International Men's Health week is 15-21 June. Reading is an essential part of staying healthy, so here are some reading suggestions of books for blokes to read.
Sent undercover with an unwilling French partner, Billy is thrust into the glamorous world of international motor racing as the diamond heists continue. But as Billy closes in on the thieves a far more sinister threat is revealed. With the fate of a city and the lives of half a million people in the balance, Billy will need to drive like never before to stop the worse act of terror since 9/11.
all-powerful State claims there is no such thing as crime, who dares disagree?
I woke with a gasp. And lay in the dark, open-mouthed, holding my breath. That feeling... that feeling was indescribable. For a moment I had felt as if I were falling... falling into bliss". All his life, Richard Kline has been haunted by a sense that something is lacking. He envies the ease with which others slip into contented suburban life or the pursuit of wealth. As he moves into middle age, Richard grows angry, cynical, depressed. But then a strange event, a profound epiphany, awakens him to a different way of life. He finds himself on a quest, almost against his will, to resolve the 'divine discontent' he has suffered since childhood. From pharmaceuticals to New Age therapies to finding a guru, Richard's journey dramatises the search for meaning in today's world. This audacious novel is an exploration of masculinity, the mystical, and our very human yearning for something more. It is hypnotic, nuanced and Amanda Lohrey's finest offering yet - a pilgrim's progress for the here and now.
"Two people brought together by a horrific act are united in a common cause by the powers of the Silver Box. The two join to protect humanity from destruction by an alien race, the Laz, hell-bent on regaining control over the Silver Box, the most destructive and powerful tool in the universe. The Silver Box will stop at nothing to prevent its former master from returning to being, even if it means finishing the earth itself"
Andrew Van Fleet is 49 and feeling 50 closing in. He's bailed out of his private equity job for something that'll let him spend more time at home, but the house is overrun by iPads and teenage hormones and conversations that have moved on without him. Plus his ailing father is now lodged in the granny flat, convalescing from surgery and with his scrappy bulldog in tow. And then there's Brian Brightman, the expensive fading star at the radio station Andrew's signed up to manage, whose every broadcast offers fresh trouble. He's 49 too and, like Andrew, starting to wonder if the twenty-first century might prove to be his second best.
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn't made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.
"The war tried to kill us in the spring," begins this breathtaking account of friendship and loss. In Al Tafar, Iraq, twenty-one-year old Private Bartle and eighteen-year-old Private Murphy cling to life as their platoon launches a bloody battle for the city. In the endless days that follow, the two young soldiers do everything to protect each other from the forces that press in on every side: the insurgents, physical fatigue, and the mental stress that comes from constant danger. Bound together since basic training when their tough-as-nails Sergeant ordered Bartle to watch over Murphy, the two have been dropped into a war neither is prepared for. As reality begins to blur into a hazy nightmare, Murphy becomes increasingly unmoored from the world around him and Bartle takes impossible actions.
I close my eyes and feel my heart begin racingSomeone is comingThey're going to find me A mother and her teenage daughter are found brutally murdered in a remote farmhouse, one defiled by multiple stab wounds and the other left lying like Sleeping Beauty waiting for her Prince.
A mother and her teenage daughter are found brutally murdered in a remote farmhouse, one defiled by multiple stab wounds and the other left lying like Sleeping Beauty waiting for her Prince. Reluctantly, clinical psychologist Joe O'Loughlin is drawn into the investigation when a former student, calling himself the 'Mindhunter', trading on Joe's name, has jeopardised the police inquiry by leaking details to the media and stirring up public anger.
With no shortage of suspects and tempers beginning to fray, Joe discover links between these murders to a series of brutal attacks where the men and women are choked unconscious and the letter 'A' is carved into their foreheads.
On 25 April 1915, Allied forces landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in present-day Turkey to secure the sea route between Britain and France in the west and Russia in the east. After eight months of terrible fighting, they would fail. Turkey regards the victory to this day as a defining moment in its history, a heroic last stand in the defence of the nation's Ottoman Empire. But, counter-intuitively, it would signify something perhaps even greater for the defeated Australians and New Zealanders involved: the birth of their countries' sense of nationhood. Now approaching its centenary, the Gallipoli campaign, commemorated each year on Anzac Day, reverberates with importance as the origin and symbol of Australian and New Zealand identity. As such, the facts of the battle, which was minor against the scale of the First World War and cost less than a sixth of the Australian deaths on the Western Front, are often forgotten or obscured. Peter FitzSimons, with his trademark vibrancy and expert melding of writing and research, recreates the disaster as experienced by those who endured it or perished in the attempt.


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package com.uservoice.uservoicesdk.image;

import android.graphics.Bitmap;
import android.graphics.BitmapFactory;
import android.os.AsyncTask;
import android.widget.ImageView;

import java.io.InputStream;

public class DownloadImageTask extends AsyncTask<Void, Void, Bitmap> {
    private final String url;
    private ImageView imageView;

    public DownloadImageTask(String url, ImageView imageView) {
        this.url = url;
        this.imageView = imageView;
        imageView.setImageBitmap(null);
    }

    protected Bitmap doInBackground(Void... voids) {
        Bitmap bitmap = null;
        try {
            InputStream in = new java.net.URL(url).openStream();
            bitmap = BitmapFactory.decodeStream(in);
        } catch (Exception e) {
            e.printStackTrace();
        }
        return bitmap;
    }

    protected void onPostExecute(Bitmap bitmap) {
        ImageCache.getInstance().set(url, bitmap);
        imageView.setImageBitmap(bitmap);
    }

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The Digg This button is for website and blog publishers that want to encourage their audience to submit or digg their content on Digg. To expose content to the Digg community adding a diggthis button is a great feature.
1. Go to Blogger Dashboard after you login as the administrator.
6. Now you need to create CSS style for Digg this button.
float: right; instead of float: left; lind for the above code segment. 8. Save your template and now you should have DIGG this feature in your blogspot blog.
(If you can't find this line in the html code then press CTRL+F and paste "
If you are running WAMP server for your Drupal 6.x installation then, the default configuration for the WAMP server doesn't not support the "Clean URLs". To enable the Clean URLs you need to change a setting in httpd.conf file. Go to wamp\bin\apache\apache2.2.8\conf folder and open the httpd.conf file with wordpad/notepad. Find the line #LoadModulerewrite_module modules/mod_rewrite.so in this file (in notepad press CTRL+F and write mod_rewrite and the line will appear. Omit the starting # (comment symbol) and save the file.
Now restart all the WAMP server services and go to Clean URLs option under Administrator--> Site Configuration in your Drupal installation. Click the Enable radio button and save configuration.
If you have a wordpress blog then look at the header section of your blog and if you have not already changed the default tagline then it says : "Just Another WordPress Weblog".
Go to General Settings of your Wordpress Blog's Dashboard. Then on the right hand side find "Tagline" and change it.
If Your PC is infected by FolderHTT or similar virus, it disables the REGEDIT, Show Hidden Files option under Tools option and even Task Manager. You can bring those utilities/ options back manually.
1. Go to run then type gpedit.msc and press enter.
2. Now Click on Administrative Templates & click the System and locate the Prevent access to registry editing tools and double click on it.
3. Click disabled in the option button and click apply and then ok .
4. The disabled button will make the policy into default, the computer will automatically configured it and you would be able to access the regisrty.
1. If you are not able to open or use gpedit.msc, then select all the codes in bold font below.
2. Copy and paste it the Run window and hit enter. This code will enable your Registry Editor.
1. Go to Run than type regedit and press OK.
3. Look at the "CheckedValue" key. This should be a DWORD key. Check its value If the value is not 1 then make it 1.
4. If "CheckedValue" key is not there then Create a new key called "CheckedValue" as a DWORD (hexadecimal) with a value of 1.
The "Show hidden files & folders" will work properly.
1. Open Group Editor Policy by Clicking on Start--> then click Run --> type gpedit.msc and hit Enter.
2. In the Group Policy Editor, expand in turn: User Configuration--> Administrative Templates --> System -- > Ctrl+Alt+Del Options.
4. Click on Not Configured and then OK and Task Manager will be available once again.
How to secretly insert another file in a .jpg/.jpeg/.gif file.
There are some software available to secretly add any file (text files, Office documents, video clips, pdf, mp3, zipped files, webpage, .exe, .bat, .reg or any other file format) inside a jpg, gpeg or gif file. But Ain't it great to do this without any software. Because there might be situations where you don't have the internet access and the software to do it, but you need to do it manually!!!
1) Zip the various files into one .rar file you want to add with the image file.
2) Pick any jpg/gif picture of any size and Dimension.
3) Copy the two Files(.rar and image files) in the same directory (same Drive & Folder). For Example: Copy the file in D:>\new folder.
4) Now open the Command prompt window ( by typing cmd in run window or by clicking start-->All Programs--> Accessories--> Command Prompt .
In the same way, You can hide other files like videos, mp3 and other secret documents too.
Labels: secretly insert another file in a .jpg/.jpeg/.gif file.
This Blog is maintained by Xero Counter. Any Comment , Suggestion, criticism and post is warmly welcome.


