The district-level rally of the BJP against price rise today turned ugly when state president of the NSUI, Yadhupati Thakur, and his supporters were thrashed and the former had to be hospitalised.
Even as the government is keen that the proposed Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act, which will replace the earlier three-decade Act, is introduced in the Assembly, failure of the Cabinet sub-committee, specially constituted to examine the proposals, in holding a meeting, could further delay the entire process.
Protest demonstrations were held all over the state by the CPM to condemn the firing incident that took place in Chamba district on Sunday.
Chabads, the Jewish congregation centres at Manali, Kasol and Dharamkot-Bhagsunag belt in the Dhauladhars, and the exclusive foreigners' meditation centre here in the town can be "possible targets" of terror attack.Though the police denies any terror links, "terror perception" of the Home Ministry has raised questions in the minds of residents as the aftermath of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, Pune bomb blast and the "cow slaughter" incident at Nerwa Chopal in Shimla, have any linkages or not.
With the Ministry of Commerce according its principle approval to Rs 60 crore Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) for the industrial hub of Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN) at a meeting in Delhi today, the pollution woes of the area would be eased.
The Beopar Mandals of Palampur, Kangra, Nagrota Bagwan, Jwalamukhi, Pragpur and Dehara Gopipur, in separate resolutions, yesterday demanded restoration of the office of Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) at Palampur which was closed by the Income-Tax department.
The state agriculture department today honoured 24 progressive farmers from six development blocks of the district at a function organised here today, which was presided over by education minister ID Dhiman.
The state fruit and vegetable growers' association has supported the government's move to auction the apple carton factory and asserted that the financial health of the sick public sector unit had deteriorated beyond redemption. It also hailed the decision to set up an engineering college at the site in the public sector.
GoC-in-C of the local Army Training Command (ARTRAC) Lt Gen AS Lamba has advised everyone to take important lessons from the fatal avalanche at the High Altitude Warfare School (HAWA) in Gulmarg which claimed the lives of 17 Army personnels.
Chief Minister PK Dhumal has underlined the need to give boost to organic fertilisers to gradually phase out chemical fertilisers.Addressing scholars of the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Centre at Turriba in Costa Rica, yesterday, he said diversified farming with organic inputs was proving beneficial for the farming community as there was a good market for such environmentally safe farm produce.
Three persons were killed and 34 injured when a bus of the state road transport corporation fell about 200-ft-down into a khud near Jabli in Solan district in the wee hours of the day.While two persons died on the spot, one woman succumbed to her injuries at Government Medical College, Chandigarh. The ill-fated bus was on its way from Delhi to Bagha (near Daralaghat). Twelve injured persons were referred to Chandigarh, three to civil hospital, Solan, an the rest were hospitalised at Parwanoo.
The BJP today held a protest against unprecedented price hike, blaming the Congress-led UPA regime in failing to take effective steps in this direction.Senior BJP leaders and workers held a protest rally outside the Deputy Commissioner's office. The leaders also submitted a memorandum addressed to the President of India to the DC demanding concrete steps to check prices or else dismiss the UPA regime.
Himachal Pradesh will soon set up a centre for climate change, disaster management and snow and glacier studies to help chalk out mitigation and adaptation strategies and enhance preparedness for natural disasters.
The police here stopped and checked a red beacon-bearing Fiat Fiana car (HR05-X0404) of a senior Haryana police officer and challaned it and fined Rs 300 under Section 177 of the Motor Vehicles Act from the car driver.
One person was killed on the spot when the vehicle which he was driving went out of control and fell into a 70-metre deep gorge at Keru Pahad on the Dalhousie-Pathankot highway, about 32 km from here, last night, the police sources said here today.
A daylong National Service Scheme (NSS) camp was organised at Government Senior Secondary School, Mahadev, near Sundernagar yesterday.
The district-level rally of the BJP against price rise today turned ugly when state president of the NSUI, Yadhupati Thakur, and his supporters were thrashed and the former had to be hospitalised.The BJP workers were organising a pre-planned rally at the Kachehri crossing against price rise according to the national programme.
About 20 NSUI activists also came to the spot, raising slogans against the state government. They were also going to the district administration to submit a memorandum, condemning the government for price rise in the state.
The cross slogans led to heated exchanges between leaders of the BJP and NSUI activists. Later, BJP workers, who were present in a considerable strength at the rally venue, caught hold of NSUI activists and thrashed them.
Senior leaders of the BJP, including local minister Kishan Kapoor, alleged that the police had failed to make adequate arrangements to prevent the clash.
However, Dharamsala SDM said the NSUI had not taken any permission from them for organising the rally.
What perplexed everybody was the presence of Yadhupati Thakur, who belonged to the Jogindarnagar area of Mandi, at Dharamsala today. Even the authorities were busy gauging if the clash was pre-planned or not.
Meanwhile, BJP leaders demanded police action against NSUI activists for disrupting their rally.
Kangra SP Atul Fulzele, when contacted, said legal action would be taken in the matter after investigation.
The clash has, however, kindled the political milieu in the area. State president of the Youth Congress Manmohan Katoch, while talking to The Tribune, flayed the incident. The Youth Congress would launch a state-level agitation against such act, he said.
Meanwhile, BJP leaders, while speaking at today's protest rally, alleged that price rise was the result of profiting by a certain minister of the state in the UPA government. The Prime Minister and other senior Congress leaders cannot be absolved from the responsibility of failing to check price rise in the country, they added.
It was at the Cabinet meeting held on December 18 that the government decided to constitute a Cabinet sub-committee, comprising five ministers, to examine the proposals so that it could be introduced in the ensuing Budget session of the Assembly starting in the first week of March.
However, the committee, headed by Public Works Minister Gulab Singh Thakur, has not held a meeting till date. Other members of the committee include Forest Minister, Rural Development Minister, Horticulture Minister and Transport Minister.
Meanwhile, the request of the TCP department to the Centre regarding certain clarifications with regard to Section 16 pertaining to subdivision of land has been referred back to the state government. "The Centre has directed us to first bring about the enactment of the new Act and then take up the matter with it," said sources.
It is with the objective of bringing about regulated and planned development that it has been proposed to bring the entire state under the ambit of the new Act, including the rural areas. In order to keep the procedure simple for villagers, all construction activity in rural areas, being undertaken in accordance with the prescribed limits and for personal use, will not require any permission from TCP authorities.
At present, the TCP Act is applicable in only 22 towns of the state and 29 urban areas are still out of its ambit.
"Unless and until the new Act covers the entire state, the government will continue to lose out on revenue as big industrial units, medical colleges and hotels coming up outside the planning areas, are not contributing to the state exchequer," the sources added.
What is even worse is the fact that villagers are being made to suffer as big units put a strain on local resources and get away by paying nominal amount.
Moreover, unregulated construction activity along the central nodal locations, highways and other lifelines, is causing a lot of harm and will hamper further development activity.
As such, any further delay in bringing the new Act into force will cause more damage and haphazard construction activity and development will continue without any check.
Protest demonstrations were held all over the state by the CPM to condemn the firing incident that took place in Chamba district on Sunday.Senior CPM leaders on Monday met the Chief Secretary and submitted a memorandum to lodge their protest against the alleged mafia-style operation being carried out at the behest of a company constructing a 5MW hydel project on the Hul rivulet.
CPM activists also staged a demonstration against the firing outside the DC office here. The activists also took out a procession which later culminated in a protest rally at Naaz. The rally was addressed by Tikender Singh Panwar, Sanjay Chauhan, Dr Kuldeep Singh and Vijender Mehra.
They regretted that despite the protest going on for quite some time at the project in Hul, the government paid no attention towards the genuine demands of the people.
"The common people, agitating against the high handedness of private companies, will not be cowed down as the companies will have to accept their genuine demands," they said.
CHAMBA: In the wake of the firing incident that took place in the Sillaghrat area of the district on Sunday, the CPM, CPI, CITU and Himalaya Bachao Samiti jointly organised a rally here on Monday.
After the rally was over, state secretary of the CPM Rakesh Singha, while talking to mediapersons, demanded that the government must revoke the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with regard to the proposed 4.5 MW Hul hydroelectric project forthwith.
He said the hydroelectric projects like Hul hydropower, having a capacity of 4.5 MW, was neither compatible to the wooded setting of the area nor it could add much revenue to the state exchequer.
Himalaya Bachao Samiti's navigator Kulbhushan Upmanyu also pleaded banning execution on the proposed Hul project.
Meanwhile, SP Madhu Sudan, in a press release, said the accused in the firing incident had been arrested and further investigations were underway.
MANDI: The CPI and the Gyan and Vigyan Samiti on Monday accused the private contractor and hydel power project company, executing the Chedera project in Chamba district, of resorting to the unprovoked firing on peaceful agitators in which Rattan Chand was seriously injured.
Condemning the gunshots fired on the peacefully agitating protesters at the project site, state CPI secretary Des Raj and Gyan Vigyan samiti president Sunder Lohia said the company and the contactor hatched a conspiracy and hired goons who fired gunshots on the local protesters. "We demand a judicial probe and the guilty should be booked," he demanded.
They stated that the firing was unprovoked and demanded compensation for the environmental damage.
HAMIRPUR: The CPM has strongly condemned the alleged firing and brutal attack on zila parishad member Rattan Chand and other panchayat representatives by "hired goons" at the Hul power project in Chamba district .
He alleged that a few police personnel were maintaining close contacts with the contractors and their goons working in the power project.
The CPM has demanded immediate arrest of the contractor and other persons involved in this incident and has asked that construction of the Hul project should be undertaken in consultation with the local people after resolving their grievances.
However, the Chabads have become the "targets" and security concern in the state, sources said, quoting Union Home Minister P Chidambaram as saying at a press conference in Pune yesterday.
Despite a fresh advisory on dealing with terror and precautionary measures from the Home Ministry, the state police and intelligence agencies in the wake of German bakery bomb blast at Pune that killed nine and injured 53 persons, the police and intelligence agencies were caught napping when the central investigating agencies zeroed in on Manali to find out the Headley links in Kullu-Manali, the sources revealed.
The police said there was no "inputs sharing with the CIA" as to whether Headley had any links in Manali or not.
According to police sources, they have received advisory on terror attacks and so far no linkage had been established as to whether Headley had links in Manali or not.
Moreover, the Jewish New Year falls in September-October when droves of Jews make a beeline for Kasol, Manali, Dharamkot-Bhagsunag for their 10-day-long Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur festival.
"We give spiritual and moral support to Jews visiting the remote valley in the Himalayas," said Yoel and Rebbe, the head of Jewish centre at Kasol and Manali.
"We are vigilant after terrorist attack in Mumbai on the Jewish centre in Nariman House," they added.
Kullu SP KK Indoria said the Chabads had been closed in winter as foreigners visit the valley in summer.
DGP GS Gill said the police was on a high alert and all Chabads had security. However, the cow slaughter incident at Nerwa in the Chopal area has no link with the Pune bomb blast," he asserted.
Officials of the BBN Industrial Development Authority, who held a meeting with the ministry's national productivity council, also received principle approval for widening of three roads, including Chakka road, Thana road and the road abutting on Annapurna hotel.
The scheme has been approved under the Centre's Industrial Infrastructure (cluster) upgrade scheme (IIUS) and its primary objective is to enhance international competitiveness of the domestic industry by providing quality infrastructure through public-private partnership in select functional industrial clusters or locations which have great potential to become globally competitive.
The strategy involves providing critical features in industrial locations in terms of physical infrastructure, common facility centre, etc.
The authority has been given a six-month period to prepare a detailed project report entailing the actual implementation of the project. Around 1,500 hectare area would be covered under the scheme and a site of 126 bighas has already been set aside at Kenduwala. About 1,000 units would benefit from this facility.
The ministry has, however, directed the authority to enhance the share of industry and financial institutions from its present 10 per cent. While the user industries would be the shareholders in the project, Kenduwala would be the centre point where the plant would be set up.
A spokesman of the Kangra district Beopar Mandal said all Beopar Mandals of the district had passed separate resolutions to this effect which had already been faxed to the Finance Minister and chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), New Delhi, requesting him for his immediate intervention.
He said all branches of Beopar Mandals of the district had also urged the CBDT chairman to reconsider this decision and take care of the interest of tax payers who had been adversely affected by attaching north zone of the state with CIT(A), Solan.
It may be recalled that the Taxation Bar Association of Kangra had also demanded restoration of the office of CIT (A) at Palampur.
A memorandum to this effect was also presented to Union Minister for Steel Virbhadara Singh during his visit to Kangra and the association had urged him to take up the matter with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
Two self-help groups were also honoured on the occasion and the minister awarded the farmers and groups (SHGs) with cash prizes of Rs10000 and Rs 20000, respectively, along with the merit certificates.
Speaking on the occasion the education minister congratulated Hamirpur district for standing first in the implementation of Pandit Deen Dayal kisan-bagwan samridhi yojna so far.
He also urged the youth not to run after the government jobs and seek their future in farming and allied sectors.
Dhiman said an ambitious plan of Rs 353 crore was launched in the state in the last January aiming to bring a sea change in the economy of the farmers through diversification and by providing better infrastructure.
He said at present farmers were being provided 80 per cent subsidy for the construction of poly-houses and raising irrigation facilities.
Earlier, deputy director of the department AS Rana briefed detailed activities of the department.
Chief adviser of the association CL Negi said here today that the factory had been closed for the past three years and growers had been procuring cartons from market without any hassles. Further, its cost of production was as high as Rs 44 per carton whereas cartons of same quality produced in private factories were only Rs 27 per carton. As such, revival of the unit, which had already accumulated huge losses, was not a feasible proposition. An engineering college, on the other hand, would benefit thousands of students who have to spend huge amount to pursue various engineering courses outside the state, he added.
Moreover, the unit was set up to encourage growers to switchover from wooden packing cases to cartons to help save forests. Now that wooden boxes had been phased out and growers were using cartons freely available in open market at very reasonable rates, there was no need for reviving the unit. The college was a good option for utilisation of the land and other infrastructure available at the site, he added.
Negi said a section of growers was opposing the move to drive political mileage from the issue and pointed out that some former office-bearers were trying to create confusion by issuing statement in the name of the association which was patently wrong.
Negi also hailed the decision of the government to implement the anti-hail gun at Khara Pathar, in the heart of the apple belt, and said it was a laudable initiative which would help save fruit crops every year. He said it was wrong to make an issue over the location of the gun as it was a pilot scheme to ascertain its success. Once successful, it could be installed at various other places across the state, he said.
After being briefed on the rescue operations, he interacted with trainees and instructors. The aspects of equipment, clothing and related issues were addressed comprehensively for better training ahead.
He drove to Gulmarg by road through heavy snowfall and inclement weather to meet the brave and gallant trainers and to pay condolences to those who made the sacrifice. He said such challenges were a way of life with the Army and reiterated that no amount of inclement weather could deter a soldier from carrying out realistic training and mental robustness.
Appreciating the exemplary courage and devotion to duty, Gen Lamba awarded the Army Commander's Commendation Cards to Major Vijay Kumar, subedar Gokul Pradhan and havildar instructor Harbhajan Singh.
HAWA, the Indian Army's premier training institute, was raised in 1948 to train soldiers fight, operate and survive in high altitude areas in snow craft, avalanche rescue, skiing and snow survival. It has produced expertise in training mountaineers, Antarctica teams and rescue experts that rescue trapped personnel in snow-bound areas, crevasses and people struck by avalanches.
For the first time in its history, a tragedy struck at a place called Gujjar Hut, about 900 m from the institute. A heavy avalanche came from an unexpected direction, engulfing around 228 of 400 personnel.
Universities and other institutes were carrying exhaustive research on high-yielding varieties of crops free from chemical inputs and healthy for human consumption.
He said in the age of information technology, there was a need to exchange research outcomes and views on different farming practices so that the same could be replicated by stakeholders at the grassroots. The benefit of research must reach the farming community, he added.
Dhumal also visited fields to take stock of hydrological, reforestation, environment services payments and allied activities in Costa Rica yesterday.
He said there was a vast scope to exchange research work which could benefit the farming communities of both nations.
He noted that Himachal Pradesh was spending Rs 45,000 per hectare on afforestation as compared to $900 per hectare in Cost Rica.
Dr Carlos Rodrigues, vice-president, Conservation International, detailed different environment-related farming activities in Costa Rica.
The loss of life would have been much higher but for the fact that the vehicle skidded downhill, without tumbling, after the first plunge.
There were over 40 passengers on board when the mishap occurred around 4.30 am. The conductor of the bus rang up the authorities from the spot as a result of which rescue and relief operation started without the loss of time.
The district administration and the staff of the corporation reached the spot promptly. The CPRF unit at Dharmapur played an important role in the relief and rescue operation.
Initial inquiries made by the police and the corporation indicated that the bus first veered to the hillside and thereafter it turned sharply to the valley side and fell near the Cosmos Ferrite factory. The road was quite wide and was not prone to accident.
Managing director of the corporation Somesh Goyal, who was in Dharamsala in connection with the Vidhan Sabha session, rushed to the scene of accident immediately.
He said according to preliminary inquiry, the possibility of human error could not be ruled out. He has constituted a three-member committee under the chairmanship of divisional manager, technical, to conduct an inquiry to ascertain the cause of accident. The corporation will bear the entire cost of treatment of the injured, he added.
Meanwhile, the police has registered a case of rash and negligent driving and investigation is on.
Those who were present on the occasion included Horticulture Minister Narender Bragta, local MLA Suresh Bhardwaj, Rohru MLA Khushi Ram Balnatah, former Speaker Radha Raman Shastri, district BJP chief Sher Singh Chauhan and HIMUDA chairman Ganesh Dutt.
Speaking on the occasion, Bhardwaj said the price rise, which had touched an all-time high, had virtually pushed the common man to the brink of starvation. "To top it all statements of the agriculture minister that consuming too much of sugar is harmful for one's health is making mockery of the common man," he remarked.
He said the BJP would expose the Congress regime, which was out and out protecting the interests of the traders. He demanded that the President of India should either direct the UPA regime to take concrete steps to check price rise or else dismiss the central government.
The district BJP chief said the central government was totally responsible for the price rise. The BJP leaders later held a meeting to discuss the state-level protest to be held at Shimla by the BJP on February 27.
Stating this while speaking at an international conference on environment and climate change, jointly organised by the World Bank and the government of Costa Rica at San Jose, last evening, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said a state resource information centre, to serve as a central repository for all databases on environment, natural resources and climate change, would also be established.
He said a master plan for environment was already being formulated with the assistance of the World Bank in which spatial vulnerability assessment and sectoral guidelines for environmental protection had been incorporated.
The state was developing tools and methodologies for green accounting in state planning and budget processes. It was assessing green house gases emissions for working out carbon footprints, he added.
Dhumal said the state was implementing the World Bank-funded Mid Himalayan Watershed Development Project under which there was a provision for paying carbon credits in lieu of afforestation by panchayats and local communities.
He said the state had signed an MoU with the Gas Authority of India (GAIL) for supply of piped gas for domestic use. Solar passive technologies and rainwater harvesting were being promoted in addition to use of non-conventional energy sources for space heating and use of charcoal, coal and other fossil fuels was beng discouraged.
All departments had been asked to carry out energy and environment audits, and introspect on actions and policies for mitigation and adaptation measures.
Superintendent of Police Kuldip Sharma said here yesterday that the authorised officer was not travelling in the car that was heading for Kullu-Manali, though there was another unauthorised person along with the driver in the car.
He said the red beacon was seized and the driver was warned against its misuse in future. Earlier, this red beacon-bearing car was spotted speeding at the National Highway-21 at Nauni by a police patrol and stopped it checking.
However, initially the driver refused to show any papers, but when he was warned that in that case the police had no alternative except to impound the car and detain the occupants for interrogation, the driver reconciled and showed the papers.
The sources revealed that the deceased had been identified as Ashok Kumar, driver of Indica (HP-2D-0129). He was a resident of Luthoon village falling under Dalhousie tehsil.
The body of the deceased had been handed over to his kin, the sources informed.
The vehicle was on it way from Pathankot to Balkan, the sources further added.
According to official information, about 100 volunteers participated in this camp.
They cleaned the premises of the school, loaded the garbage in a tractor and disposed it of. The volunteers collected polythene from nearby areas of the school and sent it for safe disposal.


