text:
Give Nairobi an Ombudsman office - City MCAs
• The Ward reps say the office will play a key role in receiving and processing complaints raised by Nairobi residents.
• Through a notice motion by nominated MCA Mbugua Kabiro, the office will only concentrate and deal with issues brought by residents since at the moment they can only complain through their area MCA .
Office of the Ombudsman in Westlands, Nairobi on July 13.
Nairobi MCAs have urged the County Government to develop a policy for the establishment of an Ombudsman office.
The Ward reps say the office will play a key role in receiving and processing complaints raised by Nairobi residents.
Through a motion by nominated MCA Mbugua Kabiro, the office will only concentrate and deal with issues brought by residents since at the moment they can only complain through their area MCA .
"At the moment residents can only air out their complaints via their MCAs and at many times some are forced to go back home due to lack of a chance to meet their ward reps," Kabiro said.
He added, "This why this motion is important to create an office which will give aggrieved city residents a chance to lay out their complaints concerning cases of maladministration from officers working at the county".
Kabiro said the office would be in a view to foster a performance-oriented culture that seeks to revamp the process through which the County Government operates.
This he argues, would increase efficiency and effectiveness, "and inculcate a culture of client-oriented, mission-driven, and quality-enhanced management in the County."
According to him, the office will be similar to that of the national government's Commission on Administration of Justice to provide an out of court mechanism for the public.
Counties urged to set up offices of Ombudsman
County governments have been urged to help devolve functions of the Ombudsman. The Commission on Administrative Justice (Office of the Ombudsman) ...
Kabiro said the executive should take note of complaints from residents because it will assist them in identifying the weak sectors in their service delivery.
"After identification of weak sectors, this will even assist the executive in effective planning and finding ways to solve and better quality service delivery," he said.
As a result, he said the county government will move in speed to provide solutions so as to also maintain its reputation.
"Its quite disappointing that the capital city which is a county as well with a population of over five million people does not have an appeal mechanism for its residents. The office will give assurance that at least there will be someone following up on their raised issues," Kabiro said.
Many residents have been complaining of county officers who have been demanding for bribes which as a result the common mwananchi is unable to access services as well as experience delay in delivery.
Due to extortion at the expense of service delivery, Kabiro states that the county has encountered huge revenue loss which affects its financial year's targets.
"Suppliers have personally complained to me of not getting paid for their services because of officers who are holding on to their money and asking for bribes before they approve their payments," he said.
Concerns have been raised over the increase of public harassment, extortion of traders and arbitrary arrests by county inspectorate officers 'kanjo' and revenue collection officers.
According to Kabiro, the office will also be used to address the above issues, because the officers have not been charged for such due to lack of effective complaints handling mechanisms.
Debate on motion to devolve CAJ office
The Ombudsman services could soon be devolved to the 47 counties if senators endorse a proposal to devolve the office "urgently". Nominated Senator ...


text:
Spanish hotel group to offer guests free Covid testing | Spain holidays
The Spanish-owned Room Mate chain of boutique hotels has become the first hotel chain to offer its guests free Covid-19 tests.
Guests will be tested on arrival or can choose to take a free antigen test before travelling at any of around 100 clinics across Spain run by Quirón, Room Mate's partner in the scheme. The hotel will then use an app to track guests' symptoms during their stay. Long-stay guests and hotel staff will be tested every three to five days.
The antigen test produces results within 15 minutes, compared with 48 hours for the more costly PCR "gold-standard" test used by the UK government, where samples have to be sent off to a lab.
The scheme will be piloted in four Room Mate hotels in Spain – in Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga and Granada – and will then be extended to the company's 28-strong chain of hotels around the world.
"Right now, our priority is the health of our guests," said chief executive Kike Sarasola. "My employees will have the comfort of knowing they are working a safe environment, as will our clients."
In May, at the height of the Covid crisis, Room Mate ceded 13 of its hotels to the ministry of health to take pressure off hospitals.
Coronavirus antigen tests ready for use in Madrid. Photograph: Getty Images
Covid has had a catastrophic impact on Spain's tourism and hotel sector. According to the country's National Statistics Institute, foreign visitors are down by 83%.
Overall, overnight stays were down 73% in July and 64% in August. Only a third of Madrid hotels are open and in August they were running at only 17% occupancy. In Barcelona, barely a quarter of hotels have reopened, and coastal resorts, such as Benidorm, have become ghost towns.
Last month, the Barcelona hoteliers' association announced that occupancy rates in the city had barely reached 10% over the summer. In some areas, notably the Costa Brava in the north-east and the Costa del Sol in Andalucía, domestic tourism has offset some of the slump in international visitors.
According to travel technology company TravelgateX, Spaniards accounted for 87% of reservations in Andalucía this summer, compared with only 6.3% from Britain.
Britons visiting Spain have to quarantine for two weeks on their return, and all passengers arriving at Spanish airports must complete a health questionnaire and have their temperature taken on arrival. Anyone with a fever is assessed by a nurse before either proceeding to their destination or taking a Covid test. At present there are no quarantine requirements. However, these measures may vary as localised regulations and lockdowns are introduced around Spain in anticipation of a second wave.
As free Covid testing is only available to people with symptoms or who have been in contact with an infected person, and as most of Room Mate's guests are currently Spanish, the hotel scheme may provide an attractive alternative.
A double room next week in one of its Barcelona hotels costs €75.75, which would mean two people getting a Covid test for under €40, considerably less than the cost of being tested in a private clinic.
UK asylum: the offshore options officials were told to consider | Immigration and asylum
US election 2020: Twitter removes Iranian accounts disrupting debate
Saracens shake off the rust but slip up at Ealing in long-awaited return | Rugby union
20 of the best… Men's hoodies – in pictures

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Russia Starts Building Warship Similar to France's Mistral as Paris Stalls Delivery
By	Matthew Bodner
One Mistral ship can deploy up to 900 troops supported by at least 16 helicopters and up to 60 armored vehicles.
Russia has begun work on a helicopter carrier similar to a previously ordered, French-built warship whose delivery has been stalled due to Paris's concerns over Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis, news agency TASS reported, citing a senior navy official.
The assault vessel is being built in St. Petersburg's Yantar shipyards and will "join the navy in 2018 after the completion of construction and all phases of testing," the head of the navy's shipbuilding department, Vladimir Tryapichnikov, said late last week.
The ship, the second of Russia's new Ivan Gren-class (Project 11711) landing vessels, was ordered a month after Paris froze a 1.2 billion euro ($1.3 billion) deal for two Mistral-class assault ships in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea and support for rebels in eastern Ukraine.
In an apparent reference to the stalled Mistral deal, the ship will be named the Pyotr Morgunov — the name of a Red Army commander who played a decisive role in the 1942 defense of the Crimean city of Sevastopol from Nazi forces in World War II.
The Morgunov and its sister ship, the nearly completed Ivan Gren, are not direct replacements for the French Mistral helicopter carriers, but will still allow the Russian navy to land ground forces onto enemy beaches up to 4,000 kilometers from their home ports.
But even in this capacity, they are considerably smaller than the Mistrals. The Morgunov, for example, has space for 300 marines supported by one helicopter and either 40 armored personnel carriers or 13 tanks.
One Mistral ship, for comparison, can deploy up to 900 troops supported by at least 16 helicopters and up to 60 armored vehicles.
To make up for this lost capacity, Tryapichnikov said the navy would begin building progressively larger landing ships by 2020. The new ships will have space for a few helicopters, but not the 16 to 35 carried by a Mistral-class helicopter carrier.
With that in mind, the head of the navy, Admiral Viktor Chirkov told TASS Friday that a Mistral-style vessel has been pencilled into the military's long-term shipbuilding program through 2050.
Contact the author at m.bodner@imedia.ru
Matthew Bodner
@mattb0401


Horror fans across the Midwest will again be treated to the best in genre film as Bruce Campbell's Horror Film Festival returns to the Chicago area from August 18-21. The 3rd annual festivities will feature dozens of films including the U.S. and World Premieres of both features and shorts, special anniversary screenings, 35mm repertory screenings, and a variety of special guests. The festival will once again be held in conjunction with Wizard World Chicago, all under the guidance of the inimitable, one-of-a-kind host, Bruce Campbell.
Submissions are now open for both short and feature films; details and information on how to submit are available at www.BCHFF.com.
In 2015, BCHFF featured the U.S. Premiere of Tales of Halloween , a 30th anniversary screening of Fright Night with writer/director Tom Holland , special guest Eli Roth, along with the Chicago premieres of He Never Died, Turbo Kid, Dude Bro Party Massacre III, and many more!
Further details on the program, guests, venues, and tickets will be announced at a later date.


text:
U.S. ambassador hopes accord attainable on Mexico power bill
U.S. ambassador hopes accord attainable on Mexico power bill - Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021
MEXICOCITY – The United States hopes that an agreement can be reached over a contentious electricity reform proposal currently in Mexico's Congress, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, who expressed "serious concerns" about the bill last week, said on Tuesday.
Mexican lawmakers last week postponed until next year debate on the bill to strengthen state control of the power market at the expense of private companies.
Speaking to reporters in Mexico City, U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar said the electricity proposal was being studied, and that he believed that a "resolution" could still be found on the matter.
When asked if the legislation breached Mexico's trade commitments with the United States and Canada, Salazar noted that U.S. companies had invested many millions of dollars in Mexico's renewable energy sector.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has championed the electricity overhaul, arguing that previous Mexican governments rigged the market in favor of private capital to the detriment of consumers and Mexico's state run energy companies.


