,” said Kennerty.
Despite the recording and touring lull and living in different cities, Kennerty said he and his bandmates find it easy to get back into shape for the occasional one-off gig or recording.
“We’re still a machine. We can go a few months apart without playing, then we do a 30-minute soundcheck and we’re right back in lockstep and good to go,” he said, snapping his finger for emphasis.
Prior to the 2019 EP, the All-American Rejects recorded three albums for Interscope Records when legendary producer Jimmy Iovine was in charge. The relationship began when Interscope purchased the Dreamworks label, which released the bands self-titled debut that spawned the decent sized hit “Swing, Swing.”
“Move Along” was their first Interscope release, and the band lobbied for the title track to be the first single. Iovine had other ideas.
“He was insistent that ‘Dirty Little Secret’ be the first single. We were like, ‘Well, he’s the head, let him make these decisions.’"
The single wasn’t an immediate hit at radio, and Kennerty said it was Iovine’s sheer will that turned things around.
“We hear these stories from our A&R guy about being in these meetings where he (Iovine) is like, ‘This is an eff-in hit, make it a hit!’ yelling at all the radio people. And it took a while, but he did it,” said Kennerty.
Not every current or former major label recording artist will say great things about their label. Kennerty said he too has heard sour stories, but for the most part, AAR have good things to say about their relationship with Interscope. The end began about the time their 2012 album “Kids on the Street" came out as Interscope was experiencing high turnover at that time.
“That was a bummer because all these people we’d been working with for almost 10 years were suddenly gone and we didn’t have that champion at the label anymore. That’s when we got the feeling you always hear about the negative stuff about a major label: there’s turnover; there’s not the same people there as when you signed. But we had a good run of almost 10 years with a lot of the same people and they were amazing for us. So yes, we had good experiences, unlike when you hear a lot of bands talking about major labels,” said Kennerty.
The All-American Rejects will headline Illinois Wesleyan University’s “Big Show” in the Shirk Center on Saturday, organized by the Campus Activities Board (CAB). Jej Vinson, former contestant on "The Voice," Season 16 is slated to open. Doors will open at 7 p.m. for an 8 p.m. showtime.
The full interview with Mike Kennerty of The All-American Rejects
People like you value experienced, knowledgeable and award-winning journalism that covers meaningful stories in Bloomington-Normal. To support more stories and interviews like this one, please consider making a contribution. | {
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Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a diet staple for many children — but is eating them in public a big no-no?
As San Francisco’s SF Gate reports, one mother was surprised to find herself scolded by a fellow shopper during a trip to Target. According to the mom’s post on the UrbanBaby parenting blog, the woman was upset that her daughter was enjoying a PB&J while perched in one of the store’s shopping carts. The woman “lectured” her about how the sandwich could pose a threat to someone with a peanut allergy.
If she was looking for sympathy from other moms, however, she was sorely disappointed.
The majority of responses let her have it — both for allowing her 4-year-old daughter to eat in a well-used shopping cart and for putting allergy sufferers at risk.
The mom’s post triggered a backlash. (Photo: UrbanBaby screenshot)peanut butt
“You feed your child in a Target shopping cart?” read one response. “That is disgusting! Your problem is much bigger than the peanut butter!”
“That’s really inconsiderate,” another poster commented. “So many kids have life-threatening allergies to peanut butter. Eating it in a shopping cart GUARANTEES it will be smeared on the handle, etc. It’s really awful you would do this. Sorry, but imagine if it were your child with the allergy.”
“I hope no child dies because of any residual peanuts on the cart,” another person added.
The original poster explained that she had been careful to wipe down the cart and her little girl afterward.
“I follow all rules everywhere about nuts (don’t sent them to [daughter’s] school and respect nut-free places, etc.), but I feel like if there is no specific rule, it’s fair game and it’s on the people with allergies to protect themselves,” she added.
That sparked a heated discussion about whether parents of children with peanut allergies are responsible for protecting their kids from potential exposure, or if everyone should be expected to avoid peanuts in public as a “common courtesy.”
“I have friends whose [kids] have nut allergies,” noted one commenter. “They do not expect everyone in public to acquiesce to their kids’ needs. If it is that life-threatening, don’t take them out.”
Story continues
“What a horrible response,” shot back one critic. “Do not take out these kids so that [the original poster’s] kid can enjoy their PB&J sandwiches while sitting in a shopping cart. Sure, confine them to their home surroundings because we do not want to inconvenience [her] child.”
According to Food Allergy Research & Education, an estimated 5.9 million children under the age of 18 — or 1 in 13 — have a food allergy. As reported this week, the number of children “at risk” for life-threatening allergies is up 104 percent, with peanut allergies accounting for 22 percent of cases.
Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:
Why the food allergy bullying in ‘Peter Rabbit’ is so dangerous
2-year-old cries after discovering Target doesn’t sell Spider-Man shoes for girls
You have to watch the hilarious moment boy ruins gender reveal
Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.
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Infographic Assignment.
Florida Atlantic University Spring 2013
Professor: Jeane Cooper
The goal of this assignment was to create an easily understandable infographic about any interesting topic.
Books of Cities measures the quantity of books, written in the English language, that refers to 10 major cities in the world between 1800 and 2000.
Although this infographic doesn't measure quantity exactly, it gives an overall idea of the amount of literature produced in each era about the same city. Information was gathered from Google's N-Gram Viewer, and the chosen cities were London, New York City, Rome, Paris, Chicago, Tokyo, Madrid, Beijing, Mumbai, and Cairo.
It was interesting to learn that interest in cities is always constant, while differing from era to era. Also, there's much to be said on historical facts, and books written about cities. | {
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Twitter has flexed its social media muscle lately, cracking down on hate-speech. And now the social network has a potentially bigger fish to fry — President-elect Donald Trump. The nation’s incoming Chief Executive has long been known to have a somewhat volatile Twitter account. Slashdot notes that earlier this week, the company told Slate that “it would consider banning key government officials, even the president, if its rules against hate speech or other language were violated.”
You can imagine the hit the Twitter servers would take if this happened. “The Twitter Rules apply to all accounts,” a spokesperson said. Interestingly, Facebook takes a different approach. According to Slate, despite employee objections, the normal Facebook community standards will not apply to Trump posts, given their newsworthiness and widespread support for his views.
For the record, the American Bar Association defines hate speech as “Speech that offends, threatens, or insults groups, based on race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, or other traits.”