text:
https://www.sfgate.com/realestate/article/Dennis-Weaver-selling-Colorado-Earthship-home-3324329.php
Dennis Weaver selling Colorado 'Earthship' home
Ruth Ryon, Los Angeles Times
Published 4:00 am PDT, Sunday, June 20, 2004
2004-06-20 04:00:00 PDT Los Angeles -- Dennis Weaver, who voices the role of rancher Abner Dixon in Disney's animated feature "Home on the Range," and his wife, Gerry, have listed their residence in Ridgway, Colo., at $4.25 million. They plan to live in a home they bought in Malibu 20 years ago.
The actor-environmentalist, who just turned 80, has been driving to Hollywood from Ridgway for acting assignments since 1993. He built the Colorado home in 1989. He and his wife decided to move back to Malibu to be closer to the studios and their three grandchildren.
"The Weaver family was shaken last July by the loss of Lynne Weaver, daughter-in-law of Dennis and Gerry Weaver, in the Santa Monica Farmers' Market traffic tragedy," said Julian Myers, a spokesman for the couple. "This too may have influenced the Weavers to be nearer their family."
The Ridgway house, which the actor calls "Earthship," is on 20 acres on a river. The home has a pond and a view of the Rocky Mountains. It also has six bedrooms in 10,000 square feet plus stables. Four llamas, born on the property, are available at no extra cost.
The house has 3-foot-thick walls made of compacted earth and recycled tires and cans. The effect is to regulate the temperature inside the home. Architect Michael Reynolds also designed the house to capture winter sunlight for extra heat. There is supplemental radiant heating in some floors. Water in the house is solar-heated.
Weaver, the daily host of Starz Encore's Westerns channel, starred in such TV series as "McCloud," "Gunsmoke" and "Gentle Ben."
He starred in Steven Spielberg's TV terror movie "Duel" (1971) and played a motel clerk in Orson Welles' film "A Touch of Evil" (1958). He was president of the Screen Actors Guild for two years.
Actress Shelley Long bought a Brentwood home on the west side of Los Angeles in March for slightly more than $1.6 million, and now she has it listed at just under $1.8 million.
The traditional-style home, built in 1999, has three bedrooms and three bathrooms in about 2,800 square feet. The breakfast area opens to a redwood deck. The master suite has a sitting room and spa tub.
Long won an Emmy for her leading role on the long-running TV sitcom "Cheers." In March, she joined the cast of an untitled comedy pilot. She recently played Carol Brady in the Fox made-for-TV movie "The Brady Bunch in the White House."
Seann William Scott, who made his big-screen debut as a crass senior in the comedy "American Pie" (1999), has purchased a Malibu home for about $4 million.
The house has five bedrooms and four bathrooms in about 7,500 square feet. The home, behind gates, has ocean views. It was built in 1980 and is on 1.4 acres.
Scott, 26, also appeared in "American Pie 2" (2001), "American Wedding" (2003) and "The Rundown," co-starring the Rock.
Hot Property: Northwest-facing condo includes a private deck...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Labor, delivery, and recovery can be a stressful time in any woman's life, and this stress may impact your milk supply. If you've tried nursing your baby more often and that doesn't seem to be increasing your supply, it may be time to investigate other avenues. Several natural options exist to help you increase the quality and quantity of your milk. Natural lactation supplement boost breast milk supply helps create the best possible breastfeeding experience for you and your baby.
OK, so water is not technically a food, but it is the most essential aspect of ensuring you will have an adequate milk supply. According to studies, 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. You do not need to drink gallons a day, but you do need to be adequately hydrated. 8 glasses (64 ounces) of fluid a day is an absolute must. In the early stages of your breastfeeding journey its a necessity to have a bottle of water next to where you are going to nurse. You might not be thirsty when you sit down, but it is not uncommon to be overwhelmed by thirst after a few minutes.
How to Breast Feed Better?
Do you think you are having a decrease in your milk supply because your breasts feel soft? Or maybe since your baby feeds for a shorter period? Look, you may not really have a problem. However, to help you feel more at ease, herbs and supplements can help products to increase milk production. It's not for everyone, and you need to check with your doctor or lactation consultant before you take any supplements or medication. Use it with caution. The last thing we want to happen is that you use the wrong dosage or find out you have allergies and sensitivities to these herbal supplements.


