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North Texas De Novo TYME Bank Withdraws Application With the FDIC
One of just two de novo applications in Texas last year, the withdrawal is a casualty of "the uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic." But founders of the proposed locally owned community bank are looking at options to refile in the near future.
by Quincy Preston • Jul 28, 2020
Ken Judd and Joe Hansen of Tyme Bank. [Photo: Michael Samples]
The organizers of de novo TYME Bank have withdrawn the proposed North Texas bank's application with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The withdrawal is a casualty of "the uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic," the group behind the proposed bank announced today.
"Unfortunately, with the headwinds of the COVID pandemic we have decided to withdraw our application with FDIC," TYME Bank Vice Chairman and CEO Joe Hansen said in a statement. "We will continue to study options for refiling an application in the near future. Our focus will be to serve small- to medium-businesses and meet the needs of our community."
The TYME group of organizers filed a de novo application for a new Farmers Branch-based bank in North Texas in December, something that hadn't happened in the region since 2009. That process was a three-year journey for proposed CEO Joseph Hansen, as well as its executives and board. The team announced in January that applications were filed with the FDIC and the Texas Department of Banking.
A de novo bank is a new institution that's not created via either a merger of equals (MOE) or by acquisition.
The de novo applications were filed for a locally-owned community bank serving customers—startups, enterprises, and individuals—in its target area of Dallas, Denton, and Collin counties. As banks consolidate, local decision-making is needed, Hansen previously told Dallas Innovates.
Hansen said the team set out to build a community bank, owned by the community, managed by members of the community, with decisions made here. "I thought, if I were going to start a new bank, it wouldn't be to close loans, it would be to open relationships," he said in January. "I think that's what sets us apart from everyone else."
The process started with the vision of the bank's chairman, Mani Jacob, to be locally owned and locally managed, with local decision making, Hansen told Dallas Innovates at the time. Hansen set about assembling a local board of directors to represent the community.
Hansen and the TYME leaders hoped the proposed bank would open in the first quarter of 2021, but the recent surge in coronavirus cases in Texas made an already complicated business environment even more difficult, he told Dallas Innovates in March.
"COVID appeared to be improving and unfortunately it has reappeared and turned Texas into a hot zone," TYME Bank Chief Financial Officer Ken Judd said. "We want to provide the best for our community and investors."
According to the bank's organizers, the Dallas de novo is not alone in making such an announcement. According to the statement, "TYME Bank (in organization) joins several other de novo banks around the nation that have been affected by the COVID-19 crisis."
Per S&P Global Market Intelligence reports, "several other de novo banks around the country either had their applications returned or have withdrawn their applications waiting for conditions to stabilize," according to TYME.
TYME Bank was the only de novo application in 2019 from North Texas, and one of only two filed in the state of Texas last year (the other was in Houston), according to S&P Global. 21 de novo bank applications were submitted nationwide in 2019, Lance Murray reported earlier this year.
The TYME Bank group put together about $1 million in working capital to get the effort off the ground, according to Hansen and Judd, who said the bank's goal was to raise roughly $32 million to $36 million. Hansen said at the time that investment interest had been pretty good, with "lots of interest."
Hansen, who has had a long military career, called the core TYME team a very "battle-proven group." According to an email from CFO Judd, the uncertainties from the virus have required a pause. But the team will reevaluate how to best serve small and medium businesses in Dallas, he said.
North Texas has plenty to see, hear, and watch. Here are our editors' picks. Plus, you'll find our selections to "save the date."
DI People: ClubCorp, North Dallas Bank and Trust, Tappit, and More Make Moves
In this week's roundup of hires and promotions in North Texas, you'll also find news from Jacobs, WiNGS, TearLab, Activate Renewables, StreetLights Residential, The Expo Group, Lear Investment Management, and more.
banks in dallas
community bank
Dallas bank
de novo application
De Novo bank dallas
de novo banks
de novo withdrawal
FDIC
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp
Joe Hansen
Joseph Hansen
Ken Judd
Mani Jacob
merger of equals
proposed bank withdrawal
tyme
Tyme Bank
tyme bank withdrawal
InfoVision Partners to Offer New Managed Security Services Vertical
Richardson-based global digital transformation and solutions company InfoVision Inc. announced it partnered with California-based Qualys, a provider of cloud-based IT, security, and compliance solutions, to bring the power of the Qualys Cloud Platform to InfoVision customers....


Are you tried of forgetting pen and needle any where in the room while doing embroidering?
Then here is the solution for you.
1) You can dispose off your needle in a spice jar. There is small hole beneath the spice jars cap, put your needle in it.
To make it more spicy you can filled the jar with different color of sand or some thing else.
Put needle in the spice jar hole.
2) Similarly you can put your pen and pencil in a used jar. In our kitchen we are having used jars, take that used jars for putting the pens.
Above both idea is very useful and free of cost. isn't it?


My review of Joy Williams' The Visiting Privilege came out over at Numéro Cinq. Also, I reviewed two books last month for Numéro Cinq, which I forgot to post. Those two were J. M. Coetzee and the Life of Writing: Face-to-Face with Time by David Attwell and The Good Story by JM Coetzee and Arabella Kurtz.


