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The Secure Act Means Major Changes to the Retirement System
By Kristin McKennaDecember 21, 2019January 1st, 2021No Comments
The Secure Act was signed into law on December 20th, 2019, solidifying the most significant changes to the retirement system in over a decade. Though clarification on some of the finer points of the legislation will be needed from the IRS, there is plenty we already know about the Secure Act. Potential planning opportunities in light of these changes should be reviewed, so be sure to work with your wealth advisor or contact us to discuss your situation. Here are seven ways the new legislation will impact your retirement accounts, inheritance, student loans, and more.
7 Ways the Secure Act Can Impact Your Finances
The required minimum distribution (RMD) age increases from 70 1/2 to 72
Non-spouse beneficiaries must take inherited retirement funds in 10 years
Expect more annuities in 401(k) plans following lift on due diligence requirements for employers and plan fiduciaries
Age limit lifted on traditional IRA contributions
529 plan withdrawals for student loan debt repayment, apprenticeship programs
Penalty-free withdrawals from retirement accounts for new parents
Expanded 401(k) access for small businesses and part-time workers
1. The required minimum distribution (RMD) age increases from 70 1/2 to 72
Right now, investors must generally begin tapping 401(k)s, all non-Roth IRAs, 403(b)s, and Roth 401(k)s at age 70 1/2, regardless of whether the need the funds or not. The Secure Act increased the required minimum distribution (RMD) age to 72. The new law will impact retirees who have not reached age 70 1/2 by the end of 2019.
Put another way, individuals born on or before June 30th,1949 will need to start required minimum distributions at age 70 1/2 while investors who are born on or after July 1st 1949 will be required to take RMDs starting at age 72. (In practice, the first RMD can be deferred until April 1st of the year following the year you turn age 70 1/2 or 72. Subsequent RMDs must be taken by 12/31 for every year thereafter, and if you choose to defer the first RMD until April, you will need to take another RMD by 12/31.)
Also in the works are changes to the IRS' uniform lifetime table, which is expected to be released in 2020 and take effect in 2021. Investors must use this table to figure out the denominator for their RMD calculation each year.
These changes are an effort to account for current life expectancies, but they won't impact all investors equally. Investors who are typically hurt the most by required minimum distributions are wealthier individuals with large tax-deferred accounts.
Given this and the other changes in the legislation, now is the time many individuals may want to consider changes to their withdrawal strategy and adding tax-diversification with Roth IRA conversions and/or a brokerage account. If you're charitably inclined and looking for ways to reduce your taxable income before or after your required minimum distribution age, you may wish to consider donor-advised funds or qualified charitable distributions right from your IRA. Note that as of now, the law allowing qualified charitable distributions from an IRA after age 70 1/2 did not change, even though the RMD age did.
Though the QCD limit remains $100,000 per taxpayer, per year, if an individual makes a tax-deductible IRA contribution and a qualified charitable distribution in the same year, the amount of the QCD is decreased by the amount of the deductible IRA contribution.
Of course, legislative changes impacting tax rates or provisions to other account types can't be ruled out in the future, but for now, some investors have more time to plan for the RMD tax cliff.
Read: Should You Wait Until Age 72 to Take RMDs?
2. Non-spouse beneficiaries must take inherited retirement funds in 10 years
Currently, most non-spouse beneficiaries who inherit any type of IRA, 401(k), or other type of defined contribution plan can choose to withdraw the funds by taking required minimum distributions over their life, based on their age in the IRS' uniform lifetime table. This is commonly called a 'stretch IRA'.
To help fund the other provisions of the Secure Act, the legislation no longer allows beneficiaries who inherit a retirement account from a non-spouse (e.g. parent or relative) to take distributions over their lifetime if the decedent passed away after 2019. Starting in 2020, these inheritances will now need to be depleted in 10 years.
This could mean a series of significant tax events for high earning working adults as required minimum distributions will be included in their taxable income for the year (except for Roth IRAs). After-tax proceeds can be reinvested in a brokerage account, but the accelerated recognition of taxable income (taxed at the highest marginal tax rate) and loss of tax-deferred growth is very significant. Non-spouse beneficiaries cannot convert an inherited IRA to a Roth IRA, so there's no way to maintain tax-deferred growth even after recognizing the income.
Forcing annual cash injections will likely encourage lifestyle spending during for beneficiaries during the payout period, which may become unsustainable when the money is gone. It will leave fewer dollars available for reinvestment for long-term financial goals.
For account owners looking for ways to provide a prolonged payout to heirs, some planning opportunities may include a Roth conversion, putting taxable assets in a revocable trust to receive step-up in cost basis, or a charitable remainder trust. Keep in mind, these strategies could also fall victim of new legislation in the future, with or without grandfathering. So it's important to weigh your goals with the risks and opportunities.
(Note: there are three exceptions to the 10-year non-spouse distribution rule: minor beneficiaries will have until they reach the age of majority (age 18 in most states) before the 10-year period begins; beneficiaries less than 10 years younger than the decedent can take distributions over their life as can disabled beneficiaries).
In light of these changes, it's wise to consider reviewing your estate plan, particularly if you've named a trust as a beneficiary of an IRA or retirement account.
Read: What the End of the Stretch IRA Means for Your Estate Plan
3. Expect more annuities in 401(k) plans following lift on due diligence requirements for employers and plan fiduciaries
Following a BIG win for the mighty insurance industry, new annuity options are expected to flow into 401(k) plans. Previously, employers and plan fiduciaries would be required to do an in-depth due diligence review of an insurer before offering an annuity product in a 401(k) plan. Under the Secure Act:
"Under the bill, fiduciaries are afforded an optional safe harbor to satisfy the prudence requirement with respect to the selection of insurers for a guaranteed retirement income contract and are protected from liability for any losses that may result to the participant or beneficiary due to an insurer's inability in the future to satisfy its financial obligations under the terms of the contract." [Emphasis added]
The legislation means that the employer cannot be held liable if the insurance company becomes insolvent and can't meet their financial obligations (e.g. pay you an expected income stream). While the employer still maintains a fiduciary duty in picking the products themselves (fees, suitability), the new legislation significantly reduces their risk in offering annuity products, many of which carry a much higher cost to the investor than other investment options in the plan, like mutual funds and ETFs.
The legislation effectively leaves employees with the risk and onerous analysis to determine whether the product is truly a suitable investment based on the financial health of the insurer and the cost of the product, which reduces investment returns.
While simple fixed, low(er) cost annuities may very well have a place in the modern retirement plan investment menu, particularly for low-to-mid-income investors who may need options in addition to Social Security to ensure they can continue to meet basic expenses on a limited fixed income. However, this legislation opens a big window to the myriad of high-cost and complex annuities that make the big bucks for the insurers and annuity salespeople alike.
4. Age limit lifted on traditional IRA contributions
Currently, individuals over age 70 1/2 cannot make contributions to a traditional IRA. Starting in 2020, individuals with earned income can make contributions up to the annual limit. This is consistent with active 401(k) participants and Roth IRAs.
IRA contributions may still be non-deductible if you're above the annual income limits set forth by the IRS. Before making a non-deductible contribution, consider the downsides.
5. 529 plan withdrawals for student loan debt repayment, apprenticeship programs
529 plans are best known as college savings plans, but in early 2018 qualified expenses expanded to private school grades K-12. Immediately following the passage of the Secure Act, qualified expenses will expand yet again to include student loan repayment and costs of an apprenticeship program.
A 529 plan beneficiary can now use up to $10,000 from a 529 plan to pay down principal and/or interest on their qualified education loan. This amount is a lifetime limit per beneficiary. Plan beneficiaries are also allowed to distribute an additional $10,000 to pay down qualified debt for each of the beneficiary's siblings. While not a huge amount in dollar terms given average debt balances, this could be helpful for families in certain situations. For example, it's possible to have leftover 529 plan funds and one or more children with debt if a younger child received a scholarship, lived at home, went to a less expensive school, didn't attend college, or was saving funds for grad school and plans changed.
Apprenticeship program costs
The Act expanded qualified education expenses for 529 plan withdrawals to include the cost of apprenticeship programs, such as a trade school for skilled labor. Not every kid goes to college and they don't have to in order to make an excellent living – very successful tradespeople in top markets can make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year running their business. There's a reason for the saying "you never see a poor plumber"!
6. Penalty-free withdrawals from retirement accounts for new parents
New parents can now withdraw up to $5,000 from their 401(k), IRA, or other defined contribution plan within a year after they give birth or adopt a child without incurring the 10% penalty. Taxes on investment gains would be due that year as the distribution would be included in your taxable income.
Note that this is not a loan and while the money can be repaid, it isn't required. Technically, each spouse can take out $5,000 from their accounts for a total of $10,000. While it's nice to have options, tapping retirement accounts so early in life can really hurt your savings trajectory.
7. Expanded 401(k) access for small businesses and part-time workers
Part-time eligibility
The Secure Act will expand employee eligibility requirements favorably for part-time employees. In 2019, employers could prevent part-time workers from becoming eligible to participate in the 401(k) plan if the individual worked less than 1,000 hours during the year (essentially precluding anyone working less than an average of 20 hours per week, assuming 2 weeks for vacation).
Effective for plan years starting in January 2021, employers will need to expand the eligibility requirements to include part-time employees who have worked at least 500 hours per year for the last three years (consecutively). The three-year lookback period will only apply to hours worked after January 1st 2021, meaning long-term part-time workers who meet this eligibility criteria could contribute starting in 2024.
For employers who have newly-eligible employees under the three-year rule, they will not be required to include those individuals in annual nondiscrimination and top-heavy tests. Current legislation also suggests that employers won't be required to make matching, profit-sharing, or Safe Harbor contributions to the accounts of long-term, part-time part employees.
Multiple-employer 401(k) plans
Allowing unrelated employers to join together to offer a 401(k) plan to their employees is another major change included in the Secure Act. Under the Act, starting in 2021, multiple companies (typically small employers) can band together to share the costs and administrative burden of offering retirement plan benefits to workers. How exactly this will work in practice will need to be fleshed out. Further, multiple-employer plans (MEPs) will have their share of challenges and limitations.
The most affordable MEPs will likely require employers to pick from an 'out-of-the-box' plan design (eligibility requirements, matching, vesting, loan provisions, etc.) and investment options. Further customization will increase costs. MEPs will still need to satisfy annual testing requirements, and depending on the make-up of the participants, could become top heavy or fail nondiscrimination testing. Employers also cannot outsource all administration requirements – they'll still need to remit payroll contributions, monitor loans and deferral changes.
Credits for small businesses starting new 401(k) plans
Starting in 2020 and for the next two tax years, small employers may be eligible to receive a credit between $500 – $5,000 to help offset the costs of starting a new 401(k) plan. An eligible employer is considered to have no more than 100 employees who was paid at least $5,000 from the employer for the preceding year.
The credit is limited to the greater of (1) $500 or (2) the lesser of (a) $250 multiplied by the number of
non-highly compensated employees of the eligible employer who are eligible to participate in the plan or
(b) $5,000.
Automatic enrollment credit for small businesses
Small businesses meeting the same eligibility requirements as above may also be entitled to a $500 credit for three tax years starting in 2020 for starting a new 401(k) plan or SIMPLE IRA that includes automatic enrollment provisions or converting an existing plan to include this feature. This credit is available in addition to the start-up cost credit.
Deadline to establish new qualified retirement plans extended
The current deadline to establish a new qualified retirement plan is December 31st to be considered for that year. Under the Secure Act, employers can establish a new qualified retirement plan, such as a 401(k) or 403(b) as late as the corporate tax filing deadline. While the extension won't impact individual contributions, which must be made before the end of the year, it would permit employers to make a profit-sharing contribution to employee accounts for the previous tax year.
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Professor Chris Knight
Email: chkn@life.ku.dk
Interest: Mammary Physiology
Chris is a self-employed research communications advisor and Editor of the Journal of Dairy Research. Brought up on tenanted dairy farms in Leicestershire, Chris enjoyed a successful career in lactation research at the Hannah Research Institute in Ayr followed by a second career teaching and researching at the University of Copenhagen, where he is now Emeritus Professor. His management experience spans dairy units to European researcher networks, but he prefers not to mention which has been most challenging! In addition to the Dairy Science Forum, Chris has active roles in the British Society of Animal Science and the European Association of Animal Production. His overriding desire is to see the UK dairy industries prosper and play a major role in ensuring future global food security.

