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Share this Story: Anxious times at Laurentian University
Anxious times at Laurentian University
'It's really upsetting to see the Laurentian family split apart'
Jim Moodie
Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ont. John Lappa/Sudbury Star/Postmedia Network
If COVID-19 wasn't enough to make this Easter Weekend less relaxing than most, students and faculty at Laurentian had extra reasons to feel stressed over the so-called break.
On Thursday the university announced it is terminating its federation agreement with Huntington University, Thorneloe University and the University of Sudbury, effective May 1.
Anxious times at Laurentian University Back to video
The move is necessary to "to ensure that millions of dollars paid by Laurentian to the federated universities each year relating to the delivery of programs and courses will remain within Laurentian, as part of its path to future financial sustainability," the school said in a release.
The university also pledged that students "enrolled in programs at any of the federated universities will be offered a place within Laurentian in a similar or alternative program."
Details of which courses will be scrapped and how many faculty members might be losing their positions were not provided, however, leaving the university community in a state of anxious limbo.
"They dropped the news at 10 o'clock on Thursday, right before the holiday," said student Darius Garneau on Monday. "So nobody is going to get an answer to any of their questions until tomorrow (Tuesday)."
A special meeting of the Laurentian senate is planned for Tuesday morning, at which members will be presented with a package and asked to approve a plan laid out through the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act process.
"That's when we will hear about what is going to get cut," said Garneau. "The senate is going to be asked to vote, and the sentiment I'm hearing is they don't want to decide on firing colleagues and kicking students out of the university."
Like most universities in Canada, Laurentian has a bicameral governance structure, meaning it has a board to oversee financial matters and a senate that is responsible for academic decisions.
Members of the senate have been involved in the court proceedings for creditor protection but "all of the things that are happening within that CCAA process are secret," noted Garneau.
He said he is eager to learn "what is going to happen next" and more specifically: "what criteria they've gone through to assess who deserves to lose their job and what student deserves to not get their education anymore. Is it going to be based on what programs are bringing in more money, on enrolment, or is it going to be based on what they value as important or not important?"
The Save Our Sudbury coalition, of which Garneau is a member, met through Zoom on Friday for a discussion he described as "super emotional," as the sense is that numerous programs and upwards of 100 teaching jobs are at risk.
"It's scary for a lot of students," he said. "Right now it's exam time, final projects for many of us. We're at the end of the semester, so if you're a student at a program that mainly runs out of a federated university, a lot of them are wondering, on top of the stress of exams, whether their program is even going to exist in a month."
Garneau said his programs are based at the main Laurentian campus, but all students will feel the loss of offerings through the federated schools.
"It's really upsetting to see the Laurentian family split apart," he said. "I don't think there are many who attend Laurentian who aren't touched by the federated universities in some way. I'm taking classes at all of them, have gone to events at all of them. They each have something very special to offer."
Thorneloe University has announced it will be taking legal action to stop Laurentian from unilaterally terminating its federation agreement.
"Thorneloe is not the cause of Laurentian's financial problems, which have been well known for many months to Laurentian's administration, as well as to the Ontario government," said Thornloe's president John Gibaut in a release.
Neither Huntington nor the University of Sudbury issued a public statement in regard to the divorce announced by Laurentian on Thursday, although the latter had earlier indicated it will be making its charters available to French and First Nation partners should they wish to operate separately as their own schools.
The U of S board of regents invited both the Indigenous and francophone communities to "help create institutions by and for Indigenous people, by and for francophones," said president John Meehan at a meeting of the LU senate in mid-March.
Garneau said it is "pretty upsetting" that programs at the federated schools might not be available beyond April 30, the deadline Laurentian faces to submit a restructuring plan that will satisfy its lenders.
"The University of Sudbury has the second oldest Indigenous studies program in North America and the Franco-Ontarian flag was created out of there," he said. "Thorneloe offers programs that are one-of-a-kind when it comes to gender diversity, inclusion and the arts. They're not necessarily science, but programs where people who are part of those communities really get to learn about themselves, and ones that aren't available everywhere."
Save Our Sudbury, which formed in February to fight for the preservation of Laurentian, is continuing to demand Queen's Park step in with emergency funding for the cash-strapped school.
"A lot of people get upset when they hear about a government bailout, because obviously Laurentian got itself here," said Garneau. "But I think what people have to remember is that Laurentian has been historically underfunded, as have most Northern institutions when it comes to post-secondary, and the province's response to low enrolment at Laurentian has been to take funding away when they instead they should be doing things to increase incentives to study in the North."
The student said current LU president Robert Hache can't be entirely blamed for the crisis, as the university's financial woes predate his time at the helm.
Nonetheless, the SOS group is now demanding Hache and the entire board of governors be "wiped clean," said Garneau, based on the way the crisis has been handled.
"He is not the president that got us to this point, but he's shown a lack of transparency and that his interest really isn't in preserving Laurentian," he said. "You can see that specifically when it comes to the decision on the federated universities, and how it was just put out there without talking to anybody."
The coalition is planning an action today (Tuesday) from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. to protest the university's decision to scrap the federated agreement and again call on the province to come forward with support.
Protesters will be "lined up with signs, masked and socially distanced, on the Bridge of Nations and leading toward Laurentian," said Garneau.
jmoodie@postmedia.com


Hubzilla is more than a simple web application. It is a complex communications system which more closely resembles an email server than a web server. For reliability and performance, messages are delivered in the background and are queued for later delivery when sites are down. This kind of functionality requires a bit more of the host system than the typical blog. Not every PHP/MySQL hosting provider will be able to support Hubzilla. Many will but please review the requirements and confirm these with your hosting provider prior to installation.
We've tried very hard to ensure that Hubzilla will run on commodity hosting platforms such as those used to host Wordpress blogs and Drupal websites. It will run on most any Linux VPS system. Windows LAMP platforms such as XAMPP and WAMP are not officially supported at this time however we welcome patches if you manage to get it working.
If you encounter problems or have issues not addressed in this documentation, please let us know via the Github issue tracker. Please be as clear as you can about your operating environment and provide as much detail as possible about any error messages you may see, so that we can prevent it from happening in the future. Due to the large variety of operating systems and PHP platforms in existence we may have only limited ability to debug your PHP installation or acquire any missing modules * but we will do our best to solve any general code issues.
Hubzilla can only be installed into the root of a domain or sub-domain, and can not be installed using alternate TCP ports.
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Please test your certificate prior to installation. A web tool for testing your certificate is available at "http://www.digicert.com/help/". When visiting your site for the first time, please use the SSL ("https://") URL if SSL is available. This will avoid problems later. The installation routine will not allow you to use a non browser-valid certificate.
This restriction is incorporated because public posts from you may contain references to images on your own hub. Other members viewing their stream on other hubs will get warnings if your certificate is not trusted by their web browser. This will confuse many people because this is a decentralised network and they will get the warning about your hub while viewing their own hub and may think their own hub has an issue. These warnings are very technical and scary to some folks, many of whom will not know how to proceed except to follow the browser advice. This is disruptive to the community. That said, we recognise the issues surrounding the current certificate infrastructure and agree there are many problems, but that doesn't change the requirement.
Free "browser-valid" certificates are available from providers such as StartSSL and LetsEncrypt.
If you do NOT use SSL, there may be a delay of up to a minute for the initial install script - while we check the SSL port to see if anything responds there. When communicating with new sites, Hubzilla always attempts connection on the SSL port first, before falling back to a less secure connection. If you do not use SSL, your webserver MUST NOT listen on port 443 at all.
If you use LetsEncrypt to provide certificates and create a file under .well-known/acme-challenge so that LetsEncrypt can verify your domain ownership, please remove or rename the .well-known directory as soon as the certificate is generated. Hubzilla will provide its own handler for ".well-known" services when it is installed, and an existing directory in this location may prevent some of these services from working correctly. This should not be a problem with Apache, but may be an issue with nginx or other web server platforms.
There are several ways to deploy a new hub.
Apache with mod-rewrite enabled and "AllowOverride All" so you can use a local .htaccess file. Some folks have successfully used nginx and lighttpd. Example config scripts are available for these platforms in doc/install. Apache and nginx have the most support.
PHP command line access with register_argc_argv set to true in the php.ini file * and with no hosting provider restrictions on the use of exec() and proc_open().
curl, gd (with at least jpeg and png support), mysqli, mbstring, mcrypt, zip, and openssl extensions. The imagick extension is not required but desirable.
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some form of email server or email gateway such that PHP mail() works.
Mysql 5.x or MariaDB or postgres database server.
ability to schedule jobs with cron.
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If you copy the directory tree to your webserver, make sure that you include the hidden files like .htaccess.
There is a shell script in (.homeinstall/hubzilla-setup.sh) that will install Hubzilla and its dependencies on a fresh installation of Debian 9 stable (Stetch). It should work on similar Linux systems but your results may vary.
Open your domain with a browser and step throught the initial configuration of Hubzilla.
Several web communities have begun to converge using common protocols. The protocols involved are somewhat limited in their abilities. The GNU-Social protocol for instance offers no privacy modes, and the Diaspora protocol is somewhat restrictive in what kinds of communications are allowed. All comments must be signed in a very unique manner by the original author. The ActivityPub protocol is also being considered and may be supported at a future date. No other existing protocol supports nomadic location as used by this project. This presents some support challenges as some features work with some networks and don't work with others. Nevertheless the federation protocols allow connections to be made to a much larger community of people worldwide. They are provided as addons.
diaspora - The Diaspora Protocol used by Diaspora and Friendica. You should enable 'Diaspora Statistics' (statistics) first to enable all the available features.
gnusoc - The GNU-Social Protocol, used by GNU-Social, Mastodon and several other communities. This addon requires you first install the 'pubsubhubbub' service (also an addon).
and enable these protocols automatically for all newly created channels.
