text:
Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days
Prophets of the Restoration
Global Histories
Revelations in Context
Women of Conviction
Joseph Smith Papers
Church Historian's Press
Church History Museum
Church History Library
Church History Catalog
Missionary Database
Pioneer Database
Treasures of the Collection
Pioneer Resources
Church Historic Sites
Church Historian's Press
How the Rescue of Handcart Pioneers Helped Revive the Relief Society
Erin Facer 15 July 2016
On October 5, 1856, Brigham Young announced to the Saints in the Salt Lake Valley that the Willie and Martin handcart companies were facing trouble on the plains of Wyoming. He emphasized the need to quickly mobilize resources and rescuers.
The Relief Society had been disbanded 10 years earlier as part of the exodus from Nauvoo. Nevertheless, women throughout the territory played significant roles in saving the handcart pioneers, and their efforts indirectly led to the reestablishment of the Relief Society. While Churchwide reinstatement of the organization did not begin until 1867, the cry for handcart aid spurred many wards to formally reinstate Relief Societies locally.
Daguerreotype portrait of Brigham Young about two years after the handcart rescue.
Earlier, in 1853, Brigham Young had directed similar efforts after calling missionaries to preach among the American Indians. He encouraged the sisters to organize themselves into benevolent societies in order to clothe the Indians.1 He wanted to meet this particular need, but he did not reinstate a universal and ongoing organization at that time. However, these societies, established to various degrees, paved the way for universal reinstatement of the Relief Society.
The pioneer Relief Society women responded valiantly to President Young's call for rescuers. For example, the Deseret News reported in late October 1856 that "a Female Relief Society was organized in Lake City [American Fork] for the benefit of the poor coming on this season; and not only for the poor now, but as long as humanity needs relief."2
As the Lake City Relief Society sisters expressed, the 1856 relief effort was not merely about collecting supplies to take to those on the plains. It included caring for the Saints once they arrived in the Salt Lake Valley. On Sunday, November 30, the day the Martin handcart company finally arrived, Brigham Young declared: "I do not want to see them put into houses by themselves; I want to have them distributed in this city among the families that have good and comfortable houses. . . . Prayer is good, but when baked potatoes and pudding and milk are needed, prayer will not supply their place."3
This revival of the Relief Society, sparked by the handcart rescue, led many Church leaders to see a long-term purpose for the organization. Between October 1856 and January 1857, the rescue efforts provided enough momentum to induce several local leaders to establish Relief Societies, organized once again "after the pattern of the priesthood."4 The renewed partnership between sisters and priesthood bearers was a step toward the reinstatement of the Relief Society throughout the Church.
Sarah Hawkins Hickenlooper, acting Relief Society President, in Salt Lake City, Utah, with her family. Photograph courtesy of the International Society Daughters of Utah Pioneers.
In Salt Lake City, the Fifth and Sixth Wards established a joint Relief Society in the "latter part of 1856. Sister [Sarah] Hickenlooper acted as Pres." At that time, the focus of their Relief Society included providing clothing "for teamsters who were bringing in the poor."5
The joint Provo Relief Society was not officially organized until January 1857; however, Lucy Meserve Smith, as de facto president, had organized the sisters in the community to assist in the relief effort weeks earlier. As she recalled, "We did all we could with the aid of the good brethern and sisters to comfort the needy as they came in with Hand Carts late in the fall. . . . As our Relief Society was short of funds then we could not do much. The four Bishops could hardly carry the bedding and other clothing we got together the first time we met."6
"We did not cease our exersions til all were made comfortable,"7 she noted in another record.
In this book, the sisters of Cedar City recorded their benevolent acts and their actions at meetings. As noted on the cover, these records started in 1856 with the formation of the Relief Society in Southern Utah.
After the bereft Saints arrived in Salt Lake City, the call to tend and care for them reached as far as Cedar City, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) away. There, too, local leaders organized a Relief Society.
At the meeting where the Cedar City Relief Society was organized, one priesthood leader said, "I have thought of organizing the Sisters into a Society for Benevolent purposes; the brethren only compose one half the Church; the Sisters have a mighty influence in the midst of this people." He also observed, "The object of this association is for the relief of the needy and destitute, and for the sisters to provide something for the poor that are coming on this season."8 In Cedar City, reinstating a Relief Society had been considered but was not put into practice until the 1856 handcart rescue provided the necessary momentum.
Provo, Utah, in 1854, where Lucy Meserve Smith rallied her fellow sisters to aid in the rescue. Photograph courtesy of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.
As women across the territory lost themselves in the service of others, they noticed that the purpose of their organizations was "not so much for the supplying of the poor, as for the advancement of the Sisters in the kingdom of God."9 Their efforts fostered feelings of unity and purpose. "I never took more satisfaction and I might say more pleasure in any labor I ever performed in my life," said Lucy Meserve Smith of the rescue effort. "Such a unity of feeling prevailed, I only had to go to the store and make my wants known and if it was cloth it was measured off without charge. [We] wallowed through snow a foot high untill our clothes were wet to get things together."10 These sacrifices provided immediate relief for the rescued pioneers, but they ultimately blessed and uplifted those serving as well.
It is impossible to quantify the good these societies accomplished. However, as one ward clerk concluded, "No doubt their names are engraved on the hearts of those to whom they ministered, and they will meet their reward promised in time to come."11
The experiences of the Willie and Martin handcart companies were tragic, and yet they led to great blessings. Notable among those blessings was the reestablishment of organized Relief Societies and the powerful example these groups of women provided of the truth that would become their motto: Charity never faileth.
[1] See Richard L. Jensen, "Forgotten Relief Societies, 1844–67," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, vol. 16, no. 1 (1983), 111–12, 118.
[2] "Minutes of a Special Conference Held in Lake City from Oct. 18 to 22, 1856," Deseret News, Nov. 6, 1956, 276.
[3] "Remarks by President Brigham Young," Deseret News, Dec. 10, 1856, 320.
[4] Sarah M. Kimball, "Auto-biography," Woman's Exponent, vol. 12, no. 7 (Sept. 1, 1883), 51.
[5] "Sixth Ward Relief Society history, 1856–1892," Church History Library, Salt Lake City.
[6] Lucy M. Smith, "Lucy M. Smith autobiographical sketch, 1888–1890," 53, Church History Library, Salt Lake City; see also Jill Mulvay Derr, Carol Cornwall Madsen, Kate Holbrook, Matthew J. Grow, eds., The First Fifty Years of Relief Society: Key Documents in Latter-day Saint Women's History (Salt Lake City: Church Historian's Press, 2016), 217.
[7] Lucy M. Smith, "Meserve Smith papers, 1848–1892," 53, Church History Library, Salt Lake City.
[8] "Cedar City Ward Relief Society minute book, 1856–1875 and 1892," Church History Library, Salt Lake City.
[9] "Cedar City Ward Relief Society minute book, 1856–1875 and 1892."
[10] "Lucy M. Smith autobiographical sketch," 53.
[11] "Second Ward manuscript history and historical reports, 1849–1983," Church History Library, Salt Lake City.
Journeying to Zion by Handcart: One Young Woman's Experience
Interactive Map: Mormon Handcart Trail (1856)
"How the Rescue of Handcart Pioneers Helped Revive the Relief Society" Gallery
Places of Rescue for the Mormon Handcart Companies
Five Things You Might Not Know about the Handcart Rescue
Contact Church History
{{#each menuItems}}
{{#if this.nested}} {{! takes care of nested list items }} {{this.text}}
{{#each this.nested}}
{{else}} {{! takes care of root level list items }} {{this.text}} {{/if}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.slideshow}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.views}}
Text View
{{#if this.title}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.paginationTop}}
{{#if this.search}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.fullScreen}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.close}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.deepzoom}}
Fit Screen
{{/if}} {{#if mediaByLine}}
{{mediaByLine}}
{{/if}} {{#if medium}}{{medium}}{{/if}} {{#if medium}}{{#if mediaLink}} | {{/if}}{{/if}} {{#if mediaLink}}{{mediaLink.linkText}}{{/if}} {{#if this.share}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.imageCaption}}
{{{this.imageCaption}}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.mediaButton}}
{{mediaButton.buttonText}}
{{/if}} {{#if this.paginationBottom}}
{{/if}} Email {{/if}} {{#if this.share.facebook}} Facebook {{/if}} {{#if this.share.youtube}} YouTube {{/if}} {{#if this.share.twitter}} Twitter {{/if}} Print
Close ,


We love you all! Thank you!
Jesse Cox joins the party! A taste of Love Esquire's Full English VA!
[MAJOR UPDATE!] Stretch Goal Unlocked & New Kickstarter rewards! Physical merch now available!
Stretch Goal Unlocked! Onwards to Physical Dakimakura!!
A special goal for a special waifu?! Love Esquire x Crush Crush!
We're happy to announce a possible collaboration with Sad Panda Studios, the amazing devs behind the immensely popular, free-to-play idle dating-sim, Crush Crush!
Stretch Goal Unlocked & Revised Harem Challenge!
Harem Challenge: Facebook Shares & Stretch Goal: Animated BGs!