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"Guys like Fauci get up there and start talking, and he doesn't know anything really about anything, and I'd say that to his face. Nothing. The man thinks you can take a blood sample and stick it in an electron microscope and if it's got a virus in there, you will know it. He doesn't understand electron microscopy and he doesn't understand medicine. He should not be in a position like he's in." ~ Kary Mullis, the inventor of the PCR Test that's fraudulently being used worldwide for COVID19. #KaryMullis #AnthonyFauci #DrAnthonyFauci #COVID1984 #TheFourthIndustrialRevolution Sources: https://is.gd/yw2KO6 https://is.gd/6lzdLJ https://is.gd/fFJltc https://is.gd/tVPJ2W https://is.gd/JnO1ar https://is.gd/NGlI2h https://is.gd/9KjujW https://is.gd/yovrtL https://is.gd/D4b7kC https://is.gd/Hqjw4a https://is.gd/m6YRO8 https://is.gd/brWFev https://is.gd/S0LcAK https://is.gd/bOdHe2 https://is.gd/sieko7 https://is.gd/wVKQEX https://is.gd/ZVfAja https://is.gd/ycIyPM https://is.gd/CaYG5p https://is.gd/NHPizw https://is.gd/mFkSsE https://is.gd/a04CRD https://is.gd/nsRLBN https://is.gd/EDWgzk https://is.gd/1Lkti9 https://is.gd/xN9f05 https://is.gd/6wavl0 https://is.gd/lA7GqV https://is.gd/tT2RU6 https://is.gd/nv311a https://is.gd/L2P18C https://is.gd/cyXLfO https://is.gd/sXcCkK https://is.gd/6H7VTZ https://is.gd/CEkbde https://is.gd/rI8jHJ https://is.gd/FCUbQN https://is.gd/gHWXqn https://is.gd/Zjafej https://is.gd/fAR1a5 https://is.gd/DFWtF0 https://is.gd/RHoy2g https://is.gd/4NsZ8H https://is.gd/EHCml9 https://is.gd/JQhppZ https://is.gd/3aXfPa https://is.gd/9h1enS https://is.gd/QWMcLJ https://is.gd/YGn1we https://is.gd/Xj2S2z https://is.gd/jGHq7W https://is.gd/iwUH9S https://is.gd/edqRz8 https://is.gd/Xi5XGJ https://is.gd/YuI7ck https://is.gd/1G0rc7 https://is.gd/WZHlnt https://is.gd/aj10zp https://is.gd/KrqOVO https://is.gd/WXUXEP https://is.gd/I7ylAO https://is.gd/z4M27b https://is.gd/TWiOY6 https://is.gd/onYIWi https://is.gd/BFPXWQ https://is.gd/Xuj41G https://is.gd/szm7Lt https://is.gd/pOkRKz https://is.gd/zG3BFE https://is.gd/cQRa7R https://is.gd/lVOnjB https://is.gd/jmxw2J https://is.gd/6JqHTn https://is.gd/GfozYA https://is.gd/LekCCw https://is.gd/VW01oW https://is.gd/eAuN7c https://is.gd/RfHPRx https://is.gd/756fE7 https://is.gd/n7AEJ4 https://is.gd/uXB2x4 https://is.gd/TQqeaJ https://is.gd/meD9Rq https://is.gd/8yFCBF https://is.gd/EX8hYc https://is.gd/6LBVrO https://is.gd/XnRMGO https://is.gd/lQj9bu https://is.gd/RaUhLO https://is.gd/zrZMEx https://is.gd/NpHxIa https://is.gd/0t0pJ4 https://is.gd/SOwhMx https://is.gd/otqXL0 https://is.gd/IRvziU https://is.gd/lpihzE https://is.gd/9aOJ5Q https://is.gd/kEwiKr https://is.gd/xx37y3 https://is.gd/x9dksA https://is.gd/ewvKB5 https://is.gd/uooXu6 https://is.gd/DzM5Aw https://is.gd/JuWJ4k https://is.gd/hL2xIU https://is.gd/hIPX7x https://is.gd/ZH2Kzi
More from Big Brother
Instagram is purging the posts on my account, which looks like they'll delete soon entirely. I noticed that they're picking posts I published months ago about Kamala Harris, which suggests that they're sweeping the internet of any criticism of her to whitewash her public image in preparation for her administration. They're erasing history in preparation for the powerful propaganda machinery of the banking class to make a terrorist like Kama Harris look presentable and acceptable to the masses. I've said it many times, and I'll say it again, the United States Government is the Nazi Fourth Reich. Let there be no doubts about it whatsoever. America is not a nation. It's a Nazi military empire. It's THE biggest and worst terrorist organization in the history of humanity. No other terrorist regime comes close to the Nazi American Empire. Not the Roman Empire, not the Chinese Empire, not the Egyptian Empire. And the brainless American sheeple continue to vote for the lesser of two evils to legitimize this terrorist organization by electing its leader. F*ck hope. There's no hope. #Instagram #KamalaHarris #VoteForNobody #VoteForNobody2020 #TheSystemIsRigged Sources: https://is.gd/J4oqjA https://is.gd/GDBW2y https://is.gd/HYnY1K
So the thugs and terrorists that the American sheeple call "politicans" gathered together to issue what they called "Covid Relief Bill" that includes more free money for the jews of Israel (of course), more bribery money for the politicians of foreign nations that'll NEVER reach their citizens, and an anti-online-streaming law that authorizes their pigs (cops in doublespeak) to kidnap you (arrest you) and force you into a rape cage (prison) for 10 f*ckin years! And what will the sheeple do about it? They'll line up in a few months to elect more thugs and criminals to lord over them, of course! What else would you expect the sheeple to do? We're talking about pathetic lifeless soulless animals who just follow orders and bend over on command. Even a donkey eventually understands what's right for him, but NEVER expect an order-following sheeple to figure out anything for their own good. They're hopeless. They've been completely and irreversibly brainwashed thanks to the years they spent in indoctrination centers (schools) and countless hours of exposure to corporate media's powerful propaganda machinery. Please don't waste a single moment of your time trying to talk some sense into the few cubic centimeters of brain cells inside their thick heads. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results, but the brainless shameless sheeple to continue to vote for the bank-owned politicians expecting different results. It does NOT matter if Clinton or Bush or Obama or Trump or Mickey Mouse is sitting at the White House, you idiots! America is a corporate oligarchy. It's the corporations that control this country, not the politicians. The politicians are just put there by the banking class to give the dumbed-down voters the illusion of choice. The system cannot be fixed by the system. THE SYSTEM IS THE PROBLEM. Please stop watching TV and grow a brain. Please research what central banks and fiatmoney are and discover the truth about money. Because it's the banks who control the world and puppeteer all governments and corporations. Revolt against the puppeteers, not the puppets. If you want the red pill, just research what the Federal Reserve is because once you figure it out, everything else becomes clear. 👉Watch these videos: https://is.gd/YVFRJp https://is.gd/Ymi7O7 https://is.gd/Fa0VTx https://is.gd/PD5KnU https://is.gd/Hyeyg5 https://is.gd/GupFnA https://is.gd/1lZZCs https://is.gd/bxEc4r https://is.gd/8nbHsD #CovidReliefBill #VoteForNobody #VoteForNobody2020 #TheSystemIsRigged #DontVoteRevolt Sources: https://is.gd/6lzdLJ https://is.gd/fFJltc https://is.gd/tVPJ2W https://is.gd/JnO1ar https://is.gd/NGlI2h https://is.gd/9KjujW https://is.gd/yovrtL https://is.gd/D4b7kC https://is.gd/Hqjw4a https://is.gd/m6YRO8 https://is.gd/brWFev https://is.gd/S0LcAK https://is.gd/bOdHe2 https://is.gd/sieko7 https://is.gd/wVKQEX https://is.gd/ZVfAja https://is.gd/ycIyPM https://is.gd/CaYG5p https://is.gd/NHPizw https://is.gd/mFkSsE https://is.gd/a04CRD https://is.gd/nsRLBN https://is.gd/EDWgzk https://is.gd/1Lkti9 https://is.gd/xN9f05 https://is.gd/6wavl0 https://is.gd/lA7GqV https://is.gd/tT2RU6 https://is.gd/nv311a https://is.gd/L2P18C https://is.gd/cyXLfO https://is.gd/sXcCkK https://is.gd/6H7VTZ https://is.gd/CEkbde https://is.gd/rI8jHJ https://is.gd/FCUbQN https://is.gd/gHWXqn https://is.gd/Zjafej https://is.gd/fAR1a5 https://is.gd/DFWtF0 https://is.gd/RHoy2g https://is.gd/4NsZ8H https://is.gd/EHCml9 https://is.gd/JQhppZ https://is.gd/3aXfPa https://is.gd/9h1enS https://is.gd/QWMcLJ https://is.gd/YGn1we https://is.gd/Xj2S2z https://is.gd/jGHq7W https://is.gd/iwUH9S https://is.gd/edqRz8 https://is.gd/Xi5XGJ https://is.gd/YuI7ck https://is.gd/1G0rc7 https://is.gd/WZHlnt https://is.gd/aj10zp https://is.gd/KrqOVO https://is.gd/WXUXEP https://is.gd/I7ylAO https://is.gd/z4M27b https://is.gd/TWiOY6 https://is.gd/onYIWi https://is.gd/BFPXWQ https://is.gd/Xuj41G https://is.gd/szm7Lt https://is.gd/pOkRKz https://is.gd/zG3BFE https://is.gd/cQRa7R https://is.gd/lVOnjB https://is.gd/jmxw2J https://is.gd/6JqHTn https://is.gd/GfozYA https://is.gd/LekCCw https://is.gd/VW01oW https://is.gd/eAuN7c https://is.gd/RfHPRx https://is.gd/756fE7 https://is.gd/n7AEJ4 https://is.gd/uXB2x4 https://is.gd/TQqeaJ https://is.gd/meD9Rq https://is.gd/8yFCBF https://is.gd/EX8hYc https://is.gd/6LBVrO https://is.gd/XnRMGO https://is.gd/lQj9bu https://is.gd/RaUhLO https://is.gd/zrZMEx https://is.gd/NpHxIa https://is.gd/0t0pJ4 https://is.gd/SOwhMx https://is.gd/otqXL0 https://is.gd/IRvziU https://is.gd/lpihzE https://is.gd/9aOJ5Q https://is.gd/kEwiKr https://is.gd/xx37y3 https://is.gd/x9dksA https://is.gd/ewvKB5 https://is.gd/uooXu6 https://is.gd/DzM5Aw https://is.gd/JuWJ4k https://is.gd/hL2xIU https://is.gd/hIPX7x https://is.gd/ZH2Kzi
All your life you've been brainwashed by corporate media and Big Pharma into believing that the life-giving sun is bad for you when, in fact, it's essential for your health and your immune system. Not only sunshine keeps you healthy, but it also makes the idea of a deadly global pandemic complete fiction because absolutely NO virus can spread and survive in the sun. Sunshine kills ALL viruses almost immediately. Yes, a deadly airborne pandemic is a pure fiction. While most beaches worldwide are shut down by fascists right now, it's still important to get as much sun as possible to stay healthy. But if you're using suntan lotions or oils, you're at risk of giving yourself skin cancer. You're more likely to get skin cancer from a suntan bottle than from the sun. Sunscreens have the active ingredients avobenzone, oxybenzone, octocrylene, and ecamsule that can be absorbed by the skin and disrupt hormone production in the body. Oxybenzone has been linked to DNA damage and abnormal skeleton growth due to endocrine disruption. Oxybenzone has also been linked to coral reef damage, which is why Hawaii banned suntan lotions to protect its coral reefs from further chemical damage. Research has found that just one drop of oxybenzone in six-and-a-half swimming pools of water is potent enough to cause bleaching, starvation, DNA damage, and reproductive problems in coral reefs. The UV-resistant chemical found in around 3,500 sun creams infects zooxanthellae (one of two algae central to the reef's survival) and thwarts the development of baby coral. The propaganda that the sun is terrible for you is no different from the propaganda that COVID19 is a deadly virus. Now you should be outside in the sun more than ever because it's been scientifically proven that sunshine kills all viruses almost immediately. Fresh air and sunlight are known historically to boost the immune system and destroy disease. Go outside! Get some sun! And never cover your skin with toxic chemicals, you idiots! #CancerInABottle #Suntan #Sunscreen #SuntanLotions #NoSunscreen Sources: https://is.gd/uz6HDO https://is.gd/gKqA3m https://is.gd/aCneEF https://is.gd/TUVdia https://is.gd/g8R0CA https://is.gd/2XVuVK https://is.gd/6Qz7Od

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


I made this little birdie on the Cricut using the Cherry Limeade Light cartridge.
I got the wood grain rub on at Big Lots. It's actually a 12x12 rub-on! I just cut it smaller to fit my card.
I love these little safety pins by Tim Holtz! Recently Joann's has started carrying more than just Distress Ink Pads from Tim Holtz.. they have a bunch of goodies!
I used Stickles on the beak, eye and feet.
On the cheek, wing and tail, I used Sepia Accents and added a pinch of white glitter.
I used the George and Basic Shapes cartridge to cut this little talking bubble. The font is from Fonts101.com and is called Monogram.
Great combination of elements! I love the bird and that background rub-on! Thanks so much for playing along in the Color Throwdown!
Very cute! Thanks for joining us for the Color Throwdown!


Utility-based power control in wireless networks has been widely recognized as an effective mechanism to managing co-channel interferences. It is based on the maximization of system utility subject to power constraints, which is referred to as power control optimization problem. Global coupling between the mutual interference of wireless channels increases the difficulty of searching global optimum significantly. In this paper, we decouple the optimization problems with concave and non-concave utility functions; and transform them into a global consensus problem by introducing locally slack variables. We then propose two distributed iterative optimization algorithms for the global consensus problems with concave and non-concave objective functions, respectively, based on an alternating direction method of multipliers. Furthermore, we prove that both algorithms converge to the global optimum of the total network utility. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the algorithms. Comparison experiments show that the developed algorithms compare favourably against some other well-known algorithms.
 Acknowledgment (funding): This work was supported in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 61072051 and No. 61202470), the key science and technology project of Wuhan (Grant No.2014010202010108) and Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (Grant No. 20110141120046).  This is the Author's Accepted Manuscript version, uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. Please note: this is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting galley proof before it is published in its final citable form. During the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.


