The older I get, the less crap I need to do my job in the kitchen. But I also appreciate a fancy gadget, too — I use a plain old chef's knife for most of the things a food processor is supposed to do, but when I need that food processor (potato pancakes, pesto and hummus, mainly), I really am glad to have it.
Some years ago, our friends John and Sam gave us a corkscrew that cost $100. The lever-action Screwpull was the first of its kind I'd used, and although there are many knockoffs on the market today, like the song says: The original is still the greatest. I've amazed many guests with its ease of use. Every time I open a bottle of wine, I think, what a miraculous gadget. If it fell to pieces tomorrow, I'd happily spend another $100 to replace it.
Which brings us to our $129 trash can.
Earlier this year I looked at Simplehuman trash cans with my sister, who has owned one for years. I thought they were nice, but like any sane person, that $129 was a bit steep for a trash can. It gave her the idea, though, and she gave us one for Christmas. There's something both horrible and wonderful about a $129 trash can — the expense seems preposterous, but it's … the iPod of trash cans. It's beautiful. It has a small footprint, and a lid hinge that allows it to sit flush against the wall. The lid closes silently. It has an inner liner that eliminates unsightly bag overhang. And it's dog-proof, important in that Spriggy, in his senility, seems to have forgotten his training in that little area. We've only had it since Christmas, and already I can't imagine my kitchen with the old, primitive, $15 trash can.
See, this is the problem with a $129 trash can. Pretty soon you're disappointed you didn't get lid shox technology. No wonder people say, Die, yuppie scum.
How was your weekend? Mine was uneventful, except for my small encounter with the Westboro loons. They were protesting outside one of the most beautiful churches in the area, a Gothic gem run by the Presbyterians, adjacent to a public facility called the Grosse Pointe War Memorial. The presence of these knuckle-dragging goobers outside was a bit jarring, but what the hell, the First Amendment protects Larry Flynt and Fred Phelps, too.
A fabulous story about the rest of the story of the attempted assassination of Gerald Ford by the loony Sara Jane Moore. The man who grabbed her arm, spoiling her aim and saving Ford's life, was hailed as a hero until it was revealed he was gay, which led to the usual complications these things led to, back then. Also, the man hit by the richochet didn't have a great rest of his life, either. It's one Paul Harvey won't be doing, I guess.
The publisher of Parade says the press run of yesterday's edition was over when Benazir Bhutto was assassinated, but the cover-story interview was "too important" to spike the whole run. Uh-huh.
Off to sync the iPod and enjoy an exceptional heat wave. Have a good one, y'selves.
What is it about dogs and snotty Kleenex? Augie shares Spriggy's fascination with them. He's spooked by trash can lids that swing, so that's what we have in the bathroom and bedroom to discourage him.
The Wire was great last night. But it's taking time to sink into my brain. The pre-show interviews with cast members was just terrific, too. I have to go browsing at E-Bay to see if I can get Season 3 for my son. I'll borrow them all back from him in a few years to revisit those characters.
The power at the office went out about 9:45 Friday AM. We were cut loose about 11:00. I went home to find — no power. It didn't get it back until about 5:55 PM on Sunday evening. Power was out in random spots all over Sacto. Great weekend. I had battery radio, Coleman lanterns etc. but all at my (ex) wife's place uo in Auburn. And her power was out as well. She told me she was cuddled up on the loveseat with a fire, the dogs and a book. I went to REI to see if they had a lantern. Too late. Target was on the way home so I dropped in (no Lileks sighting) and bought the last one they had. No battery radios there so I went to Radio Shack and got one. Sometimes lucky is as good as being prepared. I stayed out and about during the day on Fri and Sat and ate in restaurants. I went to a joint on Fri night and another one on Sat night. I took a book and held down the end of the bar. Both places were very welcoming to refugees and had friendly and attractive female bartenders. I stretched a couple of drinks for a couple of hours and left good tips. At home I had the Coleman lantern and the four burners of my gas stove going. Created a nice little corner where I could sit on a stool and read. Also, I had gas hot water which afforded me nice showers. I recharged my cell phone in the car. It could have a lot worse. I didn't lose anything in my freezer. It was full and the ice maker was full so there wasn't a lot of air space but there was a lot of frozen stuff. By 5:55 Sunday evening nothing had even begun to soften at the edges. A lost weekend but not really. Just a different one.
comment from the cheap seats: A long time ago, I clicked one of nn.c's links over to 'bossy', and thought she was funny (like Rosie O'Donnel, before Rosie changed her schtick from 'funny' to 'angry')…and then today I clicked nn.c's bossy road trip link, and laughed out loud!
edit – MichaelG – I'm sure California is exceedingly beautiful and marvelous 94% of the time….but that other 6% looks like an absolute deal-breaker, from here!
my favorite extravagant gadget is my Dyson Animal vaccum. As the only human in a large multi-species household, it's a lifesaver and worth every penny. (and it cost a lot of pennies) Completely out of character for me to buy something like that and I have never regretted it for a second.
You pays your money and you takes your choice, Brian. We don't have really cold weather or ice and snow here. Mid thirties overnight is about it. We also don't have tornados. Just think of poor Fernley NV where it flooded badly and then froze.
1. I know there's a big controversy over the Parade article, but I've never thought of Parade as anything other than a fluffy insert. Have I missed something?
2. I'm jealous because Bossy's coming to visit you. She has to; it's a given.
3. When Bossy comes to visit, make sure you have a good assortment of fabulous, fabulous Michigan wines. If I didn't make it to northern lower Michigan every year on vacation I'd have to come just to restock my wine supply.
Watch out for the hinges on the simplehuman kitchen can to break. I have the model sold in Target for 99 dollars, and within three months the plastic hinges broke. Luckily, the in-house Brit is a tinkerer and he made two new hinges from metal. They work the same way but won't fall apart as easily. We bought the simplehuman precisely to keep dog noses out of the trash, and it works perfectly in that way.
Now if they'd come up with a Simplehuman toilet to keep the dog noses out. Dogs seem especially fond of the Kohler low-flow models I have in place right now, especially when the requisite three flushes still haven't done the job.
Alex – next time, use a Toto. The Japanese are obsessed with the whole toilet experience, and their products rock. You can flush a sunday paper down the Toto.
Just read about Toto and you ain't a-shittin'.
They're even launching a model that performs urinalysis. Perfect for those days when ya gotta bone up for a pee test.
What did you read, MichaelG? We haven't had one in a while, but hurricanes and nor-easters have taken out the power for up to two weeks here. It can be a nice break, at least the first few days. I confess to having wept when the power went back on after two weeks down.
The simplehuman trash can provided some hilarity at a friend's Jan. 1 drink-one-more-time fest. The house was crowded, and any time anyone backed up to the low-profile can it opened as if waiting for a deposit. I laughed so many times I thought I'd become a junior high schooler. Again.
On the Parade weirdness: What I thought was so totally bizarre (beyond the fact they ran it post-mortem) was that this Parade story had a point of view that pretty much called out Benazir as a liar, thief and killer.
Nothing heavy. A Doc Ford book by Randy Wayne White and East 47th by Gerald Browne.
What's this about fabulous Michigan wines?
We had one of those knock-off lever action corkscrews and it worked well for about six weeks. Didn't like it well enough to replace it with the real thing, though. So it's back to the ancient wing-action corkscrew. Wine doesn't need to be any easier for me to get to than it already is.
The crazy Labrador that we had some years ago was prescribed a visit with the Last Word in animal behavior, at Purdue. When he was told of the outrageous doggy antics that we endured, he dismissed the part about tissue obsession as being considered normal for any dog. But Ole was an accomplished pickpocket. He could extract a Kleenex from the front pocket of his victim's sweatpants without the wearer even knowing he was in the room.
Dorothy – I haven't forgotten my promise to send along any of my Avon Christmas gifts that you might want. Just as I feared, this is the year that my mother-in-law finally decided to give up on giving me jewelry. Murphy and his Law are active in my life once again. But there's a lip balm and Skin So Soft soap and moisturizer for you if you want them.
Exactly. Until you use a Dyson, you have no idea how dirty your floor really is, even when it looks clean.
I didn't read the Bhutto story, Kim. Here in Gannett country, we get USA Weekend, although I can't tell you what's on that cover, either, because I pull the funnies, Target and Kohl's supplements out and ignore everything else. Parade killed the newspaper roto magazine, and speaking as one who worked (briefly) for one, that's an unforgivable sin.
Mindy the only thing I'm interested in is the Care Deeply lip balm. I've been trying to get in touch with a rep here but I get breathy emails from these gals, but no catalogs or phone calls. How do they do any business?!? I'll be glad to reimburse you for postage! Ask Nancy for my email address and she'll turn it over to you. Then you and I can communicate directly. I had forgotten all about this. You're a peach to remember me!
Oh gosh the ROTO magazine, Nance! I just loved the hell out of our Roto at the Post Gazette! I hadn't thought about it in years.
My favorite Michigan wines are Leelanau Cellars and Tabor Hill. Around here you can buy them at Meijers, though I've been to both tasting rooms. Leelanau Cellars regularly. Other interesting alcoholic things I've enjoyed in the state include Shady Lane (Suttons Bay) Cherry Port, Warner Brothers in Paw Paw fruit sparkling wines.
Madonna's father owns a winery in Leelanau County, I don't know which one, but I do occasionally hear rumors of Madonna sightings.
I can also recommend Black Star Farms' offerings, especially the non-oaky chardonnay. They make ice wine, too, and that fruity spirit where they hang the bottles on the pear tree and the fruit grows inside. Eau de Vie, I think it's called.
Eau de Vie is a generic term for a distilled fruit brandy. They make the stuff in every country from every sort of fruit imaginable. It's usually clear. Another generic term for it is WHOOEEE! Actually, some of it isn't bad. I know the fruit in the bottle stuff you are thinking of but I can't recall the name. I'll look around and see if anybody sells Michigan wine here.
The winery belonging to Madonna's dad is Ciccone Winery. He specializes in wines that are more dry so I'm not a fan, but my brother in law is. Plus it's a gorgeous winery, with a place to hold weddings etc. Never seen Madonna there, though. I noticed last summer that more and more wineries in that area are charging for tastings (about $2 for a four/six taste assortment, usually). It takes the fun out of it a little bit, but I guess I can understand it if too many people do tours without buying anything. My favorites: Gill's Pier, Good Harbor, Lelanau Cellars, Longview, Peninsula Cellars, St. Julian. I just love those Michigan fruit wines.
I like Black Star as well, though as I recall it's not cheap. Great tasting room, though. Kids can go look at the horses. PLus Suttons Bay is a nice little town.
As for corkscrews, we got one of those fancy ones awhile back and I couldn't get it to work, which made me feel like a moron. As an old waiter, though, I still prefer the pocket-knife style. I love the action of cutting the foil with a little knife, then placing the screw just so and deftly spinning it and popping that sucker out.
The fruit in the bottle stuff is called Pear William, or William's Pear, some variation on those words.
Fox News talk show host Bill O'Reilly had a confrontation with a staffer for Barack Obama's campaign that the aide and several eyewitnesses claim became physical.
The incident began when O'Reilly tried to get Obama's attention after a Nashua campaign event. He allegedly began yelling at Obama's National Trip Director Marvin Nicholson to get out of the way. O'Reilly then, according to eyewitness accounts, shoved the staffer.
Then the Secret Service intervened to ask O'Reilly to step back behind the barricade that marked the press area.
We went out for dinner last night at a fairly nice place we've been to quite a few times. It was my birthday and the two offspring and the in-house Brit cleaned up nicely and took me out. Near us was a table with five adults and four children, all between 5 and 10 in age, I'd say. The kids were noisy, running around, hitting each other, playing rock paper scissors at the top of their lungs and screaming. At my table we couldn't carry on a conversation. We couldn't hear each other. The parents of those kids were having a nice shouting conversation, but since they were sort of drunk that worked for them. I mentioned the kids to the waiter and he did nothing.
I have kids. I'm not a grouch. My kids would not ever run through restaurants. They wouldn't scream in restaurants. If they got loud, they got spoken to or removed from the scene. They weren't angels but they also were not horrid brats. Do some parents think every sound emitted by the fruit of their loins is precious or do the just not give a flying?
They don't give a flying.
It double-bugs me because I'm pretty tolerant of kid noise, generally. Most mothers are. If it's loud enough to bug a mom, it's really too loud.
But this just gives more fodder to the nastier wing of the child-free movement, that would just as soon ban all kids from public life, unless they can be absolutely silent. That's not realistic. Babies cry, kids use outside voices inside, etc. Learning not to do so is part of their socialization, and they're part of the human family, after all. But there has to be a limit. I'm far more sympathetic with a parent who's clearly trying to quiet a loud kid than one whose coping strategy is: Order another drink.
Right on, Virgotex. We vacuumed in the morning the day we got our Dyson Animal with our Oreck. When we brought our animal home, we were pleased and scared all at once. There was so much dog hair, carpet fuzz, and general dirt in the Dyson canister. We were happy that it was now "that clean" but scared because we had lived with it "that dirty" for years.
The Dyson Animal sounds like something my mom has been looking for (she has a Lab, a golden retriever and a tabby cat). But her floors are hardwood or tile — is it meant for carpets only?
Quite an adjustment, yet again, moving back from Chi-Town to Hoosiertucky.
Meals cost about a third to one-half, but the tradeoff is screaming out-of-control children. It's particularly bad in these parts. Try correcting the bastards when they're at your table messing with your dinner and the parents will take it as a personal affront to their parenting skills.
Must've been some midwesterners, Mary.
alex, you could have just gone out to Naperville. Then the meals are the same price, but there are screaming, out of control children. The best of both worlds!
Pikers! Do a hot summer's day at some theme park (or whatever) – and then regardless where you go to eat dinner, the kids are pie-eyed and fried….the cool air hits 'em, and they go into trance-state.
I recall nn.c's post about parents with hyper kiddos, and frankly – if one of our children had that affliction, we simply wouldn't eat out – or at least, not at places fancier than a burger joint. Honestly, most restaurants will take orders over the phone for pick-up, and we have found that to be a good alternative to saddling up the whole crew when the weather is uncooperative, or whatever.
we have a golden retriever, a calico cat, and an Animal 17… it is indeed amazing how much that thing picks up even after you think the carpet's clean. took us awhile to figure out what all the attachments were, though.
wine… Camelot Mead from the Oliver Winery outside Bloomington. back when I was at IU it was a dollar-69 a bottle and sealed with wax.
We went to dinner at a nice restaurant with a couple with two very young children. The mother was at her wits end and during the meal she had something almost resembling a psychotic break (aided by alcohol). Just decided to ignore the kids altogether. I'll not soon forget having to rescue her toddler and as the kiddie ambled about the swinging kitchen doors under waiters carrying full trays.
Dorothy • MichaelG • brian stouder • virgotex • MichaelG • Sue • LAMary • alex • Peter • alex • Kim • MichaelG • Mindy • virgotex • nancy • Dorothy • Connie • nancy • MichaelG • Sue • john c • LAMary • brian stouder • LAMary • nancy • Cathy • MaryC • alex • ashley • brian stouder • basset • del • and YOU.


