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hide your tweets!
Twitter announces new controls for conversations, available globally now
You can now "hide" your replies...
Stephen Warwick
Twitter has announced new controls for conversations on Twitter.
Starting today, users will be able to hide replies to their Tweets.
Everyone will still be able to see and engage with these replies, but you can hide replies away to "shut out the noise".
Twitter has announced that it is changing the way conversations work on Twitter, bringing more control to users so as to make Twitter safer and more comfortable.
According to a press release:
Everyone should feel safe and comfortable while talking on Twitter. To make this happen, we need to change how conversations work on our service. Currently, repliers can shift the topic or tone of a discussion and derail what you and your audience want to talk about. To give you more control over the conversations you start, we tested the option for you to hide replies to your Tweets. We learned that the feature is a useful new way to manage your conversations. Today, we're making this available to everyone globally.
Everyone will still be able to see replies to your Tweets but to make them visible and engage with them, you'll have to tap/click a grey icon, Twitter says this will give users more control over the conversations you start and the direction of the conversation.
Starting today, you can now hide replies to your Tweets. Out of sight, out of mind. pic.twitter.com/0Cfe4NMVPj
— Twitter (@Twitter) November 21, 2019
Twitter notes that during testing people mostly hid replies they thought were irrelevant, off-topic or annoying and says it's a new way to shut out noise. During testing, 85% of people who hid replies were not using the block or mute features. Apparently, public figures in politics and journalism haven't been hiding replies very often, which may prove surprising to some.
In Canada, 27% of people who had their Tweets hidden said they would reconsider how they interact with others in the future. Also, they thought it was a helpful way to manage what they saw, similar to muted keywords.
We learned that you may want to take further action after you hide a reply, so now we'll check to see if you want to also block the replier.
Addressing concerns over retaliation against people who hide replies because of the visible icon, Twitter said it was continuing to get feedback on this. It also said that these were early findings and that it would continue to learn as more people use the feature.
Our favorite VPN service is more affordable now than ever before
Twitter is also planning to launch a new hide replies endpoint, so developers can build additional conversation management tools. It also says it is exploring more options around "who can reply to or see specific conversations" - Twitter says it is testing engagement to see if this can lead to healthier discussions.
The new feature is now available globally on Twitter, do you think it's a good idea? Let us know!
iPad Rising
Apple releases iPadOS 13.3.1 to fix bugs
Apple has released iPadOS 13.3.1, which fixes a variety of bugs found in iPadOS.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ review
Does the plus edition of the unique Galaxy S6 Edge bring anything extra to the table? We find out, in this in-depth Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ review!
Lanh Nguyen
If you loved everything about the Galaxy S6 Edge, but wished it had a larger screen and offered better battery life, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ is the answer.
Premium metal/glass build
Large vibrant display
Fast and responsive performance
Excellent camera
reliable fingerprint scanner
Good battery life
What we don't like
Non removable battery (subjective)
No microSD (subjective)
Edge software provide little value
No IR blaster
Our scores
Samsung's first venture into the curved edge display game began with the Galaxy Note Edge, but it wasn't until earlier this year that Samsung would truly perfect the concept by introducing a dual-edge design to the Galaxy S family. The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is easily one of the most eye-catching and uniquely designed smartphones we've seen from Samsung in a while, and now Samsung has taken a page from some of its competitors' playbooks, giving the handset the "Plus treatment".
Galaxy S6 Edge Plus vs Note 5
Best Galaxy S6 edge plus cases
Does the plus-sized S6 Edge bring more to the table than the original? We find out this and more in our comprehensive review of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+!
By now, we have a fair idea of what to expect whenever the "plus" suffix is tacked on at the end of a smartphone that already exists, with it usually involving a significantly larger display and the resulting bigger footprint, and in some cases, a bump in specifications and features. That remains true for the Galaxy S6 Edge+. The device features the same beautiful design as its smaller sibling, including the metal frame, glass panels up front and on the back, and the sloping, curved sides on the display that give the phone its name.
On the right side of the phone is the very conveniently-placed and easy to reach power button, but that isn't the case with the volume rocker, which are towards the top of the left side, making it quite awkward to reach. There is no longer an IR blaster to be found, so up top is only the microphone and the SIM card slot, while at the bottom are the headphone jack, microUSB port, a single speaker unit, and a secondary microphone.
For those who felt the regular Galaxy S6 Edge to be quite sharp in the hand, that feeling alleviated with the Galaxy S6 Edge+, thanks to the side rails being slightly thicker, and the chamfered edges not being as prominent as before. On the flip side, the bigger footprint also means that one-handed usage, while manageable, isn't as comfortable anymore. Not helping the handling experience is the fact that the phone can be pretty slippery, and the device is also quite the fingerprint magnet, which is very noticeable if you have any of the darker color options. Of course, the device still looks fantastic though, and basically, if you loved the design of the Galaxy S6 Edge, you won't find anything to complain about this time around either.
The Galaxy S6 Edge+ features a 5.7-inch Super AMOLED display with a Quad HD resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 518 ppi. Samsung somehow always manages to outdo themselves every year when it comes to display tech, and so it is no surprise that this display is absolutely fantastic. Everything we love about AMOLED screens returns here, including vibrant, saturated colors, great viewing angles, inky dark blacks, and good brightness for easy outdoor visibility.
The bump in display size to 5.7-inches, compared to the 5.1-inch screen of its flagship namesake, means that this display is perfect for gaming, watching movies, and pretty much anything else you may want to do. Because of the dual curved edges the content you are looking at to also be curved and creates a very cool looking effect, especially when swiping between screens. There have been claims of things looking distorted because of the edges, but that certainly wasn't the case for me, and I am personally a big fan of the waterfall effect that the curved glass created.
Under the hood, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ packs the same octa-core Exynos 7420 processor as the original, clocked at 2.1 GHz, and backed by the Mali-T760MP8 GPU, but with an additional gig of RAM, for 4 GB in total. As was the case with the current Galaxy S flagships, the Galaxy S6 Edge+ is extremely fast in day to day use, and everything from general navigation and web browsing, to multi-tasking and gaming, are a breeze. The availability of an additional gig of RAM seems to have allowed Samsung to scale back on the aggressive RAM management issues that plagued the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge, with it being possible to load and run a lot more applications simultaneously, before running into any unwanted app refreshes.
Some of the credit for the general improvement in performance with Samsung devices this year has to do with the toning down and optimization of the software, but while the experience has been smooth and snappy for the most part, Samsung still hasn't figured out a fix for the scrolling stutters that occur when moving in between the Flipboard secondary screen and the main home screen. It is far from a deal breaker of course, and is a rather small blemish in the grand scheme of things, but is still very noticeable.
On the hardware front, you get the usual bells and whistles that are now the standard with Samsung flagships, such as the heart rate monitor on the back, and the fingerprint scanner that is integrated into the tactile home button up front.
The fingerprint scanner is still just as fast, reliable, and accurate as it was on the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge, with just a simple press and hold of the home button required to unlock the device, and its usefulness as a security measure is only going to be enhanced with the upcoming launch of Samsung Pay. Multiple fingerprints can be stored at a time, and the process of setting it up is simple and takes only a minute or two, involving just repeated presses of the home button. The fingerprint software is easy to use, and a minor improvement has been made to allow you to find out which fingerprints have been registered, just in case you ever forget.
