text:
Cursed soldiers
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For more details on this topic, see Anti-communist resistance in Poland (1944–46).
The 'Cursed soldiers' of the anti-communist underground. Left to right: Henryk Wybranowski "Tarzan" (killed Nov. 1948), pl (Edward Taraszkiewicz) "Żelazny" (killed Oct. 1951), Mieczysław Małecki "Sokół" (killed Nov. 1947), and Stanisław Pakuła pseudonym "Krzewina". Photo: June 1947
The cursed soldiers (that is, "accursed soldiers" or "damned soldiers"; Polish: Żołnierze wyklęci) is a name applied to a variety of anti-communist Polish resistance movements formed in the later stages of World War II and afterwards. Created by some members of the Polish Secret State, these clandestine organizations continued their armed struggle against the Stalinist government of Poland well into the 1950s. The guerrilla warfare included an array of military attacks launched against the new communist prisons as well as MBP state security offices, detention facilities for political prisoners, and concentration camps set up across the country. Most of the Polish anti-communist groups ceased to exist in the late 1940s or 1950s, hunted down by MBP security services and NKVD assassination squads.[1] However, the last known 'cursed soldier', Józef Franczak, was killed in an ambush as late as 1963, almost 20 years after the Soviet take-over of Poland.[2][3]
The best-known Polish anti-communist resistance organizations operating in Stalinist Poland included Freedom and Independence (Wolność i Niezawisłość, WIN), National Armed Forces (Narodowe Siły Zbrojne, NSZ), National Military Union (Narodowe Zjednoczenie Wojskowe, NZW), Konspiracyjne Wojsko Polskie (Underground Polish Army, KWP), Ruch Oporu Armii Krajowej (Home Army Resistance, ROAK), Armia Krajowa Obywatelska (Citizens' Home Army, AKO), NIE (NO, short for Niepodległość), Armed Forces Delegation for Poland (Delegatura Sił Zbrojnych na Kraj), and Wolność i Sprawiedliwość (Freedom and Justice, WiS).[3] Similar Eastern European anti-communists fought on in other countries.
1 Historical background
1.1 Formation of the anti-communist underground
1.2 Persecution
2 The largest operations and actions
2.1 Retaliation
3 Anti-communist resistance organizations
5 Notable members
6 In culture
Monument to Armia Krajowa in Sopot, Poland.
Uniform of Polish anticommunist fighter, with breast badge displaying image of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa
"The giant and the spittly dwarf of the reaction". Postwar communist propaganda poster showing soldier of the AL stepping over the underground fighter of AK
Communist propaganda poster saying "Fight the bandits from NSZ".
With the advance of Soviet forces across Poland against Nazi Germany, the Soviet and Polish communists who set up the brand new government called the Polish Committee of National Liberation in 1944 realized that the Polish Secret State loyal to the Polish government-in-exile had to be abolished before they could gain complete control over Poland.[4] Future General Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party Władysław Gomułka pronounced that "Soldiers of AK are a hostile element which must be removed without mercy". Another prominent communist, Roman Zambrowski, said that the AK had to be "exterminated".[5]
Armia Krajowa (or simply AK)-the main Polish resistance movement in World War II-had officially disbanded on 19 January 1945 to prevent a slide into armed conflict with the Red Army, including an increasing threat of civil war over Poland's sovereignty. However, many units decided to continue on with their struggle under new circumstances, seeing the Soviet forces as new occupiers. Meanwhile, Soviet partisans in Poland had already been ordered by Moscow on June 22, 1943 to engage Polish Leśni partisans in combat.[6] They commonly fought Poles more often than they did the Germans.[4] The main forces of the Red Army (Northern Group of Forces) and the NKVD had begun conducting operations against AK partisans already during and directly after the Polish Operation Tempest, designed by the Poles as a preventive action to assure Polish rather than Soviet control of the cities after the German withdrawal.[5] Soviet premier Joseph Stalin aimed to ensure that an independent Poland would never reemerge in the postwar period.[7]
Formation of the anti-communist underground
The first AK structure designed primarily to deal with the Soviet threat was the NIE, formed in mid-1943. NIE's goal was not to engage the Soviet forces in combat, but rather to observe and conduct espionage while the Polish government-in-exile decided how to deal with the Soviets. At that time, the exiled government still believed that the solution could be found through negotiations. On May 7, 1945, the NIE ("NO") was disbanded and transformed into the Delegatura Sił Zbrojnych na Kraj ("Armed Forces Delegation for Homeland"). However, this organization lasted only until August 8, 1945, when the decision was made to disband it and to stop partisan resistance on Polish territory.[5]
In March 1945 a staged trial of 16 leaders of the Polish Underground State held by the Soviet Union took place in Moscow - (the Trial of the Sixteen).[8][9][10][11] The Government Delegate, together with most members of the Council of National Unity and the C-i-C of the Armia Krajowa, were invited by Soviet general Ivan Serov with agreement of Joseph Stalin to a conference on their eventual entry to the Soviet-backed Provisional Government. They were presented with a warrant of safety, but the NKVD arrested them in Pruszków on 27 and 28 March.[12][13] Leopold Okulicki, Jan Stanisław Jankowski and Kazimierz Pużak were arrested on 27th with 12 more the next day. A.Zwierzynski had been arrested earlier. They were brought to Moscow for interrogation in the Lubyanka.[14][15][16] After several months of brutal interrogation and torture[17] they were presented with the forged accusations of "collaboration with Nazi Germany" and of "planning a military alliance with Nazi Germany".[18][19]
The first Polish communist government, the Polish Committee of National Liberation, was formed in July 1944, but declined jurisdiction over AK soldiers. Consequently, for more than a year, it was Soviet agencies like the NKVD that dealt with the AK. By the end of the war, approximately 60,000 soldiers of the AK had been arrested, and 50,000 of them were deported to the Soviet Union's prisons and prison camps. Most of those soldiers had been captured by the Soviets during or in the aftermath of Operation Tempest, when many AK units tried to cooperate with the Soviets in a nationwide uprising against the Germans. Other veterans were arrested when they decided to approach the government after being promised amnesty. In 1947, an amnesty was passed for most of the partisans; the communist authorities expected around 12,000 people to give up their arms, but the actual number of people to come out of the forests eventually reached 53,000. Many of them were arrested despite promises of freedom; after repeated broken promises during the first few years of communist control, AK soldiers stopped trusting the government.[5]
The third AK organization was Wolność i Niezawisłość ("Freedom and Sovereignty"). Again, its primary goal was not combat; rather, the WiN was designed to help AK soldiers make the transition from a life as partisans to that of civilians. The continued secrecy and conspiracy were necessary in light of the increasing persecution of AK veterans by the communist government. WiN was, however, much in need of funds to pay for false documents and to provide resources for the partisans, many of whom had lost their homes and entire life-savings in the war. Viewed as enemies of the state, starved of resources, and with a vocal faction advocating armed resistance against the Soviets and their Polish proxies, WiN was far from efficient. A significant victory for the NKVD and the newly created Polish secret police, Urząd Bezpieczeństwa (UB), came in the second half of 1945, when they managed to convince several leaders of the AK and WiN that they truly wanted to offer amnesty to AK members. Within a few months, they managed to gain information about vast numbers of AK/WiN resources and people. Several months later when the (imprisoned) AK and WiN leaders realized their mistake, the organization was crippled and thousands more of their members were arrested.[5] The primary period of WiN activity lasted to 1947; it finally disbanded in 1952.[20]
The NKVD and UB used brute force and deception to eliminate the underground opposition. In the autumn of 1946, a group of 100–200 soldiers of Narodowe Siły Zbrojne (National Armed Forces, NSZ) were lured into a trap and massacred. In 1947, Colonel Julia ("Bloody Luna") Brystiger of the Polish Ministry of Public Security declared at the security briefing, that "[t]he terrorist and political underground had ceased to be a threatening force," although the class enemy at universities, offices and factories still had to be "found out and neutralized."[5]
The persecution of the AK members was only a part of the reign of Stalinist terror in postwar Poland. In the period of 1944–56, approximately 300,000 Polish people had been arrested,[21] or up to two million, by different accounts.[5] There were 6,000 death sentences issued, the majority of them carried out.[21] Possibly, over 20,000 people died in communist prisons including those executed "in the majesty of the law" such as Witold Pilecki, a hero of Auschwitz.[5] A further six million Polish citizens (i.e., one out of every three adult Poles) were classified as suspected members of a 'reactionary or criminal element' and subjected to investigation by state agencies. During the Polish October of 1956, a political amnesty freed 35,000 former AK soldiers from prisons. Still, some partisans remained in service, unwilling or simply unable to rejoin the community. The cursed soldier Stanisław Marchewka "Ryba" ("The Fish") was killed in 1957, and the last AK partisan, Józef Franczak "Lalek" ("Doller"), was killed in 1963 — almost two decades after the Second World War ended. Four years later, long after the abolition of Stalinist terror, the last member of the elite British-trained Cichociemny ("The Silent and Hidden") intelligence and support group Adam Boryczka was finally released from prison (1967). Until the end of the People's Republic of Poland, former AK soldiers were under constant investigation by the secret police. It was only in 1989, after the fall of communism, that the convictions of AK soldiers were finally declared invalid and annulled by Polish law.[5]
The largest operations and actions
Main article: Anti-communist resistance in Poland (1944–1946)
The biggest battle in the history of the National Military Union (Narodowe Zjednoczenie Wojskowe, NZW) took place on May 6–7, 1945, in the village of Kuryłówka in southeastern Poland. The Battle of Kuryłówka fought against the Soviet 2nd Border Regiment of the NKVD, ended in a victory for the underground forces commanded by Major Franciszek Przysiężniak ("Marek"). The anti-communist fighters killed up to 70 Russian agents. The NKVD troops retreated in haste, only to reappear in the village later on and burn it to the ground in retaliation, destroying over 730 buildings.[22][23]
On May 21, 1945, a heavily armed unit of the Home Army (AK) led by Colonel Edward Wasilewski, attacked and destroyed the NKVD camp located in Rembertów on the eastern outskirts of Warsaw. The Russians incarcerated many hundreds of Polish citizens there,[24][25][26] including members of the Home Army.[27]
One of the biggest communist anti-partisan operations took place from June 10–25, 1945, in and around the Suwałki and Augustów regions of Poland. The "Augustów roundup" (Polish: Obława augustowska) was a joint operation of the Red Army, the Soviet NKVD, and SMERSH battalions with the assistance from Polish UB and LWP units, against underground Armia Krajowa soldiers. The Soviet operation extended into the territory of occupied Lithuania. More than 2,000 suspected anti-communist Polish fighters were captured and detained in Russian internment camps. About 600 of the "Augustow Missing" are presumed to have died in Russian custody, their bodies buried in unknown mass graves on the present territory of Russia. The Polish Institute of National Remembrance has declared the 1945 Augustów roundup to be "the largest crime committed by the Soviets on Polish lands after World War II."[28]
Anti-communist resistance organizations
Among the best-known Polish underground organizations,[3] engaged in guerrilla warfare were:
Wolność i Niezawisłość ("Freedom and Independence", WIN) founded on September 2, 1945, active to 1952.
Narodowe Siły Zbrojne ("National Armed Forces", NSZ) created on September 20, 1942, split in March 1944.
Narodowe Zjednoczenie Wojskowe ("National Military Union", NZW) established in mid-to-late 1940s, active until mid-1950s.
Konspiracyjne Wojsko Polskie ("Underground Polish Army", KWP) which existed from April 1945 to as late as 1954.
Ruch Oporu Armii Krajowej ("Resistance of the Home Army", ROAK) formed in 1944 against UB collaborators.
Armia Krajowa Obywatelska ("Citizens' Home Army", AKO) founded in February 1945, incorporated into Wolność i Niezawisłość in 1945.
NIE ("NO") formed in 1943, active till 7 May 1945.
Delegatura Sił Zbrojnych na Kraj ("Delegature of the Polish Forces at Home") formed on May 7, 1945, dissolved on August 8, 1945.
Wolność i Sprawiedliwość ("Freedom and Justice", WIS) founded in early 1950s.
Battle of Kuryłówka
Augustów roundup (Polish: Obława augustowska)
Attack on the NKVD Camp in Rembertów
1951 Mokotow Prison execution
Raid on Kielce Prison
Cpt. Józef Batory (noms de guerre, "Argus" and "Wojtek")
Lt. Stefan Bembiński ("Harnaś")
Maj. Marian Bernaciak ("Orlik" and "Dymek")
Lt. Ksawery Błasiak ("Albert")
Cpt. Franciszek Błażej ("Roman", "Bogusław", and "Tadeusz")
Lt. Stanisław Bogdanowicz ("Tom")
Lt. Col. Janusz Bokszczanin ("Sęk")
Lt. Stefan Bronowski ("Roman")
Cpt. Zdzisław Broński ("Uskok")
Cpl Izydor Bukowski ("Burza")
Lt. Karol Chmiel ("Grom" and "Zygmunt")
Lt. Kazimierz Chmielowski ("Rekin")
Lt. Col. Łukasz Ciepliński ("Pług" and "Ostrowski")
Maj./Lt. Col. of NSZ Tadeusz Danilewicz ("Kuba", "Doman", "Kossak", and "Łoziński")
Maj. Hieronim Dekutowski ("Zapora")
Cpt. Jan Karol Dubaniowski ("Salwa")
2nd Lt. Władysław Dubielak ("Myśliwy")
Brig. Gen.Emil August Fieldorf ("Nil")
Cpt. Henryk Flame ("Bartek" and "Grot")
Józef Franczak ("Lalek")
Lt. Henryk Glapiński ("Klinga")
Lt. Eugeniusz Godlewski ("Topór")
Maj. Antoni Heda ("Szary")
Lt. Col. Tadeusz Jachimek ("Ninka")
Lt. Franciszek Jerzy Jaskulski ("Zagończyk")
2nd Lt. Henryk Jóźwiak ("Groźny")
Cpt. Kazimierz Kamieński ("Huzar")
2nd Lt./Lt. Col of NSZ Stanisław Kasznica ("Wąsowski", "Przepona", and "Wąsal")
Lt. Col. Mieczysław Kawalec ("Iza", "Psarski", and "Bronek")
Lt. Jan Kempiński ("Błysk")
Lt. Stefan Kobos ("Wrzos")
Cpt. Jan Kosowski ("Ciborski")
Lt. Karol Kazimierz Kostecki ("Kostek")
Lt. Jan Kłyś ("Kłyś")
Lt. Michał Krupa ("Wierzba" and "Pulkownik")
Col./Brig. Gen. (posthumous recognition) Aleksander Krzyżanowski ("Wilk")
Cpt. Ludwik Kubik ("Alfred", "Julian", and "Lucjan")
Lt. Józef Kuraś ("Ogień")
2nd Lt. Adam Kusz ("Garbaty")
2nd Lt. Władysław Kuśmierczyk ("Longinus")
Lt. Col. Wincenty Kwieciński ("Głóg")
Maj. Adam Lazarowicz ("Klamra", "Pomorski", "Kleszcz", and "Zygmunt")
Lt. Col. Henryk Lewczuk ("Młot")
Lt. Col. Władysław Liniarski ("Mścisław", "Wuj", and "Jan")
Lt. Stanisław Łukasik ("Ryś")
Cpt. Władysław Łukasiuk ("Młot")
Lt. Col. Józef Maciołek ("Żuraw", "Kazimierz", "Marian", and "Roch")
Cpt. Jan Marawca ("Remiusz")
2nd Lt. Stanisław Marchewka ("Ryba")
Lt. Józef Marcinkowski ("Łysy")
2nd Lt. Lucjan Minkiewicz ("Wiktor")
Maj. Kazimierz Mirecki ("Zmuda")
Cpt. Lech Neyman ("Domarat")
2nd Lt. Mieczysław Niedzielski ("Men" and "Grot")
Col. Franciszek Niepokólczycki ("Szubert")
Lt. Wiktor Zacheusz Nowowiejski ("Jeż")
Lt. Col. Antoni Olechnowicz ("Lawicz", "Pohorecki")
Maj. Mieczysław Pazderski ("Szary")
Lt. Stanisław Pelczer ("Majka")
Cpt. Witold Pilecki ("Witold")
Lt. Franciszek Przysiężniak ("Ojciec Jan")
Cpt. Romuald Rajs ("Bury")
Lt. Col. Albin Rak ("Lesiński")
Lt. Józef Ramatowski ("Rawicz")
Cpt. Wacław Rejmak ("Ostoja")
Maj. Zygmunt Rogalski ("Kacper")
Lt. Jan Rogólka ("Grot")
Col. Kazimierz Rolewicz ("Kama", "Ira", "Oko", "Mila", "Olgierd", "Zbyszek", and "Solski")
Lt. Lechosław Roszkowski ("Tomasz")
Lt. Col. Józef Rybicki ("Mestwin")
Maj. Aleksander Rybnik ("Jerzy" and "Dziki")
Maj. Józef Rządzki ("Boryna")
Lt. Józef Rzepka("Krzysztof" and "Znicz")
Col. Antoni Sanojca ("Kortum")
Lt. Col. Stanisław Sędziak ("Wiatr" and "Warta")
Danuta Siedzikówna ("Inka")
Cpt. Stanisław Sojczyński ("Warszyc")
Sgt. Władysław Stefanowski ("Grom")
Maj. Stanisław Szacoń ("Szacun")
Lt. Col. Jan Szczurek-Cergowski ("Sławbor")
Maj. Zygmunt Szendzielarz ("Łupaszko")
2nd Lt. Teodor Śmiałowski ("Szumny", "Grom", and "Cichy")
Maj. Jan Tabortowski ("Bruzda")
2nd Lt. Edward Taraszkiewicz ("Żelazny")
2nd Lt. Leon Taraszkiewicz ("Jastrząb")
Lt. Col. Walerian Tumanowicz ("Jagodziński")
2nd Lt. Edmund Tudraj ("Mundek")
2nd Lt.. Eugeniusz Walewski ("Zemsta")
Cpt. Józef Zadzierski ("Wołyniak")
2nd Lt. Jerzy Zakulski ("Czarny Mecenas")
Lt. Wacław Grabowski ("Puszczyk")
Witold Pilecki ("Witold")
Aleksander Krzyzanowski
Zygmunt Szendzielarz
Marian Bernaciak ("Orlik")
Lt. Józef Kuraś ("Ogień" -- "fire")
Col. Franciszek Niepokólczycki
Danuta Siedzikówna, pseudonym "Inka"
Henryk Flame
Władysław Łukasiuk ("Hammer")
Ashes and Diamonds (film)
Anti-Soviet partisans
Leśni
↑ Tennent H. Bagley (2007). Spy wars: moles, mysteries, and deadly games. Yale University Press. p. 120. ISBN 0-300-12198-9. Retrieved May 24, 2011. <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
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↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Agnieszka Adamiak, Oddziałowe Biuro Edukacji Publicznej (2001). "Żołnierze wyklęci. Antykomunistyczne podziemie na Rzeszowszczyźnie po1944 roku". Institute of National Remembrance. Retrieved May 29, 2011. <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles> (Polish)
↑ 4.0 4.1 Review of Sowjetische Partisanen in Weißrußland, by Marek Jan Chodakiewicz, in Sarmatian Review, April 2006.
↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Andrzej Kaczyński, Rzeczpospolita, 02.10.04 Nr 232, Wielkie polowanie: Prześladowania akowców w Polsce Ludowej (Great hunt: the persecutions of AK soldiers in the People's Republic of Poland), last accessed on 7 June 2006 (Polish).
↑ Tadeusz Piotrowski, Poland's Holocaust, McFarland & Company, 1997, ISBN 0-7864-0371-3. Google Print, pp. 88, 89, 90.
↑ Judith Olsak-Glass, Review of Piotrowski's Poland's Holocaust in Sarmatian Review, January 1999.
↑ Prazmowska, A. (2004) Civil war in Poland, 1942-1948 Palgrave ISBN 0-333-98212-6 Page 115
↑ Malcher, G.C. (1993) Blank Pages Pyrford Press ISBN 1-897984-00-6 Page 73
↑ Mikolajczyk, S. (1948) The pattern of Soviet domination Sampson Low, Marston & Co Page 125
↑ Garlinski, J.(1985) Poland in the Second World War Macmillan ISBN 0-333-39258-2 Page 324
↑ Michta, A. (1990) Red Eagle Stanford University ISBN 0-8179-8862-9 Page 39
↑ Garlinski, J.(1985) Poland in the Second World War Macmillan ISBN 0-333-39258-2 Page 325-326
↑ Umiastowski, R. (1946) Poland, Russia and Great Britain 1941-1945 Hollis & Carter Pages 462-464
↑ Piesakowski, T. (1990) The fate of Poles in the USSR 1939~1989 Gryf Pages 198-199
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↑ Norman Davies, No Simple Victory, Viking Penguin, 2006.[page needed]
↑ Norman Davies, Rising '44, 2004, Viking Penguin, ISBN 0-670-03284-0, p. 495
↑ Norman Davies, Rising '44, 2003, Macmillan, ISBN 0-333-90568-7, p. 495
↑ Norman Davies, Rising '44, 2004, Pan, ISBN 0-330-48863-5, p. 497
↑ Tadeusz Piotrowski, Poland's Holocaust: Ethnic Strife, Collaboration with Occupying Forces and Genocide in the Second Republic, 1918-1947, McFarland & Company, 1998, ISBN 0-7864-0371-3, p.131 (Google Print)
↑ "Konferencja IPN: "60. rocznica obławy augustowskiej." (IPN Conference on the 60th Anniversary of the Augustów roundup)". Instytut Pamięci Narodowej. 20 July 2005. Retrieved May 30, 2011. <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles> (Polish)
Jerzy Ślaski, Żołnierze wyklęci, Warszawa, Oficyna Wydawnicza Rytm, 1996
Grzegorz Wąsowski and Leszek Żebrowski, eds., Żołnierze wyklęci: Antykomunistyczne podziemie zbrojne po 1944 roku, Warszawa, Oficyna Wydawnicza Volumen and Liga Republikańska, 1999
Kazimierz Krajewski et al., Żołnierze wyklęci: Antykomunistyczne podziemie zbrojne po 1944 r., Oficyna Wydawnicza Volumen and Liga Republikańska, 2002
Tomasz Łabuszewski, Białostocki Okręg AK- AKO : VII 1944-VIII 1945 (Warszawa: Oficzna Wydawnicza Volumen and Dom Wydawniczy Bellona, 1997)
Zrzeszenie "Wolność i Niezawisłość" w dokumentach, 6 vols. (Wrocław: Zarząd Główny WiN, 1997–2001)
Zygmunt Woźniczka, Zrzeszenie "Wolność i Niezawisłość" 1945-1952 (Warszawa: Instytut Prasy i Wydawnictw "Novum" – "Semex", 1992)
Marek Latyński, Nie paść na kolana: Szkice o opozycji lat czterdziestych (London: Polonia Book Fund Ltd., 1985)
(English) Short description of an exhibition on Łupaszko
(English) The Doomed soldiers - Polish Underground Soldiers 1944-1963 - The Untold Story
(English) WiN | Freedom and Independence - Historical Brief.
(English) NSZ | National Armed Forces - Historical Brief.
(Polish) Broader description
(Polish) ŻOŁNIERZE WYKLĘCI NA KRESACH POŁUDNIOWO-WSCHODNICH PO 1944 R.
(Polish) Antykomunistyczne Podziemie Zbrojne po 1944 roku
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Here is the updated list of events I'll be doing in support of HOUR OF THE RAT!
JUNE 15: Sisters in Crime Angeles Speakers Bureau Event: Lisa Brackmann, Naomi Hirahara, and Jeri Westerson will speak about writing novels set in international locales, 2:00 p.m. at the Santa Monica Public Library's Ocean Park Branch, 2601 Main Street, Santa Monica.
JUNE 22: Mysterious Galaxy San Diego, 7051 Clairemont Mesa Blvd., Suite #302, San Diego, CA 92111 ~ 858-268-4747, 2 PM, with author Richard Lange!
JUNE 22: Mystery Ink, 8907 Warner Avenue, #135, Huntington Beach, CA (714) 960-4000, 6 PM, with Author/friend Tim Hallinan!
JUNE 23: Book 'Em, 1118 Mission St., South Pasadena, CA 91030 626-799-9600 1-800-4BOOKEM, 2 PM!
JUNE 25: Joint appearance with debut author Ramsey Hootman at Books Inc.The Marina, 2251 Chestnut St., 415-931-3633, San Francisco, CA, 7 PM!
JULY 14: Noir at the Bar, Mandrake, 2692 S La Cienega Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90034, Los Angeles CA, 8 PM — Confirmed!
Please correct your linked-in site to make it easier to connect or connect with me from your site. This is a good way to stay in front of your readers and help with your promotion!


