text:
#pragma once

#include "CX/Hash/IHash.hpp"
#include "CX/Types.hpp"
#include "CX/Map.hpp"
#include <new>

namespace CX
{

namespace Hash
{

class MultiHash
{
public:

	MultiHash();

	~MultiHash();

	template <typename HASH>
	Status AddHash()
	{
		HASH                *pHash;
		Hash                hash;
		HashesMap::iterator iter;

		if (NULL == (pHash = new (std::nothrow) HASH()))
		{
			return Status_MemAllocFailed;
		}
		if (NULL == (hash.pHash = dynamic_cast<IHash *>(pHash)))
		{
			delete pHash;

			return Status_InvalidArg;
		}
		if (m_mapHashes.end() != (iter = m_mapHashes.find(hash.pHash->GetName())))
		{
			delete pHash;

			return Status_Duplicate;
		}
		hash.pData  = NULL;
		hash.cbSize = 0;
		m_mapHashes[hash.pHash->GetName()] = hash;

		return Status();
	}

	Size GetHashesCount() const;

	const Char *GetHashName(Size cIndex) const;

	const void *GetHashResultData(const Char *szName) const;

	Size GetHashResultSize(const Char *szName) const;

	Status Init();

	Status Update(const void *pBuffer, Size cbSize);

	Status Done();

private:

	struct Hash
	{
		IHash *pHash;
		void  *pData;
		Size  cbSize;
	};

	typedef Map<String, Hash>::Type   HashesMap;

	HashesMap   m_mapHashes;

};

}//namespace Hash

}//namespace CX

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Aethomys bocagei é uma espécie de roedor da família Muridae.

Pode ser encontrada nos seguintes países: Angola e República Democrática do Congo.

Os seus habitats naturais são: florestas secas tropicais ou subtropicais, savanas áridas e savanas húmidas.

Referências

Aethomys
Mamíferos descritos em 1904

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Marko Emilije Lepid (Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, 2. st. pr. Kr.), bio je rimski političar, izabran za konzula godine 158. pr. Kr., zajedno s Gajem Popilijem Lenasom.

Konzuli Rimske Republike


text:
Sen. Cory Booker Reportedly On The Verge Of Suspending His Presidential Campaign
The New Jersey is allegedly struggling with fundraising.
Mayor Bill de Blasio has dropped on the presidential race and Sen. Cory Booker might be next. Reportedly, the New Jersey Senator may drop off if he doesn't raise millions in less than two weeks.
SEE ALSO: Some No Name, Pitchy R&B Singer Disrespected Keith Sweat And Gets Demolished On Twitter
According to a staff men from the campaign manager, Addisu Demissie, which was obtained by NBC News, Booker needs to raise $2 million in the next 10 days. The memo allegedly read, "Without a fundraising surge to close out this quarter, we do not see a legitimate long-term path forward. The next 10 days will determine whether Cory Booker can stay in this race."
The memo also reportedly read, "If our campaign is not in a financial position to grow, he's not going to continue to consume resources and attention that can be used to focus on beating Donald Trump, which needs to be everyone's first priority. Booker might not be in this race for much longer — the same is true for other important voices in the field."
As of a CNN/SSRS poll from Sept. 11, Booker is polling at only 2 percent overall and 1 percent with Black voters, which is a key competent to winning the primary.
Booker has certainly had some hiccups, especially when he kicked of his presedntial campaign the first day of Black History Month and refused to say Trump was a racist.
so long. After President Donald Trump racist attacks on Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New Jersey Senator finally says he is a racist.
Booker famously said, "I don't know the heart of anybody. I'll leave that to the Lord".is one of the most talked about candidates running for president."
Reporter: Do you believe that Donald Trump is a racist?
Sen. Booker: "I don't know the heart of anybody. I'll leave that to the Lord … I know there are a lot of people who profess the ideology of white supremacy that use his words." pic.twitter.com/M2h1rlmhAt
— NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) February 1, 2019
However, by July, Booker suddenly saw the light and told CNN in July, "The reality is this is a guy who is worse than a racist. He is actually using racist tropes and racial language for political gain. He is trying to use this as a weapon to divide our nation against itself."
He continued, "And this is somebody who is very similar to George Wallace, who — a racist — he's using the exact same language."
On the other hand, Sec. Julian Castro, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Kamala Harris has been calling Trump a racist from the door. In a February interview with The Root, Harris was specifically asked if Trump was a racist. She responded with, "When you talk about his statement on [the Neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia], when you talk about him calling African countries 's-hole' countries, when you talk about him referring to immigrants as rapists and murderers, I don't think you can reach any other conclusion."
The Root's senior reporter Terrell Jermaine Starr followed up with, "So, you definitely would agree that [Trump's] a racist?"
"I do," she answered. "Yes, yes, yes."
All The Ways Cops Are Still Trying To Cover Up LaQuan McDonald's Execution
Outrageous! Figurines Of White Cherub Crushing Head Of Black Angel Removed From Dollar Store
Meet Jogger Joe, The Man Who Took Racist Cue From BBQ Becky In Tossing Homeless Man's Clothes
Jesse Jackson Demands 'Justice Now' At EJ Bradford's Moving Funeral Ceremony
Cory Booker	, Racism	, Trump
More By NewsOne Staff
Fort Worth's Police Chief Is Rewarded After Dropping The Ball With Atatiana Jefferson's Shooting
Ayanna Pressley's New Bill Aims To Stop Racist School-To-Prison Pipeline
Melania Trump Wants Kids Out Of Politics As Her Husband Bullies Children

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Home > main	> Photography's move to abstraction in face of human rights violations
Photography's move to abstraction in face of human rights violations
February 15, 2012 sohrab mohebbi
Guardian Project (an application development organization dedicated to making smartphones more secure) and WITNESS (a video advocacy group based in New York), have developed an open source application called Obscuracam. By means of a facial detection technology, Obscuracam detects faces in the photographic frame and provides an option to "obscure" them. The user has the choice to redact, pixelate, or mask the faces of photographed subjects. This feature is developed to protect the anonymity of the photographed subjects, in face of police meta-surveillance of crowd sourced images online, or stored on hard drives and other devices. The software is developed in response to security crack-down on anti government protesters caught on the cameras of citizen journalists who, captured and distributed the images of public demonstrations and protests online. An article on the project on the Economist writes: "Compelling pictures from a traceable source may also prove to be a double-edged sword for protesters. Police can mine video files for hidden information ("metadata" in the jargon) that could help identify the camera's owner, or use face-recognition software on the people being filmed." No doubt images could be used by the police to identify protestors and activists and it could have extreme repercussions for them. A telling pre-digital example of police identifying the photographic subject is the cover of Economist in July 17th 1999. The photograph showed an Iranian student holding a bloody shirt of a fellow protestor who was beaten by the police in the first public protest in country since the massive political crack-downs of the early 1980s. The image has all the requirements of an iconic photojournalistic image: a good-looking student, with long hair and a black ribbon tied to his bicep, a bloody t-shirt, two hands holding a newspaper in front of him with an image of a woman. The picture eventually sent Ahmad Batebi, the Iranian student to prison for ten years. This example (as numerous others) underlines the human rights concerns over the distribution of images of human rights violations.
protestobscura, guardianproject.info/apps/securecam/
As discussed in previous posts, history of photography, as opposed to painting's, is one of a representational mediums move away from its claim to reality, what is known as photographic indexicality. The development of Obscuracam protects the identity of the photographed subjects, but it also questions the very ontology of photography while simultaneously depends on it: the photograph represents the event as it happened, even if digitally manipulated. It is within the assumption that the "obscured" image, somehow still carries with itself the buried photographic claim to reality, even if the image is a modification of what it claims to be. It invites the viewer to believe in what he is not seeing.
By obscuring the faces of the photographed subject, the Obscuracam effaces the subjects in the world of images, before the security forces efface them in the world outside. The image will be of faceless victims in face of human brutality who's last vestiges of expression are erased from the picture plane.
Categories: main Tags: Ahmad Batebi, Economist, Guardian Project, Obscuracam, WITNESS
They Shoot Horses? Previous Post


WalkJoy was one out of over 400 applicant companies selected for StartUp Health's technology incubator program. StartUp Health is a new model for helping innovation succeed in the health sector. The company provides health and wellness innovators ("Healthcare Transformers") with a structured curriculum designed to help navigate the unique challenges of building a sustainable growth business in the health sector.
The diverse group of digital health startups which focus on solving some of the biggest healthcare challenges around chronic disease, presented to an expert panel of judges and a live audience who evaluated each company's pitch and business model. The judges and audience then voted WalkJoy as the Future of Medicine winner.
WalkJoy Inc., a California based startup, was named the winner of the second annual LTC LINKTank competition, held last week during the LTC LINK Conference in Chicago. WalkJoy was chosen from a field of six finalists for the $10,000 prize, which aims to identify cutting edge startups in the aging care space and help get their innovations to market. This year's conference drew more than 200 long-term care providers and vendors.
WalkJoy. "WalkJoy/WalkingHealth is a device & diagnostic platform that addresses fall risks, Peripheral Neuropathy and other walking health problems. This unique platform reduces unhealthy walking conditions and their related healthcare costs. WalkJoy exists as the only clinically-proven means of restoring gait and balance for people with PN. Simultaneously developed WalkingHealth is an easy and accurate platform that provides real-world/real-time diagnostics that are efficacious in all walking health applications."
An innovation competition held during the Louisville Innovation Summit this week gave health care leaders a look at what is on the horizon in technology. Long Beach, Calif.-based WalkJoy, Inc., maker of a medical device that can help improve seniors' balance and gait, was given the top prize of $20,000.
WalkJoy restores your ability to walk more normally in as little as fifty steps. It conveniently and comfortably straps below your knee to send signals to those healthy nerves when your foot strikes the ground. These signals replace the sensation you used to get from your feet so you quickly gain confidence with every step.
WalkingHealth is a completely self-contained diagnostic gait analysis device that is used in a doctor's office, outdoors, or at home. Data can be used to identify potential fall risk patients, verify patient progress and compliance, and provide documentation for billing and audits.
WalkingHealth easily and cost effectively identifies patients who are at higher risk of falling. Avoid costly falls by objectively monitoring physical therapy and providing WalkJoy devices to improve gait and physical strength. Data from periodic reviews can provide documentation during billing and audits to avoid non-payment, penalties and fines.


