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Home»Politics»Preventing Terrorism Requires Radical Change
Preventing Terrorism Requires Radical Change
Politics 22/07/2017 4 Comments14 Mins ReadBy Dilly Hussain
In trying to prevent terrorism at home, the West must leave the Muslim world
Sir Isaac Newton's famous 'Third Law' stipulates that "every action has an equal and opposite reaction". This profound principle and logical theory can be applied to a plethora of tangible realities, and is how I tend to make sense of human warfare – especially, the West's "home-grown terrorism" quagmire with "Islamism".[1] Where Newton's 'Third Law' states that every action has an "equal and opposite reaction," the proportionality of "actions" and their subsequent "reactions" significantly vary when analysing the dynamics of the War on Terror in relation to violence committed by state actors in comparison to non-state actors, which are neither "equal" nor "opposite" – though a "reaction" from either belligerent is certainly inevitable.
I would argue that the domestic terror threat from "Islamist jihadists" in the West is, generally speaking, a direct "reaction" to military intervention, political interference and historical injustices committed by Western powers in the Muslim majority world. However, the deplorable violence carried out by non-state actors like ISIS cells and Al Qaeda inspired lone wolves are neither "equal" nor "opposite" in their reaction – whether one quantifies this via death toll or by the usage of sophisticated warfare.
Before I proceed with elaborating on the above, I want to briefly touch upon three prevalent strands of thinking presented by western academics,[2] think-tanks,[3] and politicians who have attempted to explain this problem with Islamism – both its violent and non-violent forms.[4]
Prevalent arguments
Some commentators come from the perspective that the global War on Terror is an ideological conflict between modern secular liberal pluralism and an intolerant, politicised and out-dated interpretation of Islām, which has yet to undergo a systematic process of reformation like Christianity did in Europe during the 16th century.[5] This line of thinking perceives the current 'struggle' as a battle of hearts and minds, where military intervention can be 'justified' when necessary – whilst the more desired strategy is to support Muslim civil society groups, reformist movements, and secularists in the West and abroad.
Others have presented a more orientalist and Manichean reading of the current conflict – one between two Abrahamic faiths with expansionist ambitions: Western Christendom and the Islamic East, which have been at loggerheads since the dawn of Islām and its initial battles and conquests of Byzantium territories, right through to the Crusades and up to World War One with the subsequent abolishment of the Ottoman Empire.[6][7] This line of thinking perceives the War on Terror as a mere continuation of a civilisational conflict which has been ongoing for over a thousand years. This school of thought also favours military intervention abroad and draconian counter-terrorism laws at home to contain the threat of Islamism.
Both groups have numerous variations within the political spectrum between the left and the right – from neoliberalism and neo-conservatism to the far-left and the far-right. But whilst far-right populism is undeniably on the rise in the West due to various socio-political and economic factors,[8] it was neither the far-right nor the far-left that were responsible for the most recent conflicts which have destabilised the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan under the banner of the War on Terror.[9]
There is a third group, and it too has its own sub-groups. It comprises of those who, whilst believing in aspects of an ideological conflict with Islamism, accept to differing degrees that historical and contemporary injustices committed by Western powers in the Muslim majority world has significantly contributed to the problem of domestic terrorism.[10] The birth of 'Islamism' is understood by them as a post-colonial reactionary ideology that is culturally rooted in discourse not entirely alien to the Muslim world. Dubbed by their critics as "liberals",[11] "Islamist apologists" and "regressive lefties" – what makes this strand of thinking unique is that it has never manifested into state policy.[12][13][14]
Whilst I do not entirely accept the ideological premises of the third group, I cannot deny the arguments that historical crimes and foreign policy injustices committed by Western powers in the Muslim majority world have been causative factors in politically motivated violence perpetrated by a handful of Muslims in mainland Europe and the United States since 2001.[15][16] It is also important to note that those who consistently cite historical and contemporary grievances do not necessarily enjoy the mainstream platforms, state funding or media limelight as compared to those who advocate an interventionist, draconian and reformist approach to tackling the "Islamist terror threat".
Basic, but important definitions
Before I proceed with proposing a radical solution to significantly decrease the threat of "home-grown" terrorism, I must state that there are Muslim "equivalents" of the aforementioned schools of thought that exist all over the world and that they are not exclusive to non-Muslim academics, thinkers and political movements in the West.
Let us start by defining "Islamism". While there are many frequently used definitions, the most popular is:
"A political interpretation of Islām which seeks to establish an autocratic government ruled by Sharīah law."
What I understand "Islamism" to be when it is described by policymakers and the corporate media is:
"A Muslim who adheres to Islamic laws and values in their private and public life, as well as believing in the undisputed truth of Islām as the only salvation for humanity".
Why do I believe this? Because a "Muslim" is the one who submits in totality to the will of God and "Islām" means to "submit" to God, and through this submission a Muslim attains peace (the "peace" is conditional to submission).
Lastly, what is "terrorism"? "The unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims."
Can this widely accepted definition of "terrorism" be applied to the actions carried out by modern nation states or liberal democracies? Of course, it can. However, is it applied by Western governments, the United Nations, the European Union, or NATO when referring to illegal wars,[17] complicity in war crimes,[18] genocide and human right abuses committed by the West and their allies?[19][20][21] Rarely, if ever. The term "terrorism" tends to be exclusively reserved for non-state actors or "rogue states" that Western governments bear grudges with.[22] Therefore, for the remainder of this article, the term "terrorism" will be equally applied to actions committed by western countries as well as non-state actors.
Leave the Muslim world alone
The following is my 10-point solution to significantly limiting the "Islamist terror threat" in the West. Taking into consideration that practically everything from de-radicalisation programmes,[23] funding Muslim reformers to endless domestic countering-violent extremism policies have been tried,[24][25] tested and arguably failed,[26] the only strategy that remains is to holistically review Western foreign policy in the Muslim majority world:
Bring back all Western soldiers including NATO and UN troops, as well as secret service personnel stationed in Muslim countries.[27]
Close down all military bases in Muslim countries whilst keeping Western embassies and diplomats there.[28]
Review the West's unstinted relationship with Israel.[29][30]
Stop propping up despotic regimes that oppress, kill and imprison non-violent political and religious opposition groups.[31]
Stop invading and occupying Muslim countries and monopolising their natural resources.[32]
Stop meddling in the political affairs and "derailing democracy" in Muslim countries. If Muslims want to be ruled by Islamists and governed by Shariah law then so be it.[33]
Stop selling arms to regimes that go onto use these weapons against their own people or neighbouring countries, which further destabilises the region.[34] [35]
Stop criminalising non-violent Islamic movements and Muslim resistance groups under the disingenuous and irrational pretext of "combating terrorism".[36][37]
Shutdown all secret torture camps and prisons in Muslim countries that are used for illegal rendition.[38]
Respect the land, air and maritime sovereignty of Muslim countries.[39]
I know what you're thinking – the above is too far-fetched and outrageous to even dream of, let alone be uttered as a solution. Well of course it is! Because to implement my 10-point proposal ultimately means for Western governments to have a miraculous epiphany in minding their own business, and stop acting as modern day Romans.[40] As well as minding their own business, Western governments need to fundamentally abandon their neo-colonial mindset,[41] ideological arrogance,[42] and hegemonic approach to how they perceive and deal with the Muslim world.[43]
A case of survival and safeguarding
But this will never happen. Simply because there is too much at stake.[44] The geopolitical and economic implications of even remotely implementing half of what I have proposed is for Western governments, namely the US, Britain and France, to essentially allow other powers, be it Russia or China, or Muslim countries such as Pakistan or Turkey to undo the hard work of their colonial forefathers.[45] [46]
In addition to this, since the onset of the War on Terror, American and British military generals and security officials have consistently stated that countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Egypt, and now Syria, are important to contain, amongst other reasons, due to the "evil ideology" of Islamism, which seeks to resurrect a polity – the Caliphate – in an attempt to revive the medieval golden age of Islamic civilisation.[47][48][49][50]
Putting the barbaric and unIslamic practices of ISIS aside (who were born out of the US-led invasion of Iraq),[51] Western think-tanks have also stated that the likelihood of such a polity re-emerging from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire is not something that should be dismissed – especially given the Islamic world's track record of leading humanity in the arts and sciences, as well as stretching its authority deep into Spain, the Balkans, the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe.[52]
With all these hypothetically undesirable scenarios troubling western policymakers, why would they be stupid enough to just pack up, leave and abandon their geopolitical safeguarding and survival measures?
Forgive me for presenting such a daunting reality that may read like a Manichean translation of Samuel Huntingdon's 'Clash of civilisations',[53] but I genuinely believe there are undeniable truths to what I have stated.[54] Francis Fukuyama's gross assumption that mankind had reached the "end of history" in the advent of Western liberal democracy, which apparently signalled the endpoint of human government, was simply a fallacy.[55] The secular nation-state and liberal democracy should not be blindly accepted as the eternal form of nationhood or government, especially as the former is barely two hundred years old! However, what should be acknowledged is the industrial scale death and destruction that has resulted from the birth of secular nation states – just the twentieth century alone has resulted in more than 87.5 million deaths according to former US national security adviser, Zbigniew Brzezunski.[56][57]
And it is in light of this context and paradigm that we must try to understand where and how the West's paranoia of Islamist inspired terrorism fits in. From trying to contain existing superpowers, to violently preventing the birth of an Islamist empire, tackling domestic terrorism is ultimately the circular game of how the West manages to stop the chickens from coming home to roost. And these chickens are not just motivated by War on Terror foreign policy grievances, they include historical grievances dating back to European colonialism and World War One,[58] with the unnatural borders of the Sykes-Picot Agreement still affecting the Middle East and North Africa today.[59] With the well-established and normative Islamic concept of "Ummah" (global community of Muslims bound together by Islām) it is impossible to deny that what I have discussed has affected the psyche of hundreds of millions of Muslims worldwide.
To conclude, Western governments must look in the mirror and ask themselves the following questions which have glaringly obvious answers:
* Did mass-scale Islamist inspired terrorism exist before 9/11 in the Western world? No.
* Did poverty, high unemployment, "ghettoisation", lack of integration, and racial and religious discrimination of Muslims exist in Europe before the War on terror? Yes.
* Did these sociological and socioeconomic realities ever transpire into religiously or politically motivated violence before the War on Terror? No.[60]
* Lastly, did Western powers begin their political and military interference in the Muslim majority world after 9/11? Of course not, it has been an on-going foreign policy for at least 150 years (in the case of Europe).[61][62][63]
Blaming the West and ignoring ideology
A legitimate counter-question would then be: what role does "Islamist", "Salafist" or "jihadist" ideologies play in all of this? Surely, it cannot be entirely the West's fault?
Ideology or theology does play a role – a very important one – but not a causative role which necessarily leads to violence.[64][65] Studies carried out by social scientists and the British secret services have found that the perpetrators of Islamist terrorism in the West are usually religious novices who justified violence through the language, culture or religion they felt most comfortable with.[66][67] In the same way Christian terrorists, Jewish extremists, Hindu fundamentalists, Irish Republicans, South American communists, and Kurdish separatists (PKK) all justify violence through the distorted language of their respective worldviews, the lone wolves and terror cells of ISIS are no different.
There is an argument that if Western powers militarily abandoned the Muslim world, nihilistic groups like ISIS would continue to attack mainland Europe. But there are two very simple points which would nullify this unsubstantiated assumption.
Firstly, ISIS was born out of the industrial scale death and destruction of the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.[68] Therefore, the desire to seek revenge would not immediately diminish, especially as the wounds of losing Mosul and being bombed in Raqqa by Western forces are still very fresh.
Secondly, the abandonment of Western military interference would have to be coupled with the abandonment of the West's political interference in the Muslim world; which includes its support for Israel and other despotic dictators in the region, as well as selling weapons to these regimes – all of which has violent consequences that lead to grievances that are subsequently used to justify politically motivated crimes in the West.[69]
As for the wider issue of non-violent manifestations of "Islamism", in more cases than not, they tend to be advocates of normative Islām who want to regain control of the Muslim world's political destiny whilst safeguarding its Islamic identity from what they perceive to be a cultural invasion by the West.
As idealistic as the prospects of halting western interference and meddling in the Muslim majority world may seem due to the gravity of hegemonic geopolitics at stake, let us at least be honest enough to admit that the streets of North America and Europe were much safer from the threat of "Islamist terrorism" before the US-led War on Terror ensued. In the likely case that the status quo persists, let us at least reflect on the fact that, upon balance, our governments have made the conscious choice of maintaining unjust foreign policies at the calculated expense of our safety.
[1] http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/606092/Islamist-Extremist-Islamic-State-ISIS-MI5-Britain-Andrew-Parker-Security-David-Cameron
[2] http://www.claystone.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Claystone-rethinking-radicalisation.pdf
[3] http://www.civitas.org.uk/pdf/cs29.pdf
[4] https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/jul/14/religion.july7
[5] https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/not-war-terror-war-ideology
[6] https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/07/will-europe-finally-face-threat-islamism/
[7] https://theintercept.com/2016/11/23/mike-pompeo-religious-war/
[8] https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/world/europe/europe-far-right-political-parties-listy.html
[9] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jul/06/george-w-bush-tony-blair-chilcot-report-iraq-war
[10] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-terrorism-uk-foreign-policy-manchester-terror-attack-tory-security-minister-ben-a7756861.html
[11] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shawn-moksvold/the-lefts-problem-with-fr_b_8930598.html
[12] https://richarddawkins.net/2014/10/the-inner-workings-of-the-apologist-mindset/
[13] https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/tom-mills-narzanin-massoumi-david-miller-max-farrar/why-on-earth-would-leftists-go-out-of
[15] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/worst-atrocities-british-empire-amritsar-boer-war-concentration-camp-mau-mau-a6821756.html
[16] http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/07/12/536870827/amnesty-says-u-s-led-coalition-may-have-committed-war-crimes-in-mosul
[17] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/chilcot-report-john-prescott-says-tony-blair-led-uk-into-illegal-war-in-iraq-a7129106.html
[19] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-deaths-survey-idUSL3048857920080130
[21] https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/middle-east-and-north-africa/israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/report-israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/
[22] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38868039
[23] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/mar/20/almost-4000-people-were-referred-to-uk-deradicalisation-scheme-channel-last-year
[24] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/may/02/uk-government-covert-propaganda-stop-muslims-joining-isis
[25] https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/sep/05/politics-of-fear-britain-anti-extremism-prevent-government-radicalisation
[26] https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/apr/21/government-prevent-strategy-promoting-extremism-maina-kiai
[27] https://theintercept.com/2014/11/06/many-countries-islamic-world-u-s-bombed-occupied-since-1980/
[28] http://index.heritage.org/military/2015/chapter/op-environment/middle-east/
[29] https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/israel/2016-01-13/real-talk-israeli-settlements
[30] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/palestinianauthority/9645925/Britain-must-atone-for-its-sins-in-Palestine.html
[31] https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2016-03-07/helping-hurts
[33] https://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2013/07/06/us-backed-coup-hijacks-egypts-revolution/
[34] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/britain-is-now-the-second-biggest-arms-dealer-in-the-world-a7225351.html
[35] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/19/saudi-arabia-admits-use-uk-made-cluster-bombs-yemen
[36] http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/mar/27/muslim-brotherhood-listing-as-terror-group-delayed/
[37] https://www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/other/des/123085.htm
[38] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/feb/05/cia-rendition-countries-covert-support
[39] https://www.dawn.com/news/1029733
[40] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jun/01/donald-trump-has-fascinating-parallels-with-caligula-says-historian
[41] http://www.globalpolicyjournal.com/blog/19/08/2014/new-neo-colonialism-africa
[42] https://www.opendemocracy.net/north-africa-west-asia/tahir-zaman/political-islam-in-neoliberal-times
[43] http://www.globalresearch.ca/plans-for-redrawing-the-middle-east-the-project-for-a-new-middle-east/3882
[45] http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/pentagon-plan-divide-and-rule-muslim-world-1690265165
[46] http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/how-the-curse-of-sykes-picot-still-haunts-the-middle-east
[47] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWECbtxAHq8
[48] https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/dec/20/faces-2009-richard-dannatt-tory
[49] https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/jul/14/religion.july7
[51] https://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2015/03/23/isis-the-unintended-consequences-of-the-us-led-war-on-iraq/
[52] http://www.futurebrief.com/project2020.pdf
[53] https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/1993-06-01/clash-civilizations
[55] https://ps321.community.uaf.edu/files/2012/10/Fukuyama-End-of-history-article.pdf
[56] https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/capsule-review/1993-06-01/out-control-global-turmoil-eve-21st-century
[58] http://listverse.com/2014/02/04/10-evil-crimes-of-the-british-empire/
[60] http://www.poverty.org.uk/06/index.shtml
[61] https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/apr/18/britain-destroyed-records-colonial-crimes
[64] http://www.claystone.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Claystone-rethinking-radicalisation.pdf
[65] https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/aug/20/uksecurity.terrorism1
ATTACK CHANNEL COLONIALISM COUNTER-TERRORISM DEMOCRACY DESPOT DICTATOR EXTREMISM FOREIGN POLICY IDEOLOGY IMPERIALISM ISLAMISM ISLAMIST NEO-COLONIALISM NEOCON NEOCONSERVATISM NEOCONSERVATIVE POLICY POST-COLONIALISM PREVENT RADICAL SELF DETERMINATION TERROR TERRORISM TERRORIST United States of America (USA) WAR ON TERROR WEST
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Paul Barbara on 29/08/2017 11:41 pm
I'm a Christian, brought up Catholic but now Non-Denominational). I have been astonished at some of the balderdash in your articles, like Assad being allied to the West and Daesh. Have you ever heard of the 'Yinon Plan'? The plan to Balkanise all the larges countries around Israel, to allow for their 'Greater Israel' plans?
Have you not noticed that Israel, like NATO and the US's and Israel's 'friends' in the Gulf States and Saudi Arabia, as well as Turkey and Jordan, all backed and facilitated Daesh?
Have you never heard of Wesley Clark: 'Global Warfare: "We're going to take out 7 countries in 5 years: Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan & Iran.." (Global Research)? Or Roland Dumas: 'Former French Foreign Minister: The War against Syria was Planned Two years before "The Arab Spring" (Global Research)?
Do you really believe the so- called 'Arab Spring' was not a Western plot, with the likes of George Sooros and the 'National Endowment for Democracy' (NED) being prime movers, as well as the US-controlled Canvas' group: 'Ukraine Protests Carefully Orchestrated: The Role of CANVAS, US-Financed "Color Revolution Training Group" (Global Research again; these issues appear elsewhere as well, it's just easier to find on that site)?
But way ahead of the pack of daft things you seem to believe , is that Osama bin Laden planned 9/11; 9/11 was an 'Inside Job', nothing whatsoever to do with 'blowback' or 'Muslims'. Muslim patsies were set up to provide 'Red Herring' false trails; the poor guy on dialysis with his laptop dies in December 2001, NOT in a faked helicopter attack in Pakistan years later.
And remember, the murderous, genocidal attacks on Muslims follows many other the murderous, genocidal attacks on people all over the world, especially Latin America (not too many Muslims there), and it is continuing.
I have traveled extensively in about a dozen Muslim countries, beginning in Morocco in 1957, and overland to India (I realise India is not Muslim, but has a sizeable population of them) in 1967, traveling through most of the Middle East on a meandering route. I have great respect for Muslims, and detest the fact that even many Muslims accept the blatant lie that 9/11 was their doing.
In playing along with this lie, you are perpetuating the wars and massacres against your fellow Muslims, Sunni and Shia, which have been perpetrated under the 'Umbrella' of the 9/11 lie, and the subsequent 'War on Terror' lie.
Tom Metzger on 24/07/2017 2:01 am
Calling it Terrorism is a mistake. It is simply guerrilla warfare. The grand plan is to destroy much of the Middle East and at the same time herd millions into Europe. it's a well organized plan.resist.com
And not just the Middle East; they're trying the same trick in Venezuela at the moment, like they did in Nicaragua with the 'Contra' terrorist scumbags, and many other countries in Latin America and all over the world. They are particularly active now in Africa.
They want the countries, not the Africans, so they set up very well armed and funded 'Terrorist Groups' across the continent.
Faraz on 22/07/2017 4:59 pm
Salaam, if you are aware of the full history and especially if you studied eschatology, then you'll find that the ruling classes of today are responsible for universal fasaadh on this Earth. So, terrorism is their business and preventing it in a true sense isn't their aim. Radicalization in itself is part of their end game.
Dilly Hussain
Dilly Hussain is the deputy editor of British Muslim news site 5Pillars. He is also a political blogger for the Huffington Post and a features writer for Al Jazeera specialising on human rights. He regularly appears on Islam Channel, Russia Today, BBC Look East, BBC South and BBC radio stations discussing Middle East and North African politics, as well as domestic stories concerning British Muslims.