Thank-You Bruce! Your letter has helped me so much with my daughter and my faith.
God Bless you and Anna Marie.
Thank you Bruce and Anna Marie! Your Letter set me free from the guilt of being gay and now I am blessed to be a member of your church family, Royal Lane Baptist in Dallas TX. The celebration we experienced today of both your lives was nothing short of amazing! I only wish I had known you long before now. Your legacy will live on in hearts like mine and we will tear down the walls of injustice and oppresion not just for gays but for all marginalized people. Amen!
I still read your letter faithfully. On days when life gets tough I am drawn back to it. It will continue to bless my life and many others along the way. I have no doubt God lead me to your letter at a time in my life when things were very dark for me and my family.
I met Bruce Lowe about 10 years ago when I asked him to speak at a group of gay dads that I was leading. Bruce and Louise both attended and they were so warm and caring. It was really a rare thing for any minister to come speak to gay men 10 years ago! He was a pioneer! I had read Letter to Louise and found it to be one of the most thoughtful, reasonable and unbiased presentations of the biblical interpretation of homosexuality that I've ever read. Since that time, I've been recommending it to groups of people in Coming Out workshops 2 to 3 times per year. It has helped more people than I can count. I just recommended it to a friend today who is struggling with the coming out process after being a Minister for many years. His study will continue to help God loving Christian gays and lesbians long into the future. Thanks so much for this gift Bruce Lowe.
Nice comments may be posted...others will not.


MIRAMAR PENINSULA artists opened their studios for the annual Artists in Action event in March.
The peninsula is home to 17 artists from photographers, sculptures and oil painters.
Award-winning ceramic artist Nicola Dench opened her Clay Penguin studio in Seatoun six years ago and finds her inspiration from walking on the beach.
"For ages I've been walking down on the beach and I come across this seaweed. It's quite amazing how it has all these sorts of ruffles," she says.
She learnt her skills at the Learning Connexion Art School 11 years ago, starting as a painter and moving to ceramics.
Len Castle is one artist who inspires Mrs Dench.
She has been making the Dominion Post Sports Person of the Year award trophy's for four years.


text:
Common Ground leaders go "On the Issues" at Marquette Law
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016
Time: 12:15 p.m.
Place: Marquette Law School, Eckstein Hall
MILWAUKEE — Common Ground Lead Organizer Keisha Krumm and Strategy Team Member Jennifer O'Hear will be the featured guests in an upcoming "On the Issues with Mike Gousha," Wednesday, Jan. 27, from 12:15 to 1:15 p.m. at Marquette University Law School's Eckstein Hall, 1215 W. Michigan St.
Common Ground has been working on a range of issues in the Milwaukee area for years, but its profile rose considerably during the debate over a new downtown arena. The organization, whose supporters include dozens of area churches, challenged the plan to use public money for the new facility, and ultimately opposed the arena deal because the city didn't include $80 million to improve playgrounds and school athletic facilities. Now the organization says it plans to be active in Milwaukee's spring elections.
Gousha, an award-winning television journalist, is the Law School's distinguished fellow in law and public policy. His "On the Issues" series of conversations with newsmakers supports Marquette Law School's commitment to serve as a modern-day public square for the city of Milwaukee, the state of Wisconsin and beyond.
Through public programming such as the Marquette Law School Poll, debates featuring candidates in significant political races, the "On the Issues" interviews of newsmakers, public lectures by leading scholars and conferences on significant issues of public importance, the Law School serves as the region's leading venue for serious civil discourse about law and public policy matters.
The event is open to the public and registration is available online. Members of the media who are interested in attending should contact Chris Jenkins in the Office of Marketing and Communication.


MASTER HOME INTERNATIONAL TRADE PTE. LTD.
MASTER HOME INTERNATIONAL TRADE PTE. LTD. (UEN 201906865C) is a business entity registered with Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), Singapore. The UEN is issued in March 4, 2019. The entity status is issued in Registered.
Entity Name MASTER HOME INTERNATIONAL TRADE PTE. LTD.
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Please comment or provide details below to improve the information on MASTER HOME INTERNATIONAL TRADE PTE. LTD..


text:
FredKarger.comwatch
Fred's Reel
Fred's Blog
Announcement April 10, 2010
Generations of Activism
Meet Team Fred
Issues/Jobs Now! Plan
Help Fred
Delivered at Press Conference at
Southern Republican Leadership Conference
New Orleans, LA April 10, 2010
I am strongly considering becoming a candidate for President of the United States in 2012. I would run as an Independent Republican, and would likely be the only true outsider in the field.
I did not come about this decision lightly. It would be a serious undertaking.
I would be an unconventional candidate, and if I run, I will wage an unconventional campaign.
I want to help determine the direction of this country, and in the process, work to redefine the Republican Party.
I would be the first openly gay candidate to seek the nomination of a major political party as its Presidential candidate.
My thirty-five years of experience as a fighter in politics places me in a unique position to run. I have worked on nine Presidential campaigns; this would be my tenth. I have managed dozens of other campaigns all over the country, and would bring that wealth of experience to my own candidacy.
I would build a credible campaign, and would strive to engage and register new and younger voters. My campaign would be highly strategic, and utilize the latest in digital media technology to attract volunteers and raise the necessary funds.
I would discuss issues important to the gay and lesbian community
I will work hard to end to Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Pass the federal Employment Anti-Discrimination law (ENDA)
Eliminate the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
Make Gay Marriage the law of the land and
Make finding a cure for HIV / AIDS and a vaccine to prevent HIV a new national priority.
My positions and ideas on other issues will be forthcoming. I will work quickly to surround myself with the best and brightest experts. I will address the important issues: the economy and job creation, America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, homeland security, health care, the deficit and education.
Our nation is facing many challenges right now. We need new and creative leaders to solve them.
I will work tirelessly to bring back the spirit in every man, woman and child to help remake America the land of opportunity and equality for all.
Shirley Chisholm captivated the nation when she ran for President as this country's first serious black and female candidate in 1972. Her campaign paved the way for Jesse Jackson's Presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988, and the election of Barack Obama as our 44th President in 2008.
A new chapter in American history begins in New Orleans today.
Mother Jones cover and inside spread
He was one of the GOP's top dark-arts operators. Now he's riding into battle to save gay marriage—and unmask the Mormon Church.
Who's that masked man gracing the pages of Mother Jones? It's the founder of Californians Against Hate, Fred Karger. Read the article online at the link.
© 2005 - Fred Karger | All Rights Reserved
» Website Design & Development by: CCreativeDesign.com


Welcome back. This week I will be focussing on the spice turmeric and how to use it therapeutically. I will share my mum's recipe for a healing turmeric poultice, which eased many a sprained ankle during my childhood. I will also show you how to add turmeric to smoothies and juices, which is great way to incorporate turmeric medicinally into the diet and my version of the traditional turmeric tea (also known as golden milk).
So What's Great about Turmeric?
Turmeric has many health promoting properties and a long history of use in both Chinese and Indian traditional medicine.
Curcumin is believed to be the main active compound in turmeric.
It is a potent anti-inflammatory, which will be helpful in reducing inflammation and pain in muscles and joints.
Isolated curcumin when used medicinally has been found to be poorly absorbed in the gut. My personal opinion is that isolating active compounds from a whole natural food will not have the same synergy as the whole food!
Traditionally ground black peppercorns have often been used with turmeric, which recent research has found to be helpful with improving the absorption of curcumin by the body.
A heat-stable cooking fat to protect curcumin from stomach acids before entering the small intestines.
It is interesting to note that turmeric is traditionally added to curries during the cooking process along with fat and black pepper! Amazing.
Making a therapeutic turmeric paste, which heats the turmeric and combines it with black pepper makes the process of using turmeric medicinally a lot easier.
A liitle fat will be added at the time of using the paste.
In a suitable cooking pan combine 1/4 cup of turmeric powder, 1/2 tsp of ground black pepper with around 1/2 cup of water to form a paste.
On a low-medium heat, gently stir and cook the turmeric paste.
If the mixture becomes too dry then add a little more water to maintain a thick but smooth paste.
Continue cooking the turmeric paste for around 5 minutes.
Again, if the mixture becomes too dry then add more water to maintain a thick but smooth paste.
Allow the turmeric paste to cool then store in a glass jar and refrigerate.
Turmeric paste can be stored in the fridge for around 2-3 weeks.
1/4 teaspoon of this paste contains around 350mg of turmeric!
Tomorrow, I will show you how to use this turmeric paste to make a therapeutic tea.


text:
Q: XSLT: moving a grouping html elements into section levels I'm trying to write an XSLT that organizes an HTML file into different section levels depending on the header level. Here is my input:

  <title></title>

HEADER 1 CONTENT

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Header 2 CONTENT

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

I'm working with a fairly simple structure at the moment so this pattern will be constant for the time-being. I need an output like this...
<document>

     <header1>Header 1 CONTENT</header1>

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

        <header2>Header 2 CONTENT</header2>

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

</document>

I had been working with this example: Stackoverflow Answer
However, I cannot get it to do exactly what I need.
I'm using Saxon 9 to run the xslt within Oxygen for dev. I'll be using a cmd/bat file in production.  Still Saxon 9.  I'd like to handle up to 4 nested section levels if possible.
Any help is much appreciated!
I need to append onto this as I've encountered another stipulation.  I probably should have thought of this before.
I'm encountering the following code sample