We've implemented several different mechanisms in order to reduce the apparent complexity and learning curve presented to new members. At the same time, we do not wish to limit any functionality for people who are able to grasp some slightly advanced technical technical features. The first mechanism was to move several features to an optional 'Features' page where they could be enabled at will; with the default interface kept somewhat lean.
The problem we had now is that the number of features began to grow dramatically, and the Feature page is daunting in possibilities. There are also features present which probably should not be available to all members, but may be extremely useful to those with technical backgrounds.
The techlevels seeeks to remedy this by grouping features within different levels of technical ability; starting at 0 (uncomfortable with technology), and up to 5 (Unix wizard or equivalent).
When a new member registers, their account is provided a techlevel setting of 0. On the account settings page they may change this to any available level. A higher level opens more advanced features and possible interactions.
The account administrator may also lock a particular level, lock a maximum level, or change/re-arrange the features available to any level. Those with the minimum level are typically not very exploratory and are unlikely to discover the advanced modes. This is by design. Those that look around and desire more interactions will find them. In the absence of administrator defaults they may choose any level. As they look at the features available to the level in question, it is generally expected that they will discover some features are beyond their comprehension and it is hoped they will back off to a level where the interface and features are comfortable to their skill level.
Administration of the website is commonly done through the admin webpage located at /admin on your website. In order to access this page you must have administration rights to the server. Administration rights are granted to the first account to register on your site, provided the email address of that account exactly matches the email address you provided as the administrator's email address during setup.
There are several ways that this can fail and leave the system without an administrator account, for instance if the first account that was created provided a different email address than the administrator email address that was supplied during setup.
For security reasons there is no web page or interface on the system which will give you administrator access. If you need to correct a situation where a system has no administrator account it must be done by editing the account table in the database. There is no other way. To do this, you will need to locate the entry in the account table which belongs to the desired administrator, and set 'account_roles' for that entry to 4096. You will then be able to access the admin page from your system's profile menu or directly via /admin .
A hub can have multiple admins and there is no limit to how administrators you can have. Repeat the above process for every account you wish to provide with administration rights.
The system logfile is an extremely useful resource for tracking down things that go wrong. This can be enabled in the admin/log configuration page. A loglevel setting of LOGGER_DEBUG is preferred for stable production sites. Most things that go wrong with communications or storage are listed here. A setting of LOGGER_DATA provides [b]much[/b] more detail, but may fill your disk. In either case we recommend the use of logrotate on your operating system to cycle logs and discard older entries.
At the bottom of your .htconfig.php file are several lines (commented out) which enable PHP error logging. This reports issues with code syntax and executing the code and is the first place you should look for issues which result in a "white screen" or blank page. This is typically the result of code/syntax problems. Database errors are reported to the system logfile, but we've found it useful to have a file in your top-level directory called dbfail.out which [b]only[/b] collects database related issues. If the file exists and is writable, database errors will be logged to it as well as to the system logfile.
In the case of "500" errors, the issues may often be logged in your webserver logs, often /var/log/apache2/error.log or something similar. Consult your operating system documentation.
There are three different log facilities.
The first is the database failure log. This is only used if you create a file called specifically 'dbfail.out' in the root folder of your website and make it write-able by the web server. If we have any database failed queries, they are all reported here. They generally indicate typos in our queries, but also occur if the database server disconnects or tables get corrupted. On rare occasions we'll see race conditions in here where two processes tried to create an xchan or cache entry with the same ID. Any other errors (especially persistent errors) should be investigated.
The second is the PHP error log. This is created by the language processor and only reports issues in the language environment. Again these can be syntax errors or programming errors, but these generally are fatal and result in a "white screen of death"; e.g. PHP terminates. You should probably look at this file if something goes wrong that doesn't result in a white screen of death, but it isn't uncommon for this file to be empty for days on end.
There are some lines at the bottom of the supplied .htconfig.php file; which if uncommented will enable a PHP error log (extremely useful for finding the source of white screen failures). This isn't done by default due to potential issues with logfile ownership and write permissions and the fact that there is no logfile rotation by default.
The third is the "application log". This is used by Hubzilla to report what is going on in the program and usually reports any difficulties or unexpected data we received. It also occasionally reports "heartbeat" status messages to indicate that we reached a certain point in a script. This is the most important log file to us, as we create it ourself for the sole purpose of reporting the status of background tasks and anything that seems weird or out of place. It may not be fatal, but maybe just unexpected. If you're performing a task and there's a problem, let us know what is in this file when the problem occurred. (Please don't send me 100M dumps you'll only piss me off). Just a few relevant lines so I can rule out a few hundred thousand lines of code and concentrate on where the problem starts showing up.
These are your site logs, not mine. We report serious issues at any log level. I highly recommend 'DEBUG' log level for most sites - which provides a bit of additional info and doesn't create huge logfiles. When there's a problem which defies all attempts to track, you might wish to use DATA log level for a short period of time to capture all the detail of what structures we were dealing with at the time. This log level will use a lot of space so is recommended only for brief periods or for developer test sites.
I recommend configuring logrotate for both the php log and the application log. I usually have a look at dbfail.out every week or two, fix any issues reported and then starting over with a fresh file. Likewise with the PHP logfile. I refer to it once in a while to see if there's something that needs fixing.
To immediately clear out all the extra logging stuff you added. Use the information from this log and any detail you can provide from your investigation of the problem to file your bug report - unless your analysis points to the source of the problem. In that case, just fix it.
Go to the logrot admin settings and enter this folder name as well as the max size and number of retained log files.
When reporting issues, please try to provide as much detail as may be necessary for developers to reproduce the issue and provide the complete text of all error messages.
We encourage you to try to the best of your abilities to use these logs combined with the source code in your possession to troubleshoot issues and find their cause. The community is often able to help, but only you have access to your site logfiles and it is considered a security risk to share them.
If a code issue has been uncovered, please report it on the project bugtracker (https://framagit.org/hubzilla/core/issues). Again provide as much detail as possible to avoid us going back and forth asking questions about your configuration or how to duplicate the problem, so that we can get right to the problem and figure out what to do about it. You are also welcome to offer your own solutions and submit patches. In fact we encourage this as we are all volunteers and have little spare time available. The more people that help, the easier the workload for everybody. It's OK if your solution isn't perfect. Every little bit helps and perhaps we can improve on it.


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Activism/Hacktivism, Censorship, War on Whistleblowers, Journalists, Geopolitics, Synthetic Terror & Interventionalist BS, Patriot Act, Censorship & NDAA
'Terminal F/Chasing Edward Snowden' (2015)
ForbiddenKnowledgeTV
In today's headlines, we've been greeted with news from the increasingly-Orwellian UK government, that Ed Snowden's encrypted files have been cracked by the Russian and the Chinese, forcing the clandestine services of the UK to recall their agents from "hostile countries," albeit noting that "there was no evidence of anyone being harmed."
This announcement was made, in conjunction with PM David Cameron's promise to enact a swathe of new security measures, including more power to monitor Britons' communications and online activity, which critics have rightly dubbed the "Snooper's Charter."
In this film, Sarah Harrison, the WikiLeaks legal advisor who helped Snowden make his escape, she claims that there was no way that any of his information was willfully given to either the Chinese or the Russians. Harrison says "I'd stake my life on it."
Moreover, Snowden had, as a security measure released his sensitive computers to the journalists who met him in Hong Kong. One of these was destroyed under the watch of British Intelligence officials at the office of the UK Guardian in July of 2013, as seen, here:
Many people have wondered how Ed Snowden was able to escape Hong Kong and evade capture for 39 days at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport, before finally being granted temporary asylum in Russia. Some find these circumstances to be fishy.
The film reconstructs this period, using cinema verite' and candid interviews with a remarkable cast, including Michael Hayden, former Director of the National Security Agency.
'Terminal F/Chasing Edward Snowden' by Danish Director, Poul-Erik Heilbuth was just released in April 2015 and it's received virtually zero publicity, unlike the Academy-Award-winning 'Citizenfour,' which received lots of publicity, thanks to the ample funding enjoyed by Poitras and Greenwald, in their First Look venture with Pierre Omidyar.
This film was produced with an EU crew but apart from the Danish credits, this version is entirely in English. It tells the white-knuckle story of how a combination of savvy out-maneuvering by the WikiLeaks staff and its supporters plus a fortuitous mistake in the US Goverment's extradition papers (they flubbed his middle name!) enabled Ed Snowden to escape capture in Hong Kong and to board a plane to Russia, alongside WikiLeaks legal advisor, a young woman from the UK, Sarah Harrison.
Using a mix of what often appear to be real cellphone grabs of the actual scenes at the airports and not reenactments, in combination with compelling interviews, this film documents the details of their escape, as told by Ed Snowden, Sarah Harrison, Julian Assange, Glenn Greenwald, Snowden's father and a remarkably candid Michael Hayden.
After escaping from Hong Kong (who really didn't want anything to do with the situation and were all too happy to let him escape), Snowden's deactivated passport prevented him from boarding his connecting flight to Cuba, for which his tickets were checked through. Snowden has remarked that it was an odd choice, for the State Department to choose to strand him in Russia, with whom relations have only been getting increasingly strained, ever since.