text:
https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-elections-oklahoma-politics-virus-outbreak-8612ed67ec0d7d61c71eab029dfee187
NYC Wire
Virus Outbreak
OK State Wire
KY State Wire
NY State Wire
2020 Watch: Trump navigates chaos after his Oklahoma rally
By STEVE PEOPLESJune 22, 2020 GMT
President Donald Trump supporters cheer as Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the BOK Center, Saturday, June 20, 2020, in Tulsa, Okla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
NEW YORK (AP) — Presidential politics move fast. What we're watching heading into a new week on the 2020 campaign:
Days to next set of primaries (New York and Kentucky): 1
Days to general election: 134
President Donald Trump's campaign relaunch is off to a rocky start, and his Republican critics are getting louder as coronavirus infections continue to surge.
There were thousands of empty seats at the Oklahoma arena where Trump hosted his comeback rally on Saturday, an embarrassing development at an event designed to showcase the Republican president's strength. Aides were scrambling to explain away the poor optics as they juggled damaging headlines on other fronts.
Former Trump national security adviser John Bolton's much-anticipated book will be formally released this week. Bolton becomes the latest in a long line of former Trump aides to raise dire warnings about the president's job performance. At the same time, the president is trying to distance himself from Attorney General William Barr's firing of the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, who was forced out in the midst of investigating Trump's allies.
As Trump navigates continued chaos, voters in New York and Kentucky head to the polls on Tuesday in another set of primary elections that will test the nation's ability to host fair elections in the age of the coronavirus.
What happened in Tulsa?
The political world was genuinely surprised to see thousands of empty seats at Trump's comeback rally in Oklahoma over the weekend. Critics often question the president's grasp of policy, his discipline and his character, but before Tulsa, few people questioned his ability to pack an arena.
Was the relatively low turnout simply an anomaly caused by fears of protests, the pandemic or social media trolls? Or was it a legitimate sign that the energy behind Trump's reelection is fading?
For a president obsessed with crowd size, this is clearly an embarrassing development that will linger into the week, even if Joe Biden might well have struggled to draw a crowd like Trump did. And perhaps more importantly, the finger-pointing inside Trump's campaign will intensify ahead of a possible staff shakeup.
Will voting problems continue?
Primary voters across New York and Kentucky offer another high-profile test Tuesday for the nation's election system amid continued coronavirus concerns. After a series of disturbing recent trends in states like Georgia, Pennsylvania and Nevada, election experts are worried.
Georgia voters waited as long as five hours to cast ballots earlier in the month, a problem that disproportionately affected voters of color. And a surge in mail balloting created days-long delays in reporting final results in Pennsylvania, among other states.
Trump and Biden face no real opposition this week, so we'll be paying particular attention to a handful of key Democratic congressional primaries. In Kentucky, Democrats will decide if establishment favorite Amy McGrath or underdog progressive state Rep. Charles Booker takes on Mitch McConnell this fall. And in New York, former school principal Jamaal Bowman has a legitimate chance to defeat 16-term incumbent Rep. Eliot Engel.
Has Democratic overconfidence become a problem?
As Trump's chaotic presidency continues, Democrats are increasingly under pressure to guard against overconfidence. That's easier said than done, especially as Trump's own advisers privately worry about his reelection prospects and a stream of public polls raise the prospect of a Biden victory.
Biden's numbers may be strong more than four months out, but it's easy to forget that he struggled badly to energize voters in early primary contests. And few progressive activists seem genuinely excited about his candidacy.
Biden's campaign and its allies will have their hands full in the coming weeks and months maintaining a real sense of urgency in its supporters. History suggests that fear of Trump alone is not enough.
How much damage will Bolton do?
While the most damning details have already been reported, Bolton's book, "The Room Where It Happened," is scheduled for formal release on Tuesday. That means Trump is far from past the negative attention related to the book, which he ensured would remain a bestseller by suing unsuccessfully to block its publication.
Bolton, who worked alongside Trump in the White House for nearly a year and a half, has already called the president unfit for office. He tops a remarkable list of people who have worked closely with Trump and raised similar concerns.
In recent weeks alone, former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis called Trump a threat to the Constitution; Trump's longest-serving chief of staff John Kelly agreed; and one of the administration's highest ranking African Americans, Mary Elizabeth Taylor, resigned to protest Trump's stance on racial justice.
Will Trump's attacks on Biden's mental capacity work?
Lest anyone think some things might be off limits in 2020, the Trump campaign ramped up its attacks on Biden's age, health and mental capacity last week by launching a website suggesting he's "barely there." Among a series of the gaffe-prone Biden's career lowlights, the site notes that Biden forgot when he had a brain aneurysm: "Both of his brain aneurysms were in 1988."
Trump's campaign is well aware that Biden has siphoned away some of his support among older Americans, a trend that could prove extremely detrimental for Trump in several states come November, especially in Florida. Is this the kind of message that might help Trump win back older voters? One thing is clear: The deeply personal attack has become a pillar of Trump's 2020 strategy, and the president's team has the money and the willingness to take it as far as it needs to.
THE FINAL THOUGHT
As bad as it looks for Trump's reelection right now, 134 days is a lifetime in presidential politics. His team has only begun to spend its tremendous resources to persuade swing state voters, the candidates have yet to debate and Biden's flaws aren't going away.
2020 Watch runs every Monday and provides a look at the week ahead in the 2020 election.
Catch up on the 2020 election campaign with AP experts on our weekly politics podcast, "Ground Game."

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


1) Grinds and sands contoured metal surfaces to finish forging dies, using handtools: Selects abrasive tools according to operation and dimensions specified.
2) Manipulates powered hand grinder to remove bead, grind curved surfaces to specified radii, remove machining marks, and smooth die surfaces.
3) Sands surfaces of cavity and gutters to facilitate flow of metal during forging.
4) Manipulates handtools, such as files, stones, and emery cloth, to smooth surfaces.
5) Visually and tactually inspects surfaces for flaws and smoothness.
Is being a "FINAL FINISHER, FORGING DIES" your very best career choice?
See the Future Outlook and Educational Requirements for "FINAL FINISHER, FORGING DIES"
End Of Job Description for: "FINAL FINISHER, FORGING DIES"


text:
TULSA, OK, JUNE 21, 2018 — As ArdentMC expands their drone/UAS capabilities in Tulsa, they've made some important connections to grow interest in Geospatial Information System (GIS) careers in the Tulsa area.
Representatives from Tulsa Community College, the Osage Nation, and ArdentMC met at the Tulsa Airpark on the site of the new Osage Hotel and Casino in Tulsa, OK. The main topic of discussion centered on Geospatial education and the importance of growing a local community of GIS professionals.
ArdentMC demonstrated the precision flying of their flagship Ebee Sensefly drone at the Tulsa Airpark. In high winds, the Ardent drone was able to gather hi-resolution images of the airpark and surrounding area. The drone was programmed by Zach Gordon of ArdentMC's drone division to follow a precise route and altitude while gathering geospatial information. The demonstration was attended by officials from the Osage Nation, such as Assistant Principal Chief Raymond Red Corn and the Tulsa representative from US Senator Lankford's office, Derek Osborn.
Combining the different objectives of each partner, there is an opportunity for a new and exciting field of employment in the Tulsa area.
The Osage Nation has a desire to utilize the Tulsa Airpark as a community resource for budding drone pilots.
Tulsa Community College offers valuable courses in GIS and is promoting interest in the field.
ArdentMC has the opportunity to employ GIS and UAS professionals that are based in Tulsa but deployed nationwide to assist in various projects.
All parties are enthusiastic about the prospect of creating a local employment pipeline that will be a direct benefit to the Tulsa area economy. To help attract students to the GIS course of study, ArdentMC has offered to fund GIS related scholarships for TCC students in the Fall of 2018. These scholarships will help students that may not have considered a GIS career path to get involved, and possibly lead to a dynamic GIS career without the need to leave the Tulsa area.
Look for upcoming events a the Tulsa Airpark for amateur drone enthusiasts and profession UAS pilots alike. For more information about ArdentMCs drone/UAS capabilities, please visit: https://www.ardentmc.com/uas-drones/
About ArdentMC
ArdentMC is a small business information technology (IT) firm, appraised at CMMI-Dev Level 3 with offices in Reston, VA, Washington D.C., and Tulsa, OK. ArdentMC brings a significant record of work supporting USCIS in its adoption of Agile architecture, management, and development. ArdentMC also works with the Geospatial Management Office (GMO) in support of geospatial objectives through its ongoing contract engagements on the National Operations Center (NOC) Common Operating Picture (COP) and the Geospatial Information Infrastructure (GII). Each of these programs focus on information sharing and collaboration. For more information on ArdentMC visit www.ardentmc.com
ArdentMC establishes Tulsa area drone/UAS partnerships2018-06-212018-07-16https://www.ardentmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/large-logo-w-mc-170.pngArdentMChttps://www.ardentmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/large-logo-w-mc-170.png200px200px


