text:
Police: Minneapolis Carjackings Rose an Astonishing 537% in Last Two Months
By Kipp Jones, The Western Journal
Published December 3, 2020 at 5:19pm
Reported incidents of violent carjackings have skyrocketed in Minneapolis during a crime wave in the city that began amid calls to defund the police following the May death of George Floyd.
According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, forced vehicle thefts increased 537 percent in October and November when compared to the same period in 2019.
In all, 125 carjackings have been reported in the city over the last two months.
According to the Star Tribune, police are blaming "small groups of marauding teens" for some of the crimes in the city.
But other cases of forced car theft appear random. They are also, at times, very violent.
One female victim was driving when an attempted car thief pointed a gun at her, according to the outlet.
The woman sped away, but not before three shots were fired at her car. Two rounds struck the car's window, while a third bullet hit her side-view mirror.
She escaped unharmed, and those who attacked her made an escape in another stolen vehicle.
A person close to the victim in that case told the Star Tribune the woman was "traumatized."
On the violent incident, the same woman said, "It's just so bold."
Things are so bad that police responded to three different carjackings within one hour Saturday on the southeast side of Minneapolis.
An elderly woman was reportedly hit in the head in one of those incidents.
Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder spoke about the rash of violent car thefts, telling the Star Tribune, "The numbers are staggering."
"It defies all civility and any shred of common human decency," he said.
Crime has risen in the city significantly since this past summer.
One resident of the city described how order has broken down.
"I am unsettled by the acceptance that carjacking and attempted murder is being normalized as a new way of life in our city," Higgins Victor said in a letter to the City Council, according to the Star Tribune.
"Police are gone. Criminals are emboldened. City leaders are not working toward common goals," Victor said.
Minneapolis is home to the now-nationwide movement to defund police agencies.
In June, the City Council unanimously voted in favor of a plan to eliminate the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a "Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention."
Democrats in the city were seeking a "holistic" approach to policing and public safety at that time.
The City Council advanced a proposed ballot measure today asking voters to create a new Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention. https://t.co/bsfjuY6SYY
— City of Minneapolis (@CityMinneapolis) June 26, 2020
There now seems to be a bit of buyer's remorse for throwing police under the bus in the wake of Floyd's death, as crime is now affecting residents all over the city.
Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey, who was seen marching with anti-police demonstrators this summer, now opposes defunding his city's police.
KNOW-FM reported Monday that Frey described calls from the City Council to remove $8 million from the department as "irresponsible."
"We are hearing from our communities right now that they are looking for a both-and approach," Frey said in reference to the city's crime wave.
Frey said people in the city do not want to see fewer police officers patrolling the streets.
Kipp Jones, The Western Journal
Pro-Migrant Groups Overjoyed After Getting First Look at Biden's Immediate Immigration Plan
Biden's Team Outraged as Twitter Announces It Will Not Transfer Trump's Followers to New POTUS
Jack Davis, The Western Journal January 16, 2021 at 12:49pm
Innocent Man Suffers Modern Nightmare After Twitter Mob Blames Him for Capitol Violence


We previously reported Media Create's hardware and software sales figures, which were of particular interest because they contained the Vita's first posted sales numbers. While the system had respectable software sales on those charts, the figures released reflect only physical media.
Part of the Vita's appeal is its easy access to download games, and said games being significantly cheaper than the physical versions (which has been in practice in Japan for the last four or five years. This isn't new, though a lot of people think the Vita introduces this).
The challenge for Sony is that Japan is notoriously unresponsive to digital media. I've lived in Japan for a bit over four years now, and rarely do I hear of anyone downloading a game or even playing something online. I couldn't even find anyone who was aware of the PSN downtime back in the spring. Yeah.
Now, of course, since this is Japan we're talking about, these "expectations" might have been very low and to break them might be incredibly easy. There is a vague area here. Nonetheless, this is a spot of bright news for Sony and its new handheld. I'll add, despite the Vita's hardware and software sales being overall good at the Japanese launch, I worry that it might not be good enough. I'm no doomsday preacher, but I do sometimes tend to think pessimistically. By no means will I write any system off as "dead" within a mere year of its release (take a look at the 3DS now despite how many gloom and doom articles there were over the summer), but you have to also realize that not every console is capable of coming back from slow starts. I love my PSP and am sad as heck to see the effects of mainstream indifference. Now I've got a Vita, and I hope that the above is a sign of success for the new machine.


Celebrate your love and commitment with this striking diamond and sapphire wedding band. Fashioned in 10K white gold, this band features a center row of glistening bright blue sapphires bordered top and bottom with rows of shimmering diamonds. A meaningful look, this wedding band captivates with 1/4 ct. t.w. of diamonds and a polished shine.


text:
Q: trigonometry equation sin2x+sin(180-8x)=√2*cos3x the equation is: $\sin2x+\sin(180°-8x)=\sqrt2\cos3x$
I tried to solve this equation. I got 2 right answers, but in the book, there are 3 answers.
my answers: $x=9°+27°k, x=27°+72°k$. book adds this answer $x=30°+60°k$
I don't understand what I did wrong. please help .
sin2x+sin(180-8x)=√2*cos3x
sin2x+sin8x=√s*cos3x
2*sin5x*cos(-3x)=√2*cos3x
2*sin5x*cos3x=√2*cos3x
2*sin5x=√2
sin5x=√2/2
sin5x = sin45

5x = 45+360k
x = 9 + 27k

5x = 180-45+360k
5x = 135+360k
x = 27+72k

A: Over here,
$$2\sin 5x \cos 3x = \sqrt{2}\cos 3x$$
$\cos 3x$ should not have been cancelled away from both ends, as doing so eliminates certain solutions. Instead, you should shift them to the same side and do some factorization:
$$2\sin5x\cos3x - \sqrt{2}\cos3x = 0$$
$$\cos3x (2\sin5x - \sqrt2) = 0.$$
From this you get an additional set of answers from $\cos 3x = 0$, namely $$3x = 90^\circ + 180^\circ k$$
$$x = 30^\circ  + 60^\circ k.$$

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
from helper import *
#           Environment
Import( 'env' )

def add_dependencies(env):
  '''[[[cog
  import cogging as c
  c.tpl(cog,templateFile,c.a(prefix=configFile))
  ]]]'''

  AddDependency(env,'types_cnets_osblinnikov_github_com','github.com/osblinnikov/cnets/types')
  '''[[[end]]] (checksum: e8208f4ef21ca5bbecb9c806b80170a9)'''
  AddPthreads(env)
  # AddNetwork(env)

c = {}
c['PROG_NAME'] = 'runnablesContainer_cnets_osblinnikov_github_com'
# c['sourceFiles'] = ['runnablesContainer.c']
c['testFiles'] = ['runnablesContainerTest.c']
# c['runFiles'] = ['main.c']
# c['defines'] = []
c['inclDeps'] = add_dependencies
DefaultLibraryConfig(env, c)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Myanmar - Flash Flood in Taungoo District
15:50 Aug 29 2018 Taungoo District
The spillway collapse of Swar Chaung dam killed one resident, missed six ones and displaced more than 60,000 in Toungoo District, Bago Region on August 29. A surge of water fractured the part of Swar Chaung bridge, and bridge supporting pillars were submerged under about one and a half feet of water, said Dr Kyaw Kyaw, a regional parliamentarian representing Yedashe of Bago Region.
A flow of water running out of Swar Chaung dam was submerging Yangon-Mandalay highway under about two feet of water starting 7 am on August 29. The RP 1 of the bridge was lowered about one and half feet. The road section mile post 199/4 on old Yangon-Mandalay highway was also inundated, reported by the Ministry of Construction.
At the moment, plans are underway to carry out a rapid repair to the bridge by the Ministry of Construction. The chief minister of Bago Region, the deputy minister of the Ministry of Construction, the heads of departments and local authorities quickly arrived to render assistance, according to the Ministry of Construction.
A gush of water coming from the collapse of the spillway of Swar Chaung dam flooded nearby villages and both highways of new Yangon-Mandalay and old Yangon-Mandalay.
"The incident of the spillway collapse killed one person and was missing six according to the latest information received at about 2 pm on August 29. 85 villages from 17 village tracts in Toungoo District were inundated. The flash flood displaced more than 60,000 people. Rescue measures are being carried out and rescue camps opened," said Dr Kyaw Kyaw.
Some people are still missing in the flash flood because it is very swift. Rescue measures are being carried out with added momentum, said Dr Kyaw Kyaw.
"We don't know some people in the flash flood whether they are dead or not. We have found one body. It is an old-age woman," said Dr Kyaw Kyaw.
The spillway broke about 7 am and Yangon-Mandalay Highway had to be temporarily closed.
At about 10 am, Vice-President Henry Van Thio, Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, and Dr Win Myat Aye, Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement were quick to supervise rescue measures.
"We will have to work together in the event of a natural disaster. The spillway of the dam collapsed. The old Yangon-Mandalay Highway was worse. The vice-present and the deputy minister have already arrived at the scene. So far, more than 60,000 acres of farmlands have been inundated," said Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
The highway had to be closed because of the flood for a few hours. At about 11 am, one lane of Swar Chaung bridge was reopened for home-use cars.
The police officer of Yangon-Mandalay Highway said the flood water has descended. The authorities are still making checks on the bridge. The bridge lowered a little.
Erosion makes the bridge lower and it must be repaired as soon as possible. A Bailey bridge will be constructed for travelers to see conveniences, said deputy minister Kyaw Lin.
Divers will go down to the hollows at the bottom of the water when the water becomes stable. When the hollows become stable, vehicles are allowed to pass on the bridge. Then, the Bailey bridge will be constructed for traffic, said deputy minister Kyaw Lin.
Plans are underway to evacuate the residents from Kyuntawsu, Uyinhmu villages and the villages along the creek to safer places as the flow of water flooded the villages. A car was taken by the flash water near toll gate of Swar. Moreover, the railway lines were inundated between Swar and Yedashe. Seven staff of Khungon railway station was trapped. The railway line services were temporarily closed.
Country: Myanmar
Affected Area / Region: Swa Char Dam, Taungoo District
Displaced Persons: 15000
Damaged infrastructure (e.g. road, water network): 1 bridge
Loss of livelihood sources: 24281.139 hectares
http://www.elevenmyanmar.com/local/14816
https://www.facebook.com/ddmmswrr/posts/1339919459476405?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARBYBg1RbG7PliSEmLg7wDPvn2kJBxb3wR6l_xA1S67LvEtFYocgFmKYN3PhGP2Em8PSxbYWp5f-CstxzzWzLkj7v2_nBOgvEC2CVnCvk5R6Z8btlbxZH07jos5sUIwd46xAfs0&__tn__=K-R
Myanmar, Impact of Earthquake
Sin Ku, Shwe Bo, 46.66 Kms
Myanmar, Flooding in Taunggoo District
09:08 Aug 21, 2018
Sittoung River and Myole Creek in Kyaukgyi Township, 112.4 Kms
Myanmar, Flooding in Okhpo Township
Ohkpo Township, 138.33 Kms
Earthquake of Upper Myanmar
Mandalay and Sagaing Division, 149.04 Kms
Myanmar, Flooding in Kachin State, Rakhine State, and Mon State
Kachin State, 152.89 Kms