Fishing has improved here at Delphi in the past week, but more importantly the number of fish entering the system has improved dramatically, especially in the latter half of the week. Having said that fish were still playing hard to get, but we did manage to land fifteen for the week. It must be said that generally we had excellent water conditions on the river with water finally falling off to 30 on Saturday evening.
George Westropp was first off the mark, last Sunday with a nice fish from the Stream on Finlough of 5lbs5ozs on a Verminator.
Bill Williams managed to land a sea liced fish of approx. 5lbs in the Quarry pool on an Allie shrimp on Monday.
On Tuesday we landed four fish. Mike Shortt had one off the Turn pool of 3lbs6ozs on a Collie Dog. Pat Timpson had one off Quarry Flats on a Cascade of 4lbs3ozs. Michael Righton then had an amazing hour at the head of the Turn pool between 9 and 10pm in torrential rain when he lost five and landed two, both on a Collie Dog, the first of 3lbs11ozs and the second of 7lbs1oz.
Wednesday, Patrick Carroll had two off the Turn pool, both on a Collie Dog of 1lbs9ozs and approx.3lbs.
Thursday belonged to the dynamic Northern duo of Alan Boyd and Ken McMillan who landed four for the day. Before starting one of them happened to startle three ladies who were skinny dipping. On exiting the water one of them suggested that it might be his lucky day. As it turned out they were right. Alan Boyd managed to land three fish; one from Morrison's of 5lbs2ozs on a Cascade and two from the Quarry of 3lbs1oz and approx. 3lbs on a Yellow Shrimp and Cascade respectively. Ken McMillan had a fish of approx. 6lbs from the Kings on a Willie Gunn.
Friday, Alan Boyd landed a big old springer of 10lbs4ozs from the Turn pool on a Beaded nymph.
Saturday Paul Smyth from Tullamore finally got off the mark with two fish in quick succession from Quarry Run. They weighed in at 4lbs and approx. 5lbs and were taken on a Yellow Allie.
On the sea trout front George and Helen Westropp had an entertaining afternoon on Glencullin with eight finnock to 1lb and a ewe. They noticed a ewe swimming across Glencullin and they did their good deed and towed her ashore.


