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16 March 2021 Labour Markets Authors: Michael Mueller-Smith (University of Michigan), Kevin Schnepel (Simon Fraser University and University of Sydney)
Second chance: the social benefits of diversion in the criminal justice system
Public officials have made substantial efforts over the past decade to reform criminal justice policy. The general trend in the US has been towards more leniency, especially for first-time and low-risk defendants, with 'diversion' emerging as a popular option.
Diversion is a practice where a police officer, prosecutor, or judge provides an opportunity for an individual charged with a criminal offense to avoid a conviction either through a dismissal of the charge or by some alternative measure. Despite the growing popularity of such programs, until now not much has been known about the impact of diversion on future behavior.
A recent study estimates the causal impacts of a diversion program offered to most first-time felony defendants in Harris County, Texas (which covers the Houston area). This program – known locally as 'deferred adjudication' – allows individuals to remain free of a felony conviction if they can successfully complete a period of community supervision. This diversion option is similar to many other programs administered by prosecutors and judges across the US, Europe and elsewhere.
The researchers find that providing these individuals with an opportunity to avoid a felony conviction cuts their reoffending rates in half while also boosting their quarterly employment rates by nearly 50% over a 10-year follow-up period. Those at the highest risk of reoffending – young black men with prior arrests – gain the most from diversion.
What explains these improved outcomes? Investigation of potential mechanisms strongly suggests that avoiding the stigma associated with a felony conviction plays a key role in improving labor market outcomes and reducing offending.
Stigma as a key driver is supported by several findings. First, diversion leads to work in industries that are less accessible to applicants with felony conviction records. Second, there are not similar improvements among diverted individuals who already have a felony conviction.
What's more, both those diverted and those convicted typically face similar community supervision requirements and do not experience significant differences in time spent incarcerated. Therefore, the benefits of diversion do not appear to be heavily influenced by the inability to work or reoffend due to imprisonment.
Deferred adjudication in Texas represents the largest diversion program in the US with over 200,000 participants in 2017 (the most recent year with state-wide caseload data available). Based on these findings, this program may serve as a good model for other jurisdictions considering an expansion of diversion options for low-risk or first-time criminal offenders.
A criminal conviction can severely limit an individual's future opportunities, especially in the US where the majority of employers conduct criminal background checks. This column reports a recent study that measures the causal impact of a 'diversion' program that delivers the same punishment – typically remaining in the community under the supervision of a probation officer – but provides people with an opportunity to avoid a conviction. The researchers find substantial reductions in future criminal offending as well as improvements in labor market outcomes. Their results suggest that expanding diversion programs could lead to higher rates of rehabilitation and greater benefits for society.
Public officials are increasingly diverting people from the criminal justice system, usually to help them to avoid a criminal record and its associated consequences. The practice has become an important part of recent efforts to reform criminal justice policy, and it often enables corrections systems to conserve scarce resources. Despite the growing popularity of criminal justice diversion interventions around the world, little is known about their impacts on future behavior.
Potential effects of a second chance
The opportunity of a 'second chance' by avoiding a criminal conviction can affect future behavior in a variety of ways. On one hand, it increases job prospects, since a criminal conviction can severely limit employment opportunities, especially in places where criminal background checks are used to screen applicants (Pager, 2003; Raphael, 2014). A recent US study finds that job applicants with felony conviction records are 63% less likely to receive a callback for an interview compared with people who don't have a record (Agan and Starr, 2017).
More work also means less crime; a large body of empirical research consistently finds decreases in crime following increases in employment opportunities (see Chalfin and McCrary, 2017, for a review).
Providing people with a 'second chance' to avoid the consequences of a conviction is widespread in many criminal justice systems
On the other hand, diversion represents a lesser punishment, which could increase future offending. Recent work finds evidence of this effect, known as 'specific deterrence', for individuals arrested for drunk driving (Hansen, 2015). Those receiving a less severe punishment may be more likely to reoffend. Moreover, we may also expect higher levels of first-time offending as individuals learn about a more lenient punishment regime through a 'general deterrence' mechanism (Becker, 1968).
Deferred adjudication
In our recent study (Mueller-Smith and Schnepel, 2020), we use detailed administrative data from Harris County, Texas (which covers the Houston area), to evaluate the causal impact of a diversion program available to a large fraction of felony defendants in the state.
This program – known locally as 'deferred adjudication' – allows individuals to remain free of a felony conviction if they can successfully complete a period of community supervision. This diversion option is similar to many other programs administered by prosecutors and judges across the US, Europe and elsewhere.
We find that diversion leads to a dramatic reduction in reoffending. The total number of future convictions falls by 75% over a 10-year follow-up period for our sample of deferred defendants compared with those who receive a felony conviction. Our results also suggest large improvements in labor market outcomes, including a 50% increase in formal employment rates.
A diversion program in Texas – 'deferred adjudication' – allows individuals facing their first felony conviction to avoid the stigma
Measuring the impact of diversion
To measure the causal impacts of diversion, we use two sudden shifts in the use of diversion options that each approximate an experiment where the 'treatment' is randomly assigned to eligible felony defendants. Figure 1 illustrates these changes by displaying the fraction of the first-time felony defendant caseload diverted away from a felony conviction during each week for two years before and after the changes in policy.
Figure 1: Share of cases with dismissals or deferred adjudication of guilt
The sharp decline in diversion (or increase in convictions) during September 1994 depicted in the left-hand chart followed a revision to the criminal code in Texas that drastically reduced the use of diversion among judges and prosecutors. We plot outcomes by the date charges are filed for this experiment since the reform applied to all offenses committed on or after 1 September 1994. The result of this policy change was a 24 percentage-point decline in the fraction of cases diverted for charges filed after 1 September 1994 compared with the period just before the effective date of the policy change.
The right-hand chart in Figure 1 demonstrates a large shift in the opposite direction in 2007. This increase in the use of diversion for first-time felony defendants arose from the narrow failure of a jail expansion ballot initiative in Harris County on 6 November 2007. The following week, diversion among first-time felony defendants increased from less than 50% of the caseload to roughly 65%. This shift is driven by a change in judicial decisions so we plot outcomes based on case disposition dates for this 2007 experiment.
The diversion program leads to dramatic reductions in reoffending, plus lasting improvements in employment and earnings
On either side of these dramatic shifts, we do not find meaningful differences in the observable characteristics of defendants. In other words, defendants appearing in court in August 1994 were indistinguishable from those appearing in September 1994 with regard to their gender, age, race/ethnicity, or prior criminal histories. These patterns provide strong support for our assumption that individuals arrested before or after the policy change would be likewise indistinguishable in unobservable characteristics.
This key assumption enables a 'regression discontinuity' empirical methodology to evaluate the causal effects of diversion in this setting. This methodology approximates a randomized control experiment for defendants appearing in court around these thresholds. Since the change in the probability of treatment (diversion) is unrelated to other factors that influence outcomes, we can interpret changes in outcomes as being caused by the change in the probability of diversion.
Reoffending effects
Figure 2 depicts the changes in reoffending associated with the dramatic changes in the use of diversion. When the probability of diversion drops in September 1994, we observe a very large increase in future criminal offending among those appearing in court after the reform.
Here, we measure future offending by counting the number of convictions of any type over a 10-year period. When the probability of diversion jumps up following the failed jail expansion ballot initiative in November 2007, we see a sharp decrease in future criminal offending for defendants exposed to the higher probability of diversion.
Figure 2: Reoffending among first-time felony defendants
The changes in reoffending depicted in Figure 2 represent the overall effect of the policy change on first-time felony defendants in Harris County. Of most interest to us is the causal impact of diversion at the individual level. We estimate such an effect using what is known as a 'fuzzy regression discontinuity' empirical specification.
This method allows us to measure the effect of treatment (diversion) for the defendants who are affected by the policy change. In other words, we measure the treatment effect for defendants who would not be diverted if appearing in October 2007, but who would be diverted in November 2007 after the increase in leniency following the failed jail expansion ballot initiative.
Through this method, we find 1.6 and 1.7 fewer future convictions over a 10-year follow-up period associated with diversion for individuals appearing in court around the 1994 and 2007 shifts, respectively. These impacts represent declines in future convictions of around 75% from levels of offending we would expect to see in the absence of diversion.
Those at the highest risk of recidivism – young black men with one or more misdemeanor convictions – gain the most from diversion
While less precise, we also find evidence that diversion leads to improvements in employment outcomes. For the group affected by the 1994 penal code reform, we estimate an increase in average quarterly employment by 18 percentage points, or approximately 50% relative to the rate of employment expected for this group without the diversion treatment over the 10-year follow-up period. We also find an employment effect that is very similar in magnitude but not statistically significant for those diverted after the failed ballot initiative in 2007.
The importance of these employment impacts is illustrated in Figure 3, which presents the cumulative effect of diversion on years of employment over a 20-year follow-up period for those diverted around the 1994 policy change.
Diversion results in more than four full years of employment in the 20 years following treatment. This is an enormous impact and suggests that diversion can permanently place an individual on a different trajectory in terms of formal employment and earnings. Our analysis evaluating the impact on other labor market outcomes suggests that diversion enables individuals to find better and more stable jobs.
Figure 3: Estimated effect of diversion on cumulative years of formal employment for first-time felony defendants around the 1994 policy change
Those who are at the highest risk of recidivism – young black men with one or more misdemeanor convictions – gain the most from diversion. This is a group often discussed as over-policed in the US. Our results indicate that intervening for this disadvantaged population at a critical moment (when they are being charged with their first felony offense) could significantly improve their life course.
The key role of avoiding stigma
Given these profound benefits associated with diversion, it is important to understand the likely explanations for improved outcomes. Our investigation of mechanisms strongly suggests that avoiding the stigma associated with a felony conviction plays a key role in improving labor market outcomes and reducing offending.
Stigma as a key driver is supported by several findings. First, we find that diversion leads to work in industries that are less accessible to applicants with felony conviction records.
Second, we do not find similar improvements among diverted individuals who already have a felony conviction. Moreover, both those diverted and those convicted in our setting typically face similar community supervision requirements and do not experience significant differences in time spent incarcerated. Therefore, the benefits of diversion do not appear to be heavily influenced by the inability to work or reoffend due to imprisonment (known as an 'incapacitation' channel).
Avoiding the stigma associated with conviction is key to improving labor market outcomes and reducing offending
This finding of stigma as a focal mechanism contributes substantially to prior studies that discuss the impact of a prior conviction on reoffending and labor market outcomes. In particular, our estimates suggest that the negative impact of a conviction on employer callback rates, as found in the extensive audit-based research (Pager, 2003; Agan and Starr, 2017), extends to actual employment and earnings outcomes.
Given the trajectory towards more leniency in the US criminal justice system, our results suggest that increases in diversion options may lead to lower rates of reoffending and higher rates of rehabilitation in the coming years. But it is important to note that overall criminal activity could increase in response to softer punishment (Becker, 1968).
While we cannot test directly for these general deterrence effects, we do not expect these effects to outweigh the reductions in offending among those diverted based on many studies documenting a weak, if any, response to changes in expected punishments (see Chalfin and McCrary, 2017, for a review).
To the best of our knowledge, no prior research has found similarly large or lasting effects for such a low-cost intervention in the justice system. While much has been written about what does not work in criminal justice policy in the US, our study provides compelling evidence for a successful intervention that both improves defendant outcomes and saves public resources. Diversion can be implemented without significant investments or changes to current infrastructure, making it a potential solution for criminal justice reform in the US and around the world.
Deferred adjudication in Texas represents the largest diversion program in the US with over 200,000 participants in 2017 (the most recent year with state-wide caseload data available). Based on our findings, this program may serve as a good model for other jurisdictions considering an expansion of diversion options for low-risk or first-time criminal offenders.
Agan, A, and S Starr (2018) 'Ban the box, criminal records, and racial discrimination: A field experiment', Quarterly Journal of Economics 133(1): 191-235.
Becker, G (1968) 'Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach', Journal of Political Economy 169: 176-77.
Chalfin, A, and J McCrary (2017) 'Criminal deterrence: A review of the literature', Journal of Economic Literature 55(1): 5-48.
Chiricos, T., K Barrick, W Bales and S Bontrager (2007). "The labeling of convicted felons and its consequences for recidivism." Criminology 45 (3): 547-581.
Craigie, T, A Grawert and C Kimble (2020) 'Conviction, imprisonment, and lost earnings: How involvement with the criminal justice system deepens inequality', Brennan Center for Justice.
Denver, M, JT Pickett and SD Bushway (2018) 'Criminal records and employment: A survey of experiences and attitudes in the United States', Justice Quarterly 35: 584-613.
Hansen, B (2015) 'Punishment and deterrence: Evidence from drunk driving', American Economic Review 105(4): 1581-1617.
Mueller-Smith, M, and K Schnepel (2020) 'Diversion in the Criminal Justice System', Review of Economic Studies.
Pager, D (2003) 'The mark of a criminal record', American Journal of Sociology 108(5): 937-75.
Raphael, S (2014) The New Scarlet Letter? Negotiating the US Labor Market with a Criminal Record, WE Upjohn Institute.
What Goes Up May Not Come Down: Asymmetric Incidence of Value-Added Taxes
Geography, transportation, and endogenous trade costs
Photo by Africa Studio. Desaturated from original with colour filter.
14 August 2019 Labour Markets Authors: Michele Belot (European University Institute and University of Edinburgh), Philipp Kircher (European University Institute and University of Edinburgh), Paul Muller (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
Providing low-cost labor market information to assist jobseekers
Do jobseekers benefit from tailored advice about suitable occupations provided by employment agencies? This column reports the results of a randomized field experiment in which a group of unemployed people received suggestions for alternative occupations based on labor market statistics. The researchers find that the information stimulates the recipients to broaden their search to a more diverse set of occupations. What's more, they receive a significantly larger number of invitations to job interviews, which is concentrated among those with longer unemployment. These findings suggest that jobseekers find it difficult to access relevant labor market information themselves, and that they can be offered valuable tailored advice in a low-cost, automated way.
"Construction" by Alex Kislow, used under CC BY 2.0 / Desaturated from original, with colour filter.
5 January 2017 Labour Markets Authors: Luis Garicano (LSE), Claire LeLarge (Banque de France), John Van Reenen (MIT)
Why small isn't always beautiful: labor regulations and firm growth
Regulations often have unintended costs as well as intended benefits. France has a large number of labor market regulations that bind when a firm has 50 or more employees. These regulations are intended to help workers, but they also act as a tax on large firms. This discourages firms near the threshold from growing larger and producing more output. We calculate that these French labor regulations depress overall economic output by over 3%.