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Current trends in post-secondary education indicate that we are in a period of unprecedented growth and transformation, where institutions are constantly adapting and prospective students opt to get more practical learning. Education nowadays, particularly in the field of creative media, is happening out in the field through immersive and exchangeable experiences and technology.
a top-notch adaptable 120-seat auditorium, serving as a Dolby 5.1 cinema, classroom, conference amphitheatre or live music concert hall.
The mission to grow in the disciplines of interactive animation and game development meant a dedicated artistic room for the design of video games and 3D animation was provided. In light of this, we also decided to adjust the shape of our new campus with the objective of providing practical navigation to students and staff to enhance cross-disciplinary learning.
We wanted to focus less on traditional lectures and isolated study and more on project-based learning and cross-campus collaboration. Lecturers are already developing more sophisticated and interactive lessons, for example, by using virtual reality technology or by interacting with students using mobile technology in the classroom as students are likely to have one or more mobile devices.
The new Parisian campus certainly marks a new beginning and we are all confident that students are being given the best chance to succeed in their learning by this new interactive space.
Learn more about SAE Paris here, or share your thoughts and ideas via Yammer, Twitter or LinkedIn.


We work together on the mechanics of fluent speaking, using research based strategies such as Precision Fluency Shaping. At the same time, we build confidence and self acceptance, working up through a hierarchy of speaking situations. Most of all, whether in individual or group sessions, we have fun, and work together in a spirit of lighthearted camaraderie.
We have wonderful fun, and fascinating times, while building skills in speaking with clarity, confidence, and accurate pronunciation of each speech sound.
to reinforce the social skills and communication strategies we are learning.


In collaboration with Michael Phelps and Bob Bowman, we set out to develop a line of swim equipment that allows you to get the most out of your training sessions and reach your peak performance in competition. All of our swimming caps and racing caps are FINA approved so you're always race ready. Our swim snorkel, short blade swim fins, and strength building swim paddles are ergonomically designed to maximise comfort and stability so you can stay focused on your swim, not your gear. The MP Swim Bag is a durable bag that keeps all of your swim equipment organised on and off the pool deck.
Our Short Blade Swim Fins will help you build true swimming-specific leg strength whilst improving your kicking technique, body position and ankle flexibility.
Swimming Hand Paddles are designed to build your strength by adding resistance to your stroke. They also encourage correct technique by forcing you into a proper pulling position.
Use one of our Swim Bag options for easy storage and transportation. We have Swimming Backpacks or Mesh Swim Bags which are both big enough for all your Swim Gear.


text:
Annahöhe bezeichnet:

Orte:
 Annahöhe, Kreis Rastenburg, Ostpreußen, seit 1945: Góra (Korsze), Ort im Powiat Kętrzyński, Woiwodschaft Ermland-Masuren, Polen
 Annahöhe, Kreis Schwerin (Warthe), Brandenburg, ab 1945: Słodzona, untergegangener Ort im Powiat Skwierzyna, Woiwodschaft Lebus, Polen

Berge:
 Annahöhe (Erzgebirge), Berg (684 m) im Erzgebirge, Deutschland

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Interestingly the functions generated for the executable contain FPO optimization. Below is the snippet of the disassembly of a routine.
/Oy enables frame-pointer omission and /Oy- disables omission. /Oy is available only in x86 compilers.
I am wondering if this flag is only available for x86, then how come the x64 windows routines like FileTimeToSystemTime has FPO disabled!


text:
if [[ -z "$SERVICE_CRON_OPTS" ]]; then SERVICE_CRON_OPTS=""; fi

source /opt/docker/bin/config.sh

includeScriptDir "/opt/docker/bin/service.d/cron.d/"

exec /usr/sbin/cron -f $SERVICE_CRON_OPTS


text:
Turmoil in AIFF
Proper planning with a player centric approach is the need of the hour and not merely fulfilling the annual calendar with crowded fixtures.
ByRK Nimai
Updated 31 Aug 2022, 6:08 pm
(File Photo: IFP)
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) was in the news recently for all the wrong reasons. On August 24, in a short interview with a local TV Channel, the President of All Manipur Football Association (AMFA) claimed Praful Patel offered to resign his Presidentship after his term is over but was asked to continue by the States' representatives as election could not be held due to COVID-19 and that FIFA had lifted the suspension. One was confused by the statements and makes one wonder whether our representation to AIFF is at all aware of the reasons for the unsavoury developments in AIFF.
Praful Patel continued as President claiming that the matter is sub-judice arising out from a 2017 case filed by him before the Supreme Court. There were objections to his continuation from the representatives of various states like Karnataka, J&K, Delhi, Kerala, etc.
Only when a petition was filed by Senior Advocate Rahul Mehra before the Supreme Court was he thrown out by the Court and a Three-Member Committee of Administrators (CoA) comprising former Justice of the Supreme Court Justice AR Dave, former Chief Election Commissioner SY Qureshi and former India captain Bhaskar Ganguly were appointed; mandated to manage the day-to-day affairs of AIFF, adapt the Constitution in line with the National Sports Code and prepare an electoral roll for election to be held within a time frame.
After some time, on the instigation of Praful Patel as alleged by the CoA, FIFA placed under suspension AIFF on August 15 on the ground of flagrant violation of the FIFA Statutes and undue influence from third parties.
The immediate casualty was Gokulam FC which was in Tashkent for the Asia Women Club Championship where it has a fairly good chance of proceeding further and the FIFA U-17 World Cup to be hosted by India in October. CoA had filed a contempt petition against Praful Patel for his undue interference.
The CoA erred in trying to ensure 50% of former eminent players in the Electoral College by incorporating in the Constitution. Every organisation is self serving and any new changes even in the overall interest of the organisation will be objected to, if the present ruling dispensation is likely to be affected. There is serious cronyism in all sports disciplines in all parts of the globe including India and Manipur. The attempt to incorporate the salient provisions of the National Sports Code was one of the major undoing resulting in the suspension.
In the case of cricket, this was done despite objections from the international governing body ICC, as India has the clout as most of the finances were generated in India and ICC can be left out in the lurch if India decides to start a new governing body. In other sports, the clout of India is at the most marginal and if third party interference was allowed in India, it will follow suit in other countries including European countries and it is likely that UEFA can change the functioning of the existing dispensation in FIFA. Protecting one's own self interest is the primacy.
The Government filed an affidavit incorporating all the demands of FIFA and the CoA was disbanded by the Supreme Court, though 25% of the Executive Committee will have eminent players who shall be co-opted. This was to ensure that FIFA's Women World U-17 tournament scheduled in October is held in India. There is still confusion whether candidates like Baichung Bhutia or Kalyan Chaubey who filed as individuals without representing any state unit will be permitted to contest though both of them were strong contenders.
After the Supreme Court ordered disbanding the CoA, and after writing to FIFA by the acting Secretary General of AIFF on the development, FIFA revoked the suspension on August 26.
There is no doubt that cronyism is rampant in sports administration and people from politics want to enter and refuse to leave. Two politicians Priya Ranjan Das Munshi and Praful Patel were in the helm of AIFF for 34 years. The Sports Code and the Lodha Committee recommendations make an attempt to break such monopoly of powerful individuals who refuse to leave as Indians love to cling rather than retire gracefully. But were enforcement of the Sports Code and the recommendations of the Lodha Committee through legal route the answer? It seems not, as the concerned international body will object to third party interference. Thus, the Union and state governments must ensure its compliance by tightening the purse string.
The government can refuse grants to any sports body which do not conform to the sports code and the recommendations of the Lodha Committee. Except for cricket which can sustain on its own, no other federation or association can manage without government grants. Even in the BCCI, once the current dispensation came into being, they petitioned the Supreme Court to relax some of the provisions with an eye to cling to power. From a provision of 85 crore per annum for AIFF, it was slashed to 5 crore and this is the way to go ahead. The only problem with the government is that if the person involved belongs to the ruling party such reduction may not have happened.
It may also be appreciated that people without passion for the game will not be able to do justice. In this regard, it is not only the ex-players who have a passion but there are many who are deeply interested in specific games devoting time, energy and money towards its development. In any game, grass root development is the key to make the game grow in the country. Now, for football there are academies in almost every part of the country; most of them are for the money and do not properly look after the career and interest of the players. For proper development there should be a hierarchy of clubs with the top tier drawing from the lower tier clubs and ensuring that the lower tier clubs are reimbursed for the development of the players. But in India, amateur players can switch clubs anytime even without clearance from the original clubs.
Amateur players cannot go on loan to another club and have to switch clubs if they want to play in another club and the original club has no say. In such a situation, players who generally belong to a poor family tend to switch clubs on receipt of a few thousands while leaving the original club high and dry. In such a situation which club will train young players investing 5/6 years before being scouted by bigger teams?
Earlier there was a system where clearance from the original club was insisted upon but due to pressure from bigger clubs such conditions were lifted and now it is free for all. Despite instructions, very few ISL or I League teams maintain sub-junior or junior teams and when tournaments for such age groups are being held, these clubs will manage to get players from the lower tier clubs for a limited period. There is a need for a proper system so that clubs in every tier can sustain themselves. If not there will be academies who will exploit players and serious academies and lower tier clubs will vanish.
The federations and associations must ensure that players play at least 30/40 matches in a year, with a rest period of 2/3 days between matches. But in Manipur, there are many players who could play at most 7/8 matches in a season and in such circumstances there is no hope for the growth of young players.
The associations must ensure that there is proper recuperation time between matches, not like what is done in the Subroto Cup tournaments or in the National or State Games where teams play on a daily basis and sometimes even twice a day! AFC insists on a club playing 27 matches domestically for qualifying in the Asia Club Championship and that is the reason why teams from ISL and I-League joined Durand Cup from this year as this tournament has been recognised as one of the Cup Championship of India.
Proper planning with a player centric approach is the need of the hour and not merely fulfilling the annual calendar with crowded fixtures. Number of tournaments must increase, not the five a side or the seven a side tournaments but the full eleven a side ones as the set of skills required are different. Further, the playground should be conducive to football and should not be a danger to the players, not like the artificial turf at Lamlong Thongkhong which is past its longevity and puts risk on the players due to broken sub-surface.
It is hoped that the new dispensation will look into the game in a holistic manner and come up with a systematic and scientific approach with players in the centre so that the game flourish and the players are allowed to grow. If not, they should also have to quit.
(The views expressed is personal)
First published:31 Aug 2022, 6:08 pm
All India Football FederationAMFAAIFFAll Manipur Football AssociationFIFAPraful Patel
RK Nimai
The author is a former bureaucrat, Imphal, Manipur