On Feb. 1 at 11:30 p.m., a security officer reported that a smoke alarm was activated in a room in Decker Hall. Upon reaching Decker, the security officer reported an odor of what he believed to be marijuana, according to police reports. Campus Police arrived at Decker and also detected the odor. As Campus Police approached the suspected room, the odor became more pungent. Campus Police observed the red smoke alarm indicator light on the ceiling outside the door to be on. Campus Police knocked on the door multiple times, but no one answered.
A male student was walking down the hall toward Campus Police when he was asked by the officers if the room with the strong odor was his, and he replied "yes," police said. Campus Police also observed the male student's eyes to be watery, bloodshot and have ptosis (drooping eyelids). Campus Police explained to the student that they were at his room to investigate the activated smoke alarm.
The male student opened the door to his room and Campus Police immediately observed a plastic bag covering the smoke alarm, along with a strong odor of marijuana, according to police reports. The male student told Campus Police that he took a shower, and the steam set off the fire alarm. Campus Police observed that the student was fully clothed and that his hair was dry, showing no signs of having recently showered. There was also no steam in the room. The male student was issued a summons for maintaining a nuisance.
On Feb. 3, at approximately 8:45 p.m., while conducting a vehicle patrol, Campus Police observed a red Jeep parked on the sidewalk of Townhouses South. Campus Police approached the vehicle and determined it was unoccupied. Campus Police also observed an open bottle of Prosecco wine on the rear passenger floorboard in plain sight, police said.
Campus Police requested for TCNJ Dispatch to contact the student registered to the vehicle, whom the officer met with minutes later. The female student who the vehicle was registered to gave Campus Police her driver's license, and Campus Police was able to determine that the student was 20 years old. Campus Police inquired about the bottle of wine in the vehicle, and the student said she was taking the bottle home after being out to dinner at a restaurant.
The bottle of wine was confiscated, photographed and destroyed, according to police reports. The female student was issued a summons for possession of alcohol while under the legal age to do so, and was issued a verbal warning for being parked on the sidewalk.
On Feb. 4, at 11:25 p.m., Campus Police was dispatched to Wolfe Hall on a report of an intoxicated male. Upon arrival, Campus Police met with a male student who was sitting on the floor outside his room, alert and conscious, according to police reports. The male student's eyes were observed to be watery and bloodshot. Campus Police also detected an odor of alcohol emanating from his breath, police said.
The male student stated that while he was alone on Campus Town Drive, he consumed six beers, according to police reports. A community adviser was on scene and stated she observed the male student, possibly intoxicated, "stumble" into the elevator from the lobby.
TCNJ EMS arrived on scene at approximately 11:45 p.m., police said. The male student refused any further medical aid and was issued a summons for underage consumption of alcohol.
On Feb. 3 at approximately 5:40 p.m., Campus Police was dispatched to Campus Police Headquarters to meet with a male student who wanted to report a stolen laptop, police said.
When Campus Police met with the male student, he stated he went to Eickhoff Dining Hall with his friends to eat dinner around 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 2, according to police reports. The student said he put his backpack down when he went to get his food. He said he left the dining hall, but did not realize his backpack was missing until approximately 8:30 p.m. He stated he went back to Eickhoff to attempt to locate his backpack, but it was closed, police said. He said he went back first thing that morning, Feb. 3, but no one had recovered a backpack.
The item is described as a black Jansport backpack with a tan leather bottom, according to police reports. Inside the backpack was the male student's silver 13.3-inch MacBook Pro, as well as some of his notes. The backpack is valued at $55 and the laptop is valued at $500, police said.
The male student was able to provide Campus Police with the serial number and model number for the laptop. A victim notification form was filled out and given to the male student, police said.
Anyone with information can contact Campus Police at (609) 771-2345.


