Equipo Nizkor - Xinhua Voice: The BRICS still have potential to excel.
Despite current slowed growth of some emerging economies, the BRICS countries are still considered to have the potential to bolster the global recovery.
Business and political VIPs at the ongoing World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, are expected to elaborate on what kind of role these five major emerging economies could play in sustaining the still-tardy global economic rehabilitation.
The group, which consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has been playing as a dose of antidote to the hobble global economy since the start of the 2008 global financial crisis.
Facts proved that a dynamic group of major emerging countries not only strengthened cooperation among themselves, but also helped build a more constructive relationship between the developing and developed economies.
During the past few years, the BRICS countries have made tremendous contributions to the world economy by increasing employment, reducing poverty, pouring in capital, exporting and importing, among others.
Or, in other words, their economic growth in recent years compensated for the stagnation of developed countries and their currency reserves helped in the European debt crisis.
As negative perception on the future power of the BRICS economies is demoralizing some investors due to current slowdown, abundant resources could be used as a strong proof of their still-robust economy and tremendous potential.
Among the five group members, China has been the "world factory" for years, Brazil is an important "raw material base" to the global market, Russia is the world "petrol station," India is a well-known "world office," while South Africa is the resource reservoir of Africa.
The BRICS, with roughly one third of the world's total population and more than a quarter of the world's land area, had a combined nominal GDP of more than 16 trillion U.S. dollars in 2013, according to the World Economic Outlook of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Some sources have suggested that the BRICS economies might overtake the G7 (the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Canada and Italy) by 2027.
As a leading member of the group, the Chinese economy grew 7.7 percent in 2013, much higher than IMF's 5 percent forecast for emerging markets and developing economies as a whole.
British economist Jim O'Neill, best known for coining the "BRICS" acronym, has pointed out that China's economy was now more than half the size of the United States, which meant "if China grows by 7.5 percent ... this would be equivalent of the U.S. growing by 4 percent."
According to O'Neill's estimate, if China grows by 7.5 percent annually in the next decade, it would be an economy of around 16 trillion dollars or more by 2020, allowing its GDP per capita to reach 12,000-13,000 dollars.
In January, the IMF forecasted that China will grow 7.5 percent this year, India 5.4 percent, Russia 2.0 percent and Brazil 2.3 percent, while among advanced economies, the IMF only sees U.S. growth at 2.8 percent, euro area growth at 1.0 percent, and Japan at 1.7 percent.
The growth rate and its wealth-creating potential of China as well as other BRICS members still stand out among major economies in the world, which will remain a key engine for global economic recovery from a medium- and long-term perspective.


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Package
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com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.type

Package that contains concrete implementations of
 JavaType, as
 well as the factory (TypeFactory) for
 constructing instances from various input data types
 (like Class, Type)
 and programmatically (for structured types, arrays,
 Lists and Maps).

Uses of HierarchicType in com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.type

Fields in com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.type declared as HierarchicType

Modifier and Type
Field and Description

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._cachedArrayListType

Lazily constructed copy of type hierarchy from ArrayList
 to its supertypes.

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._cachedHashMapType

Lazily constructed copy of type hierarchy from HashMap
 to its supertypes.

protected HierarchicType
HierarchicType._subType

protected HierarchicType
HierarchicType._superType

Methods in com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.type that return HierarchicType

Modifier and Type
Method and Description

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._arrayListSuperInterfaceChain(HierarchicType current)

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._doFindSuperInterfaceChain(HierarchicType current,
                          Class<?> target)

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._findSuperClassChain(Type currentType,
                    Class<?> target)

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._findSuperInterfaceChain(Type currentType,
                        Class<?> target)

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._findSuperTypeChain(Class<?> subtype,
                   Class<?> supertype)

Helper method used to find inheritance (implements, extends) path
 between given types, if one exists (caller generally checks before
 calling this method).

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._hashMapSuperInterfaceChain(HierarchicType current)

HierarchicType
HierarchicType.deepCloneWithoutSubtype()

Method that can be used to create a deep clone of this hierarchic type, including
 super types (but not subtypes)

HierarchicType
HierarchicType.getSubType()

HierarchicType
HierarchicType.getSuperType()

Methods in com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.type with parameters of type HierarchicType

Modifier and Type
Method and Description

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._arrayListSuperInterfaceChain(HierarchicType current)

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._doFindSuperInterfaceChain(HierarchicType current,
                          Class<?> target)

protected HierarchicType
TypeFactory._hashMapSuperInterfaceChain(HierarchicType current)

protected JavaType
TypeFactory._resolveVariableViaSubTypes(HierarchicType leafType,
                           String variableName,
                           TypeBindings bindings)

void
HierarchicType.setSubType(HierarchicType sub)

void
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text:
et geekera
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Business of Gaming
Digital Homicide Terminates $18 Million Lawsuit Against Steam Users
Posted by Steve Murray
Just a few weeks after filing suit against 100 anonymous Steam users for ongoing harassment through the digital games store and client, the lawsuit has been terminated by Digital Homicide without prejudice. In an interview following the suit's dismissal, one-half of Digital Homicide, James Romine, said that the company was "destroyed."
Tags: Business of Gaming, Digital Homicide, Jim Sterling, Law, Steam, Valve
Digital Homicide Suing Steam Users, Considering Suing Valve after Valve Pulls Games from Steam
Two-man indie developer Digital Homicide has made more news and gained more notoriety from their response to criticism than from their games themselves. Despite having nearly two dozen games on Steam, they are perhaps best known for representing themselves in a lawsuit against critic Jim Sterling for $15 million in damages related to his reviews and first impressions videos of their games.
Now, Digital Homicide is taking their legal game to the next level. The developer is now in the early stages of filing lawsuits against 100 Steam users for $18 million and is considering taking legal action against Valve itself.
ZeniMax Accuses Oculus's John Carmack of Being a Thief, Palmer Luckey of Being a Fraud
ZeniMax's lawsuit against Oculus VR took a turn for the nastier last week. An updated filing by ZeniMax claims that the development of the Oculus Rift VR headset is a result of former id Software employee and current Oculus CTO John Carmack stealing thousands of documents and using them in developing the Rift. Their suit also now alleges that Oculus founder Palmer Luckey isn't capable of developing VR technology himself.
Tags: Business of Gaming, Copyright Law, id Software, Law, Oculus, VR, ZeniMax
Candy Crush Makers Challenging The Banner Saga Trademark
There's a line between everyday villainy and cartoonish supervillainy. The folks at King, the company behind the popular cash cow Candy Crush Saga, may have crossed that line.
While the internet collectively scratched their heads and said terrible things about King's trademarking of the word "candy" in relation to gaming, educational services and clothing, they're also claiming rights to the word "saga."
The folks at Stoic have found this out the hard way. In late December, they were served with a Notice of Opposition by King for their game, The Banner Saga. The worst case scenario for Stoic would result in punitive damages levied against them.
Tags: Candy Crush Saga, King, Law, Stoic, The Banner Saga
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Soup weather has officially begun. Which means that I probably won't be leaving my house or the couch for the next few months. I mean, I'll still have to make my weekly trips to the grocery store, and I'll probably step out for brunch on the weekend, but besides that, you'll be able to find me at home in the kitchen making large batches of stews and soups or on the couch watching reruns of the Great British Bakeoff.
This time of year brings a mix of emotions. I am simultaneously excited for Thanksgiving and the holidays. Excited to be able to batch make meals, which seems appropriate for the season, but I still find myself dreaming of warm summer nights with walks to the ice cream shop. I do enjoy a pumpkin latte here and there, but I think that my heart and soul always longs for the summer.
My usual coping strategies for dealing with the end of summer is holiday baking/decorating. This year, we will be staying in Seattle for the holidays, which I am very excited about, and we'll definitely be making big pots of cozy soup, hanging garland, and being overall very festive.
Right now we are on a soup kick. I love how easy and simple they are to make, and how a pot can last a few days in the fridge. Sebastian also really loves soup, and I find it a great way to get in those extra veggies. Who am I kidding. Veggies period. This soup is a mix of some of my favorite ingredients - pasta, cheese, and tomatoes. It's hearty and rich, but still feels healthy. Pair it with a nice loaf of fresh bread, and now we're talking about the prefect meal.
In a large soup pot, heat the butter on medium. Add the onions, carrots, and chili flakes and cook until the onion are translucent and begin to caramelize.
Add the beans, diced tomatoes, and broth, and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the dry pasta, kale, and Parmesan cheese. Continue to simmer until the pasta is cooked and the kale has softened.
Serve warm with grated Parmesan cheese on top.
Can be stored in the fridge for 4-5 days.