The hotel selection depends on the category of hotel that you choose. Once you choose the hotel class of preference, we will specify to you which hotels are available for the dates of your trip. Hotels are categorized in the following classes: Economic Class, Tourist Class, Tourist Superior Class, and First Class. All the hotels we work with have been carefully chosen by us after close inspection. Nature Galapagos & Ecuador is the proud owner of the Hotel San Vicente Galapagos(Tourist Class), and La Laguna Galapagos (Tourist Superior Class), both of which are located on Isabela and for both the quality of service can be assured.
The price of the tour does not include air tickets. We will gladly help your with the booking of the ticket from Quito or Guayaquil to Galapagos. You may also book the flights on your own if cheaper. PLEASE TAKE INTO ACCOUNT, which islands you, will arrive and leave from, and if you choose to book your own flight please try to book your arrival in the morning (before 11am) and your departure in the late afternoon (12 pm or after) so that you don't miss any part of the tour. You can book your flight either through TAME, AEROGAL, LAN, or TAME (recommended).
We recommend that you take a seasickness pill before each ride between islands if you are prone to seasickness. It is also recommendable that you carry small plastic bags with you in case of seasickness. Some speedboats used for transfers between islands are not completely covered so please make sure that valuable objects and electronics are stored in a plastic bag. The guide will not go with you on the speedboats but a new guide will greet you on the other side. There are no services onboard as the speedboat space is limited and the journey is relatively short. A water taxi ride is sometimes required (depending on the tide) from the dock to the speedboat; the cost is 1 USD per person and per ride. Please, make sure you bring cash in small denominations in case this expense is needed. This is a Public service out of our control.
We organize excursion with local naturalist guides for each island (and sometimes for each activity). The guides will accompany you throughout all excursions, give explanations of the islands (flora and fauna) and coordinate the activities each day. Regarding lunch and dinner, the guide will specify the restaurant designated but he will not accompany you during this time. The guide's activities will start and end with each daily excursion. The guide will not go with you on the speedboats between islands either. We work with local and independent guides certified by the Galapagos National Park – if you feel that their guidance does not meet your expectations, feel free to leave a complaint at the National Park Direction, if possible at the time of the tour, to help improve the quality of service in the islands.
The schedule of the excursions will be coordinated and determined locally through the guide and those responsible for the operations. The guide will indicate what time each activity will start. The transfers between islands on the public speedboats are the only activities that have fixed departure times.
Navigable tours taking place either from Santa Cruz Island (Santa Fe, Bartolomé, North Seymour and Plazas), Isabela Island (Cabo Rosa – Los Tuneles) and San Cristóbal Island (Española, Kicker Rock) do not always include a hotel pick-up service. Sometimes these require you to meet with the guide on the dock. The day before the tour, the guide or the person in charge of the navigable day tour will inform you of the exact timing, and if there will be either a hotel pick-up or a meeting point at the dock.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Activities and procedures my be subject to change or modification without prior warning depending on necessary operational variations, seasonal changes, weather conditions, and adjustments in policies set by the Galapagos National Park, and /or other unforeseen circumstances.


