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South Korean, European Trade Deals Prove Harper Can Land The Big One
March 11, 2014 5:59 pm / 1 Comment on South Korean, European Trade Deals Prove Harper Can Land The Big One
South Korean, European Trade Deals Prove Harper Can Land The Big One.
OTTAWA – No one will ever again accuse Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his trade minister of not being able to land the big one.
After years of hooking minnows like Honduras, Panama and Jordan, Ottawa has now not only concluded talks with the world's biggest economy — the European Union — but also with South Korea and, in doing so, opened the door to the world's most promising market.
The double-coup will certainly become a bragging point for the prime minister in next year's expected election campaign — before the impacts of the deals, both good and bad, are felt in the economy.
The prime minister has placed expanding trade, along with balancing the budget, at the top of the government's economic action agenda and the Conservatives will likely be able to claim progress on both fronts by the fall of 2015.
The agreements also put the opposition — particularly the left-leaning New Democrats — in the unenviable position of either having to cheer "me too" or risk continuing to be portrayed as ideologically set against free trade, rather than a particular deal.
In an interview and news release, NDP trade critic Don Davies reserved judgment until the text of the South Korea deal is released, but blasted the government for an "utter lack of transparency," and warned about possible damage to jobs in the auto sector.
The reaction from Liberal critic Chrystia Freeland was somewhat more positive, saying the party was "broadly supportive" but will need time to review the details.
Analysts say the South Korea deal, although it is far smaller in scope that the European agreement in principle, has the potential of being transformative in Canada's dealings with what is becoming the world's most important and biggest economic regions.
By way of comparison, Ottawa estimates free trade with Europe will expand Canada's gross domestic product output by $12 billion once fully implemented, as opposed to only $1.7 billion in the case of Korea.
But Ian Lee, of the Sprott School of Business at Carleton University, says Korea's significance is strategic.
"Now we're in the major league," he says. "I see South Korea not so much about the actual dollars of trade that's involved, but it provides a beachhead into Asia and the Asian-Pacific countries that watch each other like a hawk. So it's a very important precedent in what I believe is the most important part of the world."
Next on the menu for Harper and Trade Minister Ed Fast are Japan, India and the biggest prize – the TransPacific Partnership, which includes many of the region's key economies.
Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada president Yuen Pau Woo agrees Korea represents a "breakthrough" in the region that has resisted Canada's entreaties for years.
"I think it will have a demonstrable effect on our Japan bilateral negotiations because Korea and Japan compete in our market in a number of sectors (particularly autos) and the Korea deal gives it an advantage over Japanese exporters," he explained.
Economically, trade deals don't show their true colours until years have passed.
Most economists and business leaders believe the removal of artificial barriers is a general good for a country's well being, as it forces domestic producers to become more efficient and competitive, while offering consumers lower prices and a wider variety of goods.
Labour groups, however, argue that the theory works only when the playing field is level. In most cases, they see free trade agreements merely resulting in jobs gravitating to low-wage jurisdictions in a classic race to the bottom.
Ford Canada chief executive Dianne Craig's chief argument in opposing the South Korea deal is not that the Canadian auto sector can't cope with the removal of a 6.1 per cent tariff on overseas cars, but that South Korea is not a fair player in terms of trade in autos. The deal will allow South Korea to sell more cars in Canada, she believes, while deploying non-tariff barriers to keep Canadian-assembled cars out Korea.
Still the agreement is supported by the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, which includes Ford Canada and other motor companies as members.
CCCE president John Manley says Ford's concern has the benefit of putting the government to the test, to ensure Korea does not thwart car imports.
The bigger game, however, is that Canada is positioning itself for the economy of the 21st century that will be dominated by the Asia-Pacific market.
"It's not enough on it's own, but it's consistent with a broader strategy to build better trade links, including supply chains into Asia," said Manley. "Canada is a small open economy and most of our sectors rely on the ability to export."
As with the Canada-EU agreement, however, the Korean pact does not guarantee that Canadian firms will be successful in expanding exports and investments.
Toronto-based trade counsel Lawrence Herman says the deal, like all others, should be looked at as a "vehicle" that gives Canadian exporters in goods and services an opportunity, but does not mean they will succeed in seizing it.
He expects they will but also says he is confident that Canadian negotiators have given firms the best deal on offer.
"Canada has some of the best trade negotiators in the world, people don't realize that," he said. "They are not going to leave anything on the table."
Canada-South Korea Free Trade Deal Imminent: Sources
March 6, 2014 6:27 pm / 1 Comment on Canada-South Korea Free Trade Deal Imminent: Sources
Canada-South Korea Free Trade Deal Imminent: Sources.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper takes part in a bilateral meeting with South Korea President Park Geun-hye during the APEC summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia on Monday, October 7, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA – The Harper government is set to sign a long-sought trade deal with South Korea early next week, despite entrenched opposition by some in Ontario's critically important auto sector, sources close to the talks say.
Preparations are underway for a signing ceremony in Seoul early next week, ending nearly 10 years of on-and-off talks that one of Canada's biggest industries has long prevented from reaching the finish line.
Cracks began to appear in the Canadian auto industry's united front last month when the association representing Japan's automakers in Canada came out largely in favour of a deal, saying it would complement the agreement signed in the fall with the European Union and ease talks with Japan.
Another impetus was introduced when Korea was able to successfully complete deals with Canada's two largest trading partners, the United States and the European Union, leaving Canada out in the cold.
Government officials in Ottawa refused to confirm the agreement Thursday.
The deal, coming on the heels of an historic pact with the EU, will go a long way towards cementing the Harper government's expansionist trade agenda, and its stated goal that it wants to be a serious economic player in Asia.
Still, significant opposition remains. Ford of Canada chief executive Dianne Craig recently called the 2012 Korea-U.S. agreement a "disaster" for the sector — even though Ford, along with the General Motors and Chrysler, initially supported the pact.
At issue for Canada is a 6.1 per cent tariff on car imports. Critics fear once it's removed, it will further skew the automotive playing field between the two countries, with Korean-made brands Hyundai and Kia selling about 90,000 units in Canada annually in direct competition with Canadian-assembled vehicles. Korea also assembles autos in the U.S., which it exports into Canada duty free.
Ontario's economic development minister, Eric Hoskins, said Korea out-exports Canada 50 to one in autos. Hoskins said nothing he has heard from Ottawa so far has eased his concern that Canada's automakers won't be even more outgunned once tariffs are removed.
"We want a free-trade agreement that's good for all sectors, but on autos particularly it's disadvantageous," he said. "I haven't been given information to suggest that the improvements that we've asked for have been addressed."
In particular, Ontario and the industry has asked for a slower phase-out of tariffs and a "snap-back" provision allowing Canada to re-impose tariffs if there's evidence Korea is not meeting its obligations.
With the deal, Canada hopes to arrest the deterioration in exports to Korea since the U.S. agreement went into effect, particularly in the agricultural sector.
But Jim Stanford, chief economist with the Unifor union, which represents Canadian auto workers, says in effect Canada has traded off "billions of dollars" in the auto sector to win over "tens of millions" in more pork and beef exports.
"It's a trade of cars for pigs and cows," he said. "The government is willing to sacrifice autos, which is by far the largest trade item with Korea, in order to make some gains in agriculture and that's all about the government's political base in the West."
Rudy Husny, a spokesman for Trade Minister Ed Fast, said Canadian exports to South Korea had fallen by $1.5 billion — or about 30 per cent — since the U.S. agreement went into effect.
"We will only sign an agreement that's in the best interest of hardworking Canadians including though the elimination of Korean tariffs and creation of effective tools to counter non-tariff barriers to trade," Husny said via email.