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Relive the top 10 RiA stories that gained the most interest in 2022
Source: Retail in Asia
Retail in Asia is taking a look back at some of our best-read news of 2022. The ten stories below, from the top 5 e-commerce marketplaces in Singapore and Malaysia, 6 niche Korean perfume brands to know in 2022, to Southeast Asia's biggest consumer trends — these are the articles our readers spent the most time with in the past year.
The following list represents merely a small sample of the work produced by Retail in Asia, measured by collective minutes of audience engagement. For more of all of it, be sure to subscribe for our bi-weekly newsletter here.
Top Korean celebrities who became luxury brand ambassadors in 2021
Hallyu, or "Korean wave", refers to the increasing popularity of South Korean culture in the world. The success of Squid Game is just the most recent example of this trend that started in the 1990s and accelerated in the last couple of years. To align with this global trend, luxury brands tap into the influence of Korean celebrities and are seeking out more collaborations with Korean celebrities as global ambassadors… Read more
6 niche Korean perfume brands to keep an eye on
Interest in niche perfumes is also shown through YouTube beauty content, which is often at the forefront of the latest beauty trends. According to the '2022 Beauty Trend Report', issued by beauty influencer business group, Leferi, curiosity in niche perfumes, which started in the latter half of 2020, peaked in 2021… Read more
Apple reportedly opening first Malaysia store in 2022
U.S. tech giant Apple is reportedly set to open its first Malaysia store next year, eyeing the nation's capital Kuala Lumpur for its first store location… Read more
Will Hong Kong retail ever catch a break?
The current dramatic increase in Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong has prompted the government to impose numerous social distancing restrictions impacting certain sectors directly, most notably the travel, hospitality and F&B sectors. The other sector that has been constantly hit by the numerous winds of change in Hong Kong since the 2019 protests is the retail sector… Read more
Southeast Asia's biggest consumer trends to know going into 2022
The number of digital consumers increased significantly during the pandemic in Southeast Asia. According to Google's e-Conomy SEA 2021, 60 million people used a digital service for the first time during the pandemic… Read more
Sneak preview of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics team kits
The final countdown has begun as the 2022 Winter Olympics will kick off on 4th February. Fashion will be front and center in Beijing as some of the biggest sportswear brands will be dressing some of the world's best athletes. Ahead of the Winter Olympic Games, global sportswear brands have unveiled the opening and closing ceremony styles, podium outfits, village gear and different uniform kits to support the athletes during their performance. Here, we have rounded up some of the teams' outfits… Read more
Lulu to build India's second largest mall in Kerala capital
Dubai-based retail major Lulu Group is opening India's second largest shopping mall in Trivandrum, the capital of the southern state of Kerala, spending Rs20 billion ($299 million)… Read more
Top cosmetic market trends in China for 2022
2021 was a special year for the Chinese cosmetic market. Cosmetic Supervision and Administration Regulation (CSAR), the overarching cosmetic regulation, came into force, giving the cosmetic regulatory system a fresh look. In this new regulatory system, the cosmetic market witnessed the explosive growth of some categories and brands as well as the fadeaway and even disappearance of some subcategories. In general, the Chinese cosmetic market has become more orderly, so observant players have more opportunities than before… Read more
5 e-commerce marketplaces in Singapore, Malaysia to know right now
Singapore and Malaysia are two of the most promising Southeast Asian markets in e-commerce right now. Malaysia's online sales value is expected to total USD 6.297 billion in 2021, almost doubling that of its neighbour, Singapore, whose e-commerce revenue is still projected to reach USD 3.188 billion this year, according to Statista… Read more
Aesop opens first store in mainland China
The first Aesop store in mainland China will be located on Shanghai's Dongping Road. The street's rich cultural history and integration of the city's diverse styles make it a prime location. This marks the Brazilian cosmetic giant Natura&CO's official entry into the Chinese market… Read more
Tags Ambassador Apple Brand Ambassador consumer trend cosmetics Hong Kong Retail niche brands
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Hong Kong retail rents unchanged as weak conditions persist at year-end
Bad Customer Experiences Put HKD 117 Billion in Consumer Spending at Risk in Hong Kong