The Aidi dog breed is called by several names from Chien de l'Atlas, the Atlas Sheepdog, Atlas Shepherd Dog and the Atlas Mountain Hound. Regardless of what name you call this dog breed, the Aidi is one powerful, agile and hardworking herding dog.
Today, this mountain hound dog breed is also proving to be one of the best breeds trained as guide dogs for people with disabilities. Watch this very heartwarming video about an Aidi dog being trained to be a guide dog. This video also showcases the breed's training competency.
The Aidi's origin can be traced in Morocco as well as parts of the Sahara and some regions in Algeria, Libya and Tunisia. Although called a sheepdog, the Aidi never worked as a shepherd. They were generally bred as flock guards to protect livestock from predators such as wildcats or thieves. Choosing to adopt an Aidi dog is an excellent idea if you are looking for a perfect watchdog.
This breed is also called as the Berber Dog, named after the nomadic Berber Tribe who hailed from Morocco. These tribes often utilize the Aidi to hunt, pairing it with the Sloughi, the North African breed of dog found in Morocco. But they are also famous for being the nomadic tribes' reliable protector, guarding the camp's perimeter at night.
The Aidi dog is known to be generally docile and very protective of his family/owners. When choosing to adopt an Aidi dog, expect to have a pet dog that has a faithful and affectionate nature. This breed of dog is also a great family watchdog for their trait on being constantly alert for danger together with a fearless, curious and easy to train characteristics.
Aidi dogs are working dogs that protect as well as hunt. Today, they are slowly becoming house pets and companions in rural areas.
Perfect for rural settings with large spaces to move and work. The Aidi is not exactly an apartment type of dog.
Once a week – Low maintenance when it comes to grooming.
Their sensitive nature requires kind but firm training hands.
For a rare type of dog, the Aidi Dog breed shows no major health issues. If you want to adopt an Aidi Dog, it is very important to have all vaccinations as wells as heart worm and de-wormings procedures done. Also, have your vet check for hip dysplasia as well. Generally, the Aidi is one healthy dog as a breed with only obesity being the primary health issue.
The Aidi Dog is naturally gifted with a high level of energy. Failure to release this high energy will turn them restless and eventually destructive. Be ready to have long daily walks and regular exercise sessions with your rare dog breed if you do opt to adopt an Aidi.


text:
Diary of a plop star: Johnny goes off the Depp end
The 'Fantastic Beasts' villain looks to be on the skids
Robbie Collin
The most interesting thing about Johnny Depp's performance in the new Fantastic Beasts film – arguably the only interesting thing – is that he is actually there to give it in the first place.
Two years ago, audiences who saw the first instalment in JK Rowling's fantasy series were bowled a googly just before the closing credits, when the villain of the piece – a scheming magical enforcer called Percival Graves, played by Colin Farrell – unexpectedly morphed into a platinum-haired and pudgy-faced Depp. The actor's cameo appearance as Gellert Grindelwald, public enemy number one in the Wizarding World, had been kept secret – but for many of us, the surprise went off with less of a bang than a plop.
Farrell had made a suave and mysterious baddy – the kind whose path through the next four proposed films might make all sorts of intriguing turns. But now the prospect of eight to 10 hours of oddball shtick loomed instead. What's more, six months earlier, Depp had been accused of domestic abuse by his now-ex wife, the actress Amber Heard – which he has strenuously denied – and their subsequent divorce had been one of the most bitter in recent Hollywood memory. There had also been whispers of unpredictable behaviour on the set of the latest Pirates of the Caribbean film – later extensively fleshed out by crew members – that suggested the now 55-year-old actor's craft was not as laser-focused as it might have been.
Even at that relatively late stage in mid-2016, Depp could have been easily and quietly Kevin Spaceyed out of the picture. Nothing about the role of Grindelwald – a proto-fascist agitator whipping up anti-muggle sentiment in the 1930s – suggested Depp was the only man who could play him.
Also, no one knew he was actually in it. In a statement, Rowling admitted she and the director David Yates had discussed recasting, but said that based on their understanding of the circumstances, they were "not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies", before adding, a little spikily, that "conscience isn't governable by committee". In other words, a reckoning had been made at Warner Bros, and had concluded that Depp would remain a viable star and a net asset until 2024 at least.
To a critic who has spent the past eight years watching Depp floundering professionally, while his PR liability rating creeps ever higher – well, that seems like an odd call indeed. There is no mystery around why Depp should want to secure another prominent, and therefore well-paid, recurring role. A legal spat with his former business managers last year shed light on a lavish lifestyle that reportedly cost the actor an average of $2m a month, including a wine tab of $30,000 and a lump-sum payment to fire his late friend Hunter S Thompson's ashes into space from a cannon. ("It's insulting to say that I spent $30,000 on wine, because it was far more," he clarified in a Rolling Stone interview, in which he also estimated that the cost of Thompson's extraterrestrial committal at $5m.)
His personal spending was presumably only able to hit such heights thanks to the Pirates franchise, which transformed Depp from Gen X heartthrob to global megastar in 2003. And even last year, the middlingly reviewed fifth outing was able to scare up more than £600m worldwide. But with Disney reportedly sounding out a reboot, Depp's buccaneering days are likely numbered.
So what else has the present decade yielded? Half-formed vanity projects (The Rum Diary), wacko-goth diminishing returns (Dark Shadows, Alice Through the Looking Glass), glorified cameos (Into the Woods, Lucky Them), corny throwbacks (The Tourist) and outright abominations (Mortdecai). There were also two notable box‑office bombs, The Lone Ranger and Transcendence, both heavily marketed on Depp's involvement. Neither is as bad as you've heard, but with combined losses of around $300m, they suggest the public appetite for Depp is conditional on galleons and Jolly Rogers.
Next came an attempt to move back onto the Oscars' radar with the 2015 true-crime saga Black Mass. But his lead performance as the Boston gangster Whitey Bulger was buried under unconvincing and unnecessary prosthetics that left Depp looking as if he was trying to act though a chapati.
Then there was to be a remake of The Invisible Man – part of a proposed "Dark Universe" of films at Universal, in which classic monsters would be revived for the blockbuster age. But after a Tom Cruise-led version of The Mummy failed to excite audiences last summer, the Dark Universe was quietly snuffed out. Another true-crime thriller, City of Lies, in which Depp plays a detective investigating the 1997 murder of the hip-hop star Biggie Smalls, was supposed to be released in September. But it was pulled from schedules and remains in limbo, after the film's location manager filed a lawsuit alleging Depp had physically assaulted him on set, which Depp denies.
Somehow, Rowling and Warner Bros have reconciled all of the above with making Depp a linchpin of their very expensive new venture – and even at a time when audiences are lining up for familiar characters and worlds rather than stars, that's a hard gamble to rationalise. Perhaps they are banking on international audiences just not caring that much about Depp's personal or professional travails. (Even as the Pirates films faded in the West, the last one did gangbusters in China.)
Perhaps there is also a hope that Depp has one more iconic performance in him – the same hope Francis Ford Coppola had when he cast Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now amid much discussion about his capability, and whether he deserved his reported $1m pay. Like Brando, Depp rose to fame as a natural star with matinee idol appeal that he seemed determined to sabotage – and again like Brando, that tension is partly what makes him so watchable in his run of legendary early work, from Edward Scissorhands in 1990 to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas in 1998, via What's Eating Gilbert Grape, Ed Wood and Donnie Brasco. (It took longer for Hollywood to feel at ease around him: his three Oscar nominations came between 2004 and 2008, for the first Pirates film, Finding Neverland and Sweeney Todd.)
The tragedy of Brando is that his self-sabotage succeeded, and after Apocalypse Now there was nothing left of him to watch. As for Depp, it seems unlikely that he is about to give the world his Colonel Kurtz in episodes two to five of something called Fantastic Beasts. But perhaps he will discover a corner of his jungle that remains unscorched.
Won't you take us to the bioscope?
If you thought Johnny Depp's acting was pretty ...
'A Star is Born': they went Gaga over a big ...
Michael Caine: How he's helped himself help ...
Brendan 'Tarzan' Fraser: To Hollywood hell and ...
Rocky roads: Best and worst stars of the silver scream
By Martin Chilton
By Critics' choice

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Special Acquisitions
Bronzes & Sculptures
Mexico City: Sixth World Design Capital - Jean-Marc Fray Antiques
Mexico City: Sixth World Design Capital
Beginning in 2008, the World Design Organization has selected a new World Design Capital every two years, which recognizes a city for their effective use of design to drive economic, social, cultural, and environmental development. This year Mexico City is officially the sixth World Design Capital, and it is the first city in the Americas to receive this honor.
Mexico City's Zocala Square | RallyStar
Palacio de Bellas Artes | WDO
Teams including designers and artists, politicians and political scientists, and even AI experts collaborate to find innovative ways to improve the city. Many of their proposals have been refined through citizen engagement and feedback, which has been crucial in the final designs. Initiatives have focused on transportation, the visibility of refugee communities, pedestrian and bike rights, kid-friendliness of the city, and air quality. One of the projects turned city streets into play spaces in poor neighborhoods, and another created vertical gardens to clean the air.
Via Verde Project | The Civil Engineer
Philanthropic investors have also played a major role in Mexico City's development. Carlos Slim, a Mexican engineer and billionaire who once ranked as the richest person in the world, contributed in a major way to the city's art scene. He founded one of its most renowned museums, Museo Soumaya, which is named for his late wife, Soumaya Domit. The building, finished in 2011 and designed by Mexican architect Fernando Romero, is covered in 16,000 hexagonal aluminum tiles that combine to create the uniquely twisted hour-glass silhouette. The collection inside the museum ranges from Rodin sculptures, to Diego Rivera, Monet, Renoir, and Degas, and features more than 66,000 works spanning 30 centuries of art. All its operating costs are covered by Slim's fortune, including free admission 365 days a year.
Museo Soumaya | ArchDaily
Aluminum tiles exterior | HolaTelCel
Sculptures | CDMX Travel
From museums and art, to architecture and urban planning, this vibrant city has established its place in the world as a Design Capital and a hub of inspiration and creativity.
Jean-Marc Fray French Antiques
Gallery at Whit Hanks
1009 W 6th Street, Suite 102
Email : info@jeanmarcfray.com