text:
Colitis in spondyloarthritis
Muhammed Hafis, Vikas Agarwal
Department of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
Prof. Vikas Agarwal
Department of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow - 226 014, Uttar Pradesh
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is seen in up to 14% of patients with spondyloarthritis (SpA) with a lower prevalence seen in the Asian population. Conversely, SpA is the most common extraintestinal manifestation in IBD, with prevalence ranging from 10% to 39%. Apart from the strong Class I human leukocyte antigen B27 link for both diseases, several new shared genetic risk loci are identified from genome-wide association studies. Demonstrable mucosal inflammation of gut is present in most of the patients with SpA, even in the absence of clinically overt IBD. Mucosal inflammation leads to disruption of the epithelial barrier and activation of antigen-presenting cells and T-helper cells, which then home to synovium to cause inflammation maintaining the gut synovial axis. Several putative gut bacteria are implicated in the pathogenesis of SpA. IBD must be suspected in all patients of SpA presenting with abdominal pain, diarrhea, unexplained weight loss, anemia, or other malabsorption features. Fecal calprotectin is emerging as a noninvasive screening tool for detecting clinically silent IBD in patient with SpA. Several therapeutic targets have emerged in the last few years based on the understanding of the pathogenic mechanism and have considerably changed the management of both IBD and SpA.
Keywords: Ankylosing spondylitis, colitis, fecal calprotectin, gut microbiome, mucosal inflammation, spondyloarthropathy
Hafis M, Agarwal V. Colitis in spondyloarthritis. Indian J Rheumatol 2020;15, Suppl S1:52-6
Hafis M, Agarwal V. Colitis in spondyloarthritis. Indian J Rheumatol [serial online] 2020 [cited 2022 Jan 18];15, Suppl S1:52-6. Available from: https://www.indianjrheumatol.com/text.asp?2020/15/5/52/284752
The term spondyloarthritis (SpA) represents a group of disorders, including ankylosing spondylitis (AS), nonradiographic axial SpA (nr-axSpA), undifferentiated peripheral SpA, reactive arthritis (ReA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)-associated arthritis. These are not mutually exclusive diagnoses and considerable overlap occurs between the phenotype of these disorders. The common features of these disorders include predominant axial involvement, asymmetric lower limb predominant oligoarthritis, dactylitis, enthesitis, male predominance, and a strong association with human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 allele.
The association between IBD, both Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), and SpA is well described in the literature. In this review, we provide an overview of epidemiology, shared genetic risk factors, pathogenesis, and treatment of IBD in SpA.
Epedemiology
The prevalence of IBD in AS ranges from 6% to 14% across studies.[1],[2],[3],[4] A meta-analysis of 156 studies showed a pooled prevalence of 6.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 6.1–7.7%).[1] Pooled analysis of studies from Asia showed a lesser prevalence of IBD in SpA (2.9%, 95% CI: 1.9–4.4%).[1] A large population-based matched cohort study from the United Kingdom (UK) showed that 3.4% of patients had IBD at the time of diagnosis of SpA.[2] The cumulative incidence of IBD rose to 7.5% after 20 years of diagnosis of SpA. The risk for IBD was more pronounced in the 1st year of SpA.[2] A meta-regression analysis showed no association between disease duration and the prevalence and IBD. A meta-analysis addressing the prevalence of peripheral and extra-articular disease manifestations in patients with AS and nr-axSpA showed that the pooled prevalence of IBD was similar in AS (4.1%, 95% CI: 2.3–6.5%) and nr-axSpA (6.4%, 95% CI: 3.6–9.7%).[3] In the outcome in the AS international study cohort of 279 patients with 12 years follow-up, age, gender, HLA B27 status, pattern of articular involvement or level of inflammatory markers at diagnosis of SpA did not predict the development of IBD on follow-up.[4]
Microscopic gut inflammation can occur in up to 70% of patients with SpA.[5] In patients with axSpA, male sex (odds ratio [OR] =8.9), high disease activity measured by the bath AS disease activity index (OR = 2.05), restricted spinal mobility measured by the bath AS metrology index (OR = 1.94), and younger age (OR = 0.85) were independently associated with microscopic gut inflammation.[6] The significance of microscopic inflammation lies in the fact that up to 7% of them can progress to clinically overt IBD in 5 years.[7]
SpA is the most common extraintestinal manifestation in IBD, with prevalence ranging from 10% to 39%.[8] A meta-analysis of available studies showed that peripheral arthritis occurred in 13% of IBD patients.[9] In contrast, AS was seen in only 3% of patients. Two distinct forms of peripheral arthritis are described in IBD. Type I arthritis is self-limited nonerosive pauci articular asymmetric arthritis-like ReA. Type II arthritis involves more than five joints, is erosive and destructive, and has more association with HLA B27. A recent observational data from Italy, which enrolled 347 patients with enteropathic SpA showed that Type 1 (Pauci articular asymmetric peripheral arthritis) was the most frequent form.[10] CD was more associated with arthritis than UC.[10] IBD was inactive in most patients at the time of the development of arthritis. Most of the patients required biologic therapy.[10] Patients with a family history of IBD, history of appendicectomy, smoking, and the presence of any other extraintestinal manifestations are more likely to develop peripheral arthritis.[8] Erythema nodosum and pyoderma gangrenosum were also commonly observed in patients with peripheral arthritis than patients who did not.[8]
Both IBD and SpA are associated with HLA B27 allele. About 25%–78% of patients with both IBD and SpA are positive for HLA B27 allele.[11],[12],[13] Other MHC genes having an association with both IBD and SpA include HLA DRB 0103, HLA B35, and HLA B44.[8] A genome-wide association study, which did high-density genotyping of immune-related loci in a large number of AS patients, identified substantial overlap of risk gene polymorphism for AS with that of IBD.[14] AS-associated loci were associated with the same single nucleotide polymorphism at 12 loci shared with CD, at 11 loci shared with UC. The common risk polymorphism genes from this study included IL23R, ERAP, CARD9, ICOSLG, and NKX2-3.[14]
Pathogenesis
The exact immunologic mechanisms that link the gut inflammation to synovial inflammation are not yet fully understood. Various theories are proposed to explain the gut-synovial axis. Demonstrable mucosal inflammation of the gut is present in most of the patients with SpA, even in the absence of clinically overt IBD.[5] In addition, there is a considerable alteration in gut microbiota in AS patients compared to rheumatoid arthritis patients and healthy controls.[15] Studies suggest that patients with AS have a highly permeable gut mucosa, which increases exposure to microbes.[16] HLA B27 transgenic rats that had been raised in a germ-free environment did not develop features of SpA.[17] Persistent inflammation and constant antigenic stimulation can activate T-cells, and this might be responsible for chronic bowel inflammation.
Many putative bacteria are implicated in the pathogenesis of SpA, including Klebsiella pneumoniae, Ruminococcus gnavus, Lachnospiraceae, Prevotellaceae, Rikenellaceae, Porphyromonadaceae, and Bacteroidaceae.[15],[18] The loss of architectural and functional integrity in the intestinal epithelium allows for the passage of microbiota or their metabolites into the submucosa and the systemic circulation. It was earlier believed that bacterial antigens may translocate from gut to synovium via the bloodstream to initiate synovial inflammation and arthritis.[19] However, there is little evidence to suggest that actual pathogens themselves home to synovium to produce an inflammatory response.[19]
CARD15 is a susceptibility gene for both CD. Certain CARD15 polymorphisms predispose to subclinical mucosal inflammation in patients with SpA.[20] The protein product of CARD 15 is NOD2. NOD2 is expressed on the surface of the intestinal antigen presenting cells (APC). The ligand for NOD2 (MDP) is universal molecule present in the cell wall component in many bacteria.[21] On binding to MDP, NOD2 gets activated and results in downstream activation of transcription factor nuclear factor-κB and mediates cytokine release (including tumor necrosis factor-α, [TNF-α]) and inflammation.[21] Mutations in NOD2 result in a peculiar syndrome characterized by uveitis and inflammatory arthritis (autosomal dominant Blaus syndrome).[22] Together these observations suggest that NOD2 may be a common link between joint and gut inflammation.
Local intestinal inflammation leads to damage in the epithelial lining. This facilitates contact of gut flora to antigen-presenting cells located in sub-mucosa leading to activation of Th1 and Th17 cells.[19] Homing of lymphocyte to Peyer's patches is brought about interaction between integrins on lymphocyte, and mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule-1 expressed on the high endothelial venules. Activation of T cells results in the release of inflammatory cytokines, which include TNF-α and interleukin-17 (IL-17). TNF-α can activate apoptosis of intestinal epithelial cells and contributes to further mucosal damage.[23],[24],[25]
Activated T-cells and macrophages then home to synovium through bloodstream. Homing of cells to synovium requires adhesion molecules such as integrins and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (CD54).[19] Experimental data supports this theory of homing of immune cells activated from gut mucosa to synovium. Clonal T-cell expansions have been shown in the colonic mucosa and the synovium of patients with SpA.[26] Both synovium and gut mucosa of patients with SpA are enriched with CD 163 + macrophage cells.[27] It has also been shown that macrophages can selectively bind with P-selectin molecules expressed by synovial cells.[28] These macrophages may the source of persistent antigenic stimulation in the synovium.
Cytokines IL-17 and IL-22 also act in synergy to maintain the integrity of the gut mucosal epithelium against microorganisms by inducing the production of anti-microbial peptides.[29] This explains the higher incidence of IBD flares in the anti-IL-17-treated SpA patients in trials.[29] Interestingly, a recent study done to characterize the ecological effects of biologic therapies on the gut bacterial and fungal microbiome of PsA SpA patients showed that the initiation of IL-17A blockade corresponded with features of subclinical gut mucosal inflammation and dysbiosis of certain fungal and bacterial taxa, particularly Candida albicans.[30]
IBD must be suspected in all patients of SpA presenting with abdominal pain, diarrhea, unexplained weight loss, anemia, or other malabsorption features. Routine screening of all patients of SpA with colonoscopy is not yet recommended. Fecal calprotectin could serve as a screening test for IBD/subclinical mucosal inflammation.[31] A recent study has shown that elevated C-reactive protein and calprotectin together can predict subclinical mucosal inflammation.[32] Fecal calprotectin reports should be interpreted cautiously in patients who are taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
Colonoscopy is the gold standard for the diagnosis of UC. Intubation of terminal ileum helps in detecting ileocolonic CD.[8] Proximal ileal lesions can be missed in CD. Results from a recent study suggest capsule endoscopy may be superior to conventional colonoscopy.[33] Alternatives to visualizing small bowel include computed tomography with small bowel enterography and magnetic resonance imaging with small bowel enterography.
Shared genetic and pathogenic mechanisms of SpA and IBD is also reflected in therapeutic strategies in both diseases. However, certain differences in the treatment of both diseases are striking. NSAIDs, even though it is the first-line treatment in SpA, is generally avoided in IBD owing to the risk of exacerbation associated with it.[34] Similarly, while systemic corticosteroid forms part of the early management of IBD, have little role in the management of axSpA.[34]
Methotrexate and sulfasalazine have demonstrated efficacy in peripheral SpA, while their role in axSpA is controversial. Both these medicines are effective in the select group of IBD even though these are not the preferred first-line agents.[35],[36],[37] With the current evidence available, anti-TNF agents are the ideal choice for initial treatment in a patient with co-existing SpA and IBD with inadequate response to initial management.[34],[35] Among the anti-TNF, both infliximab and adalimumab have demonstrated efficacy in both CD and UC while all five are approved in the treatment of SpA.[35] Etanercept, on the other hand, is not effective in IBD and can cause IBD flares in SpA patients.[38],[39]
Understanding of the IL-23/IL-17 axis in the pathogenesis of SpA has led to the use of anti-IL17 agents in axSpA, PsA, and skin psoriasis. The efficacy and relative safety of secukinumab and Ixekizumab are established in axSpA (MEASURE1, MEASURE2, COAST-V trials).[40],[41] However, the use of secukinumab was associated with exacerbation of IBD.[29] Blocking of IL-12/23 (Ustekinumab) while effective against CD is not found to be efficacious in axSpA.[42],[43] This dichotomy despite the proven role of the IL23/17 axis in both SpA and IBD is perplexing. Recent evidence show that Th17 activation can occur in SpA independent of IL23 through direct interaction with mesenchymal cells.[44] Alternatively, ILC3 and γδ T-cells also can produce IL-17 without the requirement of IL-23.[44] These redundant pathways in IL17 production explain basal level 17 production in SpA despite blocking IL-23. IL-17 is required for the defense against pathogens in the gut micro milieu. This regulation becomes defective and leads to flare in IBD when treated with IL17 blockers. However, the basal IL-17 production is not affected by IL-23 blocking as explained above, and thus no increased risk of IBD flare.[8]
Several Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors are being evaluated in the treatment of SpA. Tofacitinib inhibits JAK3 and JAK1, to a lesser extent JAK2. Tofacitinib, while demonstrated efficacy in SpA, was not shown to be effective in CD.[45],[46] Selective JAK1 inhibitors, filgotinib, and upadacitinib have shown efficacy in both axSpA and favorable results in IBD.[47],[48],[49],[50] While newer therapeutic options emerge in both SpA and IBD, hierarchical positions of these agents, the therapeutic algorithm is yet to be defined.
IBD is an extra-articular manifestation of SpA in a small subset of patients. We do not have accurate predictors to determine which SpA patients will develop IBD. Based on shared genetic predisposition and immunologic features, current and future therapeutics are likely to change the landscape of therapeutics in this disease.
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Cho JH, Brant SR. Recent insights into the genetics of inflammatory bowel disease. Gastroenterology 2011;140:1704-12.
Abraham C, Cho JH. Functional consequences of NOD2 (CARD15) mutations. Inflamm Bowel Dis 2006;12:641-50.
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Su L, Nalle SC, Shen L, Turner ES, Singh G, Breskin LA, et al. TNFR2 activates MLCK-dependent tight junction dysregulation to cause apoptosis-mediated barrier loss and experimental colitis. Gastroenterology 2013;145:407-15.
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May E, Märker-Hermann E, Wittig BM, Zeitz M, Meyer zum Büschenfelde KH, Duchmann R. Identical T-cell expansions in the colon mucosa and the synovium of a patient with enterogenic spondyloarthropathy. Gastroenterology 2000;119:1745-55.
Demetter P, De Vos M, Van Huysse JA, Baeten D, Ferdinande L, Peeters H, et al. Colon mucosa of patients both with spondyloarthritis and Crohn's disease is enriched with macrophages expressing the scavenger receptor CD163. Ann Rheum Dis 2005;64:321-4.
Brandtzaeg P. Review article: Homing of mucosal immune cells – A possible connection between intestinal and articular inflammation. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 1997;11 Suppl 3:24-37.
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Manasson J, Wallach DS, Guggino G, Stapylton M, Badri MH, Solomon G, et al. IL-17 Inhibition in Spondyloarthritis Associates with Subclinical Gut Microbiome Perturbations and a Distinctive IL-25-Driven Intestinal Inflammation. Arthritis Rheumatol 2020;72:645-57.
Østgård RD, Deleuran BW, Dam MY, Hansen IT, Jurik AG, Glerup H. Faecal calprotectin detects subclinical bowel inflammation and may predict treatment response in spondyloarthritis. Scand J Rheumatol 2018;47:48-55.
Cypers H, Varkas G, Beeckman S, Debusschere K, Vogl T, Roth J, et al. Elevated calprotectin levels reveal bowel inflammation in spondyloarthritis. Ann Rheum Dis 2016;75:1357-62.
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Olivieri I, Cantini F, Castiglione F, Felice C, Gionchetti P, Orlando A, et al. Italian Expert Panel on the management of patients with coexisting spondyloarthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. Autoimmun Rev 2014;13:822-30.
Pouillon L, Bossuyt P, Vanderstukken J, Moulin D, Netter P, Danese S, et al. Management of patients with inflammatory bowel disease and spondyloarthritis. Expert Rev Clin Pharmacol 2017;10:1363-74.
McDonald JW, Wang Y, Tsoulis DJ, MacDonald JK, Feagan BG. Methotrexate for induction of remission in refractory Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2014;8:CD003459.
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Sandborn WJ, Hanauer SB, Katz S, Safdi M, Wolf DG, Baerg RD, et al. Etanercept for active Crohn's disease: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Gastroenterology 2001;121:1088-94.
O'Toole A, Lucci M, Korzenik J. Inflammatory Bowel Disease Provoked by Etanercept: Report of 443 Possible Cases Combined from an IBD Referral Center and the FDA. Dig Dis Sci 2016;61:1772-4.
Baeten D, Sieper J, Braun J, Baraliakos X, Dougados M, Emery P, et al. Secukinumab, an Interleukin-17A Inhibitor, in Ankylosing Spondylitis. N Engl J Med 2015;373:2534-48.
van der Heijde D, Cheng-Chung Wei J, Dougados M, Mease P, Deodhar A, Maksymowych WP, et al. Ixekizumab, an interleukin-17A antagonist in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis or radiographic axial spondyloarthritis in patients previously untreated with biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (COAST-V): 16 week results of a phase 3 randomised, double-blind, active-controlled and placebo-controlled trial. Lancet 2018;392:2441-51.
Feagan BG, Sandborn WJ, Gasink C, Jacobstein D, Lang Y, Friedman JR, et al. Ustekinumab as induction and maintenance therapy for Crohn's disease. N Engl J Med 2016;375:1946-60.
Deodhar A, Gensler LS, Sieper J, Clark M, Calderon C, Wang Y, et al. Three multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies evaluating the efficacy and safety of ustekinumab in axial spondyloarthritis. Arthritis Rheumatol 2019;71:258-70.
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Maksymowych WP, van der Heijde D, Baraliakos X, Deodhar A, Sherlock SP, Li D, et al. Tofacitinib is associated with attainment of the minimally important reduction in axial magnetic resonance imaging inflammation in ankylosing spondylitis patients. Rheumatology (Oxford) 2018;57:1390-9.
Sandborn WJ, Ghosh S, Panes J, Vranic I, Wang W, Niezychowski W, et al. A phase 2 study of tofacitinib, an oral Janus kinase inhibitor, in patients with Crohn's disease. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2014;12:1485-9300.
van der Heijde D, Baraliakos X, Gensler LS, Maksymowych WP, Tseluyko V, Nadashkevich O, et al. Efficacy and safety of filgotinib, a selective Janus kinase 1 inhibitor, in patients with active ankylosing spondylitis (TORTUGA): Results from a randomised, placebo-controlled, phase 2 trial. Lancet 2018;392:2378-87.
van der Heijde D, Song IH, Pangan AL, Deodhar A, van den Bosch F, Maksymowych WP, et al. Efficacy and safety of upadacitinib in patients with active ankylosing spondylitis (SELECT-AXIS 1): A multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2/3 trial. Lancet 2019;394:2108-17.
Sandborn W, Feagan B, Panes J, D'Haens G, Colombel J, Zhou Q, et al. Safety and efficacy of ABT-494 (Upadacitinib), an oral JAK1 inhibitor, as induction therapy in patients with Crohn's disease: Results from celest. Gatroenterology 2017;152 Suppl 1:1308-9.
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Hafis M
Agarwal V
fecal calprotectin
mucosal inflammation
spondyloarthropathy