The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) will be holding nine public outreach meetings and accepting written comments on the draft Minnesota State Rail Plan. This Plan addresses both passenger and freight rail in the State by aligning itself with other MnDOT planning documents, including the Multimodal Transportation Plan and the Minnesota State Highway Investment Plan. The draft is available to view on MnDOT's website.


What is a CDL in Oregon?
The Oregon Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division (DMV) requires a CDL for operation of vehicles weighing 26,001 lbs. or more, vehicles carrying 16 passengers or more including the driver, or vehicles used to transport hazardous materials.
Are there any exceptions for farm vehicles, police or other emergency personnel, or others?
Recreational vehicles (RVs) operated only for personal use.
Certain farm vehicles when the driver is operating within a farm property.
Emergency fire vehicles operated by firefighters.
Emergency vehicles operated by emergency service workers.
How do I get a CDL in Oregon?
Drivers seeking a CDL in Oregon must meet several requirements, apply at DMV, pass written and driving tests, and pay for testing and CDL certificate fees.
Do I need a CDL instruction permit before applying for a CDL in Oregon?
Drivers may need practice or training for the Oregon CDL, and can obtain it with a CDL instruction permit. A learner's permit is not required for you to take the commercial drive test. However, the Oregon CDL instruction permit is required for you to take a CDL third party test.
Can I get an Oregon CDL if I have a CDL from another state?
A driver who is new to Oregon must obtain and study the Oregon Driver Manual, provide proof of identification and residence, pass the Class C non-commercial general knowledge test, pass a vision screening test, turn in your out-of-state CDL and pay the appropriate fees.
DMV may waive the drive tests if the same driving privileges are being granted in Oregon as in the previous state. To retain hazardous materials endorsement, drivers must pass a TSA criminal background check.
What if I've lost my Oregon CDL?
Replacements for Oregon CDLs that are lost, stolen or destroyed are available at regular and full-service DMVs for $26.50, provided the DMV has a photo on file or you present proper identification.
How long are Oregon CDLs valid?
Can I get Oregon Driver Manuals on the Internet?
Yes, manuals, including the CDL Driver Manual are available online.
How much does it cost to get a CDL in Oregon?
Drivers who wish to obtain a CDL in Oregon must pay for the basic and other appropriate knowledge tests ($10 each), the driving test ($70), the Certificate of Test Completion ($40), and the license fee ($75.50 if you already have an Oregon driver's license). CDL renewals are $61.50 and replacements are $26.50. The test to remove the air brakes restriction is $56.


TRENTON, N.J. (WPVI) -- Trenton's oldest park now has dozens of new trees, thanks to the efforts of volunteers from TD Bank.
The volunteers, along with the New Jersey Tree Foundation, planted fifty trees Friday in Cadwalader Park.
Trenton Mayor Eric Jackson helped dig the first hole.
Volunteers with TD Bank's "tree days" initiative have planted more than 235 thousand trees in the past six years.


text:
Rolling Purge Ripples Through Florida Environment Agency
Tags: DEP, employees, Florida
Staff Told to "Demonstrate Job Creation" as Colleagues Escorted Out of Building
Tallahassee —The Scott administration has begun laying off environmental employees in a shockingly draconian fashion, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). Besides mass firings, state officials are abolishing scores of vacant positions, making it impossible to counter accumulated attrition at a time when environmental performance is already plummeting.
During the past few weeks, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) –
Fired 25 employees in the Southwest District Office in Tampa and eliminated 14 vacant positions, thus shrinking the workforce by more than a quarter;
Axed 15 employees in the Tallahassee Division of Water Resources while abolishing another 24 vacancies. One manager was fired because he refused to terminate an employee who was ill; and
Has told other districts to brace for further "changes."
The harsh manner of the firings is also striking. In the Tampa office, all 150 district employees were told to pack up their personal belongings and put them in their cars because 25 of them would be fired the next day. They were then told to return to their stations and work the rest of the day. The next day 25 of them were summarily fired and immediately escorted from the building. The surviving employees were then told to retrieve their personal belongings and return to work as if nothing had happened.
"This is no way to treat employees, let alone career public servants," stated Florida PEER Director Jerry Phillips, a former DEP enforcement attorney. "These callous and needlessly cruel tactics suggest a staggering level of managerial incompetence."
These moves are being orchestrated by Jeff Littlejohn, the DEP Deputy Secretary for Regulatory Programs, who has also issued new personnel "criteria" which, among other things –
Link any pay raise to a cost savings, thus giving DEP supervisors a bonus only if they fire staff;
Require any DEP vacancies first be outsourced to private industry before considering refilling; and
Forbid any hiring at all unless deemed "Mission Critical."
While supervisors are being rewarded for finding creative ways to fire employees, those DEP employees who survive the purge are being directed to drum up instances of how they have achieved "job creation" and cost savings for regulated industries.
"This is supposed to be an environmental agency, not a satellite office for Bain Capital," Phillips added, noting that basic enforcement of anti-pollution laws in Florida has nose-dived during Governor Rick Scott's tenure, according to an analysis of agency figures. "DEP has been through some tough times before but employees are saying that this is the absolute pits."
PEER is also pursuing complaints against both DEP Secretary Herschel Vinyard and Littlejohn for violating federal conflict of interest prohibitions due to their prior corporate environmental work. At DEP, corporations that run into environmental trouble have been able to go to both men to obtain "resolution" of their situations.
View a job creation directive
Read the Littlejohn personnel "criteria"
Look at Florida's pollution enforcement implosion
Examine Vinyard and Littlejohn conflict of interest complaints


Years ago, I worked with a gifted hypnotherapist. He was a newbie to the craft, just starting out, and I don't think either he or I understood the scope of his abilities then.
Suffice it to say, I went to places and spaces that were far beyond the price of his introductory sessions!
We worked together in the dank basement room of a rental office downtown, the kind of place where folks set up flimsy folding tables and phone banks, then clear out overnight to whereabouts unknown. A way stop for fly-by-night businesses, filled with all the ghosts of failed dreams, hush and hurry, people in unrest.
My own sessions, however, were deeply productive. I leaned back in a faux leather lounger, closed my eyes, and was transported to amazing places: I saw the Book of Knowledge, a large tome up on a larger table, in which I might turn each page and find yet another picture from my own life, a picture that I might look at, and go deeper still. I found the long path of trees, a winding boulevard of sorts, that we are all somehow destined to walk.
And during these sessions I also descended in, entered deeper, and ended up in a room I had forgotten to remember for a very long time: the living room of the house I lived in when I was perhaps one or two or three.
I found myself very young—my head did not reach the countertop—in small, hot kitchen with the radio on, and my mother, visibly pregnant, dancing. We were listening to the radio, the three of us—my mother me, and my unborn brother in her belly. We danced to the songs of the times, the radio wailing tinny and small.
Everything in the room rushed forth all at once: the speckled, reflective bits of metallic in the kitchen counter top, the thickness of the mug in the sink, the green bottle of Palmolive on the counter, the window opening a back hedge, glossy with broad green leaves. My hands were slightly stick still, as if I'd just eaten lunch.
My mother wore capri pants; the kind that were popular back then, in a bold shade of sea green. In my regression, I saw clearly the way her pants ended in the middle of her calf, and I had the overwhelming thought: she was so very young.
And in my session, I began to cry.
She was so very young.
Not yet 30, on this ordinary day in which she danced to the radio, alone in a small kitchen finishing the dishes from lunch, no one there save her tiny daughter and unborn son.
Mother is the first Beloved. Whether this is good or bad, it is your soul's agreement upon entering the world. We choose our parents, for reasons that may be unclear to us in this reality, but that our soul understands and accepts as an absolute necessity for growth and expansion in this lifetime.
Mother is the first Beloved, the earth soul that answers the new soul, or the new soul that answers the earth soul, and it is not always clear which soul is calling which. The child chooses the parent certainly; but on a soul level, the parent must also welcome, or at the very least allow, the child.
Sometimes both souls long for each other with ineffable longing, and it is a mutual calling between mother and child.
Your own mother held you in her womb for 10 months; you were created of her body, you ate of her body, you drink of her like some divine feminine version of holy communion. You were sustained by her womb, her breath, her physical self. In this way you were entered into the world.
Sometimes moving in Divine energy of trance and regression, reveals something you need to remember about your first Beloved: in this case, it was the hem of the sea blue capris that helped me understand how young my mother really was when she raised me, how new as a mother, how undeveloped as a person, how young to have moved away from family to the west coast. I saw for the first time how she might have felt spending her days alone in a tiny house, filled with hope and fierceness for her new life and her children.
Mother is the first Beloved; we have known her many times before in the karmic passage of previous lifetimes, and we will know her many times again. She is the person who makes it possible for us to enter the world, whether she is fully evolved or only beginning her journey to consciousness, whether she wanted to welcome us or not.
The first Beloved gazes at us, holds us to her breast. The first Beloved allows us to live in and of her body. The first Beloved is most times no wise ascended, no saint or master—just a young woman, unsure and unguided, doing her best to bring a new soul into the world.
Close your eyes, and breathe deeply. Go to a place in your mind or your memory, in which you can recall something about your own mother, your first Beloved, when you were very, very young. It may be a special blanket, the way the light falls in a forgotten room, a texture, a color, a smell. Go into this place, and feel everything. Because you were so young, your memory will be two ways: that of a young soul, and that of a soul who has not yet forgotten how to hold the stars in your eyes. Remember it all, and allow yourself to feel gratitude. Learn something new, from this exercise, about your mother, and hold it in your heart.