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Comedian Steve Harvey Who Was Once Homeless Says There Are Blessings in Adversity
CP Current Page: Entertainment | Monday, May 16, 2016
By Christine Thomasos, Christian Post Reporter | Monday, May 16, 2016
Host Steve Harvey smiles as he poses in the media room at the 44th NAACP Image Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, February 1, 2013. | (Photo: Reuters/Patrick T. Fallon)
Steve Harvey was once homeless, living out of his car and showering in gas stations, the comedian revealed during his commencement speech at Alabama State University earlier this month.
The 59-year-old TV host told students: "I've lost it all twice and had to start over. I had to struggle through two marriages before finding this one [Marjorie Harvey whom he married in 2007]. … I didn't have nothing," an emotional Harvey told graduates earlier this month, according to the Montgomery Advertiser.
"In every single moment of adversity in your life, two things are going to happen: There's going to be a lesson and there's going to be a blessing. If you let the adversity crumble you, you will lay there and wallow in the failure, but life is 10 percent what happened and 90 percent what you're going to do about it."
The comedian, author, and actor has been vocal about his Christian faith in the past. During his last stand up comedy show in 2012, an emotional Harvey glorified God for his platform.
"Somebody tweeted me and said, 'Your career is what [you're] paid for, your calling is what you're made for.' God has positioned me just this way to be just like I am, to say what I say, how I say it," Harvey said in his final stand-up comedy show at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. "I'm just a living witness that you can be an imperfect soldier and still be in the army fighting for God Almighty. Don't you think you got to be perfect, 'cause I ain't."
As an entertainer, Harvey knows the influence of celebrity and has made it a point to use his platform responsibly. For that reason, sharing his testimony with young men is important to him.
" ... This is one of the most important works I do. I think God put me in the position to do all of those other things to do this," Harvey told The Dallas Weekly in 2013. "I have taken the fame He bestowed upon me and I use it in a way that would be beneficial to some young men who otherwise may not get opportunities to sit with some positive men who can show them what manhood is really about."
Harvey believes God provided him with the gifts he has presented to the world, and refuses to compromise them by getting drunk or high. Instead, he focuses on prayer and his faith.
"God gives you a gift. He don't need your help to enhance it," he previously said in a YouTube video on his channel. "He needs your attention, your faith, your prayer to enhance your gift."
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Reliance Industries re-enters $100-billion market capitalisation club after 11 years
The Reliance Industries stock reclaimed the $100-billion market capitalisation mark amid Sensex and Nifty hitting record highs in trade today. It had crossed the coveted milestone in October 2007. The firm has become the second Indian firm to enter the coveted league after market capitalisation of TCS crossed the $100 billion milestone on April 23, 2018. It hit a high of Rs 3,557 on the BSE and reached $103 billion (Rs 6.8 lakh crore market capitalisation).
The Reliance stock rose to its intra day high of 1091 level, a rise of 5.27% from previous close.
Its market capitalisation rose to Rs 6,88,766 crore on the BSE.
At 12:10 pm, the Reliance Industries stock was trading higher by 4.92% or over 50 points higher at 1087 level.
The stock has been gaining for the last five days and has risen 13% during the period.
It has gained 44% during the last one year and 18% since the beginning of this year.
In the run up to the rally, the stock closed 3.02% or 30.10 points higher at 1025.75 level becoming the top gainer on Sensex on July 10. It opened at 1001 level and hit an intra day high of 1028.50 in trade.
The stock rose on July 10 amid reports that brokerage Credit Suisse has initiated coverage and gave a target price of Rs 1,180 assigning 'outperform' rating for the share of Mukesh Ambani-owned conglomerate.
"We believe refining and petrochemical businesses are well understood but Jio's ability to create significant value from the ecosystem that it is building could make a difference. Jio is much more than a telecom business. Lastly, petcoke gasification should help growth in refining margin of Reliance Industries," Credit Suisse said.
The stock also got a push after a media report said India Gas Solutions, a joint venture between Reliance Industries and BP Plc, would bid for city gas distribution licences in the current auction round.
Meanwhile, Macquarie gave outperform rating to the stock with a potential upside of 25%. The brokerage has given a target price of Rs 1,240 for the stock.
The brokerage expects gross refining margin of the conglomerate to reach $20 a barrel by financial year 2020-21 against the estimated $12 per barrel as RIL is expected to benefit with its refining hub-the world's biggest- in Jamnagar, Gujarat having the ability to process a wide range of distressed crude grades.
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This schematic covers the complete Rainbow E-2 (e SERIES™) Ametek AME motor assembly that includes the bearings, gaskets, separator, field, and carbon brushes.
Carbon brush holder kit for the E-2 (e SERIES™) AME design motor.
If you need to replace this, then there is a very high chance that you have an armature issue. An easy way to tell the difference between the AME design and the GSE design is the carbon brush holders. The holders on the AME motor are brass and the GSE motor are plastic.
Please call technical support with any questions you may have.
Brass separator nut that fits the E-2 (e SERIES™) Rainbow system. Works with the R10827 separator.
DOES NOT fit the E2 Type 12 Rainbow. Confirm that you have a brass nut and not white plastic.
This part separates air from water and allows clean air to flow out through the exhaust and the water to be transferred back to the water pan.
Separator for the single speed E-2 (e SERIES™) Rainbow. Does not fit the E2 Type 12 two speed system.
Effective July 2000, Rexair has improved this separator to increase performance. Inexpensive upgrade to gain improved cleaning ability.
View second image to compare original separator (R7805) with new design.
If your nut that holds this item in place is brass, then this is the correct part. If you have a white plastic nut, then you need to order item number R12103.
Spider nut for the E-2 (e SERIES™) AME design motor. The AME version motor is no longer available. The AME has brass carbon brush holders and the GSE has plastic.
Spider for the E-2 (e SERIES™) version AME motor design. Please sure to download the schematics to confirm what version motor you have.
Lower motor stage housing for the E-2 (e SERIES™) version AME motor design.
An easy way to tell the difference between the AME design and the GSE design is the carbon brush holders. The holders on the AME motor are brass and the GSE motor are plastic.
You may also call our technical support team to ask them any questions. Their number is 800-640-2033.
Fan assembly for the E-2 (e SERIES™) AME design motor. A simple way to tell the difference between the AME design and the GSE design is the carbon brush holders. The holders on the AME motor are brass and the GSE motor are plastic. Be sure to check the center hole is not damaged from rust.
Top hat spacer for the E-2 (e SERIES™) version AME motor design.
Cooling fan shroud for the single speed E-2 (e SERIES™) AME version motor. Be sure to understand the difference between the AME and the GSE motor design. Download the schematics to confirm your application.
This is the stage housing clip for the E-2 (e SERIES™) AME design motor. This part becomes rusted and corroded when excess moisture seeps into the motor. If you notice this, please call our technical support department to help determine where the problem lies.
Motor gasket for the early version E-2 (e SERIES™) Rainbow system. Helps seal the motor to the water pan.
Effective through serial number 9230145 with an end date of March 16th 2000.
Works with the R7284 water pan gasket.
UPDATE: This gasket is no longer available as an exact replacement. You have two options, order this item and get a universal factory OEM gasket that does not affect performance and is a direct install, or order an R11316 and R10534 while removing the R7284 original gasket.
Fan washer for the E-2 (e SERIES™) AME design motor. If this part has rust on it, you need to look into why because you have a moisture issue.
Motor cooling fan for the model E-2 (e SERIES™) version AME motor design. Unless you have the correct equipment to crimp this item into place, we suggest using JB Weld compound. If this part comes off, it will lead to motor failure.
Be sure that you understand what version motor you have. The E-2 (e SERIES™) came with both a version GSE and AME. If you need help, call our technical support or view the schematics.
Bearing bridge for the model E-2 (e SERIES™) Rainbow that fits the AME version motor. This bearing bridge works with the plastic brass brush holders. If you have plastic carbon brush holders, then you have a GSE version motor.
Original OEM upper bearing for the E-2 (e SERIES™) Rainbow vacuum. This bearing will only fit the AME version motor.
Location is above the carbon brushes seated inside the bearing bridge.
Can sometimes be difficult to replace as the manufacture presses this bearing onto the armature shaft.
Original OEM bearing for the E-2 (e SERIES™) Rainbow vacuum. This bearing fits both the AME version motor and also the GSE version.
This bearing is located in the motor base on both motor designs.
The motor base for the version AME motor design in the E-2 (e SERIES™) model Rainbow. This part is not available from the factory, so it will be from an existing motor and could show signs of cosmetic wear. We guarantee that is will be 100% perfect in construction and performance.


