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Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines 2 »
Bloodlines 2 General discussion »
Is it just me, or is VtMB2 destined to come crashing down?
Author Topic: Is it just me, or is VtMB2 destined to come crashing down? (Read 3687 times)
Barabbah
Majestic madness maker
Re: Is it just me, or is VtMB2 destined to come crashing down?
Quote from: Highwayman667 on April 17, 2019, 03:38:00 AM
Quote from: DarkZephyr on April 17, 2019, 02:04:32 AM
The romances are one of my favorite aspects of those games. In The Witcher series I stanned Geralt and Triss. I never have gone the Yennefer route yet.
If you like your women sexy and castrating, then Yen's your chick !
Eh? Yen who?
"Some quotations," said Zellaby, "are greatly improved by lack of context."
― John Wyndham, The Midwich Cuckoos
"fuck the hole in the face"
― me
Quote from: mdqp on April 17, 2019, 10:24:24 AM
Quote from: Wesp5 on April 17, 2019, 10:03:53 AM
Wait, you saw the demo of Bloodlines 2?
Yes, Paradox contacted me end of January to show the beginning of the game via a web session. But I wasn't allowed to say anything until the announcement!
Can you share everything you saw now? I bet a lot of people (including me) would like to hear more about it. I have read a few articles, but I value your thoughts quite a bit, so if you can say more, please do. ^_^
IF there's something you're allowed to talk about :P
Can you share everything you saw now?
I don't really know. The NDA I signed goes for 3 years, but I guess I can confirm what others already did. I was shown the beginning of the game which is pretty much as it was described in magazines and webpages. You start off as victim of a mass embrace, end up in a court because of this which get's firebombed so you escape. During that time you can test the three basic thinblood disciplines that are described and decide with which one you will go. You'll be contacted by a female pointing you to the pier, where you meet another vampire who points you to your haven, where you'll meet Dale who is really funny and pure Mitsoda genius! After that they had some technical problems so I didn't see the Seattle hub that the press saw.
« Last Edit: April 17, 2019, 12:03:50 PM by Wesp5 »
Informative x 3 View List
mdqp
Quote from: Wesp5 on April 17, 2019, 12:01:38 PM
You know, this isn't much, but it's already enough to get me hyped all over again. I really wish this turns out great, the wait is going to kill me. I guess I'll have a chance to try out all the mods I didn't experience so far. XD
Weirdly enough, I am also pretty excited to play a not-so-junky Bloodline game, I really hope they do a good job on the technical side. Getting stuck while walking for no obvious reason (because I snagged against some invisible thing or another, especially in the warrens) is pretty annoying, and the AI is disgustingly unresponsive at times in the old Bloodlines (they'll never figure out these damn doors... XD).
Speaking of which, the patch included with GOG is not the plus version, right? There is no shortcut to skip the sewers unless I use the other one, I assume. I am considering doing multiple runs, and that part of the game can drag for too long (I don't really mind it as much as others do, because it's a nice "trial" if you have been focusing on non-combat abilities, but it's just that the level design and enemy distribution is often more clunky than challenging, and after a couple of runs, I can see myself getting tired of it).
The Shadow Man
I'm hopefully for the mod support out of the box they are promising. That way if there's anything I vehemently dislike hopefully this will prove as way to remove it from my game.
Quote from: mdqp on April 17, 2019, 12:21:01 PM
Speaking of which, the patch included with GOG is not the plus version, right?
Yes, the GOG version only included the basic patch.
Zanderat
Quote from: Barabbah on April 17, 2019, 10:51:38 AM
Team Triss here!
Ooooook, googling Team Triss I found out you were talking of Witcher....
DarkZephyr
Caine's Plaything
LOL I agree. Yen is certainly beautiful. But Triss is lovely as well and she just seems to care more about Geralt and respect him a lot more and he has a lot of respect for her as well. He loves Yen but she seems to also get on his last nerve and for good reason. She can be a bit of a bully.
Quote from: Nanaloma on April 17, 2019, 06:11:48 AM
Dark Zephyr said, "I know that for some people "safe space" is a term of dread, ---- ". Well, yes we do. From what I can tell, it's a place where people who think and act alike and consider anything different as wrong go to hide in a bubble from reality. Generally, a writer's personal biases come out in their work and that sort of thinking, if rampant, could sink a dark project. However, that doesn't mean it will be rampant. Again, I hope but I don't expect.
For some people "safe space" isn't really about avoiding people that they consider wrong, its more like a way to take a break from those who think *they're* wrong or somehow less than simply for existing. While I don't use the term "safe space" myself, because I think its way overused and politicized, as a gay man, I do feel like I can relax and be myself in a gay bar more than I would a straight bar. Its not because I think straight people are "wrong" or that I want to hide in a bubble from reality. Its that sometimes I just want to live MY reality w/out worrying that I might get beat up or something. I don't think occasionally congregating among those like yourself is a terrible or unreasonable thing. We tend to gladly welcome straight people into our bars and clubs who are allies or friends.
As for how she used the term, what I think she meant was that for her, the gaming world is a place to take a break from the stress of reality. I know that it is for me too. If I want to take a break from the current political climate or after other stressful aspects of real life, I like to whip out my laptop and play a fun game for a few hours, maybe while munching on a favorite snack. It does wonders for my mental health. As a woman, to be confronted with this act of rape, without being able to retain control of her PC, it probably did infringe on her little zone of mental safety there in a rather jarring way.
"Safe Space" seems to be an accurate enough term for the way that some of us use gaming. But what term would work just as well that doesn't have all of the political baggage attached to it?
« Last Edit: April 17, 2019, 09:32:48 PM by DarkZephyr »
El_Gostro
Unposting posting poster unposting postitions
Quote from: El_Gostro on April 17, 2019, 11:35:05 PM
I have always been impressed with Southpark's high quality animation and voice acting.
Quote from: DarkZephyr on April 17, 2019, 09:29:01 PM
While I can ultimately understand (I mean, I assume almost everyone plays games for fun), I think this particular reaction was misplaced. Hotline Miami (I have yet to play the sequel, but from what I have heard and seen, it seems functionally the same) is a stylized, ultra violent game with a linear narrative (I think you can maybe learn a secret or two, but there isn't much in terms of self-expression and choices). You do horrible things constantly, so I am not so sure that's suddenly too much. Also, we are talking about a topdown 2d, ""pixel art" game, with a 3-4 seconds animation to depict the deed at most (I have found a comparison of the scenes on youtube)... Which turns out to be a scene in a movie (in-game) so it's not even happening for "real" in the game. Heck, she even acknowledges it in her preview, and of course dismisses it as too little too late. She also brings up the 1 in 5 stat, almost as if 1 in 5 women are raped, this all seems very disingenuous.
I don't know, seems like these are terrible standards to have when assessing art in general (a sculpture that is meant to represent something horrible, let's say the decay of the human body when afflicted by cancer, shouldn't be getting a rant by a critic because their father recently died of a terrible disease, or because they are sensitive to such a topic). You might argue that this scene snuck in and took her by surprise, but honestly, seems like I am really reaching now, just to give her the benefit of the doubt.
My stance isn't so much that she's absolutely right about Hotline Miami 2. Its more "1. I have sympathy for how she felt about it and it doesn't cause me instant concern about the direction of VtmB2 so I am going to give the game a chance, and 2. Using "safe space" the way she was using it in this case doesn't cause me any stress, so I am going to give the game a chance". I am still excited for the game. Plus, if she goes somehow off the rail, I think there are other voices there to kind of say "wait a minute!"
If her reaction to Hotline Miami 2 was knee jerk, I think so too is a reaction like "I'm not gonna touch this game at ALL because SHE'S involved!" Not that this is what you're saying, I don't get that impression from you, but its the impression I get from what I have read from others. I get that you are just a bit worried and concerned, and you do have every right to be worried and to voice that worry and concern.
I am just gonna come out and say it. I think Anita Sarkeesian has made a lot of us VERY gun shy and its easy to assume that any woman involved with gaming who has an averse reaction to content like the Hotline Miami 2 thing is gonna be just like her. Especially if they use terms like "safe space". I can TOTALLY understand that fear, believe me. But I don't think its necessarily true that Cara is like Anita. I think its actually highly unlikely. Unlike Anita, Cara Ellison is a genuine gamer with genuine gaming experience AND genuine experience working ON games. She's the real deal and frankly despite her feelings about Hotline Miami 2, she IS one of us, unlike Ms. Sarkessian who I personally consider a hostile interloper and a fraud.
Fuck The Chantry
I am SOOO down for this game.
Yeah, I don't think she can give the game a touch of death just by being involved in the project, I am just a bit wary, because the attitude I saw in that article seems to clash with how potentially dark things can be in a VtM:B game, and it all ties together with certain comments being made about the previous game and how this will be different.
I think throwing the game into the garbage bin at this stage is premature (I mean, nowadays you can always wait until after launch, and see on youtube gameplay footage of it, if you are distrustful). The game has actually a lot going for it (same lead writer, lead composer etc.), and while some things were said about the previous game that I didn't feel were fair, they also did say a lot of good things about it, and it does seem like they are passionate about the idea.
I don't know her well enough to make comments about her as a person (or whether she is a gamer or not), it's just that the more I read from her, the less I like her writing.


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BLUE Nights è un album strumentale registrato dal vivo del quartetto Bruford Levin Upper Extremities.