text:
Ian Somerhalder's and Paul Wesley's Brother's Bond Bourbon Now Available In 17 States
Posted on August 28, 2021 by Basil & Salt Magazine	One comment
Ian Somerhalder's and Paul Wesley's Brother's Bond Bourbon is now available for sale online, at national and regional chains, and many independent retailers in 17 states including: Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
The brand name is a nod to their on-screen characters, "The Salvatore Brothers" from CW's "The Vampire Diaries," their shared love for great bourbon, and a reflection of the sense of brotherhood they have formed over the years. From the bourbon liquid development to the brand identity, packaging, marketing and advertising, Ian and Paul have been pivotal in every step of producing the bourbon.
Brother's Bond had the most successful pre-sale launch in the history of Reserve Bar (highest velocity of sales in a 24hr period) following pre-sales last fall and again in January. Brand momentum and excitement have surpassed all expectations and early indicators point to the bourbon being the fastest-selling super-premium bourbon in the USA. In the first 60 days of the launch, over 40,000 cases have shipped. The brand has already accumulated over 1.4 million followers on their official Instagram page (@brothersbondbourbon).
Brother's Bond Bourbon
"Our characters bonded on-screen over bourbon and so it made sense that we would do the same off-camera. Never could we have imagined that our creation would come this far and help establish new bonds as well as strengthen old ones. We are so proud of the success of our initial release and are excited to say that this is just the beginning," said Ian and Paul.
"The positive consumer response has exceeded our expectations," says Vincent Hanna, CEO. "Everywhere we go people are lining up to buy a bottle, two or three and this is magical. When you see your strategy come to life in such an authentic way, it really gives our whole team the drive to know we are doing something very special."
Brother's Bond had the most successful pre-sale launch in the history of Reserve Bar (highest velocity of sales in 24hrs)
Brother's Bond Bourbon is elegant and exceptionally smooth, complex, and balanced with a touch of sweetness and spice. The four-grain, high rye bourbon is 65% corn, 22% rye with the percentage of wheat and barley kept a secret. Aged for a minimum of four years in virgin American oak barrels, the barrel staves with #4 char and the barrel heads with #2 char.
Product description: Hand-selected and rooted in the desire to create the perfect bourbon, Brother's Bond Bourbon features aromas of baked banana bread, jammy ripe fruit with walnuts and orange honey, and tastes of rich dried fruit and honey sweetness accompanied by hints of black tea and warm rye spice. The toasted cereal grains are rounded out with notes of honeysuckle and the finish of fresh-cut oak is energetic and smooth with perfectly balanced warm spice.
Bottle sizes available: 750ml
Suggested retail price: 39.99
It's Time to Bond with Brother's Bond Bourbon. Drink Responsibly.
Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley by Dean Bradshaw
tagged with bourbon, Brother's Bond, brother's bond bourbon, Damon and Stephen's Whisky, Ian Somerhalder, Paul Wesley, straight bourbon whiskey, Vampire Diaries, whiskey
Celebrity Chit Chat
Pingback: Ian Somerhalder's and Paul Wesley's Brother's Bond Bourbon is one of the fastest selling ultra-premium Bourbon brands | basil & salt magazine


text:
VIRGINIA NURSING STUDENTS' ASSOCIATION
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VNSA EVENTS
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VNSA Annual State Conventions >
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COSL Summits
Breakthrough to Nursing: Resources
Issues of The Torch
Get Published!
The Torch Writing Contest
Awards, Scholarships, and Abstracts
Connect to the Nursing World
Resolution Resources
Poster Resources
Getting Published in The Torch!
The Torch seeks your articles! We are looking for a wide variety of articles by nursing students for possible publication.
We are also seeking submissions for The Torch columns including:
"Reflections", which highlights memorable or emotional experiences with patients;
"Happenings", which highlights state and school chapter activities; please send us photos of your activities as well.
"Up Close" nominations of an outstanding nursing student (and NSNA//VNSA member) to be profiled in an upcoming issue.
"Write On", the "letters to the editor" section of The Torch. Love something in The Torch? Hate it? Tell us about it and why. Or tell us about a nursing related issue.
For manuscript guidelines and criteria for accepted articles, please refer to the Guidelines for Authors below.
Criteria used in accepting articles
1. Length and word count are within guidelines
2. The article is accurate, properly documented and conforms to Imprint's Guidelines for Authors.
3. Subject matter is relevant to Imprint readers
Ideal manuscripts: fit the focus/theme of an upcoming issue; and cover topics not published in The Torch within the last 12 months (unless the topic is of an upcoming focus/theme).
columns open for submission
Imprint does not accept academic or clinical school papers, or graduation speeches.
Write On - Letters to the Editor
Letters to the editor responding to articles in The Torch or nursing issues.
(Suggested length: between 200-400 words)
Local chapters report on projects and activities in which they are participating to promote member recognition and networking.
Highlights outstanding VNSA members.
Human interest stories about emotional or life-changing experiences with patients or other nursing school experiences.
Query email
We encourage authors to discuss potential manuscript ideas with the editors in order to best tailor them to our readers and to make sure a manuscript on the same topic hasn't been accepted recently.
Query Email should include a paragraph describing the proposed manuscript, its projected length, how the topic will be treated or approached, an outline, and a short biographical sketch indicating the author's credentials and qualifications for writing the manuscript. We do consider completed manuscripts without a prior query. Manuscripts published elsewhere or submitted simultaneously to another journal will not be reviewed.
Submit your query email to vnsaeditor@gmail.com
The length for features or general articles is 1200-1500 words. The length for columns is 800-1000 words, except for the "Write On" (letters).
Style and editing
We encourage a writing style that is inviting, useful, informative, and lively, with use of headings and subheadings throughout the manuscript. Refer to yourself as "I," rather than "the author" and the reader as "you." The Torch has an informal, easy-to-read style that is conversational in tone, rather than academic. All copies must conform to our editorial style, and this typically involves editing, rewriting, and condensing. We make every effort to retain content, and we send all authors edited copy prior to publication for their review. As time permits, we integrate author's corrections into the final copy, but this is at the editor's discretion.
Authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of their references and for correct text citation. All statistics and factual information must be referenced. All direct quotes, including those from government sources, online publications, and publications that are in the public domain, must be presented as such with quotations and appropriate citations. Treating direct quotes otherwise will be considered plagiarism. Plagiarized manuscripts will be rejected.
The Torch uses the American Psychological Association (APA) style for references. (See http://www.apastyle.org/ for general references, and http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html for online references.) With this format, references must be listed alphabetically by author's last name and include all elements of formal citation. The reference format for APA style is described in the 6th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, a large reference book that contains hundreds of guidelines on how to format references, statistics, tables, punctuation, and grammar. It also contains writing tips and instructions about how to format manuscripts. You may also find a copy of the Publication Manual in your school library, at a local bookstore, or online.
In the text, the author's name(s) and date of publication are in parentheses immediately following the reference.
Examples of APA Style:
Fine, M. A., & Kurdek, L. A. (1993). Reflections on determining authorship credit and authorship order on faculty-student collaborations. American Psychologist, 48, 1141-1147.
Nicol, A. A. M., & Pexman, P. M. (1999). Presenting your findings: A practical guide for creating tables. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Book chapter:
O'Neil, J. M., & Egan, J. (1992). Men's and women's gender role journeys: Metaphor for healing, transition, and transformation. In B. R. Wainrib (Ed.),Gender issues across the life cycle (pp. 107-123). New York: Springer.
Online reference
Article in an Internet-only journal:
Fredrickson, B. L. (2000, March 7). Cultivating positive emotions to
optimize health and well-being. Prevention & Treatment, 3, Article 0001a. Retrieved November 20, 2000, from http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume3/pre0030001a.html
Please note that there are several reference styles for online references, depending on whether the source in an online journal only, on online article based on a print source, or a stand-alone document with no indicated author or date. Refer to http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html for formatting information.
APA style calls for a list of References at the end of the article instead of a Bibliography. All references cited in the article must be listed alphabetically by author's last name in the list of References. All manuscripts accepted for publication are checked for factual accuracy of content and references. Authors must submit copies of source materials for fact checking during the editing phase. If the article is submitted electronically, the background source material can be sent in hard copy to the attention of the managing editor with a cover note explaining the article it accompanies.
Manuscript preparation and submission
Manuscripts must be submitted in Word (.doc, .docx). All manuscript can be sent to vnsaeditor@gmail.com
Photos may be submitted with the manuscript (send to vnsaeditor@gmail.com)
Acceptable file types: jpg (jpeg), gif, png
Resolution: a minimum of 300 dpi is required
Be sure to submit captions for each photo.
Images copied from websites, or images that are 300 dpi or lower, are not acceptable quality and will not be considered. Generally, a high-resolution image will be over 500K as a file size. Please do not send photos embedded in Word or other word processor documents.
Photo Release:
VNSA requires a photo release form before publishing any photos of identifiable individuals, as well as a photographer's release if the photos are not by the author. If photo is accepted, the Editor will send you a photo release form to sign and return.
The deadline will be determined after the Query email is submitted and responded to.
All materials are subject to review by the editors. Initial review usually takes 2-3 weeks, although expedited reviews are provided for manuscripts with time-sensitive data. Authors who believe their manuscripts are time-sensitive should contact the Editor before submitting the manuscript. The Torch staff will inform the author of the manuscript's status as soon as possible. A manuscript may be accepted or rejected, or we may ask the author to make revisions before a final decision can be made. Authors who do not receive notice of the decision on a manuscript eight weeks after submission may contact the Editor for an update on the manuscript's status.
All authors of accepted manuscripts are asked to sign and return to the Editor a copyright release form insuring that: they are the sole author(s) of the manuscript; they are releasing the copyright of the manuscript to VNSA/The Torch; the manuscript has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere; the manuscript is original.


