text:
All notable changes to this project from 3.x.x onward will be documented in this file.

The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).

# Changelog

## [3.4.0][] - 2022-07-29

- npm package updates including @google-cloud/dlp

## [3.3.0][] - 2022-06-27

- Updating dependent libraries to latest

## [3.2.3][] - 2019-09-12

- Downgrade @google-cloud/dlp to avoid memory leak in recent versions

## [3.2.2][] - 2019-08-12

- Fix bug in Google DLP Redactor with tokens overlapping and repeating
- Update dependencies to get security fixes

## [3.2.1][] - 2019-06-20

- Tweak the built-in US SSN regex to work better on large input by removing the optional delimters (the digits regex will already cover this situation)

## [3.2.0][] - 2019-05-21

- Add enhancement to automatically split Google DLP input that is too large into smaller batches. This can be disabled with the `disableAutoBatchWhenContentSizeExceedsLimit` option.

## [3.1.0][] - 2019-05-04

- BREAKING: rename `replacementValue` param of built-in redaction config to `replaceWith` for consistency

## [3.0.2][] - 2019-05-04

- fix parameter typo in docs (`enable` -> `enabled`)
- fix `TypeError` when attempting to disable built-in redactors

## [3.0.1][] - 2019-04-29

- Fix `Cannot find module './well-known-names.json'` error by making sure the file gets properly packaged

## [3.0.0][] - 2019-04-21

- This version is an almost complete rewrite from prior versions and **breaks** the prior API contract. In summary the changes are:
- Library is now written in TypeScript
- Introduces seperate API for sync and async redaction via seperate `SyncRedactor` and `AsyncRedactor` classes and seperate `.redact` and `.redactAsync` methods.
- **Important Breaking Change:** The `redact` and `redactSync` methods now always expect a `string`. Passing anything else causes undefined behaviour and _may_ cause an exception. Prior versions of the library used to simply return the original value "untouched" if it wasn't a `string`.
- Google Cloud DLP redaction is now a seperate redaction class that has to be explicitly imported and instantiated (`new GoogleDLPRedactor()`)
  in order to use it.
- Google Cloud DLP redaction does not have an implicit, hard-coded 5000ms timeout anymore. If you want to set a timeout for DLP calls you have to implement it yourself. In case you're using `bluebird` as promise library consider using `.timeout`.

[unreleased]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.2.3...HEAD
[3.2.3]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.2.2...v3.2.3
[3.2.2]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.2.1...v3.2.2
[3.2.1]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.2.0...v3.2.1
[3.2.0]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.1.0...v3.2.0
[3.1.0]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.0.1...v3.1.0
[3.0.1]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.0.0...v3.0.1
[3.0.0]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/tree/v3.0.0
[unreleased]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/compare/v3.3.0-beta.1...HEAD
[3.3.0-beta.1]: https://github.com/solvvy/redact-pii/tree/v3.3.0-beta.1

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Az 1563. év az irodalomban.

Új művek

 Károli Gáspár: Két könyv minden országoknak és királyoknak jó és gonosz szerencséjöknek okairól (Debrecen); a Vizsolyi Biblia mellett másik ismert munkája.
Pierre de Ronsard francia költőnek az őt támadó hugenottáknak címzett műve: Réponse aux injures et calomnies (Válasz a szidalmakra és rágalmazásokra).

Születések

Halálozások
 május 21. – Martynas Mažvydas, az első litván nyelvű nyomtatott könyv szerzője és kiadója (* 1510)
 augusztus 18. – Étienne de La Boétie francia reneszánsz író, műfordító, politikus, filozófus (* 1530)
 1563. körül – Arthur Brooke angol költő (születésének éve nem ismert).

Jegyzetek

irodalom
Évek az irodalomban (16. század)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Morris és una població dels Estats Units a l'estat de Nova York. Segons el cens del 2000 tenia una població de 591 habitants.

Demografia
Segons el cens del 2000, Morris tenia 591 habitants, 261 habitatges, i 174 famílies. La densitat de població era de 312,6 habitants/km².

Dels 261 habitatges en un 27,6% hi vivien nens de menys de 18 anys, en un 49% hi vivien parelles casades, en un 13,4% dones solteres, i en un 33,3% no eren unitats familiars. En el 29,1% dels habitatges hi vivien persones soles el 12,6% de les quals corresponia a persones de 65 anys o més que vivien soles. El nombre mitjà de persones vivint en cada habitatge era de 2,26 i el nombre mitjà de persones que vivien en cada família era de 2,71.

Per edats la població es repartia de la següent manera: un 23,2% tenia menys de 18 anys, un 5,9% entre 18 i 24, un 25,9% entre 25 i 44, un 27,4% de 45 a 60 i un 17,6% 65 anys o més.

L'edat mediana era de 40 anys. Per cada 100 dones de 18 o més anys hi havia 83,1 homes.

La renda mediana per habitatge era de 32.417 $ i la renda mediana per família de 36.875 $. Els homes tenien una renda mediana de 30.804 $ mentre que les dones 25.750 $. La renda per capita de la població era de 17.388 $. Entorn de l'11,1% de les famílies i el 15,3% de la població estaven per davall del llindar de pobresa.

Referències

Entitats de població de Nova York


text:
<!DOCTYPE html>

    <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" />
    <meta http-equiv="refresh" content="5;url=/functions" />

Not found

      There's a good chance you can still find what you are looking for in
      the archives. Redirecting you in 5s...


Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Recordings made on Wednesday, November 8, 1916," accessed April 26, 2019, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/date/browse?date=1916-11-08.
Recordings made on Wednesday, November 8, 1916. (2019). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 26, 2019, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/date/browse?date=1916-11-08.
Recordings made on Wednesday, November 8, 1916." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2019. Web. 26 April 2019.


