Diabetes is a group of diseases in which your blood has too much glucose (sugar) in it, which can cause many serious health problems. Diabetes treatment depends on the cause of the diabetes.
Diabetes mellitus (DM or, simply, diabetes) refers to a group of diseases that affect how your body uses sugar (glucose). Glucose comes from the foods you eat. Glucose is essential to health because it is an important source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues and it is the brain's main source of fuel. If you have diabetes, no matter what type, it means you have too much glucose in your blood, although the causes may differ. Too much glucose can lead to serious health problems.
Insulin is a hormone that helps the glucose get into your cells to give them energy. With type 1 diabetes, your body does not make insulin. With type 2 diabetes, the more common type, your body does not make or use insulin well. Without enough insulin, the glucose stays in your blood. Although type 1 diabetes can develop at any age, it typically appears during childhood or adolescence. Type 2 diabetes, the more common type, can develop at any age, though it is more common in people older than 40.
Potentially reversible diabetes conditions include prediabetes — when blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as diabetes — and gestational diabetes, which occurs during pregnancy but may resolve after the baby is delivered.
Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause serious problems. Diabetes can lead to damage of your eyes, kidneys, and nerves, and it can cause heart disease and stroke.
A blood test can show if you have diabetes. Exercise, weight control, and sticking to your meal plan can help control your diabetes. Treatments will vary depending on the type of diabetes you have.
Diabetes symptoms vary depending on how much your blood sugar is elevated. Some people, especially those with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, may have symptoms so mild that they go unnoticed. In type 1 diabetes, symptoms tend to come on quickly and be more severe.
Insulin is a hormone that comes from a gland situated behind and below the stomach (pancreas). The pancreas secretes insulin into the bloodstream and the insulin circulates, allowing glucose (sugar) to enter your cells. Insulin lowers the amount of sugar in your bloodstream. As your blood sugar level drops, so does the secretion of insulin from your pancreas.
Glucose is a source of energy for the cells that make up muscles and other tissues. Glucose comes from 2 major sources: food and your liver. Sugar is absorbed into the bloodstream, where it enters cells with the help of insulin. Your liver stores and makes glucose. When your glucose levels are low, such as when you have not eaten in a while, the liver breaks down stored glycogen into glucose to keep your glucose level within a normal range.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are conditions characterized by high blood glucose levels caused by either a lack of insulin (type 1) or the body's inability to use insulin efficiently (type 2). Two factors are important in the development of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes: a predisposition to the disease is inherited and then something in your environment triggers the onset of the disease.
The exact cause of type 1 diabetes is unknown. What is known is that your immune system attacks and destroys your insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. This leaves you with little or no insulin. Instead of being transported into your cells, sugar builds up in your bloodstream. Type 1 diabetes is thought to be caused by a combination of genetic susceptibility and environmental factors, though exactly what many of those factors are is still unclear. One trigger might be related to cold weather. Type 1 diabetes develops more often in winter than summer and is more common in places with cold climates. Another trigger might be viruses. Perhaps a virus that has only mild effects on most people triggers type 1 diabetes in others. Early diet may also play a role. Type 1 diabetes is less common in people who were breastfed and in those who first ate solid foods at later ages.
In prediabetes — which can lead to type 2 diabetes — and in type 2 diabetes, your cells become resistant to the action of insulin, and your pancreas is unable to make enough insulin to overcome this resistance. Instead of moving into your cells where it is needed for energy, sugar builds up in your bloodstream.
Exactly why this happens is uncertain, although it is believed that genetic and environmental factors play a role in the development of type 2 diabetes. Being overweight is strongly linked to the development of type 2 diabetes, but not everyone with type 2 is overweight.
During pregnancy, the placenta produces hormones to sustain your pregnancy. These hormones make your cells more resistant to insulin. Normally, your pancreas responds by producing enough extra insulin to overcome this resistance. But sometimes your pancreas cannot keep up. When this happens, too little glucose gets into your cells and too much stays in your blood, resulting in gestational diabetes. This condition is often reversible after the baby is delivered.
Glycated hemoglobin (A1C) test. This blood test indicates your average blood sugar level for the past 2 to 3 months. It measures the percentage of blood sugar attached to hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells. The higher your blood sugar levels, the more hemoglobin you have with sugar attached. An A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher on 2 separate tests indicates that you have diabetes. An A1C between 5.7 and 6.4 percent indicates prediabetes. Below 5.7 is considered normal.
Diabetes is a serious disease. Following your diabetes treatment plan takes round-the-clock commitment. Careful management of diabetes can reduce your risk of serious and life-threatening complications.
Keep your vaccinations up to date. High blood sugar can weaken your immune system. Get a flu shot every year, and your doctor may recommend the pneumonia vaccine, as well. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also currently recommends hepatitis B vaccination if you haven't previously been vaccinated against hepatitis B and you are an adult ages 19 to 59 with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. The most recent CDC guidelines advise vaccination as soon as possible after diagnosis with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. If you are age 60 or older, have diabetes, and haven't previously received the vaccine, talk to your doctor about whether it's right for you.
Take care of your teeth. Diabetes may leave you prone to serious gum infections. Brush and floss your teeth at least twice a day. And if you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, schedule regular dental exams. Consult your dentist right away if your gums bleed or look red or swollen.
If you drink alcohol, do so responsibly. Alcohol can cause either high or low blood sugar, depending on how much you drink and if you eat at the same time. If you choose to drink, do so only in moderation and always with food. Remember to include the carbohydrates from any alcohol you drink in your daily carbohydrate count. And check your blood sugar levels before going to bed.
Alzheimer's disease. Type 2 diabetes may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The poorer your blood sugar control, the greater the risk appears to be. Although there are theories as to how these disorders might be connected, none has yet been proved.
Depending on what type of diabetes you have, blood sugar monitoring, insulin, and oral medications may play a role in your treatment. Eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and participating in regular activity also are important factors in managing diabetes.
Treatment for type 1 diabetes involves insulin injections or the use of an insulin pump, frequent blood sugar checks, and carbohydrate counting. Treatment of type 2 diabetes primarily involves monitoring of your blood sugar, along with diabetes medications, insulin or both.
Monitoring your blood sugar. Depending on your treatment plan, you may check and record your blood sugar as often as several times a week to as many as four to eight times a day. Careful monitoring is the only way to make sure that your blood sugar level remains within your target range. People who receive insulin therapy also may choose to monitor their blood sugar levels with a continuous glucose monitor. Although this technology doesn't yet replace the glucose meter, it can provide important information about trends in blood sugar levels. Even with careful management, blood sugar levels can sometimes change unpredictably. With help from your diabetes treatment team, you'll learn how your blood sugar level changes in response to food, physical activity, medications, illness, alcohol, stress, and, especially for women, fluctuations in hormone levels. In addition to daily blood sugar monitoring, your doctor will likely recommend regular A1C testing to measure your average blood sugar level for the past two to three months. Compared with repeated daily blood sugar tests, A1C testing better indicates how well your diabetes treatment plan is working overall. An elevated A1C level may signal the need for a change in your insulin regimen or meal plan. Your target A1C goal may vary depending on your age and various other factors. However, for most people with diabetes, the American Diabetes Association recommends an A1C of below 7 percent. Ask your doctor what your A1C target is.
Insulin. People with type 1 diabetes need insulin therapy to survive. Many people with type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes also need insulin therapy. Many types of insulin are available, including rapid-acting insulin, long-acting insulin and intermediate options. Depending on your needs, your doctor may prescribe a mixture of insulin types to use throughout the day and night. Insulin is usually injected using a fine needle and syringe or an insulin pen — a device that looks like a large ink pen. An insulin pump may also be an option. The pump is a device about the size of a cellphone worn on the outside of your body. A tube connects the reservoir of insulin to a catheter that's inserted under the skin of your abdomen. A tubeless pump that works wirelessly is also now available. You program an insulin pump to dispense specific amounts of insulin. It can be adjusted to deliver more or less insulin depending on meals, activity level and blood sugar level.
Oral or other medications. Sometimes other oral or injected medications are prescribed as well. Some diabetes medications stimulate your pancreas to produce and release more insulin. Others inhibit the production and release of glucose from your liver, which means you need less insulin to transport sugar into your cells. Still others block the action of stomach or intestinal enzymes that break down carbohydrates or make your tissues more sensitive to insulin. Metformin (Glucophage, Glumetza, others) is generally the first medication prescribed for type 2 diabetes.
If you have prediabetes, healthy lifestyle choices can help you bring your blood sugar level back to normal or at least keep it from rising toward the levels seen in type 2 diabetes. Maintaining a healthy weight through exercise and healthy eating can help. Exercising at least 150 minutes a week and losing 5 to 10 percent of your body weight may prevent or delay type 2 diabetes.
"Diabetes basics," American Diabetes Association. "Diabetes," MedlinePlus; U.S. National Library of Medicine. "Diabetes," Mayo Clinic. "Diabetes A-Z," National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.


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Opening Times & Fees
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Somerset Coronavirus
Response & Recovery Fund
A Short Update
You're receiving this email because we awarded you one of 150 coronavirus response grants that have been distributed over the last ten weeks.
You've been doing astonishing things during that time, supporting people who have become vulnerable as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.
At Somerset Community Foundation we're extremely proud of your efforts and we're working hard to raise funds for the next 6 – 12 months.