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text:
Gheorghe Cristoloveanu (16 April 1931 – 1998) was a Romanian alpine skier. He competed in three events at the 1956 Winter Olympics.

References

1931 births
1998 deaths
Romanian male alpine skiers
Olympic alpine skiers of Romania
Alpine skiers at the 1956 Winter Olympics
Sportspeople from Brașov


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The Giants capped a busy day of trades by completing a deal for Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake late Thursday. Leake should be a solid upgrade over Tim Hudson, helping fortify San Francisco's rotation as it looks to repeat as World Series champion.
The arms race in the National League West continued into the night on Thursday with the Giants responding to the Dodgers' 13-player megadeal by acquiring Mike Leake from the Reds for pitching prospect Keury Mella and minor league slugger Adam Duvall. Leake, a free agent this fall, is expected to represent a significant upgrade on 40-year-old Tim Hudson in the Giants' rotation as San Francisco seeks to keep the pressure on the first-place Dodgers, whom they trail by just a half-game heading into Friday's action.
The Giants have shaved five games off the Dodgers' lead over their last 15 games, going 13–2 over that stretch thanks in part to getting several key players back from the disabled list this month, including Hunter Pence, Jake Peavy, Matt Cain, Nori Aoki and Jeremy Affeldt. Hudson also returned during that stretch after spending nearly a month on the DL with a shoulder strain, but his first two starts back have been unimpressive (totaling 9 IP, 12 H, 6 R, 4 BB, 4 K), and his 73 ERA+ is the worst mark on the team among pitchers with 40 or more innings pitched and the seventh-worst mark in the majors among pitchers with 100 or more innings pitched.
The upgrade from Hudson to Leake is thus significant more because of how poorly Hudson has pitched this season than because of how well Leake is expected to pitch. Despite being selected with the eighth overall pick in the 2009 draft, Leake has been little more than a league-average arm in the major leagues. In fact, his career ERA+ at the time of this trade is exactly 100. Despite possessing a swing-and-miss slider, Leake's 5.9 strikeouts per nine innings this season rank as the 11th-lowest K/9 among qualified major league pitchers (Hudson's is fourth-lowest), and among pitchers with 1,000 or more innings pitched over the last six seasons, his 6.1 K/9 is the seventh-lowest. Though ostensibly a groundballer, Leake's groundball rate is not so extreme as to assuage concerns about his low strikeout rate. In fact, the only reason he has been above average in run prevention this season is that he has benefited from a career-low .266 opponent's batting average on balls in play, a mark that could easily be attributed to the excellent Cincinnati defense (fourth-best in the majors per park-adjusted defensive efficiency).
Of course, the Giants' fielders aren't much worse, ranking sixth in PADE, and the shift from Great American Ball Park to AT&T Park is a massive improvement in run-scoring environment for Leake, who is moving from one of the most offense-friendly ballparks in the majors to one of the most pitcher-friendly. For a pitcher who allows a ton of balls in play, that could have a particularly large influence on Leake's results. That said, ERA+ already adjusts for park factors, as does Deserved Run Average, which corrects for a host of other outside influences as well (including team defense, catcher framing, umpiring and weather) and tells us that the quality of Leake's pitching thus far this season indicates he should be allowing 3.75 runs per nine innings rather than the 3.62 he has actually allowed before correcting for his hitter-friendly home ballpark.
All of which is to say that while Leake is a clear upgrade, it's unlikely that adding Leake alone can match the upgrade the Dodgers made earlier in the day in adding Mat Latos and Alex Wood to their rotation, one of the two filling an essentially vacant fifth-starter spot, and adding Jim Johnson and Luis Avilan to their bullpen.
Fortunately, the Giants didn't give up all that much for the two-month rental. Keury Mella was among the better pitching prospects in the Giants' organization, but that strikes me as a damning comment on San Francisco's farm. A 21-year-old Dominican righthander, Mella has a great fastball that sits in the mid-90s and seems far faster thanks to how well Mella's slightly awkward delivery hides the ball. However, his secondary pitches, a curve and changeup, are still developing, and that awkward delivery raises concerns about his durability. Indeed, Mella spent seven weeks on the disabled list due to a rotator cuff issue in 2014 and spent two more weeks on the DL in late June of this year. He has never thrown more than 85 1/3 innings in a season and, to my eye, could wind up as a reliever despite him having a thick starter's build, good results in high A and some projections putting his ceiling as high as a No. 2 starter.
Duvall, meanwhile, will turn 27 in early September and, despite displaying 30-homer power in the upper minors, would seem to have no future beyond that of a right-handed bench bat as a corner infielder headed to a team built around Joey Votto and Todd Frazier. Truth be told, Duvall, whose 10 games in the outfield this season comprise the extent of his professional exposure in the pastures, is a defensive liability anywhere but first base and failed to impress in his brief major league look with the Giants when Brandon Belt was on the DL last year.
Given that, this is very nearly a straight-up Leake-for-Mella swap. That strikes me as a completely acceptable price to pay for a much-needed upgrade for a team with very real title hopes, as well as an acceptable return for two months of a pending free agent for a team that did far better cashing in its ace, Johnny Cueto, last weekend. Meanwhile, it's worth noting that Leake grew up a Giants fan in the San Diego area and was a childhood teammate of Brett Bochy, son of San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy. Given the Giants' propensity for re-signing the free agents from their playoff teams during their current run, don't be surprised if Leake is a Giant for more than just the remainder of this season.