text:
Russia hits area near town with 120 rockets, says Ukraine
Ukrainian officials says Russia launched 120 'Grad' rockets at an area around the town of Nikopol overnight killing three people and wounding seven, reports Reuters. "The enemy is concentrating its efforts on establishing full control over the territories of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions," said Ukraine's General Staff, in a report issued on Thursday. It noted more 60 settlements and military targets had been targeted by the Russians.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Diana The Musical (Broadway edition)
Sometimes--maybe especially when the whole world is screaming and sad and broken--a not-very-good musical can be the perfect balm. On Broadway at the Longacre for a few more days before it shutters, Diana The Musical remains the not-very-good production it was on film, though I'd argue that the stage version is vastly superior to the Netflix debacle that dropped this fall. I've been pretty jokey about the show, but I've also grown weirdly attached to it. I've long harbored a large place in my heart for stage musicals that don't quite work despite the time, energy, hope, labor and money that get poured into them. I think I've connected with Diana as well because of all the things it tries and does not manage to be in this exceedingly weird time and this thoroughly damaged place. Yes, sure, Diana is culturally irrelevant, dramaturgically sloppy, unsure of what tone it is supposed to take, and saddled with ridiculous lyrics. It doesn't ever do much more than shine, glimmer, pop, and blare at top volume. Is it a little backward, a little sexist, a little heavy on the visuals, and a lot short on any perceptible message? Oh, you bet your ass. Then again, I'm sad and anxious and frustrated and exhausted and enraged all the damn time lately, so I just don't have the time or energy it takes to get even the teeniest bit riled up about....Diana The Musical. The show has become, at least for me, a delightfully, garishly wonderful distraction from right now, and I find I am deeply grateful for it--jewel-encrusted warts and all.
Unlike like the Netflix version, which was comparatively ponderous (and which I thus consumed in multiple minutes-long excerpts over a few weeks), the stage production swirls, gyrates, rotates and swings in and back out again at a remarkable clip. The show still doesn't make much sense, even with a few improvements in the form of some new exposition about the existence in the show (and in general) of Barbara Cartland, a bit more attention to Diana's struggles with postpartum depression and self-harm, and even more scenery, set-pieces, and shiny stuff to look at. The people of Wales are no longer dressed like chimney sweeps--they instead wear an enormous amount of tweed; lest they get confused with other tweed-wearing populations, there's now a huge new sign dangling above them that spells WALES in huge wrought-iron letters. The AIDS scene remains genuinely touching, even if the ward it takes place in still makes its patients sit around in a large circle on folding chairs. Judy Kaye as Queen Elizabeth is still in an entirely different show, though her Barbara Cartland is slightly campier now, as is Diana's butler. Try as I might, I cannot and likely never will figure out what "a lonely girl aswirl" means. And Diana's death scene at the end of the production remains utterly pointless and tacked-on. But then, that's cool with me given all the actually traumatizing, genuinely sad, enormously relevant death happening right outside the doors of the Longacre.
A live audience makes a world of difference, especially compared with the cavernously weird film that was shot without one. At the performance I attended, the spectators were kind, supportive and clearly eager to be entertained, even as they frequently erupted in hoots, hollers and applause at some of its clunkier moments, and the occasional jeer (I assume Roe Hartrampf, as Prince Charles, expects to be called an asshole at least once a performance at this point). Even as the James Hewitt scene fell flatter onstage than it did on film (dammit!), the number about the fuckety dress so delighted the crowd that its--um--lyrics were hard to hear at points. Diana may still be made up of about 50 different puzzles, some of which are missing half their pieces because the dog ate them. But the pieces that have made it into the mix sure are pretty. And as an added bonus, none of them will end up killing you.
I've said it before, but it needs to be said again: absolutely enormous kudos to the company. To a one, the cast is professional and hard-working, but not so much that they can't be in on the joke. Not a one broke character or came off as if they were phoning it in, and a significant number seemed to be having as good a time as the audience was. I hope very much that they were. I also hope that every single one of them moves on to other, better projects--and that, in the meantime, they have all become dear friends who go out together and drink and laugh and bond over their strange situation, performing mid-pandemic in a show that dips and soars into mawkish melodrama, keeps its distance from the current moment, and functions as a true distraction in a historic stretch where precious little diverts.
Posted by Liz Wollman at 11:08 AM No comments:
The Alchemist
Robert Frost once said, "Poetry is what gets lost in translation." To this I add, theatre is what gets lost in streaming. Please don't misunderstand: I am totally grateful for all the theatre-related material available during the covid-induced shutdown. I loved, eg, the Sondheim 90th birthday celebration, the plays that The Mint shared, and new work such as PCP/NYC's Standing on the Edge of Time and MasterVoices Myths and Hymns. And I don't know what the ticket price would have been if Meryl Streep, Audra McDonald, and Christine Baranski sang "Ladies in Lunch" in person, though I do know I couldn't afford it.
Manoel Felciano, Reg Rogers
Photo: Carol Rosegg
But: theatre is about being there, in the moment, with those wonderful living people on stage in front of you, sharing their talents and working their butts off. Eight performances a week they are shot out of a cannon and expected to be perfect--every time, with no pauses, pratfalls, or do-overs. Live performance is in many ways the bravest of arts, and perhaps the most human. It's all of us, in a room, interacting in real time, having an experience that will never be--can never be--repeated.
All this leads me to the rollicking Red Bull Production of Ben Jonson's The Alchemist, as adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher and directed by Jesse Berger. It is that most theatrical form of theatre, the farce, full of schemes and changing identities and bawdy humor and pointed satire and greed and hypocrisy and, yes, doors swinging open and closed as near-miss follows near-miss.
Hatcher's adaptation is first-rate--clear, funny, and witty. In one aspect I think he actually improves on the original (it would be a spoiler to say anything more). There are some disappointing facets to his work. For example, there is no good reason why one female character spends much of the first scene wearing so little clothing that she is in danger of flashing the audience. For another example, having the one Black character, a full-out fop, suddenly spew a "Goddamn motherfuckers!" is, if not racist, at least racially uncomfortable and cheap. But the play's strengths far outweigh its weaknesses (which actually makes the disappointments that much more disappointing).
Berger's direction is as madcap, quick, and fluid as one could wish. And, oh, that cast. Reg Rogers as the alchemist delights with a performance that boasts the stamina, speed, and reflexes of an Olympian. Also delightful are, well, everyone else: Nathan Christopher, Stephen DeRosa, Carson Elrod, Manoel Felciano, Teresa Avia Lim, Jacob Ming-Trent, Louis Mustillo, Jennifer Sánchez, and Allen Tedder.
The design elements are attractive, appropriate, and hard-working. Alexis Distler provided the handsome, clever set, Tilly Grimes the splendid costumes. Cha See and Greg Pliska (lighting and sound design, respectively) also contributed richly.
The Alchemist was the second show I saw after that long, painful covid entertainment desert, but the first one was mediocre, and this one was so much fun, and so thoroughly theatrical, that I consider it my real first time back. Thank you, Red Bull. Missed you a lot.
Posted by Wendy Caster at 7:30 PM No comments:
Labels: Jeffrey Hatcher, Jesse Berger, Red Bull Theater, Reg Rogers, Wendy Caster
Diana: The Musical (Netflix version)
Hi, it's been a while because--well, you know. But I'm back with news of Diana: The Musical, which received mixed to positive reviews during its 2019 La Jolla run, despite what were cited (politely and with weary resignation) as minor problems (among them: character development, lyrics, scene-work, plot trajectory, length, tone, depth, pacing, set design, and an unsettling distance from anything remotely British). Clearly encouraged though they probably should not have been, the producers transferred the show to Broadway, where it ran for nine previews before the shut-down of March 2020. At some point thereafter, the producers made the innovative if fateful decision to film a performance of Diana before an empty house for an October 2021 release on Netflix in hopes of stimulating the box office in time for the production to resume at the Longacre (it finally opens on November 17).
This is one jolly well-done son, Diana!
The decision to prerelease Diana is easily the most interesting thing about the show. In the Before Times, it was typically argued that audiences wouldn't pay to see something live if they could stream it at home. But the industry has an enormous amount of restructuring and rethinking to do as it drags itself out of the pandemic. At the moment, attempting to lure audiences to live versions of productions they've fallen in love with from home no longer seems like such a ridiculous idea. So while Diana gets props for introducing a new approach that can truly only be improved upon, I have less faith in the musical itself.
That's a shame, because a show about how Diana challenged and modernized the royal family would seem musical theater-ready in lots of ways: it's a melodramatic story that justifies some serious pomp and circumstance, it has hugely famous characters that people nevertheless want to know more about, and it ends in Great Tragedy but also offers Much Hope and Enormous Promise. Alas, Diana is a huge fail in that it never digs into the characters or their motivations, so none seem to have even a hint of an inner life. The result is two hours with a bunch of stick figures who change costumes many, many times, between performing frantic dance numbers and singing a sequence of late-80s-power-pop songs set with thuddingly unimaginative lyrics (composer-lyricist David Bryan played keyboards and wrote songs for Bon Jovi).
Some of the weirdness of the filmed version is that it was taped before an empty house, which surely helped the production avoid health risks but did nothing to boost it artistically. Live theatre, after all, depends on an audience--especially when your show is wildly inconsistent in tone and mood, and features characters with the collective depth of water in a toilet bowl. Is Diana a straightforward biography? A campy romp that winkingly shows us a royal marriage we all know is doomed? A flight of fancy that takes wild, fantastically liberties for the sake of entertainment? Are Charles and Camilla evil manipulators or just two innocent kids in love? Is Diana a scheming, monarch-challenging mastermind, or just relatively down to earth, lonely and bored? Why does the Queen double as Barbara Cartland, and who slept with whom to get Judy Kaye to be part of this exercise? Absent an audience whose reactions might have provided valuable clues for schmucks like me viewing from home, it's difficult to figure out what parts of the show were meant to be funny, moving or serious. I ended up settling on "inadvertently hilarious" as my go-to interpretation, which was fun for me but not a good sign for Diana.
Anyway, here's what happens: the show opens with Diana alone, singing a huge rock anthem about how she's livin' large but feelin' small. This number, like virtually all to follow, sounds like those late-80s MTV-ready rock anthems where dudes with electric guitars sing wistfully about how hard touring can be, and how they are forced to take comfort in an unending supply of groupies and blow. I guess Diana's rosy life had its thorns, too, man.
Charles, who in this show is supposed to be (a) dashingly handsome and (b) a huge enough player that he can't find a wealthy woman in all of England that he hasn't already nailed and dumped, is under pressure to marry because of some stiff exposition the Queen utters at him about The People. Everyone holds their arms very still and in formal positions to imply their royalness, and I found myself disappointed that no one did the Queen wave even once, especially because this is the kind of show where such a move, correctly timed, might actually work to bring the house down.
Camilla Parker-Bowles is supposed to be the real villain in Diana because she is (a) older and (b) not as beautiful as Diana and (c) that's the way mainstream entertainment created by men tends to roll. Camilla pushes Charles to marry Diana because she strikes them both as unintelligent, young and foolish, and thus surely someone who will leave them to their affair(s) in exchange for getting to be a princess.
Charles takes Diana to a concert and Diana gripes about how Charles likes the music of Dead White Men (like Bach and Beethoven), while she prefers the much cooler music of Slightly Younger Dead White Men (like Freddie Mercury and David Bowie). She also mentions Elton John, whose involvement in this show would have surely made it less cringeworthy, and I say this as someone who loathes that fucking song about the fucking candle and the fucking wind. The Queen sings Charles a song about love and her own experiences, which are thoroughly unrelated to anything Charles is concerned about, so he and Diana get hitched. The press dances maniacally around Diana while singing about having a wank and drinking Guinness because oo, British references!
Charles and Diana meet the People of Wales, who apparently all dress like chimney sweeps and live horrible, dark lives that improve instantly when Diana says hello to them. Charles is not nice to Diana but does manage to congratulate her for having their child by singing appropriately bad lyrics at her. Charles and Camilla sing of their everlasting love for one another with more bad lyrics. Diana sings in passing about her struggles with self-harm and bulimia, but then realizes that changing up her wardrobe will be truly liberating for her, hurrah.
Diana does genuinely impressive charity work, which in this production apparently involves sending cases of eyeliner to an AIDS ward because she's good with makeup. The patients are initially camera shy, given the fact that their illness might result in all sorts of inconveniences like losing their homes, jobs, and families, but once she bonds with them over clothing, they come right around and smile pretty for the camera. Charles attempts to contain Diana's popularity by speaking publicly about architecture. Diana starts an affair with James Hewitt, who rises shirtless from beneath the stage floor on a pommel horse, and whose name surely made the lyricist's day by conveniently rhyming with "Let's do it!"
All of the characters debate the possibility of divorce while they dance, fight, drink tea and hop into bed with one another. Diana's affair with Hewitt ends when, despite constant pleas to run off with her to America, he suddenly decides that his career matters and that his new position in Germany will make it absolutely impossible to ever again see one of the richest and most powerful women on the planet because borders are difficult to navigate and flights are prohibitively expensive, or something. Diana becomes newly bothered by the fact that Charles and Camilla are still Doing It now that she and Hewitt are no longer going to Do It, so there is a fight that is likened to a thrilla in Manila but instead is just a shoutfest in some palace basement or moat or back alley or something.
Finally, the Queen tells Diana they are a lot alike before launching into a song about how they are nothing alike. She insists that Diana will never be permitted to divorce and then magically grants her a divorce. Diana sings about how she is newly happy and motivated and eager to make good in the world and maybe have a daughter or several. Then she does a slow walk upstage that is meant to represent her death. The ensemble, clearly exhausted from gyrating in multiple outfits, earnestly tells the audience that the people you don't think are going to make change in the world sometimes do, and that is the end.
Is the show any better in front of a live audience? Hell if I know, but I think now I need to find out. Stay tuned....
Posted by Liz Wollman at 3:36 PM No comments:
Labels: Diana: The Musical, Liz Wollman
Standing on the Edge of Time
The Potomac Theatre Project's recent streaming play, Standing on the Edge of Time, consists largely of people talking--alone, in pairs, or in groups--about history, theatre, relationships (romantic and not), and meaning. Each segment is by a different playwright or poet, resulting in a pleasing and thought-provoking verbal kaleidoscope of words and ideas. (I've provided a list of the shows represented below.) With many young people in the cast, the show sometimes feels like groups of college kids got together for slightly buzzed, totally heartfelt, 2-a.m. discussions. I frequently wished I could join them.
Rather than discussing the individual segments, of which there are almost 20, I offer some of the lines that stood out for me.
All theatres are haunted.
Most people are stupid and couldn't tell a play from a pineapple.
My real sister became a nun to meet men.
To be or nobody.
Paranoia transcends politics; it becomes spiritual.
God wants peacocks, not ravens.
These are cold days, not to be believed.
I believe humans will walk on the surface on Mars.
The flying car will radically alter [making out].
[There will be] a global epidemic of panic and mass despair.
Sex will become [boring]; Tupperware will make dildos.
They fucked up in the 60s. They took away all the values and didn't put anything in its place.
On this planet one is overwhelmed.
One of my favorite lines comes from "What Do You Believe About the Future?" by David Auburn. After around a dozen people make their predictions, some of which are in the list above, a young man says, "I believe I will get a date."
Two points: (1) I wish I had been able to see this in a theatre. (No shit, huh?) I am much better able to sink into the mood and pacing of a word-driven piece like this in a dark theatre than in my studio apartment. (2) I really wish that the pieces had been identified as they started. I completely get why director Cheryl Faraone would not want to interrupt the flow of discussion with title cards or captions, but not knowing was problematic too. I was sometimes distracted by thinking, for example, "Wait, I've heard that before. Is that Kushner? Churchill?" And then I was distracted by thinking, "Wow, I really should be able to distinguish the voices of such individual playwrights." (The only author I identified with no problem was Ntozake Shange; she truly sounds like no one else.)
Faraone forestalls the inevitable Zoom-ness of streaming plays with an appealing, overtly theatrical opening including atmospheric shots of an old theatre and a ringmaster sort of person discussing exactly what theatre is ("Like the inside of a human heart. Only bigger, and not as empty."). When sections do have the dreaded Zoom-like boxes, Faraone uses interesting angles and various other devices to provide variety, plus a few sections are shot outdoors.
The show is well-acted by Alex Draper, Stephanie Janssen, Christopher Marshall, Tara Giordano, Sheyenne Brown, Aubrey Dube, Wynn McClenahan, Becca Berlind, Gabrielle Martin, Maggie Connolly, Madison Middleton, Francis Price, and Gibson Grimm.
It is unfortunate that this show is already gone, but Potomac has one more show this season. A Small Handful is based on the poetry and life of Anne Sexton and utilizes speech, song, and performance to "discover something about the endurance of Anne Sexton's complex journey." It runs August 13 to 17; more information can be found here.
The plays and poems of Standing on the Edge of Time.
Crowbar by Mac Wellman
Next Time I'll Sing to You by James Saunders
The Enemy by Mike Bartlett
Excerpts from "Strange Days Indeed: The Golden Age of Paranoia" by Francis Wheen
Skeleton Crew by Dominique Morisseau
Tales of the Lost Formicans by Constance Congdon
Red Noses by Peter Barnes
A Bright Room Called Day (Oranges) by Tony Kushner
Roar by Anna Deavere Smith
Spell of Motion by Stacie Cassarino
What Do You Believe About the Future? by David Auburn
Serial Monogamy by Ntozake Shange
Tickets Are Now on Sale by Caryl Churchill
In Perpetuity Throughout the Universe by Eric Overmyer
Mornings at the Lake by Stacie Cassarino
The Internet is Serious Business by Tim Price
Posted by Wendy Caster at 11:05 PM No comments:
Labels: Cheryl Faraone, Potomac Theatre Project, PTP/NYC, Wendy Caster
The Untold Stories of Broadway: Volume 4 (book review)
My latest review is up at Talkin' Broadway.
According to their interviews in The Untold Stories of Broadway: Volume 4, Ed Dixon has great affection for The Scarlet Pimpernel; Krysta Rodriguez saw Assassins at Studio 54 three times; and Arbender J. Robinson auditioned 30-plus times over many years before being cast in The Lion King. At 8 years old, Andrew Keenan-Bolger was so moved by Les Mis that he cried when characters died. Liz Callaway misses "when theatres were grungy and the area was in danger" (as do I). There were columns in the set of Grand Hotel because there were columns in the rehearsal room. As a kid, William Finn thought that My Fair Lady had always existed, like the Talmud. Longtime stagehand Manny Diaz has never seen a Broadway show from the audience. Twelve-year-old future-director Lynne Meadow thought her first Broadway show (Destry Rides Again) wasn't that good. Pretty much every other interviewee was gobsmacked by their first.
To read more, click here.
Labels: Jennifer Ashley Tepper, Talkin' Broadway, Wendy Caster
Tom Stoppard: A Life (book review)
My review of Tom Stoppard: A Life appears on Talkin' Broadway.
Hermione Lee's Tom Stoppard: A Life is a formidable achievement. Not only does Lee cover the story of Stoppard's life in great detail, but she also examines the genesis of each of his plays, offers social and political context, and provides thumbnail bios for dozens of the people in Stoppard's life. The result is 872 pages long, including copious notes; it is simultaneously fascinating and a bit of a slog.
Posted by Wendy Caster at 1:42 AM No comments:
Labels: Hermione Lee. All That Chat, Talkin' Broadway, Tom Stoppard, Wendy Caster
Myths and Hymns (Chapter 1): Flight
I'm going to cut to the chase here. I highly, highly, highly recommend the MasterVoices streaming production of Myths and Hymns, chapter one of which is available right now. The music, by Adam Guettel, is gorgeous. The lyrics are often lovely, sometimes silly and funny, occasionally grand. The designs are graceful and beautiful. The cast is amazing. And it's free, although you can certainly give a donation. I did.
Here are some excerpts from the press release to give you all the info you need:
Mastervoices Presents Flight, The First Chapter Of Adam Guettel's Four-Part Theatrical Song Cycle Myths And Hymns, In A Digital Production Conceived And Supervised By Ted Sperling
Flight features the MasterVoices Chorus; singers Julia Bullock, Renée Fleming, Joshua Henry, Capathia Jenkins, Mykal Kilgore, Norm Lewis, Jose Llana, Kelli O'Hara, and Elizabeth Stanley; the a cappella gospel music group Take 6; actress Annie Golden; and pianists Anderson & Roe. It can be found at the ensemble's YouTube channel and on mastervoices.org.
Myths and Hymns - CHAPTER ONE: FLIGHT
Music and Lyrics by Adam Guettel
Additional lyrics by Ellen Fitzhugh
Orchestrations by Don Sebesky and Jamie Lawrence
MasterVoices, Ted Sperling, Artistic Director and Conductor
Anderson & Roe, piano duo
Greg Anderson, arranger and director
Saturn Returns: the Flight
MasterVoices
Joshua Henry, soloist
Ted Sperling, director
Mykal Kilgore, soloist (Icarus)
Norm Lewis, soloist (Daedalus)
Sammi Cannold, director
Lucy Mackinnon, designer
Migratory V
Julia Bullock, soloist
Renée Fleming, soloist
Kelli O'Hara, soloist
Lear deBessonet, director
Danny Mefford, co-creator
Yazmany Arboleda, co-creator and illustrator
Cloud Chatanda, animation
Annie Golden, narrator
Jose Llana, soloist (Bellerophon)
Capathia Jenkins, soloist (Pegasus)
Elizabeth Stanley, soloist (Gadfly)
Steven Kellogg, illustrations
Jesus, the Mighty Conqueror
Take 6, soloists
Mark Kibble, arranger
Khristian Dentley, director
Mastervoices Presents Work, The Second Chapter Of Adam Guettel's Four-Part Theatrical Song Cycle Myths And Hymns, On February 24, 2021
With the MasterVoices Chorus; Singers Shoshana Bean, Daniel Breaker, Anthony Roth Costanzo, Michael McElroy, Ailyn Pérez, and Nicholas Phan; and actor John Lithgow.
Labels: Adam Guettel, Joshua Henry, Kelli O'Hara, MasterVoices, Norm Lewis, Wendy Caster
The Untold Stories of Broadway: Volume 4 (book rev...