Tracce

Formazione
Bill Bruford (batteria)
Tony Levin (basso)
David Torn (chitarra)
Chris Botti (tromba)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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HomeNews & MediaPress Releases
Press Release | Sept. 30, 2020
Cognitive Flexibility Training Manages Responses to Social Conflict
Scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute for Research and Army Research Laboratory have developed a computer-based training to reduce anger, reactive aggression and hostile attribution bias—the tendency to attribute hostile intent to the actions of others—in ambiguous social conflict situations.
Anger and aggression are common reactions to interpersonal provocations. However, not all provocations lead to these reactions. Past scientific research suggests that the extent to which the victim believes the provocateur acted with malice is key to predicting whether the victim will respond with anger and aggression. The tendency to assume malice in the actions of others is called hostile attribution bias.
Hostile attribution bias and unwarranted anger can jeopardize social bonds, team culture and team performance. It is also linked to post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and other behavioral health concerns.
The novel training, named Hostile Bias Modification Training, exposes trainees to three types of word fragments: ambiguous, aggressive and non-aggressive. Ambiguous fragments could form aggressive or non-aggressive words (KI_ _ could become KILL or KIND), aggressive fragments can only form aggressive words (W_ _PON for WEAPON) and non-aggressive fragments can only form non-aggressive words (FR_ END for FRIEND).
Participants are instructed to only form non-aggressive words and not respond if they cannot think of a non-aggressive word. Subsequently, study participants reacted to vignettes where they were wronged: in some vignettes the intent of the wrongdoer was clearly hostile while in others it was ambiguous. A second study linked these findings to real-world situations by analyzing participants' driving and online social media behavior.
Publishing their findings in the journal Cognitive Therapy and Research, the researchers suggest that HBMT results in significantly lower rates of anger, aggression and hostile attribution bias in response to socially frustrating situations compared to control groups in both laboratory and real-world situations. Notably, HBMT did not alter judgements where the intent of the wrongdoer was clearly hostile.
"Though more research is needed, we believe that HBMT could be effective as both a standalone tool for use at home, in field settings, or in concert with other therapeutic options to help mitigate unwarranted anger and aggression," said Capt. Jeffrey Osgood, a research psychologist at WRAIR and lead author of the study. "We are excited about HBMT's potential to both prevent and treat behavioral health concerns."
While researchers followed participants up to 96 hours after HBMT, further research is needed to determine the maximum durability of the training as well as to study it in clinical populations, identify the optimal dosing strategy and test its use alongside other treatments.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


I have done a little updating and rearranging. I have changed the Card Gallery to include cards from both my paintings and photos. I have also added some new items. So please feel free to browse.
It is a cold winter day today, and I am going to star on a cold painting, of ice. You can check out my other blog, Notes from the Middle, to see how it progresses.
I have begun a new art blog, which will include daily musings, bits and pieces and ongoing works. You can see it at 'Notes from the Middle'. You can make comments on this site. I found that on Redberry Art, I was getting too much spam, although you can make comments on Redberry Art too. I have changed the link, so I hope that this will reduce the spam here. Such an annoyance. We are in the depths of winter here, although it has been another milder January - just -22C today!
This year looks to be a good one for keeping me busy painting. I am going to be taking the second oil painting class through the University extension program, which follows on the first one I took a year ago. I have really enjoyed learning about and using oils. They are such fun to mix and manipulate. I am hoping to learn even more about this great medium. I am also going to take a three day workshop out in Vancouver, with the Federation of Canadian Artists.
I have recently joined a new painting group, The Escape Artists. It is a group of seven painters from Saskatoon, all with different approaches to their art. We will be having our first show and sale October 19 - 21 at the Art au Jus Gallery in Saskatoon. It should be a lot of fun. I will post details closer to the date.
Right now, I have several paintings out. I have two at the Mendel Art Gallery's Members' show and sale fundraiser. This goes until Sept. 9. Prairie River Artists also has a group show at the Royal Gallery at Circle Park Mall. This goes until Sept. 8.
Robert Genn, a BC artist, puts out a twice weekly email letter through his art site, The Painter's Keys. It goes out all across the world, with topics covering all things creative. You can sign up for the email on this page - it is painless and very worthwhile. With each letter, you get a link back to the site with responses to the previous letter. This is the best part. Yyou learn a lot, you think a lot, and you get to see what other people think too.
We had our group show for Prairie River Artists this past weekend. We had lots of people come by and this year, we tried out a 'Wine and Cheese' evening on the Saturday. We had live music as well so it was good fun - and a great atmosphere. It is a lot of work but is well worth the effort. I really enjoy seeing everyone's work and talking to all the people who come by. Now to get going again for next year!
Oliver Schroer is a wonderful Canadian violinist. I came across his most recent CD, called 'Camino' on Eric Friesen's 'Studio Sparks' on CBC2. The music spoke to me, as it was a recording of his walk along the El Camino de Santiago, where he played inside the wonderful old churches along the route. Having visited one of those churches in 2005, the music brought back those soaring arches and vast spaces of the cathedral.
This past weekend, I went out to Vancouver and took a 2-day workshop on how to paint transparent glass, in watercolour, with Kiff Holland. I went out a couple of days earlier, and attended the Federation of Canadian Artists fundraiser. I got to meet with my aunt and uncle (he is a signature member of the FCA, George Bates) and met some of the other Vancouver artists, so it was great fun.
There are currently two group shows on in Saskatoon, in which I have paintings. One is with Prairie River Artists at the Royal Gallery, Circle Centre Mall. The second is with Sage Brushes, at Mystic Java cafe. Both are on 8th Street. Come by and see the shows!
Both pieces that I entered into the Saskatoon Exhibition Showcase of the Arts were awarded ribbons. The painting, 'The Pettit House, 1912' received a second prize in its class (Heritage Architecture), and the other, 'On 15th Street', received a third prize in its class (watercolour). I felt quite good as I moved into the advanced division this year. You can see both paintings under the 'Architecture' section.
I added 4 new paintings to the site today. I have been getting a few ready to submit to various things. The University Faculty Club has an annual call for submissions to show in the club for a year. I had one accepted last year, so hope that I will be considered again this year. Also, I am submitting two for the Saskatoon Exhbition Art Showcase, both of them architectural subjects. It is Saskatoon's centennial this year, so I did one of the old homes, Summerville house, that is currently being restored.
Today marks the launch of the new and improved Redberry Art site. It was designed by City Girl Designs, and is hosted by SNH Systems. This format is a new kind of web site program that is very easy to maintain and update once it is set up. You don't have to buy any expensive web design programs, and don't have to know any fancy computer languages to make it work. If you can use a word processing program, and can use a digital camera, you can do it! They are great to work with, so consider them if you want your own web site that is easy to use and looks great.


Liberal blogs screamed over my "stupidity," "gall," and "balls" in appearing on FOX and, sin of sins, on that show. Didn't I realize I was "used"? (One might ask who was using whom when some 30,000 people came to PETA.org after the show, and more than 9,000 of them stayed to watch Alec Baldwin's video "Meat Your Meat."
Okay, wow--30,000 more people know about PETA now--but millions are armed with new reasons to discount Al Gore's important, positive message. Now they can say, 'Oh look, even the Left hates him! He's trying to save the planet, and he eats meat!' And that's really the crux of this--why does Al Gore need to be perfect?
Al Gore, Indestructible Environmental Superhero!
He's never claimed that he's the ideal enviro-savior, guilty of no green sins at all--that's what all of his detractors would have you believe. He's had the mantle of the era's premiere environmentalist thrust upon him, yes, due to some diligent, tireless good work--and due to some opponent's beliefs that he'd be easier to discount carrying that distinction.
And perhaps it would be nice if he were a vegetarian, but can't he attempt to spread the word about fighting climate change (one of the most urgent and important messages of our time) without embodying every one of the positive changes necessary to successfully do so? The line of reasoning to the contrary lands Newkirk in the arena of all those who discredit Gore's message by pointing to the fact that he lives in a big house, or travels a lot, or doesn't row across the Atlantic to UN summits on a canoe, or whatever. Since he's not the immaculate carbon-free environmentalist, he's a hypocrite--and therefore a prime target for attack.
Can't You Find Another Non-Vegetarian to Pick Who Isn't Busy Saving the World?
And no, Ingrid, it's not that Gore is "off limits" as you say, it's that your whining about his not being a vegetarian is, as so many of PETA's actions are, a transparent publicity stunt that is in no way constructive towards any other aim. And by choosing him as a target, you're adding to the already slew of detrimental white noise obstructing his work. You knew liberal bloggers would be outraged, and that PETA would take center stage--and all you had to do was sell a teensy bit of your soul to Glenn Beck to make it happen.
I'm not arguing that it's a bad idea to advocate eating less meat--it's clear that the meat industry is a huge driver of climate change, and slowing consumption could help quell deforestation, lower methane output, and benefit the environment in myriad other ways. PETA is right that cutting meat out of your diet is one of the best ways an individual can fight climate change. But it's just low to drag down a man who's working to help better the future of the planet by shamelessly pandering to a man who seems not to care whether or not it has one--all just to get your website some page views.