Your grant was made from the Somerset Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund. It was made possible due to local donations to theSomerset Coronavirus Appeal alongside money from the National Emergencies Trust.
In order for us to continue to raise money from these sources it's really important that you acknowledge our grant, if you are able.
To make that easier, we're sharing this image, which contains both our logo and the National Emergencies Trust logo. If possible, please add this to your website, social media channels, or any printed materials you produce.
The Somerset Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund will continue to award grants for emergency responses throughout June. However, our focus from this point is to fill gaps left in the county's coronavirus response.
During June we are also planning for the next phase of the Fund. We may still support emergency responses similar to those we have supported so far. But we are also starting to think about the next 6 – 12 months.
As a result, we expect to start funding projects that can continue to support the most vulnerable in our communities over the coming year. We also expect to be able to support organisations that have lost income from other sources.
Further updates will be available from our website towards the end of the month.
Thank you again for all your hard work.
Val, Andy, Kirsty and Pete
The Grants Team
Spooky Disco
The Willow Set
Wrap around, holiday club & pre-school
Huntham Lane
TA3 6EG
Email: admin@willowset.org.uk
Tel. No: 01823 491567
Copyright © 2022 Willow Set Pre School

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Morariu seeking to put final pieces together in closing gap between Rugby Europe and the Six Nations
By Mike Rowbottom
Given that England and France are two of the key members of Rugby Europe (RE) it was hardly a surprise when it supported the re-election in May of Sir Bill Beaumont as chair of World Rugby, and of Bernard Laporte as his vice-chair.
Beaumont, who led England to the Grand Slam in 1980 as a lock forward, earned a second term by a margin of 28 votes to 23 over his previous vice-chairman, Argentina's Agustin Pichot.
"We were supporting two of our members – it was entirely legitimate," the Rugby Europe President Octavian Morariu told insidethegames. "We need to be consistent. You need continuity when you have a project – like Bill Beaumont has. Like I have.
"You need continuity to be able to develop the project. And it's very difficult to judge people by small pieces – it stands in any field of activity. That is very, very important. Because sometimes the road is very long and you need time."
Continuity is indeed key for Morariu - who earned two caps for Romania as a number eight, and also became the first player from his country to represent the Barbarians – as he seeks a third and final term as RE President in an election scheduled for December 4.
Morariu, 59, took up his position at RE in 2013, and combines it with his duties as an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member – he was chair of the Evaluation Commission for the 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, and is now chair of the IOC Future Host Cities Commission for the Winter Games.
Re-election within the sport he has known and played for so much of his life – his father, Viorel Morariu, captained Romania – is currently occupying much of his attention.
IOC member Octavian Morariu is seeking a third and final term as Rugby Europe President in the election scheduled for December 4 ©Getty Images
His opponent in the election, the Russian Rugby Federation's deputy chairman Kirill Yashenkov, has voiced ambitious plans in recent weeks.
Yashenkov said on November 5 that he was looking to secure new sponsorships which would help him create a "new European club tournament".
He claimed it would be "similar" to the European Rugby Continental Shield - Europe's third-tier tournament which was discontinued in 2019.
"Funding is not more difficult because I have an intention to sign an agreement with several new sponsors which are close to me and are ready to support the organisation," Yashenkov claimed.
"I believe we will sign the agreement in the last weekend of December or the first weekend of January.
"I have an intention to double the budget of Rugby Europe within the next two years."
In announcing his candidature in October, Yashenkov said his main goal was "to declare Russia as a rugby power, as well as to pay attention to the development and improvement of the level of the Rugby Europe Championship in order to get closer to the level of the Six Nations teams.
"For example, we definitely need to introduce TMOs [television match officials] in all games of the championship, as well as pay attention to the development of countries that are in lower leagues."
Igor Artemyev, Russian Rugby Federation chairman, commented: "There is stagnation in European rugby, and we believe that with our help, rugby in Europe will receive a new impetus for development."
Morariu's response to these comments is measured, with the occasional glint of steel.
"For those who follow more closely the Rugby Europe affairs," he told insidethegames, "it is already known - as the Russian Union already knows too - that the launch of a Rugby Europe club competition and the necessary investment has already been voted by Rugby Europe Board in March 2020 and that this competition will launch for the 2021-2022 season.
"Also, agreements have been signed with media and commercial partners: River Media and Wasserman. A meeting with the union members concerned in the competition is currently taking place as I address your questions.
"I must add that Rugby Europe has already tripled its commercial income in the past 18 months and is already on a significant growth trajectory."
Kirill Yashenkov, the Russian Rugby Federation's deputy chairman, is contesting the election for the Presidency of Rugby Europe with Octavian Morariu ©Getty Images
Answering Yashenkov's comments about declaring Russia as a rugby power and getting the level of the Rugby Europe Championship closer to that of the Six Nations tournament, Morariu added: "We are already doing it.
"I think there is somewhere a fundamental misunderstanding of what Rugby Europe and its governance structure and Presidential role is. The role of the President is to work for the benefits of all members.
"The ambition of Russia to emerge as a rugby power is completely legitimate and something we obviously encourage. But - it must be done by respecting the rules and values of our sport and not come at the detriment of other members.
"As mentioned previously the development of the Rugby Europe Championship product is one of our priorities. A lot of progress has been made and more innovations are coming in relation to the execution level of international games – concerning stadiums, video-production quality, media coverage, and marketing policy over ticketing, hospitalities and merchandising.
"Much of what is claimed – either we did it, or we are on the way to do it, or we have initiated it. Most of it. For example, Rugby Europe TV has existed for years.
"As far as the new club competition – we have already met the Unions several times, we were engaged in structuring the competition. Obviously the pandemic stopped the delivery but discussions are underway including on the centralisation of rights – obviously we cannot work without doing that."
To Artemyev's charge of "stagnation", Morariu responded: "My first remark is that there are several European countries have already reached a level good enough to compete in the Rugby World Cup like Georgia, Portugal, Romania, Russia or Spain.
"All these countries deserve all efforts from Rugby Europe to progress even further to fill the gap with the top level. It's a matter of very good second tier countries aspiring to the first tier and being on track. We need to address all of them, not just only one.
"Russian rugby is represented at European level at the moment. They have a seat on the RE board of directors and chair the RE sevens committee."
He added that Russia also hosts a number of RE tournaments and events in XV and sevens rugby, with news emerging this week that they would also host beach and snow rugby events from 2021 to 2023.
"We have a very good partnership with the Russian Union," he said, "although obviously they cannot host all our events and competitions as we need to ensure a diversified approach."
Russia are among the strongest members of Rugby Europe, having reached the Rugby World Cup finals in 2011 and 2019 ©Getty Images
On the subject of Yashenkov's comments about TMOs Morariu responded: "I'm sorry to say that if my dear colleague was following a bit closer the Rugby Europe or even Russia Union matters, he would know, he should know that the implementation of HIA / TMO has already been approved by RE Board earlier this year in March and will be in effect from next year's Rugby Europe Championships. It's done.
"As for the charge of 'stagnation', let me say there has been a lot of progress made in the last couple of years that has been well appreciated by our members and by World Rugby.
"More countries than ever participate in Rugby Europe competitions. We have notably seen a sharp increase in sevens due to the Olympic inclusion and this is a very positive development.
"This has allowed notably to articulate a proper four-year planning for sevens with contracts signed with hosts of competitions for the next four years - which is a first for Rugby Europe. We are really getting structure, but also we are now able to plan in a solid manner.
"New forms of rugby are becoming increasingly popular, notably beach and snow rugby, and we have created the first European Championships of both disciplines through a great partnership with Russia.
"The gap is still there with the Six Nations, which is a private commercial organisation, not a sporting organisation. We concentrate on improving the Rugby Europe Championship so participating teams are improving both on the pitch and off the pitch to reduce the gap.
"Our main goal is to reduce that gap. Regular discussions take place with the Six Nations and World Rugby and we try to find common goals.
"In terms of commercial revenues, Rugby Europe has tripled its revenues - in non-COVID years - thanks to new partnerships and sponsors and clearly the momentum is there.
"Women's rugby is also improving fast in both XV and sevens events and represents a sizeable opportunity to continue rugby development – we are very keen on gender equity not only on the pitch but off it.
"Rugby Europe works also in much better collaboration with World Rugby and soon to be launched new global competitions will also provide new development opportunities for unions.
"For all these reasons I really don't think we can talk about stagnation. Those who really know Rugby Europe, those who have been there for years, they can tell the evolution and bear witness to all our developments."
Octavian Morariu says one of his main goals is closing the level between leading Rugby Europe countries and those contesting the Six Nations ©Getty Images
Morariu readily acknowledges Russia's status as an emerging rugby power – among other such powers.
"Russia has undoubtedly made a lot of progress during the last decade," he said. "In terms of sporting results, the men participated in the Rugby World Cup in 2019 and 2011, and the men's sevens team were European champions in 2016 and 2017.
"Their women have been sevens European champions six times since 2010. There has also been the creation of a domestic super league.
"Russia organised the Rugby World Cup Sevens Championship in 2013 – it was at the Luzhniki Stadium and I was there, it was very well done – and also the 2019 European Under-18 Championships in Kaliningrad.
"They are one of our best units, like Georgia, Romania, Portugal or Spain."