text:
Palestine's Plan B
July 30, 2013 Topic: UNInternational InstitutionsGlobal Governance Region: IsraelPalestinian territories
If negotiations break down, the Palestinians plan to internationalize the dispute.
by Grant Rumley
In the time it took John Kerry to announce that negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians would be starting again, a microcosm of the past couple years in the conflict played out. Initial leaks, clear-cut denials, clarifications about preconditions, expectations and the like burst out from all sides. Yet within the enigmatic, if not routine, vacillations that accompanied this announcement, the Palestinians began revealing different facets of their contingency plan. In an interview with a Jordanian newspaper, Mahmoud Abbas was quick to point out that "all options are open," mentioning the possibility of returning to the UN and referring to the bid as the "greatest achievement" in recent Palestinian memory.
So what happens if negotiations actually renew and then break down again? What's next for the Palestinian agenda?
Kerry has said that progress needs to be made by the fall, presumably to circumvent future Palestinian actions at the UN; it's clear that one of the conditions for resuming talks was a halt in the Palestinian internationalization campaign while talks are ongoing. The common Israeli prediction is that the Palestinians could build off their 2011-2012 UN campaign and do something as drastic as going to the International Criminal Court to air their grievances. This battle of global public opinion is one of the few areas of Palestinian diplomatic strength, and a severe concern for the Israelis. Yet if that's the next move in the eyes of the Israelis, the feeling isn't mutual in Ramallah. Indeed, as one senior Fatah official pointed out to me, the ICC is the last organization on a list of organizations triaged in importance to the Palestinian internationalization campaign. What is more likely, then, is a renewed Palestinian diplomatic campaign at the international level, a campaign that starts with the Palestinians seeking to sign some of the less-threatening international treaties such as the UNICEF Rights of the Child. These treaties and conventions are referred to by Palestinian leaders as the "first clusters"; relatively minor organizations and treaties that escalate as the campaign continues. Becoming signatories to some of these treaties has two main benefits for the Palestinians: first, they show the Palestinian people a palpable engagement on the international level, and second, they do very little to antagonize the United States and Israel.
But where did these "clusters" and contingency plans come from? The shift in the Palestinian leadership was gradual but recent. Faced with a moribund peace process and a status quo that increasingly harmed their interests, the Palestinian leadership scrambled to find alternative tactical tracks to pursue. In 2009, this reached a head when Abbas was faced with roughly three main options: attempt to reconcile the Fatah/Hamas split, essentially condone an intifada, or go international and approach the UN. With less-than-overwhelming enthusiasm for reconciliation, and similar disdain for an intifada, Abbas was left with really only one realistic option: internationalization.
The justification, then, for this choice lay in the history of the Palestinian political movement. In interviews this past year in Ramallah, Palestinian officials were quick to align the recent international campaign with the historical movements of the Palestinians at the UN. This process, in their eyes, started in 1974, with the PLO's release of the ten-point plan, a document that sought to reconcile the armed resistance, but also left room for political maneuverability. As the Lebanese war raged on, the local PLO leadership began to evolve, forming the institutions of a semi-state. This evolution continued in 1982, when PLO members began openly calling for the acceptance of Resolution 242, the UN resolution calling for Israeli withdrawal from "lands occupied in the recent conflict." Abbas's own memoirs detail this evolution—as an advocate of accepting 242 in 1974, Abbas noted that by 1982 members of the PLO thought a shift towards the international community could "break the siege [of Beirut] and preserve the PLO."
By 1988, this evolution had reached a climax when the Palestinians issued their declaration of independence, a statement that was joined with supporting documents accepting Resolution 242 and the two-state process. Soon after, Arafat was invited to address the UN, the Palestinians' status was upgraded to observer entity, and a few days later Arafat renounced terrorism in a teleconference. The evolution of Palestinian thought that had culminated in an international campaign was halted subsequently thereafter, as the United States and PLO began to form a tenuous, if not productive, relationship that would lead to Madrid and eventually the Oslo process. Not until this process broke down in the years following Annapolis would the Palestinians look back on their internationalization campaign. As one PA official told me, "it's as if the stopwatch we started in 1974 and paused in 1988 was resumed in 2009."
The beauty of the UN campaign was its flexibility. Unlike most options on the table for the Palestinians, the internationalization campaign had tremendous upside. Not only did it play to one of the last, great strengths of the Palestinian leadership, the UN, but it was able to reconcile internal Palestinian political camps, something very few policy agendas can claim in the West Bank and Gaza. For those that advocate the use of force, or at least a more stern approach to dealing with Israel, it had the advantages of appearing to antagonize Israel and the United States. For those that pledge themselves to bilateral negotiations, it had the upside of appearing to leverage the Palestinian hand, the clearest evidence of that being Kerry's recent attempts to bring both sides to the table.
For Abbas, a man who wants to appear committed to the bilateral process, the UN campaign followed in the footsteps of his predecessor. In May of 1999, Arafat both publicly and privately mused about what to do after the five-year interim Oslo period ended. With his trademark style of pursuing multiple tracks to varying levels of effort at once, Arafat deployed two deputies, Nabil Shaath and Saeb Erekat, to lobby European countries at the UN to recognize a possible Palestinian declaration of statehood. It was a lobbying campaign that Dennis Ross countered with a campaign of his own, as described in his memoirs; Arafat was "coy" about the possible move. However, President Clinton was able to take advantage of his working relationship with Arafat and bring him back from the brink with the promise of renewed negotiations. It was a moment that undoubtedly had an impact on Abbas when he launched his UN campaign in 2011. Palestinian officials describe Abbas as a leader hoping for Obama to intervene with proposed negotiations, to bring both parties back to the table. With Obama either unwilling or unable to do so, Abbas had walked himself into a corner where the only option was to go to the UN.
If Israeli officials describe the UN campaign as unilateral because it breaks with the spirit of Oslo, and the Palestinians describe the campaign as multilateral because it engages the international community, then the truth is somewhere in between. For the Palestinian leadership, there is an emerging group of officials and policymakers calling for an integrated strategy, a usage of tactics such as "smart resistance," of lobbying international countries and signing on to the "clusters" of the global community. This group is not opposed to new negotiations with Israel—indeed they support it—but they have been laying the foundation for a backup plan to failed negotiations for years. If Kerry's proposed talks do indeed break down, or if they are unable to even start, the backup plan for the Israelis is a perpetuation of the status quo. The backup plan for the Palestinians, however, is taking the conflict back to the international arena.
Grant Rumley is a Visiting Fellow at Mitvim, The Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies. You can reach him on Twitter: @Grant_Rumley. For more on the Palestinian UN campaign, read the author's latest report here.
Flickr/Thierry Ehrmann. CC BY 2.0.


This month, customers who order $50+ (before tax & shipping) in My Online Store and use the Host Code above when you check out will get a Free Gift from me!
you will be emailed a code to use for $5 off your order in September. There are no limits to how many bonus days you can earn so its a great time to stock up on essentials!
Host a Party & Earn Rewards!
Now that you have seen the New Catalog I'm sure your wish list is long like mine! When you host a Party you can earn Stampin' Rewards when your Party's sales reach $150 or more. And, those Stampin' Reward $ earn you Free items from the catalog! You can redeem them for exclusive Host Stamp Sets or anything else you would like in the catalog!
There are many ways to "Host a Party" and earn Stampin' Rewards!
*Private Party - Go on your own shopping spree!
Yes, even when you are placing your own order you qualify for Stampin' Rewards when your own order total is $150 or more!
*Catalog Party - Pass around your catalog to friends & family and put your orders together to earn Stampin' Rewards! Contact Me and I'll set up an online code for your Catalog Party so your friends & family can conveniently shop online. And, let me know if you need more Stampin' Up! catalogs to share with your friends!
*Facebook Party - Party right from home! I'll put together a facebook party for your friends & family based on your interests. I share fun product & technique videos and we have raffle prizes! Your friends & family can join in on the fun right from home & shop with a code just for your party so you can earn Stampin' Rewards!