Friday, April 5, 2019 - 5:30 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 5:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 7:00 a.m. to 7:45 a.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Lane swimming for youth and adults only. Takes place in the 65m pool today due to the swim meet.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Children and Youth must be with a person at least 16 years or over in the water within arms reach. If you are 16 or over, you may swim on your own. This swim takes place in the 65m shallow end of the pool and the warm water pool only. Diving boards, climbing wall and waterslide are closed during this swim.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 10:15 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Water aerobics class with high and low intensity exercises including jogging, some basic swim strokes, plus water suspended exercises for a total body workout. This class uses foam water weights to build strength too.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 11:15 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 4:00 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Friday, April 5, 2019 - 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.


The latest in the Gamevil baseball series, Baseball Superstars '11, delivers a good strike to the classic ballgame. Having played both of the previous titles, I can say that this one truly is an improvement.
Months ago, I did a small post regarding a classic NES baseball game: RBI Baseball. Playing Baseball Superstars '11 reminds me of RBI baseball. The game is easy to play, allows for you to just pick up where you left off, and overall is a very enjoyable experience.
You're able to play multiple game modes, from single exhibition games to full careers with a character. As before, RPG elements are included, allowing for you to improve your player's skills and abilities as the game progresses.
With some humorous elements thrown in via a subtly laid story, simple baseball gameplay, and the ability to stop and resume playing a game at any point, Baseball Superstars '11 is definitely worth checking out.