Regarding the gap between Rugby Europe's top countries and those currently in the Six Nations, which has remained unchanged for 20 years, he added: "The gap is there and we all know that, and some elements not in Rugby Europe hands must evolve if it is to be closed."
Georgia is currently engaged in the Autumn Nations Cup 2020 along with England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, Italy and Fiji. Georgia lost 40-0 to England on November 14, and yesterday by 18-0 in against Wales.
"The main goal is to raise the level and then play the top countries," Morariu said. "They have to close the gap. But also we have made a lot of gains in terms of organisation and marketing. This is also important. It's not only the level of the game but everything that is around."
The predecessor to Rugby Europe was the Fédération Internationale de Rugby Amateur (FIRA) which was established in 1934 to administer rugby union in Europe outside the authority of the International Rugby Football Board, which became the International Rugby Board in 1998 and World Rugby in 2014.
Rugby Europe was created in 2014, under Morariu's guidance. Since then the staff has risen from two to 10.
"The elements that RE control are improving every day," he said. "Competition management, match officials, digital capabilities, commercial revenues, professional staff structure.
Rugby Europe standard bearers Georgia tested Australia to the full at last year's Rugby World Cup ©Getty Images
"Structure is paramount – that is my main challenge – turning the amateur structure that was there under FIRA to a professional structure. And this is what we did. And this is how we stand today."
If he could fast-forward 10 years, what would Morariu hope Rugby Europe would look like?
"Our first goal is preserving and spreading the values of our sport, making rugby a stronger and more inclusive sport throughout Europe – especially outside the traditional markets," he replied.
"We need to fill the gap between major and emerging unions by growing the numbers of players in all countries – especially in non-traditional countries, developing alternative practices, sevens especially to strengthen the Olympic nature of the sport, which is a huge asset to rugby.
"We also need to continue to develop solid and sustainable unions in many European countries and to provide pathways for emerging nations to elite levels through regular continental or global fixtures and competitions, whether Six Nations or global World Rugby annual competitions.
"You see already a country like Georgia is competing in the Autumn Cup – so this is also an example of what lies ahead of us and what we can do in the future."
But Morariu underlines the need for careful relations with the Six Nations, against whose chairman, John Jeffrey, he played during his career.
"On the other hand we are talking about the Six Nations, which is such a great competition and we need to be very careful when we speak of it because nobody wants to damage it – on the contrary we want to reinforce it. I have constant discussions with the Six Nations on this, and I will speak to them again very shortly about our plans for the future.
"Obviously we would like them to be more involved, to make a greater contribution to Rugby Europe and the second tier of unions in Europe, so it's a constant dialogue. There is no competition between us, they are partners – let's be very clear."
Beyond his Rugby Europe preoccupations, Morariu will need to turn his mind to his responsibilities as chair of the IOC Future Host Cities Commission.
"It was a true honour for me when President Thomas Bach appointed me Chair of the FHC," he said. "It came together with a very clear sense of responsibility towards the Olympic Movement and all its stakeholders, starting with the athletes.
"I am favoured in my mission by the provisions of Agenda 2020 and of the New Norm built around the principles of sustainability, durability, flexibility and reduction of costs and also truly privileged to work together with very experienced and highly competent colleagues in the commission, with the support of a great team at the IOC HQ in Lausanne led by Christophe Dubi and Jacqueline Barrett."
The Big Read is brought to you in association with Edmonton Events.
Mike Rowbottom Chief Feature Writer
Follow @mikerowbo
Mike Rowbottom, one of Britain's most talented sportswriters, covered the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics as chief feature writer for insidethegames, having covered the previous five summer Games, and four winter Games, for The Independent. He has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, The Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian.
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Six Nations Russian Rugby Federation Sir Bill Beaumont Kirill Yashenkov Georgia Autumn Nations Cup 2020 Rugby Europe Octavian Morariu
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Canadian show jumper Ian Millar holds the record for the most Olympic appearances by an athlete in any sport. When he competed at London 2012 at the age of 65 it was the tenth time he had competed in the Games since making his debut 30 years earlier at Munich 1972. He had won his only Olympic medal at Beijing 2008 when he was part of Canada's team that took silver in the team jumping event. Millar won a gold medal in the Pan American Games team jumping event at Toronto 2015. He announced his retirement in 2019.
International Paralympic Committee - Paralympic Games Brand Manager - Bonn, Germany
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) offers the position of a full-time Paralympic Games Brand Manager (f/m/x) in an international and multicultural team at the IPC Headquarters in Bonn, Germany, starting in early 2021. The IPC is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement. We supervise the organisation of the Paralympic Games and Paralympic Winter Games and serve as International Federation for 10 Para sports. The Paralympic Games Brand Manager is accountable to the Head of Brand and Engagement and will be responsible for ensuring the Paralympic brand is represented in a consistent and impactful way at the Paralympic Games.
As the International Ice Hockey Federation prepares to decide whether Belarus remains a co-host of its World Championship later this year, Philip Barker recalls other occasions where human rights has been a key topic in the build-up to a country staging a major sports event.
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ING Groep Will No Longer Be Majority Stock Owner Of ING U.S.
The Dutch financial services group ING Groep N.V. said Tuesday it is selling part of its holdings in its former subsidiary, ING U.S., in order to repay debt.
ING Groep had a 57 percent stake in ING U.S. at the end of last year. The sale of 33.5 million shares throughout the year would reduce the former parent company's holdings to about 45 percent.
ING U.S. plans to spend $250 million to repurchase shares of its common stock from ING Groep. The number of shares, about 7 million, is based on Monday's closing price of ING U.S. stock on theNew York Stock Exchange.
The timing, size and price of the stock sales is subject to market conditions and other circumstances, the company said. ING Groep also is offering to sell additional shares — up to 4 million — which would reduce its stake in the company to 43 percent.
"With this planned sale, we deliver on our agreement with the European Commission to further reduce our stake in ING U.S. in 2014 and accomplish another important milestone in the restructuring of ING Groep while receiving proceeds to further reduce ING Groep core debt," ING Groep CEO Ralph Hamers said in a statement.
ING U.S. will be officially rebranded on April 7 as Voya Financial Inc. The company separated last year from ING Groep N.V. and the U.S. entity had its initial public offering of stock on May 2.
The company has 1,730 employees in Connecticut, of which about 1,650 people work in the Windsor offices. Others work at home.


text:
Q: Error compiling OpenSSL-0.9.7 for Win32 I'm installing OpenSSL openssl-0.9.7 on Win32 from the VC++ environment prompt.
When I run the following command:

nmake -f ms\ntdll.mak

I get following results
Microsoft (R) Program Maintenance Utility Version 10.00.30319.01
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation.  All rights reserved.

Building OpenSSL
        copy nul+ .\crypto\buildinf.h tmp32dll\buildinf.h
nul
.\crypto\buildinf.h
        1 file(s) copied.
        cl /Fotmp32dll\cryptlib.obj  -Iinc32 -Itmp32dll /MD /W3 /WX /G5 /Ox /O2
/Ob2 /Gs0 /GF /Gy /nologo -DOPENSSL_SYSNAME_WIN32 -DWIN32_LEAN_AND_MEAN -DL_ENDI
AN -DDSO_WIN32 -DBN_ASM -DMD5_ASM -DSHA1_ASM -DRMD160_ASM /Fdout32dll -DOPENSSL_
NO_KRB5 -D_WINDLL  -DOPENSSL_BUILD_SHLIBCRYPTO -c .\crypto\cryptlib.c
cl : Command line warning D9002 : ignoring unknown option '/G5'
cryptlib.c
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 10.0\VC\INCLUDE\errno.h(92) : error C22
20: warning treated as error - no 'object' file generated
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 10.0\VC\INCLUDE\errno.h(92) : warning C
4005: 'EADDRINUSE' : macro redefinition
        tmp32dll\e_os.h(156) : see previous definition of 'EADDRINUSE'
NMAKE : fatal error U1077: '"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 10.0\VC\BI
N\cl.EXE"' : return code '0x2'
Stop.

I am using visual Studio 2010. What is the problem and how it can be solved?

A: Have you looked in the .txt file where building steps are given? I have worked with this. It should work.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Tag: religion
Visual Histories: Peter de Swart and Rachelle Reichert
Posted on Monday, May 11, 2020 1:10AM Monday, May 11, 2020 by Timothy Don
by Timothy Don
The current economic crisis is crushing artists, museums, and galleries everywhere. In the San Francisco Bay Area, where I live, an exorbitant rental market made maintaining a practice difficult before this crisis hit. It's even harder now. With 3QD's permission, I'm going to use this column to talk about the work of some of the artists and art professionals I have met here. I ask you to support artists wherever and however you can.
Peter de Swart, works on paper: Triptych
The triptych form is associated with religious painting. It first appeared as a feature of early Christian art and became popular for altar paintings and devotionals during the Middle Ages. While Peter de Swart's Triptych is not overtly religious, it emanates an undeniably religious or spiritual aura. It is, in a word, numinous. To encounter this painting is to witness a sacred transaction. You'd have to be a stone to look at it and not experience a yearning for the divine. Why, apart from its rearticulation of the history and symbolism of the triptych form, is that?