Westpac has today announced the launch of Business Link, a revolutionary online supply chain management platform that allows businesses to facilitate payments and manage international suppliers, saving valuable time and freeing up cash flow.
Westpac has worked with Octet, a proven supply chain management and financing platform built in Australia, to develop the Business Link trading platform. Business Link allows Westpac customers to use their existing credit cards^ to facilitate payment of goods from overseas suppliers at competitive real-time exchange rates, removing the need to disclose secure credit card information to suppliers or make up front payments via traditional methods.
Westpac Chief Product Officer, Jim Tate, said Westpac Group (including St.George, Bank of Melbourne and BankSA) is the first major Bank in Australia to offer businesses an online platform that facilitates credit card payments to pay overseas suppliers with support for ten foreign currencies, as well as enabling business customers and their suppliers to jointly manage their workflow.
"With the increasing number of businesses trading with suppliers in a global marketplace, particularly in Asia, Business Link provides businesses with a secure end-to-end platform, which facilitates payment to international suppliers.
"We know many Chinese exporters do not accept credit card payments due to merchant restrictions and, as a result, many Australian businesses are unable to utilise funds sitting dormant on their credit cards. By working with Octet, we can now offer business customers the ability to now use their credit card instead of tapping into cash reserves to make payments. This gives businesses the ability to free up their cash flow as well as having access to competitive real-time exchange rates, credit card interest-free periods and reward terms*. It also enables businesses to make the most of early payment benefits.
"Previously only larger commercial businesses could afford to build supply chain management tools. Now, with Business Link, our customers also have access to such tools, which also encompasses the workflow between our customers and their suppliers. Business Link is another example of our continued investment to make Australian businesses stronger."
Westpac Business Link builds on a proven supply chain management platform from Octet, which has been used to transact nearly $1 billion in supplier payments to date, facilitating transactions between Australian small businesses and tens of thousands of suppliers across more than 60 countries, including China and India.
"With Business Link, Westpac and Octet are making the supply chain management tools that have traditionally been the realm of large enterprises accessible to SMEs by making cross-border payments and transactions between businesses frictionless," Octet Managing Director Clive Isenberg said.
"Small businesses are bombarded each day with alternative funding but many already have a powerful tool in their pocket: their credit card. By using the credit cards they already have to facilitate suppliers both in Australia and abroad, small businesses could pay invoices earlier, negotiate potential discounts on goods with better credit terms, and may get reward points simply by going about their business. All while speeding up their supply chain significantly and removing the language barriers often faced when dealing with international suppliers."
Saves time by consolidating the management of suppliers onto one platform - securely stores important documents such as purchase orders and invoices, as well as shipping and payment receipts. It also provides easy workflow and document management capabilities between customers and their suppliers.
Enables secure international payments to suppliers, processed by Westpac and deposited directly into the supplier's pre-registered bank account, without disclosing the Westpac customers credit card details to suppliers.