Harry is currently writing a crime series, featuring a young Welsh detective, Fiona Griffiths. The series has sold to publishers in the UK (Orion), the US (Random House), as well as France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlandsand elsewhere. The first novel was televised by Bonafide and broadcast onSky Living. The novels are notable mostly for the strong voice and strange character of their protagonist. The first three titles in the series are Talking to the Dead, Love Story with Murders, and The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths.
The books have had nice reviews in the Bookseller, Publishers Weekly,Kirkus, New York Times, New York Daily News, Boston Globe, Seattle Times,Washington Post, Daily Mail, Telegraph, Times, Sunday Times, Western Mail (all behind paywall) Shelf Awareness, crimefictionlover, and many more fine publications.
You know I'm so glad that I read other books that aren't associated with romance. Don't get me wrong, I love romance books but every once in a while I need to read something that I wouldn't normally read and The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths certainly filled that bill. Crime Thriller, mystery, suspense and not a lick of romance. Oh and did I mention that the setting is Wales? No. You are in for a treat then. Great location written by a brilliant author.
Everything about this book is brilliant. A little slow in the beginning but once I got into the story you will not be able to put it down. Fiona isn't normal at all. She has mental issues that make her seem almost robotic and unfeeling but trust me, keep reading. It will all make sense in the end. Absolutely fascinating character and Mr. Bingham lets the reader slowly into her mind and what makes her normal. She's a misfit in a way but it works. Being a detective isn't the easiest job but she makes it seem easy. I would almost put her on the level as Sherlock Holmes in terms of her temperament and the ability to connect with the victim and NOT her co-workers.
The plot is sick and twisted so don't let the blurb fool you. 🙂 Fiona finds herself in one situation after another and you will definitely be holding your breath until the bitter end. Word to the reader, it is written in first person (I love). Personally, I don't think it could have been any other way. Mr. Bingham has a written a character that with all of her "quirks", you will fall in love with her.
I will say that I didn't read the first two books in the series but you can read this one has a standalone. Of course, since I have found a different kind of character to read and follow, I will be getting the first two books in the series. Yes, the book is that good but will grab you is the writing. Taunt, thrilling, and perfectly paced. I know, I said it was slow in the beginning but that's the point.
Do yourself a favor dear readers. Read outside your romance comfort zone. Oh yes, I still read Clancy (RIP) and Grisham. Plus, I still read Danielle Steele. Shoot me. As you know, I don't conform to most romance bloggers read and The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths is proof of that.
Previous postBook Spotlight on The Space Captain's Courtesan by KC Klein w/a $10 GC rafflecopter giveaway!
Next postHappy Release Day to No More Regrets by Tamra Lassiter w/a rafflecopter giveaway!


text:
Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale, Attese, 1968
Lot 41. Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale, Attese, signed and titled 'L Fontana "Concetto spaziale ATTESE"' on the reverse; further inscribed 'La firma è scritta male / sono nervoso' on the reverse, waterpaint on canvas, 55.3 x 46.5 cm (21 3/4 x 18 1/4 in.). Executed in 1968, this work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from the Fondazione Lucio Fontana and is registered under no. 68 T 68. Estimate £650,000 - 850,000. Image courtesy of Phillips.
Provenance: Egidio Lanza, Intra
Centro Arte Internazionale, Milan
Private Collection, Italy (acquired from the above in September 1972)
Christie's, London, 15 October 2007, lot 218
Cardi Gallery, Milan
Private Collection, Miami (acquired from the above in 2014)
Literature: Enrico Crispolti, Lucio Fontana: Catalogue Raisonné des Peintures, Sculptures et Environnements Spatiaux, vol. II, Brussels, 1974, no. 68 T 68, p. 200 (illustrated)
Enrico Crispolti, Fontana, Catalogo generale, vol. II, Milan, 1986, no. 68 T 68, p. 690 (illustrated)
Enrico Crispolti, Lucio Fontana, Catalogo ragionato di sculture, dipinti, ambientazioni, vol. II, Milan, 2006, no. 68 T 68, p. 882 (illustrated)
Enrico Crispolti, Lucio Fontana, Catalogo ragionato di sculture, dipinti, ambientazioni,vol. II, Milan, 2015, no. 68 T 68, p. 882 (illustrated)
Note: Enveloping the viewer in the artist's conception of space, Concetto spaziale, Attese is a dramatic and powerful example of Lucio Fontana's tagli - or cuts - a body of works Fontana made in Milan between 1958 and 1968. Exemplary of his concern with dimensionality, with two clean central incisions, the present work marks a decade since the artist's first experimentations with tagli. From the final year of Fontana's life and career, the present work was executed at the critical height of the esteemed artist's oeuvre.
The pair of vertical cuts in the present work affords the canvas an almost architectural absoluteness. The powerful, serene and pure blue of the ground colour echoes the same hues of the artist's very first work from the tagli series. Here, the vibrant blue paired with the two clean slashes creates a serene and balanced composition which explores the realm and limitations of cosmic space. The initial impact of the intense and meditative blue, recalls Fontana's friend and fellow artist Yves Klein's trademarked and chosen tone. Since 1957, when Klein first exhibited his Blue Monochrome paintings at the Apollinaire Gallery in Milan, Fontana had admired the French artist and the infinite effects of the colour blue. Like Klein, Fontana utilised the uniformly painted canvas to enhance the viewer's perception and consciousness of space.
In Concetto spaziale, Attese purity prevails in the clean lines and deep blue of the composition. The concentrated tranquillity of the work echoes the pure and sublime environment created by the artist for his presentation at the 1966 Venice Biennale, an installation of white canvasses for which he won the grand prize. Fontana presented an entire room filled with his tagli paintings; this meditative space was designed to give 'the spectator an impression of spatial calm, of cosmic rigour, of serenity in infinity' (Lucio Fontana, quoted in Enrico Crispolti, Lucio Fontana, Catalogo Ragionato di sculture, dipinti, ambientazioni, vol. I, Milan, 2006, p. 105).
Underpinned by a revolutionary shift towards new media and fascination with the relationship between artworks and their environment, Fontana's tagli examine the dimensionality of space. Despite his consistent and active violation of the canvas plane, the artist's work is neither violent nor destructive but rather representative of an eloquent and visual argument for a radical expansion of the medium of painting. Through his slashes, an act of liberation, Fontana actively opens the canvas and reveals a new dimension. Manipulating matter, the artist forged new spaces for the visualization of his ideas. Elaborating on his motives and quest toward the eternal, his Manifesto Spaziale(spatialist manifesto) asserted: 'We believe that art liberates matter, the meaning of eternity from the concern for mortality. We are not interested in whether a completed gesture lives for a moment or a millennium, since we are truly convinced that it will be eternal after it has been accomplished' (Lucio Fontana, Primo Manifesto spaziale, Milan, 1947).
The tagli series, meditative and monochrome disrupted canvas planes, is delineated by a varying number of slashes. From single, gestural and curved incisions, to multiple cuts, slashed in opposite directions or rhythmic repetitions, each cut represents Fontana's conscious and thoughtful working method. Offering further insight into the artist's creative psyche is the text he inscribed onto the verso of his paintings from 1964 onwards. On the reverse of his tagli works with one cut the artist wrote 'Attesa' – or hope. On the reverse of works with multiple cuts, like the present painting, Fontana penned the plural form of hope, 'Attese', adding temporal dimension to his more generic title of Concetto spaziale (Spatial Concept). In 1958, the same year he commenced his tagli series, the artist stopped signing his works on the front to avoid detracting from the purity of the painting itself.
Keenly interested in the modernisation of science and technology, and the increased impact thereof on contemporary living, the artist celebrated the importance of his own action in the active manipulation of medium and slashing the canvas. He created his iconic tagli with a Stanley Knife; making single downward motions through damp canvas he subsequently broadened the incisions by pulling them apart by hand and curving them inwards before fastening them with black gauze on the reverse. This manual, visceral and tactile process emphasises the artist's concern with the manipulation of space and his move away from automation. Further refusing to accept modern industrialisation and the increased mechanisation of art, Fontana added personal sentences to the reverse of his canvasses. The present work is inscribed 'La firma e'scritta male – sono nervoso' (The signature is badly written, I am nervous), adding personal and human intervention to the reverse of the canvas,
Pivotal to his tagli series is the notion of the artwork simultaneously representing reality and appearance. In line with the title, Concetto spaziale, Attese, the composition is not just about space but rather a spatial concept and the potential of dimensionality. Through slashing his canvasses, the artist moves towards infinity whilst revealing an active and vital quality. Through his concern with the dimensions of space, Fontana holds a singular position in the canon of 20th century art history. Meditatively interrogating the interaction between ruin and construction through the juxtaposition of void and pure canvas ground, the present composition is a fundamental work from the height of Fontana's artistic output.
Phillips. 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale, London Auction, 8 March 2018.
Posté par Alain Truong à 12:19 - Art du XXème siècle/20th century art - Commentaires [0] - Permalien [#]
Tags : 1968, Attese, Concetto Spaziale, Lucio Fontana
EFFIGIE FUNÉRAIRE KONSO, ETHIOPIE
Lot 164. Effigie funéraire Konso, Ethiopie. Bois. H. 167 cm. Estimation 8 000 €/12 000 €. Photo: Cornette de...
ASPECT FAROUCHE SHIVA, INDE CENTRALE, CA 10°-12°...
Lot 80. Aspect farouche Shiva, Inde centrale, ca 10°-12° siècle. Grès, 33 x 45 cm. Estimation 8 000 €/12 000...
Four 'concetto spaziale, attese' from lucio fontana @ sotheby's, contemporary art evening auction, 10 feb 10, london
Lucio fontana (1899-1968), concetto spaziale, attese, 1964.
Lucio fontana (1899 - 1968), concetto spaziale, attese
Lucio fontana (1899-1968), concetto spaziale, attese
Exhibition at eykyn maclean reintroduces two opposing perspectives on serial art
Lucio fontana (1999-1968), concetto spaziale, attese, 1967
Lucio fontana, concetto spaziale, 1968
Lucio fontana, concetto spaziale, attese, 1964-1965
Lucio fontana (1899 - 1968), concetto spaziale, attese, 1963
Commentaires sur Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale, Attese, 1968


text:
A wishlist app for groups of people to manage gift buying

install locally using:

```
# recommend to create a virtualenv for the project first
pip install -r requirements.txt
```

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


We are working restlessly to keep the animals safe throughout the Games, however our predominant hope is that they will every find a caring and accountable household," said Rosangela Ribeiro, Veterinary Programs Manager at World Animal Protection. Animals with survival expertise discovered to dwell with individuals, roads, and populated areas. The rainforest animals adapt to eating the plants or animals which the other species do not eat. So, having wild animals as pets has turn into fairly a delicate and controversial situation. We are organizing a sequence of adoption campaigns for cats and dogs rescued near the Olympic sites, in partnership with Special Secretariat for the Defense of Animals (SEPDA).
If passed, this bill will ban the apply of pound seizure statewide, preserving the inducement to undertake out companion animals, and defending animals from being topic to experimentation and research. Maybe that is why so many individuals care about protecting animals from pollution and poaching. Many states—and individual counties and cities—have abandoned this practice altogether, specifically prohibiting the sale or donation of unclaimed animals to any analysis establishment or school. These substances go into the animals cells the place they're combined with oxygen to launch energy.
Some of us fell in love with the expressive fantastic thing about horses, a few of us with weird and outlandish animals like elephants and giraffes, and some of us with highly effective hunters like lions or wolves. Animals without backbones, invertebrates, represent the overwhelming majority of animal species. Animals are normally straightforward to tell apart from other forms of life as a result of most of them have the flexibility to maneuver. The birds and animals prefer to eat the fruits which are grown on timber, and the fish of the rainforests depend upon the fruits dropped by the tress.