text:
REPORTER ?= list
MOCHA_OPTS= --check-leaks

all: toxiclibs.js toxiclibs.min.js
toxiclibs.js:
	./bin/toxiclibsjs --out "./build/toxiclibs.js"
toxiclibs.min.js:
	./bin/toxiclibsjs --out "./build/toxiclibs.min.js" --minify
toxiclibs-core.min.js:
	./bin/toxiclibsjs --include "toxi/geom toxi/math toxi/util" --minify --out "./build/toxiclibs-core.min.js"
toxiclibs-color.min.js:
	./bin/toxiclibsjs --include "toxi/color" --out "./build/toxiclibs-color.min.js" --minify
toxiclibs-physics2d.min.js:
	./bin/toxiclibsjs --include "toxi/physics2d" --out "./build/toxiclibs-physics2d.min.js" --minify

test:
	./node_modules/mocha/bin/mocha --reporter $(REPORTER) test/*.js $(MOCHA_OPTS)

.PHONY: test

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com - Hello from Mid Michigan!
Been a lurker for a couple of years, and have especially enjoyed some of the amazing diy work everyone is doing. My current interest is in building a small "luggage" trailer to tow behind our 2017 Subaru Forester. I've read as much as I've found about aerodynamics of trailers and that's not a ton! I'm going to spend some more time researching, but if you have any tips or links you can suggest, feel free to help me out! I'm not looking to go crazy, but I'm building from scratch so options are open. I get over 30 mpg with my Forester driving reasonably, and don't want to destroy that. I'm thinking maybe it'll look a little like an Airstream Basecamp, but about 3x5 and maybe 44-48 inches high. Anyhow, thanks for the great forum, I'm glad to be here!
Thanks! I'm excited to be a more active part of the community!
As for the trailer, if it's small -- well within the cross-section of the back of the car and not far behind -- it should have minimal aero penalty. Just more weight & rolling resistance.
Thanks for making that happen! So, the same story for the trailer as for my pants, weight is the major enemy! Thanks for your advice!