<title></title>

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Header 2 CONTENT

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

As you can see, the
 is a child of  while in my first snippet,
 was always a child of a header level.  My desired result is the same as above except that when I encounter
 as a child of , it should be wrapped in
.
<document>

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

<header1>Header 2 CONTENT</header1>

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

</document>

A: Here is an XSLT 2.0 stylesheet:
<xsl:stylesheet
  xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform"
  xmlns:xs="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema"
  xmlns:mf="http://example.com/mf"
  exclude-result-prefixes="xs mf"
  version="2.0">

  <xsl:output indent="yes"/>

  <xsl:function name="mf:group" as="node()*">
    <xsl:param name="elements" as="element()*"/>
    <xsl:param name="level" as="xs:integer"/>
    <xsl:for-each-group select="$elements" group-starting-with="*[local-name() eq concat('h', $level)]">
      <xsl:choose>
        <xsl:when test="self::*[local-name() eq concat('h', $level)]">

            <xsl:element name="header{$level}"><xsl:apply-templates/></xsl:element>
            <xsl:sequence select="mf:group(current-group() except ., $level + 1)"/>

        </xsl:when>
        <xsl:otherwise>
          <xsl:apply-templates select="current-group()"/>
        </xsl:otherwise>
      </xsl:choose>
    </xsl:for-each-group>
  </xsl:function>

  <xsl:template match="@* | node()">
    <xsl:copy>
      <xsl:apply-templates select="@*, node()"/>
    </xsl:copy>
  </xsl:template>

  <xsl:template match="/html">
    <document>
      <xsl:apply-templates select="body"/>
    </document>
  </xsl:template>

  <xsl:template match="body">
    <xsl:sequence select="mf:group(*, 1)"/>
  </xsl:template>

</xsl:stylesheet>

It should do what you asked for, although it does not stop at four nested levels but rather groups as long as it finds h[n] elements.

A: An XSLT 1.0 solution (essentially borrowed by Jenni Tennison):
<xsl:stylesheet version="1.0"
 xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform">
 <xsl:output omit-xml-declaration="yes" indent="yes"/>
 <xsl:strip-space elements="*"/>

 <xsl:template match="html">
   <document><xsl:apply-templates/></document>
 </xsl:template>

 <xsl:template match="body">
   <xsl:apply-templates select="h1" />
 </xsl:template>

 <xsl:key name="next-headings" match="h6"
          use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*[self::h1 or self::h2 or
                                               self::h3 or self::h4 or
                                               self::h5][1])" />
 <xsl:key name="next-headings" match="h5"
          use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*[self::h1 or self::h2 or
                                               self::h3 or self::h4][1])" />
 <xsl:key name="next-headings" match="h4"
          use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*[self::h1 or self::h2 or
                                               self::h3][1])" />
 <xsl:key name="next-headings" match="h3"
          use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*[self::h1 or self::h2][1])" />
 <xsl:key name="next-headings" match="h2"
          use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::h1[1])" />

 <xsl:key name="immediate-nodes"
          match="node()[not(self::h1 | self::h2 | self::h3 | self::h4 |
                           self::h5 | self::h6)]"
          use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*[self::h1 or self::h2 or
                                               self::h3 or self::h4 or
                                               self::h5 or self::h6][1])" />

 <xsl:template match="h1 | h2 | h3 | h4 | h5 | h6">
   <xsl:variable name="vLevel" select="substring-after(name(), 'h')" />

      <xsl:element name="header{$vLevel}">
        <xsl:apply-templates />
      </xsl:element>
      <xsl:apply-templates select="key('immediate-nodes', generate-id())" />
      <xsl:apply-templates select="key('next-headings', generate-id())" />

 </xsl:template>

 <xsl:template match="/*/*/node()" priority="-20">
   <xsl:copy-of select="." />
 </xsl:template>
</xsl:stylesheet>

when this transformation is applied on the following XML document:

1

1

1.1

2

1.1.1

3

1.2

4

2

5

2.1

6

the wanted result is produced:
<document>

      <header1>1</header1>

1

         <header2>1.1</header2>

2

            <header3>1.1.1</header3>

3

         <header2>1.2</header2>

4

      <header1>2</header1>

5

         <header2>2.1</header2>

6

</document>

A: A more general grouping in XSLT 1.0
<xsl:stylesheet version="1.0" xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform">
    <xsl:key name="kHeaderByPreceding"
             match="body/*[starts-with(name(),'h')]"
             use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*
                                 [starts-with(name(),'h')]
                                 [substring(name(current()),2)
                                   > substring(name(),2)][1])"/>
    <xsl:key name="kElementByPreceding"
             match="body/*[not(starts-with(name(),'h'))]"
             use="generate-id(preceding-sibling::*
                                 [starts-with(name(),'h')][1])"/>
    <xsl:template match="node()|@*" mode="copy">
        <xsl:copy>
            <xsl:apply-templates select="node()|@*" mode="copy"/>
        </xsl:copy>
    </xsl:template>
    <xsl:template match="body">
        <document>
            <xsl:apply-templates select="key('kHeaderByPreceding','')"/>
        </document>
    </xsl:template>
    <xsl:template match="body/*[starts-with(name(),'h')]">

            <xsl:element name="header{substring(name(),2)}">
                <xsl:apply-templates mode="copy"/>
            </xsl:element>
            <xsl:apply-templates select="key('kElementByPreceding',
                                             generate-id())"
                                 mode="copy"/>
            <xsl:apply-templates select="key('kHeaderByPreceding',
                                             generate-id())"/>

    </xsl:template>
    <xsl:template match="text()"/>
</xsl:stylesheet>

Output:
<document>

        <header1>HEADER 1 CONTENT</header1>

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

Level 1 para

            <header2>Header 2 CONTENT</header2>

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

Level 2 para

</document>

And with a more complex input sample like:

1

1

1.1

2

1.1.1

3

1.2

4

2

5

2.1

6

Output:
<document>

        <header1>1</header1>

1

            <header2>1.1</header2>

2

                <header3>1.1.1</header3>

3

            <header2>1.2</header2>

4

        <header1>2</header1>

5

            <header2>2.1</header2>

6

</document>

A: I was able to get something working for my addendum above. I added logic into the body template to test for header tags.  It may not work for every situation, but it is doing well for my task.
<xsl:template match="body">
<xsl:choose>
<xsl:when test="descendant::h1">
<xsl:apply-templates/>
</xsl:when>
<xsl:otherwise>

<item>
<block ccm="yes" onbup="no" quickref="no" web="no">
<xsl:apply-templates/>
</block>
</item>

</xsl:otherwise>
</xsl:choose>
</xsl:template>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: Today Widget tableView freezes I have a today widget that contains two things:

*

*A UILabel

*A UITableView
In my viewWillAppearI set the label to be visible and my tableView to be hidden and I set the label text to "Loading". See image below.

Then I get a location and when this is done, I call another method and

*

*If I do not find any data I just update the label text to "Did not find data"

*Otherwise I set the label to be hidden and the tableView to be visible and I start updating the data

When this is successfully done I have a tableView that looks like this:
.
To my issue now. When I open my today widget and hit viewWillAppear, I don´t always manage to set my label and the only result I get is this
.
So what happens is that I can only show a bit of my previous result in the tableView.
This happens occasionally and it seems that the tableView freezes and I´m not able to update the initial view, to hide the tableView and show the label instead. Even when the screen freezes like this everything is running like it should and I manage to update the tableView and the view.
The only issue is when I open the widget that the screen freezes like this:

sometimes instead of showing my label. The reason it´s in the size as it is, is because I set the preferredContentSize = CGSizeMake(0, 30). Otherwise I bet it will have shown the entire previous tableView.
Any ideas of how to solve this, to always update the view when I hit viewWillAppear?
Update
Starting another bounty to see if there is some other input on this issue.

A: What the system does is that it takes a Snapshot. I have also been struggling a bit with this issue and I have checked this post but it did not solve my issue.
For the widgetPerformUpdateWithCompletionHandler there are three options

*

*NCUpdateResultNewData — The new content required you to redraw the view

*NCUpdateResultNoData — The widget doesn't require updating

*NCUpdateResultFailed — An error occurred during the update process

It does not matter which one of these is called it´s always the same result. And the system does take a Snapshot.

To help your widget look up to date, the system occasionally captures
  snapshots of your widget's view. When the widget becomes visible
  again, the most recent snapshot is displayed until the system replaces
  it with a live version of the view.
To update a widget's state before a snapshot is taken, be sure to
  conform to the NCWidgetProviding protocol. When your widget receives
  the widgetPerformUpdateWithCompletionHandler: call, update your
  widget's view with the most recent content and call the completion
  handler, using one of the following constants to describe the result
  of the update

Reference.
I think that we´re maybe trying to load to "heavy" data and this could occur because of that. This is my answer, but I started a bounty to check if someone else has another answer or if you agree with my post.