text:
Hellgate: Pope Francis Owes World a Public Denial of the Heretical Words Attributed to him by Scalfari
Pope Francis owes the Church and the whole world a public denial of the heretical words attributed to him by Eugenio Scalfari, a 93-year-old atheist and abortion advocate, that made worldwide headlines.
The Vatican's statement that Scalfari's article is not "faithful" to Francis's exact words is not enough to redress the damage that the Pope has done by allowing this to happen for a second time.
He has to do this for the sake of the millions of persons who read that the Pope denies Hell and now think they don't have to repent.
Francis specifically has to do this for the sake of the elderly atheist and abortion advocate who is close to meeting God the judge.
It appears that the Pope is the abortion advocate's worst enemy.
If Scalfari goes to Hell because either Francis told him there is no hell or because the Pope doesn't rebuke him for lying that the Holy Father said there is no hell and calling him to repentance then the end result is the same for him.
It appears extremely unlikely that Scalfari completely made up or fabricated that Francis, in private, told him there is no hell despite what the Holy Father said on the subject at other times, but for the sake of argument we'll ask what does it mean if the abortion advocate lied about the Pope's words.
All the persons like Scalfari who read in the media of the papal "there is no Hell" statement and don't repent thus ending up in Hell can blame Francis to some extent.
Francis friendly leftist and conservative Catholic media writers who whitewash this latest scandal are not doing the Pope, Scalfari, the Catholic Church or sinners a favor.
In fact, they join Francis in being their worst enemy.
They are joining the Pope in not being Christ-like.
Jesus said there is a Hell and told sinners to repent so they wouldn't go there. He didn't tell sinners to stay in their sins such as lying.
Vatican expert John L. Allen Jr. says Francis allows Scalfari to lie, whether it's due to senility or evil intent, about the Pope's words because he wants "to respect and cherish the elderly":
"First, there's basically zero plausibility that Francis actually said what Scalfari cites him as saying on Hell..."
"Yes, Burke's communique says the quotes can't be trusted, but nowhere does he explicitly come out and say, "The pope didn't say that and doesn't believe it." Why not?..."
"I remember asking a cardinal close to Francis after the first Scalfari "interview" appeared in 2013, the big headline from which was Francis denying that God is Catholic [and denied Hell the first time in this 2013 interview], why the Vatican hadn't come down harder."
"The cardinal said he'd asked Pope Francis the very same question, and here was the pope's answer: "You know, by now he [Scalfari] is quite old … we have to be gentle with him," which is consistent with the pope's repeated pleas to respect and cherish the elderly." [https://cruxnow.com/news-analysis/2018/03/30/unpacking-a-non-interview-pope-interview-this-time-on-hell/]
The Catholic World Reporter journalist Christopher R. Altieri, while admitting the Holy Father is not Christ-like, says the Pope allows Scalfari to lie about the papal words because of the CWR journalist's incredible and almost insane reasoning that Francis is "willing to expose himself to Scalfari's outrageous slings for the sake of Scalfari's own soul":
"For the record: Pope Francis believes in hell. He has preached on hell, warned of hell, threatened evildoers with hell, even explained hell to children..."
"The Pope may believe himself Christ-like in this: willing to expose himself to Scalfari's outrageous slings for the sake of Scalfari's own soul, or ready to suffer the venomous arrows of a professionally scandalized coterie of malcontents who accuse him of dining with prostitutes and publicans. Francis is not Christ-like for either: he is Scalfari's dupe." [http://www.catholicworldreport.com/2018/03/30/pope-francis-believes-in-hell-and-he-needs-to-stop-talking-to-eugenio-scalfari/]
Both the above writers seem worried about Francis, but not about Scalfari's immortal soul or about all the Scalfari's who read in the media that there is no Hell who can blame Francis, in part, if they end up in Hell.
The Pope needs to rebuke Scalfari for the sake of his immortal soul and all the persons like Scalfari whose souls may be in danger because they think the Pope doesn't believe in Hell so why should they repent from sin.
If Francis doesn't make a public denial of the heretical words attributed to him, rebuke Scalfari and call him to repentance then he needs to resign from the papacy.
Pray an Our Father now for Scalfari's soul and that Francis makes a public denial of the heretical words attributed to him by Scalfari, rebukes him as well as call him to repentance or resigns from the office of the papacy.
Fred Martinez fredmartinez573@gmail.comHide
To Fred Martinez mrtnzfred@aol.com
Hellgate: Pope Francis Owes World a Public Denial ...
Barroslettergate to Lettergate to Hellgate Pattern...
Pope Francis's Judas-like Betrayal of Chinese Cath...
Instead of Nazi-like Gun Control Marches & Rallies...


text:
select @curRank := @curRank + 1 AS rank, votes, name
from votes, (SELECT @curRank := 0) r
order by votes desc, name;


It's been pretty quiet on here of late. Betty Bus hasn't seen much use over the winter months, in fact we struggled to find time to run the engine in.
Sadly, we've decided it's time for Betty Bus to find new owners and she's up for sale.
We only intended to keep her for a year, to find out if we liked the campervan life before committing to a newer, more expensive van. But over five years later and we've had some great adventures with her. Sure, we had our share of frustrating moments and breakdowns that come with driving an older vehicle, but now we look back on them and they weren't so bad and we met some lovely people along the way.
Now it's time for us to move on to that newer van and for someone else to create memories with Betty.
Thanks for reading the blog and contributing to the comments, we hope you've enjoyed the travels, maybe even been inspired to visit some of the places we wrote about.
Hopefully we'll be back with a new blog soon.
If you are interested in buying Betty, you can find her advertised on eBay.
It was on the way home from this year's HUBB UK meeting at Baskerville Hall (inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle's famous Sherlock Holmes adventure) that we dropped into the Nagshead RSPB reserve.
We sat patiently in the pond side hide, camera trained on a log at the water's edge. In-between torrential downpours, Rosana finally got her photo.
There it was. A blur of blue and orange.
I haven't seen one for years – get your camera ready, it will be back soon.
We waited, quietly, still like statues. The water gently burbled and babbled beside us. Not that deep nor all that wide, but enough that we'd needed to use a fallen tree as a makeshift bridge across this New Forest stream, the ford too deep with recent rainfall to navigate on foot.
A Kingfisher, it will be back soon.
We waited, patiently. Nature came and went, we waited some more. The trees rustled in the cool summer breeze and we waited.
Whoosh. That same blur, heading in the other direction now. Electric blue and burning orange.
Did you get a photo?
Doesn't matter, you saw it.
Spring, a time of rebirth and renewal.
New life appears in nests, in burrows and barns and in farmers' fields – tweeting, grunting and bleating and all of it wanting to be fed.
Colour erupts around the countryside and the sun starts to warm our cold bones. The sweet smell of pollen lingers in the air, the bees begin to buzz and butterflies flit amongst the flowers.
Betty feels the change of season too. Regular readers might remember a breakdown a couple of years back, an inexpensive valve failing and destroying a very expensive cylinder head. There were ongoing issues leading to a subsequent complete rebuild of the engine that should really have solved every problem we had.
Instead, things were about to get a whole lot worse.
Crossing the Houtribdijk last year, the little red oil light of doom illuminated. We checked, we had oil. We didn't have any strange noises…yet. The light went out. Volkswagen, in its infinite wisdom, designed a very complex oil pressure monitoring system to monitor a very simple engine. A system which is prone to failure. A combination of two pressure sensors and input from the alternator. We knew we had some alternator issues so put two and two together and came up with three. The van got us home and we replaced the alternator and the pressure sensors. It didn't solve the problem. Connecting up a pressure gauge revealed the ugly truth.
So here we are, emerging from the depths of winter and Betty is reborn with a sparkly new engine. Our journeys now lacking the colour of a multitude of warning lights, the unpleasant bouquet of leaking diesel and the cheerless chirping of unlubricated metal on metal. Nothing screams to be fed oil or coolant.
Dull and dark winter journeys that bring exciting, bright and vibrant springtime joy.
Betty Bus reborn, back on the road and back in a field.
A windmill stands proudly on the bank of the canal, overlooking one of the many gates into the city. As we pass through the gate we are greeted by a marching band. Not a bad first impression.
We were heading home now, back south towards Calais and the ferry back. The Netherlands had been good to us. Maybe the weather hadn't been as kind as it could of, but we'd met some lovely people, eaten more cheese than science had thought was possible and visited some really diverse and interesting places.
Being able to get around so easily on a bike had been fantastic, with none of the traffic worries of riding in the UK. We'd discovered delicious Dutch baking along the way, like their German cousins, the dark breads are full of flavour and general yumminess.
We hadn't got to all the places we'd wanted to visit. Our plan to visit the island of Texel was abandoned when a violent storm rolled in off the North Sea, trapping us in a beachside bar for a few hours before we finally braved the run back to a van that was rocking so much it almost brought on a bout of sea sickness. There was no way Rosana was getting on a boat.
We ran out of time to visit Amsterdam and the Hague and they, along with other vast areas of the map will have to wait for another time.
Breaking up the journey home we had crossed into Belgium and were now in Bruges, another city full of canals, another contender for the title of Venice of the North. We'd arrived at Camping Melming the previous evening in the most torrential rain and sat on our pitch for some time waiting for a break in the weather to get ourselves set up, as had our neighbours.
But the weather gods had smiled on us and we walked the short distance into the city under a mostly blue sky. The marching band welcome was nice enough, but there was better to come. Men and women dressed in stunning masquerade fashion paraded the streets, posing for photographs with passers by. Costumes were extravagant and colourful but contrasted with expressionless painted masks giving them a gothic aura.
The marching band seemed to follow us into the centre of the city, which was getting a little embarrassing. We dived into a coffee shop to try and lose our tail.
In the Martin McDonagh's 2008 film 'In Bruges', Harry (the chief gangster) describes Bruges, in amongst a great deal of profanity, as a fairy tale city with fairy tale buildings and that's a perfect description. Bruges is a beautiful city, old and incredibly well preserved. The narrow medieval streets, distinctive old buildings and a plethora of canals combine to create a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It is, therefore, understandably quite busy with tourists, although not as busy as we'd feared it might have been.
Chocolate shops line the streets, their delicious looking treats dressing the windows and luring you in. The gaps between chocolatiers are filled with lace shops, Bruges other speciality. We stopped for lunch in the oldest Fritterie on the market square, one last chance for chips and mayo before we returned to a world of chips and ketchup. An afternoon snack of waffles kept our energy levels up, while suicidally strong Trappist beers took care of hydration.
We only had a day and it wasn't nearly enough to see everything we wanted. We left the city long after darkness had fallen, agreeing that Bruges deserved a return visit to take in everything we had missed.
But our time was up, it was time to head home.