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Working together to connect the world
Travel adapters ensure that people can power their devices anywhere in the world. Swiss manufacturer WorldConnect AG wanted to increase its delivery speed for these products and get closer to its customers, so the company partnered with DACHSER to reorganize its logistics.
The new DACHSER magazine is here!
Logistics often serves as a benchmark for assessing the state of the global economy. This is because international flows of goods are an early indicator of changes in global trade relations. At the same time, current geopolitical transformations can even reshape supply chains completely. That's one of the topics featured in the new DACHSER magazine.
DACHSER sets the course for air and sea freight
DACHSER is setting the course for future growth in its Air & Sea Logistics (ASL) business field through long-term succession planning.
DACHSER delivers giant crane for space mission
Back in September 2021, the DACHSER Air & Sea Logistics teams in Boston and Cologne had begun meticulously planning the transport of a colossal extra-long crane. The plan was to ship the crane together with its chassis from Germany to the United States so that it could then complete its journey by road. Its purpose: nothing less than to help build a space rocket in Houston. But then all the careful planning had to be thrown overboard.
Logistics is a hive of innovation, with solutions now becoming part of day-to-day work more and more quickly. These include alternative powertrains, a wide range of digital applications, the clever use of data, and new, autonomous helpers in transit terminals and warehouses.
DACHSER delivers to Munich's city centre with zero emissions
DACHSER Emission-Free Delivery is being launched in the Bavarian capital. In a defined inner-city area, the logistics provider is now delivering all parcel and general cargo deliveries with zero emissions. FUSO eCanter electric trucks are being used for this purpose.
Courage and confidence are always good companions, and at the moment they are more important than ever—there seems to be no end to the challenges and crises. Amid all the uncertainty, we at DACHSER take matters into our own hands in order to get the best for our customers. The stories in the new DACHSER magazine make this clear.
DACHSER appoints Jesper Larsen to lead South East Asia
Larsen has assumed the role of Managing Director Air & Sea Logistics South East Asia effective April 1, 2022. Based in Bangkok, he is responsible for 220 employees in eight locations across Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand. He reports to Roman Mueller, Deputy Director Air & Sea Logistics Asia Pacific.
DACHSER revenue exceeds EUR 7 billion for the first time
2021 was an exceptional year: Increases in volume and high freight rates generated record growth; 78.3 percent jump in air and sea freight
The economy, logistics, and people all over the world—no matter where you look, we're all still trying to find our way through very uncertain times. We have yet to tame the coronavirus, as the massive outbreak in the international trade hub of Hong Kong recently made clear. Meanwhile, the world is staring with disbelief at what's happening in the heart of Europe. The terrible war in Ukraine is causing huge numbers of people to flee their homes.
DACHSER update on the Russia-Ukraine conflict
DACHSER is following the news from Ukraine with great concern and dismay. We are deeply moved by the suffering that the war has brought to the people in the country and to all those who have had to flee their homeland in recent days. The fighting, mutual sanctions and airspace closures are also having a massive impact on supply chains and the supply of goods in the region.
DACHSER puts series-production eActros into operation
The logistics service provider sees a broad field of application for the fully electric 19-ton truck and is already planning further vehicles as part of its climate protection strategy.
DACHSER maintains strong position in European Top 100 Ranking
In the new "TOP 100 in European Transport and Logistics Services 2021/2022" study by the Fraunhofer Center for Applied Research on Supply Chain Services (SCS), DACHSER has once again ranked well in its relevant logistics segments.
The new DACHSER magazine is here
"Nothing is more constant than change"—wise words that seem to be everywhere at the moment. As the world turns faster and faster, the pace of innovation and the pressure to change are increasing in logistics as well. In the latest issue of the DACHSER magazine, we report on what our company and our customers are doing to address pressing problems of the future.
DACHSER switches completely to green electricity
The logistics provider obtains 100 percent of its electricity worldwide from renewable sources; it will quadruple the amount of green electricity it generates itself using photovoltaic systems.
From Poland to Haifa – Steel colossus for the Mediterranean
The new container bridges for the Port of Haifa made their way from Poland through Hamburg and on to the Mediterranean Sea. DACHSER Air & Sea Logistics took on the job of transporting these disassembled ship-to-shore container bridges, consolidating various parts from suppliers all over Europe—a project of epic proportions.
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On human nature
Arguments I see time and time again against left-wing politics include "human nature will get in the way" or "it ignores human nature". Recently I've even seen this argument trotted out by people on the left, that any future system must "take human nature into account". It's fairly clear what is meant here without asking too many questions. Human beings are selfish. Human beings only work in their own self-interest and that this is natural. But I believe this to be wrong. This blog post will hopefully explain why.
Submitted by AnarchoDoom on October 21, 2012
I wrote this about a year ago following a conversation on Twitter. I'm reposting it here largely to get some more input on whether/how this analysis is right or wrong, so comments are welcome.
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The complexity of this subject has seemingly always been acknowledged but the approaches of philosophers, scientists and economists have varied widely over the centuries. The ancient Greek approach held that destiny played a large role in human nature as every human was thought to be in some small way divine.
As time went on, this metaphysical view of human nature fell out of vogue and philosophers began to rely more on observation of human tendencies. Thomas Hobbes had a particularly pessimistic view of human nature as fundamentally violent. Following this, Rousseau held that there was no predestination involved in human nature. He believed that morality was a natural possession of human beings and that the construction of institutions, language and concepts such as justice are a necessary development from this, and that further to this, the importance of government and commerce had undermined liberty.
Later, following general acceptance of Darwin's ideas on evolution and natural selection, an idea built up of nature in general being a brutal and violent struggle pitting individual against individual in a battle for survival. The complexity of Darwin's idea was frequently and erroneously boiled down into soundbites like Darwin's unfortunate yet metaphorical "Survival of the fittest" and (retrospectively) Tennyson's "Nature, red in tooth and claw". Inevitably this was applied to the economic, social and political ideas of the day. Indeed, this narrow view of evolution seemed to reaffirm the class divisions and economic inequalities of Victorian society. A society divided by class and deeply uneven in economic terms suddenly had a basis in reason, a scientific justification.
Darwin himself knew, of course, that this was a gross oversimplification and had anticipated such misunderstandings by pointing out in The Origin of Species that his phrase "Survival of the fittest" was more metaphor than an attempt to distil evolution into an easily digestible soundbite.
The use of these ideas by the establishment to justify the status quo could almost be seen as harking back to the time of the ancient Greeks. While the Greeks used the idea of metaphysical predestination to justify the status quo of land-owning citizens and a labouring class of non-citizen slaves, the post Industrial Revolution capitalist societies used the idea of a kind of scientific predestination in the same way.
In the mid-twentieth century, game theory began to be used in the study of human nature and the initial studies in this direction would have consequences reaching into the 21st century. Mathematicians working at the RAND corporation tasked with developing US Cold War strategy began to apply their ideas in game theory more generally and in idea of human beings as isolated, paranoid and self-interested individuals began to be built up. Not only that, but an idea developed that human beings acting in their isolated self-interest would bring about a stable society, and the mathematician John Nash actually won a Nobel Prize for demonstrating this mathematically.
The key to this was that the ground rules set down in the games developed at RAND must be followed – that is, participants must act selfishly and always attempt to outwit other players. But when these ideas were tested on real people at RAND, the mathematicians found that in reality, people always chose to cooperate rather than betray other participants.
The particular game developed at RAND to demonstrate this concept was called the Prisoner's Dilemma, and the game can be outlined as follows:
"In the Prisoner's Dilemma two players act as prisoners who have been jointly charged of a crime (which they did commit) but questioned separately. The police only have enough evidence to be sure of a conviction for a minor offence, but not enough for the more serious crime.
The prisoners made a pact that if they were caught they would not confess or turn witness on each other. If both prisoners hold true to their word they will only be convicted of the lesser offence. But the dilemma occurs when the police offer each prisoner a reduced prison term if they confess to the serious offence and give evidence against the other prisoner.
This sounds like a good deal, confess and you get the minimum possible term in jail - although your partner will get the maximum. But then you realise that if both you and your partner confess then both will be given the maximum term in prison. So the dilemma is whether you trust your partner to keep quiet - and if you do, should you 'stitch them up' to get out of jail quicker?"
The game, and Nash's application of it to human behaviour, chimed perfectly with the paranoia of the time, at the height of the Cold War, and with Nash's own paranoid world view as, at the time, Nash was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.
These ideas eventually filtered into the consciousness of right-wing economists and politicians, culminating in modern neoliberal economic thought, Thatcherism and extreme individualistic capitalism. Cooperation and altruism were held to be myths and every person thought to be working purely in their own self-interest.
But parallel to this, certain biologists had begun to study what they considered a neglected and poorly understood aspect of evolution. Biologists knew that, contrary to the received wisdom, the story of evolution was not exclusively one of brutality, violence and death. They knew that along with the competitive aspects, there was also an aspect of cooperation and altruism, and some biologists set out to try to explain this in evolutionary terms.
Blazing a trail in the early 1970s was American evolutionary biologist Robert Trivers, who proposed theories on reciprocal altruism and parental investment. Reciprocal altruism can be framed as follows:
"…a behaviour whereby an organism acts in a manner that temporarily reduces its fitness while increasing another organism's fitness, with the expectation that the other organism will act in a similar manner at a later time."
Examples of reciprocal altruism in nature include vampire bats, which will occasionally regurgitate blood to feed each other, dolphins, which occasionally come to the aid of struggling humans and other animals, and, in particular, chimpanzees have been shown, in studies at the Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, to act altruistically towards even genetically unrelated individuals. According to Felix Warneken at the Institute:
"Chimpanzees and such young infants both show that some level of altruism may be innate and not just a factor of education. People say we become altruistic because our parents teach us so, but that young children are originally selfish. This suggests maybe culture is not the only source of altruism."
And we know from our own experience that human beings cooperate all the time in a wide range of endeavours and also often perform extremely selfless acts for the greater good of the group, or other individuals. We see cooperation all around us, from trade unions to workplaces to units in an army during times of war. All of these activities require cooperation and individual sacrifice for others.
As laid out by Peter J. Richerson, Robert T. Boyd and Joseph Henrich in a study entitled Cultural Evolution of Human Cooperation, evidence of human cooperation is "extensive and diverse". They cite studies of Prisoner's Dilemma games which shows that "humans are prone to cooperate even with strangers", and they "often vote altruistically", but that cooperation could be dependent on other factors and that institutions play a large role in human behaviour.
It may seem obvious, but, as Richerson et al put it, "people from different societies behave differently because their beliefs, skills, mental models, values, preferences and habits have been inculcated by long participation in societies with different institutions". This manifested during repeated play of the Prisoner's Dilemma game, a rapid breakdown in trust and consensus.
In Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan's book Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors: A Search For Who We Are, an experiment is relayed in which "macaques were fed if they were willing to pull a chain and electrically shock an unrelated macaque whose agony was in plain view through a one-way mirror. Otherwise they starved. After learning the ropes, the monkeys frequently refused to pull the chain; in one experiment only 13% would do so – 87% preferred to starve… Macaques who had themselves been shocked in previous experiments were even less willing to pull the chain".
In the study The Evolution of Cooperation by Robert Axelrod and William D. Hamilton, it is acknowledged that cooperation is a common intra- and inter-species phenomenon. Building on Robert Trivers' theories, Axelrod and Hamilton used the Prisoner's Dilemma game to suggest a possible mechanism for the evolution of cooperation. The tit-for-tat mechanism which had great success during these experiments is quite comparable to Trivers' idea of reciprocal altruism. Indeed, the conclusion of the study states that:
"Darwin's emphasis on individual advantage has been formalized in terms of game theory. This establishes conditions under which cooperation based on reciprocity can evolve."
In some situations it seems clear that people will cooperate and in some they will act in their own isolated self-interest. Of course, there are numerous variables which will affect this, in addition to the situation. Personalities, values and beliefs, among other things, will all play a part. But in relation to the more general situation, could the political and economic status quo of the day play a part?
There seems to be no question about this. Media and government have always been hugely influential. The influence of the experiments at RAND mentioned earlier is still being felt. The paranoid world view embodied in these experiments has sat at the heart of western capitalist institutions for several decades, especially so in 1980s Britain and America and also, even more tragically, in Pinochet's Chile. Yet despite this, people have continued to cooperate in many circumstances despite encouragement, sometimes forceful and violent, to behave otherwise.
As mentioned earlier in relation to the P.J Richerson et al study Cultural Evolution of Human Cooperation, "Institutions matter". There are implications for human cooperation which depend on the institutions under which the behaviour occurs. Politics, media and social norms will influence individual behaviour to a greater or lesser extent. And as we note the general tone of self-interested individualism presented to us by politicians and the media today, it can be no coincidence that this view of humanity has filtered into everyday thought. Where institutions themselves come from is a complex subject which has only comparatively recently come to be understood, but societies and communities probably began to develop early in the evolution of human beings as a consequence of the development of the human brain.
As the human brain began to get larger, human females in response had to give birth earlier and earlier in the development of the child since as the brain got larger, the more difficult the childbirth became. This in turn meant that human babies were born helpless and remained so for a relatively long time (a number of years). Human babies were also born without a large amount of instinctive knowledge and behaviour and thus had to be taught by earlier generations. Extended family units remained together for this purpose and as the amount and type of knowledge required changed down the generations, societies and communities built up to meet this need.
A general history of human institutions throughout the centuries is not the aim of this blog post. Different people in different places have come up with different solutions to challenges they have faced. But obviously, as we see all over the world today, institutions also have the potential to oppress a majority and work in the interests of a minority of individuals. As an example, capitalism has seized on Darwin's ideas and bent them to its own ends, with Social Darwinism as the result. Later, the ideas of the mathematicians at RAND were also used to strengthen the grip of capitalism and to try to cement in the human consciousness the ideas of all-against-all individual self-interest on which capitalism thrives. Capitalism requires division, greed and inequality in order to exist and the ideas which came out of RAND to influence neoliberal thought provided what appeared to be a reasoned mathematical basis for these ideas, even though the models relied on initial assumptions which proved to be untrue.
Opposition to these ideas has taken many forms, from changing the state to better manage capitalism, to the abolition of capitalism and the establishment of a workers' state, to the abolition of both capitalism and the state, and it is against these ideas that the human nature argument is brought to bear. The argument is thought to be simple and self-evident but relies on a mixture of erroneous assumptions and institutional propaganda. Capital has long used a mixture of these arguments and coercion by law and state violence to reinforce the status quo and to suppress opposition in all its forms. Yet human beings, while generally living under its yoke, continue to defy such coercive violence all over the world. Why should this be?
Peter Kropotkin argued in Mutual Aid that the natural tendency of human beings, far from being combat, opposition and violence, is one of cooperation and mutual aid and that mutual aid is the chief criterion of evolutionary success. Kropotkin may have overstated his case somewhat, but he was certainly onto something. Stephen Jay Gould points out that Kropotkin and other Russian intellectuals' views about Darwin's ideas and their generally Malthusian tone was coloured somewhat by the differences in culture and their experiences in Russia, in contrast to Darwin and Alfred Russell Wallace's life experience in an imperial, industrial and strongly capitalist Britain.
Since this time, we have seen the ideas of altruism and cooperation studied in more detail in evolutionary terms and have found that humans, primates and many less cerebrally complex forms cooperate extensively, with both related and unrelated individuals and that humans and primates also have a biological predisposition towards altruism and even heroism.
It would seem that this innate tendency is not exclusively a product of culture, but culture and experience is able to build on, develop and change the nature and frequency of display of these tendencies. So the question should not really be "How can we make this or that idea work with human nature?" but "How can human nature help us make these ideas work?" or "What aspect of human nature do we feel we should encourage?"
The ideals of capitalism have been responsible for a great deal of human suffering. Concentration of wealth and property, exploitation of labour, the use of land for profit, the suppression of opposition by violence, the exploitation of democracy, control of information, the enormous gap between rich and poor, and surpluses of food and medicine for the rich while millions of the poorest die of malnutrition and disease. However, attempts to oppose this system using the state have also led to oppression, poverty, injustice and violence– all of the crimes of which capital is guilty. Such regimes have proven to be twisted caricatures of the ideals of the left, however well-meaning their creators were originally.
So, if capitalist and communist regimes inevitably lead to oppression, then how can both be opposed? What can the solution be? Both types of regime require the control of the majority by a minority. Both require strict rule of law and coercion by violence to run. Both, at their heart, serve the interests of an elite against that of the masses, and so both need to use ideas of paranoia, suspicion and, ultimately, violent suppression to achieve their goals. So the reasons that paranoia, suspicion and violence are needed must be removed. Power and control by an elite must be replaced with true direct democracy in which every person can participate and in which every person can have a stake. The tyranny of capital must be removed; nobody's labour should be exploited by anybody else for their gain. No more must wealth be concentrated in the hands of the few. Wealth must belong to all.
Human beings have the capacity both for individual self-interest and for cooperation, altruism and heroism. It is culture, education and the situation in which they live which determines which aspects of human nature will manifest themselves. Society itself and the institutions within it are hugely influential in this. Cooperation, altruism and heroism must be valued above individual self-interest. By creating a society where this is so, we can remove the distinction between cooperation and altruism, and self-interest, and make true cooperation between everybody in the interest of all.
References and further reading/watching:
· Adam Curtis – The Trap: What Happened to Our Dream of Freedom? (2007) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAE-xqFr0iQ
· Open University Reith Lectures 2002 page on the Prisoner's Dilemma as proposed by John Nash http://www.open2.net/trust/dilemma/dilemma1.htm
· Robert Trivers - The Evolution of Reciprocal Altruism (1971) http://pages.towson.edu/jpomy/behavioralecon/Trivers71.pdf
· Livescience.com article on cooperation and altruism among chimpanzees http://www.livescience.com/4515-selfless-chimps-shed-light-evolution-altruism.html
· P.J Richerson et al – Cultural Evolution of Human Cooperation (2003) http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/anthro/faculty/boyd/RichersonBoydHenrich%20Dahlem%2002.pdf
· R. Axelrod and W.D. Hamilton – The Evolution of Cooperation http://www-personal.umich.edu/~axe/research/Axelrod%20and%20Hamilton%20EC%201981.pdf
· Carl Sagan & Ann Druyan – Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors: The Search For Who We Are (1992)
· Michael Crichton – The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1996)
· Peter Kropotkin – Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution (1902) http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/kropotkin-peter/1902/mutual-aid/ch07.htm
· Stephen Jay Gould – Kropotkin Was No Crackpot (1997) http://marxists.org/subject/science/essays/kropotkin.htm
· Wikipedia page on Anarchist Communism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarchist_communism
Ken Knabb wrote some good stuff about this topic under the subheading 'some common objections' in the first chapter of his book The Joy of Revolution.
tastybrain
Great post, AnarchoDoom. I pretty much agree with all of it. Franz De Waal's recent book The Age of Empathy is relevant to this topic, I think. He presented it at my school and made some really interesting points.
Yes, very good article. What worries me most about the damage being done to our inherent urges to co-operate now is the anti-conditioning of our tiny children - 'childcare' as a project of capitalism is very frightening. It is becoming normal for families to pass the responsibility for looking after babies and toddlers to professionals, just to be able to earn a living and pay the rent. However well-meaning these professionals are, and some are doing a great job, the early years are a crucial time for the forming of our minds. We are being denied the framework for nurturing developmental relationships with our own children.
As someone who has worked in Belfast, Dublin, New York, Edinburgh and London - and employed people from Sweden, Nigeria, China and Poland, I can confirm that in my experience people are the same wherever you go. You could argue that I may have a wide geographic perspective, yet a limited temporal one, but I look at the experience of Jewish people: persecuted 2,000 years ago (Romans); persecuted 1,000 years ago (in York, England, hundreds were chased into a building and it was set on fire); and persecuted tens of years ago(Europe).
In my 44 years, I've learnt life is about balance. Things you can choose should be market based, things over which you have no (or limited) choice should be state provided.
As a landlord in 'middle England' (OK Midlands) I visited various village pubs and there weas generally alwasy the same MIXTURE of local characters. You had the cocky one, the clever one, the old uneducated-yet-worldly-wise one, the funny one/clown, the silent hard man and the mouthy idiot. OK there were slight variations, but there was never one pub that had ALL OF THE SAME type. Look at Kings and Queens and Emperors and dictators, the same TYPES show up. Myers Briggs probably got closest.
Most people are easily led, otherwise how could you explain 1 billion Christians believing Christ was son of God, a billion Muslims believing he wasn't. There you go, if ONE of those religions are correct, a billion people have been led to believe a lie, not to mention the Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, et al.
The best we can probably wish for is relatively benevolent leaders, as the vast majority of humans evidently require to be led.
No doubt there will be further Stalins, Hitlers,Pinochets, Genghis Khans, Pol Pots, etc., but for the moment, we in the UK seemed to be happy with a mixture of private/public organisations (ok, the right are now taking us down the route of the good old US of A, but let's hope people see sense).
One thing I will end with - empirical evidence that (to me) wipes the floor with chimpanzees: look at Cuba and Haiti, left and right respectively. Earthquake left hundreds of thousands of Haitians homeless and what help did their country give them? The landowners didn't even want camps on their land. If that's what right wing ideology leads to, give me a starving macaque to control my destiny tha a right wing member of my species any day.
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This smart, compact aft cockpit cruiser is ideal for a couple and is incredibly easy to handle. With the fold down canopy over the steering position you can take advantage of the sunshine whilst cruising or dine alfresco on the sun deck. Featuring a full size hob, oven and refrigerator.