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Former Brazil missionary Bill Jordan remembered
Former Belo Horizonte, Brazil, missionary Charley Huffman reminisced today about Bill Jordan, who served in the same city in the 1970s. Bill passed away Monday, Feb. 6. His last residence was in Yellville, Ark. We reproduce Charley's email by permission.
Brazil missionary Bill Jordan
Bill Jordan had a heart attack while we were playing volleyball at camp one day. We rushed him to the heart hospital, where my wife Joyce stayed with him in the emergency room to interpret for him, since he had been in Belo Horizonte only a short time and spoke little Portuguese.
The Brazilian doctors said he needed to go to the USA for open-heart surgery, since he had been in Brazil for such a short time and everything was strange to him. However, the commercial airlines refused to fly him in that condition.
Bill was retired from the Air Force, and missionary wife Vonnie Hall contacted someone she knew high up in the Air Force. The result was that the Air Force sent a C141 Starlifter, equipped with a full emergency room and two crews of pilots and of medical staffers to take him to the States for surgery.
The Brazilian Air Force base in Belo Horizonte was right next to the Pampulha airport, and they shared the same runway. Some of us missionaries were there on the base with Bill, awaiting the arrival of the plane. The Pampulha runway was too small for large aircraft, so as two-thirds of the weight of a refueled plane was fuel, the C141 landed first in Brasilia and unloaded all the fuel except just enough to get to Belo Horizonte and back to Brasilia.
As they approached Belo Horizonte, the pilot radioed the tower for permission to land The tower refused permission, saying the plane was so large it could break through the runway. But the pilot said, "We're coming in".
We watched that huge, droopy-winged bird approach the runway and land safely. As it taxied toward the Air Force base, it passed between two commercial airliners on the tarmac, its wings barely missing the tips of their wings.
When the plane stopped, the back opened up, large enough for a truck to enter. They wheeled a gurney out, put Bill on the gurney, whisked him away into the airplane, and began immediately to treat him. They closed the door almost immediately, and the plane taxied to the runway and began thundering down the runway for the takeoff.
I held my breath, wondering if that giant plane could lift off such a short runway. But when it was halfway down the runway, it seemed like the Lord just picked it up and yanked it up into the sky.
Missionary Glover Shipp and I were standing with the Officer of the Day of the Air Force base. He shook his head in wonder and asked, "Who was that man, that the U.S. Air Force would send their largest plane equipped with a complete emergency room and two crews of pilots and medical people to pick him up?"
We explained, "He was a retired sergeant from the Air Force who was here working as a missionary". The Officer of the Day was still shaking his head and asked, "But why would they do that? Then Glover came up with the words we all wished we had spoken, "Well, you see, he has a very rich father."
It made us very proud of our country to think that they would do that.
When Bill arrived at a military hospital in the States, the doctors decided Bill could be treated with medication and would not need surgery. He recovered and returned to Brazil to continue the work he had come to do.
I remember Bill Jordan most of all as a peacemaker. Our team of 12 strong-headed missionary families had some difficult problems, but Bill, perhaps due to having been an elder, had a wonderful way of calming everyone down and helping us arrive at a peaceful settlement of the problems we were facing.
When I think of him I think of the words Jesus spoke, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God." He was an inspiration to all of us.
After several years in Brazil, Bill and Frances returned to the States, where he served as a preacher and elder in several places. He lived a good number of years after his heart attack, but now he has gone home to his very rich Father.
God bless and comfort Frances, Martha, and all the family.
Brazil, Missions, People
Morre missionário Bill Jordan | Projeto Alcance


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Woman Travels the World to Meet All Her 325 Facebook Friends
By Sumitra on January 20th, 2012 Category: News
ArLynn Presser is a 51-year-old woman who lives in Winnetka, Illinois. It's normal for ArLynn to stay indoors all the time. In fact, for most of her adult life, she hardly ever left the confines of her home, and most certainly did not venture out of her home town. Her career as a writer ensured that she could spend her life indoors and still get things done. If this sounds strange to you, you must know that ArLynn suffers from agoraphobia – the fear of crowded places or enclosed public spaces.
Like most introverts, ArLynn interacts with people online and she has 325 friends she chats with on Facebook. Last year, she went and did something that no one could have ever expected. On 31st of Dec, 2010, she made a resolution to meet all 325 of her Facebook friends in person, the following year. She wrote a blog post about it and then set about achieving her goal. She called her project "Face to Facebook". For a person who was terrified of flying and could never get on a plane before, this was certainly a daunting task. In the end, she did a great job, traveling over 13 countries and taking over 39 flights. By the end of 2011, she had met 292 friends, about 90% of what she had intended to. ArLynn had been to Taiwan, Korea, Philippines, Dubai, Italy, Malaysia, Ireland, England, Germany and four other countries.
According to Presser, this was something she just had to do, to make a drastic change in her life. She said, "A lot of it was just realizing that with my sons gone, I was spending a lot more time alone and a lot more time in front of the computer." Of the 325 people she had decided to meet, a few were her old friends from high school and college. A few weren't keen on her idea of 'meeting' and unfriended or blocked her, 18 people ignored her repeated requests to meet, two were profiles of pets, and five people had passed away. Meeting her Facebook friends was not always easy and she sometimes found herself in the middle of an anxiety attack. For instance, when one hairdresser friend offered to cut her hair, the skin on her face, chest and arms broke into hives. Sometimes she would face emotional breakdowns and moments of panic. For safety reasons, she always had a chaperon with her, and made sure the meetings were conducted in public.
Despite all the problems she faced, ArLynn did seem to have some wonderful moments. One of her friends taught her how to open a champagne bottle with a sabre. She also learned opera singing, trained to be a bodyguard, rode in a motorcycle sidecar, took Zumba lessons and climbed a mountain in California – all with her Facebook friends. Quite a year, I must say! Now her incredible experience has inspired a documentary called "Face to Facebook", about Facebook, anxiety, and the power of social media to inspire great personal change.
via Vancouver Sun
Posted in News Tags: agoraphobia, ArLynn Presser, Events, Face to Facebook, facebook, health, News
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India's tennis star Sania Mirza and Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik announced the birth of their baby boy on Tuesday. The news was announced on Malik's Twitter account. Since then, social media has been flooded with congratulatory wishes by their friends and fans from across the world.
"Excited to announce: It's a baby boy, and my girl is doing great as keeping strong as usual #Alhamdulilah. Thank you for the wishes and duas, we are humbled #BabyMirzaMalik," tweeted Malik.
Very soon, his manager, Ameem Haq also tweeted, "Baby and mother are all smiles, and dad is over the moon".
Ex-Pakistani captain Shahid Afridi also congratulated the couple.
Mirza and Malik got married in the year 2010. The wedding was conducted in a Muslim traditional manner at Mirza's hometown in Hyderabad which was later followed by another wedding in Pakistan.
The couple's marriage caused a lot of confusion and anger among fans. Since Mirza was a prominent tennis player from India, people even said that she is going to support Pakistan during cricket matches. But both Mirza and Malik have played for their countries and brought home many laurels as well!
The couple had announced Mirza's pregnancy in April this year. This is surely some great news for Mirza and Malik fans in both India and Pakistan!