text:
Transgender / Transsexual
Everybody's Business
Voice of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgendered Community in the North Bay
Local/ News
Free "Aging Gayfully" Classes Start this Week Through SRJC
Gary Carnivele January 17, 2021
National/ News/ Top Stories
Ned Price Tapped as First Out Gay State Dept. Spokesperson
Chris Johnson, Washington Blade January 17, 2021
Ned Price, who had served in the Obama years in a senior communications role for the White House National Security Council, has been tapped for the role of State Department spokesperson, the Washington Blade has confirmed.
Price, who'd would be the first openly gay person to serve in the role, obtains the position as the Biden transition team announced Saturday morning a slew of foreign policy appointments, many of whom served in the Obama administration.
Among the picks were Wendy Sherman, nominated to be deputy Secretary of State, and Victoria Nuland, nominated to be under secretary of state for political affairs.
Price, an alum of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, served in the Obama administration as a CIA analyst and spokesperson for the White House National Security Council. In the Trump era, Price joined National Security Action an organization of national security experts critical of the Trump administration's foreign policy.
Other roles for Price have been contributor for NBC News and professor at Georgetown University Walsh School of Foreign Service.
LGBT+ activist Ken Jones, Who Helped Fund Pride Flag, Dies
Lily Wakefield January 16, 2021
Trailblazing LGBT+ activist Ken Jones, who helped fund Gilbert Baker's Pride flag, has passed away after a battle with cancer.
Jones passed away Thursday (14 January) at the age of 70, having been diagnosed with bladder cancer in September last year.
He was a pioneer who pushed for the desegregation of the LGBT+ rights movement, and worked alongside activists like Roma Guy, Sally Miller Gearhart, and Gilbert Baker in San Francisco.
Jones was the first Black chair of the San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration Committee board, worked for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation from its conception, and even illegally traveled to Cuba in the 1980s to help with the AIDS crisis there.
His life was dramatised in the 2017 ABC miniseries When We Rise, and later in life he was ordained as a deacon so he could officiate weddings.
Ken Jones was a hero. He survived many struggles. He deeply loved his family and his community, and dedicated his entire…
Posted by Cleve Jones on Wednesday, January 13, 2021
Jones' death was announced publicly by his close friend and fellow activist Cleve Jones on Facebook, who wrote: "Ken Jones was a hero. He survived many struggles.
"He deeply loved his family and his community, and dedicated his entire life to the movement for peace and justice.
"He was very grateful to all of you who reached out to him with messages of encouragement and love during his illness.
"Today Ken lost his fight against cancer. A memorial will be arranged when it is safe once more for us to gather. Rest in Power, Ken. I love you."
KEN JONES 1950 – 2021 — rest in power my magnificent friend. My heart breaks at this morning's news that you've left…
Posted by Dustin Lance Black on Thursday, January 14, 2021
Screenwriter and activist Dustin Lance Black, who created When We Rise, also shared on Facebook: "Rest in power my magnificent friend. My heart breaks at this morning's news that you've left this world.
"Many know Ken as one of the three main characters depicted in When We Rise. Ken was a hero and an inspiration.
"An ordained deacon, he worked to desegregate the LGBTQ movement, was a passionate HIV/AIDS activist, and even played a role in helping fund the creation of his friend Gilbert Baker's Pride flag.
"I will never forget Ken's beaming smile, his deep kindness, and his inextinguishable passion for fairness."
International/ News/ Top Stories
LGBTQ History Groups in 22 Countries Outlines Best Practices, Supports Paris Archives Collective
Forty-five LGBTQ and feminist archives, museums and public history institutions from 22 countries have endorsed an open letter that outlines the best practices developed by such organizations over the past 50 years. The letter marks the first time a group of this size and geographical reach has put forward a basic charter for their work. The central point: The reconstitution of the lost and erased queer past must be entrusted to independent institutions conceived and directed by the LGBTQI community itself.
Published on Friday, January 8, in the national French newspaper Libération, the open letter calls on the French government to support the efforts of the Collectif Archives LGBTQI to establish an LGBTQ archives and public history center in Paris. Organized in 2017, the collective is a nonpartisan association that has proposed adapting the well-established international model to create a world-class queer history institution. The group has met and negotiated extensively with representatives of the City of Paris. The collective notes that such organizations have already existed for decades and receive significant resources and funding from municipal, regional and national governments in other European capitals, including Amsterdam and Berlin.
The open letter offers a forceful rebuttal to a statement released by the Ministry of Culture on December 29, 2020. Responding to a written question from a member of the French National assembly, the ministry asserted that only government officials at state-run institutions such as French National Archives should be in charge of deciding which organizational records, personal papers and artifacts from LGBTQI history should be preserved and how they should be made available.
"We're grateful to the organizations in France and worldwide who signed the open letter to make it clear that LGBTQ people ourselves are most qualified to conceive and direct the recovery of our own history," said Renaud Chantraine, a doctoral candidate at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris and a founding member of the collective. "As their initiatives have so successfully demonstrated, the role of the state is not to displace community-based LGBTQ history organizations, but to serve as a respectful partner in our important cultural work."
As a next step, the collective has submitted a formal request to meet with French Minister of Culture Roselyne Bachelot to make its case for support for its project to create an autonomous and independent LGBTQ archives and public history center in Paris.
Latvia Votes to put Anti-gay Hate at the Heart of its Constitution
Emma Powys Maurice, Pink News January 16, 2021
The Republic of Latvia has voted to define family solely as "a union of a male and female person", excluding the country's countless loving LGBT+ families.
On Thursday (14 January) the Latvian parliament, or Saeima, voted 47-25 for an amendment to the constitution stipulating that a family unit consists of a marriage between a woman and a man.
Section 110 of the constitution will now read: "The state protects and supports marriage – a union between a man and a woman, a family based on marriage, blood relation or adoption, the rights of parents and a child, including the right to grow up in a family based on a mother (woman) and father (man)."
The vote came in response to a pro-LGBT+ ruling last year by the constitutional court which confirmed that parents in a family can also be same-sex, and imposed on the state the "obligation to protect and support" them as well.
But National Alliance leader Raivis Dzintars declared that the court had violated its powers, creating a "definition of a family that is not acceptable to the general public in Latvia".
"Latvia is a democratic country with a diversity of views and respect for every citizen. But at the same time, there are values that have been especially close and even sacred to our nation and its culture for hundreds of years," he told Skaties.
"One of these values is the understanding of the family, which is based on the father and mother – man and woman – and their children. Until now, such an understanding seemed self-evident, but with the decision of the constitutional court it is questioned."
The decision represents a huge setback for the Latvian LGBT+ community, and yet another troubling example of the anti-LGBT+ rhetoric sweeping across eastern Europe.
"Today's vote in the Latvian Parliament threw us back to the times when being an openly homophobic politician was a thing to be proud of," tweeted activist Kristine Garina of the European Pride Organisers Association.
"Forty-seven members of the parliament voted YES to proceed with 'same-sex families are not families' statement to be added to the constitution."
Latvian politician Marija Golubeva described the move as a "call for discrimination" and an attempt to separate families into right and wrong.
"Support for these changes is a mockery of the principles of a democratic state, and I call for their rejection," she urged the parliament.
Israel Declassifies Being Trans as a Mental Disorder
Pink News, Vic Parsons January 15, 2021
Two years after the World Health Organization and 11 years after France, Israel has finally agreed that being trans is not a mental disorder.
New guidelines, drafted by Israel's health ministry after three years of consulting with LGBT+ and trans organisations, set out how hospitals and healthcare facilities must treat transgender people.
The guidance directs that hospitals and healthcare facilities must have at least one staff member trained in trans awareness, use a trans person's correct pronouns regardless of the gender on their official documents, and to provide unisex facilities where possible while allowing trans people to use gendered spaces in accordance with their gender identity.
Ministers also noted that so-called conversion therapy that tries to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity has no ethical or professional basis, as well as confirming that being trans is not a psychological disorder.
"Transgender people, or people on the trans spectrum, is an umbrella term used to describe people who span a broad spectrum of gender identities, distinctive from the one they were identified with and registered as at birth," the guidance says, according to Haaretz.
"People from this population group are at high risk of suffering physical and verbal violence, discrimination in employment and a lack of access to public resources being treated as social outcasts, which can worsen psychological distress and lead to susceptibility to a high rate of illness relative to the rest of the population," the guidelines continue.
"This is particularly noticeable when it comes to mental health."
Ella Amest, co-director general of trans advocacy group Ma'avarim, said the new guidelines are "an important and significant step for the community and for the health system".
"Many of us require psychological services due to our confrontations with transphobia, beyond the more common reasons experienced by the rest of the population, but the system doesn't always know how to treat us," Amest said.
She added: "The guidelines provide those who work in the field with substantive, clear tools and support from above. We hope that more and more public services will adopt this process and formulate similar guidelines together with trans spectrum organisations."
The new guidance on how to treat trans people in healthcare settings follows joint recommendations, made in December 2020, by the Justice and Social Welfare Ministries that suggested implementing sweeping reforms to trans rights in Israel.
The raft of new policies came as part of its ongoing efforts to tackle the "exhausting, frustrating and bureaucratic" hurdles that trans people face when updating their legal name or gender.
Deputy attorney general Dina Zilber and deputy director general of the Social Affairs Ministry Avi Motola wrote in an interim report that gender markers and names on government-issued documents should be able to be changed via self-declaration.
The policy, Haaretz reported, would have trans citizens' declarations authenticated by a lawyer or the Administrator General's Office. Documents and forms should also provide a third gender option, "other", they advised.
Falsely Claiming Someone is Gay is No Longer Defamation per se, N.Y. Court Rules
Jo Yarcaba January 14, 2021
Falsely accusing someone of being gay is no longer considered defamation per se, a New York appeals court ruled recently.
Defamation is a false statement that damages someone's reputation. To win a defamation suit in most cases, plaintiffs must be able to show that the statement against them is false and that it caused them to suffer damages or harm, such as losing their job. Defamation per se is a false accusation that is so damaging that plaintiffs don't have to prove that they suffered damages.
Under New York law, examples of defamation per se include falsely accusing someone of a heinous crime or having a "loathsome disease." Falsely claiming that someone is homosexual had also been lumped in.
"It meant that it was so shameful and such a disgrace that it was just assumed that obviously your reputation has been injured and you don't have to prove that element" of damages, Eric Lesh, executive director of the LGBT Bar Association of New York, told NBC News.
"Yes, this is kind of an obvious decision, but the law moves slowly, and society usually pushes it forward."
ERIC LESH, LGBT BAR ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK
In late December, however, the Supreme Court of the State of New York's Second Department — one court below the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court — overturned that decades-old precedent when it ruled that a false claim of homosexuality is no longer defamation per se. Such a false claim can still be considered defamatory, but plaintiffs will have to prove that they've been damaged by it.
The case, Laguerre v. Maurice, began in 2017, when Jean Renald Maurice, a pastor at the Gethsemane Seventh Day Adventist Church in Brooklyn, publicly claimed at a church meeting of 300 people that a church elder, Pierre Delor Laguerre, "was a homosexual" and that he "disrespected the church by viewing gay pornography on the church's computer," according to the court opinion. The allegation led to Laguerre being relieved of his responsibilities and thrown out as a member of the church.
