The expert team at MotorNuts recommend that you should check your engine oil, antifreeze and fluids around once a month and especially before a long journey.
There has never been a better time to top up your oils and fluids as we have gone Nuts and have 10% off across the whole range.
Firstly engine oil - choosing which oil may seem very confusing - is it fully synthetic, semi synthetic, and then there is the numbers (viscosity's) – where to start?
Don't go Nuts... simply enter your vehicle registration in our look up and that will narrow the search to what is recommended for your vehicle, and this information is also in your manual or handbook.
Next up - transmission or gear box oil, it is the lesser known sibling of engine oil however equally important for gearbox and axle longevity. Most manufacturers recommend changing the transmission oil between every 30,000 and 60,000 miles.
Antifreeze and coolants are next. These are essential to maintaining the engine temperature so it doesn't get too hot or too cold and so is especially important to keep on top of in winter.
The final under the bonnet check is brake fluids and power steering fluids, essential for obvious reasons and easily checked and topped up.
The MotorNuts team also recommend treatments and additives as they can fix a variety of engine troubles and help avoid costly repairs.
By simply adding them to your fuel they can work through your engine to clean build ups and maintain performance as well as maximising fuel economy and reducing emissions – we especially recommend running them through before your car goes for its MOT.
Posted in Views, Advice on 10th September 2018 .
If you're going on holiday or long journeys in your car this holiday period our expert team at MotorNuts have compiled this handy checklist to make sure your car is ready for the trip.
Firstly you need to check all your tyres are above the legal limit – a minimum tread depth of 1.6mm across ¾ of the tyre's width. Once your car is ready and loaded to hit the road check your tyre pressures are what they're meant to be – as stated in your handbook. And are you prepared if you get a flat or a puncture? space saver spare wheels can be a life saver to speedily get you out of sticky situation.
It is also a great time to give your engine and systems a bit of TLC with one of our treatments or additives.
Hot weather can mean hotter cars – so make sure your coolant level is topped up (always check when the engine is cold). Whilst we are talking about keeping cool we would also recommend you make sure your air con is gassed and working, we also really recommend running an antibacterial cleaner through it to make sure it's as fresh as it is cool.
Check your windscreen for chips and cracks and get anything over 10mm repaired. Top up your screen wash and make sure your wiper blades aren't smearing or squeaking... because that would be nearly as annoying on a long journey as the unavoidable 'are we nearly there yet'!
You need to check all lights are working and change any bulbs that need replacing - so that includes:Headlights – main and dipped, Sidelights – front and rear, Indicators – front rear and side repeaters, Brake lights, Number plate, Reverse light, Fog lights – front and rear and Hazards. In many European countries you need to use day time running lights and have to carry a bulb replacement kit.
Holidays + kids = messy car! Our top tip to avoid the inevitable food and beach mess everywhere is investing in some carpet car mats to protect your original floor and make it easier to clean and de-sand plus we have seat covers to keep the mucky fingers off the seats!
To make sure you are compliant wherever you go over sees we have handy driving abroad kits with everything you need including GB stickers, beam bender headlight stickers, warning triangles and much more.
Posted in Views, Advice on 29th May 2018 .
Your trusty Transit van is with you every step of the way; every delivery, every job – from early starts to butty breaks and the long road home.
This reliable work horse works as hard as you do and then some so why not give your van a treat, inside and out with our tailored Ford Transit products.
Protect your vans original interior with our Town and Country tailored fit heavy duty seat covers which are waterproof and stain resistant.
Covers are available for the driver's seat, double front passenger seats as well as custom crew and combi rear seat covers depending on your set up and for all the Ford Vans; Transit Custom and Connect plus the Ford Ranger pickup and Ford Minibuses.
Simple engine treatments can improve performance, reduce emissions, increase efficiency, clean build ups and ultimately prevent engine mishaps and extend life span.
We'd recommend MPEX Diesel Detox Pro – a multipurpose product this innovative treatment addresses all common deposit related problems, restoring performance loss caused by a dirty and inefficient fuel system.
The much loved Haynes manuals cover everything for service and repair; from simple roadside fixes, through general maintenance and MOT checks to full restorations - always handy to have with you to check what's what under your bonnet.
With vehicle theft up as thieves out smart newer technology drivers are reverting to more traditional security methods. We have a massive range of vehicle security products perfect for your Transit; the Bulldog DC400 or Centaur CA 2000 wheel clamps, a Disklok steering wheel lock or external van door lock are all excellent visible deterrents.
Are you prepared should you get a puncture in your Transit? To get you back on the road quickly and easily with minimal down time make sure you have a space saver spare wheel – we have different wheels for different years of the Transit Courier and Tourneo models.
In addition to these 5 Transit essentials we have a wide range of accessories as well as all the indispensable car parts for the Ford Transit, the UKs best selling van.
Posted in Views on 22nd February 2018 .
True T5 fans are all about the customisation, making their beloved van stand out from the crowd, inside and out.
Originally designed as a commercial vehicle the T5 has fast developed a cult following with many of them being customised into campers, as well as used daily for work and play.
As practical as they are cool – they can be easily made even cooler with just a couple of simple alterations.
Lowering the springs gives your VW T5 a sporty look as well as improving the handling and ride.
One of the easiest ways to make your van stand out is upgrading to some custom alloy wheels - and we have a massive range for perfecting your VWs look.
Calibre do both retro and contemporary design styles in a range of colours and finishes including metallic black, gold, polished silver, gunmetal grey, two tone and coloured trim.
Both alloys and lowering springs and kits give your VW Transporter the modified, aftermarket look you desire and are available for Caravelle, California and Shuttle models.
Less about the appearance and more about the practical usability – we have seat covers for the VW Transporters.
And should you need a helping hand along the way with any jobs we also stock the Haynes manuals for the full range of Transporters from old to new.
Posted in Views on 23rd January 2018 .
Headlight bulbs aren't just the simple replacements they used to be, there are now several options when it comes to your cars headlights and the MotorNuts team want to make sure you know what's what when it comes to bulbs.
All the evidence suggests that choosing the best bulbs is a savvy and safe move - the Department for Transport reveals that whilst only 15% of vehicle miles are done between 7pm and 7am, they account for almost a third of the road injuries and deaths.
This combined with the fact that up to 65% of drivers are less confident driving in the dark and councils nationwide are switching off or dimming up to 2 million street lights means you need to take the lighting into your own hands.
Typically cars have halogen bulbs but over recent years it became the trend and for some the preferred choice to move to LED or Xenon bulbs. As well as the standard Halogen bulbs you can then get performance bulbs which are brighter, the Ring H7 is a very popular option.
LEDs started taking over the lighting world and then were considered for cars as well as – just like in your home they draw less power than typical halogen bulbs – more like 1.4 amps as opposed to 5 amps. They also throw the light further making visibility better.
The Xenon HID Bulbs first started to appear in the luxury car market and were un-missable with their distinctive bright white light. Not just whiter and lighter – to be precise a colour temperature of 5500k white as opposed to 3000k yellow.
Xenon HID bulbs – or High Intensity Discharge have no filament but a glass capsule of Xenon gas instead, they require a higher lighting current but use a lower running current meaning that like the LEDS they require less charge to run and subsequently last longer too.
Why use Xenon HID bulbs over traditional halogen bulbs? A Xenon HID bulb will give off 3200 lumens as opposed to around 500 lumens from traditional bulbs halogen bulbs – they also last a lot longer.
The Xenon HID performance upgrades take the 500 lumens of a traditional halogen bulb and smash them out of the water giving off 5,200 lumens of the brightest whitest light.
number plate light and fog lights...even more so in Summer as you hardly use them but never know when you'll need them with the British weather!
Our final bulb tips - always change Xenon and LED bulbs in pairs to make sure of equal brightness and performance and always wear gloves to change them as any dirt on fingertips can affect the gas in the bulbs.
Posted in Views and tagged bulbs on 5th July 2017 .
The Formula 1 pre-season testing is now complete so we know who was fastest, fiercest, went furthest and we are more excited than ever for the furious fun to kick off on 26th March with The Australian Grand Prix.
The 10 teams and 22 drivers all faced off over two, four day test spells at the Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona and it was Ferrari that set the pace coming out on top with the fastest lap being clocked by Kimi Raikkonen just under 1minute 19 seconds.
There was only 5 seconds between the whole pack, with Mercedes, Williams and Red Bull hot on Ferraris heels.
Now it's not just about the speed, the best way to look at a team's performance is the reliability which can be seen in how many laps were completed and with how long between pit stops – and on this front it was the Mercedes engine cars that came out on top with McLaren's Honda engine bringing up the rear.
Finally the drivers: with the unexpected retirement of last season's champ Nico Rosberg its Valtteri Bottas who joins former champion Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes. There is the usual switching and changing between teams and then another driver change on the retirement front is Felipe Massa coming out of retirement to race alongside Lance Stroll as team mates at Williams.
Tune in to channel 4 and on sky sports for all the seasons action.
Posted in News, Views on 15th March 2017 .
The new car seat law - and why everyone is a bit baffled?
For this blog we have called in Mummy MotorNuts who with two little ones and two not so little ones knows what's needed to make sure everyone is suitably strapped in!
First up the basics - as from March 2017 the law is changing on new child car seats sold.
Basically unless a booster has a back, it's no good. The law will state that only children over 22kg (3st 7lbs) who are also over 125cm (4ft 1in) tall may use them.
The new law is that children must use an age/ weight appropriate child car seat until they are 12 years old or 135cm (4ft 5in) tall, whichever comes first.
Next up the misconceptions, why is everyone getting confused - talking to my fellow Mummy's people are worrying about seats they already have (which are not going to be affected) and also about the ever bubbling forward or rear facing car seat debate.
In other countries the law keeps their little ones rear facing longer than the UK does...but that's a whole different kettle of fish and a debate for another day.
Now currently a child over the age of 3 can use a booster seat which uses the normal seat belt across them and crucially this new legislation puts a stop to this...which is a good job as anyone with a 3 year old will know that the wriggly little monkeys will outsmart a standard seat belt in seconds!
You can now go straight from a rear facing group 0 car seat (typically used from birth to around 9 months) to a group 1,2,3 seat a high backed booster with harness - meaning you only need to buy two car seats.
The group 1,2,3 high backed booster with harness grows with the child. Your little one uses the harness until they're big enough that they outgrow it at which point you switch to the car seat belt which will by then lie in the correct position across their shoulder (and not their neck).
There are other options – group zero car seats that aren't carriers i.e that don't pop in and out of the car with baby in them - these will work from birth to around age 4 and then you'd just go straight onto a high backed booster without harness.
If you go into any car seat/ baby stuff retailer you will find there are endless choices and options based on personal preference – but what you won't find from March is booster seats without a back.
Posted in News, Views, Advice on 13th February 2017 .