text:
2012 Le Montrachet, Grand Cru, Lucien le Moine
White | Ready, but will improve | Lucien Le Moine | Code: 31848 | 2012 | France > Burgundy > Cote de Beaune > Puligny Montrachet | Chardonnay | Medium Bodied, Dry | 13.5 % alcohol
The Wine Advocate - For my sample, Mounier blended two barrels from the Chassagne and Puligny side together for his 2012 Montrachet Grand Cru. As you might expect, it is adorned with a very intense bouquet with powerful mineral-rich, citrus fruit infused with orange blossom and even quince. The palate is almost viscous on the entry with intense citrus fruit, touches of marmalade and orange rind, great persistence on the finish. Outstanding.
Eligible for storage in our Bonded Warehouses, terms and conditions apply. See Further Details
Lucien Lemoine is a small, haute-couture négociant house was established by Mounir and Rotem Saouma in 1999. Their aim is to bring to the market each year a maximum of 100 barrels of premier cru and grand cru burgundy which they have raised in their vaulted cellars in Beaune according to their most exacting standards of élévage.
There is no winemaking involved as the wines reach them after fermentation. Often there is but a single cask of each wine – their 100 barrels of 2007 cover 68 different wines.
There are no contracts with growers, though they will frequently return to the same sources, and no specific requirements as to how the grapes should have been grown or the wines made. Indeed it was very interesting to taste a line-up of Vosne-Romanée wines and see some which had evidently been vinified with stems and others not.
According to Rotem, her husband's strength is that he can sniff out the quality and style of a vintage at a very early stage. They work closely with their barrel supplier, Stéphane Chassin, to ensure the right barrels for the style of a given wine, using wood from the Jupilles forest which is apparently the slowest growing in France, thus giving the most fine-grained wood. One hundred per cent new wood is used.
The general recipe, although of course each vintage and if need be each wine may require its own treatment, is to ensure late malolactic fermentations, to stir up the plentiful lees for both red and white wines, to rely more on CO2 than SO2 to preserve the wine from oxidation and to maintain the wines unracked in new barrels until the final preparation before bottling.
Typically the wines end up with a soft, sweet-fruit character but otherwise little other evidence of new oak, and those I have tasted have displayed good typicity of their vineyard origins. They are not cheap.
View Producer
Other wines by this producer:
Chardonnay is the "Big Daddy" of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world. It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or.
Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.
It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition.
Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.
Puligny was one of two villages (along with Chassagne) which gained permission in 1879 to hyphenate the name of its most famous vineyard, Montrachet, to its own.
The reputation of Puligny-Montrachet is based around its four Grands Crus. Montrachet labels often boast a noble, triumphant 'Le' in front of its name, lest you dare confuse it with any lesser wine. It has much to be proud of, with many considering Montrachet to be the greatest white wine in the world. At its best it has an intensity, complexity and elegance that make you wonder how such a wine could be made from mere grapes.
The luxurious and explosive Chevalier-Montrachet is not quite as deep, although it is probably the next best. Only marginally less impressive, and rather more consistent than Montrachet is the richly textured Bâtard-Montrachet (also shared with Chassagne). Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet is equally good, with the focus on honeyed finesse and exquisite balance rather than richness.
These legendary wines are supported by a host of fabulous Premier Cru vineyards capable of reaching Grand Cru quality. Brimming with flavour and intensity, Le Cailleret and Les Pucelles (which both lie across the road from Le Montrachet) are prime candidates, along with Les Demoiselles, Les Combettes and Folatières.
Sandwiched between the larger Chassagne and Meursault, Puligny produces wines that are more striking than any in the Côte d'Or, portraying a floral elegance alongside a stylish, steely concentration. They are very different to Meursault: more refined and delicate, and less rich.
Village level Puligny-Montrachet from top growers can be very good indeed, but is all too often unexciting and disappointing. Grands Crus normally need at least eight years before they can be broached, and last for 20 or more. Premiers Crus should generally be enjoyed between five and 15 years of age; village wines from three to 10 years.
In theory, you can find red Puligny-Montrachet, but it scarcely exists anymore, and is rarely worth the price tag.
114 hectares of village Puligny-Montrachet
100 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (17 in all). The best vineyards include Les Demoiselles, Le Cailleret, Les Pucelles, Les Combettes, Les Folatières
21 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards: Le Montrachet (part), Chevalier-Montrachet, Bâtard-Montrachet (part), Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet
Recommended Producers: Leflaive, Carillon
Recommended Restaurant: Le Montrachet (excellent cuisine and good wine list; also an hotel)
Storage Details
Storage in BB&R Warehouses
Wines bought from Berry Bros. & Rudd can be stored
in our temperature controlled warehouses.
We can only accept orders for unmixed cases.
Storage Charges:
per case per annum
Customer Reserves For wines purchased In Bond,
Duty & VAT charges become payable upon withdrawing from your reserves.
BBX wines can only be bought In Bond.
Minimum annual storage charge applies.
More information on wine storage £12.60 (inc. VAT)
for Cellar Plan Members


text:
Home Business + News & Analysis Citizens Losing Patience Over Infrastructure Roadblocks
Citizens Losing Patience Over Infrastructure Roadblocks
Freidrich Wagoner
Image used for representation only
Pune's march towards becoming a Smart City is underway with work on the infrastructure having started…
However, problems and inconvenience to citizens on a daily basis is testing their patience enormously. While they agree that the future of the city is extremely important, they feel that the pace of the work and lack of systematic handing is causing havoc.
Some of the flyovers have missed their target and there have been protests which have blocked the smooth handling of the metro system.
Many roads in the city are also damaged and not much work has been in initiated in this regard.
Pune citizens are by nature very patient but facing some sort of hardship daily is now pushing their blood pressure levels.
"I am losing at least half an hour daily due to these works," says Madhumita Chatterji, 40, an advertising executive who lives in Pimpri-Chinchwad and works in the City area.
"I have rescheduled my daily routine to leave early every day to make up time. The work on the metro has blocked at least one portion of the road in our area and the traffic just crawls.
"I feel the work is progressing in a haphazard manner and there are no periodic updates on it. The authorities set a target but don't meet it and let things drift.
They only scramble towards the finish line and most times, fail in their endeavour," Madhumita adds.
Mohini Madgulkar, 39, a singer, who lives in Deccan Gymkhana, feels the planning and completion time go out of the window once the project kicks off.
"If we set targets, it must be met give a few days here and there. But the authorities are not bothered, that is the impression I get. After the initial enthusiasm, it just dies down.
"The traffic has become chaotic wherever the work is in progress. As it is, the traffic is situation is bad in Pune during peak hours and at these spots it is nightmarish. Might as well take a quiet nap until you can inch forward," Madgulkar quips.
Sanjeev Kale, 57, an accountant who works in Lullanagar is fed up with the whole situation there.
"In recent days, the road on one side has been narrowed considerably causing chaos all over. There are trucks, buses and SUVs traversing this portion of the road along with all other kind of vehicles.
The noise and the din there during peak hours can cause a man to have a heart attack.
"This could have been tackled better and in a more orderly way but it hasn't been done so. Outside Gera Junction building, the parking has been eliminated altogether which is good but it still doesn't seem effective.
And some who ride without licences try to squirm out of the way of the policemen who hover there to catch rule breakers. It's madness out there daily," Kale added
Suresh Gaikwad, 49, an auto-rickshaw driver is fed up doing his job during the peak hours.
"I never refuse a fare and that means that I have to go through areas where there are infrastructure projects in progress.
But those are nightmare rides for me. Even my patience is running out and I may be forced to give up trips to those parts for the sake of my health," Suresh added.
"Systematic work can eliminate many stumbling blocks if implemented seriously. But the usual government apathy sets in. The "chalta hai' attitude prevails everywhere," says PK Singh, 49, a civil engineer.
'It would be great if we could form a citizens' forum to solve these matters with the authorities to make them see the encumbrances they cause.
We probably have the bumpiest roads in the country. Let's provide quality too at the construction stage itself.
"A weekly update on the work areas and some advice on predicted traffic could be put out on the radio on a daily basis. Alternative routes could also be given. This will help the citizens no end.
If we are going the smart way, then let us start this too like other countries," he added.
Latest posts by Freidrich Wagoner (see all)
A Road To Disaster On Pune's Footpaths - March 14, 2019
Passengers Still 'Fare-Game' For Some Rickshaw Drivers - February 28, 2019
Radio Battling For Relevance In Digital World - February 13, 2019
#flyovers
#smart city
auto-rickshaw
citizens' forum
Deccan Gymkhana
Gera Junction
Lullanagar
Previous articleScoop Your Pets Poop Or Be Prepared To Pay A Fine- PMC
Next articleJesus Has to Rise Within You – Sadhguru
Who Are Your People?