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Madison Township will have to revise recovery plan
Al Lawrence
The Madison Township Trustees are going to have to revise their financial recovery plan again if the township is to emerge from a nine-year fiscal caution designation from the state auditor's office. A representatives of the auditor's office told the board at a special meeting on Thursday afternoon that a plan submitted last month did not have a capital purchase plan for the road department and did not show how the township is going to resolve deficit spending in the general fund and road department.
Trustees first discussed a new recovery plan during a virtual session July 9 with Nita Hendryx, chief projects manager for the auditor's office, to review a three-year financial forecast that showed township finances in the black through the end of 2023, although cash balances dropped in the general and road funds at the end of each year. She suggested Madison could have the fiscal caution designation lifted if it put together a new recovery plan that avoids deficit spending and suggested that a general operating levy could be a solution.
Hendryx told trustees during the latest video conference Thursday that while the township revised a recovery plan that was submitted Sept. 10, the revision still contained deficit spending in the road and general funds in 2022 and 2023. Figures in the latest plan show deficit spending of $3,350 in the general fund and $72,606 in the road fund at the end of 2022 and $7.963 in the general fund and $185,004 in the road fund at the end of 2023.
Goal is to eliminate deficit spending
"In order to get out of fiscal caution, the goal is to have the township have no deficit spending in those years," Hendryx said. "Although it's not much, I think it's definitely doable with talking it out with yourselves and figuring out a game plan to eliminate deficit spending."
Hendryx said part of the problem with the road fund is that trustees included a requested capital spending plan, which "exacerbated" the deficit problem. The plan, which township Fiscal Officer Leanna Rhodes reviewed with the trustees before meeting with Hendryx, includes spending for a tractor and boom mower, a new front end loader, a dump truck, a pickup truck and a mini excavator that will replace a road grader and a backhoe.
Rhodes also said during the pre-conference meeting that one thing she will ask the board to consider as part of the 2022 general fund budget is to include about $6,240 to hire a fiscal officer's assistant to work 10 hours per week at a rate of $12 per hour. "If I were to get totally sick and be unable to do my job there's no backup," she said. "Somebody (else) needs to know the job. That hasn't been done for years."
Operating levy a 'must' for revenue
In terms of revenue, Trustee Cathy Swank said an operating levy is a "must" and told the board she still is trying to get information on how much revenue one mill of taxes generates in Madison and is looking for help with the language on a proposed ballot issue. Rhodes urged Swank to get the information as soon as possible.
"We need this information. We've been talking about it for months and we don't have it yet," Rhodes said. ""It's really important that we have it on the table."
Madison Fire Chief Ken Justus said that while there currently are no problems with the fire funds, one issue that needs to be approached is bill collection from people who live outside of the township who receive EMS service. He noted that the difference between what the township is billing and what it is collecting is between 33% and 38%.
Hendryx set Nov. 15 as the date to submit a new revised recovery plan after trustees said they could get the work done in 30 days.


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Minifying Your App's Source Code

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    <time class="post-time">By Nic Raboy on January 10, 2015</time>

This is a guest post by Nic Raboy, an application developer with a strong background in

Android, AngularJS, Ionic, Java, SQL, and Unity3D. Nic writes often about Ionic and how to build great hybrid apps.

Previously, I wrote about the importance of uglifying your Apache Cordova source code. If you read my previous

post you'll know that hybrid applications are

incredibly easy to decompile, so uglifying your code creates additional difficulty for any malicious user.

I also wrote a generic post about how to use

the Grunt task runner to lint and uglify your code. However, using Grunt isn't the most ideal solution when it comes to

linting your Apache Cordova project for errors and uglifying your code.

In this guide, we're going to see how to efficiently lint and minify your Apache Cordova project before building. The

same information can be applied against Phonegap and Ionic

Framework projects, too.

Let's start by creating a fresh Apache Cordova Android and iOS project:

cordova create TestProject com.nraboy.testproject TestProject
cd TestProject
cordova platform add android
cordova platform add ios

Note that if you're not using a Mac, you cannot add or build for the iOS platform.

This tutorial is going to be broken into two parts:

Linting the project for JavaScript errors</li>

Uglifying the code for obfuscation purposes</li>

Once you've run these steps, your project will be in much better shape.

Linting the project for JavaScript errors

One of my subscribers recommended I check out Cordova Linter for this

task. I checked it out and couldn't figure out how to get it to work. It kept saying my project had no errors, when I

know it did. The package had no documentation to prove its process.

This is when I decided to create my own Apache Cordova hook. If you've read my previous

post regarding hooks, you should have a

general idea of what we're going to do.

Create hooks/before_prepare/02_jshint.js, and make sure to give it execute permissions if you're using Linux or Mac.

Based on the file title, you can probably guess we're going to use JSHint for linting. Open

02_jshint.js, and add the following code:

#!/usr/bin/env node

var fs = require('fs');
var path = require('path');
var jshint = require('jshint').JSHINT;
var async = require('async');

var foldersToProcess = [
    'js'
];

foldersToProcess.forEach(function(folder) {
    processFiles("www/" + folder);
});

function processFiles(dir, callback) {
    var errorCount = 0;
    fs.readdir(dir, function(err, list) {
        if (err) {
            console.log('processFiles err: ' + err);
            return;
        }
        async.eachSeries(list, function(file, innercallback) {
            file = dir + '/' + file;
            fs.stat(file, function(err, stat) {
                if(!stat.isDirectory()) {
                    if(path.extname(file) === ".js") {
                        lintFile(file, function(hasError) {
                            if(hasError) {
                                errorCount++;
                            }
                            innercallback();
                        });
                    } else {
                        innercallback();
                    }
                } else {
                    innercallback();
                }
            });
        }, function(error) {
            if(errorCount > 0) {
                process.exit(1);
            }
        });
    });
}

function lintFile(file, callback) {
    console.log("Linting " + file);
    fs.readFile(file, function(err, data) {
        if(err) {
            console.log('Error: ' + err);
            return;
        }
        if(jshint(data.toString())) {
            console.log('File ' + file + ' has no errors.');
            console.log('-----------------------------------------');
            callback(false);
        } else {
            console.log('Errors in file ' + file);
            var out = jshint.data(),
            errors = out.errors;
            for(var j = 0; j < errors.length; j++) {
                console.log(errors[j].line + ':' + errors[j].character + ' -> ' + errors[j].reason + ' -> ' +
errors[j].evidence);
            }
            console.log('-----------------------------------------');
            callback(true);
        }
    });
}

The above script will look at only the www/js directory, but feel free to add further directories. All

files in the directory will be looped through, and if they are JavaScript, the file will be fed into JSHint. If any

files contain errors, they will be presented to the screen, and then the script will stop all further processes. This

means that if you execute the script with cordova build [platform], the application will not continue to build if errors are found.