Gerizims which means cut off and the "Gerizims" Brass Decorative Drop Pull is a sure thing to crave for since it is totally different from other drop pulls. If taken a closer look the leaf patterned design just at the middle of the base makes it an authentic piece all of its own and the pull is also curved accordingly to match its base is an absolute thing of beauty. And to give this piece of beauty your own individual touch, it comes with a trendy range of finishes to choose from that will make you ask for more.


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Мрки медвед (), врста је звери из породице медведа, широко распрострањена у северној Евроазији и Северној Америци. У Северној Америци популације смеђих медведа често се називају гризли. Један је од највећих живих земаљских припадника реда -{Carnivora}-, чији је ривал по величини само његов најближи сродник, поларни медвед (-{Ursus maritimus}-), који је много мање варијабилан по величини и нешто већи у просеку.

Медвед је најнезграпнија и најтежа звер Европе. Покрети му делују неспретније него што стварно јесу. Његова силна снага и јаке канџе олакшавају му пешачење. Пење се по стенама а може да се попне и на дрво. Не плаши се воде и често улази у њу да се расхлади. Више је упућен на биљну него на животињску храну мада једноставно једе (ждере) све што је јестиво. Обожава мед, а са времена на време ухвати и неку рибу. Ако је навикао на животињску храну постаје грабљивац у правом смислу те речи. Тада прогони све веће животиње (овце, коње и различиту дивљач). Зиму проводи у сну у свом брижљиво спремљеном брлогу, где женка током зиме доноси на свет 1-3 мечета.

Главни ареал смеђег медведа обухвата делове Русије, средње Азије, Кине, Канаде, Сједињених Држава, Хокаида, Скандинавије и Карпатске области, посебно Румунију, Анатолију и Кавказ. Смеђи медвед препознат је као национална и државна животиња у неколико европских земаља.

Распрострањеност и станиште
Некада је мрки медвед био распрострањен по читавој Евроазији и Северној Америци. У Европи, никада није живео једино на Исланду и на Средоземним острвима – Сардинији, Корзици и Кипру. Данас је у западној Европи практично истребљен, а преостале популације су мале, међусобно одвојене и у нестајању. Стабилне популације мрког медведа одржане су у централној и источној Европи и у Скандинавији. Ограничена величина расположивог станишта и велик простор потребан за живот сваког медведа, онемогућавају значајнији раст популација, због чега се овај медвед сврстава у ретке и заштићене врсте.

Мрки медведи су некада настањивали низијске шуме, поплавне и травнате долине. Временом човек је медведа потиснуо у брдска пошумљена подручја. Пресудну улогу за опстанак медведа имају белогоричне шуме (буква, храст, кестен), подручја густиша и ливада. Посебно је важна могућност кретања медведа у свим смеровима укључујући и зоне различитих надморских висина.
Медвед сваке ноћи тражи храну, а дању се повлачи у мирна и густо обрасла подручја где прави дневни лежај. У пролеће посећује нижа подручја са ранијом вегетацијом, а у јесен залази у шуме са великим количинама хранљивих плодова – буквица, кестен, жир. Зими се повлачи у тешко приступачна и мирна подручја ради брложења. Веома је важно да медвед има приступ сваком делу станишта, како животни циклус не би био поремећен. Најмања површина станишта за једног мрког медведа је 250 -{km²}-.

Опис
Мрки медвед има здепасто тело које се завршава кратким репом, шиљату њушку, заобљене уши, снажне вилице и јаке, оштре зубе. Већина мрких медведа има изразиту грбу на леђима. Има страховиту снагу. Чељустима може одвући плен масе и до 300 -{kg}-. Иако изгледа незграпно, веома је спретан. Може се кретати усправно на задњим ногама, трчати, пењати по дрвећу и стрмим стенама, и добро пливати.
Пошто живи на различитим стаништима, тако му и величина варира. Већина мрких медведа тешка је између 130 и 300 килограма. Одрасле женке мрког медведа које живе у Европи теже просечно 100 -{kg}-, а мужјаци 150 -{kg}-, док поједини примерци пређу и 300 -{kg}-.

Гризли медвед и сибирски мрки медвед теже између 350 – 400 -{kg}-. Кодијачки мрки медвед са острва Кодијак је вероватно највећи и може тежити до 800 килограма, а када се усправи на задње ноге висок је 3,7 -{m}-. Током године тежина медведа варира, највећа је у касну јесен пред брложење, а најмања почетком лета односно крајем сезоне парења.
Тело им је прекривено дугом длаком и густом поддлаком, која је лети ређа него зими. Боја длаке знатно варира од подручја до подручја. Најчешће је у свим варијантама мрке боје, али може бити и сивкаста, плавкаста или скоро црна. Обично су једнобојни.
На прстима ногу су канџе које су на предњим ногама посебно дугачке (5 до 6 -{cm}-.) и снажне. Њима медвед раскопава земљу, труле пањеве и мравињаке, преврће камење, убија и кида плен.

Исхрана
Мрки медведи су сваштоједи. Исхрана им варира у зависности од доба године и територије на којој се налазе. Иако спадају у месождере, медведи око 95% својих потреба задовољавају биљном храном – једу бобице, воће, корење, траве, млади кукуруз, жир букве, кестен. Остатак њихове хране сачињавају бескичмењаци, риба и стрвине већих животиња. Понекад напада и крупније сисаре – срндаће, јелене, лосове. У Северној Америци понекад убије и поједе знатно мањег Америчког црног медведа.

Животни циклус
Мрки медведи живе усамљеничким животом. Они су строго територијалне животиње. Мужјак се приближава женки само у сезони парења. Често се територија једног мужјака преклапа са територијом више женки.
Медведи се паре од краја маја до половине јула. Мужјаци тада прелазе велике удаљености, међусобно се боре ако се нађу уз исту женку, а сваки се труди да оплоди што више њих. Женка се у једној сезони може парити са више мужјака, па постоји могућност да сви млади из једног легла не буду од истог оца. Анализама ДНК којима се утврђује очинство утврђено је да се проценат младунаца у леглима који имају различитог оца креће до 29%. Млади се рађају усред зиме, за време брложења. Мужјак је посебно опасан по младунце и често их убијају, како би подстакли женку на поновно парење.

Медвед зиму проводи у посебно одабраном и припремљеном брлогу. Већина брлога у нашим крајевима је у мањим шупљинама стена, а мањи број између жила корења великих стабала, или на отвореном односно под крошњама великих стабала. У брлогу медвед припреми удобан лежај од суве траве, лишћа и гранчица. У њега се увуче пре него што падне снег, како га не би одао траговима. Када је сигуран у своју безбедност, заспи и буди се тек у пролеће. То није прави зимски сан, већ више мировање, односно неактивност, при чему се могу врло лако пробудити. Неопходну енергију црпи искључиво из залиха сала, задржавајући телесну температуру на око 35 °C. Скотне женке у првој половини јануара рађају једно до четири младунчета масе око 350 гр. Они су потпуно слепи и без длаке. Зависни су од непосредног контакта са телом мајке која их греје и храни млеком. Млади сисају до почетка априла када напуштају брлог и следе мајку у потрази за храном. Са њом проводе прву годину живота и следећу зиму у брлогу, а одвајају се од ње када се она поново пари. Понекад, након парења, мајка допушта прошлогодишњим младунцима да је прате до јесени, када прави нови брлог где ће окотити ново легло.

Мрки медвед живи повучено и само изузетно може постати агресиван према човеку и другим животињама, а у томе предњачи северноамерички медведи. Европски мрки медвед је мирнији и радије избегава људе, али женке постају опасне у време одгајања младих.

Подврсте
Подврсте мрког медведа:
 евроазијски мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos arctos}-) -{Linnaeus}-, 1758;
 апенински мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos marsicanus}-) -{Altobello}-, 1921;
 источносибирски мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos collaris}-) -{F. G. Cuvier}-, 1824;
 камчатски мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos beringianus}-) -{Middendorff}-, 1851;
 усурски мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos lasiotus}-) -{Gray}-, 1867;
 тибетски плави медвед (-{Ursus arctos pruinosus}-) -{Blyth}-, 1854;
 хималајски мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos isabellinus}-) -{Horsfield}-, 1826;
 сиријски мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos syriacus}-) -{Hemprich}- & -{Ehrenberg}-, 1828;
 атласки мрки медвед (-{Ursus arctos crowtheri}-) -{Schinz}-, 1844;
 гризли обични (-{Ursus arctos horribilis}-) -{Ord}-, 1815;
 мексички гризли (-{Ursus arctos nelsoni}-) -{Merriam}-, 1914;
 калифорнијски гризли (-{Ursus arctos californicus}-) -{Merriam}-, 1896;
 Доловоострвски мрки медвед или гризли (-{Ursus arctos dalli}-) -{Merriam}-, 1896;
 ситкански мрки медвед или гризли (-{Ursus arctos sitkensis}-) -{Merriam}-, 1896;
 стикински мрки медвед или гризли (-{Ursus arctos stikeenensis}-) -{Merriam}-, 1914;
 аљаски мрки медвед или гризли (-{Ursus arctos alascensis}-) -{Merriam}-, 1896;
 полуострвоаљаски мрки медвед или гризли (-{Ursus arctos gyas}-) -{Merriam}-, 1902;
 кодијачки мрки медвед или гризли (-{Ursus arctos middendorffi}-) -{Merriam}-, 1896.