The data is not clear cut, however. According to U.S. trade numbers analyzed by Washington-based Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch, the U.S. has also seen the monthly average of exports to Korea fall 10 per cent from prior to the deal. The U.S. Department of Commerce, however, has noted that Ford has increased its export of vehicles into Korea since the deal.
Aside from the auto sector, most business groups in Canada will welcome the breakthrough, particularly if it is the first step to greater economic penetration into the fast-growing economies of Asia.
"Undoubtedly the Canadian-based auto assemblers are concerned, as they rightly should be, but you can't make trade policy based on only one sector," said John Manley, who is head of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, the country's most influential business lobby group.
"It's important from an offensive point of view, but it's also important defensively because, frankly, the United States got in first and they have been methodically taking market share from Canadian producers."
An agreement will be particularly welcomed by the Canadian agricultural sector, which has complained that Korea's agreements with other nations has put them at a competitive disadvantage.
Gary Stordy of the Canadian Pork Council said it's been a straight line down for pork shipments since the Korea-U.S. deal of about two years ago, with exports falling to about $70 million in 2013 from $223 million in 2011.
South Korea is currently Canada's seventh largest merchandise trading partner and third largest in Asia after China and Japan. But the relationship has been decidedly one-sided, with Korea exports totalling $6.3 billion in 2012 while Canadian shipments totalled $3.7 billion.
Washington's Blog | Liberal Politicians Launched the Idea of "Free Trade Agreements" In the 1960s to Strip Nations of Sovereignty and Hand Power Over to Global Corporations
February 21, 2014 4:17 pm / Leave a comment
Washington's Blog |
Liberal Politicians Launched the Idea of "Free Trade Agreements" In the 1960s to Strip Nations of Sovereignty and Hand Power Over to Global Corporations
Posted on February 21, 2014 by WashingtonsBlog
It's Not Only Conservative Politicians Backing Giant Multinational Corporations Over National Sovereignty
Preface: Liberals might assume that it is Republicans who are cheerleaders for global corporations at the expense of government. But, as shown below, liberal politicians have been just as bad … or worse.
Matt Stoller – who writes for Salon and has contributed to Politico, Alternet, Salon, The Nation and Reuters – knows his way around Washington.
Stoller – a prominent liberal – has scoured the Congressional Record to unearth hidden historical facts. For example, Stoller has previously shown that the U.S. government push for a "New World Order" is no wacky conspiracy theory, but extensively documented in the Congressional Record.
Now, Stoller uses the Congressional Record to show that "free trade" pacts were always aboutweakening nation-states to promote rule by multinationals:
Political officials (liberal ones, actually) engaged in an actual campaign to get rid of countries with their pesky parochial interests, and have the whole world managed by global corporations. Yup, this actually was explicit in the 1960s, as opposed to today's passive aggressive arguments which amount to the same thing.
Liberal internationalists, including people like Chase CEO David Rockefeller and former Undersecretary of State and an architect of 1960s American trade policies George Ball, began pressing for reductions in non-tariff barriers, which they perceived as the next set of trade impediments to pull down. But the idea behind getting rid of these barriers wasn't about free trade, it was about reorganizing the world so that corporations could manage resources for "the benefit of mankind". It was a weird utopian vision that you can hear today in the current United States Trade Representative Michael Froman's speeches. I've spoken with Froman about this history, and Froman himself does not seem to know much about it. But he is captive of these ideas, nonetheless, as is much of the elite class. They do not know the original ideology behind what is now just bureaucratic true believer-ism, they just know that free trade is good and right and true.
But back to the 1967 hearing. In the opening statement, before a legion of impressive Senators and Congressmen, Ball attacks the very notion of sovereignty. He goes after the idea that "business decisions" could be "frustrated by a multiplicity of different restrictions by relatively small nation states that are based on parochial considerations," and lauds the multinational corporation as the most perfect structure devised for the benefit of mankind. He also foreshadows our modern world by suggesting that commercial, monetary, and antitrust policies should just be and will inevitably be handled by supranational organizations. [Background.]
Here's just some of that statement. It really is worth reading, I've bolded the surprising parts.
"For the widespread development of the multinational corporation is one of our major accomplishments in the years since the war, though its meaning and importance have not been generally understood. For the first time in history man has at his command an instrument that enables him to employ resource flexibility to meet the needs of peopels all over the world. Today a corporate management in Detroit or New York or London or Dusseldorf may decide that it can best serve the market of country Z by combining the resources of country X with labor and plan facilities in country Y – and it may alter that decision 6 months from now if changes occur in costs or price or transport. It is the ability to look out over the world and freely survey all possible sources of production… that is enabling man to employ the world's finite stock of resources with a new degree of efficiency for the benefit of all mandkind.
But to fulfill its full potential the multinational corporation must be able to operate with little regard for national boundaries – or, in other words, for restrictions imposed by individual national governments.
To achieve such a free trading environment we must do far more than merely reduce or eliminate tariffs. We must move in the direction of common fiscal concepts, a common monetary policy, and common ideas of commercial responsibility. Already the economically advanced nations have made some progress in all of these areas through such agencies as the OECD and the committees it has sponsored, the Group of Ten, and the IMF, but we still have a long way to go. In my view, we could steer a faster and more direct course… by agreeing that what we seek at the end of the voyage is the full realization of the benefits of a world economy.
Implied in this, of course, is a considerable erosion of the rigid concepts of national sovereignty, but that erosion is taking place every day as national economies grow increasingly interdependent, and I think it desirable that this process be consciously continued. What I am recommending is nothing so unreal and idealistic as a world government, since I have spent too many years in the guerrilla warfare of practical diplomacy to be bemused by utopian visions. But it seems beyond question that modern business – sustained and reinforced by modern technology – has outgrown the constrictive limits of the antiquated political structures in which most of the world is organized, and that itself is a political fact which cannot be ignored. For the explosion of business beyond national borders will tend to create needs and pressures that can help alter political structures to fit the requirements of modern man far more adequately than the present crazy quilt of small national states. And meanwhile, commercial, monetary, and antitrust policies – and even the domiciliary supervision of earth-straddling corporations – will have to be increasingly entrusted to supranational institutions….
We will never be able to put the world's resources to use with full efficiency so long as business decisions are frustrated by a multiplicity of different restrictions by relatively small nation states that are based on parochial considerations, reflect no common philosophy, and are keyed to no common goal." ***
These ["free trade"] agreements are not and never have been about trade. You simply cannot disentangle colonialism, the American effort to create the European Union, and American trade efforts. After their opening statements, Ball and Rockefeller go on on to talk about how European states need to be wedged into a common monetary union with our trade efforts and that Latin America needs to be managed into prosperity by the US and Africa by Europe. Through such efforts, they thought that the US could put together a global economy over the next thirty years. Thirty years later was 1997, which was exactly when NAFTA was being implemented and China was nearing its entry into the WTO. Impeccable predictions, gents.
I guess it turns out that the conspiracy theorists who believe in UN-controlled black helicopters aren't as wrong as you might think about trade policy, and not just because United Technologies, which actually makes black helicopters, has endorsed the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
These agreements are about getting rid of national sovereignty, and the people who first pressed for NAFTA were explicit about it. They really did want a global government for corporations.