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Changing of the Guard: New UNCCA Chair and Deputy Chair
The Hon Neil McKerracher and Dr Dalma Demeter have now concluded their respective terms as UNCCA Chair and Deputy Chair. UNCCA thanks them for their invaluable contributions to the organisation, which have moved UNCCA to new highs.
Below is a recap and update by Justice McKerracher, which UNCCA thanks his Honour for.
As the completion of my three year term has arrived and as Deputy Chair, Dr Dalma Demeter has also retired from that office, it is an appropriate time to introduce the new Chair the Hon Justice Brigitte Markovic and the new Deputy Chair Dr Jessica Viven-Wilksch.
It is also a convenient time to review what has happened in recent years with UNCCA and to reveal some plans for the future in which both the incoming Chair and Deputy Chair have participated.
Justice Markovic practised in corporations, insolvency, commercial and administrative law and is well known and respected from her work as a judge of the Federal Court of Australia.
Jessica's studies and academic journey show her interest for commercial, international and comparative laws. In her PhD, Jessica wrote on the state of Good faith in Australia and in the European Union. One of her articles was recently cited by the South African Constitutional Court in their long-awaited decision on good faith in contract law.
Jessica began her law studies in 2002 at the University Toulouse I, France and completed her Licence through a year exchange program in UCD Dublin, Ireland. She completed a Master Degree in Comparative Law in 2007 in Germany and Australia before graduating with a Master in International and Comparative Law in France in 2008. Jessica has also worked as a legal researcher for companies and law firms, including a multinational company based in Adelaide.
She started working as a lecturer at Flinders law School before accepting a permanent full-time position as a lecturer at Adelaide Law School where she has been working since September 2015. In this role, she has distinguished herself by demonstrating collegiality, management and leadership skills.
UNCCA is also pleased to welcome to its executive, Dr Robert Walters Lecturer Law, Victoria University, Melbourne and Adjunct Professor, European faculty of Law in Slovenia, Europe. Dr Walters has had wide experience with UNCITRAL topics and has published extensively.
Jessica and Robert are most welcome additions.
It is a convenient time to bring members up to speed with what has happened over the last 3 years or so and what the future hopefully holds.
Tim Castle, the founding Chair and still very actively involved, often speaks of these time capsules as UNCCA 1.0 while he chaired, UNCCA 2.0 during my period and UNCCA 3.0 in the 3 exciting years to come. His ongoing contributions have been invaluable.
I also cannot say enough about the tireless and boundless work of Dr Dalma Demeter whose service to UNCCA as Deputy Chair has been enormously valuable.
REPORT ON STRATEGIC PLAN OUTCOMES (2017-2020)
The MOU with the University of Canberra had a fruitful three year run between 2017-2020, with UC providing admin support and hosting the May Seminar for 2018 and 2019. Our links to Canberra and the Attorney General's Department, and DFAT both involved in the creation first, and then secondly the implementation of, international instruments in the domestic sphere are essential to the effective work of UNCCA.
The size of the Executive Committee expanded to spread the load on the managing directors providing voluntary contribution to the daily management of UNCCA. In particular, the Media and Communication portfolio has two additional admin support personnel assisting the Director Jag Sandhu who has done amazing work with the web page https://www.uncca.org/ and the newsletter.
With the termination of the MOU with the University of Canberra and the move of the Executive Office off the UC campus, admin support was procured through casual paid service.
The UNCITRAL Delegates program was also extended. Director Dr Anne Matthew undertook handling the appointment of lead delegates to assist Director Dr Alan Davidson who has been successfully managing the UNLAWS student program for years.
There was a temporary inclusion of a new position focussing on expanding membership and attracting sponsor/corporate members, but that initiative was put on hold with the unavailability of its initial holder.
A new deputy treasurer and a new secretary now ensure the smooth operations of UNCCA.
UNCCA members are legal practitioners, academics, members of the judiciary, and students, in two main categories of membership: fellows and associate members.
Our membership has remained relatively constant at about 42 members have their membership paid for 2020, with new members joining each year with UNCCA's events to take the place of those who attended in prior years. With the new website, UNCCA looks forward to achieving greater retention year on year.
Similarly, proposals were made for establishing corporate membership categories for supporter or sponsor organisations and law firms, all of which were put on hold due to the inability to organise face-to-face events during the pandemic.
We engaged however with our members through live and recorded events, group emails distributing the UNCCA Newsletter and inviting expressions of interest to attend UNCITRAL WG Sessions, and by providing substantive content relevant to UNCITRAL fields of law through the UNCCA website.
Our external stakeholders have included
· UNCITRAL and UNCITRAL RCAP
· Law Asia
· AGD
· DFAT
· The legal academic community
· The legal profession
· The judiciary
We have engaged with external stakeholders by providing them with the UNCCA Newsletter, inviting them to participate in UNCCA events, sending delegates to the UNCITRAL WG sessions, and connecting through social media portals.
The main sources of revenue have been membership fees and ticketed events. Regular expenses are incurred with corporate and financial reporting obligations, accounting, and maintaining a website. Occasional expenses arise with events.
The flagship Annual May Seminar has undergone a steady growth in attendance and consistent engagement and recognition from the UNCITRAL, the AGD, and DFAT over the past three years. Held online in 2020 due to the pandemic-induced restrictions, the conference attracted a large number of registered attendees and 22 presenters, making this so far our largest event overall.
UN Day Lectures Series
The UN Day Lecture developed into a unique series of events held simultaneously in the federal courts (for the most part) of the capital cities around the country, registering great success in 2018 (60th Anniversary of the New York Convention) and 2019 (Cross-Border Insolvency – 25 years since inception). In 2020, the event was merged with the May Seminar as a single UN Day Seminar online conference package. The event was an outstanding success, with a particular focus on the 40th Anniversary of the CISG.
We attracted external organisations to support our May Seminars – ARITA in 2019, CLA in 2020, the Federal Courts for the UN day Lectures and initially pre-COVID for the proposed 2020 May Seminar.
We sent delegates to all UNCITRAL WG sessions, which is a core part of our functions.
We established a regular Newsletter distributed to UNCCA members four times a year, including reports on current work at the UNCITRAL Working Groups, events announcements, and relevant news.
We created a new website that is aesthetically appealing, is capable of managing membership and events registrations and which also includes a Research Hub that is aimed to become the primary source of information on international trade law for Australians.
We hosted the first online conference package through the new website, accessible to registered attendees only.
UNCCA STRATEGIC PLAN 2021-2023
The board has adopted a new strategic plan, which can be downloaded below or accessed in full here.
UNCCA was internationally unique when it was, with considerable vision, created. There are now similar models developing internationally. Australia is a vocal and valued participant in the work of UNCITRAL. It is a fascinating exercise to see the growth of an international instrument potentially affecting for the better, trade and commerce between a large number of countries with differing legal systems. This is a growth area internationally and nationally. The work done by UNCITRAL and UNCCA is important and challenging. It has been a rewarding experience from a personal perspective to work with such dedicated and capable people over the last 3 years as Chair. I thank you all for your support and wish the incoming team every success.
UNCCA 2021-2023 Strategic Plan


When tradition meets modernity: The new PREFA rhomboid façade tile 20 × 20 has been developed for traditional, "scaly" façade designs. Made of lightweight aluminium, the PREFA rhomboid façade tile is also perfectly suited to renovating dormers, gables and chimney cladding.
³ Metallic colours may vary in shade.


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Home » Environment » Russia Denies Causing Latest Radioactivity Over Europe; UN Agency Says Origin "Still Unclear"
Russia Denies Causing Latest Radioactivity Over Europe; UN Agency Says Origin "Still Unclear"
By olduvai in Environment on July 1, 2020 .
Last Friday monitors with the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) issued an alarming report that its radiation sensors based in Scandinavia picked up abnormal radioactivity levels in the air over the Baltics and Scandanavia. Its ultra-sensitive networked sensors set up across Europe and the world are capable of picking up nuclear weapons testing or possible nuclear power plant leakage anywhere around the globe.Leningrad plant in the town of Sosnovy Bor. TASS/Getty Images.
The Stockholm monitoring station "detected 3 isotopes; Cs-134, Cs-137 & Ru-103 associated with Nuclear fission at higher than usual levels,"according to CTBTO chief Lassina Zerbo. The UN nuclear agency has been investigating the 'mystery' radioactivity, which while not considered in large enough concentrations to harm humans, still "are certainly nuclear fission products, most likely from a civil source," according to the prior CTBTO statement. "We are able to indicate the likely region of the source, but it's outside the CTBTO's mandate to identify the exact origin."
However it's clear that there was a release of "very low" levels of man-made radioactivity.
The UN watchdog said Tuesday that the small amounts of radioactive isotopes detected over a significant area spanning from western Russia to Baltic countries to parts of Scandinavia still have an unclear origin and cause.
The International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) director general, Rafael Grossi, also sought to assure the public that "the levels reported to the IAEA are very low and pose no risk to human health and the environment."
According to the AP, European countries are being asked to self-report any radiation releases. So far at least 29 have voluntarily reported no known incidents within their borders, including Russia. Map issues by the CTBTO showing a spike in radioactivity over Nordic countries.
Tags: comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty, ctbto, europe, Russia
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Q: Install old kernel in ubuntu 16.04 My laptop can work perfectly on kernels up to 3.13.0-85 so is it possible to install the same in Ubuntu 16.04 without affecting it's performance?
And if yes then how?

A: You will need Kernel 4.4 or newer.  I'm sure there is a way to run an older Kernel, however, it will likely break 16.04 since it relies on the newer Kernel functions.
A list of Ubuntu and Kernel OS/Kernel compatibilities can be found here
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Kernel/Support

A: For 14.04 users who upgraded to 16.04, the 3.19 kernel (installed by 14.04) appears to remain usable. By similar reasoning, a 3.13 kernel may work as well even though it is not officially supported on the newer os (16.04).
You will need to download the relevant packages and install them manually via dpkg.