It must have something to do, first of all, with the simple purity of the object pictured, which appears to be a bowl of some sort. Bowls are one of those inventions (like scissors or chopsticks or the hourglass) that we got right the first time. They were perfect the moment they appeared. In the bowl, function lives harmoniously with form. Its shape is so ideal as to be almost Platonic. Furthermore, bowls are used to prepare and serve food and drink, which means that they give sustenance, enable shared meals, and consequently help to strengthen communal bonds and deepen human relationships. Finally, bowls are vessels. Like hands and pockets and ships, they hold and contain and convey things—but they are not grasping like hands, nor like pockets do they secret away their contents, and they don't trade goods and gold like ships. Quite the opposite, in fact: Bowls are generous, open, gratuitous. They give away the things they hold.
All of these attributes (form, use value, ethos) lend bowls a quasi-spiritual redolence, but they do not make bowls sacred. If this triptych depicted a bowl no different from any other bowl, then its effect would be decorative rather than numinous. This bowl is special. Again we must ask: Why is that? Read more »
Tagged aesthetics, art, climate, ocean, religion, salt, San FranciscoLeave a comment
Gods: What Are They Good For?
Posted on Monday, Apr 15, 2019 1:40AM Monday, April 15, 2019 by Thomas O'Dwyer
by Thomas O'Dwyer
"There is no question I love her deeply … I keep remembering her body, her nakedness, the day with her, our bottle of champagne … She says she thinks of me all the time (as I do of her) and her only fear is that being apart, we may gradually cease to believe that we are loved, that the other's love for us goes on and is real. As I kissed her she kept saying, 'I am happy, I am at peace now.' And so was I."
The monk Thomas Merton and the young Dalai Lama.
These romantic diary entries of a middle-aged man smitten with a new love would seem unremarkable, commonplace, but for one thing. The author was a Trappist monk, a priest in one of the most strict Catholic monastic orders, bound by vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and silence. Moreover, he was world famous in his monkishness as the author of best-selling books on spirituality, monastic vocation and contemplation. He was credited with drawing vast numbers of young men into seminaries around the world during the last modern upsurge of religious fervour after World War II. Two years after this tryst, the world's most famous monk was found dead in a room near a conference centre in Bangkok, Thailand. He was on his back, wearing only shorts, electrocuted by a Hitachi floor-fan lying on his chest. In the tabloids there were dark mutterings of divine retribution, suicide, even a CIA murder conspiracy.
So passed Thomas Merton, who shot to fame in 1948 when he published his memoir The Seven Storey Mountain. It was the tale of a journey from a life of "beer, bewilderment, and sorrow" to a seminary in the Order of Cistercians of Strict Observance, commonly known as Trappists. A steady output of books, essays and poems made him one of the best known and loved spiritual writers of his day. It also made millions of dollars for his Trappist monastery, the Abbey of Gethsemani in Nelson county, Kentucky. Because of him, droves of demobbed soldiers and marines clamoured to become monks. Read more »
Tagged atheism, Christianity, religion, Thomas MertonLeave a comment
Why should I respect your stupid opinion?
Posted on Monday, Feb 15, 2016 12:30AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Emrys Westacott
by Emrys Westacott
You have been called for jury service. The trial is complex and much hangs on the relative credibility of different witnesses, particularly those offering expert testimony regarding whether a certain medicine is likely to produce aggressive behavior as one of its side effects. A professional psychiatrist called by the defense testifies that in his opinion this effect is very likely. During cross examination, however, the wily prosecuting counsel manages to unearth a surprising, seemingly irrelevant, but nonetheless startling fact about this "expert": he believes that aliens from space landed in the Nevada desert around 1965 and now effectively control all branches of government using advanced mind-control technology. The "expert" has in fact published several articles arguing for his views in the journal Alien Watch, and is a founding member of MASA (Mankind Against Space Aliens).
When the jury eventually retire to deliberate, it is not long before these beliefs become the focus of attention. One juror refers to the expert as "that nutcase who believes in UFOs." Another calls him a "crank." A third describes him as "cuckoo." Inevitably, his beliefs about aliens damage the credibility of his other testimony in the eyes of some jurors, even though he undoubtedly has the requisite qualifications to be considered a legitimate expert on the side effects of certain medicines.
One juror, however, playing the role of Henry Fonda in Twelve Angry Men, resists this wave of skepticism. "Did anyone notice," she says, "that the expert called by the prosecution wore a crucifix around her neck? This 'expert' may well believe that a man called Jesus walked on top of the sea, changed water into wine, came back to life after being executed, and ascended to heaven on a cloud. I hate to be awkward, but to my way of thinking these beliefs are even more incredible than the idea that space invaders landed in the desert. After all, the belief about aliens—unlike orthodox Christianity–doesn't assume anything supernatural or contrary to the scientific view of nature."
Listening to the debate, you feel yourself pulled in two directions. On the one hand, you can't help agreeing with those inclined to question the judgment of someone who believes the government is controlled by aliens from outer space. On the other hand, supposing for the sake of the argument that your general outlook on the world is thoroughly secular, you sympathize with the view that many orthodox religious beliefs are just as implausible. So you find yourself astride a paradox.
Tagged religion, respectLeave a comment
Karl Marx's Guiding Idea
Posted on Monday, Aug 4, 2014 1:00AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Emrys Westacott
"Nothing human is alien to me." This was Karl Marx's favourite maxim, taken from the Roman writer, Terrence. But I think that if Marx had lived a century later, he might have added as a second choice the famous phrase sung by Sportin' Life in Gershwin's Porgy and Bess: "It ain't necessarily so." For together these two sayings capture a good deal of what I think of as Marx's Guiding Idea, the idea at the heart of his philosophy that remains as valuable and as relevant today as in his own time. Let me explain.
Human beings have been around for a few million years, and for most of that time most people's material and social circumstances have been quite stable. The experiences of one generation were pretty much the same as the experiences of their forbears. In this respect the lives of humans were like those of other animals. Unlike other animals, however, human beings reflect on their lives and circumstances; moreover they communicate these reflections to one another. The result is religion, mythology, philosophy, history, literature, and the performing arts (all of which can arise within a purely oral culture), and eventually the natural sciences, and social studies of various kinds, such as psychology, sociology, economics, and political theory.
These diverse forms of reflection on the human condition perform various functions. One function is to explain why things are the way they are. For instance, the bible explains why the Israelites lived in Israel (God made a promise to Abraham, and kept it, enabling Joshua's army to conquer the land); the theory of the four humours purported to explain personality differences between individuals. Another function is to justify a certain order of things. Thus, the doctrine of the divine right of kings sought to justify the institution of a powerful executive who stands above the law. The doctrine that individuals have a right to freedom of thought and expression is often cited to justify a policy of religious tolerance.
These two functions are sometimes hard to disentangle. For example, the alleged cultural inferiority of a people might be taken both to explain why they have been conquered and to justify that conquest as legitimate or even desirable. The "laws" of market competition provide an explanation of why some individuals and businesses do better than others, and these same laws are appealed to by those inclined to endorse the the outcome of the competition.
Tagged alienation, economics, Hegel, kant, market forces, Marx, Reagan, religion, ThatcherLeave a comment
A Refutation of the Undergraduate Atheists
Posted on Monday, Dec 9, 2013 12:20AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by David Johnson
by David V. Johnson
In "San Manuel Bueno, Martir," the Spanish philosopher Miguel de Unamuno tells the fictional story of a parish priest in Valverde de Lucerna, a small Spanish town, and his successful conversion of a sophisticated favorite son, Lazaro, who had left to seek his fortunes in America and returned an atheist.
"The main thing," San Manuel says, in summarizing his ministry, "is for the people to be happy, that everyone be happy with their life. The happiness of life is the main thing of all."
When Lazaro arrives from the New World, he dismisses the town's medieval backwardness and begins confronting villagers about their superstitions. "Leave them alone, as long as it consoles them," San Manuel tells him. "It is better for them to believe it all, even contradictory things, than not to believe in anything."
Lazaro confronts San Manuel with a mixture of curiosity and respect, since San Manuel is not only beloved by Lazaro's family for his piety but also because he appears educated. Over time, the two become friends and, eventually, Lazaro rejoins the Church and takes communion, to the tearful delight of all.
The twist: Like Lazaro, San Manuel doesn't believe the articles of faith. ("I believe in one God, the Father and Almighty, Creator of heaven and Earth, of all that is seen and unseen …") What he believes in, rather, is administering to the needs of the villagers, in putting on such a convincing performance of dedication to Christ that they all believe he is a saint and have their faith in the Church and in life everlasting sustained. Lazaro's "conversion," then, is one consistent with atheism. He becomes a lay-minister of sorts under San Manuel and eventually dies a Catholic.
I think of this story when I hear the arguments against religion of the late Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris. If Unamuno's story were updated, I could imagine Lazaro coming home to Valverde de Lucerna with a copy of God Is Not Great under his arm, ready to do battle with San Manuel. And if the story makes sense, we can imagine someone who has imbibed the arguments of Hitchens, yet converts to the faith under the saint's arguments.
The question is why.