The Galaxy S6 Edge+ comes with either 32 GB or 64 GB of built-in storage, and with there still not being any microSD card slot, power users will have to depend on the larger storage option to meet their needs. Samsung also opted to leave out a 128 GB iteration, so 64 GB is going to be as good as it gets.
As far as the speaker quality is concerned, it is fairly standard, and certainly gets the job done. The bottom-facing single speaker unit sounds good and gets loud enough to be heard even in noisy environments. Being at the bottom is still not the most optimal position, but it is definitely a better implementation than any rear-facing setup out there.
One of the biggest issues with the original Galaxy S6 Edge and the Galaxy S6 was with regards to battery life, and it was quite difficult to get a full day of use out of these two smartphones. That problem seems to have been fixed with the Galaxy S6 Edge+, however. Even though its 3,000 mAh battery may seem a little small given the large Quad HD display it has to power, I've had no problems whatsoever getting through a full day. If you do end up running out of juice, the Galaxy S6 Edge+ not only comes with fast wired charging capabilities, but also introduces fast wireless charging as well. This only works with Samsung's wireless charger, but Samsung claims that you can now charge the phone wirelessly in 2 hours, which is 33% faster than normal.
The camera on the Galaxy S6 Edge+ remains largely the same as what was available with the Galaxy S6 Edge, with its 16 MP sensor with a f/1.9 aperture and optical image stabilization, along with a 5 MP front-facing unit also with a f/1.9 aperture, that allows for some great looking selfies even in low light conditions.
Also returning is the double tap of the home button feature that lets you quickly launch the camera and take a shot. The camera app is where you will notice the biggest change in the camera experience. There are still many of the same modes as before, including selective focus, panorama, and virtual shot, along with the typical auto and manual modes, but Samsung has now added the ability to create video collages that allow you to stitch four 6 second clips together into one video, for those who really want to get creative. Another notable addition is the live broadcast button, which links directly to your Youtube account to allow you to share moments right as they happen with your followers, similar to what is possible with something like Periscope.
Samsung also made a pretty big deal about the improvements to the video side of things. They've added what they call VDIS, or video digital image stabilization, that works in conjunction with OIS for more stable footage. In my experience, the video recording is very stable and smooth, without any sort of warping or distortion, so it seems to be doing its job well.
As far as the picture quality is concerned, the Galaxy S6 Edge+ takes excellent looking shots, which is not really surprising, given Samsung's track record with their smartphone cameras. In daylight, photos are sharp and full of detail, with great contrast and dynamic range, and very vibrant and saturated colors. HDR works very well to bring out some extra detail, especially in high contrast scenarios, and if you don't want to fumble around with HDR, you can always set it to Auto and let the camera decide for you. The f/1.9 aperture not only helps to produce some great looking depth of field, but also makes for some very good low light shots. The image retains the same vibrant colors, with some noise noticeable in only extremely low light conditions. It honestly doesn't matter whether you're in daylight, lowlight, indoors, or outdoors, this is a camera that anyone can take out of their pocket and start taking great-looking photos.
On the software side of things, the Galaxy S6 Edge+ is running Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, with the latest iteration of Samsung's TouchWiz on top. It is a much cleaner interface with a lot less bloatware, that makes for a much snappier experience. It is still a very brightly-colored interface though, but you now have the option to easily and completely change the look to something that better suits your tastes via the available theme store. All the typical staple Samsung features are available here, including split screen multi-tasking via multi-window, and various motion-based gestures, but the difference here is with regards to the edge specific features, which Samsung has made a few improvements to from the Galaxy S6 Edge.
People Edge, night clock, edge lighting, and information stream return, but there is a new Apps Edge that lets you hand pick several of your favorite applications for easier access. The People and Apps Edge features can now also be accessed from anywhere on the phone and not just the home screen, and the pull tab can be relocated to anywhere along the left or right edge, to make it easier and more comfortable to reach. All of these changes are very welcome additions, but the edge features still don't feel extremely useful, and don't add a whole lot of value to the edge design either.
5.7-inch Super AMOLED
2560 x 1440 resolution, 515 ppi
32/64 GB, not expandable
16 MP rear camera with OIS
5 MP front-facing camera
WiFi a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, GPS + GLONASS
LTE cat 6 300/50
WPC and PMA-compatible wireless charging
Android 5.1 Lollipop with TouchWiz
154.4 x 75.8 x 6.9mm, 153g
black sapphire, white pearl, gold platinum, green emerald
Pricing and final thoughts
The Galaxy S6 Edge+ is available now from all major US carriers, priced at $299.99, with a two-year contractual commitment, for the 32 GB version, with the 64 GB option setting you back an additional $100. Off-contract, the device can be found for an expensive $815 and $915 respectively.
So there you have it for this in-depth look at the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+! As was the case with its smaller sibling, you will have to decide whether the dual curved edges is worth the premium that is required when compared to other flagships. If you loved everything about the Galaxy S6 Edge, but wished it has a larger screen and expected better battery life, the Galaxy S6 Edge+ is the answer. The value here is in the beautiful hardware, but not so much in the software, and if you are perfectly alright with that, then the Galaxy S6 Edge+ will definitely be worth your hard earned money.


Pam Gray and her husband, Brian, (third and fourth from right) at the District 5160 conference in 2018.
I grew up in a small family. My parents were both only children – that means I have no aunts, uncles or first cousins. As a child, my entire immediate family could sit around a dining table set for eight. My four grandparents, my parents, my sister and I filled the table. There was no additional 'kids' table!
Fortunately, my dad was a member of the Rotary Club of Paradise. Our Rotary family consisted of five families, all of similar age, so we had plenty of celebrations with this extended family growing up.
While my biological family grew as I became an adult, so did my Rotary family. Our club had more than 100 members when I joined and there was always something going on.
Club members took action when our home was evacuated in 2008 due to a wildfire. Members went to our home, secured our vehicles and motorcycle, took our animals to their homes and saved our computer with countless family photos stored in memory; all of this while we were at the Rotary International Convention in Los Angeles some 500 miles from Paradise.
After serving as club president, I began working at district jobs which added to my Rotary family tree. Serving several district governors provided tools, and many relationships, that were key to serving as District 5160 Governor in 2014-2015.
Brian and I were involved in a motorcycle accident shortly before the end of our governor year, following a ride for polio eradication. Rotarian friends cared for us and took over Rotary jobs that we were unable to fulfill.
My Rotary path continued on serving our club, district and zone. Again, my Rotary family tree expanded exponentially. The result benefited not only me, but my Rotary club and other clubs in the area.
Then the Camp Fire began on 8 November 2018 and raged for 17 days leaving much of our beloved Paradise as piles of rubble and ash. In less than 24 hours, Rotarians from Santa Rosa, California, were on task to help Paradise. They established a GoFundMe page for our club's foundation and came to see us sharing their knowledge of rebuilding after a major fire.
Rotarians, not only from neighboring districts, but neighboring states delivered supplies and provided cash aide and gift cards in the tens of thousands of dollars within the first week.
While serving as district governor and visiting 71 Rotary clubs, my Rotarian friends came to know me as "Pam from Paradise" and I chose to share my love for the family of Rotary. Considering all Rotarians as my family, they are returning the sentiment by helping Paradise where they can and providing encouraging words during our darkest days.
This entry was posted in Disaster recovery and tagged Camp Fire, Disaster recovery, wildfire by Rotary International. Bookmark the permalink.
Lend a Hand & Be a Friend are just 2 themes that come to mind when I read your story.