The Grammy Nominee Brazilian Group "Fundo de Quintal" is back to Los Angeles for a performance at Samba Steakhouse in Redondo Beach, Sunday, October 9th at 6pm. The group from Rio de Janeiro is one of the most important bands of Samba (Pagode style) of Brazil. Everything started in Cacique de Ramos (Indian Chiefs of Ramos), a suburb of Rio where they started meeting to sing, play, drink, and dance in samba jam sessions in the 1970s.
Fundo de Quintal brought a new public to the samba, inspired a generation of sambistas and had an uncommonly large influence on fledgling groups. Their sound emanated beyond the periphery of Brazil to the World. Theirs is music designed to be played in a social context, not listened to in hushed reverence. On June 17, 2007, Brazilian Nites Productions brings to Hollywood's John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, the rootsy euphoria of the group whose name is synonymous with pagode, Rio de Janeiro's "backyard samba band" (Fundo de Quintal) and now years later they finally come back to Los Angeles.
Local younger talented Daniel Carneiro will open the concert and will together with his band New Cycle, in this opportunity, release his latest CD. Daniel is a dynamic composer who brings a refreshing approach to each project, with considerable experience writing music. He is a singer and composer that play various instruments such as his acoustic nylon guitar, bass, cavaquinho (Brazilian small 4 string guitar) as well as various traditional Brazilian percussion instruments.


Sui Dhaaga finished its first week with a record collection of 63 crores. The movie faced a drop on Thursday which was reasonable as the holiday period is over and the movie has already watched by the audience. Sui Dhaaga collected 3 crores on its last day of the first week which takes its total to 63 crores which is huge. The movie has already proved to be a big hit if we look at the scale and the concept of the movie. Well, today Love Yatri is coming out which is full of music with a lot of songs which has already become the chartbuster after their release. It will be interesting to see how well the movie will grow in its second weekend when the new releases are coming out.
From the current scenario, Sui Dhaaga has fair chances to touch the landmark of 100 crores in its lifetime run if it would not face an unexpectedly big drop in its second and third week. Below is the day-wise box office collection of Sui Dhaaga. You are reading this article on Bollywood Tower.
What do you think about the performance of Sui Dhaaga at the ticket window after the first week? Let us know your opinion in the comment section.
Sui Dhaaga is directed by Sharat Kataria and produced by Manish Sharma and Aditya Chopra under Yashraj Films. The movie starring Varun Dhawan and Anushka Sharma in the lead role. Sui Dhaaga released worldwide on 28th September worldwide.
Pataakha finished its first week with an average total of 7.10 crores. The movie added another 30 lakhs on its last day of the first week which takes its total to above 7 crores. Below is the day-wise box office collection of Pataakha. You are reading this article on Bollywood Tower.
Pataakha is directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and distributed by Eros International. The movie starring Sanya Malhotra, Radhika Madan and Sunil Grover in the lead role. The movie released worldwide on 28th September worldwide.