Dec 2zerosixteen - obtain J. audacity - four Your Eyez only to the top recording download MP3 ZIP And the leaked is out there immediately totally free download. 01.
Then I used wholesale to generate arbitrary bytes, zero to 255, into a byte cream of the crop the same size as the audio bytes in a frame and initially containsideg these audio bytes previous to shifting all of them. Then appended the body header and new audio bytes together inside an output scale good thing the new record(Of Byte()). And if website is then Button4 code output that information to an MP3 row. Which home windows Media player had no challenge enjoying the MP3 paragraph although it simply feels like a mixture of Dolphcontained by/Whale/Birdchirps or one thing.
I bought this fallacious, however Im not in the least shocked.first the content of this take a look at just doesnt bolt sufficient advanced sounds contained by it.Secondly it doesnt help that i am listencontained byg on cheap computer sound.however thirdly when you smooth out the sound with decrease tool rates it is going to often sound cleaner.And if there wasnt that a lot element within the first you may lunch a more nice sound.I discovered this years ago after I used to put my information onto for comfort and in addition so the information stayed inside admirable situation.nowadays generally I hearken to the same factor from and from MP3 by the same hi-fi spokesperson & audio system, and although the sound is extra accurate and elemented from the album, inside a few methods I take pleasure in listeninsideg to the MP3 more.


RIFT offers a teaser of the five new zones unlocked with the Starfall Prophecy expansion.
A new god arrives in SMITE, along with the powerful potential to purchase all the pantheon.
Pangya is an easy to play, casual golfing game that may not impress seasoned veterans, but will keep less serious fans of the sport playing.


text:
The Hogan Studio
The Writings of Alexander Hogan - Poems and Short Stories
Saxophone man sitting with his dirty blues jacket back to the pock marked concrete wall playing a tune/ his hat begging for loose jingely jingle change from the pockets of the zombie passersbys who are passing by stone faced and stone brained and disembodied from their 9 to 5's in office buildings that are gray and marble and steel and cold as a winter night...shuffling papers, filing, typing, answering phones, endless meetings about meetings, DEADLINES! DEADLINES!...the office full of tap tap tap tap tap tapping on keyboards--their smarter siblings are piano keyboards or synthesizer keyboards who are sleeping now in the dark jazz clubs a few streets over downtown that don't open till later...maybe get together for some magaritas after work...unloading and loading, mostly loading this time of day...city workers going back to stations to get in their cars and drive to cushy suburban tract houses to cook dinners, watch tv's, stop at the local bar on the way home or pick up a bucket of chicken with sides of mashed potatoes and coleslaw...newspaper stand with the old guy selling all of the local newspapers with print so fresh it rubs off on your fingers...headlines blaring the latest crisis of the week and all of the magazines in proper military like formation yes sir, yes sir, and ones partially hidden to protect the innocent and that are sold to the guilty...orange iron horse ready to trot on track 5 to Van Buren, Hegewisch all all points further and beyond...rats the size of cats staking out their territory under the silver tracks that gleam in the fading strains of silver sunlight and sing old railroad songs...the well dressed programmed robots follow instructions and walk around the aching platforms clutching brown leather briefcases and purses like they were some kind of IV to keep them alive...practically everybody on their phones receiving instructions and talking to somebodies and nobodies, or just looking at them with dead eyes like sharks...people filing on the trains and sitting in hard plastic seats and standing holding on to germ infested straps...flower shops with bright rainbows of flowers that look out of place and little old restaurants with swinging doors and checkerboard floors and spinning stools and small tables with cheap wooden chairs and cups of coffee and danishes left over from the morning--forgotten scarfs sagging over chairs or laying on the floor waiting to be reclaimed or to find new owners...people sit there in silent solemnity with blank faces like some kind of Hopper painting--all together but miles apart...coats pulled up to their chins as they stare at their chipped cups full of columbian...blue sky getting a moody blue and grayer and the lights around the tracks coming on casting a glow of indifference...I sit on an old bench by the platform just passing time and watching the parade...clowns, floats, marching bands...everybody plays a part...offices that sell tickets and give directions to the lost and needy, automatic ticket machines that get jumped by youths and by certain writers...graffiti covered spaghetti maps...and in the morning, they'll all be back with noses to the tombstone, shuffling up the narrow cold-hearted steps that take them into the sprawling downtown to do it all over again...grim faced and in a stunning variety of black and gray coats...grabbing a latte or a frappe or an espresso from the coffee shop to keep them awake in their sleepwalk of a life.
Posted by Alexander Hogan at 12:04 AM
Tip Jar (help out a poor poet)
KGB In The Alley
Tassels of Yellow Waving Hello
A Grave Matter
Alexander In Paris
Beachside Bar
Crisis Apparition
Mystical Psychosis
Voices of the Dead
Renaissance Wolf
London Calling Me
Visit my Facebook page Alexander Hogan or follow me on Twitter at Alexander Hogan @ roshihogan
Conceptual Art---art in which the idea presented by the artist is considered more important than the finished product, if there is one.
Please Visit My Archive
Please Visit My Archive January (6) December (10) November (10) October (11) September (10) August (14) July (15) June (15) May (15) April (14) March (15) February (12) January (14) December (14) November (13) October (16) September (14) August (15) July (15) June (15) May (16) April (15) March (15) February (12) January (15) December (14) November (15) October (15) September (15) August (16) July (15) June (15) May (16) April (15) March (15) February (14) January (16) December (15) November (15) October (16) September (16) August (19) July (18) June (19) May (23) April (22) March (25) February (26) January (20) December (24) November (28) October (24) September (29) August (30) July (32) June (32) May (35) April (40) March (33) February (29) January (31) December (31) November (30) October (31) September (30) August (31) July (31) June (29) May (31) April (23) March (31) February (27) January (31) December (31) November (30) October (31) September (30) August (31) July (31) June (27) May (31) April (28) March (31) February (25) January (30) December (30) November (29) October (25) September (28) August (26) July (29) June (28) May (29) April (20) March (25) February (25) January (22) December (27) November (27) October (28) September (27) August (38) July (23) June (24) May (31) April (30) March (28) February (24) January (27) December (28) November (30) October (26) September (24) August (33) July (17) June (28) May (23) April (39) March (39) February (49) January (56) December (30) November (40) October (19) September (9) August (16) July (9) June (8) May (4) June (1) May (1) April (4) March (5) February (2) May (2) April (3) January (1) October (1) September (2) August (1) July (1) June (1)
Top 10 Countries To Visit My Blog
1. U.S.A.
3. Hong Kong
6. Ukraine
9. Canada
10. Japan
Hong Kong has now passed France for 3rd place...
Alexander Hogan
Alexander Hogan is an acclaimed writer of short stories and poetry. He has been published in many publications. His art has also been shown in many shows and exhibits worldwide.
Loading crossword puzzle. One moment please.
Roshi Hogan's Teachings Of The Tao. Powered by Blogger.