With increases in the federal estate tax exemption ($5,600,000 for single individuals or $11,200,000 for married couples in 2018) and repeal of the Oklahoma estate tax, estate-tax planning is becoming a non-issue for all but the largest estates in Oklahoma. Instead, a greater concern for most people is protecting their assets from lawsuit judgments.
One car wreck, for example, can have a devastating effect on your estate. What if someone is injured in the wreck and sues you? Will your insurance cover it? Your car insurance may include $300,000 in liability insurance; however, if the accident seriously injures or kills someone, a lawsuit judgment could be $1 million dollars or more. In that case, you could be personally responsible for damages above the $300,000 in liability insurance.


text:
Q: How to read SPECIFIC UNPREDICTED string from a text file in c# So I Have a .txt file that its content is like:
A = RANDOM STRING DETERMINED BY THE USER
B = RANDOM STRING DETERMINED BY THE USER
C = RANDOM STRING DETERMINED BY THE USER
And want to get the string after "A = " + "B = " + "C = ".
But also keep in mind that each string is RANDOM, so to get them you'll have to get' the string "A, B, C = " and then the string that is next to it would be the RANDOM UNPREDICTED string.

A: Solution:
string path = @"E:\1.txt";
string[] lines = File.ReadAllLines(path);
var result = lines.Select(s => s.Substring(4));

// Usage:
foreach (var s in result)
    Console.WriteLine(s);

// Output:
// 1234567
// 7854963
// aoeuidh

1.txt:
A = 1234567
B = 7854963
C = aoeuidh

Description:

*

*File.ReadAllLines Method:Opens a text file, reads all lines of the file into a string array, and then closes the file.

*Enumerable.Select Method: Projects each element of a sequence into a new form.

*String.Substring(Int32) Method: Retrieves a substring from this instance. The substring starts at a specified character position and continues to the end of the string.
Do not forget
using System.Linq; and
using System.IO;.


I just returned from this year's Christian Community Development Conference where over 3,000 attended. This year we met in Raleigh, NC. I feel so honored to be part of a national network of followers of Christ committed to Reconciliation, Redistribution and Relocation–the three "R"s that are the core of CCDA. This article that appeared on the front page of Aljazeera explains well some of the long term ramifications of developing under-resourced communities. Investing in a low income community can attract higher income neighbors pushing up the housing costs. This year I helped coordinate a Housing Symposium and an Action Tank–which looked at policies to help prevent housing displacement. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this amazing article.


While it may seem difficult at first to try and work out what type of turbine system to invest in, it's not all that complicated. Much of the information you need is freely available to you, and can help you make an informed decision about whether wind power is right for you and what system is appropriate. A decent supplier will also help to make sure you're getting the right turbine for your needs, that it's being properly sited, and that it's installed according to the necessary standards and regulations.
The first step is to decide how many kilowatt (kWh) hours per day you want to generate. Your average daily usage is usually information that is found on your electricity bill, so take an average reading for a whole year's worth of bills if you have them as electricity usage is likely to spike in the coldest and hottest parts of the year due to additional heating and cooling. If your house relies on passive heating and cooling there's likely to be much less of a variation, obviously. An average of your power bills will let you know how much energy your home is using per day - and once you know that, you can choose whether you'd like to offset all or part of it with a wind generator.
Next you're going to need to know how much wind power is available for you to collect in your area. Resourcing free local wind maps online can give you a good indication of average scores for your area but more accurate results can be obtained using an anemometer. The Bureau of Meteorology offers information collected from various parts of Australia on its wind roses page - although other resources might give you a more localised reading for your area.
Your wind turbine supplier should be able to use an anemometer to find the best location on your property to install a turbine. For best results, you will want to see an average wind speed of over 5m/sec (18km/hr) and have a clear open location to avoid wind buffering and reduce turbulence. A position on top of a hill is ideal, thanks to the way wind accelerates over a peak.
When you've determined your kWh target and know how much available energy there is in your area from available wind, then you need to consider how much power your turbine will need to generate to reach your goal.
Your turbine's efficiency is determined by a couple of factors; the conversion of the kinetic energy of the air (wind) being converted to a mechanical rotation, and the subsequent conversion of that rotation into electricity using magnets passing along a coil.
The first conversion has a theoretical limit of 59.3% efficiency and further energy is lost in the second conversion to a more or less controllable degree, dropping this to 45-50% under prime conditions. This may drop to around 25-30% under less than ideal conditions. Bearing this in mind, it is important to get the most efficient system you can afford to get the maximum results from your turbine. There are many different turbine types and designs, each offering different performance, levels of noise and aerodynamics. A good retailer will be able to recommend one that fits your needs.