text:
from threading import Lock, Condition, Thread
import socket
import numpy as np
import messager
import cv2
import bbprocessors
from time import sleep, clock
import random

class TrackerMain():
    def __init__(self, address, port, trackerMaker, detectorMaker, bbProcessor, multiDetect=0, width=320, height=240, detectorFrameSize=1, trackerFrameSize=1, backwardsConnection=False):
        self.newFrameAvailable = Lock() # Queue for usage of new frame
        self.usingCurrentFrame = Condition() # Lock when writing to frame
        self.netLock = Lock() # Lock for sending network messages
        self.frameUsers = 0 # Number of threads wanting to write eventually
        self.faceTrackers = []
        self.faceDetectors = []
        self.bbProcessor = bbProcessor(self)
        self.newFrameAvailable.acquire()

        self.messager = messager.Messager()

        # Connect to remote messager
        # A possibility for backwards connection was necessary for security reasons
        if not backwardsConnection:
            #self.messageSock = socket.socket()
            #self.messageSock.connect((address, port))
            self.messageSock = self.messager.connect(address, port)
        else:
            # With backwards connection we need to wait for the connection
            self.messager.setupHost(address, port)
            self.start = False
            self.messager.register('connect', self.setHost)
            while not self.start:
                self.messager.processHost()
            self.messager.unregister('connect')

        if multiDetect > 0:
            # Setup queue for multiple detectors
            # Detectors will be notified one at a time
            # at intervals of average detection time
            self.detectionQueue = Condition()
            self.avgDetTime = 0 # average time to run a detector
            self.avgDetSamples = 0 # N of samples in the average
            self.multiDetect = True
        else:
            multiDetect = 1
            self.multiDetect = False

        # Make the face detectors
        for i in range(0, multiDetect):
            newDetector = detectorMaker(self)
            self.faceDetectors.append(newDetector)
            Thread(None, newDetector).start()

        # Setup camera
        self.videoCapture = cv2.VideoCapture(0)
        self.videoCapture.set(3, width) # Width
        self.videoCapture.set(4, height) # Height
        self.maxw = self.videoCapture.get(3)
        self.maxh = self.videoCapture.get(4)
        ret, frame = self.videoCapture.read()
        self.readFrame = frame
        self.writeFrame = np.copy(frame)

        # Setup preview window
        self.windowName = 'Video'
        self.window = cv2.namedWindow(self.windowName)

        # Register trackerMaker
        # This creates new trackers, e.g. starts tracking threads
        # or does nothing if tracker threads are not wanted
        # It also defines the type of tracker to use
        self.trackerMaker = trackerMaker

        self.detectorFrameSize = detectorFrameSize
        self.trackerFrameSize = trackerFrameSize

        self.startTime = clock()

        # FPS calculation
        self.fps = 0.0
        self.fpsSamples = 100
        self.frameTimes = [0.0] * self.fpsSamples
        self.curSample = 0
        self.lastTime = clock()

    def mainLoop(self):
        # Note: this thread should have aquired the newFrameAvailable
        # lock before entering this method.
        # The first acquisition is in the class constructor.

        # See if there are any new faces waiting
        averageTime = 0
        for detector in self.faceDetectors:
            detector.processFaces(self.bbProcessor)
            averageTime += detector.lastTime

        averageTime /= len(self.faceDetectors)

        ret, frame = self.videoCapture.read()

        # Wait until all trackers are finished with the previous frame
        with self.usingCurrentFrame:
            if self.frameUsers > 0:
                self.usingCurrentFrame.wait()

        # Draw boundingboxes and labels (when available) on the image
        for tr in self.faceTrackers:
            tr.drawBB(self.writeFrame, 1 / self.trackerFrameSize)

        # Calculate and display FPS
        newTime = clock()
        fps = 1.0 / float(newTime - self.lastTime)
        self.lastTime = newTime
        self.fps -= self.frameTimes[self.curSample]
        self.fps += fps
        self.frameTimes[self.curSample] = fps
        self.curSample = (self.curSample + 1) % self.fpsSamples
        cv2.putText(self.writeFrame, str(float(self.fps)/float(self.fpsSamples)), (0, 10), cv2.FONT_HERSHEY_SIMPLEX, 0.5, (255, 255, 255), 2)

        # Show previous frame
        cv2.imshow(self.windowName, self.writeFrame)

        # Replace old frames
        self.fullFrame = frame
        self.readFrame = cv2.resize( frame
                                   , (0, 0)
                                   , fx=self.trackerFrameSize
                                   , fy=self.trackerFrameSize
                                   )
        self.writeFrame = np.copy(frame)

        # See if we should notify a detector
        if self.multiDetect:
            elapsedTime = clock() - self.startTime
            if elapsedTime >= averageTime / len(self.faceDetectors):
                self.startTime = clock()
                with self.detectionQueue:
                    self.detectionQueue.notify()

        # Let other threads use the current frame for a while
        self.newFrameAvailable.release()
        self.messager.processHost()
        tic = clock()
        self.newFrameAvailable.acquire()

    def stop(self):
        if self.multiDetect:
            with self.detectionQueue:
                self.detectionQueue.notify_all()
        for fd in self.faceDetectors:
            fd.stop()
        for ft in self.faceTrackers:
            ft.stop()
        self.newFrameAvailable.release()

    def getCopyOfFrame(self):
        with self.newFrameAvailable:
            return cv2.resize( self.fullFrame
                             , (0, 0)
                             , fx=self.detectorFrameSize
                             , fy=self.detectorFrameSize
                             )

    def getReadWriteFrame(self):
        with self.newFrameAvailable:
            with self.usingCurrentFrame:
                self.frameUsers += 1
            return self.readFrame

    def freeReadWriteFrame(self):
        with self.usingCurrentFrame:
            self.frameUsers -= 1
            if self.frameUsers == 0:
                self.usingCurrentFrame.notifyAll()

    def applyToFrame(self, f):
        with self.usingCurrentFrame:
            f(self.writeFrame)

    def makeNewFaceTracker(self, bb):
        # Invoke closure
        self.trackerMaker(self, bb)

    def sendMessage(self, messagetype, message):
        tic = clock()
        with self.netLock:
            messager.send_message(self.messageSock, messagetype, message)

    def register(self, tracker, add):
        if add:
            self.messager.register(tracker.id, tracker.setLabel)
        else:
            self.messager.unregister(tracker.id)

    def getWindowSize(self):
        return (self.maxw, self.maxh)

    def setHost(self, sock, msg):
        self.messageSock = sock
        self.start = True