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Mevrouw is een aanspreektitel voor een volwassen persoon van het vrouwelijk geslacht. Het woord gaat terug op het Middelnederlandse mijnvrouwe, dat als titel van een adellijke dame werd gebruikt.

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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Padilla v. Mnuchin
ABIGAIL GAIL PADILLA, Plaintiff,
STEVEN T. MNUCHIN, Secretary of the Department of the Treasury, and KIRSTJEN NIELSEN, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Defendants.
RECOMMENDATION REGARDING AMENDED COMPLAINT
This matter comes before the Court on the Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint (ECF No. 7)[1] filed pro se by Plaintiff, Abigail Gail Padilla, on April 5, 2019. The matter has been referred to this Magistrate Judge for recommendation (ECF No. 9.)[2]
The Court must construe the Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint and other papers filed by Ms. Padilla liberally because she is not represented by an attorney. See Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520-21 (1972); Hall v. Bellmon, 935 F.2d 1106, 1110 (10th Cir. 1991). However, the Court should not be an advocate for a pro se litigant. See Hall, 935 F.2d at 1110.
The Court has reviewed the filings to date. The Court has considered the entire case file, the applicable law, and is sufficiently advised in the premises. This Magistrate Judge respectfully recommends that the Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint be dismissed.
I. DISCUSSION
Ms. Padilla initiated this action by filing pro se an Employment Discrimination Complaint (ECF No. 1) asserting claims pursuant to Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), the Whistleblower Protection Act ("WPA"), and the Family and Medical Leave Act ("FMLA"). On March 15, 2019, the Court directed Ms. Padilla to file an amended complaint that clarifies her claims. The Court determined the Employment Discrimination Complaint did not comply with the pleading requirements of Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure because Ms. Padilla failed to provide a short and plain statement of her claims showing she is entitled to relief. As noted above, the Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint was filed on April 5, 2019.
The Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint does not provide a clear statement of the claims Ms. Padilla is asserting and does not comply with the pleading requirements of Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The twin purposes of a pleading are to give the opposing parties fair notice of the basis for the claims against them so that they may respond and to allow the Court to conclude that the allegations, if proven, show that the plaintiff is entitled to relief. See Monument Builders of Greater Kansas City, Inc. v. American Cemetery Ass'n of Kansas, 891 F.2d 1473, 1480 (10thCir. 1989); see also Nasious v. Two Unknown B.I.C.E. Agents, 492 F.3d 1158, 1163 (10th Cir. 2007) (stating that a complaint "must explain what each defendant did to him or her; when the defendant did it; how the defendant's action harmed him or her; and, what specific legal right the plaintiff believes the defendant violated.").
The requirements of Rule 8 are designed to meet these purposes. See TV Communications Network, Inc. v. ESPN, Inc., 767 F.Supp. 1062, 1069 (D. Colo. 1991), aff'd, 964 F.2d 1022 (10th Cir. 1992). Specifically, Rule 8(a) provides that a complaint "must contain (1) a short and plain statement of the grounds for the court's jurisdiction, . . . (2) a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief; and (3) a demand for the relief sought." Furthermore, the philosophy of Rule 8(a) is reinforced by Rule 8(d)(1), which provides that "[e]ach allegation must be simple, concise, and direct." Taken together, Rules 8(a) and (d)(1) underscore the emphasis placed on clarity and brevity by the federal pleading rules. As a result, prolix, vague, or unintelligible pleadings violate the requirements of Rule 8.
Ms. Padilla asserts three claims in the amended Employment Discrimination Complaint pursuant to Title VII, the ADA, and the WPA, although she also refers to violations of other statutes and constitutional provisions within each of her claims. Ms. Padilla indicates in the amended Employment Discrimination Complaint that she filed an administrative charge of discrimination and that she received a notice of right to sue, but she has not attached copies of those documents to the amended Employment Discrimination Complaint as directed on the complaint form. (See ECF No. 7 at p.19.) However, the Court notes that Plaintiff did submit documents with the original Employment Discrimination Complaint relevant to her efforts to exhaust administrative remedies, including a Decision on Request for Reconsideration dated February 6, 2019, that advises Ms. Padilla of her right to sue. (See ECF No. 1-1 at pp.5-7.) The Decision on Request for Reconsideration relates to "a formal EEO complaint in which [Ms. Padilla] alleged that the Agency discriminated against her based on race (mixed), national origin (Hispanic), sex (female), religion (Jewish), color (mixed), disability, [and] age (over 40) when she was issued a harmful mid-year performance review on July 31, 2014." (ECF No. 1-1 at 5.)
As the Court noted in the order directing Ms. Padilla to file an amended complaint, she did not include in the original complaint specific factual allegations in support of her claims that relate to a harmful mid-year performance review in July 2014. The Court's review of the amended Employment Discrimination Complaint reveals that Ms. Padilla still fails to provide a short and plain statement of any claims that relate to a harmful mid-year performance review in July 2014. In addition, even if Ms. Padilla's claims in this action relate to employment discrimination unrelated to a harmful mid-year performance review in July 2014, she still fails to provide a short and plain statement of any claims that demonstrate she is entitled to relief. Instead, the amended Employment Discrimination Complaint consists of vague, conclusory, disjointed, and confusing factual allegations that do not provide a clear and concise statement of each claim Ms. Padilla is asserting. For example, Ms. Padilla fails to link her factual allegations to the specific claims she indicates she is asserting. In other words, whatever Title VII claim Ms. Padilla may be asserting is not supported by specific factual allegations based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, see 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1), and she similarly fails to provide specific factual allegations regarding disability-based discrimination in her ADA claim or specific factual allegations that would support a claim under the WPA. Confusing the issues in this action further, Ms. Padilla repeats allegations from a separate employment discrimination case she recently filed that remains pending in the District of Colorado. See Padilla v. Mnuchin, No. 18-cv-02302-NRN (D. Colo. filed Sept. 7, 2018). In short, despite the Court's specific instructions, the amended Employment Discrimination Complaint does not provide a short and plain statement of any federal claims showing Ms. Padilla is entitled to relief.
The general rule that pro se pleadings must be construed liberally has limits and "the court cannot take on the responsibility of serving as the litigant's attorney in constructing arguments and searching the record." Garrett v. Selby Connor Maddux & Janer, 425 F.3d 836, 840 (10th Cir. 2005); see also United States v. Dunkel, 927 F.2d 955, 956 (7th Cir. 1991) ("Judges are not like pigs, hunting for truffles buried in briefs."); Ketchum v. Cruz, 775 F.Supp. 1399, 1403 (D. Colo. 1991) (vague and conclusory allegations that his rights have been violated does not entitle a pro se pleader to a day in court regardless of how liberally the pleadings are construed), aff'd, 961 F.2d 916 (10th Cir. 1992). "[I]n analyzing the sufficiency of the plaintiff's complaint, the court need accept as true only the plaintiff's well-pleaded factual contentions, not his conclusory allegations." Hall, 935 F.2d at 1110.
Ms. Padilla fails to provide Defendants fair notice of the specific claims being asserted against them and the specific factual allegations that support each claim. Therefore, the Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint does not comply with the pleading requirements of Rule 8.
II. RECOMMENDATION
For the reasons set forth herein, this Magistrate Judge respectfully RECOMMENDS that the Amended Employment Discrimination Complaint (ECF No. 7) and the action be dismissed without prejudice pursuant to Rule 41(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil ...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Git-SVN can't reset my repo I was configuring my Git-SVN repo (filter, .gitignore, etc.) when all the sudden it started to have strange behaviors.
My problem at the moment is that I can't reset my repo.
I tried:
git reset --hard HEAD
HEAD is now at a5e6951 My comment

From my understanding, I shouldn't have any file modified in my working copy anymore.
But it is not the case:
$ git st
On branch dev
Changes not staged for commit:
  (use "git add <file>..." to update what will be committed)
  (use "git checkout -- <file>..." to discard changes in working directory)

        modified:   Main.c
        [...]