Референце

Литература

Спољашње везе

 Ретке врсте: Мрки медвед, Национални парк Тара
 Медвеђе царство, Б. Пејовић, Политика, 17. децембар 2013
 Посматрање медведа на Тари
 Први комшија  - медвед, 1. део, РТС Сасвим природно - Званични канал
 Први комшија - медвед,  2. део, РТС Сасвим природно - Званични канал
 Срби медведима не верују, РТС Сасвим природно - Званични канал
 -{Brown Bear profile from National Geographic}-
 -{Bear Hunting Altered Genetics More Than Ice Age Isolation}-
 -{Ancient Fossil Offers New Clues To Brown Bears Past}-

Сисари Србије

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
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Tag: Jimmy Wales
Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales marries Tony Blair's former diary secretary in star-studded ceremony… and Alastair Campbell played the bagpipes!
Ceremony in London attended by Tony Blair and his former spin doctor Alastair Campbell wearing a kilt and playing bagpipes
Celebrities including former Simply Red singer Mick Hucknall invited
Marriage to Kate Garvey was updated on Jimmy Wales' Wikipedia page
By Larisa Brown
PUBLISHED:09:24 EST, 7 October 2012| UPDATED:09:45 EST, 7 October 2012
Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales married Tony Blair's former diary secretary in a star-studded ceremony attended by celebrity guests and politicians.
Mr Wales, 46, and his wife, Kate Garvey, 40, tied the knot on Saturday at a private ceremony at Wesley's Church in London.
His Wikipedia page was updated accordingly, where under 'personal life' it read the couple met in Davos, Switzerland, and it is Mr Wales' third marriage.
Happy couple: Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and Tony Blair's former diary Secretary Kate Garvey tie the knot
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie attended the ceremony, as did Alastair Campbell, Mr Blair's former spin doctor.
Mr Campbell – who is known for busking around the world with his bagpipes – donned a kilt in Clan Campbell tartan and played the bagpipes.
Cherie wore a fitted knee-length dress, silver necklace and bracelet and black kitten heel shoes.
Other guests included David Miliband and his wife Louise – David was carrying a present wrapped in pink tissue paper.
The newlyweds and their guests, including the bridal party, pose for pictures outside Wesley's Church in London on Saturday
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie in a knee-length dress and black kitten heels
Steve Hilton, David Cameron's former director of strategy, and his wife Rachel Whetsone, who is an executive of Google were among the invitees.
Mick Hucknall, former lead singer of Simply Red, Lily Cole, the model and actress, and former Labour minister Lord Adonis also attended.
The wedding is the third for the internet entrepreneur from Alabama and the first for the bride, who is now a director of Freud Communications.
Blair's former spin doctor Alastair Campbell wore a kilt and played the bagpipes
Lily Cole, the model and actress, wearing an electric blue dress, and Mick Hucknall, former lead singer of Simply Red, behind, were among the celebrities who attended
Mr Wales has one child with Kate, who he met at the World Economic Forum at Davos, and one with his ex-wife Christine Rohan,who he met through a friend when she was working as a steel trader for Mitsubishi.
Mr Wales set up the free, open content, online encyclopedia in 2001. As Wikipedia's public profile grew, he became the project's promoter and spokesman.
He has been named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2214123/Wikipedia-founder-Jimmy-Wales-marries-Tony-Blairs-diary-secretary-star-studded-ceremony.html#ixzz28dJv4qwi Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Author Ralph TurchianoPosted on October 7, 2012 October 7, 2012 Categories Control, Inhibiting Self Determination,, Intelligence Gathering, Security, SocietalTags Alastair Campbell, David Cameron, David Miliband, Jimmy Wales, London, Mick Hucknall, Tony Blair, Wikipedia
Don't Wait for the UK Snoopers' Charter to Pass: Encrypt Wikipedia Now
September 6, 2012 | By Eva Galperin
A joint committee of the UK's House of Lords and the House of Commons is preparing to debate a draft bill known as the Snoopers' Charter, a disastrous data retention bill which, as Techdirt explained, "would require ISPs to record key information about every email sent and Web site visited by UK citizens, and mobile phone companies to log all their calls." But before they begin, MPs are doing their homework. In addition to having a public consultation, they are taking oral testimony from a range of stakeholders, including Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales.
Wales has been an outspoken critic of the Snoopers' Charter from the beginning, characterizing the proposed bill as "technologically incompetent," and comparing it to the tactics of authoritarian regimes: "It is not the sort of thing I'd expect from a western democracy. It is the kind of thing I would expect from the Iranians or the Chinese." In this week's testimony, he went on to say that if the data retention bill were passed into law, he would move to encrypt all of Wikipedia's connections with Britain, forcing the government to resort to the "black arts" in order to gain information about the pages Britons are reading and editing on Wikipedia. He went on to urge other Internet companies to do the same.
Wales was not specific about the technology he had in mind, but we assume that his testimony referred to enabling HTTPS (the encrypted, more secure version of the protocol that displays content on your web browser) by default in the UK. Wikipedia currently supports HTTPS for security-minded users, but defaults to the insecure version. Chrome and Firefox users can make sure that they always access Wikipedia securely via HTTPS by using HTTPS Everywhere.
While it is unclear that Wales has the authority to mandate the use of HTTPS by default for Wikipedia users in Britain, EFF believes that this is an idea that the Wikipedia community should consider—not just in Britain, but all over the world. Rather than waiting for bad legislation, Wikipedians should take this opportunity to make one relatively small technical change that could serve as a bulwark against all kinds of government surveillance, filtering and data retention laws
Author Ralph TurchianoPosted on September 7, 2012 Categories Artificial Neural Network (ANN), InternetTags Britain, House of Lords, HTTP Secure, Internet service provider, Jimmy Wales, Member of Parliament, Wales, Wikipedia
Briton who launched first web page in 1990 reiterates opposition to extending government control of internet
Tim Berners-Lee: the internet has no off switch
Charles Arthur and agencies
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 5 September 2012 12.02 EDT
Sir Tim Berners-Lee at the launch of the World Wide Web Foundation in London, where he said the internet 'has no one off switch'. Photograph: Steve Parsons/PA
There is no "off switch" for the internet, says the British inventor of the world wide web – and that is a good thing, because it could only be undone by governments around the world coordinating to turn it into a centralised system.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who launched the first web page on Christmas Day 1990, was speaking at the launch of a global league table showing which countries put the web to work best.
His "off switch" comments came after concerns were expressed last year that the former Egyptian regime led by Hosni Mubarak had suppressed the use of the web to try to damp down the revolution that eventually overthrew it.
Berners-Lee, 57, said: "The way the internet is designed is very much as a decentralised system. At the moment, because countries connect to each other in lots of different ways, there is no one off switch, there is no central place where you can turn it off.
"In order to be able to turn the whole thing off or really block, suppress one particular idea then the countries and governments would have to get together and agree and co-ordinate and turn it from a decentralised system to being a centralised system.
"And if that does happen it is really important that everybody fights against that sort of direction."
His comments came on the same day that Jimmy Wales, the co-founder of the collaborative online encyclopaedia Wikipedia, gave evidence to MPs about proposals to monitor and store details about emails and other internet communications. Wales has frequently expressed strong opposition to the suggestion of extending government control of the internet; earlier this year he called for a blackout of Wikipedia to protest at a proposed US law which would have been able to shut down non-US sites alleged to infringe copyright.
Berners-Lee told the Guardian earlier this year that the government should abandon the proposals, calling them "a destruction of human rights" and warning that "the amount of control you have over somebody if you can monitor internet activity is amazing."
The global league table, launched on Wednesday by the World Wide Web Foundation, showed Sweden as the top country for its use of the web, with the US second and the UK in third place. Nepal, Cameroon and Mali were the bottom three of 61 countries measured using indicators such as the political, economic and social impact of the web, connectivity and use.
The league table, which will be updated annually and will also try to measure absolute as well as relative improvements, uses data from the past five years, and compares elements such as the extent to which relevant and useful content is available to citizens; the political, economic and social impact of the web; the speed of connections; and levels of censorship. The UK's scores were lowest for web usage and social impact. China, despite having the world's largest internet population, ranked 29th, and was 42nd in terms of political impact out of the 61 countries examined.
Author Ralph TurchianoPosted on September 5, 2012 September 5, 2012 Categories Asset and Resource Hoarding, Censorship, Control, Inhibiting Self Determination,, SocietalTags Berners-Lee, Charles Arthur, Hosni Mubarak, Jimmy Wales, Sweden, Tim Berners-Lee, United States, World Wide Web, World Wide Web Foundation
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***FIXER OPPORTUNITY*** ENORMOUS house with 5 Bed + 2 Bonus rooms + 2 Living rooms + Library. Nearly 3,000 SF plus additional basement space. Main living on top floor w/ kitchen overlooking view of Lake Whatcom & 2 living rooms (each with gas fireplace). Three deck/sitting areas. Great location on dead end road w/ peek-a-boo views of Lake Whatcom. Walking distance to Bloedel Donovan park/swimming area & access to Barkley Trails. Fenced backyard. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. Priced to sell fast!