Cannon is a Big Brother and Welcome, Baby Chord!
I love to see just how sweet little guys can be with even littler guys.
When I walked into Chord's nursery, I recognized many things that used to belong to Cannon when he was a baby and that he was willing to share. Its more than just practical, its very sweet to see these items in a new context, in a new light, around this new family.
Cannon was born four weeks early and spent almost his first full month in the NICU. I remember the conversations with Jill during that time: how difficult it was to establish bonding routines and how hopes to come home always seemed crushed by a minor set back. All she wanted was that baby boy in her arms: for good. Thankfully her pregnancy with Chord was better monitored and better altogether: she carried him to term and was able to bring him home from the hospital within a normal timeframe. I'm not sure if you can see the stillness and peace in Jill and Todd that I do, the sheer fulfillment that home and togetherness, a simple joy so easily taken for granted, can bring in those first precious weeks with a new life. I was so honored to be invited into this space and time. The house wasn't exactly quiet during my visit but no matter how frequently the two are lumped together, peace and quiet aren't the same thing.
Here's a slideshow from our day as well as the gallery. Congrats Jill, Todd and especially to you, Cannon. You are the only child in my life who answers me with, "Yes, Ma'am" and for that I want to tousle those polite, curly-blonde locks of yours. Silly boy, its "Yes, Miss!" I'm so glad your best friend, as you will come to know him, has finally arrived.
Next Post Alannah is a Big Sister and Welcome, Baby Fiona!