A: You can put your operation in viewdidload(), because viewdidload() will be called when you enter you widget.


text:
PI Handbook
Research Collabs
Sidney Hillman Foundation Announces Call for Submissions for 2014 Hillman Prizes
by Ziad Al Achkar | Dec 9, 2013 | Arts and Museums, Criminal Justice, Education, Humanities, Law, Media and Communications, Political Science, Social Sciences
The foundation is now accepting submissions for the 2014 Hillman Prizes in honor of investigative journalism and commentary in the public interest. Winners exemplify sound news judgment, resourcefulness and courage in reporting, skilled storytelling, and social...
Alexia Foundation Accepting Photography Proposals that Promote Social Change
by Ziad Al Achkar | Dec 9, 2013 | Arts and Museums, Education
The Alexia Foundation supports photographers as agents for social change through grants, scholarships, and special projects. The foundation's main purpose is to encourage and help photojournalists create stories that drive change. In 2014, the foundation will...
NSF: Grant Proposal Guide, February 2014
by Ziad Al Achkar | Nov 25, 2013 | Accounting, Arts and Museums, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Criminal Justice, Economics, Education, Engineering, Finance, Health and Human Services, History, Human Resource Management, Humanities, Law, Libraries, Literature, Marketing, Mathematics, Media and Communications, Music, Operations Management, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Religion, Social Sciences, Sociology, STEM, Technology
The National Science Foundation has released its Grant Proposal Guide for the 2014 year. This guide includes some significant changes from the previous year. Effective for proposals submitted or due on or after February 24, 2014. For proposals submitted prior...
NSF: Award and Administration Guide, February 2014
The National Science Foundation has released its Award and Administration Guide for the 2014 year. This guide includes some significant changes from the previous year. Effective for awards made on or after February 24, 2014. For awards made prior to February 24, 2014,...
Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections Grant Opportunities
by Ziad Al Achkar | Nov 13, 2013 | Arts and Museums, Education, History, Humanities, Libraries, Literature, Music, Philosophy, Religion
Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections (SCHC) helps cultural institutions meet the complex challenge of preserving large and diverse holdings of humanities materials for future generations by supporting preventive conservation measures that mitigate deterioration...
Individuals Addressing Open Society Challenges Invited to Apply for Open Society Foundations Fellowship
by Ziad Al Achkar | Nov 12, 2013 | Arts and Museums, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Criminal Justice, Economics, Education, Engineering, Finance, Health and Human Services, Humanities, Law, Libraries, Mathematics, Media and Communications, Political Science, Psychology, Social Sciences, Sociology, STEM, Technology
A program of the Open Society Foundations, the Open Society Fellowship was founded in 2008 to support individuals pursuing innovative and unconventional approaches to fundamental open society challenges. The fellowship program seeks to fund work that will enrich...
Accounting Art Arts and Museums Biology Business Cancer Chemistry Criminal Justice Culture Economics Education Engineering Fellowship Finance Funding Grants Health Health and Human Services History Humanities Human Resource Management Human Rights Law Libraries Literature Marketing Mathematics Medicine Museums Music National science foundation Nursing Operations Management Policy Political Science Psychology Religion Research Science Social Science Social Sciences Sociology STEM Teaching Technology
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text:
Q: How to fetch data from database with json_encode of ajax I use ajax to fetch data from DB. And I chose alert(valData) in success function to test the data, but unlucky nothing return from
ajax. Then I tested
select contact from IDC WHERE id='5';

It works fine in mysql cmd line.
Here is my js code:
var stNum = 5;
$.ajax({
        dataType:'json',
        type:"POST",
        url:"get_ajax_csc.php",
        data:{stNum:stNum},
        success:function(data)
        {
         var valData = data;
         alert(valData);
         $('#stContact').val(data.stCnt);
         $('#stPhone').val(data.stPho);
        }
      });

Here is my html code:

    Contact:<input type="text" id="stContact" >

    Phone:<input type="text" id="stPhone" >

Here is get_ajax_csc.php code:
<?php
if(isset($_POST['stNum']))
{
 include("DB.php");
 $q=$_POST["stNum"];
 $sql="select contact,phone from IDC WHERE id='".$q."';";
 $sel = $conn->query($sql);

 $arr = $sel->fetch(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC);
 $tmpArr = array(
    'stCnt'=>$arr['contace'],
    'stPho'=>$arr['phone']
    );
 echo json_encode($tmpArr);
 }

 if(isset($_POST['htmlCnt']))
{
include("DB.php");
$htcnt=stripslashes(".$_POST['htmlCnt'].");
........
}
 ?>

Here is DB.php code:
<?php
session_start();
$pwd=$_SESSION['password'];
$user=$_SESSION['user'];

try
{
  $conn = new PDO('mysql:host=x.x.x.x;port=3306;dbname=hpc',$user,$pwd);
}
catch (PDOException $e)
{
  echo "account or pwd wrong <meta http-equiv='refresh' content='1;url=index.html'>";
    exit;
}
$conn->setAttribute(PDO::ATTR_ORACLE_NULLS, true);
?>

It seems nothing wrong in my code, but I cann't fetch data from database
I have found that stripslashes() made ajax return nothing. When I shielded this method (//stripslashes()), it worked fine. Why stripslashes can influence my ajax return data?

A: I found that:
$htcnt=stripslashes(".$_POST['htmlCnt'].");

change to:
$htcnt=stripslashes($_POST['htmlCnt']);


text:
Q: gitHooks not working in nested package.json My git hooks does't get triggered. I pretty sure the reason is, because my package.json file isn't on the same level as my .git. So my .git dir structure looks something like this:
.git/...
.vscode/...
auth/...
core/...
www/package.json
www/scripts/verify-commit-msg.js
www/src/...

As you can see my package.json is nested inside my www/ folder.
Within my `package.json, my gitHooks looks as follow.
"gitHooks": {
    "commit-msg": "node scripts/verify-commit-msg.js"
  }

Additional Note: It works fine if my package.json is on the same level as my .git
I know 1 solution is to put my www in its own git repo. For now I don't want to do that.
I am using vue cli 3, and I know they are using yorky for the githooks tooling.


text:
Russia – Belarus – Venezuela a Steady Trio in Latin America
Paradoxically for the present-day Russia, a country pursuing neoliberal policies domestically and internationally, Moscow can always count on Venezuela with its peaceful permanent revolution as the top-reliable partner in Latin America. Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez may condemn capitalism as a historically doomed formation and dream of building a society based on social justice, but the picture stemming from the reports which circulate within Russia's foreign ministry is that he contributes more than anybody else to the strengthening of Russian positions across the continent. One might expect the role to be taken by a figure from the rightist camp, considering that Russia is on completely friendly terms with Latin American bastions of neoliberalism like Mexico, Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica, and Chile. In fact, Russia's drastic market-oriented reforms – the sweeping privatization, the inflation of the financial sector that sent institutions such as non-government retirement funds mushrooming, the welfare system demolition, etc. – were, with a surprising lack of independent thinking, patterned after Chile's. Still, neither of Latin American neoliberal regimes came close to that of Venezuela in cultivating the partnership with Moscow.
The explanation behind the tendency of the Latin American liberals to keep distance vis-a-vis Moscow is that Washington keeps the whole cohort permanently short-leashed, and, for example, under B. Obama the US Administration does not even bother to disguise its efforts to tame Russia's ambitions on the continent. For the US, Russia – communist or liberal – is equally unwelcome as a country believed to be unpredictable and as a potential competitor, a perception which prompts the US strategy of shutting it out of Latin America regardless of details.
The Russian theme never drops out of sight of the US embassies in Latin America. Russians across the continent – embassy staff, businessmen, or permanent residents – are automatically suspect, and the recurrent smear campaigns waged against Russia by the rightist Latin American media can easily be traced back to US diplomatic missions and psi-ops labs. Russia, as a result, is being portrayed as an authoritarian country run by rigid bureaucracy and criminal clans, Russian products are discounted as a priori inferior to Western analogs, and whatever business projects offered by Moscow come under fire as allegedly corrupt. If a Russian is arrested in Latin America, the case immediately gets blown out of proportions, with the plots often readable as provocations arranged by the US intelligence community and the evidence – forged by its agents. The myth of the Russian mafia is pervasive in Latin American media and largely overshadows the positive developments in Russia's cooperation with the partners across the continent in the spheres of trade, energy, the arms business, finances, and culture.
Latin America's neoliberal leaders are keenly aware that Washington frowns on serious initiatives involving Russia, and that defying control is occasionally punishable by sanctions. Under the circumstances, Russia's potential partners exercise maximum restraint, especially when the projects on the table concern energy or the military-technical cooperation. Deals with Russian companies in Latin America go through only if endorsed by Washington and pose no threat to the US interests. Evidently, the reason why recently Russia has managed to sell copters in Latin America for counterinsurgency and counter-narcotics operations was that the US military-industrial complex was overloaded due to the Empire's being locked in military conflicts worldwide and was unable to fill in the niche.
It must be noted that Belarus no less than Russia is confronted with the US opposition in Latin America. A. Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, is hammered in the West as "Europe's last dictator", but the reality is that the US Administration hates the idea that the socialism-minded leader who openly criticizes US imperialist policies might find allies in Latin America. Lukashenko responded to the West's attempts to isolate Belarus by diversifying its foreign policies. A 2006 visit to Mensk by H. Chavez marked the start of Belarus' lasting rapprochement with Venezuela and, with the assistance from the latter, with other ALBA countries. Belarus is fairly successful in marketing its energy industry, petrochemistry, food processing, and agriculture products in Venezuela and clearly hopes that the country would in the long run open to Mensk wider access to the continent. At present, Belarus and Venezuela are jointly implementing a total of 85 projects in agriculture, the energy sector, and residential construction, the biggest ones being the creation of the assembly plants to output – for Venezuela's own needs and for the export to other Latin American countries – around 5,000 MAZ trucks and 10,000 MTZ tractors annually. Several impressive infrastructural deals were penned during Lukashenko's last tour of Venezuela. Belorussian companies are to construct a 600 mW co-generation plant in the Santa Ines industrial park in Cahvez's home Barinas state, plus a memorandum exists on the building of a 200-km gas pipeline to link Barquisimeto and the city of Barinas. Venezuela and Belarus are also planning a commercially viable project aimed at producing NPK fertilizer which will be exported across the continent.
The Venezuelan leadership which has to endure constantly heightened US political pressure must be credited with an intelligent choice of international partners, with the East Slavic duo of Russia and Belarus as the key allies. The military-technical cooperation with Russia helps Venezuela maintain appropriate defense capabilities, and it is fair to say that the country's armaments have reached an unprecedented level thanks to the engagement with Russia.
It is worth noting in the context, that Venezuela's armament record includes a deal to buy the F-16 fighters from the US. The transaction got a green light from R. Reagan's Administration in the Cold War era, the rather ridiculous motivation being to enable the country to defend its oil fields from a Cuban snap offensive. The US reneged on its obligations to service Venezuela's park of F-16 fighters – and on an array of similar arms-related contracts – after Chavez rise to power in the country, leaving Caracas no option but to altogether cut off contacts with the Pentagon. The conduct being fairly typical for the US, Latin American governments have to carefully weigh the risks of the military-technical cooperation with Washington. At the moment, Brazil is in a dilemma – it can either sign a $5b contract with the US to buy Super Hornet fighters or accept the competing Dassault Rafale offer from France – and will certainly take Venezuela's negative experience into account.
A presidential campaign is taking off in Venezuela ahead of the October 7 elections. Visiting Caracas, Lukashenko expressed confidence that his friend and ally Chavez would prevail and said new bilateral projects would be coming online within years, the opposition mounted by the foes of the two countries notwithstanding. President Putin talked to Chavez over the phone this June – as a part of the conversation, the Russian leader praised Venezuela's preparations for the presidential race, wished Chavez complete recovery, and said the Venezuelan president looked visibly healthier during his last appearances in public. A Kremlin press release said Putin and Chavez intend to meet in the nearest future. Hypothetically, keeping oil prices stable is going to be an important part of the agenda.
For Latin America, the atmosphere of mutual respect and the openness to cooperation among the trio of Russia, Belarus, and Venezuela combine into a partnership model which has obvious advantages over the aggressive and divisive policies pursued by the US on the continent.
Belarus Chavez Latin America Lukashenko Putin Russia Venezuela
July 2, 2012 | World
Independent analyst and researcher
Obama's Final Adventure in Venezuela
The Upcoming Nicaraguan Election Will Be a Test
The Nicaragua Canal, Russian Tanks, and US Spies
Ecuador. The CIA Agent Known as Swat, plus Others
The US Is Preparing to Oust President Evo Morales


