Still following along and really enjoying the build. Keep the pictures coming please.
Oh boy, now you have my blood pressure going way up. That is just plain old fashion BEAUTIFUL , now I cannot wait to see a final assembly photo.
Hang in there Thomas ! I won't disappoint, more to come. And Thanks !!
Forgot to take pictures of cutting the corner radius using a 1/2" shank carbide wood router bit. That worked very well.
Man that is a stack of swarf on your machine . Same thing happened to me, my raw stock was too big and had a lot of milling to get it down to size. Looking good and my blood pressure is still rising.
Beautiful part. I still marvel at the size of if it.
Starting with 3 3/4" 6061-T6 bar stock I did a cleand up cut on the stock O.D. to 3.725" and did a rough bore of 2" diameter.
With a center in the stock the outside ribs features of the cylinder were cut.
The next operation was to finish bore the cylinder to 2.375" for the bronze cylinder liners.
The 660 bronze stock was turned for a .002" plus diameter of 2.377" for a shrink fit into the aluminum cylinders and parted off longer than than finished size of 4.250".
Got the wife to supervise me heating up the cylinders in the kitchen oven to accept the liners. Checking for size and a liner in place. Oven at 450 degrees did the trick.
Back to the lathe with the cylinder in soft jaws with the first operation to face of the liner to the finished length of the aluminum.
Finish boring the liner to 2.000" with a light polish with some fine Scotch Brite.
The last operations was to turn the 3.250" diameters on each end that fits the cylinders head and bottom plate bores.
A look at the cylinders in place on the engine base.
Glad the shrink fit of the liners went well. That can always be a tense moment . Things are coming along well Brian.
bolt pattern to match the cylinder and orientated to the fixture edge.
Next up are the pistons. Made from 303 stainless steel and will have a fit to the cylinder bores with .0005" per side clearance. The pistons are 2.000" in diameter and 2" long.
After rough turning the O.D. the counterbore in the end of the cylinder was cut to depth followed buy a rough drilling to depth for the rod end slot.
A final finish cut to size on the O.D.
Set up at the mill in my mounted 4 jaw chuck with brass shim protecting the piston diameter. Center of the piston dialed in.
Using a 5/8" end mill to cut the slot for the connecting rod.
Checking for width with adjustable parallel . Final width will be .750".
Indicating the finished slot for drill and reaming for the wrist pin. The wrist pin will be a 5/16" dowel pin.
Drill and ream for the wrist pin.
Set up to add two 8-32 taped holes for set screws to hold the wrist pin.
That's it for now. Headed to N.A.M.E.S. this weekend. Hope to have fun displaying some of my other builds.
Thanks for showing all the different set ups. It's very informative.
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Koppers Australia Pty Limited (KAP) is a 100% subsidiary of Koppers Inc. (KI) of Pittsburgh, PA, USA. The company is involved in the manufacture and distribution of coal tar chemicals, carbon black, preserved timber and timber preservation chemicals.
The Koppers world wide group, including KI, KAP, together with KI's other subsidiaries TarcoNord of Denmark and Bitmac of the UK, is the largest supplier of carbon pitch to the aluminium smelting industry world wide.
KAP's early history is that the company was incorporated on February 28, 1967 as a 50/50 joint venture between Koppers Company, Inc. (KCI) of Pittsburgh, PA and the Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited (BHP) of Australia.
The company was formed to build and operate a coal tar distillation plant at Newcastle, NSW in order to process all BHP's by-product coke oven tars produced at its steelworks in Australia. KCI at this time was the largest distiller of coke oven tars in the US and provided the technology and management for the new enterprise to become established.
KAP acquired the timber preservation assets in Australia and PNG previously owned by Hickson International Plc of the UK. This gave KAP timber preservation plants around Australia and a timber chemical manufacturing business producing CCA timber preservatives.
KAP acquired 51% of Continental Carbon Australia Pty. Ltd, a carbon black producer located at Kurnell, a suburb of Sydney.
KAP formed a joint venture with Hickson International Plc to manufacture and supply timber preservation chemicals in Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, PNG and Pacific Rim countries.
KAP became a 33 1/3% shareholder in Koppers Industries, Inc. (KII), the company formed to acquire the coal tar, timber chemicals and coke assets previously owned by KCI in the US.
Continental Carbon Australia Pty. Ltd. became 100% owned by KAP.
Koppers-Hickson Investments acquired 50% of Coastchem, a subsidiary of Murray & Roberts in South Africa.
On December 2, BHP sold its shareholding in KAP to KI so that from this date KAP has been 100% owned by KI.
Joint Venture Koppers (China) Carbon & Chemical Co formed with TISCO in Tangshan.
Koppers-Hickson Investments became 100% owner of Coastchem, now known as Koppers Arch Wood Protection.
Joint Venture formed with Kailuan Clean Coal Company, Ltd and Tangshan Iron & Steel Group Company, Limited to construct tar distillation facility in Hebei Province near Jingtang Port.
In July 2007 Koppers sold its ownership interest in the Koppers Arch joint venture to Arch Chemicals.
Total group sales in 2014 were $310 million.
The company employs approximately 284 people.
The KAP Board of Directors comprises Mark McCormack, James Sullivan, Steven Lacy and Michael Zugay.
Mark McCormack is the Vice President, Australasian Operations & Managing Director.


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Home Who We Are Iraq Syria ISIS Ukraine Afghanistan Sign up for Email Updates Donate ▼
Syria Situation Report: March 9 - 17, 2017
By ISW Syria Team and Syria Direct
Conditions on the ground are not set for a political solution to the Syrian Civil War despite diplomatic efforts by regional powers. Russia, Iran, and Turkey held the third round of Astana Talks on March 14 – 15. The talks failed to generate any significant results amidst a boycott by the opposition delegation driven by the failure of Russia to implement a promised nationwide ceasefire. The Syrian Civil War will further protract due to the regime's unwillingness to consider meaningful concessions as well as continued attacks by irreconcilable factions. Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham conducted a double suicide attack in the Old City of Damascus on March 11. Unidentified militants later conducted a second double suicide attack targeting the Palace of Justice in Damascus on March 15.
These graphics mark the latest installment of our Syria SITREP Map made possible through a partnership between the Institute for the Study of War and Syria Direct. The graphic depicts significant recent developments in the Syrian Civil War. The control of terrain represented on the graphic is accurate as of March 3, 2017.
Institute for the Study of War at 6:35 PM

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Knee pain is a common concern for individuals, but medical treatment is often too extreme, too invasive, or simply too expensive to take on. Thankfully, there are a variety of home remedies for knee pain that range from physical therapy movements to ice therapies in order to alleviate or eliminate discomfort entirely.
If you only remember to try one thing for knee pain at home, let it be the acronym R.I.C.E. This stands for rest, ice, compression, and elevation. Rest is absolutely key, especially if the knee pain was brought about by an injury rather than a chronic condition. Stay off your feet as much as possible, and avoid high-impact activities like running.
Icing a sore knee can also alleviate pain right away, and it may help to reduce the inflammation and swelling often associated with pain in this part of the body. Compression involves supporting the knee with a brace or an elastic wrap, both of which can decrease swelling. Finally, elevating the knee with a cushion when sitting and sleeping can reduce pain and swelling.
In many cases, knee pain is caused or exacerbated by the type of shoes worn. If the ball of the foot rolls inward as you walk, you may be over-pronating, which can put extra pressure on the knee. Wearing orthotics in the shoe to balance out the pronation may be a simple way to alleviate pain instantly. Runners or active athletes who are experiencing knee pain may also be wearing their shoes for too long. Typically, even the best athletic or running shoes are designed for 500 miles at most, so those who cover a lot of ground need to replace their shoes often in order to keep getting the cushioned support their knees require.
One of the keys to reducing knee pain is by reducing inflammation, which can be done by completely resting the knee or by taking medicine like aspirin or ibuprofen. However, diet can also be a smart way to reduce inflammation throughout the body.
Many common foods have naturally anti-inflammatory properties, but highly-processed foods often have the reverse effect. Some foods to include to help combat knee pain include onions, ginger, cinnamon, extra virgin olive oil, salmon, blueberries, garlic, and green tea.
There are a variety of different ways to treat knee pain without a visit to the doctor, and some top home remedies include R.I.C.E., anti-inflammatory foods, new shoes, and at-home physical therapy exercises.


The uninitiated always ask "what kind of camera do you shoot on?" I hate this question. It's unimaginative. But for the record, it's a near-broken Pentax 67 and a Canon AE-1 that sneezes exposures. I hope this warms your soul. But let's not get distracted.
She's waiting, seething, hydrotherapy not as a remedy but simply a reflective layer of simmering hate. Down in the grotto, the dance submerges then builds into parabolas among wandering rocks. She imagines turning lost men into insatiable beasts, their attention caught in bright whirlpool screens deep and misunderstood as ancient Greek oceans. Circe would be proud.


A wonderful island. Floating in the North Ari Atoll is the Maayafushi Resort. It is a place where time seems to have stopped and dreams become reality. Water and sand combine and lie in contrast to the exuberant green of the foliage. The island is surrounded by calm and crystalline water and a coral reef filled with a colored fauna, well known to snorkeling and diving enthusiasts.
A long sand bank extends naturally at the southern end of the island and is the ideal place to watch the magnificent Maldivian sunsets. The beaches are beautiful and the island's turquoise lagoon offers opportunities for great watersports. Excellent food is served and this all-inclusive resort offers really good value.