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Performers of the Week: Luke Cage's Mike Colter and Rosario Dawson
By Team TVLine / June 23 2018, 7:05 AM PDT
THE PERFORMERS | Mike Colter and Rosario Dawson
THE SHOW | Marvel's Luke Cage
THE EPISODE | "Episode 3: Wig Out" (June 22, 2018)
THE PERFORMANCE | Luke Cage may be indestructible, but words sure as hell can take their toll, as Colter and Dawson demonstrated during a pivotal, verbal clash in Episode 3 of the new season.
After almost pummeling to death an adversary (and nearly landing back in Seagate as a result), Luke's brewing brutality came to the fore. Having until now played Harlem's Hero as calm and collected, Colter copped a new intensity as Luke barked at his girlfriend, "You can't castrate me!" by trying to keep him in check. "I'm finally getting results. S—t's gettin' done. I'm rough, but I'm still a hero."
Dawson's Claire stood her ground throughout the heated exchange, countering, "This s—t is changing you. You're scaring people. You're scaring me." Luke shrugged, "I'm a black man in a hood; people have always been afraid of me." But Claire wasn't here for a lecture on racism. "Soy Afrocubana," she said, reminding him of her complicated roots. "I didn't need to leave the house to feel racism. But you rise above the labels."
Puffing his chest literally and figuratively, Luke trumpeted, "I'm a man, full-fledged. My anger is real." And if he needs to wield extreme force and fury to keep Harlem safe, "so be it." He then told Claire, "If you're down with me, you have to be down with all of me."
Things then got particularly real, when Claire brought up Luke's newly present father and, worse, shared that she had spoken to him earlier that day. "He'd be ashamed of you," she offered. "You've become the ogre—" Luke cut her off with a bellowed "Enough!" followed his fist perforating her apartment wall. Dawson got quiet as her hands formed a wall around her face, an anxious sweat sheening her.
"That hole you just put in my wall…. That was my childhood. And I said I would never put myself through that again, I would never live with anger again," she stated. And right now, Claire indeed won't, so she sketched out a plan to visit family in Cuba and sent an emotionally bruised Luke packing. A bit later, Luke would get his ass handed to him by Bushmaster, but this powerful scene made clear that losing Claire hurt even more.
HONORABLE MENTION | Hank Azaria's quiet, reflective performance in Brockmire's Season 2 finale represented his best work on the series to date. Of particular note: The scene where Jim decides to get sober. As Azaria's titular character gazed at the woman who almost convinced him to take his own life, a deep sense of sadness washed over his face as he realized he never wanted to feel that alone again. This came seconds after he launched into a wildly inappropriate, MDMA-fueled dance in the ER, and was followed by a stint in rehab where he found it damn near impossible to fight back happy tears. Suffice it to say, watching Azaria work through Jim's uphill battle was nothing short of brilliant.
HONORABLE MENTION | A long-ticking time bomb finally exploded this week on Younger — Charles told Liza! — but it wouldn't have had nearly the impact it did without Peter Hermann's admirably layered portrayal of Charles' heartbreak. Knowing that Liza has been lying about her age, Charles has been stewing in a potent mix of anger and hurt, and we saw that bubble up when he snapped at Liza: "I assume the lying was your idea." When the beans were finally spilled, Hermann conveyed Charles' deep sense of betrayal, his face tightening into almost a defensive crouch. But the conflicted look in Hermann's eye hinted that Charles still has lingering feelings for Liza… and that's why this hurts so much. Charles has always been Younger's stoic rock, so bravo to Hermann for letting us see him crumble a bit for once.
Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in Comments!
TAGS: Brockmire, Hank Azaria, Marvel's Luke Cage, Mike Colter, Peter Hermann, Rosario Dawson, Younger
GET MORE: Performer of the Week


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Flint: VW's Sinking Ship?
Jerry Flint Editor
2006 Volkswagen Golf GTI by Conor Twomey (2/26/2006)
Recapturing enough essence.
VW Turns To GTI For Juice by Jim Burt (2/26/2006)
Company pins GTI hopes on a curious new icon.
I've always had a soft spot for Volkswagen. I was a soldier in the occupation army inGermany as VW rebuilt itself. They brought out the lovely VW Karmann Ghia when I was there — it cost $1850 — and I dreamed of bringing the first back to America. Alas, I ran short of money.
I was on the job when VW started in the U.S. and watched with admiration its amazing growth and brilliant leadership.
And I was one of the cheering crowd when the New Beetle came out. For a moment VW was on the way back.
But they are in the dumps again. VW has been losing $1 billion a year in America. Sales last year were down to 224,000 VW models from 256,000 the previous year. What's wrong?
What made me think of all this is VW's new advertising campaign. According to the New York Times there will be a leggy blonde bimbo — Helga — in the skintight dress in the ads and phony German slogans like "Fast as Schnell" and a new slogan, "Make friends with your fast."
Shades of Fahrvergnugen.
Bimbo attack redux?
Whatever you think of this, it won't help. Now, I have nothing against leggy blondes, although I don't think they sell cars. It's that VW's problems go deeper.
It isn't the leadership of VW of America in Detroit . Through the years they've been sharp and knowledgeable.
The problem has been in Germany where they've refused to pay attention to their people over here or give Americans what we want.
Three problems still exist:
1. VW has stayed out of the largest part of the American market: pickups, minivans, and SUVs. They did bring out one SUV, the expensive Touareg, $40,000 or so, instead of creating a $20,000 model which is what we want from Volkswagen as well as where the market has been growing.
2. The quality level of the cars, particularly the New Beetle, was terrible. Owners who loved their car gave up because they couldn't take the repeat trips to the dealer. Possibly the quality has gone up, but when you've got that bad reputation, it sticks. It takes a huge warranty to win customers back — Hyundai's ten-year warranty did it — and VW isn't doing that.
3. And last, the inability to sell the Golf in America. The Golf is one of the world's best-selling cars, but a dog in America. VW could only sell 16,000 last year and only 25,000 the year before despite diesel engines and the speedy GTI models.
Problems need solving
Until these problems are solved, VW will continue to sink.
Start with the failure to come up with trucks. They designed a beautiful minivan but said they couldn't figure out how to build it at a reasonable price. They should have figured out how to do it. Now they've made a deal to buy minivans from Chrysler, which will put on some VW touches. Okay, it's a start. Ten years late, but a start. The problem is that if we want a Chrysler minivan, why not buy it from Chrysler?
On SUVs, sales of that expensive Touareg are tanking: 18,000 last year, down from 28,000 the year before. There's supposed to be a low-priced SUV coming, but again, too little and too late. They could have had a small SUV years ago.
Pickups? They actually showed a concept pickup a few years ago. It makes me think of Honda's Ridgeline. The difference is Honda built it and VW didn't.
Why did VW ignore the great trends in America? VW's German management was only interested in moving upscale: Phaeton, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Bentley. You can't blame the now-retired chief executive, Ferdinand Piech, for wanting to fly high where to money is, but he should have never forgotten where his main market is, and that is just what he did in America.
Tips for the volk
Will things get better? It's difficult to see any quick changes, bimbo blonde ads or not. The new models mentioned will help but how much is still a guess. What surprises me is how unimaginative VW has been in coming up with models for the American market. They haven't had a good idea for this market since the New Beetle.
Since they can't do it, here are some suggestions:
A new small SUV, built in Mexico off the Golf platform, shaped to resemble the old VW "Thing," which was modeled off the old wartime VW vehicle. It would look like a baby HUMMER.
Four doors for the New Beetle. The two doors are a pain and NB sales are sinking — only 36,000 last year. More doors could help.
As for the Golf, that may just be a lost cause. The car is quite expensive for its size, but even when the currency situation was reversed — when the Euro cheap and German exports here had an advantage — it didn't sell.
I think the Golf just looks dated to Americans. Worse, it looks like a $12,000 cheapie that sells for $18,000 and the Koreans are mopping up that cheapie market now. I think the best hope for VW is to build models designed for America, as Toyota does.
Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe the lineup and new ads will turn the business round. But I wouldn't bet on it.
Cheap Detroit Expensive Fast Good May News
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2022 Ford F-150 Lightning vs. 2024 Chevy Silverado EV: Compare Electric Trucks