02_jshint.js requires two NodeJS libraries in order to function. They can be installed like this from the root of

your project:

$ npm install jshint
$ npm install async

Uglifying the code for obfuscation purposes

One of my other subscribers recommended I check out Cordova Uglify for

the obfuscation process. Unlike Cordova Linter, this NPM package actually worked as advertised. From the root of your

Apache Cordova project, run the following command:

$ npm install cordova-uglify

When the installation completes, you should find that hooks/after_prepare/uglify.js was created. If you're on Linux

or Mac, you'll need to give it execute permissions; otherwise, it won't be picked up.

You can test that this script worked by running cordova prepare or cordova build [platform].

Conclusion

By default, Apache Cordova does not check your code for errors when building. This means you won't know if errors

exist in your code until you run your application. Linting your code can save you a lot of stress when it comes to

finding errors caused by typos or missing/extra brackets.

Your hard work is very easy to decompile by default, so it is a good idea to obfuscate your code by means of

uglification before you release your application.

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Freedetailsfiles
KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN
Hardware & Services
KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN Dec 4, 2015 20:49:26 GMT
Post by Admin on Dec 4, 2015 20:49:26 GMT
Name: KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN
Date added: September 23, 2014
Operating system: Windows XP/Vista/7/8
Total downloads: 1518
Downloads last week: 59
Some readers may already use Apple's Airplay feature that streams music to your Apple TV. A main, larger section of the window tracks the current conversation's information. Its many advanced features have not been simplified for beginners, although creating listings is relatively easy. Notes are saved automatically as long as they are left open, but if you want to close a card, you will have to save it the same way you would save any other document. With so many options, fast performance, and a clean interface for quick conversions, it's a tool anyone who frequently uses YouTube will appreciate. The app is small in size, so you'll have it up and running on your Mac in no time. KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN turns your immediate world into part of the game, with missions that you have to carry out based on your current location. After an easy installation, KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN for Mac presented us with a list of hard drives attached to our test machine, and we selected the internal 500GB drive. While the basic functions are nothing new -- photograph your receipts and save them to your Photo Library -- the other functions are. Once you load data into KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN
it's likely that the program keeps your data secure, but with no tutorials, no explanation of features, or next steps, and a sign-up process that takes place in a separate program rather than in the app, itself, KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN is a hard sell for something as important as data security on a mobile device. After you launch the app you can access its interface via the Menu Bar or using CMD-I. So if you'd like the ability to take multiple screenshots at once, this is a good option to try.KEYGENERATOR CATWOMANIt for Mac lets you use keyboard KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN to quickly
adjust window size and position, and manage your screen like you want to. If you're looking for a new kind of puzzle game, KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN is a great one to try. You can also share stories to KEYGENERATOR CATWOMAN. All of this creates a steep learning curve, which might turn some users off. This all works well enough, but the sheer lack of options out of the box limits the use of the app, especially if you heed the warnings about downloading. It's also possible to select whether or not you want to include windows from all display spaces in the thumbnail previews that pop up, and to turn on or off the inclusion of minimized windows. Those users who work on projects for multiple clients often need to track the time spent working on each task. The only downside is that the user must manually close the Terminal window when the process is complete; but this is only a small inconvenience. One of its best features is the ability to adapt and learn from the way you use your own computer.
Last Edit: Jun 13, 2016 9:16:13 GMT by Admin


text:
Guidelines for Researchers and Visitors
Other Researcher
Free access and on-premise use of the library's collection and facilities ( except for eresources, computer and internet terminals) for the first three visits per semester. After this, a research fee of Php100.00 per day will be charged.
Order of the Blue Eagle (OBE) / Ateneo Alumni Association (AAA)
Unlimited and free access to the library's collection and facilities ( except for eresources, computer, internet terminals, and Faculty/Graduate Study Area and Reserve Section ).
OBE and AAA members with valid alumni ID are eligible to borrow a maximum of 3 circulation books at a time, good for two weeks after paying a deposit of P1,000.00 per book.
The deposit is refunded upon the return of the book. For more information, please inquire at the Circulation Counter.
NOTES: These charges do not include special services such as photocopying, scanning, and micro-printing, among others.
On-premise use of the library's collection and facilities ( except for eresources, computer and internet terminals)
Validated school ID and referral letter from the school's librarian for every visit made.
Research fee:
P50.00 per day (Monday - Friday 2:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. only) and (Saturday 8:00 - 6:00 p.m.)
Only 5 (maximum) students per school will be allowed to use the library at a time. Please make an appointment at least 3 days prior to your visit. Kindly email your request to circulation.rl.ls@ateneo.edu(link sends e-mail). The Rizal Library will not accept public researchers before and during final examination week.
They have to follow all library rules and policies. Failure to do so may result in payment of fine or imposition other of sanctions, as the case maybe. Offenders will be reported to the President of their School.
Ateneo High School Students (AHS)
AHS students may be allowed to use the Rizal Library (First Pacific Hall and Special Collections Building) upon registration at the Circulation Counter and presentation of valid AHS ID.
AHS students must follow the library's rules and policies. Failure to do so may result in payment of a fine or imposition of other sanctions, as the case maybe.
Offenders of library rules and regulations will be reported to the AHS Headmaster.
Other High School Students
Only Grade 12 students from other schools will be allowed to use the Rizal Library from 2:30PM-7:30PM (Monday - Friday) and 8:00AM-6:00PM (Saturday).
Referral letter from the school librarian and a valid school ID
Visitor's fee
P50.00 (Monday-Saturday)
Only five students per school will be allowed to use the library at a time.
On-premise use of the library's collection and facilities (except for computer and internet terminals)
P100.00 (per day).
Free access to the library's collection and facilities (except for computer and internet terminals).
ADMU retirees are eligible to borrow three books at a time, good for one month.


Watching Weight, or Losing Weight?
If you research the best foods to eat that are in harmony with creating health and losing weight and causing the body to function properly, you will often hear the terms "Mediterranean Diet". Simply put, this is a regimen high in vegetables, low in carbs and with a small amount of meat or concentrated protein for each serving. You will also note that it includes variegated assortments of vegetables of different types and colors, which all serve to stimulate different cellular functions. This menu plan reduces stress on the body, cleans the cardiovascular system, as well as the GI tract, which by the way accounts for a large part of your immune system, much more than most people think.
We will be posting various menu regimens, and also recommending the associated supplements to go along with these programs. We will list the value of the components, what they do and how to schedule your days intake of foods and snacks to be sure to maximize your individual metabolism. We will also be putting together some packages to make the process simpler. Following these recommendations will result in losing not just weight, which is often a mixture of fat and muscle, along with water. This loss will be almost exclusively fat! These methods are tried and true, and will prevent most people from succumbing to lap-band or gastric bypass alternatives. We encourage all who try it to monitor their progress with their doctor, and feel free to ask us anything and we will do our best to answer your questions and concerns.


Tent rentals are available for intimate gatherings of 32 people to full out parties for more than 400 guests. From dance floor, table and chair rentals to beautiful linens and sparkling flatware, Encore is a full service wedding and event rental company.
To ensure your special day is not only beautiful but also comfortable and hassle-free, Encore will listen carefully to your needs, and make recommendations for the finer details, such as tent lighting and heating.
A curved lit bar and/or white canoe (for you to fill with ice and beverages), are among the more unique items that Encore Tents offers to make your day extraordinary.
As owner and operator of Encore Tents, Harry Jeninga provides personalized service that culminates in delighted customers on event day... and according to client testimonials, the entire Encore Tents team is doing just that.
"Dependable, spectacular and enthusiastic", are the adjectives being used to describe the Encore Tents rental experience.


What is Expo 2015? Why was the city of Milano chosen to host the universal exposition fair over the other cities that placed a bid for the spot? What does this mean for the future of the food business? Read on to find out all this and more!
"Expo Milano 2015-Italy" will host the worldwide exposition that focuses on the agricultural and foodstuffs issues in today's world. It will be an international event that sponsors workshops and debate on these issues, encouraging the frontiers of science and technology as well as communication and promotion for interested innovative businesses in the field. The city of Milano was chosen to host the expo because of its theme, which was deemed the candidates' most pertinent issue by the Expo's selection committee.
Famine, obesity and food safety and health are all increasingly important matters in a world that sees food shortages in developing countries and health issues related to diet and obesity in more developed countries.
Food quality and availability is one of the world's most fundamental needs. Because of this, the Expo's main objective is to promote tradition, creativity and innovation related to food and agriculture. In order to ensure this happens, research and technology, providing knowledge on proper diet, biodiversity, monitoring agricultural and production methods as well as finding new dependable food sources should all be improved upon. All this and more will be examined and analyzed in the 2015 Expo in Milano!
For more information and updates, please go to the official website.