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The Beginner's Guide to League of Legends
League of Legends is a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, or MOBA game. You choose one character from three different options to fight against an opponent. It's a team-based, 5-on-5-style strategy game. It's very easy. Your aim is to take down the base of your opponent before they do. There are two bases on opposite side of the map and there are 3 paths via which you enter the enemies' base. You can direct the river that runs across the middle of map. Additionally, you'll be able to utilize turrets to help your squad win the battle.
Although this is a brief explanation, it gives a good idea of the essence of what LoL is all about. I'd like to tell you more.
What is the Game's Playing Style?
What makes LoL such a fun game? This is more than just the mechanics of LoL. It's not about how it plays just like other games. However, it's about the reasons it is different and what makes it different.
Let's first say that the game has evolved drastically since its first launch as a mod for Warcraft 3. League of Legends was born just a few months later, thanks to the addictive game mechanics in this mod. The original creator of LoL is no longer accountable for it. He sold the rights to Riot Games, which currently runs League of Legends today.
Although MOBA games have been in existence for a while, this game is what has brought them to the forefront. There are many MOBA games on the market however none can match LoL in terms of both popularity and content.
A large portion of people who play League of Legends are familiar with gaming terms. The terms used in League of Legends are familiar to those who have played FPS games like Counter-Strike or Call of Duty. There's no complex control system, and anyone who has ever played an FPS game will be able to understand LoL.
To aid your character in battle, you can purchase things. To help your character become stronger, you can also get levels and gold. Certain characters are more complex than others. The game's content is constantly evolving therefore the characters you are playing today might be different in the future (because Riot Games releases new content every few weeks).
The reason LoL is unique is due to something called "Riot Points." Riot Points allow you to buy items for your account like skins (different designs for your champion) and boosts to aid in gaining more levels quicker, and even visual upgrades for your character's spells. You can purchase a skin for almost every character in the game, whether it be one of the first characters or something Riot has created on their own. This is advantageous to you since you'd like to stand out from the other players while playing this game. It's also beneficial for Riot because lots of people are looking to be unique and different from everybody else, and they will invest money in this virtual currency to fulfill the same reason.
The point I am trying to make is that the game is greater depth than you be aware of. It requires a lot of thought and planning if you intend to progress within this game. While you may play for fun however, you should have a strategy in place in order to be the best.
It is unlike Halo where if you fall and respawn, you can respawn within only a few seconds before you are back into action. It takes time to recover your mana and health after League of Legends death so it is possible to go back into the fight. When you're gone, your buddies will be required to take care of you.
If they don't, it's even more difficult to be successful as you're at a disadvantage without your team.
This game requires an incredible amount of teamwork and strategy, and skill to master. It is a game that can be played casually among friends, but it requires a skilled gamer's brain to think of the best strategies for winning.
To learn more, click elo boost league


You will explore the medinas, the kasbahs and the dars, and discover the fine repertoire of design and colour in the mosaic tilework of Zellige (which by the way you get to experience for yourself, creating your own Zellige tile).
Learn and experience the artistic geometric patterns, motifs, pigments and history, in a place where artistry and design are encouraged and given full expression as you get lost in what you've found.
11 nights staying in bespoke, exquisite accommodation, luxe tents, boutique Riads and Villas.
At the end of the tour, you will leave feeling profoundly connected with the region, it's vibrant way of life, and the colours that live inside of you. You will close your eyes later and be instantly transported back to an experience like no other.
Colour is a feeling. One does not simply think colour – one is moved by it. On this tour, you will experience and create your own personal colour palette from pigments sourced, from the world's most colour-rich country.
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST BELOW TO RECEIVE A DETAILED ITINERARY.


Published on February 12, 2019. Different Decorating Styles. 5 different decorating styles: how to find yours bellacor, quick and brief guidelines to distinguish between the. Update dallas a central hub for market and real estate. Masonta.


If a noodle salad sounds a bit like something you would only eat when it's so hot and sunny outside the mere thought of turning on the stove is enough to break you out in a sweat, I think this recipe might just change your mind. Not only because it's quick and healthy, but also because it's full of hearty and warming flavours. When you go on the hunt for ingredients, try if you can find authentic, Japanese soba noodles made with only buckwheat flour and salt. You will be rewarded with a springier texture and a nuttier flavour. Smoked tofu can usually be found in organic supermarkets, but different brands vary in taste and texture. If you happen upon a pack of Taifun smoked tofu with almonds and sesame, you know you've hit the jackpot. Serve and eat immediately when the tofu and vegetables are still warm.
Boil the soba noodles for 3 minutes. Keep an eye on them to make sure they don't boil over. Test them to make sure they are cooked but still pleasantly al dente, then drain them in a sieve or colander and rinse them thoroughly with cold water to stop the cooking process.
Stir all the ingredients for the dressing together in a bowl until the mixture is smooth. Set aside.
Break the top part of the broccoli into smaller florets, peel the stem and slice it into smaller chunks. Steam the broccoli until it is tender, then set aside.
Put a frying pan or wok on medium to high heat. Add a tablespoon of sunflower oil with a few drops of toasted sesame oil mixed in. Add the tofu cubes to the hot oil and fry them till they are golden brown on all sides. Take them out of the pan and set aside.
Add a bit more oil to the pan and fry the carrot slices. Add a splash of sake wine and wait till it evaporates. Add a splash of soy sauce and continue to stir the carrot slices around while you wait until it evaporates and coats the carrot. Take them out of the pan and set aside.
Finally, add a bit more oil if necessary and stir-fry the onion wedges for a few minutes. They should still have a some bite, but they shouldn't be raw.
Time to assemble everything. The soba noodles might be sticking together a little bit by this point. Just rinse them in cold water again to loosen them up. Add the dressing and the broccoli and use your hands to make sure the noodles and the broccoli are completely coated in the miso sauce.
Add the carrot, onion and tofu and mix them through without breaking up the noodles too much.
Optional: sprinkle the salad with some sesame seeds.
Wash your hands and enjoy!
Posted in Lunch & Dinner, RecipesTagged broccoli, cooking, easy recipe, food, foodblog, healthy food, recipe, soba, tofu, vegan, vegetarianBookmark the permalink.
Wonderful salad! Looks so beautiful & tempting!
What a vibrant mix of colors!
Thanks 🙂 ! I love colourful food.
Thanks 🙂 ! It's definitely one of my go-to recipes if I want a quick and healthy weeknight dinner.
2018: A year in the garden.


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Home ECONOMY Richest women in Kenya and their net worth (Updated 2019)
Richest women in Kenya and their net worth (Updated 2019)
Richest women in Kenya: Although men are comparatively richer than women in Kenya, there are few women who are extremely rich. Looking at the list, there are women whose net wealth is in excess of Ksh 50 billion.
Their wealth was either inherited or acquired through setting up business ventures.
If you are interested in Knowing who is the list of richest women in Kenya,here is the list:
1. Mama Ngina Kenyatta
Ngina Kenyatta, popularly known as "Mama Ngina", is former First Lady of Kenya. She is the widow of the country's first president, Jomo Kenyatta, and also the mother of President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Her Source of wealth include imports and exports, banking,real estates.She holds a vast collection of prime real estate her husband acquired in the 1960s and the 1970s during a British colonial government and world-bank sponsored settlement transfer scheme, which allowed government officials and rich Kenyans to acquire land from British colonialists at cheap prices.