Tagged atheism, Catholicism, Dawkins, God, Harris, Hitchens, philosophy, religion, UnamunoLeave a comment
Posted on Monday, Jun 3, 2013 12:30AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Gautam Pemmaraju
by Gautam Pemmaraju
It is that time of year in Bombay when the city collectively awaits relief from the heat and humidity of the summer months. "The creature of grandeur and complexity that defies comparison with anything" (see here) is but round the corner, and if recent newspaper reports are to believed, relief from the sweltering heat aside, we are to expect a graver visitation – "the ghost of 2005". It was on July 26th of that year that the city witnessed an event of unprecedented magnitude. Lashed by rains in excess of 944mm within 24 hours, the flooded city came to a standstill, hundreds died, and the loss of property was enormous. Of biblical nature, much like the hurricanes and tsunamis that have wreaked havoc across the globe in recent times, the flooding was truly, a deluge. A dangerous combination of high tidal movements and higher than normal rainfall are anticipated in June and July this year, according to the city's civic authority, and this indeed was a primary cause for the dramatic 2005 flooding. The colonial era hierarchical network of storm water drains was overwhelmed, and the rushing waters that would have otherwise been carried out to sea, were spat back upon the city, and effectively, in the words of a civic official I spoke to more than a year ago, "the roads became the storm water drains".
I was amongst the lucky that did not venture out early that day, but instead saw the onset of the storm from my balcony. The skies darkened rapidly shortly after noon as if in a time-lapse shot, and as it began to rain, the light progressively failed till it became almost pitch dark past two in the afternoon. The electricity went out. I could barely make out the large rubber tree right across from me, and as for the neighbouring building Immaculata, I could no longer discern its shape. It appeared as if I were staring at an opaque curtain, so densely composed of water, that it seemed to be of one seamless form, rather than of discrete water droplets. It seemed, as I sat out watching in bewilderment, that everything around me was, "enchafed", and I could only but darkly imagine the condition of the sea, a short walk away from where I was.
Tagged deluge literature, dracula, flood myths, history, Monsoon, mythology, rains, religionLeave a comment
The Industrious God
Posted on Monday, Nov 21, 2011 12:50AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Gautam Pemmaraju
The beleaguered liquor baron/industrialist/MP Vijay Mallya, considered to be the 'Richard Branson of India' by many, is currently seeking ways to rescue his debt-ridden airline. Having drastically cancelled flights over the last few weeks, the colourful airline promoter, who also has an Indian Premier League cricket team, an F1 racing car, one of the biggest private yachts in the world, a slew of vintage cars, amongst other baubles, has been defending himself against widespread criticism. Speculations of a possible government bailout have angered many around the country.
He is also a patron of the historic temple in the hills of Tirupati, in southern Andhra Pradesh, bordering Tamil Nadu. With a prominent guesthouse there, he is known to be an avid devotee of the resident god Venkateshwara (also Balaji, Srinivasa), and has never been shy with either devotion or largesse. Newspaper reports abound that every new aircraft of his first takes a flight of obeisance around the Tirumala hills where the temple is located, before ferrying passengers.
A former BJP minister of Karnataka and mining baron, G Janardhan Reddy, who is now in jail on charges of illegal mining, had donated to the temple a '2.5 foot long, 30 kg' diamond encrusted gold crown worth over $10 million then in 2009. Recently the temple administration (the Tirumala-Tirupati Devasthanam trust or TTD) stated officially that there was no question of returning the gift in response to demands calling for its return. Political parties and other groups led protests against the 'tainted' offering, claiming that it "polluted the sacred ambience of the sanctum sanctorum". Earlier this year, the now incarcerated politician and his brother (known as the Reddy brothers – partners in the controversial Obulapuram Mining Company) donated yet another diamond studded crown, gold laden garments and other ornaments worth around $3.5 million, to the deity at Srikalahasti temple, which is at the foothills of the main temple.
A rather entertaining news report by a regional TV station in April last year, informed viewing public that the reason for the Mumbai Indians cricket team loss to the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL final was due to a transgression by the owners, Mukesh and Nita Ambani. The temple remains closed between 12 AM and 2 AM, giving a chance for the industrious god to rest a bit. It was apparently during these hours, the wealthiest man in India and his entourage paid a private visit to the temple to pray for his team's victory. Angered at the intrusion, the resident god, according to locals, in an act of divine annoyance, caused Ambani's team to lose. Quite emphatically at that.
Tagged history, India, politics, religion, Tirupati, TTDLeave a comment
On the Gods of Horses
Posted on Monday, Oct 17, 2011 12:25AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Scott F. Aikin and Robert B. Talisse
Scott F. Aikin and Robert B. Talisse
The Presocratic philosopher-poet Xenophanes famously noted that if horses could draw, they would draw their gods as horses. The same, he holds, goes for lions and oxen. What is the intended critical edge of such observations? Suppose it's true that horses would draw their gods as horses. So what?
The famous Xenophanes fragment runs as follows:
If horses or oxen or lions had hands
or if they could draw with their hands and
produce works like men,
horses would draw the figures of the gods as
similar to horses, and oxen as similar to oxen,
and they would make the bodies
of the sort which each of them had.
The Christian apologist Clement of Alexandria is our source. He portrays Xenophanes as a religious reformer, one committed to criticizing anthropomorphism in religion. To construct a god in your own image, he holds, is a form of idolatry. Clement also provides another Xenophanes fragment, one that he takes to provide parallel support for this interpretation:
Ethiopians say their gods are snub-nosed and black;
Thracians that theirs are blue-eyed and red-haired.
The same lesson is said to follow: Humans make their gods look like themselves. But the question remains. What is the critical edge? They serve a critical religious program, but there is no overt argument in either. We hold it that the observations function as a reductio ad ridiculum.
To see this, we must make explicit what's funny about horses drawing horse gods. In doing so, we'll ruin the joke, for sure, but that's philosophy. So what's funny about horses and horse gods?
Tagged atheism, Philosophy of Religion, Presocratic Philosophy, religion, XenophanesLeave a comment
Dishonest to Whom?
Posted on Monday, May 2, 2011 12:10AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Scott F. Aikin and Robert B. Talisse
Mary Warnock's Dishonest to God: On Keeping Religion Out of Politics (Continuum, 2010) is an ambitious book. In it, Warnock distinguishes religion from morality, demonstrates the dependence of religious reasoning on moral reasoning, and argues that religious perspectives are nevertheless crucial for social and political life. We have a review of the book forthcoming in The Philosopher's Magazine. For the most part, we are in agreement with Warnock. But we do have some disagreements, and we want to focus here on one aspect of Warnock's view that strikes us as especially troublesome, namely, Warnock's conception of the value of religion in a secular society.
Warnock's case in favor of religion is broadly consequentialist. She holds that religious institutions and practices should be sustained because, on balance, they are socially beneficial. Warnock contends that – unlike morality and the rule of law – religion is not necessary for civil society; yet she insists that "there is no possible argument for holding religion is outdated, or that it can be wholly replaced in society by science or by any other imaginative exercise" (159). Surely this is overstated. No possible argument for the social dispensability of religion? Really? Actual arguments for this conclusion are easy to find. Consider Hegel's argument at the end of the Phenomenology that religion must give way to art and philosophy in public life. Or John Dewey's argument in A Common Faith that the social and experiential benefits of religious life can be detached from religion and subsumed under a more substantive conception of democratic community, leaving religion to wither away.
It is likely that Warnock means to claim that there is no good argument for the dispensability of religion; that is, Warnock means to deny that there could be an argument for the dispensability of religion which gives religion its due.
Tagged Dishonest to God, Mary Warnock, religion, Religion and Public LifeLeave a comment
Of Quislings and Science: Reflecting on Mark Vernon, The Templeton Prize and Richard Dawkins
Posted on Monday, Apr 18, 2011 12:55AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Tauriq Moosa
by Tauriq Moosa
Recently, Sir Martin Rees was awarded the most lucrative science-prize in the world, The Templeton Prize. Notice I said 'lucrative'; not most respected or prestigious, though some indeed do think it is. This prize is awarded because it, according to its official website, "honors a living person who has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life's spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical works." It is given to those "who have devoted their talents to expanding our vision of human purpose and ultimate reality" – a sentence worthy of a tacky Hallmark card.
Sir Martin is in the company of £1,000,000 sterling and Mother Theresa and Billy Graham. Indeed, I wonder if that amount is enough to sway anyone, so that he or she is mentioned in the same breath as these fanatics. The point being there is little that is, by definition, about science. The Templeton Foundation and Prize is about promoting notions of the Divine, in whatever loose language you can fathom, using something vaguely non-Divine in approach. If you can anchor your pursuits that effect the world, dealing with sick people (not aiding) like Mother Theresa, or probing the mysteries of the universe with an appreciation for its beauty or possible higher purpose, then you qualify. They've melted the solid idea of the theistic god down into liquid form, so it slips through any pretention even when the person awarded the prize is not religious. Like Sir Martin Rees.
If Sir Martin donates it all to Oxfam, I would have little to quarrel with it suppose, except I think any scientist who doesn't think there's a conflict between faith and reason or science and religion is wrong. But that's another discussion. What interests me about this whole episode was not the prize itself but the views that arose concerning the atheist culture wars. I'm interested particularly in ex-Anglican-priest-turned-"agnostic" Mark Vernon's ever-banal criticisms of Richard Dawkins, as seen here (an ad hominem attack), here (how Dawkins is doing nothing new even though Vernon keeps writing about him), here (when Dawkins praises fellow writer, Christopher Hitchens, Dawkins is promoting hatred), here (Dawkins… groupthink… bus… bad), here (I don't even know).