This poses an interesting conundrum for one of social media’s leading platforms. Look at the concepts in play here — the company has issued set of policies that end users need to adhere to. That’s nothing new, as all companies have a set of guidelines in one form or another. Sometimes, though, those policies conflict with the right of free speech. And then you have the obvious PR problem of potentially removing the account of the new President of the United States (we assume @RealDonaldTrump will just point to the dedicated account of @Potus from January 20 onward).
QZ.com said “Republicans have grown wary of Trump’s unfiltered, potentially inflammatory tweets.” Newt Gingrich is an adviser and vice-chairman of Trump’s transition team, and said a recent tweet from the president-elect about illegal voters was “out of line.” Gingrich added in USA Today, “The president of the United States can’t randomly tweet without having somebody check it out. It makes you wonder about whatever else he’s doing. It undermines much more than a single tweet.”
Editors' Recommendations | {
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Tammy Yew, 77, was waiting in the median at Northern Boulevard on her way to her housekeeping job when she saw the charter bus zooming down the street.
“The bus came barreling down the street so fast, so fast, it was like an airplane,” she said in Mandarin, waving her hands as she described what she saw.
Mr. Mong and those who were critically injured were taken to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Queens, where four patients were in critical condition late Monday evening; noncritical patients were being treated at Elmhurst Hospital Center, where Mr. Liljefors was taken, and Flushing Hospital Medical Center, according to Michael Fitton, the assistant chief of emergency medical services.
On Monday evening, Mr. Liljefors’s family gathered in his fourth-floor apartment in Flushing, struggling to process what happened earlier in the day. “We’re grieving,” said Chazen Rivera, 34, a stepson, adding that Mr. Liljefors used to work in the ticket booth at the Queens Zoo.
Marcin Kurpiewski was driving on Monday when the police called and told him that his stepfather, Mr. Wdowiak, died in the bus crash. “I pulled over, got out of the car and just fell to my knees,” Mr. Kurpiewski, 37, said in an interview.
He said that his stepfather was a pilot in Poland before moving to the United States and someone who helped anyone in need. “It still feels like he’s coming home,” Mr. Kurpiewski said. | {
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Authored by Gregory Clark via The Strategic Culture Foundation,
The U.S. spy community - those nice people who told us they were certain the Iraq of President Saddam Hussein was holding weapons of mass destruction - have now made it known they are certain the Russian ambassador to the United States is Moscow’s top spy. But these people, even if they do not know much about WMD, must know what a top spy does. They do it themselves.
First, there is the messy and time-consuming job of finding information-loaded officials. Then there is the problem of maintaining contacts with those officials at secret rendezvous. So a senior ambassador, and former deputy Russian foreign minister, is able to do all this while going to cocktail parties, hobnobbing with the national elite, running a large embassy and studying the politics of the nation to which he is accredited?
I suggest U.S. top spies go back to doing their real work instead of inventing fairy tales.
I have seen the spies at work, on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
On the Soviet side they were not a very attractive breed. Their idea of a hard day’s work was constant snooping on the few Russian-speaking foreigners in their midst and relentless interrogation of any Soviet citizen who spoke to a foreigner, together with the occasional attempt at blackmail or compromise.
In the process they created a generation of Western policymakers deeply prejudiced against their people and their nation. Not a bad result for their decades of hard work, especially since the Western hostility they helped generate guaranteed their continued employment till well into the future.
Almost all their successes were “walk-ins”— people who for money or ideology wanted to provide information. Those volunteers would probably have provided more if they were not disgusted by the crudity of the people they had to deal with.
Spies sent to work abroad were usually of better quality. But they always had cover, as private citizens or mid-rank embassy officials at best.
Much the same in reverse was going in the West. To some extent it is still going on. In Japan the spies are almost out of control. Even though Russia has granted Japanese diplomats there the freedoms now enjoyed by Western diplomats in Russia, the Japanese spies continue to behave as in Soviet days. Like dogs chasing a bone (according to one victim), they are so crudely persistent and obtrusive that even ordinary diplomatic work becomes impossible. And these “dogs”think this will help them get their Northern Territories back?
I once played host to a prominent Western critic of U.S. Vietnam War policies. Thuggish Japanese spies camped outside my apartment for days.
These people are not the suave, romantic James Bonds of film fantasy. For the most part they are what we used to call “second elevens”— a cricket analogy for people rejected for the top team. Failing to enter the diplomatic service they make do by joining a spy network. One result is a burning desire to get ahead by undercutting the “first eleven”diplomats and by using largely bogus information to get close to the people in power. Hence the WMD information failure and the Iraq disaster, opposed by most Western diplomats with Middle East experience.
When U.S. President Donald Trump visited the CIA headquarters in Washington he was upbraided for failing to respect a “sacred” memorial wall devoted to the 90-odd CIA officers who have died while on duty. Maybe he was looking for the wall devoted to the 900,000 or so Iraqis who died as a result of CIA failures. Even Trump had the sense to turn against that dreadful war.
I once worked for two years as a diplomat in the Soviet Union. On return to Australia I went through the usual spy-agency debriefing, partly because I had reported some KGB stunts against our embassy there. Suddenly the debriefer jumped to his feet waving a report which I had written saying that the Odessa hotel where I was staying was close to the local KGB headquarters. Leaning ominously over the table he demanded to know how I knew the KGB location. I had to educate this stalwart and grossly overpaid defender of Australian security that in Soviet Union the KGB was a public organization with a large brass plate on its buildings reading Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti, or Committee for Government Security.
Later, because I also spoke Chinese and had also opposed the Vietnam War, I was subjected to one of their stunts (our usual term for spy operations) to persuade me that a Soviet Embassy official wanted to meet me urgently. They made a bad mistake; the telephone operative they had employed spoke pre-revolutionary Russian (Australia has many White Russians, mostly people fleeing to China following the Russian Revolution). There was no way he could have been working for the Soviet Embassy. It seems that little detail passed completely over the heads of our Australian security interest defenders — the people who decide whether we can be trusted with secrets. Nor were they very happy when I was able publicly to expose the stunt.
The current anti-Russian hysteria in the U.S. media is fueled by similar ignorance. Various Trump officials and appointees are being persecuted relentlessly by leaks accusing them of talking to the Russian ambassador. But anyone who knows anything about diplomacy knows that such informal talks can be crucial to policymaking.
I admit to having joined secret talks with the premier and foreign minister of the Soviet Union in a fat-headed 1964 Australian attempt to have the Soviet Union join with the West in Vietnam to stop Chinese “aggression.” Because there were laws against revealing state secrets I sat on that important story for more than 20 years.
Today when the West is bent on equally fat-headed efforts to stop alleged Russian “aggression”(read the 2015 Minsk Two agreement if you want to know who really is the aggressor), talks with Moscow’s ambassador really are needed. And the spies who want to leak that information to embarrass their own government really should go to jail.