text:
BACK TO IFAD.ORG
Annual report on results and impact
Corporate-level
Country strategy and programme
Evaluation synthesis
Project completion report validations
Evaluation profiles
Evaluation insights
Books and co-publications
Corporate-level evaluation
IOE year y1992 y1993 y1994 y1995 y1996 y1997 y1998 y1999 y2000 y2001 y2002 y2003 y2004 y2005 y2006 y2007 y2008 y2009 y2010 y2011 y2012 y2013 y2014 y2015 y2016 y2017 y2018 y2019 y2020
Corporate-level evaluation on IFAD's support to innovations for inclusive and sustainable smallholder agriculture
Innovations in rural development approaches and solutions are crucial to improve the effectiveness of agrifood systems and better meet the rising demand for food worldwide. Innovations are thus critical for IFAD to achieve its mandate of investing in rural people and enabling inclusive and sustainable rural transformation.
The evaluation found that innovations are indeed key in boosting the performance of agrifood systems. IFAD-supported innovations are generally institutional or organizational in nature, and usually originate with IFAD or project staff, based on ideas or solutions already proven in a different country or context. As for developing genuinely novel ideas or processes (especially those addressing smallholder agriculture challenges), loan investment projects have little appetite to provide support in this respect, given the risk potentially associated with such innovations; grants are thus especially useful in promoting them.
Moving forward, the evaluation notes that "bundling" together different innovations to address the diverse challenges across the agrifood system is more likely to lead to transformative change, that can be sustained and scaled up. To enhance the bundling of innovations for transformative change, the evaluation recommends (among other things) setting corporate goals for IFAD's innovation agenda and implementing an operational framework aligned with these goals, as well as fostering the innovation culture within the Fund.
Corporate-level Evaluation on IFAD's Engagement in Pro-poor Value Chain Development
The attention to value chain development is becoming increasingly important for IFAD as traditional food systems are being replaced by organized value chains. Over the last decade, the number of value chain- relevant projects supported by IFAD has increased from 41.5 per cent to 72.3 per cent, while the volume of loans approved has gone from 50 per cent to 81 per cent. This major shift posed challenges as the value chain approach was new to many IFAD staff and government staff in charge of managing IFAD-funded projects.
The evaluation found that project design has improved over time, reflecting a better understanding of the value chain concept. However, analytical gaps remain. Few designs have been supported by market intelligence to prioritize the choice of commodities and steps within the value chain in order to achieve pro-poor outcomes.
The evaluation suggests that it is possible to reach out to poor and very poor producers through value chain approaches, but this requires specific attention. The most convincing pro-poor outcomes occurred in projects where IFAD had experience and where multi-stakeholder platforms were created to enable dialogue between value chain actors.
The evaluation recommends that a corporate strategy be prepared for IFAD's support to pro-poor value chain development that clarifies the objectives and principles of engagement as well as the resources required. It suggests a "programmatic" approach to value chain development, recognizing the need for long-term engagement. Finally, the evaluation emphasizes the importance of promoting an inclusive value chain governance and regulatory environment.
IFAD's financial architecture
The overarching purpose of the corporate-level evaluation on IFAD's financial architecture is to independently assess how IFAD creates value for Member States through sound investment decisions and financial strategies contributing to rural poverty reduction. This is the first evaluation of its kind undertaken by a development finance institution and one of the most complex evaluation exercises conducted by the Independent Office of Evaluation (IOE). It examines the policies and systems adopted to mobilize, manage, allocate and disburse financial resources to fulfil IFAD's mandate.
The evaluation generated a number of important findings and recommendations that merit close attention. The main finding is that the Fund's financial architecture has been under strain since the Ninth Replenishment period of IFAD's financial resources. As it stands, it can no longer support an expanding programme of loans and grants. Moreover, the financial architecture does not pass the test of financial sustainability: accumulating losses lead to an erosion of IFAD's equity. Therefore, the evaluation recommends that important reforms be undertaken to address the factors affecting IFAD's financial sustainability, the mobilization of financial resources and the rationale by which these are allocated. It also recommends introducing new and revising current financial products to respond to the demands of borrowing Member States, as well as to internal and external financial governance. Accomplishing these reforms will be essential to ensure the Fund's financial sustainability, enabling IFAD to fulfil its unique mandate of rural poverty reduction and make a substantial contribution towards meeting the goals set in the Agenda 2030.
The corporate-level evaluation was discussed at the 124th session of IFAD's Executive Board on 12 September 2018. The Board noted that the findings and recommendations of the evaluation raised vital questions with regard to the future character and structure of the Fund.
IFAD's Decentralization Experience
The Independent Office of Evaluation conducted a corporate-level evaluation of IFAD's decentralization experience in 2016, covering the period from 2003 through mid-2016.
The evaluation found that the objectives of the decentralization process were broadly relevant to improve the development effectiveness of IFAD-funded operations. In particular, by bringing IFAD closer to its operation and to the country development context and actors, country presence was expected to improve project and strategy design and implementation support, enhance engagement in non-lending activities, improve alignment with country systems and donor coordination, and contribute towards system-wide coherence of the United Nations.
However, IFAD could have learned more from the experience of other organizations and could have been more realistic in its expectations. In particular, the range of activities that country offices were to perform was very broad compared to the resource envelope allocated to them. Moreover, for many years IFAD concentrated on expanding its country presence but paid little attention to re-organizing headquarters.
The report also highlighted that by opening country offices, IFAD was in a better position to provide implementation support to its operations. It is through this support that country offices contributed to better project performance and results, especially in terms of impact and gender equality. But the contribution to non-lending activities (e.g. knowledge management, partnership-building and policy dialogue) was mixed. This was partly due to the limited human and financial resource available at the country-office level for non-lending activities. Moreover, engagement in policy dialogue largely depended on relevant interests and experience of individual staff members.
IFAD's Performance-based Allocation System
Since it was introduced by IFAD's Executive Board in 2003, the Performance-based Allocation System (PBAS) has enhanced the Fund's credibility, transparency and predictability of financial resource allocations to its developing Member States. The core feature of IFAD's PBAS is that country allocations are calculated using a specific formula to generate a country score, using several variables that, put together, determine country needs and country performance. Overall, the PBAS is found to be relevant. The formula should better factor in some key dimensions of IFAD's priorities, such as food security, nutrition and climate change. It also should improve the way it considers vulnerability issues as determinants of country needs. The evaluation finds the system's effectiveness to be on the whole moderately satisfactory. The rationale for including or excluding countries from the PBAS and the underlying mechanisms guiding the capping system should be made more explicit and institutionalized. Among the recommendations, the need to refine the PBAS design, by sharpening its objectives and strengthening the rural poverty focus; streamline the process for better effectiveness; and enhance management and governance, by taking a more corporate approach to the PBAS in general.
In-house learning event on the CLE-PBAS, 9 March 2016, IFAD headquarters. Photo by Maurizio Navarra.
IFAD's Engagement in Fragile and Conflict-affected States and Situations
This is the first corporate-level evaluation on IFAD's engagement in fragile and conflict-affected states and situations (FCS) undertaken by the Independent Office of Evaluation (IOE). It reflects IFAD's growing involvement in such contexts, and growing global interest in FCS. The evaluation focuses on IFAD's work with FCS over a 10 year period from 2004 to 2013.
The evaluation found that IFAD has a critical and distinct role to play in addressing the problems of fragile states which, in turn, are key to achieving a range of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals including the elimination of poverty, the promotion of sustainable agriculture and productive employment and the building of peaceful and inclusive societies.
The evaluation shows that there have been significant improvements in overall project achievement, project effectiveness, IFADÃ's performance as a partner and rural poverty impact in fragile countries. At the same time, the evaluation underlined the importance for IFAD to develop a new policy/strategy for its work in fragile situations, which would ensure even more customized approaches for better development effectiveness
Corporate-level Evaluation on the IFAD Policy for Grant Financing
Corporate-level evaluation. IFAD's grants programme has a long history, dating back to the Agreement Establishing IFAD. The Executive Board approved a policy for grant financing for the first time in 2003 and a revised policy in 2009.
The overall objectives of this evaluation were to: assess the performance of the IFAD Policy for Grant Financing, in terms of relevance, effectiveness and efficiency; and generate findings and recommendations that will inform IFAD's strategic directions and priorities for future grant activities.
This evaluation finds that grants can be an invaluable tool for IFAD to promote its agenda of rural poverty alleviation. Grants have allowed IFAD to collaborate with a wide range of organizations, such as farmers organizations, civil society and indigenous people's organizations, and international agricultural research institutions. However, the relevance of the policy has been limited by lack of clarity and prioritization. Overall, the effectiveness of the policy has been moderately unsatisfactory, overall though have are signs of improvement since 2010.
IFAD Replenishments Evaluation
The corporate-Level evaluation reveals that replenishment consultations are critical for IFAD's financial sustainability and also provide a unique platform to ensure accountability for results and collective reflection on IFAD policy and strategic priorities. In particular, the changes introduced in the Ninth Replenishment of IFAD Resources have further strengthened the effectiveness and efficiency of the Fund's replenishment processes. At the same time, the evaluation identifies some areas for further development. On the financing side, IFAD would need to intensify its ongoing efforts to mobilize additional resources beyond replenishment contributions to meet the increasing demand for its assistance in all recipient countries. Moreover, the current representation system of IFAD Member States in the replenishment consultations might require some adjustments to better reflect the existing geopolitical and economic landscape. Finally, the evaluation also highlights the value for IFAD to simplify the current results measurement framework, including by more explicitly defining a theory of change for achieving rural transformation.
IFAD's Supervision and Implementation Support Policy
This first evaluation synthesis report issued by IOE makes an initial assessment of the progress made so far in implementing IFAD's Policy on Supervision and Implementation Support, identifying promising practices and emerging issues. IFAD's decision to move to direct supervision and implementation support was one of the most far-reaching changes since the Fund was established. It has facilitated more direct follow-up with implementing agencies to resolve bottlenecks that have emerged during implementation and has allowed IFAD not only to achieve closer cooperation with other partners but also to establish and nurture partnerships with multiple stakeholders. Overall, IFAD should be commended for implementing such decision. However, the direct supervision and implementation support of IFAD operations has posed several challenges. The specific preparations needed for implementing this ambitious supervision policy were inadequate and implementation has progressed at different rates and with different modalities among the five regional divisions. In the longer term, IFAD should now consider drawing on the best practices from the different approaches to increase harmonization, efficiency and shared responsibilities across IFAD departments, and to reduce risk. There is also a need to optimize the division of labour in undertaking direct supervision and implementation support, within IFAD and between IFAD headquarters and its country offices
IFAD's Institutional Efficiency and Efficiency of IFAD-funded Operations
This report presents the findings and recommendations of the corporate-level evaluation on IFAD's efficiency (CLEE). The CLEE responds to the growing interest in the organization's efficiency in the wake of the 2008 global economic and financial crisis, and the ensuing budget constraints affecting many IFAD member states.
The main audience of this evaluation is IFAD Management and the Executive Board. However, the evaluation will also be of interest to IFAD Member States, multilateral and bilateral organizations, as well as the development evaluation community in general. CLEE covers not only the efficiency of IFAD operations, but also institutional efficiency in a number of critical areas: the management of human resources, results and budgets, ICT, oversight and support functions, leadership and decision-making, and governing bodies. Given its scope and coverage, it has been arguably the most complex and challenging evaluation done by the Independent Office of Evaluation (IOE). The challenge has been exacerbated by the fact that this evaluation is the first of its kind among development agencies, requiring IOE to develop a dedicated methodology, and mobilize extraordinary expertise in evaluation and a range of technical areas. The unique features of this evaluation include the analysis of efficiency at multiple levels – output, outcome, impact and scaled-up outcome and impact, which is very relevant for IFAD. Credit goes to the Executive Board and IFAD Management for their support in this undertaking, as well as for their openness to engage with IOE throughout the evaluation process, and share with us the necessary data, information and documentation required for our analysis.
IOE has been ably supported by a highly credible team of consultants, with country case studies mostly done by national consultants (annex 14). IOE has benefitted from the insightful inputs of two senior independent advisers, Robert Picciotto and Richard Manning, who ensured that IOE and its consultants followed the most appropriate evaluation methodology and process to conduct this evaluation, and who also reviewed and commented on several deliverables, including the draft final report. Their joint analysis on the quality of the evaluation has been included (annex 10). The CLEE also included valuable contributions by several IOE staff at different stages, however, in line with the IFAD Evaluation Policy, as the manager of the CLEE, I take full responsibility and ownership of the contents in the final evaluation report and the overall evaluation process.
In terms of process, special effort was made by IOE throughout the evaluation to minimize surprises and maximize learning and dialogue. For example, emerging evaluation findings were discussed with IFAD Management in a timely manner, both informally and formally. Management was given the opportunity to review and comment on the emerging findings in an interim report, and their feedback was duly considered by IOE in the preparation of the draft final evaluation report, where they also had a chance to comment. The main findings were presented to the Evaluation Committee and the Executive Board for their feedback before the preparation of the final evaluation report.
The CLEE found that a number of initiatives to enhance efficiency and effectiveness have been undertaken in recent years, including in the course of the evaluation. They include the introduction of direct supervision and implementation support, expanded country presence, the Change and Reform Agenda, commitments related to efficiency undertaken in the context of IFAD9 consultations, a more transparent and strengthened budget process, and the even more recent Strategic Workforce Plan.
On the operational front, IFAD is engaged in a fundamental transition from a focus on financing individual projects to a programmatic approach that links knowledge work, policy dialogue and partnerships to projects in each country, with growing attention given to the scaling up agenda. It will take time for the full benefits of many management decisions and reforms to be realized fully. At the same time, there are a number of opportunities for increased efficiency at different levels, and they are enumerated in the report. In pursuing these opportunities, IFAD Management and the Executive Board must be mindful of the trade-offs between efficiency at these different levels.
With respect to the governing bodies, CLEE finds that their overall architecture is complex, but it works. The non-resident nature of the Board is a positive characteristic but it does contribute to an overloaded agenda. There are opportunities for the Governing Council to delegate to the Executive Board, and for the Board to delegate to Management. The report includes a dedicated chapter on the efficiency of IFAD governing bodies, with many interesting findings that deserve reflection.
Recommendations. The evaluation has a number of important findings and recommendations that merit close attention. The overarching recommendation is that IFAD "Raise the bar for IFAD's own performance as a partner to promote scaled-up impact of IFAD-supported operations". This recommendation is grounded in the rationale that for IFAD to make a significant impact, it must leverage its resources manyfold by attracting partner resources on a very large scale to replicate and scale up pioneering, innovative IFAD-funded operations and activities. This requires that IFAD become the center of excellence in its niche by raising the bar on its own performance. It compels IFAD to aspire to the threshold of 'satisfactory or better' performance as against the current practice of 'moderately satisfactory or better'. That is the first step toward excellence in all aspects of operations, and toward developing IFAD-supported projects and country programmes that can lead to the desired levels of scaled-up impact.
This recommendation is supported by seven sub-recommendations:
Scaling up of high impact, innovative approaches emerging from IFAD-supported projects and programmes should become the objective of IFAD's business model;
Articulate and implement a clear vision for country presence and how IFAD would operate in a decentralized environment;
Manage oversight and support units, including critical ICT functions, with a clear focus on increasing service quality and cost efficiency;
Better manage scarce budgetary resources towards high-quality results;
Manage strategically the skills composition, cost and performance of the workforce;
Focus oversight by the governing bodies on key strategic issues, with more attention to discussing results, lessons and evaluations;
Instill an institutional culture of accountability and performance, and strengthen the reporting for results.
With respect to the governing bodies, the evaluation also recommends the introduction of a code of conduct, a normal feature of international financial institutions, and the development of broad terms of reference for Executive Board members to assist Member States in designating their representatives. Discussions on the CLEE by the Evaluation Committee and the Executive Board have resulted in broad agreement on the recommendations, and highlighted the critical importance of effective and timely follow-up. Management and IOE agree that the best way forward is to combine the recommendations of the evaluation and the efficiency-related commitments undertaken in IFAD9 consultations into a single, consolidated action plan for further enhancing IFAD's efficiency.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