I rather enjoyed Dr Vernon's books 42 and Plato's Podcasts, so it is disappointing to see this usually clear, clever writer putting on the same performance each time Dawkins is mentioned in an online discussion or in the media. This is especially so when Vernon reflects on Sir Martin's recent prize and… Richard Dawkins' stridency. Yes. You obviously made that connection as quickly as I did. Vernon, expert bar none on how Dawkins should conduct himself publicly, has to write something… and it might as well be as Dawkins' media nanny.
Tagged atheism, Mark Vernon, religion, Richard Dawkins, Sir Martin Rees, Templeton FoundationLeave a comment
Accommodationism and Atheism
Posted on Monday, Feb 7, 2011 12:50AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Scott F. Aikin and Robert B. Talisse
by Scott Aikin and Robert B. Talisse
Our book Reasonable Atheism does not publish until April, yet we have already been charged with
accommodationism, the cardinal sin amongst so-called New Atheists. The charge derives mainly from the subtitle of our book, "a moral case for respectful disbelief." Our offense consists in embracing idea that atheists owe to religious believers anything like respect. The accusation runs roughly as follows: "Respect" is merely a euphemism for soft-pedaling one's criticisms of religion; but religion is a force of great evil, and thus must be fought with unmitigated vigor. Atheist calls for respect in dealing with religion simply reflect a failure of nerve, and must be called out. Anything less than an intellectual total war on religion is capitulation to, and thus complicity with, irrationality.
In our case, the charge of accommodationism as a failure of critical nerve is misplaced; anyone who actually reads our book will find that we pull no punches. But we also think that, as it is commonly employed in atheist circles, the idea of accommodationism involves a conflation between two kinds of evaluation which should be kept distinct. Some clarification is in order.
Tagged Accommodation, atheism, religionLeave a comment
Some thoughts about Poe's Law
Posted on Monday, Jan 10, 2011 12:05AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Scott F. Aikin and Robert B. Talisse
The website LandoverBaptist.com has posted headlines that run from the goofy ("What Can Christians Do to Help Increase Global Warming?" and "New Evidence Suggests Noah's Sons Rode Flying Dinosaurs") to the chilling ("Satan Calls Another Pope to Hell" and "Trade Us Your Voter's Registration Card for Free Fried Chicken from Popeye's"). The site is designed to parody the racism, scientific illiteracy, and religious bigotry widely attributed to American fundamentalist and evangelical Christians. But, judging from the site's posted mail, it seems that the general public does not recognize that the site is parodic. Most email responses begin by chastising the authors for not knowing the true meaning of Christianity, for having misinterpreted some quoted Bible passage, or for being hypocrites with respect to some point of contention. Very little of the posted mail actually confronts the owners and writers at Landover with what they are doing: presenting a grotesque, overblown, and bombastic parody of Christian religious life. LandoverBaptist.com's mail bag has entries from its first days, and there has been a consistent failure on behalf of the writing public to recognize that the site is a parody. What gives? Poe's Law (Wiki).
Nathan Poe is widely credited for formulating the eponymous law. He first noted a particular difficulty in an entry on a Christianforms.com chat page regarding creationism:
Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humor, it is utterly impossible to parody a Creationist in such a way that someone won't mistake (it) for the genuine article.
This is to say that unless there are unmistakable and explicit cues that one is being ironic or sarcastic, many parodies are not only likely to be interpreted as earnest contributions, they will, in fact, be indistinguishable in content to sincere expressions of the parodied view. The law can be fleshed out in a few ways, but the following thought capture the core of the Poe's Law: For any webpage which parodies religious extremity, if the webpage has no overt cues of its status as parodic, no appeal to the page's content can distinguish it from that of a webpage with sincerely expressed religiously extreme views. That a webpage is filled with Biblically-inspired scientific illiteracy, racism, or sexism doesn't mean that the poster sincerely believes such things; the page might be a parody. Yet the problem is that this works in reverse as well. Blatant errors and blinding ignorance may mean that the poster is truly an immoral idiot. For every crazy thing on LandoverBaptist.com, there's something just as (or maybe more) crazy on Godhatesfags.com. Looking just at the content, one cannot tell the difference between them.
Now, our objective here is not that of determining whether Poe's Law is true. Our interest rather is in the effects of accepting it as true. What happens to interpersonal argument when disputants generally accept Poe's Law? What are the effects of believing that a parodic expression of an extreme view is indistinguishable from a sincere expression of an extreme view?
To get a handle on the issue, consider first the straw man fallacy.
Tagged Argument, Group Polarization, Poe's Law, religion, Straw ManLeave a comment
Women's Freedom – A Short Introduction to Why I Care
Posted on Monday, Jul 5, 2010 3:20AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Tauriq Moosa
Why have so many stopped fighting for women's rights? We fight for "human" rights and discuss them as if they were a natural element of being human; groups lobby and defend, almost diabolically and with much vitriol, the rights of "animals" (species that are not human). Yet women's rights, that better half of our species, remain a neglected element of secular discourse. It surprises me that so few of those who consider themselves secular humanists do anything concerning this important issue. This does not mean that many secular humanists do not think it important but there is a great divide between simply thinking it important and doing something to make it so. Not only do I think it important, I believe in my lifetime the liberation of woman, all over the world, for all time, is the single most important goal that we must defend, increase and enhance. The other goals which many of us long for, freedom of speech, lack of coercion, and so on, all are part of, and tributaries within, this pathway. By fighting for women, we fight for free speech and liberty; by defending their rights, we defend human rights; by finding the cause for their oppression we cease the cycle of violence and poverty within families around the world. Reports have suggested that a decrease in women's freedom correlates to an increase in religious fanaticism. This does not mean that once women are free, all over the world, religious dogmatism, backward political regimes and patriarchal bullying will be banished from the earth; but there is little debate that the fight in itself will lead to a greater amount of freedom, more happiness and will result in woman no longer being the fodder for the religious wrath of backward mullahs and reverends.
According to estimates, which have more than likely increased, 70 percent of the two billion poor are women; two thirds of illiterate adults are women; employment rates for women are declining after increasing (yes, of course, the world wars are now over). At the same time many women are forced into veils and burqas, burnt for merely looking at men, stoned to death or buried alive for adultery, forced into sex, pregnancy and delivering HIV-infected children because they were raped, but if they were to report it, they would either be raped again, executed, exiled from their village or town or family. While this happens, the fashion industry booms with make-up and high-heels and plastic models and girls as thin as the paper they are pictured on, presenting us with yet another contrast to whether women really are in control of their bodies even in supposedly liberated societies. That is an issue unto itself, which I am not focused on, but it certainly should give us pause considering the areas we are dealing with. Modern writers, in the secular West, tell women to go back to the kitchen, obey the husband, be a mother, tie an umbilical cord around the house and hang themselves from it. "Feminine is good," says women's rights author, Nikki van der Gaag, "feminism is bad." A lot of feminist views, philosophy and political goals truly deserve scorn, since they replace one tyranny with another; are subject to faith-based, dogmatic adherence rather than calculated sex equality. The vengeful world of patriarchal accident has given birth to a malicious view toward its women. As this highlights, the malicious desire is one of control – but I do not wish to instil Orwellian fears in big governments and little men.
Tagged AC Grayling, equality, fundamentalism, gender, Half the Sky, Misogyny, Nicholas D. Kristof, Nikki van der Gaag, oppression, Oprah, religion, sex, Sheryl Wudunn, women's rightsLeave a comment
Let's Keep God out of Ethics
Posted on Monday, May 10, 2010 12:26AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Tauriq Moosa
When a television network has a porn channel in the pipe-lines voices of outrage sound. When a television-series mocks a dead religious figure, knives are being sharpened and fingers are being shaken. Picketing outside abortion clinics, fighting against end-of-life alleviation, marching against free expression (do they never see the irony?) – we can usually count on the faithful to raise an outcry, on our behalf apparently, for things they consider to be sinful and, therefore, immoral. But what is sinful is not necessarily immoral. They appear to have some insight we do not about morality and ethical deliberation. But upon critical scrutiny, we soon discover that all the noise is a mask for shallow deliberation.
When did we hand over our moral autonomy – that is our ability to look critically for ourselves at moral dilemmas – to the lecherous hands and myopic vision of religious leaders? When did we say that we wanted guardians stationed in moral outposts, peering into the world with outrage-telescopes and hysterical megaphones? I certainly did not and I hope, regardless of your belief in god, you didn't either. Ethical deliberation is something we all must face as part of our epistemic duty in this world, filled as it is with problems and a continuum of moral actions. To ask simply whether something is good or evil is often to trivialise ethical dilemmas: they are often not simply about choosing between right and wrong, but between two conflicting attitudes which are both apparently the right thing to do. Do we kill the fat man to save the lives of five others? Are we obligated to each sacrifice one kidney, which we don't need, to save others who do? Do we give up eating meat, which we do not need for survival, to end the suffering of other animals?