Ball in particular expressed his idea of a government by the corporations, for the corporations, in order to benefit all mankind. Keep that in mind when you think you're being paranoid.
The full hearing can be downloaded here, though it is a big file.
The bottom line is not that liberals – or conservatives – are evil.
It's that neither the Democratic or Republican parties reflect the true values of the American people (and see this).
Indeed, a scripted psuedo-war between the parties is often used by the powers-that-be as a way to divide and conquer the American people, so that we are too distracted to stand up to reclaim our power from the idiots in both parties who are only governing for their own profit … and a small handful of their buddies. See this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this and this.
Posted in Politics / World News | 1 Comment
Why Banks Are Doomed: Technology and Risk
Posted on February 21, 2014 by Charles Hugh Smith
It's not just that banks are no longer needed–they pose a needless and potentially catastrophic risk to the nation. To understand why, we need to understand the key characteristics of risk.
The entire banking sector is based on two illusions:
1. Thanks to modern portfolio management, bank debt is now riskless.
2. Technology only enhances banks' tools to skim profits; it does not undermine the fundamental role of banks.
The global financial meltdown of 2008-09 definitively proved riskless bank debt is an illusion. If you want to understand why risk cannot eliminated, please read Benoit Mandelbrot's book The (Mis)Behavior of Markets.
Technology does not just enable high-frequency trading; it enables capital and borrowers to bypass banks entirely. I addressed this yesterday in Banks Are Obsolete: The Entire Parasitic Sector Can Be Eliminated.
Unfortunately for banks, higher education, buggy whip manufacturers, etc., monopoly and propaganda are no match for technology. Just because a system worked in the past in a specific set of technological constraints does not mean it continues to be a practical solution when those technological constraints dissolve.
Posted in General | Tagged (Mis)Behavior of Markets, banks, leverage, moral hazard, risk, technology, transparent exchanges | Leave a comment
Banks Are Obsolete: The Entire Parasitic Sector Can Be Eliminated
What else can we do with the $1.25 trillion we'll save by eliminating these obsolete financial middleman parasites? A lot.
Technology has leapfrogged the banking sector, rendering it as obsolete as buggy whips. So why are we devoting 9% of our economy to an obsolete parasite?Financial sector profits now total a staggering 4.5% of GDP (gross domestic product), while the expenses generated by financial churning account for another 4.5% of the economy.
Posted in General | Tagged banking sector, banks, skimming. financial parasites, technology. middleman | 1 Comment
Operation Nazification
Posted on February 21, 2014 by DavidSwanson
Annie Jacobsen's new book is called Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program That Brought Nazi Scientists to America. It isn't terribly secret anymore, of course, and it was never very intelligent. Jacobsen has added some details, and the U.S. government is still hiding many more. But the basic facts have been available; they're just left out of most U.S. history books, movies, and television programs.
After World War II, the U.S. military hired sixteen hundred former Nazi scientists and doctors, including some of Adolf Hitler's closest collaborators, including men responsible for murder, slavery, and human experimentation, including men convicted of war crimes, men acquitted of war crimes, and men who never stood trial. Some of the Nazis tried at Nuremberg had already been working for the U.S. in either Germany or the U.S. prior to the trials. Some were protected from their past by the U.S. government for years, as they lived and worked in Boston Harbor, Long Island, Maryland, Ohio, Texas, Alabama, and elsewhere, or were flown by the U.S. government to Argentina to protect them from prosecution. Some trial transcripts were classified in their entirety to avoid exposing the pasts of important U.S. scientists. Some of the Nazis brought over were frauds who had passed themselves off as scientists, some of whom subsequently learned their fields while working for the U.S. military.
The U.S. occupiers of Germany after World War II declared that all military research in Germany was to cease, as part of the process of denazification. Yet that research went on and expanded in secret, under U.S. authority, both in Germany and in the United States, as part of a process that it's possible to view as nazification. Not only scientists were hired. Former Nazi spies, most of them former S.S., were hired by the U.S. in post-war Germany to spy on — and torture — Soviets.
The U.S. military shifted in numerous ways when former Nazis were put into prominent positions. It was Nazi rocket scientists who proposed placing nuclear bombs on rockets and began developing the intercontinental ballistic missile. It was Nazi engineers who had designed Hitler's bunker beneath Berlin, who now designed underground fortresses for the U.S. government in the Catoctin and Blue Ridge Mountains. Known Nazi liars were employed by the U.S. military to draft classified intelligence briefs falsely hyping the Soviet menace. Nazi scientists developed U.S. chemical and biological weapons programs, bringing over their knowledge of tabun and sarin, not to mention thalidomide — and their eagerness for human experimentation, which the U.S. military and the newly created CIA readily engaged in on a major scale. Every bizarre and gruesome notion of how a person might be assassinated or an army immobilized was of interest to their research. New weapons were developed, including VX and Agent Orange. A new drive to visit and weaponize outerspace was created, and former Nazis were put in charge of a new agency called NASA.
Permanent war thinking, limitless war thinking, and creative war thinking in which science and technology overshadowed death and suffering, all went mainstream. When a former Nazi spoke to a women's luncheon at the Rochester Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1953, the event's headline was "Buzz Bomb Mastermind to Address Jaycees Today." That doesn't sound terribly odd to us, but might have shocked anyone living in the United States anytime prior to World War II. Watch this Walt Disney television program featuring a former Nazi who worked slaves to death in a cave building rockets. Before long, President Dwight Eisenhower would be lamenting that "the total influence — economic, political, even spiritual — is felt in every city, every State house, every office of the Federal government." Eisenhower was not referring to Nazism but to the power of the military-industrial complex. Yet, when asked whom he had in mind in remarking in the same speech that "public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite," Eisenhower named two scientists, one of them the former Nazi in the Disney video linked above.
The decision to inject 1,600 of Hitler's scientific-technological elite into the U.S. military was driven by fears of the USSR, both reasonable and the result of fraudulent fear mongering. The decision evolved over time and was the product of many misguided minds. But the buck stopped with President Harry S Truman. Henry Wallace, Truman's predecessor as vice-president who we like to imagine would have guided the world in a better direction than Truman did as president, actually pushed Truman to hire the Nazis as a jobs program. It would be good for American industry, said our progressive hero. Truman's subordinates debated, but Truman decided. As bits of Operation Paperclip became known, the American Federation of Scientists, Albert Einstein, and others urged Truman to end it. Nuclear physicist Hans Bethe and his colleague Henri Sack asked Truman:
"Did the fact that the Germans might save the nation millions of dollars imply that permanent residence and citizenship could be bought? Could the United States count on [the German scientists] to work for peace when their indoctrinated hatred against the Russians might contribute to increase the divergence between the great powers? Had the war been fought to allow Nazi ideology to creep into our educational and scientific institutions by the back door? Do we want science at any price?"
In 1947 Operation Paperclip, still rather small, was in danger of being terminated. Instead, Truman transformed the U.S. military with the National Security Act, and created the best ally that Operation Paperclip could want: the CIA. Now the program took off, intentionally and willfully, with the full knowledge and understanding of the same U.S. President who had declared as a senator that if the Russians were winning the U.S. should help the Germans, and vice versa, to ensure that the most people possible died, the same president who viciously and pointlessly dropped two nuclear bombs on Japanese cities, the same president who brought us the war on Korea, the war without declaration, the secret wars, the permanent expanded empire of bases, the military secrecy in all matters, the imperial presidency, and the military-industrial complex. The U.S. Chemical Warfare Service took up the study of German chemical weapons at the end of the war as a means to continue in existence. George Merck both diagnosed biological weapons threats for the military and sold the military vaccines to handle them. War was business and business was going to be good for a long time to come.