text:
Michael Lee Aday, ameriški glasbenik in igralec, * 27. september 1947, Dallas, Teksas, Združene Države Amerike, † 20. januar 2022, Nashville, ZDA.

Mladost
Meat Loaf se je rodil kot Marvin Lee Aday policistu Orvisu Wesleyu Adayu in njegovi ženi, učiteljici Wilmi Artie. Mladi Marvin je imel težko otroštvo. Njegov oče je bil alkoholik, z materjo pa sta ga večkrat iskala po barih v Dallasu. Zaradi tega je bil večkrat v oskrbi svoje babice. Iz tega obdobja je nastalo tudi veliko zgodb o tem, kako je dobil svoj vzdevek "Meat Loaf" (mesna štruca).

Ti problematični trenutki v njegovem otroštvu, so malo zavirali njegove ambicije. Po končani srednji šoli se je na koncu vpisal na North Texas State University (ki se zdaj imenuje University of North Texas).

V tem času se je med drugim tudi namenoma zredil za 60-68 funtov (27.2-30.8 kilogramov), zato, da bi padel na fizičnem testu pri vpoklicu v vojsko. Kljub temu prizadevanju, so ga pri testiranjih označili za fizično zmogljivega in mu čez dva tedna ponovno poslali obvestilo o vpoklicu. Le-tega je nato preprosto ignoriral in se leta 1967 preselil v Los Angeles. Tam si je našel delo varnostnika in začel s svojo prvo glasbeno skupino "Meat Loaf Soul"

Po več spremembah članov in imena, se je naposled skupina razšla. Večji uspeh pa se je zgodil v gledališču, kjer je Meat Loaf zaigral v enemu od dejanj muzikala "Lasje". Njegovo sodelovanje s produkcijo ga je sčasoma pripeljala do Broadwaya in si prislužil tudi prepoznavo.

Tam je bil Meat Loaf preko avdicije uspešno sprejet za vlogo "Eddieja" v produkcijski fazi Rocky Horror Picture Showa. Leta 1975 je Meat Loaf sledil tej oddaji do prikaza na velikem zaslonu, kjer so skupaj z njim nastopali tudi Susan Sarandon, Tim Curry in Barry Bostwick. Na veliko presenečenje gledalcev, je film požel velik uspeh. Bruto zaslužek prodaje vstopnic je presegal 112 milijonov dolarjev v naslednjih trideset in več letih.

Komercialni uspeh in padec
Približno v času snemanja Rocky Horror Picture Showa se je vrnil v studio in začel snemati rock opero "Bat Out of Hell" (kot album izšla leta 1977), ki je kasneje postala mejnik v njegovi glasbeni karieri. Produkcijo je vodil sloviti rocker Todd Rundgren, sodeloval pa je tudi tekstopisec Jim Steinman, ki je napisal vse pesmi v albumu. Meat Loaf je ustvaril album, na kateri sta pomešana bolečina (pesem "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad") in najstniška spolnost (pesem "Paradise by the Dashboard Light").

Album se je od takrat prodal v več kot 34 milijonih izvodih po vsem svetu in je Meat Loafu prinesel multi-platinasti status.

Toda z uspehom je prišlo tudi do sporov. Nastal je razkol med Meat Loafom in Steinmanom, saj je slednji izrazil svoje nezadovoljstvo nad Meat Loafovim pomanjkanjem sredstev za uspeh albuma. Potem pa si je Meat Loaf med nastopom v Ottawi še zlomil nogo, zaradi česar je nekaj naslednjih nastopov izvajal iz invalidskega vozička. Steinman je nato šel svojo pot leta 1981 ustvaril svoj album "Bad for Good".

Ti dogodki so Meat Loafa pahnili v razvado drog. Njegov drugi album "Dead Ringer" (1981) je razočaral, le-to pa je še povečalo njegove težave. Soočanje tožb, vključno z eno s strani Steinmana in slabo upravljanje denarja sta Meat Loafa leta 1983 pripeljala do bankrota.

Povratek
Naslednjih nekaj let je Meat Loaf še naprej ustvarjal glasbo. Med tem časom sta nastala albuma "Bad Attitude" (1985) in "Blind Before I Stop" (1986), ki sta prinesla mešane ocene. A kljub temu je delavni Meat Loaf nadaljeval s turnejami.

Leta 1993 je Meat Loaf obrnil stvari okoli z albumom "Bat Out of Hell II", "pošastnim" hitom, ki je bil plod obnovljenega partnerstva z Jimom Steinmanom. Zasidran s priljubljenim singlom "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", se je album prodal v več kot 15 milijonih izvodih. Omenjeni singel je promoviral tudi s sodelovanjem s pevko Patti Russo.

Zatem je sledilo še več turnej in več albumov, vključno z "Bat Out of Hell III" (2006). Poleg tega, pa je Meat Loaf ponovno pokazal svoje talente kot igralec, z nastopi v filmih, kot sta Waynov svet (1992) in Klub golih pesti (1999).

Leta 2001 si je svoje rojstno ime "Marvin" spremenil v "Michael".

Leta 2003 je Meat Loaf utrpel zdravstveni pretres, ko se je zgrudil na odru v Londonu. Zdravniki so mu kasneje diagnosticirali Wolff-Parkinson-Whiteov sindrom, ki povzroča nepravilen srčni utrip.

Meat Loaf je popolno okreval. Leta 2010 je posnel svoj 11. studijski album, "Hang Cool Teddy Bear" in nato v letu 2011 še "Hell in a Handbasket". Zadnji album je izdal leta 2016, z naslovom "Braver Than We Are".

Sklici

Ameriški glasbeniki
Ameriški igralci

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Kościół Podwyższenia Krzyża Świętego w Wilejce – kościół parafialny w Wilejce na Białorusi.

Historia
Budowę kościoła rozpoczęto w 1906 r. po wydaniu przez cara Mikołaja II Manifestu październikowego o wolności wyznania. Kościół zaprojektował architekt August Klein, autor projektu kościoła w Ilii. 20 lipca 1907 r. wmurowano kamień węgielny. Wśród ofiarodawców był Aleksander Lubański z Lubania. W 1909 r. przewodniczącym komitetu budowy kościoła był ks. Jan Jankiewicz, a kierownikiem budowy został inż. Filipowicz-Dubowski.