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Why doesn't the life of the "child in the middle" snap?
He is not an excellent student, but he is not an inferior student. Such a "medium-sized child" is easy to be left alone in the school. Rinko Torii, an educational advisor, said, "The 'child in the middle' has a lack of presence and is not required for opinions. Therefore, there is a risk of becoming an adult who can't be decided and can't move."
The child of "Inside" who is left "We are transparent existence"
For many years, the author has been covering private junior high and high schools mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area. I have a lot of opportunities to listen to the live voices of not only teachers but also students, but recently I have noticed that there is.
Because the coverage destination is an integrated junior high and high school, the majority of the students who have entered the junior high school entrance examination are the majority. Among them, there are many students who are worried that they are not satisfied with their school life, regardless of the difficulty of passing the exam. Many of the students who have these problems are "middle" students in terms of grades.
One third-year junior high school student whose grade is "middle", said:
"At the end of the day, I'm transparent from the teachers' point of view. It's transparent, even if it's not noticed.
As for what it means, the teacher leaves them because there is no problem because the schoolwork and the friendship are taken. As a result, the existence that it is neither good nor bad is regarded as existence only to pay the tuition fee without expectation and concern as a result.
Middle-grade high school students don't have confidence in themselves.
The misfortune of the "inside" layer.... There is a testimony which supports this, too. It is a story that the professor of the private university in Tokyo which shows the position of the middle class a little lower by the university deviation value talked as "the problem of the present education".
"In my seminar, it's important to let students express their opinions. However, it is not easy to say the opinion at first. Most of the children who come into our house have achieved grades in middle school, but they can't deal with the fact that they should suddenly announce what they're thinking because they've never spoken their opinions in front of third parties."
In addition, the professor taught me:
"They never have an opinion, but rather vice versa. As proof of this, the seminar students say: "Teacher, can I say my opinion too?" Until now, no adult ever listened so seriously to his story. In other words, they didn't claim it in their lives, but they didn't come across "adults" who silently listened to them. Their claims and opinions often sparkle. I think the "sins" of adults who have silenced them so far are now exposed in many places."
This is a remark in the coverage theme of "the problem of the present junior high and high school education seen from the university".
"Life satisfaction" falls when "desire for approval" is not satisfied
The author also agrees with this point that "the child in the inside is dangerous". People are creatures with a desire for approval, but if the desire is not satisfied, the satisfaction of life will fall extremely.
Adolescence, in particular, tends to be mentally unstable, but they are waiting for a third party's affirmation that you deserve to exist. In other words, instead of "I want you to be relieved", first of all, "I want you to listen to the story".
However, there are a lot of children who did not have the opinion seriously heard by the adult at this sensitive time. And, the children who are tired of waiting before long become adults with a lack of a sense of self-affirmation.
As a result, as pointed out in the previous article in this column describing "LINE and youth circumstances", many of them read too much air and act in an act that unconditionally panders to the opinions of someone who dominates the place. As a result, they tend to become like this when this becomes "habit".
"Lose the freedom to have your own opinion"
In the old society, it was still able to live enough. No, the work ant which made "Destruction private dedication" my mission, did not think anything, and was faithful to the order above would have been welcomed rather. However, society is changing at a tremendous speed, and it is not possible to cope with conventional common sense. What is required in an era where there is no right answer is the strength to think with your own head, make your own decisions, and act.
The child who did not stand out while in school was able to pass the super difficult university.
Then, how can such power be obtained?
The author is talking to the graduates who were called "Miracle-kun" at various schools. Miracle-kun is a former student who entered a super-difficult university or fulfilled his dream as a result, even though he didn't stand out while he was still in school. When I arranged these episodes from the teachers at each school, I found that Miracle had something in common.
It is sure to be "blessed with a friend and a teacher".
Almost 100% of junior high and high school students say they have high school satisfaction, and they say they had good friends. This is what happens when you dig deep into the word "good".
"There is a child who can talk about anything."
"I can't put my mind down."
"When I'm worried, they'll just be there for me."
And, it is testified that "the teacher is good". Let me give you an example of a student who has been blessed with good friends and teachers.
The background behind the unmotivated "middle child" was able to "pass the difficult medical school"
It is a "very ordinary male student" who went to a school in Kanagawa Prefecture. If you ask, club activities were the return club, study was a typical "inside" that there is no problem in advancement, and it looks back on oneself. However, it is said that this happened when the children around him became a high school student and entered the university entrance examination system.
"I didn't have much desire for regular tests until I was 2 years high. I couldn't feel positive about my studies. However, the moment my friends, who were good friends as a game mate, became high school students, I changed the color of my eyes and began to study. They were people in the advanced class, but while hanging out with them, they came to teach me parts that they didn't understand, and I was drunk by the waves. That's why I started to study."
After all, it passed the national university medical school of the super difficult of the first choice university after the ronin.
"I realized that the word "exam is a group game" was ingrained in my body. Until then, I was a person who didn't even know the meaning of effort, but I asked my friends, 'Why should I study?' I did a lot of stories like that. And the conclusion came out was 'to live my life'. So I thought there was a need to take the exam, so I started studying."
He told me why he became another "trigger".
"My high school teacher has always been the same teacher. The teacher just listened to me and my friend in the classroom after school. I was not motivated to study, and even for me who had a game, the teacher always said, 'You can do it if you do it.' He didn't abandon us. That's what gave me a chance to study."
by Juliana
He is not an excellent student, but he is not an inferior student. Such a medium-sized child is easy to be left alone in the school. Rinko Torii, an educational advisor, said, The child in the middle has a lack of presence and is not required for opinions. Therefore, there is a risk of becoming an adult who can t ...
"Move the child of withdrawal" parents' terrible voice
Children can t stand on their own, they don t leave their parents.In March 2019, the Cabinet Office released a survey showing that the population of 40 to 64 years old is estimated to be approximately 610,000 people. There may be a lot of people close to you who have the trouble of being confined to home even though th...
The author of "A Cat That Lived A Million Times" has put it in my heart
Rei Miura is an international political scientist who continues to disseminate information on tv and in various media such as magazines. In particular, president s official e-mail magazine Miura Rei s Talk of Politics for Thinking for Yourself (distributed every Wednesday) develops deeper discussions about politics a...
A professional tutor affirms, "Elementary school students should not be allowed to study in the children's room."
Where should I let my children study? Noriyasu Nishimura, president of the prestigious leadership group of professional tutors, said, It is good to study in the living room for elementary school students and younger. However, there are some tips. I can t study alone yet among elementary school students.She s been stud...
The latest questionnaire"The majority of the annual household income of 3 million yen is happy"
Half of the households with an annual income of 3 million yen are happy.I m happy even with an annual household income of 3 million yen. Such a situation emerged in the questionnaire survey (figure) of President s magazine. A total of 54.4% and more than half of the respondents answered that they were very happy or ...
The 3 points to solve the problem of make-up falling off and collapsing with a mask!
Actually, I can go there on the weekend! This is the recommended plan to enjoy Singapore in two days.
To the "traveler girls" who seek superb views and healing. 9 Recommended Spots in Southeast Asia
There are a lot of ways to use the back of the door - room refreshing "back side storage technique"
Back pain relief after telework, 3-minute stretches when you notice
Insensitive Medium-sized coffee Promise Japan


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text:
Food|An Early Look at the Grill, in the Former Four Seasons Space
https://nyti.ms/2pd1Fql
An Early Look at the Grill, in the Former Four Seasons Space
Francesco Sapienza for The New York Times
By Florence Fabricant
Forget the famous power lunch. For the time being, forget about any lunch at all in the rooms that used to house the Four Seasons.
When the Grill, the first of two new restaurants in the Seagram Building space, opens to the public on May 2, it will serve only dinner. Jeff Zalaznick, a partner in Major Food Group, which now runs the restaurant complex, said the group wants the restaurant to make its mark as a destination for dinner. (Lunch will be added in about two months.)
And though the partners spoke at one point about resurrecting dishes from the Four Seasons' past, the menu will be entirely new.
Major Food, with the blessing of Aby Rosen, the building's owner and a partner in the restaurant, is wiping the slate clean. The Grill, on the second level, aims instead to channel the spirit of 1958, when the bronze Mies van der Rohe tower opened. (The Four Seasons, a celebrity magnet, followed in 1959 and closed last July; its owners plan to reopen a few blocks away.)
"It's going to be a classic midcentury chophouse," Mr. Zalaznick said. "We're really into the history of dining in New York in that era." He mentioned Jack Dempsey's and Christ Cella as examples.
Hanging in the travertine lobby on the ground floor are works by Joan Miró, Cy Twombly and others, all dating from 1958. (There are also a few paintings in the private dining rooms.)
The menu by Mario Carbone, the chef and a partner in Major Food, features dishes from that era, like steak tartare, scallops in snail butter, mock turtle soup, avocado crab Louis and lobster Newburg. It also includes honey-mustard duckling, filet mignon any of three ways (including with oysters), and Dover sole finished tableside like a number of other dishes, including the spit-roasted prime rib roast with deviled bones, carved on a silver trolley.
A signature Four Seasons dish was the crab cake; the Grill's is called the Seagram crab cake. "It's all crab meat, no filler," Mr. Zalaznick said.
A sumptuous buffet at the top of the stairs, presided over by a chef, will dispense cold dishes for the table, like cured salmon and assorted hams, crudités and terrines. Also on display will be floral arrangements, platters of food and cakes.
The room has been restored, polished and fitted with thick oxblood carpet, leather Knoll chairs and new banquettes. The balcony, once a Siberia for diners without boldfaced names, could become a desired location; tables for six are fitted with imposing plush Burgundy banquettes and offer a sweeping view of the dining room.
The host stand has been relocated to the street-level lobby, where guests can check in for the Grill and, in about three months, the Pool, a seafood restaurant with its own bar and lounge run by the chef Rich Torrisi, another Major Food partner.
The dining rooms' landmark protections prohibited any structural changes and even most cosmetic ones. But the kitchen was fair game and has been completely redone, more open yet divided in two to meet the needs of each restaurant.
The Grill, 99 East 52nd Street, 212-375-9003, thegrillnewyork.com. Starting Monday, reservations can be made at reservations@thegrillnewyork.com.
Follow NYT Food on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. Get regular updates from NYT Cooking, with recipe suggestions, cooking tips and shopping advice.