The following persons were asked the question: "How has Bob Marley impacted on your life, the world and reggae music?"
" When I was a kid, I used to listen to the Wailers. I even played drum on their song "Punky Reggae Party". I respect Bob and his music a lot. He help push reggae music forward. I also remember visiting him in New York and up at the studios on Hope Road. Today (6th) is also my daughter's birthday."
"Bob took me out of hiding. He is a great influence. I know him not only as Bob Marley, but as Robert Nesta Marley. Knowing him personally, he was a good friend. Can't even tell you the magnitude. Can't even describe the feeling. Great, great influence."
"Bob Marley impacted me a great deal. Growing up and listening to his musical messages in songs and seeing how far he has helped to take not only reggae but the whole Jamaican culture to the rest of the world, well that makes me feel great. Personally, he just makes me feel proud to be a Jamaican."
"I grew up more on Dennis Brown I think he is way underrated and more needs to be done to enhance his legacy. But to Bob I later realized how great a composer he is. His lyrics are deep and my favourite line from one of his songs is "only your best friend know your secret and only he can reveal it."
"Bob Marley set the trend. He has had a great influence on the world and on me too. I really like his songs a lot, there are a lot of messages in them. Even after his death he is still influencing the world."
"Well he made reggae what it is right now - a force to be reckoned with and subsequently higlighting Jamaica on the map therefore providing additional business for us in the music."
"Well if my mother had never met Bob and Rita Marley in California back in the early 70's, she never would have left her job at United Artists Publishing and moved us to Jamaica - then she would not have recorded for Joe Gibbs. I would never have returned to Jamaica as an adult to work at Tuff Gong - never would have met my husband, started Eight76 Records...aside from his incredible impact on the world as an artist - my personal and professional life was greatly impacted by Bob Marley."
" Well Bob is the King of Reggae, simply words can't describe him he is a great human being. What he simbolises, what he has shown the world, no matter what struggles you can overcome. I am big fan of the Wailers."
" He is the source everyone chose because of his influence, it is indelible, ultimate. If your going to do reggae music that is the school."
"In a great way. When I first was going through my changes, I use to listen to Sizzla's "I have no White" and all of Bob's collection. He has played a role."
" Music of worth. Everybody has to understand that he did not do it by himself a whole lot of other people contributed. If Bob was here it would be a different story. The person that he was all of this would not be happening. Bob is a shepherd and I long to see someone like him."
"Bob was a special jewel sent to this world. He has not left us, because his voice and message is still here. Remarkably, his message is still relevant; he was a man ahead of his time. His message was peace and love, and everyone, worldwide, could see themselves in Bob Marley's message."
"He is my role model and my father. I count it a privilege to be associated with a man who is such a role model to so many people, and I'm even more privileged to be his child."
"As his son I've learnt a lot of lessons from him. Also, most of modern Reggae music is still following the trend he has set; the powerful, passionate style in which Reggae musicians are known to deliver their material with."
"He's exceptional. Happy Birthday Bob! He's in the heavens. His music will live on."
"He used his music to do what others use bombs and guns to do. He fought for what he believed in through his music."
"We were blessed to have a prophet among us, and he left a legacy. I was privileged to be a part of his mission."
"Bob has grown larger after life. For me, it is a moment of joy to see Bob honoured. I'm glad that there is no mourning. Although he is dead, I see festivity, joy; and I love it."
"Bob Marley is number one. He put Reggae music on the international map."
Fond memories of The Honourable Robert Nesta Marley on the anniversary of his birth\n\nThe following persons were asked the question: \"How has Bob Marley impacted on your life, the world and reggae music?\"\n\n \n\nSly Dunbar (Musician)\n\" When I was a kid, I used to listen to the Wailers. I even played drum on their song \"Punky Reggae Party\". I respect Bob and his music a lot. He help push reggae music forward. I also remember visiting him in New York and up at the studios on Hope Road. Today (6th) is also my daughter's birthday.\"\n\nSangie Davies (Song Writer/Singer)\n\"Bob took me out of hiding. He is a great influence. I know him not only as Bob Marley, but as Robert Nesta Marley. Knowing him personally, he was a good friend. Can't even tell you the magnitude. Can't even describe the feeling. Great, great influence.\"\n\nSizzla (Singjay)\n\"A whole lot.\"


text:
Cincinnati Review 8.1 is Out!
May 31, 2011 December 12, 2014 | Ted Wheeler
Our accumulated vacation mail came today, and included was a box full of new issues of The Cincinnati Review! The issue features my story "The Current State of the Universe," which won their Schiff Prize for Prose last year.
Fiction Editor Michael Griffith had this to say about the story on the TCR blog in the fall. The blog also features my explanation of where the idea for the story came from.
I wrote more about the story in this space in October too, and included an excerpt from the story.
You can buy the issue for $9 at The Cincinnati Review's secure server here.
This is a great journal and I'm very excited to be included in its pages. We should do all we can to support it.
Finally, a special thanks to Nicola Mason, Michael Griffith, Christian Moody, and everybody at the journal for all of their help. It's a great bunch of people, who were a real joy to work with.
Posted in Events and Appearances, How to Die Young in Nebraska: Stories "The Current State of the Universe"Christian MoodyMichael GriffithNicola MasonRobert and Adele Schiff Prize in ProseThe Cincinnati Review
< Fifth Anniversary
PS Summer Edition >