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text:
Q: High dimensional behavior of Dirichlet Process-based clustering? I have a problem stemming from Dirichlet Process Gaussian Mixture Models (DP-GMMs) in high dimension. I'll write this question so that no knowledge of DP-GMMs is needed.
Let $D$ be the dimensionality of our data. Suppose we sample a number of cluster centroids $\mu_1, ..., \mu_C \in \mathbb{R}^D$ i.i.d. from $\mathcal{N}(0, \rho I_D)$. Then, we choose a random centroid $k$ and generate an observable variable $x_n \sim \mathcal{N}(\mu_k, \sigma I_D)$. The likelihood that the datum $x_n$ belongs to the $k$-th cluster is:
$$p(x_n | c_n = k, \{\mu_{c} \}) = (2 \pi \sigma )^{-D/2} \exp \Big( -\frac{1}{2\sigma} ||x_n - \mu_k||^2 \Big) $$
In a DPMM, the likelihood that the datum $x$ belongs to a new cluster is:
$$p(x_n | c_n = \text{new}, \{\mu_{c} \}) = (2 \pi (\rho + \sigma ))^{-D/2} \exp \Big( -\frac{1}{2(\rho + \sigma)} ||x_n||^2 \Big)$$
My question is: as the dimension of the data increases, what happens (in expectation) to the ratio of the likelihood of a new cluster divided by the likelihood of the nearest cluster?
$$\Big \langle\frac{  p(x_n | c_n = \text{new}, \{\mu_{c} \})  }{p(x_n | c_n = \text{closest}, \{\mu_{c} \}) } \Big \rangle_{x_n, \{ \mu_c \}}
$$
By closest, I mean the cluster with the smallest distance $||x_n - \mu_k||$. The above expectation can equivalently be written:
$$ \Big(\frac{\sigma}{\rho + \sigma}\Big)^{D/2}\Big \langle \exp \Big(\frac{1}{2\sigma} ||x_n - \mu_{closest}||^2 - \frac{1}{2(\rho+\sigma)}||x_n||^2 \Big) \Big \rangle_{x_n, \{ \mu_c \}}
$$
Edit: I'm struggling with the marginal distribution over $x_n$ and the distribution over the cluster means. Does anyone know how to characterize these?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Are Nuclear Plants as safe as they would like us to believe?
You will only hear of a nuclear event in the News if something drastic takes place for example the Chernobyl Disaster of 1986 or the most recent Disaster at Fukushima in Japan.
These are not the only incidents to happen at Nuclear power plants around the world, on average at least 1 plant is manually or automatically closed down due to a problem with the Nuclear plant, we have had 17 reported nuclear incidents already this year and we are only 3 months in, should we be worried?
** U.N. Nuclear Watchdog commented that the reason Rods would be removed from a Nuclear Plant is a sign of a Major Problem.
*** Iranian Foreign Minister, Ali Akbar Salemi denied this to be the case "decision to halt Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, Tehran was a routine test because safety is it's priority"
Pickering Nuclear Generating Station - Canada - Leaked 19000 Gallons of water into Lake Ontario - Report didn't appear until a full 2 days after this incident took place.


Mr. Kapadia has over a decade of experience in the petroleum industry. Having begun his career as a pharmacist for Walgreen's in 1996, with a degree from St. John's University, New York, in 1998 Mr. Kapadia was an officer and ran AEO, a newspaper and magazine distribution company that had over 200 customers throughout the 5 boroughs of New York, in 2000 he went to work at Right way Petroleum, where he oversaw the management of gasoline distribution. During this period, he began to participate in negotiations, acquisition, evaluation and management of retail gas stations. In 2004, Mr. Kapadia founded Perfect Petroleum, where as president and owner his duties include the management of fuel distribution throughout Central Florida, and parts of other States, including the acquisition, evaluation, and negotiation of new contracts. In addition, since 2000, he has served as a private consultant in the petroleum, real estate, and financial services industries.