I've been writing articles on why nitrogen in your tires is a waste of money for several years, but It has had very little effect on the number of car dealers that are selling it to their customers. Just last week, I received a text from a listener to my radio show disputing the fact that nitrogen is worthless for auto tires. The "Nitrogen Lobby" must be very powerful because we still have no federal or state legislation to curtail this. Selling nitrogen generation equipment and tanks of nitrogen to car dealers is very lucrative and, even more lucrative is the money car dealers make selling nitrogen to their customers. One large volume car dealer charges $899.99 for nitrogen in the tires of every vehicle he sells (August 2017). The cost of nitrogen is about "25 cents" per application. If you feel you absolutely must have nitrogen in your tires, Costco will give it to you for nothing which is exactly what nitrogen in your tires is worth. Costco reason for this is to encourage you to come back for more free nitrogen so that they can sell you a rotate, balance, and another set of tires.
I don't recommend that you even accept free nitrogen for this reason. It's widely accepted and recommended that you should have your tire pressure checked in your tires at least monthly. We do this free for our customers and automatically do it at every service visit. When you are sold or even given nitrogen, it comes with a sales pitch that nitrogen will remain in your tires for a much longer time than air which is not true. Click on this link to Consumer Reports article,www.NitrogenInTiresWastesYourMoney.com. If you believe the sales pitch, you're less likely to check your tires inflation every 30 days. You may have a slow leak in one tire from a nail or screw, uneven wear from misalignment, or even a defective tire. Being "over confident" because you paid money for nitrogen may cause these problems to go undetected. Consumer Reports estimates that 1 lb. of nitrogen will escape from your tires every 3 months vs. 1 month for air. Remember that air is 78% nitrogen. I'll bet the salesman that sells you nitrogen "forgot" to tell you that.
To be perfectly fair, I must say that some car dealers that are selling nitrogen have "drunk the Kool Ade" from the nitrogen generation equipment industry. Some car dealers believe that nitrogen is good for your tires. But those who do know must know how much they're marking up that 25 cents worth of nitrogen they're selling you! The argument for nitrogen can be persuasive. In fact, when the concept was first introduced, before the Consumer Reports study, I considered adding nitrogen to my customers' tires. But, in an abundance of caution, I decided to test the claims about nitrogen myself. Over a six-month period I used pure nitrogen in 50% of my rental car fleet and regular air (78% nitrogen) in the other half. Guess what! There was no measurable difference between the pure nitrogen and air-filled tires in the fuel economy, tire wear, or inflation pressure after 6 months. We did check the tires every 30 days for slow leaks from road hazards, uneven wear from misalignment or other reasons, and we rotated and balanced the tires every 5,000 miles.
Finally, I'll tell you why I was so careful to be sure there was no advantage to nitrogen. My dealership has a "free tire program". Everybody who buys a Toyota from me, new or certified used, receives free tires (maximum of $700 per set) for as long as they own their car. The one requirement is that they bring their car back to me for the factory recommended service and we replace only tires from normal wear, not road hazards, underinflating or misalignment. I give away in excess of $100,000 worth of tires every month, well over a million dollars per year. BELIEVE ME, if I thought I could get longer wear from a tire for "25 cents" worth of nitrogen, I would! I look at the tires on my customers' cars as "belonging to me" because I incur the cost of replacing them when they wear out.


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std::vector<std::string> split(const std::string& str);

std::string getArticle(std::string word);

std::string listThings(std::vector<std::string> things, bool articles = false);

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Kill Dil Expected Box Office Collection, will it cross 100 Cr mark?
Kill Dil is the latest upcoming movie of Bollywood this Friday. This upcoming movie will be full of comedy, drama and action. Shaad Ali is the director of Kill Dil movie. Although it will be a comedy movie, but the director of this movie said that this movie will also give a strong comedy plus humor dose to the audience. This movie starring with Parineeti Chopra along with Ranveer Singh & Ali Zafar is being excitedly awaited by the viewers. Govinda is also present in main role and this fact will surely attract more audience.
With some good and super star names associated with the film, it is being promoted well enough all over the country at different platforms. As a result audience is excited to watch this movie a lot and have been searching for the box office collections expectations from this movie. As per critics review, the film is capable of earning good figures and due to not much competition from new releases, it will get good exposure from the audience.
Kill Dil is based on the life of four people; there are many plus points in the favor of movie which may support it to get good public attention and box office collection. Popular actors Govinda will also be seen in this movie in effective role.
On the whole, Kill Dil movie has much chances to take a lead at box office and according to the audience pre release response, the expectations say that the film might do a business of around 80-85 Crores* in its total lifetime. Final results will be seen only when the film will get released actually.


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Lifespan Development & Educational Sciences Faculty Handbook
Matters of School Governance and Related Procedures
Close Matters of School Governance and Related Procedures Overview
Appointment of Faculty
Employment Procedures and Regulations
Teaching Assignments, Workload, and Related Procedures
Close Teaching Assignments, Workload, and Related Procedures Overview
Faculty Workload and Workload Equivalents
Teaching Assignments and Class Schedules
Summer Teaching Assignments
Faculty Annual Workload Summary Report
Curricular Procedures
Matters of Student Success
Additional Faculty Responsibilities
Reappointment, Tenure, Promotion and Other Faculty Personnel Actions
Close Reappointment, Tenure, Promotion and Other Faculty Personnel Actions Overview
Graduate Faculty Status
Evaluation of Candidates for Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion
Purpose of the Contextual Statement
Research Expectations
Teaching Expectations
Service Expectations
Specific Programmatic Expectations
RTP Criteria for Regional Campus Faculty
Review of Full-Time Non-Tenure Track (NTT) Faculty
NTT Performance Review Criteria
Evaluating Performance of Full-Time NTT Faculty with Instructional Appointments
Evaluating Performance of Full-Time NTT Faculty with Research Appointments
Evaluating Performance of Full-Time NTT Faculty Assigned Administrative Duties
Evaluating Performance of Additional Professional or Academic Activity
Renewal of Appointment
Promotion of Full-Time NTT Faculty
Emeriti Faculty Actions
Faculty Excellence Awards
Close Faculty Excellence Awards Overview
Documentation Required for Application
Review of FEA Applications
Other School Guidelines/Policies
Close Other School Guidelines/Policies Overview
Assignment of Offices
Faculty Representation at Commencement
Handbook Modification, Amendment, and Revision
Service is expressed in an array of activities that reflect positively on the program and university. Two types of service activities are required for tenure and/or promotion: (1) service to the Program, School, College, and/or University, and (2) service to the Community and/or Field. Faculty must clearly articulate within their contextual statement how they have contributed to the Program, School, College, University, Community, and/or Field. Reporting of these activities must include documentation of involvement. Our School values service activities that guide and influence policy and/or professional practices in disciplines related to our academic programs as well as contributing to and/or strengthening the community.
Service to the Program, School, College, and/or University
Examples of Program, School, College, and/or University service involvement includes, but are not limited to:
Serving as Program Coordinator;
Engaged, responsive participation in Program development and improvement;
Cultivating community partnerships to address Program, School, and/or College priorities;
Linking local service initiatives with state and/or national initiatives;
Providing technical assistance/consultative service to a wide variety of campus and community partners;
Serving as Chair or demonstrating active membership on School, College, and/or University committees;
Serving as Chair or participating on Faculty search committees;
Serving as the Library representative;
Serving as a member of the IRB committee;
Serving as a member of Faculty Advisory Council and/or College Advisory Council;
Serving on the University Tenure and Promotion Committee
Considerations for Reappointment
Service on various Program, School, or College ad hoc and standing committees appropriate to years of appointment and Faculty workload. At the beginning of the pre-tenure appointment, the candidate is expected to focus on the development of a research agenda research and teaching. However, during the years approaching tenure and promotion to Associate, the candidate must demonstrate more engagement in service commitments.
Considerations for Tenure
University Guidelines identify the specific standards for tenure by which the School adheres. That is, the School's guidelines for tenure mirror university policy. In general, tenure is established when a candidate demonstrates involvement, and, potential for leadership, in service to the Program, School, and/or College through ad hoc and/or standing committee membership. A description of the nature and quantity of the candidate's service is required and must be articulated within the contextual statement using factors such as those identified in this Handbook. In particular, responsiveness to the needs of the Program and the needs of students must be demonstrated.
Considerations for Promotion to Associate Professor
A pattern of active involvement and emerging leadership in service to the Program, School, and/or College through ad hoc and/or standing committee membership is required. A description of the nature and quantity of the candidate's service is required and must be articulated within the Contextual Statement using factors such as those identified in this Handbook. In particular, responsiveness to the needs of the Program and the needs of students must be demonstrated.
Considerations for Promotion to Professor
A pattern of active leadership to the Program, School, College, and/or University through ad hoc and/or standing committee membership is required. For promotion to full professor, the candidate is expected to demonstrate high levels of professional service through committee membership at the School, College, and/or University levels, as well as other opportunities, including but not limited to, coordination of the program, directing dissertations, and serving as a graduate Faculty representative. Candidates for promotion will have been involved in the life of their Program, School, College, and/or University. A description of the nature and quantity of the candidate's service is required and must be articulated within the contextual statement using factors as those identified in this Handbook. Responsiveness to the needs of the Program and to the needs of students must be demonstrated, as well as evidence of how service is related to the goals of the Program, School, College, and/or University.
Service to the Community and/or Field
Examples of service to Community and/or Field include, but are not limited to:
Serving as an Executive and/or Administrative Officer within a national and/or international professional organization;
Holding a position of leadership and/or committee membership in a national and/or international professional association;
Editorship or editorial board member of professional international, national, regional, and/or state peer-reviewed journals;
Serving as a reviewer for professional international, national, and/or state venues professional associations/learned societies;
Serving as an external reviewer for a Faculty member's application for tenure and/or promotion at another academic institution;
Appointment and service on state and national and/or international commissions;
Internal or external grant funding to support collaboration between faculty and community partners, community service, development, and/or demonstration projects
Community service related to one's professional role. For example: (a) consultation with professional and non-professional organizations; (b) response to public request for professional expertise; (c) election or appointment to city, county, state, national boards, councils, task forces, networks related to the profession; (d) presentation of scholarly nature to radio, television, and/or press; and (e) service to community-based agencies and organizations.
Service to the profession at the regional, state, or national and/or international level appropriate to years of appointment and Faculty workload. At the beginning of the pre-tenure appointment, the candidate is expected to focus on the development of a research agenda research and teaching. However, during the years approaching tenure and promotion to Associate, the candidate is expected to demonstrate more engagement in service commitments.
University Guidelines identify the specific standards for tenure by which the School adheres. That is, the School's guidelines for tenure mirror university policy. In general, tenure is established when a candidate demonstrates involvement in service to the profession at the regional, state, or national and/or international level. Potential for emerging leadership to the profession at the national and/or international level is required. A description of the nature and quantity of the candidate's service is required and must be articulated within the contextual statement using factors such as those identified in this Handbook.
A pattern of active involvement and emerging leadership in service at the regional, state, or national and/or international level. Emerging leadership to the profession at the national and/or international level is required. A description of the nature and quantity of the candidate's service is required and must be articulated within the contextual statement using factors such as those identified in this Handbook.
A pattern of active, noteworthy service to the profession at the local, regional, national and/or international level is required. For promotion to full professor, the candidate is required to demonstrate high levels of professional service as evidence through a variety of activities, including but not limited to, participation in learned society activities, service to advisory boards/panels, participation as a reviewer for grants, membership on journal editorial board(s), and/or accreditation reviews, consultancy to agencies/districts, etc. It is desirable that the candidate demonstrates evidence of contributions to or engagement within the broader community, and, in some cases, may be part of the candidate's expectations (e.g., serving within an administrative capacity, chairing committees). A description of the nature and quantity of the candidate's service is required and must be articulated within the contextual statement using factors such as those identified in this Handbook.