text:
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| 147101 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147102 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147103 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147104 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147105 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147106 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147107 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147108 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147109 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147110 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
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| 147111 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147112 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147113 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 ||  ||
|-
| 147114 - ||  || 3 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147115 - ||  || 3 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147116 - ||  || 1 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147117 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147118 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147119 - ||  || 3 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147120 - ||  || 2 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147121 - ||  || 3 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147122 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147123 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147124 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147125 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147126 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147127 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147128 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147129 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147130 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147131 - ||  || 14 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147132 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147133 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147134 - ||  || 4 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147135 - ||  || 7 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147136 - ||  || 8 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147137 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147138 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147139 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147140 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147141 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147142 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Kitt Peak || Spacewatch
|-
| 147143 - ||  || 8 octombrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147144 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147145 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147146 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147147 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147148 - ||  || 9 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147149 - ||  || 10 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147150 - ||  || 10 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147151 - ||  || 11 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147152 - ||  || 12 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147153 - ||  || 11 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147154 - ||  || 28 octombrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147155 - ||  || 28 octombrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147156 - ||  || 28 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147157 - ||  || 28 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147158 - ||  || 30 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147159 - ||  || 30 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147160 - ||  || 30 octombrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147161 - ||  || 1 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147162 - ||  || 1 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147163 - ||  || 1 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147164 - ||  || 1 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147165 - ||  || 1 noiembrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147166 - ||  || 2 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147167 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147168 - ||  || 4 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147169 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147170 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147171 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147172 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147173 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147174 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147175 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147176 - ||  || 4 noiembrie 2002 || Palomar || NEAT
|-
| 147177 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147178 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147179 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147180 - ||  || 6 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147181 - ||  || 3 noiembrie 2002 || Haleakala || NEAT
|-
| 147182 - ||  || 5 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147183 - ||  || 8 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147184 - ||  || 7 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147185 - ||  || 7 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147186 - ||  || 7 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147187 - ||  || 7 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147188 - ||  || 7 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147189 - ||  || 7 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147190 - ||  || 8 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147191 - ||  || 11 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147192 - ||  || 11 noiembrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147193 - ||  || 11 noiembrie 2002 || Anderson Mesa || LONEOS
|-
| 147194 - ||  || 8 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147195 - ||  || 11 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147196 - ||  || 11 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147197 - ||  || 12 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147198 - ||  || 12 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147199 - ||  || 12 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-
| 147200 - ||  || 12 noiembrie 2002 || Socorro || LINEAR
|-

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Collective tragedy of Pakhtuns
Mushtaq Gaadi
The spectre of colonial history would continue to haunt the tribal borderlands unless the right to improve their judicial system according to their own indigenous formations is not recognised
It appears as if the state is again out to add to the miseries of tribal people of the borderland region. There is a growing talk of political and judicial reforms in FATA. For this purpose, the governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has established FATA Reforms Commission (FRC) to frame a plan for the next 25 years. It is, however, not yet clear what reforms and for whom?
History acts cruelly if its lessons are not learnt. It punishes our ignorance through its spectral recurrence, akin to how the suppressed content of memory produces haunted dreams. In short, those who are oblivious to the lessons of history are bound to live in preordained time.
A recent ruling of Peshawar High Court (PHC) vis-à-vis the administration of justice in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) indicates just how little we have learnt from history. The PHC has instructed the parliament to amend the Constitution in order to bring FATA under the jurisdiction of superior courts.
Two decades ago, a similar decision was passed by the Supreme Court decreeing that customary tribal courts in Swat and other Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA), overseen by local elders, were no longer legally valid, and had to be replaced by official courts and Pakistani civil laws.
In retrospect, it is easy to understand how the court ruling proved an opportunity for the then newly-established Tehreek Nifaz-e-Shariat Muhammadi (TNSM). It created a political and legal vacuum which the TNSM effectively availed by launching violent protests to demand the enforcement of Sharia laws.
The region was already undergoing deep turmoil owing to the abolition of self-rule of the princely state; an ill-planned political and legal transition was underway. Before the merger of Swat state, the system of political power and law was a blend of monarchic authority, and customary codes and institutions.
History tells us that such confusion and distant authority in conflict ridden factional societies always gives way to anarchy and ruthless struggles for domination.
The majority of local people still consider that judicial system better than what replaced it with regard to efficiency and delivery of services and justice. It was considered consistent with local conditions and norms. Indeed, the traditional system was established after a prolonged period of relative anarchy amidst mass struggle against the British colonialism in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
As a matter of fact, the British colonial administration had to concede the demand for internal regional autonomy after the partial failing of the Ambala military campaign in 1864-65 and, later on, the Malakand uprising in 1897. Charismatic religious figures coordinated and led different tribal militias in both instances.
The colonial state was thus forced to acknowledge the potency of millenarian ideologies amongst Pakhtuns, particularly when faced with the threat of foreign rule. Therefore, it not only avoided further military incursion but also tacitly supported the process of state building in the region. The rest of the story is well known. The region experienced unmatched peace and prosperity under the short period of self-rule.
The abolition of Swat and other frontier states in the late 1960s precipitated sheer confusion and hardships. The region was made a provincial territory under the PATA Regulations. However, effective control was invested in the central authorities. Similarly, all old laws including orders, rules, notifications and customs were kept intact but their interpretation was left to the provincial bureaucratic machinery.
History tells us that such confusion and distant authority in conflict ridden factional societies always gives way to anarchy and ruthless struggles for domination. It was exactly this confusion and dissatisfaction among local people combined with misplaced state priorities that the TNSM and, later on, Swat Taliban used to rally popular support for their political agenda.
The case of FATA is not much different. The region is already suffering from state and non-state violence, drone attacks and the breakdown of social order. The latest addition to the historic and collective tragedy of the Pakhtuns is a large-scale involuntary displacement.
The status quo in Pakhtun tribal borderlands is unacceptable. However, any change that does not take into account the following imperatives is certain to cause further catastrophe.
First, we should move beyond the colonial imagination of the tribal borderlands as a buffer between the savage and the civilized world. Before the advent of colonialism, these tribal regions were relatively open spaces serving as the main land routes for regional trade and mobility. The British colonialism reconstituted them as a buffer zone and closed geographies.
Second, the mobilisation of religious identities as an instrument of state policy is a double edged sword. It not only has the potential to unleash violence but can also metamorphose into an archaic form of Pakhtun nationalism.
Third and last, there should be the recognition of tribal sovereignty and internal autonomy. The liberal notion of the rule of (state) law that originated from Europe and then transported to colonies in the nineteenth century has long been resisted by Pakhtun tribesmen. The spectre of colonial history would continue to haunt the tribal borderlands unless the right to improve their judicial system according to their own indigenous formations is not recognised.


NECRONAUT, the solo project of former DISMEMBER/CARNAGE drummer Fred Estby, has posted another new track, "In Dark Tribute", on its MySpace page. The song features Hellbutcher (NIFELHEIM) on vocals and Tyrant (NIFELHEIM) on guitar.
NECRONAUT's self-titled album is scheduled for a September 2010 release via Regain Records. The cover artwork for the CD was designed by Chat Zar, who was reponsible for creating the prosthetic effects for such movies as "The Ring", "Planet of the Apes" and "Darkman".
After more than 20 years in the death metal scene, Estby wanted to express his passion for different kinds of extreme music he's bore since his youth. In 2008, Estby started to write and record material with the intention of having one unique vocalist for each song. Dubbed NECRONAUT, the project would become a reality one year later when Estby began contacting the many talented metal musicians he had in mind to complete the album of his diabolic dreams. In short, NECRONAUT is a raw slab of old-school metal and while the term "old-school" alone goes a long way in accurately describing the sound that one should expect from Estby and co, NECRONAUT is so much more. The band's approach is crude and dead simple, a la early BATHORY and VENOM mutated with BLACK SABBATH and IRON MAIDEN, but with an unorthodox bass-heavy production that allows the album to stand out amongst its peers. The goal was primitive brute force, but because of the manner in which Estby chose to achieve it, he also managed to create an aura of pure malevolence that, prior to this album's creation, was likely difficult to imagine.
The song "Infecting Madness", featuring Chris Reifert on vocals, is available for streaming at this location.


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text:
Il pedale per cassa (o per grancassa) è quello strumento che serve per suonare la grancassa.

I primi esemplari risalgono alla fine dell'800, per poi entrare nell'uso comune negli anni Venti del XX secolo.

La tensione della molla differenzia la durezza o la morbidezza del colpo ma anche la forza da imprimere con la gamba per percuotere la pelle.