I have plenty of others strange behaviors (.gitignore doesn't work, etc.).
My question:

*

*What is happening?

*How can I properly reset my environment?

Thank you for your help!

A: If someone comes here someday, I finally noticed it is an EOL issue (CRLF vs LF).
Fixing this is a pain.
I recommend reading this:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/20653073/882697

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Orheyn Lai Lai Remix Original Joker Edition Lai Lai Song. Orheyn Lai Lai Remix Original Joker Edition Lai Lai Download totally free mp3 get.
Orheyn Lai Lai Remix Original Joker Edition Lai Lai Song. Free Download MP3, Music and Video Orheyn Lai Lai Remix Original Joker Edition Lai Lai Song Download free on LAGUHD just for review. Check this video clip and download another songs here.


text:
using FlatRedBall.Glue.MVVM;
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Text;

namespace GlueFormsCore.Plugins.EmbeddedPlugins.SyncedProjects.ViewModels
{
    class ToolbarControlViewModel : ViewModel
    {
        public bool IsOpenVisualStudioAutomaticallyChecked
        {
            get => Get<bool>();
            set => Set(value);
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This one is about is about as under-the-radar as it gets — according to ChuSpo, the Mets have agreed to sign Japanese teenager Taiki Kawasaki to a minor league contract. Kawasaki is a 17 year-old left handed pitcher who had been training at Julio Franco's baseball academy in Florida. The Osaka native left Japan after finishing junior high school in April 2008 with the hopes of catching on with an MLB organization. In his time in Franco's academy, Kawasaki has grown from 177cm, 66kg (5'10, 145) to 185cm 77kg (6'1, 170), and added velocity to his fastball, which now averages around 140kmph (about 87mph). An older report mentions that Kawasaki has a slider and curve as well.
I couldn't find any English info on this signing, but this ESPN Deportes article from last year mentions Kawasaki's presence at Franco's academy. Franco will reportedly travel to Japan in mid-October to officially announce the signing.


text:
IWSH /
OUR WORK /
According to the World Health Organization at least one in three African people is affected by water scarcity, leaving them without enough fresh water for drinking, cooking and food production, as well as sanitation, hygiene and cleanliness practices. Consequently, open defecation is a common practice, leading to an estimated 115 deaths every hour in the African Region. Bacteria, viruses, parasites and pollution contaminate the freshwater supply. Many people have resorted to storing water in their homes, which leads to household water contamination and serves as a breeding ground for mosquitoes, which carry such diseases as scarlet fever and malaria.
IWSH works closely with World Plumbing Council partners in Africa. Learn more about our work in the following countries:
AFRICAN PROJECT UPDATES:
June 2020: WPC Partners Team Up to Tackle 2,000 Township Taps in Diepsloot
June 2020: WPC Connects IWSH, Plumbers Association of Zambia for Children's Village Hand-Washing Program
March 2020: IWSH, RPO to Collaborate for Enhanced WASH Services in Rwanda


Aiden Markram. Photo: Lee Warren/Gallo Images.
The national selectors hardly had a reason not to pick the exciting young opener for the Test series against Bangladesh.
Given that his form the past few weeks have almost made it impossible not to do so, the Proteas will hand Aiden Markram his Test debut against Bangladesh next week.
The national selectors on Friday confirmed the 23-year-old Titans opener will face the new ball in the first Test in Potchefstroom.
"Aiden has been knocking on the door for some time now," said Linda Zondi, the convenor of selectors.
Handed the captaincy in this week's Sunfoil Series round of matches, Markram hit 119 and 87 against the Dolphins to book his place.
A week earlier, he smashed a brilliant 134.
There are no further surprises as new coach Ottis Gibson has stuck to the men that did duty on an ultimately disappointing tour of England.
Wayne Parnell and Andile Phehlukwayo have been included as the all-rounder options as Vernon Philander is not available for the first Test.
That said, Parnell will have to undergo a fitness Test next week.
As a result, promising 19-year-old Highveld Lions player Wiaan Mulder will be training with the squad as back-up.
The squad is only valid for the first Test.
Proteas: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Quinton de Kock, Dean Elgar, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morne Morkel, Duanne Olivier, Wayne Parnell, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada.


text:
The Tribune Is Changing Its Digital Subscription Plan Next Year
By Kate Shepherd in News on Nov 5, 2015 9:18PM
jnhPhoto
Tribune Publishing, the parent company of the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times, is changing the way it charges for online content next year.
The company will introduce a metered digital subscription model across all of its titles in 2016, according to Capital New York. The upcoming switch was announced by Tribune digital chief Denise Warren in a conference call regarding the company's third quarter financial results.
All of the company's newspapers have a "premium" digital pay model, which means that certain content is only available to subscribers. With a metered model, readers are able to access a limited number of articles for free before they hit a paywall which requires them to subscribe to read more—think of the New York Times.
Warren was instrumental in developing the New York Times' metered pay model—which has been more successful than the Tribune's current premium model. Readers are more likely to subscribe digitally with a metered model than a premium model, according to research she cited. The Tribune has seen some digital subscription growth with a total of 81,000 subscribers, up 37 percent over last year.
The new model is slated to be introduced in the second quarter of 2016.
chicago tribunela timestribune publishing


text:
'60 Minutes' report: Russian gold medalists were on PEDs at Sochi
Four Russian gold-medal winners at the Sochi Olympics used performance-enhancing drugs, according to the whistleblowers who exposed systemic cheating in that country's track program and took part in a "60 Minutes" interview that airs Sunday.
In the interview, an excerpt of which appears on CBS Evening News on Friday, Vitaly Stepanov says the former head of Russia's drug-testing lab told him he had a "Sochi List" of Russians who competed on performance-enhancing drugs, and four athletes on that list won gold medals.
Stepanov and his wife, 800-meter runner Yulia, revealed details about doping on the Russian track team that led to an investigation, which has put the team's status in jeopardy for the upcoming Summer Olympics. The team's fate will be determined next month at a meeting of the sport's governing body.
Athletes and others have called for the investigation, undertaken by an independent commission appointed by the World Anti-Doping Agency, to expand beyond track. Lead investigator Dick Pound kept the initial probe centered on track -- the investigation's mandate. WADA leaders have said they would consider expanding the investigation if evidence calls for it.
WADA spokesman Ben Nichols said agency leaders "will watch the ('60 Minutes') program with interest" but won't comment until they've seen the entire thing.
The WADA Foundation Board meets next week in Montreal; an update on the commission's investigation and enhancements to WADA's whistleblowing policy are on the agenda.
sportsespnpedsrussianolympic sportssochi olympicsgold medalsteroidswinter games60 minutes


text:
Nothing but Fools
Baka Bakka
Nothing but Fools (バカばっか, Baka Bakka?) is the eighty-fifth chapter of Kohei Horikoshi's My Hero Academia.
Inside the hospital, Izuku Midoriya phones his mother and informs her about his wounds. She asks if he can stop going to U.A. High School. After ending the call, Izuku returns to Eijiro Kirishima, Shoto Todoroki, Tenya Ida, and Momo Yaoyorozu. Tenya apologizes for punching him. Momo and Tenya remind Izuku, Shoto, and Eijiro that they are going with them to ensure that they do not engage in combat.
The group of Class 1-A students follow Momo's device and board a train to the location the device is detecting. On the train, Izuku asks Shoto and Eijiro if they told the rest of the class about the plan; Shoto and Eijiro reply that they did although the class still tried to stop them from going through with the plan. Ochaco Uraraka even tried to dissuade them by saying Katsuki Bakugo will feel disgraced with being saved by everyone. Shoto tells the group that they can still turn back if they want to. However, Eijiro is resolute in rescuing Katsuki, and Izuku thinks back to the phone call between him and his mother before leaving. Izuku told his mother that he is All Might's successor and as the successor, he cannot sit back and relax. Back in the present, Izuku states that it is too late for him to turn back.
After two hours of traveling, the group departs from the train and follows the device which brings them to a place called Kamino Ward, a place in Yokohama City in the Kanagawa Prefecture. Since they are near the League of Villains' location, Izuku along with Shoto, Eijiro, Momo, and Tenya put on disguises to make infiltration easier as well as to prevent the League of Villains from recognizing them.
The disguised group exit the clothing shop and Izuku sees a video clip of the public apology issued by U.A. The video clip shows Nezu, Shota Aizawa, and Sekijiro Kan apologizing for failing to protect the students from the villain attack at the training camp as well as their shortcomings. One of the journalists questions what measures U.A. is taking to address the matter; Nezu replies that they are taking strong measures to guarantee the safety of their students by strengthening U.A.'s security and re-examining U.A.'s crime prevention system. However, the people watching are not satisfied with their apology or measures to protect the students and are still displeased with them due to U.A. not trying to actually protect their students. Izuku sees that U.A. is being treated like criminals and notices the mood.
At the same time inside the League of Villains' hideout, Tomura Shigaraki, the Vanguard Action Squad, and Katsuki have also watched the video clip of U.A.'s public apology. Tomura understands why society is criticizing U.A. for their failure and that is because the current Hero society is not just. Spinner agrees that the current Hero society is not just since the modern Heroes are only doing their job for compensation and not out of selflessness. Tomura explains that the League of Villains are fighting for a just society and intends to win this battle. Tomura orders Dabi to remove Katsuki's restrains, although Dabi is unsure since Katsuki might attack. Tomura wants to treat Katsuki as an equal and is aware that Katsuki knows he has no possibility of winning. Dabi has Twice remove the restrains. As Jin removes the restraints, Mr. Compress apologizes to Katsuki for forcibly kidnapping him and explains that the League of Villains are not just a group of hoodlums perpetuating crimes nor did they casually abduct him; he goes on by saying that everyone in the League of Villains is shackled by the current society and hopes that Katsuki understands their discrimination.
Katsuki's restraints are removed. As Tomura approaches, Katsuki attacks him with Explosions. Katsuki tells the League of Villains that it is pointless to try and make him change his mind as he has already been won over by the way All Might looks when he wins. Katsuki says that from the beginning he has dreamed of becoming a Hero and surpassing All Might and nothing they say will change that.
The smoke from Katsuki's Explosions clears and Tomura sees that the hand on his face has been blown off as a result of Katsuki's attack.
Ochaco Uraraka (Flashback)
Mashirao Ojiro (Flashback)
Denki Kaminari (Flashback)
Vlad King (Screen)
Shota Aizawa (Screen)
Nezu (Screen)
All Might (Flashback)
The U.A. students that went to the infiltration mission wore the following disguises:
Izuku dressed himself as a gangster.
Eijiro is dressed as a punk.
Tenya is dressed as a barber.
Momo disguised herself as a hostess.
Shoto is disguised as a host.