text:
Home » Local Authorities News Sustainability
Calls for learner drivers to take lessons in electric vehicles
More learner drivers should be encouraged to take lessons and tests in electric vehicles (EVs), says LeaseElectricCar.co.uk.
Under current plans, the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be banned in the UK from 2030, with some hybrid cars allowed until 2035.
A spokesman for LeaseElectricCar.co.uk said: "Many learner drivers represent the next generation of motorists – a generation which will witness huge strides in tackling climate change across the world.
"Already the UK has ambitions to reduce the number of petrol and diesel cars on our roads, and there has been a recent Government announcement suggesting new homes will have EV chargers by law, so the culture towards electric cars is happening.
"It makes sense for a greater number of learner drivers to get the opportunity for all or at least for some of their learning to take place in electric cars as we approach these future milestones."
Learner drivers who take a test in an EV will only be able to drive cars without gears, so this may be seen by some as a barrier to embracing electric cars whilst learning.
Other aspects of an EV that may require some getting used to include differences in braking, the lack of a noisy engine, instant acceleration and fully-automated systems.
However, there is an argument that as electric cars become more mainstream, learner drivers should be given an opportunity to experience what it is like behind the wheel of an EV, even if they are also learning in a vehicle with a combustion engine too. This would help them to be more prepared and comfortable driving an electric car on UK roads once they have qualified.
Original source article: https://airqualitynews.com/2021/12/13/learner-drivers-should-take-lessons-in-evs/
Author: Pippa Neill
Disclaimer: This article was not originally written by a member of the HighwaysIndustry.Com team.
Road and active travel improvements in Welwyn Garden City town centre close to completion


Last Friday, University President Robert L. Barchi announced the formation of a Free Speech panel at Rutgers in light of constitutional protections that allow for speech that some find "offensive or morally repugnant." This standing panel will consist of First Amendment experts and legal scholars and it will advise the Office of the General Counsel and, in turn, the Office of Employment Equity in assessing all matters that involve questions of free speech. While the line between offensive or morally reprehensible speech and hate speech is very thin, we laurel the formation of this panel as an important step to ensure that inalienable rights are protected.
A collaboration between Rutgers—Newark, the New Jersey Department of Corrections, the State Parole Board, Rutgers—New Brunswick and a group of other colleges in the Garden State brought into fruition the New Jersey Scholarship and Transformative Education in Prisons (NJ-STEP) program. The program is meant to help incarcerated people in New Jersey attain greater access higher education. Additionally, it assists people released from prison in their transition to college life. While this program is undoubtedly positive, we dart the fact that there are far too many unnecessary prison sentences that have severely undermined the ability of so many people to become educated and grow as people.
Because of the financial challenges faced by many students, the Rutgers Board of Trustees has allocated $2 million to support tuition assistance grants, emergency assistance and student-based food pantries through 2020. The Task Force on Student Aid, which was established by the Board of Trustees in 2017 to study the financial concerns of Rutgers students, recently published a report that reaffirmed the financial assistance initiative. As the national student crisis continues to weigh on the shoulders of Rutgers students, we laurel this initiative as a necessary measure but note that this should not be the only action taken to confront the financial challenges of students.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health have given Rutgers a five-year grant for $18 million to look into the effects that the marketing of tobacco has on public health. This initiative is beneficial, no doubt. But while this is happening, millions of young people are becoming hooked on nicotine not through the use of combustible tobacco products, but through electronic devices like Juuls. We dart the fact that nicotine addiction in young people is still so prominent, and we hope that more initiatives like this one will work to hamper the drug's grasp on young members of the population.
On Thursday, a New Jersey Senate Committee approved a new bill that set a national standard as it would impose the strongest statewide ban on everyday plastic products in the U.S. Now it will go to the Senate Appropriations Committee and then to the Senate President Stephen Sweeney to be considered for a full house vote. The proposed bill would prohibit New Jersey stores from distributing single-use plastic bags, plastic drinking straws and polystyrene food containers. In addition to the ban on plastic products, the bill would also establish a 10 cent fee on single-use paper bags, which would finance a "Plastic Pollution Prevention Fund." We laurel this proposed bill as a necessary and vital step in preserving our environment and bettering the health of our community.
Yesterday, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford gave testimony in front of a Senate Judiciary Committee about Judge Brett Kavanaugh, the nominee for associate Supreme Court justice, having sexually assaulted her. In addition to Ford, two other women, Julie Swetnick and Deborah Ramirez, have come out with similar allegations against Kavanaugh. It seems that at this point in time the cultural movement toward backing women who come out as victims of sexual assault is increasingly gaining traction — and rightly so. Many victims of sexual assault choose not to speak out for many reasons, such as shame and fear of backlash, and suffer in silence for years. We dart the fact that so many victims of sexual assault feel silenced, and we commend Ford and the other women who came forward about Kavanaugh for their bravery.


Posted by Norma on March 10, 2016, 1:30 pm, in reply to "Re: Kulu update"
Sorry to hear this, Sparks. I am going to search out non toxic alternatives to these all these medications. Frontline is ineffective or has side effects. I thought I'd found the solution, but apparently not. I guess it is something we all need to educate ourselves about, so we can best take care of our precious pets. Thanks for giving me the heads up on this.


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Media outlet accidentally exposes the real reason Trump's latest order is so wrong [TWEET]
Ed Sykes
On 28 March, US President Donald Trump signed the 'Energy Independence Executive Order'. This will roll back more than half a dozen measures from the Obama Administration aimed at curbing climate change.
Trump claimed these were "job-killing" regulations. But one major media outlet accidentally exposed the real 'job killer'. And it was spot on.
Trump's climate war, and the real 'job killer'
Once again putting his climate change denial into practice, Trump said his latest executive order would end the "war on coal". And it certainly was a big boost for the fossil fuel industry, which was quick to praise Trump. One measure scrapped, for example, previously required states to slash their carbon emissions.
But CNN soon pointed out that it wasn't green regulations which had been killing jobs in the US. It tweeted:
Trump's move to roll back climate rules won't bring back coal or mining jobs. Blame capitalism. https://t.co/PZllQGis0O pic.twitter.com/vSVoPJ7rGr
Trump to be allowed back on Facebook, announces Nick Clegg
Another week, another fantastic performance from the government
In its article, CNN wrote that "demand for coal in the United States has been declining for years due to capitalism". And while true, the media outlet was not exactly seeking to overturn the global capitalist system with its piece. So the strength of its "blame capitalism" one-liner was perhaps accidental.
But the mention of capitalism was incredibly poignant.
"Blame capitalism"
People's World wrote in 2011 about how capitalism was "more loyal to profit abroad than jobs at home". In other words, hiring workers abroad was more attractive because corporations could earn much more in countries with fewer workers' rights and lower wages. And that's how the profit motive usually works in the capitalist system.
Alternet, meanwhile, stressed in 2012 that:
For the last four decades, U.S. corporations have been sinking our economy through the off-shoring of jobs, the squeezing of wages, and a magician's hat full of bluffs and tricks designed to extort subsidies and sweetheart deals from local and state governments that often result in mass layoffs and empty treasuries.
In short, capitalism (and not green regulations) is to blame for the current job situation in the US; and in other wealthy nations for that matter.
Capitalism (and Trump) vs the climate (and the People)
But capitalism isn't only responsible for 'lost jobs'. It's also responsible for climate change. So speaking of tackling unemployment by scrapping green policies is just wrong. We need to deal simultaneously with the root cause of both crises.
After Trump's presidential victory in 2016, Naomi Klein spoke out to this effect. The author of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate first outlined why ordinary people were so sick of the capitalist establishment:
a hell of a lot of people are in pain. Under neoliberal policies of deregulation, privatisation, austerity and corporate trade, their living standards have declined precipitously. They have lost jobs… They have lost much of the safety net that used to make these losses less frightening… At the same time, they have witnessed the rise of the Davos class, a hyper-connected network of banking and tech billionaires, elected leaders who are awfully cosy with those interests…, and they know in their hearts that this rising wealth and power is somehow directly connected to their growing debts and powerlessness.
So capitalism has brought us to where we are today. And Trump spoke to the pain it had caused. But he didn't rail against the system. As Klein pointed out, he and other right-wingers simply answered people's pain "with nostalgic nationalism and anger at remote economic bureaucracies"; and "by bashing immigrants and people of colour, vilifying Muslims, and degrading women". And by waging war on the environment, of course.
How we need to respond
In response to the recent right-wing resurgence, Klein insisted:
what we know from the 1930s is that what it takes to do battle with fascism is a real left… An agenda to take on the billionaire class with more than rhetoric, and use the money for a green new deal. Such a plan could create a tidal wave of well-paying unionised jobs, bring badly needed resources and opportunities to communities of colour, and insist that polluters should pay for workers to be retrained and fully included in this future.
In short, she said, a left-wing alternative:
could fashion policies that fight institutionalised racism, economic inequality and climate change at the same time.
The truth is that, by picking on regulations aimed at tackling climate change, Trump is distracting his supporters from the real cause of economic inequality and lost jobs – capitalism. In reality, the fight for full employment, for economic equality, and against climate change is the same fight. And the sooner left-wingers around the world can come together and articulate that as part of an organised and united opposition to the resurgent right, the better.
See below the trailer for the film adaptation of This Changes Everything:
– See more on Donald Trump at The Canary Global. And see more on climate change at The Canary Discovery.
– Visit our Global Facebook and Twitter pages for more international coverage.
Featured image via Gage Skidmore
Alex/Rose Cocker , 26th January 2023
Ralph Underhill , 20th January 2023
Andrew Tate: a by-product of neoliberalism – not someone helping young men
Curtis Daly , 16th January 2023
The prosecution of war criminals just got a whole lot easier [VIDEO]
UK motorists celebrate being able to drive in miles per gallon again
TrumpWatch
Hundreds of asylum-seeking children are going missing from Home Office hotels