we watched it twice it was so good and so funny especially at a party where a moose head overlooked us from above.
so they can drink beer, eat bad pizza and watch The Rock-afire Explosion.
and then have someone else publish their newspaper stories into a blog once it goes through the copy editors.
they also believe that in order to "feed the blog" they need to hire people other than their actual reporters to "blog" on the "blog".
unfortunately this is 2013, almost 2014 and that is like hiring someone else to kiss your wife.
KISS YOUR OWN DAMN WIFE!
is to OMG have all of those writers OMG write OMG everyday.
things they experienced, like, oh i dont know, when a Laker/Clipper Kardasian caused a three-car accident and they were one of the cars.
THAT THEY CAN POST ON A BLOG FOR THEIR NEWSPAPER.
sure there are some reporters who will resist this or flinch. "i'm working on an actual piece of journalism, boss", they'll say.
"im too busy for the !#@$ing blog," they'll argue.
you must write every damn day?
that its time for them to write three graphs before noon, every day?
or are you not ready to enter the modern age either?
at some point something is going to give. and sooner is happening a lot more nowadays than later.
the website with 5 kids blogging 8 times a day.
WHOSE TIME HAS COME TO ACTUALLY RETURN TO SAID RADNESS.
but what the f do i know? i still subscribe to print, so maybe im sending the message that thats all i want.
therefore heres my message: OMG that is not all i want.
because i know that that will only lead to the certain death of my local paper.
who strangely is acting like it's everybody else's job than theirs to prevent that tragic fate.
you can write your way out of.
his right hand bore into the blonde.
who sounds and acts a lot like formers Steelers head coach Bill Cower.
unfortunately he is a US Embassy worker. whoops.
road rage is a serious thing, america.
just might be having a bad day and will be forced to use his AK.
other than opening day, that is.
wanna know something nice the dodgers do?
today when the dodgers took the field the PA blasted "El Rey" by vicente fernandez.
the crowd of "38,000" cheered happily.
when they wanna get the party started.
i said Firestone IPA please.
she said, see, no Cub fan order Coor Light.
and pointed at my Cubs hat.
but because i was raised right i kept my jokes about the $25 balls to myself.
this is a new series of reviews of things that sucked pretty much right off the bat.
the first installment will be: EA Sports Madden 25.
only reason i got this from Amazon for $99 is for the priceless access to all of Directv's airings of the real NFL games through the upcoming season.
normally to get that youd need a directv dish, about $250, and the ability to be in front of your tv on gameday.
with this new Directv offer you get all the games on your smartphone, tablet, or laptop.
which means if you happen to find yourself in a cabin in lake tahoe during week 13 and your baby says why dont you watch the game im gonna take a super long bath… you can flip on your laptop and watch da bears and da whoevers.
like papa bear hallas intended oh so many eons ago.
maybe they have to bundle it with a game so bad i threw it on eBay after an hour of fiddling with it.
a football fan would probably prefer the games on the laptop because then they can beam it to whatever tv is in front of them.
not necessarily the one hooked up to their satellite dish.
these be modern times, yall.
which is why its so disappointing that madden football, one of the most popular and amazing franchises in all of video games, refuses to change with them and keep making the same bad game year after year.
the gameplay has only floundered. and the options have only gotten more complicated.
its especially disappointing in light of games like nba2k, which have figured out how to have technology enhance game play in sports video games.
basically this is what happens when there is no competition: the product fails.
unless they throw in this amazing directv dealio again.
in westwood because my man dave was all our bro is doing a radio show from there.
so i went. it was fun. good beers (Racer 5), good fish tacos, and a few spicy wings.
and that i happen to be a cubs fan.
and now shes out here? why?
because she is getting her masters at ucsb.
for no good reason, but its excellent proof that you're just not hitting on the hottest xbi agent at the bar.
therefore miley is just an extension of that.
when in 1998 mca of the beastie boys, three years before 9/11 criticized then-president Clinton that his retaliation to the US embassy bombings was a bad call.
"Those bombings that took place in the Middle East were thought of as retaliation by the terrorists and if we thought of what we did as retaliation certainly we're gonna find more retaliation from people in the Middle East. From terrorists specifically I should say, because most Middle Eastern people are not terrorists," Yauch said.
the three bad brothers you know so well always knew how to shock in different ways, true.
and at 2am we keep reading because neither of us had nowhere to be in the morning.
and puts me back in the game.
people are fake-worried about what 14-year-old kids thought.
im just glad my mom didnt see it.