Field visit to the Wattled Crane Isolation Rearing for Release facility at the Bill Barnes Crane and Oribi Nature Reserve at Nottingham Road, hosted by the KZN Crane Foundation and Endangered Wildlife Trust. Delegates will receive interesting talks on the research and conservation of Wattled Cranes, in particular, and will visit the chick rearing facility and observe puppet rearing of Wattled Crane chicks.
A couple of lucky delegates may get to put on the puppet costumes and walk with crane chicks under the guidance and supervision of the KZN Crane Foundation's Aviculturists.


Most families don't have the time to spend hours making dinner every night. And since going through the drive-thru isn't the healthiest or most cost-effective dinner solution, taking a few small and simple steps to make dinner at home will benefit both your wallet and waistline. In fact, a healthy and delicious dinner that will satisfy even the most finicky in your family is just a couple of chops, stirs and mixes away.
Do some prep work on the days when you have a bit more time on your hands. Before making a trip to the grocery store, decide on at least three meals you would like to prepare throughout the week. Then compile a list of ingredients so you're not left aimlessly wandering up and down the aisles.
Once the groceries are unloaded, spend just an hour or two completing the time-consuming cooking chores like chopping veggies for a stir-fry, mixing together a large batch of marinade to be used for meat, fish or chicken dishes, or cooking grains for a casserole. Store cut-up vegetables in plastic bags, keep grains in glass containers, and use an empty jam jar to house the marinades or sauces. All of these items will stay fresh in the refrigerator for a few days. The trick with making dinner easy is to have as much of the meal prepped ahead of time so that all you have to do is add a few extra ingredients, heat and serve.
For those evenings when you don't have a meal planned, turn to ingredients that you already have in your kitchen. Ask any chef about their must-have cooking staples and they are likely to rattle off a small list of tried-and-true ingredients that can be quickly prepared and added to any dish to boost flavor and appeal. Whole-grain pasta, fresh Parmesan cheese, herbs like basil or rosemary, canned beans, and a good quality tuna fish can provide the basis for numerous simple dinners. Consider these as the foundation of your meal and build from there. In addition, quick-cooking grains like couscous and quinoa, and bags of frozen veggies or ready-to-serve salad greens easily round out a main dish.


text:
Morten Thorsby (born 5 May 1996) is a Norwegian professional footballer who as a midfielder plays for Bundesliga side Union Berlin and the Norway national team.

Club career

Stabæk
Thorsby started his youth career in IL Heming but joined FK Lyn in 2009. While playing in Lyn he was drafted into the boys-15 national team. In 2012, he joined the youth ranks of Stabæk.

He made his first team debut in the 2013 1. Divisjon, as a substitute in four matches. Stabæk was promoted, and he made his first-tier debut in April 2014 against Molde.

SC Heerenveen
On 2 June 2014, Thorsby signed a five-year contract with Eredivisie side SC Heerenveen.

Sampdoria
On 11 January 2019, Thorsby signed a four-year pre-contract with Serie A side Sampdoria. The contract will run through the 2023 season. He joined the club on 1 July 2019. He made his debut on 4 November in the 1–0 away win against SPAL, in which he played the full match. After that game he slowly rose in the team's hierarchy, becoming a starter in midfield alongside Albin Ekdal. On 21 June 2020, he scored his first goal for Sampdoria scoring the 2–1 consolation goal in the away defeat to Inter Milan.

The following year, he was confirmed as a starter alongside Ekdal, and he scored 3 goals in 35 total appearances.

The day before the start of the 2021–22 season, Thorsby decided to change his jersey number from 18 to 2 to raise awareness about the Paris Agreement – the number 2 signifying the first aim of the agreement to hold "the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C".

Union Berlin
On 19 July 2022, German club Union Berlin announced Thorsby's signing.

Personal life
Thorsby is known for his commitment to environmentalism and is an advocate for stronger actions on climate change. He established the We Play Green foundation to encourage the football community to adopt environmentally friendly initiatives, and has met with municipal and national leaders in Italy while at Sampdoria in support of improved climate policy. In August 2021, he switched his shirt number to 2 to raise awareness of climate change. The digit represents the target of the internationally-adopted Paris Agreement of keeping global warming "well below" 2 °C above pre-industrial times, in order to avoid dangerous levels of climate change. He was named 'Young Athlete of The Year' at The BBC Green Sport Awards 2022.

Career statistics

Club

International

References

1996 births
Living people
Footballers from Oslo
Association football midfielders
Norwegian footballers
Norway international footballers
Norway under-21 international footballers
Norway youth international footballers
Stabæk Fotball players
SC Heerenveen players
U.C. Sampdoria players
1. FC Union Berlin players
Norwegian First Division players
Eliteserien players
Eredivisie players
Serie A players
Norwegian expatriate footballers
Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands
Expatriate footballers in the Netherlands
Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Expatriate footballers in Italy
Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Germany
Expatriate footballers in Germany
Climate activists
Norwegian environmentalists

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A global observance – International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPwD) is observed on December 3 with the aim to increase public awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with disability and celebrate their achievements and contributions. Recent reports from the World Health Organization (WHO) suggest that around 10% of the world's population, or roughly 650 million people, live with a disability. According to CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, about 1 in 4 adults (61 million Americans) experience a disability that impacts their major life activities. The annual one-day campaign aims to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and generate awareness about the situation of people with disabilities in every aspect of life.
Earlier, the UN Decade of Disabled Persons was held from 1983 to 1992 to enable governments and other organizations to implement adequate measures to improve the life of disabled persons around the world. However, on October 14, 1992 this observance was ended and the UN General Assembly (under its resolution 47/3) officially proclaimed December 3 – as the "International Day of Disabled persons". Yet again, on December 18, 2007, the assembly changed the observance's name from the "International Day of Disabled Persons" to the "International Day of Persons with Disabilities". The new name was first used in 2008.
The annual campaign aims to highlight the day-to-day challenges faced by people with mobility issues and bring attention towards the availability of various types of life-changing accessibility devices such as – stair lifts, handicap vans, specialty vehicles, wheelchair lifts, and other types of adaptive devices that help improve the mobility and independence of people to a great extent. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires all public buildings and businesses to be handicap accessible. This means that all the places that people go for purposes such as work, play, education, business, and services should not have any barriers and need to be completely accessible to all users. Incorporating several changes like – removing barriers such as narrow entry doors, building ramps for wheelchair access, installing elevators, widening doorways to accommodate wheelchairs and setting up platform lifts (where there is no space for ramps) can enhance accessibility in buildings and public spaces.
Each year, the IDPwD observance focuses on different unique themes. The theme for the 2018 campaign is – "Empowering persons with disabilities and ensuring inclusiveness and equality". The theme focuses on empowering persons with disabilities for the inclusive, equitable and sustainable development (as envisaged in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development). The 2030 Agenda pledges to "leave no one behind" and empowers people with disabilities to be active contributors to society (both as beneficiaries and agents of change). Countries across the world celebrate this day by conducting a wide range of activities like – designing posters, media releases, holding discussions, open forums and talks related to this campaign.
Join the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPwD) celebration! Raise awareness about the need for building an accessible society for all.


The risk of developing skin cancer is established during childhood and younger years.
A single, blistering sunburn in childhood more than doubles somebody's chances of developing melanoma later in life.
For babies and toddlers, the best approach is to simply keep them out of the sun. If that is not possible, try to only put your child outdoors when the sun is less strong in the early morning or late afternoon.
Children and young people should use a waterproof sunscreen with sun protection factors of at least 30 that giving protection from both UVA and UVB rays. If outside in the sun, they should wear a T-shirt, a sun hat, and quality sunglasses with UV protection.
It is important to teach children from an early age about good sun protection behaviour. Help them to do that by clicking on the 'Play and learn with Jo Spots' book or downloading the printable games below.