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Q: Repeating a value when a previous variable value has occured I have a data set with the following variables:
1. Group
2. Status (Takes on variables 1-7)
I need to create a flag where the following conditions are met:
-Flag 1=0 when Status <6, else Flag 1= 1 when Status >=6
-Within each group: If Status has reached 6 or higher and goes back down to below 6, the flag 1 must remain as 1.
The desired table would look as follows:

A: data.table and cummax do the job:
library(data.table)
dt <- data.table(Group = c(1,2,2,3,3,3,3,4,4),
                 Status = c(1,2,3,7,6,5,4,5,6))
dt[, flag := cummax(Status >= 6), by = Group]
dt

  Group Status flag
1:     1      1    0
2:     2      2    0
3:     2      3    0
4:     3      7    1
5:     3      6    1
6:     3      5    1
7:     3      4    1
8:     4      5    0
9:     4      6    1

A: Using ave to apply a custom function within each group.
df <- data.frame(Group = c(1,2,2,3,3,3,3,4,4),
                 Status = c(1,2,3,7,6,5,4,5,6))

df$Flag = ave(df$Status, df$Group, FUN = function(x) {cumsum(x >= 6) > 0})

A:
df$flag <- ifelse(df$status >6,0,1)
df$status <- ifelse(df$status =>6,5,df$status)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Oxfordshire (Challow) store guilty of selling knife to teenager
Image - Knives Trading Standards
A retailer in Challow, whose employee sold a knife to a 16-year-old in December 2019, has pleaded guilty following a prosecution brought by Oxfordshire County Council's Trading Standards Service.
Haynes of Challow Limited pleaded guilty to a single offence under S141A of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 at Oxford Magistrates' Court on Friday 07 August 2020.
The Court heard that on 17 December 2019, Trading Standards made a test purchase of a Stanley knife from Haynes of Challow with the assistance of a 16-year-old volunteer from the Fire Cadets.
The company pleaded guilty by post and was fined £7,500. The council was awarded its prosecution costs of £2.222.81 and the company was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £190.
The Magistrates were minded to fine the company in the region of £10,000 based on its turnover and the seriousness of knife crime related matters but took account of the early guilty plea.
The court noted that there were some significant aggravating factors in the case including the fact that the trader had been given specific advice on under age sales of knives before the sale was made, that there was no effective training structure in place for staff, and that the company sells a wide range of age restricted products.
Councillor Judith Heathcoat, the County Council's cabinet member for Community Safety, said:
"Anyone who sells age-restricted-products must ensure their staff are adequately trained and prepared to request a valid form of identification, when appropriate.
"We have all seen the tragic consequences of what happens when there are confrontations between people wielding knives. All too often those involved are under 18.
"One way of stopping such awful incidents occurring is for businesses to take sufficient steps to prevent knives being supplied to children in the first place."
Head of Oxfordshire County Council Trading Standards, Jody Kerman, said:
"Wherever possible, Trading Standards works with businesses to assist them comply with the law rather than taking legal action.
"Prior to test purchases being attempted, stores are visited by Trading Standards officers and given advice on the sale of age-restricted products. They are also informed of upcoming test purchasing and given time to implement improvements to their processes prior to the tests being carried out.
"Despite these measures, we unfortunately still get underage sales being made and retailers failing to take the reasonable steps to prevent such purchases, as the law requires. When such incidents occur, we will take the appropriate enforcement action, including prosecution."
From April 2019 to March 2020 Trading Standards services across England and Wales carried out 1,614 test purchases of knives with 210 stores failing to make the required age checks (13%). This is a drop in the failure rate by 2% compared to 2018/19 but the majority of sales made (68%) were from independent retailers.
To combat this in Oxfordshire, Trading Standards will be providing business advice and conducting further test purchasing to ensure retailers and their staff are complying with the law. As part of ongoing Operation Sceptre, test-purchasing and business visits will also be done by Thames Valley Police.
Shop staff involved in the physical sale of knives to anyone under the age of 18 can also face unlimited fines and up to six months imprisonment. In March this year a former employee of Poundland in Cowley was ordered to pay £879 in fines and costs after she sold a knife to an underaged volunteer in July 2019 during another Trading Standards operation.
In July 2020, another Oxfordshire business, Lewis Baker Retail Ltd, pleaded guilty to a similar offence and was ordered to pay £2,909.46 in fines and costs.
Anyone with information about the illegal sale of knives, alcohol or cigarettes to people under 18 should contact Oxfordshire County Council Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133 or by email: Trading.Standards@Oxfordshire.gov.uk
Photo: A selection of knives sold to Trading Standards test purchasers in 2019.


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The Netherlands remains a 'place of refuge' to easily limit liability
Global limitation
Shipowners have a long-standing right to limit their liability for claims resulting from maritime casualties. This right of limitation is known as 'global' limitation. The Netherlands has a history of being a popular place for shipowners aiming to globally limit liability. Examples of high-profile limitation cases that have been dealt with by the Dutch courts are those concerning the foundering of the vessels "Tricolor", the "Baltic Ace" and the "Thorco Cloud". Despite the recent change in the Dutch perspective on global limitation for wreck removal claims,[1] the Netherlands is and remains a safe 'place of refuge' for shipowners to limit their liability.
The conditions to limit liability in The Netherlands are so warm and welcoming for shipowners that they have gone to great lengths to ensure that they could limit their liability in the Netherlands.
Why limit liability in The Netherlands?
Besides the Dutch courts having extensive experience with limitation of liability and the Dutch court system itself being considered one of the best in the world, there are further reasons why shipowners should consider The Netherlands when determining where to limit their liability:
1. Unbreakable limit
In The Netherlands it is virtually impossible to deprive the shipowners of their right to limit liability. Once a limitation fund is constituted in The Netherlands, shipowners do not have to much fear that they will barred from limiting their liability. Shipowners are only not entitled to limit their liability if it is proved that the loss resulted from:
a. their personal act or omission
The Court of Rotterdam has held in the "Seine"[2] and the "Delfborg"[3] that 'personal' refers to the conduct of shipowners' 'alter ego', i.e. the conduct of their board of directors or of those whose conduct has to be considered as the conduct of the shipowners. Generally this is not the crew or master of the vessel.
b. committed with the intent to cause such loss, or recklessly and with knowledge that such would probably result.
The phrase 'intent to cause such loss' is self-evident; the shipowners must have a personal intention to cause the loss. In the "Arcturus" and "VW-VI"/"Coby" and "Horn"[4] the Supreme Court held that shipowners act 'recklessly and with knowledge that such would probably result' when they knew the risks connected with their conduct and were aware of the probability that these risks would materialize was considerably greater than the probability that they would not, but such has not deterred them from their conduct.
2. Statutory interest
As said, limitation funds in The Netherlands can be constituted by means of remittance of a cash deposit or by providing a guarantee. Constitution by means of a cash deposit has the advantage that statutory interest stops accruing over the amount of the limitation amounts. If it takes several years to distribute the limitation fund, the amount of the accrued statutory interest may be reduced significantly by paying a cash deposit.
3. Pleasure crafts
The CLNI 2012 only applies to vessels used for commercial inland shipping. The Netherlands has made use of the possibility in the CLNI 2012 to make its own arrangements in that respect. The Dutch legislator considers it desirable that owners of non-commercial inland vessels (such as pleasure yachts) may limit their liability because the risks applicable to commercial inland vessel also apply to non-commercial inland vessels. These risks are connected with the movable nature of the vessels. Other state parties to the CLNI 2012 have not made such arrangements and in these countries shipowners of non-commercial inland vessels are not entitled to limit their liability.
'Legal proceedings' in the eyes of the Dutch Supreme Court
To limit liability in The Netherlands shipowners must constitute one or more 'limitation funds' by either remittance of a cash deposit or by providing a guarantee from a reputable underwriter, P&I Club or bank. Such 'limitation funds' can only be constituted in The Netherlands if 'legal proceedings' are instituted against the shipowners in The Netherlands (both LLMC 1996 and CLNI 2012) or if legal proceedings may be instituted in the Netherlands for claims subject to limitation (CLNI 2012 only).
The Dutch Supreme Court has held in the "Sherbro"[5] that the term 'legal proceedings' should be interpreted broadly and includes general legal proceedings, arbitral proceedings and other provisional and protective measures such as vessel arrests and provision witness hearings. The District Courts and the Courts of Appeal did not impose any further requirements on the character of the 'legal proceedings', e.g. whether liability of the shipowner is disputed or that the person commencing the 'legal proceedings' is not an affiliated company of the shipowner.
Several cases have shown that shipowners can easily find a 'friend' to commence such 'legal proceedings' against them in The Netherlands. For example, in the "Jork Ranger"[6] the shipowner found its 'friend' in the vessel's charterer, who also happened to be an affiliated company of the shipowner and who was insured by the same insurers. Shipowners of colliding vessels can also befriend each other. This happened in the "Odessa Star", where the owners of the vessels involved in a collision agreed that all their disputes regarding their collision off the Turkish coast would be dealt with before the District Court of Rotterdam.[7] Despite fierce resistance of the creditors of the shipowners involved against these apparent set-ups, the Court of Appeal did not see any reason to bar shipowners to limit their liability in The Netherlands.
On 29 May 2020 the Dutch Supreme Court dealt with a similar set-up in the case "Thorco Cloud"/"Stolt Commitment".[8] Briefly summarized, the Supreme Court sanctioned the reasoning of the lower courts in all the previous cases. The "Thorco Cloud" and the "Stolt Commitment" collided on the high seas near Indonesia on 16 December 2015. The "Thorco Cloud" sank as result of this collision. The owners of the "Stolt Commitment" commenced arbitral proceedings against the vessel's bareboat charterer in The Netherlands. Again, both owner and charterer were affiliated companies and had the same underwriters. With 'legal proceedings' pending against her in The Netherlands, charterer submitted a request to limit its liability in The Netherlands. Creditors contested this set-up, but to no avail. With a judgment confirming his earlier views on the broad interpretation of the term 'legal proceedings', the Dutch Supreme Court held that such a 'friendly' action shall not bar shipowners from limiting liability in The Netherlands.
Should the need arise to limit liability, one 'friend' is enough to allow shipowners to benefit from all what The Netherlands has to offer in respect of limitation of liability for shipowners.
Should you have any further questions concerning the limitation of liability of sea-going vessels or inland vessels, please do not hesitate to contact Olivier Böhmer or Nol van Hal.
[1] See: 'Does limitation of claims for costs in respect of refloating operations require a wreck removal fund?', June 2018; 'Beperking van aansprakelijkheid voor 'wrakopruimingskosten' lijdt schipbreuk', November 2019.
[2] District Court of Rotterdam 5 December 2018, S&S 2019/27 ("Seine").
[3] District Court of Rotterdam 12 December 2018, ECLI:NL:RBROT:2018:10933 ("Delfborg").
[4] Dutch Supreme Court 22 June 2018, S&S 2019/48 ("Arcturus" and "VW-VI"/"Coby" and "Horn").
[5] Dutch Supreme Court 20 December 1996, S&S 1997/38 ("Sherbro").
[6] District Court of Rotterdam 17 November 2010, S&S 2011/30 ("Jork Ranger").
[7] Court of Appeal The Hague 20 December 2016, S&S 2017/38 ("Odessa Star").
[8] Dutch Supreme Court 29 May 2020, NJ 2020/280 ("Thorco Cloud"/"Stolt Commitment").
Nol van Hal