BRAND NEW WITH TAGS, 100% AUTHENTIC, ADIDAS ORIGINALS ZX500 SNOWBOARD BOOTS SIZE UK 9 BLACK WITH BLUE AND WHITE TRIM COMPLETE WITH ORIGINAL BOX BUT BOX SHOWS A LOT OF SIGNS OF WEAR THROUGH STORAGE FROM A SMOKE FREE, PET FREE HOME I'M HAVING A CLEAR OUT SO CHECK OUT MY OTHER AUCTIONS I will discount postage charges if more than one item is purchased.
Nike Zoom Kaiju Snowboard Boots - Size UK 8. Condition is Used. These boots are still in a very good condition. They are very comfortable (and look cool too!) Dispatched with Royal Mail 1st Class.
32 Thirtytwo Scott Stevens TM2 pro Snowboard boots size 9 UK. Iv listed these boots as used. Although only very light use. 3 days to be exact!
ThirtyTwo STW Boa Snowboard boots Men's Size 9. Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 1st Class. Used around 1 time per month for the last 12 month's indoor only. They are in excellent condition. If anyone courses the buy it now, I will refund the postage.
Nike Vapen Black Snowboard Boots UK Size 10. Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Size 9 Thirty Two snowboarding boots. White with blue accents.
Men's VANS Hi Standard M White/Snake SNOWBOARD BOOTS UK 10 New. Condition is New with box. Bestselling Vans 'hi standard' snowboard Boots Dispatched with MyHermes or free collection from Leeds. For any further information or if you have any questions please get in touch!
Men's BURTON Ruler Speedzone 2018 Black Faux Leather SNOWBOARD BOOTS UK 10 New. Condition is New with box. Dispatched with MyHermes. Free collection is also available from Leeds. For any more information or if you have any questions, please get in touch!
THIRTYTWO LASHED BRADSHAW WINTER 2017/2018 UK SIZE 10 SNOWBOARD BOOTS. Condition is New with Box RRP £240. Winter 17/18 model. Boots are slightly too small as my feet are quite wide. These are 'Team fit' and for normal width or narrow feet. They have been tried on and walked around my house to check fit but that's all. If you use 'Buy It Now' I will post for FREE!
Ride Deadbolt snowboard boots UK11. 9 days wear in total. In excellent condition. Slight nick one toe as pictured. Boa fastening system. Tremendous looking and feeling boot. Wet comfortable and responsive. Light and durable. Worth reading the review online. Used with box. Dispatched with Parcelforce 48 hours. Any questions don't hesitate to ask.
Mens Thirty Two 32 Snowboard Boots UK11 / EU46. Boots are in very good condition as have had little use. Boa system works great, all ready to go. Grab an absolute bargain! Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class. thirty two snowboard boots size 11 Boa. Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Burton Men's MOTO Snowboard Boots - Black and red, Size 10 UK 44 EURO (11 US) . Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Vans BOA snowboard boots good condition all round. New boots force sale. Will post. I do have advertised elsewhere. Any questions please contact 07983961026.
Selling as used but the show hardly any sign of wear. Only marks i can see is a tiny bit of rub on the sole at the heel. I bought these and never used them as I took to skiing.
Vans Aura Pro (2018/19) Double BOA - UK Size 9.5 - Black/Grey - RRP £255 - Hardly used (footbeds new unused). It features our dual-zone Custom Focus Boa construction for unlimited, on-the-fly micro-adjustability backed by the customizable comfort and heel hold of the Custom Slide Guide.
New Burton Fiend Ltd Snowboard Boots size 8uk RRP £240 Boxed. Condition is New with box. The added warmth of Sleeping Bag heat-reflecting foil and impact absorbing ReBounce cushioning with AutoCANT EST® settles the score on a new benchmark in genre-busting freestyle performance.
Thirty Two snowboard boots Size UK7. Condition is Used but in very good condition as only worn for approx 8 hours before deciding they were too tight. So bought next size up- hence sale. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Burton Ruler Snowboard Boots. UK Size 10. Condition is Used. These are my well used boots, great pair of boots and so easy to get on with the speed zone lacing system. Please look carefully at pictures for condition. Side material has perished slightly and there are cuts from board edges also. Crack also on outside material. I used them this season and they're still great and kept my feet warm and dry. Postage via my hermes.
Salomon launch snowboard boots. Here is it what Salomon say about them.
Black Snowboard Boots size UK 11 - Thirty Two . Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Used for one week snowboarding.
Men's DC Mutiny Multi Brown SNOWBOARD BOOTS UK 10 New. Condition is New with box. Dispatched with MyHermes. Free Collection available from Leeds. For any further information or if you have any questions please get in touch!
Nike Snowboard Boots Size 6 Used Once . Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Salomon Snowboard Boots - Dialogue Wide Mens Boots Black - 2018 - UK 8. Condition is used but basically new as used sparingly on a three day trip to France, during which I realised they are too large for me! Great quality solid boots, with styling which will last season to season. Thanks for your interest.
You are looking at a new pair of 32's snowboard boot liners. At least your feet will be going into your own inner linings! Plus they do not weigh that much in your luggage. I wear a size 8 boot but 32's are on the small side so these are closer to 8 than 9.
NEW without box! Ladies Saloman Ivy Snowboard Boots UK 4.5. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Men's Snowboard Boots 8.5 UK Burton Moto, used once but too small for me!
Men's Snowboard Boots 8.5 UK Burton Moto, used once but too small for me!. Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Thirtytwo PRION Advanced Snowboard boots (UK Size 11). Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class. Barely been used, black leather, lightweight, have purple/magenta inserts with a draw string tightening lock on the internal insert. Lace up on the outside of boot. Fully waterproof, black wit mesh pattern. Grab yourself a bargain as these were 198.99 new!
Snowboard Boots Burton Boa Zipline UK 5. Superb condition - only used for 1 day.
Snowboard Boots Burton Youth Boa Zipline UK 5 (6K). Condition is Used but in great conditon as only used for one day! Still with box. Dispatched with Royal Mail.
Used thirty two lashed snowboard boots, bought for first snowboard trip but are a touch small. Would fit a wide 10.5 or standard 11 foot. Have probably had about three weeks total riding. Price is collected but can probably post. £50 Ono thirty two lashed snowboard boots Size 10.5. Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Burton Invader Snowboard Boots Size 10. Used on 3 snowboarding trips, excellent condition. Condition is Used.
Thirty Two Exus Snowboard Boots. UK Men Size 9 VGC. Condition is Used. Dispatched with Royal Mail 2nd Class.
Red with tiger print design, black and gold accents, and tiger rabbit detail on back. Other features include red laces, golden eyelets and black leather toe cap. Rare Winter 2009 release pro-rider Zoom Force 1 snowboard boots.
To enjoy your time on piste or powder, protect your feet and enhance your performance with snowboard boots. Options on eBay allow you to glide smoothly over powdery snow, and stay on your feet comfortably.
Can all snowboard boots absorb impact?
Yes. Snowboard boots from eBay are designed to keep your feet warm while protecting them from intense activity. They offer different levels of protection, and the ones that absorb shock well are made with air pockets in the heel, to absorb hard landings off giant cliffs. Those with gel pads in the forefoot also reduce shock. EVA cushions are built into the outer sole of some boots, giving you extra shock defence with every jump.
How much flexibility is available in snowboard boots?
Cheap snowboard boots offer different levels of flexibility, and these suit people who are beginners, intermediate, or experts. Those with the most flex on eBay are designed for beginners. Stiffer boots are designed for speed and high-impact jumps, so they suit people with more experience.
Can all snowboard boots be customised?
Built-in independent dials on some high-end boots let you adjust the outer section and heel cup.
Heat-adjustable liners ensure that boots conform to your feet.
Liners featured in boots on eBay often help people with flat feet to stay relaxed on the slopes.
How much traction do cheap snowboard boots offer?
Lots of cheap snowboard boots provide some traction, improving your safety as you go hiking along ridge lines. Those that distribute pressure evenly prevent pressure points, so you can hike without pain. Several designs have treads on the outer sole which help them to grip the surface like tyres, while others feature excellent heel hold to reduce fatigue and prevent you from sliding. Freeride snowboarding boots offer good traction to tall individuals, making them a good choice for hiking.


text:
Aspen halfpipe skier Alex Ferreira grateful,…
Aspen halfpipe skier Alex Ferreira grateful, elated and charging into Winter Olympics
Ferreira: "It's all about consistency and long-term growth as a person."
Hyoung Chang, The Denver Post
Alex Ferreira in action during freeski halfpipe final of Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Aspen Snowmass. January 12, 2018. Ferreira finished in second place.
By Jason Blevins | jblevins@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: February 7, 2018 at 12:10 pm | UPDATED: February 7, 2018 at 12:11 pm
Alex Ferreira skipped moguls practice that day.
He was 12, maybe 13. His pal Torin Yater-Wallace, who he's been skiing with since he was 3, urged him to try skiing in the halfpipe. Yater-Wallace's mom was there with her video camera.
"He said 'You should try a 900.' And there it was. I did my first-ever invert that day and it was the best feeling I've ever felt and he was there so stoked and I was stoked," says the now 23-year-old Olympian. "The first day I ever tried a cork 900, I landed it and the rest is history."
History is smiling on Ferreira as he joins Yater-Wallace on the second-ever U.S. Olympic halfpipe ski team. With a commanding season in the pipe, the Aspen High School graduate is peaking at the perfect time.
It feels like many years of effort — including winning a Denver Post Youth Excellence in Sports Award in 2011 — have built to this point.
"That's how I try to live my life. Through consistency. It's not good to have huge fluctuations. It's all about consistency and long-term growth as a person," he says. "You know, always changing and becoming a better person."
With an ever-escalating technical prowess and an effortless style he says he gleaned from his one-year-younger mentor Yater-Wallace, Ferreira is tracking toward Olympic glory. So far, the high point of his career was taking second at the Snowmass Grand Prix in front of his home crowd last month to cinch his spot on the U.S. Olympic Team.
"One of the best days of my life," he says. "That moment will hold true to me for the rest of my life. Absolutely grateful and elated."
It was Yater-Wallace who, in a push-and-pull scenario, was there for every step of this journey. Yater-Wallace grabbed the brightest of spotlights first, at age 15 with an X Games silver medal in their home pipe. Ferreira watched as his buddy lived the dream: big sponsors, big dollars and a big truck. Ferreira cheered his pal with unbridled energy. He still does, even as they share adjacent podiums. He's the kind of friend everyone wants. As Ferreira now owns his share of that same spotlight, ask him about his motivation, his dreams and his skiing and he steers back to Yater-Wallace.
"I definitely have learned a lot from him. He doesn't take a day for granted because he's been in such crazy situations and he's overcome adiversity so many times," he says of his friend's endurance through injuries, a near-fatal illness and financial struggles. "To be able to watch that, I have nothing but gratitude and a sense of happiness for him and of life. I see how he's living and I think … it's just so cool that I can be a part of it and be his really good friend."
Yater-Wallace was 8 and Ferreira was 9 when they set their shared goal: X Games gold. The event was right there in their backyard. They grew up watching the storied battles between pipe pioneers Simon Dumont and Tanner Hall. Now they are like those two warriors, brawling each other for that elusive Aspen X Games gold.
They came close last month in Aspen's Buttermilk pipe, with Ferreira finishing second and Yater-Wallace third behind the dominant technician David Wise, who claimed his fourth Aspen X Games gold. It's a rough time to be an American halfpipe skier. Six of the world's top-10 pipe skiers — an FIS ranking that Ferreira leads — are on the U.S. Team. Any of them would be among the top two pipe skiers in any other country. But only four Americans can go to the Olympics. So two of the world's top-ranked pipe skiers — Birk Irving, No. 5, and Kyle Smaine, No. 7 — are watching from home.
"I think about that all the time. If I was born in the 80s, I would have been growing up with Simon Dumont and Tanner Hall throwing 720s and 900s and it would have been awesome," Ferreira says. "But at the same time that's what makes this so special right now, because it's so difficult on this team and you truly have to earn your place. Everybody on this team charges and you can't take a minute off. You can't lose your focus. You have to be 100 percent in the moment, crushing it all times."
After the Olympics, Ferreira plans to ski in Europe's prestigious SFR Tour final in Tignes, France. Then maybe back to school. He's been studying at Utah's Westminster College, a partner with U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association that fields 18 student-athletes at the PyeongChang Olympics.
But he wants to be in Colorado. Especially Aspen, home to his mom, dad and younger sister.
"For sure I want I want to be a part of the community and part of the Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club and keep helping kids here, whatever that entails," he says.
Alex Ferreira
David Wise
South Korea Olympics 2018
Torin Yater-Wallace
Jason Blevins
Reporter Jason Blevins left The Post in 2018. He covered tourism, mountain business, skiing and outdoor adventure sports for both the business and sports sections.
Follow Jason Blevins	@jasonblevins
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MA Filmmaking: Documentary student, Santhana Beeroli, has spent the past eight years studying the pioneering engineer, Colonel John Pennycuick, in research for his film.
Pennycuick is widely known amongst the Tamil community of India as the engineer behind the Mullaiperiyar Dam, constructed between 1887 and 1895. The project was established to provide water to the arid rain shadow region of Madurai, which was in dire need of a greater supply.
Santhana, who grew up in the Theni District of Tamil Nadu, discovered that while Colonel Pennycuick's efforts have deemed him a hero in India, there isn't much known about him in the UK, even by his own family. In response to this, Santhana travelled to England to begin his research into the great engineer, compiling his findings into a film-documentary.
In 2018, Santhana made a request to the Church Ministry in London to preserve the cemetery of Pennycuick and also to erect a statue for him in his home town of Camberley. A year later, his ambition was brought to life and the statue was unveiled at Saint Peters Church on Saturday.
"My people worship Pennycuick like a god. He sold his own property to finish building the dam after it collapsed and the government stopped the funding. He didn't take a single day off in all those years, so to us he is a hero.
The statue and headstone were dedicated to Colonel Pennycuick at his renovated resting place in honour of his services, which Santhana hopes will go some way to raising the profile of the revered British engineer in his home country of England. The unveiling was attended by the Indian High Commissioner as well as a local councillor.
Eight years of Santhana's research is being compiled into a film which is he is producing on his MA Filmmaking: Documentary course at UCA.
"The reason I came to study at UCA was to finish my documentary. I'm good at writing but needed help with the visual effects. It's going very well and I'm having a good time here. I should say a big thanks to my course leader Simon, he's been really supportive of my project and I'm on track to be finishing my film soon.