Budowę zakończono w 1913 r. Budynek ucierpiał od ostrzału artylerii w czasie I wojny światowej, lecz został wyremontowany w latach 1922-1928. W 1931 r. świątynię konsekrował arcybiskup wileński Romuald Jałbrzykowski.

Po II wojnie światowej kościół został zamknięty i zamieniony w magazyn. W 1979 r. rozpoczęto restaurację pod kierunkiem architekt L. Pawłowej. W latach 80. XX w. świątyni nadano status pomnika architektury, a po odrestaurowaniu w 1988 r. umieszczono w niej salę wystawową im. Nikodema Siliwanowicza, malarza pochodzącego spod Mołodeczna.

W 1990 r. kościół został zwrócony wiernym. Podczas restauracji prezbiterium ozdobiono neogotyckim ołtarzem głównym, w którym umieszczono kopię obrazu Matki Bożej Ostrobramskiej, przechowywaną podczas zamknięcia świątyni przez ks. Stanisława Żuka. W lewym skrzydle transeptu umiejscowiono nowy neobarokowy ołtarz Matki Bożej. Na 50-metrowej wieży kościelnej - dzwonnicy w 2005 r. umieszczono krzyż, a w 2006 r. zamontowano elektroniczne dzwony. Krzyż i dzwony poświęcił biskup Antoni Dziemianko.

Architektura
Kościół zbudowano z żółtej cegły na podmurowaniu z kamiennych bloków. Stanowi pomnik architektury neogotyckiej z elementami neoromańskimi. Jest to trzynawowa bazylika z transeptem i wysoką wieżą z południowej strony babińca. Wnętrze ozdobiono arabeskowymi malowidłami.

Przypisy

Linki zewnętrzne
 Parafia Podwyższenia Krzyża Świętego w Wilejce na stronie catholic.by
 Kościół Podwyższenia Krzyża Świętego w Wilejce na stronie internetowej radzima.org

Zobacz też

 Lista najwyższych kościołów na Białorusi

Architektura neogotycka na Białorusi
Kościoły archidiecezji mińsko-mohylewskiej
Świątynie pod wezwaniem Podwyższenia Krzyża Świętego
Kościoły w obwodzie mińskim
Kościół
Zabytkowe kościoły na Białorusi


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text:
The Levitical Ban: The Final Verdict
HOMOSEXUALITY AND THE BIBLE,
Key Passage: Leviticus 18:21-23, Deuteronomy 22:5, Genesis 38:9-10
By Bruce L. Gerig
Our earlier two articles on "The Levitical Ban" attempted to refute an an erroneous (homophobic) trend on the part of some scholars today to deny that cultic male prostitutes (probably including castrated, homosexual, transvestite and hermaproditic elements) widely practiced their sacred duties in the ancient Near East. That this was pervasive is supported by God's warning given to Moses in Deut 23:17: "None of the daughters of Israel shall be a temple prostitute; none of the sons of Israel shall be a temple prostitute." (NRSV) Later comparison material to the Ishtar cult comes from the 3rd cent. B.C. - 4th cent. A.D., from Asia Minor, Syria, and Rome, which describes the cult of the great Mother Goddess (worshipped under different names), who attracted lay eunuchs who connect in manifold and profound ways with the earlier Mesopotamian sacred eunuchs.1 Apuleius (2nd century A.D. Roman satirist), in The Golden Ass, vividly portrays these castrated devotees (galli, sing. gallos) as passive homosexuals who seek out virile young peasant lads to satisfy their desires. Eusebius (4th century church historian) mentions effeminate priests attached to the moon goddess Nikkal (= Ishtar) in Harran, who carry on homosexual cult practices on Mount Lebanon.2 Greenberg observes that Ishtar had many lovers, yet remained childless. So, appropriately, both her female and male prostitute servants remained barren by uniting with male worshippers through anal intercourse. Not only did the goddess look favorably on the precious gift of semen, but the act brought good fortune, health and healing, and other benefits to the offerer and his household.3 Of course, such an ancient and ingrained relationship between transvestism and pagan worship certainly bears on such a verse as Deut 22:5, which forbids cross-dressing; and it is noteworthy also that eunuchs were not allowed to serve as priests in Israel (Lev 21:20) or gather with Israel to worship the Lord (Deut 23:1).
In contrast to private, nonviolent homosexual relations, which must have gone on with little notice in Israel (as they did throughout the ancient Mesopotamian world),4 the male sacred prostitute turned out to be a real and persistent problem in Israel. During the reign of Rehoboam, in the kingdom of Judah (late 10th century B.C.), the people "built for themselves [idolatrous] high places, pillars, and sacred poles" and "there were also male temple prostitutes [qedheshim] in the land. They [the Israelites] committed all the abominations of the nations that the Lord drove out before the people of Israel." (1 Kings 14:23-24, NRSV) Notice the same wording and condemnation here as found in Lev 18, in the chapter's preface (vv. 1-5) and conclusion (vv. 24-30). Then, when Asa (Rehoboam's grandson) came to the throne, he "put away the male temple prostitutes" (1 Kings 15:12); but later we read that Jehoshaphat (Asa's son) exterminated "the remnant of the male temple prostitutes who were still in the land" (1 Kings 22:46).
Yet, nine kings later, the qedheshim are still around. When Hezekiah came to the throne (late 8th century B.C.), he "disposed the idolatrous priests [who had been] ordained to make offerings in the high places" and "broke down the houses of the male temple prostitutes that were in the house of the Lord" and "defiled Topheth [the place of burning]" in the valley of Ben-hinnom, so that no longer children could be sacrificed to Molech - perhaps a god of the underworld5 (2 Kings 23:5,7,10). In this last passage, note that male cult prostitution is mentioned alongside sacrificing children to Molech. In fact, L.W. Countryman suggests that the three laws in Lev 18:21-23, directed against child sacrifice, male intercourse, and bestial union, may be tied together by their all having cultic associations. (A similar triad of laws is found in Exod 22:18-20, connecting and condemning sorcery, bestiality, and idolatrous sacrifice).6 Although we have no direct reference to the Israelites practicing bestial cultic practices, the allusion to the Ephraimites "kissing calves" at their bull sacrifices (Hosea 13:2, cf. 12:11) is a bit unsettling. (Other non-biblical references do mention specific bestial acts done in religious contexts.)
Returning to Lev 18:22, another major issue still needs to be addressed, namely, that most interpreters view this verse, in the overall Holiness Code (Lev 17-26), as a ban covering all male homosexual intercourse (if not all gay-lesbian practice). Jacob Milgrom, in his erudite study of Leviticus 17-22, lists the main explanations that have been offered for what lies behind the Lev. 18:22 ban – connecting homosexual union with idolatrous practices (Snaith 1967, Boswell 1980), wasting of male seed (Eiberg-Schwartz 1990, Biale 1992), blurring of gender boundaries (Douglas 1966, Thurston 1990), or mixing of semen with a defiling liquid (Bigger 1979, Olyan 1994).7 For Milgrom, the underlying issue is procreation vs. the producing of improper offspring (incest, adultery), no offspring (male or animal union), or the destruction of offspring (child sacrifice). Yet, he acknowledges that none of the ancients, including Israel, condemned the "spilling of seed" outside the womb, in any form (though Israel's law considered this defiling).8 Later, rabbis in the Babylonian Talmud would condemn masturbation (under Persian influence), while rabbis in the Palestinian Talmud would not.9 Milgrom connects 18:22 to fear of a stagnant birth rate, which would undermine God's Abrahamic covenant and promise that Israel would multiply exceedingly. Semen stood for life, and loss of semen stood for loss of life.10 Applying this ban to today, Milgrom holds that it applies only to Jewish gay males – who can, however, still fulfill the Eternal's call to "bear fruit" by adopting children.11
Yet, while various rationales have been offered for viewing Lev 18:22 as a comprehensive ban on homosexual practice, none of them can be applied without difficulties – except as related to idolatrous practices. Notice the clear command to Israel in Lev 19:1-4: "You shall be holy [set apart for me]. … Do not turn to idols or make [them]." With regard to the wasting of seed, "loss of seed" was not condemned in the Law of Moses, whether in night emission, masturbation, or incompleted heterosexual intercourse (Deut 23:10-11; Lev 15:16-17, 22:4b; Lev 15:18). The case of Onan in Gen 38:9-10 had only to do with not fulfilling the demands of the levirate tradition (to give a widowed sister-in-law an heir) and cannot be read in context as a ban on masturbation or interrupted coitus, in general. Israelite men were allowed to visit prostitutes (who would try to avoid pregnancy), and they were not banned from having sex during pregnancy or after menopause (neither of which could produce children). The command to "Be fruitful and multiple" (Gen 1:28, 9:1), while it made sense in terms of Israel's survival (and everybody married), makes little sense today in our overpopulated world, where many starve for lack of food. Even in ancient Israel, some women were barren, some men sterile, and others could not bear children for other reasons – so God's command could hardly be applied to everyone.
There would have been concern, of course, with a blurring of gender boundaries in the patriarchal mindset of the ancient world and among the Israelites – yet, as Nissinen notes, the important question in ancient times was not whether there was heterosexual vs. same-sex activity, but "Who's on top?" As long as a man was the active partner (the penetrator) and he was having sex with an inferior male (slave, foreigner, defeated enemy, eunuch, or boy), no dishonor nor disgrace was generally attached to any such act.12 Milgrom even notes that if an absolute ban on same-sex anal intercourse existed in Lev 18:22, it would have been unique in the whole ancient Near East.13 Bullough concluded that anal intercourse was widely practiced in Mesopotamia, and that there is no evidence that it was a taboo per se.14 Theologically, in Israel, the patriarchal system stemmed from the Fall and the curse that followed (Gen 3:16). In our age, so very different from ancient Israel, when women become every bit as well educated and capable as men, such gender divisions in labor, duty, and authority do not fit at all. With regards to the mixing of semen with a defiling liquid, it is bestial unions that are called "an [improper] mixing" (18:23), not lying with a zakhar ("sacred male," 18:22). This concern may have related to a fear people had that freaks (like centaurs) might result from animal-human mating. Bestiality is banned in general in the great curses in Deut 27 (v. 21) – but no similar ban here or elsewhere in the OT covering all homosexual intercourse.
So, the final verdict is in on the meaning of Lev. 18:22: Although Jewish rabbis many centuries later interpreted this ban as a condemnation of (Greek) homosexuality, many factors point to an original ban which was directed solely against the dangers of sacred prostitution being absorbed into the worship of Yahweh. Nowhere in the OT is any nonviolent, non-cultic homosexual act or relationship condemned or punished – and this is surely not because such did not happen. Indeed, when we look at the Jonathan and David story, we shall see how the writer there describes a clearly homoerotic friendship, with no hesitation or shame whatsoever.
FOOTNOTES: 1. Nissinen, p. 31-32. 2. Greenberg, p. 96-98; Nissinen, p. 31-32, cf. footnotes. 3. Greenberg, p. 106. 4. Horner, p. 23-24; Bottero, p. 97; Leick, p. 160. 5. Milgrom, p. 1558-59, 1564. 6. Countryman, p. 33. 7. Milgrom, p. 1566. 8. Milgrom, p. 1567-68. 9. Milgrom, p. 1658. 10. Milgrom, p. 1785-86. 11. Milgrom, p. 1568-69,1786-88. 12. Nissinen, p. 128-30. 13. Milgrom, p. 1566. 14. Bullough, p. 56.
REFERENCES: Bottero, Jean, Everyday Life in Ancient Mesopotamia, orig. Fr. ed. 1992, Eng. trans. 2001. Bullough, Vern, Sexual Variance in Society and History, 1976. Countryman, L.W., Dirt, Greed and Sex, 1988. Greenberg, Clement, The Construction of Homosexuality, 1988. Horner, Tom, l Loved David, 1978. Leick, Gwendolyn, Sex and Eroticism in Mesopotamian Literature, 1994. Milgrom, Jacob, Leviticus 17-22 (Anchor Bible), 2000. Nissinen, Marti, Homoeroticism in the Biblical World, 1998.
TRANSLATIONS: New Revised Standard Version, 1989.
© 2003 Bruce L. Gerig
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During the day, the American tulipwood installation promises to be fun and playful. The labyrinthine spaces lead visitors through a series of stairs, corridors and open spaces, inviting them to explore the potential of wood in architecture. In the evenings, with subtle lighting, the pavilion becomes a quiet and contemplative space, allowing visitors to reflect on the beauty of its natural material.