A local group of investors have bought four former Bray & Gillespie Inc. commercial beachside properties here with plans to build a new restaurant in the heart of the tourist district.
DAYTONA BEACH — A local group of investors have bought four former Bray & Gillespie Inc. commercial beachside properties here with plans to build a new restaurant in the heart of the tourist district.
Seabreeze A1A Corp. paid $379,000 for the properties in the middle of the 500 block of north A1A, said David Konchan, a sales agent for Charles Wayne Properties in Daytona Beach. Konchan represented the seller, a consortium of banks who took over the properties after Bray & Gillespie filed for bankruptcy in 2008.
The properties include the lot and 4,000-square-foot, three-unit retail building at 527 N. Atlantic Ave., two lots behind the building that front N. Grandview Ave. and an adjoining lot. The properties total just less than an acre and are located between Seabreeze and Oakridge avenues.
David Turetsky of Ormond Beach is the managing member of Seabreeze A1A Corp., according to state records.
Konchan said the new owners plan to demolish the existing building at 527 N. Atlantic Ave., which is across the street from The Plaza Resort & Spa, construct a new restaurant for a national chain and use the rear lots for vehicle parking.
NEW SMYRNA BEACH — James Stowers, an attorney who worked for the law firm of Cobb Cole in Daytona Beach the past five years, has left to become a partner at Wright & Casey, P.A., a law firm in New Smyrna Beach.
The firm will be renamed Wright, Casey & Stowers.
Stowers, who was a partner at Cobb Cole, specializes in land use law.
Wright, Casey & Stowers has four attorneys and three support staffers.
The firm plans to open an office this November in Ormond Beach, where Stowers resides.
In addition to being an attorney, Stowers also is an Ormond Beach City Commissioner who is currently seeking reelection to the Zone 1 seat.
PALM COAST — The Palm Coast Business Assistance Center will hold its second Annual "BAC to Business Expo" on Nov. 2, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Hammock Beach Resort, at 200 Ocean Crest Drive, Palm Coast.
The theme for this year's expo will be "How Successful People Think." The event will include exhibitors, networking and three keynote speakers, one of whom is Joie Chitwood III, president of Daytona International Speedway. The other speakers are Steve Cabot and Pamela Roach.
The early registration deadline is Oct. 1. Tickets purchased by that date are $99. Tickets after that date are $125. For more information, visit www.BACExpo.com on the Web or call Joe Roy of the Palm Coast Business Assistance Center at 386-986-4765.


The first two floors of this well-maintained building were built in 1924 when the Gothic Style was popular. They were erected to house the new telephone dial equipment which was first used in Tulsa in November of 1924. Six years later, in 1930, when Zigzag Art Deco had supplanted the Gothic style, a four story addition was made. The addition held the division offices and the toll terminal equipment for the Oklahoma City-Tulsa underground cable.
The facade of the first floor of this light brown brick building is broken by a series of large, arched windows. These windows are framed in terra cotta, matching the color of the rather narrow terra cotta quoins and foundation of the building. The second floor windows are rectangular and separated by brick panels decorated with ornate terra cotta torches. A vertical pair of terra cotta shields is located above the torches. Above the second floor the building facade is broken into a series of stepped-back panels terminating in pinnacles above the roof line. The windows appear to be recessed panels. The spandrel area, constructed of buff-colored terra cotta tile with art deco designs, has strong vertical lines. The pinnacles are also faced with terra cotta tile, as is all of the building's ornamentation. Northwestern Terra Cotta Tile Company of Chicago, the leading manufacturer of these tiles, was the supplier.
The Southwestern Bell Main Dial Building was listed in the National Register on June 22, 1984, under National Register Criteria A and C, and its NRIS number is 84003445.


text:
House committee hears industry opinions on small-biz
By Matthew Weigelt
Root out burdensome overregulation, ban permanent Internet taxes and make research and development funding permanent, a panel of technology and telecommunications business representatives and business owners urged a congressional committee today.
House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.) said she will dig deeper to find ways to strengthen the business options for innovation, given that small businesses are large consumers and producers of technology.
The committee listened to testimony to understand industry's policy priorities and expectations of Congress.
"It only makes sense that as Congress begins its work on advancing innovation and enhancing U.S. competitiveness, the interests of small businesses are a priority," Velazquez said.
Phillip Bond, president and chief executive officer of the Information Technology Association of America, asked Velazquez to consider the Small Business Administration's proposed changes to size standards for small businesses. The current $23 million revenue size standard for IT-related businesses hampers federal agencies' ability to use small businesses. Also, federal contracts can lift a small company above that threshold, but do not prepare it to compete against large firms in the public sector, Bond said.
He also advocated for stopping the 3 percent withholding tax on payments to federal contractors. He said it limits business options for the public sector and imposes higher costs on companies.
"Companies need a fertile policy environment for their ideas to materialize into products and services ripe for the marketplace," Bond said.
The panelists agreed that Congress should block Internet taxes and regulations, and it must annually fund research and development. But the funding should be extended by more than a year at a time. Ideally, the funding should be permanent, they said.
"Companies like some sort of predictability," said William Archey, president and CEO of the American Electronics Association. Bond added that auditors like it, too.
Matthew Weigelt is a reporter with Washington Technology's affiliate publication, Federal Computer Week.
Matthew Weigelt is a freelance journalist who writes about acquisition and procurement.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
by Jonathan McIntosh
Glaucon, unimpressed with the ease with which the wild Thrasymachus has been tamed by Socrates in book one, wants to know what justice and injustice are, in and of themselves, and what their intrinsic effects are on the soul that possess them. When Socrates says that justice is a good that is desired both for its own sake and for its benefits, Glaucon counters that most people think that it desired only for its benefits. The common view is that doing injustice is good and suffering injustice is bad. Because the costs of suffering injustice are greater than the benefits of inflicting it on others, however, people are led to make an agreement with each other not to do injustice, and this is the political origins of justice. Give people the opportunity, however, to do injustice without suffering it, and they will do injustice, as the story of the Ring of Gyges illustrates. A shepherd finds a ring that makes him invisible, so that when he goes to serve as a messenger to the king, he decides instead to seduce the queen, kill the king, and rule in his stead. This is what everyone would do in the same situation, meaning that no one really believes that justice is choice-worthy for its own sake. To truly defend justice as something good in itself, therefore, Glaucon challenges Socrates to show how the just man who suffers all the reputation and consequences of injustice is still better off than the unjust man who enjoys all the benefits of being reputed to be just.
Socrates responds that just as the same message written in small letters from a distance is easier read if it is written elsewhere in large letters, so justice and injustice in the soul might be better seen if we were to read them "writ large" in a whole city. More specifically, he says that if we were able to watch a city coming into existence, we would see justice itself coming into being. The origin of the city lies in the individual person's lack of self-sufficiency: human beings have many needs that no one individual is able to conveniently provide for himself. This leads to a division of labor in which each person does a single task that he is best suited for. Socrates then takes inventory of all the kinds of occupations that the city will need: in addition to farmers, homebuilders, and weavers, there will be carpenters, metal workers, cowherds, shepherds, importers, merchants, and sailors. All of the trading going on will further require a marketplace and some form of money. Adeimantus points out that the merchants will be weaklings who aren't fit to do anything else, and as for the laborer who sells his labor for wages, Socrates says that his intellectual deficiencies will prevent him from being a citizen of the city.
Socrates describes this initial, moderate city as a "healthy city" and as "the true city" (373a), but when Glaucon complains that it contains only necessities and no luxuries, Socrates agrees to enlarge it into a "feverish" city, adding all sorts of other dainties and the occupations necessary to provide them. The addition of luxuries means that the city's land will no longer be sufficient to provide for the now enlarged population and its demands, requiring it to seize the land of its neighbors and so leading to war. If there is to be war, then on the earlier principle of one-man/one-job, the city must now be enlarged further still by adding a whole military class to fight the city's battles. These warriors must have a warrior nature, being strong in body and courageous and spirited in soul, but also philosophical, being able to wisely discriminate friend from foe, being gentle towards the one and fierce towards the other.
This leads into a lengthy discussion of the warrior or guardian class's education, involving physical training for the body and music and poetry for the soul. The stories the guardian-children are told will be tightly censored, with gods and heroes never being portrayed in a negative or immoral light. The gods are to be portrayed only as they are, namely as causing only the good and not responsible for evil, suffering, deception, or falsehood, and because already perfect, not ever changing in form.
Summary of Book 1 of Plato's Republic
Introduction to Plato's Republic
Summary of Book 1 of Plato's Republic by Jonathan McIntosh The Republic opens with Socrates and Glaucon (Plato's