Two trades stand out most in the 2009-2010 season. Two teams benefited when Washington Wizards decided to throw in the white flag. Both the Dallas Mavericks and the Cleveland Cavaliers can thank Gilbert Arenas.
Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers have a very real chance of winning it all with Antawn Jamison now at the 4 spot. The future is really all about how fast Jamison can adjust to playing with Lebron James and Big Shaq in the middle. If its a seamless transition, the rest of the league is in some big trouble. James seems to have a lot of confidence in Jamison even after watching him go 0-12 his first game in a Cavs Jersey. Simply put, James is willing to ride this lineup to the championship.
This is a sad, sad story, but is a all too real problem across America, no check that, the world. It goes unchecked, because no one really knows the long term effects. Some see it as an entry way to gambling, drug use, and some go as far as saying schizophrenia. While it may be acceptable for a child to play video games 24/7, it can be detrimental to an adult who has a 9-5 and more responsibilities than he/she can count on both hands.
I remember when the Dallas Mavericks were the doormat to the NBA. They were horrible, their uniforms sucked, and their players, well, I don't remember who played for them. The only notable player that I can remember is Derrick Harper. Such records as 11-71, 13-69, they were far from stellar. Then along came Mark Cuban. He made them stellar.
After Mark Cuban took over the Mavericks in 2000, the Mavericks have made the playoffs 9 out of 10 times (very impressive). The Dallas Mavericks are champions for having turned around their team so quickly. There's no doubt that they should have been the 2006 NBA Champions. They would have been champions if it weren't for some ludicrous referring. Those refs were possibly working for the same people that Tim donaghy used to work for.


Training? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Training!
BY SHARON MARTIN For the same reason that some legislators refuse to do what is necessary to adequately fund public education, it was once illegal to teach a slave to read. Those who seek power and their own interests fear educated citizens. They want pawns, not critical thinkers. Critical literacy is necessary for a free society….


After a day's break, I'm back to work on another story that I've left dormant for maybe months. Beyond This Little Moon of Ours is a young adult, science fiction story about a lost human colonised planet that is currently in the throws of re-discovery. The main character Medina is in a personal crisis after having lost both her mother and older brother in separate incidents. What's more is that the outside influence of the Azeel Empire, the offworlders that re-discovered them, are imposing their presence and culture as they are fighting against terrorists bent on the destruction of the empire. Medina is stuck in the midst of this. The suspicious circumstances of his disappearance haunt her, while her community is in transition. The Azeel have brought so many benefits to their world, but what do they want outside of a base of operations against an unseen terrorist threat?
The story revolves around the upheaval of gender and society norms and expectations in a technologically devolved community. The main character is a young woman who has to decide whether finding out her brother's fate and by extension, the activities of the Azeel empire, is more important than her station in life.
What is Sci-fi? What is Science Fantasy?