At first, Russia's President Putin, likely, none too thrilled about this hot potato, left the two of them to fend for themeselves in the transit area of Terminal F, at Moscow's International airport. The two escapees were given a windowless room, with two bunk beds, where they stayed without running water for over a month, until Putin finally decided to grant Snowden temporary asylum. This was extended last year and now expires in August of 2017.
This period of limbo at the airport coincided with a state meeting of gas-producing countries in Moscow, which included Bolivia.
Since Venezuela, Ecuador and Nicaragua had already offered asylum to Snowden, the Russian press asked Bolivian President, Evo
Morales if he would be willing to offer asylum to Snowden. He said, "Yes, why not?"
His casual response led to the US State Department making a flurry of calls to its European allies, ordering them to not allow Morales' plane to refuel on his return to South America, as planned. In fact, his Presidential plane was escorted to the ground by the French military and a search was conducted of his aircraft, where there was no Snowden to be found – the second of two major embarrassments to the US National Security establishment in a week.
In addition, Snowden and his dad reflect on another gonzo plan, hatched by the FBI, to take a small CIA plane (normally used to
transport targets of "Extraordinary rendition," to be tortured offshore), using the father as bait, in a cockamamie cowboy plan to kidnap Ed onto the rendition plane…and presumably, to leave his father stranded at Sheremetyevo Airport. Although that plan didn't jump off, it is believed that the plane managed to arrive there and was lurking around.
'Terminal F/Chasing Edward Snowden' is a compelling European docudrama. The apparent intimacy that the director was able to evoke from his hard-to-access interviewees is impressive.
Although the Jon Rappaports of the world would still maintain that the whole Snowden melodrama is a limited hangout of unfathomable proportions, I can't help but be impressed with Snowden's manifest patriotism and righteousness, whenever I see him speak. Yes, I can understand why Hayden and other members of the clandestine agencies would see Snowden as a traitor and arrogant beyond belief. However, Ed claims, here that he was hardly alone, among his former peers, in his misgivings about how NSA was slipping into a fatal pit of lawlessness.
He says of Hayden, "What kind of man is this? How can he justify the violation of the rights of an entire nation, without even a law to lean on? How do we come back from a situation, in which the most senior officials in a Democracy are acting against the interests of the public – in secret?"
More details about their escape in Vogue Magazine:
'Terminal F/Chasing Edward Snowden' "Snooper's Charter" 15th Director of the National Security Agency Australia Barack Obama Bolivia Ecuador Ed Snowden Espionage Act Evo Morales Glenn Greenwald Julian Assange Michael Hayden Sarah Harrison systems administrator venezuela whistleblower WikiLeaks
5G Network/Psychotronic Weapons/Brainwave Entrainment/HAARP, Censorship, War on Whistleblowers, Journalists, Slavery, Smart?, Technology, Transhumanism/Futurism
Post Postmodern Pilgrimage
Activism/Hacktivism

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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AutoPilot ReviewReviews of Self Driving and Autonomous Cars and Technology
NewsPaperReviews of Self Driving and Autonomous Cars and Technology
How to Charge a Tesla – The Complete Guide
Tesla Model 3 Charging
Tesla has one of the most robust charging capabilities of any electric vehicle, making it easy to charge at home or on the road by utilizing its massive Tesla Supercharger network or any other public EV charging station across the US, Canada and Europe.
Many new or prospective buyers want to know how to charge a Tesla, so we created this tutorial to walk through all the aspects of charging a Tesla, whether a Model 3, Model S or X.
Tesla Charging Basics
The Tesla Charging Port
All electric cars, including Tesla vehicles, have a charge port (or two, in some cases). These charge ports have a special EV charging connector that connect compatible charging cables. There are four major charge port connectors in the US, with Tesla being one of them, and one of the most popular, especially as they continue to outsell other electric vehicles.
The charge port on Teslas is located on the left rear of the vehicle near the taillight assembly is and integrated in such a way that the charge port door is hidden and neatly integrated into the design.
Tesla Model 3 Charging Port
Opening the Charge Port
To open the charge port door on a Tesla, you simply bring the charging cable near the door, press the button on the cable and the door opens. Make sure you have the key with you, however, otherwise it won't work. You can also open the charge port via the screen in the car or using the Tesla app.
Open Charge Port on Tesla by Pressing Cable Button
Once you plug in the cable, your Tesla will begin charging.
The color near the charge port will turn blue indicating the charge is starting and then green once the charge has begun and everything is working correctly. A fast green pulse means it's charging quickly and a slow green pulse means it's charging slowly. If it turns orange or red, that means there's a problem. Try plugging back in again, or using a different charger or stall (if available).
Tesla Model S and X Charging – Green Light
Charge Port Locking
Once the charge starts and you leave the vehicle, the charge port locks automatically so others can't remove the charger. You can remotely unlock the charge port from your app, if needed. It will unlock again once you approach with your key.
Monitoring The Charge
You can monitor your charge, charge rate and the battery charge state using the screen in the car (by pressing the lightning bolt on the screen) or via the Tesla smartphone app, which is handy if you're off shopping or dining and want to know how much time is left.
Charging Status in Tesla App
Finishing Your Charge
Once your charge is completed, return to your vehicle, press the button on the charging cable, wait for the ring around the charging port to turn light blue, then remove the cable and replace it on the charger.
Note that many Supercharging stations will charge owners an idle fee if the vehicle is left in the charging stall after a full charge. This is to ensure others have a chance to access the chargers and owners aren't leaving their vehicles sitting in charging stalls after the charge is complete.
Where to Charge a Tesla
You can charge a Tesla almost anywhere there is power, even a 110V outlet (although very slowly) since Tesla includes adapters for standard power outlets (some included, some extra).
Example Tesla North America Power Adapters
That said, most people install high speed charging adapters at home, or if they live in an apartment, either use included Mobile Adapter (see below) or visit a nearby Tesla Supercharger to fill up quickly.
On the road, you can utilize the robust Tesla Supercharger network, one of the largest in the world and other public charging stations. We'll get into more of that in a bit.
When to Charge a Tesla
It's best to charge a Tesla before the battery level becomes too low which could damage the battery over time, just like the battery in your cell phone, for example. Ideally, charge your battery when it gets to around 15 to 20 percent and stop charging at around 85 to 90 percent. It's OK to go lower or higher occasionally, but it should be the exception to ensure the longest life possible for your Tesla battery pack.
Tesla Battery Ideal State of Charge
When charging, you can set your Tesla to stop charging at a designated level, allowing you to simply plug in when you come home and not worry about overcharging. Tesla also has a recommended maximum charge for daily charging, set by default.
Additionally, you can set your Tesla to charge at certain hours to avoid peak electricity rates and take advantage of lower rates at night or if you have an EV rate plan, for example, that certain states like California offer.
How to Charge a Tesla at Home
Install a Wall Connector
For home charging, most people install a Tesla Wall Connector that includes the Tesla connector cable and taps directly to your home's 240V electrical circuit so you can enjoy relatively high-speed charging overnight.
Tesla Home Wall Connector
When charging at home, it usually takes a few hours to overnight to fully charge a battery, depending on how many amps are powering your Wall Connector (see How Long Does it Take to Charge a Tesla). Most people connect the Wall Charger to a 60 amp circuit, which provides 11.5 kW of charging power and will provide 30 to 44 miles of Range Per Hour (RPH) for a Model X and Model 3, respectively.
Use the Mobile Connector at Home
Alternatively, if you don't want to install a Wall Connector, you can use the Mobile Connector that comes with new Tesla vehicles (and that you can buy online).
Tesla Mobile Connector
This allows you to connect your Tesla to any standard North America power outlet, such as a standard 110V power outlet (NEMA 5-15). Note however, that charging from a standard 110V outlet is extremely slow and only provides a few miles of charge per hour, typically. Tesla also includes a NEMA 14-50 adapter that allows you to plug into a 240V socket like those that are used for clothes dryers, for example. They provide a higher rate of charge to so you can fill up faster.
Note that Tesla sells a wide variety of chargers and adapters via the Tesla Store online.
Cost to Charge a Tesla at Home
The cost to charge a Tesla at home is usually fairly economical, more so than on the road or than of an equivalent gas vehicle. For example, the average cost of electricity in the United States is around $0.13 per kWh. So, hypothetically, charging a Model 3 Standard Range Plus with a 75 kWh battery from 0% to 100% would cost $9.75. See How Much Does it Cost to Charge a Tesla for more.
Charging at a Tesla Supercharger Station
Tesla provides its owners with ample fast charging options while charging on the road. In addition to the ability to charge at a growing number of public charging stations (more on that below), Tesla owners can also charge quickly and cost-effectively at one of the many convenient Tesla Supercharging stations placed strategically throughout the country on popular routes.
These high-speed chargers are also sometimes called "DC Fast" chargers or "Level 3" in the EV parlance, but for Tesla owners, they are simply called Superchargers.
Tesla Supercharger Network
Superchargers allow Tesla owners to simply pull up and plug in to start charging, unlike most other public chargers. Any costs incurred are billed directly to the owner's account.
There's no need to log in when arriving at the station, the station recognizes the car and the account automatically. Founder Elon Musk wanted to ensure charging is easy and simple for Tesla owners and a better experience than going to a gas station.