text:
AIDS Commission criticised for ignoring 'potential HIV breakthrough cure'
Source: Ghana|myjoyonline.com|edwin.appiah@myjoyonline.com
Ag. Director-General Ghana AIDS Commission, Mr. Kyeremeh Atuahene and former Executive Director of the Center for Plant Medicine Research, Prof Alexander Ocloo.
Ghana AIDS Commission has been criticised for its posture towards a Ghanaian researcher, who claims he is on the verge of a breakthrough cure for HIV/AIDs.
Prof. Alexander Ocloo, an expert in medicinal plants, has observed the Commission's posture insisting there is no cure despite the promising research, is too reactionary.
"All that we are doing now is there is no cure, there is no cure," the former Executive Director of the Center for Plant Medicine Research, said on Joy FM's Super Morning Show, Thursday.
Prof. Ocloo wants to see the Commission taking a proactive approach by investigating the claims made by the founder of Center of Awareness, Dr. Samuel Ato Duncan.
The researcher has been claiming since 2012 that he had discovered a herbal drug to suppress the HIV virus in the bloodstream which weakens the immune system of its host until it is too weak to fight even mild sickness, leading to death.
According to Dr. Duncan, his center engaged Ghana's leading biomedical research institute, the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) in 2012 to test his product, COA FS.
Photo:Dr Samuel Ato Duncan
It emerged, 50% of the virus had been "taken care of" within six hours, a rate that improved to 80% within 12 hours.
"It was a great joy," Dr. Duncan said noting, no product had ever reached such milestone in invivo-analysis for HIV/AIDS research works. Dr. Duncan said, he further tested his work in South Africa with results which left his fellow African researchers awed and wondering the lack of government support for his work.
"Ghana is sitting on a diamond mine… This is a serious breakthrough if we are able to get through at the end of the channel," he expressed confidence in his center's medicinal progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
The center has two medical products – COA FS and COA 72 - which he stressed do not cure HIV/AIDs despite claims it is advertised as a cure.
JoyNews in a documentary found some HIV positive persons who abandoned antiretroviral treatment in favour of the advertised promise of the COA products.
Luv FM's Prince Appiah found, the health of such persons who relied exclusively on these products, deteriorated.
"COA FS is just an immune booster. You can never stop taking your antiretroviral drugs," Dr. Duncan warned. He also explained the research work claiming a potential cure is not what was used to produce COA products.
That research suppresses the quantity of the HIV virus in the blood while COA FS, which is registered by the Food and Drugs Authority, only boosts the immune system, he clarified.
"What the Center for Awareness is claiming is not something that is on the market. HIV cure is not on the market," the founder stressed.
It has taken an "expensive" investment of about $2om to push and test the potential of his research, he said and begged that government should be interested in advancing his work.
Government should put scientists together to help in further research, he urged. "We think that is the way to go," he said.
Acting Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Kyeremeh Atuahene noted, the Commission has been supportive of herbal medicines in the fight against HIV/AIDs. It has funded some of these ventures and found, the drugs could treat infections that take advantage of a patient's weak immune system.
He mentioned a potential cure discovered in another African country which is being tested in the US. But he said there has been no testing for COA's potential cure.
Despite branding the "great potential" of herbal medicine, Kyeremeh Atuahene complained, "we have always had a challenge of they not cooperating with the scientific community."
He would not reveal the extent to which the Commission has engaged the Center of Awareness in the quest for a cure.
But unenthused by the Commission's posture, Prof. Alexander Ocloo said all stakeholders must demonstrate a keen interest in any claim of a cure for HIV/AIDs.
"We should be able to close the chapter in the shortest possible time," he decried what he saw as a pussy-footing of stakeholders in the face of a possible breakthrough.
Stakeholders like the AIDs Commission should be able to come out publicly if it finds evidence that the research by Dr. Duncan, holds no promise of a cure.
The medicinal plant expert pointed out World Health Organisation finding that more than 70% of the population relies on herbal medicine.
"…so it is not enough to say there is no cure," he said.
The Center for Plant Medicine Research has examined COA FS and COA 72 to determine its toxicity levels. For COA FS, it found, the product is safe while for the COA 72 the test done only on animals shows, it is safe.
But there are other important indices on the products yet to be determined. One of them is efficacy, he said.
Prof. Alexander Ocloo called on government to make available resources to carry out further tests and research on the potential of a cure for HIV/AIDs in Ghana.
"We have enough brains to discover whatever we want to discover," he said.
The professor said the history of science has stories of people branded mad for their hypothesis but time has justified them and is now a working theory.
According to the Ashanti Regional Directorate of the National AIDS Control Program, about 30 percent of people living with HIV stop taking antiretroviral drugs. They resort to the use of herbal preparations, prayers from spiritualists and drinking strange concoctions.
An HIV sentinel report for 2017, found 13, 000 adults and children of more than 15 years died of AIDS in Ghana.
Widespread stigma and discrimination toward Persons Living with HIV in the general population and those perceived to be infected, have been recognised to act as barriers to seeking health services such as HIV Testing and Counselling (HTC), adherence to antiretroviral therapy and access to supportive services.
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text:
Blog < Greenlight wins at the UK Biddable Media Awards 2018
Greenlight wins at the UK Biddable Media Awards 2018
By Katrina Makins | 06 Mar 2018
The UK Biddable Media Awards, which celebrate and reward expertise within the UK biddable media industry, took place on the evening of 15th March at a glamourous London ceremony, and we're pleased to announce that the evening saw us win two awards; Display Campaign of the Year and Best Use of Video. We're delighted to have won such competitive categories and to have had our paid media and display teams' work recognised by the influential judging panel.
Data-driven, audience-first strategies
As with all our campaigns, we strive to deliver strong results through unique, creative and hyper-targeted strategies that fit each brand's audience. Both of our wins were for Superdry, with each campaign being cemented by an audience-first approach based on unique data insights. The value of this approach means that efficiencies are maximised, as efforts are geared towards relevant, valuable audience cohorts with high brand affinity and propensity to convert based on their interactions. Furthermore, data was drawn upon from previous Superdry activity and learnings were applied in order to maximise the impact of our campaigns. As such, the results are a testament to the value of having an audience-first approach and backing up strategies with unique data insights - we not only overdelivered on all our targets, we drove a significant amount of conversions and significant ROI for Superdry.
Nominations and wins on the night
Alongside our wins, we're very proud to have also been nominated for six other awards, which further underlines the fantastic results our teams are driving for our clients:
Display Campaign of The Year with Superdry for its Black Friday campaign
Best Use of Video with Superdry for its The Night Is Young campaign
Retail Campaign of the Year with Footasylum
Retail Campaign of the Year with Superdry
Best Use of Attribution with Rajapack
Technology Innovation of the Year for Greenlight PRISM
Rising Star of the Year for Becky Potter
Rising Star of the Year for Jonathan Kelterer
We're ecstatic that our work has been recognised by the UK Biddable Media Awards' panel and judges.
See more of our work here, or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook for all our updates.
Katrina Makins
Greenlight wins Diversity and Inclusion Leader Award at the Regional Bing Partner Awards
The 2019 Regional Bing Partner Awards, which recognise the achievements and outstanding work of Bing's Europe and Asia Pacific partners, were...
Greenlight nominated for seven awards at the DADI Awards 2018
The DADI Awards nominations were published on the 7th of September, and we're proud to announce that we've been shortlisted for seven awards this...
Greenlight Digital nominated at The Drum Search Awards 2017
The Drum Search Awards finalists were announced via Twitter on 18th April 2017, so it was a tense afternoon in the office while we waited to find out...
On the evening of 25th May, the inaugural UK Biddable Media Awards winners were announced and we're thrilled to say that Greenlight won the award for...