* * *
Gregory Clark served as first secretary at the Australian Embassy in Moscow, from 1963 to 1965. | {
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NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – July 31, 2018
SAN DIEGO, CA – Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes, who is charged with the first-degree murder of U.nited S.tates Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, was extradited from Mexico to the United States today, announced Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Southern District of California U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman for the Southern District of California. He will be arraigned in U.nited S.tates District Court in, Tucson, Arizona, Wednesday tomorrow afternoon. Osorio-Arellanes has been in custody awaiting extradition since his arrest by Mexican authorities on April 12, 2017.
Agent Terry was fatally shot on Dec.ember 14, 2010, when he and other U.S. Border Patrol agents encountered Osorio-Arellanes and four other members of a “rip crew” (a criminal gang that attempts to steal from drug and alien smugglers) operating in a rural area north of Nogales, Arizona. Of the six defendants charged along with Osorio-Arellanes in the case, three have pleaded guilty, two were convicted following a jury trial, and one other defendant – Jesus Rosario Favela Astorga (arrested by Mexican authorities in October, 2017) – has not yet been tried. is pending extradition to the United States.
“The Department of Justice is pleased that the suspected killer of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry has been successfully extradited to the United States and will now face justice for this terrible crime,” said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. “We are grateful for the efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Marshals Service and U.S. Customs and Border Protection as well as our law enforcement partners in Mexico. To anyone who would take the life of an American citizen, in particular an American law enforcement officer, this action sends a clear message: Working closely with our international partners, we will hunt you down, we will find you, and we will bring you to justice.”
“The arrest and extradition of Osorio-Arellanes reflects the steadfast commitment and tireless work of the United States and our law enforcement partners in Mexico, who shared the common goal of seeking justice for the murder of Agent Brian Terry,” said U.nited S.tates Attorney Adam Braverman. “When an agent makes the ultimate sacrifice while serving his country, we must hold all the individuals who played a part in this tragic outcome accountable for their actions. This extradition moves that important goal forward.”
The indictment charges the defendants with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, attempted interference with commerce by robbery, use and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer. In addition to the murder of Agent Terry, the indictment alleges that the defendants assaulted U.S. Border Patrol Agents William Castano, Gabriel Fragoza and Timothy Keller, who were with Agent Terry during the firefight with the “rip crew.”
This case is being prosecuted in federal court in Tucson by attorneys from the Southern District of California, Special Attorneys Todd W. Robinson and David D. Leshner. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona is recused. The case is being investigated by the FBI. The Government of Mexico assisted in the apprehension and extradition. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided assistance with the extradition of defendant Osorio-Arellanes.
The public is reminded that an indictment is a formal charging document and defendants are presumed innocent until the government meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
DEFENDANT Case No. 11-CR-00150-TUC-DCB (BPV)
Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes
AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
United States Border Patrol
DOJ Office of International Affairs | {
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Of all the planks of Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign platform, none united conservatives, libertarians, Republicans, and independents like his pledge to nominate judges who respect the Constitution as it was originally interpreted.
Of all the successes President Trump has achieved during his 32 months in office, none infuriates liberals and socialists quite the same way as his demonstrated ability to follow through on that promise — big league.
Final confirmation votes for six more federal district court judges are expected as the Senate settles back into business, which will bring the total to 152 total judicial confirmations since Donald Trump took office, including two Supreme Court justices who are in a position to shape American jurisprudence for a generation to come.
GOP LEADERS DECRY KAVANAUGH ATTACKS AS MCCONNELL SAYS 'THIS IS NOT NORMAL POLITICAL BEHAVIOR'
That is a prodigious number, and if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell keeps up his current pace of confirming the President’s nominees up until the end of Donald Trump’s first term, it will be the second-most judicial confirmations ever in a single term. If McConnell maintains the same pace for the full eight years, Trump will have appointed far and away the most federal judges of any president in American history.
This was by no means a foregone conclusion. Recall that there were dozens of “Never Trump” voices in 2016 claiming that President Trump would nominate liberals and relatives to the courts. Instead, he has nominated one impeccable originalist after another.
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What’s more, the president has stood firmly behind his nominees when they’ve come under attack from the left. McConnell has done an admirable job, as has Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. But without resolve at the White House, the whole enterprise would have fallen apart long ago.
If the left’s savage attacks on Justice Brett Kavanaugh — which they now admit were politically-motivated — were not enough to shake President Trump’s resolve, then nothing is. Top-tier lawyers and jurists such as Kavanaugh can more confidently seek and accept nominations knowing that — come hell or high water — the leader of the free world has their back.
The President’s support isn’t just an empty gesture, either. Nothing incenses the left quite so much as a federal judiciary committed to interpreting the Constitution the way it was originally intended. George Soros’s Open Society Foundation, for instance, is pouring millions of dollars into a dedicated opposition research and activist group specifically aimed at stopping, ruining, and humiliating qualified Trump judicial nominees.
The group, “Demand Justice,” has put Democratic politicians such as Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on stage with radicals such as Ferguson Riot organizer Brittany Packnett. This group is firmly committed to keeping the courts in the hands of people who will disregard the Constitution and ensure that women aren’t unduly inconvenienced when they wish to get a late-term abortion.
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For conservatives, though, the money Soros and his fellow leftists spend fighting Trump’s judicial nominees is a win in and of itself. If the Kavanaugh affair proved anything, it’s that they’re throwing their money down a well — and every dollar they waste is a dollar they can’t spend on their other ludicrous priorities, such as confiscating guns from law-abiding citizens.
The courts are rapidly being returned to the originalists, and each new confirmation represents another brick in the wall that will protect American liberties from liberal overreach long after President Trump leaves the White House. The howls of outrage emanating from the political left are a good indication of just how successful the president has been.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE BY JENNA ELLIS | {
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At least 3.5 million unique customers were affected, the FTC said.
"AT&T promised its customers 'unlimited' data, and in many instances, it has failed to deliver on that promise," said FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez in a statement. "The issue here is simple: 'unlimited' means unlimited."
The complaint alleges that the mobile service provider charged millions of customers for "unlimited" data plans while cutting data speeds, sometimes by nearly 90 percent. This practice of slowing down speeds to near-impractical levels after the user has crossed a usage threshold is called data throttling.
The Federal Trade Commission sued AT&T on Tuesday for deceptive and unfair "data throttling."
"The FTC's allegations are baseless and have nothing to do with the substance of our network management program," Wayne Watts, AT&T senior executive vice president and general counsel, said in a statement.