My friend wanted to win something at the end of her marriage. Maybe acknowledgement from the husband for her efforts through the years. Maybe validation from the judge that she was wronged. Maybe she wanted to make sure she got a fair deal financially, since they teetered on bankruptcy. Maybe she just didn't want to roll over without a fight. In any case, she followed her gut (not my advice) and hired the best attorney she could afford to represent her. Needless to say, her ex-husband did the same.
As the months went by, I got reports from the front lines. His lawyer requested a list of every single item they owned. Her lawyer warned that alimony was unlikely even though she devoted her prime to raising the children and caring for the home. His lawyer contested the child support amount. And on and on. It wasn't looking good for my friend, but each week the latest installment included a hopeful element, keeping her hooked in the fight. Not wanting to throw good money after bad, she contemplated stopping, but enticed by what lay just around the next corner she continued, eventually borrowing money from her family to pay the lawyer.
Nearly two years after the process began, she attended her final court proceeding. She received about half of their meager assets and was left with about half of their liabilities. She didn't get alimony. She got full custody of their teenage son, but the ex-husband had agreed to that in the beginning. She and her lawyer fought valiantly, but she didn't "win" anything at all. In the end, she paid her lawyer just over $14,000. Her only consolation: her ex-husband probably paid over $20,000 for his legal representation. Any scrap of tenderness that existed for her ex-husband dissolved into hatred in the process.
Divorce is big business in the country. A lawyer friend of mine who recently gave up taking divorce cases explained that each case represented $30,000-$60,000 for her firm. Companies such as BBL Churchill now offer divorce financing so both parties can participate in the "arms race" of legal representation. What worries me most about this escalated demand is that it simply doesn't give people the solution they seek. We seek validation, resolution and peace of mind. Consider what leads to that end before stepping into the boxing ring.


steady until the end of June.
higher rates attract capital flows.
strays off the bank's desired path.
The currency rallied to a high of C$0.9970 to the U.S.
U.S. dollar, or $1.0012, its highest close since late May 2008.
the greenback on April 15.
president, economics, at Scotia Capital.
Canadian dollar in that scenario," he said.
there is about a 93 percent chance of a June rate hike.
announcement on expectations of a higher rate environment.
the rising yields on other short-term investments.
Canadian government bonds mostly underperformed U.S.


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text:
Contributor biographical information for Pearl of China : a novel / Anchee Min.
Bibliographic record and links to related information available from the Library of Congress catalog
Biographical text provided by the publisher (may be incomplete or contain other coding). The Library of Congress makes no claims as to the accuracy of the information provided, and will not maintain or otherwise edit/update the information supplied by the publisher.
Anchee Min was born in Shanghai in 1957. During the Cultural Revolution, she was ordered by Communist officials to denounce Pearl Buck as an American imperialist. At seventeen, she was sent to a labor collective, where a talent scout for Madame Mao's Shanghai Film Studio recruited her to work as a movie actress. Min moved to the United States in 1984. Her first book, the memoir Red Azalea, became an international bestseller and was published in twenty countries.
Library of Congress subject headings for this publication:
Buck, Pearl S. -- (Pearl Sydenstricker), -- 1892-1973 -- Fiction.
Women novelists -- Fiction.
Americans -- China -- Fiction.
Friendship in children -- Fiction.
Female friendship -- Fiction.
China -- History -- 20th century -- Fiction.


text:
ACCEPTED

#### According to
The Catalogue of Life, 3rd January 2011

#### Published in
Ann. Bot. , Lond. 15: 333 (1901)

#### Original name
Eurotium microsporum Massee & E.S. Salmon, 1901

### Remarks
null

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
UNDERSTANDING SCREENWRITING: Lots of Women and a Few Guys
Tom Stempel analyzes A Simple Favor; The Old Man and the Gun; Juliet, Naked; The Book Shop; Operation Finale; Colette; All About Nina; The Sisters Brothers; and the book, When Women Wrote Hollywood.
Tom Stempel
My apologies to Anna and Henry.
A Simple Favor (2018. Screenplay by Jessica Sharzer, based on the novel by Darcey Bell. 117 minutes)
Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively in 'A Simple Favor'
Paul Feig, the director of this film, is primarily known as a director of comedies. He's directed television comedies, and he has had spectacular box-office success with his recent theatrical features, including Bridesmaids (2011), The Heat (2013), and Spy (2015). He wanted to try something different, and when Sharzer's screenplay, which had been turned down by a lot of people, came to him, he could see it as a "Hitchcockian" picture, which he wanted to do.
Thank God it is not a Hitchcockian picture.
It's much more interesting than something in the traditional Hitchcock line. I have always thought Charles Bennett's Fat English Friend, as he's known in these parts, was much more interested in scenes than character. Some people objected to that when I mentioned it in this column back in its House Next Door days. You can read the wrap-up of that discussion here.
What Feig has in Sharzer's script is as much a character study as a thriller, although it is not without its thriller moments. We first meet Stephanie [Anna Kendrick] when she is doing her vlog about cooking for mothers, then learn how she became best friends with Emily [Blake Lively], the mother of a son in Stephanie's son's class. Emily is about as opposite of Stephanie as you can get. She's rich, married to a novelist with writer's block, has a marvelous house, and works in a glamorous job in the city, i.e., New York. No wonder Stephanie is enchanted by her. And perfectly willing to pick up Emily's son from school and have him over for playdates and…well, one day Emily goes missing.
That brings an element of mystery into the story, but Emily is so interesting a character we are sorry to not have her around. Even more so when she turns up dead, drowned in a lake in Michigan. Except then Emily's son begins to think he sees her… But we've seen the body…
Stephanie is so involved with Emily that she begins to play detective on her own. It turns out she is really good at it, and is great at lying to people to get information from them. Just as Emily and Stephanie are great characters, so are the people Stephanie meets on her quest.
I suspect one reason people kept turning down the script is that the focus is on the women, all of whom are interesting characters. The men are very such secondary characters, which I think makes the film more interesting.
Want Complex Female Characters? Put Them in Action
So the film provides a lot of great work for the actresses involved. In writing here about Pitch Perfect I said of Anna Kendrick, "I hate to say it, but on the basis of this film, she may end up a great character actress rather than a star. Unless somebody out there, hint, hint, writes a really great star part for her." In writing about Pitch Perfect 2, I qualified that by saying, "Beca is a little looser than before, and I may have to take back my comment in the review of the first film that Anna Kendrick can't carry a picture as a star."
On the basis of A Simple Favor, I offer my sincere apologies to Kendrick, who plays Stephanie. Boy, does she carry this picture. Blake Lively is just as good as Emily in what is maybe her best performance yet. And Jean Smart and Linda Cardellini are not wasted in supporting roles.
The men are definitely secondary, but I also have to add another apology to Henry Golding. I did not think he was all that impressive as an actor in Crazy Rich Asians, but here he shows some actual acting chops.
So you have a good script, a good cast, and a director smart enough to stay out of their way. Good career choice, Paul.
Twinkle, Twinkle, Major Stars
The Old Man and the Gun (2018. Screenplay by David Lowery , based on the New Yorker article by David Grann. 93 minutes)
Forrest Tucker [Robert Redford] (no relation to the action movie star of the 40s and 50s) is an old man who very politely robs a bank. And not for the first time. What makes this time interesting is that while being chased by the police, who are some distance behind him, he stops to help Jewel [Sissy Spacek], a woman who is probably not quite as old as he is. Her truck is on the side of the road with the hood up. Forrest stops, gets out, comes over and looks at the engine. And the cops drive right by.
Because Forrest is so polite, Jewel goes to a coffee shop with him and they chat. He says he's a salesman, the later tells her the truth, but in a way she won't believe. He is charming. She is just as charming. If you have seen the trailer for this film, you have seen most of this scene, which takes up a greater part of the trailer, and rightly so. Forrest is played by Robert Redford and Jewel by Sissy Spacek. They bring their full star-power to this scene and to the rest of the movie.
They twinkle big time, as only major stars can. Lowery has written a great scene for them and they act the begeezus out. Lowery also directed, not very well (he does not have the best sense of where to put the camera), but the writing and the stars carry it, and the movie.
We get more bank robberies, and a glum cop chasing Forrest, and at least one more great scene with just Forrest and Jewel. We also get another great scene when the cop goes to see who he thinks is Forrest's wife, but turns out to be his daughter. You will recognize the actress on her day off from her regular starring role and she, like Redford and Spacek, acts the begeezus out of her scene. Not as much twinkle, but incredible acting skill.
Juliet, Naked (2018. Screenplay by Evgenia Peretz and Jim Taylor & Tamara Jenkins, based on the novel by Nick Hornby. 105 minutes)
You can tell this movie is based on a Nick Hornby novel immediately when we meet Duncan, who is obsessed with an American musician Tucker Crowe, who has gone into hiding. What makes the film interesting is that Duncan is not the main character. His wife Annie is. When Tucker sends Duncan a pre-release version of his greatest hit, Annie writes a review of it on Duncan's website, which leads to a relationship developing between Tucker and Annie. This leads to great scenes. (The actors, Rose Byrne as Annie, Ethan Hawke as Tucker, and Chris O'Dowd as Duncan, are wonderful.) One great scene is Tucker in the hospital with his assorted children, girlfriends, et al piling up in his room. It's the best multi-character scene since the finale in Tangerine (2015; see my review here for more detail about writing multi-character scenes).
The Bookshop (2018. Screenplay by Isabel Coixet, based on the novel by Penelope Fitzgerald. 113 minutes)
Florence, a young widow in a small sea-side village in Post World War II England, decides to open a book store. Unfortunately, the building she picks is coveted by Violet Gamart. Gamart is the queen bee of the village and does everything she can to stop Florence. The movie is charming (with great performances by Emily Mortimer as Florence and Bill Nighy as Mr. Brundish, the town recluse), but there is no dramatic tension, just one downhill slog.
SCENE FIX: Tips for Elevating Tension, Characters and Conflict
Operation Finale (2018. Written by Matthew Orton. 122 minutes)
Since 1961, when infamous Nazi Adolph Eichmann was captured by Mossad, the Israeli intelligence force, there have been a number of films about Eichmann and his capture, which is why when I was watching this I kept thinking of the 2004 film The Alamo.
There had been a lot of films about the Alamo, so why make another one? The only answer for the 2004 film was that so Billy Bob Thornton could play Davy Crockett. He was great, but the rest of the movie was stuff we'd seen before. In Operation Finale, the newest element is that Eichmann is played by Mahatma Gandhi himself, Ben Kingsley. Well, he's great in the part, but the rest of the movie is, as with The Alamo stuff we've seen before.
So the lesson is, if you are going to do something that's been done before, you had better bring a really fresh approach to the material. Sometimes, sadly, Billy Bob Thornton and Ben Kingsley are just not enough.
Colette (2018. Screenplay by Richard Glatzer & Wash Westmoreland & Rebecca D. Lenkiewicz, story by Richard Glatzer. 111 minutes)
This is about the early life of the great French writer Colette, but it spends too much time on the early years of her marriage to Willy, a literary entrepreneur who publishes her books under his name, both for commercial and egotistical reasons. We know she's going to demand they be published under her name, but the movie takes forever to get to that.
When she finally gets a publisher to print one with her byline, all we get is a shot of the book in a store window and then titles that describe the rest of her career. We don't have to see that, but since the film has been building to her name appearing on a book, at least we ought to see her enjoying it. Especially since they have Keira Knightly in her best performance surprisingly cast as Colette.
All About Nina (2018. Written by Eva Vives. 97 minutes) A similar problem here. Nina is a foul-mouthed comedian who moves from New York partly to get away from her abusive boyfriend and mostly to try to get a television gig. She falls in love with a great guy, Rafe, but she has no idea how to deal with a nice guy. Doing a gig, she has an emotional breakdown and spews out a lot of details about what really happened to her as a kid. So she blows the TV gig? No, and there is talk about how she, the TV producer, her agent, and a publicity person may be able to handle it. But we don't get enough of that, which would be fresher than the love story with Rafe. If Vives, who also directed, was limited to 97 minutes, she could have condensed the love story and developed the end. Or if she could get more time, she could have added on to the end. What she has here at least gives Mary Elizabeth Winstead, whom longtime readers of this column know I have been mad about for years, a terrific opportunity to stretch her already impressive talents as Nina.
The Sisters Brothers (2018. Screenplay by Jacques Audiard and Thomas Bidegain, based on the novel by Patrick Dewitt. 121 minutes)
I love westerns. I love shaggy dog stories. So I should love this shaggy dog western. But I don't. It may be just a bit too shaggy, or maybe not shaggy enough.
We follow the Sisters Brothers, Eli (John C. Reilly) and Charlie (Joaquin Phoenix), two hired assassins in the west as they try to track down Hermann Kermit Warm, a scientist who has discovered a new way to pan for gold. The brothers' boss, the Commodore, wants him killed, although we don't know why. The Commodore also has a tracker, John Morris, trying to find Warm for the brothers. They all meet up, get to be friends, and some of them die. There just is not that much happening to hold our interest, and the dialogue can't hold our interest much either. Listen to William Goldman's dialogue in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) for how it ought to be done.
Q & A with Director Caroline Case, 'Nobody Knows Anything (except William Goldman)'
Two other things, one bad, one good. The bad: as in Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018), the lighting is so dark we can't see the faces. I suspect Joaquin Phoenix is giving a better performance than we can see. The good: unlike Colette and All About Nina, the ending, especially the last meeting with the Commodore, is nicely developed.
Youngsters Writing About Oldsters
When Women Wrote Hollywood (2018. Book edited by Rosanne Welch. McFarland [McFarlandBooks.com]. 221 pages)
Rosanne Welch is a television writer who also teaches screenwriting at a variety of places. One of her gigs is handling the Los Angeles residency for screenwriting courses offered at Stephens College in Missouri. The students come out to L.A. a couple of times a year, where they get lectures from people connected to the business. One assignment that Welch has her students do is research papers on screenwriters of the past. This book is a collection of those papers, 23 by her students and one by Welch.
Stephens used to be an all-women's college, but it now takes male students. The preponderance of its students are female, so all of the essays, including two by male students, are about women screenwriters in the early days of Hollywood. Some writers, like Anita Loos, you have probably heard of. Many of them you probably have not.
I was particularly taken by Amelia Phillips's piece on Jeanie Macpherson. I wrote briefly about Macpherson in my book FrameWork: A History of Screenwriting in the American Film (1988), but one reviewer gave me a hard time for not mentioning that she was Cecil B. De Mille's mistress. He seemed to think that disqualified her as a writer. Phillips starts out in the first paragraph by noting that Macpherson was only one of De Mille's three long-time mistresses and has credits on a lot more than just De Mille's films.
Several of the pieces, such as the ones on Zoe Atkins and Bella Spewack, note that they worked in both the theatre and film, which was a lot more common than is generally assumed about the early days of movies.
Welch takes her students to the Margaret Herrick Library of the Motion Picture Academy and some get into the archives in depth. Others, such as the people writing on Anita Loos and Dorothy Parker, depend mostly on memoirs and biographies. Then there is Pamela Scott, who found very little material on Sarah Y. Mason, the wife and co-writer of Victor Heerman, but was able to follow her connections with other people to give a nice little view of Mason's career.
Like virtually every other book that is a collection of essays by different writers, the quality varies a lot, but there is enough good stuff to make it worth your while.
More articles by Tom Stempel
What are you doing that could be thwarting your writing career? Learn the Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters!
The Old Man and the GunAll About NinaA Simple FavorOperation FinaleColetteThe Book ShopJuliet NakedWhen Women Wrote HollywoodThe Sisters Brothers
Tom Stempel taught film history and screenwriting from 1971 to 2011 at Los Angeles City College, and has contributed to Slant Magazine and Creative Screenwriting. He has also written six books on film, five of them about screen and television writing. You can learn more about his books here. His latest book is Understanding Screenwriting: Learning from Good, Not-Quite-So- Good, and Bad Screenplays. The book evolved into his column "Understanding Screenwriting." In the column he reviews movies and television from the standpoint of screenwriting. He will be looking at new movies, old movies, and television movies and shows, as well as writing occasional other items, such as appreciations of screenwriters who have died, plays based on films, books on screenwriting and screenwriters, and assorted other sundries.