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text:
Think Oregon
Mind and Body: Oregon Ballet Theatre's Xuan Cheng
Oregon Ballet Theatre's Xuan Cheng keeps raising the bar with hard work and training
written by Mackenzie Wilson
Since she was a little girl living in China, Xuan Cheng, 33, has been familiar with call times. At 10 years old, she left home to attend the School of Guangzhou Ballet of China, where she and other aspiring ballerinas started their days with a rigorous hour-and-a-half workout at 5:30 a.m.
"We were like a little army," Cheng said. She doesn't sugar coat the school's strictness—snacks weren't allowed and neither were family visits. Cheng's family lived five-and-a-half hours away by train and she saw them once or twice a year. The only relief from the isolation was a five-minute phone call once a week to loved ones. Now a principal dancer for the Oregon Ballet Theatre, Cheng can appreciate the level of discipline it took to push her and the other students to perfection. "It takes a lot of sacrifice, and you have to really love it like 300 percent because it doesn't just come. … You have to really pay for it," Cheng said.
"I mean pay for it by working on it, striving for it, not just physically but mentally." Cheng spent five years at the school, which was a training ground for its own company of dancers. In 2000, she became a company dancer with the Guangzhou Ballet company. Competition took her to New York in 2005, where she felt a freedom she didn't know. "The experience changed me. … I wanted more than just to be a baby ballerina in the company, I wanted more for my life, I wanted to travel, to see the world and dance internationally," Cheng said.
Shortly after, she danced with two companies in Montreal, Quebec. "Once you are on stage dancing, it's like a drug. It's addictive, you want more." In 2011, Cheng auditioned in Portland for the Oregon Ballet Theatre with her husband, who is also a professional dancer. "It's just a very nice city to live in, and as Chinese, English is our second language, but you feel very welcome. You don't feel you're different than anyone else," Cheng said. Besides being a principal dancer, Cheng also teaches ballet. She's not moving into her final act yet, but decades of dancing have taken a toll on her body.
"It's hard for a dancer when you're past 30 because your body feels different than when you're 20, but then your mind understands more," Cheng said. "That's why it's so hard when suddenly you figure something out, but your body might not allow you to do it." She combats the changes by devoting extra time to stretching, as well as swimming and practicing Pilates. "When you're young it's like, 'I want to be the best in the class, then I want to be the best in the company,'" she said. "And at this age right now, I just want to be the best version of myself."
Xuan Cheng –– Ballerina
Born: Hunan Province, China
Residence: Portland
WORKOUT Ballet, swimming and Pilates.
NUTRITION "I am very lucky I can eat whatever I want and don't have a weight problem as a dancer. I like Chinese food. I eat a lot of vegetables and fruits. When we are in a busy performance week, my body needs steak and burgers. I don't eat a lot of dairy." "I like Chinese hot pot and Chinese northern-style barbecue. We can't really find authentic ones here in Portland, so I cook at home when I have time. In fact, my husband cooks very well. I also like to hang out with my friends and grab cocktails for happy hour."
INSPIRATION "I get inspired from everything. I get inspired by the little flower on the street when I take a walk by the river. I get inspired by my students—they remind me why I dance and make me a better teacher and dancer. I get inspired by my talented friends and colleagues in the studio every day. I get inspired by a delicious yummy chocolate cake."
EVENTS The Oregon Ballet Theatre will perform The Nutcracker December 8-26. www.obt.org/18-19-season/nutcracker
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I'm an artist, children's book author / illustrator, and educator living and working in Vancouver, BC. I believe that art is a language that helps us to understand ourselves and connects us to one another.
In my own work I investigate ideas of human nature and relationship, community, interconnection, and the natural world through an inclusive, anti-oppressive and feminist lens. More than a reflection of reality, my art is a practice in optimistic imagination.
Are you interested in an author visit or art workshop?
Hi Roz! We met by a happy chance at Gallery Gachet.


text:
Business / Top News
China Telecom will offer iPhone
China Telecom Corp Ltd plans to offer its 106 million subscribers Apple Inc's iPhone by the end of 2011, sources said on Wednesday.
BYD shares skid on profit warning
BYD Co fell in Hong Kong and Shenzhen trading after the Chinese automaker, partly owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc, said first-half profit might tumble by up to 95 percent.
Nanjing Pharmaceutical, Alliance Boots co-op
Nanjing Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said on Wednesday that its parent company intends to reach a cooperative agreement with the UK-based pharmaceutical giant Alliance Boots to boost its market innovation ability and improve its competitive position.
High-speed train breaks down again
A northbound train on the newly opened Beijing-Shanghai high-speed line broke down on Wednesday, the third such incident since Sunday when services were disrupted by power outages.
Budget carrier to add to routes in China
The Australia-based Jetstar Group, the largest Asia-Pacific budget carrier by revenue, will launch five new routes between China and Singapore in 2011, the group said on Wednesday.
Tesco opens logistics center as it expands
Tesco Plc China will open more than 20 stores this year and has opened its first freehold and largest logistics center in coastal Zhejiang province.
Escalator safety in spotlight
Growing concerns that standards in China are too lax.
Zhu Min nominated to prominent IMF role
The nomination of Zhu Min, special adviser to the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as a deputy managing director of the fund, is in line with expectations and reflects the growing influence of China and other emerging economies.
GDP growth eases fears of hard landing
A 9.5 percent growth in the second quarter eased concerns over a hard landing.
SMEs face difficulty despite boost in GDP
The steady increase in gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter does not mean that the challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are less, analysts and entrepreneurs said.
Consumption set to gradually rise
China's household consumption rate will rise gradually, and experts said the government should improve the welfare system to increase consumers' willingness to spend.
Temasek denies ABC share sale
Temasek Holdings Pte said on Wednesday that it will not sell its shares in Agricultural Bank of China Ltd.
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Dublin's Lord Mayor recalls his time in prison, and shares his thoughts on the Queen.
I was an IRA volunteer. I done jail. I was on the run.
LORD MAYOR CHRISTY Burke plans to write a book when his time as first citizen of Dublin ends this summer.
He's been a councillor in the city for 30 years, an anti-drugs and homelessness campaigner, and an active Republican – for which he served time in prison in the 1970s.
In 1986, he was jailed again – this time alongside Independent TD Tony Gregory - for campaigning on behalf of Moore Street traders.
In short: it'll be a good read.
Burke left Sinn Féin three days after being re-elected in the 2009 local elections.
I still have a great relationship with all of the Sinn Féin group … I'm very friendly with Gerry Adams, I speak to Mary Lou [McDonald]. I don't have any beef. I don't hold any grudges. I've no regrets.
Last year, Burke urged Taoiseach Enda Kenny to consider not placing any members of the royal family in the front row or strategic positions during ceremonies to mark the centenary of the 1916 Rising.
He said such a move might unfairly deflect attention away from those who fought and died for Irish independence, and their descendants.
During his tenure, Burke has been very vocal about the growing homelessness problem in Dublin, and was a driving force behind the emergency summit last December. He is passionate about the issue and said he will be keeping his "foot on the pedal" to ensure Government promises are delivered on.
Another personal interest he has pursued while in office is that of a Luke Kelly statue, something he hopes will be a reality in the capital before his term ends in June.
So, as a proud Dubliner, what are some of his favourite things about the capital? And, most importantly, which is better: Northside or Southside?
Email "'The most memorable thing about jail? Helping IRA members escape on a helicopter'".
Feedback on "'The most memorable thing about jail? Helping IRA members escape on a helicopter'".


text:
TechRadar pro
IT insights for business
Best WordPress hosting
Why Windows 8.1 is best for business
By Gary Marshall 2013-10-29T15:00:00.301Z PC
The latest Windows delivers everything you need, on any device
Microsoft's OS can make your business sharper and smarter
Windows 8.1 is the most powerful Windows yet, and it's the most flexible too. It's as productive on an ultra-thin notebook as it is on a high-end workstation, and it delivers the goods on all-in-one PCs and business tablets alike.
It's designed to bring together everything your business does, on all your devices, wherever your employees need to be.
Windows 8.1 delivers everything you expect from Windows - and a whole lot more. You can take advantage of new mobile apps that are easier and faster to develop, deploy and manage, and the enhanced user experience takes full advantage of touch-screen tablets and notebooks.
But there's also the ability to use the familiar Windows Desktop and your existing apps, including Office. That delivers the best of both worlds: touch-friendly mobile apps for mobile working, and full desktop applications when you're back at base.
One of Windows' great strengths has always been its management and security features, and with Windows 8.1 they've been given a significant upgrade. New security features include enhanced support for biometrics, ensuring that corporate data is encrypted and can be wiped remotely, and there's extensive support for BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policies to make the most of your existing investments and infrastructure.
The Mobile Device Management features have been beefed up too. Internet Explorer has been given a significant upgrade too. It delivers much faster page load times, side-by-side browsing, and synchronisation of favourites, tabs and settings between multiple devices. It's also more secure than before, with an integrated anti-malware system that scans for dangerous files and significant improvements to Windows' own Defender security software.
More mobility
In addition to the enhanced user experience and apps, Windows 8.1 delivers a host of new features for mobile users. There's enhanced support for mobile broadband including support for embedded wireless radio, which delivers increased power savings and longer battery life while also enabling thinner, less expensive mobile devices, and Windows 8.1 devices offer tethering, which shares their mobile broadband connection by creating a local Wi-Fi hotspot other devices can connect to.
The new NFC-based 'tap to pair' feature enables effortless connection to enterprise printers, and there's support for Wi-Fi Direct for instant peer-to-peer networking with wireless printers. Mobile presenters will appreciate the native Miracast wireless display capabilities, and the new Work Folders feature offers seamless synchronisation between users' devices and the company's data centre.
With Windows 8.1, businesses can choose from a huge range of devices to fit every conceivable scenario, ranging from thin and light Ultrabooks and tablets for maximum mobility and sleek, space saving all-in-one PCs to hugely powerful desktop and laptop workstations for high-end applications such as engineering, imaging, design and desktop virtualisation.
Microsoft's goal was to offer customers the best business tablets and modern business PCs, driven by the most powerful operating system - and with Windows 8.1, that's exactly what it has delivered.
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Hot girl culture is whatever you want it to be
Interrogating the "online hot girl" persona.
By Rebecca Jennings@rebexxxxa Jul 20, 2021, 9:00am EDT
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Rebecca Jennings is a senior correspondent for The Goods at Vox, where she covers social platforms, influencers, and the creator economy. She has reported on TikTok since its introduction to the US in 2018.
My jaw clench is back. It was around during the week of the election, in that several-day stretch where the poor CNN guy had to point at the same map for 72 straight hours. It returned in the lead-up to my birthday party, and now it's back and I'm not really sure why, which is its own kind of anxiety. But that's okay, because on the internet, I can tweet something like "hot girls have bruxism" and maybe get 50 or so likes.
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This is how it feels to be on the internet lately. You've potentially seen some iteration of this, perhaps in a tweet about how all hot girls have IBS and depression or anemia and ADHD or some combination thereof. The joke, of course, is that these are deeply unhot ailments, couched in the acknowledgment that yes, I too am in on the joke, unlike you other weirdos who won't stop earnestly debating the scraps of whatever the culture war most recently dredged up.
But before we got to a place where we were openly talking about hot girls' bowel movements or their collective proclivity for, like, tinned fish, there was Megan Thee Stallion. In 2019, the artist's fans iterated on her "hot girl" moniker and invented the concept of "hot girl summer." At the time, the idea that people of all genders could call themselves hot girls because they shared a certain attitude and not because it had anything to do with their proximity to traditional hotness, felt novel. Even Megan certainly couldn't have anticipated what came next, though, which was the total memefication of "hot girl" by too-online adult women, creating something like a natural, more self-aware nemesis to the girlboss.
hot girls have 1) eczema 2) IBS 3) chronic utis 4) scoliosis or 5) all of the above. if u don't see yourself on this list idk what to tell u
— spookshow baby (@httpkathleen) May 16, 2021
One of my favorite TikTok memes from a hundred years ago was "I can't talk right now, I'm doing hot girl shit." There was one iteration that made me gasp in recognition: In this instance, the "hot girl shit" in question was "scraping the large mounds of dandruff off my scalp," which is objectively disgusting but extremely relatable to me personally. "'I'm hot' is the new 'I'm ugly,'" reads a recent tweet from the delightful @clintoris, referencing the wave of people calling themselves ugly on the internet, but, as I've written about previously, in an almost wholesome or progressive way.
When I talked to an expert for that story, she said that the inclination to self-deprecate is mired in self-protection. "I kind of celebrate what they're doing — they're trying to push back on the idea that we all look perfect on social media," Sara Frischer, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, told me. "But I think it's just a little misguided in how they're doing it. It's deflection, and it's self-protective to then make a joke about it. It protects people from feeling vulnerable."
Calling yourself a hot girl would appear on its face to be the opposite: Rather than reappropriating a weakness, you're asserting your power, regardless of how traditionally attractive you actually are. There's something else going on, though, something more like how a humblebrag operates as a way of protection against seeming too narcissistic. You can use the specter of hotness as a preemptive defense against any anonymous avatars waiting for the chance to call you ugly or fat, while also adding the vulnerability of admitting you have poop problems.
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That's a relatively cynical explanation for something that, again, is literally just a joke. Yet I'd argue that "sad online hot girl" is just as useful of an identity marker as anything else. The popularity of the ironic bimbo aesthetic — the state of being both classically hot and socially progressive — has given way to a continuous debate on TikTok and elsewhere about whether it's really possible to be a feminist while still appealing to the male gaze. But as Marlowe Granados pointed out in the Baffler, the feminist film scholar Laura Mulvey's theory of the male gaze was about representation of women in art created by men, not actual women living their lives. "Laura Mulvey's manifesto has been recast as an inescapable fact of life, conflating men's artistic gaze with men's literal gaze — the latter being painted as inherently oppressive," she writes. "How long will we measure women's every action against the Male Gaze?"
The idea of proudly touting oneself as a hot girl subverts not only men's opinions, but the opinions coming from the endless annoying chatter of circular internet discourses. Every time I come across a video about whether, say, plastic surgery is inherently progressive or immoral, I'm reminded of why so many of us wish we were hot sluts who don't know how to read. It's because watching the same kind of people — people who seem to have genuinely good intentions but have spent far too much time arguing in comments sections — yell over each other is exhausting. "Hot girl," then, is a relatively useful term for the very online to differentiate themselves from, well, the other kind of very online person.
Regardless, calling yourself a "hot girl" is normal now. But wait: Next we'll all be calling each other "submissive and breedable."
This column first published in The Goods newsletter. Sign up here so you don't miss the next one, plus get newsletter exclusives.
TikTok: the most exciting, and controversial, social media app on the planet
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Next Up In The Goods