text:
Union pay remains non-"prevailing"
The latest federal labor statistics continue to cast serious doubt on a state public works "prevailing wage" mandate that assumes 30 percent union coverage of building trades occupations across New York.
As shown below, the annual estimate of union coverage level in New York's private construction sector stood at slightly less than 27 percent in 2019, according to the Union Coverage and Membership Database, which in turn is derived from federal population and labor data.
Adjusting for volatility in the annual state-level estimates, which are derived from statistical samplings, the five-year rolling average of the annual estimates has declined from 41 percent as of 1988 to just 27 percent as of 2019, down a percentage point from that rolling average as of 2018. By this measure, trades unions have been representing less than 30 percent of New York's construction workers since 2005.
Article 1, Section 17 of the state Constitution says construction workers on public works jobs—including all government-owned and -funded buildings and infrastructure—must be paid "the rate of wages prevailing in the same trade or occupation in the locality within the state where such public work is to be situated."
While promoted by its advocates as the equivalent of an industry-specific minimum or living wage, the pay requirement goes much further, imposing combined hourly wage and "supplemental benefit" levels that range from $43 an hour for laborers (the least-skilled trade) in the lowest-cost region (Syracuse) to more than $100 an hour for operating engineers in New York City.
As a result, a 2017 Empire Center study conservatively estimated, the law boosts public works costs by at least 13 percent in some upstate regions to 25 percent in New York City, where union work rules contribute to the notorious inefficiency of transit infrastructure projects. Beyond those levels, the law further boosts costs and saps productivity by effectively imposing inefficient union work rules upon public projects.
The term "prevailing wage" is a misnomer, since what the law actually requires is neither truly "prevailing" (as the word is commonly defined) nor limited to wages.
Based on Section 220 of Labor Law, the New York State Labor Department (NYSDOL) defines "prevailing" as the wages and benefits mandated by union collective bargaining agreements that cover at least 30 percent of the workers in a given trade in each locality. In addition to union wages, it requires payment of the supplemental benefits required by union contracts, which can equal or exceed the actual wage. Between 2007-08 and 2017-18, more than half of the compensation increase for workers on New York government projects was driven by supplemental benefits, including increased contributions needed to bail out severely underfunded union pension plans.
In some cases, this crowding effect caused workers to experience a pay cut in real terms.
NYSDOL's secret sauce
The misnomer is compounded by an administrative mystery, since NYSDOL repeatedly has refused to publicly release copies of the construction union contracts and pay scales it uses as the basis for its prevailing wage calculation. Nor will it disclose the headcount of workers supposedly covered by those agreements. In addition, neither NYSDOL nor the New York City comptroller's office, which sets the public works pay scales in the city, is required to survey employers to independently verify that the threshold actually is being met.
As unionization of the industry continues to decline, the latest data make it clearer than ever that the 30 percent construction coverage threshold is not being met in New York—least of all in upstate regions, where private-sector unionization in general is lower. Under the alternative laid out in state law, public works labor compensation for most trades in most of New York should now be pegged to the actual "average" prevailing in each locality. This would yield a much lower compensation figure in all regions, based on federal occupational statistics.
While public works contractors in New York have legal standing to challenge the wage mandate, potential plaintiffs face a legal Catch-22: the burden of proof is on any party seeking to challenge a wage determination, and courts have ruled government agencies cannot be compelled to share the kind of "extremely broad and undefined" information needed to demonstrate that the coverage threshold has been met.
The insistence on enforcing a dubious definition of "prevailing" compensation is driven by Governor Andrew Cuomo's strong political alliance with construction unions. More than any of his predecessors, Cuomo has usually supported the construction unions' agenda, most notably during a largely unsuccessful two-year battle to impose the union compensation mandate on privately sponsored affordable housing projects linked to New York City's 421-a property tax abatement program. He also has continued to push project-labor agreements, or PLAs, as part of most infrastructure contracts.
In a provision of his budget Article 7 bills, Cuomo has proposed expanding the union compensation mandate to economic projects indirectly supported or financed by state and local governments. Given the dearth of large-scale fully private development in upstate New York, such a mandate is likely to severely hamper new projects across the region, a business coalition has warned.
Tags: Contracts Prevailing Wage Unions
Utility board turns into union tool
The idea that the PSC would artificially drive electricity costs higher to benefit a political constituency represents a new low. Read More
New Docs Raise Big Questions About NY's Megafab Mega-Deal
The Hochul Administration published a pair of documents concerning the Micron Megafab deal that raise more questions than they answer. Read More
The Micron deal's other big giveaway
The announcement that Micron Technologies will build a computer-chip plant in Onondaga County comes with an important condition that will deliberately hike the price tag. Read More
City union scandal isn't NY's first
One of New York City's largest public-sector unions has been effectively taken over by its national parent after an audit revealed extensive financial mismanagement. It's the latest example of misconduct made possible under New York's public-sector collective bargaining rules that force the government to collect hundreds of millions of dollars annually without any safeguards on how the funds are spent. Read More
Firefighter-rights bill torches local control
Two of Albany's most-vetoed concepts are headed toward Governor Hochul's desk, this time concealed as a "firefighter bill of rights." Read More
Still-Unreleased Union Deal Rains Cash on State Workers
The still-unreleased deal between the Hochul Administration and the Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA), state government's largest group of unionized workers, would award bonuses, backpay, and guaranteed raises the next three years, documents sent to union members show. Read More
Thanks to Unions, NYC's School Reopening Deal Was Costly and Educationally Hazardous
New York City schools reopened this fall under terms dictated by the city's teacher and principal unions. Now, as city schools close -- once more at the unions' behest -- the city is left with thousands of extra teachers hi Read More
With State Officials' Freeze Through 2023, More Reason To Ice All Government Pay
In light of the state government's "extremely precarious financial position," New York's state lawmakers, judges, statewide elected officials and certain gubernatorial appointees should not receive pay raises in the Read More


Taro Kono is the foreign minister of Japan.
Last November, I visited the Cox's Bazar refugee camp, where more than 700,000 Muslim refugees from Rakhine State are taking refuge. In January, I visited northern Rakhine State. These two trips made a huge impression on me and helped move the Rakhine issue up to become one of the highestpriority issues in Japan's foreign policy agenda. In August, I visited Myanmar and Bangladesh for the second time and met with the leaders of both nations to discuss a way forward. Any solution to the refugee problem must be led by the two countries. Myanmar, also known as Burma, and Bangladesh are committed to the safe, voluntary and dignified repatriation of the refugees. We must help support their efforts and foster mutual trust and cooperation.
The most urgent task today is to improve conditions in the Cox's Bazar camp. I praise the Bangladeshi people and their government for their compassion and generosity in accepting hundreds of thousands of refugees. However, the funding gap to assist the refugees remains large. To date, only 38 percent of the needed funds have been pledged by donors. Though the burden on the local communities is getting bigger, they are still willing to share their scarce resources with the refugees, such as land, food and water. The international community needs to support Bangladesh's efforts to overcome this crisis and further increase assistance to fill the gap.
Nevertheless, the key for a sustainable solution is to create the conditions for the early return of refugees and their peaceful resettlement in Rakhine State. As John F. Kennedy wrote in "Profiles in Courage," "The true democracy … puts its faith in the people … faith that the people will not condemn those whose devotion to principle leads them to unpopular courses, but will reward courage, respect honor, and ultimately recognize right." Aung San Suu Kyi, the longtime democracy and human rights advocate of Myanmar, is facing great difficulty in balancing her moral principles and the views of her constituents, who are not necessarily very open to the idea of repatriation and resettlement. It is easy to criticize Aung San Suu Kyi for not responding to the situation quickly, but what the international community has to do now is to support the efforts of her government.
The Myanmar government has been making efforts, but it needs to do more. While it has constructed facilities such as reception centers and housing, the government needs to guarantee freedom of movement and clarify its pathway towards citizenship verification process. It has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the U.N. refugee agency and the U.N. Development Program that guarantees U.N. workers' presence on the ground in Myanmar, which is essential for the success of the repatriation process. Their projects based on the latest needs assessment will begin soon. Moreover, no effort should be spared to tackle the multifaceted root causes of the issue, for which Kofi Annan and his Advisory Commission on Rakhine State provided comprehensive prescriptions in their report last year. The international community must help these efforts of Myanmar for enabling repatriation and resettlement of the refugees.
In order to uncover what happened in Rakhine State, the government of Myanmar established the Independent Commission of Enquiry, which is composed of two Myanmar members and two international members. Accountability should be established on Myanmar's own initiative. We fully hope and expect the commission to conduct its investigation in a credible manner, and to that end, it needs the full cooperation from Myanmar's military.
Many are busy criticizing the Myanmar government for not taking the necessary steps quickly enough. However, what the international community has to do right now is not to criticize, but to patiently support Myanmar's own efforts for the early, safe, voluntary and dignified repatriation of refugees. The peace and stability of Rakhine State cannot be realized without solidifying democracy and human rights in Myanmar. The international community must not short-circuit Myanmar's evolution toward democracy.


Here in Xi'an SR Bio-Engineering Co.,Ltd our absolute focus is to source and deliver products of the highest quality to your business.
As a customer focused company, Xi'an SR can support your manufacturing site with quality ingredients coupled with accurate and comprehensive information.
In 2018, we obtained a food production license issued by the CHINA government.
Our factory is a professional manufacturer of herbal extracts, with experienced production team under the strict scientific management system. Our facility includes pure water equipment, multifunctional extraction tank, heat sterilization, vacuum drying, milling machines, sieving machines, mixing machines, other advanced production equipment.
The area of our factory covers 20,000 square meters, with processes ability of 300 tons of per year for standard extract and customized high purified extract.