Tesla V2 Supercharger
Each Supercharging station has multiple stalls, often between 8 and 12, so multiple vehicles can charge at once. There are different types of Superchargers, each with unique characteristics, which we'll explain below.
Finding Superchargers
Finding Superchargers with a Tesla is simple. Tesla drivers simply click the charging icon on the map.
Tesla Supercharger In-Car Map
The map will then show nearby chargers, the speed, availability, number of stalls and costs for each charger. You can click on any charger for more information and to navigate directly to it.
The Tesla App also shows nearby charging stations and how many stalls are used.
Tesla App – Nearby Superchargers
Charging During Trips
For road trips, the built-in Tesla navigation system will automatically calculate the vehicle's state of charge along the trip and route you to Superchargers along the way to ensure you always have enough charge.
Tesla Trip Navigation with Charging Stops
Cost to Charge at a Tesla Charging Station
Most Supercharger stations charge on a per-kWh basis (i.e. amount of electricity used) and currently charge $0.28 per kWh. This is roughly twice the average US home electricity rate so filling up a Model 3 Standard Range Plus with a 75 kWh battery would cost $21. Some Superchargers charge by time instead of kWh (which is less ideal since many factors can influence charge rate), but luckily they are in the minority. See How Much Does it Cost to Charge a Tesla for more.
Many owners also take advantage of free Supercharging by using a Tesla referral code when purchasing their new vehicle (depending on the offer at the time), allowing them to save a bit of money upfront.
How Long to Charge at a Tesla Charging Station
The charging time at a Tesla Supercharger depends on the station type. In general, they are all fairly quick, allowing you to fill up under an hour in most cases, however, some are faster than others. We'll explain the differences below. Also see How Long Does it Take to Charge a Tesla for more.
Types of Tesla Supercharger Charging Stations
There are three types of Tesla Superchargers:
Tesla Urban Superchargers
Tesla V2 Superchargers
Tesla Urban Superchargers are meant to provide a quick charge solution in urban environments where Tesla owners, many of whom may live in apartments, don't have access to charging at home or at work.
Tesla Urban Charger
They can also serve drivers on road trips who need to top-off along their route. Urban chargers provide the lowest rate of charge for Superchargers at 72 kW, but don't split the charge with other stalls, so they provide a consistent rate of charge (unlike V2 Superchargers below).
Typically you'll fill up your Tesla here in about 45 minutes to an hour.
Tesla V2 Superchargers are the original Superchargers first deployed by Tesla at a large scale and are strategically placed along popular routes across the country to allow owners to drive from coast-to-coast and most urban centers.
These chargers can provide charging speeds up to 150 kW, but split the charge between stall pairs (for example stalls labeled 2A and 2B will split the charge between cars in those stalls, effectively cutting the charge power in half).
V2 Superchargers – Charge split between 3A and 3B here.
Therefore, may Tesla owners will try to park in an open stall that has the other pair also open, to avoid splitting the charge.
Typically, you'll fill up your Tesla here in about 30 minutes to an hour or more (depending on how busy the station is).
Tesla V3 Superchargers are the latest and greatest chargers deployed by Tesla in 2019 and rolling out in earnest in 2020. These provide the highest power rate, up to 250 kW, and best of all, don't split the charge between stalls as the V2 Superchargers do. The only way to identify V3 Superchargers is via the built-in vehicle map or by visiting Tesla/findus. They look exactly the same as V2 Supercharger, except have thinner, water-cooled cables.
V3 Supercharger cable vs V2 cable
Typically you'll fill up your Tesla here in under an hour.
Speed of Charging Depends on Your Tesla
One thing to note is that the charging time depends on your Tesla. A new Tesla Model 3 will charge faster than older Tesla Model S or Tesla Model X vehicles, even if the charger can provide a higher rate. See How Long Does it Take to Charge a Tesla for more.
Tesla Supercharger Station Etiquette
Certain Supercharger locations are very popular and may often have wait lines to charge. For new owners, it can be confusing to understand how and where to queue up in line if all the stalls are full.
Sometimes there's a sign that Tesla Provides showing where to queue up.
Tesla Supercharger Line with Sign
Other times you'll have to survey the parking area and find a place to line up that is out of the way of traffic.
Tesla Supercharger Line
In addition, popular Tesla Supercharger locations may automatically limit the maximum charge to 80% since charging becomes slower as the battery becomes fuller (see Tapered Charging). By limiting the charge to 80%, your vehicle fills up quickly and doesn't clog up a charging stall just to fill up the small remaining amount, which could take a while. You can always override this setting, but it's nice to be courteous, especially if others are waiting.
As mentioned earlier, once your charge is complete, you may also be charged an idle fee if you don't vacate the charging stall in a timely manner so others can charge their vehicle.
Tesla Destination Chargers
Tesla also provides a version of the home Wall Connector mentioned above to businesses to help them attract Tesla owners so they spend time at their place of business, often hotels or wineries, for example.
Tesla Destination Charger
These destination chargers look exactly like the home Wall Connectors but are placed outside, often in parking lots so Tesla owners can charge while visiting the business. They are typically free to use for customers of the business.
Since they are connected to the power line from the business (usually 240V at 80 amps or more), they charge relatively slowly, usually providing 8 or 16 kW of power. But still, these can be great time savers, when staying at a hotel, for example, since you can often charge up in several hours.
Charging a Tesla at Public EV Charging Stations
In the times where you can't charge at a Tesla Supercharger or Destination Charger, you can utilize one of the growing number of public EV charging stations. While it's great that more public EV charging stations are becoming available, they aren't as quick and easy to use as Tesla chargers.
Different Plug Types
For one thing, there are three different plug types for Public EV chargers (four total if you count Tesla … which isn't really public) in North America.
North America EV Charging Port Examples
That means you have to use an adapter to connect them to your Tesla. Tesla provides the J1772 charging adapter, however, it's unfortunately the slowest of all the plug types (similar to Tesla Destination chargers in speed).
Tesla also offers an optional CHAdeMO adapter for purchase so you can utilize stations with that plug type. There's currently no CCS adapter for Tesla vehicles, but most stations with CCS adapters also have CHAdeMO plugs so it's usually not an issue.
Level 1 vs. Level 2 vs. Level 3 EV Charging
You may hear the terms "Level 1", "Level 2", and "Level 3" charging. Here's a brief overview of what they mean.
Level 1 Chargers – This is simply charging at home on a regular AC 110V outlet. This very slow and you may get something like 2 to 5 miles of Range Per Hour (RPH).
Level 2 Chargers – These are higher voltage 240V AC based chargers. They're still fairly slow and can typically deliver around 25 miles of RPH. ChargePoint has many Level 2 charging stations.
Level 3 Chargers – Level 3 chargers are "DC Fast" chargers (like Tesla's Superchargers) that tap directly into the vehicle's battery system and can deliver anywhere from 100 to 1000 miles of RPH.
Charging Speeds and Costs Vary Widely at Public Chargers
The other challenge with Public EV charging stations is that costs, payment methods and charging speeds vary widely. The best thing to do is plan ahead for any trip that may take you out of the way of Tesla charging stations.
Major Public EV Charging Networks
The largest public EV charging networks in North America include:
ChargePoint – thousands of primarily Level 2, J1772 chargers (some DC Fast)
EVgo – 750 sites, 1,250 chargers (DC Fast)
Electrify America – 385 stations, 1,300 chargers (DC Fast)
Chargepoint Public Charging Station
ChargePoint is one of the older networks, but most widespread. They have primarily slower Level 2 chargers. Electrify America is owned by the VW Group and is expanding quickly. There are more networks, which you can find with one of the apps below, as needed.
Finding Public EV Charging Stations
There are many apps that can help you find a public charger including Plugshare and Chargepoint. Both will not only locate a charger, but also provide information on the charge rate, cost, plug type and number of stalls. That can be handy when wanting to find a fast charger, with a rate of over 50 kW, for example.
Plugshare App – Apple iOS or Google Android
ChargePoint App – Apple iOS or Google Android
Cost and Paying for Charging at Public Stations
Public charging stations all unfortunately have different payment methods. Luckily many of these companies have entered into roaming agreements with one another. So if you get a Chargepoint account, for example, you can roam on EVgo and Electrify America networks. There are also different options to pay (e.g. pay-as-you-go, subscriptions, etc.). Check the Chargepoint site for for information, if you're interested.
Plan Ahead for Public EV Charging Stations
The bottom line for public EV charging stations is to plan ahead. Make sure you have the adapters you need, the apps downloaded on your phone and an account set up (e.g. with Chargepoint, for example).
Charging a Tesla is getting easier and more convenient all the time as Tesla continues to build out its Supercharger network. When Tesla first came to the market almost a decade ago, it was certainly more challenging to charge on the road, but today options are plentiful and Tesla owners enjoy a variety of charging options, make road trips fun and exciting. No other electric car has access to as many charging options as a Tesla!
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How Long Does it Take to Charge a Tesla
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Nationwide has announced the launch of a new members' zone website, which offers customers of the banking group a portal through which they can access information of forthcoming events and benefits.
The site can be accessed either from the existing Nationwide website or through its new domain name, and provides updates on what's new in the industry and member events, as well as featuring podcasts and videos.
Corporate affairs director at the banking group Maxine Taylor stated: "Members can book places at forthcoming TalkBack events that we hold across the UK, or read transcripts of online TalkBack sessions held between members and the society's directors."
She added that the aim of the site is for the bank to communicate more directly with customers.