But how big a change did the United States go through after World War II, and how much of it can be credited to Operation Paperclip? Isn't a government that would give immunity to both Nazi and Japanese war criminals in order to learn their criminal ways already in a bad place? As one of the defendants argued in trial at Nuremberg, the U.S. had already engaged in its own experiments on humans using almost identical justifications to those offered by the Nazis. If that defendant had been aware, he could have pointed out that the U.S. was in that very moment engaged in such experiments in Guatemala. The Nazis had learned some of their eugenics and other nasty inclinations from Americans. Some of the Paperclip scientists had worked in the U.S. before the war, as many Americans had worked in Germany. These were not isolated worlds.
Looking beyond the secondary, scandalous, and sadistic crimes of war, what about the crime of war itself? We picture the United States as less guilty because it maneuvered the Japanese into the first attack, and because it did prosecute some of the war's losers. But an impartial trial would have prosecuted Americans too. Bombs dropped on civilians killed and injured and destroyed more than any concentration camps — camps that in Germany had been modeled in part after U.S. camps for native Americans. Is it possible that Nazi scientists blended into the U.S. military so well because an institution that had already done what it had done to the Philippines was not in all that much need of nazification?
Yet, somehow, we think of the firebombing of Japanese cities and the complete leveling of German cities as less offensive that the hiring of Nazi scientists. But what is it that offends us about Nazi scientists? I don't think it should be that they engaged in mass-murder for the wrong side, an error balanced out in some minds but their later work for mass-murder by the right side. And I don't think it should be entirely that they engaged in sick human experimentation and forced labor. I do think those actions should offend us. But so should the construction of rockets that take thousands of lives. And it should offend us whomever it's done for.
It's curious to imagine a civilized society somewhere on earth some years from now. Would an immigrant with a past in the U.S. military be able to find a job? Would a review be needed? Had they tortured prisoners? Had they drone-struck children? Had they leveled houses or shot up civilians in any number of countries? Had they used cluster bombs? Depleted uranium? White phosphorous? Had they ever worked in the U.S. prison system? Immigrant detention system? Death row? How thorough a review would be needed? Would there be some level of just-following-orders behavior that would be deemed acceptable? Would it matter, not just what the person had done, but how they thought about the world?
Activist Post: No-Brainer Course In Derailing The Trans-Pacific Partnership
January 9, 2014 7:20 pm / Leave a comment
Activist Post: No-Brainer Course In Derailing The Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Heather Callaghan
If you don't know what it is yet – that means it's working. The secrecy, that is. But once Pandora's Box is opened, there's no putting anything back. It will go down in history as one of the worst, oppressive plagues to saturate the planet.
Like Spider Man trying to stop a train from going over with nothing but his strength and shooting threads; we are going to need all the Web we can get to stop the fast-tracking Trans-Pacific Partnership from running over us. Perhaps more aptly, it is a tangled web we'll be left trapped in as prey if we do nothing.
Here's a crash-course and the easiest approach – all guesswork removed. But first, here's a sampling of what you can kiss goodbye if this mammoth piece of legislation goes through…
What's left of our jobs, food safety, Internet freedom, natural medicine, small farming, choice in medicine, financial regulation, privacy and more. Basically, all your rights. It permeates every area of your life, it's been ramrodded through the Senate, and the media is not saying anything. It grants the likes of Monsanto, Wall Street and other huge entities full reign with immunity.
Kiss any last American sovereignty goodbye and say hello to your new global crypto-corpocracy complete with international tribunals and the end of domestic law – from your newly refurbished prison cell, of course. After all, you clicked on the wrong Internet link! And your ISP was watching and reported you. In the near future, this article could be enough to jail me, ban my whole family from the Internet, have computers seized and delete the website. No more videos that piece other clips together, or anything that hints at "infringement," no more fair use, so no more non-corporate news.
It's been shrouded in secrecy, especially from the People and Congress, planned behind closed doors for years, and proponents are searching for sponsors to have the President push it through now that Congress is back from recess.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership n. 1. A "free trade" agreement that would set rules on non-trade matters such as food safety, internet freedom, medicine costs, financial regulation, and the environment. 2. A binding international governance system that would require the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and any other country that signs on to conform their domestic policies to its rules. 3. A secret trade negotiation that has included over 600 official corporate "trade advisors" while hiding the text from Members of Congress, governors, state legislators, the press, civil society, and the public.
Here's your crash course link on the TPP. You'll be ready for take-off in no time. They've made it that simple:
Expose the TPP
After being mind-blown and catching your breath, you can do the absolute easiest thing there is to do by using Twitter with the hashtag #NOFastTrackTPP (but wait, there's more).
Don't use social media? No problem, scroll down. For social media users, here are the easiest things you can do, besides sharing memes and links on Facebook. Share things to Reddit andStumbleUpon. Everyone should call their reps (below).
See the Twitter storm event – still going. Pull any memes – share. Only use this hashtag for social media: #NOFastTrackTPP. Using other hashtags and adding more will split the trends.
Next, Tweet your little heart out to your reps and others. Easily find them by clicking the "Discover" button and typing "congressman" in the search. All their Twitter names appear. Find celebrities, they often re-tweet. Example: @repfitzpatrick or @RepBera
Example Tweet:
@RepBera NO to Fast Track Authority and TPP, or we will not re-elect!! #NoFastTrackTPP
Here's another: "Do NOT sponsor FastTrack! Vote NO on TPP! #NoFastTrackTPP"
Some reps have stood against the TPP, so first you might want to see this:
Spank or Thank?
Use a general message for everyone: "I will NEVER support the Trans-Pacific Partnership#NOFastTrackTPP"
Want to jump into the Twitter storm? Easy. Sign up at Twitter, it runs you through a few-second tour and you can figure out the rest, see Help, or ask friends. Use the hashtag #NOFastTrackTPP on Facebook statuses.
Non-Social Media Users:
Find all your representatives' info/forms in one-click. Just click on your state:
Or use this:
Call President Obama: 202-456-6213
Call your Representative: 202-225-3121
or Toll Free (877) 762-8762
E A S Y S C R I P T:
(Breathe and talk slowly. You will do just fine. Be polite and confident.)
"Hi, this is (your full name). I am a constituent of Rep/Senator (name). I live in (name of city). I am calling to request that Rep/Sen (name) vote NO on Fast Track Authority. It is important to me that Congress follows the Constitutional directive to negotiate international trade and that all trade agreements are given full consideration, debate and amendments as needed.
Do you know Rep/Sen (name) position on Fast Track Authority? Will he/she vote Yes or No? (wait for an answer)
Do you know Rep/Sen (name) position on the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement? Will he/she vote Yes or No? (wait for an answer)
(regardless of their response, just continue)
Once again, I am requesting that Rep/Sen (name) vote NO on Fast Track Authority and NO on the TPP! Please be sure he/she gets my message. Thank you."
Go to the Crash-Course site and print off PDFs to share. Actually, that whole website is designed to help you take action, online and off. You can still share the hashtag in any way you choose – it gets the point across fast.
URGENT:
If you can target these two reps, you could stop the fast-track today:
1) MIKE QUIGLY (IL-05)
D.C. 202-225-4061
District: (773) 267-5926
Twitter: @RepMikeQuigley
https://www.facebook.com/repmikequigley
2) GREG MEEKS (NY-05)
D.C. (202) 225-3461
District: 347-230-4032 & 718-725-6000
Twitter: Gregory Meeks
https://www.facebook.com/gregorymeeksny05
Lastly, if you have done something, no matter how small to derail the TPP fast track – THANK YOU!!
Special thanks also to Andrew Pontbriand, Emily Laincz and Nick Bernabe for their tireless organizing, efforts and information – and to all those who joined them. Without them, this article wouldn't be – nor will it with the TPP!
The smallest action is bigger than the greatest intention.
Heather Callaghan is a natural health blogger and food freedom activist. You can see her work at NaturalBlaze.com and ActivistPost.com. Like at Facebook.
Recent posts by Heather Callaghan:
How Does Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Wind Up in Organic Meat?
Whole Foods to Privately Support Local Growers with $25 Million
Mixed Reactions to Cheerios Dropping GMOs