text:
Final COVID-19 relief bill of 2020 provides tax support and expands the PPP
December 28, 2020 Article 22 min read
Stephen Eckert James Minutolo Michael Monaghan Alison Frankel
The Consolidated Appropriations Act provides tax support for businesses and individuals for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about what this could mean for you.
This article was originally published on December 22 but has been updated to reflect final enactment.
As we approach the end of a tumultuous and challenging 2020, Congress has completed a new relief bill in response to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. To facilitate its passage in Congress, this relief was combined with several other measures into the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA). This bill was formally signed into law by President Trump on December 27. The CAA is substantial legislation that includes many provisions to fund government operations through Sept. 30, 2021, as well as to provide economic support to individuals and businesses through a combination of tax benefits, grants, and loans. It also includes several significant changes to federal tax laws that are unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The enactment of the CAA is great news for the many businesses and individuals that continue to feel the economic impact of the pandemic. As part of its support, Congress has focused primarily on expanding programs that were first utilized as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Since most of these programs are now familiar to taxpayers, Congress's hope is that implementation can be accomplished quickly. In addition, Congress has extended several non-COVID-19-related tax provisions that were previously set to expire at the end of 2020.
This discussion largely focuses on the federal income tax provisions of the CAA as well as the expansion of the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) providing forgivable loans to certain businesses. However, there are other provisions that will impact businesses across many industries as well as individuals across the country through grants, other lending programs, and various other financial support. Visit our COVID-19 Resource Center for a more detailed analysis of other aspects of the CAA and many other related resources.
PPP business loans
The CAA includes significant changes to the PPP as well as expansion of other lending and grant programs. A key aspect of this is an opportunity for eligible entities to obtain PPP second draw loans (PPP2). PPP2 loans are available to eligible entities that employ not more than 300 employees and had a decline in gross receipts during the first, second, third, or fourth quarter of 2020 by 25% or more when compared to the same quarter in 2019. Special eligibility rules apply to specific industries, including accommodation and food service employers (NAICS Code 72), if they employ not more than 300 employees per location. Entities that received original PPP loans are eligible to apply for PPP2 loans if they meet the above criteria and have used the full amount of the original loan prior to disbursement of the second loan.
The maximum loan amount is the average monthly payroll costs for the one-year period before the date the loan is made (or, 2019 average monthly payroll costs) multiplied by 2.5 (3.5 if the business is classified in NAICS Code 72), but the loans are capped at $2,000,000.
Loan amounts less than $150,000 can be requested by submitting a certification, attesting that the eligible entity meets the revenue loss requirements.
Forgiveness will be granted for funds spent on the following:
Interest on covered mortgage obligations
Covered operations expense
Covered property damage costs
Payment on covered rent obligations
Covered utility payments
Covered supplier costs
Covered worker protection expenditures
The amount forgiven will be the lesser of the loan amount or payroll costs divided by 60%. The tax implications for PPP2 loans will work in the same manner as the original PPP. Any income resulting from forgiveness is not taxable and, as is discussed further below, expenses paid for with second draw funds will still be deductible.
There are several retroactive modifications to the rules applicable to original PPP loans:
A simplified loan forgiveness application is provided for loans less than $150,000. A one-page forgiveness application will be made available within 24 days of the enactment of the CAA. The application will include a description of the number of employees the borrower was able to retain, the estimated amount of the loan spent on payroll costs, and the loan amount. The borrower is required to retain support related to employment for four years and other records for three years, as the SBA may review and audit these loans to check for fraud.
The requirement that PPP borrowers deduct the amount of any EIDL advance from their PPP forgiveness amount is repealed.
Amounts are set aside to support first- and second-time PPP borrowers with 10 or fewer employees, first-time borrowers that have recently been made eligible, and for loans made by community lenders.
Expense categories have been expanded to include covered operations expense, covered property damage cost, covered supplier cost, covered worker protection expenditures, group life, and disability insurance benefits. This change could potentially increase loan forgiveness for some borrowers, so businesses may consider waiting to apply for forgiveness until updated forms are available.
Business tax relief
The CAA includes several business tax provisions ranging from the expansion of CARES Act programs to the extension of non-COVID-19-related tax provisions that were set to expire.
Expense deductions funded with PPP loans
One of the most significant tax provisions of the CAA clarifies the tax treatment of expenses funded with PPP loans. The CARES Act provided for forgivable loans to the extent that the funds are used to pay certain payroll, benefits, and other allowable expenditures during the covered period. Under general tax principles, loan forgiveness results in taxable-income recognition to the borrower, unless a specific exception is available. The CARES Act specifically excluded PPP loan forgiveness from taxable income of the borrower. However, it did not explicitly address the tax treatment of deductions that were funded with the PPP loan. The IRS and Treasury Department subsequently issued guidance indicating that the expenditures funded with forgiven PPP loans would not be deductible for tax purposes.
The CAA modifies the CARES Act and overrides the IRS and Treasury Department determination by providing that businesses are able to deduct expenses funded with PPP loan proceeds. To this end, the CAA clarifies that "no deduction shall be denied, no tax attribute shall be reduced, and no basis increase shall be denied" by reason of the exclusion of loan forgiveness from taxable income. The CAA also clarifies that in the case of a partnership or S corporation, the excluded loan forgiveness income shall be treated as tax-exempt income that is allocated to the partners or shareholders. This means that pass-through entity owners will not be indirectly harmed by having to reduce their basis in the pass-through entity as a result of the PPP loan. This treatment applies to original PPP loans as well as PPP2 loans.
For example, consider a business that obtained a $1,000,000 PPP loan and used those funds to cover payroll costs during the covered period. The $1,000,000 of debt forgiveness would not be included in taxable income, and the $1,000,000 of payroll expenses would still be deductible. If the business's effective tax rate was 30%, it would generate a $300,000 tax savings from the PPP loan and the related expenditures on top of the $1,000,000 of cashflow from the loan. For pass-through entity owners, their basis would be reduced by the $1,000,000 of deductible expenses but would also be increased by the $1,000,000 of tax-exempt cancellation of debt income, resulting in no net impact to basis (although there may still be a timing mismatch between those two basis adjustments).
Key takeaway: The allowance of PPP-funded tax deductions is a welcome development for businesses that have faced uncertainty over the course of 2020. As year-end approaches, tax projections can be updated to take these deductions into account, and any fourth-quarter tax payments that are still outstanding for individual owners of pass-through entities can be reduced to take into account these new deductions. Further, allowing these expenditures as tax deductions also avoids open questions about how disallowed deductions would have coordinated with other tax rules, such as the research and development tax credit, qualified business income deduction, and other payroll-based credits. The rule change also provides certainty with respect to financial statement income tax provisions.
Employer tax credits for employee retention
The CARES Act created a new refundable payroll tax credit for employers that retained their employees during 2020 despite the impact of COVID-19. That credit was equal to 50% of the first $10,000 of qualified wages paid by an eligible employer during 2020, leading to a maximum credit of $5,000 per employee. Eligible employers were determined on a quarterly basis to include those that were either: (1) partially or fully shut down due to government orders, or (2) suffered a decline of 50% or more in gross receipts when comparing the 2020 quarter to the same quarter in 2019. For eligible employers that had more than 100 employees, qualified wages only included amounts paid to employees who did not provide services. Conversely, eligible employers with 100 or fewer employees were able to include wages paid to all employees as qualified wages during the applicable quarters. Finally, employers that received PPP loans were ineligible to claim the retention credit. Eligible employers generating the credit as a result of a shutdown were still only able to obtain the credit for the wages paid during the period of the shutdown. The CAA both retroactively changes the CARES Act retention credit but also extends it into 2021 in a substantially modified form. These changes are very substantial and can generate significant amounts of cashflow for eligible businesses.
Retroactive retention credit changes
The CAA makes three modifications to the retention credit that are retroactive to the effective date of the CARES Act. The most significant change removes the restriction that prevents employers that obtained PPP loans from claiming retention credits. Under the modified rule, employers can claim the employee retention credit on any eligible wages not used to support PPP loan forgiveness and any wages that could count toward both provisions can be applied to either, but not both, at the election of the employer. By doing this, employers can maximize both their PPP loan forgiveness and employee retention credit.
Another change clarifies that the gross receipts of a tax-exempt entity include all amounts treated as gross receipts under Section 6033 of the Tax Code. The final retroactive change modifies the determination of qualified wages with respect to health plan expenses. Specifically, group health plan expense not included in gross income of an employee may be allocated and included in qualified wages.
Key takeaway: The retroactive changes to the retention credit, particularly with respect to PPP loan recipients, creates an immediate refund opportunity for these employers. Impacted employers with PPP loans should begin to review how their payroll costs might be covered by both provisions in order to determine which provision to apply. Consideration should also be given to which expenditures are needed to support PPP loan forgiveness to determine how the payroll costs factor into that determination. As noted above, the modifications to the PPP program may retroactively result in certain nonpayroll expenditures being treated as expenses eligible to support loan forgiveness. Where applicable this may expand opportunities to claim retention credits.
Extension and expansion of retention credit
The retention credit has been extended into the first half of 2021, so it will now expire on June 30, 2021, instead of Dec. 31, 2020. The credit has also been increased to 70% of up to $10,000 of qualified wages paid per quarter in 2021. This will allow employers to claim a maximum of up to $14,000 per employee in 2021 if they are eligible in both of the first two quarters of 2021. The test to determine qualified wages remains largely the same, but the threshold separating the two tests has been increased to 500 employees. Thus, eligible employers with up to 500 employees will be able to claim all wages paid to employees during an eligible quarter irrespective of whether the employees provided services. The gross receipts test for determining employer eligibility has also been reduced from a 50% decline to a 20% decline.
These changes together result in a substantially more lucrative credit for many employers, especially those with between 100 and 500 employees. For example, if an employer with 400 employees satisfies the 20% decline in gross receipts for each of its first two quarters of 2021 and each of its employees have at least $10,000 of compensation in each quarter, including allocable healthcare expenses, then it would generate the maximum credit of $7,000 per quarter for each employee. This would create $5,600,000 of refundable credits over the first six months of 2021. Alternatively, if an employer with 200 employees does not satisfy the gross receipts test but is partially shutdown as a result of a government order during January 2021, it would also be eligible for the retention credit but only for qualified wages paid to its employees during the period it was partially shut down. If its employees averaged $3,500 of compensation and health benefits in January, it would be eligible a credit of $490,000.
The CAA also removes the prohibition that employers receiving PPP loans are ineligible for the retention credit in the same manner as discussed above.