La scelta del pedale per un batterista è una delle più cruciali, le dimensioni del piede e molti altri fattori puramente strutturali del batterista stesso sono incisivi nella scelta del pedale giusto.

Esistono anche i pedali doppi, appositamente progettati per suonare batterie dotate di una sola grancassa, eliminando la necessità di avere per forza a disposizione due grancasse separate, detta comunemente "doppia cassa".

Costruzione
Il pedale è costruito solitamente in acciaio. I componenti del pedale si possono dividere in varie parti:
Base: è dove il piede appoggia per far muovere il sistema.
L'attacco: ha la funzione di bloccare fermamente tutto il pedale al cerchio della cassa
Piastra: essa trasferisce l'azione del piede sulla trasmissione.
Trasmissione: è la parte che collega il pedale al battente. Ne esistono diversi tipi: catena, doppia catena, cinghia e trazione diretta.
Battente: produce il suono percuotendo la pelle dello strumento al quale è dedicato. I battenti sono collegati alla trasmissione e alla molla e se uno di essi venisse a mancare il battente avrebbe difficoltà nei movimenti. Solitamente il materiale del battente è in feltro, ma ne esistono anche in legno e plastica.
Molla: ha la funzione di tirare indietro il battente e fornire resistenza all'azione del piede.

Altri progetti

Componenti della batteria


text:
import os

from setuptools import find_packages, setup

def prerelease_local_scheme(version):
    """Return local scheme version unless building on master in CircleCI.
    This function returns the local scheme version number
    (e.g. 0.0.0.dev<N>+g<HASH>) unless building on CircleCI for a
    pre-release in which case it ignores the hash and produces a
    PEP440 compliant pre-release version number (e.g. 0.0.0.dev<N>).
    """
    from setuptools_scm.version import get_local_node_and_date

    if os.getenv('CIRCLE_BRANCH') == 'master':
        return ''
    else:
        return get_local_node_and_date(version)

# perform the install
setup(
    name='girder-jobs',
    use_scm_version={'root': '../..', 'local_scheme': prerelease_local_scheme},
    setup_requires=['setuptools-scm', 'setuptools-git'],
    description='A general purpose plugin for managing offline jobs.',
    author='Kitware, Inc.',
    author_email='kitware@kitware.com',
    url='http://girder.readthedocs.io/en/latest/plugins.html#jobs',
    license='Apache 2.0',
    classifiers=[
        'Development Status :: 5 - Production/Stable',
        'Environment :: Web Environment',
        'License :: OSI Approved :: Apache Software License',
        'Operating System :: OS Independent',
        'Programming Language :: Python',
        'Programming Language :: Python :: 3',
        'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.6',
        'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.7',
        'Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8',
    ],
    include_package_data=True,
    packages=find_packages(exclude=['plugin_tests']),
    zip_safe=False,
    install_requires=['girder>=3'],
    entry_points={
        'girder.plugin': [
            'jobs = girder_jobs:JobsPlugin'
        ]
    }
)


Welcome to Talk About The Magic: A podcast sharing Encouragement and Inspiration with Disney Magic.
This Person Doesn't Like Me Shouldn't I Force Them?
I'm a born and raised Texan who loves to visit Disney as mush as possible with his family. I love Disney, Spurs, God, Family, Music, Movies, and of course video games. (not necessarily in that particular order) I hope you have a wonderful night, day, weekend, or whenever you may be reading this. As always Stay Magical!
Get my "Top Ten Walt Disney Inspirational Quotes"