text:
Q: Как в коде определить, какая команда передана manage.py? У меня реализован метод, запускающийся при каждом запуске сервера:
class MyConfig(AppConfig):
    name = 'app'
    verbose_name = "Main app"

    def ready(self):
        #что-то делает при запуске

Я обнаружил, что при запуске команды
python manage.py migrate

он тоже отрабатывает. Такая же ситуация и с другими командами, передаваемыми в manage.py, помимо runserver.
Как в коде отследить, какая команда была передана manage.py, чтобы прерывать выполнения если это не runserver?

A: Если данный код находится в файле manage.py то все просто, там уже есть передача аргументов
execute_from_command_line(sys.argv)
Проверяем их на наличие нужного.

Алтернативные варианты
Создание своей команды управления рекомендуется чаще чем проверка аргументов.
Вот интересное решение, stackoverflow.com/questions/5942759/… одновременный запуск вида /manage.py clearcache && ./manage.py runserver

Создание своего способа запуска сервера.
Для этого создаем свою команду запуска сервера, частично код копируем из файлов autoreload.py и runserver.py

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Recent decades have witnessed a research boom into the history of the early modern English town. A subject which in many respects was uncharted territory in the early 1970s, before the publication in 1972 of the path-breaking Crisis and Order in English Towns 1500–1700,1 now has the character of a map the broad contours of which have been sketched in, although in which there are still obvious lacunae, and there is much scope for detailed infilling. The volume of research, and an early focus on synthesis — on viewing towns generically rather than individually2 — has ensured that the town has emerged as a distinct (if not independent) variable in the period's history as a whole. This chapter will survey the findings of this new work as it relates to the Restoration town (1660-c. 1688).


Patna University MCA All Sem Time Table 2019: Patna University Time Table 2019: Hello Students it is very glad moment to inform you all that the Patna University is going to announce Patna University Time Table 2019 FY SY TY 1st 2nd 3rd for all type of MCA All Sem PG Degree and other Diploma Programmes for all faculties. So all the students who are studying hard and eagerly waiting for Patna University Date Sheet 2019 for MCA All Sem theory and practical examination. They can check and download their respective courses Exam Schedule for its Summer time table here.
*Step 1: Go to University Main website through by url (www.patnauniversity.ac.in/).


It is actually the last beach of the vast beachfront of Plakias, called Yialia, which starts at Shinaria, several kilometers away. Unlike the true meaning of the name (the Latin word suda means narrow passage), the bay of Souda is quite large.
Martsalo is a secluded beach in the west Asterousia Mountains, one of the most inaccessible areas of Heraklion. It is located just a few kilometers from the "horn" of Messara Plain, the Cape Lithino, and 80km southwest of Heraklion.
In this rugged landscape there are a few small beaches, totally secluded and which can be accessed by boat or on foot. The beaches, starting from east to the west are Kokkinos Volakas, Stavri, Filadelfi, Parahoristra, Agios Antonios, Hohlakas and Klimata.


text:
Vega Flight VV15 failure: Arianespace and ESA appoint an independent inquiry commission
Arianespace Flight VV15: Mission failure
Flight VV15: New launch date
Flight VV15: New postponement due to weather conditions
Flight VV15: Launch delay due to weather conditions
Flight VV15: With Vega, Arianespace at the service of an Earth Observation Program for the benefit of the United Arab Emirates
Arianespace chalks up another success with Ariane 5, launches T-16 and EUTELSAT 7C
Arianespace at CommunicAsia 2019: After a remarkable year in the Asia-Pacific in 2018, Arianespace tackles the future with Ariane 6 and Vega C
Arianespace and ESA announce the JUICE (JUpiter ICy moons Explorer) launch contract
Viasat, Arianespace Modify Initial ViaSat-3 Satellite Launch Contract; Viasat to Become First Commercial Customer to Launch Aboard the Ariane 64
Soyuz	January 27, 2017
Flight VS16: For Soyuz' first GTO launch from the Guiana Space Center, Arianespace successfully orbits Hispasat 36W-1
Arianespace has orbited the Hispasat 36W-1 telecommunications satellite for operator Hispasat. The launch took place on Friday, January 27, 2017 at 10:03 p.m. (local time) from the Guiana Space Center (CSG), Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana.
This was the first launch of the year for Arianespace, and also the first Soyuz launch into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) from CSG.
Hispasat 36W-1 is the first satellite built using Europe's new SmallGEO geostationary platform, developed by OHB System AG of Germany within the scope of the European Space Agency's ARTES (Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems) program.
With this latest mission, Arianespace continues to deploy its complete family of launchers to support Europe's innovative space solutions.
First Soyuz geostationary satellite launch from CSG is a success
Capable of launching small geostationary satellites, Soyuz complements the payload capacity of Ariane 5 from the Guiana Space Center. The ability to launch lighter satellites into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), identified right from the start of the program, is now a reality with the launch of Hispasat 36W-1.
Arianespace has another Soyuz GTO launch scheduled in 2017, for the operator SES.
Through these missions, Arianespace clearly confirms the availability and versatility of its launcher family for the benefit of all customers.
A launch for the Spanish satellite communications operator Hispasat
Hispasat 36W-1 is the seventh satellite orbited by Arianespace since 1992 for Hispasat, the Spanish satellite communications operator and leading distributor of Spanish and Portuguese content.
Building on more than 25 years of experience, Hispasat has a strong presence in Iberia and Latin America, where it is the fourth leading satellite operator. Hispasat deploys a fleet of satellites to distribute more than 1,250 television and radio channels, and also plays a key role in the Spanish space industry.
Once in its orbital position, Hispasat 36W-1 will provide a wide range of communications services for continental Europe, the Canary Islands and South America.
Hispasat satellites previously orbited by Arianespace:
1992: Hispasat 1A
1993: Hispasat 1B
2009: Amazonas 2
2010: Hispasat 1E
2014: Amazonas 4A
Supporting ESA-driven European innovation in space
Hispasat 36W-1 is the first telecommunications satellite built using Europe's new SmallGEO geostationary platform. Developed by OHB System AG (Germany) under ESA's ARTES (Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems) program, the SmallGEO platform offers satellite operators an all-European solution in the small telecom satellite market.
By design, it speeds up the production and testing processes, reducing costs and broadening the range of design options.
The satellite features the innovative RedSAT regenerative payload, plus an antenna equipped with a processor, to offer a superior quality signal, as well as fast beam reconfiguration in orbit for optimized utilization.
Arianespace and OHB System AG
Including Hispasat 36W-1, Arianespace has now launched 15 satellites built by OHB System AG, and has 11 more from this company in its order book:
3 SmallGEO-based satellites: EDRS-C – MTG-I1 et MTG-S1,
8 Galileo FOC (Full Operational Capability) satellites
Shortly after the announcement of the satellite's orbital injection, Stéphane Israël, Chairman and CEO of Arianespace, said: "With this successful first launch of the year, Arianespace is proud of being able to give Hispasat the benefits of our family of launchers, characterized by excellence and versatility. We are very honored by this mark of confidence from Hispasat, for whom we have already orbited seven satellites since 1992. Congratulations to OHB System AG, which built the Hispasat 36W-1 satellite, as well as the European Space Agency, a key partner in the development of the innovative SmallGEO platform. I would also like to thank the Russian space agency Roscosmos for their commitment to our partnership on the Soyuz launcher, which today carried out a first launch into geostationary transfer orbit from CSG. In addition, I would like to thank CNES/CSG, our ground segment companies and all staff at the space center, who continue to work alongside us for new successes. Lastly, congratulations to everybody at Arianespace for this first launch of the year, a success."
Hispasat 36W-1
The Hispasat 36W-1 satellite was built by OHB System AG in Bremen, Germany, using Europe's new Small GEO platform.
Its payload is composed of 20 Ku-band transponders and additional capacity provided by three Ka-band beams.
Once positioned at 36° West, Hispasat 36W-1 will cover Europe, the Canary Islands, and South America.
The satellite weighed 3,210 kg. at launch and offers a design life of 15 years.
About Arianespace
To use space for a better life on earth, Arianespace guarantees access to space transportation services and solutions for any type of satellite, commercial as well as institutional, into any orbit.
Since 1980, Arianespace has performed missions placing more than 540 satellites into orbit with its three launchers: Ariane, Soyuz and Vega.
Arianespace is headquartered in Evry, France near Paris, and has a facility at the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, plus local offices in Washington, D.C., Tokyo and Singapore.
Arianespace is a subsidiary of Airbus Safran Launchers, which holds 74% of its share capital; the balance is held by 17 other sharehold-ers from the European launcher industry.
Mission VS16 : pour la première mission de Soyuz vers l'orbite de transfert géostationnaire depuis le Centre spatial guyanais, Arianespace a lancé avec succès Hispasat 36W-1
OHB System
Flight VS16 – First-ever mission to geostationary orbit with Soyuz from the Guiana Space Center to launch Hispasat satellite