Earlier this month, Nationwide's Importance of Saving Index rose by 11 points, indicating that people are more aware of the benefits of putting money aside for the future.


text:
Tag: Rob Freedman
Ending at the Top: RUSH, TIME STAND STILL, Part I
On December 14, 2016 By bradbirzerIn progressive rock6 Comments
2016, available now.
A two-part review of Rush, TIME STAND STILL (2016).
Between May and August, 2015, Rush performed to jam-packed audiences in cities across the United States and Canada. Rush captured this tour with its own 2015 release, R40 LIVE, a three cd/1-bluray set. This tour attracted an immense and diverse crowd. Generations of men in the same family (grandfather, father, and sons) sat together, women attended in larger than usual numbers, and my two oldest kids (Nathaniel and Gretchen) drove with me nearly 10 hours to see the band perform R40 in Lincoln. That magical show will always remain one of the greatest of my life. Not just because I was seeing Rush for the umpteenth time, but because I got to share the band with my children for the first time. They've grown up with Rush—listening to the music and watching their concerts over and over again; indeed, all six of my kids can readily name the members of the band, the songs, and the albums—but they'd never experienced the joy of an actual concert. It was, to be sure, a glorious spectacle.
When I looked out the bedroom window the other day to see Nathaniel shoveling snow and head banging, I could tell he was head banging to 2112. Every few moments the shovel came up and served as an Alex Lifeson air guitar. Needless to write, it took a bit for him to complete the driveway. Regardless, I'm deeply proud that my children recognize the greatness of the three Canadian artists, even older than their dad!
Continue reading "Ending at the Top: RUSH, TIME STAND STILL, Part I" →
Neil Peart: Cultural Repercussions Now Available
On September 14, 2015 By bradbirzerIn progressive rock music1 Comment
As any Neil Peart fan well knows, the great man just celebrated his 63rd birthday and his sequel to his co-authored novel, CLOCKWORK LIVES, comes out tomorrow. We all eagerly await with intense and immense anticipation this new work by Peart and Hugo-nominated science-fiction author, Kevin J. Anderson.
Out September 15, 2015.
I must also proudly note that my intellectual biography of the world's greatest drummer comes out tomorrow as well. NEIL PEART: CULTURAL (RE)PERCUSSIONS (WordFire Press). It will be available in paperback ($14.99) and ebook ($5.99) but is now available for pre-order.
http://www.amazon.com/Neil-Peart-Repercussions-depth-professional/dp/1614753547/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1442243061&sr=8-1
I have to thank a lot of folks for their encouragement with this book project, and I hope I give everyone due credit in the book. When I read the works of Steve Horwitz and Rob Freedman, I just knew that I had to write a book on Peart. I've loved Neil Peart's words and musicianship since first encountering MOVING PICTURES in March 1981. I was in seventh grade, and I've never been the same. To me, Peart fits in the same category as J.R.R. Tolkien, Ursula LeGuin, Ray Bradbury, and Milton Friedman as influences on my young life. As Peart has grown, so have I. And, so, I presume have most of us.
This book also turns out to be my fifth published biography. The other biographies, however, have been almost completely academic. When I first started to write this book, I'd wanted to write an autobiography with the emphasis on how Peart shaped my own life and thoughts on a variety of things. Even during the first draft, I started deviating from this plan. By the final product, I'd left in only a few personal experiences. There are two reasons for this.
First, almost everyone who reads the book wants to know about Peart, not me. Second, some of the experiences are still too painful to make public fully. I can only state that Peart's art and example has meant as much to me and my life as any figure outside of my family.
In the book, I focus on Peart as a man of letters, one of our greatest in the English language. I was pretty thrilled when PROG's Johnny Sharp wrote:
But author Bradley Birzer does go a little over the top in his gushing praise of his subject. When an intro mentions Peart in the same sentence as Socrates and Cicero. . .
He's completely correct, of course. But, you should've seen earlier drafts! Ha. Anyway, if you like what we do at progarchy, you'll like the bio.
Actually, I was just thrilled that my favorite magazine reviewed my book! Even if Sharp had hated it, I'd still be pretty honored that Jerry Ewing and Grant Moon took it seriously enough to review. Still, I'm so glad Sharp actually enjoyed it!
Here's hoping you will as well!
The Saving Grace of Neil Peart
On November 30, 2014 November 30, 2014 By bradbirzerIn progressive rock music29 Comments
In part, a review of Rob Freedman, Rush: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Excellence (Algora, 2014).
N.B. This post should be approached with caution. It is at least PG-13, if not NC17. Not for language, but for personal revelation and content. Additionally, I've written about one or two of these things before, especially about Peart as a big brother. Please don't fear thinking—"hey, I've read this before." But, even the few things I've mentioned before are here rewritten. Final note: for an exploration of Peart's Stoicism, see Erik Heter's excellent piece on the subject, here at progarchy.com.
Neil Peart, ca. 1987.
As I've mentioned before in these pages and elsewhere, few persons, thinkers, or artists have shaped my own view of the world as strongly as has Neil Peart, Canadian drummer, lyricist, writer, and all-around Renaissance man. I've never met him, but I've read all of his words and listened to all of his songs. I've been following this man since the spring of 1981 when two fellow inmates of seventh-grade detention explained to me the "awesomeness" of Rush. My compatriots, Troy and Brad (a different Brad), were right. Thank God I got caught for doing some thing bad that day. Whatever I did, my punishment (detention) led to a whole new world for me, one that would more than once save my life.
Having grown up in a family that cherished music of all types, I was already a fan of mixing classical, jazz, and rock. Rush's music, as it turned out, did this as well as any band.
While the music captivated me, the lyrics set me free. I say this with no hyperbole. I really have no idea how I would have made it out of high school and through the dysfunctional (my step father is serving a 13-year term in prison, if this gives you an idea how nasty the home was) home life without Peart. I certainly loved my mom and two older brothers, but life, frankly, was hell.
I know that Peart feels very uncomfortable when his fan project themselves on him, or imagine him to be something he is not. At age 13, I knew absolutely nothing about the man as man, only as drummer and lyricist. Thus, even in 1981, I absorbed his lyrics, not directly his personality. Though, I'm sure many of Peart's words reflect his personality as much as they reflect his intellect.
Rush gave me so much of what I needed in my teen years. At 13, I had completely rejected the notion of a benevolent God. He existed, I was fairly sure, but He was a puppet master of the worst sort, a manipulative, Machiavellian tyrant who found glee in abuse and exploitation. As a kid, I was bright and restless, and I resented all forms of authority, sometimes with violent intent. Still, as we all do, I needed something greater than myself, a thing to cherish and to hold, a thing to believe in.
I immersed myself in science fiction, fantasy, and rock music. Not a tv watcher in the least, I would put the headphones on, turns off the lights in my bedroom, lock the door, and immerse myself in the musical stories of Genesis, the Moody Blues, ELO, ELP, Alan Parsons, Yes, Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd, and, especially, Rush. I could leave the horrors of my house for roughly 44 minutes at a time.
Scratch, scratch, side one. Zip, turn. Scratch, scratch, side two.
Rock music was the sanctuary of my world. But, not just any rock. ZZ Top and REO Speedwagon might be fun when out on a drive, but I needed a work of art that demanded full immersion. I needed prog. I was not only safe in these rhythmic worlds, I was intellectually and spiritually alive, exploring innumerable realms. Pure, unadulterated escape. But, escape into a maze of wonders.
The first time I heard the lyrics (at age 13, the spring of 1981) to "Tom Sawyer," I knew Rush was MY band. It seemed as though Peart was talking specifically to me, Bradley Joseph Birzer. That's right. To 13-year old Brad in Hutchinson, Kansas. Peart was 15 years older than I, and he must have gone through the same things I had. Or so I thought. Again, I knew him only through his lyrics. But, did I ever cherish those lyrics. I lingered over each word, contemplated not just the ideas, but the very structures of lyrics as a whole.
Though his mind is not for rent
Don't put him down as arrogant
His reserve a quiet defense
Riding out the day's events
No, his mind is not for rent to any God or Government
Always hopeful, yet discontent [corrected from my original typos]
He knows changes aren't permanent, but change is
Though I've never given any aspect of my life to the Government (nor do I have plans to do so), I long ago surrendered much of myself to the Second Person of the Most Blessed Trinity and to His Mother. While I'm no modern Tom Sawyer at age 47, I still find the above lyrics rather comforting. And, I do so in a way that is far beyond mere nostalgia.
Armed with Peart's words and convictions, I could convince myself to walk to Liberty Junior High and, more importantly, to traverse its halls without thinking myself the most objectified piece of meat in the history of the world. Maybe, just maybe, I could transcend, sidestep, or walk directly through what was happening back at home. I could still walk with dignity through the groves of the academy, though my step father had done everything short of killing me back while in our house.
[N.B. This is the PG13 part of the essay] And, given all that was going on with my step father, the thought of killing myself crossed my mind many, many times in junior high and high school. I had become rather obsessed with the notion, and the idea of a righteous suicide, an escape from on purposeless life hanged tenebrous across my soul. After all, if I only existed to be exploited, to be a means to end, what purpose did life have.
What stopped me from ending it all? I'm still not sure, though such desires seemed to fade away rather quickly when I escaped our house on Virginia Court in Kansas and began college in northern Indiana. Not surprisingly, my first real friendship in college—one I cherish and hold to this day—came from a mutual interest in all things Rush. In fact, if anything, my friend (who also writes for this site) was an even bigger Rush fan than myself! I'd never met such a person.