He added that the case was "baffling" and that the company has been "completely transparent with customers since the very beginning," including a well-reported press release on the matter in 2011.
Read MoreAT&T earnings miss as mobile profit margins decline
The data program has only affected about 3 percent of customers, Watts said.
In addition to its highest-priced "unlimited data" plan, rival carrier T-Mobile offers a 5 gigabyte plan with "unlimited data" and explains on its website that after the allotted amount is used up, data speeds slow.
"AT&T and Verizon are offering various forms of trickery to lock their base in because they don't know what to do," T-Mobile USA's president and CEO, John Legere, said earlier on CNBC's "Halftime Report."
"We're porting on a post-paid basis 2.2 to 2.3 to 1," he said. "It's everyday, 2.2 customers come to us from them and one goes out the door. So we can compete."
AT&T declined to comment on Legere's remarks but did say this: "It's worth noting that our postpaid churn, or turnover, was just 0.99 percent—a record for the third quarter. Churn is one of the surest indicators of customer satisfaction and retention."
Verizon did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the T-Mobile chief's remarks.
"Wireless customers across the country are complaining that their supposedly 'unlimited' data plans are not truly unlimited, because they are being throttled and they have not received appropriate notice," Federal Communications Commission spokesman Neil Grace said.
"The FCC has been actively investigating throttling practices since this summer, when Chairman Wheeler sent letters to major nationwide wireless carriers about these practices."
Grace recommended that customers contact the FCC if they experience throttling. | {
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It has not been a great year for television so far.
There have been plenty of treats, to be sure, and even some real treasures. But compared to the way 2017 seemed to haul out new classics with astonishing regularity (to the degree that I couldn’t rank them when it came time to make a list), 2018 has featured a lot of shows where my recommendation comes with a caveat, or where I love it but plenty of my critical comrades despise it, or something like that.
This is fine, in many ways. TV criticism was defined too long by the idea that there were a simple handful of good shows, and critics could mostly agree on them. It’s exciting to get away from that era in some way, to argue about if Westworld is magnificent or malarkey, to discuss whether The Handmaid’s Tale is incisive or exploitative.
But it also means lists like these require far more grains of salt than they might have in the past. So here, presented alphabetically, are 24 TV shows from the first half of 2018 that I gave four stars or more and that have stuck around in my memory in the time since they aired. I hope you like them! But maybe you won’t! And since the TV year typically features more good shows in its first half than its second (due to the Emmys falling in September), my year-end list will likely feature almost all of these shows.
Related The 15 best movies of 2018 so far
(A few caveats: I typically use the summer to catch up on stuff I missed, so some shows that aren’t here almost certainly will be come December. And I’ve tried to limit this to shows that aired six or more episodes in 2018 so far, cutting out some other favorites. I’ve made a list of things that missed due to one or the other of these caveats at the bottom of this article.)
One of the best final seasons I’ve ever seen, the last 10 episodes of The Americans circled back to what the spy drama had always been about — whether this unlikely marriage between two KGB spies pretending to be ordinary Americans could survive all of the things threatening to rip it apart. The series finale is a pitch-perfect cap to six years of bleak but beautiful television.
How to watch it: The Americans is available for digital purchase, or on FX’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be on Amazon Prime.
Related How The Americans built one of the best final seasons ever made
The second installment of American Crime Story after 2016’s The People vs. O. J. Simpson was less immediately arresting. But its depiction of ’90s America is just as impressive, tracing the circuitous route of serial killer Andrew Cunanan backward from his most famous victim through a gay scene struggling not to be forced back in the closet. Darren Criss’s work as Cunanan is masterful.
How to watch it: American Crime Story is available for digital purchase, or on FX’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be on Netflix.
Donald Glover’s laconically loopy trip through the titular city grew bolder and more confident in its second season, as the characters endlessly debated ideas of what it means to be “fake” versus “real.” The season’s standout was the darkly funny horror tale “Teddy Perkins,” about the legacies of child abuse, but every episode stands as a pitch-perfect, beautifully honed gem.
How to watch it: Atlanta is available for digital purchase, or on FX’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be on Hulu.
So far, 2018 has been a year of uneasy comedies, of stories that are ostensibly funny but hide something dark and sad at their core. No “comedy” embraced this idea more than Barry, about a hitman who would be an actor, played by Bill Hader. The show is terrifically funny, especially in its depiction of the fringes of show business, but what sticks with you is Barry’s inability to change.
How to watch it: Barry is available for digital purchase, or on HBO’s streaming platforms.
A riotous trip through the deleterious effects of income inequality, Billions had its best, most cutting season this year, as the show blew up its own premise (by burying the investigation that had always been at its center), then spent the rest of its season vamping for time by digging into the ways those with money and power seem utterly oblivious to those without those qualities in the 2010s.
How to watch it: Billions is available for digital purchase, or on Showtime’s streaming platforms.
You like fish? This has so many fish!
How to watch it: Blue Planet II is available for digital purchase, or on BBC America’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be available on Netflix.
A deeply funny dark comedy about the cost of working for a terrible company, Corporate is one of the most visually audacious shows of the year, turning the workplace comedy into an excuse to indulge in gray, chilly frames, in the style of David Fincher. Somehow, that only makes the jokes, about the dehumanization inherent in trying to hold down a corporate job, even funnier.
How to watch it: Corporate is available for digital purchase, or on Comedy Central’s streaming platforms.
For whatever reason, 2018 has been full of terrific spy dramas, but this one seemed to get a bit lost in the shuffle. Starring Oscar winner J.K. Simmons, it tells the story of a world that split in two late in the Cold War, with the second universe, initially a copy of our own, slowly becoming more and more different. Forget just having one great J.K. Simmons performance. Counterpart had two.
How to watch it: Counterpart is available for digital purchase, or on Starz’s streaming platforms.
This satirical comedy, set on the campus of a predominantly white college, but focusing primarily on the school’s black students, hit another level in its second season. The show crystallizes Trump-era racism — just a new face on a very old American horror — through its storytelling and especially its visuals. The eighth episode, structured as one long conversation, is a marvel.
How to watch it: Dear White People is available on Netflix.
I include the “season one” here in hopes that it’s unnecessary. Netflix has made noise about following up this dark British comedy with a second season, but doing so would be self-defeating, as this first season tells its story so perfectly that to tack on more would feel wrong. So watch this gem of a miniseries about a teenage sociopath and the girl he can’t bring himself to kill before it gets all screwed up.
How to watch it: The End of the F***ing World is available on Netflix.