Mama Ngina Kenyatta and her family owns stakes in Kenya's largest dairy company Brookside Dairies, media company Mediamax, Heritage Hotels, Commercial Bank of Africa and hundreds of thousands of prime Kenyan land. (Forbes)
2. Tabitha Karanja
Tabitha Karanja is the founder and CEO of Keroche Industries Ltd. The award winning entrepreneur took a whooping Sh 1 billion from their hardware in Naivasha and pumped it into her wines and spirits business.
When she started the company in 1997, the liquor industry was heavily dominated by East African Breweries Limited. It took her 5 good years to penetrate the industry.
Today, the business is an empire, making annual profits in the tune of billions.
She was crowned as the Business Woman of the Year at the CNBC Africa All Africa Business Leaders Awards (AABLA) in 2014.
READ MORE: NSE's women billionaires who are among richest women in Kenya
3. Margaret Saitoti
Former Security Minister George Saitoti lived until 2012 when he was killed on a tragic plane crash in Ngong.
Until his death, Saitoti was among the richest men in Kenya and by extension East and Central Africa. Saitoti's death meant that all his assets were to be transferred to his wife, Margaret Saitoti and his adopted child Zachary Saitoti.
In 2012, the Mathematics Professor and the longest serving vice president in the history of Kenya, was estimated to be worth a good amount of money.
4. Leah Wanjiku Muguku
She's a kin of the late business magnate Nelson Muguku, closes the exclusive list of the stock market's women billionaires who are also among the richest women in Kenya, having gained Sh306.9 million in the same period. Ms Muguku, who is listed as the representative of the late Muguku's estate, holds a 0.9 per cent stake in Equity Bank worth Sh1.6 billion — a residual stake that remained after the family sold shares worth billions of shillings following the death of the entrepreneur five years ago.
5. Jane Wangui Njuguna
Despite being the preferred life partner of Equity Bank CEO James Mwangi, she is said to own Ksh. 3.7 billion worth of shares at Equity Bank and Britam. They both hold the single largest family fortune at the bank. Wangui, together with Equity Bank founder Peter Munga also run an investment vehicle called Filimbi Limited which is among the top shareholders of Britam.
6. Mary Okello
The Makini Schools founder raked in nearly Ksh1 billion in 2018 after selling 71 a per cent of her school to a UK-based firm and another South African company.
History will remember her for being the first African Woman to become a Branch Manager at Barclays Bank in 1977.
7. Lucy Mwiti & Faith Mwikali
The two women were listed among the top taxpayers by KRA in 2017. They are classified among Kenya's High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs) whose annual income lies between Ksh. 350 million and Ksh. 1 billion.
8). Lawyer Jane Wanjiru Michuki
She tops the list of NSE female billionaires who are also among the richest women in Kenya. Last year, she increased her portfolio by Sh1.2 billion, climbing ahead of businesswoman Jane Wangui, who gained Sh768.9 million. Ms Michuki's 9.5 per cent stake in financial services firm Britam is now valued at Sh5.4 billion.
Ms Michuki, who owns the stake through an investment vehicle Equity Holdings where she has a 44.4 per cent stake, has not traded any of her 179.8 million shares in Britam since the company went public in July 2011.
The remaining 55.6 per cent stake in Equity Holdings is owned by billionaire businessman Peter Munga, who also owns large chunks of Britam's stock through multiple accounts. Ms Michuki is a managing partner at Kimani & Michuki Advocates, a city law firm that advised Equity Bank ahead of its listing in August 2006.
When Britam first listed at the NSE, Ms Michuki's stake was valued at Sh1.6 billion but a recent price rally has significantly increased her wealth. This means the lawyer's paper wealth has nearly tripled in three years, making her one of Kenya's wealthiest women.
Ms Michuki also bought a minority stake in Equity Bank in 2004 having acquired shares worth Sh10 million in a private placement that netted a total of Sh725.1 million, but it is unclear whether she still retains an interest in the lender.
Source: Forbes, Venusnews
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Craniolaria integrifolia är en martyniaväxtart som beskrevs av Adelbert von Chamisso. Craniolaria integrifolia ingår i släktet Craniolaria och familjen martyniaväxter. Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Martyniaväxter
integrifolia

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Our Thick Leather Collar uses a tanning process that gives it a distinct "pull-up" effect where the dyes lighten when the leather is stretched, pulled, or bent and darken when it returns to normal shape. This creates a unique and individual pattern in the collar that your dog creates as they wear it. This leather is extra-thick and durable and will last for years to come. We have added a variety of edge paints to our collars to provide a pop of color to match your dog's personality.


At Dumpster Blog, we strive to bring you the best service at the best price available. We have a wide selection of dumpster sizes in stock in Five Points, AL, with flexible & timley pickup and delivery. Give us a call today for all your dumpster rental and roll off needs.
Attend home when the Cost of a Roll Off Dumpster in Five Points, AL company comes to fruition at pick up your dumpster. In this way, you might avoid getting penalized one to get a day or two as long as they return afterwards.
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Air ducts help heated or cooled air circulate throughout your home. Air ducts stabilize the room's temperature; equally distributing the air in every room. However, the very things that the air ducts transfer are also the very things that can decrease air output flow and functionality.
When air moves, it is able to bring along particles that are light for them to carry. Particles such as dust, dirt, wood chippings, and the like, swirl and follow the direction of the wind and may end up accumulating in your air duct. Other particles and organisms (e.g mice, squirrels, and birds), that are too big for the air to carry, are also capable of entering and permanently living in your air ducts.
In order for your air duct to remain in tiptop condition, it must be cleaned, inspected, and maintained in a regular fashion.
There are two approaches to cleaning your air ducts. Now, depending on the situation you are facing, one method might be better than the other.
If your air ducts need minimal cleaning, then doing it by yourself is an acceptable choice. Hiring professionals for easy-to-do jobs is costly and unnecessary. Here are a few things you can do at home to keep your air ducts from wearing out.
Turn off the system first before working. You don't want to damage the air ducts or be greeted with a surprise breeze of hot or cool air while working.
Remove and clean the dust covers or air grille plates. Wiping the covers will ensure that once you are done cleaning, it will be easier for air to enter your air duct systems.
Use your vacuum cleaner when cleaning your air ducts. Using a damp towel is difficult and time consuming. Your vacuum should be long enough to reach the duct's inner casing. Try not to use your vacuum's strongest setting; a powerful sucking force can damage the walls of your system.
Emergency situations such as mold contamination, vermin infestation, and impossible cleans, are moments that should be handled by the professionals. Professional companies are equipped to deal with these types of events and have enough experience to handle these situations with care. If you decide to face these situations by yourself, you are putting yourself in harm's way. You are prone to using incorrect methods, there is a higher chance that you are going to injure yourself, and your methods may make the situation much worse than it already is.
By choosing the right method, your air ducts will last longer and improve in functionality with each clean.
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Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency in all Florida counties on October 2 in response to Hurricane Maria's catastrophic impact, opening disaster relief centers at the Orlando International Airport, Miami International Airport, and the Port of Miami to help Puerto Ricans displaced by the storm. The school district was joined by officials from other state agencies, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Salvation Army, and Catholic Charities of Central Florida. Orlando is among East Coast cities from Florida to Massachusetts where officials expect thousands of new students after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico on September 20. Fleeing the island has been difficult, but displaced students have already begun to arrive—and as more families score plane tickets, school leaders expect the influx to multiply.
The devastation in Puerto Rico exacerbated an already dire financial situation on the island. This piece does a nice job of laying out some of the educational and public policy ramifications of people moving from Puerto Rico to other places in the United States.