I have more than 14 years of experience in public accounting, risk advisory, information technology and cybersecurity advisory in financial services and other highly regulated industries. I also lead a broad array of projects, including cybersecurity consulting, regulatory compliance consulting, internal controls advisory, internal audit, information technology audit and risk assessment.
Most recently, my work is focused on conducting cybersecurity assessments against industry and regulatory frameworks, developing roadmaps for compliance with cybersecurity regulations and industry best practices, designing and implementing vendor risk management, internal audit, compliance audit and enterprise risk management functions, and designing and testing incident response, disaster recovery and business continuity plans.
What, for you, are the benefits of attending a conference like Risk Americas 2019? What part of the conference are you most looking forward to?
One of my favourite things about these types of conferences is the networking component. It's great to reconnect with industry contacts and meet new, high talent, like-minded people. I also enjoy sharing information with other professionals, so we can glean insights from one another from what we are implementing in our respective organizations, as well as common challenges and pain points we are experiencing across the industry.
Another reason I get excited for these types of conferences is that it helps me stay on top of my game. In a world that is constantly evolving, the only constants are disruption and change. The aforementioned knowledge sharing at conferences like Risk Americas helps inform me of upcoming issues and trends companies are seeing.
You will be joining a panel discussion alongside Ulster Savings Bank and Credit Suisse on "increasing cyber resilience and BCM in an advancing threat landscape". What do you believe will be the key talking points amongst the panellists?
Preparedness: understanding where you are on the crawl, walk and run spectrum. On one end of the spectrum is the company without an incident response plan or a dated plan, and on the other end is an entity with an incident response plan, an emergency response plan, a crisis management plan, business continuity plan, disaster recovery plan each tested multiple times during the year and multiple data centers running hot with automatic failovers.
The hardest part is to identify and map all data and applications, system interdependencies, network segmentation, data flow, configuration management and communication protocols.
Another key discussion point will be how organizations are ensuring comprehensive stakeholder involvement in the planning and testing of BCM programs. If the only individuals involved in the organization's BCM plans are in the IT function, you create blind spots, which lead to either inefficiencies or ineffectiveness of response.
What are the best practices that need to be made when financial institutions look to protect sensitive information, and train their staff to protect information?
Patching and vulnerability management: Following a patch management process, which guides implementation for critical security patches, significant updates, standard bug fixes, and patches, is imperative. It is also important to be conducting regular vulnerability scans and penetration tests to identify issues, prioritize the issues based on risk and have a process for remediation tracking.
Similar to software and technology, humans also have vulnerabilities. Because of this, regular training of information security staff, executives, directors and personnel remains paramount to protecting sensitive information. Part of this protection should include an effective training program that includes a mechanism through which completion is evidenced and employee performance is assessed and evaluated. Ideally, employees illustrating deficiencies through evaluations will receive enhanced training to increase their cybersecurity awareness. One effective way to assess employee behaviour is to consider combining social engineering exercises with security awareness training by creating a feedback loop and highlight and reinforce good behaviour.
In your experience, can you give an example/case study of where you have helped an organization combat cyber crime?
In doing so, we addressed cyber-crime pre-emptively and helped the organization become more prepared and resilient in the event of an attack.
How can financial institutions ensure they stay ahead of cyber criminals in the future?
Bad actors have a distinct advantage compared to financial institutions, whereas the institution has to be "right" every time, the bad actor only has to be "right" once, and bad actors are much better at sharing information amongst themselves as to what "worked." Financial institutions have the FS-ISAC for information sharing which is a great mechanism, but it relies on members to share their weaknesses and provide insight to a "private" part of their business. However, as cyber criminals are constantly becoming more sophisticated and trying new tactics in order to manipulate individuals in organizations, these information sharing networks are going to become more helpful. Secondly, the need to focus on changing end-user behaviour and helping staff develop scepticism when dealing with incoming communications (e.g., email, phone, SMS, etc.), social media and browsing is essential to thwarting future attempts from cyber criminals. People will continue to be the weak link, and it will become increasingly more necessary to educate staff, test their competence through simulations, reinforce good behaviour, re-test, etc. The more aware and "ready" personnel are to identify questionable content and prepared to act as prescribed (i.e., notify Info Sec) the better prepared an organization will be to respond.
How do you see the impact of cyber resilience evolving over the next 6-12 months?
This answer truly depends on the company's culture. Organizations with a strong CISO with board and executive support will see their resilience increase as a result of employee training, continued phishing exercises, firewall hardening, employee communication and reporting protocols, process improvements, information sharing amongst peers, the implementation of additional tools and continued testing of incident response. Organizations that treat regulatory compliance as the gold standard and don't strive for comprehensive information security and continuous improvement will continue to struggle.
In November 2017, a man in Virginia was arrested in a "Nigerian Prince" scam of defrauding victims of over $3 million.
As sophisticated as we want to believe attacks are, the simple attacks, those which exploit humans and human tendencies, are still proving very effective. Until organizations can effectively change employee behaviour, they'll always be in a defensive position against an opposition that uses volume as a weapon.


text:
13 June 2019 by Rob Burgess
Aer Lingus and AerClub
Aer Lingus flat bed flights are now bookable between London and Dublin
Aer Lingus is soon to receive the first of its Airbus A321neo LR aircraft. Whilst these are single-aisle planes which look identical to a standard short haul aircraft, they have the engine and fuel capacity to fly to the East Coast of Canada and the USA – and they will.
In order to do this, Aer Lingus is installing flat bed Business Class seats – see the image below.
To allow passengers to have seamless connections from Dublin to and from key business cities in Europe, Aer Lingus is also timetabling these aircraft on selected short haul flights. After arriving from North America, selected aircraft will do a return flight to Europe before heading back over the Atlantic.
The first Heathrow service is now timetabled.
From 1st November, you can book the A321neo LR on:
09.50 London Heathrow – 11.20 Dublin
07.30 Dublin – 09.05 London Heathrow
That's the good news. Here is the bad news. Aer Lingus is not, at least for now, selling the flat beds seats as 'Business Class'. This means that there is no Avios reward availability in Business Class.
To book a flat bed, you need to pay cash for an Economy seat in AerSpace, the new Aer Lingus short-haul premium option. This gets you a front row seat, an empty middle seat (not a problem here!) and a free snack. You can't book this with Avios, as Economy redemptions book you into the standard product.
Here is what I mean. For £181 for a one-way ticket in AerSpace, you are allowed to select a flat bed (click to enlarge):
For £145 one-way in Advantage, you can only select a seat down the back:
Here is a summary of the difference between the fare types, although it makes no mention of AerSpace booking into flat bed seats on the A321LR fleet (click to enlarge):
I am keen to take a look at the new seating when it launches, although £181 for 45 minutes is not the biggest bargain in aviation today!
You can find out more about AerSpace on the Aer Lingus website here.
Want to know more about redeeming Avios on Aer Lingus?
This HFP article shows you everything you need to know about how to redeem Avios points on Aer Lingus which can lead to substantial tax savings when flying to North America.
How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (January 2022)
As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses.
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:
Run your own business?
We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 30,000 Avios.
30,000 Avios is a special offer which runs to 4th February 2022.
You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 45,000 Avios sign-up bonus.
45,000 Avios is a special offer which runs to 28th February 2022.
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
(Want to earn more Avios? Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)
William PH says:
13 Jun13 June 04:56
And how many TPs and Avios will you get for your €181?
guesswho2000 says:
TPs presumably 40, as for any short haul flight?
Short haul J, that is.
I thought no TPs (just avios) on EI?
Correct, unless BA codeshare.
Aer Lingus have their own tier point scheme: https://www.aerlingus.com/aerclub/using-aerclub/tiers-and-benefits/
Pumplekin says:
If you buy an EI ticket, you can't get TP's.
If you try and buy it from BA instead you can't as EI aren't selling it as J.
So unless something changes, there is no way to get the 40TP's right now.
Nick G says:
The article refers to euros, yet your insert showing prices is in pounds. Therefore it's £181 or about €203…. Worse value than you thought!
Sorry, misread my own screenshot!
Nick_C says:
How is this going to work flying back from the US to London on Aer Lingus? Will there be flights where you can just stay on the plane in Dublin on the eastbound journey? That could be attractive. Especially if they offer a proper breakfast on the Dublin to London sector.
No, you would always need to clear immigration in Dublin.
In transit? Flying East? Blimey.
I was forgetting the Common Travel Area and thinking of Ireland as a "foreign" country
It wouldn't be attractive to EI as they wouldn't be able to sell it as a separate DUB- LHR flight due to not being able to mix passengers.
And EI will be scheduling these planes to other short European routes so there is no guarantee that the plans you are one is going to London when it could be Paris or Amsterdam.!
riku2 says:
I thought they were scheduling these planes on European routes because they would otherwise be idle (in the same way that AY are using A350's from HEL-LHR since they arrive from HKG early morning in HEL and don't return to HKG until late at night).
This story instead says it's for "seamless connections" but I don't think that is the case. Perhaps LHR-SIN-SYD on BA can be considered "seamless" since it's the same plane the whole way through, but I don't think that's the case here.
That was my thought. If you have to get off, clear Irish customs, and then reboard, then its hardly a seamless connection. Who really cares what sort of seat you get on the short hop from Dublin to London.
And of course Aer Lingus have no desire to complete with BA.
Perhaps there is a missed opportunity here though. They could perhaps have a direct flight linking the US East Coast with a British provincial airport via Dublin, picking up business from British airports not served by AA.
Memesweeper says:
My goodness aerflex is terrible value on a short flight!
Does it earn 40TP in line with BA or has it not reached that stage yet?
AG says:
no tier points on EI
Chrisasaurus says:
To be fair the price for the lie flat seat is £35 if you were otherwise going to be booking aerwhatever one tier down for the other components…
Looks like the seating is identical to the BA 321 mid-haul aircraft.
@mkcol says:
Think I'll wait until they're rostered on other routes to see if better value can be gained.