text:
Stephen Colbert Rips Republicans for Scrapping Obama-Era Internet Privacy Rules (Video)
"I guarantee you there is not one person, not one voter of any political stripe anywhere in America who asked for this," says host
Brian Flood | March 30, 2017 @ 6:22 AM	Last Updated: March 30, 2017 @ 6:24 AM
"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" slammed a recent bill passed through the House and Senate that would allow Internet providers to sell private user data, on Wednesday night. "Anybody here use the Internet? Might want to knock that off," Colbert said.
"Congress has now voted to allow Internet providers to sell your web browsing history," he continued. "I've got nothing to hide, I burned my computer this morning.
"This is what's wrong with Washington D.C. … I guarantee you there is not one person, not one voter of any political stripe anywhere in America who asked for this."
Also Read: The 28 Most-Watched Cable News Shows of 2017 So Far, From Rachel Maddow to Tucker Carlson (Photos)
Colbert continued: "Taking the side of a cable company? The only thing less popular would be if they passed a bill allowing traffic jams to call you during dinner to give you Gonorrhea."
Earlier this week, the House of Representatives voted to repeal an Obama-era law that demanded ISPs have permission to share personal information, including location information. President Trump is expected to sign the order in the near future, according to BBC News.
Verizon, AT&T and Comcast argued that ISPs were being subject to stricter privacy laws than companies like Google or Facebook.
Check out the video above.
2020 Presidential Candidates, Ranked by Vegas Odds (Photos)
Donald Trump won't take office until Jan. 20, but gambling site Bovada is already thinking about the next election. Here are its top candidates to win the presidency in 2020, ranked from worst odds to best.
John Kasich 40/1 odds
Bovada ranks several Republicans, which means they would have to replace Trump as the Republican nominee. Ohio's governor famously skipped the GOP convention there because he didn't support Donald Trump. Maybe Bovada thinks he could take on Trump in the 2020 Republican primary?
Also Read: Kellyanne Conway Is Tired of Anti-Trump Millennials Being Treated as 'Precious Snowflakes' (Video)
Marco Rubio 33/1
Note that several people are tied at 33-to-1 odds. Rubio, a Florida senator, famously feuded with Trump during the 2016 primaries, earning the nickname "little Marco." Bovada has longshot odds on him replacing Trump.
Also Read: Jon Stewart Wants Donald Trump to Explain What Makes America Great (Video)
Kamala Harris 33/1
The first Democrat on our list, she was just elected as a California senator after previously serving as the state's attorney general. She'll only have four years of experience in 2020, but President Obama only had four years.
Nikki Haley 33/1
The South Carolina governor is a rising Republican star under consideration for the Trump administration.
Also Read: Donald Trump Sneaks Out for Dinner, Sparks Transparency Furor
Trey Gowdy 33/1
The South Carolina Republican congressman is known for talking tough and his legal background.
Also Read: NY Times Adds Record Number of Post-Election Subscribers Despite Trump Tweets
Kirsten Gillibrand 33/1
The Democratic junior senator from New York has vowed to recruit more women for political office.
Ted Cruz 33/1
The Republican Texas senator battled Trump for the 2016 nomination and unenthusiastically endorsed him.
Also Read: Ted Cruz Endorses Guy Who Said His Dad May Have Helped Kill JFK
Catherine Cortez Masto 33/1
The Democratic senator-elect from Nevada will be the first Latina senator. Like Harris, she will only have had four years of Senate experience in 2020.
Also Read: Ted Cruz Booed Off Stage After Failing to Endorse Donald Trump at Republican Convention
Michael Bloomberg 33/1
The former mayor of New York considered running in 2016 and probably regrets that he didn't, so 2020 could be his year.
Also Read: Facebook Is Now Less of an Echo Chamber. Twitter Is More of One
Joe Biden 33/1
The outgoing vice president considered running against Hillary Clinton in 2016 but decided not to after the 2015 death of his son Beau. Biden is popular, particularly with working-class voters whom Trump lured from the Democrats. He'll be 77 in 2o20, which would make him the oldest person to win the presidency, if he won.
Also Read: Donald Trump's Adorable Granddaughter Becomes an Internet Sensation in China (Video)
Bernie Sanders 20/1
The Vermont senator came close to upsetting Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. But in 2020, he'll be 79.
Also Read: Trump vs. Press Freedom: How Much Damage Can He Do?
Amy Klobuchar 20/1
The Minnesota senator is extremely popular in he home state.
Also Read: Democrats Believe Facebook Contributed to Hillary Clinton's Loss To Donald Trump
Hillary Clinton 20/1
After coming losing the Democratic nomination in 2008 to Obama and coming so close in 2016, does the former secretary of state have it in her to try again? She'll turn 73 in 2020, but Trump is eight months older.
Julian Castro 20/1
The secretary of Housing and Urban Development is a Texas native and considered a rising star among Democrats.
Cory Booker 20/1
The New Jersey senator is a talented campaigner and speaker and one of the most prominent African-American Democrats. The New Jersey senator is also popular among his peers.
Also Read: Donald Trump Reveals Unfulfilled Goal to TMZ's Harvey Levin in Fox News Special
Elizabeth Warren 14/1
The Massachusetts senator could pick up supporters of the Sanders movement. She has feuded with Trump, but also expressed a willingness to work with him on certain issues.
Tim Kaine 14/1
Clinton's running mate knows his way around Washington and may be the de facto candidate given his role as her understudy.
Michelle Obama 12/1
The First Lady is terrifically popular, but has said the job doesn't interest her. That may change after a few years of Donald Trump.
Also Read: Michelle Obama Has Best 2020 Presidential Odds of Any Democrat, Vegas Says
Paul Ryan 10/1
The House Speaker is a star among traditional conservatives, but it will take a TV drama worth of surprises for him to somehow replace Trump as the presidential nominee, but that's true of every other Republican on this list, too.
Also Read: 8 of Donald Trump's Most Surprising '60 Minutes' Answers
Mike Pence 10/1
The vice president-elect would be the obvious candidate to replace Trump if Trump opts not to seek a second term.
Also Read: Donald Trump Tells '60 Minutes' He Will Keep Parts of Obamacare (Video)
Donald Trump 2/1
The president-elect will be the man to beat, assuming he seeks a second term. So far there's no reason to think he won't.
Gambling site Bovada is already thinking about the next election
Stephen Colbert Brings Back Alter Ego to Blast Trump's 'Cruel' Budget (Video)
By Carli Velocci | March 21, 2017 @ 8:02 AM
Stephen Colbert Mocks Maddow's Trump Tax Reveal With Chicken Joke (Video)
By Ross A. Lincoln | March 15, 2017 @ 10:29 PM
Colbert's 'Late Show' Murders Sam the Snowman in Blizzard-Mocking Cold Open (Video)
By Tony Maglio | March 15, 2017 @ 7:02 AM
By Ross A. Lincoln | January 16, 2020 @ 10:22 PM
Recording Academy CEO Deborah Dugan Out Following 'Misconduct' Accusation
By Ross A. Lincoln | January 16, 2020 @ 7:40 PM
Leslie Jones Boycotted the Comedy Cellar Over Louis CK
Colbert Turns Into His Own Meme to Celebrate Lev Parnas Implicating Trump in Ukraine Scandal (Video)


Wunschliste.de review & pagerank - wunschliste.de - Das TV- und Fernsehserien-Infoportal.
Wunschliste.de website is scored 400 1Pagerank.com points (1PRS) and has a global traffic ranking of 53,686 in the world. This website Google PageRank is 4 out of maximum 10 and its estimated worth is about $ 146,160.00. It has potential to earn online around $ 203.00 US Dollar daily. Wunschliste.de was registered 201 decades 8 years ago (0000-00-00) and is hosted in Sachsen, Dresden, Germany. As no recently active internet threats were reported, Wunschliste.de is probably SAFE to browse.