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Plea deal reached in arson case
An Oceola Township man pleaded guilty Friday to arson for burning his former girlfriend's personal property.
Under a plea deal, Stephen Carl Williams Jr. pleaded guilty as charged to fourth-degree arson and prosecutors dismissed a count alleging he stalked the victim.
Prosecutors also agreed to recommend that the 34-year-old Williams serve a minimum sentence not to exceed two years in prison and the sentence will run concurrent to any sentence Williams receives for violating probation, according to Livingston County Circuit Court records. Williams was sentenced in March to two years of probation for trying to strangle someone.
Sentencing is set for Dec. 4.
Police said the complainant returned home around 8:50 p.m. July 4 to find a large fire in her yard. When she investigated, she found Williams burning furniture, and upon further inspection, the woman told police that it was her bedroom set, including a bed, two dressers and a nightstand, police added.
Police said Williams, who was waiting on the porch when police arrived, admitted that he burned the property because he and his ex-girlfriend were no longer dating and "no other man was going to lay in his bed." Authorities said Williams claimed the property was his and he had a receipt for the purchase of the bedroom set.


1. I am at least 18 years of age and an adult of sound mind and judgement.
2. I am permitted by the laws in my residing country to receive the treatment and medication that I am requesting for my personal use, and I enter into this Agreement in compliance with the laws of my country.
3. I, the patient, have recently undergone an examination with a local Doctor or my General Practitioner (GP) who has evaluated my current condition and past medical history and deemed this to be to a satisfactory level.
4. My local Doctor or GP is a registered medical practitioner who is available for a further consultation if the need arises and I agree to immediately contact my Doctor for any necessary check-up, care or intervention in the event that I should experience any side effects or complications or have any questions in respect of the medication(s). The prescribing Doctor and the dispensing pharmacy may also be contacted and I will email them accordingly to arrange for the prescribing Doctor or the dispensing pharmacy to call me back, if the need arises. I accept that the prescribing Doctor or an appointed representative may contact me for any reason whatsoever even if I have not requested them to do so.
5. The prescription and medication that I am requesting are entirely for my own personal medical needs and my own personal use, are required for my condition and will not be used to sell onto any third party or used to stockpile an excess of medication beyond an adequate supply.
6. I agree and understand that the purpose of this service is to support, not replace, the relationship with my healthcare providers, local Doctor or GP.
7. I have been informed by an appropriately trained health care professional and fully understand the benefits, possible side effects and risks of the prescription treatments I may request. I have also studied written or online materials on these medications including various links and websites that offer in-depth material on the subject.
8. I may have used on previous occasions the medication that I am requesting under a Doctor's supervision and its use was safe and free from side effects. I also state that my local examining Doctor or GP advised me that the use of the medication is not contraindicated for me and is appropriate for my personal medical needs.
9. By completing this consultation and anything associated here forth, I am requesting that a UK- or EU/EEA-registered prescriber act only in an adjunct capacity to my local Doctor or GP. I do not wish for this registered prescriber to replace my local Doctor or GP. As a result I confirm that I am requesting that the registered prescriber considering my consultation issue the prescription for dispensing by the associated licensed pharmacy.
10. I will immediately contact a local Doctor or my GP for any necessary medical intervention should a complication or side effect manifest whilst using the medication or at any time thereafter. Before taking any other new medicines, I agree to first obtaining approval from a registered medical practitioner or pharmacist and take full responsibility in this regard. I agree to fully disclose to this practitioner the list of medications that I am currently taking including the one being ordered from this Website.
11. I have answered and will answer all questions answered truthfully and to the best of my knowledge, in the same way I would answer in a 'face-to-face' consultation with my local Doctor or GP.
12. I understand that full disclosure is essential in maintaining my personal safety and I will without fail adhere to this condition of disclosure at all times.
13. As a further affirmation of the aforementioned point, I confirm that I have disclosed in full any and all information concerning my health and medical history that may be relevant to my request for treatment and medication. I have not omitted or misrepresented any information or statement of fact during the consultation process and relevant hereto.
14. I fully understand that there are risks as well as benefits associated with and in relation to the use of any medication or treatment. I affirm that I have undergone a recent medical examination with respect to my physical and medical condition.
15. I agree to monitor my blood pressure and will do so at least once every 7 (SEVEN) days. I agree to stop taking the medication immediately if my blood pressure is higher than 140/90 (if the top number is greater than 140 or the bottom number is greater than 90). I will stop taking the medication immediately and will consult a Doctor or my GP as soon as possible and without any further delay.
16. I am permitted by law to use the credit card and or any other payment card that will be used to purchase the medication or treatment, if my request is approved and processed. I affirm that I am an authorised cardholder or signatory and or duly authorised to use the payment card used on this Website.
17. I have not been induced or placed under duress to use this Website, undertake an online medical consultation and or purchase medication or any other treatment that I requested or may request and I do so out of my own free will and choice.
18. By proceeding with this request for the chosen treatment or medication, I am voluntarily agreeing to all of the above-mentioned points. I understand that by using this Website and the service it provides, I irrevocably bind myself to the Terms and Conditions contained herein.