Regardless, from age 13 to 18, I can say with absolute certainty that some good people, some good books, and some good music saved my life, more than once. Neil Peart's words of integrity and individualism and intellectual curiosity stood at the front and center of that hope.
Perhaps even more importantly to me than Moving Pictures ("Tom Sawyer," quoted above) were Peart's lyrics for the next Rush album, Signals. On the opening track, a song about resisting conformity, Peart wrote:
Growing up, it all seemed so one-sided
Opinions all provided, the future predecided
Detached and subdivided in the mass production zone
No where is the dreamer or misfit so alone
There are those who sell their dreams for small desires
And lose their race to rats
Even at 14, I knew I would not be one who sold my dreams for small desires. I wanted to be a writer—in whatever field I found myself—and I would do what it took to make it through the horrible home years to see my books on the shelves of a libraries and a bookstores. Resist and renew. Renew and resist. Again, such allowed me to escape the abyss of self annihilation.
Indeed, outside of family members (though, in my imagination, I often think of Peart as one of my older brothers—you know; he was the brilliant one with the goofy but cool friends, the guys who did their own thing regardless of what anyone thought). From any objective standpoint, as I look back over almost five decades of life, I can claim that Peart would rank with St. Augustine, St. Francis, John Adams, T.S. Eliot, Willa Cather, Ray Bradbury, Russell Kirk, and J.R.R. Tolkien as those I would like to claim as having saved me and shaped me. If I actually live up to the example of any of these folks, however, is a different question . . .
I also like to say that Peart would have been a great big brother not just because he was his own person, but, most importantly, because he introduced me as well as an entire generation of North Americans (mostly males) to the ideas of Heraclitus, Plato, Aristotle, Sophocles, Cicero, Seneca, Petrarch, Erasmus, Voltaire, Adam Smith, Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, John Dos Passos, T.S. Eliot, J.R.R. Tolkien, and others.
During my junior year of high school, I wrote an essay on the meaning of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer, based on Peart's interpretation. I earned some form of an A. In one of my core humanities courses, while at the University of Notre Dame, I wrote my major sophomore humanities term paper about the cultural criticisms of Neil Peart as found in his lyrics to the 1984 album, Grace Under Pressure. Again, I received an A.
I'm not alone in this love of Rush. The band is, of course, one of the highest selling rock acts of all time, and they are just now crossing the line into their fortieth anniversary. Arguably, no other band has had as loyal a following as had Rush. Thousands and thousands of men (and some women) faithfully attend sold-out concerts throughout North and South America to this day. This is especially true of North American men, ages 35 to 65. Now, as is obvious at concerts, an entirely new generation of Rush fans is emerging, the children of the original set.
Telling, critics have almost always despised Rush, seeing them as having betrayed the blues-based tradition of much of rock, exchanging it for a European (and directly African rather than African-American) tradition of long form, complexity, and bizarrely shifting time signatures. Such a direction and style became unbearable for the nasty writers of the largest music magazines. They have felt and expressed almost nothing but disdain for such an "intellectually-pretentious band," especially a band that has openly challenged the conformist ideologues of the Left while embracing art and excellence in all of its forms. Elitist rags such as the horrid Rolling Stone and equally horrid NME have time and time again dismissed Rush as nothing but smug middle-class rightists.
That so many have hated them so powerfully has only added to my attraction to the band, especially those who came of age in 1980s, despising the conformist hippies who wanted to mould my generation in their deformed image. Rolling Stone and NME spoke for the oppressive leftist elite, and many of my generation happily made rude gestures toward their offices and their offal. I had no love of the ideologues of the right, either. But, they weren't controlling the schools in the 1980s. Their leftist idiotic counterparts were in charge. They had no desire for excellence. They demanded conformity and mediocrity.
[The best visual representation of this widespread if ultimately ineffective student revolt in the 1980s can be found in "The Breakfast Club" by John Hughes (RIP).]
To make it even more real for me, the parents of Geddy Lee, the lead singer and bassist of Rush, had survived the Polish holocaust camps, and the parents of Alex Lifeson, the lead guitarist of the band, had escaped from the Yugoslavian gulag. Peart came from a Canadian farming community, his father an entrepreneur. No prima donnas were these men. They understood suffering, yet they chose to rise above it. And, of course, this makes the British music press even more reprehensible for labeling the members of Rush as rightest or fascist. Again, I offer the most dignified description for Rolling Stone and NME possible: "ideological fools and tools."
At age 13, I stared and stared at this image. I loved the look of each of the guys. They couldn't be more interesting to me.
Enter Rob Freedman
In his outstanding 2014 book, Rush: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (Algora Press), author, philosopher, and media specialist Rob Freedman has attempted to explain not just Peart's popularity among his multitude of fans—some of the most dedicated in the music world—but also the Canuck drummer's actual set of ideas and explored beliefs in his books and lyrics. Not surprisingly, Freedman finds the Canadian a man deeply rooted in the western tradition, specifically in the traditions of western humanism and individualism.
As Freedman notes, one can find three themes in all of Peart's lyrics: individualism; classical liberalism; and humanism. It's worth observing that Freedman has formal training in academic philosophy, and this shows in his penetrating discussion of the music as well as the words of Rush.
Cover of Rob Freedman, Rush: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Excellence (2014). A must own.
Relying on interviews with the band, the music journalism (much of it bogus and elitist idiocy) of the last forty years, and actually serious works of Rush criticism, such as that done admirably by Steve Horwitz in Rush and Philosophy (Open Court, 2011), Freedman offers not so much a biography of the band, but rather a map of their intellectual influences and expressions. Freedman possesses a great wit in his writing, and the book—relatively short at 164 pages—flows and flows, time standing still until the reader reaches the end. For all intents and purposes, Freedman's book serves as an intellectual thriller, a page turner.
Author Rob Freedman.
I also believe that Freedman underplays the role of Stoicism in his book. The venerable philosophy barely receives a mention. Yet, in almost every way, Peart is a full-blown Stoic. In his own life as well as his own actions, Peart has sought nothing but excellence as conformable to the eternal laws of nature. This is the Stoicism of the pagans, admittedly, and not of the Jews or Christians, but it is Stoicism nonetheless. Freedman rightly notes that Plato and, especially, Aristotle influenced Peart. But, so did Zeno, Virgil, Cicero, and Seneca. This comes across best in Peart's lyrics for "Natural Science" (early Rush), "Prime Mover" (middle Rush), and in "The Way the Wind Blows" (recent Rush). In each of these songs, Peart presents a view of the world with resignation, recognizing that whatever his flaws, man perseveres. Erik Heter and I have each attempted to explore this aspect of Peart's writings at progarchy. Heter has been quite successful at it.
As the risk of sounding cocky, I offer what I hope is high praise for Freedman. I wish I'd written this book.
Peart as Real Man
In the late 1990s, Peart experienced immense tragedy. A horrible set of events ended the life of his daughter and, quickly after, his wife. Devastated, Peart got on his motorcycle (he's an avid cyclist and motorcyclist) and rode throughout the entirety of North America for a year. It was his year in the desert, so to speak.
Then, in 2002, Rush re-emerged and released its rockingly powerful album, Vapor Trails. The men were the same men (kind of), but the band was not the same band. This twenty-first century Rush, for all intents and purposes, is Rush 2.0. This is a much more mature as well as a much more righteously angry and yet also playful Rush. This is a Rush that has nothing to prove except to themselves. The last albums—Vapor Trails (2002); Snakes and Arrows (2007); and Clockwork Angels (2012)—have not only been among the best in the huge Rush catalogue, but they are some of the best albums made in the last sixty years. They soar with confidence, and they promote what Rush has always done best: excellence, art, creativity, distrust of authority, and dignity of the human person.
Peart is not quite the hard-core libertarian of his youth. In his most recent book, Far and Near, he explains,
The great Western writer Edward Abbey's suggestion was to catch them [illegal immigrants], give them guns and ammunition, and send them back to fix the things that made them leave. But Edward Abbey was a conservative pragmatist, and I am a bleeding-heart libertarian==who also happens to be fond of Latin Americans. The 'libertarian' in me thinks people should be able to go where they want to go, and the 'bleeding heart' doesn't want them to suffer needlessly" [Far and Near, 58]
If he has lost any of his former political fervor, he's lost none of his zest for life and for art. "My first principle of art is 'Art is the telling of stories.' What might be called the First Amendment is 'Art must transcend its subject'." [Far and Near, 88]
These twenty-first century albums speak to me at age 47 as much as the early albums spoke to me at age 13. I've grown up, and so has Rush. Interestingly, this doesn't make their early albums seem childish, only less wise.
After my wife and I lost our own daughter, Cecilia Rose, I wrote a long letter to Neil Peart, telling him how much the events of his life—no matter how tragic—had shaped my own response to life. I included a copy of my biography of J.R.R. Tolkien. Mr. Peart sent me back an autographed postcard as thanks.
I framed it, and it will be, until the end of my days, one of my greatest possessions.
After all, Neil Peart has not just told me about the good life, creativity, and integrity, he has shown me through his successes and his tragedies—and thousands and thousands of others—that each life holds a purpose beyond our own limited understandings. As with all things, Peart takes what life has given and explodes it to the level of revelation.