Key takeaway: The retention credit has provided helpful support for businesses during 2020 but was limited in its availability for businesses that met the $5,000 per employee limit and for businesses with more than 100 employees who were not paying employees that were not working. By substantially enhancing the amount of the retention credit and opening up the more favorable rules to employers with up to 500 employees, it will become a significant source of cash flow for many more businesses in 2021.
Employer credits for paid sick and family leave
The FFCRA provided refundable payroll tax credits to employers that were required to provide paid sick leave and paid family leave (see our discussion from enactment of the FFCRA). Specifically, employers with fewer than 500 employees were required to provide two forms of paid leave. First, paid sick leave was required for employees that were forced to stay home due to quarantining or to care for a family member. Second, qualified family leave was required for employees staying home to care for a child if the school or place of care was closed. The required amount of paid leave was capped depending on the reason for such leave on a per day basis, up to a per-employee maximum. Employers were eligible for a 100% payroll credit of the amount of paid leave that was required. Special rules were also included for self-employed individuals. However, the requirement to provide such paid leave was scheduled to terminate on Dec. 31, 2020.
The CAA expands the required paid sick leave and paid family leave program through March 31, 2021. For employers and self-employed individuals that are required to provide such leave in 2021, the 100% credit will remain in effect. The per-employee daily and maximum amounts of required leave remain the same, so employers may have already exhausted these requirements. Any voluntary sick leave or family leave paid in excess of the required amounts will not be eligible for the FFCRA credits but may be eligible for the general paid leave credit.
100% deduction for certain business meals
Business expenses for food and beverages are subject to specific rules that generally limit deductions to 50% of the amounts incurred. The 50% limitation includes "de minimis" fringe deductions, meals provided for the convenience of the employer, and company cafeteria expenses. Very limited exceptions allow for 100% deductions in the cases of meals for employee recreational, social, and similar activities or in the case of food provided to the public.
The CAA modifies existing rules by making 100% of business meals deductible where the food and beverages are provided by a restaurant, and the expenses are paid or incurred between Jan. 1, 2021 and Dec. 31, 2022. This change is expected to increase business tax deductions for the next two years while also providing support to a restaurant industry that continues to face significant challenges due to COVID-19.
Election to waive farming loss carrybacks
The tax treatment of net operating losses (NOLs) depends on the nature of the losses and the tax years in which they are incurred. Thus, different rules apply to general business losses, farming losses, and losses sustained by insurance companies. The CARES Act made significant changes to the treatment of NOLs that are incurred in 2018, 2019, or 2020. Such losses are now carried back to the five years preceding the year of the loss unless the taxpayer waives the carryback.
The CAA modifies the CARES Act with respect to farming losses by providing a special rule for the waiver of the five-year carryback. Specifically, this provides that taxpayers will be treated as waiving the NOL carryback where a waiver was included with their previously filed 2018 or 2019 tax returns. If those taxpayers wish to revoke such elections and take advantage of the CARES Act changes, they can amend their previously filed returns. The amendments are due prior to the due date for their first tax return due after enactment of the CAA.
Non-COVID-19 disaster relief
The CAA includes a disaster employee retention credit that applies to areas covered by federal disaster declarations between Jan. 1, 2020, and 60 days after enactment of the CAA. Qualified disaster areas for this purpose do not include COVID-19-related disaster declarations. This credit is similar to the employee retention credit described above but differs in several significant ways (although it is identical to the disaster-related employee retention credit that has been enacted several times in the past for specific disasters). An eligible employer for this credit is any employer that operated an active trade or business in the disaster zone and which is inoperable at any time during the period beginning on the first day of the disaster and ending upon enactment of the CAA. The maximum credit is equal to up to 40% of qualified wages of up to $6,000 per employee. This results in a maximum credit of $2,400 per employee. Differing from the employee retention credit, the disaster credit is available irrespective of whether employees provide services. However, qualified wages for the disaster credit do not include any wages taken into account for the employee retention credit.
Other business tax changes
The CAA includes several other provisions that extend or modify existing tax incentives. Those include:
Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) – The WOTC is a credit that is available to employers that hire individuals from certain targeted groups. This was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2020 but has now been extended until Dec. 31, 2025. Earlier legislative proposals considered an expansion of WOTC, but the final form of the CAA merely extends the effective date without any other substantive changes.
New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) – The NMTC is an investment incentive program that provides federal tax credits in exchange for investments in low-income communities. These credits are authorized by Congress but are then allocated by the Treasury Department to Community Development Entities (CDEs). The CDEs pass these credits along to investors that make investments into qualifying development projects. The NMTC was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2020, but it has been extended until Dec. 31, 2025. The carryover period for the unused NMTC limitation has also been extended through 2030.
Excise taxes on beer, wine, and spirits makers – The CAA makes permanent the lowered excise taxes that were implemented as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. These were set to expire on Dec. 31, 2020.
One-year extension of expiring credits and deductions – Certain tax credits and depreciation rules set to expire on Dec. 31, 2020 have been extended for one year. Those include the Indian Employment Credit, accelerated depreciation for business property on Indian reservations, the three-year recovery period for race horses, and income tax and excise tax credits related to biofuel producers, fuel cell motor vehicles, alternative fuel refueling property, and alternative fuel excise tax credits.
Extension of accelerated depreciation and expensing – Several rules related to depreciation and expensing that were set to expire on Dec. 31, 2020, have now been extended until Dec. 31, 2025. Those include the seven-year recovery period for motorsports entertainment complexes and expensing of qualified film, television, and live theatrical production costs.
Individual tax relief
The CAA includes several changes that will benefit individual taxpayers. These include direct payments, expansion of deduction provisions, and extensions or modifications of tax credits.
Recovery rebates
The CARES Act included a direct payment program for individual taxpayers through the creation of advanced tax rebates. Individual taxpayers were eligible to receive $1,200, married couples who file jointly were eligible to receive $2,400, and parents were eligible to receive an additional $500 for each of their children under the age of 17. Such payments were also subject to an income-based phaseout.
The CAA expands the recovery rebate program albeit in modified form. Individual taxpayers are eligible for an additional $600 per individual, plus $600 per qualifying child. Thus, for example, married taxpayers with two dependent children would be eligible for up to $2,400. These payments are subject to phase-out based on the adjusted gross income (AGI) of the taxpayer for the 2019 tax year. Taxpayers with the following adjusted gross income are completely phased out of this benefit: single filers with AGI of $87,000, head of household filers with AGI of $124,500, and joint filers with AGI of $174,000.
Disaster relief and retirement funds
The CAA provides relief to individuals with respect to federally declared, non-COVID-19 disasters that occurred during 2020. In particular, special rules are provided for early withdrawals from retirement accounts and their repayment. Any income that is attributable to an early distribution in these circumstances will be subject to tax over a three-year period, and the taxpayer will be allowed to recontribute the distributed funds to an eligible retirement plan within three years.
The CARES Act created an above-the-line deduction of up to $300 for cash charitable contributions made by taxpayers during 2020 if the taxpayer does not claim itemized deductions. Such contributions can generally be made to charitable organizations but exclude private foundations and donor-advised funds. The CAA extends this above-the-line deduction into 2021 and increases the deduction to $600 for married taxpayers filing jointly.
The CARES Act also increased the limitations on deductions for charitable contributions made by individuals who claim itemized deductions. Generally, an individual taxpayer can't claim charitable contribution deductions in excess of 60% of such taxpayer's AGI. The CARES Act increased that limitation to 100% of AGI for the 2020 calendar year allowing individuals to offset all of their income with charitable contribution deductions. The CAA extends that treatment through 2021.
Unreimbursed medical expenses
The CAA includes a permanent extension of the deductibility of unreimbursed medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of adjusted taxable income. This deduction has been subject to change recently, with a 10% of adjusted taxable income threshold previously set to take effect in 2021. By permanently setting the threshold at 7.5%, taxpayers will be eligible to claim itemized deductions for more medical expenses.
Employer-paid student loans
The CARES Act allowed employers to provide tax-free student loan repayment benefits to its employees. Specifically, employers were permitted to contribute amounts up to $5,250 toward an employee's student loans per year, with such amounts being excluded from the employee's taxable income. The capped amount of $5,250 is combined with any other tax-free educational assistance that the employer already provided, such as tuition, fees, books, and more. This provision applied to any student loan payment that was made by an employer directly to an employee or on an employee's behalf beginning on March 28, 2020, and ending on Dec. 31, 2020. However, the CAA extends this treatment to qualifying payments made through Dec. 31, 2025.
Deferral of employee payroll taxes
In late August, the IRS and Treasury Department issued Notice 2020-65, which allowed for the voluntary deferral of the 6.2% Social Security tax paid by employees. Under this program, employees could retain the 6.2% payroll tax on wages paid between Sept. 1, 2020 and Dec. 31, 2020. However, the deferred payroll taxes would then be paid between Jan. 1, 2021 and April 30, 2021, through additional withholding by the employer. Any deferred taxes not paid by May 1, 2021, would be subject to penalties. Participation in the deferral program involved complicated considerations for both employers and employees (see our discussion), so many employers chose not to participate.
The CAA provides for an extended repayment period for any deferred payroll taxes under this program. Accordingly, employees that deferred any amounts will now have a full calendar year, from Jan. 1, 2021 to Dec. 31, 2021 to repay the deferred amounts, still via additional withholding by the employer. This extended period will be expected to reduce the per-paycheck impact of the repayment period.
Educator expense deductions for PPE
Elementary and secondary school teachers are eligible to deduct up to $250 per year against their gross income for certain education-related expenses. Those include expenses for professional development courses, books, supplies, computer equipment, and other equipment and materials. The CAA expands that definition of educator expenses to include personal protective equipment, disinfectant, and other supplies to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) – The CAA includes a special provision allowing individual taxpayers to utilize their 2019 earned income in place of their 2020 earned income when determining application of the EITC and CTC. This is expected to increase the amount of available credits for individuals that earned less income in 2020 due to the impact of the pandemic.
Rollover of FSA Benefits – The CAA also allows for individuals to rollover unused benefits from a health flexible spending arrangement and dependent care flexible spending arrangement from one plan year to the next. This applies to plan years ending in both 2020 and 2021.
The CAA contains many provisions that can provide significant cash flow to individuals and businesses. Some provisions will provide this cash automatically while others require taxpayers to take specific actions or to specially plan to take advantage of certain provisions. Taxpayers should be sure that they begin to evaluate each of these areas to develop a plan to ensure that they are maximizing benefits available to them.
Given the speed with which the CAA was enacted and the sheer magnitude of the legislation at close to 6,000 pages, the full extent of some of the provisions are still being unpacked. Visit our COVID-19 Resource Center for continued analysis of the CAA and other COVID-19-related matters.
COVID-19 resource center Take advantage of the employee retention credit
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text:
This page was generated with Wiki Builder. Do not change the format!