The space-faring political drama tightened the screws and ratcheted up the tension in its third installment, which collapses a full novel and a half from the book series it’s based on into a single season of television. Complete with memorable guest arcs from David Strathairn and Elizabeth Mitchell, the series finally dug into the true nature of the mysterious alien presence in our solar system.
How to watch it: The Expanse is available for digital purchase, or on Syfy’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be available on Amazon Prime.
The comedy about women wrestlers and the basic cable TV show that broadcast them to the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area has a bit more sprawl than it knew what to do with in its second season. But the show is so open-hearted and generous to its characters that it doesn’t matter. Its stories of women navigating men’s spaces and womanhood as a kind of performance make for riveting television.
How to watch it: GLOW is available on Netflix.
Already brutal and bruising, The Handmaid’s Tale became even more so in its second season. It removed some of the cold comforts of the first season to examine how living in a totalitarian society inevitably means that you become complicit in at least some of its horrors, even as those horrors are being visited upon you. Elisabeth Moss and Yvonne Strahovski are fantastic as they navigate a society set up to oppress them.
How to watch it: The Handmaid’s Tale is available on Hulu.
This stand-up set is a must-see, as Australian comedian Gadsby sets up a long series of punchlines that then resolve into a complete deconstruction of jokes and who gets to tell them in a society filled with fatal power imbalances. It’s funny, yes, but also filled with a scorching fury that finally resolves in a sense that to do better, we have to tear apart every assumption we have.
How to watch it: Hannah Gadsby: Nanette is available on Netflix.
I’ve always enjoyed this rural noir about two best friends who solve strange mysteries in and around the American South. But the third season, which features the two of them taking on the Klan, felt like the show turning a corner into its examination of how much America is defined by its gruesome past and how little any of us are willing to pay attention to that. Naturally, Sundance canceled it after the season aired.
How to watch it: Hap and Leonard is available for digital purchase, or on Sundance’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be available on Netflix.
The CW’s daffy and inventive telenovela has always been some of my favorite TV comfort food. But in its fourth season, it somehow became something even more, leaning into storylines that underlined the show’s themes of family, perseverance, and love. It’s rare for a TV show to do a “character might have cancer” arc that doesn’t feel like a cheat, but Jane more than pulled it off.
How to watch it: Jane the Virgin is available for digital purchase, or on Netflix. Some episodes are available on the CW’s website.
Related Jane the Virgin just took its sex positivity to a whole new level
Here’s another terrific spy drama, this one focused on a bored spy (Sandra Oh) who finds herself intrigued — and then maybe even more — by her new quarry, a mysterious assassin (Jodie Comer). Killing Eve takes tropes you’ve seen a million times and makes them feel new again, and it’s the first TV show in ages to remind me of my beloved, dearly departed Hannibal.
How to watch it: Killing Eve is available for digital purchase, or on BBC America’s streaming platforms.
The Looming Tower is dry and occasionally impenetrable. But I ended up loving the way this miniseries about the build-up to 9/11 slowly but surely built its case for how US intelligence agencies failed to spot what was right in front of them, leading to one of the biggest tragedies to ever occur on American soil. It’s not an argument for more intelligence work; it’s an argument for smarter intelligence work that remains relevant to this day.
How to watch it: The Looming Tower is available on Hulu.
The middle stretch of this season reeled off classic episodes, like the show was in a groove it was never going to leave. What’s more, those episodes are all so recognizable as episodes — from a magic-inflected hour of short stories to a musical — that it became hard not to get caught up in the inventiveness. And the series’s emotional core about sad 20-something magicians trying to bring back the thing that makes them sad (magic) remains rock solid.
How to watch it: The Magicians is available for digital purchase, or on Syfy’s streaming platforms. It will eventually be available on Netflix.
The second season of the remake of the 1970s sitcom of the same name is perhaps the most joyful show of the year, as the Alvarez family at its center struggles through life in these United States with heart and hope. You’ll see few TV performances as terrific this year as the work of Justina Machado and Rita Moreno, as a mother and daughter who are never defined by their conflicts.
How to watch it: One Day at a Time is available on Netflix.
Ryan Murphy’s final series for FX (before leaving for Netflix) is this delightful, warm ’80s period piece about drag ball culture of the era and the idea of found families among people all across the LGBT spectrum. In particular, the show tells stories about trans women like few TV shows ever have, allowing them to have full lives and desires beyond their transition narratives.
How to watch it: Pose is available for digital purchase, or on FX’s streaming platforms.
My favorite workplace comedy had maybe its best season with its third run, which both deepens the show’s interest in social issues (including age discrimination, something few TV shows would even think to touch) and also serves as a master class in how to spin romantic and sexual tension across an entire season of a TV series. When all of its stories came together in the finale, it felt almost magical.
How to watch it: Superstore is available for digital purchase, on NBC’s site, or on Hulu.
More than 100 men sail into the Arctic in the mid-1800s, sure they’ll win glory for the British crown by discovering the Northwest Passage. None of them return, and this miniseries (the first in a new anthology series under the banner of The Terror), based on a Dan Simmons novel, imagines what might have happened to them, utilizing both historical research and a mighty monster to tell its tale. It’s grim and unrelenting but also starkly beautiful.
How to watch it: The Terror is available for digital purchase, or on AMC’s streaming platforms.
Two sisters return to their Los Angeles neighborhood in the wake of their mother’s death, then vow to keep the bar she ran open to preserve their neighborhood in the face of gentrification. This lively half-hour drama examines ideas of identity, sexuality, and class consciousness, but never in a way that feels didactic. Instead, it offers heart, humor, and a touch of magical realism.
How to watch it: Vida is available for digital purchase, or on Starz’s streaming platforms.
Seven I either missed or cut
12 Monkeys and Channel Zero are other Syfy treats I’ve highly recommended in the past, but I’ve been able to catch up with neither so far. The CW’s Crazy Ex-Girlfriend technically aired six episodes in 2018 (exactly six), but I really want to see where it’s going with its current story arc. CBS All Access’s The Good Fight is one I just haven’t caught up with yet, to the consternation of my friends. NBC’s The Good Place will surely be on my year-end list but only aired five episodes in 2018 so far. I loved HBO’s The Tale, a searing story about the aftermath of sexual abuse, but it already made our “best movies of 2018 so far” list. And someday I will finish Netflix’s Wild Wild Country, but I liked what I saw. | {
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Hide and seek could take on new meaning if schools take RealNetworks up on this offer.
The company is offering K-12 learning institutions free facial recognition software that can be downloaded via its website, Technology Review reports. The software is called SAFR, and according to a press release, it uses IP-based cameras and other hardware to “recognize staff, students, and visitors in real time to help improve school safety.” It also promises to “streamlin[e] entry, record keeping, campus monitoring, and guest check-in.”