In a large skillet, heat canola oil. Add onion and garlic and sauté until they start to brown. Stir in curry powder, cinnamon, paprika, cayenne pepper, bay leaf, ginger, sugar, and salt. Stir until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Add chickpeas, cauliflower, and peas. Stir in broth and coconut milk. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until cauliflower is tender. Remove from heat.
Remove bay leaf. Garnish with cilantro and serve.


I popped in there recently and really loved what I saw.
It is an independent shop down a pretty quiet street in my home town of Chelmsford. Run by Matt and Geraldine. I have only eaten cake in there and must say have been a bit put off the savouries as they seem a little pricey but they may well be delicious and worth every penny!
It takes a real effort to run an independent shop in a city where the corporates are king and people so easily gravitate to them. It just shows how consistency of product is so important.
I will them well and will do a full review on the main site when I can.


The Chinese company announced its first 8K TVs at the IFA show in Berlin. Together with Samsung, Sharp, and other companies, TCL will soon start pushing 8K LCD as a competitor to OLED TVs that continue to win market share in the premium segment.
TCL highlighted a 75-inch version that will have 832 dimming zones and 1000 nits peak brightness. Besides 8K resolution, it will support HDR, including the Dolby Vision format, and a wide color gamut (quoted as "157% BT.709"). The company said that it will deliver "ultra-vivid picture quality".
Like Samsung, TCL will start beating the QLED drum and sell the TV as "8K QLED TV". However, it uses an LCD panel with a quantum dot film. The TV will also be available in 65 and 55-inch sizes but TCL cautioned that the specifications may change slightly before launch.
my only question is ......Why ?
HiDefRev and straybeat like this.
Why introduce 8K TVs? Is that your question Rizzo? I would think that their actions would be obvious.
It's introduction will stir limited Buyer's interest I like to see it's results which would be CES showing where it will be at its peak presentation abilities ie 8K panel displaying dedicated 8K playing material from an 8K dedicated player. I'm sure the results would be amazing .......But at what cost ?
It would be a niche product because of the initial offerings would suffer from the lack and, therefore, the cost of producing 8K software ?
You forget - they sold plenty of 4K TVs before any software was available.
These 8K TVs have an AI in them that is far superior to what is in 4K TVs for up-sampling HD and 4K to 8K. Plus some will be 12 bit panels which can take full advantage of Dolby Vision. There will be no 12 bit 4K panels, only 10 bit.
The TV manufacturers no longer care about available "matching resolution" software. All they care about is producing high value (read: high profit) TVs. 4K TVs are not high profit anymore.