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Home » Positive Psychology Articles » What is Positive Psychology & Why is It Important?
If you've been hearing the term "positive psychology" thrown around a lot, but you're not quite sure what it is, you've come to the right place!
There are some common misconceptions about positive psychology, both about what it is and what it is not.
To clear up some of these misunderstandings and provide a brief but comprehensive overview of the field, we've put together this piece focused on defining and describing the positive psychology movement.
To push this brief description a bit further, positive psychology is a scientific approach to studying human thoughts, feelings, and behavior with a focus on strengths instead of weakness, building the good in life instead of repairing the bad, and taking the lives of average people up to "great" instead of focusing solely on moving those who are struggling up to "normal" (Peterson, 2008).
Martin Seligman is a researcher with a broad range of experience in psychology.
If you had never heard of the positive psychology movement until now, you still might have heard his name at some point. Seligman's research in the 1960s and 70s laid the foundation for the well-known psychological theory of "learned helplessness." This theory, which has been backed by decades of research, explains how humans and animals can learn to become helpless and feel they have lost control over what happens to them.
Seligman connected this phenomenon with depression, noting that many people suffering from depression feel helpless as well. His work on the subject provided inspiration, ideas, and evidence to back up many treatments for depressive symptoms, as well as strategies for preventing depression.
While this is impressive enough on its own, Seligman knew that he had more to offer the psychology community and the world at large—in particular, more work on the positive, the uplifting, and the inspiring. After making a name for himself with learned helplessness, he turned his attention to other traits, characteristics, and perspectives that could be learned. He found what he was looking for in resilience and learned optimism, findings that became the groundwork for his widely administered resilience programs for children and members of the military, among others.
Seligman grew frustrated with psychology's overly narrow focus on the negative; so much attention was paid to mental illness, abnormal psychology, trauma, suffering, and pain, and relatively little attention was dedicated to happiness, well-being, exceptionalism, strengths, and flourishing.
When he was elected president of the American Psychological Association in 1998, he jumped at the opportunity to alter the direction of the field from such an influential position. He proposed a new subfield of psychology with a focus on what is life-giving rather than life-depleting. The foundational paper of this new field, positive psychology, was published in 2000 by Seligman and the "founding father" of flow, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.
Since 2000, Seligman's call for a greater focus on the positive in life has been answered by thousands of researchers around the world, provoking tens of thousands of studies on positive phenomena and establishing a base for the application of positive principles to coaching, teaching, relationships, the workplace, and every other life domain.
Since you're reading this, you probably already know that Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi's endeavor was wildly successful. The plethora of projects and papers on positive topics has provided an enormous repository of knowledge on how to encourage ourselves and those around us to live the best lives possible.
It would be impossible to list all of the benefits of positive psychology, but we'll try to give a comprehensive overview of some of the most impactful and influential outcomes of practicing positive psychology.
1. It teaches us the power of shifting one's perspective.
This is the focus of many techniques, exercises, and even entire programs based on positive psychology, because a relatively small change in one's perspective can lead to astounding shifts in well-being and quality of life. Injecting a bit more optimism and gratitude into your life is a simple action that can give you a radically more positive outlook on life.
Of course, no respected positive psychologist would tell you to think about, act out, and focus on ONLY the positive in life—balance is important. Positive psychology was not established to replace traditional psychology, but to complement it with a positive bias that's just as strong as psychology's negative bias over the last several decades.
2. People overestimate the impact of money on their happiness by quite a lot. It does have some influence, but not nearly as much as we might think, so focusing less on attaining wealth will likely make you happier (Aknin, Norton, & Dunn, 2009).
3. Spending money on experiences provides a bigger boost to happiness than spending money on material possessions (Howell & Hill, 2009).
4. Gratitude is a big contributor to happiness in life, suggesting that the more we cultivate gratitude, the happier we will be (Seligman, Steen, Park, & Peterson, 2005).
5. Oxytocin may provoke greater trust, empathy, and morality in humans, meaning that giving hugs or other shows of physical affection may give you a big boost to your overall well-being (and the well-being of others; Barraza & Zak, 2009).
6. Those who intentionally cultivate a positive mood to match the outward emotion they need to display (i.e., in emotional labor) benefit by more genuinely experiencing the positive mood. In other words, "putting on a happy face" won't necessary make you feel happier, but putting in a little bit of effort likely will (Scott & Barnes, 2011).
7. Happiness is contagious; those with happy friends and significant others are more likely to be happy in the future (Fowler & Christakis, 2008).
8. People who perform acts of kindness towards others not only get a boost in well-being, they are also more accepted by their peers (Layous, Nelson, Oberle, Schonert-Reichl, & Lyubomirsky, 2012).
9. Volunteering time to a cause you believe in improves your well-being and life satisfaction and may even reduce symptoms of depression (Jenkinson et al., 2013).
10. Spending money on other people results in greater happiness for the giver (Dunn, Aknin, & Norton, 2008).
11. Positive emotions boost our job performance.
12. Positive emotions in the workplace are contagious, which means one positive person or team can have a ripple effect that extends through the entire organization.
13. Small, simple actions can have a big impact on our happiness, meaning that it doesn't take much to encourage your workplace to become a happier and more positive place (Kjerulf, 2016).
14. Success! Not only does success make us happier, feeling happy and experiencing positive emotions actually increases our chances of success (Lyubomirsky, King, & Diener, 2005).
However, don't assume that refusing to brook any encroachment of negative emotions or outlooks will help you reach success.
15. An important finding from positive psychology research is that forcing people who are not naturally optimists to "just think positively" can do more harm than good; unrealistic optimism is detrimental, along with intense pessimism (del Valle & Mateos, 2008; Dillard, Midboe, & Klein, 2009).
Another broad benefit of the positive psychology movement is a more well-defined idea of what "the good life" is.
Renowned positive psychologist Roy F. Baumeister and colleagues took on the challenge of determining what makes a good life, and they found some interesting findings that you can apply to your own life (2013). Their research showed that happiness and a sense of meaning in life do not necessarily go hand-in-hand, indicating that focusing on positive emotions alone will not bring the fulfilling and satisfying life you crave.
16. The satisfaction of one's wants and needs boost happiness, but have virtually no impact on meaningfulness; this indicates that focusing on obtaining what you want will increase your happiness, but you may have to supplement to get a deeper sense of meaning.
17. Happiness is present-oriented, rooted in the moment, while meaningfulness is more focused on the past and future and how they link to the present; this finding suggests that you can focus on the present to increase your happiness, but you might consider thinking more about your past and future to find meaning.
18. "Givers" experience more meaning, while "takers" experience more happiness; if you find yourself lacking in meaning, try giving back to others, but if you are lacking in happiness, try being accepting of others' generosity to give yourself a boost.
19. Worry, stress, and anxiety are more likely to be felt by those whose lives are high in meaningfulness and low in happiness; this indicates that you shouldn't get too down about experiencing negative emotions if you have a strong sense of meaning—a little negative emotion can actually be a good thing!
20. An intention to express your authentic self and a sense of strong personal identity is linked to meaning, but not to happiness; if you are searching for meaning, try working on your practice of authenticity.
Findings such as these have given rise to, and are driven by, a number of interesting theories that pepper the positive psychology literature.
For the most part, most people are happy.
Happiness is one of the causes of the good things in life, and also promotes more happiness.
Most people are pretty resilient.
Happiness, character strengths, and good social relationships act as buffers against disappointments and setbacks.
Work also matters in terms of making life worth living, as long as we are engaged and draw meaning and purpose from it.
Money has diminishing returns on our happiness after a certain point, but we can buy some happiness by spending money on other people.
Eudaimonia (well-being, deeper form of satisfaction than happiness) is more important than hedonism (sole focus on pleasure and positive emotions) for living the good life.
The "heart" matters more than the "head," meaning that things like empathy and compassion are just as important as critical thinking.
Nearly all good days have three things in common: a sense of autonomy, competence, and connection to others.
For an overview of some of the most salient theories and concepts in positive psychology, the website positivepsychology.org.uk offers a great "mind map" of the field here. We'll also cover a couple of the biggest topics later in this piece.
Applying positive psychology to coaching can be a tricky business, but it is undertaken with the best of intentions and care for others.
To positively impact the client's life – this goal is above all others, and all others feed indirectly into this goal. The number one goal of coaching in general is to improve the client's life, and positive psychology coaching is no different.
Increase the client's experience of positive emotions.
Help clients identify and develop their strengths and unique talents.
Enhance the client's goal-setting and goal-striving abilities.
Build a sense of hope into the client's perspective.
Cultivate the client's sense of happiness and well-being.
Nurture a sense of gratitude in the client.
Help the client build and maintain healthy, positive relationships with others.
Encourage the client to maintain an optimistic outlook.
Help the client learn to savor every positive moment (Mentor Coach, n.d.; Peppercorn, 2014).
You can probably easily see why the first goal is the biggest, and basically subsumes all the other goals. Each of Goals 2 through 10 can be considered milestones on the way to Goal 1—effective techniques and objectives that help the client and coach work their way towards the client's biggest life goals.
The PERMA model is a widely recognized and influential model in positive psychology. Seligman proposed this model to help explain and define well-being in greater depth.
P – Positive Emotions: Even though seeking positive emotions alone is not a very effective way to boost your well-being, experiencing positive emotion is still an important factor. Part of well-being is enjoying yourself in the moment, i.e., experiencing positive emotions.
E – Engagement: Having a sense of engagement, in which we may lose track of time and become completely absorbed in something we enjoy and excel at, is an important piece of well-being. It's hard to have a developed sense of well-being if you are not truly engaged in anything you do.
R – (Positive) Relationships: Humans are social creatures, and we rely on connections with others to truly flourish. Having deep, meaningful relationships with others is vital to our well-being.
M – Meaning: Even someone who is deliriously happy most of the time may not have a developed sense of well-being if they do not find meaning in their life. When we dedicate ourselves to a cause or recognize something bigger than ourselves, we experience a sense of meaning that there is simply no replacement for.
A – Accomplishment / Achievement: We all thrive when we are succeeding, achieving our goals, and bettering ourselves. Without a drive to accomplish and achieve, we are missing one of the puzzle pieces of authentic well-being (Seligman, 2011).
Experiencing more positive emotions; do more of the things that make you happy, and bring enjoyment into your daily routine.
Working on upping your engagement; pursue hobbies that interest you, develop your skills, and look for a job more suited to your passions, if necessary.
Improve the quality (and/or quantity) of your relationships with others; work on building more positive and supportive relationships with your friends, family, and significant other(s).
Seek out meaning; if you don't find it through your work, look for it in volunteering opportunities, personal hobbies or leisure activities, or acting as a mentor for others.
Keep your focus on achieving your goals—but don't focus too hard; try to keep your ambition in balance with all of the other important things in life (Seligman, 2011).
Each of these five aspects of the PERMA model are measurable, and each is vital for an overall sense of well-being. This model pushes past the older model of authentic happiness in its consideration of more than just happiness or positive emotions. Of course, positive emotions are important—they're part of the PERMA model itself, after all—but focusing just on positive emotions will not help you to develop a comprehensive sense of well-being, including engagement, meaning, success, and positive relationships with others.
Happiness alone will likely not propel you towards flourishing, but well-being will.
Speaking of flourishing, it's a concept we've touched on in this piece already, but have not yet defined. We've also mentioned the topic of flow, though indirectly, which is an important concept in positive psychology as well.
Understanding these concepts is vital for understanding the field of positive psychology. Read on to learn more about them.
Flourishing is one of the most significant concepts in positive psychology, as it encompasses and extends to so many other positive concepts.
In short, "flourishing" refers to the state we are in when we pay attention to each aspect of the PERMA model and build up a solid sense of well-being. We flourish when we cultivate our talents and strengths, develop deep and meaningful relationships, feel pleasure and enjoyment, and make a meaningful contribution to the world. We flourish when we find fulfillment in life along with achieving more traditional objectives related to success when we are truly living the "good life" (Seligman, 2011).
Further, Soots emphasizes that flourishing is not a trait, a characteristic, or something you "either have or don't have;" rather, flourishing is a process that requires action. While it might be disappointing that it doesn't come easy, it's encouraging to know that, truly, anyone can flourish!
Another well-known topic in positive psychology is that of flow.
The concept of flow was first scientifically explored and defined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (our second "founding father" of positive psychology). In the last few decades of the 1900s, Csikszentmihalyi noticed that many artists fell into a particular state while they were working; this state was characterized by a particularly intense focus and great concentration on the task at hand, to the point of losing track of time for hours at a time.
The merging of action and awareness, or being fully present in your actions.
A loss of reflective self-consciousness (lack of attention to the self).
A sense of personal control or agency in the situation.
A distorted sense of time passing.
Experiencing the activity or situation as intrinsically rewarding (Csikszentmihalyi, 1975).
Those who enter into a state of flow are totally immersed in what they're doing. This immersion arises when the challenges of the activity in front of us are significant and roughly equal to our skill at this activity. When we have high skill and low challenge, we are bored. When we have a high challenge and low skill, we are overwhelmed. When we have low skill and low challenge, we are apathetic. It is only when both our skill and our challenges are high that we enter into a flow state.
Entering into flow is not only an intrinsically rewarding and often enjoyable experience, it also seems to link to greater happiness and well-being, more academic (and, subsequently, career) success, and more positive and healthy relationships (Csikszentmihalyi & Csikszentmihalyi, 1988).
To learn more about flow from the founder himself, watch Csikszentmihalyi give an outstanding TED Talk on the subject.
Now, on to what the practitioners and application-minded people are really here for—how to put positive psychology into practice!
Positive psychology principles and exercises can be applied in several different settings, including therapy, the classroom, the workplace, and in your own home.
The use of the experience sampling method (or ESM), also referred to as a daily diary method. Before the days of smartphones, you would be given a beeper or a pager that would go off at random points during the day, alerting you to pause, notice what you were thinking, feeling, and doing in that moment, and writing it all down. This is often used in positive interventions to help people realize how much of their day is actually quite positive.
The practice of keeping a gratitude journal. A gratitude journal offers individuals a method of identifying and reflecting on all of the good things in their lives—all the things they have to be grateful for. Interventions often involve prompting people to write down three things they are grateful for each day, with the only stipulation being that they need to be different each day. Within a week, many people experience a boost in well-being along with an increase in gratitude.
Making a gratitude visit. A gratitude visit (or letter) is an exercise in which an individual identifies a person to whom he or she is grateful and why; once they have these in mind, they can write a letter to this person expressing and explaining their gratitude. If the person lives close enough to visit, they are encouraged to drop off the letter in person and visit with them; if not, a phone call, video chat, or simply dropping the letter in the mail can work as well. This exercise provides a significant boost to both gratitude and well-being.
Focusing on building personal strengths instead of weaknesses. One of the most significant differences between many other forms of coaching and counseling and one based in positive psychology is the focus on strengths instead of weaknesses. Positive psychology is based on the idea that building on our strengths is often a more effective path to success than trying to force excellence in areas we are simply not suited for. In practice, this technique involves identifying one's strengths and working to provide yourself with more opportunities to use them.
Well-being therapy. This holistic approach to therapy is similar to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), but focuses on both promoting the positive and alleviating the negative in the client's life. It is founded on Carol Ryff's model of well-being, which recognizes six facets or factors of well-being: mastery of the environment, personal growth, purpose in life, autonomy, self-acceptance, and positive relationships (Harvard Health Publishing, 2008).
Positive psychotherapy. This therapy is similar to well-being therapy, but generally packages several techniques and exercises into one treatment. Its focus is on building positive emotions, character strengths, and a sense of meaning in life. Twelve exercises are generally practiced in this form of therapy, including exercises on using your signature strengths, keeping a gratitude journal, making a gratitude visit (Harvard Health Publishing, 2008).
For more tools, you can use to put the exercises and techniques of positive psychology into practice, click here and check out the free eBook with 3 positive exercises.
Although positive psychology has been embraced by much of the psychology community (not to mention much of society at large), there are some common critiques of the movement—many of which have some valid points.
At the 2015 World Conference of Positive Psychology, some of the biggest names in positive psychology discussed a few of these criticisms. Below, we'll outline some of the major criticisms and an evaluation of their merit in today's field.
Research findings are often invalid, overstated, and misleading.
Like any other scientific field, mistakes are sometimes made. This often seems to be due to an excitement over the potential of findings in positive psychology; it can be hard to maintain objectivity when you feel a finding has both broad and deep applicability to the real world.
However, this is no excuse for a lack of scientific rigor. While there is a bit more leeway in crossing your "t"s and dotting your "i"s in applied research, positive psychologists must be careful to keep their claims within reason and think critically about the limitations of their methods—there is always a limitation!
Today, positive psychology has overcome some of the initial obstacles and growing pains inherent to a new field. More critical attention is being paid to the research, which gives us all more confidence in the findings.
There is too much emphasis on self-report and cross-sectional survey data.
This is certainly a valid point; much of the positive psychology literature is built on survey data. However, this emphasis on survey data is not exclusive to positive psychology, and positive psychology does not exclusively use surveys. Receiving feedback from those close to an individual is increasingly being utilized to corroborate or compare self-report data to, which increases confidence in data.
Although positive psychology is not alone in this limitation, it is one that positive psychologists should continue to consider when planning, implementing and reviewing research.
Positive psychology has a cultural and ethnocentric bias.
It's true that much of the research in positive psychology has been published by Western scholars, editors, reviewers, and journals. It is also true that positive psychology generally embraces a white, middle-class audience, in which injustice, poverty, and inequality are swept under the rug.
However, this bias seems to have been much over-hyped. Recently, more research from experts in non-Western countries and from a diverse range of backgrounds is being conducted (and published). The recent establishment of the International Positive Psychology Association is one sign of this attempt at broadening the perspective of positive psychology.
The field is too individualistic.
Another valid point is that positive psychology focuses too much on the individual—on personal experiences, individual traits and characteristics, and intrapersonal processes and phenomena. Positive psychology does indeed seem to have an overly narrow focus on the individual and a lack of attention paid to relationships, teams, groups, organizations, and communities.
Some have argued that this focus on individuals leads positive psychology to victim-blame (e.g., "If you can't figure out how to be happy, it's your fault") and excuse those who are contributing to systemic issues (e.g., "It's too hard to make corporations act ethically, so we'll just help you make the best of it.").
Positive psychology is just a promotion of a "Pollyanna" personality type, not an authentic exploration of the good life.