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It's the last newsletter of the year from us to you, we hope you'd take the holiday season to unwind and get prepared for the new year.
We'd miss you for the 2 weeks we'd be away, see you on the 11th of January, 2020.
Let's dive into the news 😊
So what's been jumpy lately?
Nigeria's inflation rate. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show that inflation has risen year on year by a mammoth 11.85% in the month of November, 2019, its highest since April 2018.
Cause of the jumpiness?
Mostly Food. The costs have been pushed up by the border closure that President Muhammadu Buhari ordered in order to curb the smuggling of rice and other food commodities. Food inflation rose from by 14.48% in November in comparison to 14.09% in October. The culprit food commodities include Bread, Cereals, Oils and Fats, Meat, Potatoes, Yam and other tubers and Fish. Other causes include rise in the price of cleaning, repair, hospital services, hairdressing salons and clothing materials.
The foreseeable future
The festive holiday season has raised the demand for these commodities, piling pressure on prices because Nigerians typically spend more at this time of the year. It is however expected that the prices of food would drop afterwards, this may positively impact inflation.
No! Don't Alter Our Constitution
A bill seeking for Presidents and Governors to only sit for a six year single term seems to have fallen short through second reading at the House of Representatives.
John Dyegh, a representative of Gboko/Tarka (Benue) Federal constituency at the House of Representatives Benue State sponsored the bill which he suggested should also include members of the National Assembly. The 5 year single term Bill is aimed at solving election irregularities and curbing violence attached to re-election.
According to him, re-election for the President and governors cost three times more than the first election and is characterised by violence.
Fact Check: We couldn't validate that re-election costs are 3x more but we're aware election costs are rising and violence is the order of the day.
So what is their stand now?
Lawmakers, on the other hand, rather pushed for a credible electoral system and argued that six years isn't enough to make meaningful achievements.
Nigeria's Economic Outlook for 2020
The end of the year comes with a lot of reflection for individuals, companies & countries. For Nigeria, when Fitch an International rating agency looked at Nigeria's performance in 2019 and what 2020 would look like, it had only one thing to say: Please, Lower your expectations.
What did the report have to say?
In summary: Nigeria's economic outlook moved from being stable to negative, kudos to wrong policies implemented by the government.
Nigeria should have an average GDP growth of 2.4% from 2019 – 2021, that's higher than Nigeria's current growth rate ( Nigeria's GDP grew by 2.28% in Q3 of 2019, the fastest since the fourth quarter of 2018) but lower than what Nigeria needs to turn things around.
Inflation would increase in 2020, if policies such an increase of VAT from 5% to 7.5%, closure of border and FOREX protection are implemented
The government would likely borrow more to get things done, this would lead to a higher amount of the country's revenue being used to repay debts.
How are other African countries looking?
Positive Outlook: Benin and Cote D'Ivoire are posed to have a better 2020 due to concrete policies aimed at reducing government deficits and debt accumulation.
Negative Outlook: Countries such as South Africa, Angola, Ethiopia also have Negative outlooks due to a worsening debt to GDP ratio, slow economic recovery and political instability.
Bottom line: Economic outlooks are very realistic and objective, however, as usual this wouldn't sit well with the Nigerian government which is always more optimistic.
Well, It's up to the Nigerian government to prove Fitch wrong.
Rise of An Empire?
With Chinese venture capitalists flocking to invest in startups, and Twitter's Jack Dorsey moving to the continent that will "define the future," Africa seems to have a bigger say than she thinks she does.
Growth, like never before. For a start, $360 million was invested in Nigeria-focused payment ventures in November alone—roughly one-third of all the startup venture capital raised in the entire continent in 2018—making her Africa's unofficial capital for fintech (financial technology) startup investments. Nigeria also hosts the only tech unicorn in Africa, Interswitch, as Jumia's declining share prices since going public have dropped the company's valuation to below $1 billion.
What's a unicorn, by the way?
It's a privately held company valued at $1 billion or more.
What's worth noting?
The unflinching interest of Chinese investors in Africa. After investing a total of $220 million in Nigeria-based PalmPay and Opay, they went ahead to invest $50 million in East African trucking logistics startup Lori Systems. Seems they're seeing something many aren't. And Twitter's CEO Jack Dorsey will be spending a few months in Africa next year to find this thing.
Next year promises to be interesting for this landscape—and that's all we can say for now.
Burundi: Tales of A Double Entendre
The political dynamics in this East African country has gotten even more perplexing.
In April 2015, Burundi's President and religious minister Pierre Nkurunziza announced that he would be seeking a third term in office, having been in power since 2005. When the public replied in negation whilst reminding him that he was violating the constitution, he argued that his first term should not count as he was not directly elected. Well, he's still in power, and his party has proclaimed him the "eternal supreme guide." In fact, a 2018 constitutional referendum approved amendments that could allow him to stay in power till 2034.
Why does this concern me?
If the politics doesn't bother you, then the suffering should. Currently, 300,000 people have fled the country for safety, 116,000 are internally displaced, and almost 1.8 million need assistance. Civil and political rights are under siege, while opposition leaders have been mysteriously killed. Numerous media organizations have been exiled and reporters arrested. And anti-government protests are spreading. All while Pastor Nkurunziza continues to preach the gospel and wash the feet of the poor.
Who's trying to help?
Local, regional and international bodies—but the government is extremely fending against them. It rejected UN and AU peacekeeping proposals in 2016, left the International Criminal Court in 2017, and closed the local UN Human Rights Council's offices in 2018.
Okay. Now I'm worried.
We are too. And we hope the situation changes soon.
Trump (not yet) Impeached
Earlier this week President Donald Trump became the third president in US history to be impeached but that's only one leg of the hurdle.
Trump who is a republican would be counting on his party to frustrate the impeachment plans are the next phase is another round of voting by the senate.
Backstory: President Trump was impeached on the basis of abuse of power, after he was charged for his influencing Ukraine to announce investigations targeting former Vice President Joe Biden, a possible 2020 rival, and other Democrats on discredited allegations.
Up next the senate
If all democrats in the senate vote for the impeachment of President Trump, they'd still need the votes of 20 republicans in order to successfully impeach Trump.
Do you think he'd eventually be impeached?
Triple threat becomes tag team
2019 has ended with many bangs. Here's another one.
Shock me.
Three Silicon Valley giants Google, Amazon, and Apple alongside other members of the Zigbee Alliance are joining forces to ensure all smart home hardware works together seamlessly.
This is an effort to reduce the burden on hardware makers and consumers who have to decide from the start which connectivity method their device supports and then build updates every time that method changes. Also, considering that the global smart home market is predicted to grow to $174.2 billion by 2025, these behemoths are pretty much the early birds.
Alright! Who doesn't think that's cool?
Many people. There are grave concerns about data privacy—with companies like Google and Amazon tracking how many times you've told your smart speaker to turn off the lights; fears of being hacked; and skepticism about trading personal data to other companies.
What a bang this is.
Meanwhile, in the Far East…
India has been thrown into turmoil.
Say what now?
Last week, the Hindu government passed a law set up to grant citizenship to religious minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. It includes Hindus, Sikhs, and Buddhists, but not Muslims. Since then, protests have surged and deaths have been recorded across the densely populated country
Why did they do that?
India's prime minister Narendra Modi has explained that the law is only "for those who have faced years of persecution outside and have no other place to go except India." But critics say it's his latest effort to execute his party's Hindu nationalist agenda (see here, here and here).
Protesters have taken to the streets for various reasons, some believing that the law marginalizes Muslims and others scared that more immigrants from Bangladesh could lead to cultural shifts or more job competition. Even UN officials and international advocacy groups have called the law discriminatory.
How much would it cost to buy all of the items in 'The 12 Days of Christmas'?
On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me,
Have you ever wondered how much all this stuff would actually cost?
Well In 2019…
If you just count each line in the song once: ~$39k.
If you count cumulatively (adding up the total mentions of each item in all verses): A toasty $170k.
Worth Reading 📚
The Year of Cuddly Capitalism
Google top search trends 2019: From ASUU strike to Naira Marley to Xenophobia to Big Brother Nigeria
Investment options for salary earners
What you need to know about new BVN 2.0
Thank you for reading this week's edition.
Please share it with a Friend.Was this forwarded to you?
Got a question about something you don't understand from this newsletter?
Copyright © 2019 Cloout All Rights Reserved.