Disaster assistance, like humanitarian assistance and other forms of foreign aid, is political. In the modern era, media coverage often drives the government's response to natural disasters. And many Americans don't support providing this type of emergency assistance to non-Americans. Surveys show again and again that many Americans believe the U.S. government spends too many taxpayer dollars helping foreigners, when it should be doing more at home. Even the most altruistic forms of foreign aid come under pressure: 45 percent of Americans support cutting humanitarian assistance. Trump's recent tweets on Puerto Rico echo much of the criticism often leveled against foreign disaster and humanitarian assistance. Despite the fact that Puerto Rico is not a foreign country (though many Americans think it is), the president seems insistent on treating it like one.
Do your homework, America. Too many of us do not know even the most basic facts of our national geography. This weekend, remember to do what you can to support disaster relief in Puerto Rico.
There are a number of ways to interpret these results. One, is that families value characteristics — like safety or after-school programs — besides the metrics of school quality used in this study. That said, the study includes measures like high-school graduation and college attendance, that parents and students are likely to care about Another hypothesis is that families and students simply don't have good data on which schools are good. "Without direct information about school effectiveness … parents may use peer characteristics as a proxy for school quality," the study suggests. Indeed, there is evidence that families respond to information about school performance, but it's unclear to what extent they would prioritize sophisticated measures of school quality, even if given that additional data.
It's possible for both of these things to be true simultaneously. That said, this research raises questions for school choice advocates. There always has been a tension between the ideas of "choice" and "accountability" in school reform policy. Policymakers on the political right tend to think that the opportunity for parents to choose is sufficient accountability in itself. Many of us on the left, including me, disagree with that position. Results like these help to make our case.
Apple is really white ... To fix its diversity problem, the tech company hired Denise Young Smith as its first-ever vice president of diversity, because it's much easier to hire one person and claim you're "working on your diversity problem" than it is to simply just hire brown people. Earlier this week, Young Smith ... was asked about inclusion and whether she would focus on any particular group, she said: "I focus on everyone. ... Diversity is the human experience. I get a little bit frustrated when diversity or the term 'diversity' is tagged to the people of color, or the women, or the LGBT ... There can be 12 white, blue-eyed, blond men in a room and they're going to be diverse ..."
Yikes. Read the whole piece, because Harriot points out all of the problems with this argument, with the ultimate point being - in his mother's words - that "words mean things," and you can't just redefine diversity to divest it of any meaning whatsoever.


A course of education, including the class schedules of a resident course not leading to a standard college degree, offered by a school must be approved by the State Approving Agency for the state in which the school is located, or by the State Approving Agency which has appropriate approval authority, or where appropriate, by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (38 U.S.C. 3672).
The State Approving Agency, upon determining that a school has complied with all the requirements for approval will notify the school by letter setting for the courses which has been approved, and will furnish to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs an official copy of the letter and attachments and any subsequent amendments. The letter of approval for each school will be accompanied by a copy of the catalog or bulletin of the school, as approved by the State Approving Agency (§21.4258).
The State Approving Agency for Tennessee is the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, Veterans Education. For each academic year, the APSU's campus and the APSU's Office of Veterans Affairs must complete Institution of Higher Learning approval packets to obtain approval of veterans' training.
Developmental/remedial courses: Per the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the State Approving Agency regulations, remedial and developmental courses must be taught as conventional resident courses (in the classroom) for payment of educational assistance (§21.4265, 4267, and THEC/State Approving Agency).
Audit courses: VA shall not pay educational assistance for an enrollment in an audited course (§21.4252). The school's certification shall exclude courses which are being audited by the veteran or eligible persons since no educational assistance allowances shall be paid for such courses (38 U.S.C. 3680(a)).
Repeat courses: Previously passed courses, including those dropped under the CARE or Fresh Start policy programs; do not qualify for VA education benefits (VA school certifying official handbook).


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No deal yet for Singapore on live Olympics coverage
Dentsu now holds the Olympics' free-to-air TV rights in Asia previously held by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), of which Mediacorp is a member. ABU paid about US$10 million for the rights to the 2012 London Games (above).PHOTO: EUROPEAN PRESSPHOTO AGENCY
http://str.sg/4UQR
S'pore believed to be among the few in Asia yet to come to an agreement on broadcast terms
Chua Siang Yee
siangyee@sph.com.sg
With less than two months to go to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, it is unclear if Singapore sports fans will be able to catch the action from Brazil live on television. The Straits Times understands that neither broadcaster Mediacorp nor pay-TV operators Singtel and StarHub have been able to strike a deal with rights holder Dentsu.
Dentsu won the 2016 Olympics' broadcast rights in Singapore and 16 other Asian territories following an International Olympic Committee (IOC) tender in 2013. Of the 17, it is believed that Singapore is among the few yet to agree on terms to broadcast the coverage live.
It is understood that Mediacorp and Dentsu have so far agreed on a package that includes two daily highlights shows produced by Mediacorp's crew in Brazil. The only live content in this deal are the opening and closing ceremonies.
A Mediacorp spokesman said it "is finalising details of our plans and will advise on our broadcast details shortly". The broadcaster did not address ST's queries on whether Mediacorp is still keen on broadcasting the sports action live.
Singtel and StarHub said they were interested but confirmed no agreement had been reached with Dentsu. Dentsu declined to comment, citing ongoing negotiations.
The Olympics' free-to-air TV rights in Asia were previously held by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), a non-profit association of broadcasting organisations, of which Mediacorp is a member. ABU paid approximately US$10 million (S$13.5 million) for the rights to the 2012 London Games. But this will be the first Games sold to territories via a middleman.
The Rio Games will feature sports' biggest names, including Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and American swimmer Michael Phelps.
Team Singapore will be headlined by swimmer Joseph Schooling and the women's table tennis team.
Schooling beat Phelps in a 100m butterfly race this month, while the Republic's female paddlers have won medals at the last two Olympics. They are tipped as potential medallists at the Rio Games.
But ST understands broadcasters here are exercising prudence due in part to the 11-hour time difference between Singapore and Brazil. This means the action takes place between 8pm and 7am (Singapore time), which is unattractive to advertisers as viewership is not high.
That said, in 2013, Mediacorp tried to acquire the Singapore rights from the IOC but were pipped to it by Dentsu, a Japanese communications company.
A source familiar with the talks said Dentsu's latest offer is about a quarter of what Hong Kong had paid and 30 per cent to 40 per cent lower than Malaysia's deal. Various reports said Hong Kong's free-to-air broadcaster TVB bought the rights to the Rio Games in 2014 for about US$25 million.
The source added that talks between Dentsu and Mediacorp started in 2013, but after dozens of meetings, Mediacorp made a formal offer only in January. Dentsu's latest offer compares favourably to what Mediacorp paid for the 2012 Olympics.
Four years ago, viewers here watched the London Games on eight Mediacorp free-to-air channels, with at least 21 hours of daily coverage on Channel 5 and HD 5.
Fans were also able to follow the action on Singtel's mio TV, which aired more than 3,000 hours of live coverage over 13 channels.
This is not the first case of a breakdown between broadcast rights holders and local broadcasters.
In 2006, Mediacorp decided not to air the Commonwealth Games live, citing high costs as one of the reasons. But the Media Development Authority and the then Singapore Sports Council came forward with extra funding and live broadcast started from the fourth day of competition.