These dilemmas are secular, in that anyone can come to them regardless of religious belief, and find in them a moral problem. However, with the blurring between morality and religion in today's world, some "moral" problems become problems merely because of the arrogant bullying by religious groups who claim to "know", better than the rest of us, what is moral. Homosexuality, women's rights and abortion would most likely not be such hysterical moral dilemmas if not for tawdry metaphysical beliefs on the part of the believer. A good case can be made for any of these being moral dilemmas in purely secular terms, but it is unlikely that death or violence would ensue because of disagreement. The ferocity and vernacular of the dilemma would not be one spurred on by self-righteous believers who are defending god's laws; or defending "babies" from evil, pincer-wielding doctors; or trying to maintain "family values" because of the "moral decline" in society. A lot of these dilemmas could be carefully deliberated upon in a safe, public platform, using the weapons of words and the shield of a podium, rather than bullets and knives to make one's point felt. We have given into the worst reasoning to justify moral decisions, that is: raising your voice and making the loudest noise. And best of all if you can use god as a backing – since this still has moral force today, though it should not. Just because so many people are outraged by gay-marriage does not make it immoral anymore than everyone believing the earth flat would alter our planet's shape. Turning something immoral merely because the majority view it as such is part of John Stuart Mill's notion of 'tyranny of the majority'.
Tagged atheism, Christopher Hitchens, ethics, free expression, freedom, homosexuality, Humanism, John Stuart Mill, pessimism, philosophy, pornography, progress, religion, Udo ShucklenkLeave a comment
Between Wole Soyinka and Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab
Posted on Monday, Mar 1, 2010 12:02AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Tolu Ogunlesi
By Tolu Ogunlesi
Lamenting the presence of Nigeria on the US government's list of "countries of interest" (in the war on terror), Nigerian writer and first African Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka told British journalist Tunku Varadarajan, at the Jaipur Literary Festival in January: "[Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab] did not get radicalized in Nigeria. It happened in England, where he went to university."
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is the 23 year old Nigerian man whose arrest on Christmas Day 2009 while attempting to detonate a bomb aboard a Detroit-bound plane caused the country's blacklisting.
In 2005, at the age of 19, Umar Farouk enrolled in the University College London (UCL), for a degree in 'Engineering with Business Finance', after high school at a British-curriculum school in Togo. From all indications UCL kept the young man busy. In his second year he was elected President of the Student Union's Islamic Society, organizing a "War on Terror Week" during his tenure.
Soyinka's England
Five decades before Umar Farouk became a student in England, Wole Soyinka was admitted to the University of Leeds. In October 1954 the future Nobel Laureate left the sleepy city of Ibadan, Western Nigeria (where he was studying at the University College), for England. He was 20. Soyinka would spend the next six years in England, returning to Nigeria on the eve of the country's independence from Britain.
It can be argued that England was the breeding ground for Mr. Soyinka's genius; the playwright was, in a sense, forged between the stiff upper lips of Poundland. It wasn't only Soyinka the playwright that was made in England. Soyinka the father was too. He would during his time in that country fall in love with an English woman, who in 1957 bore him a son, his first.
When Mr. Soyinka left for England, the Nigeria he was leaving behind was merely one colony in an Empire that stretched across the world, and Mr. Soyinka was a subject of the Queen of England. The England he was leaving for was not the one in which multiracialism had become the politically correct thing; this was still an England that wore its racism rather comfortably on its sleeves. One of Mr. Soyinka's most anthologized poems dates back to that time, a cheeky send-up of racism, which to all intents may have been autobiographical:
It features a young black man in England, speaking on the phone with a potential landlady. The phone conversation is a prelude to a face-to-face meeting. But he feels the need to make a "self-confession":
"Madam," I warned, / "I hate a wasted journey—I am African." / Silence.
The landlady's interest is piqued.
"HOW DARK?". . . "ARE YOU LIGHT / OR VERY DARK?" she wants to know. She repeats herself, for emphasis.
"You mean – like plain or milk chocolate?" the narrator suggests. Then he has a color-coded brainwave. "West African sepia," he concludes.
Tagged Britain, Chinua Achebe, fundamentalism, religion, Terror, terrorism, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, war on terror, Wole SoyinkaLeave a comment
X-Epsilon
Posted on Monday, Feb 23, 2009 12:48AM Friday, December 8, 2017 by Maniza Naqvi
By Maniza Naqvi
Just as the frigid February evening air is stirred by the imams calling out the azan from all over the valley on Monday evening —Hiya al salah—hiya al falah— "come towards worship—come towards salvation"— Rahima pulls a cigarette out from her pack of Drinas; sticks it between her lips; lights it; dials 5555 and calls a Zuti taxi to her apartment—one of the many cab companies in Sarajevo which arrive at the door a minute after being called. She puts on her coat, an oversized olive color, man's raincoat with a corduroy collar. She double checks the pockets for her pack of Drinas and the 3 convertible marks in loose change for the fare. All set, she leaves her one room apartment. The cab arrives and she gets in to its smoke filled interior. A sevdah's ululating blues plays on FM 89.9 Radio Zid for the short ride just down the hill to the hospital.
Her 48 hour duty has begun. She has entered her world. All morning long she has cleared her head for this—all Monday morning, after a weekend plunged in a seamless nightmare-filled fitful sleep. The same nightmares always, every off-duty. The same method of recovery. This is her routine.
Outside the emergency room she can see the usual sight: police guards with automatic weapons dressed in tight black uniforms and bullet proof vests barring the way to the ER. Police cars parked in the driveway. She sweeps past them waving them aside, saying she's the doctor and can't they see that?
'He's a bank robber from Olovo! He's shot himself trying to run away!' A cop shouts after her.
"Thank you doctor" she growls back at him and shrugs her shoulder with a jolt as though repulsed.
As she enters the ER and surveys the newest arrival it's as though a switch had been turned on inside of her lighting up a thousand bulbs of a thousand watt each. She is on! This is an interesting one. The one last week, the victim of a burglary—the plastic surgery—the reconstruction—was successful. It seems to have worked but it's still too early to tell, the bandages haven't come off yet.
This one, they tell her, he has shot himself in the head. Outside, the hospital the walls are still pock marked with bullet holes. Inside for Rahima it has never ended, it goes on.
Tagged Atheist, Bosnia, Faith, Genocide, God, Pain, religion, WarLeave a comment
"I really appreciate your selection of generally sane and mostly stimulating articles. 3 Quarks Daily has been my goto website at the end of the day, and now also during the day!"
—Horst Ludwig Störmer, Nobel laureate in physics and emeritus professor at Columbia University.
"Just wanted you to know I'm one of many who reads and enjoys 3 Quarks....almost daily."
—David Byrne, musician, former lead-singer of the Talking Heads, artist, intellectual.


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"M"ark down January 31st, 2019 in your calendars, it will be the beginning of your ultimate festival experience where we make our way to our beautiful Caribbean dream destination, Labadee! If you do not have your spot secured on board yet make sure to snag one right away, a very limited number of tickets remain. You do not want to miss the boat!
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Matthew graduated with a BA (and MA) in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge. Immediately following this, he worked for two years in an internet shopping startup company, before returning to the university to work for the Department of Genetics in the FlyMine group for eight years. He then studied for his engineering doctorate with the University of Surrey and the Met Office. Matthew has developed a keen interest in data analysis and efficient software algorithms for processing data. He has been working in the monogenic diabetes group in the university medical school since 2015.
In his spare time Matthew enjoys music, gardening, DIY and mountain walking.
Software engineering, data structures and algorithms, databases, data processing, performance optimisation, nonlinear minimisation, variational data assimilation.
Stals KL, Wakeling M, Baptista J, Caswell R, Parrish A, Rankin J, Tysoe C, Jones G, Gunning AC, Lango Allen H, et al (In Press). Diagnosis of lethal or prenatal-onset autosomal recessive disorders by parental exome sequencing. Prenat Diagn, 38(1), 33-43.
Diagnosis of lethal or prenatal-onset autosomal recessive disorders by parental exome sequencing.
Iacovazzo D, Flanagan S, Walker E, Quezado R, Antonio de Sousa F, Caswell R, Johnson MBJ, Wakeling M, Brandle M, Guo M, et al (2018). A MAFA missense mutation causes familial insulinomatosis and diabetes mellitus. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Full text.
Laver TW, Wakeling M, Hua JHY, Houghton J, Hussain K, Ellard S, Flanagan S (In Press). Comprehensive screening shows that mutations in the known syndromic genes are rare in infants presenting with hyperinsulinaemic hypoglycaemia. Clinical Endocrinology Full text.
Wakeling MN, Laver TW, Wright CF, De Franco E, Stals KL, Patch A-M, Hattersley AT, Flanagan SE, Ellard S, DDD Study, et al (In Press). Correction: Homozygosity mapping provides supporting evidence of pathogenicity in recessive Mendelian disease. Genet Med, 21(3).
Correction: Homozygosity mapping provides supporting evidence of pathogenicity in recessive Mendelian disease.
The original version of this Article contained an error in the top left of Figure 2: the number 1 on the y-axis had been changed to 0 during the typesetting process. This has now been corrected in both the PDF and HTML versions of the Article.
Wakeling MN, Laver TW, Wright CF, De Franco E, Stals KL, Patch A-M, Hattersley AT, Flanagan SE, Ellard S, DDD Study, et al (In Press). Homozygosity mapping provides supporting evidence of pathogenicity in recessive Mendelian disease. Genet Med, 21(4), 982-986.
Homozygosity mapping provides supporting evidence of pathogenicity in recessive Mendelian disease.