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Prestigious accolade for Hunter asthma leader
Hunter respiratory research leader Professor Peter Gibson has been elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (AAHMS) in Adelaide on October 19, 2017.
He joined the induction of 49 new Fellows for demonstrating outstanding leadership in health and medical science in Australia. Their contributions were to a diverse range of clinical and research areas, including chronic diseases, mental health, neuroscience, medical physiology and cancer research.
Professor Peter Gibson is a Hunter New England Health respiratory physician, clinical researcher and Co-Director of the HMRI Viruses, Infections/Immunity, Viruses and Asthma (VIVA) research program, as well as Co-Director of the University of Newcastle's Priority Research Centre (PRC) for Asthma and Respiratory Diseases.
He is also past President of the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand.
Along with his research team, Professor Gibson is working to improve the management of asthma in pregnancy while also developing a new treatment for non-eosinophilic asthma using macrolide antibiotics.
Results of his 'AMAZES' study published in leading international journal The Lancet this year showed that severe asthma attacks were reduced by 40 per cent with a low daily dosage of Azithromycin, a macrolide antibiotic. It benefited asthma sufferers whose symptoms were unresponsive to standard preventer medications.
His work was also instrumental in having a drug called Mepolizumab listed on Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme after targeted clinical trials proved its worth in a sub-group of patients. It was purpose-built to block a protein causing inflammation in eosinophilic asthma but at first appeared ineffective.
"This is a great honour to be elected as a member of the academy , a society of great clinical scientists in australia," Peter said. "I look forward to continuing to contribute through research that improves the lives of people in Australia."
The 2017 AAHMS induction brings the Academy's Fellowship tally to 321. The ceremony took place during the Academy's third Annual Scientific Meeting, held at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) in Adelaide.
"Health and medical research undertaken by the new Fellows of the Academy, and enabled by government and philanthropic funding, will help to ensure quality and equitable health care as we enter the age of precision medicine," Academy President Professor Frazer said.
The full list of new Fellows, together with their citations on election, are available here.


The USCIS California Service Center (CSC) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Blaine, Washington, port of entry (POE) are participating in a joint agency pilot program for Canadian citizens seeking L-1 nonimmigrant status under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This pilot program was originally scheduled to run from April 30, 2018 through Oct. 31, 2018, but has been extended to run for an additional 6 months through April 30, 2019. The pilot is designed to evaluate how long USCIS needs to adjudicate these petitions and whether USCIS can support CBP through remote adjudications. Ultimately, the goal is to increase consistency in adjudication of L-1 petitions and facilitate the adjudication and admission process of Canadians traveling to the United States as L-1 nonimmigrants.
This pilot program allows, but does not require, Canadian citizens to request that USCIS remotely adjudicate their petitioning employer's Form I-129 or I-129S prior to their arrival or when they arrive at the Blaine POE. Previously, Canadian citizens had two options: (1) Go to a Class A POE or pre-clearance airport to apply for admission as an L-1 nonimmigrant and ask CBP to adjudicate the Form I-129 or I-129S on that day, or (2) Wait for USCIS to adjudicate their employer's Form I-129 or I-129S before going to a POE to apply for admission into the United States.
To participate in this pilot program, petitioners must file their Form I-129 or I-129S and supporting evidence with the CSC. USCIS will receive fees, issue a Form I-797C receipt notice, and adjudicate the Form I-129 or I-129S. If USCIS needs additional evidence, USCIS will send a request for evidence (RFE) to the petitioner.
If participating in the pilot, Canadian citizens do not need to wait for USCIS to adjudicate the form before going to the Blaine POE to apply for admission into the United States. At the Blaine POE, they can request that USCIS remotely adjudicate their employer's Form I-129 or I-129S. This option is only available at the Blaine POE during this pilot program.
Any correspondence with USCIS about your Form I-129 or Form I-129S.
CBP and USCIS strongly encourage petitioners filing under the L-1 pilot program to file L-1 nonimmigrant petitions with USCIS as far in advance of travel as possible.
You may choose not to file under the pilot program. Canadian citizens can still submit Form I-129 or Form I-129S at a CBP POE or you may submit your form to USCIS. However, during the pilot program, CBP will not adjudicate these forms at the Blaine POE. Instead, CBP will adjudicate them at the nearest Class A POE. The three stations nearest to Blaine that are able to process L-1 petitions are the Class A POEs Point Roberts, Washington, and Sumas, Washington, and the Vancouver Airport Pre-clearance location.
If you are a Canadian citizen and your employer is filing a Form I-129 or I-129S for you to apply for admission as an L-1 nonimmigrant, look at the chart below to see your options during this pilot program.
Is still pending with USCIS and was filed at CSC as part of the pilot program. Blaine POE Present CBP with the receipt notice (Form I‑797C) that USCIS sent you, and USCIS will remotely adjudicate the Form I-129 or Form I-129S. This may cause delays. If USCIS approves your form, CBP will review your admissibility and determine whether to admit you to the United States as an L‑1 nonimmigrant.
Submit your employer's Form I-129 or I-129S to CBP to adjudicate.
We encourage you to send us feedback as quickly as possible. The L-1 nonimmigrant pilot program for Canadian citizens will allow USCIS and CBP to determine the efficiency of the program's procedures, identify shortcomings, and develop operational improvements. During the pilot, you may communicate and provide feedback to USCIS about the program by emailing Public.Engagement@uscis.dhs.gov. USCIS values your feedback as we consider extending the program concept to other POEs.


The night life scene in St. Augustine wouldn't be complete without a robust comedy scene featuring local, regional, and national acts that perform weekly. The great variety of comedians and comediennes in St. Augustine provide excellent nighttime entertainment! Visitors can hear from well-known acts, up-and-coming comedians, and great performers at the local comedy clubs.


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Q: What is the filterDispatcher in struts2 what is the work of Filter Dispatcher and StrutsPrepareAndExecuteFilter and where to use which filter? Actually I have created one app with filterdispatch and another with StrutsPrepareAndExecuteFilter so wanted to know the diffrence between these two or we can have both in same web.xml?

A: FilterDispatcher was the filter that was provided by Struts 2 for handling all request which needs to be controlled by struts framework. After Struts 2.1.3 use of this filter was deprecated. As alternative StrutsPrepareAndExecuteFilter, StrutsPrepareFilter and StrutsExecuteFilter any one of these three filters can be used. Use of first filter is suggested when there is no other filter in chain which requires action context information, such as Sitemesh.

what is the work of Filter Dispatcher and StrutsPrepareAndExecuteFilter and where to use which filter?

If you are using struts 2.1.3 or higher it is Advised to use newly available filters instead of deprecated filters. While googling came across following points on some blog

*

*There were a lot of issued with the FilterDispatcher and its deployment.

*New Filter provides a better way to enable customizations and overrides.

*Make it crystal clear to developers what filters are doing what processes.

*Make dispatch process be more flexible to support things like native operation in OSGi or plugin system.

can have both in same web.xml?

Result this will be chaotic rather your application won't even be deployed. Doing this will be like asking two drivers to run a same car at a same time.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


I say "Rock, Paper, Scissors" and then throw.
I say "Ro-Cham-Beau" and then throw.
I say "Rock, Paper, Scissors" and throw on "Scissors."
I say "Ro-Cham-Beau" and throw on "Beau."
I say "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Shoot" and throw on "Shoot."