text:
Trump's Sons Get Destroyed For Sitting Front Row At D-Day...
Trump Shows Other World Leaders What A True Narcissist He...
by Andrew Simpson
Donald Trump, Mueller, News, Veterans
Trump Forces D-Day Veterans To Sit And Wait As He Goes On Fox News Rampage Against Pelosi And Mueller
So disrespectful!
by Andrea Thompson 7 months ago 3 months ago
While visiting Normandy, France, president Donald Trump delayed a 75th D-Day anniversary event and forced veterans to sit there waiting on him as gave an interview to Fox News' Laura Ingraham in which he spewed hatred for Special Counsel Robert Mueller and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Thousands of veterans, foreign dignitaries, and US officials, as well as members of the public, were left to wait — the entire ceremony on hold — as the president called Pelosi a "disaster" and Mueller a "fool" in the interview with Fox News.
"Nancy Pelosi, I call her Nervous Nancy, Nancy Pelosi doesn't talk about it," Trump told the Fox News host as an announcement was being made that the D-Day event would be delayed. "Nancy Pelosi is a disaster, okay? She's a disaster. Let her do what she wants. You know what? I think they're in big trouble."
After taking a swing at Pelosi, Trump went on to attack his next favorite bullying victim, Robert Mueller, as the crowd gathered for the anniversary event continued to wait.
"Let me tell you, he made such a fool out of himself," Trump said to Ingraham. "because what people don't report is the letter he had to do to straighten out his testimony because his testimony was wrong."
Mueller made his first public remarks in regards to his 2-year Russia probe on May 30th, in which he stated that he was unable to charge the president with the obstruction that he committed due to DOJ rules against indicting a sitting president. But he made it very clear that he and his investigators could not confidently say that the president committed no crimes.
Later, representatives for the DOJ, along with the special counsel, released a joint statement to clarify that Mueller's office had decided that they would not be able to reach a conclusion about whether the president committed any crimes.
Trump then riffed on tariffs, which have been unpopular even among the Republicans who feel they have to support them in order to get reelected.
"When you're the piggy bank that everybody steals from and robs from, they deceive you like they've been doing from 25 years, tariffs are a beautiful thing, it's a beautiful word if you know how to use them properly," Trump continued.
He also denied receiving any Republican backlash over his tariff disaster: "Republicans should love what I'm doing."
After he finished with his tangent, Trump briefly touched on the reason he was in Normandy in the first place.
"Think of that — these were incredible, brave people who were just being blown up and you have the graves all over. These were people who knew they were going to die. It was, it was, horrendous," he stated. "This was a very, very horrific day. But it was also a very special day, and it's an honor to be here."
Trump eventually made his way over to the D-Day event. But it just goes to show how little respect he truly has.
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
D-Day, Donald J Trump, Veterans
Posted by Andrea Thompson
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What caused the witch trials in Salem?
Part the last of our Truth v. Myth series on the 1692 witch scare in Salem. Here we try to figure out what led rational, if religious, people to fear that multiple witches were at work in their community.
As I've pointed out earlier, while the Puritans did believe in the Devil and evil spirits and witches, they very rarely believed they were in the presence of real witches, and most of the time that someone was accused of being a witch it was simply a way to hurry the resolution of a problem (you encroach repeatedly on my land, you won't stop, you laugh at my complaints, so I go to the court and tell everyone you're a witch; this sobers you up and gets you to agree to mediation). When people were seriously accused of witch craft, they were usually outsiders who made no secret of their disdain for the group. They were not pillars of respectable society, church members, and magistrates, and children were never allowed to make public accusations of witch craft, or to appear in court.
Yet these things happened at Salem. That's what makes it such an anomaly in New England Puritan history. Deep beliefs about adults having complete power over children were overturned, the universal sign of respect that was church membership was overthrown, and the accusation was not against one person but against an ever-growing number of citizens.
We've looked at varying theories about why this happened. In the end, it's one of those problems that is very hard to resolve because we lack sufficient primary resources. All we can really do is throw our two cents in. Mine is that it was a combination of factors; that, as usual, there was no single cause.
The rye crop may have been infected with ergot poisoning, giving two girls weird physical symptoms. One of those girls happened to be the daughter of the Reverend Parris, the divisive minister of Salem Village. Worried that his daughter should be manifesting signs of demonic possession–he, a minister, and one trying to keep the people of Salem Town within the sphere of the Salem Village church–Parris was panicked enough to accept a verdict of witch craft rather than sickness, which was the original verdict of the midwife.
Once word got out that the minister's daughter might be possessed, fears of demonic attack echoed the longstanding fear of American and French attack. Salem has already been in physical danger from American war parties, and now it is in spiritual danger from Satan's minions. Maybe God is actually punishing or "harrowing" Salem to remind them that their safety is in God's hands alone, and that He can destroy them by Indians or by demons.
At this point, a few other women are infected by the rye, so accusations break out afresh. Because of the new symptoms, the fact that symptoms are only striking Salem Village citizens, and the need of Parris and his supporters to maintain their power base against Salem Town, some of Parris supporters, notably Putnam (whose daughter was also stricken) decide to shift the focus from "Why is Salem Village so vulnerable to the devil?" to "Why is Salem Town not affected?" Accusations by Villagers against Townies proliferate. Salem Town residents are the witches, attacking Villagers in order to undermine SV's religious centrality (remember, the Church in Salem Village is the oldest, the original and most prestigious Congregational church in North America, and Town residents wanted to split it by forming their own church).
Now it is a political battle between Village and Town, and a bit of hysteria and panic set in amongst the average people when their leaders don't contain and defuse the situation as was usually the case. This causes wilder accusations because it is now consequence-free to denounce someone as a witch. Problems that might have caused only consternation before now seem to be the devil's work. People who might have been grudgingly tolerated before were now denounced. The arrival of outside officials to investigate only seems to lend credence to the idea that real witchcraft is at work.
Once people are actually executed, real fear sets in. No one wants to protest the procedings lest they be denounced themselves. Plus, the average person believes that their usually rational system of government would not wrongly sentence someone to death, so the accused must be real witches. A self-perpetuating system is set up that is only stopped when the governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony calls a halt to the trials, implying that criminal proceedings will be held against those who make any further accusations.
It was this reassertion of rational government that put an end to the trials. Why? Because the Puritans were rational people who loved good government, and they were used to their governing bodies keeping a tight rein on people's behavior. When the Salem government abandoned this responsibility, for its own reasons, and did not make it clear that the second wave of accusations were not permissable, order was destroyed and society became lawless. When the MBC government stepped in to reinforce precedent, the scare ended as quickly as it began.
So although we will never know for sure why the scare in Salem became what it became, I do think that a combination of factors, most importantly the reluctance and then refusal of the Salem governing body to follow precedent and defuse witch craft accusations (sternly warning the accuser to accept the court's decision in their case and not to hazard a second accusation), led to the frenzy of the witch hunt. In a politically dangerous time, a time of guerrilla war and internal division, a frontier town became unmoored from the legal and religious traditions it was part of, and chaos ensued.
It is part of the fascination of Salem that it was the only witch scare in North American history. If there had been three or four witch hunts in the 1690s, I think none of them would be as famous and hypnotic to later generations as Salem. There's something about the singular incident that grabs the imagination. If Titanic and two of its sister ships had all gone down in 1912, it would be a case for shipbuilding engineers to ponder rather than the subject of dozens of movies and hundreds of books. If two women rather than just Amelia Earhart had disappeared on a flight it would be noted briefly in the history of aviation rather than the subject of intense scrutiny and speculation.
But the fact that Salem stands alone makes it less illustrative of Puritan society, not more. The Puritans believed in devils and witch craft, but they lived by rule of law, and they did not suffer witch scares and witch hunts to become part of the fabric of life. Study Salem all you like, but do so in the context of witch mania in Reformation-era Christendom, or how a breakdown in law and order leads to chaos, or any other context than New England Puritanism per se.
Salem does not stand alone. There was another witch trial in Stamford, Connecticut in in 1692. Read: "Escaping Salem: The Other Witch Hunt of 1692" by Robert Godbeer.
What a great-looking book! Thanks for the recommendation. But it does still seem that only one young woman in Stamford accused only 2 other women, so it is not on the scale of the Salem scare.
How did the girls who were making the accusations get the names of some of the accused, as the scare grew to include neighboring towns? Was there ever any evidence of pay-offs (to use a modern term) to the judges? What about the families who lost anything not nailed down from their homes and farms once they were carted off to prison to await "trial"? I did read somewhere that women without a husband or male children were often more at risk. Was restitution ever made to any of these people who so suffered in the hideous conditions of the prisons?
I agree — there's always a combination of factors at work in strange situations like these.
Hello Lynn! No one can know, I suppose, how the girls chose or fixed on their victims, but in the small worlds of the 17th century it's not surprising they knew these women. There has been no evidence of payoffs to the judges, who seemed to be caught in a dual vise of real belief that witchcraft might finally be happening and fear for their own safety if they debunked it. I don't know if those who were imprisoned were victims of looting—I tend to think no one would dare be seen going into the house of an accused witch, and any item they might take from someone's house would quickly be recognized. That's just my take on it—stealing may have happened. There was no restitution at all, only an ashamed silence about the incident almost as soon as it was over.
Hey, great post. It really helped me take a new look at the Salem trials especially since I am working on a research paper on the Puritans. I especially found the ergot poisoning issue interesting. However, one question others have brought up concerning it has been why the ergot poisoning wasn't more wide spread. Any ideas?
Hello Andrew; that's a good question. I'm sure it may be addressed in the study itself, but why there weren't mass outbreaks in other places and times is a good question, that casts a little doubt on that particular theory. Until we come up with the answer, of course!
I had read other articles that stated the town sheriff would be sent to confiscate the accused property as if they somehow legally forfeited their belongings by being accused. Not sure if these articles are accurate and it sounds unbelieveable.
We don't remember ever reading that either–can you share your sources? We're interested in checking it out.
The following is from "find a grave.com" it mentions liens placed on his body after his death by a person who had property confiscated and that the family feared more would come forward………..
. He was the High Sheriff of Essex County in the Massachusetts Bay colony during the Salem Witchcraft Hysteria and carried out the arrests of the accused and the executions of the condemned. He also presided at the fatal interrogation, under torture, of accused Giles Cory, who was crushed to death with stones over a period of three days. Only in his mid twenties when he held the post, anecdotal history portrays the sheriff as particularly sadistic and corrupt. But official documents that survive indicate he carried out his duties according to the accepted practices and mores of the time. Reviled after the hysteria, when he died a man who was among the accused successfully put a lien on Corwin's corpse delaying its burial until his executors recompensed him for property seized by the sheriff. Later, Corwin's family buried him in the cellar of his house fearing his body might be seized by others seeking revenge or reimbursement. Years later, his remains were exhumed and quietly re-interred in the Corwin family tomb. Surviving evidence shows property seized by Corwin was used to maintain prisoners. Corwin was awarded the High Sheriff's post by Gov. William Phips after he distinguished himself in Phips' expedition against French Quebec in 1690.
That there was something demonic happening in Salem.
All of the theories you posted and even your own analysis has simply assumed the Puritans were wrong in their belief in a spiritual realm. Is it really rational to believe in a spiritual realm if there really isn't? If you understand the Puritans and their emphasis on telling the truth, especially under oath, you will have a hard time fitting alterior motives to the testimony of the witnesses. I think it is a smug, elitist bias that assumes they were lying simply because you believe there to be no spiritual realm.
Do your research again from the perspective that there could be a spiritual realm and you might come to an interesting conclusion.
What caused the girl's fits?
Hello Massierox; as the post says, no one is sure of the answer to that question, but it does seem likely that ergot poisoning in the rye crop was responsible for the vomiting and seizures. if they ate infected rye and got sick, they would have the fits. They wouldn't be eating rye bread while they were sick, so eventually the symptoms would die down, and once they felt better, they would eat rye bread again and unwittingly induce the same symptoms. This could well have led them to panic, since they did not understand what was causing the illness, and their minds would have turned to witchcraft. There was at least one doctor who put it down to food poisoning at the time, but her diagnosis was swept aside.
i need help on a paper about the execution of witches in salem can you help??
Always here to help: what do you need to know?
I have read about the rye infections, but what about Anne Putnam's later confession that they had simply made it up? I would think an accusers confession beats other theories.
Hello Bill; thanks for writing. We go back to the idea that it's very hard to fake the symptoms they exhibited for weeks on end. Vomiting, falling down so violently they were bruised–these are hard things to do on cue, day after day. Maybe a middle ground is that they had the rye poisoning that made these things actually happen, but lied about the reason, blaming their symptoms on witchcraft when, as Anne Putnam said, they knew it wasn't.


No, SCCABE, Anyway i'm having a good laugh picturing this scenario at the cop shop.
"I wish to report a person for using my name in a defamatory manner sergeant"
"Not again cabe, who was it this time"
"Someone by the name of Teabag"
"Oh FFS son, what is their real name"
"Okay how did they know your real name"
"Right son, take another few weeks off"
oh for f**ks sake. 24 pages of utter shite.
It's still 2 days till you sign on.
Why would I look at you 2 boring bastards?
Pretty creepy, he keeps viewing my profile even though it doesn't change.
It will all blow over , soon enough . .
those parking tickets aren`t going to write themselves .
19 Nov 2015 - 07:21 this is copied from who viewed my profile, not you ? then who ?
Hey, you're a poet, and didn't know it.


text:
Q: Can't create new model object from import laravel excel data I'm using Laravel Excel from Maatwebsite to import a .xlsx file with headers, the problem is when I try to import the file, laravel returns an error saying:
SQLSTATE[23000]: Integrity constraint violation: 1048 Column 'confirmation_number' cannot be null