Of the major critiques of positive psychology, this may be one of those with the least merit. Although there is a good deal of research on "Pollyanna" types (happy, bubbly, cheerful, extroverted), that research is by no means representative of the entire field.
As cited earlier, there are studies on the dark side of happiness and optimism and the benefits of thinking pessimistically. There are also myriad studies on people from all across the spectrum of personality, from quiet and successful introverts to boisterous and struggling extroverts, and on the lack of fulfillment and meaning in the lives of some of the most "bubbly" individuals.
On the surface, it may seem that positive psychology is the study of the perpetually happy, but anything more than a cursory look will show you that the field is a rich exploration of all that which makes life good (and a bit of what makes it difficult as well).
Some of the criticisms of the field make excellent points. Rather than struggling against these points, we should be open to considering them, thinking critically about the health of our field, and coming up with solutions for any big problems. No field is immune from criticism, nor should it be; a healthy debate and a robust peer review process is what will keep positive psychology theory from lapsing into nothing more than an edict to "be positive" and positive psychology interventions from devolving into self-help material that is based on nothing but opinions and wishful thinking.
What is Positive Psychology and How Did it Come into Being?
The question "what is wrong with people" has guided the thinking of many researchers and dominated countless scientific studies during the 20th century. It is hard to deny that this entails an important question.
In our attempts to answer the question, we have gained more understanding of many illnesses and have developed effective treatments for a wide range of problems.
However, as an inevitable consequence of our focus on the negative aspects of well-being and health, such as distress and disease, we developed an almost exclusive attention to pathology.
This question is at the heart of positive psychology, which is the scientific and applied approach to uncovering people's strengths and promoting their positive functioning.
During the past 14 years, the number of scientific studies on positive psychology has increased tremendously. In addition, countless interventions have been developed to increase people's wellbeing.
We hope this article has given you a good understanding of positive psychology—what it is, what it isn't, where it's been, and where it's going.
Positive psychology is a field with a ton of potential for improving the lives of people around the world, and a ton of impactful findings have already been discovered.
The bottom line is, if you want to keep up in the world of coaching, teaching, counseling, therapy, and a dozen other domains, make sure to keep an eye out for what's new in positive psychology!
What are your thoughts on the state of the field? Do you think there are bigger criticisms that are being ignored? Do you think the field is doing a good job at solving the problems it set out to solve? What do you think is the "next big thing" in positive psychology? Let us know in the comments!
Seph has a passion for positive psychology and a background in online marketing. Positive Psychology Program allows him to work at the intersection of these fields and utilise his strengths to the fullest.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. New York City, NY, US: Atria Books.
I enjoyed reading this article full of helpful information. Positive psychology is very essential for in our daily life for a better productivity and surely we need it.
This website define briefly about positive psychology. Provide evidences are very useful.
What are your thoughts on the state of the field? Do you think there are bigger criticisms that are being ignored? Do you think the field is doing a good job at solving the problems it set out to solve? What do you think is the "next big thing" in positive psychology?
Wow, you're opening a big door here. And I'm taking the bait and stepping though it … with some thoughts triggered by your article and those questions.
THOUGHT 2 – In the section titled "The 20 Benefits of Positive Psychology" you state: The greatest potential benefit of positive psychology is that it teaches us the power of shifting one's perspective. I concur. But I would add this. Now that positive psychology has taught us the power of shifting our perspective, there remains one more thing it should teach us: HOW to shift our perspective from counterproductive to productive, on any issue at any time. So, the question is: What, exactly, is the most effective methodology for shifting one's perspective any time one wants to (especially when one is deeply discouraged or irrationally mad as hell)? I'm waiting for the leading positive psychology professors to deliver on this one.
THOUGHT 3 – You state: "Of course, no respected positive psychologist would tell you to think about, act out, and focus on ONLY the positive in life — balance is important." This statement sounds like it derives from the "dark side", "second wave" wing of positive psychology. It's a confusing head-scratcher. What exactly does "balance is important" mean? Does it imply that the desired human condition is to have as much negative as positive? Or that thinking about, acting out, and focusing on negative aspects of life is a good or helpful thing to be doing? Clarity is needed here. And the clarity that's needed is a full, correct definition of what positive thinking — a.k.a. positive attitude, positive perspective — is.
As I view it, positive thinking, attitude, or perspective doesn't mean never having an unhappy thought or unpleasant feeling or never dealing with an unwanted situation. And, it doesn't mean ignoring or never addressing one's unwanted thoughts, feelings, and situations. Rather, positive thinking, attitude, or perspective involves adopting the thinking, attitude, or perspective that produces the most positive outcome in any situation. So, the need for and the benefit of taking a positive approach to negative situations isn't a "sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't" thing or a "some situations call for it, some situations don't" thing. As I see it, the best approach to any situation is the approach that will produce the most positive outcome. Or, put more specifically, the best approach to any situation — including "negative" or "dark side" situations — is the approach that's most apt to (a) increase our effectiveness in dealing with the situation, (b) increase the likelihood of resolving or mitigating any "negativity" pertaining to the situation, and/or (c) increase the likelihood of deriving benefit, learning, or positive outcome from the situation. That, in my opinion, is what a true positive approach, attitude, or perspective is. And, in light of that approach, the concept of striving for some kind of "balance" in positivity vs. negativity becomes pointless — and also counterproductive.
To conclude, I maintain that the reason we have disagreement and confusion over what kind and how much positive thinking we should have — and also the reason we have the "second wave movement" — is that the leading thinkers, or the academicians, of positive psychology have thus far failed to provide a full, correct definition and explanation of what positive thinking really is, what it encompasses, and how to use it for fullest life benefit. In short, we don't suffer from too much positive thinking, we suffer from inadequate definition of positive thinking and inadequate application of positive thinking.
THOUGHT 4 – At Benefit 15 of the "Benefits of Positive Psychology" list it says "unrealistic optimism is detrimental." I've read that before. It causes me puzzlement. It implies that out there in the world there are unrealistic optimists. But, when I reflect on it, I can't think of any time in my 74 years that I've encountered one. In my family? No. Among neighbors, friends, co-workers? No. So, where exactly are these folks who are engaging in detrimental unrealistic optimism?
Also, the concept of unrealistic optimism begs a question: Unrealistic by whose standard? Were not the aspirations of nearly every great achiever regarded as "unrealistic optimism" … up until the day the unreasonably optimistic aspirations become actuality? I also wonder, which is more detrimental in our society: People who hold unrealistic optimism or the act of telling a person they're unrealistically optimistic? Also, how many kids are holding unrealistically optimistic dreams on a daily basis? And, which is the biggest problem: Too many kids holding "detrimentally unrealistic" dreams, or perhaps not enough kids doing it? And, should we be "wising up" those kids engaging in daily unrealistic optimism, getting them to "tone down" their unrealistic thinking to something more "real," something that's less optimistic and more pessimistic? Yes, I'm sure it's possible to be unrealistically optimistic and I'm sure it's possible that unrealistic optimism can be detrimental and I'm sure that somewhere unrealistic optimists exist, but what perplexes me is: I can't think of any time in my life when I've encountered any of this. Which tends to cause me to conclude that perhaps this "detrimental unrealistic optimism" thing is more of a strawman than an actuality.
That sounds logical, and I concur with it. But, I include this point. As I see it, in it's fundamental form, the act of maximally impacting a person's life in a positive way involves providing that person with an optimally effective achievement methodology pertaining to whatever particular life-enhancing pursuit the person has chosen to pursue. I define "achievement methodology" as: a set of actions that, when performed, bring achievement drivers into play within a certain pursuit. And, I define an "achievement driver" as: a condition or activity that, when present in a particular pursuit, makes achievement, or goal actualization, either happen or more apt to come about. (There are, by the way, many achievement drivers — explanation of which goes beyond the scope of this discussion).
Fundamentally, life enhancement — a.k.a. increased life flourishment — rides on the basic universal act of actualizing desired positive situations. Or, put another way, increasing life enhancement, flourishment, or well-being is realized via the act of creating or bringing about actual situations that correspond to one's imagined desired positive situations. And, what's the most effective way to achieve actualization of an imagined desired positive situation? Apply an achievement methodology that's specifically created for achieving success in that specific pursuit. By doing this, a person automatically (intentionally and non-intentionally) incorporates a maximal number of achievement drivers into the pursuit. This, in turn, results in the person realizing maximal success in the particular pursuit — or, put another way, results in the person achieving maximal actualization of their imagined desired positive situation.
So, where does a person go to get an achievement methodology for any particular life-enhancing pursuit they might desire to undertake? They go nowhere. Because, as of yet, positive psychology has produced no maximally-effective achievement methodology for any achievement area or pursuit that it says people should be undertaking. Yes, a few professors have produced some interesting, informative, inspiring, helpful books on how to promote certain desirable positive situations. But, as of yet, none have created what I would recognize as a true, full-blown, fully-thought-out, fully articulated achievement methodology for any achievement area or type of life-enhancing pursuit. When positive psychology professors and/or practitioners get around to doing this, the impact of positive psychology within our world will undergo a quantum upward leap.
Final question: Why have they not done it already? Two reasons. First, because most persons don't realize that the essence of achieving life enhancement, or the essence of increasing life flourishment, is the act of actualizing imagined positive situations. They "see" everything else but they've not yet recognized this. Why not? Because the act of actualizing imagined situations is so universally pervasive we haven't been recognizing it. It's the forest we're not seeing because of the trees all around us. The second reason we don't yet have a specific achievement methodology for any specific area of life enhancement is because creating a true, effective achievement methodology requires a lot of thought, time, testing, and re-testing. In short, a LOT of creative mental work.
In doing this I noticed many things about the field of positive psychology — most of them positive and inspiring, a few of them troubling. One of the things that troubled me was that positive psychology professors seemed to take little digs at the field of self-help and the writers of self-help literature. The professors would point out that self-help, or "pop," psychology wasn't grounded in rigorous scientific research like the professors' work is. So, they would belittle self-help writers and writings as being misguided and unscientific and, thereby, "elevate" their own works as being something of superior value. It's true that much of self-help psychology literature is scientifically unsubstantiated. But, when one takes a long view of this arena — a view extending back over the past hundred years — it becomes clear that it's not self-help writers that deserve criticism, it's the field of professional psychology and the academics that populated it that deserve to be snickered at and ridiculed. Why so? Here's the situation in historical perspective.
For a hundred years — a hundred years!, the entire 20th century — the profession of psychology almost totally ignored the positive side of psychology and the positive side of human existence. For a hundred years there were thousands of psychology PhD's who spent thousands of hours and millions of dollars, and did copious research and published thousands of documents, all purportedly studying something related to the human mind and human condition. And what did they produce that was positive? Almost nothing. They contributed very little that the average person could use to expand the positive side of their life. Forget about flourishing and well-being, or elevating life to something near a +10. They didn't even tell us how to get to +1. Sure, there were a few exceptions of professors that tried to offer a "positive approach" to psychology. But they didn't amount to even a hundredth of one percent of total "output" of PhD psychologists in the 20th century.
So, where did the foundational concepts of positive psychology come from? I'm talking about concepts such as personal life enhancement, achievement, improvement, positive attitude, perspective shifting, goals, mindset, self-esteem, persistence, overcoming adversity, hope, and so forth. Do you think it was positive psychology professors who conceived and planted these concepts within our society? Well, think again. These concepts were conceived, written about, promoted, and incorporated within our culture long before positive psychology arrived. They were planted within our collective psyche by the persons and the literature that positive psychology professors today sneeringly call unscientific self-help, or pop psychology. The core foundational concept and message of self-help philosophy is this: You — an average human being — possess the power to change your self and your life for the better. You do it by changing your thoughts and perspectives. When you change your thoughts and perspectives you change your feelings. When you change your thoughts and feelings you change your actions. When you change your thoughts, feelings, and actions you change the events, outcomes, relationships, and rewards that constitute your life. Does this not constitute the essential premise of positive psychology?
To a large extent, positive psychology exists today because self-help psychology existed for 80 years before it. Today we enjoy the flowers of positive psychology. But those flowers exist because self-help writers of the 20th century planted the conceptual seeds for those flowers within our collective psyche, starting a century ago.
If you want proof that this is where the conceptual foundations of positive psychology originated, just do this. Look up Napoleon Hill's list of The 12 Riches of Life. (Napoleon Hill, by the way, was the pioneering self-help author who began publishing his findings and concepts in the 1920s.) There is much discussion today about what constitutes a flourishing life. Read Hill's list of 12 riches of life. Then ask yourself, how far off the mark is this from what you would consider to be a flourishing life?
Today, positive psychology should be recognizing and commending the bygone pioneers of self-help psychology and self-help philosophy, not deriding them.
THOUGHT 7 – In the section titled "Criticism on the Movement in Perspective," one of the criticisms is: The field is too individualistic — it focuses too much on the individual. I couldn't disagree more. As I see it, a main weakness of positive psychology is not that it focuses on the individual too much but that it focuses too little. We have way too little focus and emphasis on creating action-oriented achievement methodologies that any individual can use for succeeding at achieving success in the life-enhancing pursuits of their choice.
For example, positive psychology doesn't even have an achievement methodology a person can use for achieving success in the pursuit of lifelong healthy-weight living. Yes, I know what you're thinking. "Healthy-weight living? That's weight control. That's outside the domain of positive psychology.'' But, if that's what you assume, I respectfully suggest that you re-think it. Contrary to what our society presently assumes, lifelong healthy-weight living — a.k.a. lifelong weight control, or making weight loss stick — doesn't result from dieting, exercise, and medical procedures. Rather, it derives from making weight management into an achievement process. Or, put another way, it results from incorporating achievement drivers into the process of daily managing one's weight. And, the easiest way to do this is by the creation and application of an achievement methodology designed to bring this about when a person performs a certain set of daily actions each day. In short, the key to succeeding at lifelong weight management is to make lifelong weight management into a lifelong achievement process. And, the scientific discipline that's best oriented and equipped to create an achievement methodology that accomplishes this is the discipline of positive psychology.
I'm white. I've been living middle-class for the past 74 years. And now I discover that all along I've been sweeping injustice, poverty, and inequality under my rug. Are you telling me there are professors in the world of psychology who are actually dispensing this bunk? So it got me pondering: If I've been sweeping injustice, poverty, and inequality under my rug, who, exactly, are the persons who have been sweeping it on TOP of their rug?
THOUGHT 9 – Of the questions you posed at the end of your blog, the most compelling are the last two: "Do you think the field is doing a good job at solving the problems it set out to solve?" and "What do you think is the 'next big thing' in positive psychology?" Here's my answer to those two questions.
Using that scale as the measuring device, my answer to the question "Do you think the field is doing a good job at solving the problems it set out to solve?" would be a resounding "NO." Why do I say that? I doubt that positive psychology has yet to provide humankind with the psychological wherewithal that enables each person to elevate their life to number plus-ten on Seligman's scale, or to a state of maximal life flourishment.
So, the next two questions are: (1) Why hasn't positive psychology not yet achieved that goal and (2) what must it do to accomplish it? As I view it, the main thing that is impeding positive psychology from achieving that goal is the same thing that is preventing it from transitioning from a movement into a science. It's that: positive psychology is a movement without a paradigm. I define "paradigm" as: A theoretical framework containing the basic assumptions, ways of thinking, and methodology commonly accepted by members of a scientific community (derived from dictionary.com).
For the past 20 years, positive psychology has been a "big bang" collage of disparate concepts with no common foundation or unifying conceptual thread tying all these disparate concepts together. Instead of evolving into a cohesive science it has become a bookshelf of disparate discoveries, theories, and self-help info. Or, to use another analogy, it has become like a toy store filled with aisle after aisle of fascinating toys, but with each of the toys having no relationship or conceptual connection to any of the other toys.
To achieve the ultimate goal it set out to accomplish and also to transition from a psychological toy store into a science, the profession of positive psychology — in particular, the leading thinkers, or the professors of positive psychology — must create and apply an effective paradigm. Without a paradigm the positive psychology movement will eventually undergo dissolution. With an effective paradigm it will transform from being a movement into being a science, and it will eventually achieve its ultimate goal of equipping humankind with the psychological wherewithal that enables each individual to achieve maximal life flourishment, or achieve plus-ten on Seligman's scale.
There are numerous forms a paradigm for positive psychology could take. For example, I've put my own thoughts on the subject to paper and published it as a book. (Explaining it here goes beyond the scope of this discussion.) But, ultimately, the leading thinkers of the positive psychology movement should make it a top priority to discover, create, and apply the most effective paradigm possible. The stronger and more complete the paradigm is, the more quickly the positive psychology movement will become a science and the more effective the Science of Positive Psychology will be in achieving its ultimate goal.
THOUGHT 10 – I predict that the most powerful outcome of this future paradigm for positive psychology will be (a) positive psychology professors will identify and elucidate a panoply of achievement drivers that will become the building blocks humankind will use for increasing individual life enhancement and (b) positive psychology professors and practitioners will create at least one effective achievement methodology for each of the many areas, or possible pursuits, that humankind uses for achieving expanded personal life flourishment.
Finally, I predict that one of the most popular and beneficial of those achievement methodologies will be one that enables any person who applies it to easily achieve lifelong healthy-weight living. Yes, I know you're shaking your head and mumbling "no way this will happen." But if positive psychology adopts the right, or most effective, paradigm it WILL happen … and it will happen soon. And when it happens, the overweightness problem — one of humankind's biggest, fastest growing, most costly, most entrenched problems of the past 40 years — will become a "problem of the past." And, positive psychology — in particular, the leading thinkers and leading institutions in positive psychology — will reap the credit and the rewards for creating the means by which the problem was solved.
When all this happens, it will then be acknowledged — by both the positive psychology profession and the world-at-large — that positive psychology finally resolved the problems and achieved the ultimate goal it initially set out to accomplish.
Thank you Courtney Ackerman for your positive soul, I am from Iraq.
In the paragraph on Marty is a typo: "Seligman grew frustrated with POSITIVE psychology's overly narrow focus on the negative" You probably mean just psychology, right?
You could also include a short paragraph on PP2.0 and Tim Lomas or Paul TP Wong`s solution of the criticisms. I like Wong`s idea that psychology was a thesis, positive psychology the antithesis and second wave PP the synthesis of both.
I am from Calgary too and my kids are attend CCS.
Great article! I am looking forward to sharing it with my Grade 10 Psychology class here in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Bless you, Courtney.
Carol Holmes, Teacher at Bearspaw Christian School.
I'm from Mexico, my language is Spanish, nevertheless, reading carefully, I can keep in mind your ideas, it seems to me very value, congratulations!