text:
Covid Crime
The largest organized crime against humanity ever perpetrated
The Virus
Strategy/Response
Test Explanation
Mortality & Hospitalization
MortalityExplanation
AdverseEffects
Europe – AdverseEffects
Detention/Camps
Resist/Recover
Organisations & Actions
Laws & Justice
Video-UK-Officer
News / Info
The PCR Test
We are in a PCR false positive pseudo-epidemic created by a scientifically meaningless PCR Test.
In mid-January 2020 a PCR (RT-PCR)diagnostic test protocol ("Detection of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) by real-time RT-PCR" )was created …… find more information here. 👉🏼
The PCR test protocol (polymerase chain reaction) has been used to run hundreds of millions of PCR tests across the world since last spring in 2020. Its positive test results have been the basis for all kind of restrictions all around the world ever since.
Mass testing the healthy population with a PCR test which creates many false positives generates a "PCR false positive pseudo-epidemic".
Please find more information about the test on this page. 👉🏼
Below you will find scientific, detailed explanations and information about the PCR test protocol (polymerase chain reaction) and why it generates false positives in in-depth studies and research papers published by scientists and experts below and on the right hand side.
On July 21, 2021 the CDC published the following "Lab Alert":
Changes to the CDC RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 Testing
"After December 31, 2021, CDC will withdraw the request to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) of the CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel, the assay first introduced in February 2020 for detection of SARS-CoV-2 only. CDC is providing this advance notice for clinical laboratories to have adequate time to select and implement one of the many FDA-authorized alternatives."
"In preparation for this change, CDC recommends clinical laboratories and testing sites that have been using the CDC 2019-nCoV RT-PCR assay select and begin their transition to another FDA-authorized COVID-19 test. CDC encourages laboratories to consider adoption of a multiplexed method that can facilitate detection and differentiation of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses. Such assays can facilitate continued testing for both influenza and SARS-CoV-2 and can save both time and resources as we head into influenza season."
CDC / Lab Alert / 7/21/2021
So-
1. the EUA for the CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel will end on December 31, 2021
2. FDA authorized COVID-19 types of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 related IVDs / In Vitro Diagnostics EUAs
3. The CDC actually admits that the PCR tests never could differentiate between the flu and SARS-C0V-2 !
Removal Lists of Tests That Should No Longer Be Used and/or Distributed for COVID-19
Long list of tests that should no longer be used and/or distributed for COVID-19.
FDA / Medical Device Recalls
This is an example of one of the manufacturers that uses "NASAL SWABS" out of more than 300 manufacturers. Interestingly it causes injuries or death.
The FDA has identified this recall as a Class I recall, the most serious type of recall.
Stop Using Innova Medical Group SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Qualitative Test
The performance of the SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test as a tool for detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection in the population
"In light of our findings that more than half of individuals with positive PCR test results are unlikely to have been infectious, RT-PCR test positivity should not be taken as an accurate measure of infectious SARS-CoV-2 incidence. Our results confirm the findings of others that the routine use of "positive" RT-PCR test results as the gold standard for assessing and controlling infectiousness fails to reflect the fact "that 50-75% of the time an individual is PCR positive, they are likely to be post-infectious"
A brief report: Cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea after repetitive nasal swab testing for coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)
"Even though nasal swab sampling has become a reliable source of a diagnostic tool during COVID-19 pandemic, this case of CSF leak shows that nasopharyngeal swab testing can lead to iatrogenic outcomes due to its invasiveness."
Positive results from UK single gene testing for SARS-COV-2 may be inconclusive, negative or detecting past infections
"Without diagnostic validation of the single gene call, for both the original and the B1.1.7 variant it can only be assumed that, in the absence of confirmatory testing, many of the reported positive results may in fact be inconclusive, negative or past infection for SARS-COV-2."
"The proportion of positives called on single genes increased over time, suggesting a shift in testing policy around mid-November 2020 coincident with the reported significant increase in transmission of the new variant B1.1.7."
"Unless the UK lighthouse laboratories have performed diagnostic validation of their single gene call, for both the original and the B1.1.7 variant, and there is no evidence of this in the public domain, it can only be assumed that, in the absence of confirmatory testing, many of the reported positive results may in fact be inconclusive, negative or from people who suffered past infection for SARS-COV-2. And even with diagnostic validation of the single gene call the UK lighthouse laboratories appear to be in breach of both the WHO emergency use assessment and, also to have potentially violated the ThermoFisher TaqPath kit instructions for use."
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2102.11612v1.pdf
WHO changes PCR Test criteria calling into question the ability of PCR Test to detect COVID-19
In an updated guidance published on Jan. 20, 2021 the WHO said that lab experts and health care practitioners should also consider the patient's history and epidemiological risk factors alongside the PCR test in diagnosing the coronavirus.
The World Health Organization published a memorandum on January 13, 2021 stating that a single positive PCR test should not be used for diagnosing Sars-Cov-2 infection.
WHO finally says:
Most PCR assays are indicated as an aid for diagnosis, therefore, health care providers must consider any result in combination with timing of sampling, specimen type, assay specifics, clinical observations, patient history, confirmed status of any contacts, and epidemiological information.
…… and with this clarifies that it is not a diagnostic test.
It never was, but WHO finally admits this openly.
The new guidance could result in significantly fewer daily cases, the false positive cases that created an environment of panic and fear which experts have been warning since last year.
WHO Information Notice for IVD Users 2020/05
Nucleic acid testing (NAT) technologies that use polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detection of SARS-CoV-2
https://www.who.int/news/item/20-01-2021-who-information-notice-for-ivd-users-2020
CSF Leak After COVID-19 Nasopharyngeal Swab: A Case Report
iatrogenic CSF leak following a nasal swab
Meningitis due to cerebrospinal fluid leak after nasal swab testing for COVID-19
Journal of Clinical Neuroscience
CSF rhinorrhoea post COVID-19 swab: A case report and review of literature.
"With most of commercially available swabs exceeding these dimensions (Fig. 3 A) improperly directed swabs can cause mucosal damage as well potential damage to the skull base."
The criminal WHO blows its own cover: fake PCR test / Explanation / Translation of the WHO Notice
https://blog.nomorefakenews.com/2020/12/31/the-criminal-who-blows-its-own-cover-fake-pcr-test/
The PCR test is virtually THE foundation of the Covid narrative.
Without it you have nothing but healthy people and the normal winter flulike illnesses. Every 'case' you read about is only a case because of a PCR test.
We and others have been saying since at least June that the PCR test is scientifically meaningless. And now, the WHO is admitting it too.
And if the PCR test is meaningless. So is the "pandemic".
Corman Drosten Addendum
The global team of scientists and experts wrote another 60 page dissection of the Drosten PCR protocol. Answering criticism of the initial retraction request not having enough "wet-lab" proof.
20 peer reviewed papers showing catastrophic problems.
https://cormandrostenreview.com/addendum/
"We believe the references provided in this addendum itemize the scientific consensus evident in the literature regarding the flaws in the original PCR detection method for SARs-CoV-2 published by Corman et al.. Further, since several important flaws were published in peer-reviewed journals, the lack of correction of the original PCR protocol by either Eurosurveillance or as an update in the Charité-WHO protocol brings into question the scientific integrity of the authors of Corman et al. These references settle any remaining debate that the Corman et al. manuscript should be retracted on technical grounds alone. The rapidity of the peer-review and conflicts of interest are even more troubling."
– Corman Drosten Addendum
In a statement released on December 14, 2020 the World Health Organization finally owned up to what 100,000's of doctors and medical professionals have been saying for months: the PCR test used to diagnose COVID-19 is a hit and miss process with way too many false positives.
https://www.who.int/news/item/14-12-2020-who-information-notice-for-ivd-users
A brief history of the PCR fiasco of the Pandemic that can't seem to end.
SARS-CoV-2 RNA reverse-transcribed and integrated into the human genome
We investigated the possibility that SARS-CoV-2 RNAs can be reverse-transcribed and integrated into the human genome and that transcription of the integrated sequences might account for PCR-positive tests.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.12.12.422516v1.full
Viral cultures for COVID-19 infectious potential assessment – a systematic review
Those with high cycle threshold are unlikely to have infectious potential.
https://academic.oup.com/cid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cid/ciaa1764/6018217
Retraction request letter to Eurosurveillance editorial board
https://cormandrostenreview.com/retraction-request-letter-to-eurosurveillance-editorial-board/
Corman Drosten Review Report
A global team of experts has found 10 FATAL FLAWS in the main test for Covid and is demanding it's urgently axed.
External peer review of the RTPCR test to detect SARS-CoV-2 reveals 10 major scientific flaws at the molecular and methodological level: consequences for false positive results.
In light of our re-examination of the test protocol to identify SARS-CoV-2 described in the Corman-Drosten paper we have identified concerning errors and inherent fallacies which render the SARS-CoV-2 PCR test useless.
https://cormandrostenreview.com/report/
– Corman Drosten Review Report
The PCR FalsePositive Pseudo-Epidemic
A "case" is a positive PCR test. No symptoms are involved. A "COVID-19 admission" to a hospital is a person testing positive by PCR before, on entry or at any time during a hospital stay, no matter the reason for the admission or the symptoms the patient is presenting. A "COVID-19 death" is any death within 28 days of a positive PCR test. If there is any doubt about the reliability of the PCR test, all of this falls away at a single stroke.
In summary, I argue that it is criminally dangerous to drive policy based in any way on this test (set up the way it is) and its results. No amount of argument or prevarication can alter these damning facts.
PCR-based COVID testing has failed and is not a proper basis to
lockdown the nation, let alone decide on tiers for restrictions
https://lockdownsceptics.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/MP-briefing-26-Nov-2020.pdf
In November 2020 judges in Lisbon have described the reliability of tests being rolled out in their tens of thousands as "more than debatable".
A 34-page ruling on an appeal against a writ of habeas corpus filed by four German tourists …leaves no doubt that a positive RT-PCR test cannot be taken on face value.
https://www.portugalresident.com/judges-in-portugal-highlight-more-than-debatable-reliability-of-covid-tests/
https://greatgameindia.com/portuguese-court-pcr-tests-unreliable/
PCR "Pandemic", Cycle Thresholds of 35+ = False
Positives, Even Tony Fauci Says So!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJfvnzGBqoA&feature=emb_logo
with Emeritus Prof. Beda Stadler, Prof Carl Heneghan, Dr. Fauci, Kary Mullins, Professor Stephen A. Bustin
Cerebrospinal Fluid Leak After Nasal Swab Testing for Coronavirus Disease 2019
"This case of iatrogenic CSF leak from nasal swab testing for COVID-19 illustrates that prior surgical intervention, or pathology that distorts normal nasal anatomy, may increase the risk of adverse events associated with nasal testing for respiratory pathogens, including COVID-19."
Jamanetwork
Correlation Between 3790 Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction–Positives Samples and Positive Cell Cultures, Including 1941 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Isolates
The 👆🏼 Portuguese judges cited the following study conducted by "some of the leading European and world specialists
"At a cycle threshold (ct) of 25, about 70% of samples remain positive in cell culture (i.e. were infected): in a ct of 30, 20% of samples remained positive; in a ct of 35, 3% of samples remained positive and in a ct above 35, no sample remained positive (infectious) in the culture".
"This means that if a person has a positive PCR test at a threshold of cycles of 35 or higher (as happens in most laboratories in the USA and Europe), the chances of a person being infected is less than 3%. The probability of a person receiving a false positive is 97% or higher".
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) swab testis useful (but not perfect) for detecting SARS-CoV-2 virus RNA in symptomatic patients. However, problems arise using the test for purposes that disregard symptoms or time of infection—namely, case finding, mass screening, and disease surveillance. This is because PCR is not a test of infectiousness.
https://www.bmj.com/content/370/bmj.m3699.short?rss=1&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bmj%2Frecent+%28Latest+from+BMJ%29
The FDA did not regularly approve the PCR test, but approved it "For Emergency Use Only".
"The CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel is only for use under a Food and Drug Administration's Emergency Use Authorization. "
FDA also states:
"Positive results are indicative of active infection with
SARS-CoV-2 but do not rule out bacterial infection or co-infection with other viruses. The agent detected may not be the definite cause of disease."
In April 2020, a laboratory in Augsburg, Germany published the following information on their website:
"Modified reporting layout of SARS-Cov-2 PCR results.
From now on, we will only print the result as positive or negative on our findings.
Previously, you received two results depending on the test used.
If the sample was analyzed using the Roche method, we have reported the test results for both target sequences of the PCR (ORF1 and E gene) separately.
The ORF1 gene is specific for SARS-CoV-2, whereas the E gene is also present in other coronaviruses. The cases in which only the ORF gene was amplified, have also been positively assessed by us before. Few cases with isolated positive E gene were considered questionable and therefore repeatedly led to queries and problems regarding further management of affected patients. Taking into account the epidemiological situation and the overall increase in the positive rate, from now on we follow the WHO recommendation and report a result as "positive" when just the E gene has been amplified. Therefore, to simplify the findings, only one overall result (positive or negative) will appear in the future. A result is positive if at least one of the two target sequences of SARS-CoV-2 was detected in the swab material.
If the sample was analyzed using methods from rBiopharm or TibMolbiol, we have previously performed separate screening and confirmatory tests. Analogous to the approach described above, we restrict ourselves to the previous screening test targeting the E gene because of its high positive predictive value with increasing COVID-19 prevalence."
End of Quote.
A day later, this notification was removed from the website.
The Invented Pandemic, the Lack of Virus Isolation and the Invalid COVID-19 Test.
Fauci knew that the PCR Tests is done by to high cycles above 35 (which are fake positives) in Juli 2020
Kary Mullins PCR Inventor:
"PCR is just a process..it does not tell you that you are sick."
"With PCR, if you do it well, you can find almost anything in anybody."
Dr Karyy Mullins – Inventor of the PCR test and Nobel Prize winning scientist
Extended interview
Return to Wuhan: What Life Is Like One Year Later / NBC Nightly News
Dr. Wu Zunyou / Chinese Center For Disease Control
"They didn't isolate the virus. That's the issue."
Correlation Between 3790 Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction–Positives Samples and Positive Cell Cultures
Non-infectious/ Maybe infectious/ Infectious
Drosten Protocol paper
Detection of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) by real-time RT-PCR
https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.3.2000045
WHO – Drosten Protocol
Diagnostic detection of 2019-nCoV by real-time RT-PCR
CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel
For Emergency Use Only
Virology, transmission, and pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2
https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m3862
Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests can detect viral SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the upper respiratory tract for a mean of 17 days; however, detection of viral RNA does not necessarily equate to infectiousness, and viral culture from PCR positive upper respiratory tract samples has been rarely positive beyond nine days of illness
Symptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission (1-2 days before symptom onset), is likely to play a greater role in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 than asymptomatic transmission
A wide range of virus-neutralising antibodies have been reported, and emerging evidence suggests that these may correlate with severity of illness but wane over time
Most clinical presentations are mild, and the typical pattern of covid-19 more resembles an influenza-like illness—which includes fever, cough, malaise, myalgia, headache, and taste and smell disturbance—rather than severe pneumonia
bioPerfectus technologies
COVID-19 Coronavirus Real Time PCR Kit
"Positive result suggests SARS-CoV-2 infection but bacteria and other virus induced co-infection could not be excluded. SARS-CoV-2 test result is not the only confirmation evidence of suspected cases and all positive results have to be reported to Centers for Disease Control (CDCs) and authorities."
https://www.who.int/diagnostics_laboratory/eual/eul_0515_202_00_covid19_coronavirus_real_time_pcr_kit_ifu.pdf?ua=1
cobas® SARS-CoV-2 Test
Hoffmann-La Roche
– This test has not been FDA cleared or approved
– Clinical correlation with patient history and other diagnostic information is necessary to determine patient infection status. Positive results do not rule out bacterial infection or co-infection with other viruses.
Kary Mullins about Anthony Fauci
– Kary Mullins
Jens Spahn, German Minister of Health
"We now have to be careful that we don't have too many false positives due to too much testing."
All information is deemed accurate but not guaranteed and should be independently verified.


text:
Q: How to use PowerShell to set the time on a remote device? I want to set the Date and Time of a remote device (Raspberry Pi 2 running Windows IoT) to the value of the Date Time of a local device.
I create a variable $dateTime to hold the local DateTime.
I assign a password to connect to  a remote device to a variable $password.
I create a credential object.
I connect to the remote device using Enter-PSSession.
Now that I'm connected I try assigning the remote devices DateTime using Set-Date = $dateTime | Out-String.
I get cannot convertvalue "=" to type "System.TimeSpan" error.
$dateTime = Get-Date
$password = ConvertTo-SecureString "mypassword" -AsPlainText -Force
$cred = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("myremotedevice     \Administrator",$password)
Enter-PSSession -ComputerName myremotedevice -Credential $cred
Set-Date = $dateTime | Out-String

It seems as if the $dateTime variable is out of scope once I am connected via the PSSession.  Is there a way around this ?