text:
Search for: "Grutter v. Bollinger" Results 1 - 20 of 301
Promoting diversity? It's Constitutional! (Grutter v. Bollinger)
6 Apr 2018, 7:00 am by Quimbee
(<em>Grutter v. [read post]
Before the Bar Blog - ABA For Law Students - http://abaforlawstudents.com/stay-informed/before-the-bar-blog/
Spann on Fisher v. University of Texas & Grutter v. Bollinger
23 Nov 2012, 8:00 am by Lawrence Solum
Unless, of course, the Court plans to overrule Grutter v. [read post]
GRUTTER v. BOLLINGER DECIDED ON THE DAY IN 2003: In it, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, held i…
23 Jun 2019, 5:44 am by Gail Heriot
Instapundit.com - http://pjmedia.com/instapundit/
Supreme Court to hear Fisher v. University of Texas: The Use of Race in Admissions
21 Feb 2012, 7:35 am by constitutional lawblogger
Bollinger, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari today in Fisher v. [read post]
Hawkins on Grutter
9 Oct 2013, 12:59 am by Lawrence Solum
Here is the abstract: The prospect of Grutter v. [read post]
SCOTUS for law students: Barbara Grutter, meet Abigail Fisher
11 Oct 2011, 12:27 pm by Stephen Wermiel
Bollinger. [read post]
Judge Baer and Grutter v. Bollinger
29 Oct 2010, 6:10 pm by Jason Mazzone
The School Assignment Cases and Grutter
Bollinger, the University of Michigan Law School case. [read post]
Rich on Justifying Diversity for Equal Opportunity in the Workplace and Beyond
20 Jun 2015, 7:33 am by Workplace Prof
In a recently posted paper (forthcoming in the Southern California Law Review), Stephen Rich argues for a way to reconstruct the legal conception of diversity—narrowly endorsed in Grutter v. [read post]
Workplace Prof Blog - http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/
Ayres & Foster on Grutter & Gratz
28 Aug 2008, 7:45 pm
Bollinger and Gratz v. [read post]
Moran on Social Science and Race Cases
Board of Education and Grutter v. [read post]
Legal History Blog - http://legalhistoryblog.blogspot.com/
Court Upholds Michigan Ban on Consideration of Race in Admissions
23 Apr 2014, 9:42 am by Derek Black
Bollinger, was constitutional. [read post]
Education Law Prof Blog - http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/education_law/
Affirmative Action Is Dead In The Water; Diversity Is The 21st Century Fight
University of Texas, Grutter v. [read post]
Supreme Court to rule on University of Texas affirmative action policy
21 Feb 2012, 7:23 am by Jaclyn Belczyk
University of Texas [docket; cert. petition, PDF] to determine whether the court's decisions interpreting the Equal Protection Clause [Cornell LII backgrounder] of the Fourteenth Amendment, including Grutter v. [read post]
JURIST - Paper Chase - http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/
The Bush Department of Education Tries to Gut Grutter Below the Radar Screen
Last month's decision in the voluntary public school integration cases purported to interpret rather than overturn Grutter v. [read post]
I'M HOPING FOR THE CLARENCE THOMAS MOMENT INSTEAD: Paul Mirengoff asks, "Is This the Sandra Day O'…
22 Jun 2018, 11:12 am by Gail Heriot
" O'Connor said in Grutter v. [read post]
Heriot: Why Aren't There More Black Scientists? Racial Preferences In University Admissions.
22 Oct 2015, 10:06 am by Paul Caron
Remember when Justice Sandra Day O'Connor predicted in Grutter v. [read post]
TaxProf Blog - http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/
Supreme Court as Pulp Fiction
22 Feb 2012, 6:57 pm by Buce
Underbelly: A Journal of Soft Information - http://underbelly-buce.blogspot.com/
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds University of Texas Affirmative Action Admissions Program
19 Jan 2011, 11:49 pm by Ilya Somin
Texas, the US Court of Appeals upheld a University of Texas affirmative action program in admissions, applying the Supreme Court's 2003 decision in Grutter v. [read post]
The Volokh Conspiracy - http://www.volokh.com/


text:
Q: Reading generated PDF file with PHP sometimes download if (file_exists("folder/$unique_id.pdf")) {
    header('Content-type: application/pdf');
    ob_clean(); // Added after reading similar question's answer
    flush(); // Added after reading similar question's answer
    readfile("folder/$unique_id.pdf");
} else {
    $html   = "PLACING_MY_HTML_CODE_HERE";
    $dompdf = new DOMPDF();
    $dompdf->load_html($html);
    $dompdf->set_paper("A4");
    $dompdf->render();
    $output = $dompdf->output();
    file_put_contents("folder/$unique_id.pdf", $output);

    header('Content-type: application/pdf');
    ob_clean(); // Added after reading similar question's answer
    flush(); // Added after reading similar question's answer
    readfile("folder/$unique_id.pdf");
}

If the PDF file does not exist, the PDF files is generated using DOMPDF. The files is generated without any error and stored inside the folder. But sometimes, instead of reading the generated file, it downloads a file without extension and mostly with name 'download'. I tried opening the file in text editor, and I see symbols with some headers such as application, content-type etc.
Later, searched in SO and saw this question, and added ob_clean, flush in my code. But still the issue persists.
Note: I checked opening the PDF file stored in the folder using Adobe reader and Google Chrome. The files were completely rendered and saved properly.
EDIT:
Instead of readfile I tried header redirect directly to the file. And there are no issues with this.
Any suggestions?

A: I suggest you change your code to this, and see what it does:
header('Content-type: application/pdf');
header('Content-disposition: attachment; filename="'. $unique_id .'.pdf"');
if (!file_exists("folder/$unique_id.pdf")) {
    $html   = "PLACING_MY_HTML_CODE_HERE";
    $dompdf = new DOMPDF();
    $dompdf->load_html($html);
    $dompdf->set_paper("A4");
    $dompdf->render();
    $output = $dompdf->output();
    file_put_contents("folder/$unique_id.pdf", $output);
}
header('Content-Length: ' . filesize("folder/$unique_id.pdf"));
readfile("folder/$unique_id.pdf");

First of all, you had a lot of double function calls in there (like header() in both if{} and else{}, readfile in both, etc.) so it is sane to put it outside of the condition since they get executed anyway.
Second, you were missing the file name and the file size parameters in your download.
Also, you did not specify if you wanted to force download of PDF or open it in browser? If you want to force download then change application/pdf to application/octet-stream.
And finally, code this way is easier to debug. If you see that certaing PDF generation is giving you incorrect pdf, all you have to do is comment out all header() calls and see what it gives you in browser. If dompdf spits out some kind of notice, it can render the pdf corrupt and unreadable. When you comment out the header() calls you will see those notices in browser.

A: Change the code inside the else {} to this:
else {

$dompdf = new DOMPDF();

ob_start();
$temp_text   = "PLACING_MY_HTML_CODE_HERE";

echo $temp_text;

$html = ob_get_contents();
ob_end_clean();

$dompdf->load_html($html);
$dompdf->set_paper("A4");
$dompdf->render();
$output = $dompdf->output();
file_put_contents("folder/$unique_id.pdf", $output);

header('Content-type: application/pdf');
ob_clean(); // Added after reading similar question's answer
flush(); // Added after reading similar question's answer
readfile("folder/$unique_id.pdf");

}

I used this with mpdf and it worked. I hope this will help you too. Let me know the output.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


PennDOT District 5 announced nighttime lane restrictions will commence Monday, Aug. 13 on Interstate 78 between the Lebanon County Line and Exit 17 (PA 419).
The restrictions will be in place for a project to rehabilitate Interstate 78 in Bethel Township, Berks County.
There will be lane restrictions Monday through Friday between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. Delays are expected and motorists are encouraged to use caution and allow for extra time traveling through the work zones. Updates will be provided whenever traffic patterns change.
The project involves diamond grinding, cleaning joints and installing seals, concrete patching, shoulder backup, milling, overlay, base repair, pavement markings, guiderail update, and other miscellaneous items.
The project is expected to be completed by the end of October. Schedules are subject to change.
Reading Materials, Inc. of Skippack, Pa. is the general contractor on the $7,736,722 project.
This section of Interstate 78 has an average daily traffic volume that varies between 34,433 vehicles at the western end of the project area and 37,749 vehicles at the eastern end.
UPDATE (Sept. 14): Hours of work have been expanded to include weekend work. Hours on the weekend will be as follows- Westbound work will occur around the clock 8 p.m. on Friday to 6 a.m. on Mondays. Eastbound hours will be the same except for a break in work on Sundays from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Normal weekday hours will not be affected by this change.