Only a few years ago an organization could build a Facebook following, post information, and their Fans would see every update. As the saying goes, "all good things must come to an end" and as we all know, that happened with Facebook and it's much talk about algorithm. Organizations can no longer execute their digital marketing plan without an advertising strategy. Here are three ads every DMO or tourism organization should we utilizing.
Usually called a Followers or a Likes Ad. This one is simple to create and pretty cheap to maintain (as low as a $1/day!). We call this an "always on" ad, because it should be always on and running in the background of your ad strategy that changes based on priorities. With such a low buy-in, every DMO should utilize an Audience Builder Ad. These can be changed up seasonally or left to run as long as your CPR (Facebook calls this, cost per result) or ROI (what us normal folks use) stays within an acceptable range.
Facebook Event Ads can help spread the word about your event, increase ticket sales, and boost attendance. You can target your fans, as well as others who might be interested in your event. And if you really want to get fancy (and by fancy, we mean effective), you can 'retarget' your Event Ad to people who have interacted with or expressed interest in your event. Time to get those attendees confirmed!
Learn more about Event Ads here.
When people thing of Facebook Ads they usually think of a Boost, but as we've shared, it's much more than that. Boosts can be an easy way for an organization or event to get their feet wet in the Digital Advertising game, but it's only the beginning. Boosts are used to get more eyes (or awareness) on a post on your Page. Decide a few important posts each month that you REALLY want your audience to see and plan a Boost for these. Your budget for these can be as low as a few dollars, but we recommend you save any BIG budgets for actual Ads you create through Facebook's Ads Manager. Trust us!
These three ads are a great foundation for any Organization's Ad Strategy. Now, go forth and advertise! Or you can just call us!


The last major conference on infrared astronomy was the IAU Symposium No. 96 in June 1980. Since then, the discipline has continued to mature and to contribute to all branches of astrophysics. One particular area of growth has been in spectroscopic capabilities at all infrared wavelengths. The purpose of the Symposium in Toledo was to review the scientific questions to be addressed via infrared spectroscopy and to provide, in the proceedings, a useful summary of the field. The sensitivity of infrared spectroscopic observations is still generally limited by detector characteristics or by thermal background radiation. However in recent years improvements in detector technology together with developments in spectroscopic instrumentation have made possible both quite detailed spectroscopy of the brighter members of many classes of galactic sources and also begun to open up some infrared spectroscopy of extragalactic sources. The potential of the field in the next decade or two is clear. The lRAS mission has completed one of the pre-requisites, namely an all-sky photometric survey. Major space missions utilising cryogenic infrared telescopes have been approved in Europe (ISO) and seem likely in the USA (SIRTF); plans for space submillimeter telescopes are firming up. On the ground large telescopes optimized for infrared observations are now in operation at high altitude sites and specialized submillimeter facilities are under construction. The particular advantages of planned, very large telescopes for infrared observations are widely accepted.


text:
We Failed This Film: Scott Cooper's 'Out of the Furnace'
By Dylan Moses Griffin on September 18, 2015
We Failed This Film is a series about various films that simply didn't get the love that they deserved upon initial release. For the eight entry, we'll be revisiting Scott Cooper's 2013 film Out of the Furnace in honor of his latest film, Black Mass, opening today.
How We Failed It
Today, director Scott Cooper's latest film, Black Mass, will be released. It's a chronicle of Boston gangster Whitey Bulger and his corrupt alliance with the FBI, and based on the positive reception it received at its Toronto International Film Festival debut, it feels safe to say that the film will have a good chance to succeed at the box office. It also feels safe to say that Scott Cooper will go three for three in delivering quality films throughout his young career. His previous film, Out of the Furnace, did not have the same chance to succeed and received little critical support.
Having been rewritten based on the original script by Brad Ingelsby, Cooper's Out of the Furnace follows Russell Baze (Christian Bale), a blue collar worker at a local steel mill in Braddock, Pennsylvania. His younger brother Rodney (Casey Affleck) owes some money to local crimelord John Petty (Willem Dafoe) and Russell is doing his best to help out with his meager paycheck. He has a loving girlfriend in Lena (Zoe Saldana), and they contemplate having a kid. One night, as Russell drives home drunk after getting blown off by Rodney for a beer, he gets in a tragic car accident that takes a life. When he gets out of prison five years later, Lena has moved on with Chief Barnes (Forest Whitaker), his sick father has passed and his brother is immensely scarred from his four tours in Iraq. Rodney is now competing in bare-knuckle fights to pay off his gambling debts and goes missing after scheduling a brawl for Appalachian crime kingpin Harlan DeGroat (Woody Harrelson). The law is stalled by jurisdictional troubles, so he takes it into his own hands to track down DeGroat and exact revenge.
Out of the Furnace had a modest $22 million budget, but the film only scored $5.2 million in its opening weekend showing in 2,101 theaters. It dropped out of public view fairly quickly after the disappointing open, and by its third weekend, Cooper's film was only playing in 728 theaters. It's domestic gross would top out at only $11 million, and foreign markets could only lift the worldwide total to $15 million. Out of the Furnace was a flop. Films like this (Hollywood funded but made with an auteur and independent drive) were already rare, and the flop didn't help overturn the existing beliefs of major studios. Some of this can be attributed to the fact that the film was released while both Frozen and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire were swallowing up most of the available audiences during early December. The potential adult demographics for Out of the Furnace were stuck taking their kids to see Frozen.
Partly responsible for the failure was how the film was marketed. If you watch the trailer and then watch the film, you're getting two strikingly different pieces of work. The Out of the Furnace trailer leans heavily on the revenge aspect, but when you watch the film as whole, that plotline doesn't even begin until halfway through. Most of the time, when a film is much more than the trailer lets on, that's a good thing. The car crash that sends Russell to prison is a complete surprise — an effective one at that — and works to further round out the character and the sharp decline of his personal life. Still, the surprise seemed to rub audiences and critics the wrong way. There's an understandable frustration in being misled by a trailer, but this time it should have been seen as a plus rather than a minus.
Critics reacted venomously to Out of the Furnace, which contributed greatly to its quick burial. Many were caught up in their comparisons to Michael Cimino's The Deer Hunter, as Wesley Morris wrote "He (Scott Cooper) either quotes from or directly echoes other movies —The Deer Hunter, Heat. What is he trying to get at? Where is he trying to go?" Morris also noted that "You never believe that Cooper knows what the gorgeous shots of puffing smokestacks and empty mills mean, other than to signify blue-collar grit. You never believe he went beyond asking men like Bale, Affleck, and Harrelson, who acquit themselves ferociously, to represent male totems and movie clichés."
Matt Zoller Seitz ripped into the film, writing "Had Out of the Furnace been willing to fully embrace its coincidences, overheated emotions and allegorical touches, it could have been one of the great Guy Movies of all time, a bro tragedy on the level of The Indian Runner, A Perfect Storm and, yes, The Deer Hunter (a film that wouldn't be name-checked repeatedly in this review if Out of the Furnace didn't strive to remind you of it, at one point brazenly lifting a key sequence involving a rifle, a deer and a moment of hesitation)."
There were a few who saw past The Deer Hunter comparisons though, with Scott Foundas writing "Perhaps because he was originally an actor himself (Gods and Generals, Get Low), Cooper seems to make actors feel safe and willing to expose themselves in ways they ordinarily might not, and time and again he takes scenes to places of unexpected emotional power…… But unlike many actor-directors, Cooper is an equally skilled visual storyteller, staging a SWAT team raid on DeGroat's compound with an editorial sleight-of-hand borrowed from The Silence of the Lambs and always fostering a vivid sense of a place cut off from time and the world."