Responding to queries, a Sport Singapore spokesman said: "We understand the broadcasters are finalising their plans and will be announcing the details soon."
Broadcast rights fees for live sports have been escalating. In 2014, NBC Universal inked a US$7.65 billion deal with IOC for the US broadcast rights for the Olympic Games through to 2032.
In football, Sky and BT Sport paid a record £5.14 billion (S$9.86 billion) for live English Premier League TV rights for three seasons starting from the 2016-2017 season.
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 15, 2016, with the headline 'No deal yet on live Olympics coverage'. Print Edition | Subscribe
TV SUBSCRIPTIONS


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EU Poll of Polls tightens after release of YouGov's split test
When I posted about the EU referendum polls yesterday (and updated this blog's Poll of Polls), I somehow managed to miss the big polling story of the day - that YouGov had conducted side-by-side online and phone polls to test a theory about what might be causing the discrepancy between the findings produced by each method, and that both polls had shown a small Leave lead. This is just the second time in the whole campaign that a phone poll has reported an outright lead for Leave. It only seems to have happened because YouGov were especially persistent in trying to contact potential telephone respondents, and as a result eventually managed to speak to enough non-graduates, who are more likely to be Leave voters. Bizarrely, at almost exactly the same moment that these findings were released, the very recently-retired former President of YouGov Peter Kellner was expounding his own theory that greater persistence in reaching respondents would have precisely the opposite effect - it would turn up hidden masses of socially liberal people who are more likely to vote Remain.
It was rather amusing to see the personal attack that YouGov's current management then made on Peter Kellner. I seem to recall that whenever I criticised Kellner during the indyref or questioned his motivations, it was cited as evidence that I was plainly an uncivilised cybernat lunatic! It's gratifying to see they've belatedly come around to my way of thinking...
Seriously, though, it's hard to escape the impression that YouGov were casting around for a reason why they as an online pollster might be right and the phone pollsters might be wrong. They homed in on educational attainment and it gave them the results they wanted, but you do have to wonder if they could have magically 'proved' the complete opposite - ie. that phone polls are more accurate - if they had lavished their attention on a different factor instead.
The bottom line is that the uncertainty continues, although two newly-released polls showing a Leave lead obviously has a significant impact on the Poll of Polls. (Both polls are somewhat out of date, but they were mostly conducted within the last three weeks, and therefore qualify for inclusion in the Poll of Polls.)
50/50 ONLINE/TELEPHONE AVERAGE :
Remain 45.5% (-2.3)
Leave 41.0% (-0.7)
ONLINE AVERAGE :
TELEPHONE AVERAGE :
(The Poll of Polls takes account of all polls that were conducted at least partly within the last three weeks. The online average is based on seven polls - three from ICM, three from YouGov and one from TNS. The telephone average is based on five polls - one from ICM, one from YouGov, one from ORB, one from Ipsos-Mori and one from ComRes.)
Labels: Brexit, EU referendum, poll of polls, polls
How might an SNP-Labour pact work in advance of the next UK general election?
The furious reaction of Dunc "don't call me Dunc" Hothersall is probably sufficient to tell you that Keiran Pedley may be on to something in suggesting that, because Labour's only hope of regaining power at UK level depends on a deal with the SNP, it would be better to conclude that deal in advance of a general election and then sell it to the English people. Nothing's inevitable, of course, as the bogus claims of "absolute certainty" about the result of this month's Holyrood election proves. I can just about imagine a scenario in which Labour might return to being competitive in Scotland by 2020 - it would depend on the constitutional issue fading from people's minds, and on Jeremy Corbyn being replaced by a charismatic leader who looks set to sweep the hated Tories from office. In those circumstances, the Scottish electorate's priorities might change. But the overwhelming likelihood is that one of three things will happen -
1) Corbyn will remain leader.
2) Corbyn will be replaced by someone of like mind, such as John McDonnell (who admittedly is more charismatic, but is still regarded as unelectable in England).
3) Corbyn will be replaced by a bland, uninspiring identikit centrist politician in the mould of Ed Miliband or Andy Burnham.
If that's the case, Pedley is surely right in saying that the game's a bogey for Labour in Scotland. But what intrigues me - and what Pedley doesn't address - is the electoral consequences of any deal. If we're talking about a formal pre-election Labour-SNP pact to keep the Tories out, how could the two parties justify putting up candidates against each other? Labour in particular would find it very difficult to pitch for votes in seats that are already held by the SNP - which is virtually every seat in Scotland. Logic would therefore seem to dictate that they should practically sit out the election north of the border.
Ironically, that would probably benefit only the Tories. The former Labour heartlands are highly likely to vote SNP anyway, and the absence of Labour candidates would simply lead to bigger majorities in seats that were never in doubt. But in heavily No-voting areas like the Borders and the rural north-east, the SNP could arguably do with Labour opposition to help split the unionist vote and keep the Tories out.
If an anti-Tory pact isn't going to prove counterproductive, the details are going to need some careful thought.
Labels: Jeremy Corbyn, politics
Crikey! ComRes confounds us with another cracking EU contradiction
This week has been the perfect example of what drives me crazy about people's irrational responses to individual opinion polls. We've had seven EU referendum polls since Monday, and this is what they've shown -
* Five reported a Remain lead.
* Two reported a Leave lead.
* Four reported a swing to Remain.
* Three reported a swing to Leave.
As you can see, the overall picture is as clear as mud, and yet there have been big movements on the currency and betting markets, all apparently attributable to just one of those seven polls - the Ipsos-Mori telephone poll showing the Remain lead surging from ten points to eighteen. Now, to be fair, it's arguable that the trend shown by Ipsos-Mori is more important than the modest progress made by Leave in some of the other polls. If there isn't a dramatic indyref-style convergence between telephone and online polling as we approach referendum day, I would imagine the Leave campaign will be hoping to get to mid-June with a clear lead in online polls, and a deficit of no more than a few points in telephone polls. An eighteen-point lead for Remain in a new telephone poll obviously makes the latter aim seem less likely to be realised, so from that point of view Remain are probably happiest with the new batch of numbers. But there's still no excuse for completely discounting the more Leave-friendly part of the story.
One thing is for sure - online polling this week has entirely failed to corroborate the Ipsos-Mori trend. The ICM and TNS online polls both showed Leave in the lead and a small pro-Leave swing - which perhaps can be explained by normal sampling variation, but certainly can't be easily reconciled with a supposedly massive surge for Remain. The only other online poll was from YouGov, and showed the Remain lead increasing from 2% to 4% - but half of that small increase was an illusion caused by a methodological tweak. Essentially, the state of play was unchanged, which again contradicts Ipsos-Mori.
Even the other telephone polls have provided only limited backing for the Ipsos-Mori narrative. In line with YouGov, the ICM telephone poll on Monday showed a statistically insignificant increase in the Remain lead. The ORB phone poll did show a bigger increase, but as I've noted many times, the trend reported by ORB phone polling has from the start looked suspect, because it's been completely out of line with other data. The latest piece of the jigsaw arrived in the form of a new ComRes phone poll last night, which showed a slight improvement for Leave. That, I would suggest, tips the balance and makes it more likely than not that the Remain surge in the Ipsos-Mori poll was at least somewhat exaggerated.
ComRes have started using their turnout-adjusted model for their headline numbers, which makes a comparison with their previous poll more complicated. Here are two different sets of like-for-like comparisons -
Old methodology :
Remain 51% (n/c)
Leave 41% (+1)
New methodology :
Remain 52% (-1)
The swing to Leave on both counts is small and isn't necessarily genuine, but it's unlikely the reported movement would be in that direction if Ipsos-Mori were correct about the Remain lead almost doubling.