## Gorgon
### Info
* **enemyId:** TheGorgons
* **enemyName:** Gorgon
* **cardId:** 603025
* **enemyTier:** Major
* **raceName:** Vex
* **raceClass:** VexMajorHarpyA
* **activityType:** Raid
* **activity:** RaidVenus0
* **destination:** Venus
* **location:** GorgonsLabyrinth

### Stats
statType | statId
-------- | ------
deathsFrom | deathsFromTheGorgons
killsOf | killsOfTheGorgons


text:
Negus Haile Malakot Sahle Selasé (Ge'ez: ንጉስ ኃይለ መለኮት ሣህለ ሥላሤ) fut Negus du Choa de 1847 à 1855.

Fils ainé du roi Sahlé Sellassié du Choa né en 1824.

Il devient roi du Choa à la mort de son père le . Il meurt brutalement à Atakelt le  la veille d'une confrontation armée avec le nouvel empereur Théodoros II d'Éthiopie qui venait de rétablir la monarchie et l'unité du pays.

De son épouse la Woizero (princesse) Ijigaehu il eut un fils unique Sahlé Mariam le futur Empereur Ménélik II d'Éthiopie.

Naissance en 1824
Naissance en Éthiopie
Décès en novembre 1855
Personnalité éthiopienne du XIXe siècle
Souverain éthiopien
Shewa

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Q: UIAlertController crashes when running under XCode 6.1 debugger My iPad app (XCode 6.1.1, iOS 8.1.1, ARC, Storyboards) issues this code when verifying the user wants to delete a record:
//  create an action sheet
UIAlertController *view=   [UIAlertController
                             alertControllerWithTitle:@"Warning!"
                             message:NSLocalizedString(@"Are you sure you want to delete this appointment?",nil)
                             preferredStyle:UIAlertControllerStyleActionSheet];

UIAlertAction* yes = [UIAlertAction
                      actionWithTitle:@"Yes"
                      style:UIAlertActionStyleDefault
                      handler:^(UIAlertAction * action)
                      {
                          [self deleteSingleAppointment];
                          [view dismissViewControllerAnimated:YES completion:nil];

                      }];
UIAlertAction* no = [UIAlertAction
                     actionWithTitle:@"No"
                     style:UIAlertActionStyleDefault
                     handler:^(UIAlertAction * action)
                     {
                         //Do some thing here
                         [view dismissViewControllerAnimated:YES completion:nil];

                     }];

[view addAction:yes];
[view addAction:no];

view.popoverPresentationController.sourceView = self.view;
view.popoverPresentationController.sourceRect = CGRectMake(self.view.bounds.size.width / 2.0, self.view.bounds.size.height / 2.0, 1.0, 1.0);
[self presentViewController: view animated:YES completion:nil];

This code runs just fine when I run it outside the debugger on the device; this is the error shown, the stack trace follows:

UPDATED  Here is the "stack trace" from 'bt':

(lldb) bt
  * thread #1: tid = 0x14e4ec, 0x0000000111437dd2 CoreFoundationCFArrayGetValueAtIndex + 130, queue = 'com.apple.main-thread', stop reason = EXC_BAD_ACCESS (code=1, address=0x0)
      frame #0: 0x0000000111437dd2 CoreFoundationCFArrayGetValueAtIndex + 130
      frame #1: 0x00000001137461af CoreTextTCharStream::CopyBreakIterator(__CFString const*) + 251
      frame #2: 0x0000000113745f7e CoreTextTCharStream::FindLineBreak(CFRange, bool, __CFString const*) const + 274
      frame #3: 0x00000001136cde9c CoreTextTTypesetter::SuggestLineBreak(TLine const&, long, double, double) + 290
      frame #4: 0x00000001136cdb52 CoreTextCTLineSuggestLineBreakWithOffset + 20
      frame #5: 0x000000011a6158f3 UIFoundation__NSStringDrawingEngine + 19550
      frame #6: 0x000000011a610c6f UIFoundation-[NSString(NSExtendedStringDrawing) boundingRectWithSize:options:attributes:context:] + 198
      frame #7: 0x000000010faa0305 UIKit-[UILabel _textRectForBounds:limitedToNumberOfLines:includingShadow:] + 1025
      frame #8: 0x000000010fa9fda0 UIKit-[UILabel textRectForBounds:limitedToNumberOfLines:] + 76
      frame #9: 0x000000010faa3852 UIKit-[UILabel _intrinsicSizeWithinSize:] + 170
      frame #10: 0x000000010faa3932 UIKit-[UILabel intrinsicContentSize] + 76
      frame #11: 0x000000010ff59ea4 UIKit-[UIView(UIConstraintBasedLayout) _generateContentSizeConstraints] + 33
      frame #12: 0x000000010ff59c64 UIKit-[UIView(UIConstraintBasedLayout) _updateContentSizeConstraints] + 422
      frame #13: 0x000000010ff610d6 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) updateConstraints] + 163
      frame #14: 0x000000010faa379d UIKit-[UILabel updateConstraints] + 272
      frame #15: 0x000000010ff606fa UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 248
      frame #16: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #17: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #18: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #19: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #20: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #21: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #22: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #23: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #24: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #25: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #26: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #27: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #28: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #29: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #30: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #31: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #32: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #33: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #34: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #35: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #36: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #37: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #38: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #39: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #40: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #41: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #42: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #43: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #44: 0x0000000111455194 CoreFoundationCFArrayApplyFunction + 68
      frame #45: 0x000000010ff6069b UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _internalUpdateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 153
      frame #46: 0x000000010ff608f2 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsIfNeededAccumulatingViewsNeedingSecondPassAndViewsNeedingBaselineUpdate:] + 124
      frame #47: 0x000000010edcbd6e Foundation-[NSISEngine withBehaviors:performModifications:] + 155
      frame #48: 0x000000010ff60bd4 UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) updateConstraintsIfNeeded] + 565
      frame #49: 0x000000010ff541e0 UIKit-[UIWindow(UIConstraintBasedLayout) updateConstraintsIfNeeded] + 91
      frame #50: 0x000000010ff6119e UIKit-[UIView(AdditionalLayoutSupport) _updateConstraintsAtEngineLevelIfNeeded] + 159
      frame #51: 0x000000010f947b2d UIKit-[UIView(Hierarchy) _updateConstraintsAsNecessaryAndApplyLayoutFromEngine] + 114
      frame #52: 0x000000010f953973 UIKit-[UIView(CALayerDelegate) layoutSublayersOfLayer:] + 521
      frame #53: 0x000000010f626de8 QuartzCore-[CALayer layoutSublayers] + 150
      frame #54: 0x000000010f61ba0e QuartzCoreCA::Layer::layout_if_needed(CA::Transaction*) + 380
      frame #55: 0x000000010f61b87e QuartzCoreCA::Layer::layout_and_display_if_needed(CA::Transaction*) + 24
      frame #56: 0x000000010f58963e QuartzCoreCA::Context::commit_transaction(CA::Transaction*) + 242
      frame #57: 0x000000010f58a74a QuartzCoreCA::Transaction::commit() + 390
      frame #58: 0x000000010f58adb5 QuartzCoreCA::Transaction::observer_callback(__CFRunLoopObserver*, unsigned long, void*) + 89
      frame #59: 0x0000000111481dc7 CoreFoundation__CFRUNLOOP_IS_CALLING_OUT_TO_AN_OBSERVER_CALLBACK_FUNCTION__ + 23
      frame #60: 0x0000000111481d20 CoreFoundation__CFRunLoopDoObservers + 368
      frame #61: 0x0000000111477b53 CoreFoundation__CFRunLoopRun + 1123
      frame #62: 0x0000000111477486 CoreFoundationCFRunLoopRunSpecific + 470
      frame #63: 0x00000001122de9f0 GraphicsServicesGSEventRunModal + 161
      frame #64: 0x000000010f8da420 UIKitUIApplicationMain + 1282
    * frame #65: 0x000000010ddba9a3 SalonBookmain(argc=3, argv=0x00007fff51e46488) + 115 at main.m:15
      frame #66: 0x000000011100d145 libdyld.dylibstart + 1
  (lldb)

I have restarted the Mac, but it still happens.  Any idea what's causing this?


To ensure successful hiring, it's essential to communicate effectively with your staffing agency. Staying engaged via ongoing communication will ensure the best possible results and a smooth recruitment process.
Lay down the process from start to finish.
Successful recruitment involves several stages, from sourcing and selecting candidates to hiring, onboarding and retention. Discuss the entire process with your staffing agency. Be sure to include such specifics as the time required for each phase and all related logistics.
Discuss job requirements in full detail.
Include specific technical skills, required degrees, certifications and licensures, and all details on how candidates will be assessed. Set clear guidelines regarding terms of service, major milestones, and any sensitive or delicate issues related to filling a position.
These might include dress code and hours, just to name a few. Give your agency representative a good idea of your company culture and what type of professional would succeed there.
Hold regularly scheduled calls and updates. A good rule of thumb is to schedule these weekly. Even if you have no immediate needs, take the opportunity to discuss long-term plans and hypothetical scenarios. This way, you can avoid fighting recruitment fires. Be transparent about your current situation, as well as upcoming needs and challenges.
Be sure communication is two way.
Keep your agency informed of any updates or changes to your staffing plan. And, be sure they keep you informed of their progress. Use whatever tactics work best – meetings, phone calls, online sessions or other tools – to keep communication flexible and accommodating for everyone involved.
Whether your staffing goals include temporary or permanent hiring, consider partnering with Frontline Source Group to help ensure your success in filling jobs in IT, accounting, finance, administration, CSR, engineering, and the oil and gas industries. Our recruiters will work as a seamless extension of your in-house HR team, as you tap into our nationwide network of resources. Looking for a staffing agency in Austin, TX? Contact us today to learn more. To find the branch closest to you, click here.