Sign Into Facebook Is one of the most made use of social network in the entire world. Considering that 2006, numerous individuals have actually developed an account on Facebook and also today there are many who continuously join this social network. Now having a Facebook account is virtually as crucial as having an e-mail. Listed below we show you everything you need to understand about this social media as well as exactly how it Log in Facebook. As well as if you do not have an account yet, we additionally reveal you how you can develop one.
Facebook has greater than 100 billion energetic users around the globe. This is because it is a social media network really easy to use where you could locate your loved ones and interact with them so they are in different continents. A Facebook account can likewise help you advertise your company or item. There are many benefits you get to the Sign in Facebook.
1. Sign in Facebook is one of the most convenient points to do. To start you must go to the Facebook home page.
2. Right here you will locate the type to sign up, as well as at the top of the display you will see package to login.
3. You must just enter the email you used to produce your account and your password.
If you have actually forgotten your password, click on the alternative that says 'I forgot my password' By doing this you will certainly get guidelines in your email to develop a brand-new one.
If you do not have a Facebook account you could easily produce one. You simply need to fill in the register type to create your account. You will require an active email and put a couple of personal data. In a couple of minutes you can start utilizing your brand-new Facebook account.


text:
Lebanese women determined to continue fight for more political representation
Lebanon's 2018 parliamentary election has highlighted the dearth of women in parliament and the possible ways in which their numbers can be increased.
Newly elected Lebanese parliamentarian Dima Jamali arrives at the legislature ahead of a session to elect a new speaker, Beirut, May 23, 2018. - ANWAR AMRO/AFP/Getty Images
Hanan Hamdan
@HananMHamdan
BEIRUT — Earlier this month, Lebanon voted in parliamentary elections to fill seats based on a new system of proportional representation. After the ballots were counted, women occupied six of the 128 seats. This small number looks even smaller when one takes into account that there were 111 female candidates out of 976 total. These figures indicate how difficult it is for women to become legislative representatives and decision-makers.
Previously, with so few female parliamentarians and candidates, some believed that women themselves were the problem. That is, they simply preferred not to run. The May 6 election showed, however, that women do want to take part in national decision-making, but when they set out to do so, they find obstacles in their way.
In the recent balloting, three women from the Future Movement won seats: Bahiya Hariri, Rola al-Tabsh Jaroudi and Dima Jamali (Sunnis). Hariri, sister of the late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, has been a member of parliament since 1992. Jaroudi, a business and trade lawyer, had previously worked with several parliamentary committees and helped draft numerous laws. Jamali, a professor at the American University in Beirut School of Business, is also an expert on social policy.
Sethrida Geagea (Maronite), with the Lebanese Forces Party (LF), has been a member of parliament since 2005. She holds a degree in political science and is married to LF leader Samir Geagea, who served an 11-year prison sentence (until his release in 2005) for crimes committed during the civil war. Sethrida oversaw LF affairs while the party was temporarily inactive during her husband's incarceration.
Inaya Ezzeddine, from the Amal movement, is a member of her party's political bureau and the first (and for now the only) Shiite woman in parliament. She is minister of state for administrative reform in the current government and the owner and manager of Medical Analysis and Pathology, a laboratory in Beirut.
Paulette Yaacoubian (Armenian Orthodox), a former journalist at Future TV, won a seat running on the Kollouna Watani (All for the Nation) coalition's list. She belongs to Sabaa, a political party founded in October 2016 that casts itself as an alternative to the traditional parties.
It has become commonplace to see a small number of women in Lebanon's parliament, but since the civil war ended (in 1992), they have been under-represented in the chamber. In elections in 2009, four out of the 12 female candidates took seats, suggesting that Lebanese women are not yet perceived as intrinsic party members. Although the number of female candidates running this year overshadowed those of previous years, women continue to have little legislative access.
Interestingly, the majority of female candidates in May were not affiliated with or endorsed by a party. They included journalists and human rights and civil society activists running for the first time. Some parties, including Hezbollah, did not even nominate female candidates. Rima Fakhri, a member of Hezbollah's political bureau, said in January, "We have reservations about [women's] participation in parliamentary elections as it would be at the expense of their families."
In the past, the majority of women in parliament inherited their access, replacing their fathers, brothers and husbands. It has almost become the norm for women. In 1963, Mirna al-Boustani was elected by acclamation to succeed her father, Emil al-Boustani, and served into the following year. In the 2009 elections, the women taking seats were Bahiya Hariri, Sethrida Geagea, Nayla Tueni, daughter of the late parliamentarian Gebran Tueni, and Gilberte Zuein, daughter of the late member of parliament Maurice Zuein.
The women victorious in May who spoke to Al-Monitor agreed that the absence of a gender-based quota system is a primary reason for women's under-representation. Yaacoubian told Al-Monitor, "A quota for women could be adopted temporarily, for once or twice, so that the voters get used to electing women and men grow accustomed to seeing women as part of the decision-making picture."
She further stated, "The political class' broken promises are another factor obstructing women's access to parliament. This is not only limited to [the political class] not keeping its promises, but also due to the lack of accountability by the people. If enlightened men and women had boycotted electoral lists that do not include women, achieving full and proper participation and representation for both men and women would have been forced. Moreover, the majority of parties that nominated female candidates to present a civilized image recommended that their voters cast their ballots for the male candidate, making the women's loss inevitable. Kollouna Watani has indeed given women a role and weight, with women making up more than 30% of the total number of candidates."
Jamali told Al-Monitor, "Women in Lebanon continue to face the difficulty of being accepted as members of parliament, in raising funds for their campaigns and winning the nomination of a particular established movement. All of these factors have a role in making women's access to parliament an uneasy task." This implies that the society's prevailing preference is for male, rather than female, politicians.
Ezzeddine remarked, "Identifying the reasons requires a rigorous and precise study on this particular issue. In the meantime, the discussion would be based on impressions and conclusions. My impression is that a positive score was recorded in the latest elections, with an increased number of female candidates. It is a positive because it is required that the culture of having female candidates be spread broadly. Unfortunately, only a few women won in the election, and the reasons are numerous, such as culture. The culture of voting for women is still not well established in Lebanon. Based on that, we demand that a quota for women be introduced, and I'm certain that the law largely alters people's behavior. Another reason is that [a lot of] the female candidates were not on the parties' lists. Women have better chances of winning when they are on the parties' lists."
These women agree that to promote the presence of women in parliament, what is needed first and foremost is the introduction of a quota for women in the electoral law. Izzeddine asserted, "I will seek to have a quota introduced and will work on legislation that would stop all forms of discrimination against women in Lebanon at the multiple levels." Yacoubian stated, "I will propose to set a mandatory, temporary gender-based quota of at least 30% in any electoral law."
Jamali would like to see a sufficient number of women in parliament to form a bloc to work on bills on women's affairs. "The Future Movement's bloc includes three women in parliament, and for us the priority will be given to women's affairs," she said. "Based on that, we will be working on many draft laws, including a women's quota in all public and private institutions, government and the public domain. We will seek the [right of] Lebanese women to pass their nationality on to their children and to reduce violence against women. This is in addition to other bills that would change gender stereotyping toward women."


text:
Star Wars: Character Encyclopedia Updated Edition
By DK
Art, Music & Photography / Education & Reference
Updated and expanded with amazing new material.
Star Wars: Character Encyclopedia is the definitive guide to the people, aliens and droids of the Star Wars galaxy and is now bigger and better than ever before, packed with new characters from Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens.
Want to know how tall Darth Vader is? Or where the ferocious Nexu comes from? Look no further than the Star Wars: Character Encyclopedia. This handy guide is full of fun facts and intriguing information, including never-before-seen information revealing characters' back stories and personalities.
With over 200 heroes, villains, monsters and more, Star Wars: Character Encyclopedia is guaranteed to enthral for hours on end.
Also by DK
Love Star Wars: Character Encyclopedia Updated Edition? Subscribe to Read More to find out about similar books.