A Greek bailout deal failed to materialize on Wednesday following an emergency meeting of euro zone ministers, resulting in waves of sarcasm across the social media sphere.
Late in the day, reports emerged that the cash-strapped European economy reached an agreement "in principle" to stay in the European Union's bailout scheme. Shortly thereafter, the Eurogroup announced it would be holding a press conference in Brussels, sparking widespread speculation among media outlets regarding the chances of a deal.
Frustration ballooned after Dijsselbloem said that not enough progress was made for a concrete bailout deal, contradicting earlier media reports. He said that talks would continue on Monday.
Twitter users poked fun at the inability of officials to issue a joint statement on Wednesday.
So, is Wednesday the new Friday in the eurozone? Are there some Belgian labor laws that mean they can't talk tomorrow too?
People wait for 2 hours to hear that there will be 4 more days needed to find out if a deal is possible.
How do you keep Greek banks open until Monday?
Sounds to me like the Eurogroup response to Greece was "You can't be serious," and they didn't get past that.
Smooth of the Eurogroup to have its presser amid the Netflix fiasco.
Users also joked about the Burberry scarf worn by Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, which retails for nearly $500 on the luxury brand's website.
@CNBCWorld Lagarde "My penthouse, or your ruin? lets have breakfast anyways!"
A brief online spat took place between Greece's Varoufakis and long-time euro zone watcher Peter Spiegel of the Financial Times after the latter posted a Eurogroup statement that Varoufakis allegedly agreed to.


text:
Toronto police Sgt. Ryan Russell was killed in March 2013.
Man who killed Toronto cop with snowplow doing 'very well' after release
Richard Kachkar remains "a serious risk to the public" due to the major mental illness he suffers from, but he is at a low risk of reoffending, according to a hospital report.
By Alyshah HashamStaff Reporter
Thu., June 15, 2017timer4 min. read
A man found not criminally responsible for killing a Toronto police officer, while continuing to do "very well" since being discharged from hospital, has never apologized directly to the officer's widow.
Richard Kachkar was found not criminally responsible by a jury in 2013 for killing Sgt. Ryan Russell with a snowplow in January 2011 during a psychotic episode.
Kachkar had been detained at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Heath Sciences for treatment. The conditions of his detention are governed by the Ontario Review Board and are reviewed annually by a five-member panel.
He began living in supportive housing on April 18, his psychiatrist told an Ontario Review Board panel Thursday.
The panel approved Kachkar's gradual transition from the hospital to living in the community after his 2016 hearing.
And while he remains "a serious risk to the public" due to the major mental illness he suffers from, he is at a "low risk of reoffending" under his current care, according to a hospital report dated May 4, 2017.
At his annual hearing on Thursday, Russell's widow, Christine, said Kachkar isn't truly sorry for what he's done.
"I wish he would just acknowledge my family is here and we are hurting," Russell said after the hearing. She says Kachkar has never apologized to her directly.
And in an emotional victim-impact statement, she said she feels her family's heartbreak and loss is being overlooked, and that she should have been notified that Kachkar was now living in the community.
"I feel your path to freedom has been paved and I fear your imminent release," she said to Kachkar who never made eye contact with her and kept his head down.
"I was shocked yesterday to learn you have been living off-site in an apartment just a mere four years after the NCR verdict," she said. The lack of information is both "disrespectful and further proof to me that victims play no role in this system. It truly shows that the killing of my husband bears little weight over your expedited need to be free and well."
She said she hopes "people don't forget his crime... I hope that it haunts him for the rest of his life."
In his meeting, Kachkar was seeking permission to be able to visit his daughter in Hamilton for up to 72 hours. He is not permitted to drive. He is in contact with both his son and daughter.
His psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Pytcyk told the panel Kachkar has been living in an apartment owned by the Canadian Mental Health Association, with twice daily visits from mental health workers (once daily on weekends).
He sees a psychologist biweekly and attends an outpatient program three days a week to assist with transitioning into the community after a long period time in hospital, she said.
Last year, he consented to taking his medications in biweekly injections from a mental-health professional in order to ensure he takes them, Pytcyk told the panel.
Kachkar has never had any problem taking his medications and has committed to continuing to taking them, she said.
The key issue for Kachkar is managing stress — the cumulative effects of a number of stressors including relationship problems and money problems ended in a severe state of psychosis and led to a "very serious act of violence and very serious harm," Pytyck said.
"You mean death," Christine Russell, said softly from her seat in the public gallery.
Pytcyk said she believed Kachkar would be forthcoming about dealing with present stressors in his life. The mental health professionals who interact with him are looking for signs that arose prior to him killing Russell, including confusion, unusual thoughts, paranoia and increased religious preoccupation.
Pytyck said Kachar's notoriety may place him in stressful situations but nothing has happened so far and they are "encouraged by his progress." He is considering starting a volunteer position or looking for part-time work, she said.
Pytyck said that prior to any trip to see his daughter, Kachkar's mental health would be assessed, his itinerary approved and they would speak to his daughter.
In answer to a question from a board member, Pytyck said Kachkar may be able to take other trips unaccompanied, such as to Toronto to see a baseball game, if approved by the hospital.
In response to a question from the panel about whether the way the public views Kachkar is a stressor for him, Pytyck said Kachkar "is understanding of why the public might see him that way . . . and while it must be stressful to hear those things about yourself, I think he sees them as only reasonable given what happened."
She noted that Kachkar has struggled to reconcile the guilt and shame that comes with taking responsibility for killing Russell with moving forward with his rehabilitation. It is too early to consider a conditional discharge, Pytyck said.
A conditional discharge would mean that Kachkar would no longer be under a detention order with specific privileges as he is now, and would be free other than conditions imposed by the Ontario Review Board.
It depends on how Kachkar navigates low-level stress in the community and whether he remains stable over the next one or two years, she said.
The Ontario Review Board panel is expected to release their decision next week.