My controller
public function createLettersFromImport(Request $request)
{
    if($request->hasFile('file')){
        Excel::import(new LetterImport, $request->file('file')->store('temp'));

        return redirect()->route('mailsender.index');
    }
}

My LetterImport.php
<?php

namespace App\Imports;

use App\Models\Confirmation;
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Auth;
use Maatwebsite\Excel\Concerns\ToModel;
use Maatwebsite\Excel\Concerns\WithHeadingRow;

class LetterImport implements ToModel, WithHeadingRow
{
    /**
    * @param array $row
    *
    * @return \Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model|null
    */
    public function model(array $row)
    {
        return new Confirmation([
            'confirmation_number'           => $row['confirmation_number'],
            'guest_name'                    => $row['guest_name'],
            'guest_address'                 => $row['guest_address'],
            'email'                         => $row['email'],
            'checkin'                       => $row['checkin'],
            'checkout'                      => $row['checkout']
        ]);
    }

    public function headingRow(): int
    {
        return 1;
    }
}

My Confirmation.php model:
<?php

namespace App\Models;

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Factories\HasFactory;
use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model;

class Confirmation extends Model
{
    use HasFactory;

    protected $table = 'confirmations';

    protected $fillable = ['confirmation_number', 'guest_name', 'guest_address', 'email', 'checkin', 'checkout'];
}

When I make dd($row) on LetterImport.php $row has data from the file .xlsx

But the error stills the same

My file to import:

Edit: I can successfully import .csv files with the same structure, but not .xlsx

A: Looks like Laravel Excel is picking up "Phantom Rows". When you're entering data into Excel, if you hit "Enter", your cursor moves into an empty cell below your current row (vs hitting "Tab", which moves to the next Cell in the current row). When this happens, Excel inserts metadata into that Cell, which is likely being picked up as a filled in row in your import code. You have a couple ways to handle this:

*

*Delete the Extra rows in your Excel File:

This one is simple; just select everything below the rows you want to import and Right Click > Delete Rows. That should clear out any metadata from those Cells/Rows, and on your next Import, should only target Cells/Rows that were actually filled in.

*Import as a .csv file:

As you stated in your question, a .csv file worked fine. This is due to .csv being text-based, and empty rows would render as ,,,,,,, (a bunch of Commas, with no values). It would be a lot more obvious that there is an extra row(s), and deleting them would be much easier.

*Handle this in your Code:

This is a little trickier. An easy way to handle this is to return null; if all row['properties'] values are null:
if ($row['confirmation_number'] === null && $row['guest_name'] === null) {
  return null;
}

return new Confirmation([
  'confirmation_number' => $row['confirmation_number'],
  // ...
]);

The syntax get's a little silly with multiple Columns you're checking, but the approach would work the same with a foreach() loop, for example:
$columns = ['confirmation_number', 'guest_name', 'guest_address', 'email', 'checkin', 'checkout'];

$allBlank = true;
foreach ($columns as $column) {
  // If _any_ column has a value, update `$allBlank` to `false`
  if ($row[$column] !== null) {
    $allBlank = false;
  }
}

// If `$allBlank` is `true`, you hit a phantom row; return `null`
if ($allBlank) {
  return null;
}

// All good; return a new `Confirmation`
return new Confirmation([
  'confirmation_number' => $row['confirmation_number'],
  // ...
]);

Also have a look at Row Validation; this might be able to validate and ignore Phantom Rows by making each column value required.

A: I have the same issue, as In Laravel-excel ToModel interface does not allow to use Model::create. So, I used implements ToCollection instead of implements ToModel and use foreach loop inside it. My error was resolved with that.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The UB Post reported that a group of children's rights NGOs and associations had joined forces to try and stop child riders taking part in spring and winter horse races, raising their concerns at a press conference.
They say that due to the very cold weather conditions it is not safe for child jockeys, who can be as young as seven years old, to take part. Due to race days and child jockeys can also miss out on important school work, meaning they get left behind in lessons.
The NGOs also say that races organized during the winter and spring are not traditional, unlike the races which take place as part of the Naadam Festival in the summer, and are organized for commercial gain. Because of this, they say adults should take part as jockeys rather than children.
The UB Post spoke to Amaraa Dorjsambuu, a child protection specialist at UNICEF Mongolia, to find out more about their concerns.
Can you tell me about winter racing in Mongolia and why it should be stopped?
Our concern is really about children who are riding the horses in winter and spring. These races only started in 2004 and a recent study we commissioned with the Human Rights Commission and Legal Research Center and Bar Association of Mongolia looks into five main issues.
1. Are winter races really part of the culture?
2. Are they in line with national standards? And do we have a legal framework for them?
3. What are the health hazards?
4. How does this affect children's education?
5. And whether it is a form of hazardous labor?
So these are the areas that we looked into. What the report showed is that the legal framework is really missing, there is a big hole, and winter racing is not regulated. First of all, we have the national festival, Naadam in July, which is regulated but there are no such regulations on organizing races in winter or springtime.
Secondly, this is not in line with the obligations that the Government of Mongolia has entered into with international conventions. So our recommendation is to really align with international treaties and have the races regulated to ensure children's rights.
If the races are to continue, we strongly urge that it is done so using adults who are over 18, especially when the nature of this racing is becoming more commercial. With this commercial nature, we think the horses should be ridden by adults because there is no tradition of them being ridden by children.
This year, mayors of 12 provinces prohibited to organize these racing competitions until May 1. But because there is a government decree that allows them to organize races, people still do and this year, the first race happened on February 28.
Were there any problems with the last race that took place?
So far we don't know how many children fell off their horses or got injured, as we have not heard from the national counterparts yet. So far, we know that 19 children fell off their horses but that needs to be verified. We don't know yet exactly how many got injured or what is the severity of their injuries, so we will follow up on that.
And what are the health hazards with winter racing in general?
In terms of the health hazards of winter racing, it is happening in a time when it is very cold, and if it is -15 degrees or -20 degrees and a horse is racing at the speed of around 70 kmph, we do not know how a child would feel on a horse. But it would be a lot colder. And the clothing they wear is not fit for winter, we have a standard but that is only for summer racing and we do not have winter suitable clothing for children. They need to be able to put on many layers and then the safety stuff on top of that.
And what about the educational problems caused by the races? Can you tell me about that?
It has, of course, very negative effects on the children's education. It does not only effect the day of the race so children have to take a lot of time off school. They need to prepare for several days before that. So on those days, children also miss classes. And if they miss classes, then they cannot catch up.
How old are the children that take part in the races?
The students who are riding the race horses are from primary and secondary schools. The majority are aged from seven to 12 and they are chosen to take part because they are so light.
Can you tell me about some of the dangers that the children face?
It can be really dangerous for them because the horses and children are not familiar with each other. Traditionally, for example, my dad was a child jockey when he was young, but he was riding horses that were familiar to him. They were his dad's and they grew up together so they knew each other. But nowadays, so many horse races are happening and the trainers lack children so horse trainers go to a school or to a school dormitory and ask for a child. This means that the horses are completely unknown to the child, so they are not used to each other. And of course, a horse is an animal so it can behave in any way it wants and is unpredictable. They can be beyond control and that can cause risks for the child.
Why do children want to take part in these races?
If you look at the profile of these children, they are from vulnerable families. And the public opinion about racing is that if you want your horse to take part in a competition then you should have your own child ride it, but that does not happen.
Ideally, would you like the practice of winter racing to stop altogether?
At UNICEF, we want them to align the legal framework with the international one, and ban winter and spring horse racing if a child is riding – if it is adults we don't care (laughs)! Adults can make their own choices and know what risks can occur when they take part. But seven year olds cannot foresee what could happen to them. They miss classes for about a month so they are not able to catch up and of course if you stay behind once, then for those little children, especially the ones from the countryside who are away from their parents, that will see them really fall behind with their studies.
The injuries they can receive, they can be life changing. What is being done to make the sport safer?
With the approval of the law on February 5, that will really help to address those issues because we now have a provisional on mandatory reporting. Now we know that from the study we commissioned that about 300 children a year get injured. We know this because they come to a trauma hospital after a race. But we don't know how many get injured and were taken to provincial hospitals or district hospitals because there was no reporting requirement. But now if a child falls off a horse, it doesn't matter if the injury is light or severe it has to be reported. There is also now an online database where that information will be input and it can be followed up.
Who is keeping watch over the races to make sure this happens? Which sort of organizations?
There is a task group in charge of these kinds of thing for each of these races if they are organized by the government or by their decision. So in the organizing committee, it is good practice that they invite, well it is not really invite, they have to have children's organizations at the registration to make sure the age of a child jockey is seven or above and if all the children are insured and to make sure they have safety clothing.
From the organization's point of view, we would like to stop children racing altogether, but we will not be able to stop it all at once. We won't, for example, be able to ask that the age is raised from seven to 12. We will have to take it in stages from seven to nine or 10 and then 12. Then, ideally, from 12 to 16 to 18 and then adults only.
There is nothing we can do about the summer races like the Naadam festival because that is a tradition. But winter racing is not a tradition and is for commercial gain so we can do something about that.
Posted by The UB Post on Mar 10 2016. Filed under Community. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.