The Second Department court ultimately dismissed Laguerre's defamation claim, citing Yonaty v. Mincolla, a 2012 ruling by the Supreme Court's Third Department that found that previous decisions labeling false claims of homosexuality as defamation per se were "inconsistent with current public policy and should no longer be followed." That decision also ruled that "it cannot be said that current public opinion supports a rule that would equate statements imputing homosexuality with accusations of serious criminal conduct or insinuations that an individual has a loathsome disease."
The Second Department agreed, writing that the "profound and notable transformation of cultural attitudes and governmental protective laws" for LGBTQ people influenced its decision. The court cited a 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Lawrence v. Texas, which found that laws criminalizing homosexual conduct were unconstitutional, and the court's 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges establishing the right to same-sex marriage throughout the country.
"Based on the foregoing, we conclude that the false imputation of homosexuality does not constitute defamation per se," the Second Department wrote in its Dec. 23 decision.
Lesh called the ruling a "no brainer," but said it is an important way to evaluate how far we've come on LGBTQ equality.
"It took a long time for New York law to catch up to where we were public-policy wise," he said. "Yes, this is kind of an obvious decision, but the law moves slowly, and society usually pushes it forward."
The Second Department's decision doesn't set precedent for the entire state of New York, Lesh noted. The court is based in Brooklyn and its jurisdiction includes Queens, Brooklyn, Long Island and parts of Staten Island and the Hudson Valley, while the Third Department is seated in Albany and includes the Capitol District and part of Central New York. The other departments in New York's Appellate Division — the First, which covers the Bronx and Manhattan, and the Fourth, which includes the western and part of the central area of the state — will have to rule independently on the issue. When given the opportunity, Lesh said they will likely rule the same way the Second and Third Departments have.
Across the United States, whether false claims of homosexuality are considered defamatory per se is dependent on the state and, often, on the court.
Historically, many states considered false accusations of homosexuality to be defamation per se, because their state law criminalized homosexual conduct. However, after the Lawrence v. Texas ruling, which struck down the country's remaining sodomy laws, this started to change. Several courts have ruled similarly to New York's Second Department since that landmark 2003 ruling.
Defamation lawsuits resulting from false accusations of being LGBTQ — like the one brought before New York's Second Department — are less common than they once were due to increasing acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people, according to Brad Sears, executive director of the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. But when the issue does come up, Sears said the general trend courts have followed is to rule that it is no longer defamation per se.
There are places where being LGBTQ could, for example, cause someone to lose their job due to bias, and when false accusations are made in those cases, someone could still sue for defamation. But unlike a suit for defamation per se, the plaintiff would have to prove financial or other damages.
Sears said last month's New York decision and others like it make an important statement about how LGBTQ people are viewed and treated in society: "I think what's important is this kind of bias no longer has the backing of the law."
In 'Nasty Parting Shot,' HHS Finalizes Rule Axing LGBTQ Nondiscrimination Protections
Dan Avery January 14, 2021
With little more than a week left to the Trump administration, the Department of Health and Human Services has finalized a rule permitting social-service providers that receive government funds to discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Critics claim the new guidance could have wide-ranging implications for agencies that address adoption and foster-parenting, as well as homelessness, HIV prevention, elder care and other public services.
"Even as Trump administration officials abandon ship, HHS has announced yet another dangerous rule that invites discrimination against the very people federal grant programs are meant to help," Sasha Buchert, senior attorney for the LGBTQ civil rights group Lambda Legal, said.
According to the 77-page release, published Tuesday in the Federal Register, Obama-era requirements that agencies refrain from discrimination on the basis of sex, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity and recognize same-sex marriages as legally valid violate the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
"Given the careful balancing of rights, obligations, and goals in the public-private partnerships in federal grant programs, the Department believes it appropriate to impose only those nondiscrimination requirements required by the Constitution and federal statutes," the rule states.
Slated to take effect on Feb. 11, the rule change is targeted at child welfare organizations, according to Julie Kruse, director of federal policy for LGBTQ advocacy group Family Equality. Whether private adoption agencies receiving taxpayer money can deny services to same-sex potential parents is at the heart of Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, now before the Supreme Court.
Kruse said both President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have made allowing discrimination in adoption and foster care a priority over the last four years.
At the National Prayer Breakfast in February 2019, Trump bemoaned that St. Vincent Catholic Charities in Michigan was facing legal action"for living by the values of its Catholic faith" and turning away same-sex prospective parents. The president vowed that his administration was "working to ensure that faith-based adoption agencies are able to help vulnerable children find their forever families, while following their deeply held beliefs."
That same year, HHS issued a  waiver  allowing a Protestant foster care agency to turn away Jewish foster parents and stopped data collection on LGBTQ youth in adoption and foster care.
In November 2019, HHS Secretary Alex Azar announced the agency would stop enforcing anti-discrimination protections against federal grantees, prompting a lawsuit by Lambda Legal and Democracy Forward on behalf of the LGBTQ social services groups Family Equality, True Colors United and SAGE. HHS has also ordered recipients of federal funding to accept employees' religiously based refusals to perform job duties, including denying contraception to women and medical treatment to transgender patients.
According to Kruse, Tuesday's final rule could also allow a homeless shelter to turn away a queer teen and a senior center to refuse to drive an elderly gay man to his doctor's appointment. She's confident it will be overturned by the incoming Biden administration, calling it a "nasty parting shot that won't stand." But she admits "it does clog up the works; it does delay protections."
HHS was among nine federal agencies tasked by the Trump administration to draft guidelines safeguarding "religious freedom," along with the Departments of Justice, Education, Labor, Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security and the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Those orders spun out of a White House faith and opportunity initiative launched in 2018 "to remove barriers which have unfairly prevented faith-based organizations from working with or receiving funding from the federal government."
The Department of Education issued its final rule last September, determining religious universities and student groups were exempt from sex-discrimination statutes in Title iX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos stated the change would "protect First Amendment freedoms on campus and the religious liberty of faith-based institutions."
Dena Sher, associate vice president of public policy at Americans United for Separation of Church and State, called the DoE guidance "discrimination underwritten by tax dollars and tuition fees," Inside Higher Ed reported.
HHS's regulation change was announced the same day the Department of Labor's own final rule took effect, expanding exemptions to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to any contractors — for-profit or nonprofit — who "hold themselves out to the public as carrying out a religious purpose."
"Religious organizations should not have to fear that acceptance of a federal contract or subcontract will require them to abandon their religious character or identity," Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia said in a statement on Dec. 7.
President-elect Joe Biden's transition team declined to comment on whether it would overturn the new HHS rule. But, in a statement, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., vowed to work with the incoming administration "to restore humanity to HHS."
"From Day One, the Trump administration has been determined to roll back essential protections for LGBTQ+ Americans, religious minorities and other vulnerable communities," Wyden, a member of the Senate Finance Committee, stated.
"It's no surprise that in its last days the Trump administration has delivered a devastating blow to try and permanently greenlight taxpayer-funded discrimination and put the health and well being of children and families across the nation at grave risk," he added.
Czech Republic Rules Against Same-sex Couples Adopting
The Czech Republic has ruled against adoptions from same-sex couples registered abroad as anti-LGBT+ rhetoric continues spreading across eastern Europe.
On Monday (11 January) the Czech Constitutional Court rejected a regional court's proposal to amend a law that prevents same-sex couples registered abroad from adopting Czech children.
Same-sex couples are currently unable to adopt as adoption is restricted to married couples, and same-sex marriage isn't legal in the Czech Republic. So the Prague Regional Court proposed changes to the wording on private international law, allowing Czech courts to recognise same-sex partners registered overseas.
This was rejected in the new ruling, which suggested it would allow Czech adoption laws to be "circumvented" abroad, according to Expats.CZ.
"Should the legislators set the rules for adoption, they can substantially prevent the rules from being 'circumvented' via foreign legal arrangement," the finding reads.
The Constitutional Court considered the amendment in relation to the case of a registered same-sex couple, a Czech and a Trinidad and Tobago citizen living in the US.
A court in New Jersey approved their decision to adopt two children with the US citizenship, but the men feared legal complications when travelling back to the Czech Republic as a family.
When they asked a local court to recognise the US adoption their request was dismissed, since private international law doesn't allow for the approval of a decision that goes against Czech law.
The Czech LGBT+ advocacy group We Are Fair expressed regret over the ruling, saying that the decision is proof that the Czech Republic needs to legalise marriage for everybody.
The troubling news follows a wave of anti-LGBT+ sentiment rising across eastern Europe that has seen both Poland and Hungary restrict adoption for same-sex couples.
Poland's president, Andrzej Duda, has suggested changing the country's constitution to explicitly forbid adoptions from LGBT+ couples, while Hungary's nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, announced in November that a ban on same-sex adoption had "become necessary" due to coronavirus.
"Family ties shall be based on marriage and the relationship between parents and children. The mother is female, the father is male," declared the Hungarian minister of family affairs as she announced the changes.
MI Republicans Launch Bid to Ban Trans Kids from Accessing Puberty Blockers
Nick Duffy January 13, 2021
Mississippi Republican lawmakers are seeking to ban all transition-related healthcare for transgender people until the age of 21, under one of the most extreme anti-trans bills yet.
The Orwellian legislation tabled by state lawmakers on Monday (11 January) aims to restrict access to trans-related care in the Deep South state.
The so-called "Transgender 21 Act", filed by Republican senator Angela Burks Hill, would ban the use of puberty-blocking drugs, hormones and surgery for transgender people until they are 21.
Hill claims the purpose of the act is to "protect" minors, arguing that they are "unable to fully appreciate the risks and life implications that result from the use of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgical procedures".
Mississippi currently permits marriage from age 15 with parental consent, enlistment in the military from 17, and both cosmetic surgery and gun ownership from 18 – several years before trans people are apparently competent enough to make decisions about their own body.
The bill only targets treatments intended to "facilitate the minor's desire to present or appear in a manner that is inconsistent with the minor's sex", meaning that the exact same puberty-blocking drugs and hormones could still be issued to cisgender people for unrelated health conditions.
Mississippi Republican lawmakers are seeking to ban all transition-related healthcare (CC BY-SA 4.0/Michael Barera)
Mississippi Republicans' 'Transgender 21 Act' would be 'devastating'.
Of course, prescribing puberty-blocking drugs at the age of 21 would be fairly redundant, meaning the bill would also function as a de facto ban on the treatment.
The mean-spirited law would also continue to allow cisgender people to get breast enhancements or reductions as teenagers, while banning transgender people from doing so.
ACLU lawyer Chase Strangio said the bill would be "devastating" for trans people, branding it "alarming and unconstitutional on many fronts".
The move comes amid a flurry of anti-trans legislation filed across the US as state legislatures return, with a tidal wave of copycat bills filed in Oklahoma, Montana, Tennessee, Texas, Alabama, Utah, New Hampshire and Maine seeking to restrict healthcare or roll back rights for trans people.
Strangio tweeted: "Every time I looked away from my computer today, another anti-trans bill was filed. It is non-stop."
Hill is a regular proponent of anti-LGBT+ legislation in the state, previously sponsoring bills to exclude trans people from sports. She also championed an anti-gay religious freedom law passed by the state in 2016, seeking to permit businesses and officials to lawfully discriminate against same-sex couples.
© We The People 2021