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INTER MILAN are plotting a summer swoop for Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann, according to reports in Italy.
Inter Milan are plotting a huge overhaul this summer following investment from Chinese owners Suning Group.
The Far East investors already have their sights set on a new manager and are hopeful of bringing in Diego Simeone for next season.
And according to Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport, they want the Atletico Madrid boss to bring striker Antoine Griezmann with him.
The report says Simeone is keen to take the France international to the San Siro and Inter have got behind the deal.
The Serie A club's owners are willing to sign the £85million striker but are aware it will be a tough battle with other European clubs hot on his heels.
Manchester United are said to be leading the race to sign Griezmann and increased their efforts to do so following the long-term injury to Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
And Griezmann's agent Eric Olhats confirmed this week Real Madrid, as well as United, have already reached out to him.
"We're thinking right now about the most suitable offer. Real Madrid and other clubs are part of this thinking process," Olhats said.
"There was Manchester United who came, who inquired, they told us about their project. They were the first and most concrete in their wish."


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Heavy rain has been forecast in the UK over the weekend with weather warnings already place in across swathes of the country.
Brits can expect days of downpours, with warnings amber and yellow alerts in place on Friday and Saturday.
London can also expect plenty of rain throughout the weekend.
A yellow weather warning for rain is in place on Friday for parts of south-west England and Wales, as well as parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland. An amber warning is also in place in south-west Wales.
The amber warning is for heavy rain with the Met Office warning that the area could see 20 to 40mm of rain within nine hours.
Bonnie Diamond, a forecaster at the Met Office, said: "There is a band of heavy rain coming across the UK with weather warnings in place in south west England, Wales and Scotland."
On Saturday, rain will also fall in south-east England, with temperatures reaching a maximum of 15C.
"There will be heavy showers in London tomorrow afternoon and evening," Ms Diamond added.
Another yellow weather warning is in place for south-west Wales.
On Sunday, London will be busy with numerous Armistice Day commemorations however those attending can expect downpours with sunny interludes.
"Sunday will have clear spells with some areas receiving heavy showers. Temperatures should reach a maximum of around 12 to 13C," Ms Diamond said.
Moving ahead to next week, Monday will be the same as the weekend with sunny spells and scattered showers however it will start to clear up on Tuesday and become drier.
Ms Diamond said: "Temperatures will still be mild with Wednesday becoming more settled."


text:
India agrees to protect Irish whiskey
2nd September, 2019 by Nicola Carruthers
Irish whiskey has been granted legal protection in India, the largest whisky market in the world.
The IWA has successfully registered 'Irish whiskey' as a certification mark in India
According to trade body the Irish Whiskey Association (IWA), the registration of Irish whiskey as a certification mark will mean that the category "can fully compete against other whiskies by reinforcing the authenticity of the product for the Indian consumer".
India is the largest whisky market in the world by volume, with 2.3 billion bottles sold in 2018, the majority of which were domestically produced.
Last year, sales of Irish whiskey doubled to 34,000 cases in India with "further growth now being targeted", mainly in "high-growth" cities such as Delhi.
"Securing the geographical indication for Irish whiskey in India is another landmark for the Irish whiskey category," said Carleen Madigan, IWA's legal advisor.
"Like similar registrations achieved earlier in the year in Australia and South Africa, this is another major success in our efforts to protect the integrity of Irish whiskey on a worldwide basis
"We will now be able to take much tougher enforcement action against fake Irish whiskey products on sale in India.
"This protection will also enable us to maximise opportunities to increase sales in this crucial whiskey market as it is an important selling point for the Indian consumer knowing they can enjoy Irish whiskey confident in the quality and authenticity of the product."
Last year, the IWA launched a major drive to combat the sale of counterfeit Irish whiskey around the world, tripling its legal budget for 2019.
Irish whiskey gained greater legal protection in Asia following the signing of the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement last summer.


by Laura WanjiruVisited 6,439 times.
The Kenya Revenue Authority (K.R.A) is the tax collection agency of Kenya which performs on behalf of the Government of Kenya. Kenya Revenue Authority in Kenya collects a number of taxes and duties, including: income tax, value added tax and customs.
In order to be able to carry out various transactions in Kenya such as business banking, investments, land transactions, employment, applying for HELB loan among others, one needs to have the Kenya Revenue Personal Identification Number.
Once you have been able to access KRA online page in Kenya, you will be welcomed to the KRA online service where you will be given the option to either login, retrieve lost password, or new taxpayer option. As a new tax payer in Kenya, click on new tax payer option.
Once you have done that, you shall be directed to a new page whereby you shall be prompted to enter the following; ID Number, Date of birth, District of Birth, Mother's Last Name, Father's Last Name and your Year of Birth. For the Date of birth select day on the calendar, month (from the pull down menu); for year click the button with three dots on the pull down menu and click on the – sign until you get to the year you were born.
After successfully completing the required field on the KRA online page you shall be taken to another page where you will find a form that requires further information from you such as; Area of residence, phone number, parents identification number, your personal email address and taxes that you as a taxpayer entitled to pay in Kenya.
The KRA PIN will act as the Taxpayer's Personal Identification Number, the Password as your secret access number to use the system while the Security Stamp will act as your secure number generated by the system and is only used once upon the first login into the system.
Once you get your KRA PIN number in Kenya, you can register online and print the PIN details. You will now be required to enter your Identification which in this case will be your KRA PIN Number. As for the password, you should have received it on your email together with the security stamp. If not, you will need to go to KRA Times Tower in Nairobi and request it to be reset including your email address. KRA offices in Nairobi are located in Times Tower on Haile Selassie Avenue in Nairobi CBD. Kenya Revenue Authority offices are located opposite Central Bank of Kenya and next to Office of Commissioner General in Nairobi town in Kenya.
In order for you to print your KRA PIN certificate in Kenya, you will need to click on the link "Registration Certificate" which is under the "Registration Application" link After that one just simply needs to print it using an ordinary printer and you will be done with the entire process and you will have the certificate.
The online method of applying for a KRA PIN and printing of KRA certificate in Kenya is generally efficient to Kenyans since it saves on time and money that would be lost if we all had to go to KRA offices in Nairobi to register. And the best part is that it is free and easy and requires no extra special skills to apply for a KRA PIN in Kenya. Furthermore, one can do it on their own as long as they have access to a computer and internet connection and can also print a KRA certificate in any section of Kenya.
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text:
MB&F and Eddy Jaquet team up to recreate the stories by Jules Verne
Eddy Jaquet engraves his interpretation of scenes and characters from eight Jules Verne works onto the MB&F Legacy Machine Split Escapement. MB&F transcends telling time by venturing into a new fantastical world with its latest collaboration with Swiss master engraver, Eddy Jaquet. This new partnership brings to life the works of the Father of Science…
Eddy Jaquet engraves his interpretation of scenes and characters from eight Jules Verne works onto the MB&F Legacy Machine Split Escapement.
MB&F transcends telling time by venturing into a new fantastical world with its latest collaboration with Swiss master engraver, Eddy Jaquet. This new partnership brings to life the works of the Father of Science Fiction himself, Jules Verne.
For this partnership, Eddy Jaquet uses MB&F's Legacy Machine Split Escapement (LM SE) as his canvas, because of its wide expanse of surface available for engraving. As preparation for this collection, Jaquet read up to 60 novels and short stories written by the 19th-century French author, before selecting eight stories to illustrate: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, From the Earth to the Moon, Around the World in Eighty Days, Five Weeks in a Balloon, The Adventures of Captain Hatteras, Michael Strogoff, Robur the Conquerer, and Journey to the Centre of the Earth.
MB&F x Eddy Jaquet Five Weeks in a Balloon.
One of the key features to note is that none of the illustrations are realised from an existing piece of art – they instead come purely from the creativity and interpretation of Jaquet. Each engraving is a highly intricate tableau of scenes and key moments from the chosen stories, achieved by applying dark rhodium alloy by hand to bring out each detail within the restrictions of the dial.
In producing each of the eight 18k red gold timepieces, Jaquet had to take into consideration the varying thickness on the reverse side of the LM Split Escapement dial plate, in order to accommodate the different components of the engine. Several adjustments also had to be made to the original LM Split Escapement, so that Jaquet could showcase his savoir-faire to the fullest. Open-worked date and power-reserve subdials were created, along with wider dial plates. The bezel was given a slimmer design and the case dimensions were reworked to make space for a wider dial plate. This increase in diameter also resulted in the production of a new dial crystal with a less pronounced curve to the dome.
Each unique piece of the MB&F x Eddy Jaquet is priced at US$162,000, which is about RM674,973. The only downside to this series is – it's already sold out! You can still discover the full collection and the beautiful engravings in detail here.
Photos: MB&F
Tags Eddy Jaquet Jules Verne MB&F Unique timepieces
Give your home a touch of futurism with the MB&F "TriPod" table clocks
MB&F LM FlyingT presents the gift of horological rebellion to women
Only Watch 2019: 5 watches up for charitable auction this November
Q&A: Watch trends to look out for, according to industry professionals
Baselworld 2018: Day 3 highlights


Matt Schick - ESPN Press Room U.S.
Matt Schick joined ESPN in 2012 as a college studio host on ESPNU.
Most recently, Schick was seen on KETV in Omaha, Neb., where he anchored, produced and reported. He also co-hosted and produced the Schick and Nick Show on 1620 The Zone, also in Omaha. Schick began in television in 2001 at NTV in Kearney, Neb. He started his career in sports radio after college at 950 AM The Fan in Denver.
Schick was born and raised in Rochester, N.Y. He is a 2001 graduate of the University of Colorado with a degree in broadcast news.
Schick served on the Board of Directors for the Nebraska chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and also partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Midlands.