Could anyone rework on UPSMON script to fit for arma3?
I tried to implement it, but always got message "MPframework.sqf not found". I found when script call it from arma2 ca, but I don't understand this part of the script, so I'm not sure to delete it.
Go to your Init_UPSmon.sqf and Disable the Debug.
^ He is a legend.
Be aware. The current version for Arma3 doesnt include parameters like "fortify". Check inside the .sqf for available parameters.
Once the OA beta codebase is merged with A3, you may use the UPSMON (multi-)HC version because of the dependency on the hasInterface-statement.
- With a single HC, just chuck it in your mission and create a HC slot.
- With multiple HC, give each HC its own script to execute to prevent localities on an HC scale.
Did you get the mortar(mk6?) working so that the AI fires it on known enemy positions?
If it doesnt work, would it be possible for you to try and get it to work?
Or atleast give some pointers on what needs to change for it to work.
I haven't tested it yet. I will take a shot at it today or tomorrow.
Can you please make a simple hc mission using this. i got server and hc working on arma 3.
Any progress on the artillery ligthert ?
Also anyone heard anythin regarding hasinterface and other commands making it into arma3?
This is a heavily mutalated version of UPSMON, but works on the same principle as the UPSMON HC I released for A2 (http://www.reddit.com/r/arma/comments/16u1zm/this_is_for_you_mission_makers_upsmon_with_hc/). In this version it checks for a player named HCSlot and then has it execute the UPSMON code.
In the co80 version I mutilated the displaying of markers, so it isn't that usable, unless you strip it out.
Arti, not yet. I am kinda ArmA fatigued at the moment.
As for the hasInterface command, my guesstimate is later this week (Valve-time).
With the UPS script for ARMA3 Alpha, has anyone got this functionality to work?
in the init.sqf but that still doesn't work.
OK, I've found a workaround that's a bit messy, but does the job.
Instead of making rectangular markers for the UPS spawn, use the ICON marker type, but still set the dimensions you need for x and y (suggest creating it as a rectangle first, getting the dimensions right, then converting it to an empty icon.
Because this empty icon marker becomes bigger then the map and impossible to see properly!
However UPS will happily spawn your AI into the correct rectangle, and work without showing any areas to the player.
works fine for me... and my marker names are area1. area 2. etc. they could be anything. works fine.
Do you think there's a chance you could add me on Skype so I could talk with you about the UPSMON script?
where on my map, there is a marker called "Spawnpoint01" and a patrol area called "PatrolArea01".
The group spawns ok, and teleports to the patrol area, but after a few seconds they all surrender with their arms in the air.
Figured it out. Correction in above script.
I have a question that might be pretty complicated. Lets say we have 2 objectives with patrol areas around them. Players engage enemys at obj one. The players get killed and decide to do obj 2 instead. Is it possible for all the units at obj one, to despawn and respawn, at obj 1 patrol area, when they have not had contact in a certain amount of time? The point of this would be to kind of reset the obj after the players have left it alone, for lets say 15 minutes.
Has anyone successfully used the reinforcement feature in A3 yet? I haven't used it in some time, and I'm having some trouble. Was just curious if it's me and I need to keep trying, or if it's the script and/or alpha-status of A3.
BTW, thanks very much for your time in bringing this to A3, ligthert. Much appreciated.
I'm using your script for my mission on Arma 3 Alpha and it's work fine with all kinds of unit except for 'Divers'.
Any chance to have an update including patrolling Divers?


Write the smallest amount of code to pass your test.
When introduced to Test-Driven Development (TDD), frequently you will read or hear that you should write only the smallest amount of production code to get your failing test to pass. There are several reasons for doing this: We don't want to over-engineer or complicate our system, we want it to be simple to understand and maintain, and most importantly we don't want to have any code that is not covered by a test. That's all fine and good, but how do I know that I'm actually writing the bare minimum necessary?
This kata simulates a babysitter working and getting paid for one night.
After reviewing the requirements we decide that the first test we should write should test that working a single hour before bedtime should calculate the babysitter's pay to be $12 for the night. We create and call a calculatePay method that takes the start time, end time, and bedtime. Let's just assume a 24 hour clock for the time being.
Cool. At this point you may be tempted to do some math because this problem is easy to solve. Maybe a little (endTime — startTime) * 12 will do the trick. It will certainly get this test to pass. I mean, how could that be bad? It means that you're writing production code that is not covered by a test. With a small example like this, it's pretty easy to get a good idea of what needs to be done, making it tempting to cheat or jump ahead. With larger systems containing dozens or even hundreds of classes, this becomes even more important when you can't reasonably keep track of everything that's going on.
Our test passes with this. Whenever you have a failing test, you should always challenge yourself to write the smallest amount of production code to get that test to pass, no matter how ridiculous or useless you think the production code is. Trust your tests. Your tests will tell you if you have a particular piece of functionality implemented or not. In the end you will notice that your code seems smaller, cleaner, and more purposeful. Better yet, the next developer that comes along to add functionality to this or maintain it probably won't hate you.
Now we can move on and write a test for multiple hours before bedtime. This will enable us to write out some of the math we may have wanted to write during the first test.
You may start to wonder why my tests specify some variables passed into the method that are unused at the moment. Technically for my first test I could have had a calculatePay method with no arguments. The only reason I did this was to give my tests more meaning. TDD doesn't necessarily mean that you give no thought to a little upfront design. The kata specifies that I need to know a start time, end time and a bedtime, so I don't need to make things more difficult on myself by trying to avoid certain things in the beginning.
How do I know I wrote the bare minimum necessary to make the test pass?
1. You write a test that you expect to fail, but it instantly passes.
This is likely an indication that you wrote too much production code to get a previous test to pass. This is an after-the-fact situation, but if you start to recognize this as soon as it occurs and make an attempt to understand why, you will run into this situation far less in the future. My recommendation for when you reach this point is to fix up the production code you wrote previously in order to get only this new test to fail. You may be removing a chunk of functionality that you thought was important, but it's just as important to make sure you see your test fail before you make it pass. Otherwise you run the risk of having unnecessary production code.
2. Your test coverage tool indicates that your production code coverage dipped below 100%.
If you're writing tests in any capacity, I would recommend using a test coverage tool if possible (EclEmma for Eclipse is a good example). A new project started with TDD should begin with and maintain a test coverage percentage of 100%. If you're on a project where this isn't the case, just at least make sure that you're not decreasing the test coverage percentage. Sometimes you'll be on a project with multiple teams and not every team will be as diligent with adding tests (if they even write tests). It's important that you do your best to keep the quality at its highest. If your test coverage tool finds that a conditional branch you just added to your code is only covered for one case and not the other, it's a good indication that you added the condition too early before a test dictated that it was necessary. Try removing the condition completely and see if your test still passes, then drive that back in with a second test.
3. You're throwing more code at the problem.
You just wrote some production code to get your test to pass. Easy! Now you run your tests and find out that the test is still failing. Darn. Let's just add another line or two of code here. Crap, the test is still failing. Let's add a few more lines of code. The test still won't pass? Now you have a pile of garbage that isn't working and you're confused because it seems like it should be. If you find yourself to be in this situation, you need to take a step back and return to what is most simple. Double-check that your test has been written properly and undo your production changes. If I know I can get my test to pass by simply returning 12, but when I do that I'm still getting 0 back from that method, it can point me to a completely different location. This happened to me once when I neglected to initialize memory for the babysitter object I was testing. Oops! In this case, no amount of production code would help me.
Sometimes it's hard to write such a small amount of code because you already have a vision in your head of the solution. I know that my calculatePay method will not always just give me $12, but it's important not to cheat and skip ahead. Challenge yourself to keep your production code as small, clean and maintainable as possible. Trust your tests and you'll go far.