This video was capturing a tsunami sweeping away debris in Japan. A ghostly figure was captured flying from one direction to another and finally faded away in the water.
This video was captured by a woman video-shooting her son. All of a sudden, there was a "little man" running passed the boy. The woman went to check it out and its no where to be found. What was it??? Does little people really exist???
This video was taken from the hotel CCTV. Many guests complaining that the room beside or above them were noisy with girl screaming. When the record was checked, there's no one checking in to that room. So they get a guy to the room to check the problem and guess what, no one was there but a shadow was seen coming out from that room.
This video was captured when the nuns were trying to remove the spirit from possessing the girl. It was reported that this girl was possessed at school. She suddenly ran amok and started shouting and cursing at her schoolmates and teachers. The school reported this her parents who then rushed her to the nuns.
A woman (mom) was video shooting her daughter and suddenly she saw a ghost peeping from the corridor. She ran out and saw the ghost standing in first floor looking at them. She was so scared and ran out of the house and again, she saw the ghost in one of the room.
This video was captured by the guy who always experienced paranormal stuff at his home. He video captured the ghost appearing inside his store room and when he opened the door, nothing was there. He closes the door and it appeared again seconds later.
** Not sure how genuine this video is. If it was me who sees the ghost face to face, I would have run away.
Thanks to Kousuke for sharing this video clip.
This video was captured by a TV crew to investigate places reported to be haunted. It was reported that ghost was spotted in a jungle. When they visit the place, a grave was spotted and the girl was asked to go near the grave to pray and called upon the spirit to show itself. Suddenly, the girl screamed in pain and eventually died.
** I don't know how true is this video. Believe it or not, you decide.
Thanks to Chew KS for sharing this video clip.
This video was captured by CCTV showing a girl/guy rescuing a motorcyclist from crashing with a truck. Is he/she a hero or ghost? He/She seems to be flying at extreme high speed and brought the motorcyclist to the other side of the road.
This video was captured by a passing car at the accident scene using his mobile phone. While he continues the recording, a ghost was captured which he believes that she is the decease in that accident. A photo was shown the next day in newspaper.