Rush 2.0: Clockwork Angels Tour (2013) Review
On November 27, 2013 By bradbirzerIn progressive rock music9 Comments
A friend of mine said to me—in response to my obvious glee that Rush's Clockwork Angels Tour Blu-ray had just arrived in the mail—"it's good to be childlike every once in a while." Well, maybe it was the reaction of a 13-year old trapped in a 46 year-old body. Regardless, the reaction was sincere. Rush!
Three thoughts and images (images as thoughts, and thoughts as images) come to me whenever I think of Rush. Rush—brilliance. Rush—inspiration. Rush—comfort. For thirty-three years, they've been all of these things to me. Thank the Good Lord for that detention in seventh grade, and thank the Good Lord again for sharing that detention with Brad and Troy, the two guys who introduced me to Moving Pictures and, consequently, to Rush. That was a heady spring. I had also heard The Wall for the first time, the U.S. had just defeated the Soviets in hockey, and some idiots tried to kill the U.S. president and the Pope and came damn close to succeeding. 7th grade. Prog Rock, Dr. Who, and Dungeons and Dragons. But, most of all, Rush.
Maybe I never grew up. These are still the things I love and share with my own kids (the oldest, now 14; he proudly wears a "prog rock—all else is noise" t-shirt; he and my twelve-year old daughter will be seeing that majesty that is Transatlantic in Chicago this coming February).
Oh, fair reader, back to the subject at hand. Rush, Clockwork Angels Tour Blu-ray. Holy schnikees. Yep, God rest Chris Farley's soul. Holy schnikees. What a work of absolute joy. Over three hours of absolute joy. A precious document of their massive tour, 2012-2013, the blu-ray captures them for a Dallas, Texas, show.
As Kev pointed out in his review of the same, there was a time when Rush fans could calculate an era by what live CD had been or was just about to be released. All the World's a Stage for the hard prog stage; Exit Stage Left for the melodic prog stage; A Show of Hands for the synth prog stage; and Different Stages for the return to guitar/alt rock stage.
But, this was all for Rush 1.0, testing for echo.
After the horrific tragedies in Peart's life, his purgatory and redemption (symbolically), we're at Rush 2.0.
I would argue rather forcefully that this is a different band, a band that finally (yes, these guys are truly humble and always have been despite their driving ambition) realizes its more than a mere band. You can see this realization dawn, finally (again, finally!) on them in Beyond on the Lighted Stage and on the Colbert Show.
They have nothing to prove anymore when it comes to acceptance. They never really did, but they always thought they did. They only have to prove their excellence. And, to me, they've done this in spades. As one of my favorite Rush writers, Rob Freedman, wrote about a year ago (and I quote this whenever I can)
The story of Rush is a story of validation. When the band first started out, the mainstream music establishment largely ignored them. Geddy's voice was the brunt of jokes, Alex's guitar playing got no respect, Neil's lyrics were pretentious and channeled a kooky Ayn Randian ideology, and he played too many drums, all of them with the passion of a mathematician. Meanwhile, musicians and music aficionados loved them, so you had this great narrative tension. Now they're nearing their 40-year anniversary, their old critics are in nursing homes, their fans are in leadership positions in business, science, government, and the arts, and they're looked to as elder statesmen of rock.
Amen, Rob. Amen. On this issue, I can speak from some personal experience. As I look back over my own life as a historian, a writer, and an academic, I can easily claim that Peart has had as much influence on my own thinking as any of the other greats I looks to for ideas and inspiration: Russell Kirk, Friedrich Hayek, Edmund Burke, Adam Smith, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ray Bradbury. . . . A whole generation of us can claim to be Peart's little brothers. Like any older brother, Neil almost certainly will not agree with all of my own views, or with what I've done with his ideas. But, then, Neil never—in any way—sought to conform the world. One of the greatest things Neil gave to a generation was the advice to develop and hone what is best in each of us, whatever that best might be.
Not content to fade, Rush 2.0 has decided to shimmer with excellence. I can't help but think of Neil's words off of Signals, "Losing It."
Some are born to move the world
To live their fantasies
But most of us just dream about
The things we'd like to be
Sadder still to watch it die
Than never to have known it
For you, the blind who once could see
The bell tolls for thee….
Rush is proving that greatness can beget greatness. As I see it, Rush's last three studio albums have done nothing if not prove this. Vapor Trails, Snakes and Arrows, and, especially, Clockwork Angels. While building upon everything from Rush to Test for Echo, the last three Rush albums come with a confidence, not of resignation, but assertion. Nature has given us this time, I'll be damned if I let it fly by unused and unappreciated. Indeed, one can say with the last three albums, Rush looked at the world not just with confidence, but with gratitude.
So, when the band decides to release a live album for each tour, I can only shout "hooray." Give us as much as you can, Rush. So many of us want to keep journeying with you in any way we can.
As with the previous tour, this one is a massive production. Explosions, lasers, weird sets, and, best of all, incredible film clips add to the already stunning music. The background story for the Clockwork Angels Tour film clips—an IRS agent looking for the Watchmaker is just outstanding, drop-down, gut-wrenching funny. Geddy, Alex, and Neil appear as rather mischievous "G"nomes.
And, it's just a joy to watch these guys perform. They obviously love each other and what they're doing. In terms of playing, none of the members of Rush have ever been this good. They are each in top form. Watching each of them play guitar, bass, and drums is nothing if not humbling. I hope I give as much in my lectures as these guys give in their playing. Phew.
Musically, of course, what more could we want? Knowing that they've been releasing lots of tour material over the last decade, Rush chose to play a significant portion of their 1980s material—stuff that's not appeared on any of their live releases in a long time. It's worth remembering, however, that this is Rush 2.0. They bring the sensibilities of the last three albums to the previous multitude of albums. There's not a dud in the live set, but songs that stand out in ways the originals didn't: Force Ten; The Body Electric; and The Analog Kids. Schnikees (again, apologies to Chris Farley), these are amazing. Rocking, rocking, rocking.
It's set two, however, that boggles the mind, the set that includes almost all of Clockwork Angels and—gasp!—a string quartet. Phew. Amazing. So much energy emerges from the blu-ray in set two, it's actually a bit wonderfully overwhelming. YYZ is especially spectacular with the strings.
Bonus material on the blu-ray includes: Limelight, Middletown Dreams, The Pass, and Manhattan Project, as well as all of the movie clips from the tour and some documentaries.
For me, this is pretty much perfection itself. 33 years of loving this band comes down to this 3plus hour set. Yes, Geddy, Neil, and Alex, I could never thank you enough for the confidence you've given me, the excellence you've shown me, and the hope you embody. Whether you ever expected to get here or not, you are the embodiment of the best of rock, you are now the elder statesmen of culture. You have persevered, and we have as well!
May the journey long continue.


While some say leaders are born, a little guidance never hurts. Leadership experts share their advice for training a good leader.
A new study finds that leaders viewed as the most effective are those with moderate levels of charisma. But just how much charisma is too much? Find out here.
Are your leadership skills effective? Here are eight things you can to do improve them.
A new study finds that when leaders abuse their power, they have trouble relaxing after work and are less likely to feel competent, respected and autonomous in the workplace.
While leadership has always been about inspiring and guiding a team, management strategies have changed over the years. Here's what modern leaders need to know.
Leaders all have their own unique strengths and skills, but one trait every leader should strive to develop is humility. Here's how to practice humble leadership.
Company leaders who commit acts of indiscretion can cost their employers hundreds of millions of dollars.
Megan Driscoll, CEO of EvolveMKD, shares the experiences that shaped her personal leadership philosophy.
Meg Schmitz, a franchise consultant with FranChoice Chicago, shares the experiences that shaped her personal leadership philosophy.


New crime drama by Val McDermid, starring Helen Baxendale.
DCI Marion Bettany (Helen Baxendale) and DS John Hodgson, a new detective team created for Radio 4 by award-winning author Val McDermid, investigate a murder in the sleepy Northumbrian village of Shilwick.
They love their work, they enjoy each other's company and like nothing better than investigating a new crime.
The only thing that makes life difficult is dealing with the public.
Take the residents of the former mining community of Shilwick, for example.
Val McDermid is a multi-award winning crime writer, and creator of TV's Wire in the Blood, which stars Robson Green.
Village SOS is a fictional version of the BBC One series of the same name.
DCI Bettany continues to investigate Colin Arnott's murder.
DCI Marion Bettany, played by Helen Baxendale, continues her investigation into Colin Arnott's murder, but the residents of Shilwick are curiously reluctant to help.
Colin's plans to turn a deconsecrated chapel into a performing arts centre had ruffled feathers throughout the village, and Bettany wants to know if that's a strong enough motive for murder.
Set in Shilwick, Village SOS is a fictional version of the BBC One series of the same name.
DCI Bettany's investigation leads her to the village post office.
On the hunt for Colin Arnott's murderer, DCI Marion Bettany (Helen Baxendale) turns her attention to the village post office, run by terse sub-postmistress Angela Bryman.
And Angela's not the only villager who resented Colin's project to turn a deconsecrated chapel into a performing arts centre.
The detectives head to Shilwick's beach house workshops.
Today's episode of Village SOS takes us to Shilwick's beach house workshops, where DCI Bettany and her sidekick DS Hodgson interview even more villagers with a grudge against murder victim Colin Arnott, his grieving widow Kai Ling, and their plans to turn a disused chapel into a performing arts centre.
Set in a sleepy Northumbrian community, Village SOS is a fictional version of the BBC One series of the same name.
DCI Bettany hopes to find Colin's murderer in the village pub.