text:
UTC: Local:
Home Page Index Page
1637: No Peace Beyond the Line: Chapter Eight
Last updated: Sunday, October 25, 2020 09:39 EDT
Petit-cul-de-sac Marin, Guadeloupe
"Starboard battery two, A gun, reports ready, Commodore!" Svantner cried over the flap of Intrepid's sails.
"Fire at the crew chief's discretion, Lieutenant!" Eddie shouted back, albeit with none of his XO's animation.
That permission, shouted down a speaking tube to the cruiser's gun-deck, brought no immediate response from the weapon. Take your time, thought Eddie, raising his binoculars to examine the state of their target.
The French bark, only two hundred thirty yards away, was in difficult straits — literally and figuratively. Barely more than a third the length or freeboard of the Intrepid, she had been at anchor in Guadeloupe's large southern bay, the Petit-cul-de-sac Marin, when the larger ship appeared with the Dutch jachts Zuidsterre and Fortuin.
These escorts, lately attached after completing their duties as the northern arms of the detection net spread before La Flota, harried the larger bark, dancing away from her guns, but cutting off any escape out into open water. Eddie had kept Intrepid slightly back from those maneuvers, watching the Frenchman for signs of where she felt it safe to go and where not. Had he been conning the bark, his goal would have been to entice the impossibly large steam cruiser to follow him into shallows and there either run aground, or be in enough danger of doing so that she would abandon pursuit in favor of carefully navigating back to safe waters.
That did indeed seem to be what the Frenchman had been hoping to achieve. After the first quarter hour, when it was clear that the cruiser was not taking that bait, he made one run to escape, hard along the eastern shore. He had not counted on the range of Intrepid's carronades. Starboard battery one had discharged all three guns. The result was one embarrassingly wide miss, a very near one, and a solid hit amidships. The power of that sixty-eight pound ball at such close range sent strakes, planks, and a deck gun flying up and the Frenchman flying back the way he had come.
As the bark heeled over to beat that retreat, Eddie would almost certainly have scored at least one more hit by coming a point to port, thereby giving battery two a ready target. But by chasing the enemy hull back into the Petit-cul-de-sac Marin, he hoped its captain would see and submit to the hopelessness of his situation, and thereby surrender his ship to ensure the survival of his crew.
Either the captain was made of sterner stuff or was simply stubborn. For the next half hour, he attempted to entice Intrepid into chasing him, ultimately tucking tightly around the western end of one of the bay's small islands — ÃŽlet Cochon — and making for the glorified sand-bar named ÃŽlet Boissard. It was an act of desperation, in that no mariner worth their salt would have followed him there, not even the shallow-drafted jachts. But the French captain had little choice; he was now operating in a patch of water so small, and so uneven in the rise and drop of its sandy bed, that his only remaining hope was for his enemies to make a foolish mistake or intercession by force-majeur. Which on a day as clear as this one, Eddie reflected with a rueful smile, would mean the freakish appearance of either a water-funnel or a hoary-hided kraken.
Neither appeared, and his opponent's desperation took its toll: it was the Frenchman that ultimately found itself brushing the bottom in a touch-and-go dance with running aground. Instead of Intrepid, it was the bark that had to slow and, using sails ill-suited for the purpose, reverse her course out of the labyrinth of silt and sand at the foot of the bay. And at the present moment, that meant showing her stern to Intrepid.
And still, Eddie realized, starboard two's A gun had yet to fire. He was about to make a loud suggestion that sooner would be better than later when the gun released its raucous blast along with a plume of white smoke. An eyeblink later, its ball punched down upon the amidship deck planks of the bark, just aft of the mainmast. It's angle of impact — extremely acute — had the effect of almost skipping the shot back up, but it was blocked by two very solid objects: the mainmast and its deck collar.
The impact generated a crack like a wood-splitting lightning strike, and the surrounding planks buckled or sheared, broken ends sticking up like sawed-off toe-tips. The chaotic spray of wood dropped several deckhands and those who remained fought to keep the mast up. Either orders or a greater understanding of the damage reversed those labors; now they were trying to ensure that its fall would not bring down the foremast.
They managed that, but settling back into the divot dug by the carronade's ball, the mainmast tilted and then rushed down sternward, stripping the gaff clean off the mizzen as swiftly and surely as an axe trimming a dried branch.
"She's done!" Svantner said enthusiastically, loudly. "They'll strike colors any second, now."
Eddie crossed his arms and frowned. This captain had persisted when most others would have accepted the inevitable. "We'll see," was all he said.
Three minutes later, the Frenchman's starboard stern cannon roared defiance at her three opponents; the six-pound ball missed Zuidsterre by thirty yards. Not bad shooting, given the range of two hundred fifty yards. On the shattered deck, men were moving with purpose: making repairs, passing out muskets, adjusting the foresail to renew their attempts to escape the twisting shallow, and tossing the dead over the side.
Eddie shook his head; just what he'd feared.
Svantner was outraged. "What instructions for the Master Gunner, sir?" he almost shouted, although the cannons were still that moment.
Eddie sighed. "Starboard battery one is to load with canister."
"To bring down their foresail, sir?"
"Svantner, it's not their foresail that keeps them fighting." Eddie sighed more deeply. "Aim low. Sweep the length of the deck. Stop when she strikes her colors."
"And if she doesn't?"
"Then keep firing until there's no one left to shoot back."
As his longboat's prow touched the sand with a grating hiss, Eddie glanced past the white flag fluttering over its transom: Intrepid looked deceptively small at this distance. It was the first time since coming to the New World that he'd been in potentially enemy territory while outside of her protective umbrella and stout hull. It was not, he decided, a particularly enjoyable sensation.
He rose from the seat as the team of Marines in the bow — armed with percussion cap rifles and revolvers — jumped into the knee-deep water on either side and made their way out of the lazy surf. There was no indication that anyone in the small encampment a hundred yards east and just beyond the margin of the beach had noticed their arrival. Nor was there a Kalinago war party waiting for them, either. About which he had to wonder: was that a good sign or the calm before a storm?
Since being lowered down from Intrepid's aft davits, Eddie had thought more than once that maybe Svantner had been right: mount the outboard motor for this mission. Probably wouldn't be needed, but if it was, there was nothing like a 30 horse-power engine to ensure a quick get-away. But mounting it and testing it would have meant a delay, and following up the decisive defeat of the French bark with a prompt, confident visit under a flag of truce was the best way to keep the initiative.
Which, Eddie acknowledged with a sigh, would not be achieved by remaining on Intrepid's skiff. As he made ready to stand — not easy with a prosthetic foot and ankle, even one of up-time design and manufacture — Lieutenant Gallagher jumped out and pulled the boat a foot or two further up the strand. The young Irishman — one of the Wild Geese mercenaries — smiled back at him. "Mind, there's a wee undertow, Commodore."
Eddie nodded, pushed down two resentments. First, that he didn't have two feet of his own any longer. And second, that he'd agreed to having the commander of his elite troops accompany him as a personal guard, the notion of which fit Eddie's view of himself and the world about as well as kneepads fit a chicken. But Svantner's objections had bordered on insubordination: it was his role to make landfall instead of his CO. And, under other circumstances, he would have been right.
But these circumstances were not typical, and required a diplomatic touch that Svantner sorely lacked. So Eddie had suggested that one of the Wild Geese could look after his safety. Even that failed to mollify Svantner until Gallagher overheard the debate and promptly volunteered himself for the duty.
Which left Eddie with three choices. Decide against a guard from the Wild Geese (no good; it had been his idea); insist upon another of the mercenaries (a slap to Gallagher's face), or reverse his order and refuse any guard at all (probably stupid and a CO can't even appear to waffle).
With a nod to the two ship's troops who were remaining behind to guard the skiff and maintain visual contact with Svantner (who was probably about to have kittens), Eddie threw his good leg over the side, waited for the slack in the space between the tide's ebb and flow, got his prosthetic solidly on the sand, and marched toward the tents to the east.
Eddie had anticipated many possibilities when he had seen the cluster of tents and lean-tos from the deck of Intrepid. It could have been the starving survivors of a failed colony; a camp of invalids, weakened by malnutrition and struck down by a local disease; cripples who, after fleeing from retribution after their failed attack on St. Eustatia, had lost their health along with the limbs taken by a combination of gangrene and the surgeon's saw. The only thing that seemed certain was that its inhabitants were neither numerous nor vigorous; forty-five minutes of observation through a spyglass had yielded only a few signs of brief, labored movement.
But none of that prepared him for what he discovered as he approached the tents. For the first few moments, he couldn't even come up with a mental label for it. But then one emerged: The colony of lost women. Almost all of whom were malnourished, sickly, or both.
At the center, one thin, well-featured man — pale, dark-haired, bearded — was sitting on the remains of a sun-bleached crate. He stood unsteadily and said, "I am Jacques Dyel Du Parquet. Nephew of Pierre D'Esnambuc, late the Governor of the French colony on St. Christopher, whose ship and life you have just erased from this world." His smile was both sardonic and rueful. "I suspect you wish our surrender."
Comments from the Peanut Gallery:
ISBN: 1-9821-2496-2 Copyright © 2020 by Eric Flint and Charles Gannon
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.


text:
Q: Update Vim in RHEL to version 7.4.2009 I am trying to write a Go server on a RHEL 7 system, but the Vim plugin, vim-go, requires version 7.4.2009, where the system only has 7.4.1099. I have tried
yum install vim

and it already has the latest version.
Package 2:vim-enhanced-7.4.160-4.el7.x86_64 already installed and latest version
Nothing to do

Question is, how can I update Vim such that it will support Go syntax highlighting?