NEW DELHI -- On route to the summit of the world's five major emerging economies in Johannesburg this week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping have been touring some key African nations in a bid to expand diplomatic and economic ties with the resource-rich region.
As part of his three-nation, five-day African tour, Modi on Monday landed in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. His arrival came hours after Xi concluded a visit to the tiny nation, described by Indian government officials as "an important gateway" to eastern Africa.
Earlier this year, the IMF stated that Rwanda is Africa's third fastest growing economy. Human rights groups, though, report free speech restrictions in the country.
On Tuesday, Modi traveled to a Rwandan village where he presented a gift of 200 dairy cows, a contribution to President Paul Kagame's Girinka scheme, which gives cows to poor families who can then use the animals to transform their lives.
India and Rwanda in January 2017 formed a strategic partnership, the highest level of bilateral ties. Modi this week became the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Rwanda.
After Rwanda, Modi is to head to Uganda, the current chair of the East African Community. He will then make his way to South Africa to attend the 10th summit of BRICS nations -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The meeting begins Wednesday and goes through Friday. Russian President Vladimir Putin is also expected to attend.
During Modi's ongoing visit, India and Rwanda have inked several cooperation agreements in agriculture, defense, culture, trade, and leather and allied sectors, according to an Indian government statement.
As for Xi, he and Rwandan President Kagame, the current chair of the African Union, signed multiple agreements regarding the "Belt and Road" initiative and other areas of cooperation, according to China's official Xinhua News Agency.
Xi's Rwanda visit was the first by a Chinese head of state. He left the country for a state visit in South Africa and to participate at the BRICS summit. His final stop as part of his first overseas trip since being re-elected President in March will be to Mauritius, in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar.
China views Africa as key to its Belt and Road expansion, which entails investing huge amounts in infrastructure not only in Africa but also in Central Asia and Europe. During Xi's Dakar visit, Senegal became the first West African country to sign Belt and Road contracts with China.
China is Africa's largest trading partner. Not only does China want to build strong economic ties with the continent, it is keen to deepen military relations with its countries.
The communist country has set up its first overseas naval base in Djibouti, which has a strategic location on the Horn of Africa where the Gulf of Aden meets the Red Sea.
India is also looking to expand its influence across Africa, for both strategic and economic reasons. However, India is no match for China's deep pockets or trade volume. India-Africa trade is worth more than $50 billion, which pales to the China-Africa total of nearly $170 billion.
Modi's visit "is a reflection of the intensity of our engagement with Africa and the priority we attach to our relations with African countries," said T. S. Tirumurti, an economic relations secretary for the Ministry of External Affairs. Tirumurti was speaking ahead of Modi's departure for Africa.
Since Modi came to power in May 2014, India has increasingly engaged with Africa. New Delhi in October 2015 received more than 40 heads of state and government at the third India-Africa Forum Summit. While China and India are vying for clout in Africa, India says it does not see itself in a competition with China. "Our relations with African countries go back a very, very long way," Tirumurti said. They go "back... to Mahatma Gandhi."
This week's BRICS summit, to be focused on Africa, will take place as U.S. President Donald Trump conducts a trade war, mostly with China, and imposes sanctions on Russia and Iran, two countries with which China and India have strong economic relations.
"Despite continuing political instability in Brazil... the BRICS nations need to underpin the international rules of commerce and investment," K.C. Singh, a former secretary in the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, wrote in The Asian Age newspaper. "This is necessary to counter the anti-globalization sentiment strongly advanced by the United States under President Trump and breeding in some European Union nations.
"To achieve this, they must enhance intra-BRICS trade and investment and energize BRICS' New Development Bank, which has already approved four infrastructure projects worth $5 billion."
Rajiv Bhatia, a distinguished fellow at the Mumbai-based foreign policy think tank Gateway House and former envoy to South Africa, says BRICS leaders should be realistic.
"It is best to have moderate expectations of the forthcoming summit as global politics is mired in complexity," he said writing for the Gateway House. "BRICS may do better, strengthening cooperation among its own members and with its partners in Africa and elsewhere than pursue its ambition to change the world."


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Invest NI backed innovation aids training of keyhole surgeons
Photography by Michael Cooper
Pictured with the new Endosim Laprotrain device, (left) Prof Walter Prendiville, Robert Bailie, and Dr Ray O'Sullivan of Endosim, Tracy Meharg, Managing Director of Innovation and Capability Development, Invest NI, and Ian Niblock of Endosim.
Belfast-based Endosim has been assisted by Invest Northern Ireland to develop a unique training device that has been endorsed by the influential Association of Surgeons in Great Britain and Ireland and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
Endosim's Laprotrain device is a portable simulator that abdominal surgeons, particularly those recently qualified, can use in the office or at home to develop their keyhole surgery skills. The device, now being made available by the Royal College at regional training centres throughout Britain, was developed with R&D and export marketing assistance from Invest NI. Invest NI's support includes part funding from the European Regional Development Fund.
The company is projecting sales worth around £500,000, mostly outside Northern Ireland, during 2011.
Assistance for Endosim was announced by Tracy Meharg, Invest NI's Managing Director of Innovation and Capability Development, at the launch of the Laprotrain device by the team which has set up the company to market it. The team includes businessmen Robert Bailie and Ian Niblock and consultants Prof Walter Prendiville and Dr Ray O'Sullivan.
Tracy Meharg said: "Laprotrain is a highly innovative device which has substantial export potential and will also contribute to Northern Ireland's international standing as an important European centre for the development of medical devices. This pioneering technology represents a quantum leap in training for keyhole surgery.
"Our support has been tailored to assist the company in developing the product and then to bring it to market through participation in a range of export-focused initiatives including our trade missions and exhibitions. Feedback from the company's participation in these activities has been extremely positive.
"Another aspect of this leading edge technology development is the work it is providing for other local companies including Denroy Plastics in Bangor, which is manufacturing the main plastic device, and Evasson Product Design in Lurgan, providing essential design guidance and practical support."
Mr Bailie, outlining the benefits of the device, said: "Laprotrain is a fully, functional, take home endoscopic trainer which provides a realistic simulated means by which surgeons can develop their skills. It provides the perfect image without the need for a light source.
"The innovative device draws on the experience in keyhole surgery and the marketing of medical devices gained over many decades by our team of directors. What is does is to offer an efficient and highly cost effective alternative to existing training techniques and equipment.
"Laprotrain's portability enables both experienced and new surgeons to take the device home, plug it into a television and then use it to develop their dexterity within a realistic environment.
"Existing training devices for endoscopic surgeons either depend on computer systems that do not provide a realistic surgical environment or require equipment only available in a hospital setting. We believe that Laprotrain has the potential to revolutionise training for endoscopic surgeons worldwide because of its portability and the realistic conditions that it offers," he added.


You've signed on with a great marketing partner. Time to maximize your marketing dollars and finally build some brand equity right?
Tell your agency what you have done in the past, what's worked, what hasn't, as well as what you hope to accomplish in the future. Disclose survey results, customer feedback, and stakeholder insight with your agency — it only builds a better picture of the whole story.
Take a hard look at your own team to assess if you have the bandwidth to handle some items in-house so that the agency can focus on others. If your agency is busy with production-type work, the focus will be derailed and the brand will suffer from inconsistency.
In order to "move the needle" in terms of sales, the agency needs to know where they are starting from. Share analytics, sales statistics, lead generation strategies and industry benchmarks.
No company is perfect. We all have flaws in communication or breakdowns in process every once and awhile. Let your agency know your strengths as well as your weaknesses so they can tackle them with you and help create better workflows.
Even an incredible agency is only as effective as their point person within your company. Set yourselves up for success by empowering the agency point person to make decisions, consider new ideas, and speak on behalf of your company.
As much as you'd like to dive into tactics with your marketing agency, resist the urge. In the end, you will have a stronger relationship that will yield better results across all of your marketing efforts.


Bag a bargain in our hot hot handbags sale. We have cool clutches, tip top totes and elegant evening bags all with fab discounts. Vintage handbags bring so much character to your outfit so why not grab one of these fab vintage style bags at a fraction of the price adding a sense of smugness to your style too!


The SEAT Pro Netanya returns from 10-19 January 2019 to officially launch the 2019 Qualifying Series of the World Surf League. Held at Contiki Beach (The Amphitheater) – from the first waves at 7:00am until 5pm.
Music compounds, food stands, surfing products and more – come see those surfers ride the waves.