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Home Science & Technology Innovation Social Media Faces EU Fine If Terror Lingers For An Hour
Social Media Faces EU Fine If Terror Lingers For An Hour
ReportersAtLarge
Social Media logos
THE European Commission is planning to order websites to delete extremist content on their sites within an hour to avoid the risk of being fined.
The regulation would affect Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, among others.
The crackdown would lead to the EU abandoning its current approach – where the firms self-police – in favour of explicit rules.
The shake-up comes in the wake of high-profile terror attacks across Europe over the past few years.
ALSO READ: EU To Fine Google Billions Over Android
Julian King, the EU's commissioner for security, told the Financial Times that the EU would "take stronger action in order to protect our citizens".
The BBC has confirmed the details of the report.
In March, the EU's civil service published details of the current voluntary arrangement, which noted that "terrorist content is most harmful in the first hours of its appearance online".
At the time, it said there was "significant scope for more effective action".
The BBC understands the draft regulation is set to be published next month. It would need to be approved by the European Parliament and a majority of EU states before it could be put into action.
Mr King told the FT that the law would apply to small social media apps as well as the bigger players.
"Platforms have differing capabilities to act against terrorist content and their policies for doing so are not always transparent," he added.
A study published last month by the not-for-profit Counter Extremism Project said that between March and June, 1,348 videos related to the Islamic State group were uploaded on to YouTube, via 278 separate accounts, garnering more than 163,000 views.
READ Facebook In Class Of Its Own As Ad Revenue Soars
The report said that 24% of the videos had remained online for more than two hours.
ALSO READ: 5 Tips For Choosing A Catchy Hashtag For Your Social Media Campaign
The BBC has asked Google, Twitter and Facebook to comment.
Google has previously said that more than half of the videos YouTube removes for containing violent extremism have had fewer than 10 views.
If the proposed regulation is approved, it will be the first time the European Commission has explicitly targeted tech firms' handling of illegal content.
SOURCEBBC
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Home > Ocean Racing > Transat Jacques Vabre: New Hugo Boss out after high speed underwater collision
Transat Jacques Vabre: New Hugo Boss out after high speed underwater collision
by yachtracinglife - 4th November 2019 4th November 2019
British sailor Alex Thomson and his co-skipper Neal McDonald have been forced to retire from Transat Jacques Vabre double-handed transatlantic race after a high speed collision with an unidentified object that has severely the keel of their newly launched high-tech IMOCA 60.
The two sailors sustained no major injuries other than some bruising and are working to stabilise the boat in order to sail safely, hopefully without assistance to the nearest port.
Thomson and McDonald were taking part in the team's debut race onboard the new state-of-the-art Hugo Boss IMOCA 60 monohull when at At 09:37 GMT on Sunday morning, while sailing at approximately 25 knots, the boat hit a submerged unidentified object in the water sustaining severe damage to its keel and marking the end of the race for the British duo.
Speaking from onboard the boat after the incident, Thomson said:
"This morning, Neal and I were both awake, going about 25 knots, when we hit something in the water. I was stood inside the cockpit just behind the pedestal. Neal was just behind the cockpit door.
"We're not sure what we hit but it was something big under the water, which must have been submerged to have hit our keel and physically stop the boat at 25 knots. The keel sustained a lot of damage and it was left attached only by the hydraulic ram.
"Neal and I are both physically OK. No major injuries, just some bruises. We were very lucky.
"If you were to get into your car, close your eyes, and drive at 40 miles an hour into a brick wall…that's what it felt like!"
Since the incident occurred, the skippers – with guidance from their technical team shore-side – have been working around the clock to stabilise the keel in order to allow them to sail safely, without assistance, to the nearest port.
The team's technical director, Ross Daniel, gave this update:
"After many hours of trying to stabilise the keel, Alex and Neal are understandably very tired and so we have made the decision that they should take some rest. Together, we will re-assess the situation in the morning. Both skippers are safe on board, the boat is stable, and they are in no immediate danger.
"Once the keel is stabilised, our best option looks to be to sail slowly and safely to the Canary Islands however we will make that decision tomorrow. Right now, Alex and Neal are in no immediate danger, and we are under no time constraints because the boat is currently in light winds and a slight sea state, and this is likely to continue due to the high pressures over the Azores. The boat is currently sailing in a north westerly direction, which it will continue to do throughout the night".
The incident occurred on what was day seven of the Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre, the world's longest and toughest double-handed transatlantic race which takes skippers, in their pairs, on a 4,350 mile journey from Le Havre, France to Salvador, Brazil. When they hit the unknown object, Thomson and McDonald were a little over a third of the way into the race and sailing around 380 miles to the north west of the Canary Islands.
Tagged alex thomson racing Hugo Boss transat jacques vabre
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Gail Freeman - 24 Mar. 2015
Gail Freeman
Naomi Raichyk
The middle of three siblings, Gail Freeman was born in Johannesburg in 1953. The daughter of committed Jews, she fondly remembers the beautiful seders her parents would host, sometimes having as many as forty-to-fifty people joining them for Pesach. Growing up, she attended a Jewish day school in Linksfield, a positive experience that would later influence her decision to enroll her own children in Jewish day schools in Canada. Overall, it was a happy, almost utopian childhood, which took on a slightly more complicated character when she developed a political consciousness as a teenager.
It was at a cousin's wedding that Gail met her future husband. Years later, she would joke that they met under the chuppah. The young couple married a short time after meeting and had two children in South Africa before moving to Canada and having two more.
Upon arriving in Canada, the family received a warm welcome from Toronto's South African community, which she describes as "out of this world." Gail, who has a master of education degree in educational psychology, found work in the Jewish school system while her husband found work as an accountant. The family's immigration a success, her parents followed suit, thereby ensuring that her children would grow up with grandparents nearby.
Today, Gail feels proud to be a Canadian, not least because Canada allows her to be proud of her Jewish identity. As she puts it, in Canada "everybody [is] from everywhere."
Freeman, Gail, 1953-
Irving (Calif.)
Johannesburg (South Africa)
00:19 Gail was born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1953.
00:30 Gail discusses her grandparents' immigration to South Africa from Russia. Her maternal grandparents were from (Kadam?) and her paternal grandparents were from Vilna. Her mother was born in Vilna and her father was born in South Africa.
01:17 Gail's mother is the youngest of three sisters. Her father is the eldest of three, with a younger sister and brother. Gail has an older brother, Hilton, living in New York, and a sister, Felicia, living in California.
01:55 Gail's father was born in the suburbs of Doornfontein.
02:14 Gail's parents were married in 1948. They worked in the building industry.
02:26 Gail describes her family's practice of Judaism while she was growing up.
03:39 Gail's parents originally lived in the neighbourhood called Bez Valley but moved to Linksfield, a Jewish neighbourhood where the King David Jewish day school was built.
04:25 Gail attended King David from nursery to high school. She briefly describes the school.
05:22 Gail mentions that another branch of King David later opened in Victory Park. She notes other Jewish day schools in Cape Town, Durban, and Pretoria. Later Yeshiva College opened.
06:15 Gail notes that her own school experience influence how she selected schools or her own children, who attended the Associated Hebrew Day School in Toronto.
07:28 Gail notes that there is a King David alumni group on Facebook. She mentions class reunions and a fundraiser spearheaded by former schoolmaster Elliott Wolf.
08:25 Gail earned a bachelor of arts with a major in Hebrew and sociology at the University of Witwatersrand. She earned a teaching diploma at the Hebrew Seminary. She completed her practical work at King David School. She returned to university and earned a bachelor's in social work and a master of education degree in educational psychology.
09:56 Gail discusses her involvement with "Boys Town" as principal in a children's home.
11:30 Gail shares some childhood memories concerning friends and school while growing up in Linksfield.
12:40 Gail notes that she became more politically aware as an adolescent. She identifies some of the issues that challenged her morally as a Jew. She comments that her ability to protest was limited due to the restrictions imposed by the police state.
14:14 Gail describes her warm relationships with her nannies.
15:11 Gail describes Jewish life in Linksfield. She attended weekly Shabbat services with her friends at King David. She recalls fond memories attending holiday services with her family at the Jewish Hebrew Congregation in Doornfontein, where her father was chairman. (Gail has a photo of the synagogue in her home.)
16:26 Gail participated in a group bar mitzvah through school.
17:44 Gail identifies a strong commitment to Israel as a major component of her Jewish tradition. They were encouraged to volunteer in Israel, support Israel and move to Israel. She recalls David Ben-Gurion visiting her school.
18:27 Gail was married in 1977. She describes how she met her husband and where they lived after they were married (Norwood, Berea and Linksfield).
20:34 Gail worked as a social worker for Jewish Family and Child Services and for Yeshiva School. Her husband worked as an accountant.
22:30 Gail discusses how the circumstances in South Africa that contributed to their decision to emigrate. She explains how she and her husband considered applications to the United States, Canada, Australia, and Israel. She discusses the trauma involved with leaving family and moving to an unknown, new country.
27:02 Gail's parents moved to Canada two years later.
28:13 Gail describes what they were allowed to take out of South Africa and what they brought.
29:25 Gail shares some of her initial impressions upon arrival in Toronto.
30:15 Gail describes how she was able to secure work as a guidance counsellor with Associated Hebrew Day Schools of Toronto while in Washington for a Tay Sachs conference.
31:40 Gail explains how through family connections they were able to find housing in a neighbourhood with an established South African community. She recalls how she was well-received by the South African community.
34:22 Gail and her family arrived in Toronto in 1988.
34:30 Gail recollects more difficulty fitting into the Toronto Jewish community and having few Toronto friends.
36:30 Gail describes the decision to move to a new subdivision near Associated Hebrew Day Schools on Atkinson in 1993, her current home.
37:50 Gail's family joined the Chabad Flamingo synagogue after the move, but has since returned to the synagogue on Green Lane to be with her parents.
38:48 Gail describes the relative ease of adapting to Canadian society and her pride living in Canada.
40:28 Gail worked as a principal for a Jewish day school in Irvine, California for three years.
41:50 Gail discusses some differences in child-rearing between South Africa and Canada.
43:33 Gail explains that her reasons for teaching her children the values of respect and kindness stem from her personal experience living in South Africa.
44:30 Gail has returned to South Africa twice over thirty years, but her husband has not returned.
45:38 Gail discusses some of the differences, both positive and negative, she observed when she returned to South Africa.
47:00 Gail notes that her children feel a strong connection to South Africa (e.g. history, culture, accent, foods, politics).
50:00 Gail speaks with pride about the contributions made by South Africans who have immigrated to Canada.
Crying on Route to Canada
Like a Little Kibbutz
A Closed Door