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Largest Christian Book Chain in U.S. Files for Bankruptcy
End Times and Current Events > Forum > General Category > False Religions > Churchianity > Largest Christian Book Chain in U.S. Files for Bankruptcy
Author Topic: Largest Christian Book Chain in U.S. Files for Bankruptcy (Read 503 times)
https://www.yahoo.com/movies/s/largest-christian-book-chain-u-files-bankruptcy-002906789.html
Family Christian Stores, the largest chain of Christian bookstores in the U.S., has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The chain says it has no plans to lay off employees or close any of the 266 stores it operates in 36 states. It is seeking to sell its assets to a newly created subsidiary of Family Christian Ministries, Publishers Weekly reports. In 2012, a group of Atlanta investors acquired the chain of stores and donated it to Family Christian Ministries.
Family Christian's bookstores sell Bibles and Christian-themed books, gifts and music. The chain, headquartered in Michigan, did $216 million in sales in 2014, but its sales have steadily declined since 2008, according to court filings reported by Michigan Live.
"We strive to serve God in all that we do and trust His guidance in all our decisions, especially this very important one," Chuck Bengochea, president and CEO of Family Christian Stores, said in a statement. "We have carefully and prayerfully considered every option. This action allows us to stay in business and continue to serve our customers, our associates, our vendors and charities around the world."
Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.


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Algeria: Tebboune's son acquitted in corruption case
February 28, 2020 at 1:46 am | Published in: Africa, Algeria, Asia & Americas, Brazil, News
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune [Algérie résumé des infos/Facebook]
A court in Sidi Mohamed, Algeria, acquitted the son of President Abdelmajid Tebboune on Thursday of corruption-related charges in the real estate sector. At the same time, the main suspect was sentenced to eight years in prison, according to the Algerian radio.
The verdicts were issued on Wednesday after a full day trial, which was given maximum attention, given the presence of the president's son, Khaled Tebboune, who has been arrested since June, among the defendants.
The court sentenced the main accused, Kamal Sheikhi, to eight years in prison and a fine of 10 million Algerian dinars, about 76,000 Euros, while preventing him from participating in public deals for five years, according to the radio.
Read: Algerian Olympic Committee rejects president's resignation
The official Algerian news agency, APA, explained that the main charge revolves around "granting concessions to benefit from illegal services by officials and employees" about obtaining illegal real estate and building licenses.
In the same case, a former mayor was sentenced to six years in prison and four years for the driver of the former police chief, for "exploiting influence and providing undue benefits to Kamal Sheikhi in exchange for money." The radio added that, along with Khaled Tebboune, the court acquitted two judges from the charge of taking bribes.
Sheikhi, who is a real estate owner and meat importer and a close associate of the Bouteflika government, was summoned to investigation in May 2018, when more than 700 kilograms of cocaine were seized on a ship carrying meat imported from Brazil.
The investigation of this case has not yet ended, except that the repercussions were significant, the most important of which was the dismissal of the then director-general of police, Major General Abdelghani Hamel, after uncovering the involvement of his private driver. Then he was imprisoned pending his trial in several corruption cases along with members of his family.
All the people who used to visit Sheikhi in his office were investigated, including Tebboune's son.
AfricaAlgeriaAsia & AmericasBrazilNews


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Environmentalists Need Strategy. Saul Alinsky and the Green Movement.
Sustainability made stylish
Sami Grover samigrover
Image credit: Christ Centered Mall
Being right is not enough. We have to win too.
From Dark Mountain's rejection of environmentalism, through the dangers of disasterbation, to an obsession with individual impact as opposed to collective action, I can't help feeling like much of the green movement is missing something.
And that something is strategy. I've mentioned my recurring fear before that I will end up in a yurt, sitting around as the ecosystems we rely on for survival collapse all around us. With me will be an intrepid band of environmentalists. And we'll all be patting ourselves on the back because we weren't the ones responsible for the destruction.
I'm afraid this scenario is not so far fetched. Whether it's activists protesting luxury green condos after construction has begun (as opposed to during the planning process), or eco-nags indulging in passive aggressive preaching, there seem to be an awful lot of environmentalists for whom the fight is an end in itself.
But ultimately the success of environmentalism will not be judged on whether we were right or not. It will be judged on whether we managed to halt, and even reverse, the threats that environmental destruction and resource depletion pose to our way of life and, possibly, our survival. And central to that success, or failure, will be our ability to view the challenges we face through a strategic lens. But what does that lens look like?
I may be in danger of perpetuating the myth that environmentalism is socialist here, but in discussing the importance of strategy with a veteran activist friend of mine, he urged me to check out the work of community organizing pioneer Saul Alinsky. I think he may have been on to something.
For one thing, many greens would do well to take on Alinsky's insistence that self-doubt is vital:
"...I could never accept any rigid dogma or ideology, whether it's Christianity or Marxism. One of the most important things in life is what Judge Learned Hand described as 'that ever-gnawing inner doubt as to whether you're right.' If you don't have that, if you think you've got an inside track to absolute truth, you become doctrinaire, humorless and intellectually constipated."
I'm not saying that greens should question whether protecting the environment makes sense or not—that much, to me at least, is obvious. But we should remain open to discussing what the best way to do that is. From nuclear power to carbon offsets to geo-engineering, the threat of climate change is such that no option should be dismissed on ideological grounds alone. Only whether it works or not.
That question of whether something works or not points to another central tenet of Alinsky's organizing principles - namely, you have to pick your battles, and those battles have to be winnable. It might be attractive, even romantic, for some greens to cast themselves as the tragic hero, battling against all odds for what's morally right. But with so many battles to pick, and such high stakes at hand, folks would do well to learn from Alinsky's relentless focus on strategic, targeted battles that forced change effectively, but incrementally - neighborhood by neighborhood, and issue by issue.
From my limited reading so far, whether or not you agree with Alinsky's political stances, there is much to be learned from his strategic vision. (Our current president would no-doubt agree.)
So let's open it up to the floor. What does a winning strategy look like for the green movement? Is Alinsky's work a useful model? And are there other strategic thinkers—be they from corporate, philosophical, military or sports—that we could learn from? You know where the comments box is...
Image credit: Christ Centered Mall Being right is not enough. We have to win too. From Dark Mountain's rejection of environmentalism, through the dangers of disasterbation, to an obsession with individual impact as opposed to collective action, I can't
Do personal consumption habits really matter in the climate emergency?
Lush Cosmetics will shut down for Global Climate Strike
Solutions summit: How to decarbonize now
7 things you can do if you can't do a Climate Strike