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Watch these trans kids learn the value of self-love from their parents
By Katie Dupere 2017-04-07 18:12:31 UTC
A boy in bright blue glasses sits on his mother's lap and looks at himself in the mirror. His mom smiles, waiting for him to repeat an affirmation she wrote especially for him.
"I know who I am," he says, voice brimming with confidence.
SEE ALSO: How you can help protect trans kids right now
The mother-son pair are part of a heartwarming new video that features parents sharing inspirational statements they wrote for their transgender kids, encouraging self-love and self-acceptance. The two-minute short, which is the second installment of The Scene's "Affirmations" series, shows how important it is for trans children to receive support, love, and encouragement from their parents.
"I am hope," one girl repeats after her mother.
"I get back up," another child says.
"Even if it doesn't feel true — remember, that's what an affirmation is," one woman tells her son. "We say something because we want to work on feeling good about ourselves."
Image: The Scene/YouTube
Parental support is particularly important for transgender youth, who experience an overwhelming amount of discrimination and bias. And fostering confidence is crucial for kids who are often told their identities aren't valid.
According to national research, 75 percent of transgender youth in the U.S. feel unsafe at school because of their identity. A staggering 40 percent of the entire homeless youth population is LGBTQ, with family rejection as the primary cause. Approximately 45 percent of transgender youth have attempted suicide.
Simply put, the parents in this video have it right — and their affirmations prove it.
WATCH: Are schools bullying trans students?
Topics: Parenting, Culture, Family & Parenting, LGBTQ, parents, Social Good, Video, Videos