Rahul Srivastava is calling from "Bhu Adhikar Abhiyan" about demolition of 30 adivasi houses without prior notice in Cheri village of Palera block, Tikamgarh district in MP on Sep 3 2014. The adivasis living there for 20 years possessed land documents. Their belongings were taken away and women and children harassed. The collector was informed of this in a public hearing. Please call CF@9424791350, forest range officer@9424791361. Rahul Srivastava@8982206613.


text:
Die Basilika Sant'Ubaldo ist eine römisch-katholische Kirche auf dem Monte Ingio oberhalb von Gubbio in der italienischen Region Umbrien. Das Heiligtum des Bistums Gubbio trägt den Titel einer Basilica minor und ist dem hier beigesetzten Stadtpatron Ubald von Gubbio gewidmet. Die heute barocke Kirche wurde Anfang des 16. Jahrhunderts anstelle eines mittelalterlichen Bauwerks errichtet und Anfang des 20. Jahrhunderts in der heutigen Form gestaltet. Sie ist beim Stadtfest mit der Festa dei Ceri Ziel der "Wachskerzenprozession".

Geschichte
Die Basilika wurde auf einer bereits bestehenden kleinen Kirche errichtet, die dem heiligen Ubaldo und dem Pieve von San Gervasio und Protasio gewidmet war. Die Arbeiten an dieser begannen 1513 mit Unterstützung der Herzoginnen von Urbino, Elisabetta und Eleonora Gonzaga sowie von Papst Julius II. Die Kirche mit Kloster und Kreuzgang wurde 1627 fertiggestellt und den Augustiner-Chorherren vom Lateran anvertraut, dem der Heilige angehörte.

Ab 1786 wurde die Basilika von Passionisten bis hin zu napoleonischen Unterdrückungen und später von den Frati Minori Riformati betreut.
1919 wurde sie von Papst Benedikt XV. in den Rang einer Basilica minor erhoben. Seit dem 6. Januar 2020 kehrten auf Geheiß des Bischofs von Gubbio Luciano Paolucci Bedini die regelmäßigen Laterankanonier zurück

Beschreibung

Das Äußere der Kirche ist nüchtern; an der Spitze einer breiten Treppe führt ein Portal mit fünf Türen ins Innere. Die fünf Kirchenschiffe und die halbkreisförmige Apsis sind mit einem dem reich verzierten Interieur ausgestattet, geschmückt mit Fresken aus der 16. und 18. Jahrhunderte.

Der Altar ist ein monumentaler, neugotischer Schrein mit dem Glassarkophag, in dem die erhaltenen sterblichen Überreste des im Jahr 1160 verstorbenen Heiligen verwahrt werden. Die Basis ist mit Bildern zum Heiligen und der damit verbundenen Geschichte der Stadt gestaltet. Er wird von der Hinterseite durch die Buntglasfenster von Mossmeyer mit Szenen aus dem Leben des hl. Ubaldo beleuchtet.