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Q: Obvious speedup to NSGA-II? Nondominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA) II has become very well known for multiobjective optimization.  I'm starting to implement this, starting with the "fast-non-dominated-sort" function, i.e., not touching the anticrowding schemes just yet.  The pseudocode is show at the bottom of the 3rd page of the above NSGA II link.
Upon studying it, it seems to me (most likely naively!) that a simple speedup can be tweaked into the pseudocode.  Specifically, the testing of whether solution $q$ is nondominated can be brought outside of a nested loop.  More specifically, there are two nested loops, one to iterate $p$ over the solutions of the current nondominance front and another to iterate over each solution $q$ dominated by $p$.  The test of whether $q$ is nondominated for the next front is $n_q = 0$, where $n_q$ is the number of solutions that dominate solution $q$.  If we bring this outside the two nested loops, the test doesn't have to happen as often.  Yet it seems that $n_q$ should still have the correct value when both loops are done.  You would still have to iterate over all $q$'s to test them, but you wouldn't be visiting each one more than once.
Am I missing some obvious reason why the domination count is inside the nested loops?


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Q: How do I choose the best k mean cluster in weka As you can see the bottom result I have two different clusters using different seed. I would like to choose the best cluster out of the two clusters.
I know that the minimum square error is the better. However, it shows the same square error although I use different seeds. I want to know why it shows similar square error. I also want to know what other things I need to consider when i am selecting the best cluster.
*******************************************************************
kMeans
======

Number of iterations: 10
Within cluster sum of squared errors: 527.6988818392938
Missing values globally replaced with mean/mode

Cluster centroids:
                                  Cluster#
Attribute             Full Data          0          1
                         (4898)     (2781)     (2117)
=====================================================
fixedacidity             6.8548     6.9565     6.7212
volatileacidity          0.2782     0.2826     0.2725
citricacid               0.3342     0.3389     0.3279
residualsugar            6.3914     8.2678     3.9265
chlorides                0.0458     0.0521     0.0374
freesulfurdioxide       35.3081    38.6897    30.8658
totalsulfurdioxide     138.3607   155.2585   116.1627
density                   0.994     0.9958     0.9916
pH                       3.1883     3.1691     3.2134
sulphates                0.4898      0.492     0.4871
alcohol                 10.5143     9.6325    11.6726
quality                  5.8779     5.4779     6.4034

Time taken to build model (full training data) : 0.19 seconds

=== Model and evaluation on training set ===

Clustered Instances

0      2781 ( 57%)
1      2117 ( 43%)

***********************************************************************

kMeans
======

Number of iterations: 7
Within cluster sum of squared errors: 527.6993178146143
Missing values globally replaced with mean/mode

Cluster centroids:
                                  Cluster#
Attribute             Full Data          0          1
                         (4898)     (2122)     (2776)
=====================================================
fixedacidity             6.8548     6.7208     6.9572
volatileacidity          0.2782     0.2723     0.2828
citricacid               0.3342     0.3281     0.3389
residualsugar            6.3914     3.9451     8.2614
chlorides                0.0458     0.0374     0.0522
freesulfurdioxide       35.3081    30.9105    38.6697
totalsulfurdioxide     138.3607   116.2175   155.2871
density                   0.994     0.9917     0.9958
pH                       3.1883     3.2137     3.1689
sulphates                0.4898     0.4876     0.4916
alcohol                 10.5143    11.6695     9.6312
quality                  5.8779     6.4043     5.4755

Time taken to build model (full training data) : 0.15 seconds

=== Model and evaluation on training set ===

Clustered Instances

0      2122 ( 43%)
1      2776 ( 57%)

A: Define "best result".
By the definition of k-means, a lower sum of squares is better.
Anything else is worse by k-means - but that doesn't mean that a different quality criterion (or clustering algorithm) could be more helpful for your actual problem.

A: Using different seeds doesnot guarantee you different clusters in the result.


Ice fishing on Tunkwa has been a bit spotty the past week. Lots of trout down there coming in to look, but very tough to get them to bite, and when they do hit, it's often very light. Still, trout are being caught, low light periods being the best.
Ed and Layla Thomson show how it's done, nice fish!
Jessica's all smiles with her first trout through the ice!


» MEMBER LOUNGE » Member Discussions » Learning Japanese?
Hey there! I've been learning japanese for a few weeks..and I was wondering if someone else here was learning too?
Hello, I'm trying to learn Japanese as well.
I am also learning Japanese (been taking classes since the beginning of the year).
Although I can apply this to my job (but it's going to take a while), I was getting frustrated by not finding enough translated content for Scandal on line, especially after watching their DVD concerts and not knowing what they were saying during their MCs. I decided to learn the language, especially learn how to read it. It's been a bit challenging to say the least, but I'm enjoying it.
Don Dio wrote: I am also learning Japanese (been taking classes since the beginning of the year).
@thistigersaysmeow Hey there! Its great to see another fellow learner!
I'm still studying but I want to be good at Japanese :3 I also hope that it helps me with my future jobs etc.
What about you guys? What level are you at?
I'm using an app called Duolingo. The Japanese lesson is only available on mobile as of now, but they're working on a web version.
Oh yeah! I have heard of Duolingo! How is the app? What is your review?
It's a good app to use as a learning supplement. The Japanese lesson is new, so there are a couple of issues. For beginners like us, it's best to check the discussions and read the comments of other users.
I remember that I was about to download duolingo for Japanese..but it didn't have a Japanese course then..So I downloaded Memrise.
Memrise works fine but the problem with it is that you need to learn many courses. I have finished courses for Hiragana and Katakana and I'm learning 2 kanji courses (one is 100 Imp kanji and the second one is Remembering the Kanji-James Heisig). Apart from that I completed 3 courses of Japanese (without script). However, I found those 3 kinda incomplete..So I'm currently learning courses on Grammar and Verbs+verb conjugation.
I used Memrise a couple of years ago, but I haven't finished any course yet. I should probably get back to it after I'm done with Duolingo.
thistigersaysmeow wrote: I used Memrise a couple of years ago, but I haven't finished any course yet. I should probably get back to it after I'm done with Duolingo.
I plan to use Genki books( I Integrated Elementary Japanese Course, Workbook - Elementary Japanese Course,II - Integrated Elementary Japanese Course) , this Remembering The Kana - Part 1+ 2 - Hiragana + Katakana and an app called Kanji Study. Also I have all CD as mp3 for Genki books.
Should I use a blank papper or a notebook with horizontal lines to learn to write ??
I found Duolingo a few months ago - it's good because I use it every day. Helps with vocab. However the Japanese is not as extensive as the European languages.
Books are good - but you have to find a way to do it often - that's my problem. What I know I know really well but it's extremely limited.
The down side to the Concert or Documentary is there is no CC, Whereas if you get a Japanese movie it has subtitles in Kana - so I've spent some time translating movies. I'd like to be able to translate the non subtitled content. Anyway it's turning into a life long passion - I improve every time we go to Japan though if you do travel there you have to put your self in situations where you are forced to use it. It's too easy to visit Japan and speak very little Japanese.
Hello!! I'm not exactly "learning" through classes but I did learn a lot from watching A LOOOOOT of anime and by listening to SCANDAL.
Alxa wrote: I found Duolingo a few months ago - it's good because I use it every day. Helps with vocab. However the Japanese is not as extensive as the European languages.
I agree, the Japanese course is probably the shortest course they have. It's still in beta though, so (hopefully) more lessons will be added.
Mamimilove17 wrote: Hello!! I'm not exactly "learning" through classes but I did learn a lot from watching A LOOOOOT of anime and by listening to SCANDAL.
This still counts as learning, right?
You may also want to read the community discussions, as they are helpful. Just in case you don't know where that is, click on the speech bubble that appears after you answer a question.
Hello. I'm also studying Japanese myself. Next month I'll be taking JLPT exam to know if I learned anything at all. Lol.
After almost a year I feel like the more I learn, the more I forget. It's tough not having the opportunity to converse with someone everyday.
Considering how much vocabulary and grammar I do know, I can read fairly well at this point; but listening and breaking out words to understand what's being said is the greatest hurdle. I don't hear too well to begin with and sometimes have trouble in my native English.
I have the free membership which emails me a Word of the Day and an occasional free lesson. Because I'm taking an actual weekly class I don't dive into this site too much, but it's well reviewed, and from what I have experienced it could be a good alternative to a class.
I can relate to everything you said. I've been studying for more than a year already and I feel like whenever I'm learning something new (or at least I thought I do) I'm forgetting the ones I've studied before. There's many time when I can read some sentence or whatever is written along the streets yet I don't know what does it mean. Lol.
That's fantastic you all are learning Japanese. Learning any 2nd language is cool. I sorta regret my six years of Latin in high school, as it hasn't been that helpful! Now if you need an old coin translated or to speak with the Pope ... Veni, vidi, vici!
Third (or more) language, even cooler! That's great.
It was very impressive. Needless to say he was a professional translator. I hired him to subtitle movies for DVD release.