text:
Can Elon Musk Get SolarCity's Gigafactory Back On Track?
The 1.2 million-square-foot facility in Buffalo, NY, is set to be the biggest solar-panel factory in the western hemisphere. Now it just needs to open.
Miles of plumbing, valves and wires. Image from a tour of SolarCity's factory at RiverBend in Buffalo. [Photo: Robert Kirkham/Buffalo News]
By Austin Carr long Read
In Buffalo, NY, Elon Musk and his newly acquired company, SolarCity, are trying to build the largest solar-panel factory in the western hemisphere. But the once-heralded project has faced significant obstacles in recent years.
The Gigafactory 2, as it is now named, is a 1.2-million-square-foot facility just a short drive south of downtown Buffalo, on an 88-acre site called RiverBend that was formerly home to a steel plant. It has become a symbol of hope and revitalization for the city, a bellwether partnership between the private sector and state government, which has invested nearly $1 billion in the project to date, that promises to bring innovation to the Rust Belt, along with manufacturing jobs.
As we detail in our new feature on Tesla's controversial $2.6-billion acquisition of SolarCity, the solar company founded by Musk's cousins Lyndon and Peter Rive, the Gigafactory 2 was a selling point for the merger and is key to the future of a new product: the Solar Roof. But for the past several years, the Gigafactory 2's development has run into a series of project delays, automation challenges, and budget overruns, according to people familiar with the matter. With pressure now mounting on Musk to lead the clean-energy revolution, the stakes couldn't be higher for him to deliver on the Gigafactory 2's promises. "This factory was supposed to help save the city of Buffalo, as well as the planet," says one source involved. "If it fails, it will set back the entire solar industry."
Related: The Real Story Behind Elon Musk's $2.6 Billion Acquisition Of SolarCity And What It Means For Tesla's Future–Not To Mention The Planet's
Tesla and SolarCity have maintained that the Gigafactory 2 is on track. "Timing and strategy shifts for cell and module manufacturing were either as a result of wanting to increase the capacity of the facility or transition our focus to Solar Roof rather than traditional panels," a Tesla spokesperson says via email. The company initially approved Fast Company's request to visit the facility, but later reversed course. (Instead, Fast Company was allowed to see inside Tesla's other Gigafactory, near Reno, NV, a factory focused on battery production that is far more developed.) The following account of the factory's evolution, based on interviews with scores of sources familiar with the project's development, includes many previously unreported details.
The genesis of the Gigafactory 2 can be traced back to SolarCity's acquisition of solar-panel startup Silevo, in June 2014, for $200 million in stock plus an additional $150 million tied to certain development targets. The company thought Silevo's panel technology could achieve "a breakthrough in the cost of solar power," as Lyndon and Peter wrote in a blog post at the time along with Musk, who was then SolarCity's chairman and largest shareholder. The trio also touted a deal Silevo had inked with the state of New York to build a manufacturing plant in Buffalo, and sought to ramp up the factory's output. "Silevo originally had modest goals for Buffalo, but when Elon, Lyndon, and Peter came into the picture, those goals jumped 5x," says a former high-level employee. "We had to scramble to figure out how to do it."
"Project Whitney"
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo committed $750 million to fund the project, on the condition that SolarCity would generate 1,460 direct manufacturing jobs at the facility and spend $5 billion in related area investments in the next decade when the plant becomes fully operational. The arrangement was made in collaboration with Empire State Development, a public agency that promotes regional economic development, and the State University of New York (SUNY) Polytechnic Institute. Musk and the Rives targeted an annual production capacity greater than one gigawatt by the first quarter of 2016. "[Lyndon] Rive said, 'I'm going to build SolarCity, my vision, my baby, my future right here in Buffalo,' because he believes in Buffalo," Cuomo said in September 2014, at the groundbreaking ceremony for the factory.
But the project ran into challenges. The goal was to build what are known as high-efficiency solar panels that feature premium cells that can convert sunlight into energy at a materially higher percentage and at a cost on par with what SolarCity had been paying to Chinese manufacturers for more standard-efficiency solar panels. (The latter may produce around 250 watts per panel and convert sunlight at an efficiency rate of around 13% to 18%.) While the company had focused on developing a more standard-style solar panel at first, its attention eventually shifted to one that featured roughly 330 watts per panel, which it hoped would reach a solar-cell efficiency rate of about 22%. Internally, teams referred to this panel-development effort as "Project Whitney." But panel prices globally were plummeting to the point of commoditization, down more than 75% since 2009, and the Silevo team wrestled with creating an economically viable product. On a call with shareholders in February 2015, Lyndon delayed the timeline: The factory, he indicated, would now be built and ready for equipment by early 2016 (while that one-gigawatt production target wouldn't be reached until the first quarter of 2017).
Workers install utilities in the massive SolarCity production facility at RiverBend. [Photo: Derek Gee/Buffalo News]
Silevo's R&D team, working out of an old Solyndra building in Fremont, CA, in early 2015, tried to create a pilot production line that they hoped to one day replicate in Buffalo. Their aim at the Fremont facility was to reach an annual production capacity of 100 megawatts, which would enable them to achieve 10 times that capacity at the company's Gigafactory. But as Governor Cuomo's office, along with the Empire State Development corporation and SUNY Polytechnic, announced that "high volume manufacturing" would soon be coming "online" at the Gigafactory, the Silevo R&D team was still figuring out how to hand-assemble the modules in Fremont that they hoped to produce in Buffalo, according to multiple sources.
To reach the 100-megawatt goal, sources indicate that the pilot production line in Fremont would eventually need to yield between 800 to 1,000 high-efficiency Whitney panels per day. But the team was not able to automate the process consistently enough to produce more than dozens of Whitney panels per day, according to people familiar with the matter. Most of the production resulted in "scrap," they say. "The big problem was simply that they couldn't scale up the technology to the point where you could run it in a factory," a source familiar with the development explains. A spokesperson for SolarCity acknowledges that the company ran into issues with some of its automation equipment, but says this was "not necessarily" due to its cell technology.
Multiple sources also claim that even the Whitney panels that did make it through the automation process in Fremont were not reliable enough for the market. Normally, solar panels are designed to last several decades on rooftops, but according to these sources, in early 2016, the Whitney panels failed internal tests that determined whether they met industry-standard longevity. SolarCity decided to go ahead with installing trials on around 70 customer roofs. But in many cases, the Whitney panels lasted just weeks before malfunctioning, and later needed to be removed, according to two sources familiar with the matter. (A SolarCity spokesperson says the trial deployments generated data that have since helped improve the product, and that its customers were reimbursed for any lost solar production.)
To date, there are just roughly five customer homes still equipped with Whitney panels.
Trouble in RiverBend
Meanwhile, in Buffalo, SolarCity was burning through hundreds of millions of dollars of government funding to get the factory built as fast as possible. Because of its leasing arrangement with the state of New York, SolarCity acted as a tenant of the facility, meaning that the property and equipment purchased with state funds was owned by the state through the SUNY Polytechnic Institute. But SolarCity was nonetheless essentially directing the facility's layout and making decisions about equipment for future operations. Even though the production line in Fremont had not been finalized, according to multiple sources, the company purchased more than $250 million in custom machinery for Buffalo in 2015 and 2016 using state funds. Much of it sat idle while layouts were being reconfigured and the building was still being constructed. (A spokesperson for SolarCity suggests that ordering some of this machinery in advance was partly due to equipment lead times of 12 months or longer. Around this time, federal investigators reportedly began looking into questionable practices of how the Cuomo administration awarded third-party developer contracts, which some insiders suggest also delayed the project.)
Moreover, the equipment was purchased in such a way that panel manufacturing couldn't begin in earnest even if the building had been ready for it. The company aimed to get to one gigawatt of annual production capacity there by manufacturing 10,000 high-efficiency panels per day, on four to five production lines. But instead of starting by creating, say, one or two production lines in Buffalo at a time, it purchased a fraction of the equipment necessary for even a single production line of Whitney panels. "At Tesla's battery factory [in Reno, NV], they [added] on to make it more and more functional, whereas in Buffalo, SolarCity tried to do the whole thing in one shot," says one knowledgeable source. "In hindsight, it was really crazy." (A SolarCity spokesperson says the company "phased the significant orders [of equipment] for the first 550 megawatts of cell production.")
The Gigafactory 2, in December 2016, covered in snow behind a chain-link fence. [Photo: Austin Carr]
Some company insiders theorize that the Silevo team was influenced by the earned-payout structure of its acquisition by SolarCity, which would give some team members big bonuses for hitting certain technology and production milestones by predetermined dates. "That incentive structure incentivized horrible results," claims one source. (SolarCity declined to comment on how this earned-payout structure influenced the Gigafactory 2's development.) But other sources say it was more a matter of the company lacking an overall core competency in building factories. "Silevo was an R&D company that was very good in the lab," says a former SolarCity executive. And "SolarCity had no institutional knowledge in large-scale solar manufacturing. Even still, they had this Muskian management style, where they kept muscling ahead." Leading into 2016, the knowledgable source says, "it was clear they were heading toward some serious delays and budget problems, but nobody seemed ready to admit it."
In the first half of 2016, SolarCity's financial pressures were also intensifying, and, another source involved says, "It all just stopped. We were going to rely on SolarCity's money to finish the Buffalo project, but our sales were so far down that all the money just stopped." The company confirms that there was "limited activity" in Buffalo during this period but explains that "the intended operations in Buffalo were shifting and management attention was squarely focused on this."
Related: Inside "Steel Pulse," The Project That Became Elon Musk's Solar Roof
As Tesla was considering its acquisition of SolarCity in mid-2016, Musk visited the Fremont facility to assess the company's manufacturing progress. According to several sources, while touring the site, he told the team that he thought they "could do a lot more than one gigawatt" in Buffalo. He proposed that they try to double or triple the Gigfactory 2's output. In the weeks ahead, the company redesigned the factory's layout to try to fit more equipment into the space to increase production capacity. Most sources say this was a smart, long-term decision, even though it also meant altering certain scheduling and financial assumptions. "Things were just constantly changing. The management was never able to settle on a goal," says the source familiar with the Gigafactory's development.
In an earnings call later that summer, Peter Rive, who was then SolarCity's CTO, explained the merits of the changes to shareholders: "We don't want to rush to actually initiate some of the equipment installation for the cell line and then have that be a regretful layout only months later." He added that SolarCity's module manufacturing was actually "ahead of schedule." The company, by that point, had also begun considering how it might be able to manufacture its new "solar roof" product in Buffalo, which led it to reassess whether it should actually be producing Silevo's so-called "flat-plate" modules at all.
In November, the site was finally almost ready to accommodate machinery. But the building cost had gone over budget by at least $130 million, and in order to pay for the remaining equipment, SolarCity would need to pony up an estimated $200 million of its own, according to people familiar with the matter. The following month, SolarCity, having determined that Silevo would not achieve two of its three production and technology milestones, decided that it had to bring in an outside partner, Panasonic, to help bear the costs and to take over solar-cell manufacturing.
Rendering of SolarCity's factory [Illustration: courtesy of Empire State Development]
Since the merger, Tesla and SolarCity have been able to share expertise and resources, and shifted their attention to producing Solar Roof tiles at RiverBend rather than Whitney panels. But according to sources, with Tesla focused on ramping up Model 3 production at its other factories, Musk himself has yet to tour the Buffalo plant. The CEO and CTO of Silevo have departed the company, and there have been additional layoffs in Fremont and Buffalo. While the state of New York has invested more than $900 million of taxpayer funds to date into the project and its associated developments, SolarCity has spent just around $20 million in capital expenditures in Buffalo so far, according to multiple sources. (The company confirms this figure, but says in the coming years, "We expect the project to contribute vastly more in job and economic value than the state expends.") SolarCity currently does not expect the Gigafactory 2 to reach one gigawatt of solar-module production until 2019.
Governor Cuomo's office and the SUNY Polytechnic Institute declined to comment for this story. In a statement provided to Fast Company, Jason Conwall, a spokesman for the Empire State Development corporation, says that "the Tesla facility in Buffalo will soon begin to produce the most advanced solar technology on the market. The Gigafactory at RiverBend will make products for distribution across the country and continues to remain on schedule, with its official opening slated for the third quarter of 2017."
The financial consequences for Tesla will be significant if the Gigafactory 2 does not achieve its goals. Per its agreement with the state of New York, if the company does not meet its obligations during any year in the decade after it hits full-production capacity, Tesla must pay a penalty of $41.2 million per year and may lose its lease to the Gigafactory. In a May SEC filing, Tesla said, "Although we continue to remain on track with our progress at Gigafactory 2, our expectations as to the cost of building the facility, acquiring manufacturing equipment and supporting our manufacturing operations may prove incorrect, which could subject us to significant expenses to achieve the desired benefits."
The pressure is now on Musk and Tesla to live up to the promises SolarCity made to the city of Buffalo and the state of New York. For a clean-energy industry already facing political headwinds, and a high-profile CEO often highlighted as America's best bet to end the country's dependence on fossil fuels, the years ahead will be crucial. Even before President Trump announced the U.S.'s withdrawal from the Paris climate accord, many industry observers say the odds were stacked against Tesla and SolarCity, considering the competition it faces in China, where the country's investments in solar and other renewables far outpace the rest of the world. Says Shayle Kann, the head of GTM Research, which analyzes the renewable-energy industry. "Building [this solar factory] is hard to do. It's a tough road ahead, but that is Elon Musk's speciality."
For the residents of Buffalo, the pressures Tesla faces are less of an immediate concern than their need for a job at the Gigafactory 2. The forecast has been lowered for the number of direct manufacturing opportunities the facility will offer, with documents indicating that just around 500 positions will be created at the plant itself. At a series of job fairs held around the city in December, recruiters told potential hires that the facility would likely be heavily automated. "I'm going to try to apply for something in manufacturing," a disappointed job hopeful told me after one of the recruiting sessions. "I would like a supervisory position–I've been a machinist for 35 years and was recently laid off–but [the SolarCity rep] said if I want a job, it would be entry level, paying around $15 an hour."
Tesla's solar factory with the skyline of Buffalo in the distance. [Photo: Austin Carr]
Even still, applicants, city officials, and other residents remain optimistic. They express pride in the possibility of being a part of the future, rather than stuck hoping for a revival of industries of the past. They also have faith in Elon Musk, who, a number of them told me during my visit, is a "visionary" and an "innovator." They still believe that Buffalo, known locally as the "City of Light," will be a part of the solar revolution.
"Now that SolarCity has been merged with Elon Musk's company," Mayor Byron Brown told me in December, "it truly brings the eyes of the world to Buffalo."
Austin Carr writes about design and technology for Fast Company magazine.