text:
Federal Lawsuit Alleges Maryland Law Unconstitutionally Discriminates Against Independence Candidates For Public Office
staff | Federal Criminal Defense	| No comment
Maryland law clearly discriminates against and discourages a citizen from running as an independent/unaffiliated candidate for public office. In fact, it encourages a candidate to create a sham new political party, rather than allowing a candidate to run truly unaffiliated and not beholden to a party's platform.
Greg Dorsey wants to run for a seat in the United States Senate from Maryland and he wants to run on his own principles to restore true independence and American values to Congress. He has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, asking the federal court to declare Maryland's law that creates this severe burden only on unaffiliated candidates unconstitutional in violation of the First Amendment rights and the rights to Equal Protection under the law of all candidates who seek to run for public office independent of any party and all Maryland voters who wish to cast their votes for an unaffiliated candidate.


text:
The Last Ride
One hitchhiker's oral history
Dev Carey and Michelle Nijhuis Oct. 29, 2007 From the print edition
www.codysmart.com
CODY SMART
I don't even remember my first ride. When I was a young teenager, growing up in southern Oregon, my dad and I used to hitchhike back to our car after we'd boated down the Klamath, or the Rogue, or the Umpqua. Hitchhiking wasn't a very large part of my life until I graduated from college, and became an idealist.
I decided to try to go places, go long distances. I liked the environmental aspect of hitchhiking, that it used less gas, and I liked that it was cheap. It also felt like a grand adventure, like a cool thing to do.
So I took a lot of trips. I went from Arizona to Montana to Colorado and back to Arizona, and I went from Colorado to Oregon and back to Colorado. I hitchhiked around Germany, France, Luxembourg and Holland.
I've probably gotten four or five hundred rides in the last 20 years. I think I did get better at hitchhiking as the years went by. But I also kept thinking I was finding the trick of it, and all of a sudden I would be standing on the highway for six hours with nobody picking me up, thinking I wasn't so smart after all.
I did learn the value of picking my rides, of having a conversation before I got into the car and making sure that the person wasn't drunk, and that they were going to stop in a place that would be a good place for hitchhiking. I learned that last lesson the hard way, over and over again.
I don't know if I've ever felt that my life was in danger. Maybe once. The common experience is that someone stops, you open the door, and you start talking to each other. One of my first questions is always, "Why did you pick me up?" Ninety percent of the time the answer is, "Been there, done that." They've been hurting, and they needed help, and somebody helped them.
Usually, my goal is to find out the most interesting thing I can about the person and get them talking about it. I've learned quite a bit about a lot of trades that way. I rode with one guy who told me his whole story about being in Vietnam and getting wounded, and how he'd decided that he didn't want to deal with a society that would do that to a person. When he stopped to pick me up, he didn't let me in at first, not until he'd talked to me for long enough to figure out that I was safe. Then he took me all the places he knew about for free food, and we got free pizza and free donuts.
One driver told me that he had only half a brain. He told me he'd been diagnosed when he was a kid, and told that it was a very dangerous situation, and that the thing to do was not to think. He'd never gone to another doctor for a second opinion, and he'd gone through his life - through 60 years - trying not to think. It was obvious that he thought quite a lot about not thinking, but he felt like he'd succeeded.
It's very rare that anyone wants to know about me. Every now and then somebody does. I had one woman who turned around in her RV and picked me up because she was convinced I was the Messiah. I couldn't get rid of her. I rode with her for a while, but it was too much, because she just kept praying to me, and telling me how the Second Coming had arrived, and that she'd known this was going to happen.
I started out being humble and denying things, but that didn't go anywhere because she'd just say, "Oh, that's just how Jesus is supposed to act." So I finally said, "You're right, and I just had a vision that you must let me off in this next town," and she dropped me off, but not before she tried to get my address so that she could send me money and come to visit me. That was in southern Arizona somewhere. A lot of interesting rides come out of southern Arizona.
My reasons for hitchhiking have changed a lot since I was 22. It's much less about saving gas than it used to be. It's more about the feelings I have when I do it. It's always felt very freeing to me, to surrender to fate. All I can really do is stand there and smile and wait for someone to pick me up.
I remind myself that it doesn't do any good to get mad when they go whizzing by. It doesn't do any good to think, damn, what's wrong with these people, and why aren't they stopping? I've been very stoic. I've thought, I can keep doing this, no matter what happens. I usually feel really good when I hitchhike, even though I'm utterly dependent on people. I feel like most of the people who pick me up have richer lives because of it. That sounds completely egotistical, but it seems like they feel better, because they get to be useful, they get to talk about themselves, and they're thanked profusely for it. So that's my main motivation for hitchhiking now, the human experience of it.
I also see it as an injustice that the world has made it so hard to hitchhike. You can't find a freeway these days that doesn't say pedestrians are illegal. My worst experiences as a hitchhiker have been with the cops. I've been run out of towns, I've been told by a state patrolman that he was going to kick my riffraff ass off his freeway. Just like you have far fewer rights in this country if you're homeless, you have far fewer rights if you don't own a car.
So I hitchhike as a form of activism, because I feel like I'm lucky. I have an education, I'm pretty articulate, and I've got a good network of friends and family. No one's going to get away with throwing me in jail and treating me badly for too long. So I feel like it's a chance to advocate for the people who have to hitchhike and don't have those luxuries.
There's another motivation, too, which is that miracles happen. Every time I've gotten really down and out, every time I've started to feel desperate, something wonderful has happened.
Audio: Michelle Nijhuis reads from The Last Ride
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NEW STADIUM CORNER STAND & 50 SPECTATORS. MADE BY ZEUGO.
A SUPERB NEW TWO TIER CORNER UNIT FROM ZEUGO TO MAKE YOUR STADIUM COMPLETE. IT COMES WITH 50 UNPAINTED SPECTATORS AND ADVERTISING STICKERS. YOU GET ONE CORNER UNIT IN A BOX, THE UNIT MEASURES: 27CMS DEEP X 20 CMS HIGH. TO MAKE A COMPLETE STADIUM YOU WILL REQUIRE 4 CORNER UNITS AND 20 GRANDSTANDS (6 STANDS DOWN EACH SIDE OF THE PITCH AND 4 STANDS AT EACH END). THE STANDS AND CORNER UNITS JUST CLIP TOGETHER ONCE ASSEMBLED TO MAKE THE BEST EVER STADIUM. THESE UNITS ARE TOTALLY COMPATIBLE WITH ALL ORIGINAL SUBBUTEO GRANDSTANDS AND SPECTATORS AND CAN BE USED WITH ANY SUBBUTEO, PEGASUS OR ZEUGO PITCHES AND ASTROPITCHES.
1002. FEMALE TABLE SOCCER STREAKER SET. With Rules.