A: I wouldn't use Enter-PSSession for this at all, since that's for interactive sessions.
I'd use this:
$dateTime = Get-Date;
$password = ConvertTo-SecureString "mypassword" -AsPlainText -Force;
$cred = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("myremotedevice     \Administrator",$password);
Invoke-Command -ComputerName myremotedevice -Credential $cred -ScriptBlock {
    Set-Date -Date $using:datetime;
}

Or, if I had multiple things to execute:
$dateTime = Get-Date;
$password = ConvertTo-SecureString "mypassword" -AsPlainText -Force;
$cred = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("myremotedevice     \Administrator",$password);
$session = New-PsSession -ComputerName -Credential $cred;
Invoke-Command -Session $session -ScriptBlock {
    Set-Date -Date $using:datetime;
}
Invoke-Command -Session $session -ScriptBlock { [...] }
.
.
Disconnect-PsSession -Session $session;

Passing local variables to a remote session usually requires the using namespace.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
The Democratic Party's San Francisco Problem
By Lee Ohanian • The Hoover Institution
Progressive Democrats have dominated San Francisco's city government for the last 20 years, a time during which homelessness, drug abuse, the cost of living, and the city budget have skyrocketed. San Francisco is becoming an increasingly obvious problem for the national Democratic party, with vice president-elect Kamala Harris, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and Senator Dianne Feinstein all from the Bay Area.
As a succession of city governments have tacitly tolerated drug abuse and the crimes that go with that, a de facto thriving drug-based economy tragically plays out in the open on city streets every day. The city spends a small fortune each year collecting millions of used hypodermic needles from city streets and pays city workers about $185,000 annually to clean up feces from the sidewalks.
This is why $8 million in campaign money was poured into local elections earlier this month to convince San Francisco voters to replace progressive Democrats with more moderate Democrats on the city's Board of Supervisors, and to vote down a number of local tax initiatives that would make San Francisco even more expensive and less desirable as a business location than it presently is.
The party strongly backed more moderate candidates with the view that San Francisco could make progress if a moderate majority board was elected who would in turn work productively with San Francisco mayor London Breed, who has a much better understanding of the city's problems than the current board.
The party's investment in bringing about more responsible governance and policies didn't work. It wasn't even close. The most progressive Board of Supervisors candidates won, which means that the board's majority remains highly progressive, and thus likely will continue to block many housing proposals. Why? Because most developments would gentrify neighborhoods by replacing very old, low-density housing with new, high-density housing. And for progressives, gentrification is not an option.
Blocking new development means constraining supply, which in turn means San Francisco housing costs remain ridiculously high. How high? How about $1.1 million for about 1,000 square feet in the city's Mission District, San Francisco's highest crime neighborhood? For comparison, a similarly sized home in in a low-crime Atlanta neighborhood is yours for $174,900. In rapidly growing Denver, a similar home costs about $250,000.
The blocked housing developments in San Francisco would be so valuable that those residents who might be displaced could be substantially compensated. The devil is always in the details, but the status quo of keeping the economic pie much smaller than it could be is never the solution.
For decades, San Francisco's politicians have blocked new housing to prevent highly aid tech and finance workers from moving in and changing old-school neighborhoods. Yes, the 1950s-era Italian American diner serving spaghetti with red sauce and sausage, as delicious as it is, would be gone, and would be replaced by a higher-priced restaurant with a menu tailored to serve new residents. But times and people change, and so will neighborhoods.
It is grossly expensive to prevent new development, because new development helps everyone by expanding the city's housing stock. Build it, no matter what it is, and supply expands. As more housing opportunities open, people move, freeing up existing homes for others to move into. California grew from about 7 million people in 1940 to about 20 million by 1970, but home prices, adjusted for inflation, did not skyrocket, because new construction kept up with demand. Prices did not enter the stratosphere until local government began to block development.
Local progressives have drawn a line in the sand: no new housing unless it is new housing that they personally find acceptable. Meanwhile, about 17,000 homeless people live in the streets, according to the National Homeless Information Project, roughly twice as many as the official count. And there are now more drug users within the city than there are high school students.
San Francisco's failure to effectively govern is a growing problem for the national Democratic party, and for reasons that go beyond the human tragedies that unfold every day in plain view, and which remind everyone that the Democrats own this.
Former San Francisco mayor and old-school Democratic politician Willie Brown knows this as well as anyone. Brown recently was interviewed and argued very candidly that the Democratic party has lost its way, and that it provides little of interest to voters outside of Sunday morning political talk shows. He openly worries about the fate of San Francisco and his party, a political party that is increasingly being dominated by wealthy elites and one that is moving far from the ideas that he represented.
Brown knows that San Francisco and, more broadly, California have run the experiment of very liberal governance, and that experiment has clearly failed. He also knows that California voters made a right turn two weeks ago by voting down tax increases and the restoration of affirmative action, and by voting to restore the right of gig workers to work as independent contractors by passing Proposition 22. By passing this proposition, voters told elite Democratic lawmakers they didn't approve of the legislature stealing economic freedom and making it illegal for many to work as independent contractors.
California's failure to effectively govern is a teaching moment for the rest of the Democratic party. The progressive agenda failed in California, and it will fail nationally. Without the perfect foil of Trump to hide behind, Democrats must now deliver without the benefit of simply saying that they are working 24/7 to fight against everything Trump.
Willie Brown and other old-school Democrats know that if Biden and Harris are to succeed, the party must move against its progressive wing that includes Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar, all of whom favor policies that would sharply reduce economic freedom, economic growth, and our quality of life.
The national Democratic party has plenty of problems to address. The global pandemic remains. China is China. Iran is Iran. Russia is Russia. And 70 million voters remain skeptical that the party even knows they exist. What has happened in San Francisco scares the national party, because they understand San Francisco's fate can happen anywhere if the old guard can't find a way to take control of the party and implement moderate policies.
It is good that the national party is worried about what has happened in San Francisco. Sadly, San Francisco's plight will continue for the time being. But we can hope that its lessons will help promote better national policies in the Biden-Harris administration.
Tags: Economy, housing, Liberalism, Progressives
Reversal on Appeal of Texas Trade Secret Ruling Offers Promise for Economic Recovery
By George Landrith • Southeast Texas Record
The coronavirus has wreaked havoc on Americans' health as well as the health of our economy over the past several months. The real estate industry is certainly no exception. Due to challenges and unpredictability ahead, combined with record unemployment and cost-cutting layoffs, many Americans have put their plans to purchase a home on hold.
At the pandemic's onset, new home sale listings dropped by as much as 70 percent in some markets but the April numbers suggested some recovery was underway. Web traffic to real estate portals like Zillow plunged by almost 40 percent. Further, nearly 4 million homeowners are in the midst of forbearance plans – delaying payments on their mortgages – making up almost 8 percent of all mortgages.
While challenges presented by the coronavirus introduce uncertainty, a competitive real estate market and an environment that rewards fair competition and promotes collaboration within the industry will help foster a faster recovery.
Today, key industry partnerships and collaborations between mortgage service providers or banks, fintech and realtech developers offer products and services that bridge the gap between the huge swaths of available data and informed consumer decision-making. These innovations empower home buyers or sellers to make more informed decisions, at a time when few can afford to spend more or sell for less than they should based on constantly fluctuating home markets. A prime example is how Amrock, one of the nation's leading title insurance, property valuations, and settlement services providers, has focused on developing innovative solutions, such as their eClosing platform, to improve the real estate experience for all parties involved. Because of the rapidly evolving and highly dynamic nature of the industry, partnerships have become key to finding innovative ways to use data to provide the best product for consumers.
Regrettably, such ingenuity and the necessary B2B collaboration faces challenges that predate the current pandemic raddled housing markets. The real estate industry and those who rely on it all pay the price for the increasing onslaught of litigation abuses by the hands of legal profiteers seeking to exploit our courts and our industries for financial gain.
Fortunately, on June 3, the Texas 4th Court of Appeals issued a decision offering hope that the trend of increasing abusive litigation, particularly that within the real estate industry, may not be so inevitable.
This ruling marks a milestone for homeowners who pay title insurance, which protects both real estate owners and lenders against loss or damage occurring from liens (mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, easements), encumbrances, or defects in the title or actual ownership of a property. Critically, title insurance offers buyers and sellers the assurance they need to buy, sell, and reinvest, all critical components of a recovery.
The Texas 4th Court of Appeals follows a March 2018 decision by a Bexar County, TX, jury who awarded HouseCanary, a software developer, nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars after mistakenly believing Amrock allegedly stole their trade secrets. In truth, Amrock had hired HouseCanary on a $5 million contract to develop an automated valuation model (AVM) mobile application for use by appraisers in the field – a key development in streamlining the real estate buying/selling process. AVMs are formulas that are used to appraise real estate property based on key variables like historical price data, tax assessments, sales history and past lending transactions. However, after HouseCanary had failed to deliver a functional application after more than a year and no clear progress, Amrock sued for breach of contract, and built their own AVM for appraiser use.
The facts of that case – and the weakening standard of what makes up a trade secret – painted a distressing picture for the future of American innovation.
In an effort to cover their inability to develop the application they were hired to produce, HouseCanary countersued – alleging Amrock had stolen their trade secrets and used proprietary information in the development of their own AVM. After ignoring key facts and employing several faulty legal arguments and highly questionable calculations, HouseCanary was able to convince the jury that Amrock had misappropriated their trade secrets – and that such information was valued at $235 million dollars – more than 100 times HouseCanary's total revenues for all product sales during the period in question.
Beside the fact that the ruling was 150 times the value of the initial $5 million contract, there is another piece of fundamental misinformation the entire ruling hinges on: HouseCanary had no trade secrets or any proprietary information – hence their inability to produce the mobile AVM application Amrock contracted them to create.
This was confirmed by four HouseCanary executives-turned-whistleblowers, who, alarmed by the massive damages figure, testified that "there was never a working version of the App," and that HouseCanary had deceived Amrock by "representing that the App was more functional than it actually was." In a then-anonymous email to Amrock CEO Jeff Eisenshtadt, former HouseCanary Director of Appraiser Experience Anthony Roveda wrote "housecanary never had any proprietary anything…"