text:
Gospel-Hip Hop
Praise-Worship
Upcoming CD NEWS!
Innovative Videos
Who R WE?
Get Me Featured!
Promo eFLYERS
Interview Us
You are here: Home › Gospel Music › Dawkins & Dawkins – I'm Just Sayin
Dawkins & Dawkins – I'm Just Sayin
From their new CD "From Now On" Dawkins & Dawkins RETURN!!!! Take a listen to "I'm Just Sayin"!! This CD is FULL of really good music, along with the classic Dawkins & Dawkins vocals and style!!
Visit them on Light Records website:
Follow them on Twitter:
View Them on Facebook:
Purchase this song on iTunes:
Dawkins & Dawkins "From Now On" CD:
Brothers Eric & Anson Dawkins, better known to Gospel Music enthusiasts as Dawkins & Dawkins, are poised to reclaim their position as trail blazers of Contemporary Gospel Music, with the release of their highly anticipated CD, FROM NOW ON. After a self-imposed hiatus that unexpectedly spanned over a decade, this dynamic production, songwriting, and singing duo has answered the prayers of fans and colleagues alike to join forces once again.
FROM NOW ON is no departure from the signature Rhythm & Praise (R & P) sound that they coined and created on their previous releases, including their self-titled debut recording; DAWKINS & DAWKINS, their sophomore effort; NECESSARY MEASURES, and most notably, their last release; FOCUS. However, FROM NOW ON continues in their tradition of combining compelling Christ-centered lyrics with cutting edge and progressive production and presentation.
During their break from recording as Dawkins & Dawkins, both Eric and Anson were busy honing their talents in other areas. Eric became one of the most sought after song-writers and producers in mainstream music, due to his work with his production team, The Underdogs, with whom he worked on music with a veritable who's who in contemporary R & B and pop music which includes, but is not limited to; Ruben Studdard, Tyrese, Tank, Chris Brown and Christina Aguilera. Anson focused on beginning a family and, answering the call to traditional ministry, by serving as College & Career Pastor at his church, Life Center, in Tacoma, WA.
FROM NOW ON is rife with both contemporary themes and spiritual principles, and is palatable for even the most discriminating musical ear. Songs like "Get Down" and "From Now On" urge listeners to seek God, for guidance and direction no matter the circumstance, while "Best Man" and "Ordinary" both serve as reminders that as followers of Christ, we are a chosen generation, set apart from the rest of the world. Whether over a thumping bass-driven up-tempo track, or an impassioned ballad, Dawkins & Dawkins have the unique ability to encapsulate the problems, privileges, and pressures of our lives within the constraints of beautiful music.
Dawkins & Dawkins:
Eric and Anson Dawkins were born in Davenport, Iowa. As young children they moved to Tennessee when their father, a Pentecostal minister who started his first church. In the mid-1980s when they were teenagers, the family moved to Ohio, where their musical careers took off.
With such strong connections to the church, praising the Lord through music came naturally. Eric played piano while Anson played drums.
"We have been singing all of our lives," Eric said. "Back then we never expected to do it professionally. Eventually we developed a desire to do this globally, rather than just locally."
They were influenced by Commissioned, a major gospel group in the 1980s. A friend of theirs knew Fred Hammond, a founding member of Commissioned, and delivered a demo they had recorded on equipment at the radio station at their father's church.
They became a duo, Dawkins and Dawkins, and released their self-titled debut album in 1993. Hammond was impressed and brought them on tour with Commissioned.
Their fusion of contemporary gospel with elements of rap and R&B, which was tagged "rhythm and praize," struck a chord with audiences. Their second album, "Necessary Measures," was released in 1994. "Focus" came out in 1998. They did numerous national tours.
Special Thanks to our friends at Light Records!
Translate Into Your Language:
William McDowell – Send the Rain
MQV – Next in Line & Created 2 Worship
He Turned It – Expressions of Praise Mime
Gospel Innovation ® - All Rights Reserved 2014
—–Site Design: Giant Killer Media Design—


text:
Home / Hollywood / Review / Priyanka Chopra's Hollywood debut 'Baywatch' is the least rated movie in the USA right now
Priyanka Chopra's Hollywood debut 'Baywatch' is the least rated movie in the USA right now
May 24, 2017 Hollywood, Review
Priyanka Chopra may have won hearts abroad with her part in the prominent TV arrangement 'Quantico', yet things appear somewhat troublesome for her extra large screen make a big appearance "Baywatch" there. The motion picture which discharged in the USA as of now, has been appraised only 14% by Rotten Tomatoes, the audit aggregator. This makes it the minimum appraised film in the USA. Unmistakably, Hollywood press is unmoved with the motion picture and has bashed it cleared out right-and-focus. It's a significant astonishment considering the way that Dwayne Johnson is at the highest point of his amusement, yet his nearness also couldn't spare the day. Nonetheless, Priyanka Chopra has been accepting some gratefulness for her little part, yet she is by all accounts squandered in this plot which depends on childish amusingness. (Likewise Read: She's relentless! Priyanka Chopra is defining new style objectives with "Baywatch" advancements)
So discussing the motion picture, Rotten Tomatoes has expressed, "Baywatch takes its source material's shake element to R-appraised levels, yet does not have the first's awkward appeal — and leaves its enchanting stars thrashing in the shallows." Entertainment Weekly stated, "Women and refined men, I give you "Baywatch" — the uncommon motion picture that even the Teflon-covered, thousand-watt charm of Dwayne Johnson can't spare. It's conceivable that this messy, scattershot gesture to '90s wiggle TV was unavoidable."
New York Post kept in touch with, "It appears on the shoreline like a dead whale… Even the activity scenes require CPR, frequently undermined by impacts so chintzy, you think about whether the cash planned for them was rather eaten up by the creation's seven-figure waxing spending plan. It's a disgrace. The cast is able, and a meta-examination of "Baywatch" ought to have created something more keen."
To the extent Priyanka is concerned, Steve Rose from 'The Guardian' expressed, "Even Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra, the underused antagonist of the piece, seems as though she was legally obliged to appear as much tissue as allowable."
In this way, completely, the film has been hammered extremely by the faultfinders and passing by the surveys, it doesn't appear to get great audits in India also, when it discharges on June 2. Be that as it may, PeeCee still has a few expectations as her minor part has without a doubt not gone unnoticed.


text:
A Victory for Law in Israel
by Max Boot
The Palestinian Authority, the "moderate" alternative to Hamas, has become notorious for celebrating terrorism against Israel.
A recent example occurred on October 9, when, as CAMERA reports, a "Palestinian terrorist named Musabh Abu Sbeih murdered two Israelis, a 60-year-old grandmother, Levana Malihi and a 30-year-old police officer, Yosef Kirma, in a shooting rampage in Jerusalem." Sbeih, who wounded five others before he was killed by police, was hailed by Fatah, the dominant political party in the Palestinian Authority, as a "shahid," or martyr. It was not long before Fatah published a celebratory cartoon "depicting a hand waving a machine gun from the top of the Dome of the Rock." In the cartoon's corner was "a pool of blood and two helmets with Stars of David, symbolizing two murdered Israelis."
It is this mindset, rather than, as Secretary of State John Kerry and the United Nations seem to imagine, Israeli settlements in the West Bank that prevent the conclusion of peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Granted, Israelis are sometimes guilty of brutality against Palestinians as well. The difference is that Israel is a rule-of-law country where those who commit human-rights violations against Palestinians, of the kind that are inevitable in all struggles against terrorism, have a good chance of being tried and convicted.
The latest case in point is Sergeant Elor Azaria, an Israeli army medic who was videotaped shooting in the head a wounded Palestinian assailant who was lying on the ground motionless in the West Bank city of Hebron after having stabbed and wounded an Israeli soldier. Some Israelis on the far-right —including the current defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman–celebrated Azaria as a victim whose actions were excusable in the war on terrorism. The Israeli Defense Forces high command took a very different view of this shocking breach of the laws of war. Azaria was court-martialed, and now he has been convicted of manslaughter by a military court.
The court proceedings shredded Azaria's contradictory defense, with the sergeant's lawyers telling the court that the man he shot, Abed al-Fatah al-Sharif, "appeared to pose a danger because he was still moving" while also "bringing medical witnesses who asserted that he was already dead by the time Sergeant Azaria shot him in the head."
Americans know from own experience how difficult it is to hold errant soldiers to account for crimes committed during the course of a conflict. Witness the My Lai Massacre in 1968, when soldiers from the Americal Division murdered hundreds of Vietnamese civilians. The only soldier convicted of this terrible crime was Lieutenant William Calley, a platoon leader. Though he was found guilty of 22 counts of murder, he would serve only three and a half years under house arrest, thanks to the misguided leniency extended by President Nixon.
It is never easy and seldom popular to hold soldiers to account. The IDF understands that such discipline is essential in order to keep the military's honor clean and to maintain the moral high ground over adversaries who violate the most basic laws of war, to say nothing of the tenets of humanity. Israel can hold its head high for holding Sergeant Azaria to account even if it will get no credit from the rest of the world.
UPDATE: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is doing himself no credit by issuing a call for President Reuven Rivlin to pardon Azaria. Such an act would not only deal an unwarranted blow to Israel's public image; more importantly, it would be an insult to all IDF soldiers who conduct themselves according to the highest standards of ethics and professionalism even in the face of grievous provocations.
Max Boot
Max Boot, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, is the author of the forthcoming book The Road Not Taken: Edward Lansdale and the American Tragedy in Vietnam (Liveright, 2018).