Defense testimony in the Corrine Brown trial is archived below.
Brown, in her testimony Thursday, cried more than once, as she contended that she knew very little about the counterfeit charity, just as she knew very little about her tax returns having inflated donation levels. Brown contended that former chief-of-staff and co-defendant Ronnie Simmons — who rolled on her in February — handled the entire interface of her political machine with his ex-girlfriend's charity.
"They're trying to destroy my life": Blistering cross-examination of Corrine Brown continued Friday, with U.S. Attorney A. Tysen Duva hammering the former Congresswoman over inconsistencies between her testimony and that of prosecution witnesses and the financial records upon which the government's case is predicated.
As on Thursday afternoon, Duva was aggressive in interrogating Brown – a woman who, over the years, considered aggressive questions from the press grounds for cutting off interviews.
However, in the biggest interview of her life, she had no recourse to cut off her interlocuter.
Initial inquiry focused on Brown's donations to Bethel Baptist Church, New Destiny Christian Church, and Clara White Mission between 2009 and 2015, which were less than reported on federal income taxes, according to church records.
Brown, in a muted voice, confirmed that was the case – what fire she might have had Thursday was apparently dampened by Thursday's torrential rains.
The early part of questioning involved a familiar rhythm: the prosecutor asking Brown about evidence in the case, and Brown disclaiming knowledge or responsibility.
Brown mentioned "cash in the bucket" on Thursday, but confirmed that cash she gave didn't make the difference up between what was reported and what was donated.
However, when asked how much she gave to these churches, she couldn't recall.
Brown, sounding like a chastened senior citizen much more than someone who was the most powerful Congressional Democrat from this area since Charlie Bennett, was in Grandma Corrine mode throughout much – but not all! – of this line of questioning.
"Let's be truthful with this. I did not double-check my taxes. It was a mistake. Several people worked on my taxes," Brown said, getting emotional.
The line of questioning was then cut off by Judge Corrigan, who appealed for decorum and the avoidance of crosstalk.
"How some of this got on here, I can't tell you, sir. But it was not correct. Sir," Brown said.
"I don't know who wrote this check … I am saying this is not my signature and I did not write it," Brown said.
When asked why someone else would write it, Brown didn't know.
"All I know is that this is not my signature and I did not write this check," Brown said.
Brown disclaimed documents saying that Brown gave verbal accounts of a $12,500 One Door donation to her tax preparer.
"This does not establish anything. This is not my writing," Brown said.
Brown also didn't know about a $3,000 check from One Door, but then identified the writing as that of her daughter, Shantrel Brown.
The Browns were at the Beverly Wilshire, and Brown couldn't remember which of several reasons might have occasioned her cross-country flight.
"I went to LA for numerous reasons … in addition to that, I attended foreclosure workshops … I can't tell you why I was there, but I went there for four separate reasons … I don't have my scheduler anymore, so I don't know why I was there," Brown said, as part of rambling about events that rivaled Faulknerian stream of consciousness.
"We went to the Garment District," Brown said, to negotiate discounts for cash purchases.
Brown's recall of the trip was faulty, as she couldn't initially recall coming from the Bahamas to L.A., until she rambled her way into recalling that she was visiting a Beaver Street Fisheries plant in the Bahamas.
"I do work. And then I do other things." Brown said, regarding a stay at the Atlantis in the Bahamas – one of the nicer hotels, apparently.
Brown then disclaimed responsibility for reading her own mail, when asked about an associated bank statement to that trip.
Drill down continued into Brown's shopping and spending, with a $558 tab at a clothing store and an $850 tab for "cleansing" at a Beverly Hills cosmetic center coming under scrutiny, especially since those spends came after the One Door money was dropped into Brown's account.
"Credit cards work," Brown said.
Prosecutor Duva crowded Brown on the stand, being told at one point to retreat by Judge Corrigan, as surveillance clips of Brown taking out money were addressed.
In the reporting period, Brown spent over $17,000 – much more than her salary.
"I know how to rob Peter to pay Paul," Brown said, inadvertently summing up the complex narrative of the case into one pithy sentence.
Corrigan continued to deflect Duva's hectoring, perhaps in deference to who Brown once was, perhaps because of the optics of a tall white male prosecutor looming over an elderly African-American lady on the stand.
The hits kept coming anyway.
"Do you think that I would do that?
Brown burst into tears, and a 15 minute recess ensued, with her attorney hugging her as she crumbled on the stand.
$141,905: the total cash deposits into Brown's account from 2009 to 2014.
How did it get there? Brown didn't know. And the government went through the paper trail to draw out a narrative which is now familiar to those following the narrative of this trial, now in its 8th day of testimony.
Brown's office was a "shambles," and for that she took responsibility.
But none of the 22 counts she faces has to do with bad office management.
And despite her assertion that her "reputation has been destroyed," none have to do with one's reputation either.
After the recess, Duva drilled down into donor checks, such as a Sept. 2014 disbursement of $10,000 from a New Jersey anesthesiologist.
A more composed Corrine Brown confirmed receiving the check, but when asked if the payee line was blank, her answer was interesting.
"He gave me an envelope of checks. I didn't look at the checks. I took the envelope back to Washington and gave it to Ronnie Simmons," Brown said.
One $10,000 check to the Alexander Agency led to about $6,000 of cash deposits into Brown's account. Shantrel Brown also got $1,000 from that check.
"I can't testify to that," she said.
Von Alexander, a former Brown employee who owns that Jacksonville PR agency, wrote a series of checks to cash from that account.
Brown denied having told Simmons to write that check to the Alexander Agency, contradicting the testimony of her former co-defendant and chief of staff.
When asked about the notation of "printing" on the check, Brown said she discussed a number of needs with Lipsky, who wanted Brown's help with a legislative issue – a common thread with these donors.
"I don't know why Von Alexander said the things she said, unless it was what someone told her to say," Brown said, again diverging from an employee of many years.
"I did not give her that information or any information she gave," Brown said, noting that Alexander was flat broke, struggling for food and gas money, and begging for money at Brown's mother's house.
Brown's bank statement was brought forward from the Sept. 12 – Oct. 14 showed $17,117 of deposits – thousands more than Brown made in official money.
Brown then dismissed the forensic accountant's analysis as "garbage in, garbage out," an analysis that drew direct lines between timely deposits and spending outside traceable money.
"When you sit up here and say she would have overdrawn her account every month, without input from me, I don't know how you can do that," Brown said.
"I'm not a computer person, but if you feed garbage in, you get garbage out," Brown added.
Questions came forth about One Door cutting a check for a political reception for a DC City Council candidate.
"When I saw this check, I wondered why this check was sent in. I have a fund to help other candidates. This doesn't make sense," Brown said.
Brown was likewise confused by a $3,055 check to Von Alexander from One Door, money that ended up in Brown's bank account a day later.
A $2,086 check from Aug. 2013 to Von Alexander from One Door, for Brown's golf tournament, was explained by Alexander being the event coordinator – and that the money could have been for reimbursement.
"I do know one thing. This is not Corrine Brown's signature. And I did not write this check," Brown said.
Of that deposit, $1,650 went into Brown's account.
A Sept. 2013 check from One Door to Alexander was cashed, then $1,000 was deposited into Corrine Brown's account, and $500 into Shantrel Brown's account.
"We just want to bore them to death with the same thing," Brown said about the prosecution's recounting of transactions.
"Any money put into Shantrel's account," said Brown, was reimbursement money, which would go to bills for their shared townhouse in D.C.
A Dec. 2013 check from One Door to the Alexander Agency also surfaced in interrogation.
Of the $2,500 check, $1,800 was cashed out, and fifteen minutes later Brown had $900 dropped into her account. Brown's daughter also got $900 dropped in.
Duva asserted that Brown gave her the check; Brown denied that, then seemingly recanted.
"It was reimbursement for money I gave her," Brown said.
Another line of questioning had to do with Brown's serial balance inquiries ahead of a July 2015 $800 cash drop. Brown was outraged that those inquiries cost $2.50 a piece.
July 20 2015 was, said Duva, around "the time of the China trip" – a purportedly educational endeavor that saw Brown's family and friends going to Asia for cultural enrichment.
"Two or three of them I know," Corrine Brown said.
As with other fundraising pushes, money found its way into Brown's account, $800 at a time. And as with those other pushes, Brown disclaimed responsibility, pushing it onto Simmons.
Discussion followed of the myriad ways to give to Brown: the campaign account, Brown's PAC, the legal defense fund, and One Door.
"These are different ways you can support Corrine Brown … if you chose to," Brown said.
A form that listed One Door up top of those four ways, Brown said, was not her handiwork.
Duva continued to hammer Brown on inconsistencies, bringing up more questionable signatures on tax forms.
Brown signed a document saying that she reviewed her 2014 tax return.
"Also my testimony is I did not check my tax information closely … I was so busy doing other things that I should have taken more responsibility to make sure my taxes were done properly," Brown said.
Brown blamed "a lot of sloppy bookkeeping … a mistake on my part" for this and other tax woes.
"It was my fault. It was my mistake. Sloppy bookkeeping," Brown said.
Dubious donations to Edward Waters College – a focus of much of the government's tax case, as Brown historically inflated charitable contributions on her filings – also were points of inquiry.
A $12,000 "donation" in 2008 of furniture was debunked by longtime EWC employees saying the furniture was donated around the turn of the century.
When asked why the audits didn't spur her to pay more attention to her returns, Brown skated around the answer.
Onward to Jacksonville City Councilman Reggie Gaffney's Community Rehabilitation Center and associated companies, where the answers were less than revealing.
Brown got money from CRC and associated companies, such as a 2011 check to cash for $4,000 that went into Brown's account.
When asked why Gaffney would be floating Brown $4,000, she had no real answer.
Brown, in the redirect, turned on the waterworks about Simmons, her mentee.
"I thought he had made it … I never thought Ronnie was taking any money," Brown said.
"I really would have fired Ronnie and turned it over to the House Ethics Committee," Brown added.
The onlookers began to file out of the courtroom.
Cross-examination begins: The cross-examination began with an assertion.
"You said Ronnie Simmons was 'your boy'. You mentored him … he rode your coattails," US Attorney A. Tysen Duva said, bringing his A-Game from the jump.
Volume in the back of the courtroom has been a problem throughout this trial, but Duva's voice boomed, reflecting a sense of general grievance and irritation at the case – and the political machine itself.
Simmons "was your boy for 30 years … why would he put you in that position," Duva asked, regarding the One Door scheme.
Brown couldn't explain why Simmons would do such a thing.
She also couldn't explain why Von Alexander was making cash deposits into her account.
Duva painted Brown as sophisticated beyond the defense narrative: a powerful Congressperson with advanced degrees.
"You spent time trying to bring things to the district. And you even had a slogan," Duva said, then made her say the slogan.
"Folks went to the polls … twelve elections," Duva noted.
"Every day, you caucused, and you voted, and you determined things that affected the lives of all Americans," Duva added.
The hectoring continued, with Duva wondering if she knew everything in the budget.
Brown, alas, did not know all the details.
The point of this – to establish Brown's fundamental competence.
Duva then moved onward, compelling Brown to speak up, rather than nod, before discussing her salary, which was nearly $200,000 at her peak.
"You were, what, a top three or four percent wage earner in America. You made a decent living. Much more than me," Duva said.
"I paid my bills," Brown related.
Duva moved to taxes, questioning paying them in October rather than April.
She said that there was always something going on in April in the House.
"I wasn't as organized in handling my taxes as I was in other areas," Brown said.
Staffers would "try" to help with the taxes, collating information ahead of the deadline, Brown said.
When presented with a list of Schedule A contributions, Brown couldn't recall telling her tax preparer that she'd dropped $12,500 into One Door for Education as part of yet another generous year of charitable giving.
"I don't recall … I don't recall … I don't recall," like a refrain.
Brown said she never gave One Door money, contradicting her tax returns, but she "never gave that information" to her tax preparer.
Duva pressed Brown on donations from 2013, which totaled – at least theoretically, at least on the tax return – $27,655.
Shown a copy of her tax return, sounding dazed, Brown identified it as her own.
"I see the number," Brown said.
The interrogation paused for evening recess, the toughest questioning Brown has gotten since a press conference after an August, 2016 debate, where she compared these charges to false accusations of pedophilia.
More of this comes Friday morning.
Taking the stand on her own behalf Thursday: Corrine Brown.
Brown, in a bravura performance (and possibly, the last of her public career) took the stand for over three hours Thursday afternoon, with most of the defense's witness list left on the cutting room floor.
Brown, who has played to big rooms in the past, was greeted by a packed courtroom … and a drowsy, post-lunch jury, which has seemed throughout the trial to be overwhelmed by detail of dodgy financial transactions.
Questions going in included how she would account for the various charges, how she would present on the stand, and what she would say about Ronnie Simmons, Carla Wiley, and the accusations of unjust enrichment and fraud made against her over the course of the prosecution's arguments.
Brown cried on the stand, many times. Admitted mistakes, many times. But in terms of the counts, she held herself blameless.
"I should have been more attuned to what was going on around me," Brown said.
Off the bat: she denied conspiracy. Denied wire fraud. Denied false tax returns. Denied false financial disclosure forms.
Testimony moved to Ronnie Simmons.
"I saw a lot of potential in Ronnie," she said about when she met him.
Simmons moved on to work for Brown in the Florida House, then the U.S. House, setting the stage for the charges considered by the jury.
By the time she went to D.C., Brown and Simmons interacted daily. Simmons ran her campaign in 1992, then moved to his chief of staff position in 1993.
Brown, even early in her testimony, veered into declarations about her amazing career as the "#1 Democrat in Veterans Affairs," a role she attained after getting decades of tenure.
And all the while, Simmons was there. And so were financial obligations.
Brown had a home in suburban D.C. and a home in Jacksonville. And was tightly scheduled.
"A lot of people think you live this glamorous life … you're stuck on the Hill. That's where you live," Brown said.
Brown described herself as taking meetings from "anywhere," a function of her rank and seniority on committees.
"I would take the meetings myself," Brown noted.
As well, Brown endeavored to travel home once a week – Jacksonville or Orlando mostly. And Simmons often would make the arrangements, Brown said.
Brown received reimbursements – but they came out of her Congressional budget.
Brown also got cash from Simmons, she said – which her attorney framed as being unusual.
"Any cash that Ronnie gave me – he told me it was his personal cash. If we had an event, Ronnie would put up his credit card," Brown noted.
Brown, when asked, discussed at length her association with the Congressional Black Caucus … glossing over specific questions about events in the One Door era to answer more holistically.
"I always had events … the entire time I was in Congress," Brown said.
The events, Brown said, generated scholarships.
Her voice quavered, as she talked about One Door.
Despite having the name One Door on event flyers, Brown lacked the skills to make the flyers. She said she couldn't even use a computer.
Simmons pitched Brown One Door as a "charity that would be working with us on some of our initiatives." He never showed her proof of what it was.
"Why would he show me? I'm not on the board … I don't look at organizations' statements," Brown said.
"They were just one of many organizations I worked with," Brown said.
Brown discussed her Invitational Golf Tournament, noting that she was "instrumental" in starting a minority transportation group, COMTO, listed as a co-sponsor. The idea of the golf tourney: to appeal to "transportation leaders" who "wanted to play the TPC" course at Sawgrass.
"I don't know why my golf tournament is such a big deal. Some members have golf tournaments every week," Brown said, exhibiting a flash of the personality media got to know over decades.
Brown, when asked about the charter flight on Florida Democratic Party chair Stephen Bittel's plane to a Jaguars/Redskins game, said that it was someone else's idea, that it was just to raise money for scholarships – and that she didn't know it was Bittel's plane.
Brown then discussed One Door donors. She mentioned One Door to them, as part of a larger group of concerns.
She might take a flyer or a document promoting an event, provided by Simmons, to introduce them to the concept.
"All of them," she added, her voice cracking again.
Regarding another donor, John Baker, Brown denied telling him she "founded" One Door.
Then she issued a blanket denial of telling anyone that.
Brown, at many points in the testimony, discussed how she offered tangible help to the donor class, rejecting the proposition of a "one-sided relationship" in these dynamics.
Brown then discussed the need to fundraise.
"I hate fundraising. That means you're supposed to go for hours to the Democratic club and work the phones," Brown said.
Noting that her entire fundraising team was subpoenaed in 2016, she said that's why she lost her last election.
Donors could give to Brown in any number of ways: the official campaign account and the Leadership PAC were two. And One Door was another. And the Legal Expense Trust Fund, established to fight the redistricting that changed her district.
Pivoting back to One Door, Brown asserted that she never told anyone it was solely a scholarship fund.
And Simmons never told her One Door wasn't registered as a 501C3. She found out post-indictment.
And she didn't know Simmons, who was like a son to her, was taking money either. If she had, she would have reported it to House Administration.
"I would have fired him. And I loved him," Brown said.
Brown denied Simmons' assertions that she directed him to take money from One Door and give it to her. Brown claimed to have trusted Simmons with access to her bank accounts.
"It might sound strange, but that's what we did," Brown contended.
"He did not give me any blank checks," Brown added later.
Brown didn't know Simmons was copping a plea either.
"I didn't know that. I didn't know that … I had no idea," Brown cried.
There was no discussion, she said, of coordinating stories.
Even when the FBI called, Brown said she had no idea One Door had any issues.
Then the FBI came to visit Brown.
"When he pleaded guilty," Brown realized that something was wrong.
Until then, she claimed to have taken Simmons at his word.
"There's another part to this story, and I have found out … I never knew that money was taken from One Door and used for things we didn't advertise for," Brown said.
"I loved Ronnie Simmons like a son, and I thought I got him out of his environment. There's a lot of young people from his community who ended up in jail," Brown said.
Brown said she had contact with One Door CEO Carla Wiley "maybe five" times.
"She said she was Ronnie's girlfriend," Brown related. But they never talked about One Door.
"I knew she was one of the organizers of the events," Brown said about the $330,000 of money raised in nine co-branded Brown/One Door events.
Brown never knew Wiley was taking money from the till. And she didn't know One Door was paying for romantic trips for Wiley and Simmons, including to one of Miami's best hotels.
"I can count the number of times I talked to her," Brown related.
Brown also discussed hiring Simmons' sister as a phony employee, saying she had cancer, and the school district for which she worked had bad health insurance.
If Brown had known Simmons was pocketing his sister's salary, he would have been fired, she added.
And Brown was appalled by the idea of taking money and putting it into her account from One Door.
"Why would you take money? There was no reason," Brown said when asked about taking money from One Door and putting it into her account.
Brown, when asked about her shopping habits, gave preferences: Dollar Tree over Dollar General.
"Everything at Dollar Tree is a dollar," Brown said.
After recess, Brown also discussed soliciting funds for a computer drive, after having been shown a solicitation letter that she claimed to have never seen before. She speculated that Simmons may have written the letter.
The same was true, she said, for a solicitation letter for a senior citizens' bus trip to the second Obama inauguration.
Brown was in favor of the trip to the "historical" event. However, she didn't know One Door was sponsoring the effort. It had never been discussed, she said.
The letter included a "call to action" pitch, urging remittance to Carla Wiley.
"Several of these documents, this is the first time I've seen them … never did I draft any documents. I didn't know how to do that," Brown said.
Brown also contended that she was not part of the planning committees for her events.
Regarding the "Queen Corrine" drink, she said she had no role in formulating that sweet strawberry libation.
Alexander issued a devastating testimony about checks that she had processed to give Brown cash.
Brown said that she "absolutely not" would have asked her to do anything illegal, including funneling money into Brown's account.
And kept employing her, despite a brain tumor that led to memory loss.
"I gave her money … she needed assistance to help her. I understand when you give money to your family, it's a gift, but when you lend money, you expect it to be paid back," Brown said.
Brown also questioned the idea of routing money into her daughter's account, claiming that two sets of bills precluded her doling out money to her lobbyist daughter.
On the subject of Onyx magazine, a vanity-press publication doled out to the African-American community, Brown said it was a campaign expense and the cost of the cover was $5,000.
"Friends of Corrine Brown paid for the cover," Brown said.
On the subject of fudged financial disclosures, Brown said Simmons filled them out.
"That's the kind of thing that he did," Brown said.
And on the subject of her personal finances, Brown said she let Simmons handle a lot of the details, taking over from a previous staffer.
She didn't know why hundreds of thousands of dollars flowed into her account; she was too busy "working for her constituents," and Brown's records were garbage.
"I was the kind of person who came with multiple shoeboxes," Brown said about trips to the tax preparer. And she was always filing at the last minute.
"If I had it to do over again, I would have done it differently … I was always busy doing something else. I should have spent more time on my personal business. Making sure the office ran the way it should have," Brown said.
"I made mistakes. I just didn't pay the kind of attention to details that I should have," Brown added.
Among those mistakes: inflated reports of charitable contributions to non-profits in Jacksonville.
Brown said she actually did donate furniture to Edward Waters College, despite it being disputed by multiple EWC staffers.
Brown claimed to work over a "period of time" to score that furniture, along with a computer lab at EWC.
Any retroactive deductions were just happenstance.
Brown addressed inflated donations to churches also, a claim made by multiple employees of local churches.
"There are many times that you give that you don't write it down," Brown contended.
Regarding Reggie Gaffney's Community Rehabilitation Center, to which her charitable deductions were questionable at best and fraudulent at worst, Brown noted that he'd known Gaffney for 20 years.
The letters – of which one thanked her for $10,000 of her "time" – struck her as novel; she hadn't seen them, she said, until this process.
She kept her records in a shoe box, she said.
Brown kept coming back to the idea of "not taking care of Corrine," noting she forgot to file for Social Security.
Brown described her shopping as trips to the drug store, perhaps to buy something for her mother, her voice cracking again.
"I go to the stores and I compare the prices … I shop," Brown said, rejecting the portrayal of her as a shopaholic with a taste for the finer things.
Brown also rejected any idea that she did online banking … though now she knows how to use an ATM.
All told, Brown presented the case her defense needed: one of plausible deniability, in which every action could be explained away.
However, as thunder boomed outside, auguring the first real rain in weeks in Jacksonville as Brown cried on the stand, there were two potential reads on the natural phenomenon.
One read: that the rain had a baptismal quality, offering the renewal that only clean water will provide.
Another read: that the rain was as ephemeral as Brown's well-timed waterworks.
The cross-examination, no doubt, will be dispositive.
John Delaney speaks: In what was framed as an abbreviated presentation of defense witnesses, Corrine Brown's lawyer James Smith began defense testimony late Thursday morning with three witnesses – ahead of Brown taking the stand after lunch.
The big get: former Jacksonville Mayor John Delaney.
The current President of University of North Florida, Delaney interfaced with Brown as Mayor from 1995 to 2003, then in his role at UNF since.
Delaney met Brown when she was in the State House in the 1980s, and interacted with her a "lot" when at City Hall – with Brown offering access to her contacts, and help getting the Fuller-Warren Bridge and the current federal courthouse funded.
"She's bluntly honest, and sometimes it gets her in trouble … Corrine tells the truth. I've always 100 percent relied on what she told me," Delaney said.
When subject to cross-examination, Delaney said he did not know her finances or banking activity.
Leaving the stand, Delaney paused to hug Corrine Brown, and kiss her on the cheek.
Brown will take the stand after lunch.
Along with Delaney, two others took the stand.
Both attested to her philanthropy. And one painted Brown as an enfeebled old woman who relied on staff for pretty much everything beyond delivering remarks.
Brenda Simmons-Hutchins – no relation to Ronnie Simmons – took the stand first.
Brenda Simmons-Hutchins was a few years ahead of Corrine Brown in high school, then worked with Brown at the local community college later on, and their professional paths continued to interact.
Simmons-Hutchins is a member of "The Links" – an organization of African-American women devoted to community service, which collaborated with Brown on a project doling out laptops to local female 6th graders at a certain middle school.
This project was questioned during the trial previously.
Simmons-Hutchins understood that the laptops were bought from the school district's surplus stock, and they had to be bought with cash. They were, in fact, given to the students, Simmons added.
Simmons-Hutchins also attested to one student (her then 17-year-old grandson) who actually went on the Chinese cultural exchange trip Brown raised money for and programmed.
"All of the expenses were taken care of," Simmons-Hutchins asserted.
Prosecution pointed out that other Brown associates, including former Mayor Alvin Brown's son, were on this trip.
Rontel Batie, a former Brown Congressional staffer and lobbyist, was the second pre-lunch witness.
Batie noted Brown was early to arrive and late to leave the office, with the schedule stepping up further when she became the ranking member of Veterans' Affairs in 2015.
Ronnie Simmons, Batie said, made the offer and directed him through tortuous post-hire paperwork.
Discussion moved to Congressional Black Caucus events. And Brown's events "always had a cause," Batie said.
Batie remarked that Brown relied on staff to help with personal matters, including helping her to walk.
By the end, "she didn't do much walking at all," and had to be driven from her office to the House floor – just a hundred yards away.
"We pretty much tried to create an environment where she didn't have to do anything but walk into her room and deliver remarks," Batie said.
Despite her unfitness otherwise, Batie called Brown an "expert" on complicated Congressional issues, capable of multitasking.
When asked about One Door for Education, Batie said "they were honoring the Congresswoman for her efforts in Veterans' Affairs," but he didn't know who told him.