So is there any particular reason why the Ipsos-Mori poll might have led us astray? Anthony Wells noticed a couple of striking things about the poll - that the percentage of Tory voters backing Remain was much higher than in other polls, and that a disproportionate amount of the boost for Remain came from mere 'leaners', ie. people who initially said they didn't know how they'd vote, but who opted for Remain when pressed by a follow-up question to say which way they'd be more inclined to vote. Ipsos-Mori include those people in the headline numbers for a good reason - past history shows it makes the results more accurate. But all the same, this referendum is an (almost) unprecedented event, and there's a good deal of uncertainty about the turnout. It could be that many of the Remain leaners found by Ipsos-Mori don't really care that much about the issue, and will be less likely to vote at all. A whopping 83% of the full sample gave a firm opinion on the main voting intention question, which is obviously much, much higher than the eventual turnout is likely to be - and further calls into question whether the others will ever make it to the polling station, regardless of their apparent inclination to favour Remain. But even if the leaners do vote in decent numbers, their opinions clearly look more susceptible to change.
Remain 47.8% (+2.0)
Leave 41.7% (+0.4)
(The Poll of Polls takes account of all polls that were conducted at least partly within the last three weeks. The online average is based on nine polls - four from ICM, two from YouGov, one from TNS, one from ORB and one from Opinium. The telephone average is based on four polls - one from ICM, one from ORB, one from Ipsos-Mori and one from ComRes.)
Posted by James Kelly at 4:50 PM 7 comments
Labels: Brexit, EU referendum, politics, poll of polls, polls
Winning With Willie
A real clash of the titans to look forward to as Rennie takes on Sturgeon. Wonder who will win? Should be close. #WinningWithWillie
— James Kelly (@JamesKelly) May 17, 2016
It would be embarrassing if Rennie suffers defeat to Sturgeon by, say, 63 votes to 5. But I'm sure that won't happen. #WinningWithWillie
It's absolutely uncanny. In spite of the spectacular progress made by the Liberal Democrats two weeks ago, when they surged from a pathetic 5 seats last time around to a stunning 5 seats this time (prompting the cracking open of champagne and joyous hugs between Willie Rennie and Tim Farron), I somehow just had this weird feeling - call it a premonition - that Rennie's bid to become First Minister would all go horribly wrong and he would lose to the SNP's Nicola Sturgeon by a humiliating margin of 63 votes to 5. It seemed so improbable, and yet I should have trusted the nagging voice inside my head, because that's exactly what happened.
Election of First Minister :
Nicola Sturgeon (SNP) : 63 votes
Willie Rennie (Lib Dem) : 5 votes
Nicola Sturgeon re-elected as First Minister by a margin of 58 votes.
But give Rennie his due - at least he gave us an election. Ruth Davidson, by contrast, didn't make our day - she ran away. I couldn't help but smile at this rather charitable interpretation of her decision on the BBC website...
"Ms Davidson will not stand this time, after pledging during the election campaign to form a strong opposition."
That implied, somewhat amusingly, that the only reason Davidson wasn't putting herself forward as First Minister was because it would be a breach of a clear manifesto commitment that she wouldn't try to get elected. I felt sure that she wouldn't be mad enough to attempt that excuse herself - after all, you can't control how many people vote for you, so what would she have done if there had been a Conservative majority? Would she have instructed half her parliamentary party to resign immediately? Or would she have voted for Nicola Sturgeon just so that she could have the SNP government she promised to oppose? It gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "Vote Tory, get SNP".
But yes, bizarre though it may seem, Davidson confirmed in her speech that she wasn't trying to get elected because she had promised to be the opposition. The mind boggles.
EU referendum polls are like the proverbial London buses - you wait a whole week for one, and then four turn up at once. Since the two ICM polls were released yesterday afternoon, we've had another two from other firms...
Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?
TNS poll (online) :
ORB poll (telephone) :
Remain 55% (+4)
Leave 40% (-3)
Remain activists were getting very excited about the ORB poll last night, but I'm not really sure what to make of it. The trend shown by ORB phone polls has been as mad as a bucket of frogs, and so far hasn't borne any resemblance to what phone polls from other firms have been reporting. When we have three polls from other firms conducted at around the same time (including a phone poll from ICM) all showing either a steady picture or slight progress for Leave, I think we have to be a bit sceptical about the ORB findings. It's not completely impossible that they're just ahead of the game in picking up a Remain surge earlier than other firms, but we'll just have to wait for more information to find out.
The other slightly irritating thing about ORB phone polls is that it's never entirely clear which set of figures should be treated as the headline figures. The Telegraph, who commission the polls, usually seem to give more emphasis to the turnout-filtered figures - which in this case are much more favourable for Leave (51% Remain, 45% Leave).
(The Poll of Polls takes account of all polls that were conducted at least partly within the last three weeks. The online average is based on eleven polls - four from ICM, two from YouGov, two from TNS, one from ORB, one from BMG and one from Opinium. The telephone average is based on three polls - one from ICM, one from ORB and one from Survation.)
Get set for Schrodinger's referendum as bombshell ICM poll reveals that Remain and Leave are both winning
After a whole week without a single EU referendum poll (almost unbelievable this deep into the campaign), ICM have broken the drought with simultaneous phone and online polls, which once again show the traditional disparity. It looks like public opinion hasn't budged much - the phone poll shows a statistically insignificant one-point increase in the Remain lead, and although the 4% Leave lead in the online poll is unusually high, it's still within the normal range when you take account of the fact that ICM made a couple of Leave-friendly tweaks to their online methodology a few weeks ago.
Online poll :
Phone poll :
In line with the Kevin Williamson theory that opinion polls are always 100% accurate and that voters never, ever change their minds as an election approaches (as long as Boris Johnson isn't photographed with a copy of The Sun, naturally), we now know the result of the vote on June 23rd. Remain are going to win the phone referendum, and Leave are going to win the online referendum. It remains to be seen who will win the paper and pencil referendum, though, and come to think of it, that could be quite important.
Intriguingly, Martin Boon of ICM has parted company with his counterparts in ComRes, and also with Matt Singh of the Number Cruncher website, by disputing the assumption that the Remain-friendly phone polls are likely to prove more accurate. Matt Singh's reasoning on that point has always seemed a little suspect to me - for example, he prayed in aid the fact that online polls overestimated the UKIP vote in the May 5th elections (including the Scottish Parliament election), but it could well be that turnout patterns are going to be radically different next month. The EU referendum is the ultimate 'home fixture' for UKIP supporters, and it's not hard to see why they would be considerably less motivated to go out to vote in a Holyrood contest.
Remain 44.6% (n/c)
(The Poll of Polls takes account of all polls that were conducted at least partly within the last three weeks. The online average is based on ten polls - four from ICM, two from YouGov, one from ORB, one from TNS, one from BMG and one from Opinium. The telephone average is based on two polls - one from ICM and one from Survation.)