Mark Kermode was a bit more understanding and gave a nuanced analysis on the cinematic meaning of The Deer Hunter callbacks, writing "Although the film opens in 2008, everything about Out of the Furnace harks back to the previous century, specifically to the American cinema of the 70s, which looms over the piece like a cloud of industrial smog. Cooper cites Altman, Cassavetes and Malick as key inspirations, but clearly it's The Deer Hunter that casts the longest shadow – the bleak steel-town setting, the interpersonal tensions between taciturn men, the battle-scarred veteran now lost in the world of a deadly sport (Appalachian scrapping rather than Russian roulette). There's even a hunting sequence in which Christian Bale sights, lines up and then merely admires a stately beast, not so much a nod as a kneel to Michael Cimino's template… Meanwhile cinematographer Masanobu Takayanagi shoots 'entirely and proudly' on 35mm Kodak film, enriching the retro feel with a handsome widescreen image that oozes aching nostalgia. The war may have changed from Vietnam to Iraq but the manly battles remain the same."
The Deer Hunter nods are proudly there and Out of the Furnace does have more than one thing in common with Cimino's film — a character battling PTSD, a rural working class town, and even a scene where characters go deer hunting — but it's still a cinematic work that firmly stands on its own.
Why It's Great
Christian Bale gives one of his most understated performances as Russell Baze. Typically, his performances are what you could call "sweaty," as his commitment to the craft is always impressive, but in Out of the Furnace, his fierce investment is reserved. Bale adopts a convincing regional Pittsburgh accent, but he doesn't do much talking. Of course, he doesn't have to either, since one learns plenty about him from the subtle and lived-in expressions. There's a weariness to how Bale carries himself in this film, as Russell is a man fully aware of his entrapment by the town's economical conditions, and to a certain degree, he is content. But still, life seems to kick him further down whether he deserves it or not. This sort of spiritual wear and tear is manifested in each scene through Bale.
Zoe Saldana takes a thankless sort of role as Lena and elevates it with heart-wrenching honesty. There's a scene where Russell goes to see her after his incarceration and they talk on a bridge. He communicates that he wants to work out a relationship even though she's with Chief Barnes. Lena reveals that she's pregnant with Barnes' baby, and that she can't be with Russell, who fights through tears to convey his happiness for Lena (and she begins crying too). Describing the scene makes it seem like a checklist of stereotypes and familiar story beats, but the moment is constructed and performed with such aching honesty by Bale and Saldana. It's generically written yet utterly authentic and devastating; Bale and Saldana bring truth to the emotional history of their characters.
Casey Affleck is heartbreaking to watch as Rodney succumbs to the tragic effects of PTSD. His eyes are wells of agony that continue to swell up as he goes on, and there's a youthful innocence that naturally exists in Affleck, which succinctly complements his character. The fury that boils inside of Rodney is convincing through Affleck's deteriorated spirit, while the chemistry between he and co-star Bale is incredibly believable. The brothers have been beaten down by the current state of America, but only Russell has accepted that there's nothing he can do aside from being content.
Right from the opening scene, Woody Harrelson's Harlan DeGroat immediately stands out as a real threat. Upon a senseless beating at a drive-in theater, it's clear that this guy is dangerous, and Harrelson rides the terrifying momentum through the rest of the film. He's threatening even with a lollipop in his mouth. Every line of dialogue from Harrelson is coated with menace, and before any direct involvement with Rodney and Harlan takes place, Russell runs into the menacing figure at John Petty's bar, but he doesn't realize who the man is upon disrupting a meeting. Before leaving, Harlan argues with Russell and notes that "I got a problem with everybody." Right then, Harrelson takes the simplest line and drives it home. The man has tattoos on his hands that read "Fuck" and "You" — a nice little nod to The Night of the Hunter. It's Harrelson at his most menacing in a truly iconic and unforgettable villain performance.
Cooper assembles an incredibly impressive ensemble cast, all of whom deliver memorable performances no matter how small the role. Willem Dafoe toes an authentic line between sleaze and sympathy as John Petty, the face of local organized crime in Braddock. Forest Whitaker takes a thankless role as Chief Barnes and injects authenticity and authority into it, and to be honest, all Sam Shepard has to do is show up to elevate any role. Talents like Tom Bower and Boyd Holbrook memorably fill out the supporting cast.
Out of the Furance is a grand thematic epic of American filmmaking. The presence of the economic collapse is felt at every turn as every building is decayed to a certain degree. Each character is feeling the effects. When Harlan meets Rodney, he asks him why he wants to fight. Rodney simply replies that he needs the money. Harlan responds with "Hmm…yeah. We all need money." In one early scene, a background TV shows Senator Ted Kennedy giving a speech at an Obama rally, and it's no coincidence that when Russell comes back from jail, he tries to repaint and repair the structure of his father's dilapidated house. It's an effort to improve a life that has already been destroyed and cannot be repaired. Everything around Russell serves as a reminder that he cannot overcome this life, economic disparity hanging on each frame like a ghost. The shots of this rural setting are striking and say much about the crumbling economic state of rust-belt America. During the climax, Russell pursues Harlan through the abandoned steel mill, as Cooper and cinematographer Masanobu Takayanagi fittingly frame the setting like a thematic graveyard, the steel structures standing as tombstones of the working class.
Cooper developed a knack for real-world authenticity in Crazy Heart — his directorial debut — and amplifies it further in Out of the Furnace by creating a much bigger and grander film. This time, he's playing with economic themes both macro and micro, and he conveys that through the strong character work in the script. The film spends the first hour developing the characters' circumstances to better understand why Russell would be driven to revenge. It shows how he incrementally loses his world, and as a result, the act of revenge almost doubles as an act of release against all his frustrations.
Out of the Furnace is about fate, family and consequence, and the final shot encapsulates this concept. Russell sits alone in his house, contemplating what has just happened as "Release" by Pearl Jam starts playing…then fade to black. The sound of Eddie Vedder's wailing of the lyrics has never felt more appropriate with a film and a character. Out of the Furnace could have easily ended on an admirable and thematic note with Bale having completed the revenge, however the extension takes it an ambitious step further. With Bale's presence in the final shot, it's hard to tell if there is solace, grief or just more weariness in Russell. With Bale's stoic posture, he plays it as a possible combination of all three.
Out of the Furnace feels appropriate for a Criterion release, but ultimately, the best thing for one to make reparations would be to purchase a ticket for Black Mass. I haven't seen the film at the time of this article's submission, but it's easy to see that Scott Cooper has earned my respect. The hope is that Black Mass will do well, and those who like the film will feel compelled to go back and watch Out of the Furnace and Crazy Heart. If Cooper's latest film does succeed, it will hopefully enable him to direct more films like Out of the Furnace, as studio-funded American character thrillers were once prevalent in the 1970s, but they are all too rare in the present.
Dylan Moses Griffin has been a cinephile for as long as he can remember. His favorite film is Taxi Driver, and he reads the works of Roger Ebert like it's scripture. If you want, he will talk to you for 30 minutes about the chronologically weird/amazing Fast and Furious franchise.
Categories: 2015 Film Essays, Film Essays, We Failed This Film by Dylan Moses Griffin
Tagged as: Black Mass, Boyd Holbrook, Casey Affleck, Christian Bale, Crazy Heart, Forest Whitaker, Masanobu Takayanagi, Out of the Furnace, Sam Shepard, Scott Cooper, Tom Bower, We Failed This Film by Dylan Moses Griffin, Willem Dafoe, Woody Harrelson, Zoe Saldana
Of Love and Other Demons: 'Bullhead' (Michaël R. Roskam, 2011)
Review: Baltasar Kormákur's 'Everest'