text:
350 Action Responds to the First Presidential Debate
Washington, DC — The first presidential debate took place tonight in Cleveland, Ohio. The presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Joe Biden, were asked about the pandemic, the Supreme Court, election integrity, racial injustice, recent protests, the economy, and the climate crisis. Viewers watched as Trump used his usual tactics of bullying, disruption, and creating chaos to avoid answering questions on his abysmal record from the last four years, while Biden tried to remain issue focused and calm, speaking directly to the people.
350 Action North America Director Tamara Toles O'Laughlin gave the following response:
"Tonight made one thing clear: Donald Trump is afraid of losing so he's retreated to bully and cheat his way through the election by creating mass chaos. Trump attempted to distract from his own wide-ranging negligence on healthcare, the economy, and racial and climate injustice by resorting to interruptions, misinformation, and bulldozing. In one of the most stunning moments of this tumultuous debate, Trump refused to condemn white supremacists and militias when asked, telling them to "stand back and stand by." We cannot afford four more years of this ineptitude and blatant disregard for our communities. The American people deserve better than a debt-laden millionaire who cheats, while driving our country further into chaos. We deserve leadership that can deliver us a just recovery, and prioritize people and planet.
"As heat waves and wildfires engulf the West Coast and in Colorado in flames, toxic smoke spreads across the country, and a record breaking hurricane season continues, the moderator finally raised the climate crisis in the debate, a testament to the pressure of our movement. In response, Joe Biden spoke directly to voters, most of whom support climate action. He laid out his plans for addressing the climate crisis, the pandemic, and racial and economic injustice. Biden made clear that climate action will boost the economy and generate millions of good jobs, despite misinformed claims from his opponent. Going forward, we'd like to see Biden show he's listening to our movement by committing to real solutions to address systemic racism, such as defunding the police, and comprehensively addressing the climate crisis through unequivocally supporting the Green New Deal.
"This is it. We've got 34 days to get to the polls and vote for a livable future."
350 Action is throwing its weight behind efforts to get out the vote. If you'd like to learn more about these efforts, click here: https://350action.org/get-out-the-vote/
On Weds, September 30, 350 Action's sister organization 350.org is hosting the 'Stronger than Storms: Climate & Just Recovery Forum,' bringing together community leaders from impacted communities on the frontlines of demanding and building a Just Recovery on the ground.