Are These Personal Growth Myths Limiting Your Leadership?
"A pumpkin farmer was strolling through his rows of beautiful green leaves. At the beginning of the season, the acorn size pumpkins were beginning to add dots to the landscape. When he glanced down he noticed a clear glass jar and curiosity got the best of him.
He brought the jar over to one of his pumpkin buds, slipped the small pumpkin inside and left it sitting there in the field. Months later, with the experiment long forgotten, the farmer walked his land with great satisfaction as large beautiful pumpkins covered the patch.
The problem for this little pumpkin is the same problem for most businesses today. Rather than growing to their full potential, they conform to the shape of external molds or models defined by the leader.
These "glass jars" create invisible barriers for growth and predetermine the shape of the business' future. Your thinking also will never get any bigger than the size of the "jar".
However, you, as the leader, can "break the mold" and smash your "jar" by embracing working ON, not just IN, the business. Consequently, you will be able to expand your thinking to grow your business.
Have you ever heard of that quote above? It is iconic and true for so many leaders. I have found many leaders don't want to hear that they lack personal growth in their own lives or even that their people lack personal growth.
Many leaders have settled for mediocrity. They have had missed opportunity after opportunity for personal growth and to accomplish great things, but they never achieved much.
They may feel regretful because they have gone long enough without personal growth that they now have begun to feel they have had an unused life. Why? They gave into the myths of growth.
Every leader can grow their business by understanding the following three myths about personal growth.
1. Growth is automatic – Well, growth is not automatic! We think that our minds will just take care of themselves and keep growing like our bodies did when we were younger.
However, like when our bodies stop growing and when we got out of high school or college, our minds stop growing as well when we no longer had someone pushing us to improve our job skills (training) and become a better person (development).
2. Growth comes with experience – Many people believe that personal growth comes simply as the result of experience. It is good only if you reflect upon what you have learned from both your successes and mistakes.
3. Growth comes from information: Knowledge is not enough. I'm sure you know someone, like I have, just full of information and data, but they do nothing to apply all this wonderful knowledge to benefit themselves or others.
What is the Size of Your "Jar"?
Can you handle the truth? The truth is no matter what work you do or where you do it, your greatest challenge is YOU! Many leaders are looking for that quick fix to growth, but if you are not growing, you will be the "lid" on your organization's growth.
Are you willing to change? For without change, there can be no growth. Then commit yourself to not only accept change but to seek it. And commit yourself to become a great leader by investing in the personal growth for yourself and your people.
In what ways have you put your business inside of a Mason jar? What can you do to remove the limits on the size of your business? Are you willing to change and invest in personal growth for yourself and your people? Please share your reply <here>. I'd love to hear your thoughts.


It's been a week now since the wife of exiled Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko reportedly heard shots and found him face down on the floor of their apartment in Kiev. Three bullet holes were plainly visible in his sweater, showing he'd been shot in the back. Beneath him was a puddle of blood. Some of it oozed out of his mouth.
Then, the next day, Babchenko showed up alive and well at a press conference the brass of the Ukraine Security Service, the SBU, to announce the whole thing was a ruse—a sting, as they say in America—to flush out the conspirators in a Kremlin plot to murder critics who sought safety in Ukraine.
Since then, Babchenko has spoken at some length with a small group of his colleagues, and meanwhile the main suspect in the conspiracy has appeared in court.
The details suggest some very dark operations, what Russian spies used to call mokroye delo, wet work, meaning contract murders or, in more antiseptic American parlance, targeted killings. There are also suggestions the plotters may have called on the services of organized crime, which is not unusual in the overlapping underworlds of intelligence and the mob.
But there are also many major issues of concern about the actions of Babchenko and the SBU in a case that may have done more damage to his credibility and to that of journalists in Ukraine and Russia than it did to the would-be murderers.
One glaring question left unanswered, and often unasked, is why the Babchenko performance was necessary at all in order to arrest the one conspirator who actually appeared in the dock. By every indication, the case against him already was made. One is left with the impression that the purpose of the sting was primarily to publicize the investigation, which it certainly did. But if new information came to light because of it, that has not been revealed.
The alleged organizer of the attempted assassination, Borys Herman, appeared in a Ukraine court on Thursday, reportedly having been detained the day before, prior to Babchenko's televised resurrection.
Borys Herman (also written Boris German) is a pudgy, round-faced 50-year-old independent arms manufacturer who appeared before the judges in a white short-sleeved shirt. He was isolated in a glass box, and often grabbed his head, or shook it as if suffering flashes of physical pain when he heard the accusations he was involved with Russian-backed terrorism.
His lawyer argued that Herman's arms company, Schmeisser, had worked closely with Ukraine's defense ministry, selling to the country's military weapons that were used in the fight against Russian-backed separatists.
More significantly, Herman declared that he was a double agent working simultaneously for Ukrainian counterintelligence and a Putin-linked fund or foundation represented by an "old acquaintance" of his in Moscow named Vyacheslav Pivovarnik.
Herman said this mysterious fund "organizes unrest in Ukraine" and has been plotting "terrorist attacks" meant to impact next year's Ukrainian presidential elections. Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says no such fund exists.
In Herman's chronology of events, he was contacted about six months ago by Pivovarnik and quickly informed what he called "Ukrainian counterintelligence." Herman claimed that these Ukrainian officials first asked him to help investigate the Kremlin's plans for contract killings but then he was detained and accused of cooperating with Moscow's terrorist program.
Such is the infighting in Ukraine that even the state prosecutor in this case, former internal affairs minister Yuriy Lutsenko, has been investigated in the past for alleged corruption.
Herman's family background might have made him seem a likely choice to organize contract killings. His father, Lev Herman is known in Ukraine for his deep-rooted connections to a famous Ukrainian-born Russian crime boss, Semion Mogilevich, who has many alleged links to top Russian officials.
And that is very interesting indeed in the current context.
Mogilevich, who is in his early 60s, is about 5-feet-6-inches tall and weighs nearly 300 pounds. He has pockmarks on his face, may have a moustache, and is a heavy smoker. He is living in Moscow, where Russian law prohibits his extradition to the U.S.
Through his extensive international criminal network, Mogilevich controls extensive natural gas pipelines in Eastern Europe, and he uses this wealth and power to not only further his criminal enterprises but to influence governments and their economies, Kowenhoven said.
Mogilevich's money laundering network involved 27 nations around the world.
Ukrainian prosecutor general Yuriy Lutsenko says that the Russian secret services were behind the alleged plot to murder Babchenko, and they gave Herman the job of pulling it all together. Herman then hired Oleksiy Tsymbalyuk, a former monk and a veteran of the war in eastern Ukraine.
Herman said he gave the assignment to Tsymbalyuk, along with a down payment of $20,000 on a $40,000 contract, precisely because he knew such a religious warrior would not kill an unarmed man.
Nishnianidze told The Daily Beast, "At a recent private meeting Tsymbalyuk told us that some men came to him and offered thousands of dollars to kill the Russian journalist Babchenko; Tsymbalyuk immediately reported to SBU—that was his moral duty," Nishnianidze added.
Nobody disputes that Tsymbalyuk cooperated with the SBU, even recording the exchange of money at a meeting in a car.
But if Tsymbalyuk was working with the police and there already was evidence against Herman—who may have been working with another branch of the same security service—what was the purpose of the sting? Did it fill some hole in the case against Borys Herman? Did it further implicate his alleged accomplice at the mysterious Putin fund? Did spies withing the SBU give themselves away by their reactions? Babchenko's fake death might have accomplished any number of things, but nothing presented so far shows what those were. The only certainty is that it created a lot of noise.
In the meantime, what the information actually released about the case so far has done is intimidate a large group of people in Ukraine, many of them journalists, who might be on an alleged Kremlin hit list—and that is all the more ominous because the public has not been told what the names are.
On Friday Prosecutor General Lutsenko stated that the number of people on the list for assassinations allegedly prepared by the Russian secret service and passed to Herman was much higher than the original list of 30 names mentioned at the SBU's Babchenko resurrection press conference last week. Now the prosecutor is talking about 47 names.
A source who has been briefed by security services told The Daily Beast that the alleged assassins were going to choose one or two victims from this roster of almost four dozen people. The idea would be to target someone whose death would create as a big a scandal as possible but who would be clueless and an easy target. Ukrainian investigators say they have correspondence among the alleged organizers of the hit discussing the price on the head of a Ukrainian politician.
Some journalists in Ukraine are very suspicious of the case presented thus far by the government. They fear that what's being called "The Story of 47" is meant to put more pressure on an already embattled press corps. By publicizing a list like this the SBU is essentially telling them that the way to stay safe is to work with the security service. That was why Babchenko says he decided to play along. He felt he had no choice.
A list purporting to be "the 47" was has been published by strana.eu, a Ukrainian news site. And according to a source there, Herman handed it over to the secret services before they had Babchenko "killed." There is also speculation the SBU wrote the list itself.
Ekaterina Sergatskova, one of the names on the leaked list wrote on her Facebook page: "On Monday [May 4] I received a summons from the SBU, where it was clearly said that I was a witness in the Babchenko case opened against Borys Herman. Why am I a witness? What can I know about the case? At the interrogation [Tuesday] I still did not understand why I am a witness, why they summoned me and what I could know about this case."
Sergatskova manages a medial project called "Banned" that documents themes censored in Ukraine.
If the SBU had a better reputation among reporters, cooperation might be more acceptable, but in addition to the new "47" factor focused on the Russian threat, Ukrainian reporters note they have yet to see a proper investigation into the real assassination of their friend the Ukrainskaya Pravda reporter Pavel Sheremet. He was blown up in his car in July 2016. Both Pavel and his girlfriend Olena Prytula, also a journalist from Ukrainskaya Pravda, had received multiple death threats for criticizing Ukraine's own authorities, and had complained that somebody was tailing them.
If Babchenko's sting drew attention to that fact and helped prevent more such killings then, messy as that ruse proved to be, it has to be counted in the plus column.
Anna Nemtsova reported from Moscow and Christopher Dickey reported from Paris.