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Lutzomyia meirai är en tvåvingeart som först beskrevs av Causey O. R., Damasceno R. G. 1945.  Lutzomyia meirai ingår i släktet Lutzomyia och familjen fjärilsmyggor. Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Fjärilsmyggor
meirai


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Iberdrola Renewables Seeks to Build New Wind Farm in New Hampshire
Submits state application for 23 towers after four years of research and local outreach
PORTLAND, Ore. — Iberdrola Renewables formally submitted an application to the New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee (SEC) to build a new wind farm in Danbury and Alexandria. After considerable input from the local communities and consultation with state agencies, the project's proposed configuration has undergone significant changes. If approved, the Wild Meadows Wind Farm would become the company's third wind power project in the state, following wind farms in Lempster and Groton that went on-line in 2008 and 2012 respectively.
The proposed project would feature 23 modern wind turbines, 15 in Danbury and eight in Alexandria, and is projected to produce enough clean energy to power approximately 30,000 average homes each year and 90,000 homes at peak production.
Iberdrola Renewables has been studying and evaluating the project since 2009, conducting a wide variety of wildlife, environmental, and technical studies, in consultation with New Hampshire state agencies and local experts. The proposed 75.9 megawatt (MW) wind farm would bring a new source of clean emission-free energy to the region, in addition to many economic benefits.
"Tax benefits for residents and increased yield-per-acre for loggers will be a huge help to those of us who have farmed or logged our land for generations," said Fred Platts, a farmer and resident of Alexandria. "This is about protecting the small towns of the Lakes Region and preserving our rural way of life."
Estimated economic impacts include first year payments of $695,000 to the Town of Danbury, $370,000 to the Town of Alexandria, up to $565,000 for New Hampshire's general revenue fund and $280,000 to the local landowners. Ongoing annual payments to the towns would start at approximately $545,000 to Danbury and $325,000 to Alexandria, with 2.5% annual increases.
Besides these significant additions to the local tax base, the Project will provide substantial economic benefits to New Hampshire during the construction and operations phases.
The economic impacts would carry on through construction and the operation of the project. According to a study by the University of New Hampshire, the construction phase would create the full time equivalent of 404 jobs (direct and secondary jobs), resulting in $21.77 million in earnings and $42.35 million in increased economic activity. During the operations phase, the project would create 13 full time equivalent jobs (direct and secondary), $770,000 in annual income and $2.31 million of increased economic activity each and every year for the life of the project.
"Some of New Hampshire's wildlife, like moose, are in serious decline thanks to our shorter winters as the climate warms," said retired New Hampshire wildlife biologist Eric Orff. "To conserve our rich biological heritage in New Hampshire, we must transition to well-sited clean energy sources like wind, and quickly."
The comprehensive SEC review process is expected to last approximately one year.
Ed Cherian, 603-440-3127