DCI Bettany fears she's no closer to finding Colin Arnott's murderer.
Colin's plans to convert a United Reformed chapel into a performing arts centre made him enemies in the village.
Bettany hopes that spending a night in the village pub will bring her closer to the killer.


HM Health Solutions (HMHS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Highmark Health, is partnered with eight health plans serving 10 million members. In an effort to get their managers thinking through a business lens, HMHS partnered with Paradigm Learning. Using Zodiak®: The Game of Business Finance and Strategy and Mosaic: The Art of Talent Leadership®, HMHS was able to inspire leaders to take accountability for their impact on the financial health of the organization and their role in attracting, retaining and transitioning talent.
HMHS recently became an independent company, while remaining a part of the Highmark Health Family. Managers and their teams formerly functioned in a siloed manner. As an organization with this new structure, they asked: How can we level-set our people and get them to see the big picture of our business? How can we change their behavior so they make better business decisions?
"Many leaders at HMHS look to other entities outside their realm of responsibility to put things in play or development," says Vanessa Tirpak, an Instructional Designer for HMHS, who recognized managers' need to become more active in employee development. HMHS was already putting together a much broader training program and wanted to reinforce not only the responsibility of attracting the right talent and transitioning them, but also tying in core leadership behaviors at HMHS.
In the first year as a standalone company, HMHS seized the opportunity provided by their annual leadership rally to implement customized versions of Zodiak and Mosaic. A gathering of 450 managers, team leads and employees were exposed to these engaging and dynamic simulations.
Zodiak and Mosaic rely on an educational principle known as discovery learning, which states that people successfully absorb and retain material when they are actively involved in the learning process.
In the Zodiak simulation, participants manage a fictional company and learn to think like a CEO as they attract customers, manage their business, and develop new products while analyzing the impact of their decisions on the company's financials. Participants make challenging decisions about innovating for the future and balancing short-term business needs.
In Mosaic, vibrantly illustrated table-sized Discovery Maps® create the visual foundation for a leadership learning experience. Working in table teams, managers explore a robust case study about fictional managers struggling with various steps of developing their employees.
After their managers experienced Zodiak, HMHS worked with Paradigm Learning to create a custom business finance workshop that built upon the in Zodiak. In this workshop, participants explored a case study based on the business of HMHS, made strategic decisions and analyzed financial outcomes. They dove into additional topics like maintaining margin on projects, managing expenses, and cascading business finance knowledge to their teams.
To date, approximately 600 participants have gone through the customized Zodiak and Mosaic programs at HMHS, including team leaders, managers, executives, and Senior Vice Presidents. Managers embraced an entrepreneurial mindset and gained clarity on the actions they can take to drive better bottom-line results.


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Institutional Buildings
Haifa Court House / Chyutin Architects
https://www.archdaily.com/112238/haifa-court-house-chyutin-architects
Architects: Chyutin Architects
Area Area of this architecture project Area: 10000 m²
Text description provided by the architects. The Urban Context: Haifa is the main northern city of Israel, situated on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea, on the slops of Mount Carmel. The building site is located at Haifa's downtown area, between two roads that define its boundary. The lower avenue serves as a main city thoroughfare, linking the city of Haifa to the northern part of Israel. The topographical situation is unique as the topographical soaring of Mount Carmel begins at the site's longitude parallel. As a result, the building's positioning is "double faced," i.e., one side facing the mountain and the other facing the sea. The structure has two public entrances. The main entrance leads from the urban square in the west directly to the upper entrance level. The secondary entrance from the urban square on the eastern side of the structure leads to the lower entrance level. The building's entrance square from the west is a meeting point of main urban pedestrian routes.
Description of the Structure: The main concept pertaining to the building's functional plan is expressed in the systematic approach, which regards the structure as a "law factory." The functional effectiveness surpasses considerations related to prestige or status. The building is composed of two blocs, with unique functional and spatial characteristics. The southwestern judicial wing, which is positioned along the length of the upper street, contains the courtrooms and judges' chambers. The northeastern administration wing, which is positioned along the lower main avenue, features the administration of the various courthouses. The two wings demarcate a monumental entrance hall, which constitutes the bridging and connecting link between them. From the entrance hall one enters the general service activity area including the law library, a restaurant and the judges' club. A sweeping and wide ceremonial stairway, designed in the entrance hall, leads to the main levels, and overpasses link the judicial and administrative wings on the various levels.
The Traffic inside the Building: The interior of the structure is designed as a covered urban system. The courthouse's entrance space is the continuation of the external pedestrian street, which is defined by the office buildings and stores along its length. The space is designed as a covered street defined on its sides by the administrative and judicial wings. The public activities (the library and restaurant) face the main space, like the stores on the main road. The secondary roads and lanes lead perpendicularly from the main space to the judicial clusters and the administrative service areas. The traffic of the various groups in the building is based on the principle of separating the routes of the different groups of users: Judges, staff, detainees and visitors.
Natural Daylight: The penetration of daylight into all of the courtrooms and the adjacent judges' chambers is a guiding principle in the choice of the architectural solution. This principle dictated the bloc-related split of the judicial wing into four "judicial clusters," each of which contains six courtrooms. The main entrance hall is illuminated through an upper skylight.
Address:Haifa, Israel
Chyutin Architects
ProjectsBuilt ProjectsSelected ProjectsOfficesInstitutional buildingsHaifaInstitutional ArchitectureIsrael
Cite: "Haifa Court House / Chyutin Architects" 19 Feb 2011. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/112238/haifa-court-house-chyutin-architects> ISSN 0719-8884


Many times i have had users ask me a question which book to opt between H.C Verma Concepts of physics and NCERT physics books. My answer is you can keep both the books set for your preparation as NCERT is nice book to learn a good concepts and is according to the exam level of class 11 and class 12. But what i think about HC verma is that it is the best book for problems ,go for solved as well asboth unsolved questions in HC verma and do practice them without looking at the solutions. MCQ and conceptual problems given in the book are good. So the book is also good for objective purpose but first do subjective questions to get a grip over the concepts you have learned. You can also first solve the questions given in the NCERT book as they are bit easy in comparison to the questions given in the HC Verma book. For further reference you can consult books like resnik halliday to get and in depth knowledge of theory although my personal favorite is university physics with modern physics by Hugh D. Young .
From flipkart.com you can buy these books at discounted rates and they also have cash on delivery options.
I suggest my friends to refer this book.
H.C. Verma is indeed a very good book i have been using it for years. Really do like this book but i also like NCERT books as they are also well written concise and are good books to start with.


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Phuket King's Cup Regatta 2012
Date: December 1 - 8, 2012
Venue: Phuket
Recognised throughout the eastern hemisphere as the premier sailing event of its kind, the Phuket King's Cup Regatta will once more put on a spectacular display of the finest sailing talent from around the world, competing in Andaman Sea off Phuket Island, to win the 'must-have' racing trophy in all of Asia, from 1 - 8 December, 2012.
This year's competition will feature the largest and most competitive fleet of any regional regatta, with top competitors from the region and beyond, plus large international charter and cruising fleets. Over 35 countries with 1,000 sailors will be represented in total, with a strong showing expected of Thai and Asian sailors. Dominance in the dinghy classes by Thai youth sailors is likely to continue with these classes racing 2 - 5 December inclusive.
The 2012 Classes will likely include a number of IRC Classes - IRC Zero, IRC One, IRC Two, IRC Three - Premier, Sports Boats, Modern Classic, Bareboat Charter, Multihulls (with possible Racing and Cruising splits), Firefly 850 Sports, Classic and a Cruising Class. Full details can be viewed in the Notice Of Race at http://kingscup.com/index.cfm?ntid=1203.
Kevin Whitcraft, President of the Phuket King's Cup Regatta Organising Committee, spoke of the widespread anticipation for 2012's Regatta: "Last year was a genuine landmark for the Phuket King's Cup; a quarter centenary of world class racing in Phuket for a race which is seen by many as the top prize in sports sailing for the region. We were delighted to welcome the introduction of a Kiteboarding class, success for the Royal Thai Navy, the first Japanese winners in the history of the Cup, plus increasing levels of participation from Chinese sailors. For 2012, the fleet is expected to be of a similar size, though the racing will be of an even higher class; many of our international teams have chosen to prioritise the Phuket King's Cup. It's a sign of just how coveted and revered this trophy is in Asia and beyond; a superb draw for the best of the best, and it reflects extremely well on Thailand as a premier sailing destination."
The modern Phuket King's Cup Regatta has become a major boating event, attracting keelboats and ocean-going catamaran teams from around the world. As a principal fixture on the Asian Yachting Circuit, the Regatta annually features upwards of 100 boats and 1,000 participants, ranging from the high-tech yachts in IRC Zero to live-aboard ocean cruisers, multihulls and classics. International-standard race management is combined with lively beach parties during Regatta Week to create this world-renowned yacht racing exhibition.
About the Phuket King's Cup Regatta - Asia's legendary yacht race under Royal Patronage
The Phuket King's Cup Regatta last year celebrated its Quarter Centenary year, after first sailing in 1987 to celebrate His Majesty the King of Thailand's 60th birthday. Under Royal Patronage, the Phuket King's Cup Regatta is organised by the Phuket King's Cup Regatta Organising Committee under the auspices of the Royal Varuna Yacht Club, in conjunction with the Yacht Racing Association of Thailand, the Royal Thai Navy and the Province of Phuket.
More information: www.kingscup.com