A: The vim-go software is packaged for CentOS 7 already, does that not work for you?
You can find the RPM in the EPEL repositories: https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/7/x86_64/Packages/v/vim-go-1.8-3.el7.x86_64.rpm
This leads me to believe that the version of vim packaged for CentOS 7 has the needed requirements to run vim-go.
If that still does not work, post what errors and issues you continue to experience.


text:
Election forecasts
The election result: six possible scenarios
Six months from today, the country will be waking up to find it has elected a new… what exactly?
I first asked that question six months ago when I began this blog, and when the election was still a whole year away. Back then I suggested three answers: a Labour majority, a Conservative majority, or Labour being the largest party in a hung parliament. I thought the last of these was most likely, and to that end concluded we'd be waking up on Friday 8 May 2015 to find we hadn't elected a new government at all. Instead no party would have reached the magic figure of 326 seats needed to have an absolute majority in the House of Commons. A period of negotiation would be about to begin, culminating in a coalition agreement between two parties. I believed this would be between Labour and the Liberal Democrats.
Six months on from that forecast I still think we're heading for a hung parliament. But there are no longer just three scenarios to consider. And it's not the case a coalition may come about between merely two parties.
Starting with the assumption that no single party will win enough seats to have an outright majority, I reckon there are now a total of six realistic scenarios, each involving a different combination of parties and calculation of seats. Any one of these could be facing us the morning after the election.
1. A Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition
In other words, the same as before. For this to happen the Lib Dems would need to limit their losses to a small enough number to still make it possible for a combined total with the Tories to add up to more than 326. At the 2010 election the combined number was 373 (306 Conservatives + 57 Lib Dems). Nick Clegg's party could lose 20 or so seats and still give the Tories enough extra MPs to pass the winning line – assuming the Tories don't lose too many of their own, of course.
2. A Conservative minority government
If the Tories get close enough to 326 to feel they can get by without entering a formal coalition with anybody, they might decide to go it alone. The party could negotiate an ad hoc agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland, or even – whisper it – with Ukip. A minority government could not last for five years, however, and a fresh election would have to take place before too long.
3. A Labour minority government
Labour may choose to also go it alone if it gets close enough to 326 to feel it more of a hindrance than a help to enter a formal coalition with anyone. But I think this scenario would only have the smack of legitimacy if the Tories had been badly beaten. There would need to be a large enough bloc of anti-Tory opinion in the new House of Commons for a Labour minority government to be both constitutionally and practically viable. That means a good showing by the nationalists and the SDLP in Northern Ireland, as well as a Liberal Democrat party that was willing to switch its allegiance from the Conservatives. If Nick Clegg feels sufficiently justified in swapping one bedfellow for another, and if Labour will have him, we may end up with…
4. A Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition
This seemed like the default outcome for much of the past six months, even though opinion polls in the first half of 2014 suggested Labour was on course for a majority. I still feel it is the most plausible scenario, if no longer highly likely. But were it to come to pass, it would be more through arithmetical necessity rather than ideological consummation. You get the sense that most senior Lib Dem politicians would rather carry on dealing with the Conservatives than Labour.
5. A Labour-Liberal Democrat-SNP coalition
Now we get to the multi-party options. If the SNP takes its toll on Labour in Scotland, Ed Miliband may find that even a coalition with the Lib Dems is not enough to get him past the 326-seat mark. A "progressive" coalition might then come into being – more precisely, an "anti-Tory" coalition – but the SNP would surely want to exact a juicy price for such an arrangement. It remains the fact that there are more parties in the UK opposed to the Conservatives than those willing to make any kind of accommodation with them. Miliband's list of potential allies is longer than that of David Cameron. But ensuring any kind of multi-party coalition lasted five years would need at its helm a master tactician and manager. Is the Labour leader either of those?
6. A Conservative-DUP-Ukip coalition
It could never happen – or could it? Ukip currently says it would support a Tory government on a "confidence and supply" model; in other words, supporting legislation on a vote-by-vote basis. But I have no doubt whatsoever this attitude would change were the Tories to dangle a seat in the cabinet in front of Nigel Farage. Throw in the DUP's eight MPs and you'd have an alliance of the main right-wing parties in the Commons. Such an arrangement would have more legitimacy if the Tories and Ukip combined won more votes than Labour and the Lib Dems. This could very well happen. Indeed, the matter of who wins most votes versus who wins most seats could underpin much of what plays out in those feverish few days immediately after the election.
If the result is very close – a mere handful of seats, as in February 1974 – precedent would give David Cameron, as the sitting prime minister, the first go at forming a government. Negotiations might take days, even weeks. But I think that would be no bad thing. The coalition talks in 2010 were far too rushed, framed by an illusory threat of an "economic crisis" that was never going to happen. The coalition talks of 2015 need to be different. Embarking on a further five years of shared government ought to give politicians of every hue pause for thought.
If they haven't already done so, someone should start booking a few meeting rooms in Whitehall.
Published on: 8 November 2014 8 November 2014 Author: Ian Jones
Six months to go
Latest by-election results: twin humiliations for Labour


The bill, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post, would change the law to say that "marriage is the legally recognized union of two people" and that "any person who otherwise meets the eligibility requirements . . . may marry any other eligible person regardless of gender.".
If you live in DC, call your City Councilor today. And, next week. And, the week after.


To take up the Quit to Win! Challenge, you must be a regular smoker (cigarettes or other tobacco products) as of December 20, 2018, live in Québec and be ready to commit to not smoking between February 4 and March 17, 2019, inclusively. You must also register online or by phone between December 20, 2018, and February 4, 2019, inclusively.
A person may not register for the Quit to Win! Challenge to stop the use of e-cigarettes or cannabis, since these are not considered tobacco products.
2. What is the deadline for registering?
You have until February 4, 2019 to register for the Challenge. Online registration will be blocked as of midnight (00:00 EST) on February 5, 2019.
3. Is the Challenge open to smokers of all ages?
The Quit to Win! Challenge is open to everyone, whatever their age. In the case of registration with a sponsor, the sponsor must necessarily be 18 or over only if the participant is younger than 18. If the participant is over 18, the sponsor's age doesn't matter. For registration with a teammate, age is of no importance.
4. Once I register, can I quit smoking before the start of the Challenge?
You can stop smoking as of December 20, 2018. However, to be eligible for our draws, you must abstain from smoking for the Challenge period, from February 4 to March 17, 2019 inclusively.
5. Can I use medications to quit smoking during the Challenge?
Of course! Using medications to quit smoking (nicotine patches, gums, lozenges, inhalers and mouth sprays, varenicline or bupropion pills) is allowed during the Challenge. In fact, they can greatly improve your chances of success.
6. May I use e-cigarettes as cessation aids to quit smoking?
Because electronic cigarettes aren't tobacco products, participants are allowed to use e-cigarettes (with or without nicotine) as cessation aids to help them quit smoking within the framework of the Challenge. To learn more about this method.
7. Can I smoke cannabis during the Challenge?
The only requirement for the 6 weeks of the Challenge is not to smoke cigarettes or any other product containing tobacco, for example, a cannabis joint mixed with tobacco.
8. How can you ensure people keep their pledge to not smoke?
The Quit to Win! Challenge is based on the good faith of participants, sponsors and teammates. However, when awarding the prizes we make sure the winners have kept their promise. They must sign a declaration attesting they have not smoked during the Challenge period, and, as the case may require, we reserve the right to have them undergo a screening test.
9. What happens if I have a relapse?
You will no longer be eligible for the prize draw, because to win a prize you must not have smoked at all during the Challenge period. But that is no reason to give up trying!
10. What happens if a person whose name is drawn fails the test?
Unfortunately, that person will not receive a prize. Another name will be drawn and someone else meeting the eligibility rules will be declared the prize winner.
11. If I live in a place where there is lots of smoke, will I fail the test because of the second-hand smoke?
Second-hand smoke is more diluted than the smoke inhaled by smokers, and leaves no significant amounts in the body. In contentious cases, other measures will be applied to determine the smoking status of the participant.