Labels: Brexit, EU referendum, politics, poll of polls
A few thoughts on the Tory/Labour plan to legalise sectarian abuse at football matches
It's been suggested today that because the SNP won a clear mandate at the Holyrood election, it's wrong for the opposition parties to press for the repeal of the Offensive Behaviour at Football Act. It may surprise you to hear that I don't agree with that line of argument. In this particular case (and it's a very rare one), a tiny majority of MSPs with a vote - 65 out of 128, or 50.8% - were elected under the banner of a party that opposes one specific SNP policy. If those MSPs want to attempt to use that numerical edge to reverse the policy, there's no democratic problem there - quite the reverse, in fact. But the operative word is "attempt". There's a fair chance this episode may actually end up demonstrating just how strong the SNP's arithmetical position is. The opposition parties will need total discipline across four party groups who agree on little else and who don't particularly like each other - and that will only get them to 65 votes. By contrast, the SNP group is cohesive and should easily be able to turn out 63 votes. There's very little margin for error as far as the opposition are concerned, and the devil is often in the detail. At this stage, the smart money should probably be on the Act remaining in force.
However, if by any chance the repeal attempt succeeds, the Tories and Labour are quite right to say that we have to accept that there is a 65-63 mandate for that to happen, albeit a complicated four-party mandate. But the principle cuts both ways. The 69-59 mandate given to the two main pro-independence parties is of course considerably less complicated and much more emphatic (one might almost say "decisive"). I therefore look forward to the unionist parties displaying their customary logical consistency, and showing the same respect for democracy that they demand of us.
By the way, my popular Labour MSP namesake has made this mind-boggling observation on the subject -
"Labour will work [with] other parties in the Scottish Parliament to repeal the Football Act. The law has become a symbol of the SNP's arrogance in government. No other party supported the law but the SNP used their majority to bulldoze it through anyway."
Kelly-speak to English translation : The SNP used the overwhelming mandate they received at the 2011 election to outvote the losing parties. This is in line with what majority governments are typically expected to do. Presumably Kelly thinks the Attlee government shouldn't have used its 1945 mandate to establish the National Health Service, but should have been less "arrogant" and entered into a compromise with the Tories instead. But hey, a 10% discount on medical bills would be almost as good as a free NHS, right?
Posted by James Kelly at 3:47 PM 148 comments
Labels: 2016 Scottish Parliament election, politics
Thunder and lightning, it's getting exciting
I knew that the sight of Australia racking up a huge Eurovision lead on jury votes, but losing it all on the public vote, reminded me of something. It took me a while to put my finger on it, but of course it was the SNP totally dominating the constituency vote in the Holyrood election, before the list vote didn't work out quite so well thanks to flippin' tactical...well, you get the picture. But at least Nicola Sturgeon still won the election by a country mile - there's no such solace for the Aussies tonight.
Normally when one country is 100 points ahead, and the host says "but everything can still change", it provokes little more than a weary and hollow laugh. In fact that was probably the case tonight, because I don't think anyone really thought Australia could be caught, but the new points system worked its magic better than we could have dreamed. It won't always be like this - often in the Melodifestivalen (where the system is borrowed from) the juries and public are in agreement. But a split decision is probably more likely to occur at the Eurovision, simply because the public vote is always heavily distorted by neighbourly bloc voting.
From the point of view of my own prediction, it was a slightly irritating final outcome, because I got so many things right, and yet I still somehow contrived to get the overall winner wrong. I correctly predicted that Australia would win the jury vote and would do reasonably well on the public vote. I was also correct that Russia would be hammered by the juries but would win the public vote. But what I didn't foresee was that a third country would come through the middle by finishing second on both the jury and public votes, and in particular I didn't foresee that the country that would do that was Ukraine. They were doing pretty well in the betting, and some Eurovision bloggers predicted they would win, but no matter how many times I listened to the song, I just couldn't see it happening. I thought it was too dark and complex to do well on the public vote (even allowing for Ukraine's in-built advantage courtesy of the ex-Soviet bloc vote), and I wasn't even 100% convinced that the juries would like it. I suppose part of the explanation is the emotion in the performance, although even that didn't come across as fully as it might have done if the song had been entirely in English.
But I can't say I'm disappointed - I would have preferred Australia, but the most important thing is that a credible, non-formulaic song won out over Russia's derivative effort. (And of course if Australia had won, the contest would have faced credibility problems of an entirely different sort.)
Graham Norton is a great commentator, but I do think he got a bit of deserved comeuppance tonight after repeatedly slating the Georgian song and saying it was baffling that it had made it through to the final when Ireland hadn't. (It really, really wasn't baffling at all.) He clearly wasn't sure quite how to react when the UK jury, comprised entirely of music professionals who presumably know their stuff, gave Georgia the maximum twelve points! Norton also isn't quite as sharp as Terry Wogan used to be in his observations on the voting. In this case, he was reading far too much into the lack of political voting among the juries, which actually isn't a great surprise if you look at the voting patterns prior to telephone voting being introduced in the late 1990s. Greece and Cyprus used to swap twelve points as a matter of routine, but that was pretty much it - there was no reliable Nordic bloc vote, or anything like that. There also shouldn't have been any surprise tonight that the UK did much less well on the public vote than with the juries - that's been a fairly consistent pattern in recent years, although until now it hasn't been quite so visible.
There used to be a tradition at the Olympics that the IOC president would finish his remarks in the closing ceremony by declaring the latest edition of the Games "the best ever". I think the EBU could be forgiven for making an equivalent boast tonight. I don't think the contest has ever been as well hosted, the jokes were actually funny rather than cringe-inducing (which is almost unheard of), the climax of the voting was a thriller (which has been rare of late), and the quality of the music was pretty high (by Eurovision standards, I mean, which is the only test that can be meaningfully applied). It really was the complete package - no complaints at all.
Labels: Eurovision


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Home » Car Reviews » US Treasury Says Commercial EV Tax Credit Applies To Consumer Leases
US Treasury Says Commercial EV Tax Credit Applies To Consumer Leases
According to the US Treasury Department, new EVs leased by consumers beginning January 1, 2023, may be eligible for as much as $7,500 in "commercial" tax credits. This apparently allows EVs assembled outside of North America to qualify. However, to be clear, there have been no changes to the original guidance related to the assembly requirements.
When the new US federal EV tax credit first surfaced, it was somewhat confusing, as always. We worked to figure out all the details, though it seems government officials are going to continue to make changes, some temporary and some permanent. Moreover, we won't have all the official details until at least March, when the US Treasury hopes to be finished dealing with the specifics surrounding battery requirements.
Automotive News notes that the new announcement about the EV leases will help some brands that hoped to allow consumers to use the commercial electric vehicle tax credit to open up more options for US shoppers. Reducing lease prices is a big step forward since many people lease new cars today rather than financing them. Interest rates are high, and even with a tax credit, monthly car payments can be hard on the budget. It's typically cheaper per month to lease, and it means warranty coverage for the full term and a new car every few years.
When the clock struck 12:00 AM on January 1, 2023, many automakers that sell EVs in the US saw their customers potentially lose access to the federal electric car tax credit. The credit starts fresh, and even companies like Tesla and GM that reached the previous credit's 200,000 EV cap are once again eligible. However, foreign automakers and those that manufacture vehicles and source materials outside the US may not easily qualify once the rules are finalized. That said, the "commercial" credit doesn't have sourcing requirements.
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, who had a big hand in getting the bill passed, is already pushing the US Treasury Department to pause the new credits until all the details are worked out. He's concerned that companies are looking for loopholes that will negate the original intent of the bill.
The Treasury now has until March 2023 to officially release the new guidelines for the sourcing of EV battery materials. Until then, many current electric cars may already fall into a loophole that will help automakers and consumers.
Source: Automotive News
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