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'He hasn't read the Constitution': Rand Paul hits back at Lindsey Graham's 'fake drape of patriotism'
On CNN Wednesday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) responded to the insinuation by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) that he and Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) weren't real patriots because they criticized the Trump administration's rationale for military action against Iranian general Qassim Suleimani, and backing a Democratic resolution to constrain presidential war powers.
"You heard what he said," said anchor Wolf Blitzer. "He's accusing you and Sen. Lee of 'empowering the enemy' by supporting this war powers resolution. I need your response."
"I think it's sad when people have this fake sort of drape of patriotism and anybody that disagrees with them is not a patriot," said Paul. "I love my country. I have many family members that serve in the military and continue to serve. I love my country as much as the next guy. For him to insult and say we're not as patriotic as he is — he hasn't read the Constitution … he insults the Constitution, our founding fathers, and what we do stand for in this republic by making light of it and accusing people of lacking patriotism. I think that's a low, gutter type of response."
"He's saying you and Sen. Lee are 'empowering the enemies' of the United States. Sen. Lee also said the message in the classified briefing that you and your fellow senators got, he said that the message was you need to, quote, be good little boys and girls and run along and not debate this in public. Do you feel the administration wants you to fall in line and be good little boys and good little girls?"
"To me, this is much bigger than the Trump administration," said Paul. "This question we have about who has the war making power, this goes back to Truman in 1950. We fought war after war, the Korean war, the Vietnam war, without having them authorized by Congress. It's been a tug-of-war. Many people have written that Congress and senators have abdicated their role in declaring war. That's true. What Sen. Lee and I are doing is standing up and saying the power resides in Congress and we're going to fight for it."
Watch below:
Here's why some Americans don't appreciate 'extraordinary' accusations from Lev Parnas
On Thursday's edition of CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin broke down a key reason why indicted Giuliani associate Lev Parnas hasn't quite gotten across the severity of his accusations against President Donald Trump to the American people.
"Jeff, what do you think of Parnas as a witness?" asked Cooper.
"He has a distinctive style. He's very deadpan, very low-key," said Toobin. "You somehow don't realize how extraordinary story he is telling. The proprietor of a company called Fraud Guarantee, and he is going to the leadership of the government of Ukraine and saying, unless you announce an investigation of the Biden family, are you not getting the money that Congress has authorized. you are not getting the visit from the president and you are not getting an Oval Office visit. And it's true. None of it happened."
Intel officials are terrified of briefing Congress on global threats — because Trump will be furious if they contradict him
On CNN Thursday, correspondent Kaitlan Collins revealed the startling reason why intelligence officials don't want to hold a congressional briefing on global threats: Because they are afraid they'll contradict President Donald Trump's speeches and make him angry.
"Kaitlan, tell us the reporting that you have," said anchor Erin Burnett. "Why are intelligence officials reluctant to hold the hearing?"
"What sources are telling my colleagues is that a lot of it has to do with the president's anger after they testified publicly last year," said Collins. "You'll remember back then, about a year ago today, the president was so mad as he was watching the highlights that sources told us he was literally screaming while watching people like Dan Coats, the former Director of National Intelligence, talk about things like Iran, North Korea and the like because they were contradicting a lot of what you hear from the president publicly."
'Jealous' Trump mocked as a 'self-loathing manbaby with crippling insecurities' after latest Bloomberg rant


Bekkering Adams architects is a dynamic and versatile architectural office, operating internationally, and working and looking towards our future society with an open mind. The founders, Juliette Bekkering and Monica Adams, share a fascination of enhancing the urban environment. Together with an enthusiastic team of architects and designers, they work on innovative and sustainable projects with a strong identity, defined by expressive architecture with a tactile expression of material and detail.
Over the years a distinct oeuvre has been established, characterized by iconographic and characteristic buildings. Research plays a key role within projects and parallel to the design process the office frequently seeks collaboration with other parties to set up research routes to deepen the content of the design, including research into sustainability, materialization, scenographic and typological studies. The office has a special interest in the potential of public and collective space in the contemporary transformation processes of our cities.
The commissions vary from complex building assignments to concept development, ranging from headquarter offices to public buildings, from urban plan to interior design. The work of Bekkering Adams architects has been published in a wide range of renowned national and international architectural reviews and books. Various projects have been nominated for national architectural awards.
Recently completed buildings include a firestation in Doetinchem, the head office Esprit Benelux in Amstelveen, the urban ensemble of public buildings called 'Bloemershof' in Dieren, the school and daycare centre called 'de Schatkamer', a public playground in Rotterdam, the head office of the Schuurman Group, the Booster Pumpstation East in Amsterdam, the Municipality Offices Maashaven in Rotterdam and the fire station and rescue service Vlissingen Middelburg. Furthermore the office completed an installation for the Biennale in Venice, Italy and a comprehensive concept design for a highway.
Among others the office is currently working on a Secondary and Preliminary School, a Boarding School and a Sport complex, all embedded in a new public park in the vicinity of the Peer city centre, thus comprising a new School Campus in Peer, Belgium.
The office has a comprehensive approach. The aim is to create projects that go beyond the purely architectural and to repeatedly surprise. Great attention is paid to the consistent development of the projects. With a preference for natural and beautifully aging materials, the office is constantly searching for possibilities to combine idiosyncratic materials and a characteristic detailing with environmentally friendly techniques.
The compact organizational structure of our office ensures that it is possible to collaborate in a very direct and personal way, and that there is room for thorough investigation. This personal involvement also ensures that the office can deliver customized solutions and can quickly and adequately respond to clients questions.
Our work includes all the standard operations of feasibility studies to implementation. On large scale projects the office cooperates with long-term partners for technical support in architectural engineering, cost control and site engineering. All partnerships are entered into from shared love for the profession. In this way our dynamic design expertise is reinforced with engineering experience and knowledge in the area of cost control, and enables the office to accept commissions of any scope and scale.


Do you worship food, more than God? Think about it.
Is food a false idol? Food for thought.
Is going out to a good restaurant more exciting than going to church? Is ice cream your true savior? Is a burger and fries your real comfort and joy?
Focusing on food- whether by thinking about it, obsessing over it,preparing it, or constantly eating it- can hurt our commitment to God. When we turn to food to feel soothed, comforted, cheered up, or calmed down, that's an indication that it has become a very powerful substance in our lives. Remember that our focus on food can go the other route where we are obsessed with every calorie and fat gram that goes into our mouth that we become imprisoned in that way. If your life revolves around food in either way, there is a problem. We can be committed to the Lord in every way but still struggle to loose the grip of food on us. It is certainly painful when we recognize that we have edged God out with food.
I can remember a long time ago, we would have junk food night each Friday night. If everyone behaved well for the week, we would go and get every kind of junk out there and celebrate by consuming massive amounts of calories and sugar each Friday. We actually taught our children to reward themselves with food and love it! I think about how much I loved eating out and always wanted that for a gift for special occasions. Food was truly my god and that is why I could never understand why I was getting nowhere in my life in all areas.
But surrendering our food to God leads to amazing freedom! By planning our healthy meals for the day and then following through with the plan, we become less aware of food and more aware of God. As we let go our need for food to support us, we become more available to the nurturing of His presence. In time, we forget food and instead focus on life.
Letting go of food a day at a time amounts to worshiping Him with our very lives. Forgetting ourselves, we find our true life and true worship of God.
Have a wonderful week Fit By Faith Family!