text:
E-MAIL NOW (407) 801-4242
Commercial Solar + Storage
Architecture, Large Commercial & Microgrids
Government & 501(c)(3)
Shop Solar Online
SMA PV Solar Inverters
http://www.sma-america.com/
SMA Solar Technology AG is a PV solar inverter manufacturer headquartered in Niestetal, Germany. As a leading global specialist for photovoltaic system technology, SMA is devoted to "setting the standards today for the decentralized and renewable energy supply of tomorrow."
SMA was founded in 1981 and currently employs over 3,000 people across 20 countries. SMA's sales in 2016 totaled to about 1 billion euros.
SMA has a variety of commitments when it comes to culture, community, education and the environment. As part of this work, they actively contribute to building a sustainable power supply using renewable energies in third world countries.
SMA offers string inverters for both residential and commercial sized projects, as well as central inverters and battery inverters. SMA also offers optional module-level DC optimizers. They are the only company that has been in existence for a longer period of time than their current warranties last.
In a PV solar system that uses string inverters, multiple PV solar modules are connected in series, and then this "string" of modules is connected into the string inverter. String inverters, which are larger and are not usually installed on rooftops or underneath modules (which generate a small amount of heat while producing electricity), can typically operate more efficiently than microinverters since they will often be operating at lower temperatures. Also, since there are fewer components required, a string inverter system may be less costly to the customer, but this ultimately depends on the price the installing or sourcing company will charge and is not guaranteed.
DC optimizers are small components that are attached directly to each individual PV solar module, and can help increase the performance of a PV solar system compared to a system that utilizes a string inverter without these optimizers. They do this by regulating the DC power that the individual modules produce in order to mitigate the effects of shaded conditions and module mismatch, while keeping the inverter in a more protected environment than under the modules.
SMA offers string and central inverters of all sizes, both for single-phase and three-phase applications through their Sunny Boy, Sunny TriPower, and Sunny Central model families. They also produce a line of battery inverters, named Sunny Island. SMA's inverter products are able to acheive a CEC weighted efficiency of 98%, and their Sunny Island product can reach a 94.5% CEC weighted efficiency.
SMA's DC optimizer technology also provide built-in functionality that inherently allows any system they are installed on to be compliant with the rapid shutdown requirements in the 2017 NEC. Some of SMA's optimizers are also able to meet the new UL1741 SA standard which relates to a distributed system's compatibility with the grid.
SMA has more than 20 years of experience in designing storage-based systems, and has partnerships with leading home energy management and battery providers including Mercedes Benz, Tesla Energy, and LG Chem. As budget allows and more solutions become available, a homeowner can leverage SMA technology for a truly integrated smart home of the future.
Homeowners can enjoy total security with free, module-level monitoring via Sunny Portal – the world's largest PV monitoring platform, which is easy to use and mobile-friendly. Even small discrepancies in power production can be seen and quickly rectified.
Is SMA Right for You
SMA is a global leader in PV solar inverter technology, but is a SMA branded product right for you?
Contact your local Uptown Energy Solutions consultant and they'll help you identify what solar modules your local installers are offering, what inverter each recommends your modules be paired with, and what they would charge to have the whole system installed now.
On top of that, your UES Solar Energy Savings expert will do a full design analysis of each installer's proposed system, compare its expected production with it's quoted costs, and determine which will give you the most "bang for your buck", all as part of your Gold Standard Solar Investment Strategy.
Contact us today for a no nonsense approach to your solar investment, and let us help you Maximize your Solar ROI.
Questions, comments, or corrections? Feel free to contact us.
SOLAR DOWNLOADS FOR FL BUSINESSES
424 East Central Blvd, Orlando, Florida, United States. 32801
Copyright © 2022 - Uptown Energy Solutions
Uptown Energy Solutions


Nowhere else is the old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure more apt than in the field of sports medicine. And in the areas of sports injury treatment, sports injury rehabilitation, and sports injury prevention, no profession is better equipped to meet the rigors of sports therapy than physiotherapy.
Physiotherapists don't just treat an injury, they treat the underlying causes to reduce the risk of re-injury and improve performance. The therapists at Pickering Physiotherapy Institute have the knowhow, and are ready to put it to work for you.
Anyone, from the weekend warrior to the professional athlete, who uses their muscles, knows that injuries occur. And pushing yourself to the max whether accidentally or on purpose will cause your muscles to seize and freeze. And when you've overdone it, you know it.
The issue is how will you recover? Recovery is the key to success in any workout.
Any cross trainer will tell you that increasing the workout will increase fitness. That's a simple fact of the matter. But what is neglected is the recovery. The body needs time to recover from intensive workouts, and that recovery is what will let you push past previous boundaries and adapt to a new level of stress.
That's where a good sports physiotherapy clinic comes into play. You need to have a full complement of sports medicine that will aid you in recovery when you've over done it, and help you with normal recovery when you are working to push it to the next level. And that's our business.
When you've overdone it, we can help. We can give you immediate relief with deep tissue massage that will sooth and help your muscle fibers realign and assist the healing process. And we can help you with stretching exercises and routines that will manipulate your tissues back to their optimum levels.
The key to prevention is to keep the muscles and soft tissues supple. This is best accomplished by a good routine of stretching, warm up exercises, and good recovery periods between work outs. What we will do to help you with preventing a sports injury, is provide massage and therapy between workouts as well as working with you to develop your own pre and post workout warm up and cool down routines.
The key to sports injury prevention is to understand how your body mechanics work when you stress during a workout. You need to know how your musculoskeletal systems work and react to physical inputs, and you need to know how to keep that system in balance and functioning at its peak. That's where the team at Pickering Physiotherapy Institute can help. We know sports medicine, and we know body mechanics. And we can help you optimize your workouts for the best success possible.
Start slowly: Begin easy and work into the full level of the routine. In general, until you are in your peak physical shape, you should plan to extend your workout no more than 5% per session. And if you are in your peak shape, don't rush into it. Stretch and build your tolerance in each session.
Pay attention to twinges: Overuse injuries often send signals before they are serious. Listen for these signals from your body and take action beforehand. Your body is a feedback mechanism and measures your level of stress, effort and response. Pay attention.
Know when to back off: The real secret to prevention is knowing when to back off and when to endure. Your body will warn you before you overuse. Just listen.
Recover: Make sure you give your body quality recovery time. Get a massage, take a rest, and cool down between sessions. If you have been injured, give the injury time to heal. Your body will know when it's ready for more.


Tourtoulon, P. de (1908). Les principes philosophiques de l'histoire du droit: 82.
Rohrer, C.W.G. (1909). A Contribution to the Comparative Anatomy of the Prostate Gland: 5 (refers to Carrol D. Wright as originator of this exclamation).
Pound, R. (1912). The scope and purpose of sociological jurisprudence. Harvard Law Review 25, 489-514: 503 (refering to Tourtoulon).
Ashley-Montagu, M.F. (1940). The socio-biology of man. Sci. Month. 50, 483-490.
Scott, J.P. (1946). Minutes Conf. Genetics & Social Behaviour: 5 (acc. to OED 2011).
Hockett, C.F. (1948). Biophysics, linguistics, and the unity of science. Amer. Sci. 36, 558-572: 564.
Scott, J.P. (1950). Foreword. Methodology and techniques for the study of animal societies. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 51, 1003-1005: 1004.
Sociobiology is defined as the systematic study of the biological basis of all social behavior.
Wilson, E.O. (1975). Sociobiology: 4.
Galvin, R. & Leo, J. (1977). Why you do what you do. Time 110 (August 1), 54-63: 54.
sociobiology Study of the biological basis of social behaviour.
Lincoln, R.J., Boxshall, G.A. & Clark, P.F. (1982). A Dictionary of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics: 229.


2016 high school seniors (and their parents) are welcomed to their final year of high school by a list of deadlines. The first one being the fast approaching deadline for their yearbook pictures. Although today's senior pictures are not just for the yearbook, you should know when your yearbook pics are due at your school.
Most yearbooks for San Luis Obispo County schools have senior portrait deadlines the first month or two of school. Why? Because the seniors are featured in the first part of the yearbook that gets turned in to the publishers. Some schools even get discounts for turning their pages in early. Also, it's one of the few parts of the yearbook that does not feature events or candid photos that are taken throughout the year.
So now that you know why, the big question is; When is your school's senior portrait deadline? At Studio 101 West Photography we shoot mostly northern San Luis Obispo County seniors, although we also shoot seniors from San Luis Obispo and Arroyo Grande. Here are some due dates for the north county public schools.
Templeton High School: September 18th — they will usually extend that if they know you have a session already booked with us.
Atascadero High School: October 2nd — still plenty of time to get senior portraits you'll be proud of.


fantasma magic kit magic top hat show.
fantasma magic kit ultimate legends of magic set a quick view.
fantasma magic kit magic kit.
fantasma magic kit kids deluxe magic show magic tricks set.
fantasma magic kit puzzling magic set.
fantasma magic kit toys wooden table magic set by magic.
fantasma magic kit the beyond reality magic set.
fantasma magic kit mind twisting magic set.
fantasma magic kit magic magic set over professional magic tricks with.
fantasma magic kit magic astounding magic set children toy magic kit tricks with.
fantasma magic kit magic table set.
fantasma magic kit magic kit plus tricks instructional easy for kids toy toys light up fingers cards money etc games toys in fl.
fantasma magic kit toys super deluxe legends of magic set this award winning magic kit has over.
fantasma magic kit ring escape magic.
fantasma magic kit for a magic set with more than tricks.
fantasma magic kit magic vortex magic set.
fantasma magic kit grand french front.
fantasma magic kit ultimate magic legends gift set with magic tricks 7 years.