The tech is currently being tested at a school in Seattle (specifically, the school that the founder’s kids attend) where kids can unlock a gate by smiling at a surveillance camera—which may sound chilling to anyone who has read Nineteen Eighty-Four. It will reportedly be piloted in the state of Wyoming later this year.
In the absence of reasonable gun control laws, the program is meant to improve safety in schools by allowing for real-time monitoring. However, facial recognition tech in general—and for kids in school in particular—is a growing area of concern for privacy advocates and parents alike. After it was reported that Western New York’s Lockport School District would be introducing “the invasive and error-prone technology,” the New York Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to the New York State Education Department urging it to consider students’ and teachers’ privacy.
“Students should think of schools as a safe place to learn,” the ACLU wrote. “They should not worry that their every move is being monitored or that their pictures could end up in a law or immigration enforcement database simply because they came to class.”
It’s not just privacy rights advocates: Last week, Microsoft revealed in a blog post that it is asking Congress to regulate AI-powered face recognition software. | {
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The Indian state is bereft of emotion. This was made even more obvious when lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj was arrested on August 28 in connection with caste violence in Maharashtra’s Bhima Koregaon village on New Year’s day last year. Nine other prominent human rights have been arrested for the same incident. Bharadwaj’s arrest separated her from her 21-year-old daughter Maaysha, who could not sleep or stop crying for the first 14 days.
The authorities claim that the detained activists are “urban Naxalites”, who aimed to engineer “frequent protests and chaos [which] will gradually lead to a breakdown of law and order, and this will have significant political ramification in the coming months”.
Bharadwaj was initially under house arrest but was sent to jail on October 28.
In a lengthy interview with Scroll.in, Maaysha Bharadwaj described her pain, how she has coped with it and what it is to live with an activist mother.
Excerpts:
Is it all still very vivid for you when the police came knocking at your door – the day, the date, your feelings?
I don’t remember the date but I do the time – it was 6.45 am. Mamma woke me up and said, “Get up, police have come to search our home.”
I went out and sat in the hall, which has a bed. So did Mamma. I asked, “What is happening here?”
Mamma calmed me down saying, “Nothing. They have come to search.”
I asked mamma, “Do they have a search warrant?”
Mamma replied, “They have the first information report copy with them, but they don’t have a search warrant.”
I found that weird.
So you know the legalities?
Not really (laughs). But search warrant is necessary, that much I know. I asked mamma, “Without a warrant, why did you let them in?”
She replied, “We don’t have anything [incriminating]. Let them search.”
They were merely going through the pretence of searching our place. They took my and mamma’s phone and laptop.
They took your phone as well?
Not only phone but my iPad as well. They asked for the passwords to my email, Instagram and Snapchat accounts.
They must have checked whether the passwords worked.
Yes, they did to check whether I was lying. They were very normal with me. They would say, “Accha beta, don’t take tension.”
I was still sleepy. I often get up only in the afternoon.
That is part of the millennial lifestyle.
Ya (laughs heartily). They were video-recording the search. Mamma told them, “You haven’t given me files of what you are taking. You are using my internet account. You can insert anything into my mail.”
Mamma was angry. It took them four-five hours to prepare the files.
A little later, they said to mamma, “Madam, there is a senior officer of ours who has come to Faridabad. You have to meet him.”
I didn’t know then that they had arrested her and were taking her away.
Perhaps they didn’t spell it out because you were there?
I don’t know. I didn’t even go down to see her off. I thought she was going to return. The news of her arrest came on TV. Then, reporters came over. I was adamant about not speaking to them. That was because I had started crying.
Was it from the TV that you came to know your mother had been arrested?
One of mamma’s friends phoned me to say they were planning to take her to Pune. I was alone. I started freaking out. I was getting calls from reporters, mamma’s friends, my friends. I was just crying and crying. I was totally messed up. I thought I hadn’t even hugged mamma, not even said bye to her.
Fortunately, she was put under house arrest.
They brought her back under heavy police escort. I had an argument with one of the woman constables. She said she didn’t think I was my mamma’s daughter.
I retorted, “Yes, I am not my mother’s daughter, what about it? What do you have to do with that?”
My friend clasped my mouth shut and took me away to the bedroom.
How long did the house arrest last?
It lasted around two months. Initially, there were five woman constables guarding her round the clock. Later, there were three.
I am very particular about hygiene. I would get very angry that they were using my mamma’s toilet, her bed. They even took to switching on AC. I asked them, “Who is going to foot the electricity bill?”
Mamma said, “Let them use it, beta. We don’t have enmity with them. They are only doing their job.”
I would often restrain myself from freaking out only because I thought they would take it out on mamma.
In those two months, could your friends come over?
No.
Could you go out?
Yes, I could. I would often go to a friend’s place because I did not like having the constables around. But mamma couldn’t even step onto the balcony.
Your mother’s house arrest ended on October 27. How did it feel when she was taken away?
I was like completely numb. They were to take her away the next morning [October 28]. I spent that night with mamma in her room. I hugged her and kept crying and crying and saying, “Don’t go, please. What will I do alone?”
In the morning, before she was taken away, mamma and I had our 10 minutes of a private moment. I again hugged her and started crying. I couldn’t say anything to her.
Your mamma didn’t cry?
No. She said to me, “It is okay. Look after yourself. Study hard. Be with your friends. Don’t stay alone.”
When they were taking her out of the apartment, someone said, “Let us go outside to see her off.” There were many reporters and camerapersons. I could not give her a last-minute hug. Residents of our apartment building were supportive of us.
It must have felt bizarre to see your sad moment captured on camera.
It did. There I was hugging my mamma’s friend and howling and the cameras were all focused on me. My mamma’s friend concealed my face. Journalists were shouting, wait, wait, give us a comment. I was like no, no, and I ran into the building.
Thereafter?
For two weeks, I felt totally, ek dam alone. I could not sleep at night, could not during the day.
But there were and are people with you?
Two. Both are mamma’s friends.
There was company but you felt desolate.
I would just keep crying and could not sleep.
Let alone in childhood, even now the first thing anxiety takes away from me is sleep.
Yes, I would take out my mamma’s photographs and try to recall events linked with them. I was totally ill. I was nauseous, had panic attacks and anxiety.
What about friends? Didn’t they come over?
No.
But you said you would spend time at a friend’s place when your mamma was under house arrest.
Yes. But the two people who stay with me are from mamma’s union (Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha). They are very, very helpful.
But friends didn’t come over?
No. Maybe they are scared or something.
You never reached out to them?