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Q: Insert rows into excel range via formulae I have the following range in column A :
01-Mar-12
01-Apr-12
01-May-12
01-Jun-12
01-Jul-12
01-Aug-12
01-Sep-12
01-Oct-12
01-Nov-12
01-Dec-12
01-Jan-13
01-Feb-13
01-Mar-13
01-Apr-13
01-May-13
01-Jun-13
01-Jul-13
01-Aug-13
01-Sep-13

In column B, I would like the same list of dates ( i.e. March 12 -> Sep 13), but I would like every August to be duplicated:
01-Mar-12
01-Apr-12
01-May-12
01-Jun-12
01-Jul-12
01-Aug-12
01-Aug-12
01-Sep-12
01-Oct-12
01-Nov-12
01-Dec-12
01-Jan-13
01-Feb-13
01-Mar-13
01-Apr-13
01-May-13
01-Jun-13
01-Jul-13
01-Aug-13
01-Aug-13
01-Sep-13

I can add as many columns in between as I like, but it must be done with formulae.
I'm having a little trouble figuring this out - any help would be much appreciated.

A: A formula is not capable of inserting rows.
Copy ColumnA to ColumnB, insert a cell and shift down immediately under each Aug and in the blanks created enter:
=R[-1]C

A: This formula works, assuming the values in column A are unique. Paste the formula into cell B3.
=IF(AND(MONTH(B2)=8,MONTH(B1)<>8),B2,INDEX(A:A,MATCH(B2,A:A,0)+1))

The current formula assumes that B1 and B2 are part of the list in column B. You'll have to manually fill in the values for B1 and B2 unless you change the formula a little.
What the formula does:

*

*If B2 is August and B1 is not, then B3 copies the value of B2.

*Otherwise B3 is the date in Column A found under the date B2.

You can then copy the formula into the remaining cells below B3.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Haley: '2021 Is the Year Socialism Took Control' in America
Likely 2024 GOP candidate slams Republican Party for giving in to socialist agenda
Adam Kredo • November 3, 2021 11:00 am
Nikki Haley, former Trump administration ambassador to the United Nations and a likely 2024 Republican presidential candidate, criticized her own party on Wednesday for allowing America to be taken over by far-left socialists.
"Last year, I said 2020 was the year socialism went mainstream. 2021 is the year socialism took control," Haley said in a speech at the Heritage Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based think-tank. "The left is tearing down the American people. Yet too many on the right are rolling over, when we should be fighting back."
Out-of-control spending by Democrats who seek to create a "cradle-to-grave" welfare state endangers American capitalism and will significantly increase taxes on the middle class, Haley said in a speech that could lay the groundwork for a Republican run at the White House in 2024.
"Democrats are on the verge of creating the first cradle-to-grave welfare state in American history. They're creating a country where dependency is the default. It's a guaranteed recipe for national decline," Haley said. "Working middle class families will pay once in higher taxes, twice through lower wages, and three times when the bill comes due for the trillions of dollars that Democrats are adding to the national debt."
Haley blamed Republicans in Congress and the conservative movement at large for allowing socialism to rise as an alternative to American capitalism and economic freedom.
"It pains me to see some of our friends turning their backs on our principles," Haley said. "You know what I'm talking about. The conservatives who claim capitalism no longer works. They conclude that economic freedom fails families and hurts workers. So they're trying to create a hybrid capitalism—a hyphenated capitalism. It's all a sham."
Socialism, she added, "isn't progressive. It's backwards. And it has no place in America—not now, not ever."
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If you need computer repair in Bradenton, Florida, you probably think waiting for a local shop is your only option. Did you know, however, that remote computer repair can help you solve your issue? And that it's often faster and less expensive than in-person computer support?
Today, services like virus removal, tune-ups, and troubleshooting can all be provided remotely. This makes it much easier to enjoy a functional computer, without the hassle of dropping your computer at a computer repair shop.
If the first contact you have with a computer support professional makes you feel rushed or disrespected, look elsewhere. Computers can be difficult to troubleshoot on your own, and you deserve to feel safe and respected when you take the step to hire a professional.
With this in mind, find a remote computer repair technician who demonstrates that they care about your problem. In addition to assuring quality service, this helps you build a relationship with the professional.
Hiring a computer technician who has experience working in a physical location can help with this. In addition to keeping the specialist fresh, in-person experience contributes to better customer service skills and experience in all facets of computer support.
One of the biggest benefits of remote computer repair is that it can be faster than taking your computer to a local shop. Because of this, it's critical to find a remote computer repair specialist who can commit to resolving your problem rapidly.
Don't be afraid to ask the remote computer repair team how long it takes them to fix common computer glitches. You can also ask whether they're anticipating any holdups or difficulties during the process. In addition to helping you understand what you can expect from your service, this will also clarify expectations and let you know when you will be able to use your computer again.
With a remote computer repair, you don't have the benefit of being able to meet and interview your support technician in person. For some people, this can make it harder to determine who is a good computer repair specialist, and who might not be. Fortunately, it's easy to weed out the pros from the amateurs by looking at reviews.
Ideally, the remote computer support specialist you choose should have a demonstrable history of good reviews and satisfied customers. This will help you determine the professional's skill level, while also allowing you to learn what previous customers loved about the professional or team.
Custom projects can be challenging to orchestrate remotely. Despite this, though, a good computer repair tech will understand that custom service packages are critical for customers.
With a custom support package, you won't have to wonder whether your needs fall under the umbrella of the professional's services. For example, you can call your support person for help with software updates rather than virus removal only.
This makes it easier to get what you need from computer repair. It also enhances the likelihood that you'll be satisfied with the experience.
Today, most people are unfamiliar with remote computer repair in Bradenton, Florida. Despite that, however, it's an excellent choice for anyone who wants to resolve their computer repair issues more efficiently. As effective and efficient as in-person computer repair, remote computer repair is fast, efficient, and accessible for everyone.