As we close the first month of the year, my music therapy community concludes a month-long drive to spread awareness through social media channels. I don't talk too much about music therapy on here, but I would be remiss if I didn't continue to share what lights me up about music therapy.
I am currently working in a teen recovery center that has a boys home, a girls home, and an intensive outpatient school for kids transitioning back into life after a stay at one of the homes. Where does music therapy fit in with addiction recovery? Well, first, let's get straight about what addiction is. It's a neurological disease the features a breakdown in the reward system in the brain. Often triggered through a combination of genetic predisposition and trauma, addiction is a conundrum because 1) there is no simple test to differentiate an abuser from an addict, 2) and the recovery is patient-generated. It still lives in our culture under a veil of morality i.e. people who fall to addiction may be judged as having 'poor moral fiber.' This is relevant, because the shame that addicts often feel hinders their ability to seek treatment to get healthy.
Before treatment, whatever the drug or behavior of choice may be becomes the default response for how to deal with the feelings associated with life, and the cravings associated with addiction. Remember the TV show "Family Feud?" Remember "The Number One Answer?" That's how the brain responds. Happy? Use. Sad? Use. Lonely? Use. Angry? Use. Bored? Use… and so on.
… and that's where I come in.
Can you imagine 6 teenage boys sitting in a circle trying to articulate their feelings?
Seriously. Think about your feelings. They are emotions in action… e-motion… energy in motion… swirling around the mind and body. Do they have words? Not exactly… not until we try to MAP a word or phrase over them to try to match. What if you don't have a word to describe how or what you are feeling? Are you still feeling? HECK YES, right? Imagine those teenage boys' feelings trying to 'get out'… be expressed, but they are trapped inside because they boy lacks a word to map over it… so it remains stuck inside… festering.
Language is like a toll-booth for emotional expression. It's as if the emotion must pass through the toll booth of language before it is allowed to exit the body.
Well, I say FORGET all that.
My mantra is, "If you can't say it, PLAY IT."
You should SEE the boys play their drums… and just because girls seem to have a better knack for articulating, don't think they don't lay into 'em either. Just giving them ALL a NEW AVENUE for their swirling emotions and feelings to travel down and out of their minds and bodies… it is so cathartic!
One boy told me recently, "Sometimes I don't even KNOW what I'm feeling UNTIL I hit a drum. Then, I listen to how I am playing and realize, 'hey, I'm really angry right now… listen to how hard I'm playing!'" That was from a 15 yr old boy with a history of anger management issues. It is SO GREAT to watch these young men and women who are pretty much learning how to emotionally regulate all over again utilize this tool so eagerly. Because pretty much every kid coming into treatment already has a prior, personal, and powerful relationship to music… I don't have to introduce them to anything 'new.' They may not know me, but they know - and MUCH more importantly - TRUST - music.
Music is such a wonderful tool. You can use it in so many different ways from preemies to those in hospice and everywhere in between. Our field is still extremely small, but as we continue to see good solid research validating why music works so powerfully on the brain, I feel that music therapy is poised to takes its rightful place in the allied health landscape that includes physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech/language therapy. My 30 year vision is that when I'm 71, music therapy will be spoken of with the same level of understanding as physical therapy. My hope is that this tipping point occurs much sooner than that, but I EXPECT it to have already occurred before I see 72!
Have you witnessed music therapy in action before? Where? Please Comment!
There are those who will be touched by music therapy in 2014 no matter what I do.
There are those who won't be touched by music therapy in 2014 no matter what I do.
But, there are those who will only be touched by music therapy in 2014 as a result of the expansion of the students I'll be training (along with my biz partner Kat Fulton).
And those people are who I am fighting for this year.
Who or what am I fighting?
Tapes like, "You don't have enough experience to teach others. What could they POSSIBLY learn from you?
Or this one, "When others figure out that you're still struggling in your business, they'll think you're a fraud and expose you to the world for what you really are."
Kat and my coaches call these voices our inner 'gremlins,' and apparently, we've all got 'em, and they are NOT very nice!
Tomorrow morning, our new FB group begins where we drop a little nugget of information or inspiration every business day for the rest of the year. We have about 63 or so 'students' (could be students, interns, or professionals) who have 'enrolled' in our group and payed their $1 trial to check us out. Now, it's time to deliver the value. I'm up first. I'll be posting a short article on core values in the morning, and I imagine that maybe this is what a college professor or teacher feels like the night before the first day of school when they are teaching a class or course for the first time.
My inner gremlins officially kicked into HIGH GEAR at about 6pm tonight and haven't let up. I have a headache, neck ache… my heart is pounding. Luckily I played soccer today, so my body is POOPED OUT… hopefully pooped out enough to make me sleep through the night.
We did a commitment exercise, and it was another visualization exercise where at one point, my hands were open in that same "I am worthy" position I talked about last week, and little strands of light were shooting out of my fingertips and coming back into my fingertips like one of those orbs at "The Sharper Image" where you touch it and electricity connects the center of the orb to your finger tip. The light was shooting out of the room and reaching that strata of music therapy recipients I described above… the ones that were going to be reached this year because a whole GROUP of music therapists are going to get really clear on their business skills and reach a lot more clients this year. I could visualize them on a map almost, and their energy was dancing back to me and vice versa, all through my fingertips. It was exciting, because these are people I'll never meet and never know personally, but through teaching, training, and coaching, their lives will be impacted nonetheless! That's an honor to be a part of.
Then we had to pretend we had a stake in our hand and that it represented our commitment to our vision, and we had to imagine planting it in the ground. Well, I had a flag pole in my hand, and the flag that was on it was our EMPOWER U ACADEMY social medial button, which was designed to look like a school crest. I held it up over my head to thrust it in the ground, and as I looked up over my head in my mind's eye, I saw again Bella and my dad cheering me on to PLANT THAT PUPPY DEEP IN THE GROUND! So when I thrust that virtual flag pole into the ground I feel like the ripple of energy reached the earth's core! It was an intense experience. Then, I leaned my cheek against this virtual flag pole, and rested against it, knowing that if at any time during the journey ahead, the gremlins start attacking, or I start fading, I can just lean against that flag and know it isn't moving.
When I opened my eyes, I had tears streaming down my cheeks, and when I turned and looked at the young woman next to me, she did too. Apparently she had her own intense moment, and without saying a word, we just gave each other a big hug of support. I never saw her again, and I never spoke a word, but the support I felt (and gave) just in a hug was so heartfelt, so authentic, it was a treat.
So, this is the game for me in 2014. Empower U Academy. Where we teach vital business and personal development skills to other therapists and clinicians so they can help more people, make more money, and have the effect on the world they envisioned when they set their own course.
There's more to catch up on, but luckily, I'm feeling spent. I'm gonna try to dive into bed before I get an unfortunate second wind!
God night and God bless.
January 13, 2014: Road Trip!
Sorry I missed posting last night. I just got home today from an epic road trip to a seminar in northern California. I honestly can't remember how much I've shared if any about the new venture I'm undertaking in 2014, but this weekend was a seminal moment in its development, and a huge breakthrough weekend for me personally.
One thing I love is that no matter what I've been through, what books I've read, courses I've taken, etc, there is always another level to the game of life. That is what makes it so endlessly beautiful! I have been working on my own personal growth throughout my life; I remember going on church retreats in high school, wilderness school, heck, even Boy Scout camp was personal development. I remember being deathly afraid of water I couldn't see in (ponds, lakes, oceans). In fact, I'm still afraid. However, I purposefully took canoeing merit badge, because as part of the badge, I had to swamp my canoe in the middle of the lake, then get back in it and paddle it back to shore still submerged. I still remember my heart pounding in my chest throughout the whole experience, but I also remember the feeling of adrenaline when I reached the shore. I was 13.
Now, I'm 41, and I'm still as committed to having those same breakthroughs as ever, and this weekend, I had not one, but two.
My business partner, Kat Fulton, and I have started a new venture called Empower U Academy where we teach business skills to clinicians, therapists, and professionals who have degrees in helping people, but never got the skills to learn how to get paid to help people. We have been teaching these skills to our fellow music therapists for the past 4 years at conferences and online, and now we want to help an even wider group help even more people. So we went to San Francisco to a 2-day seminar put on by a company called - interestingly enough - Thrive Academy.
We thought we were simply coach shopping; we were looking into a couple of different business coaches to help us launch our new venture this year, but we found much more.
There were two breakthrough exercises that we did that left nothing to question about the new year. In the first, we had to think of what our main disempowering belief about our selves was. Mine was, "I don't deserve to be successful." Then we had to hold our chair up in front of us with our eyes closed and imagine that the chair were bars from a prison cell that we had sentenced ourselves to as a result of this belief. From that cell, in my mind I could see all the people I have touched, helped, served, and treated over the years from either coaching, speaking, performing or treating. There was an army of people amassed all looking at me in my cell, and they were all very confused. They were asking each other, "Why is he in there?" and when they found out that I put myself in there, they were baffled, confused, and stunned.
The peace and humility that accompanied the statement calmed every cell in my body, and I felt a stillness and peace throughout my entire being the likes of which I'm not sure if I've ever felt before. It was so calm. When I got back to my hotel room afterward, I walked in, looked over at the mirror, and froze.
I didn't quite recognize myself.
I saw a different person. I saw a man. A happy, peaceful, loving man. It was weird! I tried to snap a picture to see if I could capture the moment, but the camera didn't capture what I was seeing in the mirror. It was genuinely like I was looking at someone else, not me… and I really liked the guy I was looking at.
I'll tell you about experience number 2 next week; I am drained. However, before I go, want to close by saying that if you work for yourself and your purpose is to help treat others, Kat and I are giving a FREE online class tomorrow evening on 4 key tools every owner/clinician needs if you want to have your best year ever. We're giving away a few gifts on the webinar as well! Please, if that would benefit you, come over! Just go to our website and sign up, and hang out with us online! If you can't make it live, we'll give you a link to the replay, but only if you sign up. We have something FUN cooked up for the new year!
Just CLICK HERE to head on over to our site to reserve your spot, and we look forward to serving you tomorrow.
January 5, 2014: Happy New Year!
Ang and I started the new year off by reconvening in our FB group: 12 by 2/1. If you're like me, and you gained some holiday weight, and you want to shed that weight, and you want to have a supportive community cheer you on, come find us on FB! If you request to join, I'll add you to the group! Just type in "12 by 2/1" in the search bar.
The name comes from the goal I had last January of losing 12 pounds by Feb 1st. I just threw the idea up on FB one night to see if anyone else wanted to lose their holiday weight together, and 30 something members later, we got a great group that is totally supportive and seeing progress and posting it! It's fun, and I know it works. The whole reason I didn't reach for a beer today was because I didn't want to post that I had a beer! Social accountability can be a beautiful thing!
This week rings in the non-stop pace of the fall as well. Ali returns to school tomorrow, Ang gets on another plane till Thursday, and I travel Fri-Mon. No grass growin' under any feet over here. Still, I'm starting the year super grateful for the past 3 weeks. Ali's been home from school, and mommy was home for all but 2 of those days. It felt really great reconnecting and spending so much time together.
Perhaps the biggest news of all was watching (and smelling) Julian go poop on the potty tonight! LOL. We have been reading to that little guy on the potty for who-knows-how-long now, and at one point tonight, he pooped while I was reading to him, but then, not too long after, he went into the bathroom, got himself a book to read (no joke) and made a giant poop all by himself! He also peed through 3 pairs of underpants along the way, but hey, that's progress!
Tim's Speech in Washington D.C.
Anabella Ringgold was born on May 27, 2009 with a rare skin disease called Epidermolysis Bullosa, or EB. She had the rarest form, called Recessive Dystrophic, or RDEB for short. A single gene in her body responsible for making the anchor that hold her skin to her body was defective. This caused blisters and wounds to occur all over her body, including her mouth and entire GI tract. Any kind of friction, rubbing, bumping caused blisters to form, or it caused her skin to shear clean off. Life expectancy is under 20 years due to risk of malnutrition, infection, or squamous cell carcinoma. Although pain and discomfort was constant, Bella remained bright and cheerful, bless her heart. Though currently there is no cure for EB, Bella took place in a clinical trial at the U. of Minnesota where through Bone Marrow Transplantation, she grew her sister's skin on her body over time. Unfortunately, she died from complications of transplant on October 11, 2010. This is her story, and our story of how we cope as a family with the journey we are on together.
Copyright © Bella's Blessings. All rights reserved.