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Oddly Enough News
Forlorn searches for thousands of missing Iraqis
By Waleed Ibrahim
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Karim Faraj trudges to Baghdad's morgue, just as he has done every day for the past year, hoping to find some clue about the fate of his kidnapped brother Ali.
A man sits next to the grave of his brother, who was killed after he was kidnapped in Baghdad and the body found buried at graves for unknowns in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, January 24, 2008. Many of the missing are never found, while thousands of others end up in numbered mass graves for "unknowns", their identities reduced to a file number at the morgue and the cemetery for families hoping to track them down. REUTERS/Ali Abu Shish
So far there has been no signs and Faraj fears the worst.
"Whether he is dead or alive, it makes no difference to me. I just want to find something to lead me to him," Faraj said.
"I swear I will not be sad if I find him dead or find a grave for him. At least this will put an end to our suffering, at least there will be a grave and a sign saying he is laying peacefully which we can visit."
Ali Faraj is just one among tens of thousands of Iraqis who have been killed or gone missing in sectarian violence following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
Many of the missing are never found, while thousands of others end up in numbered mass graves for "unknowns," their identities reduced to a file number at the morgue and the cemetery for families hoping to track them down.
Karim Faraj's daily trek is replicated many times across Iraq. The International Committee of the Red Cross estimates that 10,000 unidentified bodies were taken to Baghdad's main morgue in the year to August 2007 alone.
Few of the missing are found alive, but some families are at least able to identify their relative's remains and put them to rest. Many more never achieve any kind of closure, despite months or even years of looking.
Shi'ite Karim Faraj has scoured police stations, jails and hospitals for any trace of Ali since his kidnapping in the Sunni Arab Ghazaliya neighborhood of west Baghdad over a year ago. He has even tried psychics, but to no avail.
He doesn't want to tell Ali's two young sons and handicapped daughter what he really thinks has happened.
"They are always asking me and I'm always telling them he will come back again. I can't tell them that most likely he was killed," Karim Faraj told Reuters.
Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesman Major-General Abdul-Kareem Khalaf would not give any estimate for the number of people missing across Iraq, even though his office kept a count.
"All kinds of crimes were committed in Iraq, killings, kidnappings, displacements ," Khalaf said. "No one can give a solution to all of these problems. It takes time."
Some of the missing are kidnapped because their jobs mean they have ransom potential, others are guilty of nothing more than being the wrong sect in the wrong neighborhood. Others just get caught up in random acts of criminality.
Um Mohammed, a Sunni Arab woman in her 40s, and her family unwittingly got caught up in the assassination of Iraqi Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi's brother Amir in their west Baghdad Seligh neighborhood in 2006.
Amir al-Hashemi fled across the roofs of neighboring houses, including Um Mohammed's, as he tried to get away from gunmen in Iraqi security forces uniforms. After killing him, they came back and took Um Mohammed's husband and two sons.
She said the gunmen later demanded a $150,000 ransom for her husband Qasim Swidain, a former army colonel, and their two teenaged sons Qasim and Abdul Sattar.
They reached a deal for $80,000 but they never heard from the gunmen again. Um Mohammed fears her husband, who had had a stroke, is dead but can't bear thinking the same of her sons.
She said she made "thousands" of visits to the morgue, to hospitals and the interior and defense ministries before reluctantly giving up her search. "I despaired of finding them."
"I still have a daughter and a small son, I'm dedicating all of my time to raising them. What has happened has happened."
Reactions among families with missing loved ones vary. While Karim Faraj doggedly refuses to stop searching and Um Mohammed despairs of seeing her husband and sons again, others simply just don't know what to do.
Um Ali, a divorced Shi'ite woman living in Baghdad's Sunni Arab Adhamiya district, had two sons kidnapped in July 2007.
Her eldest son, Ali Jaffar, worked on contract at Iraq's Defence Ministry. On July 6 last year, she said masked gunmen stormed into her house and went straight upstairs to Ali's room "as if they knew the house."
"He was wearing only his underwear when they took him," Um Ali said. "I shouted, grabbed him and begged them not to take him. One of them kicked me in the chest."
Her other son, Mohammed, was kidnapped eight days later while he was looking for his brother.
She too has searched tirelessly for her sons to no avail and blames the Iraqi government for doing nothing to help her.
"No one feels how much we suffer," Um Ali said.
"Really, I am confused. I don't know what I have to do or where I have to go."
Writing by Paul Tait, Editing by Matthew Jones


Qatar Airways launched a new on-board dining experience for its Premium customers travelling to Europe. The new concepts include newly-designed tableware, specially crafted cutlery and chinaware, as well as new signature dishes, desserts and afternoon tea to the in-flight menu, such as porcini and truffle risotto, kabsa, biryani and flame-grilled meats, based on route destinations.
The national carrier of the State of Qatar has recognised the emerging trend of its travellers being more aware of their dietary needs and expressing interests in healthier food options. Now featuring lighter options, such as fresh crisp salads, woodland berries, warm breakfast oatmeal and healthier drink options such as cold pressed juice Qatar Airways hopes to revitalise passengers during a long flight.
Qatar Airways launched a highly-successful pre-select dining option last year, whereby passengers travelling in First and Business Class are able to pre-select one main course from the à la carte on-board menu as far as 14 days in advance and up to 24 hours before take-off. This is in addition to the existing Dine-on-Demand service already available for valued First and Business Class passengers.
The Pre-Select dining option complements the airline's award-winning Business Class experience, Qsuite, which offers an unparalleled level of luxury and privacy on board a Business Class cabin.


A recent survey from the Department of Education shows that parents are increasingly unhappy with their local schools. Satisfaction levels have fallen by 10% during the past year and more than half of parents saw no change in the quality of schooling or thought it had got worse.
Now it's the turn of parents to help sort it out. In the government's controversial proposals for education reform, parents are to be a big part of the solution. In a chapter of the 'Parents Driving Improvement' White Paper parents are given more say in the way schools are set up and run, including the introduction of new parent councils.
Woman's Hour looks at the proposed new relationship between parents and schools - and asks will it be too high maintenance?
This was a very interesting debate because it encapsulated all the important perspectives on causality within education and the system of schooling. Almost every possible cognitive model (frame) of education was expressed in one way or another by the callers. It was also very clear that model-switching (cognitive equivalent to code-switching) is very common in normal cognition but extremely difficult when the models/frames are hypostasized into a theory (anywhere on the folk-expert continuum).


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For nearly two years, the Sport respects your rights project network developed capacity amongst young Europeans at grass roots level to reflect, act and protect themselves against sexualised violence and gender harassment through creating peer-to-peer, youth-led campaigns.
During this time, these young people became active agents of social change in their settings and contributed to shaping a protective and participatory sports environment in six countries. Simultaneously, the partnering organisations in the project initiated national multi-disciplinary networks involving diverse and relevant stakeholders from society to build supportive structures for the sporting sector in the future.
The aim of the project network was to develop the European dialogue in regards to the prevention of sexual and gender harassment and abuse in sports and to spread good practice and experiences by empowering multipliers – young sportswomen and -men in the organized sport setting.
Sport respects your rights came to a successful conclusion at the final European conference, taking place on 26th and 27th February 2015 in the official representation of the EU in Vienna, Austria. The event brought together over 120 participants from 16 countries, including members of sport organisations, European policy-makers and stakeholders, as well as national policy makers and scientists.
The Austrian Ministry of Families and Youth took patronage over the event and speakers included participants from the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Council of Europe, international scientists and experts, representatives from national sports bodies and grass root sports organisations.
PDF downloads of the project brochure, poster, and conference programme are available here; PDFs of some of the speakers' presentations are here.
"Like" the dutch facebook pages!
After the UBSC Graz successfully sensitized 20 young workshop participants for a culture of respect and integrity and against sexualised violence in sports at it`s first workshop, the 2nd workshop focused on developing a flyer and video-clip for the youth campaign. By mind-mapping, brainstorming and discussions in small groups and in the plenum, different aims for the youth campaign were identified and three different layouts were discussed. On the second workshop day, ideas were generated for the creation of the video-clip and consensus was found amongst the group about it`s message and storyboard. It was decided to inform the young sportswomen and –men, at the tournament where the youth campaign would be launched, prior to the event itself in order to sensitise and prepare them for the topic. The youth workshops have now been completed and all further steps for the production of the campaign are currently being put in place by the young team and their excellent club project leader, Otto Weiler.


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Analyze at least three health care practices that create conflicts of interest for the stakeholders involved
Health Care Practices
For this assignment, analyze at least three health care practices that create conflicts of interest for the stakeholders involved (e.g., physicians who receive samples from drug representatives). For each practice analyzed, develop and propose one strategy (or strategies) that would eliminate these conflicts. From an ethical standpoint, include your overall recommendations for eliminating conflicts of interests in the three areas that you selected with specific evidence and support from the literature.
Your paper must be five double-spaced pages (excluding title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Utilize a minimum of two to four scholarly sources that were published within the last five years, and cite them in APA format.


To become a member of the Orthodox Church means that one enjoys the same sacraments and way of life that the ancient church established. The process of joining the church varies according to each person's situation and circumstances.
In general, the Orthodox Church does not re-baptize a Christian who has received baptism in a mainline Protestant or the Roman Catholic Church. The criterion is that the Baptism was done in the name of the Trinity along with proof, i.e. a certificate or parental verification. The Orthodox Church does not accept the baptisms of Mormons. An initial consultation is done with the Priest by appointment and then, a method of preparation for the Chrismation is discussed.
There are two books recommended for an overview of the Orthodox Church. Fr. Anthony Coniaris, Introducing the Orthodox Church, and, Bishop Kallistios Ware's, The Orthodox Church. Those from Protestant backgrounds, Fr. Jordan Bajis, Common Ground: An Introduction to Eastern Christianity, and Fr. Peter Gillquist's, Becoming Orthodox.
A person who has never been baptized is received through Baptism, Chrismation and Holy Communion. In order to marry an Orthodox Christian one must be a baptized Christian.
There are no fees associated with joining the Orthodox Church. Once received, each new member enrolls as a Steward of the Church and actively participates in the sacramental life of the Church.
Please contact Fr. George and schedule an appoint to begin the process.