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Deals this week: DP World Australia, The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA)
DP World Australia, part of DP World, has signed a $45m contract with Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company (ZPMC) for four new super post-panamax container cranes.
The new cranes, to be operational by next year, will increase the productivity and capacity of DP World Australia's Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney terminals.
The cranes will integrate new technology and LED lighting, and will also feature ergonomic cabins for better driver comfort.
"Singapore and Norway will collaborate on maritime and offshore research and education."
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries have signed a joint statement to improve maritime relations between the nations.
Under the agreement, Singapore and Norway will collaborate on maritime and offshore research and education.
Singapore's Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Norway's BI Norwegian School of Management are currently offering bachelor's and master's degree programmes on science in maritime studies.
Antwerp, Zeebrugge, Rotterdam, and Singapore ports have established the Network of Ports and Maritime Administrations to formulate a set of accorded liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering standards.
The network was further expanded to include Jacksonville, US; and Norway, and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was also signed to include a group of LNG bunker-ready ports across East and West, and Trans-Pacific trade.
The new LNG bunkering standards will be based on the regulations of the International Association of Ports and Harbours (IAPH), the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) and the Society for Gas as a Marine Fuel (SGMF).
The new standards will enable the ports to become LNG bunker-ready and will also streamline the LNG bunkering operations.
The Naval Vessels and Surface Combatants Market in Australia to 2024: Market Brief
The Maritime and Border Security Market in Australia to 2024: Market Brief
The Global Submarine and MRO Market in Australia to 2025: Market Brief
MOU S.A.
Lang Kft
DP World Australia, Ltd.
MPA S.p.A.
MSC and Maersk to terminate 2M container shipping alliance


Office Copier Needed – Can you help?
Partner with the Catholic Pro-Life Committee to help save lives through daily prayers for our work and by donating here, or visit prolifedallas.org/donations. Thank you!
The Sherman Planned Parenthood officially closed its doors this week! David Bereit, founder and National Director of 40 Days for Life, is joining in the Planned Parenthood closing celebration this Sunday! Plus the former manager of this Planned Parenthood will share why she left before the doors closed and what Planned Parenthood's real agenda is. All are welcome!
And there's more . . . David's coming to Dinner in Dallas on Saturday!!
David, the man behind the international phenomenon of 40 Days for Life, is joining us for dinner this Saturday, August 27 to share an inspiring message and support the upcoming Dallas campaign beginning September 28. For $40 ($70 per couple), you can help support our local 40 Days campaign to stand vigil, pray and reach out to the community to end abortion in our city!
Click here to reserve one of the few remaining dinner tickets now.
When: Saturday, August 27, 7:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Dallas Kickoff Rally, September 27, 6:30 p.m., Harry Moss Park, featuring the powerful pro-life testimony of the former manager of the now-closed Sherman Planned Parenthood!
Read 40 Days for Life-Dallas News Release: "Planned Parenthood Closes . . . Former Manager Speaks Out"
Date: Saturday, Sept. 17 Learn strategies on how to start and grow a pro-life youth club or group, hear ideas for campus activities, make plans for the school year, and sign up for ongoing one-on-one strategy meetings throughout the year. All students and moderators who want to start or grow a youth pro-life club are invited to this half-day training. Admission is FREE.
Date: Tuesday, October 11 Join us for our 11th Annual CPLC Golf Classic/Bishop's Cup. Registration and lunch begin at 11:00 a.m, followed by the putting contest at 11:30 and tee-off at 12:30. To participate in this great annual event, register individually or as a foursome here.
Time: Tee-off at 12:30 p.m.
October 8: Audubon Park in Garland, Erwin Park in McKinney, Sacred Heart Church in Rowlett, Kiest Park in Oak Cliff Bilingual Hike!
Registration and Opening Ceremony: 8:30 a.m.
Hike: 8:40 a.m., followed by refreshments, 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.
A new study provides more good news for pro-life advocates, as it shows fewer doctors are willing to perform abortions than before — creating a situation where the lower availability of abortion may be helping to reduce abortions.
The new report, published [this week] in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, finds 97 percent of physicians surveyed say they have encountered patients wanting an abortion while only 14 percent of doctors are willing to do an abortion. That's lower than the 22 percent of doctors who said they would do an abortion in the last poll, from 2008.
I can't count the amount of times I've been asked what my stance is on contraception. It's not breaking news that many oral contraceptives and some invasive barrier methods (IUD) have been proven to cause abortion, including the highly controversial ella and Plan B drugs, and I stand firmly against the use of anything that destroys a life created at conception. But what about contraception that prevents conception from taking place?
What do you say? What's the pragmatic response* here?
1) Birth Control, no matter what form, doesn't prevent abortions. In fact, it provides a false sense of security. . . .
2) Birth control comes with its own complications and risks. In some cases, it's deadly for both the child and mother. . . .
3) Condoms and birth control are everywhere. You can obtain them for free, yet the abortion and STD rate hasn't fallen. . . .
*Editor's note: This article provides secular arguments supporting the foundational truth that we know as Catholics – that artificial contraception "harms true love and denies the sovereign role of God in the transmission of human life." (Vademecum for Confessors 2:4) Couples can responsibly welcome children in accord with Catholic teaching through natural family planning. Learn more here.
The CPLC office copier has served us well, but has seen its last day and is beyond cost-efficient repair. To best meet our ministries' needs, we need to replace it with a free-standing office copier of similar capabilities, including an automatic document feeder, multiple trays/drawers and the capacity for duplex printing and copying originals of various sizes. A digital copier with scanning capabilities would be a plus!


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Click here for more info on Austin apartments.


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Day of the dead prayer to the holy death Mexican folk prayer candle.
Our Lady of Holy Death is a personification of death. Unlike other saints who originated in Mexican folk religion, Santa Muerte is not, herself, seen as a dead human being. She is associated with healing, protection, financial wellbeing, and assurance of a path to the afterlife.
Holy death Mexian skeleton glass jar prayer candle : Six things shop gifts, gift, home wares.