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How Therese helps prevent diseases in Congo
© Diana Zeyneb Alhindawi/Oxfam
Therese lives in the Kalunga refugee camp with her 9 children aged from 7 to 17 years. Together with Oxfam, she helps preventing diseases in the camp. The new Ebola outbreak in Congo shows that her work is more vital than ever.
Ebola is all too familiar in Congo, as it is not the first time that the deadly virus has occurred in the country. For the time being, the new outbreak is limited to a few regions and can therefore be closely monitored.
Ebola on top of famine and violence
But the Ebola virus poses an additional threat to communities that were already vulnerable, such as refugees. Violence in Congo has been going on for some time now: between the Bantu and Twa population groups, and between armed groups in the province of Tanganyika in south-east Congo. More than 654,000 people have had to flee their homes. The food shortage is increasing, putting thousands of families at risk.
Therese is one of the people who was forced to flee from violence. She ended up in Kalunga, where she followed a training at Oxfam to become a hygiene promoter. Now she cleans the sanitary facilities in the camp every day and distributes water purification tablets to families, assuring them of clean water.
Since it started working in Tanganyika in 2017, Oxfam has already helped 58,302 people: both refugees and the people who receive them in their own communities. Apart from providing clean water and sanitation, we work with local volunteers, who inform people about the importance of good hygiene for their own health.
Good hygiene = preventing diseases
"I lost everything"
Therese has been living in the Kalunga refugee camp since November 2016, after her village was attacked. At the time of the attack, her husband and one of her children were absent. "We fled immediately," says Therese. "There was no time to pack. The only thing I could do was take my children and run".
After the attack, Therese went in search of her husband and missing child, but could not find them. Three months later she was told that their bodies had been found. "I had already experienced war in my life, but I had never been forced to leave my home and live in a refugee camp. I had never seen such violence before."
"We had been walking for two days before arriving here. My mind was filled with thoughts. I had lost everything. Sometimes I wish I were dead instead of my husband, because this burden is too heavy for me to carry. I still have 9 children. One of them is paralyzed, so I had to carry her all the way."
"We arrived here last November and were well received. The first two months, we got food and some money to buy other stuff. But how can you raise 9 children in these circumstances?"
The first victims: women, children and elderly people
"I never thought I would end up here," Therese continues. "My plan was to save money for a house where we would live a comfortable and normal life as a family. Now I can't even think of tomorrow. How can I think of good education for my children if I don't even know what their next meal will be?"
Women, children and the elderly are the most vulnerable to this situation in Congo. They have seen their families being murdered, their villages burned down and/or their fields destroyed. The situation in the country remains uncertain and violence can erupt at any moment. The Congolese who are fleeing (in their own country) cannot return home or rebuild their lives.
"The people here want to return when the conflicts are over," says Therese. "Others have already returned to see what remained of their fields and other possessions".
With water we can save lives
Water and hygiene are essential for survival. That is why Oxfam provides water on a large scale and good sanitary facilities in emergency situations. That way, diseases are prevented as much as possible.
We also give people essential information about good hygiene. In the Kalunga refugee camp, Oxfam has now trained 61 women to be hygiene promotors, and they spread their knowledge within the community.
What's happening in Congo?
In Congo, millions of people have had to flee due to protracted conflicts in the provinces of Kasai, Tanganyika, Ituri and Kivu. 13 million people are in urgent need of humanitarian aid.
Oxfam helps the people in Congo both in the short and the long term. For example, we supply drinking water and sanitary facilities to 400,000 people. We also distribute cash to the most vulnerable families. However, the situation remains highly critical. Besides, the risk of a new Ebola outbreak is very worrying.
DR Congo Humanitarian aid
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Jazzy tunes for your wedding can make a perfect romantic evening and are often accompanied by easy listening and more up beat music selection for your dancing time.
A quartet or quintet acoustic band will suit a wedding of up to 80 guests. It will make the wedding feel more tropical and give it a casual style. A duo acoustic is also available to accompany your cocktail party or wedding ceremony.
A band playing "Top 40" hits will create a lively atmosphere at your wedding reception with the latest up beat tunes.
Why go to a club when you can have your private DJ party? The DJ will play your preference of music. Classic rock, R & B, Hip Hop, Techno, House, Reggae, Jungle, Drum & Bass, Electric, Top 40 - you name it, its your choice. A DJ is the perfect choice for your after-party.
Make your wedding day sparkle with the fireworks in the evening sky. It will mark the day and be a real treat for your guests.


text:
Britisk unionisme er en politisk ideologi, som støtter den fortsatte enhed af England, Skotland, Wales og Nordirland som en samlet stat, Storbritannien. En person som støtter denne ideologi kaldes på engelsk unionist, og dette begreb bruges af flere partier.

Unionens historie
Unionen blev dannet gennem Acts of Union i 1707, som samlede Kongeriget England og Kongeriget Skotland som en stat, Kongeriget Storbritannien. Unionen blev udvidet i 1801, da Kongeriget Irland blev del af unionen, og den nye stat, Det Forenede Kongerige Storbritannien og Irland, blev skabt. I 1922 blev Nordirland skilt fra Sydirland, som senere blev den selvstændige stat Republikken Irland. Det moderne navn for statsdannelen, Det Forenede Kongerige Storbritannien og Nordirland, blev taget i brug i 1927.

Unionisme i moderne politik

Nordirland
I moderne historie har den største debat over unionismen været i Nordirland, hvor at spørgsmålet om Nordirland burde være del af unionen eller blive del af Republikken Irland, har domineret landets politik længe. Resultatet af denne splid var især set under The Troubles, hvor at unionister og republikaner var i ofte voldelig konflikt. Den voldlige konflikt blev afsluttet ved Belfastaftalen i 1998, men stadig i dag, så definerer spørgsmålet om unionisme stadig store dele af nordirsk politik.

Skotland
Spørgsmålet om skotsk uafhængighed er vokset i de seneste år, som især kan ses på fremgangen for selvstændighedspartiet Scottish National Party, som for første gang blev det regerende parti i Skotland i 2007, og fik et flertal i det skotske parlament i 2011. Der blev i 2014 afholdt en folkeafstemning om spørgsmålet i Skotland, hvor at 55,3% af vælgere stemte imod selvstændighed. Debatten om skotske uafhængighed fortsatte dog, og er især blevet styrket som resultat af Brexit, hvor at Skotland klart stemte for at forblive medlem af Den Europæiske Union.

Unionistiske partier

Nationale partier

 Conservative and Unionist Party
 Labour Party
 Liberal Democrats
 Reform UK
 UK Independence Party (UKIP)

Nordirske partier

 Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)
 Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV)
 Ulster Unionist Party (UUP)