Weblinks

 Basilika Sant'Ubaldo auf der Seite der Gemeinde Gubbio (italienisch)

Einzelnachweise

Sant Ubaldo
Kirchengebäude in Umbrien
Basilica minor
Erbaut im 16. Jahrhundert
Kirchengebäude in Europa
Bistum Gubbio
Ubaldkirche
Barocke Kirche
Barockbauwerk in Umbrien


text:
Home Trend Who is Todd Beamers wife and where is she today?
Who is Todd Beamers wife and where is she today?
Sudhir Jagjit
Morgan's parents, Todd and Lisa had been together since college. Morgan's mom's last known appearance was at Wheaton College in Sep 2021. She was an honorable guest who shared her message of hope during the college's chapel service. It was also the 20th anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11.
Morgan's other brother, Andrew, who was 1 during his father's death, is also a student at Wheaton College and is on a soccer team as a midfielder. Tuko.co.ke released an article on what happened to Frankie Lons, her life story and the cause of her death. Frankie Lons was a famous actress and celebrity mother from the United States.
When Todd made a call using a phone on the back of the plane, an operator Lisa Jefferson took his call. He informed her about what was happening on the plane. In lavilla italian restaurant fact, she has become one of the most sought-after speakers on the planet. She says all the media attention has, at times, left her more than a little bewildered.
" Beamer led his fellow passengers into the cockpit by using the beverage cart to break through the door. Todd had boarded United Flight 93 in Newark New Jersey for a business trip to San Francisco on the morning of September 11, 2001. At the time, the father of two had plans to celebrate the tenth anniversary of his first date with his wife when he got home.
She further mentioned that their daughter took after Todd so much that she was the only one of their children with hair as dark as his. Lisa was born in Albany, New York, on April 10, 1969, and in 1991, she graduated from Wheaton College, the private Evangelical Christian liberal arts college. Lisa Jefferson also told her that before he put the phone down, Todd asked her to recite the Lord's Prayer with him. Lisa appears to have a privatised Instagram account and looks to opt for a life away from the media spotlight in 2021.
Lisa Beamer was married with Todd Beamer, who was an American passenger aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked and crashed as part of the September 11 attacks in 2001. He was one of the passengers who battled to regain control of the plane from the hijackers. The Boeing 757 lost control and crashed into a field in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania, killing everyone aboard, but saving the intended target and additional victims, during the scuffle. Todd and other passengers had been in communication with people via in-plane and cell phones. They had also known two planes had already destroyed the World Trade Center.
Rap Sensation Wiz Khalifa Invests in Professional Fighters League
Michael Jackson estate net worth: Who are the heirs to the 'King of Pop' fortune?
200+ Cute Car Names for Girls From Angelica to Zippy
Groom in Burgundy Suit with White and Gold Sneakers, Groomsmen in Black Suits with Matching White and Black Sneakers and Burgundy Bowties Wedding Party...
Brendel Damon Fandom


text:
Iggy Azalea to Hollywood: Stop Calling Plastic Surgery 'Contouring'
byBibi Deitz Mar 24, 2016 at 2:00 pm EDT
When you're no stranger to the knife, own it. Or at least quit pretending like you're really, really good at duckface or you've somehow uncovered a bra that not only lifts your boobs but makes them grow four sizes larger. That's the message Iggy Azalea made crystal-clear Wednesday night on "Watch What Happens Live."
MORE: 26 Celebrities Who Look VERY Different Now
"If you're gonna do something that obvious, and everyone's seen what your nose looks like before, then you might as well own up to it, she told Andy Cohen, after getting asked about her buzzed-about appearance, which seems to have shifted quite a bit during the last year. "Some people are like, 'It's contouring!' Yeah, contouring with a chisel," she quipped.
Iggy in 2016; and in 2012. Getty Images
Last year, reports surfaced that Iggy tweaked her nose, and the rapper didn't deny it. She then admitted to Vogue last March she'd had her boobs done—something she wasn't planning to reveal for fear her young fans might start to feel bad about their bodies—but decided she "wasn't into secret-keeping."
During her appearance on the Bravo show, Iggy also opened up about her "feud" with past collaborator Britney Spears, saying it was completely fabricated by the press, and told a story how—after inviting the pop star over for lunch—Britney's handlers raided her house before letting her in. "They came and checked my place to make sure I wasn't trying to stash anything weird and, like, give it to her or something," Azalea recounted. Maybe because of those weird heroin rumors from last year?
celebrity plastic surgery


text:
UPDATE - Itau CorpBanca Announces Second Quarter 2016 Management Discussion & Analysis Report and Audit Review Report of Quarterly Financial Statements
August 12, 2016 05:37 ET | Source: Itau CorpBanca
SANTIAGO, CHILE--(Marketwired - Aug 12, 2016) - ITAÚ CORPBANCA (NYSE: ITCB) (SSE: ITAUCORP) announced today its Management Discussion & Analysis Report for the second quarter ended June 30, 2016 and the Audit Review Report of Quarterly Financial Statements.
In order to allow for comparison with previous periods, historical pro forma data of the consolidated, combined results of Banco Itaú Chile ("Itaú Chile") and CorpBanca deconsolidating our subsidiary SMU Corp S.A. (which is no longer considered strategic as of this quarter) and excluding non-recurring events for the periods prior to the second quarter of 2016 is presented in the Management Discussion & Analysis report. The pro forma income statement has been calculated as if the merger of Itaú Chile with and into CorpBanca occurred on January 1, 2015.
The pro forma information presented here is based on (i) the combined consolidated historical unaudited Financial Statements of each of CorpBanca and Banco Itaú Chile as filed with the "Superintendencia de Bancos e Instituciones Financieras" ("SBIF"), (ii) the deconsolidation of SMU Corp unaudited Financial Statements as filed with the SBIF and (iii) the exclusion of non-recurring events.
The pro forma combined financial information included in the MD&A Report is provided for illustrative purposes only, and does not purport to represent what the actual combined results of Itaú Chile and CorpBanca could have been had the acquisition occurred as of January 1, 2015.
For more information, please refer to the following link: http://www.capitallink.com/press/2016_Q2_Earnings_Release.pdf
About Itaú CorpBanca
ITAÚ CORPBANCA (NYSE: ITCB) (SSE: ITAUCORP) is the entity resulting from the merger of Banco Itaú Chile with and into CorpBanca on April 1, 2016. After the merger, the resulting ownership structure is: 33.58% owned by Itaú Unibanco, 33.13% owned by CorpGroup and 33.29% owned minority shareholders. Itaú Unibanco is the sole controlling shareholder of the merged bank. Within this context and without limiting the above, Itaú Unibanco and CorpGroup have signed a shareholders' agreement to determine aspects related to corporate governance, dividend policy (based on performance and capital metrics), transfer of shares, liquidity and other matters.
The merged bank has become the fourth largest private bank in Chile and will result in a banking platform for future expansion in Latin America, specifically in Chile, Colombia, Peru, and Central America. Itaú CorpBanca is a commercial bank based in Chile with operations also in Colombia and Panama. In addition, Itaú CorpBanca has a branch in New York and a representative office in Madrid. Focused on large and medium companies and in individuals, Itaú CorpBanca offers universal banking products. In 2012, the bank initiated a regionalization process and as of the date hereof has acquired two banks in Colombia -- Banco CorpBanca Colombia and Helm Bank, becoming the first Chilean bank having banking subsidiaries abroad. The merger with Banco Itaú Chile and the business combination of our two banks in Colombia, represent the continued success of our regionalization process.
As of June 30, 2016, according to the Chilean Superintendency of Banks, Itaú CorpBanca was the fourth largest private bank in Chile in terms of the overall size of its customer loan portfolio, equivalent to 12.0% market share.
As of May 31, 2015, according to the Colombian Superintendency of Finance, CorpBanca Colombia was the sixth largest bank in Colombia in terms of total loans and also the sixth largest bank in Colombia in terms of total deposits, as reported under local regulatory and accounting principles. At the same date, its market share by loans reached 5.9%.
Itau CorpBanca
IR@corpbanca.cl
http://www.corpbanca.cl


Find a participating LED retailer by entering your city or ZIP code, or by entering a retail store's name.
NOTE: INVENTORY MAY VARY AMONG RETAILERS.
Get instant rebates from Con Edison when you choose energy efficient LED bulbs for your home. Save up to $3 per bulb at check-out when you purchase select LED bulbs, then save even more in energy costs over the life of the bulb. For a list of participating retailers, please enter your information to the left.
For more information regarding ENERGY STAR® certified products, visit the ENERGY STAR website.
© 2017 Con Edison. All Rights Reserved.


The auditor / treasurer / tax collector is an elective office, independent of the Board of Supervisors. This independence is part of the checks and balances built into the system of county government in 51 of the 58 California counties. The intent of this arrangement is to avoid manipulation of investments and tax enforcement for political purposes. The officeholder is answerable directly to the constituents through the elective process and is not dependent on the goodwill of three supervisors to keep the job.
Effective July 1, 2011, the Treasurer / Tax Collector office was combined with that of the Auditor in a move to save tax dollars and it remains an elective office: Auditor / Treasurer / Tax Collector.