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Home / Entertainment / 2020 BET SOUL TRAIN AWARDS – HIGHLIGHTS
Oceans December 4, 2020	Entertainment, News, O-News Leave a comment 162 Views
The 2020 BET Soul Train Awards proved to be the perfect way to end the Thanksgiving weekend! The star-studded night of celebration brought out some big names and even bigger performances as everyone from Brandy to Babyface performed.
Brandy's frequent collaborator, Monica, also gave a great performance but she wasn't the only one! Ceelo Green, Smokey Robinson, Moses Sumney, Skip Marley, and Chanté Moore — among many others were on hand to deliver some show-stopping performances
Chris Brown was the top winner at the 2020 Soul Train Awards, Brown won four of the 12 awards presented, including best R&B/soul male artist. "Go Crazy," Brown's Collab with Young Thug, won three awards, including song of the year. The smash has cracked the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The annual celebration of soul, R&B and hip-hop was hosted for the third time by Martin stars Tisha Campbell and Tichina Arnold, and clearly did not disappoint.
Self-acclaimed Starboy wizkid is also a recipient of the 2020 BET Soul Train Award. He won the award alongside American superstar Beyoncé for their collaboration on the song, Brown Skin Girl. The song is off Beyoncé's The Lion King: The Gift album.
Tags 2020 BET Soul Train Award. Beyoncé Wizkid
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Bill Clinton is a Populist-Leaning Liberal.


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Allegheny Adult Band Camp
Post on: July 14, 2008
Can't get enough of band camp?
The band camp fun never has to end! Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., offers Adult Band Camp, a weeklong program where adults from all over the country come together to play concert band music.
The program was founded by camp co-director John Fleming in 1989. "The reason it was started was that I had helped out at an orchestra festival where adults played, and they really enjoyed playing with professionals and learning more," Fleming says. "There wasn't anything like this for band."
Seventeen people attended that first year. Now, between two sessions, there are more than 150 people. "People keep coming back year after year," Fleming says. "It's sort of turned into something of a family reunion. It's become kind of a cross between a musical event and a social event, a group of people who have 'banded' together. We have people who have been here and have probably been coming for 18 to 19 years."
The group reads about 40 different charts in a variety of musical styles in preparation for the final concert on Friday night, which features a guest conductor. "One of the things that people find out very quickly is that we're not an organization where you come to learn the basics," Fleming says. "We play grade 4 to 6 music."
Each camp session plays a completely different set of music, so people who attend both camps play 80 different pieces. The attendees represent a wide range of experience levels and ages—from 20s to 90s. "We have people that have probably played professionally to people who have picked it up very much as a hobby or to just add some joy to their lives," Fleming says.
Auditions are typically not required "If people can't play everything, they sit in the back of the section and they play what they can play," Fleming says. "For percussion we carefully check out who is coming. For most of the wind instruments, you can find a niche for somebody."
In addition to the full concert ensemble, smaller groups, such as woodwind quintets or a Dixieland band, are formed and perform at recitals on Wednesday and Thursday of the camp. "It's a bringing together of people from all over the country who like to play concert band music," Fleming says. "We bring them together and form a band, and we rehearse a lot of music and have small ensembles."
The camp's schedule is jam-packed: full rehearsal in the mornings, master classes and small ensembles in the afternoons, and another full rehearsal at night. "It's a fairly intense week," Fleming says. "We don't have much down time, and we find that that's what people want. They come to play music, so we let them play."
For more information on the Allegheny College Adult Band Camp, click here.
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Read this Halftime marching band magazine article about the Jersey Surf Drum and Bugle Corps from Berlin, N.J., revealing their comprehensive environmental-impact project, one of ...


A heat pump can be used to effectively collect and store the heat produced in piggery processes. Utilisation of the energy from ground heat and sludge brings the owner noteworthy savings compared to oil-fired heating. A heating system that utilises a heat pump improves the living conditions of pigs as well as the tenders' working conditions in the piggery.
The piggery heat pump collects heat from ground energy, sludge and the cooling of suites. The main advantage of the heat pump is its low operating cost.
The heat pump system can also be used for cooling of manure chutes, which significantly reduces the amount of ammonia in the air. The cooling of sludge pits reduces the air odour content in the animal shed by about a third. This produces clear benefits for example in environmental permit procedures when building new piggeries.
The heat pump collects and stores renewable energy which is stored in the sludge and in the ground. The heat produced by the heat sources remains relatively consistent throughout the year, and it can be adjusted higher through heat pump technology. The cost savings are generated from the utility function of the energy required by the heat pump and the energy produced by it, i.e. the thermal coefficient, which is usually 2-to-4-fold.
The heating equipment and a pipe system embedded into the heat collection circuit recycle a solution that binds heat energy. Compressor technology is used to raise this heat energy above 100 degrees, and the heat is then transferred into a hot water accumulator through a thermal exchanger. The energy being released is utilised when heating the suites and delivering drinking water and hot water, e.g. for cleaning the suites.
Pellon heat pumps are the foundation for the new Pellon HEPAC concept. The size of the condenser and superheater system is selected according to the number of animals.


Last month, the T-Bar Social Club held an impromptu Open Mic Night. Hosted by the personable Mike McGuire, a noticeably high level of musical talent showed up to rock out and have some fun.
Many of the entertainers expressed excitement after hooking into our state-of-the-art sound system. Sound technician Rob Marshall did an amazing job juggling the different musicians and their various instruments (and even took a turn banging the skins).
The evening was filled with a wide range of instruments including guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, saxophone and ukulele. Some of the musicians even joined together on stage and performed impressive improvised jams. At times, it appeared as though these musicians had been playing together for decades.
Sara McConnell performs Blue Bayou.
After seeing a roomful of smiling musicians and music lovers, we concluded the show must go on.
We will be hosting our next "Open Mic Night in the Loop" on Wednesday, December 5th. Then beginning January 9th, we will host one every other Wednesday night, beginning around 7 pm. Click here for a full list of our upcoming events.