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The retail banking and debt collections landscape in Thailand
Posted by Dimitris Vassiliadis on Thu, Jun 27, 2019 @ 11:37 AM
For decades, economic growth in Thailand has been driven and defined by tourism and exports. However, while tourism remains steady, the demand for exports has slowed. There is one other significant economic problem that refuses to abate - household debt.
Thai households are among the biggest borrowers in Southeast Asia, (itself a notoriously complicated region for debt collections) and they are finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with payments. An October 2018 survey by Bansomdej Poll in collaboration with the Foundation for Consumers (FFC)'s Chaladsue (Smart Buyer) magazine indicated that up to 77.5% of Bangkok residents - over 6 million people - are in debt. Even more shocking, however, is the fact that more than half (53%) of those who are in debt have fallen behind on repayments and are in danger of defaulting on their loans.
Thailand continues to represent the region's second-largest economy, and definite improvements are being made across the retail banking sector. But what are they, and are they working?
Retail banking in Thailand today
Commercial banks dominate the financial landscape in Thailand, with the top five banks accounting for around 70% of all commercial banking assets. There are also eight specialised financial institutions, which are government-owned and provide banking services to sectors that are not sufficiently served by the commercial banks, including agriculture, housing, SMEs and rural businesses.
In Thailand, there is a push and pull between the 'old ways' of brick-and-mortar branches and the 'new ways' of digital banking. According to Deloitte and the World Bank, Thailand is still heavily reliant on traditional brick-and-mortar banking. However, it also has one of the highest levels of digital interaction at 73%, compared to the US at only 46%.
You may like: Southeast Asia's banks are growing - but there's danger ahead
Sasapak Kiatsommart, team head of retail marketing management at TMB Bank, said: "People still go to branches not because they want to, but because they have to, to open accounts and apply for loans." This suggests that many Thai consumers are waiting for a digital revolution to intervene and transform the way that retail banking in the country works so that they can comfortably and safely do all of their banking digitally.
There is, however, already digital transformation happening in Thai banks. Indeed, there has been for some years now. The vast majority of it originally came from collaboration with fintechs. EY's data showed that in 2017, there were over 128 fintechs in Thailand, with a total of $12 million in fintech investments. Today, fintech adoption continues to drive local banking trends, with 51% of Thai banking users now using their phones to conduct their banking activities. Still, when compared to other Asian countries, there is plenty of work yet to be done.
Back in 2017, digital banking penetration in Thailand was only at 19% (far behind Singapore's 94%). Fast forward two years and it's now ranked No.1 for mobile banking users globally, second for ownership of cryptocurrency, and third in mobile commerce. Indeed, 74% of the population now use online banking. This paints a picture of a society that is very much on board with the digital revolution, meaning that what comes next for the country's banks needs to be digital-first, mobile-focused and customer-centric.
Of course, there is a middle ground to be found between going 'all-in' on digital and staying on the traditional path - adaptation. Many Thai banks are already fast-tracking the transformation of their brick-and-mortar branches to survive the push for digital integration. At the Bangkok Leg of the 2019 Asian Banking & Finance Retail Banking Forum, over 50 bankers, industry players and speakers exchanged ideas on how the traditional model should evolve in response to changing customer mentalities.
Some of the industry's big thinkers felt that the rapid digitisation of the sector risks deepening the digital divide. Chris Jenkins, COO of Thailand and GMS representative offices at Standard Chartered pointed out how the advent of digital banking in the UK resulted in a backlash as many people could not easily afford and access the technology. However, it would appear that Thai people are now eagerly embracing tech in a manner that might mitigate any potential backlash.
Of course, whilst banks still need to progress to paperless and move forward with their digital ambitions, they should not completely phase out human touch points. According to Arapat Sangkharat, EV of transformation at Krungthai Bank, their branches have evolved to take on advisory roles and focus on sales beyond day-to-day deals. These branches have been designed to look more like retail stores and have used subtle digital transformation. He explains that these new enhanced branches "change the customer journey because it's not about coming to a branch, pushing a button to queue and sitting there waiting to do your transaction, when a lot of the transactions can be done upfront."
These digitally transformed branches feature more personalised services with the help of technologies such as facial recognition and paperless Know Your Customer authentication processes, but still leave room to integrate human beings for those who require a more personal touch. The key with digital is for it to help human touchpoints, rather than replace them. The best of both worlds, you might say, and maybe that's the most desirable future for Thai banks.
Debt collections in Thailand today
Gross NPL volume in Thailand reached a serious high of $11.6 billion in Q2 2017, representing a 20% year‐on‐year increase. Declining household income (particularly in the manufacturing and export sectors) prompted a rise in consumer loans, predominantly personal and credit card loans. More debt creates more loans and more loans create more debt. It's a vicious cycle.
To address this debt cycle, two primary government initiatives have been created to bring these loans under control: The Debt Collection Act and the Bank of Thailand's Debt Clinic. The Debt Collection Act came into effect in 2015 to regulate the way creditors collect debts, bans unscrupulous collections tactics and gives individual debtors increased protection and rights.
Awareness and enforcement of this act still remain low four years later, however, as does awareness of the Debt Clinic which kicked off in 2017. This initiative is essentially the central bank's mechanism to lower the country's household debt-to-GDP ratio, which currently sits at 78.6%. That's down slightly from 80.8% in 2015, still the third highest in Asia. The Debt Clinic pools bad loans from 16 participating local and foreign commercial banks in the hope that they can become performing assets. Participants restructure their debt and are then prohibited from running up new debt for five years. They must also take courses in financial literacy and fiscal planning.
The problem with the Debt Clinic is that the entry bar is prohibitively high. According to local news outlets, 17,000 people initially applied to join the scheme. But after verification of their qualifications, only 20% of those debtors were qualified to participate. That trend continued. According to the Bangkok Post, from its founding until April 2018, a grand total of 33,736 borrowers had applied to join the program and only 1,074 were accepted.
In the last 12 months, however, eligibility requirements have been relaxed, with self-employed workers and other formerly ineligible categories of debtors now allowed to participate. This year, the Thai Central Bank also expanded the program to include 19 non-bank financial institutions and is now targeting 490,000 borrowers holding ฿49 billion in debt. Even that higher number is a drop in the bucket, however, when compared with the sheer scope of the country's indebtedness.
JMT Network Services, Thailand's top unsecured consumer debt collector, expects consumer debt to rise even further in the next 12 months, with housing loans making up half of the total. Sutthirak Traichira-aporn, chief executive of JMT, which buys bad loans and provides debt collections services for 3.2 million distressed debt accounts worth 128 billion baht, said: "As consumer loans increase, bad debt will also rise. Now we also see more secured loans, particularly home loans, turning sour. We are buying more of that too." Good news for JWT, maybe, but bad news for the country.
The Bank of Thailand's figures reveals that, in the last 15 years, the economy didn't grow due to production efficiency, but due to sheer borrowing, with debt growing at a faster rate than GDP growth. According to Chartchai Parasuck, a freelance economist for The Bangkok Post, the reason that Thais have accumulated so much debt is that "their income rises slower than consumption demand and demand is fulfilled by easy credit from financial institutions."
So, does the fault sit with the banks who are too eager and willing to extend lines of credit to households that they know will probably never be able to pay it back? It certainly can't lie with the people themselves. Around half of the Thai population works in the agricultural sector, which simply doesn't generate enough income to sustain a decent living (40% of them live under the poverty line). So what choice do they have but to borrow? Either way, something has to give.
Initiatives such as the DCA and the Debt Clinic are a good start, of course. The government's forward-thinking regulatory frameworks are also helping to grease the wheels. But to really get a solid handle on the situation, banks and lenders need to help the government's cause by considering a more thorough investment in digital transformation. With digital banking adoption in Thailand currently the highest in the world, the infrastructure is already in place to make this a reality and the public are obviously receptive to customer-centric digital solutions. The debt collections sector really needs to lean into this trend in the coming months and years if it wants to avoid becoming the antiquated arm of the Thai retail banking world.
Completing the puzzle
Regulation has improved and, thanks to the debt collections law of 2015, the old ways of intimidation and unscrupulous practices are mostly behind us. But the debt collections landscape in Thailand might still seem severe.
There are, however, definite advances being made by the government. It's working continually to resolve the household debt problem by promoting financial knowledge, issuing measures to regulate credit cards and personal loans under the supervision of the BOT, and establishing debt relief clinics.
The strong advances made in the digital retail banking sector are also very encouraging and Thailand has a great variety of innovative fintech startups willing to collaborate with traditional banking systems, rather than work against the industry. Banks, meanwhile, have been working with fintechs to bring new services to the market.
The ideal solution would be one that stops bad debts happening in the first place, and digital solutions will certainly help in that regard. The way forward for retail banks and debt collectors in Thailand is to continue pressing ahead with digital transformation to make banking and debt collections even more approachable and convenient, without underestimating the other pieces of the puzzle.
Interested to know more about the economic and debt picture in APAC? Check out our overview of the region's various efforts.
Written by Dimitris Vassiliadis


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Het Koninkrijk Slavonië was een provincie van de Habsburgse monarchie in de 18de en 19de eeuw als onderdeel van de landen van de Heilige Hongaarse Stefanskroon. De provincie omvatte noordelijke delen van het hedendaagse Slavonië maar ook delen uit Kroatië, Syrmië en Servië. Het zuidelijke deel van de regio was een deel van de Habsburgse Militaire Grens.