You will also visit the famous Cat Museum. The diversity of Malaysian cultures is reflected in your visit to the colorful Tua Pek Kong Temple, the State Mosque and the Cathedral. Dinner will be served at the city hotel.
After Breakfast, you will check out from the hotel and depart to one of Sarawak's National Parks (either Bako or Gunung Gading National Park). Bako National Park is the oldest national park in Sarawak. It covers 2, 742 hectares of rugged peninsula, indented with beautiful rock formations, steep sandstone cliffs and sandy bays. Gunung Gading National Park, located near Lundu Town, has a series of waterfalls along the trek up the mountain. It is famous with the world's largest flower called Rafflesia. Packed lunch is provided for a full day tour to the national park. Dinner is provided at the resort that you will stay in for the night.
Storytellers and demonstrators are available to enable you to experience true village activities of these ethnic groups. Finally, you will be entertained by a 45-minute culture show in an air-conditioned theatre. After lunch, you will be transferred back to the resort. In the evening, you are free at your own leisure. Dinner will be served at the resort.
Breakfast is served at the resort. After check out, you will visit the Sarawak Pottery Factory on the way to the airport. Tour ends. See you next time.


Among the items auctioned off at the 2014 Tennessee Hawgs for Dogs event was a Jack Daniels whiskey barrel. From left, District 711 Business Representative Tim Wright, Local 1501 President Paul Buckner, GDA Volunteer Teresa Blevins, and Asia.
Also auctioned was a unique handmade quilt made by IAM members Angela Duren and Paula Skelton.
More than four dozen motorcycle riders kicked off this year's annual Tennessee Hawgs for Dogs ride to benefit Guide Dogs of America (GDA). The day-long event, which raised more than $6,000 for the IAM's favorite charity, was organized and hosted by volunteers from District 711 and Tullahoma, TN Local 1501.
In addition to rider's entry fees, the event raised money for GDA with auctions for collectable items that included a Jack Daniels barrel (was it full?) and a one-of-a-kind quilt made from Hawgs for Dogs T-shirts by IAM members Angela Duren and Paula Skelton.
GDA receives approximately 50 percent of its yearly budget through IAM fundraisers such as the Tennessee Hawgs for Dogs event and uses the money to graduate between 50-60 guide teams each year. It cost approximately $42,000 to successfully breed, raise and train the guide-team to graduation. GDA also provides a lifetime of aftercare beyond graduation, at no cost to the blind and visually impaired recipient.