It was 1974 and I was 8 years old.
1974 was a time, for me anyway, when you played all day with the neighbourhood kids – riding your bike, football, cricket, fishing, Cowboys & Indians, Cops & Robbers, trying to chat up the beautiful Catherine Beazetto….all these activities jammed into endless summer days.
One of the real treats in the neighbourhood was going over to the local shop and enjoying the delicacies that were Fizzy Tizzy (pure sugar), Freddo Frogs and sherbets.
The local shop was owned by Mr Spinks.
Mr Spinks was, to my 8 year old eye, approximately 140 years of age.
He was also well over 11 feet tall.
That, I was sure, made him the world's oldest and the world's biggest man.
Mr Spinks wore a long brown coat at all times, much in the style of a doctor's coat. He'd slowly fill your orders wandering around the shop in a very methodical manner which indicated to us children that he was perhaps even older than the 140 years we'd assumed.
Mr Spinks had a daughter. Appropriately her name was Miss Spinks.
Miss Spinks did not, to any of the local kids knowledge, have a first name. She was also very old – she must been at least 30.
Mr Spinks and Miss Spinks would attend to the local kids needs, whether it was buying a lettuce head for mum or 5 cents worth of mixed lollies for yourself.
That's where you would take your time – often changing your mind 42 times as it is every kid's right to do – selecting from the huge array of sweets as Mr/Miss Spinks would dutifully fill the bag with your selected treasures.
Oh how they must have hated the sight of 3 or 4 grubby kids swinging through the door, pointing at the prized lolly counter and saying "I'll have 1 of those, and 1 of those….no, wait, make it 1 of these…." and on it would go.
I struggle to understand to this day how they made enough money to survive, or where they got their incredible patience from.
But the real feature of the shop was the milk. Cold, delicious full cream milk that came in bottles with a foil lid.
Taking the foil lid off revealed the incredible treasure beneath – a thick film of beautiful sweet cream.
I can still taste that cream now if I think hard enough. I think hard a lot.
If you had been industrious enough to collect recyclable cordial bottles (1 cent each), or (like me) mowed grumpy old Mr Batchelor's lawn for 5 cents a few times, then you'd have enough for the greatest prize of all.
(The main reason to mow Mr Batchelor's lawn was so you could retrieve the hundreds of balls that found their way into his backyard that he refused to throw back.
Anyway, back to the greatest prize of all.
This was real flavoured milk I'm talking about. Not some highly processed muck they serve up in cardboard cartons or plastic these days with some fancy nancy name that's more about 'branding' than drinking.
Miss Spinks would grab a bottle of milk from the depths of the ice chest.
The bottle would be placed on the back bench.
Pressing down on the foil lid of the bottle, Miss Spinks would remove same with a deft touch and place it carefully to the side.
Then in goes the teaspoon to scoop out the cream.
That teaspoon, with cream dripping off it, would be offered over the counter to the freckle faced little boy (me) who was practically salivating at the thought of what he was about to receive.
A little milk was then poured from the bottle. The greatest chocolate syrup the world has ever known (Cottees) was then poured in to replace the milk poured out.
Enough room was left in the bottle to allow for mixing to take place.
The foil lid was then placed carefully back onto the top of the bottle and vigorous shaking then took place.
This had the effect of mixing in the syrup with the milk and was essential to a well-balanced chocolate milk drinking experience.
It also served to raise the anticipation levels of the waiting child to what could safely be termed a 'frenzy'.
Pavlov's salivating dog had nothing on me as I was waiting for my flavoured milk – I understand that Miss Spinks often had to mop the floor after I'd left with my milk to ensure no customers slipped on the drooling spot I'd occupied just minutes before.
Anyway, after what seemed like hours, I handed over every cent I'd saved and Miss Spinks handed back what can only be described as bliss in a bottle.
Ice cold full cream milk infused with a syrup so sweet that schoolchildren's teeth had reportedly dissolved immediately upon direct "teeth to syrup" contact (this is why it was well known to children that mixing with milk was best).
As I raced out the door with this perfect concoction, I was, without question, the happiest boy who ever lived.
2 seconds later I was the saddest boy the world had ever seen as the glass bottle slipped from my little hands and smashed to smithereens onto the pavement – what had once held so much perfection was now a puddle flowing away into the gutter.
Tears immediately gushed from my eyes like a newly struck oil well and I would have surely died of dehydration within seconds if it wasn't for the comforting arm of Miss Spinks who rushed to my aid.
You see, she'd watched the unfolding horror from inside the shop and knew the gravity of the situation. She knew the lifelong happiness of little Brendon Sinclair was at risk.
Miss Spinks bustled me into the shop and sat me down on a rickety old chair in the most revered of spots… behind the counter. It was like entering the promised land.
No one, not even my 4 older brothers, had ever been 'Behind The Counter'.
As I fought to quell my crying (it had reduced to merely constant sobbing by this stage), Miss Spinks worked her magic. I could hear a flurry of activity beside me, but dared not look.
Miss Spinks was scooping here and there and then shaking something with the well-practiced arm of a veteran.
"It couldn't be, could it?" thought I, as I sat on that little chair. I could only now make out vague shapes from my bleary, teary eyes.
But I had a glimmer of hope. Just one glimmer.
A moment later that hope had turned to beautiful reality when into my hands, now positioned in a cradling way, was gently placed a new ice cold bottle of chocolate flavoured milk.
"It's alright Brendon," said the kind Miss Spinks, the most beautiful, kind and wonderful woman in the world, even surpassing (at that moment anyway) my own mum.
I was still sobbing when I returned home – through the Gerlach's driveway into their back yard, through the bushes into the Hiller's backyard and then through the hole in our fence into our yard – 40 seconds later carrying the greatest prize of all.
I sat on the lawn in the summer sun, under our big old peach tree and drank straight from the bottle, as was the way of 8 year old boys, the most perfect drink ever made – milk, chocolate syrup and (the most important ingredient ever added) a dash of kindness.
We run a few business and consult with many more. Customers usually assume they have a fight on their hands to get a replacement/refund if something goes wrong.
But they don't know I learned my customer services skills from Miss Spinks.
All I have to do is remember how I felt when something went wrong. And then remember how I felt before Miss Spinks made it all better.
Then I do what I think Miss Spinks would have done.
That's customer service. Taught by Miss Spinks in 1974.


These are the moves everyone should be doing.
Warming up before a workout is key for reducing injury. Personal trainer and nutritionist Albert Matheny says that warming up "helps make sure you don't load your joints, tendons, and ligaments too much, too soon." So we asked Matheny, founder of SoHo Strength Lab and Promix Nutrition, to come up with a list of warm-up exercises everyone should do before any type of workout. It's time to get your gym on.
How to do it: Bend at the waist and reach down to touch your toes. Keep your legs as straight as possible and slowly walk your hands out until you're in push-up position. Then walk your hands back to the starting position. Try to keep your hands as flat as possible on the ground. Complete 10 times.
How to do it: Start in push-up position. Move your left foot to your hand, keeping your leg at a 90-degree angle. Then raise your left hand and reach up, looking at your fingertips, and come back down. Then repeat on the other side.
How to do it: With your palms facing up, grip a band in your hands and extend your arms straight in front of you. Keep your shoulders dropped away from your ears, arms straight, and elbows extended while pulling outward. Think about trying to pinch your shoulder blades together. Then return to start position. Complete 15 times.
How to do it: Stand up straight, with your feet between hip- and shoulder-width apart (or wider, if that's more comfortable) and toes pointed slightly outward. With your knees bent slightly, push your hips back and lower your body as if you were about to sit down. Squat as low as is comfortable without your lower back rounding.
Make sure you keep your chest tall and all of your weight in the middle of your feet (so you're not on your tippy toes or heels). Don't let your knees go beyond your toes, and always keep your knees in the same line as your toes (i.e. not angled in, if your toes are pointing slightly out). Reverse to get to the start position. Complete 10 times.
How to do it: Extend arms straight out to your sides and rotate in circles for 15 seconds, keeping them straight. Then repeat in the other direction.
How to do it: Reach your hand through the resistance band, twist the band over your wrist, and then grab the band. Let the band pull you (instead of you pulling at the band). Take a few steps back and sit into a squat. Keep your neck and body relaxed. Hold the position for 10 seconds. Repeat with your other arm.
How to do it: Start in the top of a push-up position. Bring your right knee to your chest. Keeping your knee at a 90-degree angle, slowly lean forward so your back is parallel to the floor. The goal is to keep your back from rounding (i.e. keep your chest up and reach your body forward over your knee). Hold the stretch for 15 seconds and then repeat with the other leg.
How to do it: Lie on your back with your arms to your sides, palms facing down. Bring your right knee to your chest at a 90-degree angle. Twist at the waist and bring your knee across your chest to the left, and turn your head to the right. Use your right hand to gently hold your knee in position. Hold position for a few seconds, and reverse. Complete on each side five times.


Watches2u is one of the largest online watch dealers in the whole of United Kingdom. They are engaged in selling hundreds of products everyday with best price and dedicated customer service. This company advises customers to buy watches only from reputed and official dealers like them who always give manufacture backed guarantee, packaging and documents. You also require excellent customer service till the life time of the product. They hold more than one million pounds of stock at a time in several warehouses. They are also ready to price match any product that is available elsewhere and ready for dispatch.


Metaglossary.com - Definitions for "amun"
Lord of all the Gods and father to the kings. The God worshipped in ancient Thebes, and resident in Karnak Temple.
A minor god of the city of Thebes, the cult of which gained prominence through the political rise of the city at the beginning of the New Kingdom. Represented as a man, sometimes ithyphallic.
God of Luxor. During the New Kingdom, regarded as the king of the gods.
(Pronounced 'Amoon'.) Creator god, the 'hidden one', often identified with Ra.
Amun (also spelled Amon, Amoun, Amen, and rarely Imen, Greek Αμμον Ammon, and Άμμον Hammon, Egyptian Yamanu) was the name of a deity, in Egyptian mythology, who gradually rose to become one of the most important deities, before fading into obscurity.


MBG Rare Books: Library Information for Plantarum Brasiliae icones et descriptiones hactenus ineditae : iussu et auspiciis Francisci Primi, imperatoris et regis augustissimi / auctore Ioanne Emanuele Pohl.
Title: Plantarum Brasiliae icones et descriptiones hactenus ineditae : iussu et auspiciis Francisci Primi, imperatoris et regis augustissimi / auctore Ioanne Emanuele Pohl.
Description: 2 v., 200 leaves of plates : ill. (some col.) ; 47 cm.
Notes: Plates undated, published in Lipsiae [Leipzig] by T.O. Weigel.
Subjects: Botany Brazil. Lithograph hand colored 1827 Germany.