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Military Images Digital
Showcase. Interpret. Preserve.
Overworked, Overwhelmed and Unappreciated
By MI Digital September 2, 2017 June 6, 2021
Henry Meigs Meade had his hands full in 1864. The 24-year-old Navy paymaster was designated as the lone disbursing officer for all of the federal vessels in the regional fleet along the North Carolina coast. It fell to Meade to balance the ledger books in a challenging theater of operations.
Paymaster Henry Meigs Meade, U.S. Navy. Carte de visite by Courret Hermanos of Lima, Peru, about 1869. Ronald S. Coddington Collection.
Uncle George G. Meade. Library of Congress.
Meanwhile, his superiors held him to strict accountability from the comforts of Washington, D.C. Added to his burden; Meade was also placed in charge of the delivery and distribution of gunpowder on his own vessel, the gunboat Mattabesett
Meade hailed from a patriotic family with deep military roots. His uncle, Maj. Gen. George G. Meade, commanded the Army of the Potomac during the war. Quartermaster General Montgomery C. Meigs was his third cousin. Two of his brothers were career officers in the Navy and Marines.
By all accounts, Meade did the best he could in North Carolina. But when his yearlong stint on the Mattabesett ended in May 1865, clothing and other small items valued at $1052.53 were missing. Still, he was allowed to remain in the peacetime Navy. A series of mishaps resulted in his dismissal in 1872—and a $2,545.43 bill from the Treasury Department for monies unaccounted for during his entire service.
Friends and former shipmates lobbied the Navy and Congress to clear Meade's name. When matters were finally settled seven years later, the dismissal was revoked and replaced with his formal resignation. And, the bill was dismissed. In its official report, the Committee on Naval Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives stated of Meade's wartime accounts, "It was impossible under the circumstances, amidst the excitement and confusion of the frequent engagements by the fleet with the enemy, to avoid such losses.
Section 1, Plot 261. ANC Project.
His honor restored, Meade lived out his days in Washington.
The lifespan of Meade men tended to be less than the average. Henry Meigs Meade died at age 57 in 1897.
This portrait is part of the Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) Book Project. Established by Jim Quinlan, owner of The Excelsior Brigade, its mission is to identify approximately 15,000 Civil War veterans interred on the hallowed grounds of the cemetery, and to provide a biographical sketch and photograph of each individual. If you have an image to share, or would like more information about the ANC project, please contact Jim at 703-307-0344.
Categories2017 Autumn Most Hallowed GroundTags1864arlingtoncemeterycivil wargeorgegordonHenryMeade major generalMeigsMontgomerymost hallowed groundnationalnavyunionvirginia
© 2023 Military Images Digital | Contact MI


Curt Hébert co-chairs BPC's Electric Grid Cybersecurity Initiative.
Hébert served four years in Washington as a presidential appointee to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). He was nominated to a Republican seat on FERC by President Clinton in 1997 and named chair by President Bush in January 2001. At 38 years of age, he became the youngest chairman in FERC's history. During Hébert's tenure at FERC, he led efforts to restructure the electric utility and natural gas pipeline industries to promote competition.
He is currently a partner with Brunini, Grantham, Grower & Hewes, PLLC. He is the former chief executive officer of Lexicon Strategy Group, LLC, a firm that focuses on policy and regulatory issues in the financial, energy, and governmental sectors.
Previously, Hébert was executive vice president of eternal affairs at Entergy, where he supervised the company's system regulatory efforts and strategies, system and federal government relations, environmental policy, external and internal communications, and corporate contribution functions.
He earned degrees from The University of Southern Mississippi and the Mississippi College School of Law, and completed the Nuclear Reactor Technology Program at MIT. Hébert is a member of the Mississippi bar.


Well, I certainly can't make everybody happy but I'll get at least two out of four with this post. Possibly three if I set out a bowl of shelled walnuts.
So, without further ado, behold the best love poem (about moats) ever written!
The Moat: An Epic Poem For Eve About Love, Fish, Pirates, and, ummm….Moats.
And to say that I want a house with a moat.
Not only are there reasons, there's a lot.
Is because all of the best castles have one.
"We're better: We have two moats; they have none".
Is because preserving wildlife is our wish.
When the cranes again drain his pond of its fish.
Instead of one week at year at Chiemsee.
Is for protection from salesmen and thieves.
And post a sign, "Man-eating dog bites…and retrieves".
And I won't let ANYONE steal my love.
And let our other yard-shark, Willy, lick their faces.
Their faces dripping with gross drool.
And we'll go skinny dipping in our moat-pool.
Rats. I forgot about Peeping Tom. Perhaps it's time to break with history and add ramparts in front of the moat instead of behind it. Since this is no longer the 14th century and I'm fairly certain that you can't loose arrows at someone anymore just because they glimpsed her Highness' bare backside, the ramparts will have water-gun openings instead of arrow slits. Sure, the history books tell us that most wars were started as territorial claims, but I'm positive that some were simply started due to some fussy noble's overzealous sense of virtue. Now, I'm no Baron Von Jealouspants and am therefore unlikely to march on Berlin should anyone see my queen's bottom. That being said, anyone actually caught peeping will endure the merciless super-soaking of their lives and, as a dastardly display of tyrannical power, I won't even offer them a towel afterward. MUAHAHAHA!
Okay, yeah. I probably will. I'm just not the ruthless type. Once a liberal, always a liberal, I suppose. So in lieu of causing potentially lethal hypothermia to wayward perverts, I guess that I'll just have to stick with the water guns. Since I'm probably required to lest I have my bleeding-heart card revoked by the SPD (German Social Democratic Party), I'll even post a fair warning next to the sign reading, "Beware of Yard-Sharks". Which will be conveniently located right next to the towel rack.


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ComicsGames
Batman: Arkham Knight: New gameplay trailer released and game delayed to June 23
By Tim Villasor
Uh-Oh Batfans. Looks like you'll have to hold out just a little bit longer if you're one of the many people anxiously anticipating the next installment to Warner Bros. Games and Rocksteady Studios final installment in their immensely popular Batman Arkham video game series – Batman: Arkham Knight.
Taking to Twitter to make the announcement that there would be another delay, Rocksteady has stated that the new release date would be on June 23, 2015. This is the second time Rocksteady has bumped the release window, with the first instance going from October 14, 2014 to June 2, 2015.
We are pleased to announce our new release date – Batman: Arkham Knight will officially launch worldwide on 06.23.15 pic.twitter.com/3XEBhghpK6
— Batman Arkham (@BatmanArkham) March 23, 2015
In light of this three week delay, Rocksteady has decided to make it up to fans by releasing a brand new gameplay video that showcases more of the awesome action and beautiful graphics that the sequel has to offer.
Batman: Arkham Knight will now be released on June 23 for Playstation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
AsiaSoft and XSplit to change eSports in SEA
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation teaser poster and trailer released
Tim Villasor
Regularly cosplays as Batman (founding member of Justice PH) for events. Writer for GMA Sci-Tech and former contributor to Playground Magazine. Pop culture Crusader.


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