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Jan Harrison is an American painter and sculptor whose work, which primarily features animal imagery, centers on the animal nature as it relates to human existence and the collective psyche. Her art is informed by the philosophy of deep ecology. A monograph detailing her work describes it as "excavat(ing) the arcane kingdom of the human psyche, so long tyrannized by the repressive and oppressive forces of socialization." She has exhibited widely in the United States and abroad. Harrison speaks and sings in a language, Animal Tongues, which she performs.
Jan Harrison was born in West Palm Beach, Florida, and has lived in Georgia, California, Ohio, and New York. In 1989 she moved from Cincinnati to New York's Hudson Valley. Her art has been in over one hundred and seventy solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States and internationally, including Animal.Anima.Animus, c: Linda Weintraub and Marketta Seppälä, which opened in Finland and was exhibited in Holland, Canada, and at PS1 in New York.
Arcana Mundi, a monograph, was published in 2001 by Station Hill Press. In 2003, a chapter regarding her art was published in the book, In The Making: Creative Options for Contemporary Art, Linda Weintraub, D.A.P., New York, NY. In 2010 an article and interview about her work was published in PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art, New York, NY. Her work has been featured on the covers of books, including Divinanimality: Creaturely Theology, Stephen D. Moore, Laurel Kearns, Drew University, Ecospirit: Religions and Philosophies for the Earth, Laurel Kearns & Catherine Keller, Fordham Press, and The Animals Look Back at Us, Sara Lynn Henry, catalogue for the exhibition.
In 2018 a feature article and interview, Life or Death, by Brainard Carey, about Jan Harrison's 1993-2018 series of paintings, "Animals in the Anthropocene," was published in Praxis Center for Aesthetics, Yale.
"Jan Harrison beckons viewers to embark on a voyage. But instead of leaving home to explore exotic sites and sounds, we are guided into equally foreign territory — our innermost selves. We journey downward, circumventing our personalities and our individual life stories, passing our accumulated recollections and our acquired attitudes, crossing beyond spoken and written histories and even beyond human ancestry. Ultimately we disembark in the wondrous galaxy we carry within each gene. Its constellations are measured in units of shudders, murmurs, gasps, and shivers.
On this primal level, we discover our common animal ancestry, a vestigial remnant here awakened and made observable as pastel drawings, porcelain sculptures, and recorded voices."
Linda Weintraub, excerpts from essay, Genus Fusion, In The Making, Creative Options for Contemporary Art, and Animal.Anima.Animus
"The stuff of dreams… slithering reptilian creatures, soulful dogs, enigmatic cats, poignant and terrifying primates, all reflecting and sharing our deepest imaginings and cravings, our primal fears and pain. These are the images and emotions we keep hidden, but they steal into our dreams unannounced, emerging at our most vulnerable moments — the anima/animus — our shadow figure, our soul. These archetypes are deeply rooted in the indelible beauty of the paintings and sculpture of Jan Harrison.
Harrison's pastels, encaustic paintings and animal sculptures explore the essence of being both animal and human. She delves into the obscure depths of our collective psyche and melds the two worlds with a searing intensity. Her work has a strangely exquisite, eerie charm as it stuns us with its beauty.
There is a powerful purity, an intimate authenticity in the primacy of her work. This is the natural world, our inner truth, a world that captivates us and elucidates the duality of existence. Startling us, we descend into a primeval plain – a hidden place that still exists somewhere deeply buried in our sensibility. The effect is profoundly personal, a mysterious journey into the self."
Donatella de Rosa, excerpts from essay, Anima / Animus; the strange and beautiful world of Jan Harrison, Roll Magazine
"Harrison's work explores origins. Her large primate heads, part of the "Corridor" series — a term that relates both to the eco-passageways into which much of the world's wildlife is being squeezed as well as a cloistered psychological space — seem to be seeing more of us than we do of them. They gaze at us out of a velvety darkness, the details of their fine, bristling fur and rounded faces barely visible, creatures of ancient memory tangibly, palpably present, whose eyes seem to follow us as we move past. The frontal composition and fine scrolls of whiskers drawn in gold ink suggest a Byzantine icon, while the soft atmosphere suggested by the smudged veils of color is naturalistic: it's the combination of the two that perhaps imbues the creatures with their uncanny presence."
Lynn Woods, excerpts from article, Beauty of the Beast, Kingston Times
"Occasionally an artist embodies the full manifold, a many-folding mind field, a replete and monstrous sheath turning out an underside of mind and, as Blake said, "the infinite which was hid."
This is liminal being with highwire intensity — and no more human vs. animal, and especially no more diminution of the animal as something sub-human, rather than the essential reality of any other in the natural mystery of its primacy.
Somehow its magic is to release us from our dying images, to set us out on our journey of the precariously beautiful, with its unlimiting energy and self-secret identity, and we are, to transpose Yeats, changed utterly: A terrible beauty is born."
George Quasha, excerpts from essay, Crossing Over to Jan Harrison
"Harrison combines elements from animals we all know and love in a way that honors their innate otherness while also speaking to the non-human and intuitive inside everyone ….. all quite beautiful and bewitching …. Her pieces tend to emerge, with a resulting sense of mysterious origins, otherworldliness, to all she does. …. .Deeply personal and pioneering work."
Paul Smart, excerpts from articles: Painting in the Language of Animals,and Fine Furred Friends, Ulster Publishing's Almanac
"Childhood memories of drawing huge mermaids and animals on the sidewalk, surrounded by the swaying and shimmering of plant life and ocean of south Florida where she grew up, she created art, even as a child, out of an intense feeling of deep connection to life….."
Lorna Tychostup, excerpt from article, Speaking in Tongues, Chronogram
"In talking about her work, the artist states a desire to 'live and see clearly, in a world that is brutal and uncaring, yet nurturing and joyous.' Harrison's paintings, self-portraits of her own interiority, her own animal nature, depict a world filled with chaotic struggle between what the sociobiologists have termed our basic 'altruism' and what Darwin identified as our 'reptilian brain.' Harrison is able to depict her struggle, her obsession, with artistic power and an unflinching self-referential style………we find a center of personal calm and cosmic balance in the aesthetic maelstrom provoked by Harrison's desire to communicate and her awesome technical facility. "
Steven Kolpan, excerpt from article, Beast of Eden, Woodstock Times
"Sometimes exuberant with joy, but almost always eerie in their psychic allusion to mankind's archaic affinity with nature, Harrison's canvases seldom leave the viewer without some lingering impact like a half-remembered dream. In Harrison's pictoral allusions to our archaic past we see, also, modern man's new interpretation as he wrestles with his ancient, dormant instincts."
Ann Pollak, excerpt from essay, Myths for Our Time, Dialogue Magazine


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Jerusalem Post Opinion
Shame on Europe
There is no denying that the European Union is engaging in a double standard toward Israel.
AN OLD map presents Europe in the shape of a queen holding scepter and orb, with Portugal as her crown, Spain as her face, France as her belowthe- neck area, lower Germany and Denmark as her left arm, Italy as her right arm (with Sicily as orb), and the rest of central and eastern Europe as the dres
(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
The European Union's Court of Justice decided this week that products made in Judea and Samaria cannot be labeled "made in Israel," mandating that labels be changed in all 28 EU member states.
Before the ruling, the EU had only advised such labeling, but now it will be a requirement, and the union can launch legal proceedings against any state that does not comply.
The mandatory labeling also applies to products of east Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, even though those areas are under Israeli sovereignty.
This decision is an outrage for a number of reasons.
First, it came while half of Israel was shut down due to the threat of rockets launched by terrorists into civilian populations. A modicum of consideration would have been appreciated at this time.
The court could have easily waited, but it did not.
The decision would have been controversial at any time, but for it to come when children from Tel Aviv to Beersheba and beyond had to stay home from school and run for shelter when rocket sirens went off, was an insult to Israelis.
This singling out of Israel is exactly what former Jewish Agency chairman Natan Sharansky meant when he wrote in 2004 of the "three Ds" distinguishing antisemitism from legitimate criticism of Israel: delegitimization of Israel, demonization of Israel and subjecting Israel to double standards.
There is no denying that the European Union is engaging in a double standard toward Israel as opposed to other territories.
There is no similar labeling mandate for other areas under territorial conflict, like Tibet, Northern Cyprus or Western Sahara, as former justice minister Ayelet Shaked pointed out. In fact, rather than singling out their products, the EU even has an agreement with Morocco allowing European boats to fish in territorial waters off Western Sahara.
Beyond the formal definition of antisemitism, Europeans have a long history of telling Jews where they can – and more often, can't – live, and with whom they can do business, going back centuries.
Labeling products from Judea and Samaria will encourage boycotts, something Jews were subjected to in the darkest period of Europe's history.
And by declaring Jewish businesses – the implication being Jewish life – in Judea and Samaria as illegitimate, the EU is acceding to the Palestinian-driven idea that certain spots on the map need to be "Judenrein," free of Jews.
After all, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has said that, for him to reach an accord with Israel, the West Bank will have to be "free of settlers," meaning Israeli Jews.
Europe allows free passage and even residence of citizens of one state into another, but its courts think that Jew-free areas are an acceptable concept in other parts of the world.
The decision also applies to Israeli products made in the Golan Heights, an area that falls under Israeli sovereignty, which is recognized by the United States. Requiring labeling of Israeli products made in the Golan makes no sense. Let's say Israel would want to give the Golan to somebody: who would the EU recommend?
The brutal Syrian leader Bashar Assad, who has murdered more than half a million of his people in this long civil war? Or would Europe prefer ISIS, Iran or maybe Russia? Israel's control over the Golan helps keep Israel secure and prevents a larger conflict that could erupt and engulf the Middle East.
The failure to recognize this simple fact is not just ignorance. It is a lie.
And then there is east Jerusalem. Basically, what the EU is saying is that if a menorah is made in the Old City and then exported for sale to Paris, it would need to be labeled. The capital of the Jewish people for three thousand years and its connection to the Jewish people is put into question.
What Europe seems to fail to understand is that the days when the continent could tell Jews where they can live or where they can do business are over. Those days ended in 1948.
For the European Union's top court to make a decision reeking of prejudice on a day when Israelis were most vulnerable is inexcusable.
Europe should be ashamed.