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-Keep the blinds closed while the sun is up.
-Install an air conditioner (recommended with a health efficiency particulate air filter).
-Drink plenty of cool, non-alcoholic beverages.
-Place a bowl of ice in front of a fan to create a cool breeze.
-Avoid using the oven and instead cook on the stovetop.
-Do any physical activity in the cooler morning or evening hours.
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Staying inside during summer is not ideal, so make the best of it. Take the time to read a book, do some house work, play a board game or enjoy a movie.
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In a recent conference, I listened to Todd Hirsch speak about "Spiders in Space." He spoke about how spiders that were brought into space eventually adapted to zero gravity and were able to create a web to catch a fly and survive. He then spoke about people and companies who have seen success by adapting to a changing environment. His session has stuck with me, as I am seeing the health & safety practice go through its largest adaptation in decades: the move from paper to software and mobile based solutions.
If you are a progressive leader who is constantly searching for the next program or process to streamline your Health and Safety Management System, you likely fit the mold of Todd Hirsh's "Spiders in Space." As a Health & Safety Auditor, I see technology simplifying and improving Health and Safety Management systems every day. I can easily say that, because when it comes to monitoring all aspects of a management system for the purposes of accountability, tracking & trending, and driving employee participation, technology has revolutionized the practice.
In particular, mobile technologies are proving to enhance a worker's experience with Health and Safety Management systems. The convenience of submitting an incident report, hazard ID, or inspection on your phone is unparalleled, thereby encouraging further worker participation.
•	Compilation and centralization of outstanding corrective actions resulting from inspections, audits, incidents, hazard reporting, meetings, employee feedback, etc.
•	Ease of participation for all employees.
As technology in the Health and Safety space continues to evolve, the solutions being offered are becoming more robust every year. My "Spider in Space" recommendation to all clients and peers I deal with is: Adapt! Don't be satisfied with the same old, same old. Explore technology to help your management system evolve, and become a true leader in Health and Safety.
As work gets back into full swing after the holidays, it's important for employers to exercise more vigilant control of their workplace to ensure that it is still safe place to work. Every person is responsible for being alert and creating a safe work environment the minute they step onto the jobsite. If the minds of team members are still on holidays, who is watching out for their safety?
Start the new year off with a safety stand-down refresher meeting.
Management can set a weekly agenda and make sure all safety topics are covered before the tasks begin.
Be more vigilant to take precautions in the work place, as routine tasks cause the most accidents after a long holiday.
All scaffolds, working platforms, lifting appliances, gas welding and flame cutting operations, confined spaces and excavations should be inspected by competent persons to ensure that they are in safe condition before putting them to use again.
Exercise more vigilant control and supervision of their workplace to make sure that safe work practices are being followed.
Take a moment to breathe and not get overwhelmed.
Prioritize what needs to get done.
Take a moment to identify known or potential hazards before catching up on tasks.
Set realistic timelines in order to ensure that work isn't rushed.
Look over all equipment, identify new hazards if they are present, and ensure it is well-maintained and ready to use.
Let's work together to help employees refresh, refocus, and re-engage back in the job!
6.	Follow-up to ensure all workers are working safely, and any mitigation that has been put in place is effective.
An incident report should also be completed to outline the details of the work stoppage, what has been done to remedy the situation, and verification that the job is healthy & safe to move forward.
Executing Stop Work Authority to catch potential unsafe or unhealthy actions/conditions before they become hazardous is not only responsible, but can prevent potential incidents and injuries in the workplace, if acted on in good faith. Stopping work in good faith indicates that the worker is stopping work because they are genuinely unsure of the task, unsure of the steps, scared of the task, see something hazardous that could affect a co-worker or themselves, or feel someone is working in a way that could be hazardous.
All employees should be encouraged to watch for unsafe or unhealthy conditions or acts and when it's necessary, stop the job until it can be done safely. It is important that employees understand there will be no retribution for stopping unsafe work, if it's acted on in good faith. Lastly, it is important to remember that you must also consult and follow the client's policy and procedure when on their sites. Communicate/report to the on-site client rep if you need to stop unsafe work, to ensure you are meeting the expectations of their policy.
When should I report incidents?
It is extremely important to report incidents right away, no matter how minor it may be. Even if the injury is minor or if there is no initial injury and you feel it is not worth reporting, the incident must be documented.
When an incident occurs you should report immediately to your Supervisor. Do not fear reporting! It is a necessary aspect of creating a safer workplace and you are protected by the law.
It is become standard that Clients are requesting information from their contractors to prequalify for bids on projects and to access sites. Clients are requesting health and safety information, WCB coverage, insurance certification, verification of training, and to sign off on the Client's terms and conditions.
This information allows for the Client to ensure that the contractor has performed their due diligence in assuring their company is acceptable to go onsite and work safely.
•	Clients can view statistics – Statistics are a huge factor in verifying that a contractor is adhering to their health and safety programs, as well as they can see if there is trending up or down.
Clients ultimately want a contractor with the least risk on their sites.
•	Exposure to New clients – your industry selection can play a factor is potentially getting work from new clients. This is beneficial for the contractor to expand their horizons.
•	Maintenance of statistics – the database can serve as a resource for your annual statistics, which ticks off one of the items of a COR audit. This also helps with your trending of statistics and can make you more aware of how your company is trending upward or downward.
•	Health and Safety program maintenance – although most contractors complete the COR process, OH&S is ever changing and databases take your industry code into account and provide legislation that is specific for your industry. Databases ensure that your health and safety program is compliant with the applicable legislation for your industry.
•	Orientations prior to going onsite – Orientations can play a key factor for a contractor being able to access a site as it is a Client expectation of their completion. Completion of an orientation prior to trying to access a site will save time when trying to get onsite.
There are multiple databases that Clients will have their contractors subscribe to. Some examples include ISNetworld, Avetta, Complyworks, and Browz, these are all based on the client's requirements and expectations that the database requests of their contractors.
While Database maintenance is not a high priority for many contractors, it is ultimately important to continue a relationship with your key clients and it has widely become an industry standard.
Consider Kasa Consulting when you are wanting to ensure you are at a high level of compliance at all times to ensure you never miss out on a job opportunity!
•	Thoroughly inspect all nylon webbing on belt/body harnesses for frayed edges, broken fibers, burn marks, deterioration or other visible signs of damage. Do the same if the belt or body harness is constructed of other materials. Stitching should be intact and not torn or loose. The belt or harness should be somewhat "soft" and flexible and not stiff from dirt or contaminants.
•	Check to see that buckles and "D" rings are not distorted or damaged. Look closely at all components for stress cracks, deformity, gouging, corrosion and sharp edges. Inspect connection points where the buckle or "D" ring is attached to the belt or body harness. Insure that no stitching is pulled and that the buckle or "D" ring is securely attached.
•	Inspect all rivets and grommets to be certain they are not deformed, and are securely fastened to the belt or body harness and cannot be pulled loose.
•	If you find any of these conditions during the inspection, do not use the equipment.
•	Completely check the entire length of the lanyard, looking for cuts, fraying, deterioration, knots, kinks, burns or visible signs of damage. Stitching should be intact and not torn or loose. Spliced ends must also be carefully examined for damage or deterioration. Check to see that the lanyard is somewhat "soft" and not stiff from dirt or contaminants.
•	If using a "shock absorber" type of lanyard, look for the "warning tag" which indicates that the lanyard has been exposed to a fall.
•	Snap hooks and eyes should not be distorted or bent. Inspect them for cracks, sharp edges, gouges or corrosion. Check to be sure the locking mechanism is operating properly and that there is no binding of the mechanism.
•	If using a self-retracting lanyard (SRL), you must inspect the body of the mechanism for flaws to assure that all nuts, screws and rivets are installed and tight. Also check crimped ends or stitching for damage. Inspect the entire length of the SRL for any visible signs of defects.
•	Test the locking mechanism by pulling sharply on the cable end to be sure it locks immediately and firmly.


text:
Manuel Akanji joins Borussia Dortmund from Basel in €21.5m deal
Raphael Honigstein tests US soccer star Christian Pulisic on his German having spent three years with Borussia Dortmund.
Borussia Dortmund have signed former Liverpool target Manuel Akanji from Basel for a reported €21.5 million fee including bonuses.
Akanji, a former target for Liverpool, became the club's first signing of the January transfer window when he agreed a deal until 2022.
The Switzerland international defender was in Dortmund on Sunday to witness the club's goalless draw with Wolfsburg and a day later put pen to paper on his contract.
"With his performances, Manuel appeared on the radar of several European top clubs," Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc said on the club's official website. "We are delighted that he opted to join us.
"He's shown for his national team and in Champions League that he can play at the highest European level. At the same time, we believe he's a defender with still a lot of potential for development."
✍ Borussia Dortmund hat sich mit dem @FCBasel1893 auf einen sofortigen Wechsel des Spielers Manuel #Akanji verständigt. Der 22 Jahre junge Abwehrspieler unterzeichnete einen Vertrag bis zum 30. Juni 2022 und erhält die Rückkennummer 16. Herzlich willkommen, Manuel! ✌ pic.twitter.com/79VFrXKz9I
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) January 15, 2018
Akanji has so far won four caps for Switzerland, and has impressed during Basel's Champions League campaign this season.
The defender said: "I felt good in the talks with the BVB hierarchy. And thus, my heart decided. I have always liked the football played by Dortmund. I am looking forward to my time here, and will give it my all."
After boasting the best defensive record in Europe's five top flights with two conceded goals in seven matches up until the first international break in late September, Dortmund conceded 22 goals in just 10 league games up until the winter break.
They now rank 43rd among the 98 teams of Europe's top flights.
Under new head coach Peter Stoger, Dortmund have managed to stabilise their defence, conceding only one goal in the former Cologne man's three matches in charge.
Dortmund are set to pay just under €20 million for Akanji, according to kicker, with Sky adding that the transfer fee could go up to €21.5 million with bonuses.
Stephan Uersfeld is the Germany correspondent for ESPN FC. Follow him on Twitter @uersfeld.
Swiss Super League
Manuel Akanji


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