The original 2018 decision, as it stood before June 3, established a dangerous precedent for the future regarding what was classified as protectable "trade secrets," which deterred innovation and the partnerships needed to provide the best product for consumers.
As the nation emerges from the coronavirus pandemic, the government – from policymakers to judges – have a duty to provide stability, create meaningful policy, uphold our justice system, and provide clarity where needed. The Texas appeals court decision to overturn Amrock v. HouseCanary sent a loud and clear message that this kind of frivolous litigation has no place in our courts – providing a reassuring and much-needed signal to innovators and developers that collaboration remains welcome here in the United States.
Tags: Covid-19, Economy, housing, Innovation, Whistleblower
Essential or not?
The COVID-19 experience helps us decide what is essential and what isn't
By Dr. Larry Fedewa • DrLarryOnline
One effect of the lockdown is that we find ourselves with frequent decisions as to what is essential to our survival and happiness and what isn't. Life gets stripped down to essentials, with all the extras becoming secondary, if that. Here are some ideas along these lines.
The first essential is food. The availability of food for us to buy entails a massive industry. First, there is the source which is the farmers and ranchers who provide our meat, fruit and vegetables. Their activities require thousands of acres of land and huge amounts of water for crops and livestock, which in turn depend on favorable weather. Bad weather can bring both floods and droughts.
Then there is also a vast capital expense required for equipment and labor to plant, cultivate and harvest the crops which feed both people and animals.
Ahead is the immense supply chain which involves the transportation, processing and ultimately delivery to the thousands of stores and restaurants which will make our food supply available to all of us. It is important to remember that this entire industry and all its parts must continue to operate at all times in order for us to survive. Any significant disruption could have disastrous consequences.
Closely related to food is water. Humans can survive longer without food than without water. The availability of water involves another massive industry as well as favorable weather. When we turn on a faucet and water appears, it is well to remember what has gone into that daily miracle.
The moral of these reflections is that 1) we are all radically dependent on the proper functioning of extremely complicated and expensive sources and supply chains for the very fundamentals of our existence, and 2) that the survival of the human race depends on factors which are mostly beyond our control.
Among other things, these essentials remind us that they depend entirely on people working, pandemic or no pandemic.
The subject of "work" brings up another consideration: buildings may not be as universally essential as we thought. Specifically, our housing is essential. If we never thought about that before the "shelter in place" mandate appeared, staying home for three or four months certainly showed us the importance of our house.
For many, however, the experience also demonstrated that "office" is not essential to work. We have been forced to discover that, thanks to all the modern communication technology, much of the work we do can be as easily preformed at home as in an office. So, offices are not really on some lists as essential.
But work really is essential. We have discovered what we always knew – that our work is what keeps us going, defines our place in this society, which, if we are not satisfied with the way things are, provides alternatives for us to test and follow. Work is also critical for society as a whole because it constitutes the means by which all those complex supply chains are sustained. Combined, they are the "economy" which is followed so thoroughly by the news – and Wall Street.
Another essential which has been forced to the front of our attention span by the pandemic is our family. In many cases, parents who work hard in often stressful circumstances have re-discovered the importance and the joys of marriage and parenthood by staying home for extended periods. They have become re-acquainted with their spouse and children, and spouses and children have in turn made their own discoveries.
Fathers especially sometimes become almost mythical figures to children who see them only for short periods, often in a disciplinary circumstance. The rest of the time their father is talked about but not there. Getting to know each other better is beneficial to all.
Hygiene is another subject which has drawn more attention in the last few months than in the last few years. We have been told ad nauseum how to wash our hands and sterilize every surface in sight. Like it or not, cleanliness – of person and environment – has become a new essential.
Shopping, restaurants, sports events and sports teams have fallen to lower placed priorities. All are missed – acutely by some – but there are other ways to get exercise and to prepare and consume food and drinks, other ways which involve much less risk of contracting disease.
Among the essentials most missed, however, are social events and interactions with other people. Some have discovered that the absence of crowds and gatherings is so important that being deprived has led to depression or worse. Others – often a significant number – have decided to seek communal activities, whether parties or protest marches, in spite of advice and even prohibitions to the contrary. To them, a full social life is essential, damn the consequences!
Just some contemplative thoughts (while working at home!).
Tags: Covid-19, Family, housing, Workforce
Harris, Warren Present Plans For Government To Redistribute Wealth By Race
By Tristan Justice • the Federalist
U.S. senators and 2020 presidential rivals Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) both announced new plans over the weekend for government to redistribute private wealth differently according to recipients' race.
Both announced these plans at a cultural and music festival hosted by Essence Magazine, a monthly magazine for African-American women. The festival attracted several high-profile speakers, including former first lady Michelle Obama and six 2020 White House hopefuls: Harris, Warren, U.S. Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-TX.), and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
Harris and Warren took the opportunity to showcase new proposals aimed at government picking economic winners and losers according to race and sex.
Harris Pledges $100 Billion to Subsidize Homeownership
Harris' plan targets homeownership, pledging a $100 billion grant to support black families and individuals to secure homes in communities where financial institutions have historically denied loans to people of color, a practice known as red-lining. The money, Harris says, would be used to cover down payments and closing costs for as many as four million families or individuals.
"A typical black family has just $10 of wealth for every $100 held by a white family," Harris told the audience. "So we must right that wrong and, after generations of discrimination, give black families a real shot at homeownership – historically one of the most powerful drivers of wealth in our country."
The program Harris proposed would be administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and provide home buyers of certain racial backgrounds up to $25,000 each from taxpayers. Families making more than $100,000 annually or $125,000 per year in high-cost areas would be ineligible for these taxpayer subsidies. The cap is lower for individuals, at $50,000 and $75,000 for those living in what bureaucrats would define as high-cost places.
Harris' proposal also calls for more government interference in alleged housing discrimination and new taxpayer funding for financial literacy. The California senator also proposed changes to how credit scores are calculated. Credit scores are based on people's financial decision-making histories, and lenders use them to decide loan interest rates and eligibility.
Credit scores today are calculated based on individuals' payment histories for debt such as credit cards, student loans, and mortgages. Harris wants to require credit-scoring agencies to take other payments into account including rent, phone bills, and utilities.
Harris also wants to change the way applicants' debt is calculated when applying for a home, from the debt-to-income ratio being based on one year of income to a monthly basis. The change to a debt-to-income ratio based on monthly expenses would affect approximately 7.5 million black households and 5 million Latino households, according to Harris.
According to the Harris campaign, giving taxpayer money to black and Latino Americans to buy houses and forcing financial institutions to use politically calculated standards for lending would shrink the wealth gap between black and white households by 31 percent and bring up the median wealth of black households by approximately $32,000, and by $29,000 for Latino households.
Warren Proposes New Regulations for Gov't Contractors
Warren's plan aims at creating new rules for contractors working for the federal government, which employs approximately one-quarter of the nation's workers. Warren released her plan Friday and discussed it at the Essence Festival Saturday, calling on an executive order to require federal contractors to increase their employment of people who are not white and getting government involved in deciding what women and minorities should be paid.
"It's up to the federal government to say what the terms of those contacts are," Warren asserted to the festival crowd. "It's not enough to talk the talk about equal pay for equal work. It's not enough to talk the talk about the diversity of your work force. You've got to walk the walk, or you're not getting those federal contracts."
Under Warren's plan, companies seeking federal contracts would be prohibited from asking potential hires about previous salaries or criminal history. Contractors would also be barred from using forced arbitration and non-compete clauses,
The proposals from the two top-tier presidential candidates come as both senators have picked up steam following well-received performances in the first round of presidential debates held in Miami last month. Their campaign momentum has come at much of a cost to Democratic front-runner former Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt), both of whom have seen their support drop in the polls but remain competitive in the race.
Harris saw her poll numbers jump the most out of any other candidate following the debate, practically doubling her support from pre-debate levels at 7 percent to above 14 percent, according to Real Clear Politics' latest aggregate of polls. The California senator garnered positive attention when she attacked Biden on stage for the former Delaware senator's opposition on forced busing and for his recent remarks touting friendships with segregationist senators as examples of civility.
Even so, Biden remains the front-runner by a solid lead. The latest polling on display from Real Clear Politics still shows Biden with an average ten-point lead ahead of every other candidate.
Tags: housing, Redistribution, Socialism
Report: Low-Income Entitlements Make Recipients Less Likely to Work
GAO finds Medicaid and housing assistance may cause lower labor force participation
by Ali Meyer • Washington Free Beacon
Government entitlement programs such as Medicaid and housing assistance may make their beneficiaries less likely to work, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.
According to the GAO, an increase in income could result in a loss of Medicaid benefits for an individual and thus cause them to be less likely to pursue employment.
The GAO found the same result when looking at the housing assistance program, especially in Chicago. GAO found that the Section 8 program had a negative effect on labor force participation and earnings. Continue reading →
Tags: Economics, entitlements, food assistance, Government Accountability Office, housing, Medicaid
BUSTED: Paul Krugman removed 20 years of data from a chart to show a correlation that wasn't really there
by Cullen Roche • Business Insider
Someone sent me an email Wednesday evening with some details on the Paul Krugman response to James Montier, which I discussed here. I had previously stated that the Krugman response was lacking meat. But it's actually worse than that. It's actually highly misleading and appears intentionally so.
In the post, Dr. Krugman tries to show how much interest rates matter by comparing the Fed Funds Rate with Housing Starts. He shows a chart and declares that there appears to be a strong correlation. Except, as this emailer notes, he appears to have shifted the chart to make it appear as though there is a correlation where there isn't one.
Here's the Krugman chart:
Tags: federal funds rate, housing, Junk Science, Politically motivated science