No. Since everyone knew what happened to me they should have on their own come over to meet me.
So if they didn’t come over, they didn’t want to?
I used to spend my time alone.
Doing what?
Crying (laughs).
'For two weeks, I felt totally alone. I could not sleep,' says Maaysha.
The human mind is a funny place – a disturbing thought keeps spinning round and round in the head.
You are right. I still cry at times. February 21 is my birthday, and I am like, Oh! my God. I want my mamma to be there on my birthday.
Hopefully, the judges or the state will fulfil your wish.
I have written three public letters.
From the way you speak about the first 14 days, it seems things got better thereafter.
Yes, my feelings changed. I began to feel more mature and that I could handle all this.
Do you feel under pressure that you have to act beyond your age?
Yes (smiles). Everyone wants me to be a strong person.
Even when you don’t want to smile, they expect you to.
Yesssss.
When you want to cry, they want you to keep a straight face.
Yes. Not everybody, but many say, “Don’t cry, you have to be strong.”
What is wrong with crying? It makes me feel lighter. In those 14 days, even when I wanted to stop crying, I could not.
Did the uncles staying with you figure out you were spending a lot of time crying?
It is my habit from childhood to never cry aloud.
In my childhood, I would cry into the pillow. What about you?
Same here (giggles). Or I would go into the bathroom and cry in front of the mirror.
In one of your public letters, you wrote that you did not live with your mother on a regular basis until you were in Class 6. How is the pain of the current separation from her different from what it was in your childhood?
Then I was living with a family associated with the union [Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha]. I lived in Bhilai, Chhattisgarh. I was focused on studies then, I had friends.
But, strangely, at the time of bhakti, when there was puja in the neighbourhood temple or azaan was called, the memory of my mother would haunt me. I would clutch my mother’s sari and cry. I didn’t have a photo of hers. So I tore her identity card and took out the photo. I was scolded (laughs).
But mamma would come to visit me. Besides, I had 20-25 friends. I was getting very good grades and I was totally happy. From Class 6, I started living with mamma in Bilaspur. Mamma was there but also not there. She was so deeply immersed in her work that for a month at a stretch I would be living alone. For a year, I and two children from the union lived together.
The three of you lived alone?
Yes, in a small apartment.
You got toughened early.
I never thought that way. I never thought it was a big deal to live alone. Besides, I could always reach out to mamma over the phone. I knew she would come after a certain number of days. But now, I can’t even talk to her over the phone. I don’t even know when she will return to me.
Basically, your worry arises from uncertainty about the future?
That is my problem. For one and a half years we had been staying in Faridabad. She would come late from the university [the National Law University, Delhi, where she taught], at 8 pm or 9 pm. We would be in touch over the phone. She would ring me up to inquire whether I had taken my meals, whether the didi who works at our place had come over and what she had cooked. When she went out of the city, we used to converse through video calls. It was pretty fine with me.
My feelings today are very different. What you pointed out, the uncertainty about the future, is what bothers me constantly. There is also fear of what might happen to her – and me.
Like what?
In March, I have my exams. Mamma always helped me a lot with my preparation. I would tell her, “You prepare notes so well, do it for me.” After doing the university work, she would stay up through the night to prepare my notes. And I would be chilling (laughs). Mine is not a typical family, where the mother cooks meals and feeds children.
Do you have a strong bond with her?
Very strong, but the sense of loneliness was also there. I always wanted her for myself all the time. During her house arrest, I would tease her, “You had wheels under your feet, like a morni [pea-fowl] you roamed around. Now you can’t. Just stay at home.”
During the house arrest, she was there for me 24 hours.
How was it living with your mother in Faridabad?
When we shifted from Chhattisgarh to Faridabad, we did up our house – put in the sofas and the dining table. In Bilaspur, we just had two beds in two rooms and there was the kitchen. My mamma is of the kind who does not mind sleeping on the floor. I am not like that. I like to fill in the empty spaces around me with stuff.
Since shifting to Faridabad, our lifestyle had started to resemble that of other people. Mamma would go to the university, come home, and we would watch a film on Netflix or TV. At times, we would go to the theatre with others. We had started to bond as we had never before.
Suddenly, it all vanished.
It has happened not on account of your mother or you but because of a third party.
What I tell everyone is that when someone helps Adivasis, they are called Naxalite. When you help Muslims, you are called terrorist. Would a doctor deny treatment to a person who is an Adivasi or Muslim? My mamma is a lawyer. She has to do cases for all. She can’t refuse help out of the fear of what might happen to her.
Mamma was never like that. I had started to write a book…
About what?
On mamma’s life. She was helping me with it. She gave me the names of her friends at Cambridge University and told me to contact them. We searched for them on the internet. I mailed some. Her life at Cambridge seems like a film to me. When I was very young, she would sketch parts of Cambridge for me.
I like going into the psychology of a person. I told mamma, “I’m a student of psychology. What are your feelings? So mom, tell me about your mental condition.”
She replied, “I am afraid. I have worked so much for people but I fear all that work might go waste.”
She wasn’t afraid for herself?
No. I don’t feel guilty saying that mamma has given more time to others than she has to me. In fact, we shifted to Faridabad because she said she wanted to focus on me now. I feel terrible even this has been interrupted.
A third party chose to come in between. So, whom do you blame for taking away your mother from you?
Government.
Have you thought of writing to the prime minister and MPs?
No, they are not sensitive people. I don’t like insensitive people.
A protest against the arrest of Sudha Bharadwaj and other human rights defenders in Delhi. Photo credit: HT
Getting back to the initial days, what did you do after crying through 14 days?
I went to Bhilai, which is where the Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha is based. I lived in the labour camp with a family which is very fond of mamma. I also spent time with another family there. They took great care of me. They were very sweet. I derived another kind of energy from them. I enjoyed, there were children of my age. There were also moments when we cried together thinking of mamma. In fact, I went there after meeting mamma in Pune.
Where did you meet her? Court, jail?
I met her first when she was in police custody. I started crying on seeing her. She looked tired. She asked me how I was.
This meeting was when?
I think 15 days after they took her to Pune. I met her in a room. Outside, there were others who had been arrested along with her. Mamma pointed to a bespectacled person and said, “He is Arun Ferreira. He was slapped around.”
I was petrified. I asked Mamma, “Did they beat you? Tell me and I will beat the person.”
But she said, no, they were taking good care of her. I met her for about 10 minutes.
Then you met her in the court, didn’t you?
It was a horrifying sight for me. When I was a child, I would accompany mamma to court, sit in someone’s lap and see her arguing the case before the judge. It was just the reverse: they announced her name, Sudha Bharadwaj. It was a terrible blow for me. Someone who had fought for workers all her life had been turned into a criminal.