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I used (on tubes)a reversed legacy Kiron 28-70mm f3.5-4.5 zoom in Nikon mount.That mount is manual aperture and it remains stopped down unless fitted (normal way round) to a suitable Nikon camera, which will give full aperture focusing.
I have been playing a little at this. A 70-200mm L F4 as the rear lens with a 2x convertor on 65mm of extension tubes with a 50mm f1.4 reverses on the end.
By my reconning this is about 11:1. I lit it with a Sigma ring flash to the side, off of the camera.
Try mounting a G-type adapter ring for mirrorless cameras, e.g. Nikon G-Fuji X adapter. These adapters have a manual aperture control ring to move the aperture lever. Alternatively, take a small piece of folded paper, stick it into the the lever that opens up the aperture, and the height of the paper would provide you with the effective aperture - push the lever all the way to get wide open, make it half way to get half-way closed down - the aperture lever is linear in the f-stop. Simplest is to get manual focus Nikkors.
You say to use the front (reversed) one for aperture alterations and just leave the other one wide open but it's the back one that you can control through the camera and there's no manual on the front ones. Is there an easy way to deal with this?


Everything starts on Monday. All rehearsals are at the usual times and in the usual places. The only exception to this is 5-note Orchestra, which we are giving a rest this term.
We are going to start having a regular busking slot in The Street on a Friday Week B breaktime. This is open to anyone who wants to perform. The buskers will locate themselves near the piano at the top end of the street – obviously the piano can be used, but if you want to do anything else you will need to set it up there very quickly at the start of break. Singers – would recommend that you use a mic and run that through an amp.
It doesn't matter whether you're a solo performer or a small group – you just need to have enough music to play from as soon as possible after 10.35 until the whistle goes at 10.50.
It's been a while since we've done a flashmob at school. Find out in Choir on Monday what our next flashmob is going to be!
Perhaps our best ever flashmob (so far) was Ravel's Bolero. This was way back in 2012! The video doesn't do it justice (we'll get a better sound recording for our next one)!
PS to find out what songs we're doing in Choir this term, visit the Choir page!


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China has become a giant manufacturing hub in the world in the recent years. Regardless of what industry it is, China has been taking huge steps in bringing up the manufacturing of quality products in the last two decades. One of the things that China is highly famous for is, the furniture industry. No matter what type of furniture you're looking for you, China has got it covered. To import from China has become the first option when it comes to sourcing furniture. Almost all of the famous chain stores in Furniture like Ikea, Ashley Furniture, and Restoration Hardware, have their own factories who are private label manufacturers offering OEM serivce in China. There has been a huge outbound of furniture from this country to all over the world, as the China can provide both quality and quantity when it comes to furniture. Among all wholesale places over the country, Foshan furniture market is by far the best one both in quality and size.
Furniture is one of the major costs that you must focus on, while designing a home or office. One of the optimum benefits that you get by importing furniture from China is cutting down the cost, since furniture from the dragon country comes at a wholesale price. In the year of 2004, China has become the largest furniture exporter in the whole world. Most of the leading interior designers around the globe gets their furniture from China for various important reasons. Moreover, the furniture that you get from China comes with different variations such as models that are specially designed to avoid the usage of nails, glue, and screws. Such types of furniture can last up to as long as a few centuries. There are about fifty thousand manufacturers of furniture in China, among which most are small to medium sized furniture manufacturers. Most of the furniture manufacturers produce brand-less or generic furniture.
High-quality Furniture: Furniture is one of those things that stay forever with your interior of a home or office. Picking up the right quality furniture is a highly important thing to do, which can be a really tricky job. Furniture manufacturers in Foshan furniture market are making advancements in bringing up innovative technology that can help them in producing furniture that of great quality. Their priority is to produce top-quality furniture that is durable and long-lasting. They have a abundance of quality raw material along with good and sustainable manpower which enables them roll out high quality furniture. Additionally, the local government has set some strict quality standards which must be followed by all the furniture manufacturers in Foshan furniture market.
Economical Labor: As per the new reports, Chinese workers are more committed and focused on their work than their counterparts from any other Asian countries. The huge population of different age groups in China look out for jobs, which makes them to be dedicated and sincere at whatever they do at work. Most of the Chinese labor are more than ready to work for minimum wages, due to the lack of jobs for everyone. Inexpensive labor helps the furniture manufacturers to produce the furniture at low production costs. Sourcing furniture from China, which has inexpensive labor can really help you in cutting down your expenses for the interior design of your place.
Cheap Capital: In the recent years, China has taken major steps towards helping out the manufacturers to access low cost capital. The growth in the banking and financial sector of China has helped the cause immensely. This phenomenon has helped the furniture manufacturers in producing furniture at relatively low costs, which is a great thing for you if you're looking forward to sourcing furniture from this country. You can save up a decent amount of money by sourcing furniture from a manufacturer that has access to low cost capital and manufactures the furniture at a low production cost.
Low Taxes: In order to attract and encourage businessmen from all around the world, Chinese government has lowered tax rates on several types of goods. The good thing here is, furniture being one of those goods. Importers from the USA and Europe don't have to pay taxes importing few types of goods from China, such as sofas, wooden chairs, plastic or metal made furniture and a few more. This aspect can also help you by leaps and bounds if you're thinking of sourcing furniture from China, since you can save good chunks of money due to the absence of taxes or low tax rates.
Superior Infrastructure: For the last few decades, China's economy has been growing in almost all sectors, which has resulted in innovation and development of their infrastructure. The increase in number of high-speed rails, freeways, airport terminals, and roads has been helping manufacturers in achieving faster shipping. This rapid growth in the China's infrastructure has helped them in lowering down the transportation costs of the goods.
Why deal with a Furniture Sourcing Company?
Time Saver: If you are looking forward to importing furniture from China directly, get ready for a thoroughly hectic and stressful task. Importing furniture from China can take you through a roller coaster, since you are about deal with multiple furniture suppliers from China. If you want to avoid all that fuss, letting a sourcing company do all the work for you is the way to go. A furniture sourcing company gives you all the much-needed advice and assistance which can help you in making effective decisions. They help you throughout the whole process of importing furniture from Foshan furniture market. Additionally, you can face several issue while communicating with Chinese furniture suppliers due to the language barrier, which is why you must take the assistance of a furniture sourcing company since they know how to deal with the Chinese suppliers.
Expertise: Importing furniture is no easy task, due to the wide range of qualities and models that are available at the Chinese suppliers. If you don't have the perfect idea of all the details and information about the Furniture industry, you may end up buying and importing bad quality furniture, which you may regret for doing so. A Furniture sourcing company usually have expertise and experience in the furniture industry which can help you by leaps and bounds to avoid any hassles in the process of importing furniture from Foshan furniture market. Furthermore, a furniture sourcing company can assist you in finding the best quality furniture at the reasonable prices, since they exactly know how and where to buy from.
Familiarity: You may be living in the opposite part of the world to China, and you may really lack any type of knowledge and information about this country. The business regulations and norms in China are vastly different from other countries, which is why you need to trade carefully. While buying furniture directly from a Chinese supplier, you may face conflicts due to the huge difference in cultures and expectations. A furniture sourcing company can really come handy in such situations, since they are very familiar with the way business is conducted in Foshan furniture market, China, especially the furniture industry. They help you in buying and importing furniture from China with their familiarity of local conditions.
Sourcing furniture from Foshan furniture market is a tricky thing to do, due to the vast number of available options. There are tons of manufacturers and suppliers in the Foshan furniture market which you may find overwhelming to choose from. It is therefore highly advised to seek for the help from an experienced China sourcing agent or China import agent for product sourcing. China Sourcelink is one of the sourcing company that has the right team and expertise to help you along the whole process of sourcing furniture from Foshan furniture market without any hurdles. Since Foshan also lies in the great Guangzhou Metropolitan area, it takes only less than half an hour to get there by subway from downtown Guangzhou. Whether you are a e-commerce business owners who for example has the need in amazon product sourcing, or a wholesaler who sourcing products from China on a regular basis, having a local Guangzhou sourcing agent is essential in terms of logistics and supply chain management, especially if you are also looking for China warehouse and China freight forwarder. While sourcing furniture from Foshan furniture market, you must make sure that choose the right quality and model for furniture. To do that, China Sourcelink is here to help you in all aspects that are related to sourcing high-quality furniture from Foshan furniture market. China Sourcelink has been sourcing furniture from China for a long time, which resulted in gaining vast amount of knowledge about the Furniture industry of China.
If you're having any type of queries or doubts regarding the process of sourcing furniture from China, you can simply ask and get clarified from a representative of China Sourcelink and then make a proper decision accordingly. China Sourcelink have got a very good amount of expertise and familiarity of the Foshan furniture market and furniture industry in general. To get your furniture sourcing from China done quickly and easily, dealing with China Sourcelink is the way to go. The professional and committed team will help you with any aspect related to the furniture sourcing from China.