PURPOSE: One of the greatest challenges currently facing those studying Mendelian disease is identifying the pathogenic variant from the long list produced by a next-generation sequencing test. We investigate the predictive ability of homozygosity mapping for identifying the regions likely to contain the causative variant. METHODS: We use 179 homozygous pathogenic variants from three independent cohorts to investigate the predictive power of homozygosity mapping. RESULTS: We demonstrate that homozygous pathogenic variants in our cohorts are disproportionately likely to be found within one of the largest regions of homozygosity: 80% of pathogenic variants are found in a homozygous region that is in the ten largest regions in a sample. The maximal predictive power is achieved in patients with 3 Mb from a telomere; this gives an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.735 and results in 92% of the causative variants being in one of the ten largest homozygous regions. CONCLUSION: This predictive power can be used to prioritize the list of candidate variants in gene discovery studies. When classifying a homozygous variant the size and rank of the region of homozygosity in which the candidate variant is located can also be considered as supporting evidence for pathogenicity.
Low KJ, Stals K, Caswell R, Wakeling M, Clayton-Smith J, Donaldson A, Foulds N, Norman A, Splitt M, Urankar K, et al (In Press). Phenotype of CNTNAP1: a study of patients demonstrating a specific severe congenital hypomyelinating neuropathy with survival beyond infancy. Eur J Hum Genet, 26(6), 796-807.
CHN is genetically heterogeneous and its genetic basis is difficult to determine on features alone. CNTNAP1 encodes CASPR, integral in the paranodal junction high molecular mass complex. Nineteen individuals with biallelic variants have been described in association with severe congenital hypomyelinating neuropathy, respiratory compromise, profound intellectual disability and death within the first year. We report 7 additional patients ascertained through exome sequencing. We identified 9 novel CNTNAP1 variants in 6 families: three missense variants, four nonsense variants, one frameshift variant and one splice site variant. Significant polyhydramnios occurred in 6/7 pregnancies. Severe respiratory compromise was seen in 6/7 (tracheostomy in 5). A complex neurological phenotype was seen in all patients who had marked brain hypomyelination/demyelination and profound developmental delay. Additional neurological findings included cranial nerve compromise: orobulbar dysfunction in 5/7, facial nerve weakness in 4/7 and vocal cord paresis in 5/7. Dystonia occurred in 2/7 patients and limb contractures in 5/7. All had severe gastroesophageal reflux, and a gastrostomy was required in 5/7. In contrast to most previous reports, only one patient died in the first year of life. Protein modelling was performed for all detected CNTNAP1 variants. We propose a genotype-phenotype correlation, whereby hypomorphic missense variants partially ameliorate the phenotype, prolonging survival. This study suggests that biallelic variants in CNTNAP1 cause a distinct recognisable syndrome, which is not caused by other genes associated with CHN. Neonates presenting with this phenotype will benefit from early genetic definition to inform clinical management and enable essential genetic counselling for their families.
Satellite infrared sounders are invaluable tools for making observations of the structure of the atmosphere. They provide much of the observational data used to initialize atmospheric models, especially in regions that do not have extensive surface-based observing systems, such as oceans. However, information is lacking in the presence of cloud, as the cloud layer is opaque to infrared radiation. This means that where information is most desired (such as in a developing storm) it is often in the shortest supply. In order to explore the mathematics of assimilating data from cloudy radiances, a study has been performed using an idealized single-column atmospheric model. The model simulates cloud development in an atmosphere with vertical motion, allowing the characteristics of a 2D-Var data assimilation system using a single simulated infrared satellite observation taken multiple times to be studied. The strongly nonlinear nature of cloud formation poses a challenge for variational methods. The adjoint method produces an accurate gradient for the cost function and minimization is achieved using preconditioned conjugate gradients. The conditioning is poor and varies strongly with the atmospheric variables and the cost function has multiple minima, but acceptable results are achieved. The assimilation system is provided with a prior forecast simulated by adding random correlated Gaussian error to the truth. Assimilating observations comparable to those available from current geostationary satellites allows vertical motion to be retrieved with an error of less than a centimetre per second in most conditions. Moreover, evaluating the second derivative of the cost function at the minimum provides an estimate of the uncertainty in the retrieval. This allows atmospheric states that do not provide sufficient information for retrieval of vertical motion to be detected (such as a cloudless atmosphere or a non-moving opaque cloud layer in the upper troposphere). Retrieval is most accurate with upwards motion. © 2014 Royal Meteorological Society.
Smith RN, Aleksic J, Butano D, Carr A, Contrino S, Hu F, Lyne M, Lyne R, Kalderimis A, Rutherford K, et al (2012). InterMine: a flexible data warehouse system for the integration and analysis of heterogeneous biological data. Bioinformatics, 28(23), 3163-3165.
InterMine: a flexible data warehouse system for the integration and analysis of heterogeneous biological data.
SUMMARY: InterMine is an open-source data warehouse system that facilitates the building of databases with complex data integration requirements and a need for a fast customizable query facility. Using InterMine, large biological databases can be created from a range of heterogeneous data sources, and the extensible data model allows for easy integration of new data types. The analysis tools include a flexible query builder, genomic region search and a library of 'widgets' performing various statistical analyses. The results can be exported in many commonly used formats. InterMine is a fully extensible framework where developers can add new tools and functionality. Additionally, there is a comprehensive set of web services, for which client libraries are provided in five commonly used programming languages. AVAILABILITY: Freely available from http://www.intermine.org under the LGPL license. CONTACT: g.micklem@gen.cam.ac.uk SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Lyne R, Smith R, Rutherford K, Wakeling M, Varley A, Guillier F, Janssens H, Ji W, Mclaren P, North P, et al (2007). FlyMine: an integrated database for Drosophila and Anopheles genomics. Genome Biol, 8(7).
FlyMine is a data warehouse that addresses one of the important challenges of modern biology: how to integrate and make use of the diversity and volume of current biological data. Its main focus is genomic and proteomics data for Drosophila and other insects. It provides web access to integrated data at a number of different levels, from simple browsing to construction of complex queries, which can be executed on either single items or lists.
De Franco E, Lytrivi M, Patel K, Igoillo-Esteve M, Wakeling M, Haliloglu B, Unal E, Godbole T, Yildiz M, Ellard S, et al (2018). Mutations in YIPF5 are a novel cause of neonatal diabetes, highlighting the critical role of endoplasmic reticulum-to-Golgi trafficking in human beta cell survival. Author URL.
Laver T, Wakeling M, Knox O, De-Franco E, Flanagan S, Colclough K, Ellard S, Hattersley A, Weedon M, Patel K, et al (2018). Redefining the pathogenicity of Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY) genes: BLK, PAX4 and KLF11 do not cause MODY. Author URL.
Janssens H, Lyne R, Smith R, Guillier F, Ji W, McLaren P, Riley T, Reisinger F, Rutherford K, Wakeling M, et al (2006). Flymine: an integrated database of Drosophila and anopheles genomics. Author URL.


Booking talent isn't as easy as it seems. We've compiled a list of our most frequently asked questions.
Why should I use a professional entertainment company to procure entertainment, speakers, or production services?
Whether it be a lawyer, doctor, or entertainment producer, a professional in any industry is there to provide their qualified ability to best serve their client's need in an efficient and professional manner.
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With over three decades of providing the finest entertainers, production, and speakers our reputation remains a one of the most professional and well equipped companies on an international basis.
Like any product or service, talent also has a price. Although there is variance due to date/location/type of event, the cost is determined by the talent and their representatives based on the type of talent and level of notoriety.
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In many cases travel (airfare, hotel, and ground transportation) and production (staging, sound system, lighting, etc.) is required. Every situation has its own special circumstances.
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Ornamentation and caps are just a couple of the ways you can upgrade your fence.
A fence can be a great way to improve your home; it adds privacy and protection but also can help improve aesthetics and make your yard into a safe oasis for your family and pets. However, if your fence is older (and perhaps attached to a neighbors house) you may not be in love with its design nor ready to install a totally new unit. Fortunately, there are several ways to upgrade your fence to help it look great once again. While not all options are possible if your fence shares a border with a neighbor, they all contribute to bringing out the best in your fence once more.
Adding lighted post caps to your fence can be a great way to make it look better while adding a functional detail. Lighting your fence can help improve the outdoor ambiance as well as helping to keep your space safer for anyone visiting. Lighted caps come in a wide range of varieties including wood, metal, and plastic and can be set up using traditional power, solar, or even low voltage options.
Finding the right decorative accents is a fun way to improve your fence! Depending on your material you may find that you can add a new fence panel with the decorative element. Wrought iron fences, for instance, can be created with the design element built into the fence itself. In other cases you might try a lightweight feature, like a decorative star motif, that can be safely secured to your fence. Note that for elements that are attached, use items resistant to weather damage to prevent any secondary issues for your fencing.
Adding a top cap or trim is a great way to improve the look of your fencing while helping it last longer. For many fence types, the top end grains of the fence are the weakest points – they're open to wearing and can allow the elements to affect the material. When a top cap is applied, it can help make the unit look like new and prevent this type of damage significantly.
Adding a stain or paint to a wooden fence is a critical step for ensuring that it lasts as long and as well as possible, and it revitalizes old and dingy posts. With the fresh coat, those who visit your home will think you've installed a totally new unit!
This entry was posted on Friday, March 22nd, 2019 at 2:41 pm. Both comments and pings are currently closed.


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