Geschiedenis
Het Koninkrijk Slavonië werd gevormd in 1699 toen het de jure onafhankelijk werd van het Ottomaanse Rijk, maar de facto onder gedeeld  militair en civiel bestuur  van de Habsburgse monarchie stond. Het ontstond met de Vrede van Karlowitz na de Grote Turkse Oorlog. Vanaf 1745 was het koninkrijk ook juridisch onderdeel van zowel het Koninkrijk Kroatië als het Koninkrijk Hongarije. In 1867 werd het koninkrijk onderdeel van de Hongaarse Stefanuskroon  en sinds 1804 was het een  kroonland binnen het Keizerrijk Oostenrijk.  Na 1849 werden zowel het koninkrijk Slavonië als Kroatië als twee verschillende kroonlanden beschouwd. In 1868 werden beide landen in het kader van de Hongaars-Kroatische Ausgleich verenigd in het Koninkrijk Kroatië en Slavonië. Hoewel het onder de Heilige Stefanskroon viel had het koninkrijk toch een zelfbestuur tot op zekere hoogte.

Bevolking
Volgens de Oostenrijkse census van 1790 woonden er in het koninkrijk 131.000 Serviërs (46,8 %), 128.000 Kroaten (45,7%), 19.000 Hongaren (6,8 %) en 200 Duitsers (0,7%). Het aantal Serviërs is toe te schrijven aan Syrmië dat tegenwoordig in Vojvodina ligt.

Externe links
 Kaart
 Kaart

Slavonie
Slav
Geschiedenis van Kroatië
Geschiedenis van Servië
Geschiedenis van Vojvodina


BNP Paribas USA CEO Jean-Yves Fillion on the global economy, markets and Trump administration trade policy.
The chief executives of America's largest companies saw an increase in pay last year, according to a new study.
In its initial report on CEO pay for 2017, Equilar said the top executives at the 100 biggest companies by revenue recorded a median compensation of $15.7 million, up from $15 million. CEOs that made the list earned a median pay boost of 5%, down slightly from the 6% increase reported in the prior year.
The study also looked at the ratio of CEO pay versus the median employee, a new disclosure requirement for public companies. Among the 69 companies that have reported data so far, CEOs earned $235 for every dollar earned by the median employee.
Manpower Group, a British provider of workplace solutions, had the widest gap of 2,483:1, largely because most of its employees are temporary workers. Warren Buffett had the lowest CEO-to-employee pay ratio of 2:1.
The highest-paid CEO is Broadcom's Hock Tan. His total compensation surpassed $103 million, largely thanks to a one-time stock award that will be distributed over time. The chip maker, which recently moved its headquarters from Singapore to San Jose, California, dropped its bid to acquire rival Qualcomm in March amid opposition from the Trump administration.
AIG CEO Brian Duperreault ranked No. 2 on the list with 2017 compensation of $42.8 million, followed by Oracle co-CEOs Mark Hurd ($40.8 million) and Safra Catz ($40.7 million). Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger was the fifth highest-paid CEO at $36.3 million, though his compensation fell 11% year-over-year.
Rounding out the top 100 is Buffett, who earns a base salary of $100,000. The "Oracle of Omaha's" Berkshire Hathaway booked more revenue than any other publicly traded company last year. Berkshire Hathaway's top line grew 8% to $242.1 billion in 2017.
Apple was the runner-up in total revenue at $229.2 billion. Its CEO, Tim Cook, earned $12.8 million during the year, up 47%.
The Equilar 100 study is based on public filings from the first quarter.


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Colt Firearms Company officially purchased by a Czech company
For you dedicated and long-time Colt firearm owners, the 175 year old company has been officially purchased by CZG – ??eská zbrojovka Group SE ("CZG" or "the Group"; PSE: CZG). CZG which has secured all necessary regulatory approvals from the U.S. and Canadian authorities, has successfully closed its acquisition of 100% of the equity interest in Colt, the parent company of the U.S. firearms manufacturer, Colt's Manufacturing Company LLC as well as its Canadian subsidiary, Colt Canada Corporation.
CZG and Colt are confident that the merger will bring significant operational, commercial, and R&D synergies for the combined business, which generated pro-forma aggregated annual sales in excess of USD 570 million in 2020 and which has more than 2,000 employees in the Czech Republic, the United States, Canada and Germany.
"With this acquisition, we have created a strategic relationship between CZG and Colt, which will bring significant opportunities for the group. We will focus on continuing to provide high quality products to our customers in a seamless manner as we harness the many synergies generated by this acquisition. We are confident that this combination will create value for our customers and shareholders alike and strengthen these iconic brands," stated Lubomír Kova??ík, Chairman and President of CZG. "This merger also confirms our commitment to the North American market which is an integral part of our growth strategy," he added.
Thanks to this acquisition, CZG gains further production capacity and positions itself to become a leading firearms manufacturer and a key partner globally for military, law enforcement and commercial customers.
"Colt is pleased to join forces with CZG. We are proud of our heritage and believe that the strength of the combined businesses and the many synergies created by the merger will enable us to honor our roots while also securing the future of the Colt brand. We look forward to continuing to deliver our high- quality products while also investing in innovation and new product offerings in the near future. We believe in the successful connection of our corporate cultures, the proven track record of our teams and the complementary nature of the CZ and Colt brands," stated Dennis Veilleux, President and CEO of Colt.
CZG – ??eská zbrojovka Group (CZG), together with its subsidiaries, is one of the leading European producers of firearms for military and law enforcement, personal defense, hunting, sport shooting and other commercial use. CZG markets and sells its products mainly under the CZG - ??eská zbrojovka Group SE, (??eská zbrojovka), CZ-USA, Dan Wesson, Brno Rifles and 4M Systems brands.
CZG's subsidiaries include ??eská zbrojovka, CZ-USA, 4M Systems and CZ Export Praha. CZG owns a minority stake in Spuhr i Dalby, a Swedish manufacturer of optical mounting solutions for weapons.
CZG is headquartered in the Czech Republic. It has production facilities in the Czech Republic and in the United States and employs around 1,670 people in the Czech Republic, the United States and Germany.
About Colt
Colt is one of the world's leading designers, developers, and manufacturers of firearms. It has supplied commercial, military and law enforcement customers in the U.S. and throughout the world for over 175 years.
Colt is a supplier to the U.S. military, the exclusive supplier to the Canadian military and it also supplies its products to other armed forces around the world. Colt firearms enjoy a reputation throughout the world for accuracy, reliability and quality. Colt pistols and revolvers are carried by military and law enforcement personnel in numerous countries and are used by hunters and sportsmen and sportswomen worldwide. Colt commercial, sporting, military and law enforcement rifles enjoy similar renown.


text:
est une chanson du groupe de rock écossais Simple Minds sortie en single en , elle est extraite de l'album Sons and Fascination.

C'est la première chanson du groupe à obtenir un succès commercial. Elle se hisse à la  des charts britanniques mais fait mieux au Canada (), en Australie () et en Suède ().

En 1992, elle ressort légèrement remixée sur un single double face A avec Alive and Kicking afin de promouvoir la compilation Glittering Prize 81/92, et culmine à la  au Royaume-Uni.

Face B
Le morceau instrumental This Earth That You Walk Upon apparaît en version chantée sur l'album Sons and Fascination.

Composition du groupe
Jim Kerr - chant
Charlie Burchill - guitare
Michael MacNeil - claviers
Derek Forbes - basse
Brian McGee - batterie

Classements hebdomadaires

Notes et références

Chanson interprétée par Simple Minds
Single musical sorti en 1981
Single musical sorti en 1992
Single publié par Virgin Records


Technical Support Specialist | Tecplot, Inc.
In my technical support role here at Tecplot, Inc., I have learned that choosing the best plotting image formats may not be the highest priority for many scientists and engineers, but it definitely is considered important. After all, it would be a shame to spend all of that time carefully analyzing your results and making those plots oh-so-pretty only to have the images look less-than-stellar outside of Tecplot products where everyone will see them.
If your primary intent is to share your results onscreen in the form of a presentation, an email, or informal report, I recommend the Portable Network Graphics (PNG) format. The image file size is small but the quality on screen is indistinguishable from the original plot. The file format also is highly compatible with operating system image viewers, office applications, email applications, and Web browsers, as long as you aren't still using a 90s-era browser like Netscape Navigator 3.
If your primary intent is to publish the image, either digitally as a PDF or physically as a printed piece, I recommend the Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) format. While PNG is a pixel-based image, EPS is a vector image, which maintains its smooth definition when scaled. The Windows Metafile (WMF) format also is recommended for Windows-only applications. The only two downsides with EPS and WMF files are that they don't support translucency and file sizes can be large.
To export plot images in Tecplot 360 or Tecplot Focus, choose the Export option from the File menu (In Tecplot RS, the Export option is available in the Project menu). If you want more information on the available exporting options, click on the Help button at the bottom of the export dialog.