This paper reports the first laboratory study of the swing voter's curse and provides insights on the larger theoretical and empirical literature on "pivotal voter" models. Our experiment controls for different information levels of voters, as well as the size of the electorate, the distribution of preferences, and other theoretically relevant parameters. The design varies the share of partisan voters and the prior belief about a payoff relevant state of the world. Our results support the equilibrium predictions of the Feddersen-Pesendorfer model. The voters act as if they are aware of the swing voter's curse and adjust their behavior to compensate. While the compensation is not complete and there is some heterogeneity in individual behavior, we find that aggregate outcomes, such as efficiency, turnout, and margin of victory, closely track the theoretical predictions.


text:
https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Unlikely-allies-lawmakers-take-aim-at-payday-1691222.php
Unlikely allies, lawmakers take aim at payday loans
Payday loans in the cross hairs
With support from a coalition of unlikely allies, lawmakers believe time may be right for a clampdown
PATRICIA KILDAY HART
, AUSTIN BUREAU
Published 5:30 am CDT, Monday, May 2, 2011
The Rev. Chad R. Chaddick, pastor of San Antonio's Northeast Baptist Church, considers it part of his mission to help families with financial setbacks, but he also insists that people with recurring problems meet with a church deacon for gentle advice about sticking to a budget.
Just before Christmas last year, one of his deacons was helping a family sort through bills when he made an alarming discovery: The family had been making $200 payments to roll over a payday loan — every two weeks for four months - without making a dent in the principal. They had shelled out $1,800, but still owed the original $700. Now, they were in danger of losing their home.
"The deacon came to me and said, 'Is this even legal?' No wonder they were about to lose their house," Chaddick recalled. Under the terms of the loan, "they can't make a partial payment, so they just roll it over. They're never going to get the full amount."
Particularly galling to Chaddick was the realization that money set aside by churches for the poor was "indirectly going to payday lenders," he said. "This has been very eye-opening."
The discovery prompted Chaddick to join a coalition of unlikely allies - faith-based organizations, charities such as Goodwill, liberal advocacy groups and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle - committed to reining in the state's 3,000 payday and auto title lenders, who offer short-term loans with expensive penalties if they are not repaid in full.
The coalition's efforts have stalled a $3.8 million lobbying effort by the industry and persuaded a key lawmaker to insist on mediation between industry and consumer groups to negotiate what has become a perennial and nasty fight at the Texas Legislature.
This week, State Rep. Vicki Truitt, R-Keller, will ask the Texas House to approve a package of three bills written as part of the extraordinary compromise efforts.
Truitt, who chairs the Texas House committee overseeing the issue, summoned mediators from the University of Texas School of Law to craft legislation that would induce lobbyists to drop their opposition.
"The status quo is not acceptable," Truitt said. "I called the industry people together and told them, if you have to have regulation, this is the Legislature to do it in," referring to the overwhelmingly conservative membership. "With the makeup of the House, now's a good time. And I am taking control."
Reluctant in the past
The 40 hours of mediation between industry and consumer representatives resulted in three bills that Truitt believes will end the worst practices in the industry. Just as importantly, she said, the bills have a shot at passage in a Legislature that has been reluctant to take a stand in previous sessions.
Truitt's bills would force lenders to limit loans to a percentage of a person's annual income, and allow only four "roll-overs" of a loan. After that, the lender would be required to put a borrower on a payout plan without additional fees. Her legislation also would require the industry to report on its operations, which will allow for better government oversight in the future, advocates say.
One powerful advocate for regulating the lenders is former House Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland.
Normally suspicious of government regulation, a few years ago, Craddick heard the heartrending tale of a Midland housekeeper who took out a payday loan for a family funeral and fell into a quagmire of debt. Each time she failed to pay her debt in full, it was rolled over into a new loan - with costly fees added each time. In seven months, what started as a $5,000 debt grew to more than $10,000.
The incident outraged Craddick, who tried and failed last session to pass a bill regulating the industry. He does not believe Truitt's bills go far enough.
Operating as "consumer service organizations," payday and auto title lenders escape regulations on interest rates by charging exorbitant fees. Until that loophole is closed, Craddick said the industry will continue to make 61 percent of its national profits in Texas, the only state with no regulation.
He also has a personal reason for not trusting industry representatives. After he filed his bill last session, he got an offer from the industry: "If I withdrew the bill, they would fly down and pay off that (the housekeeper's) loan," Craddick recalled. When the bill failed, Craddick redoubled his commitment.
"It's awful," Craddick told a House committee early in the legislative session. Church money given to the poor ends up in the hands of a payday lender when it "could have been used to buy groceries for a family or a toy for a child at Christmas."
At a recent legislative committee hearing, Frederick Haynes, pastor of Dallas' Friendship-West Baptist Church, told the committee he believes the industry deliberately chooses poor neighborhoods for its storefront operations.
"There are 20 of them within a five-mile radius" of his church, Haynes said. "What does that portend for the economic development of that community?"
Goodwill Industries shared several stories of employees who became deeply in debt to payday lenders, but asked that their names not be used.
A woman identified only as "Susan" recounted how she took out a $300 loan for medication, and shortly afterward lost her job. "On this $300 loan, I kept renewing it and paid fees in excess of $750 over 20 weeks," she said. She gave up and defaulted. "I am not one to walk away from an obligation, but I paid for my loan two and a half times over," she said. "They more than got their money. They prey on innocent people and set them up for financial failure and embarrassment."
A San Antonio couple, who own an ice cream truck, became desperate for immediate cash when it needed a new transmission. They took out a $1,500 loan that was supposed to be paid back in 30 days with interest, for a total of $1,962.75.
According to a letter their adult child wrote to State Rep. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, when the couple couldn't come up with the entire amount, they "could re- finance but would have to pay an additional $200 to keep the loan open. Every month, they would have to re-finance and the balance would NEVER get smaller. Fortunately, they were able to pay on the 5th month in full to have their title returned to them. They would have lost the title to their only vehicle they use for transportation."
Pleading with Gutierrez to support regulating the industry, the letter concluded, "It is not right that the fees are renewed each month and that you can keep paying and paying and never pay down the principal."
Defend the practice
Industry representatives defend their loans as necessary and helpful to consumers who are turned down for credit by banks and credit unions. With 7,800 employees, they say, it is obvious their businesses offer something consumers want.
Julie Hillrichs, a spokeswoman for a payday loan association called the Consumer Service Alliance of Texas, said the horror stories presented during legislative committees are not representative of the industry.
"Something like 95 to 98 percent of all borrowers in Texas pay back their loans," Hillrichs said. The cases involving exorbitant fees, she said, "are a small number."
During a committee hearing, Truitt asked an industry spokesman how he felt about the "cycle of debt" that many payday loan customers are trapped in.
"It's an important issue and deserves discussion," said Rob Norcross, a CSAT lobbyist. "One of the things that industry struggles with is how to identify people who get into trouble with the cycle of debt," he said, adding, "it is not reflective of the vast majority of transactions that happen every day."
Norcross also said the industry has grown as traditional banks have "adjusted their lending patterns" in the past decade. He told lawmakers that, contrary to stereotypes, 56 percent of payday loan borrowers have some college education and 44 percent own their homes.
State Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, said he is sponsoring Truitt's bills in the Senate. Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, is advocating stricter legislation, but Corona said he considers Truitt's legislation an important first step.
"Nobody said these bills are perfect, but they absolutely are better," he said. "It is a modest first step toward regulating this industry."
patti.hart@chron.com


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Junction Coalition
One City with Coordinated Action
Right-to-Know Request Documents Provide Answers
Posted on February 10, 2020 by Junction Coalition Special Reports 0
And Some Answers Raise More Questions
Since 2018, residents of Four Mile Run (The Run) have filed several Right To Know requests with the City of Pittsburgh regarding the proposed Mon-Oakland Connector (MOC) project. City government eventually gave residents documents that were inadequate in fulfilling the RTK requests. Missing information includes up-to-date engineering documents and large portions of City departments' correspondence with all private partners in the project. In the city's response to the requests, they stated that they are not required to share any information, but would do so selectively. Furthermore, they added, "We are prohibited from forwarding records that reflect the attorney-client privilege or the attorney work product privilege."
But a section of the PA office of Open Records Right–to-Know Law states:
Section 708 of the RTKL places the burden of proof on the public body to demonstrate that a record is exempt. In pertinent part, Section 708(a) states: "The burden of proving that a record of a Commonwealth agency or local agency is exempt from public access shall be on the Commonwealth agency or local agency receiving a request by a preponderance of the evidence." Preponderance of the evidence has been defined as "such proof as leads the fact-finder … to find that the existence of a contested fact is more probable than its nonexistence."
The City's position raises the question: Who is the attorney and who is the client in this case? This is the very same claim that city government made while conducting its infamous secret Amazon deal. The details of that plan, now available after Amazon turned down the bid, reveal the reasons for the secrecy. Pittsburgh promised the world's richest man one of the most generous corporate welfare giveaways of land and taxpayer money of any city in the U.S. Those promises included the MOC.
At the suggestion of the City of Pittsburgh, residents also filed RTK requests with the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority (PWSA), the agency tasked with constructing the Four Mile Run Watershed Plan. The scope of this crucial and technically challenging project was to include fixing The Run's worsening chronic flooding. But the City is forcing the merger of the MOC with PWSA's plan. PWSA failed to respond to a resident appeal and the Office of Open Records in Harrisburg ordered PWSA to hand over all documents requested. Those documents contained crucial information including:
Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI) Director Karina Ricks stating that the MOC is not a sufficient transportation solution and that other routes would have to be added. (The same alternative routes that residents proposed instead of the present route that would permanently degrade two communities and Schenley Park).
A March 2019 engineering document that shows the permanent loss of approximately 7 acres of tree canopy if the MOC is constructed.
Don Smith of RIDC saying, "Let's get an imperfect connector road there now and more perfect long-term solution implemented later."
A Heinz Endowments representative saying "the connector road to Oakland is incredibly important. Developers have indicated their interest in the Almono site is contingent on the road being constructed." (In other words, the roadway is a sign-on condition for potential HG developers/tenants, rather than a necessity that serves the affected communities.)
Regarding the watershed project's aim to fix The Run's annual severe flooding problems, Alex Sciulli of PWSA states that "more cost-effective options may be to change the floodplain and purchase the affected properties." (City officials have repeatedly stated they have no plans to attempt to acquire resident properties.)
Mayor Chief of Staff Dan Gillman referring to the project as a "clusterf@$k."
A portion of Mayor's office meeting document listing who attended and Mayor Chief of Staff Dan Gillman's remarks about the MOC project.
There is more evidence of non-transparency and duplicity by city government regarding the MOC project. Throughout the process, residents have demanded they be informed of what DOMI was planning and when DOMI would be filing grant proposals or other requests for funding. DOMI has refused to do so. They applied for a 1 million dollar grant for the MOC through the Southwestern PA Commission in 2018—while DOMI was holding a series of public meetings about the project. The money was approved, but DOMI failed to notify residents beforehand and afterward. Only dogged research and policing of the project by opponents flushed out the information.
Residents more recently received another document: a 2018 request from DOMI to the City Budget office for funding. That document is mostly blank, but DOMI was nonetheless given 9 million dollars of taxpayer money. One section of the document DOMI did fill out was the section reading: Please identify the source of external funding and how the project adheres to the funding source's rules and regulations. "Demonstrated support of the public" was a question within that section. DOMI's response: Depends on which community!
A section of the City Budget form shows DOMI's response to whether the project has community support.
What else are city officials hiding and why? Why are they so determined to bulldoze through two vibrant neighborhoods and Schenley Park when they admit their proposed shuttle road is not a transportation solution and does not serve the affected communities? University expansion through a slow-motion land grab could be the answer.
Opponents of the MOC recognize this issue as much bigger than any individual neighborhood. Our growing coalition of residents, park protectors, neighborhood organizations and other concerned citizens is committed to protecting Pittsburgh's communities from erasure.
(This article was previously published on February 1, 2020 in the Hazelwood Homepage)
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The second home in a collection of six iconic custom opportunities at Country Farm in Windsor's Pelican Farms presented by Robbins Contracting. Ranch-style home featuring modern farmhouse touches, paired with luxurious finishes and amenities. The spacious main level living features a completely open floor plan, an exquisite kitchen, three bedrooms and three bathrooms. In addition, you will find a 1,000+ square foot RV garage and a wraparound farmhouse porch. Enjoy the amenities of the optional Water Valley/Raindance membership, soon to be connected by golf cart paths.