Referencer

Storbritanniens politik

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


As the current opioid epidemic rages around use, more people fall victim to opioid use, abuse, dependence, and addiction. From prescription painkillers to heroin, the opioid crisis threatens not only public health but also economic welfare. Opioid abuse single-handedly costs the United States an astonishing $78.5 billion every single year, accounting for the costs of health care, treatment, lack of productivity, and criminal justice.
When opioids first came into play in the late 90s, doctors and medical experts assured that prescription opioids would not be addictive, leading to many more people being prescribed opioids.
Unfortunately, overdose rates rose exponentially, and by 2015, over 33,000 people were killed by opioid abuse and another two million people suffered from addiction. These outrageous numbers were not due to simply overprescribed opioids but also as a result of the creation of illicit synthetic opioids. Fentanyl, one of the most powerful illicit opioids created, contributed largely to the skyrocketing numbers and remains one of the most dangerous drugs ever known.
For decades, medication-assisted treatment has been a powerful tool in addiction treatment. There is an enormous variety of medications that serve different purposes. In the case of opioid use disorder, medication-assisted treatment is extremely effective and almost always necessary due to the severity that opioid addiction can spiral into. Unfortunately, medication-assisted treatment, especially in regards to opioid use, has a negative connotation and, although medications could potentially save someone's life, the stigma surrounding medication-assisted treatment often times dissuades a patient from engaging in MAT.
By definition, medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is a method that administers medications, usually in conjunction with therapy, to aid in addiction treatment. MAT is commonly used in treating severe addictions such as alcohol, benzodiazepines, and opioids.
From blocking the pleasurable and euphoric effects of substance use and abuse, the medications used in MAT have a variety of purposes. Medications can alter someone's chemical brain functionality, treat withdrawal symptoms, and normalize body functions among many other things.
One of the main and most noticeable differences between medication-assisted treatment and abstinence treatment is that addiction treatment progress during MAT is measured in much smaller steps than in abstinence-based treatment. With the precision and care offered by MAT programs, a patient is much more likely to succeed in their addiction treatment and overall long-term sobriety. In the case of MAT for opioid addiction, slowly tapering off of the substance is viewed as progress instead of abstinence-based treatment, which generally views every step as either success or failure.
When it comes to alcohol rehab, MAT therapy will at first be used as a treatment option to help someone through the often difficult withdrawal symptoms that accompany alcohol detox. This help keeps someone safe from certain potentially life-threatening symptoms and also allows them to get to participating in therapy sooner than they otherwise would be able to.
There are many people who are skeptical of medication-assisted treatment, typically for opioids but also for alcohol use disorders as well. They are under the impression that medication-assisted treatment merely gives someone a new addiction to replace the old one, but this is not the case. The medications being given to those in treatment are not harmful, especially compared to whatever substance they had become dependent on. The administration and dosage of these medications are also closely monitored by medical professionals.
It is always important to differentiate between medication-assisted treatment and treatment via medication. MAT involves the use of medications to aid in the treatment process, but it is important to not assume that simply taking meds will cure your addiction. Medications are only effective when used in conjunction with counseling, therapy, and other treatment methods. Assuming that taking medications will instantly lead to a sober life can often lead to relapse and ultimately the building of addiction again.
Unfortunately, there is much false information that has been spread regarding medication-assisted treatment. These myths can easily dissuade an opioid addict by providing false information and scares. Knowing what is fact and what is fiction when it comes to MAT can prevent unnecessary fear or complications in future treatment.
The most widespread myth about medication-assisted treatment is the idea that engaging in MAT simply replaces one substance addiction with another substitute substance addiction. This is especially believable when talking about opioid addiction, as many medications that are used in MAT to treat opioid disorders are commonly viewed as addictive.
While these accusations may have some truth behind them, and while substituting substances does occur, it does not immediately "swap" the addictions. In the highly unlikely event that a patient becomes addicted to the administered medication, it should still be viewed as an improvement. Patients' addictions generally involve life-threatening drugs, and while they may now be dependent on a different one, their lives are in a much more stable state now.
Only the most extreme and severe addictions should be treated with medication-assisted treatment.
While MAT can greatly help severe life-threatening addictions such as opioid, alcohol, or benzodiazepine addiction, it does notonly benefit the more severe disorders. Medication-assisted treatment consists of the use of a wide variety of drugs, and with so many options, MAT can easily benefit almost any addiction, regardless of severity or length of use. Even milder substance use disorders, such as marijuana addiction, can be treated with MAT, further proving the usefulness of medications in addiction treatment.
Medication-assisted treatment increases the risk of overdosing.
Contrary to popular belief, MAT only helps patients in preventing future overdoses. Because a patient may go from heavy use to complete sobriety at the beginning of treatment, addicts are likely to overdose if they relapse due to a habit of taking high doses in the past. The use of medications during the early stages of treatment especially can help prevent relapse and overdose, proof that MAT is not half as dangerous as it is perceived. Common medications have the effect of causing negative side effects at even the slightest use of a drug. In alcohol addiction treatment, for example, there is a medication that causes nausea and migraines if alcohol enters the patient's system.
Medication-assisted treatment should only be used short-term.
This is one of the most debated topics when it comes to MAT. Many people assume that medications are meant for medical detox or the beginning stages of treatment, which is an understandable point of view. It would make sense that medications should only be used short-term to avoid the swapping of addictions, however, research indicates that long-term MAT (between one to two years) has led to higher success rates and long-term sobriety after treatment.
Medication-assisted treatment and abstinence-based treatment have little to no difference in results.
While more common in benzo or alcohol withdrawal, Delirium tremens is the life-threatening withdrawal symptoms associated with substance withdrawal that include a number of severely dangerous side effects such as intense confusion or disorientation, vivid hallucinations, constant panic and anxiety attacks, and even fatal seizures. Delirium tremens generally take three days to start and can last another three days before finally fading.
When an opioid addict engages in professional treatment, the withdrawal symptoms become significantly less dangerous. Through MAT, a patient can safely avoid things like seizures and Delirium tremens. Medications can include benzodiazepines (to counteract the severe physical withdrawal symptoms) and antidepressants (to counteract the psychological withdrawal symptoms).
Although opioid withdrawal is among the most dangerous cases out there, people will avoid seeking treatment at a professional treatment center. While the reasons may vary, a common deterrent to seeking professional treatment is the inconvenience of engaging at a treatment center. Many people view rehab as "not worth it" and attempt to treat themselves.
This is a grave mistake, and if your addiction is not professionally managed and treated, it may ultimately prove to be fatal. Self-detoxing at home usually consists of "going cold turkey," and should never be a choice for addicts.
The term "cold turkey" refers to the immediate cessation of all intake of a certain substance in an attempt to treat an addiction. While it may sound good at first, further information proves the exact opposite. Going cold turkey should never be chosen over professional treatment. An addict's brain changes through chronic drug abuse, chemically altering its function to accommodate the constant barrage of drugs and their effects. The body requires time to readjust from constant drug use to total sobriety, and treatment centers help this through tapering and MAT. Quitting cold turkey gives the user no time to readjust and causes extreme withdrawal symptoms.
When you start to engage in medication-assisted treatment as part of your plan to treat your opioid addiction, knowing the proper information before actually beginning. The medications used in MAT for opioid addiction treatment are commonly used with different therapy methods such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, as well as with each other.
The primary goal of opioid MAT is to return a patient's body and mind to complete sobriety. Unfortunately, there may be some complications, as now there is a different medication in the patient's system, however much safer. A patient will usually taper off of the medications that they are using during treatment after they are tapered off of their addicted opioid. The weaning process of removing the medication from a patient's system may take up to months, years, or can even be indefinite. Similar to how a broken leg requires a crutch in order to heal, brain functionality that has been chemically altered as a result of chronic drug use requires time to recover, and medications such as methadone and naltrexone can serve as the "crutch," further speeding up the recovery process.
Unfortunately, some injuries are extremely serious and severe, and long-term opioid abuse is no exception. Sometimes, the addiction is so damaging to the brain that a user may need the "crutch" of medications indefinitely.
In 2010, naltrexone was released as an injectable, long-acting medication under the brand name Vivitrol.
Methadone is an opioid agonist, working to completely replace an opioid in an opioid addict's treatment. Methadone, which produces an effect similar to opioids, reduces an addict's need for a specific opioid and can be used to help treat cravings. Being a long-term method of treatment, methadone's main drawback is that it may only be administered from a methadone clinic. This is exceptionally worrisome especially when considering that methadone is usually taken every day. For this reason, methadone is extremely efficient in inpatient treatment programs, where patients can be monitored around-the-clock.
Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist, working to replace the addicted opioid while also not rewarding the user with full opioid effects. Similar to methadone, buprenorphine can reduce the need and craving of a detoxing addict and can help curb withdrawals. It is generally viewed as safer than methadone, coming in an adjustable-dose tablet as well as significantly reducing the likelihood of respiratory depression. For this reason, buprenorphine is slightly more expensive but well worth the extra buck.
Differing from both methadone and buprenorphine, naltrexone is an opioid antagonist. Instead of replacing the addiction with a safer drug such as methadone, naltrexone blocks the activation of opioid receptors, preventing a patient to enjoy the previously-addicted opioid. In partaking in naltrexone MAT, the long-term effects of Vivitrol (a brand of naltrexone) can easily aid those who seek treatment that do not have 24-7 access to healthcare or those who have difficulties in taking daily medications.
While these medications may vary in function, their goal is the same: to help treat a victim of addiction in their path to sobriety. Evidence shows that methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone all reduce the intake of opioids, reduce the severity and frequency of withdrawal symptoms, reduce the likelihood of contracting an infectious disease relating to opioid use, and even reduce the risk of a victim engaging in criminal activity.
In engaging in MAT for opioid use disorder, a patient will always run the small chance that medications such as buprenorphine and methadone be misused against the doctor's instruction. While this is true, most of the buprenorphine and methadone used without a doctor's prescription is not used to achieve a high, but more to control withdrawal symptoms and cravings. Methadone and buprenorphine are only a few opioid agonists used and together account for only 15 percent of abuse reports during treatment. Oxycodone and hydrocodone, on the other hand, are responsible for a staggering 67 percent of abuse reports.
Naltrexone, an antagonist, itself does not cause the pleasurable effects that agonists do, and is a very low-risk, but high-reward medications.
Here at New Perspectives, we pride ourselves on providing top-quality service and up-to-date treatment methods. When it comes to opioid addiction treatment, our MAT programs can make your addiction treatment a breeze. We understand that it may be difficult at first, and we are happy and excited to be a part of your recovery story. If you or someone you know struggles from opioid addiction, medication-assisted treatment may be the best course of action.
Whether it is about insurance or the kinds of medications used in treatment, our addiction specialists are available around the clock to answer any questions you may have regarding treatment. Our team of professional doctors, nurses, therapists, and case managers work around any and every need you may have during treatment.
Call New Perspectives today at (855) 627-3437 if you or a loved one is struggling with addiction. Our goal is your goal: to eliminate your addiction as quickly and easily as possible. We want you to see life from a clearer, sober point of view; we want you to look at things from a New Perspective.


We are welcoming summer with another new dish – Hiyashi Chuka – 冷やし中華.
You have to imagine you're in Osaka, where it's 27 degrees and over 90% humidity while reading this. This dish is a refreshingly chilled ramen salad, perfect for such a day!
We use the same thick, chewy noodles that are so popular in our abura-soba dish but served chilled, the texture is even firmer, the bite even better! They are topped with all sorts of summer ingredients like strips of cucumber, pepper, or slices of tomato, omelette and ham. Choose your toppings to make it 100% vegetarian or vegan compliant if you prefer! Finally, a tangy fresh sesame and soy-based dressing is added. Try it with some sharp Japanese mustard for a fabulous flavour balance!
Back in the beautiful setting of the ROUGE emporium in Stoke Newington, we'll give a short introduction before allowing you to assemble your own dish.
This event will have 2 sittings each day and is ticketed only.
Tickets are £10 each and include a bowl of edamame. Water and tea will be served and you can also BYOB at no corkage.


This month Jeremy Hobson visits Sarah McKenzie of Sussex Garden Poultry and discovers a lady with plenty of knowledge, enthusiasm and enterprising ideas.
Sarah's amazing 'chicken trailer'... complete with birds and a garden!
How did you first become interested in chicken-keeping?
I've been chicken-keeping for well over 20 years now and it all began when we rented a cottage outside Petworth which had a (disused) outside loo. It was too small to be a useful shed but perfect for a few chickens to use as a home base – so I bought four hybrids. It wasn't long before I'd bought and hatched some Pekin eggs… 'Proper' chicken houses (and more pure-bred birds) soon followed!
Apart from their eggs, what is it about chickens that you love?
That you can do that nurturing thing and they immediately give something back. I just love their beautiful feathers and their iridescence; their character, company, opportunities for re-cycling produce from the vegetable patch… I love the big round 'blousy' Brahmas and the way their 'skirts' move as they come up the garden hoping to find something interesting.
What breeds do you keep now?
Apart from the Brahmas' as large fowl I have speckled, buff and light Sussex; Cochins and cream Legbars. In the way of bantams, I have light Sussex, Pekins, Barbu d'Uccles and various types of Wyandotte.
Living in the county I do, I decided I would concentrate on the Sussex… and use the light Sussex breed as my logo. Apart from anything else, they are docile and, although I'm a vegetarian, they are wonderful dual-purpose birds.
Part of my business also involves buying in hybrid varieties from a good reliable hatchery I know and selling them on at POL [point-of-lay] to customers keen on a few hens for the back garden. Batches of birds come in monthly between February and October and I always encourage customers to choose their own birds from the various groups I have. It's important that anyone – particularly children – who buys birds from me takes home exactly what they want… you choose other pets carefully and for their characteristics so why not your chickens?
Do you ever show your pure breeds?
I've never shown them competitively – to me, breed standards are not as important as character and nature – but I do exhibit and display my birds at many events held annually in Sussex. As I want people to see and realise that they can enjoy chickens in their garden, I've a trailer made from a caravan base at the back of which is bolted a chicken house and run. At the front of the trailer is a garden with flowers and space for another small pen of birds… its set up for easy viewing and always creates a lot of interest.
I also take birds into schools and have just started hiring incubators and brooders to schools. I supply all that's necessary and, because I think that we all learn best visually, I provide illustrated colourful charts rather than long lists of written instructions.
Do you paint the illustrations for these and the birds on your range of pottery yourself?
Yes… I love designing, whether it be chicken houses or instruction leaflets and charts. I started painting greetings cards featuring chickens and went and worked in a pottery for a time but didn't get chance to paint the pots – so I bought my own kiln and worked from home. It's just such good therapy to sit and paint… as indeed it is to sit and watch the antics of your chickens!