The tests for the first land based submarine we're a disaster.
This game is so Rigged!
5 seconds to Storm Front Squall Line.
Edit: I forgot what the, ditch your buggered airplane, announcement was called.
Edited by Toggle, 28 September 2018 - 10:17 AM.
NO! I said "inverted gull wing" not "inverted landing"
FFS!! Your other left Ace.
Edited by Perco_lator, 27 September 2018 - 03:15 AM.
The Hand of Doom is a real thing!
5 seconds to Storm Front.
Edited by MelBrooks, 27 September 2018 - 07:50 PM.
"knew I should have calibrated my joystick"
I blame the cat. When all else fails, blame the cat.
FU team, could you gimme some cover!!!
Edited by El_Mulo, 28 September 2018 - 12:27 AM.


The Museum is located on 1,800 hectares of rugged mesa plateau or jump-up. The Jump-Up is part of the Winton Formation and is 95-98 million years old. Rest easy on this Jump-Up-inspired pillow. 30.5 cm x 30.5 cm. 80% polyester and 20% cotton.


Written by Travel Writer Nam from Laugh, Travel, Eat.
Lake Bohinj is the largest permanent lake in Slovenia, and it also happens to be less than half an hour's car ride from Bled. While my visit to Lake Bohinj happened because of a scheduling mishap that left me a week between my pre-planned travels, it was the best destination I could have hoped for.
The lake is nestled between the Julian Alps and on the fringes of the only national park in Slovenia: the Triglav National Park. A glacial lake fed by, you guessed it, glaciers, the water is cold even in the warm summer months. But its large size means it's more water-sports friendly than Lake Bled. Spending a week in this region seemed like a lot of time, but I had just about managed to cover the most accessible attractions available in this beautiful corner of Slovenia. Here, I want to share the top 5 things to do in the Lake Bohinj region, plus here is a free map of the Lake Bohinj area for you!
A small town on the east bank of Lake Bohinj, it is the most touristy of all the towns and villages in the region, but its charm is undeniable. Even though I stayed in the largest town in the area, Bohinjska Bistrica, I infinitely prefer this scenic town. With an unparallel view over Lake Bohinj as well as the readily available water sports equipment rental facilities, it's a great base for travelers.
The moment I fell in love with this town was when the bus drove past the bridge of Ribcev Laz just as the sun set. It was the most serene scene I have ever seen.
Aside from the brick bridge and the church next to it, you can quickly reach some great relaxing spots on the perimeter of Lake Bohinj north of the town.
Northeast of Lake Bohinj near the town of Stara Fuzina is the Mostnica River, and one of the most fascinating gorges I have ever seen. The Mostnica Gorge is a two miles stretch of the Mostnica River where the river has eroded deep gorges. The stunning turquoise water and mini waterfalls and rapids formed in the limestone landscape are Instagram-worthy. You can easily finish the hike around the paid area in half an hour, but I ended up spending one hour there snapping photo after photo.
If you are feeling adventurous, you can even hike up to the source of the Mostnica River, the Okrepcevalnica Slap, crossing beautiful meadows and traditional houses. Though the waterfall isn't as spectacular as I hoped, the view on the way more than make up for it.
On my research on what to do in the area, I found the prettiest pier on Instagram in Lake Bohinj. The only problem was that it isn't easy to reach, being on the south bank of the lake where it is bordered by the main road. However, upon closer inspection, it is close to a public bus station Voglom, and the hostel of the same name. But the schedule makes it challenging, and I didn't want to be stuck there for an hour plus waiting for one public bus. Instead, I rented a kayak at Ribcev Laz and paddled over there. Lake Bohinj is bordered by gravelly banks, and there are plenty of nooks and small bays where you can dock your kayak or SUP. I docked mine right next to the pier, took some photos and a swim before setting off again.
Also south of the lake, Mount Vogel is a ski resort in winter and a popular hiking destination in the summer months. One of its biggest selling points is the view down to Lake Bohinj as you rode the car lift that would take you up to 1,353 m above sea level. If you are not a keen hiker, you can stroll around the ski center level where you can admire the alpine sceneries or try zip lining. There are also herds of mountain goats roaming the ground during my visit in August, who barged around the place looking for grass to eat.
Given the name of the ski center, I decided to hike up to the peak that gave the center its name. The view at the beginning wasn't anything special, but it began to get better as I got higher. It topped with a stunning vista of the Julian Alps across at 1,922m above sea level. I can only describe as feeling being on top of the world. You can read more about my hike up Mount Vogel on my blog.
A waterfall northeast of Lake Bohinj, Savica Slap is famous for its A shaped double waterfall that is a result of a fault line. A well-developed tourist attraction, there are a paved set of stairs that lead to the waterfall. However, be warned that it's quite long and there isn't a lot of space at the end for everyone to get a good photo at once. In spite of that, the Savica Slap is a beautiful waterfall that hangs on the limestone cliff. And with the vibrant water and curious shape, it is the most visited attractions. Not to mention it involves the least amount of exercise.
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text:
Fluch des verborgenen Schatzes (Originaltitel: I cacciatori del cobra d'oro) ist ein italienischer Abenteuerfilm mit Fantasy-Elementen, der von Action-Spezialist Antonio Margheriti 1982 inszeniert wurde. Der nicht nur im Titel an Steven Spielbergs Jäger des verlorenen Schatzes gemahnende Film erhielt zurückhaltende bis mäßige Kritiken.

Inhalt
Bob und Dave haben es als amerikanische Soldaten des Zweiten Weltkrieges mit einem falschen japanischen General, einer Sabotageaktion und einer Statue einer goldenen Kobra zu tun. Angeblich hat diese Statue magische Kräfte, die sich auf den Besitzer übertragen. Nach einigen Jahren – beide sind nun Geheimagenten der amerikanischen Regierung – machen sich beide auf die Suche. Ihnen gesellen sich die hübsche June und ihr Onkel zu, die das Verbleiben der verschollenen Schwester April von June interessiert. Ihre Reise durch den Urwald wird von zahlreichen Gefahren und Fallen gesäumt, die sie mit Glück und Geschick überstehen. Als sie einen Eingeborenenstamm erreichen, finden sie dort nicht nur die Statue der Kobra vor, sondern auch June, die die Herrscherin des Stammes ist. June und ihr Onkel, die nun erkennbar aus Habgier handeln, sterben bei einem Vulkanausbruch; der überlebende Bob kehrt mit der Statue und April in die Zivilisation zurück.

Kritik
Segnalazione cinematografiche urteilt: "Der Film, der eine pausenlose Aneinanderreihung von Actionszenen ist, bereitet Abenteuer aus, die wir aus vorherigen Werken des Regisseurs oder von amerikanischen Vorbildern kennen oder aus Bruce Lee-Streifen. Mittelmäßiges, durchschnittliches Abenteuergarn."

Sonstiges
 Die deutsche Kinoversion war gekürzt; die Videoversion dagegen FSK-ungeprüft und ungeschnitten.

Einzelnachweise

Weblinks

Filmtitel 1982
Italienischer Film
Abenteuerfilm

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia