text:
Oxford girls and baseball coach go for flag football | High school
OXFORD – Kirsten Davis imagined a future watching her older brother Tae play football for Oxford. She was seen on a raised platform, on the track and behind the bench at Lamar Field, a megaphone in hand.
"I thought I would just be on the sidelines cheering," Davis said.
That future has come for Davis, but the junior cheerleader is also spending time on the fence field, the latest in the family line of linebackers from Oxford. That's because the AHSAA added women's flag football starting this season and Oxford created the first team based in Calhoun County.
Oxford played a Black-Gold scrum on Tuesday night to honor six senior players and a manager from their inaugural squad.
The Yellow Jackets, whose bus was escorted by police after returning from their Monday game at Southeastern, enjoyed a team meal outside head coach Wes Brooks' classroom before Tuesday's scrum.
Oxford is 5-3. He will compete in his state qualifying tournament on Saturday at Huntsville High School. The girls hope to compete in their first-ever state tournament, which starts on November 1 and ends with the championship match at the Super 7 on December 1 at 3 p.m. at Protective Stadium in Birmingham.
"A lot of people thought we weren't going to take him seriously, but I think we impressed a lot of people," said junior quarterback Reygan White. "I hope we get a state card (trophy)."
Brooks, better known as the longtime Oxford baseball coach, called the first season of women's flag football "really, really, really fun for me."
"Girls are like sponges," he says. "They take everything I say and they play so hard. They can mess it up, but man, they play real hard.
It's flag football. Blocking is more about staying on the path, and the Oxford blockers put their hands behind their backs not to use them. It would be a sanction.
There is, however, a lot of football in this brand of flag football. Brooks, who was previously a soccer shift assistant and still serves as the team's operations coach, deploys 1-5-1 and 2-4-1 defensive rosters.
"Probably the biggest turning point of the season is teaching them terms like containment," Brooks said. "If our defensive lineman loses control, then the linebackers have to be second content. If they lose their composure, then the cornerback has to come up and we deploy the cover. "
When the Yellow Jackets struggled to defend a contraband game early in the season, Brooks ran into another terminology gap.
"I said eye candy about three or four times," he said. "I said to stop falling in love with that eye candy three or four times, and I asked a girl at halftime to say, 'What the hell is the eye candy? ""
Yellow Jackets learn quickly. Free Safety Payton Brooks, an eighth-grade student and the coach's niece, had three interceptions at Southeastern.
Oxford runs a triple option offense and crack block dependent reaction sweeps. White, also known for soccer and athletics, runs the show. On potential passes, the Yellow Jackets look to eighth-grade quarterback Gabrielle Lindsey with White in the backfield as a transfer threat.
Sophomore Ashlyn Burns, also a volleyball player and softball fielder, brings speed to the running back or wide catcher. She performs reactive sweeps and often comes back to the backfield.
"I just call it the two-minute offense because we're going down simple routes," Brooks said.
Brooks let his players name games, like "Trojan," where Burns runs a corner route. They run from formations named after animals, such as "eagle" or "jag".
"The first play (Monday) was 'Jag Left, Bunch Strong, Quarterback Sweep Left, Crack'," Brooks said.
The Yellow Jackets have progressed to the point where Brooks allows White to play options games.
White, a "big" football fan from Alabama, said it took a while to learn the triple option.
"I'm not going to lie; it was a little confusing to remember all the pieces, "she said. "I had to go home and see them in my head over and over again. "
The team comes with several personal angles.
Brooks' wife Summer was named Jacksonville State University's intramural flag football female athlete of the year. She was playing wide catcher.
She and their two daughters wanted Brooks to be a flag football coach.
"It gives me a chance to train Sawyer, then Skylar will be in seventh grade next year," he said. "Maybe we'll have the opportunity to have them both on the same team, and dad will be the coach."
Sawyer, also a soccer and cheerleader star, and Wes Brooks worked on backyard soccer during the summer. She said she learned a lot about baseball from her dad and translated her dad to his teammates.
"It's like he's telling me how much he knows about baseball and how much he loves baseball, and making him like something I do the same way he does baseball is pretty cool. "Sawyer said. "I also love to see that coaching side, and now to see it as a player, being coached by someone who cares so much about a team is pretty amazing."
Burns had an idea of what to expect from Wes Brooks. Her mother, then Amy Brannon, took on the leadership role when he coached the Wellborn High girls' basketball team in 2000.
"She said he was going to be tough on you," Burns said. "It's just because he loves you and just not to take him to heart, because he's just trying to improve you."
Davis has a whole new way of identifying with his brother, now a linebacker with the Houston Texans in the NFL. They play at the same position.
Tae's NFL obligations prevented him from returning home to see Kirsten play, but he watched the video.
"He helps me a lot with the parts and tells me what to do," she said. "As a linebacker he basically coached me on Facetime and said, 'When that happens, do it. "He's just giving me ideas on what to do.
Sports Writer Joe Medley: 256-235-3576. On Twitter: @jmedley_star.


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Lura ist der Name einer Region, einer ehemaligen Gemeinde und mehrerer Dörfer in Nordostalbanien in der Gemeinde Dibra des gleichnamigen Qarks. Der Ort liegt in der Bergregion Lura () auf rund  am Rande des gleichnamigen Nationalparks.

Lura liegt abgeschieden im Lura-Gebirge von hohen Bergen umgeben. Im Westen erhebt sich die Kunora e Lurës (), ein langer von Norden nach Süden verlaufender Bergzug. Östlich von Lura liegt die Runja (Maja Runja e Lurës, ), ein weiterer paralleler Bergzug. Durch einen Einschnitt südlich der Maja e Madhe () besteht ein Übergang ins Drin-Tal. Entwässert wird die Region aber mehrheitlich nach Nordwesten über den Bach Molla e Lurës, der erst bei Krej-Lura seinen Lauf nach Nordosten ändert. Das Dorf Gurë-Lura etwas südlich wird vom Rest durch einen rund  hohen Pass vom Rest getrennt; dieses Tal wird vom Bach Sela nach Osten entwässert.

Bis 2015 war Lura eine eigenständige Gemeinde (komuna). Heute ist sie eine Njësia administrative innerhalb der Bashkia Dibra. Im Jahr 2011 hatte die Gemeinde gemäß Volkszählung 1096 Einwohner, nach Angaben der Lokalbehörden sogar 1482 Einwohner (2014).
 Zur Gemeinde gehörten die Dörfer Fushë-Lura (390 Einwohner nach Angaben der Lokalbehörden), Lura e Vjetër (200 Einwohner), Borie-Lura (247 Einwohner), Pregj-Lura (103 Einwohner), Krej-Lura (120 Einwohner), Arrmall (138 Einwohner), Vlashej (63 Einwohner) und Gurë-Lura (167 Einwohner). Daneben gibt es noch zwei weitere kleine Dörfer.

Weblinks

Einzelnachweise

Ort im Qark Dibra
Ort in Albanien
Dibra (Gemeinde)
Ehemalige Gemeinde in Albanien

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


In commemoration of the forthcoming 60th anniversary of the Munich air disaster, we are running a series looking back at some of the lesser celebrated 'Babes' who lost their lives and some lesser known information about their careers. Today it is the turn of the captain of that side, Roger Byrne.
After breaking into the first team in the 51/52 title winning squad, Roger Byrne went from being a young pup in that side to a leader of men of the generation of 'Babes' who followed him into the Manchester United senior side.
Byrne was as reliable as any player could be, rarely missing a game. In the 1949/50 season he broke into the Central League side and in the following year and a half he played alongside fellow future stars like Mark Jones, Jackie Blanchflower and Dennis Viollet.
Byrne was a triumph of coaching, and the very model of professionalism. Playing nine consecutive games at the start of the 1949/50 season in the Central League in the number 6 shirt, it was quickly determined that he wasn't a half back. Byrne was then moved to the number 11 shirt and showed some goalscoring prowess with a couple of goals in his handful of games in that role in the second half of the season.
And despite starting the following season in the same vein – with 4 goals in 12 games before December not the worst return for an outside left – Murphy and Whalley felt that they had seen something different in the player.
They moved him to left back, and he played fifteen games there in the second half of the reserve season, more or less adapting to that role right away. Byrne's obvious ability on the ball and his versatility had also helped him stand out as a leader. It was a testament to both player and coaching that such tremendous foresight was shown.
With the coaches perhaps wanting to ensure his stunning form at full-back hadn't been a flash in the pan, Byrne was given a run of games in the number 3 shirt at Central League at the start of the 1951/52 season before he made his first team debut in a 0-0 draw at Liverpool in November 1951 and never looked back.
Jimmy Murphy said of Byrne: "Roger Byrne, a superbly built athlete had already won a League Championship as a winger before he became our regular left back and captain.
Murphy would also say that Byrne would have been part of an England team that could have won the 1958 World Cup.
Byrne was that little bit older than the other Babes. And though his own career had benefitted from their guidance, he wasn't so besotted with the teachings of Murphy and Busby that he wouldn't challenge them. If he thought a tactical decision was wrong he would question it, whereas other players like Jones, and Colman, and even Duncan Edwards, believed so much in the word of their coaches that they wouldn't even question it.
For Busby and Murphy, this made Byrne the perfect captain – someone who, whilst never exactly belligerent, was not indoctrinated enough by their methods that he wouldn't ask why when told how high to jump. Though a defender by nature, Byrne's attitude on the pitch and as skipper was similar to that of a Bryan Robson or Roy Keane.
As Murphy said, Byrne's introduction into the first team mirrored his Central League transition, first of all starting him at left wing, before moving him further back once he had become acclimatised to the rough and tumble of first team football. That accounts for his goal tally gradually decreasing – after scoring 11 goals in his first seventy games, there were just another 9 in the following 210. Byrne played 280 times for United, with twenty goals.
Byrne was at his peak when the Munich Air Disaster took his life. Matt Busby described his captain as 'majestic'. There is a reason why many historians name Byrne in their all-time best United team.
Additionally, this series will not feature Duncan Edwards in great detail. So much has been written about Duncan that there was little point writing an individual feature about him, but he was featured in the first in this series which included Eddie Colman. Tommy Taylor will also not feature due to the intention of this series, to shine a light on those young players who came through the Central League, and to present some facts and figures that most supporters are unlikely to know.


Looking for ideal Wood White Paper 70g Manufacturer & supplier ? We have a wide selection at great prices to help you get creative. All the Offset Printing Paper 78gsm are quality guaranteed. We are China Origin Factory of Offset Printing Paper 68gsm. If you have any question, please feel free to contact us.


ŠKODA has collaborated with Czech specialists Robodrone to implement the first testing phase. The drone is equipped with LIDAR (light detection and ranging) technology to accurately identify and count unoccupied containers at the car manufacturer's factory in Mladá Boleslav. The data is then automatically transferred to the logistics department to be processed.
Testing has been live since May 2018 and the technology has seamlessly integrated into ŠKODA's regular operations. During the next development phase, the drone will get its own 'nest' and the battery-powered device will then be able to autonomously navigate to a charging station.


Who believes that smart growth caused the recession?
So, I have a question. This might sound like I'm trying to be snarky, but I'm actually genuinely in search of an answer: Is there any economist out there other than Wendell Cox and Joel Kotkin who actually believes this?
This all should give some pause to the relentless hoopla about the country's supposed "urban renaissance." The roots of the current economic crisis lie deep in urban economies, where employment growth that has lagged even in good times. During the last economic expansion, urban job growth was roughly one-sixth that of suburbs and one-third that of smaller communities.
I believe the smart growth-caused-the-subprime-mortgage theory originated with Wendell Cox, and while Joel Kotkin's statement is rather vague and leaves a lot of wiggle room, it sure sounds like he's buying into it, too. Any others to add to the list?
I don't understand. Hasn't Randal O'Toole shown that land use policies rapidly inflated housing prices? And that in places without such stringent land use policies there was no housing bubble?
I'm sure he's tried, but especially if he isn't distinguishing between density-forbidding and sprawl-forbidding ones, I can't imagine he's had much success – the bubble clearly hit sprawling Sunbelt cities the hardest and dense East and West Coast cities the least.
It might have played a minor role, but it was nowhere near a primary cause.
I have to admit that Kotkin is skillful at mixing fact and fantasy – but what he leaves out is just as important as what he says. He makes no mention of the massive intervention that continues to favor the non-urban over the urban, from regulations to tax subsidies to corporate welfare. He's right that cities are the locus of the worst of the money-grabbing that's dragging us down – not because of "smart growth" or "ultra-expensive new trains" but because that's where the power is. He's surely right that Obama's dreadfully flawed HSR plans won't go anywhere – but there's no mention of the even more expensive investments that will be required of all taxpayers to finance the roads-only transportation network that Obama's opponents envision – presumably, the pretence that roads are financed solely by users will continue to be common wisdom.


text:
Home » Google
No more Google Video, Contents will be Moved to YouTube
Almost three years back, in 2009, Google stopped the accepting videos to Google Video. And now, they have officially announced that they are shutting down the service. But no content from Google Video will be lost or deleted. YouTube is to take over all the videos hosted in Google Video. Everything will be moved to YouTube this summer.
From the official blog post :
Later this summer, all remaining hosted video on Google Video will be moved to YouTube. Google Video stopped taking uploads in May 2009 and now we're moving the remaining hosted content to YouTube as private videos. Google Video users can rest assured that you won't be losing any of your content as it will be fully available on YouTube, and you can choose to make those videos public on YouTube if you'd like.
Google ensures the users about the protection of their videos on Google Video. You will have the option to manually transfer and delete your videos to YouTube before 20th of August, 2012 from here. If you don't move them yourself, Google themselves will be doing to for you. But if you don't want any of those videos on YouTube, then simply delete them.
All the videos will be made private on YouTube once moved. But you can change the state to public whenever you like.
By Bimal Roy on 07/03/2012
How to Download Youtube Videos in Google Chrome
How to Speed Up Youtube Video Buffering and Streaming
How to Create Video Playlists in Youtube
How to Stop or Prevent Buffering of Youtube Videos
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BRITISH MEDIA TAKEN TO SMEARING ANTI-ISLAMIC-SUPREMACY EDL ACTIVISTS AS 'RACISTS' IN CONNECTION WITH PROTEST IN NOTTINGHAM ENGLAND……. – The Tundra Tabloids…….
The English Defence League are a multi-ethnic organization that originated in 2009, to defend the country against extremism, militant Islam and Sharia law in the UK.
Previous Post Previous Post MORE BLOOD LIBELS AGAINST ISRAELIS THANKS TO THE AFTONBLADET…….
There a differnt source, who could get as arguments for the rassiat standing of EDL.
May be not every islam-criticism is rassist motivated.
But there are rassist movements in anti-islamistic organisations.
The EDL also has some strong relationsship with the violent Hooligans in Britain. People nobody want to have on coffee table on Sundays.
ISLAM is the worst form of Fascism,those whites who support the Islamists are secretly anti-semites,neo-nazi and anti-british.
Lets not forget that members of Hitlers Muslim SS came from Palestine,Turkey and other Islamic countries.


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Auburn Downtown Merchants Association to host Downtown Dribble
Auburn Downtown Merchants Association will host Downtown Dribble on Oct. 11 in an effort to promote local businesses.
By Drew Daws | Campus Writer
Cameron Brasher | Staff Photographer
Toomer's Drug's during the Come Home to the Corner event on Friday, Sept. 14, 2018 in Auburn, Ala.
Jessica Kohn, downtown coordinator for the association, said the event will give people the opportunity to experience much of what downtown has to offer.
"The Downtown Dribble will feature exclusive merchant specials and waived cover charges at local bars with the purchase of a wristband," Kohn said. "This event is really geared more toward students."
The association believes it's important to offer incentives to students and community members so that they will support local businesses.
"Over 20 merchants are participating in this special event," Kohn said. "There will also be giant yard games and outdoor dining areas on College and Magnolia."
This is an Entertainment District event. Patrons who purchase tickets ahead of time will receive special perks, she said.
"The first 200 (people) to purchase a wristband will receive a downtown discount card," Kohn said.
Participants will also have the opportunity to win a unique piece of sports memorabilia.
"Everyone who purchases a wristband will be entered to win an Auburn basketball signed by Coach Pearl," Kohn said.
Guests can purchase wristbands from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at a tent located near Toomer's.
The association worked in conjunction with Tipoff at Toomers: a kick-off event for the university's basketball season.
Drew Daws | Campus Writer


in JMP 8 dt2 used to refer the newly created (for example "Untitled #") table but in JMP 10 it doesn't refer to new table. This is giving erroneous results as dt2 reference is wrong.
I would appreciate if anyone can point me on how to refer to newly created table...specifically for newly created Control chart limits table.
Also, noted that in JMP 10 the script doesn't output the graphs to window is that the reason why the reference is failing?
In the above the problem seems to be in cc<<save limits (in new table); statement as there is no new table created in the first place. Not sure what changed in JMP 10 for this to not work. Any pointers?
Your code works fine in JMP 10 for me. What happens if you try to save limits in new table manually? Is the option available, and if so, is the table created?
dt3 = cc << save limits( in new table ); //This works too!
MS thanks for getting back to me. In JMP 10.0.1 Release:2 (Win 7) cc<< save limits(in new table); didn't work not sure if it's a version bug.


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Karl Oyston interview
Robert Cuthbert
Karl Oyston, the chairman of Blackpool Football Club, on keeping a busy social diary, introducing people to shooting and regenerating a country estate.
TAGS: Interviews
Robert Cuthbert: Has this been a typical season?
Karl Oyston: "Yes. We've done about 10 days so far. We've had two grouse days where we live at Meanley, in the Trough of Bowland, and another grouse day on a moor my wife has over at Darwen, near Blackburn. A day up at Queensbury Estates… Drumlanrig, the Duke of Buccleuch's place, and a partridge day with a pal in Bronte country in West Yorkshire. Claughton Hall is where I was brought up. It's not far from Lancaster; both Meanley and Claughton have grouse, partridge, pheasant and duck."
RC: That is pretty close to a sporting paradise; the odd trout too?
KO: "No. We're terrible with fish. It's pretty rough, one-dimensional shooting, that's what we do. That's our social life in general, it always has been."
RC: It must be wonderful to be able to play host to people who are curious about shooting and have never really witnessed it first hand.
KO: "Absolutely. There is nothing better than introducing new people to shooting. You come across a lot of fantastic people. I spent a lot of years beating and picking-up on local shoots and I think if I ever stopped shooting I'd go back to that. The whole link to nature and creation of habitat, the dog handling, it makes everything worthwhile."
RC: Do many people from the world of football shoot?
KO: "Loads. There really are quite a few footballers and people within the sport who shoot from time to time: Theo Paphitis; David Sheepshanks, who used to be the chairman at Ipswich; and Rupert Lowe, who used to be in charge at Southampton – he's a mad keen shooter. The late Nigel Doughty, who used to own Nottingham Forest, was very keen."
RC: What about the beating and picking-up; who opened your eyes to all this?
KO: "I started going out shooting when I was six or seven with my father. When we moved to Claughton Hall, which at the time was 60-odd acres, we used to go sneaking about together shooting the odd pheasant and rabbit. I was probably a pain in the backside for him, running around and picking-up the birds he'd shot. Around about the mid- to late-1980s we expanded it to what it is now. Claughton Hall estate is now 3,000 acres. We have grown it over the last 20 years or so. We've regenerated dozens of miles of dry-stone walls, planted hedges and new woodland, created ponds, farmed to favour ground-nesting waders and grouse and just tried to turn it round in general. Where we live now at Meanley, my wife had gone through the same process with her late husband and pretty much mirrored what I've done at Claughton."
RC: It must be rewarding to engineer the regeneration of an estate?
KO: "It is and it's surprising how you can actually make a big impact in so little time. Take the two grouse days we've just shot at Meanley. This time about three years ago we did a joint venture with one of our neighbours, Robert Parker from Browsholme Hall. We had some unmanaged moorland on top of the hill with a few grouse on, so we did a deal and put the land together. We shoot it together and we've put a keeper on, Aaron, and he's done wonders. In the first year he took over, the breeding count was 22 birds, although it may have been pairs. Anyway, it was a very low number. We shot two days this time and we shot 47 brace and 28 brace, which are the first two days we have shot."
RC: Which guns do you use?
KO: "A Beretta SO3, and that stems back to when I was 17 or 18 when my father bought me a pair of SO3s."
RC: Is it a family thing – do you have children who are involved?
KO: "Yes, we have eight children who all shoot to an extent; we have a few family days. I'm really fortunate; I met my wife through shooting, so I'm probably one of the luckiest men alive. At our peak we shot over 80 days a season together. She's a bloody good shot as well."
Karl Oyston is a supporter of A Soldier's Journey – a-soldiers-journey.co.uk
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text:
Shock Exit: 'Outstanding' £18m Liverpool star pushing to quit Anfield after Rodgers' snub vs. Bournemouth
On Monday, Reds boss Brendan Rodgers excluded Mamadou Sakho from Liverpool's match day squad for the second game in a row, and reports in France today suggest that the 'outstanding' France defender remains eager to quit Anfield before the transfer window closes.
July 2015: La Lazio Siamo Noi claimed that Sakho - who cost Liverpool £18m - 'asked his agents' to find him a new club.
Aug 2015: An alleged CalcioMercato exclusive claimed that Sakho is one of Roma's top transfer targets.
Aug 2015: The Daily Express reported that Liverpool are 'in talks' with Roma over a possible deal.
Now, according to French newspaper L'Equipe:
* After being snubbed for the Bournemouth game, Sakho is 'questioning' his future at Liverpool.
* Sakho is 'interested' in signing for Roma, who remain keen on a transfer.
Sky Sports further reports:
"According to Sky sources, Liverpool have rejected approaches from Roma and Bayer Leverkusen for Mamadou Sakho"
Additional reports add that Leverkusen's best offer will be £7m (!)
A few points to consider:
* Rodgers failed to include Sakho in Liverpool's 16-man squad for the club's pre-season friendly against HJK Helsinki.
* Rodgers described Helsinki as the 'most successful team in Finland', and said he'd approach the fixture 'like a Premier League game'.
* Clyne, Lovren, Skrtel, and Gomez started that game, so it was clearly a defensive dry-run for the Premier League opener against Stoke.
* If Rodgers saw Sakho as a starter, he clearly would've included him in the Helsinki squad.
* The fan-created narrative is that Sakho missed the Stoke game due to the birth of his daughter, but the Frenchman trained all week, and travelled to the game, yet didn't even get a place on the bench. Why?
* Liverpool played Stoke FIVE days after the birth of Sakho's daughter. Are we to believe that he wasn't ready to play?
* In-denial fans claims that paternity leave is the reason for Sakho's ongoing omission from the squad, but Liverpool played Bournemouth 13 days after the birth. If Rodgers wanted him in the team, he would've played, irrespective of the birth, and I'm sure Sakho - who is desperate for a first-team place - would've answered the call.
With all this in mind, it's no surprise that Sakho wants out. With the European Championship next summer, he needs to be playing regularly, and it doesn't look like that's going to happen at Liverpool.
Additionally, Rodgers has made a rod for his own back by playing Lovren-Skrtel, and after two clean sheets in a row, the manager has no choice but to stick with the Croatian (which, based purely on merit, is the right decision).
When fit, Sakho is arguably a more effective defender than Lovren, but there's no point changing a settled defensive unit just to accommodate him in the team.
As such, unless Lovren or Skrtel make some major mistakes and/or concede a bucketload of goals (or get injured), Sakho faces an extended spell on the sidelines.
Of course, Liverpool can force Sakho to stay (just as they did with Suarez), but there's little benefit in keeping an unhappy player in the squad.
On a related note: If Liverpool end up selling Sakho for a measly £7m, it will be transfer negligence of the highest order. The best solution is (arguably) a loan deal, with an option to buy next summer.
Some fans may even baulk at that idea, but the reality is that Sakho is increasingly injury prone (Last season: 3 separate injuries; 30 games missed), and with only 46 appearances in 2 seasons (23 per year), he is unreliable.
Ultimately, Sakho's ability is somewhat irrelevant if Liverpool are unable to consistently benefit, so letting him leave might be the best solution all round...
survey solution


text:
Q: How to install librdkafka with Kerberos? So I am trying to write a script where the data comes from a database and then gets published into a kafka topic. I am using the confluent-kafka due to its speed.
The kafka has kerberos configured thus, I have to enable it in my producer. I have the keytab and the required config parameters.
As far as I understand I need to manually install librdkafka + it's dependencies and then install the confluent-kafka from source.
So till now I have installed the following dependencies:
1. yum install cyrus-sasl.
2. yum install cyrus-sasl-devel
3. yum install cyrus-sasl-lib
4. yum install cyrus-sasl-gssapi
5. yum install openssl-devel
6. yum install openssl

When I try to execute the following command yum install librdkafka it gives me as error:
No package librdkafka. Error: Nothing to do

I was hoping this would install librdkafka and then I could execute the following command pip install --no-binary :all: confluent-kafka and get the confluent-kafka working with kerberos.

*

*Could anyone tell me if I am doing this right as I haven't been able to find any guide regarding this.

*I may also be missing some dependencies, if that is the case feel free to point it out.

*Lastly, if my procedure till now or for the future is flawed, do point it out and please advise how to go about it.

System Info:

OS: rhel-7-server

P.S If there are any additional info required, let me know I will update the post accordingly.

A: The latest version of librdkafka is not generally available in RHEL, you should use the Confluent RPM repository to get the most up to date version.

*

*Add the Confluent RPM repository

*Install librdkafka devel packages: yum install librdkafka-devel

*Build and install the confluent-kafka-python client with python setup.py install or pip install .

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The Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Color assembly supports color image processing functions.
Main imaging demo (Windows Forms) <installdir>\Examples\DotNet\<CS/VB>\MainDemo Demonstrates core Raster / Document / Medical imaging functionality of LEADTOOLS, including image file import/export, image display, image processing, scanning, and more.
Demonstrates the LEADTOOLS Image Processing functionality. Applies Image Processing filters to images.
Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Core.dll Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Core.winmd The Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Core namespace includes more filters and transforms to process images (or selected portions). It includes mostly methods for medical, document and detection transforms, such as multiscale enhancement, registration mark transformation, document cleaning, and others.
Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Effects.dll Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Effects.winmd The Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Effects namespace includes filters and transforms to process images (or selected portions). It includes methods to smooth, sharpen, detect/enhance edges, remove noise or combine two or more images.
Leadtools.ImageProcessing.SpecialEffects.dll Leadtools.ImageProcessing.SpecialEffects.winmd The Leadtools.ImageProcessing. SpecialEffects namespace includes filters and transforms to process images (or selected portions). It includes methods for applying artistic effects such as ripple, warp, tunnel, lens flare, colored pencil, and others.
Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Utilities.dll Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Utilities.winmd The Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Utilities namespace includes properties, methods and events for displaying and rendering images to any display device, including printers.
leadtools.imageprocessing.color.jar Android package and shared object library support for the Leadtools.ImageProcessing.Color namespace.


Launching through the PlayStation Store on August 27 in Europe is inFamous: First Light, a standalone piece of inFamous: Second Son content that stars Fetch Walker and gives us insight into her past. If you'd rather get a physical version of inFamous: First Light though, PlayStation Europe has announced that it will arrive on September 10 (no price given).
For North America, there was no mention of a physical release, so it looks like First Light will be digital-only when it launches on August 26.


The release of mapping between International Securities Identification Numbers (ISINs) and Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) by the Association of National Numbering Agencies' (ANNA) and the Global LEI Foundation (GLEIF) has received a positive industry response, but also raised questions about why a significant number of National Numbering Agencies within ANNA have not yet opted into the initiative.
The GLEIF initially talked about plans to map ISINs and BIC codes to LEIs to enhance their use back in April 2017. Swift and the GLEIF fulfilled their plans to deliver a BIC-to-LEI relationship file in early 2018. An ISIN-to-LEI relationship file was introduced late last week with the aim of improving transparency of exposure by linking the legal issuing entity to its issuance of securities, and addressing some of the regulatory requirements under the Prospective Directive, Central Securities Depositories Regulation (CSDR) and Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR).
ANNA and the GLEIF have been working on the technical development of mapping ISINs to corresponding LEIs over the past nine months, an exercise that has brought together two ISO standards – ISIN ISO 6166 and LEI ISO 17442 – and provides a consolidated view of ISIN-to-LEI links provided by National Numbering Agencies (NNAs) to the ANNA Service Bureau and on to the GLEIF. The published ISIN-to-LEI mapping is freely available to all on the GLEIF website.
Audience members of a webinar on data standards and global identifiers hosted by A-Team Group this week noted that ISIN-to-LEI mapping is a real value add for data management practitioners. They also questioned why only a limited number of NNAs are currently taking part in the initiative. According to ANNA and the GLEIF, 11 NNAs opted in from the start, with others expected to follow in coming months.


his hemp fuelled and cellulose-plastic prototype car.
The panels composed of 70% cellulose fibres proved to have the impact strength 10 times stronger than steel and the car was to run on hemp-ethanol.
"The experimental model is pictured as a step toward materialization of Henry Ford's belief that some day he would "grow automobiles from the soil."
He added: "It will be a car of darn sight better design in every form. And don't forget the motor car business is just one of the industries that can find new uses for plastics, made from what's grown in the land!"
—Iron Age Magazine, 1941, as cited by Herbert Chase, Society of Automobile Engineers in 30 March 1941 New York Times.


text:
MTMTE Celebration
Moor than meets the eye > About Us > News > News Articles > MTMTE Celebration
Over 150 people joined us to celebrate the successes of the MTMTE scheme over the last 5 years at a special event which took place in Manaton on Friday 5th July. There were presentations from a range of people who have been involved in the scheme from partner organisations to project leaders. One of the common threads that came out of the afternoon was the huge impact we have made on caring for our wild and built and cultural heritage and the impact that it has on all of us who have worked together. Speakers paid tribute to the dedication, patience, enthusiasm and expertise that people had contributed to the projects. To complete the celebration the afternoon ended with a hogroast and a chance to chat to each other. The big question now is what happens next?
Parishscapes will help local communities to come together to explore their parish landscape and discover the heritage within it. Moor than meets the eye will help communities by providing a toolkit of resources and a grant scheme. This will enable local communities to make decisions about their heritage and develop projects that celebrate, care for and increase understanding of and improve the heritage of the parish-landscape.
Ashburton was one of Moor than meets the eye's pilot Parishcapes parishes alongside Moretonhampstead, Lustleigh and North Bovey. The Guild of St Lawrence, who manage the grade II listed St Lawrence Chapel, have developed a comprehensive research project which will look into all aspects of medieval Ashburton.
Last update: 11 Jul 2019 10:57am


text:
static NSString *const RMEmberPresetPrivacyKey = @"privacyLevel";
static NSString *const RMEmberPresetCollectionKey = @"collectionSlug";
static NSString *const RMEmberPresetCategoryKey = @"categorySlug";

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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Our "Blank Canvas" exhibition was about giving the same amount of wall space to 7 different artists and give them complete freedom of expression.
Three artists from Benin - Dominique Zinkpe, Tchif, Gerard Quenum - and 4 artists from Nigeria - Victor Ehikhamenor, Uche Uzorka, Obinna Makata, Uchay Joel Chima - presented their works during this exhibition, each having their very own style.
The common theme of the exhibition was to allow the artist to do what they do best: express themselves through art. Our job was to showcase it.
Uche Uzorka was born in 1974 in Delta State, Nigeria. Uzorka graduated in 2001 from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, majoring in painting. Uzorka's practice incorporates painting, collage, cutting and pasting, charcoal, and ink drawing in an examination of processes of urban street culture.
A self taught artist, Tchif took part in many exhibitions and has been invited worldwide to present his work (Brasil, Holland, France, germany, Belgium, Portugal…). The National Museum of Africa Art of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, selected him for one of its largest exhibitions organized around the ''Earth Matters''contemporary african art for a full year.
He is one of this generation's artist who plays a great part in the world of contemporary art. Tchif has always been painting. He throws himself into creation in an instinctive, emotional, sensual way. His hand is his favorite tool. Although matter and colour are at the heart of his paintings, he is not limited to this technic.
First of all, I try to use a collection of various African textile to develop a style which I call "AFRICAN TEST STYLE". This series of works deals with the impact of excessive acquisition of material things in the contemporary African society. A period where the sustenance of everything African is facing a big challenge of test of time - things like language, social life, fashion, Religion etc. The obsession of consuming not just products but also a "life style" is something that bothers me not just as an African but also as an Artist.
In tackling this problem, I try to look into the social, economic, and political implications of consuming without producing. In doing this, I use the ostentatious nature of the fashion industry in Lagos state as a case study.
In most of my works there is no dichotomy between the real and the spiritual; they are almost one and the same. When you look closely at my art you see various human facial expressions and forms of life. At first glance they appear to be abstract, until you spend enough time and the figures invite you into their own lives. Similarly, when I draw on a newspaper, invitation or postcard, what first appears to be an obfuscation of the original turns out to be a transformation into something new. Is that magical, is that real? The question is usually left to the viewer to ascertain.
Are figurines following a traditional belief and practice - that of the cult of twins.
The physical elegance and the stories that embody these little beings pushed me to develop the concept of the Gemini.
Between my hands, new shapes are born; starting from sculptures and creating others are creative explorations that lead to a universe that is profoundly contemporary.
One of the most compelling features of Gérard's work is his examination of the concept of history. The dolls are steeped in their own particular histories, in and out of Africa, histories which draw them close and link them inextricably with the people who made, loved, used and discarded them over the years. They animate the objects to which they are attached: hoes, drums, mortars for pounding fufu – even the staff of a babalawo or diviner over there. Like the simple figurines, bocio, used by the babalawo for centuries, Gérard's work ensures that these objects, like the living fabric of society which they represent – WILL NEVER DIE.
From Chris Spring's talk at the opening of Gérard Quenum exhibition.
Every human contains a goldmine of ceaseless potential. But while some live with the awareness of what they contain, many never discover theirs and are lost in the crowd.
With all the focus on the oil wells in Niger Delta, the much needed investment in manpower development is still not far fetched. And with us living in an era where many jobs are being automated, the consequences are dire. We have seen our school system failing for inadequate funding and lack of consensus as to how to prepare the next generation for the world they will inherit.
When the people are empowered, great opportunities come together and the 'Giant' ceases to walk on clutches. Igwebuike!


Whether it's Starbucks, Nike or the Java Hut at the corner, just about every company has its own specialized brand these days. The way Michael D. Brown sees it, it's time you had your own as well.
The author believes the "power of the brand" — in this case your own personal brand — can help you land that dream job, win a coveted promotion, or move from a dead-end job to one of fulfillment.
By branding, Mr. Brown means emphasizing the personal qualities and skills that make you stand out, the things you can do better than anyone else, and how they can deliver for your prospective employer or your new boss.


- Kicked around three continents in three languages in the computer industry, doing everything from development to sales to management.
- In 2002 changed careers to writing.
- Has been lead or assistant writer on eighteen published titles across pretty much every platform and genre: two more titles are coming in late 2013 and the first half of 2014.
Obsessions include storytelling and player experience in games, narrative design and delivery, character development, and the impact of genre (game and literary) on storytelling.
DEVELOP salary survey -- Way to go, guys!
Another annual survey is up, and I can only congratulate DEVELOP magazine for their bold decision to exclude any role that includes the title "writer" or "narrative" from the survey.
This is a link to a an article I did for the IGDA Newsletter about writing for casual games. Its goal is to suggest some of the shortcuts that might be helpful to transmit a fairly rich story in a limited space.
Non-linearity is generally trumpeted as the biggest problem for a game writer or narrative designer. This is not always the case -- after all, there are relatively linear games. In my opinion the real complexity lies in the nature of game design itself.
A recent article in the L.A. Times dealt with voice actors in games and their working conditions. Having spent a lot of time in the studio, I wanted to point out a few errors in the article and present the game developer's point of view.
It occasionally happens that designers are frustrated by a writer who imposes 'his' story on 'their' level or game design. Here are five reasons why this might happen, and why the writer may not be the guilty party.
What Is A Good Game Story?
Are the fundamentals of a good story medium-dependent, or is there such a thing as a universally 'good' story regardless of delivery? This is a question that I would like to address during the next few posts; it may or may not be answerable.
Are you a game designer, or a fiction writer?
Sad ending: Is good storytelling at odds with 'winning'?


As a first step we recommend you come for an assessment. You will be guided through the process by one of our therapists.
During the assessment you will have a chance to get a feel for how we work, time to tell us your story, to explain to us what you hope to gain from therapy and what your reservations might be.
As the assessment draws to a close, we begin to think together about the best way forward for you and what might be the most appropriate way forward.


text:
Arkansas House passes toughest abortion law in US
Photo from wikipedia.org (Daniel Schwen) © Wikipedia
Under new legislation voted upon by the Arkansas House, victims of rape and incest will no longer be able to procure abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy as the Republican-dominated legislature tries to crack down on abortions.
Representatives on Monday voted 75-20 to approve the measure, which would also block insurers from paying for abortions if they participate in the state-sponsored health insurance exchange under the Affordable Care Act. If the law goes into effect, insurers who violate it would face a class D felony prosecution, which can result in up to six years imprisonment and a $10,000 fine.The abortion ban would apply to any pregnant woman who has carried a fetus for 20 weeks or more and only exempt potential mothers who are at serious risk of substantial and irreversible physical impairment or death from childbirth.The bill comes after the Arkansas Senate last week voted to approve a more restrictive ban, which bans abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detected and could prohibit the procedure as early as five weeks. The proposed bill would be the most restrictive abortion ban in the US.The Arkansas legislature's unwavering pursuit of tighter abortion laws has angered pro-choice lobbyists and members of Planned Parenthood."Extreme groups pushing these bills want to eliminate abortion," Planned Parenthood lobbyist Murry Newbern told Reuters. "The bill has nothing to do with the health and safety of a woman. It's an attempt to chip away access to abortion."The initiative may also be an unnecessary push against a fictional problem: in Arkansas, only two abortions were performed after 20 weeks of pregnancy in 2011, which Newbern says were both likely due to pregnancy complications.Rep. Greg Leding, the top Democrat in the Arkansas House, said the new measure also forces pregnant women to give birth to fetuses that are crippled or permanently sick or injured, thereby being "incompatible with life". He also told AP that the measure is unfair to victims of rape or incest, some of which might themselves still be children."The case made for that exclusion is that a woman should have been able to make that decision early in her pregnancy," Leding said. "But what if that woman is a 12-year-old girl and she's raped by a family member or friend and she's too afraid to speak or at that young age is simply unaware that she's pregnant?"Rep. Butch Wilkins, the author of the bill, argued that the measure also prevents public money from going towards abortions. But this is already banned by state and federal law. With only two abortions occurring after 20 weeks of pregnancy in a one-year period in Arkansas and existing legislation already banning public funding of the procedure, the bill seems to hardly accomplish much and simply places restrictions on rape and incest victims or women who might be carrying a permanently damaged fetus.As for the bill banning abortions after a detected fetal heartbeat, Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe believes it may be unconstitutional."Obviously, we don't want to pass unconstitutional laws and end up in court costing taxpayers tons of money," he told Reuters, without explaining why he believes the bill might be unconstitutional. But Beebe said the two bills have a lot of support in the legislature and have a good chance of passing.But if Arkansas' pro-life legislators win in another fight against abortion, pro-choice advocates have already pledged they will sue the state."They're both unconstitutional, and I think they're both cruel to woman and families," said Bettina Brownstein, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas. Opponents claim that the "heartbeat" ban in particular is questionable, since it contradicts the US Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion up until viability – usually at 22 to 24 weeks, as opposed to the five weeks at which a heartbeat can often be detected."I understand the governor has some constitutional concerns and he's analyzing it. I am too," said Republican House Speaker Davy Carter.Only seven US states currently ban abortion after the 20-week mark, and similar laws already approved in Arizona and Georgia are facing legal challenges because of their passage. With Arkansas' proposed "heartbeat" law being the most restrictive in the US, it too could soon face its own flurry of legal problems if it decides to pass the measures.
French parliament eyes plan for govt to pay for all abortions
More than 10,000 protest in Ireland over woman's death from denied abortion
New Mexico moves to ban aborting rape pregnancies as 'tampering with evidence'
Tens of thousands march in Washington anti-abortion rally
Native American confronts 'anti-illegal immigration' protesters (VIDEO)


text:
Judgment Categories Binding Financial Agreement
1: Thorne v Kennedy [2017] HCA 49 | November 8, 2017
Court or Tribunal: High Court of Australia
Catchwords: Appeal, Binding Financial Agreement, Binding Financial Agreement, Post-Nuptial Agreement, Pre-Nuptial Agreement, Pre-Nuptial Agreement
Judges: Bell JEdelman JGageler JGordon JKeane JKiefel CJNettle J
Background: He was a multi-millionaire property developer, she was his much younger Eastern European bride who spoke little English. The couple met online in 2006 on a "website for potential brides" when the husband was 67 and she was 36. The husband, known as Mr Kennedy, had assets of at least $18 million. He was divorced from his first wife and had three adult children. Soon after he met the wife online, he told her that if they married, "you will have to sign paper. My money is for my children." The agreement said the wife was to receive a total payment of $50,000 adjusted for inflation in the event of separation after at least three years of marriage. It also provided for the wife to receive a penthouse worth up to $1.5m, a Mercedes and continuing income, in the event the husband die
[Legal Issue]The Federal Circuit Court initially set aside the agreements, finding that they were signed "under duress born of inequality of bargaining power where there was no outcome to her that was fair and reasonable". However, the Full Family Court ruled the agreements were binding, and said there had not been duress, undue influence or unconscionable conduct on the husband's part. The High Court disagreed. It said the primary judge's conclusion of undue influence was open on the evidence and it was unnecessary to decide whether the agreements could have also been set aside for duress. The case will now be sent back for the Federal Circuit Court to decide how the property pool should be divided between the two. Ms Thorne is seeking orders for a further $1.1 million plus a lump [Court Orders]1.Appeal allowed. 2.Set aside the orders of the Full Court of the Family Court of Australia made on 26 September 2016 and, in their place, order that the appeal to that Court be dismissed with costs. 3.The respondent pay the appellant's costs of the appeal to this Court.
2: Kennedy & Thorne [2016] FamCAFC 189 | September 26, 2016
Catchwords: Binding Financial Agreement, Binding Financial Agreement, Post-Nuptial Agreement, Pre-Nuptial Agreement, Pre-Nuptial Agreement
Judges: Aldridge JCronin JStrickland J
Background: The parties met over the internet in early to mid-2006. She was a 36 year old, born and living overseas with limited English skills. She was previously divorced, had no children and no assets of substance. He was a 67 year old, was a property developer and worth approximately $18 to $24 million. He was divorced from his first wife, with whom he had three children, now all in adulthood. Having met on a dating website in early to mid-2006, the parties then commenced speaking with each other on the telephone. They spoke in English and in (language omitted). The applicant agreed that the deceased said to her: "I will come to (country omitted) and we will see if we like each other. If I like you I will marry you but you will have to sign paper. My money is for my children."
[Legal Issue]The Federal Circuit Court initially set aside the agreements, finding that they were signed "under duress born of inequality of bargaining power where there was no outcome to her that was fair and reasonable". However, the Full Family Court ruled the agreements were binding, and said there had not been duress, undue influence or unconscionable conduct on the husband's part. [Court Orders]The appeal be allowed.
3: Thorne & Kennedy [2015] FCCA 484 | March 4, 2015
Catchwords: Post-Nuptial Agreement, Pre-Nuptial Agreement
Judges: Judge Demack
[Legal Issue]Both agreements were set-aside by the Court because the Court agreed that Ms Thorne signed the agreements because she was under duress. The Court found that Ms Thorne had no negotiating power at all. She fully understood the deceased's position, that she either sign or there would be no marriage. The husband did not negotiate on the terms of the agreement. He did not offer to negotiate. He did not create any opportunities to negotiate. The agreement, as it was, was to be signed or there would be no wedding. Without the wedding, there is no evidence to suggest that there would be any further relationship. Ms Thorne understood that if the relationship ended, she would have nothing. No job, no visa, no home, no place, no community. The consequences of the relationship being at an en [Court Orders]The wife has been wholly successful in this hearing. The Court has found that both binding financial agreements, including the one prior to the wedding and the one after the wedding, being 26 September 2007 and 20 November 2007 respectively, are not binding upon the parties. Thus are are null and void. As such, both agreements have been set-aside and will not be followed as to the distribution of the estate of Mr Kennedy. The Court has set a new date to determine how much Ms Thorne can
4: Wallace & Stelzer and Anor [2013] FamCAFC 199 | December 11, 2013
Catchwords: Appeal, Binding Financial Agreement, Binding Financial Agreement, Pre-Nuptial Agreement
Judges: Finn JRyan JStrickland J
Background: A couple, known by the court as Mr Wallace and Ms Stelzer, met in 1998 at the Sydney club where Ms Stelzer worked soon after Mr Wallace split from his first wife. At the time, he was 51 and she was 38. They married seven years later and entered into a prenuptial agreement that Mr Wallace would pay Ms Stelzer $3.25m if the relationship failed within four years. It failed within two.
[Legal Issue]Mr Wallace tried to renege on their pre-nuptial (binding financial) agreement, arguing that the relevant legislation was unconstitutional because it was retrospective. He argued that his pre-nuptial agreement was signed before the 2010 amendments and so his agreement should be deemed invalid. Mr Wallace also fought to have the pre-nuptial agreement deemed invalid, claiming that Ms Stelzer behaved fraudulently by making "false promises of love and desire for children". He also said his lawyers did not give him adequate legal advice and make clear the pros and cons of the pre-nuptial agreement. He said that his lawyers had taken only minutes to sign it. [Court Orders]The Full Court of the Family Court ruled the pre-nuptial agreement was binding and that the amended legislation "can have a retrospective operation which is constitutionally valid". The woman who previously worked as a pole dancer is set to receive $3.25 million from her ex-husband after the Family Court ruled against his bid to have their pre-nuptial agreement overturned because of her "false promises". The ruling means that there is much more certainty about the validity of pre-nuptial a
5: Schacht v Bruce Lockhart Thompson and Dennis Michael Staunton (trading as Staunton and Thompson Lawyers) (No. 3) [2013] NSWSC 316 | April 10, 2013
Catchwords: Binding Financial Agreement, Binding Financial Agreement, Breach of Duty, Contract, Lawyer Complaints, Pre-Nuptial Agreement, Professional Negligence, Property
Judges: Johnson J
[Legal Issue] [Court Orders]Father of two to be awarded up to $800,000 in damages from his lawyers for professional negligence in preparing a defective binding financial agreement (pre-nuptial agreement).
6: Herold & Kay [2012] FMCAfam 1071 | October 4, 2012
Catchwords: Binding Financial Agreement, Property, Property Settlement
Judges: Jarrett FM


text:
Articles published in August, 2019
I rely on Google Calendar to tell me where I am supposed to be, when and with whom. When the service collapsed for an afternoon last month, it felt like a teachable moment. For a few seconds, I panicked. Then, I realised that with all the meetings gone, I was free to do some real work.
I know I'm not the only person who loves to hate meetings. Will There Be Donuts?, a book by David Pearl, skewers the "Wagner meeting" (of epic length), the "mushroom meeting" (appears suddenly, multiplies rapidly) and the "Stonehenge meeting" (it's been a fixture for ages but nobody knows why).
Yet Mr Pearl also acknowledges that ineffectual meetings often suit us. Boring meetings make us feel interesting by comparison. Long meetings pass the time. Indecisive meetings postpone painful choices.
Meetings frustrate when they reveal painful disparities in power. For subordinates, meetings are often the things that get in the way of doing their job. For the person with the power — the manager — meetings are the job. The manager can even offload the scheduling on to her secretary. No wonder some staff feel resentful of meetings while their managers are oblivious.
That said, the relentless democracy of a meeting where everybody must be heard is a kind of torture in its own right. Never-ending consultations are a good way to ensure that nothing ever happens and nobody has to take responsibility. Oscar Wilde never said that socialism "would take too many evenings" but if he'd met UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, he surely would have.
Some meetings are to transfer information, some to allow discussion and some to reach a decision or resolve a problem. There are committee meetings that exist to satisfy some rule or regulation. I am on such a committee, and find it useful as a reminder not to sign up for any other committees. Then there are the meetings that exist purely for the sake of meeting. Don't dismiss them; there's nothing wrong with consenting adults enjoying a coffee break together. There doesn't always need to be a reason.
But nothing undermines a meeting more than a lack of agreement as to why it's happening. I know a school that invites parents in for curriculum meetings. The teachers think they're explaining their approach to the parents; the parents are under the misapprehension they're being asked for their input. Nobody goes away happy.
Yet despite all the well-justified complaints, there are many situations in which there's simply no substitute for a meeting. For quickly co-ordinating a shared task, it's perfect. A few minutes is often sufficient. "Agile" working methods call for a "scrum" in which team members briskly report what they did yesterday, what they're going to do today and if there's anything stopping them. A newspaper's morning editorial conference serves a similar purpose, without the funky terminology.
Or perhaps the meeting is a workshop designed to produce ideas. Some people will assert that meetings are creativity killers, and "a camel is a horse designed by committee". But this is absurd. We've all been in conversations where one idea sparks another. And while an individual can write a novel or paint a portrait, solo creativity is no way to produce nuclear fusion or a new antibiotic. In a world full of specialists, complex projects require collaboration. Meetings can and do generate ideas that no individual could have conceived alone. They do not do so automatically, however.
A persistent myth is that "brainstorming" — the unfiltered, no-wrong-answers, bellowing out of ideas — is a reliable route to innovative brilliance. Psychologist Keith Sawyer, the author of Group Genius, points out that there are many reasons to doubt this. In brainstorming, individuals distract each other, groups fixate on particular topics and some people use the opportunity to stop thinking entirely. Twelve people generate more ideas if they work separately than if they brainstorm together.
The meeting serves a far more important creative purpose when it is time to criticise, evaluate and combine those ideas. Charlan Nemeth, a psychologist at UC Berkeley and author of In Defense of Troublemakers, has found that groups come up with more ideas — and, importantly, better ideas — when they are invited to debate and dissent. It may even be worth breaking the meeting into subgroups with the express purpose of developing competing ideas. "Do not criticise" is a handy rule for new grandparents; it's not a good approach for innovators.
In a daily scrum, everyone arrives with a brisk update and leaves with a crisp to-do list. In a creative workshop, everyone arrives with a boxful of ideas, ready to discard some and weave the rest together. There's a big difference between the two types of meeting, but there's also a clear common thread: people come prepared, have a reason to work together and finish the meeting with a clear sense of what comes next. A good meeting is a good meeting less because of what happens at the time, but because of what came before — and most importantly, what comes after.
Written for and first published in the Financial Times on 26 July 2019.
My book Messy has more on the joys of creative tension. Feel free to order online or through your local bookshop.
23rd of August, 2019 • Undercover Economist • Comments off
US health care is literally killing people
It is astonishing how far the debate on healthcare has moved in the US, at least for the Democrats. Not long ago offering universal, government-funded healthcare was viewed as tantamount to communism; now, it's a touchstone of many presidential hopefuls.
Not before time. The US healthcare system is a monument to perverse incentives, unintended consequences and political inertia. It is astonishingly bad — indeed, it's so astonishingly bad that even people who believe it's bad don't appreciate quite how bad it is.
I don't say this out of any great devotion to the UK alternative. The National Health Service works well enough for a vast tax-funded bureaucracy, but it might work better if we didn't view any attempt at reform as the desecration of a holy institution. Nor do I have bad experiences of US healthcare. My daughter was born in America, where my family had sensitive and expert medical care. But that's what you'd expect with a good health insurance plan — something that many Americans don't have.
Around 27m people — 10 per cent of the non-elderly US population — have no insurance at all. That is precarious, given that a serious illness or accident could incur bankruptcy-inducing costs. Yet the astonishingly large number of people living on the edge is still progress: before the passage of the Affordable Care Act under President Barack Obama, the figure was closer to 45m people.
It's this lack of anything resembling universal access that seems most grotesque to observers from other rich nations. But it's just the beginning of the costs that the US health system imposes on Americans.
The financial costs are most obvious, and they are truly extraordinary. For a family of four, the US system costs about $13,000 a year more than that of Switzerland, which itself is substantially more expensive than any other. The US system costs more than twice as much, per person, as the universal coverage provided by the UK's NHS. Even the government-funded part of the US system costs more per capita than the NHS.
Why so expensive? It's because US doctors prescribe more treatments, and those treatments cost much more than they do elsewhere. Most governments limit the price of treatments, freeriding on the US market to stimulate investment in medicine. American hospitals and drug companies have enormous leeway to raise prices — insurers have limited bargaining power, and uninsured patients even less.
Nor is all this money bringing any obvious reward. Compared with other rich countries, the US ranks at or near the bottom on life expectancy, infant mortality, adolescent pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, drug-related mortality, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, lung disease and arthritis. No, the healthcare system can't be blamed for all that — but it is hardly covering itself with glory.
One of the striking tragedies of modern America, brought to light by the research of the economists Anne Case and Angus Deaton, has been the phenomenon of "deaths of despair", from suicide, alcohol abuse and overdoses. Such deaths go a long way to explaining why mortality rates for middle-aged white Americans have stagnated or perhaps even risen in the US, while falling fast in other rich countries.
I recently had the opportunity to ask Prof Case and Sir Angus to what extent the US healthcare system was to blame. Their answer, in a nutshell: it would be an exaggeration to blame the system entirely but not a gross exaggeration.
The most obvious connection is that the opioids that have played such a role in these deaths of despair were supplied by the healthcare system. Opioids are a simple and profitable palliative for a widespread condition ("I'm in pain") rather than a cure for anything. Doctors and drug companies made more money if they prescribed more opioids, and human nature being human nature, found ways to justify that decision to themselves.
The dysfunction of the US healthcare system has also eaten away at American wellbeing in other ways. Those extraordinary costs — more than $10,000 per person — must be paid by someone. When they are paid by employers, through workplace health plans, rising healthcare spending becomes a substitute for the rising wages that workers so desperately want.
And those extortionate costs also give employers a powerful reason to jettison staff at every opportunity, employing freelancers and subcontractors in the hope of cutting the cost of employer-sponsored health insurance. As a result, people feel disconnected from the workplace. Jobs become insecure ways to scrape a living, rather than sources of identity and pride. For many, despair follows.
Such problems are easier to diagnose than to cure. Reforming American healthcare will require an almighty effort. With politics gridlocked and soaking in lobbyist money, it's not obvious that the US government is capable of running the kind of healthcare system that works elsewhere — even if Congress decides to try. But try it must, because the status quo is a tragedy.
My book "Fifty Things That Made the Modern Economy" (UK) / "Fifty Inventions That Shaped The Modern Economy" (US) is out now in paperback – feel free to order online or through your local bookshop.
9th of August, 2019 • Undercover Economist • Comments off
The strange power of the idea of "average"
"While nothing is more uncertain than a single life, nothing is more certain than the average duration of a thousand lives." The statement is often attributed to the 19th-century mathematician Elizur Wright, who not coincidentally was a life insurance geek. But buried in the aphorism is a humdrum word concealing a powerful idea: the "average".
The idea of taking an average — that is, of adding up (say) a hundred lifespans and dividing the total by a hundred, to produce the arithmetic mean — seems absurdly simple. But Stephen Stigler, a historian of statistics, reckons it is the most radical statistical operation ever devised. I am inclined to agree. The mean has a strange power over the way we think, and not always a benign one.
We do not know who invented the arithmetic mean. The statistician Churchill Eisenhart once tried to trace its history. It was originally used as a way of combining various observations that should be identical, but were not — for example, estimates of the direction of magnetic north.
In 1635 the mathematician Henry Gellibrand used the word "meane" to describe the midpoint of a lowest and highest number — not the same thing — but by 1668, a person known as "DB" was quoted in the Transactions of the Royal Society describing "taking the mean" of five values casually enough to make it clear that the concept was by then established.
Why is this such a powerful idea? As Prof Stigler puts it in The Seven Pillars of Statistical Wisdom, "you can actually gain information by throwing information away". This is true in the straightforward sense that too many numbers become confusing: more than 50m people died last year, but if I could somehow show you a hundred-mile long printout of all their ages at death, you might struggle to learn much from it.
But the mean also eliminates errors. In the context that Gellibrand and DB were writing, taking an average cancels out mistakes in the original observations. This was by no means obvious. When confronted with contradictory measurements, the instinct of mathematicians had been to figure out which one was best and to dismiss the rest. But taking the average was a far better way to eliminate error.
And yet in this method lies a trap, because not all variation is error. The trap was sprung in the 1830s by the hugely influential statistician Adolphe Quetelet, who was an astronomer as well as a founder of the idea of "social physics" — using statistical techniques to understand humans and their societies.
Quetelet asked us to imagine that a thousand sculptors had made a copy of a famous statue of a gladiator. Each copy would have some errors or imperfections — but on average, they would be a perfect copy. So far, so good. But then, Quetelet continued, if we measured a thousand real soldiers and averaged their body measurements, we could get the ideal, perfect soldier. "L'homme moyen" — the average man — was Quetelet's benchmark for perfection. (What about "la femme moyenne"? Well, quite.)
But as Todd Rose points out in The End of Average, Quetelet's logic isn't just andro-centric. It's nonsense. A tall copy of a statue may be an error, but a tall soldier is not — and may well benefit from having superior reach.
Quetelet did not lack for critics. His contemporary, the mathematician and proto-economist AA Cournot, correctly argued that the Average Man probably didn't exist. Victorian statistician Francis Galton was fascinated by averages, yet asserted: "No statistician dreams of combining objects into the same generic group that do not cluster towards a common centre . . . if we do so the result is monstrous and meaningless."
But this idea of the average as perfection did not die. In an age of mass production it was too convenient. Production-line managers and modernist architects found it easy to design for the average person.
In 1943, the sculptor Abram Belskie and obstetrician Robert Dickinson turned Quetelet's metaphor into reality, carving statues of "Normman" and "Norma", based on the average measurements of 15,000 young adults. The US press loved Norma in particular: she was regarded as female perfection, at least from the male perspective. (It would be a stretch to describe the statue as "monstrous".) Yet a competition to find an actual woman who matched her dimensions did not succeed. Being precisely average is not the same thing as being perfect — but it is just as rare.
We no longer have to fall into this trap. It is still hard to personalise rather than standardise — but it is not impossible. Drugs are not best evaluated by the average effect over thousands of patients. Social care will fail if it is designed only for the average recipient, or education for the average pupil. A forecasting model that is correct on average may be a very dangerous model indeed.
Elizur Wright was quite correct to declare that a single life is uncertain; but we should never leap to the conclusion that an average life is ideal.
Written for and first published in the Financial Times on 5 July 2019.
2nd of August, 2019 • Undercover Economist • Comments off


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Cleveland Guardians News
Indians sign six players on first day of international free agency
A brief look at the six international free agents signed by the Indians on Wednesday
By Jason Lukehart@JasonLukehart Jul 3, 2014, 10:00am EDT
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Wednesday marked the beginning of MLB's international free agent signing period. Unlike regular free agency, when players sign over the course of months, with many of the top names waiting a long time before agreeing to a deal, international free agency tends to play out very quickly, and so many of the most highly rated talents signed with a team within the first few hours, and the Indians (like most teams) have already spent most of their budget.
The Indians are allowed to spend $1,980,700 this year, which is one of the smaller budgets (that's due to budgets being determined by how teams do in the previous season).
Actually, teams can spend as much as they want, but they are taxed 100% of any overage, and if they exceed by 5-10% or more, they cannot sign anyone for more than $500,000 next year, if they go over by 10-15% they cannot sign anyone for more than $300,000 next year, and if they go over by more than 15% they cannot spend more than $300,000 in either of the next two years.
Here are the six players the Indians signed yesterday, all of whom are from the Dominican Republic:
Oscar Gonzalez (OF) $300,000 - 6'3", 180 pounds, with a strong arm and good right-handed power
Leonardo Rodríguez (RHP) $300,000 - 6'7", 200 pounds, his fastball already touches the low 90s
Chris Cespedes (OF) $200,000 - 6'3", 190 pounds, good right-handed power
Julio Cabrera (OF) $200,000 - 6'0", 185 pounds, left-hander hitter with a line-drive stroke
Henderson D'Oleo (3B) $165,000 - 6'4", 190 pounds, right-handed power and a strong arm
Orlando Cedeno (RHP), $100,000 - 6'1", 185 pounds, fast in low 90s, has worked with Pedro Martinez
(Credit to Baseball America and Dionisio Soldevila as the sources for much of that information)
None of those players appeared on the top 30 lists I saw from a couple different outlets, but it's worth noting that these signings are even more hit-and-miss than the MLB draft, which shouldn't be surprising, give the extreme youth of the players involved. There were a number of future All-Stars signed yesterday, but they weren't necessarily the ones signed for the biggest bonuses.
Among those signed in recent years were Oscar Taveras, now one of the top five prospects in baseball. His bonus was $145,000. Yordano Ventura, a Rookie of the Year candidate in the American League this season, was signed for just $28,000.
On the other hand, here are the the 16-year-old players who signed for $1,000,000+ through 2008 (meaning they've had enough time to have arrived in MLB since signing):
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Michael Ynoa (2008, Athletics, $4,250,000)
Rafael Rodriguez (2008, Giants, $2,550,000)
Yorman Rodriguez (2008, Reds, $2,500,000)
Joel Guzman (2001, Dodgers, $2,255,000)
Angel Villalona (2006, Giants, $2,100,00)
Juan Duran (2008, Reds, $2,000,000)
Adys Portillo (2008, Padres, $2,000,000)
Miguel Cabrera (1999, Marlins, $1,800,000)
Jesus Montero (2006, Yankees, $1,650,000)
Jackson Melian (1996, Yankees, $1,600,000)
Ricardo Aramboles (1998, Yankees, $1,520,000)
Michael Almanzar (2007, Red Sox, $1,500,000)
Esmailyn Gonzalez (2006, Nationals, $1,400,000)
Fernando Martinez (2005, Mets, $1,400,000)
Willy Aybar (2000, Dodgers, $1,400,000)
Carlos Triunfel (2006, Mariners, $1,300,000)
Luis Domoromo (2008, Padres, $1,250,000)
Roberto De la Cruz (2008, Cardinals, $1,100,000)
Julio Morban (2008, Mariners, $1,100,000)
Kelvin De Leon (2007, Yankees, $1,100,000)
Granted, there's still time for some of those guys to pan out, as the 2008 signees are still only 22 years old, but there are twenty players on that list, and only one of them has become even an average MLB player (granted, that one is Miguel Cabrera, one of the five best players of the last decade, but the point still stands).
The Indians still have $715,700 remaining in their budget (and they could spend another $99,000 without it limiting their options for next year), so there will probably be another one or two medium-priced signees, along with a number of lower bonus additions.
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Profile | Career Statistics
#21 - Montreal Canadiens
Position Center
Ht/Wt 5'11" / 183 lbs
Birthdate July 20, 1993
Birthplace Belleville, Ontario
Draft 2011 - Round 3 (68 overall) by Philadelphia
Experience 5 years
Date vs Score G A P +/- PIM PP SH S HT BS SHF TOI
1/16/20 @ PHI W 4-1 0 1 1 -1 0 0 0 1 - - 16 11:55
1/15/20 CHI L 1-4 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 1 2 1 20 13:54
1/13/20 CAL W 2-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 - 13 10:03
1/11/20 @ OTT W 2-1 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 1 2 - 15 11:39
1/9/20 EDM L 2-4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 - 17 14:50
1/7/20 @ DET L 3-4 0 0 0 -2 2 0 0 0 1 - 18 12:17
1/6/20 WIN L 2-3 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 1 - 2 17 15:00
1/4/20 PIT L 2-3 (OT) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 1 25 17:44
1/2/20 TB L 1-2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 5 1 1 21 17:32
12/31/19 @ CAR L 1-3 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 1 1 2 21 17:43
Statistics | Career
Season Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM PPG SH Shots Sh%
19-20 MON 43 5 9 14 -4 12 2 0 82 6.1
18-19 ARI 81 7 20 27 -8 35 1 0 144 4.86
17-18 ARI 71 12 7 19 -7 31 1 0 119 10.08
16-17 PHI 60 6 10 16 -6 31 1 0 99 6.06


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U.S. President Donald Trump pardons former aide Steve Bannon
Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon exits the Manhattan Federal Court, following his arraignment hearing for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S.
U.S. President Donald Trump granted clemency to former White House aide Steve Bannon as part of a wave of pardons and commutations issued in his final hours in office, but did not pardon himself, members of his family or lawyer Rudy Giuliani.
Trump leaves office on Wednesday, when Joe Biden is sworn in as the nation's next president. White House officials had argued to Trump that he should not pardon himself or his family because it might look like they are guilty of crimes, according to a source familiar with the situation.
Bannon, who was a key adviser in Trump's 2016 presidential run, was charged last year with swindling the president's own supporters over an effort to raise private funds to build the president's wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. He has pleaded not guilty.
"Bannon has been an important leader in the conservative movement and is known for his political acumen," the White House said in a statement.
White House officials had advised Trump against pardoning Bannon. The two men have lately rekindled their relationship as Trump sought support for his unproven claims of voter fraud, an official familiar with the situation said.
As part of more than 140 pardons and commutations, Trump also pardoned Elliott Broidy, a former top fundraiser for Trump who pleaded guilty last year to violating foreign lobbying laws, and former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who was serving a 28-year prison term on corruption charges.
Rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black who were prosecuted on federal weapons offenses, were also granted pardons.
Giuliani, who has been at the forefront of Trump's unsuccessful efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, has not been charged with a crime, but investigators have been probing his activities in Ukraine.
Trump was impeached by the Democratic-led House last week on charges of inciting the January 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol by the president's supporters. He may face a Senate trial and could be barred from running for president again if convicted.
The pardon power, which comes from the U.S. Constitution, is one of the broadest available to a president. While pardons are typically given to people who have been prosecuted, pardons can cover conduct that has not yet resulted in legal proceedings.
A pardon is not reviewable by other branches of government and the president does not have to give a reason for issuing one. But the pardon power is not absolute; it only applies to federal crimes.
Bannon, 67, is the latest prominent political ally to receive clemency from Trump, who has often used the powers of the executive branch to reward loyalists and punish his enemies.
Trump previously pardoned former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn for lying to the FBI about his conversation with the former Russian ambassador, and he commuted the prison term for Roger Stone, who was convicted of lying to Congress during its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
The former executive chairman and co-founder of the right-wing news outlet Breitbart, Bannon is credited as being the architect behind the rise of "America First" right-wing populism. He was a key influencer behind some of Trump's staunch anti-immigration policies in the early days of Trump's presidency, as well as the border wall that was one of Trump's key campaign promises.
He was fired from his post at the White House in August 2017.
Bannon can still be charged with fraud by New York state prosecutors, said Daniel R. Alonso, a former prosecutor now at the Buckley law firm. Fraud prosecutions are frequently brought by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, Alonso added.
Broidy, who was a top fundraiser for Trump during the 2016 campaign, pleaded guilty in October to violating lobbying laws by attempting to influence the administration on behalf of Chinese and Malaysian interests.
Lil Wayne, 38, whose real name is Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., pleaded guilty in federal court in December to illegally possessing a firearm and faced up to 10 years in prison. He has expressed support for Trump's criminal justice reform efforts.
Kodak Black, 23, who was born Bill Kahan Kapri, is in federal prison for making a false statement in order to buy a firearm.
January 20, 2021 247newsupdateAmerica, Crime, PoliticsBill Kahan Kapri, Donald Trump, Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., Elliott Broidy, Kodak Black, Kwame Kilpatrick, Lil Wayne, President Trump, Steve Bannon
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Star Lotulelei Emmanuel Sanders Josh Allen Matt Barkley Sean McDermott Devin Singletary Jerry Hughes Mitch Trubisky Football Professional football NFL football Sports Athlete health Athlete injuries
Carolina Panthers Buffalo Bills
Bills QB Allen intent on playing despite sprained left foot
By JOHN WAWROW - Dec. 15, 2021 04:49 PM EST
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) slips a tackle by Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (9) on an 18-yard touchdown run during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 12, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — So long as he can walk, Josh Allen has no intention of letting a sprained left foot prevent him from playing against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, and with the Bills' late-season playoff push needing a jolt.
"Obviously, I want whatever's the best opportunity to win the football game," Allen said Wednesday. "But if I can go, I'm going to go."
Though it's too early to determine whether he'll be cleared by the Bills medical staff, the fourth-year starter left no doubt of his desire to play after practicing on a limited basis in a noncontact walkthrough session three days after getting hurt in a 33-27 overtime loss at Tampa Bay.
"Yeah, it's quite a bit better," Allen said of his injury. "We've got a few more days to be able to rehab. Obviously, I'd love to play. I guess we'll have to re-evaluate some things in a couple of days. But as of right now, it feels pretty good."
A bigger test comes Thursday, when the Bills are scheduled to hold a full practice.
"We'll just have to take it one day at a time," coach Sean McDermott said regarding Allen's chances of playing.
"He's working through it. He's a tough guy. And the soreness is still there, that's to be expected," he added. "But I love his attitude. And I think that's key to when you're trying to come off of any injury, is the attitude and the mindset."
Allen's injury comes at a critical juncture for the Bills in their bid of making a third consecutive playoff appearance, which would match the team's longest run since a six-year stretch spanning the 1988-93 seasons. At 7-6, Buffalo has lost three of four, but maintains hold of the AFC's seventh and final postseason berth.
Despite various struggles, Allen has been the team's most valuable player in accounting for a large majority of the team's offense.
His 28 touchdowns passing are fourth in the NFL, and already rank third on the team's single-season list. Allen's 531 yards rushing are 16 shy of Devin Singletary's team-leading total, and represent more than a third of Buffalo's total of 1,573.
Allen's value to the Bills was particularly on display in the second half against Tampa Bay, when he went 23 of 32 for 175 yards passing with two touchdowns, and had 66 yards rushing and a TD in rallying Buffalo from a 24-3 deficit.
"Give me a pair of pads, I'll play right next to him," McDermott said of the resolve Allen showed in playing through the injury which occurred six minutes into the fourth quarter. "Whether it was throwing it, running it, just diving for first downs, I was very not surprised but impressed with what he did in that game, in particular down the stretch."
If Allen can't go, the Bills would turn to backup Mitchell Trubisky, an offseason free-agent addition who spent four seasons in Chicago after the Bears selected him with the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft.
The Bills signed Trubisky to a one-year contract because they considered him an upgrade over former backup Matt Barkley in the event Allen might get injured. That belief would be put to a test should Allen miss his first start since missing four games with a sprained throwing elbow in 2018, his rookie season.
"Very confident in Mitch Trubisky," McDermott said of the backup who has been limited to mop-up duty in five appearances this season. "Very appreciative of his team-first approach for a guy that hasn't typically been in that role prior to coming here. ... I'm real proud of him for it, and we'll be ready to go if and when his number's called."
In holding a walk-through, McDermott revised Buffalo's practice schedule to provide players an extra day of rest. The Bills played games six days apart following a 33-27 overtime loss in Tampa on Sunday.
During a normal seven-day week, Buffalo traditionally holds two full days of practice on Wednesday and Thursday.
NOTES: WR Emmanuel Sanders did not practice and is not expected to play after hurting his knee against Tampa Bay. ... DT Star Lotulelei was limited in practice because of a toe injury, which led to him not playing Sunday. ... DE Jerry Hughes was limited with a foot injury.


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British envoy, CIPM, others call for active engagement of PWDs
By Kehinde Olatunji
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The Chartered Institute of Personnel Management, (CIPM), Sightsavers and other stakeholders have called on employers of labour in Nigeria to engage the services of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in the workplace to bridge the economic shortfall.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) had stated in its report that three to seven per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is lost within middle and low-income countries to the exclusion of PWDs from the job market.
The stakeholders comprising of corporate giants, high-profile private companies, international development organisations and government, envoys, professional bodies, human resources outfits among others, made the call at a webinar on 'Launching ceremony of Nigeria Business Disability Network, (NBDN),' organised by Sightsavers, a private-sector network that champions disability inclusion in the workplace.
The British Deputy High Commission in Nigeria, Ben Jones and other dignitaries attended the webinar.
The Country Director of Sightsavers, Nigeria and Ghana, Dr. Sunday Isiyaku, explained that employing persons with disabilities has clear benefits not only for the people employed but also for businesses.
"One estimate suggests that there's a spending power of $8 trillion waiting for businesses who recognise this, and it starts with hiring inclusively."
Chief Executive Officer, CIPM, Ms. Busola Alofe, urged employers to make it a top priority to engage people living with disabilities in workplaces, noting that this would contribute to the development of the society.
"It is said that a lot of organisations and governments are yet to imbibe inclusiveness in employment. I urge all employers to go out there, identify PWDs, and identify their strengths for improving their businesses and revenue base.
"People will not just see you as making money but also contributing to the development of society. PWDs have equal or better competence and skills than persons without disabilities."
Jones, who delivered a keynote on 'The Roles of Private Sector, organisations and Donor Agencies in driving a sustainable disabilities inclusion agenda in the workplace,' said one billion people globally are living with disabilities.
He stated that most of them are invisible and living in developing countries while 20 million are in Nigeria.
While decrying the exclusion of PWDs in the workplace, the British envoy urged the Nigeria government to convene a disabilities summit to address challenges facing the group.
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The school P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is located in the area LADENENTHAL of THIRUPPUVANAM. P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is in the SIVAGANGA district of TAMIL NADU state. pincode is 630611. P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU THIRUPPUVANAM was establised in the year 1981. The management of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is Local Body.
P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is a Primary only school. The coeducation status of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is Co-Educational. The residential status of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is No. and the residential type of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is Not Applicable. The total number of students in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU THIRUPPUVANAM is 46. The total number of teachers in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU THIRUPPUVANAM is 2. The total number of non teaching staff in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 0. The medium of instruction in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is Tamil.
The total number of class rooms in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 2. The total number of other rooms in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 0. The total number of black boards in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 2. The total number of books in the library of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 357. The total number of computers in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU THIRUPPUVANAM is 0. The student teacher ratio of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU THIRUPPUVANAM is 23.00000. The student classroom ratio of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 23.00000. The pass percentage of P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 0.00000. The percentage of students who scored first class in P.U.PRI.SCHOOLMANALMEDU is 0.00000.