How was it meeting her in jail?
There was a glass wall separating her from me. There was a phone and a constable on either side.
You didn’t feel like breaking the glass wall and hugging your mother?
It felt bad not to touch her. I put my palm on the glass and she did the same from the other side. Palm on palm, with the glass in between, we talked.
There have been two other meetings with her in jail. The last meeting was a bit trying. I hadn’t carried my Aadhaar card. I had my school ID. But that wasn’t enough for them. I couldn’t meet her in the morning. I also fell sick because I have motion sickness. I vomited twice; I hadn’t had lunch. It was only after the lunch break I was allowed to meet her after a true copy of Aadhaar was made.
When I saw mummy, I broke down thinking I might not have had that chance to meet her.
I could not talk to her much. Only for about nine minutes.
She said, “Don’t take tension.” And I was like, “How is that possible?”
Your mother seems alright to you?
Yes. But, you see, I have seen her breaking down only once. That was when her maternal uncle died. I was very small then. After that, never.
Are you able to handle your sorrow better now?
Yes, I try to. I slip sometimes. At times, without mamma, I feel desperate. But then I realise I must wait for good times to come.
How do you keep your hope alive?
At the base of my hope is my belief that my mother did no wrong. Initially, I did not know what the case against her was.
When she was arrested, right?
Yes. When I came to know that she has been connected to the Bhima Koregaon violence, I was like, “What?”
When my mother has to squash a mosquito she does it so tenderly (laughs). For her to be involved in violence...it is all cooked up.
The other thing is that nobody came to ask her questions during the time she was under house arrest. Wouldn’t they have if they had evidence? Such is the technology now you can easily gather proof of someone’s involvement in violence in minutes. But they are still preparing a chargesheet against her. It is a nonsensical allegation they have pinned on my mother.
And you blame the government for it?
Yes, I do. I have been a student of political science. They are incapable of doing anything. What meaning does democracy have? What meaning does the right to free speech have? Mamma was doing precisely that. But it is her freedom that they have taken.
When mamma was with me, I wrote, “It takes courage to fight for justice, it takes a lot to fight for your right and your dignity and individuality. According to the police, fighting against injustice or fighting for the poor is against the law. They want the poor to be invisible.”
Still, I have both positive and negative feelings.
Negative feelings?
Nothing will be done for my mother. She will come out of prison but after a long time. Our government is interested in sending people like her to jail, even without proof.
At the same time, so many famous personalities have spoken in her favour. I hope this will put some pressure on the government. That is my hope.
So you are constantly swinging between hope and hopelessness. That is often the source of our suffering.
Yes, I feel the same way.
Have friends got back in touch with you now?
Yes, some of them have, one or two. The thing is, new friends stopped talking and old friends, with whom I had lost touch over the years, they reached out to me. There used to be a very good friend of mine. This person knew mummy well but then stopped talking to me. I was shocked.
After your mother was arrested, the media was full of stories about her and the others. But the media has forgotten them now. Do you feel let down?
Yes, they should have continued writing about them. Once I heard someone remark that the shortest life of anything in this world is of news.
That is a wise one. What does Maaysha mean?
Pretty.
What do you want to do in life?
I want to help people. But my method would be different; I want to work as a psychologist or a part-time activist. I would take my family along. In the future, if I were to have a child, I would not want him or her to suffer the pain of separation. I can’t be like my mom.
Have you told her this?
Yes.
What did she say?
She said, “Beta, you are free to live the way you want. I have never stopped you, I never will.” | {
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El biólogo español Rafael Martín-Ledo estudia desde hace años la microfauna marina, incluyendo los tardígrados. Hace poco, en el río Saja en el norte de España, recolectó uno que era más extraño de lo que ya suelen ser estas sorprendentes criaturas. ¿Qué demonios tenía en su interior?
A través de una técnica de microscopía de contraste capaz de resaltar los cambios en el brillo y las estructuras pequeñas, el investigador encontró un tardígrado que se retuerce con el estómago lleno de luces brillantes. Poco después publicó el siguiente tweet:
¿La respuesta? No tenemos ni la menor idea. Los investigadores cuentan que es demasiado pronto para decir qué es este material iridiscente, y mucho menos de dónde viene. No obstante, Martín-Ledo tiene una sugerencia: el efecto brillante es el resultado de la aragonita, una forma cristalina común de carbonato de calcio que se ve a menudo en las conchas de los animales marinos.
De hecho, el investigador cree que puede haber llegado de los tardígrados que se tragan partes de su propia boca. Tal cual.
¿Cómo? Al parecer, estas criaturas de ocho patas tienen largas bocas tubulares, que están armadas con un par de dientes con forma de cristal llamados estiletes. Estos se utilizan para perforar plantas o pequeños invertebrados, chupando los fluidos de sus presas. Los estiletes están hechos casi exclusivamente de aragonita, y se reemplazan solo cuando el tardígrado pasa por su proceso regular de muda.
Por esta razón, el investigador sugiere que las alucinantes criaturas pasan por períodos de canibalismo. Para Martín-Ledo:
Los tardígrados que son depredadores se alimentan al chupar los fluidos corporales de rotíferos, nematodos, ciliados, etc. Así que no creo que haya ninguna posibilidad de que se coma a otros tardígrados.
Otro investigador, en este caso Kazuharu Arakawa, un biólogo molecular de la Universidad de Keio en Japón, se muestra escéptico ante tal posibilidad:
El aparato bucal generalmente se expulsa durante la muda, y el aparato bucal tardío no permite el consumo directo de estructuras quitinosas. Están optimizados para perforar el exoesqueleto quitinoso y chupar el fluido corporal.
Arakawa cree que si hubiera cristales de aragonita en el intestino de este tardígrado, probablemente sería de las algas o bacterias que come. En cualquier caso, habrá que esperar para encontrar respuestas sobre una de las criaturas más fascinantes y misteriosas del planeta. [ScienceAlert] | {
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Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein is taking a step toward new leadership, as Mary Lou McDonald became the only candidate to replace outgoing leader Gerry Adams.
McDonald, who's currently deputy leader, has been a member of the lower house of the Irish parliament since 2011. The 48-year-old Dublin native will be formally elected at a special party conference in February and will become the party's first ever female leader.
She told party members Saturday that she "won't fill Gerry's shoes. But the news is that I brought my own."
Adams announced in November he was stepping down after 34 years. The 69-year-old is a key figure in the Irish republican movement, which seeks to take Northern Ireland out of the U.K. and unite it with the Republic of Ireland. | {
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